Your Natural Truth For Today!

“It's part of our culture, and it's important to know it.”--Sergio Mendieta, a secondary school teacher from the state of Mexico, on an outdoor adventure game in which participants pay $10 to re-create the experience of sneaking across the US border illegally.

And Where, Sen. Obama, Did They Bury The Survivors?

Addressing a Memorial Day crowd Monday, Sen. Barack Obama made an interesting observation:

On this Memorial Day, as our nation honors its unbroken line of fallen heroes -- and I see many of them in the audience here today -- our sense of patriotism is particularly strong.

That's right: Sen. Obama sees "fallen heroes" attending his speech. At least, I think it was Sen. Obama. It could have been Bruce Willis.

Now, the senator obviously misspoke--something I do on the air everyday--so it's no big deal...in and of itself. But something is happening to Barack Obama and it's starting to be a trend. He's getting a reputation as the "one-man gaffe machine."

I first heard this from Michelle Malkin a couple of weeks ago. Then Jake Tapper jumped on it for ABC this weekend. Now the audience full of dead people, and the trend is starting to take on a life of its own.

Yes, George W. Bush is at least as bad, if not worse. But this could end up being a significant problem for Sen. Obama if it amplifies the "ready on Day One" issue. The fact is, Sen. Obama clearly isn't ready to be president. Most voters know that, but they either really like him and don't care; or they really hate the GOP and care even less.

Constantly misstating your positions and not knowing what town you're in don't inspire confidence. Right now they're just kind of funny. But if they continue, fewer voters will still be laughing.

Remembering The Victories, Too

In the current media climate, every day is Memorial Day--a day to count up the tragic costs of war. And war, by definition, always involves a terrible, terrible cost.

But is our war in Iraq truly a war of all costs and no benefits? Check out this timeline from the guys at PowerLine. And then ask yourself if it isn't finally time to give our soldiers and Marines the credit they deserve.

The Good News/Bad News From The US Border

The good news is that 270 illegal immigrants were sentenced this week to five months in prison for using fake IDs to work in the US.

Despite claims by pro-open-borders boneheads that crimmigrants haven't done anything actually criminal because immigration law violations are civil violations only, this case makes the point I keep repeating: You cannot stay and work in the US without committing numerous criminal acts.

There are 270 crimmigrants who've just figured that out. Let's hope Barack Obama and John McCain eventually do as well.

Speaking of bad news...

Down in central Mexico, a local group is making money by charging people $10 to experience what it's like to sneak into the US illegally:

Gunshots ring out and sirens shriek, mixing with the ragged breath of muddy, panting humans. Suddenly, the full moon sweeping the ground like a searchlight
reveals a disturbing scene: a group of illegal immigrants being handcuffed and led away by U.S. Border Patrol agents. But the U.S. border is 700 miles from this rugged municipal park in Hidalgo state, a three-hour drive north of Mexico City.

The spectacle unfolding here isn't an actual border crossing attempt but a live simulation-adventure that attempts to give participants a taste of what it's like for the thousands of Mexican and other Latin American undocumented migrants trying to enter the promised land of "el norte."

Dubbed the "Caminata Nocturna" (Night Hike), the three-hour simulation is a combination obstacle course, sociology lesson and PG-rated family outing.

You gotta love the Mexican "family values" on display in this story. My favorite quote from this story comes from a Mexican school teacher:

"It [sneaking into the US illegally] is part of our culture, and it's important to know it."

Breaking into the US, stealing a job from a legal immigrant and committing identity fraud on some US taxpayer's Social Security number--that's not a crime. It's a culture.

I feel much better about it now.

Another "Profile In Courage" From Beacon Hill

Then....

MARCH 27, 2008: The state's top leaders vowed yesterday to use their combined political might to take on powerful police unions by limiting construction details, a longstanding cash cow for police officers that critics for years have called a waste of taxpayer dollars....A Herald review found that state transportation agencies in 2006 spent more than $44 million on police details at construction sites statewide. -- The Boston Herald.

And now...

