June 16-21, 2020
Jun 16 03:48 Election 2020, Trump vs. Sleepy Joe Jun 16 14:05 Jenny Durkan's Summer of Love Jun 16 19:59 A second straight night of gunfire in St. Cloud Jun 17 01:24 Let's kill #DefundThePolice ASAP Jun 18 06:19 Norm Coleman's voice of leadership Jun 20 06:00 Another 'Sources close to the Trump campaign' article Jun 21 04:16 African-Americans, this is what you have to lose by voting for Biden Jun 21 17:06 Black Lives Matter activists are terrorists says Muhammad Ali Jr.? Jun 21 23:11 Robert Reich's socialist dissertation
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Election 2020, Trump vs. Sleepy Joe
I've been consistent in predicting this presidential election since before the Impeachment hearings started. It's my long-held theory that the first presidential test is the 'commander-in-chief' test. This year, there's another threshold to eclipse. I call it the are-you-out-of-your-mind test.
Another gift that Democrats have thrown President Trump is the Defund-the-Police movement. Never has a major political party given the opposing major political party a bigger gift than that. Establishment Democrats insist that "defund the police" doesn't mean they want to defund the police. Establishment Democrats insist that they just mean that they want to take money away from law enforcement, then give that cash to other Democrat wish list items. Others insist that they mean to dismantle entire police departments .
A respectable case can be made that Joe Biden can't pass either test. Too often, Biden is caught looking at his notes while answering questions during interviews with TV hosts. Too often, Biden stumbles, not stutters, in making basic points that a congressional candidate would make with ease. Too often, Mr. Biden can't string 3 straight coherent sentences together, his cognitive decline on full display:
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Biden's cognitive decline is frequently on full display. This isn't a surprise to honest people. In the above video, Joe clearly isn't right when he said "poor people are just as smart as white people." He's clearly not thinking clearly when he says that "we choose truth over facts." He couldn't even struggle his way out of "we hold these truths : you know, the thing."
Clearly, Democrats will pick Biden's running mate because she will be the president within 2-3 months if he wins. At this point, Susan Rice and Elizabeth Warren look like the finalists. Neither is qualified to be president or vice president.
During a crisis, Rice lied to each major Sunday morning talk show to hide the fact that Hillary Clinton didn't protect the ambassador to Libya. Warren told a story that she was let go because she was "visibly pregnant at the time." She's said that she wouldn't do fundraisers with billionaires because she's all about fighting for the little guy. Last night, she hosted a fundraiser with some of the richest people in America. You can't rail that the system is rigged, then hobnob with the people she's accused of rigging the system.
Meanwhile, the Trump-RNC juggernaut keeps chugging along :
Trump campaign manager Brad Parscale on Monday said they have received more than 1 million ticket requests for President Trump's first campaign-style rally since the coronavirus lockdowns slated to take place Saturday. "Over 1M ticket requests for the @realDonaldTrump #MAGA Rally in Tulsa on Saturday," Parscale tweeted Monday, adding safety guidelines for the event.
When I wrote this post , I wrote that "According to Brad Parscale, Trump's campaign manager, 96.6% of the people who attend a Trump rally wind up voting for him. Additionally, Parscale said that if a person who attends a Trump rally and who makes a contribution, the chances of that voter returning and voting for Trump jumps to 98.4%." That's why the #MAGA rallies are the greatest GOTV operation in the history of politics. The other thing that the Trump campaign has touted is that they're using these #MAGA rallies as voter registration drives. People that think that Trump is using these rallies to pump up his base isn't paying attention to the reality that he's using these rallies to expand his base.
Posted Tuesday, June 16, 2020 3:48 AM
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Jenny Durkan's Summer of Love
Journalist Andy Ngo is reporting that the Occupied Territory within Seattle "could be described as a 'sort of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.'" In greater detail, Ngo reports that "during the day it could be considered peaceful if one ignored boarded-up businesses or graffiti calling for the murder of police. But when the sun goes down, the "criminal elements come out," Ngo noted. 'Unfortunately, last night that was made very clear, when one person on a microphone and a loudspeaker was able to sic a mob of probably more than 100 people to chase down this business that was several blocks away. They just all descended on it. It was pure anarchy.'"
Jenny Durkan, the idiot mayor of Seattle, once told CNN's Chris Cuomo that "We could have a summer of love." That's Durkan's legacy. She'll never be able to live that down for the rest of her life. That statement is as tied to her as "If you like your plan, you can keep your plan" is tied to President Obama.
