Trump's First Picks

The Trump Transition team announced its first cabinet picks this morning.
 

• Senator Jeff Sessions, a stalwart conservative from Alabama, has been selected to be attorney general.

  Sessions has been a leading critic of Barack Obama's "pen and phone" governing style and his barrage of executive orders. Trump's selection of Sen. Sessions is further evidence of his intention to secure the border.

  Jeff Sessions was the first member of the Senate to endorse Donald Trump for president. When many Republicans were abandoning Trump, Sessions stood by him and encouraged him.

  I have known Sen. Sessions for many years. While I will miss his leadership in the Senate, especially on border security issues, Sessions is an incredible choice for attorney general and he will have considerable input in the selection of federal judges. Conservatives could not hope for a stronger advocate at the Department of Justice.
   

• Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn will serve as National Security Advisor. Flynn may be a registered Democrat, but he understands the threat America faces from radical Islam. CAIR and other groups on the left are fuming over his appointment.
   
• Rep. Mike Pompeo (R-KS) has been selected to lead the CIA. Pompeo is a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy and Harvard Law School, and currently serves on the House Intelligence Committee. He is one of the leading critics of the Iranian nuclear deal.

  Obama Encourages Demonstrators

  Speaking at a press conference in Berlin, Germany, yesterday, President Obama addressed the ongoing demonstrations against the election results. Obama said:

  "I've been the subject of protests during the course of my eight years. . . So, I would not advise people who feel strongly or who are concerned about some of the issues that have been raised during the course of the campaign, I wouldn't advise them to be silent."

  Why is it always about him?!

  It is outrageous for a sitting president, during a transition of power, to encourage continued protesting. Can you imagine John McCain or Mitt Romney encouraging demonstrations after 2008 or 2012 in which protestors were refusing to accept Obama as president?

  The mob's favorite slogan is "Not My President." They aren't protesting over issues because most of those arrested didn't bother to register to vote!

  Much to my frustration, I don't recall George W. Bush ever criticizing Obama publicly. I wish he would have spoken up on various occasions, especially when Obama surrendered our hard-won gains in Iraq and capitulated to Iran's nuclear ambitions.

  That said, former President Bush has a certain set of values he strongly believes in when it comes to how former presidents should conduct themselves. This president has no such constraints. I give Obama a week after he leaves office before he starts stoking controversy.

  Bannon Backfire

  The left's efforts to destroy Steve Bannon, the former CEO of the influential Breitbart news outlet, are beginning to backfire. As we have told you before, the politics of personal destruction is a favorite weapon of the left. The acolytes of Saul Alinsky pick a target, polarize it and paralyze it. The left has been smearing conservatives since Ronald Reagan.

  In Bannon's case, the charge was anti-Semitism, and the Anti-Defamation League, which is now lead by a former Obama appointee, led the attack. Thankfully, it failed because it was so obviously false.
   

• Harvard Law Professor Alan Dershowitz condemned the attack on Bannon, saying, "I haven't seen any evidence of personal anti-Semitism on the part of Bannon. . . It is not legitimate to call somebody an anti-Semite because you might disagree with their policies."
   
• Jewish philanthropist Bernie Marcus defended Bannon, calling the attacks against him scandalous. Marcus added, "I have known Steve to be a passionate Zionist and supporter of Israel who felt so strongly about this that he opened a Breitbart office in Israel to ensure that the true pro-Israel story would get out."
   
• I noted that Bannon had been a frequent guest on my radio show, which is dedicated to defending Israel and Judeo-Christian values. We have routinely addressed the topic of anti-Semitism and Bannon was always on the right side with me and my co-host, Tom Rose, the former publisher and CEO of the Jerusalem Post.

  By the way, the man who founded Breitbart -- Andrew Breitbart -- was a Jew. And would Jared Kushner, Donald Trump's Orthodox Jewish son-in-law, really allow an anti-Semite in the White House?

  A few years ago, Bannon delivered a speech at the Vatican in which he attacked the excesses of capitalism while nevertheless offering a robust defense of Western Civilization. He repeatedly referred to "Judeo-Christian" civilization in his remarks.

  In the past 24 hours, the Anti-Defamation League has backpedaled somewhat in its attack, conceding that "We are not aware of any anti-Semitic statements made by Bannon himself."

  Yesterday, Israeli Ambassador Ron Dermer stopped by Trump Tower. When he left, he told reporters, "We look forward to working with . . . all of the members of the Trump Administration, including Steve Bannon, and making the U.S.-Israel alliance stronger than ever."

  Real Anti-Semitism

  Among the many issues we will be pressing hard in the new year is convincing the new administration to stop funding international bodies that undermine Israel. One example is the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

  Dr. Moshe Kantor, president of the European Council on Tolerance and Reconciliation, has an informative article in Newsweek that I encourage you to read. He notes that UNESCO is supposed to "promote international cooperation and understanding." Instead it is being used "as a weapon . . . to wage a cultural war."

  That international body recently passed a resolution that referred to the Temple Mount and the Western Wall solely by their Islamic names. As Dr. Kantor explains, "This is not just an affront to millions of Jews around the world, it is also a denial of Christian history and is deeply offensive to over a billion Christians worldwide."

  Why would we support this attack on the West with our tax dollars? Every dollar saved can be better used to fight radical Islam or secure our borders. There is no reason to support U.N. bureaucrats who want to see the entire nation of Israel wiped off the map.