The Tweet That Set the Left on Fire

I'm old enough to remember when MSNBC was a new cable network and three women hosted a weekday show - Gina Gaston, Ashleigh Banfeld, and Mika

Brzezinski. Gina Gaston is an evening news anchor for the Houston ABC News affiliate; Ashleigh Banfeld moved on to CNN and HLN; and Mika is still with MSNBC. I have not been a fan of Mika's for a very long time. Mika is now a co-host and newsreader for that network's Morning Joe show.

A little recent background on the Morning Joe hosts: she was given the Obama administration talking points and recited them during the course of the show during that administration. She was a vocal and unabashed Hillary supporter during the last election cycle. Her co-host is former GOP congressman Joe Scarborough. Both have divorced their spouses and are now engaged to each other. Both were friendly with Donald Trump and allowed him on their show regularly, as did all the other networks, giving him unprecedented in-kind (free) campaign publicity in exchange for ratings. Then, once Trump became the GOP nominee, they turned on him, as did CNN and some on Fox, as well as all the dinosaur networks. Since his election, the hosts have regularly - maybe daily - slammed Trump as mentally unbalanced, a liar, unfit for office, and all the usual liberal sounding slurs. Like other networks (looking at you, CNN), the show brings on #NeverTrump 'conservatives' who happily join in on the personal attacks.

Like the former president, Barack Obama, Trump is a thin-skinned man. Now seeing improvement in the show ratings, the hosts should be sending Trump a fruit basket with a thank you note for providing fuel to the turnaround.  With a bitterly divided nation tuning in to shows supporting the opinions most closely aligned with themselves, MSNBC, once a laughingstock in cable news now finds its ratings rising. Why? A quick look at its programming tells the tale. Like CNN, it is all Trump/GOP bashing 24/7.  

President Trump expertly uses social media to push out his message to millions of followers. I'm all in favor of using social media as a tool. For politicians, Twitter and Facebook, even Instagram, should be used to promote policy and progress on the agenda on any given day. The problem with Trump, though, is that he is a coarse and aggressive New York businessman unaccustomed to self-censorship and  self-control. He gets very personal in his criticisms on Twitter instead of sticking to policy and politics. That's a big no-no when it is from the President of the United States, the most powerful man on earth.

We knew all this as Trump ran for POTUS. It's why Republicans like me didn't support him in the primary. He's not my cup of tea. That said, once he became the GOP nominee, he became my candidate. I didn't have to like him to vote for him.The Supreme Court nominations and conservative governing policies are too important to me to ever vote for a Democrat for president. Ever. Sanctimonious long-time Republicans who threw support to Hillary or third party candidates with no hope of winning forever lost my respect. The professional class that earns a living off the Republican party understood that they would no longer be in the inner circle and they responded according. They were willing to support Hillary Clinton and the Bernie Sanders crowd over a Republican promising to govern as a conservative. Today they all sound just like the left on social media - more interested in slamming the president than supporting solid policy and initiatives the GOP is moving forward.

Thursday, after the usual barrage of nasty statements from Mika and aided by her fiancé, Joe, the president took to Twitter and took his thoughts into personal criticism. He said Mika was bleeding from a face lift over the New Year's holiday and he (Trump) didn't want to join her and Joe during Mar-a-Lago festivities. Apparently the face lift part set the left on fire. I understand the discomfort from those offended. Personal attacks are not right, especially from the president, who should be leading by example. The fact that the show hosts are using personal attacks against him for ratings doesn't matter in this case. Keep it about facts, not snarky personal attacks, I would counsel him. I'm most concerned that others around President Trump don't have the sense to counsel him themselves. He is a 70 year old man, though, and no one should have really expected him to make good completely on his campaign promise to act presidential, should he win the election.

Mika and Joe are special examples of Trump Derangement Syndrome within the media. Truly the only respite from non-stop Trump bashing on television is to be found on Fox News - most of the time, and from OAN, though it can be harder to find. Those two hosts take extra pleasure in going as low as possible in their slurs against Trump. Whatever happened to "When they go low, we go high"? Oh, yeah. It was really never a thing.

