July 15-16, 2019
Jul 15 00:50 Democrats' food fight erupts Jul 15 07:31 Nancy Pelosi, theologian? Jul 15 10:40 Steyer's impossible mission Jul 15 14:15 Tony Lourey's resignation Jul 15 16:25 Sen. Benson's statement on Tony Lourey's resignation Jul 16 02:48 The origins of a scandal Jul 16 08:19 The Squad's historic press conference
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Democrats' food fight erupts
Yesterday, it was pretty much 'Open Warfare Day' within the Democratic Party. It turns out that Justice Democrats are interested in handing the House majority to Republicans on a silver platter . During the open warfare on Twitter, shots were fired in both directions pretty much all day long.
Later in the day, things started getting nasty. AOC's chief of staff, Saikat Chakrabarti, fired a shot, saying "I think the point still stands. I don't think that people have to be personally racist to enable a racist system." That tweet opened the floodgates. Shortly thereafter, someone with personal access to the official House Democrat Twitter account tweeted "Who is this guy and why is he explicitly singling out a Native American woman of color? Her name is Congresswoman Davids, not Sharice. She is a phenomenal new member who flipped a red seat blue." Later in the day, the gloves came off, with Chakrabarti tweeting this:
Pelosi claims we can't focus on impeachment because it's a distraction from kitchen table issues. But I'd challenge you to find voters that can name a single thing House Democrats have done for their kitchen table this year. What is this legislative mastermind doing?
- Saikat Chakrabarti (@saikatc) July 7, 2019
Ouch. "I'd challenge you to find voters that can name a single thing House Democrats have done for their kitchen table this year." Chakrabarti just handed the NRCC an industrial-strength jackhammer to beat Democrats over the head with from now through Election Day, 2020. When Democrats admit that Democrats haven't done anything to help voters with kitchen-table issues, that isn't the way to preserve the Democrats' majority. That's a lesson on how to give Republicans their majority back on a silver platter.
If Democrats insist on fighting amongst themselves, Republicans should shut up and get out of the way. The first rule of your opponent demolishing themselves is to step out of the way and let them.
The serious point in all this that isn't getting much attention is this: Democrats really haven't gotten anything done since regaining the House majority. They've passed legislation but that legislation doesn't fix any problems. It's mostly been highly ideological stuff that doesn't have a chance of getting a hearing in the Senate. House Democrats will complain about this during the campaign but I don't see that having much of an impact.
Democrats have been badly wrong on 3 major immigration-related issues. Democrats are wrong about decriminalizing illegal border crossings. Democrats are certainly wrong with giving free health care to illegal aliens. Finally, Democrats are wrong in vilifying border patrol agents as the heartless people that AOC has characterized them as.
Sunday night on The Next Revolution, host Steve Hilton focused virtually the entire show on immigration-related issues:
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It isn't hyperbole to say that this was a spirited debate for virtually the entire hour. Rep. Harley Rouda, (D-Calif.), got asked some rather pointed questions about immigration. At one point, a questioned noted that Rep. Rouda mentioned some legislation from 2013. The questioner asked him if he thought that the bill would be a good bill. Rouda said it would be. The questioner then immediately asked him if he'd talk to Speaker Pelosi to get the bill a hearing.
Rouda dodged, saying that he's just one vote so he couldn't get the bill passed by himself. With all due respect, that isn't what the questioner asked. The questioner asked if he'd introduce the bill for consideration. It's my contention that Rouda knows that the fight between Pelosi and AOC is just window-dressing. Democrats know that the Resist Movement controls the Democrats' agenda in the House.
These things will get exposed during the campaign. That's when ths food fight will intensify.
Posted Monday, July 15, 2019 12:50 AM
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Nancy Pelosi, theologian?
Democrats have insisted that Nancy Pelosi is a great politician, something that I've often disagreed with. Now that her congressional career is winding to a halt, Speaker Pelosi appears to want to become a biblical theologian . In reality, she's just another Democrat politician that won't hesitate to use the Bible for political gain. Frankly, that practice is disgusting to real Christians.