Right now, it appears as though there's a 3-way competition for the 'Worst Mayor in America.' At this point, the tri-finalists are Durkan, Jacob Frey and Bill de Blasio. It's a difficult race to handicap. Durkan allowed a foreign nation to sprout up in the middle of her city. Frey let rioters and looters demolish his city. In a city of 8,000,000 people, De Blasio has figured out a way to piss off every influential group in the city. But I digress.
Seattle Police Chief Carmen Best told everyone that it was Durkan's decision to abandon the police:
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Seattle is transforming itself into a hell-hole:
"For example, there's a Trader Joe's nearby who announced just a few days ago that they're closing indefinitely because of security and safety issues," he remarked. "So, when you take that and you also see all [of] the businesses that are boarded up, that no cars can drive into this area - I don't see how the few anecdotes of positive experiences of some owners could be the representative voice. Particularly when there are now some dissident voices coming out to speak and they're having to do it anonymously because of threats of retaliation," Ngo noted.
Another contributing factor to what Ngo described as a chaotic atmosphere is that many people have been seen openly carrying weapons like handguns, rifles, batons or knives . In addition, Ngo highlighted other concerns like rampant drug use, homelessness and lack of medical care.
Other than those dangers, Seattle is a virtual paradise. Then again, what would you expect if you removed law enforcement officers? I'd expect a chaotic situation, which is what's happened.
Posted Tuesday, June 16, 2020 2:05 PM
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A second straight night of gunfire in St. Cloud
For the second straight night, gunfire interrupted the night in St. Cloud . For the second straight night, the St. Cloud police reacted with restraint and forcefulness. In light of the tinderbox that we're living in, it's difficult to picture a police department handling things perfectly. Nonetheless, the SCPD handled things well.
I'm basing that opinion on this Strib article , which reported "However, unrest resurfaced about 10:20 p.m. Monday, when authorities were alerted to gunshots in the same area where the officer was shot."
There's little question whether this is escalating, despite the best efforts of the police. The escalation is underway and intensifying. Tonight will be another tense night in St. Cloud.
According to police:
- Officers arrived and found multiple people running from where the gunfire originated, and no victims were located.
- Within a half-hour, roughly 200 people had gathered in the area. Some blocked traffic, and threw rocks at officers and passing vehicles.
- Officers soon saw some from the crowd break through the front-door glass of the Southtown Liquor Store. Multiple people went inside, stole items and caused more damage.
- Police ordered the crowd to disperse, followed by a warning that the gathering was considered an unlawful assembly. Officers then used 'chemical crowd control munitions' to break up the gathering, a department statement read.
FYI- A loyal reader of LFR sent me information that said that the only person allegedly booked into the Stearns County Jail on Monday morning was Abdikarin Mohamed Omar . The arrest date/time in 6/15/2020 at 05:50 am. The charge was " Fleeing a peace officer-MS ." You'll recall that the person arrested early Monday morning wasn't identified. This explains why. I expect that CAIR-MN will be in St. Cloud by Wednesday mid-morning to claim this young man's civil rights were violated. That's BS on steroids. This collection of information explains why it's BS:
Over the next four hours, however, officers responded in the same area of the city to numerous unlawful assemblies, multiple reports of gunfire, assaults involving people within the crowd, rocks being thrown and three dumpster fires. One person needed medical attention at a nearby hospital. "Crowd control measures" eventually proved successful in breaking up the gatherings of various sizes, the police statement continued.
Numerous officers were hit with rocks, but no significant injuries were reported. The unrest forced the Police Department to close its headquarters lobby Tuesday to the public.
That's a small-scale riot. A meeting was held this afternoon in an attempt to suppress the violence:
Members who gathered at Lake George were those who signed the city's community policing agreement, which was first signed by parties in 2005 and updated in 2018. Those involved include representatives from a number of civil rights organizations, churches and advocacy groups. Some meeting with Alberts said the militarized police force seemed heavy-handed for many of the people protesting and some thought that undermined the community policing agreement.
This is ridiculous. The police tried settling things without violence. When the people started raiding stores, there aren't many options left. When the rioters start throwing projectiles at the police, the police officers' nonviolent options should be taken off the table.
[Video no longer available]
Posted Tuesday, June 16, 2020 7:59 PM
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Let's kill #DefundThePolice ASAP
If ever there was a need to stop a bad policy before it started, it would be to stop the #DefundThePolice movement. It's one of the most absurd ideas ever. This article by Charlie LeDuff illustrates why investing in better police training, more officers on patrol and better salaries is the ticket to better outcomes. That doesn't mean that our police forces don't need cleaning up. They definitely need that. It's that dismantling the police, which the Minneapolis just voted to do, is a terrible idea.
