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 NOVEMBER 16,  2016

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:52 P.M. ET:

ALMOST FORGOTTEN – FROM CNS:   (CNSNews.com) – Republicans added to their historic 2014 gains in the nation’s state legislatures with the addition of five state House chambers and two state Senate chambers in last week’s election, while Democratic control was reduced to levels not seen since the Civil War.  Republicans are now in control of a record 67 (68 percent) of the 98 partisan state legislative chambers in the nation, more than twice the number (31) in which Democrats have a majority, according to the bipartisan National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL).  “That’s more than at any other time in the history of the Republican Party,” according to NCSL. “They also hold more total seats, well over 4,100 of the 7,383, than they have since 1920.”  That gives the GOP great redistricting power, as well as solid state organizations.  The Democratic Party is in terrible shape.  I guess Obama won't list that as part of his legacy.

TRUMP RATINGS RISE – FROM GALLUP:  WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Fifty-one percent of U.S. adults say they are "more confident" in President-elect Donald Trump's ability to serve as president based on his statements and actions over the past few days. The percentage "more confident" in Trump a few days after his election is similar to ratings when Bill Clinton and George W. Bush won their respective elections in 1992 and 2000.  The fact that similar percentages of Americans say they have more confidence in Trump in the days after his election as did so for Bush and Clinton is notable, given that Trump is much less popular as president-elect than they were. Trump's favorable rating measured 42% in the Nov. 9-13 survey, compared with Bush's 59% and Clinton's 58% after they were elected.  Trump is rising, but knows he must still prove himself, a difficult task given the unrelenting press hostility that he faces. 

THE HOUSE VOTES ON IRAN – FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER:   The House voted overwhelmingly on Tuesday to extend an Iran sanctions law for another 10 years, amid growing worries that the U.S. needs to keep some leverage over Iran as it pushes for that country to implement the nuclear agreement.  Lawmakers voted 419-1 in favor of extending the Iran Sanctions Act, the foundation of a range of U.S. sanctions against Iran.  The only vote against the bill came from Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky.  The vote is a sign the bill should easily pass the Senate. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., said passage shows that Congress is ready to take a tougher stance on Iran than that of President Obama. While Obama has moved to ease sanctions against Iran, Republicans and even some Democrats say the U.S. needs to impose tougher measures to ensure Iran's compliance.  Obama might veto this measure, but Trump certainly won't.

November 16, 2016       Permalink

WELL, WHADDAYA KNOW? – AT 9:58 A.M. ET:  Despite the best efforts of some news outlets to paint the incoming administration as racist, many African-Americans are apparently willing to give Trump a chance, which is the constructive attitude.  It will drive their leaders crazy.  From The Wall Street Journal: 

This may come as a shock to the political left, but not everyone who opposed Donald Trump is as angry or despondent as the demonstrators who grabbed headlines nationwide over the past week or the pundits who intellectualized the Democratic hissy fit.

On Monday I took a stroll around New York City’s Harlem neighborhood and asked a couple of dozen black residents to respond to the election and subsequent protests. I didn’t come across any Trump voters—or at least any who admitted it—but many told me they had expected Hillary Clinton’s defeat. No one thought it was the end of the world.

“Hillary wasn’t strong enough. She didn’t fight enough,” said a gentleman leaving a drugstore, who introduced himself as Pace. “People saw her as weak and thought she’d be weak in the White House.” He also faulted Mrs. Clinton’s message. “She was talking about what she did in other countries as secretary of state. I can understand the situation around the world, but we live here.” Mr. Trump, in contrast, “was talking about the people who live here—the poor, the veterans.”

When I asked Pace, who retired from a job in dress manufacturing several years ago, if he thought Mr. Trump would ever win him over, he responded: “He said he’d protect Medicare. I can go along with that. He said he’d get rid of the Bloods and the Crips and the gangs—get them out of here. I like that. If he does those two things, he’s my man.”