According to the article, Pelosi tweeted "It should be a sign to us that today's Catholic Gospel reading is the Good Samaritan, where Jesus teaches us to love our neighbors as ourselves and treat them with mercy. Trump's ICE raids today tear families apart -the opposite of mercy." While there's no doubt that Jesus is a loving God, it's apparent that holiness is important to the Lord, too. According to the search I did through BibleGateway.com , the word holy is used almost 600 times (576 times, to be precise) in the Bible.
I'd love hearing Pelosi explain how protecting criminal aliens is an act of holiness. Ms. Pelosi, do you really think that it's holy to protect violent criminals from law enforcement? I'm betting that God doesn't think that's an act of holiness. I also searched the word justice. According to the same search engine, justice is used almost 200 times. One of those times, the word justice is used in the 'Hebrew Hymnal', aka the Book of Psalms, where it says "For the Lord loves justice , And does not forsake His saints; They are preserved forever, But the descendants of the wicked shall be cut off."
I'd prefer that Ms. Pelosi stick to being a politician rather than thinking of herself as a qualified theologian. It's more than a little galling to hear Ms. Pelosi talking about morality when she's the one who hasn't lifted a finger legislatively to stop sex trafficking and the meth and opioid epidemics. I'm tired of Democrats like Pelosi cherry-pick their way through God's Word, emphasizing God's love but utterly ignoring other Godly traits like justice and loving order over chaos. The Democrats' selective theology is a bit frustrating.
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Posted Monday, July 15, 2019 7:31 AM
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Steyer's impossible mission
David Avella, one of the most astute political observers out there, made some shocking statements in this article . According to Avella, Steyer's entry likely ends Joe Biden's chances of winning the nomination. Steyer has promised to spend $100,000,000 of his own money on the race.
That won't get him closer to winning the nomination. It just means that he'll be one of the loudest complainers on stage and campaign trail. I'm betting that he'll be Nancy Pelosi's worst nightmare. While she's insisting that impeachment is foolish politically, Steyer insists that it's the only moral choice for anti-American progressives. How that fight will end is anyone's guess. Let me modify that last statement. The winner will be President Trump.
This infighting won't stop anytime soon. This isn't just about dumping Trump. Already, these carnivores are starting to devour themselves:
The progressive-socialist party has absorbed what is left of the old Democratic Party. Its iconoclasts are not satisfied with erasing the images or commemorations of old white public enemies of the past - Father Serra, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson - but have quite logically turned their identity politics venom on all old white people of the present, including some of their own left-wing brethren.
At first, the progressive Old Guard in Congress, like good Girondists, found the revolutionary carnivores useful in reducing the ranks of the Trumpians, the Tea Party, Reagan Democrats, old Perot voters, and the white working class to the inanimate status of 'deplorables,' 'irredeemables,' 'clingers,' and 'dregs - and with them, the bigoted, racist, sexist, nativist, classist, homophobic, and xenophobic Republican Party. Certainly, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), and a few geriatric sympathizers, such as Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), enjoyed the progressive feasting on the Ancien Regime - especially the unity offered by shared hatred of the obviously soon to be impeached, deposed, exiled and discredited Donald J. Trump.
This story most likely is about who gets eaten last. If anyone thinks that AOC and Ilhan Omar will be satisfied with taking down old farts like Joe Biden and Nancy Pelosi, I'd offer members of the CBC as proof that the Justice Democrats have a lengthy target list .
The bloodbath has started. What stops it is anyone's guess. What's most likely to happen is to have Steyer's ego trigger a definitive Trump victory in 2020. Steyer isn't a serious presidential candidate. He's a serious fundraiser but he isn't a serious policymaker. Possibly the best description of him is that he's a wealthy back-bench bomb-thrower. BTW, he's got tons of liabilities:
Steyer's notoriety comes from donating the billions he has made investing in fossil fuels, private prisons and subprime lending companies into progressive activism for impeaching President Trump and reckless environmental policies.
The minute he steps onto the stage is the minute he becomes a pinata for self-righteous lefties like Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren and Kamala Harris. He's a hardline lefty environmentalist who made his money investing in fossil fuels and as a subprime lender. What Democrat (other than Hillary) will put up with that? Can anyone picture AOC giving him a pass? At minimum, Jonathan Karl didn't give him a pass in this interview:
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I'm being charitable when I say that Steyer's argument is ridiculous. Don't bet that Nancy Pelosi won't convince the moderators to attack Steyer, with the argument being that she needs impeachment off the table to maintain the Democrat House majority.
