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MARCH 28,  2016

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:05 P.M. ET: 

FBI CRACKS TERRORIST'S PHONE – From Fox:   The U.S. Justice Department announced Monday it has successfully accessed data stored on the iPhone that belonged to the San Bernardino gunman without Apple's help, ending the court case against the tech company.  The surprise development effectively ends a pitched court battle between Apple and the Obama administration.  The government asked a federal judge to vacate a disputed order forcing Apple to help the FBI break into the iPhone, saying it was no longer necessary.  The court filing in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California provided no details about how the FBI did it or who showed it how. Apple did not immediately comment on the development.  I'm glad they got the data.  It's important that we know how terrorists operate.  But there should be some protocols for problems like this, so the government doesn't have to sue a company.

A VERY BIG DEAL – From The Hill  A new report says 147 FBI agents are involved in the investigation surrounding Hillary Clinton.  The Washington Post reports that the large number of agents have been deployed to run down leads in the investigation, citing a lawmaker briefed by FBI Director James Comey.  The Post reported that the FBI has accelerated its investigation as officials want to avoid potentially announcing any action close to the November election.  Comey has signaled that he is personally close to the probe into Clinton's personal email account used during her time as secretary of State that was revealed last year.   The Clinton side is starting to leak all kinds of arguments about this case, the latest being that we shouldn't divert all these resources to investigating Hillary in light of the threat of terrorism.  We are moved to see their sudden interest in national defense.

THE COST OF POLITICAL CORRECTNESS – From London's Mirror:   A German train operator has announced it is introducing women and children-only train carriages amid fears over sex attacks in the country.  The Regiobahn line between Leipzig and Chemnitz will introduce the carriages to increase security for women.  The carriages will be next to the train conductor in a bid to make women feel more safe.  A spokesman for the railway said: “The local proximity to the customer service representative is chosen deliberately.”  Germany is still reeling from a a string of sex attacks in Cologne on New Year's Eve, allegedly carried out by dozens of migrants.  That's what it comes do.  But if someone suggests a change in immigration policy, he's called a racist, an Islamophobe, a hatemonger.  So-called "women's" groups have been generally silent on the rape epidemic, as they follow whatever leftist party line is fashionable.  Women are way down the list of priorities.

March 28, 2016       Permalink

FIDEL LECTURES OBAMA – AT 11:20 A.M. ET:  Fidel Castro – he's the older brother – has now responded to President Obama's visit to Cuba.  He's taken a page from the Iranian playbook, and spoken down to the president, showing how our gestures of friendship are regarded by petty dictators.  From The Politico: 

President Barack Obama did not meet with Fidel Castro during his historic visit to Cuba last week, but apparently that does not mean that Castro did not have any thoughts about el presidente norteamericano in his country.

Castro ripped into the president and his words during the visit in El Granma, the official state newspaper of the Cuban Communist Party, bringing up Obama's relative youth, the failed Bay of Pigs invasion in 1961 and the role of both countries in ending the apartheid in South Africa and elsewhere on the continent in an article titled "El hermano Obama."

"Native populations do not exist at all in the minds of Obama," Castro wrote. "Nor does he say that racial discrimination was swept away by the Revolution; that retirement and salary of all Cubans were enacted by this before Mr. Barack Obama was 10 years old."

Referring to the 1961 failed invasion of the Bay of Pigs, Castro wrote of the U.S.' "mercenary force with cannons and armored infantry, equipped with aircraft ... trained and accompanied by warships and aircraft carriers in the U.S. raiding our country. Nothing can justify this premeditated attack that cost our country hundreds of killed and wounded."

Castro referred also to Obama's invocation of both countries' role in the end of apartheid in South Africa, remarking upon his country's 1975 intervention in Angola backing the leftist People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola against other U.S.-backed revolutionary forces. Ridding apartheid South Africa of nuclear weapons "was not the goal of our solidarity," he wrote, "but [rather] to help the people of Angola, Mozambique, Guinea Bissau and other fascist colonial rule of Portugal."