At a nearby hair salon, the proprietor, a 30-something West African woman who asked me not to use her name, said Mrs. Clinton lost because the country “didn’t want a female president, wasn’t ready for it.” Still, she’s optimistic about a Trump administration. “I think things will be different in a good way. He might surprise us. I don’t think he’s a bad person. It’s just the way he talks. He was real and people like that. I don’t think he’ll do the really crazy things like deporting everybody.”

Derrick, an off-duty police officer, told me that he considers Mr. Trump a con artist who tricked people into voting for him and won’t come through, especially on his promise to bring back manufacturing jobs. “But I’ll give him this,” he said. “She was not talking about securing this country, and that’s what he was talking about. People are watching people get blown up by these terrorists, and they’re scared, and she was talking about an open border. She didn’t emphasize scrutinizing the people who are coming in, and he did.”

COMMENT:  Wouldn't it be incredible if Trump did come through and broke the stranglehold the left has on minorities?  I'd love to see it.  It could transform America in ways that Obama could never understand.

November 16, 2016       Permalink

IS THIS SERIOUS? – AT 9:40 A.M. ET:  The Obama administration isn't done, and it is being pressured to take drastic action in its last days.  From the Washington Times:   

Illegal immigrants are preparing to ask President Obama to pardon some 750,000 Dreamers, saying such a move is their last, best hope to stave off what they fear will be a wave of deportations once Donald Trump takes the Oval Office.

Community leaders have planned a rally in New York on Wednesday to make the request.

“Millions of law abiding undocumented immigrants are fearful of what will happen when the new Administration takes control in January,” the group of New York state lawmakers and immigration advocates said in a statement announcing the rally. “However, President Obama has the power of pardons that he can use to protect all DACA enrollees.”

As of September, more than 740,000 illegal immigrants had been approved for Mr. Obama’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, a minor amnesty that grants young adult illegal immigrants a two-year stay of deportation and issues them work permits, entitling them to driver’s licenses and some taxpayer benefits.

Mr. Trump has signaled that he would cancel that order, leaving Dreamers out of status when their work permits expire. That puts Mr. Obama in a bind because he has expressed an interest in helping illegal immigrants but also has acknowledged limits on power.

COMMENT:  Look, we need a new immigration policy, and it must be one of President Trump's first priorities.  Tension over the issue is very high, with demagogues floating in and out, and appearing on every side.

This issue will test President-elect Trump's negotiating skills.  Let's see if he's as good as he claims.

November 16, 2016        Permalink

AT LEAST IT'S A START – AT 9:21 A.M. ET:   Some journalists are starting to realize the extent of their disconnect from the American people.  From lifezette: 

Just how surprised was the media when Republican Donald Trump won the White House?

They were so surprised that they soon realized they did not know anyone who voted for him.

Republicans are as new to Florida newspapers as the wild python population in the Everglades.
In Palm Beach County, Florida — where Donald Trump actually lives part-time — the Palm Beach Post has put out a call for the Trump voters of South Florida to come educate them.

The Post put out the request out on its Facebook page on Tuesday: “Did you vote for Donald J. Trump to become President of the United States? Are you willing to sit down with the The Palm Beach Post Editorial Board and tell us why? Please, email Editorial Page Editor Rick Christie at rchristie@pbpost.com.”

Florida is probably the most Republican state with such a liberal newspaper sector: the Miami Herald, the Tampa Bay Times, the Orlando Sentinel. There are a few conservative editorial boards, but generally the newspapers have not kept pace with the growing Republican segment of the Sunshine State population. Republicans are as new to them as the wild python population in the Everglades.

COMMENT:  Excellent idea, although it's hard to know if the editors would actually make any changes in their approach to the news.  The New York Times did a bit of a mea culpa last week, but the paper's antagonism to Trump, on its news pages, continues.