So, here's what I think about the latest Twitter storm - do I care about the face lift crack? No. She's even come out and admitted she had what she calls minor surgery on her chin at that time. She's upset that it came out into the public, no doubt. I wouldn't like that, either. Should Trump have gone that far? No. There are any number of ways he could have constructed a tweet to let his displeasure of their lowbrow conversations against him be known without making it a personal jab. But, we all know that is not Trump. This isn't a surprise. It makes me angry, though, that Trump seems unable to control himself long enough to allow a really good week go by for his administration and allow the headlines be about political accomplishment, not silly Twitter wars. This was a good week for Trump, politically speaking. The Supreme Court ruled unanimously ( quite unusual these days) in favor of his travel ban, immigration reform measures were signed, VA reform legislation was signed, tort reform has passed, unemployment is down, job creation is up, and so on. He should be tweeting about all that to satisfy his urge to use Twitter. Take the wins. Let the other stuff go.

Make no mistake - I have no sympathy for Mika. She's a nasty human being and has a good-sized platform to promote her brand of bullying and hate. It's divisive and unnecessary. As a leftist, she has lots of things she could criticize the GOP and Trump about on policy. She uses the ugliness for ratings. Trump punches back. This is not a surprise, as he campaigned on that. She responded to Trump's tweets by using one of her own - a personal attack on the size of Trump's hands. So, tit for tat.

Mika and Joe published an op-ed this morning as they left for vacation. No, I am not linking it here. I'm sick of this nonsense. It's time for everyone to grow the hell up. There are eight years of the destruction left from the Obama years to correct and there is no time to waste. If President Trump truly wants to Make America Great Again - and I think he does - it's time to get on with it.  

Trump Nominates Texan Kay Bailey Hutchison for Ambassador to NATO

Good news, fellow Texans! President Trump has nominated our own former Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison to be the next Ambassador to NATO. This is truly an excellent choice. Not only am I pleased to see her be recognized with such a prestigious position, but she is well qualified to do the job.

This is the press release issued last night from Senator John Cornyn:

Cornyn Statement on Nomination of Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison as U.S. Ambassador to NATO

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) issued the following statement after President Donald Trump nominated former Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) to be U.S. Ambassador to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO):

“Throughout her career in public service, Kay’s dedication to helping others and advancing commonsense Texas values has been second to none.  With a proven track record of getting results, she has always done what she thought was in the best interest of Texas and our country.

“I have no doubt she will now bring her tireless advocacy and fierce work ethic to the world stage on behalf of the American people.  I’m thankful she has once again answered the call to service, and I look forward to supporting my fellow Texan’s nomination before the U.S. Senate.”

Kay Bailey Hutchison was the first woman to represent Texas in the U.S. Senate. She also became the first Texas U.S. senator to receive more than four million votes in a single election.

Victim Blaming - Liberal Media Blames Steve Scalise for Assassination Attempt Against Him

The Hollywood left and liberals in the media are so buried in identity politics that they are unable to embrace the basic humanity of a victim of an assassination attempt. If you do not dip into the world of social media on a regular basis, count yourself lucky to have missed the unimaginable commentary that is swirling around out there. Whether on cable television or Facebook or Twitter, the vitriol is at an all time high. Make no mistake - those people claiming the mantle of progressive are ok with an elected official being shot if that person hold different political views. The victim, in their minds, had it coming.

Sadly, this is not an exaggeration. I point you in the direction of two Twitter accounts in specific - Joy Reid, a MSNBC show host and George Takei, an actor best known for his Star Trek role of Sulu on the USS Enterprise. I do not watch Reid's show, a platform for her progressive views, but I have heard her views on Sunday morning shows and she clearly has no tolerance for conservative thought. Takei is an 80 year old man consumed with reducing people to labels - gay, racist, homophobic, etc. - who is openly gay in Hollywood after being closeted during most of his career.