MAY 25, 2008: Confronted with a withering lobbying blitz by police officers, meanwhile, key lawmakers inserted legislative language in a transportation bill that would protect municipal union contracts and, with those contracts, the construction details that boost police salaries by thousands of dollars...

The performance by the state's politicians - quickly retreating from a plan that is popular with fiscal watchdogs and reformers - once again demonstrates the political might of police unions and the inability of elected leaders to make significant changes in a practice embedded in police contracts across the state.

It is a not a retreat the officials are eager to discuss. Senate President Therese Murray and House Speaker Salvatore F. DiMasi did not respond to requests for comment on Friday. --Boston Globe-Democrat.

Military Veterans For Obama! Well, One Anyway...

His name is Captain James Yee, and he is an Obama delegate to the Democratic National Convention. Here he is, in his own words, telling you why he supports Sen. Obama.

And here's the CNN story on James Yee's arrest after a US Customs official found he was carrying lists with names of detainees and interrogators when he left Guantanamo Bay and arrived in Florida. A Muslim chaplain serving at Gitmo, he eventually pleaded guilty to adultery and downloading porn onto a military computer (one of those observant Muslims, apparently) and left the Army.

But even better is this video of Obama delegate and disgraced military chaplain Yee attacking the US military on TV...in Syria. He repeats the now-debunked accusation that Korans were thrown into toilets at Gitmo and makes other accusations of bad behavior that he admits he never actually saw.

He just assumes the military is bad and America is guilty. Sounds like an Obama supporter to me.

One More Note On The US Military

They are still kickin' Al Qaeda ass in Iraq.

The Al Qaeda terror group in Iraq appears to be at its weakest state since it gained an initial foothold in the aftermath of the U.S.-led invasion five years ago, the acting commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East said Wednesday in an Associated Press interview.

Army Lt. Gen. Martin Dempsey, who assumed interim command of U.S. Central Command on March 28, acknowledged that Al Qaeda remains a relentless foe
and has not disappeared as a serious threat to stability. But he said an accelerated U.S. and Iraq campaign to pressure Al Qaeda has paid big dividends.

"Our forces and the Iraqi forces have certainly disrupted Al Qaeda, probably to a level that we haven't seen at any time in my experience," said Dempsey, who served in Iraq in the initial stages as a division commander and later as head of the military organization in charge of training Iraqi security forces.

"We Support The Troops...Unless They Run For President"

Does his military background make John McCain too "dangerous" to be president?

That's what US Senator and former Democratic presidential contender Tom Harkin says.

Republican presidential candidate John McCain's family background as the son and grandson of admirals has given him a worldview shaped by the military, "and he has a hard time thinking beyond that," Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Ia., said Friday."I think he's trapped in that," Harkin said in a conference call with Iowa reporters. "Everything is looked at from his life experiences, from always having been in the military, and I think that can be pretty dangerous."

Harkin said that "it's one thing to have been drafted and served, but another thing when you come from generations of military people and that's just how you're steeped, how you've learned, how you've grown up."

The Des Moines Register goes on to note, without additional comment: "Neither of the Democratic presidential candidates served in the military."

Berkeley liberals attack a Marine recruiting office and even try to cast spells on it. Cambridge shuts down a Boy Scout drive collecting gifts to send to soldiers in Iraq. Harvard chased the ROTC off campus during the Vietnam War and still won't allow them back.

But whatever you do...don't question the Left's patriotism!

My question is, was this a trial balloon by the Obama campaign? Was Harkin just firing off ill-considered comments, or are Democrats testing the idea that McCain's military background could be used as a liability?

If so, it wouldn't be the first time. Watch this TV ad run by the Adlai Stevenson during his 1952 campaign against Eisenhower. The Stevenson campaign raised questions about Ike's candidacy because of his military background, too.

And we all know how THAT worked out.

Newton Taxpayers To Davey Cohen: "We're Not THAT Crazy..."

Hey, Newton--You are the change you've been waiting for!