LeDuff's article highlights the folly of Minneapolis's policy. In his article, LeDuff writes about India Williams. According to the article, "India Williams was shot just over five years ago. 'All I want from the man who shot me is an apology,' says India, now 12. She has yet to receive one. In fact, her case has been closed, her shooter never charged, and is presumed still at large." Then there's this story:
Mayana Lanton, 14, was shot through the face in 2018 as she stood inside her west side home, readying herself for school. Like India, she was a media darling for a few weeks. Now the cameras are gone and her story forgotten. Her shooter, too, has never been apprehended.
That's the future Minneapolis is destined to have if its citizens don't rescue the city from its city council. The first responsibility that each unit of government is assigned is protecting its citizens. There's no proof that the Detroit Police Department, aka DPD, is capable of consistently living up to that responsibility. Minneapolis Police Department Chief Medaria Arradondo has a difficult fight ahead. To say that he looks battle-fatigued in this interview is understatement:
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Barring a miracle, Minneapolis might be in Detroit's situation within 5 years. Here's more from LeDuff:
The children of Detroit deserve better schools, better housing, cleaner water and summer camps. Funding these priorities by defunding patrol officers, however, is squeezing blood from a turnip. So where do we find the financial capital to invest in human capital? Start with the municipal contracts.
It might start with Tim Scott's and Ben Carson's opportunity zones. What's also needed are opportunity scholarships and some federal grants to hire police officers at a decent salary.
The police department is hiring. But be forewarned. Starting salary is $40,000 a year. And the risks are obvious.
If we want to rebuild the City of Detroit, which we should, public safety must be everyone's highest priority. If we want to stop the #DefundThePolice movement, we must eliminate the thought that something is irreparably damaged. People thought that during Jimmy Carter's term in office. People said that the job of president was too big for one man. Then Ronald Reagan got elected. It took a little time but things started improving. It wasn't that the job was too big for one man. It's that the job was too big for Jimmy Carter.
What Detroit needs is a turnaround specialist with crisis management skills. I wonder if Mitt Romney is interested.
Posted Wednesday, June 17, 2020 1:24 AM
Comment 1 by Nick at 17-Jun-20 12:30 PM
I don't support defunding the police, however I do support mandatory body cam requirements for all police officers, ending warrantless no-knock raids, and so called qualified immunity (especially with people under 18).
Norm Coleman's voice of leadership
You don't miss something (someone?) until you don't have it anymore. These days, I'm missing Norm Coleman because he'd be a major upgrade over Jacob Frey and the idiots serving on the Minneapolis City Council. Norm's op-ed in the Star Tribune reminds us what leadership and good policy making look like.
It didn't take Norm long to criticize the leadership team in Minneapolis. Starting in the 4th paragraph, Norm wrote "Meanwhile, in times of great tragedy there are those who rise from the ashes to give comfort to the afflicted. There are those who provide leadership when communities are clamoring for a way out from desperation. There are people who bring the best and the brightest ideas to bear to change bad systems and bad processes."
Next, Norm dropped a bombshell:
And then there is the Minneapolis City Council.
That bunch of wild-eyed activists can't see straight. That's why they're leading Minneapolis off a policy cliff.
A majority of the City Council members who have publicly declared they will defund and disband their Police Department.
Norm mentions later in his op-ed that "the lawless always want less law." Then he harshly criticizes Minneapolis City Council President Lisa Bender:
Minneapolis City Council President Lisa Bender claims that calling police during an emergency is an act of "privilege." On the contrary, the first responsibility of government is to protect its citizens - all its citizens.
Minneapolis failed George Floyd. The City Council now wants to double-down on that failure of responsibility by dismantling their Police Department. Every American citizen is owed the right, not the privilege, of being able to call for police assistance in an emergency.
Outside of Seattle Mayor Jenny 'Summer of Love' Durkan, Lisa Bender might be the most foolish-sounding local politician in the U.S. That's saying something. They both should be instant inductees into the Municipal Hall of Idiots.
Next, Norm asks some important questions, questions that the Minneapolis City Council doesn't have answers for:
The people of Minneapolis have every right to ask their elected officials who are promoting eliminating the Police Department why this solution is better than all the other solutions they've offered up for decades that didn't stop racism, violence and bad cops who failed their city.
- Why didn't they protect the people of Minneapolis?
- Why didn't they protect good cops from bad cops?
- Why didn't they stop their city from burning?
Frey and the City Council failed because they're activists, not serious policy-makers. During the 2016 presidential campaign, President Trump asked the African-American community "What do you have to lose?" This year, African-Americans should recognize that the inept leadership of the DFL mayor and the terrible policies of the DFL City Council cost their neighborhoods and their stores everything. It's been reduced to rubble..