In the spirit of naming names of those who must be called out for bad behavior, I concentrate on  these two people because theirs is an elevated level of hatred against Republicans. I don't expect Democrats or Socialists to agree with a Republican president's agenda. I do expect basic human decency from those given a platform on which to influence public thought. Believe me, I am not perfect in my comments all the time but I do try to rise above bottom-dwelling vitriol. An example - when public figures die that I have little or no respect for as human beings, I remain silent on the death in social media. It's the old adage - if you can't say anything nice, say nothing at all. When Senator Ted Kennedy died, not a peep from me about it on Twitter. I didn't just oppose his politics, I held him in low regard as a man.

In the case of Majority Whip Steve Scalise, the ugliness from the left towards him is all about politics. There is no dispute that Scalise is a good man. He is a husband and a father. He is a man of faith. He serves his community and his country. He loves his alma mater of LSU. There is strong consensus that both sides of the political aisle hold him in respect. He's an amicable guy and an inclusive leader. How about the young man who serves in government relations (lobbyist) for Tyson Foods? Did he deserve to be shot multiple times as he watched the baseball game practice?

You can watch Reid's hideous remarks here. There is a special spot reserved in Hell for her. Takei is old and bitter. He falls into the liberal propaganda tactics of identity politics. People are dehumanized by lumping individuals into categories to label them. He thought he should tell the world that the heroic member of Rep. Scalise's security detail was a lesbian, along with the fact that she is black. He did this to give his opinion that Scalise is both racist and homophobic. Neither accusation is true, of course, but I think Takei and the others were best put into their place of shame by a statement from the Scalise family. As he lay in critical condition, his survival still in question, the family thanked the heroes who rushed to save the ball players and bystanders. They also made a point of stating that the officer credited with saving Scalise by shooting the deranged terrorist is a longtime member of his security team and considered a part of the Scalise family.

And, there is CBS's news anchor Scott Pelley. In his final broadcast - CBS is cutting him loose so he'll be full-time at 60 Minutes - Pelley said: 

It's time to ask whether the attack on the United States Congress, yesterday, was foreseeable, predictable and, to some degree, self-inflicted.
Too many leaders, and political commentators, who set an example for us to follow, have led us into an abyss of violent rhetoric which, it should be no surprise, has led to violence.

That's right. He didn't accurately report it was the action of a political assassin. He stated his opinion - the victims brought it all on themselves. Instead of being a journalist, he was playing political commentator as he called them responsible. You can't make this stuff up. Good riddance to him.

There are lots of examples of this behavior out there. The next time the ugly left tries to virtue-shame you into acting differently, remember this. They think you deserve to die.

The #ArlingtonShooter Was a Political Assassination Meant to Terminate Republicans

The unimaginable happened Wednesday morning as most people were beginning their day, carrying out normal routines. In a ballpark in a residential area of Alexandria, Virginia, a deranged Democrat attempted a mass assassination of Republicans. During a practice game, with the annual Congressional charity baseball game scheduled for Thursday night, a man approached Congressmen leaving a bit early to avoid rush hour traffic congestion on their way to the Capitol to ask if the group were Democrats or Republicans. With their response as "Republicans", the man continued on. He opened fire on the Republicans.

Majority Whip Steve Scalise was at second base. He fell to the ground as he was shot, bleeding heavily. He remains in critical condition, with many surgeries ahead of him.  A Tyson Foods lobbyist was watching the practice and was severely wounded. He remains in critical condition. Rep. Roger Williams from the Austin, Texas area, was injured but not shot in the scramble. An aide to Williams - a young man from Houston - was shot in the leg. Two of the three Capitol Police on Scalise's security detail were injured - one was shot, one described as injured during the attack. The shooter was shot by an injured Capitol Police special agent and later died at the hospital. Scalise was the only member of leadership with a security detail there. Had those special agents not been present, this terrorist attack would have been a massacre.