For every Massachusetts resident who thinks that the state is lost, that the Left is too strong, that common sense can never prevail, I offer the voters of uber-elite, obnoxious, "we deserve a $200 million high school" Newton, MA.

The largest override request of the year, $12+ million, was shot down by the taxpayers by a whopping 55-45%. That's impressive anywhere, but in Newton it's positively historic.

So don't give up, my fellow Bay Staters. Stay and fight! Don't give up the ship!

The Natural Truth From Iraq

While Sen. Obama prepares to declare defeat in Iraq and abandon a developing democracy to Al Qaeda, Iran and the Sadrists, something has been happening that this Harvard lawyer cannot comprehend: Victory.

It's not just former Army Lt. Col. Ralph Peters who sees it, though he does an excellent job of reporting the current state of Iraq.

And it's not just our friend Michael Yon, the best on-the-ground reporter in Iraq today.

It's also the enemies of America who are conceding an American victory is within grasp.

First there's this email from an Al Qaeda ally doing an analysis of their efforts in Iraq. He notes with alarm that Al Qaeda managed about 300 attacks last May, but just 16 so far this month--part of a drastic drop-off that has followed the success of the surge. (The Al Qaeda analyst does NOT point out that Sens. Clinton, Kennedy and Obama all opposed the surge.)

Then there's this story from--believe it or not!--the Boston Globe-Democrat:

BAGHDAD - Some 10,000 Iraqi troops fanned out in Baghdad's Sadr City yesterday, taking positions on main roads, rooftops, and near hospitals in an attempt to establish government control in the Shi'ite militia enclave for the first time since Saddam Hussein's ouster.

Success relies on whether a truce holds with fighters loyal to radical Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr....

The move, code-named "Operation Peace," is the latest by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to impose government authority in areas controlled by armed groups. Besides the Basra offensive, an ongoing sweep launched a week ago in the northern city of Mosul aims to uproot Al Qaeda in Iraq and other Sunni insurgents.

But the fragile truce's survival could depend on how forcefully the troops try to reduce the Mahdi Army's long-unquestioned domination of Sadr City, home to 2 million Shi'ites.

Already, Sadr supporters were complaining of the heavy deployment.

"We were surprised by the size of the force," said Sheik Salman al-Freiji, director of the Sadr Movement office in the district. "But their entry in such size has sparked fears that there could be violations of mosques and homes. There must be respect."

The elected government of Iraq and its Shi'ite president once again confronting Shi'ite militias, and with a "surprising" show of force. When the Boston Globe-Democrat can't avoid the story, maybe it's not too late for Sen. Obama to catch up, too.

Gov. Patrick Discovers The Law of Unintended Consequences

So which Democrat will Deval Patrick appoint to replace Ted Kennedy, should the senator be unable to serve?

Thanks to the Democrats of the Massachusetts legislature, the answer is: nobody.

Horrified by the possibility of Gov. Romney replacing John Kerry with a Republican in 2004, the Massachusetts legislature passed a bill stripping the governor of the power to make an interim appointment. The same legislature that hasn't been able to get rid of the "temporary" income tax hike in 20 years passed this new law in about 2 days. Gov. Romney vetoed it, the legislature overrode it...and Kerry lost.

As a result of that forward-thinking action by the legislature, Gov. Patrick is now denied the right to make any appointment, should Sen. Kennedy be forced to leave office. Instead, the state will hold a special election no sooner than 145 days and no later than 160 days of any vacancy.

So instead of a Patrick ally running as an incumbent, there will be a wide-open Democratic primary to replace Sen. Ted. According to a spokesperson in the Massachusetts Secretary of State's office, any primary would be held after the 145 day deadline, with a general election six weeks after that.

There's a long list of potential Democratic candidates: Rep. Ed Markey, AG Martha Coakley, former Congressman Joseph P. Kennedy II, perhaps former gubernatorial candidates Tom Reilly or Chris Gabrielli, and even Vicki (Mrs. Ted) Kennedy. Given the rarity of an open US Senate seat in Massachusetts, a big-time primary battle is almost certain.