November 16,  2016     Permalink

NOVEMBER 15,  2016

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:52 P.M. ET:

HOW PRECIOUS – FROM AP:  NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump’s name is being stripped off three luxury apartment buildings after hundreds of tenants signed a petition saying they were embarrassed to live in a place associated with the Republican president-elect.  In all, about 600 residents of the three rental towers in Trump Place signed the online petition, which began circulating weeks ago after the public release of a decade-old recording of Trump boasting about groping women and kissing them without their consent. Tenants learned on Tuesday from the company that owns and manages the New York skyscrapers, which hold 1,325 rental apartments, that the huge gold letters spelling out “Trump Place” would be removed from the sides of the buildings within days.  "We’re all very excited and thrilled, and it’s about time,” said Marjorie Jacobs, who has lived in one of the buildings for five years. “We’re disgusted with the results of the presidency.”  Typical rich, liberal New Yorkers.  Putting on a show for their Ivy League alumni associations.  Never invite them to a party.  Boring.

NOW WE KNOW THE CAUSE – FROM AMERICAN MIRROR:    Move over James Comey.  Hillary Clinton’s campaign has a new culprit for its loss to Donald Trump: Self-loathing, sexist women.  During an appearance on MSNBC on Monday, former Clinton campaign communications director Jess McIntosh claimed it was women with “internalized misogyny” who couldn’t bring themselves to vote to elect the first woman president.  When she was asked by Chris Hayes why Hillary didn’t do better with white women than Barack Obama did in 2012, McIntosh responded, “Internalized misogyny is a real thing and this is a thing we have to be talking about as we go through and see.”  Well, I'm glad that's settled.  Another excuse will be announced Friday morning.

BOOK YOUR ROOM NOW – FROM LONDON'S TELEGRAPH:    Guests unwinding in the gilded splendour of the Corinthia Hotel in London would not generally expect to be asked if they wanted to have their heads examined.  Another glass of champagne, perhaps; an appointment in the Daniel Galvin hair salon, maybe; dinner in the deliciously opulent Massimo restaurant, absolutely.  But to these options, as of today, has been added a range of offerings designed specifically to enhance the workings of the brain. These include black-out blinds and sleep-inducing lavender sprays in the bedroom, mindfulness massages in the award-winning spa and a ‘Brain Power Menu’ featuring a range of dishes that in addition to being healthy – think raw kale salad with beetroot, green tea veal paillard with spinach and cognition-boosting coconut oil – actually get the mind moving more effectively.  The new offerings come courtesy of Dr Tara Swart, a trained doctor, psychiatrist, leadership coach and author who has this week taken up a year-long post at the Corinthia as 'neuroscientist in residence' – a global first in the hotel industry.  I wonder if it's covered by Obamacare.

November 15,  2016     Permalink

THE FUTURE OF MULTICULTURALISM – AT 10:29 A.M. ET:   As the Democratic Party assesses its future, the Federalist runs a piece of advice for the left:  get rid of multiculturalism.  It's good advice, but probably won't be followed:   

It looks like the Left that will have a big, dragged-out fight over what exactly constitutes their philosophy and agenda. I am a conservative, but if I can offer my liberal friends advice, it is this: drop your misguided pursuit of a multicultural society. It will continue to get you nothing but heartache.

Let me hasten to add that I don’t mean a multiethnic society, obviously. That exists, and in fact it has always existed in America. Only cranks would decry it.

No, I mean multiculturalism, the idea that several cultures and national identities should co-exist under one American roof and even be cultivated by our government and institutions. The bureaucracy creates multiple cultural groups out of thin air (Hispanics, Asians, soon to come: Middle-East and North-African Americans), and before you know it they acquire ascribed statuses and group rights, and even their own congressional districts.

America meanwhile drifts further in an ethnic proportional system akin to Lebanon’s. We have certainly had our problems recently, but this is not the model we want to follow.

The people promoting this view are blowing through the historical compromise that allowed America to remain united and have a strong national identity even as it took in immigrants. That was called assimilation.

And...