Posted Monday, July 15, 2019 10:40 AM
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Tony Lourey's resignation
The Lourey family name has certainly hit tough times in Minnesota recently. First, Sen. Lourey resigned his Senate seat to become the commissioner of the Department of Human Services. Next, his son lost a special election for the seat that's been in the Lourey family literally for decades. Today is another hit against the Lourey family legacy.
Today, Commissioner Lourey resigned from that position thanks to Commissioner Lourey's corruption and/or incompetence. State Sen. Jim Abeler, (R-Anoka), rightfully criticized the Department , saying "This is now an agency in crisis. And the confidence of the million people who need the services from DHS : (is) at risk."
Apparently, that's just the tip of a nasty iceberg. The Pioneer Press article mentions that "deputy commissioners Chuck Johnson and Claire Wilson" resigned last week without saying why they were resigning. That's without factoring this in:
This past week has seen criticism of the DHS by Inspector General Carolyn Ham, who was placed on paid leave in March so a complaint could be investigated against her, shortly after a report critical of the DHS' handling of child care fraud was released.
The top 3 people at DHS have left in the last 3 business days. The DHS Inspector General hasn't looked into the child care fraud scandal that was reported months ago. That still isn't the entire turmoil within DHS. Check this out:
And another DHS official was ousted last month. Dr. Jeff Schiff, the longtime medical director of Minnesota's Medicaid program, said his elimination was sudden and done without clear explanation.
These resignations and terminations make the Trump administration look downright placid. I'm still waiting for Gov. Walz's statement to see what he's got to say about this crisis. Thus far, his explanation has been virtually nonexistent :
9:46 a.m.
Gov. Tim Walz's Human Services commissioner has resigned just six months after being appointed. The governor's office announced Tony Lourey's resignation on Monday without explanation. He leaves just days after two deputy commissioners announced their departures - also without explanation.
How many of these resignations are related to the child care fraud investigation scandal? Did Lourey's deputy commissioners resign out of frustration with Lourey's mishandling of that fraud investigation? Gov. Walz is a politician, not an executive. It's still anybody's guess as to how he'll handle this first crisis.
Posted Monday, July 15, 2019 4:52 PM
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Sen. Benson's statement on Tony Lourey's resignation
Anyone that thinks this Lourey resignation isn't a big story is kidding themselves. This afternoon, Sen. Michelle Benson issued this statement regarding Commissioner Lourey's resignation:
I want to thank Commissioner Lourey for his service to the state of Minnesota. Going forward, reform must be the top priority at DHS. Their technology is failing and costing too much. Their programs are filled with fraud and wasting taxpayers' dollars. The new commissioner should examine DHS from the bottom up and prove they can meet basic benchmarks in their budget, program integrity, and technology.
This is further proof of what Republicans have been saying since the Walz administration began promoting ONECare, his massive public healthcare program - DHS is simply not able to take on a project of that scope and size .
It would be my recommendation that any future DHS commissioner focus on reform and accountability rather than new programs if they expect confirmation from the Senate. That's exactly the right prescription for what's ailing MN DHS. I'd also say that the Department is in turmoil but that's too obvious. A 10-year-old could see that. Kurt Daudt issued this statement this morning:
The abrupt, unexplained departures of the top three officials at DHS in the past week is deeply troubling, and indicative of turmoil at our largest state agency. Minnesotans deserve answers and transparency from Governor Walz about what's going on.
Lourey's resignation is the latest in a major exodus of top leaders at the agency. Last week, Deputy Commissioners Chuck Johnson and Claire Wilson resigned unexpectedly without explanation from DHS. A former DHS Director, whose position was unexpectedly eliminated after 13 years in June, called for an investigation by the Walz administration citing "systemic issues with the leadership culture of the agency.'"
In the same statement, Daudt announced that "Senate Deputy Majority Leader Michelle Benson, who also serves as Chair of the Senate HHS Finance and Policy Committee, and Rep. Mary Franson, R-Alexandria" would join him for "a noon press conference to discuss the latest developments at DHS."