[My colleague, Jim Braude, says that if a Kennedy runs, everyone else will step aside. Didn't they say the same thing about Hillary Clinton a year ago?]

This is significant because Gov. Patrick is struggling here in Massachusetts and he could use both an ally in Washington and a victory here at home. An interim appointment who went on to win the next election would give him both. Instead, the Mitt-o-phobia of Massachusetts Democrats leaves him with nothing.

Speaking of Mitt, Republicans can forget any hopes of another Romney bid for Kennedy's seat.
Not even Mitt's millions could win such a special election because:

a) this is a one-party state;
b) 2008 is a lousy year for Republicans;
c) there's no way the Lefties of Massachusetts are going to let Ted Kennedy's replacement be a Republican.

So best wishes to Sen. Kennedy and a speedy recovery.

Mass Insanity

"Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different
results. "

This quotation is attributed to Einstein, but whether he said it or not, it absolutely applies to Massachusetts politics in general, and the Boston Globe-Democrat in particular.

The BG-D has been a big-time proponent of Gov. Patrick's $1 billion boondoggle to corporations involved in the thriving life sciences industries. This sector of the high-tech economy is booming, both in Massachusetts and across America, and without taking a single tax dollar from guys working construction in Dorchester.

But Gov. Patrick and his Globie lapdogs never saw an opportunity they couldn't screw up. Patrick proposed giving $1 billion in tax dollars to an industry that doesn't need it, the BG-D cheered him on and the bill was sent up to Beacon Hill for those responsible, trustworthy pols to work their magic. The result?

"Backers Cry Foul on Science Legislation," is the front-page headline in the Globe-Democrat today. "Say measure weaker, laden with earmarks."

Wait--are you telling me a legislative body that is 95% Democrat and 100% Massachusetts took a billion-dollar spending bill and loaded it up with goodies and giveaways? Wow, who could have seen THAT coming? (Other than every Massachusetts taxpayer, that is). So the "high-tech, life-sciences, cutting-edge" bill will be paying for, among other things, a sewage plant in Framingham and a highway interchange in Andover.

Roads and sewers? Golly, what will those science wizards on Beacon Hill think of next?

But wait--there's more! Proving that Massachusetts politicians are impervious to both experience and reason, today's Globe-Democrat--the same one reporting the "big business boondoogle turns into BIGGER boondoggle" life science industry story--has a favorable article on Gov. Patrick's plan to give $100 million to "clean-energy research and business development, an expensive wager on the future of companies that produce and institutions that research solar panels and biofuels." We need those tax dollars, of course, because with heating oil and gasoline around $4 a gallon, there's absolutely no interest in alternative energy from the private sector at the moment.

I say "Spend the $100 million tax dollars!" What could possibly go wrong...that already hasn't?

"Will The Last Taxpayer To Leave Massachusetts Please Turn Out The Lights?"

My take on the ongoing Mass exodus is in the Boston Herald today.

Does it make sense to flee just because the Legislature shafted voters on the income tax rollback? Or because Beacon Hill denied voters the right to have their say on same-sex marriage? Or because our pols welcome and reward illegal immigrants? Or because double-dipping public employees are rolling in tax-funded dough?

Taken individually, the answer is no. But collectively, they reflect the stream of petty abuses heaped upon the average Bay Stater by an elitist and adversarial political culture.

Gov. Deval Patrick can preach “Together We Can.” But unless something changes, the motto of his administration may well be “Massachusetts: I’m Outta Here.”

Watching Out For The "O" Word

OK, am I missing something here? I've read this entire statement by President Bush about a dozen times, and I still can't find the magic word:

There are good and decent people who cannot fathom the darkness in these men and try to explain away their words. It's natural, but it is deadly wrong. As witnesses to evil in the past, we carry a solemn responsibility to take these words seriously. Jews and Americans have seen the consequences of disregarding the words of leaders who espouse hatred. And that is a mistake the world must not repeat in the 21st century.