Posted Thursday, June 18, 2020 6:19 AM
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Another 'Sources close to the Trump campaign' article
This article is sloppy journalism. It's what you'd expect from the MSM. It's what you'd expect of GOP establishment Trump-haters.
The article opens by talking about Joe Biden, saying "Joe Biden hasn't held a press conference in 77 days, but Democrats aren't feeling much pressure to put their presumptive presidential nominee front and center at the moment. Biden has, for the most part, kept a low profile throughout the coronavirus pandemic and weeks of demonstrations for racial justice across the country. Over that time, Biden has built up a healthy lead in the polls and emerged as the heavy favorite for now to be the next president."
It isn't until the 13th paragraph that the article's apparent sourcing appears, saying "The only way to smoke him out is to start throwing haymakers directly at Biden," said one Republican who is close to the campaign. "It needs to come from the campaign and the president directly, and they need to be the kinds of shots that force a response. Right now, the Biden campaign has no incentive to respond. But I also think at a certain point the press pool will get frustrated by the lack of press conferences and access and Biden will start to feel organic pressure to be more accessible."
That's literally the only time a source is mentioned. It isn't sourced as "a senior Trump campaign advisor." It's likely just a Trump campaign wannabe. As for the campaign, this is President Trump's to lose. Democrats are digging themselves a huge whole with their "defund the police" campaign. Do they seriously think suburban security moms will gravitate to this message? Here's something worth asking yourself: picture a husband and wife sitting in their condo. They've been stuck there for 2+ months thanks to the COVID lockdown in Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio or Pennsylvania.
Next, they see scenes like this from Minneapolis:
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The next thing they hear is that the Minneapolis City Council has voted to put a charter amendment on the ballot this November to dismantle the Minneapolis Police Department, aka MPD. After that, national figures like AOC, Ilhan Omar and potential Biden VP pick Kamala Harris speak out about defund the police.
After that, Jenny Durkan, Seattle's mayor, lets anarchists take over a major portion of Seattle's downtown. In an interview, Durkan says that this development might start Seattle's "Summer of love." What sane person is attracted to such weak-kneed examples of leadership? Though the media won't speak negatively about the defund the police, people will figure it out that Democrats are the Party of Anarchy and Violent Crime. There's no way that's a winning message.
Posted Saturday, June 20, 2020 6:00 AM
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African-Americans, this is what you have to lose by voting for Biden
On August 19, 2016, then-candidate Donald Trump asked African-Americans " what do you have to lose " in voting for him. Back then, then-candidate Trump could only suggest that he could implement policies that would make life better for African-Americans. This year, it isn't a theoretical 'what if' question anymore. This time, African-Americans can figure out for themselves what they have to lose.
For African-Americans living in Minneapolis, they know what they've already lost. They've lost neighborhoods. They've lost their businesses, which were, essentially, their retirement accounts. They've lost their life savings and their livelihoods. Contrary to Boy Toy Mayor Jacob Frey's declaration that these things were just "bricks and mortar", they were so much more than that. They were their communities. Literally, this meant everything to them. The people who owned property that got destroyed will likely move out. With the DFL 'leaders', a joke if I've ever heard one, promising (threatening?) to dismantle the Minneapolis Police Department, aka MPD, why would people stay? This is what they watched during the early part of the rioting:
This is candidate Trump's initial appeal to African-Americans:
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The last line in the sentence is especially powerful:
"America must reject the bigotry of Hillary Clinton, who sees people of color only as votes, not as human beings worthy of a better future."
Just 4 years later, African-Americans earn more, are employed in greater numbers and percentages, and face a brighter future thanks Sen. Tim Scott's Opportunity Zones legislation. Also during the first 4 years of the Trump presidency, President Trump signed legislation that permanently funded HBCUs, aka Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Between those 2 pieces of legislation, President Trump signed prison reform to undo the mass incarceration of African-Americans.
To the African-American community, if you want a future, it isn't with the Democrats. They're part of the racist past. Democrats are the party of the KKK and Jim Crow and now, the party that let your cities burn without attempting to protect your neighborhoods, your pharmacies or your police department. Republicans are the party of Abraham Lincoln, the Emancipation Proclamation and the party of Abolitionists.
Now that you have a lengthy list of comparisons, it's time for you to decide. Do you want to be taken for granted? If you say yes, then vote Democrat again. If you want to have a bright future, vote for Republicans up and down the ticket.
Originally posted Sunday, June 21, 2020, revised 12-Jul 2:28 AM
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Black Lives Matter activists are terrorists says Muhammad Ali Jr.?