Rep. Franson is the leading authority in the House on child care issues. That leads me to think that this shake-up at Human Services is, at minimum, partially caused by the child care fraud investigation. Frankly, it sounds like Human Services is putting the fun out of dysfunctional. Starting with MNsure, then proceeding to the child care fraud investigation to the OneCare initiative, it's difficult to point to a recent success story at the Department.
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Saying that Daudt, Benson and Franson were upset is understatement. To say that they criticized Gov. Walz over these multiple scandals is understatement, too. The harshest criticism early in the press availability came from Kurt Daudt when he said that if Gov. Walz kept ignoring the problem, he'd own the problem. That's exactly right.
Frankly, this isn't how a major state agency should be run. The Human Services budget comprises approximately 40% of the state budget. If money is flying out the door as a result of fraud and the people running the department aren't paying attention to what's happening, then that's a monstrous problem. It's one thing if there's fraud in one of the minor departments. It's another when it's a major part of the budget. That can't happen.
Sen. Benson highlighted the fact that she chief-authored a bill that would've made the Inspector General's Office a separate office. Republicans passed it in the Senate. According to Sen. Benson, the House DFL refused to move on it last session because the DFL is beholden to the public employees union that staff Human Services.
It's also worth noting that the press covering the press availability tried their best to suggest that this wasn't really a scandal, that it might just be 3 separate resignations that have nothing to do with the culture at Human Services. Frankly, it was pathetic watching them try to cover for the DFL.
Posted Monday, July 15, 2019 4:51 PM
Comment 1 by Rex Newman at 15-Jul-19 09:33 PM
Am I wrong to think this is really Mark Dayton's legacy? Yes, Walz was too busy being Super-Legislator to mind the Administrative store but he now has no higher priority than to fix DHS. Tony Lourey wanted the job, could have been our DHS hero, only to resign en masse. Why? Perhaps he knew he wouldn't be able to clean the stables with a micro-managing, bare-knuckle politician, Governor Walz, hovering over him.
Response 1.1 by Gary Gross at 16-Jul-19 02:36 AM
Rex, you aren't wrong in thinking that Mark Dayton's misadministration was epic. There's too much proof of him being inept to contradict your theory. I think, though, that it's entirely possible to say that Gov. Walz is just about as inept as Gov. Goofy II, aka Gov. Dayton. Gov. Walz isn't as eccentric as Dayton but I think he's just as inept.
Further, I think that Lourey was a check-the-boxes choice. Let's remember that he was one of the 'leaders' who put together MNsure, only to watch it fall apart right from the start. Michelle Benson did more to fix MNsure than all of the other politicians combined. While the DFL was busy patting themselves on the back over the 'fact' that MNsure was doing better than HealthCare.gov, Sen. Benson was highlighting the corruption within the administration and the failings it was experiencing.
The origins of a scandal
If you want to know how the DFL treats the taxpayers' money, look no further than the Department of Health and Human Services, aka MN DHS. This article should infuriate every taxpayer in the state. It should infuriate them for multiple reasons.
This is a major scandal because of what was found. According to the article, "A March report from the Office of the Legislative Auditor found 'pervasive' fraud in a state-administered child care program." When Jim Nobles sinks his teeth into an investigation, things start happening. Mr. Nobles is that thorough and honest. If he says that the fraud is wide-spread, he means it. Nobles isn't known as a man who embellishes.
What we know besides the fact that Tim Walz's DHS (a friend sarcastically calls it the "Department of Human Sacrifices) had rampant fraud is that we know that the DFL has been in charge of the Department for almost 10 years. Further, we know this:
Nearly four months and $42,000 of taxpayer money have been spent since the Department of Human Services placed Inspector General Carolyn Ham on leave to investigate a complaint. Ham, Minnesota's top investigator of child care fraud , told the Pioneer Press on July 12 that the investigation hasn't started, but will start on July 23.
Ham was put on leave March 18 after an audit accused her of fraud misconduct. A March report from the Office of the Legislative Auditor found 'pervasive' fraud in a state-administered child care program.
