Don't Miss Rice
No, that's not a dinner suggestion. Lost in all the furor over a potential DACA deal yesterday was the news that former Obama National Security Adviser Susan Rice admitted to House investigators that she unmasked or disclosed the names of senior Trump campaign officials.
Apparently, President Obama felt snubbed that the crown prince of the United Arab Emirates came to the country and did not meet with him or inform the U.S. government that he was here. But the crown prince was here to establish relations with the incoming Trump Administration. Moreover, the UAE was upset by Obama's appeasement of Iran.
Why was Susan Rice so interested in this particular meeting? At a minimum, it proves that President Trump was right about the Obama Administration spying on Trump Tower. As Judge Andrew Napolitano said on Fox News last night:
"Susan Rice knew, and presumably President Obama knew, that President-Elect Trump and his people were being surveilled in Trump Tower in the era before he was the president of the United States. And she knew how to take advantage of that."
Napolitano noted that this unmasking took place "about the same time" that portions of Michael Flynn's phone conversations with the former Russian ambassador were leaked to the Washington Post. These and other leaks, many of them false, severely damaged the new Trump Administration, and continue to hobble it to this day.
Judge Napolitano suggested that Special Counsel Mueller should be looking into whether the Obama Administration abused our national security apparatus to "make it look like there was involvement between the transition team and the Russians."
Every American should be deeply concerned by Rice's actions. Is this really an acceptable way to run our constitutional republic? Would the left ever tolerate the Trump/Pence team spying on Bernie Sanders or Elizabeth Warren?
We face many foreign dangers. But numerous commentators have noted that free societies frequently collapse from the rot within rather than from external threats.
The spying on the Trump team, the entire so-called "Russia scandal," has only exacerbated the polarization of America. The left feels cheated and the right feels like the media and the deep state are trying to destroy a populist president committed to putting America first.
Kim Does It Again
Kim Jong-un test-fired another ballistic missile this morning. Once again, it flew over Japan, putting innocent lives in jeopardy.
With each provocation from the Stalinist regime, I hear more and more commentators suggest that we must simply learn to live with a nuclear North Korea. They always say how horrible a military confrontation would be and that we just can't go there.
I don't mean to minimize the horrors of war. But every time the pundits and politicians say that it is unthinkable, they signal to Iran and other enemies that we are weak and willing to accept nuclear blackmail. If war is never acceptable, there are not many options other than servitude to tyrants.
Shapiro Speaks
Conservative commentator Ben Shapiro spoke at the University of California Berkeley last night. Antifa protestors were there, but law enforcement was ready for them this time. Nine protestors were arrested, including at least three who possessed banned weapons.
While Shaprio spoke to students, Antifa thugs chanted outside, "No Trump! No KKK! No fascist USA!" As Shapiro noted, that chant proves Antifa's protest has nothing to do with him and everything to do with its own intolerance for conservatives.
To begin with, Ben Shapiro is no Trump fan. And comparing him to the KKK and fascism is disgusting and offensive because he is a Jew.
It is astonishing to witness the radicalization of the progressive left. In the 1960s, the left was all for unbridled freedom and the right to speak and protest. The "free speech movement" began in Berkeley. Today, the left is all about suppressing speech and the rights of those it disagrees with.
Don't believe me? Consider these headlines:
"Poll: Most California Democrats What To Restrict Free Speech"
"Antifa Activists Say Violence Is Necessary"
The secession movement is gaining ground in California. Sadly, the poll above shows just how much it has succeeded already. California progressives have separated themselves from the founding principles of this country -- religious liberty and free speech. They increasingly embrace anti-American ideas.
California certainly has come a long way since the days when Ronald Reagan was governor. What explains this dramatic shift? Well, there may be serveral explanations, but it is worth noting that among all the states, California has the highest percentage of foreign born residents.
What logical conclusion can you draw from that? As more people come from countries that do not understand or value our history and traditions, and as their children are subjected to an educational system that rejects Western Civilization and finds chants of "USA!" offensive, it is not surprising that more and more people begin to reject basic tenets of Americanism.
Other News
- After a severe backlash, Harvard University has revoked its invitation to convicted traitor and transgender activist Bradley "Chelsea" Manning to be a Visiting Fellow.
- The Senate appears to be inching closer to a major overhaul of Obamacare.
- Responding to this morning's terrorist attack in London, President Trump tweeted, "The travel ban into the United States should be far larger, tougher and more specific." He also wrote: "Loser terrorists must be dealt with in a much tougher manner."