Some seem to believe that we should negotiate with the terrorists and radicals, as if some ingenious argument will persuade them they have been wrong all along. We have heard this foolish delusion before. As Nazi tanks crossed into Poland in 1939, an American senator declared: "Lord, if I could only have talked to Hitler, all this might have been avoided." We have an obligation to call this what it is--the false comfort of appeasement, which has been repeatedly discredited by history.

Some people suggest if the United States would just break ties with Israel, all our problems in the Middle East would go away. This is a tired argument that buys into the propaganda of the enemies of peace, and America utterly rejects it.

OK, where is Senator Obama in this statement? The only senator it references, Borah of Idaho (a prominent pre-WWII appeaser) is a Republican. Meanwhile, the attitudes President Bush is bemoaning are held by thousands of American liberals. So why did Sen. Obama leap forward to seize the insult?

I think it's a calculated political move. Sen. Obama's position on Iran is dumb, and he knows it. It's just boob bait for the bubbas of MoveOn.org. But picking a fight with President Bush is a great political strategy. An Obama vs. McCain race is close. But an Obama vs. Bush race is a Democratic landslide.

In other words, this is all politics.

But there is one profound question raised by this story: What part of the statement above does Sen. Obama disagree with?

The Links You've Been Looking For

My apologies for taking so long to get these links up to stories we've been talking about on the show.

Here's that columnist in Australia knows more about America's greatness than Michelle Obama.

And there must be something in the water in Australia because this surge of common sense about/appreciation of America is growing.

Those of you who want to know more about what's really going on with the polar bears and "global warming" than the Boston Globe-Democrat does--congratulations, you already do! Because, as they demonstrated on the front page this week, they know nothing.

Here's Professor Roy Spencer--an actual climate scientist--on the polar bear issue. There are more polar bears alive and thriving today than any other time since we've been tracking them.

And if you're afraid that all the polar ice is melting, you might be surprised to learn that, in some key areas, we have the most sea ice in 15 years. There are also the new findings from NASA and independently reported in the journal Nature as well (but not reported by the Boston Globe-Democrat) that the somewhat higher than normal melting at the poles--you did know that water melts every summer and freezes every winter, right?--is entirely unrelated to "global warming."

In October 2007, NASA announced the results of an in-depth study of Arctic sea-ice melting and found that what has caused the unusually large melting seen in the last eight years was not greenhouse gas-induced global warming. In the press release describing the study, team leader Son Nghiem explained that the warming of recent years was, in fact, caused by a change in wind patterns.

"Unusual atmospheric conditions set up wind patterns that compressed the sea ice, loaded it into the Transpolar Drift Stream and then sped its flow out of the Arctic," he said. When that sea ice reached lower latitudes, it rapidly melted in the warmer waters.

One final link, on the economy. The next time you hear someone whining that we're entering the next Great Depression, give them these facts to ponder. Not that it will do any good.

Hillary Clinton: Can't Win For Losing

The CBS headline makes its message very clear: "Little Gain In Big Win For Clinton."

The presumptive Democratic nominee, Sen. Obama, just lost to a woman who cannot get the nomination by almost 40%(!); in a state, West Virginia, that every Democrat who made it to the White House has won since 1916; and the relentless, insistent "reporting" from the Mainstream Media is...."Nothing to see here, folks. Move along."

Question: Are Democrats stinkin' insane?

MSNBC, Time and the Washington Post can continue to openly insult every white person to the right of Michael Moore if they want, but it won't change the Natural Truth for Barack Obama: You can't beat the math.

Forget actually winning white Democrats in a primary. Sen. Obama hasn't gotten above 40% of his fellow Democrats who are white to vote for him since February 19th. In West Virginia Hillary--the most unlikeable politician this side of Newt Gingrich--trounced Sen. Obama among white voters both with college degress and without.

Among any group of rational people, the question of the day would be "What's wrong with our candidate?"

But these are not rational people. They are MoveOn.org liberals and members of the media (redundancy alert!). And so they are asking "What's wrong with you ignorant voters?"

Those "ignorant" voters are trying to teach you something, my Democratic friends. Are you determined not to hear them?

If so, you could very well be learning this lesson the hard way. In November.