Clinton and the Democrats’ inability to speak to millions of working-class white Americans is one consequence of the diversity mess they have created. If only they had read some of their own, they would have gotten the message. Thomas Edsall at The New York Times and former senator Jim Webb have been sounding the alarm for years on how the Democratic Party dropped blue-collar whites.

Clinton didn’t even get the “minority” groups on which the whole “majority-minority” architecture relies. African-American voters didn’t show up in high numbers, and 8 percent voted for Trump. When you live by the sword, you die by it. Cuban-Americans helped deliver Florida to Trump...

COMMENT:  Read the whole thing.  A very good argument on behalf of scrapping the whole multiculturalism racket, with great benefits for the party that gets there first.

November 15, 2016       Permalink

FEEL THEIR PAIN, PLEASE – AT 9:33 A.M. ET:  The in-group in Obama's Washington fears being the out-group.  Here are people who really don't get what happened a week ago today.  I'm not so sure the reporter does either.  Inside the Washington bubble, from The New York Times:   

WASHINGTON — Michelle Obama has burned off her date-night meals at Washington’s new generation of acclaimed restaurants by pedaling at SoulCycle. President Obama has shopped for Jonathan Franzen novels with his daughters at local independent bookstores. Obama administration staff members, their barhopping chronicled in the gossip pages, have hit the 14th Street hot spots hard.

Decades ago, Washington was broke and run by a mayor best known for smoking crack with a prostitute on a surveillance tape. Neighborhoods had not fully recovered from the 1968 riots, and an aging Georgetown elite still set the tone. The administrations of two Bushes and a Clinton in between hardly had an effect on the city.

But Mr. Obama’s arrival in 2009 coincided with an urban renaissance. Economic development, federal and private investment, and an influx of highly educated young, gay and diverse professionals gentrified neighborhoods, leading to an explosion in restaurants, bars and cafes. And the Obama family — African-American, youthful, attractive and urbane — were archetypes of a modern city on the upswing.

What the effect on Washington will be when Donald J. Trump moves into the White House is hard to predict. But many Washingtonians fear the worst. Among them is Vincent Gray, the city’s mayor during much of the Obama administration.

“I’m worried about people not wanting to come here because of the image they have of the Trump administration,” Mr. Gray said.

Now a member of the City Council, Mr. Gray said the engagement of Mr. Obama and his family with the city has been “tremendously uplifting.”

“Their presence in the city brought a level of dynamism that just wasn’t there before,” he said.

COMMENT:  The snottiness is unbelievable.  No matter what you might think of Trump, he's a very knowledgeable urban man.  He just completed one of Washington's finest hotels. 

There are reasons why the Democrats lost the election, and that arrogance is one of them. 

November 15, 2016       Permalink

GREAT MOMENT IN EDUCATION – AT 9:12 A.M. ET:  A major breakthrough in intellectual development has occurred.  From Fox: 

The University of Michigan’s law school has cancelled a planned “self-care” event, designed to help students cope with Donald Trump’s election, following a wave of Internet ridicule.

The event, called “Post-Election Self-Care With Food and Play” appeared Friday on the school’s website, entreating students to work out their Trump-driven anxiety with “stress-busting self-care activities” including coloring, blowing bubbles, sculpting with Play-Doh and “positive card making.”

The event has now been removed from UMich’s website, though a version still lives on Google cache.

The event, hosted by the school’s “embedded psychologist” Reena Sheth, drew swift and acerbic criticism from people on social media, who found it risible that adult graduate students, studying to enter a difficult and often stressful profession, would require crayons and comfort food to cope with a function of American democracy.

UMich law school, apparently, responded by removing the event from its website. Instead, it appears, the law school will host a more traditional, professional event on Friday, featuring a panel of three of the school’s law professors, discussing the “limitations of executive power."

COMMENT:  I love the title "embedded psychologist."  What precisely does that mean?  As far as the "self-care" event is concerned, I expect that the people who designed it will soon become major players in the Democratic Party. 

I wonder what military veterans think of this.

November 15,  2016     Permalink