COMMENT:  It just rambles on and on.  The Castros have been in power in Cuba for more than half a century, with no free elections.  There are no basic human rights.  The economy is a mess, which the Castro brothers conveniently blame on the United States.  The Castros have also given aid and comfort to a variety of leftist dictators around the world.  And they lecture us.

We certainly got a good deal with Cuba, didn't we?

March 28, 2016       Permalink

TRUMP WOBBLY? – AT 10:18 A.M. ET:  We noted last night that Trump and Cruz are close in California.  The question is whether this is a serious national trend.  From Paul Mirengoff at Powerline:

The pattern has been the same throughout this campaign season. After each big primary, I look at the polling for the next major contest — e.g., Florida, South Carolina, or Michigan — and see Donald Trump leading by around 15 points. As the primary approaches, there is talk that the gap might be narrowing, and on election day we hear that the late voters have broken in favor of a non-Trump option. Yet in the end, Trump wins comfortably.

But now, a look at polling for Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, two huge upcoming primaries, suggests that Trump is vulnerable. Moreover, one national poll indicates the same thing.

The next big primary will be in Wisconsin on April 5. A poll by Basewood Research conducted for the Washington Free Beacon shows Ted Cruz in the lead at 36.2 percent, compared to 31.4 for Trump and 20.8 percent for John Kasich. The margin of error is 4.4 percent.

In a head-to-head race between Cruz and Trump, the Texas man leads 47.8 to 36.2. To be sure, Kasich isn’t going to drop out before the Wisconsin race. However, perhaps some of his backers will vote “strategically,” in other words for Cruz — the candidate who can defeat Trump in this particular contest.

Wisconsin is an open primary. Trump has had the edge in such races thanks to his comparatively strong support among Democrats and independents. Republicans made up only 72 percent of the Free Beacon’s sample, yet Cruz still outdistanced Trump.

In another survey of Wisconsin, conducted this week by Emerson, Cruz leads Trump, albeit by only one point. The poll also puts Cruz just one point behind Hillary Clinton in a general election match-up. Trump, by contrast, trails Clinton by 9 points.

COMMENT:  It's those Trump/Clinton matchups that are generating a lot of second thoughts among Republicans.  In virtually every poll, Trump is shown as the weakest Republican candidate against Clinton.   And Trump's antics aren't doing him any good.  His chiding of Heidi Cruz, Ted Cruz's wife, in the last week, will not help him with women, a group with which he trails Clinton badly. 

March 28, 2016       Permalink

NEW DEFENSE WARNING – AT 9:31 A.M. ET:  Obama has gutted our national defense.  It's a hard thing to keep in mind day by day, but the impact has been dramatic.  He just doesn't care.  He really doesn't.

And I'm sorry to say that there are too many Republicans who seem not to care as well.  The zealous pursuit of a strong national defense, which marks the Reagan Republicans, has faded somewhat.  John McCain, though, is issuing another warning.  From Rowan Scarborough at the Washington Times:

Some lawmakers are warning that budget cuts, a troop drawdown and a decade and a half of wars have created spotty combat readiness, overburdened forces, more fatal accidents and beat-up weapons.

Weeks of congressional testimony from the top brass on next year’s $524 billion defense budget shows that many Army brigades and Air Force squadrons are less ready. The Marine Corps lacks sufficient aircraft to fully train pilots. The Army and Marine Corps can wage small wars but doubt they can meet the demands of a major conflict against, say, China or Russia, in a time frame called for in official military strategy.

After this sober news, the House Armed Services Committee sounded the alarm: “Concerns are growing louder and more frequent about the real-life consequences of cuts to personnel, training, equipment and other military resources as the security situation around the world becomes more precarious by the day.”

Rep. Mac Thornberry, Texas Republican and committee chairman, issued scary statistics. The Marine Corps’ major, or “Class A,” accident rate has shot up from an average of 2.15 per 100,000 flying hours to 3.96.