' We found weaknesses in DHS's program integrity controls and concluded that both DHS and local human services agencies must do more to effectively prevent, detect, and investigate fraud in CCAP ,' James Nobles, the state's legislative auditor, said in the agency's report.
That's Nobles way of excoriating DHS. To the average taxpayer, that means Human Services doesn't take seriously their fraud prevention responsibilities. Ham insists that she's innocent:
"As I have said from the beginning, this investigation is purely political and there was no wrongdoing on my part," Ham said. "I have patiently waited for the investigation to begin, and I am ready to cooperate in any way that is necessary. As to the reason for the long delay, you will have to ask DHS."
Saying that a Nobles investigation "is purely political" doesn't wash. He's the most serious, least partisan man in Minnesota government. Period. When a serious person investigates this scandal, I'd be surprised if Ms. Ham isn't fried to a crackly crunch.
Finally, isn't it ironic that Tim Walz and Peggy Flanagan attended a child care roundtable in Little Falls while Commissioner Lourey's deputy commissioners were resigning?
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Posted Tuesday, July 16, 2019 2:48 AM
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The Squad's historic press conference
For those who didn't watch Monday's press conference featuring the Democrats' Squad, aka AOC, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib and Ayanna Pressley, missed an historic press conference. It didn't take long for Rep. Omar to blow the lid off the event, accusing President Trump of conspiring with Russians and, of course, of being a racist and xenophobe. It was entirely predictable and totally worth it for the Trump campaign.
By attacking The Squad, President Trump forced Speaker Pelosi to defend the indefensible, namely, The Squad. Yes, Democrats had formed a circular firing squad. Indeed, the Squad had called Pelosi a racist. In President Trump's mind, that was nice but it wasn't the thing that would do the most long-term damage to the Democrats. When he saw the now-famous poll of battleground districts that shows how toxic AOC and her Squad is, President Trump decided there was more gold to be mined by bringing an end to the AOC-Pelosi civil war than by letting the civil war continue. Now, we'll test President Trump's theory. Here's what the poll showed:
The poll found that Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez had a 22% approval rating and Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota had a 9% approval rating among 1,003 "likely general-election voters who are white and have two years or less of college education" and knew of the two outspoken lawmakers.
AOC was recognized by 74% of likely voters in those swing districts while Omar's name recognition was 53%. Tying House Democrats to this toxic pair would definitely yield major benefits in the Trump plan.
First, AOC and Omar fit the Capitalism vs. Socialism theme perfectly. AOC doesn't hesitate in admitting that she's a socialist. It isn't difficult to portray Omar as a socialist. Next, it's easy portraying both ladies as part of the 'Hate America First' brigade. AOC insisted that law enforcement agents told women held at the Clint, TX, detention facility to drink out of a toilet. Nobody believes that. When people think of Omar, one of the first things that pops into their mind is her "some people did something" statement:
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This gives Republicans the edge in portraying Democrats as part of the lunatic fringe. But I digress. Let's return to the press conference, which was an epic fail for Democrats. Think of it as the unofficial end to Pelosi's speakership.
During her presentation, Rep. Omar hit all the desired high notes. She insisted that House Democrats need to impeach President Trump for colluding with Russia. (Apparently, nobody told Omar that the Mueller Report cleared him of that accusation.) Rep. Omar also accused President Trump of "carrying out mass deportations" as though most Americans see that as a bad thing. Then she accused President Trump of "committing human rights abuses at the border."
While nobody thinks conditions in these holding facilities is that good, people recognize that border agents are facing an unprecedented situation. The people believe that they're doing their best under difficult situations. The point is that the Squad repeated the Democrats' talking points virtually point-by-point.
Now, Speaker Pelosi is proposing a resolution condemning President Trump for attacking the freshmen who attacked her last week as a racist. There's little doubt that Democrats will pass this non-binding resolution. Add to that the likelihood of a far-left presidential getting the Democrats' nomination and you've built the framework for a Trump/GOP wave election.
While pundits say that it was foolish for President Trump to unite Democrats, there are people who thinks that unifying Democrats around socialism, anti-Americanism and far left ideas is a winner for the GOP. I'll self-identify with the latter category.
Posted Tuesday, July 16, 2019 8:19 AM
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