Guns saved everyone present but zealots are unwilling to recognize facts, even in terror attacks. Immediately the anti-gun lobby was fundraising off this attack. Former astronaut and husband of Rep. Gabby Giffords took another turn in the spotlight he pursues after every high profile shooting by giving an exclusive interview on ABC's Houston affiliate. He and Giffords run a PAC which targets incumbents who don't tow their line of gun control measures. ABC's Houston affiliate also aired bites with Rep. Sheila Jackson- Lee and Rep. Al Green during their lunch time newscast, giving time to their stories of being victims of threats. Both Democrats, this seemed wrong. With a majority of Republicans in elected office in D.C. from this area, why those two? Former House Majority Leader, Tom DeLay is from Sugarland and actually experienced an attack on his office on Capitol Hill where Capitol Police saved his staff. I tweeted about my opinion (shocker, I know!) and DeLay was interviewed briefly on the 10:00 P.M. newscast. Channel 13 favors Democrats and it's wrong, even if they are owned by Disney. Also, political reporter Miya Shea is married to Democrat State Rep. Gene Wu. The incestuous relationship of media and politicians is not good at the local level any more than it is at the national level.

Make no mistake, this was an act of political assassination.  Evil lives among us and in today's overly heated and divided political world, this is the new level with which we find ourselves. Think I'm exaggerating? I wish that were true. I use a very basic method of checking the pulse of the general public - I shop at a grocery store. Normal enough of an activity, right? Yesterday I happened to have some shopping to do and headed out to a Kroger in my area. All was well until I began unloading my purchases onto the conveyor belt in the check-out. The cashier was chatting with another cashier (the store was in a bit of a lull in activity) and I overheard their conversation. My cashier said, "Well, it's to be expected. It's what everyone thinks about doing." I looked up at him, expressionless so as not to get his attention, and they continued on. His friend agreed with him and said, "They never tell us the whole story. They don't tell us the truth."  Everyone thinks about doing that - to shoot up a field of people with whom you disagree politically? These were two young black men - I'd guess in their late twenties. In contrast, the youngish Hispanic man bringing in the shopping carts from the parking lot stopped and pleasantly conversed with me - how are you today? and the like.

For the record, there is a lot of blame to go around on both sides but blaming victims of acts of violence is wrong. The left was wrong in blaming conservatives for former Rep. Gabby Giffords' attack. The New York Times, for example, rushed out to bring up the long ago discredited blame game of Sarah Palin's map of targeted incumbents and  Politico decided to run with the trope that Steve Scalise is a racist, so he deserved to be shot. Or something. The Scalise is a racist bit was also long ago discredited, but hey, there are political points for journalists to score, right? Speaking of political reporters who are truly hacktastic, the NYT's Jonathan Martin nefariously claims Republicans want looser gun laws.

Members of Congress went through the motions to call for unity and that lasted about 5 minutes. Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi started to shed crocodile tears on the House floor as she spoke of Majority Whip Scalise but the botox wouldn't allow actual tears to flow. Then, a brief time later went back on the attack on Republicans. Fortunately, sales for the108th Annual Congressional Baseball Game that will be played is on track to shatter records in attendance and thus the amount of money contributed to the three charities that will reap the benefits of those willing to show the terrorist wrong. Another shooting terrorist's mother, though, was happily quoted by Pelosi, who blamed Fox News for her son's evilness. Wednesday's shooter had a record of violent behavior, yet Pelosi chose to quote another shooter's mother on the evils of watching Fox News.#Sad.

Just in case you are not convinced that the left hates Republicans and wishes for our demise, here are some hot takes from them after the shootings happened. It is stomach-turning stuff and along the lines of those cashiers in Kroger's comments I overheard. They wish death on those who have different political views.

I deliberately did not name the Arlington shooter in this piece. I will not be a part in humanizing him in any way.

Words matter. Actions matter even more.

**UPDATE**  The shooter made a hit list of Republicans and this list was found by authorities. The political assassin listed, among others, the very congressman who answered his question in the parking lot that morning if those were Democrats or Republicans practicing on the field. Clearly, in his murderous rage, the man didn't even recognize those he specifically wanted to kill.