“We track this very closely, and the simple fact is that we don’t have enough airplanes to meet the training requirements for the entire force,” said Gen. Robert Neller, Marine commandant. “The force that’s deployed is trained and ready.”

COMMENT:  Ashton Carter, Obama's fourth secretary of defense, is a good man, but national defense is not a priority for his bosses in the White House.  They believe in "smart" power, which means applying their graduate-school degrees to combat conditions.  Not a good idea.

We hope the next president will take this more seriously.

March 28,  2016     Permalink

MARCH 27,  2016

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:53 P.M. ET: 

CLOSING IN – From the L.A. Times:   Federal prosecutors investigating the possible mishandling of classified materials on Hillary Clinton’s private email server have begun the process of setting up formal interviews with some of her longtime and closest aides, according to two people familiar with the probe, an indication that the inquiry is moving into its final phases.  Those interviews and the final review of the case, however, could still take many weeks, all but guaranteeing that the investigation will continue to dog Clinton’s presidential campaign through most, if not all, of the remaining presidential primaries.  No dates have been set for questioning the advisors, but a federal prosecutor in recent weeks has called their lawyers to alert them that he would soon be doing so, the sources said. Prosecutors also are expected to seek an interview with Clinton herself, though the timing remains unclear.  I'd love to see Hillary walking out to accept the Democratic nomination when she's interrupted by a guy saying, "Secretary Clinton, I'm Special Agent Desmond.  Can we talk?"

TRUMP MAY LEAD BY ONLY ONE POINT IN CALIFORNIA – According to a new USC poll.  From The Hill:   Among likely June primary voters, Trump leads Cruz by just 1 point, 36 to 35 percent. John Kasich falls far behind at 14 percent.   Trump, however, got 30 percent support among registered Republicans surveyed in California, according to the poll. Cruz got 30 percent and Kasich received just 12 percent support.  Low turnout could hurt Trump and help Cruz, the Times reported.  According to the poll, about 25 percent of California Republican voters said they would refuse to vote for Trump if he is the Republican Party's nominee.  There have been signs around the country that the race is tightening.  We'll get an indication April 5th, when Wisconsin votes. 

HOW THRILLING – From MSN:   WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama is offering his prayers for the families of the two Americans killed in the bombings in Brussels and telling Belgians that "America has their back" in the fight against terrorism.  In his weekly radio and Internet address, Obama is renewing his vow to continue the campaign against the Islamic State, which took credit for the attacks. He says U.S. officials are working with allies to root out the group's operations in Europe.  It must be wonderful for Barack Obama to have your back.  Just the feeling of confidence, the remembrance of the firm stands he has taken against, say, Iran, or the Cuban regime.  If Obama said he had my back, I'd be on the phone in ten seconds with a life-insurance agent. 

March 27, 2016       Permalink

JUST IN, ON THIS EASTER SUNDAY – AT 1:08 P.M. ET:  From Reuters: 

LAHORE/ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, March 27 (Reuters) - A suicide bomber killed at least 65 people and injured more than 280 others, mostly women and children, at a public park in the Pakistani city of Lahore on Sunday, striking at the heart of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's political base of Punjab.

The blast occurred in the parking area of Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park, a few feet (metres) away from children's swings.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the blast, which occurred in a busy residential area during the Easter holiday weekend. Police said it was not clear whether the attack had deliberately targeted mainly Muslim Pakistan's small Christian minority.

Pakistan, a nuclear-armed nation of 190 million people, is plagued by a Taliban insurgency, criminal gangs and sectarian violence. Punjab is its biggest and wealthiest province.

Eyewitnesses said they saw body parts strewn across the parking lot once the dust had settled after the blast.

"When the blast occurred, the flames were so high they reached above the trees and I saw bodies flying in the air," said Hasan Imran, 30, a resident who had come to Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park for a walk.

Salman Rafique, a health adviser for the Punjab provincial government, put the death toll at at least 60 people.