It isn't every day that you see an article where a prominent African-American citizen criticizes Black Lives Matter, aka BLM. This article quotes Muhammad Ali's son, Muhammad Ali Jr., as saying "Don't bust up s-t, don't trash the place. You can peacefully protest. My father would have said, 'They ain't nothing but devils.' My father said, 'all lives matter.' I don't think he'd agree."
Ali Jr. continued, saying "It's not just black lives matter, white lives matter, Chinese lives matter, all lives matter, everybody's life matters. God loves everyone, he never singled anyone out. Killing is wrong no matter who it is,' Ali said during an hour-long interview with The Post. On police brutality, Ali defended law enforcement in general. 'Police don't wake up and think, 'I'm going to kill a n - -r today or kill a white man. They're just trying to make it back home to their family in one piece.'"
That isn't the most incendiary part. This is likely getting the most backlash:
Speaking of Floyd's killing at the knee of a white Minneapolis police officer, Ali said, "The officer was wrong with killing that person, but people don't realize there was more footage than what they showed. The guy resisted arrest, the officer was doing his job, but he used the wrong tactic." He agrees with President Trump that Antifa fomented violence during the Floyd protests and should be labeled a terrorist organization.
"They're no different from Muslim terrorists. They should all get what they deserve. They're f-king up businesses, beating up innocent people in the neighborhood, smashing up police stations and shops. They're terrorists, they're terrorizing the community. I agree with the peaceful protests, but the Antifa, they need to kill everyone in that thing. Black Lives Matter is not a peaceful protest. Antifa never wanted it peaceful. I would take them all out."
That will get some attention. This will too:
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This, though, will attract the most heat:
"I think Trump's a good president. My father would have supported him. Trump's not a racist, he's for all the people. Democrats are the ones who are racist and not for everybody. These [Democrat politicians] saying Black Lives Matter, who the hell are you to say that? You're not even black.
Democrats don't give a s-t about anybody. Hillary Clinton doesn't give a s-t; she's trying not to get locked up. Trump is much better than Clinton and Obama. : The only one to do what he said he would do is Donald Trump."
The biggest question I have is what effect people like Jack Brewer, Pastor Darrell Scott and Sen. Tim Scott are having within the African-American community. Couple that with Candace Owens' #Blexit Movement. I don't have the answer to this question but it's one worth paying attention to -- are these this year's hidden Trump voters?
Posted Sunday, June 21, 2020 5:06 PM
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Robert Reich's socialist dissertation
If you don't realize that Robert Reich, Bill Clinton's former Labor Secretary, is a socialist by the time you reach the third paragraph of this article , then you're either a Democrat or a product of a government school. The article starts by saying "Some societies center on social control, others on social investment."
It continues, saying "Social-control societies put substantial resources into police, prisons, surveillance, immigration enforcement and the military. Their purpose is to utilize fear, punishment and violence, to maintain what they consider order. Social-investment societies put more resources into healthcare, education, affordable housing, jobless benefits and children. Their purpose is to free people from the risks and anxieties of daily life and give everyone a fair shot at making it."
Does Reich really think that people who appreciate being safe push policies that "utilize fear, punishment and violence?" Does Reich, a hardline Democrat progressive, think that Democrats invest in policies that "free people from the risks and anxieties of daily life?" That's the definition of socialism. Socialism guarantees equality of outcomes. That's why it inevitably leads to a race to the bottom. Capitalism inevitably leads to innovation and prosperity. Then Reich said this:
Donald Trump epitomizes the former. He calls himself the 'law and order' president. He even wants to sic the military on Americans protesting against police brutality.
That's a lie. President Trump doesn't want to use the military to put down peaceful protests. This video is proof of that:
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The United States began as a control society. Slavery, America's original sin, depended on the harshest conceivable controls. Jim Crow wasn't much better. But in the decades following the second world war, the nation began inching toward social investment.
Slavery wasn't just "America's original sin." It was many nations' original sin. Native Americans took other tribes captive after their wars. Just because the MSM isn't willing to talk about this doesn't mean it didn't happen. In fact, there's lots of things that the MSM doesn't write about that's happened.
Reich's propaganda is a rewriting of history. Thanks to civil order, more money could be invested in things like the military, the interstate highway system and other types of infrastructure. Also, as public employee unions gathered power, corruption set in. Rather than focusing on what's best for students, the NEA and AFT worried about what's best for their clients. Teachers, aka their clients, pushed for the status quo, which didn't keep up with the students' needs.
Insisting on maintaining civility didn't cause the problems that Reich described. Officials who weren't people of integrity had far more negative influence on the decline of society.
Posted Sunday, June 21, 2020 11:11 PM
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