Kudos To Michelle Manhart
Many of you probably heard the recent stories about Michelle Manhart. She is an Air Force veteran who attempted to rescue an American flag last week that was being desecrated by radical demonstrators at Valdosta State University in Valdosta, Georgia.
She got into a scuffle with one of the protestors, Eric Sheppard, Jr., and resisted arrest by the campus police. She was briefly detained, banned from campus by the university, but Mr. Sheppard declined to press charges.
For several days Ms. Manhart made headlines, usually being mocked by the left-wing media for trying to suppress the demonstrators' free speech. But the story has taken a dramatic turn in the past 48 hours.
Mr. Sheppard -- the demonstrator Ms. Manhart struggled with -- is now wanted by the police. In the days following the demonstration, Sheppard became increasingly hostile and reportedly threatened students on campus. He posted a video explaining that in his view, the American flag represented "white supremacy and racism." But there was more.
In another video Sheppard said, "I'm a terrorist towards lies. I'm a terrorist toward liars and those who are weak. So yes I am a terrorist toward white people."
During a confrontation with police Tuesday morning, Sheppard dropped a backpack. They let him go, but later retrieved the backpack. Inside they found a gun and two clips of ammunition.
A warrant was issued for his arrest, but Mr. Sheppard disappeared. Police say he is on the run and considered armed and dangerous. Yesterday afternoon, his father issued a public plea to turn himself in.
Who knows what Eric Sheppard was planning to do. It seems to me that Ms. Manhart deserves some credit. By drawing attention to this protest and to Mr. Sheppard she may well have prevented a slaughter on Valdosta State University.
In the wake of the Ferguson shooting, there were the usual calls for a national dialogue about race and police brutality. Fair enough. But perhaps we also need a national dialogue about the poison the radical left is feeding the youth of this country. The Occupy Wall Street movement was prone to violence and developed a lengthy rap sheet.
How many Eric Sheppards are there on our university campuses? Where are they learning this hatred for America?
Obama Soft On Iran
As nuclear negotiations between Iran and world powers resume this week in Switzerland, a new Fox News poll finds that Americans disapprove of Obama's outreach to the Islamic regime. The president earns negative scores for his handling of major issues, but one issue stands out:
- 45% of registered voters approve of Obama's handling of the economy.
- 43% approve of his handling of health care.
- 40% approve of his handling of terrorism.
- Only 32% approve of Obama's handling of Iran, while 57% disapprove. Last May Obama's numbers on Iran were 48% to 40%.
Asked if Iran "poses a real national security threat to the United States," 65% of voters said yes, while only 29% said no.
By a margin of 50% to 40% voters said that negotiating with Iran over its nuclear weapons program was the wrong thing to do because the regime cannot be trusted. Moreover, a majority of voters (51%) said Obama was being "too soft" on Iran during the talks, while 34% said he was "striking the right balance."
Yesterday Stephen Rademaker, a former senior State Department arms control official, testified before the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Here's how he summarized the nuclear negotiations so far:
"If you look at the declared red lines on our side and on the Iranian side at the outset of these negotiations, and when you look at what appears to be emerging as the final agreement, the final agreement is pretty much consistent with the Iranian red lines and bears little relationship to the red lines that were declared on our side going in.
"So, what that tells you is that during the course of the negotiations, on issue after issue, the Iranians prevailed and we backed down. . . . And I'm not sure we've seen the last of the retreats on our side in the negotiations, regrettably."