COMMENT:  Obviously, a major, and awful, terrorist attack.  We'll follow the story.  If it's a specific attack on the Christian community, on Easter Sunday, that meaning will not be lost.  Let's see if our White House shows much interest.

March 27, 2016       Permalink

NUCLEAR FEAR IN BELGIUM – AT 12:18 P.M. ET:  Whenever there's a terrorist attack, the presumed experts begin to project ahead.  What if the terrorists had nuclear materials?  Or chemical gases?  Or biological weapons?  There is real fear in Belgium that ISIS is targeting nuclear facilities.  From London's Daily Mail: 

Belgian security services are fearful that ISIS operatives may have been looking to target a nuclear plant as it emerged two workers from a plant in Doel fled to Syria to join ISIS.

One of the men, reportedly known as Ilyass Boughalab, is believed to have been killed in Syria, while the second served a short prison sentence in Belgium for terror-related offences in 2014.

With an extensive understanding of nuclear facilities, the convict's short jail sentence has raised further questioned of the Belgian security services as well as fears he may have passed on important knowledge about the sites to the terrorist group.

And...

Sebastien Berg, spokesman for the federal agency responsible for Belgium's nuclear industry said they were fearful of a bomb exploding inside a plant or terrorists conducting a 9/11-style attack using a hijacked aircraft.

Nuclear power plants are known to be targets for the terror network behind the Brussels bombings and the Paris attacks in November.

According to the New York Times, several employees working in the Belgian nuclear industry have had their security clearances revoked over potential ISIS plots.

Following last November's terror attack in Paris, Belgian police recovered surveillance footage of a senior nuclear official in the home of ISIS ringleader Mohamed Bakkali, who was arrested and is currently facing terrorism charges.

COMMENT:  Talk about scary.  Field Marshal Obama assures us that we're safe, that more people are killed by ping pong balls or chocolate-chip cookies, or something like that, than by terror.

But if a nuclear plant is successfully attacked, and radiation spews over a city, even Obama might have to revise his remarks, or shorten his tango.

March 27, 2016       Permalink

FANTASYLAND, OR REALITY? – AT 11:46 A.M. ET:  Bernie Sanders swept three caucus states last night – Washington, Alaska, and Hawaii.  Now he's talking tough.  Maybe Hillary's superdelegates, the party regulars appointed to a convention to prevent the children from taking control, will switch.  From The Hill:

After three big wins out west, Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders said he thinks many of the party's superdelegates who have pledged to rival Hillary Clinton will switch to his side.

"I think the momentum is with us," Sanders said on CNN's "State of the Union" with Jake Tapper on Sunday. "A lot of these superdelegates may rethink their positions with Secretary Clinton."
The Vermont senator swept Saturday's Democratic contests in Washington, Alaska and Hawaii, easily winning the majority of the 142 pledged delegates in those states. The biggest prize of the day was in Washington, which offered 101 delegates to be split up on a proportional basis.

The latest delegate counts still put Sanders behind Clinton, however, with 1,004 pledged delegates to her 1,712.

Of those, 469 are superdelegates who have pledged to Clinton and only 29 have pledged to Sanders.

Sanders on Sunday said those superdelegates may begin to see the "reality" that he's the best candidate to beat GOP front runner Donald Trump.

COMMENT:  I really can't see superdelegates abandoning Hillary, but I could be wrong.  These are pros, and they know just what the GOP will do to Sanders if he's nominated.  He honeymooned in the Soviet Union, for goodness sake.  Can you see that hammer and sickle on the screen?  And they'd leak comments by corporate executives, threatening to take their companies to other countries if Sanders is elected.

Sanders polls well now because he comes off as your friendly uncle.  He won't look so friendly when the Republicans pull out the "D" word – for economic depression, and predict it if Bernie is elected.

I think only the FBI probe can stop Hillary, and the alternative might well be Biden.  But it's a very strange year, and we're not much on predictions here.

March 27,  2016     Permalink