Vengeance & Disinformation

 
As I noted in yesterday's report, Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy's retirement sent the left into a mass panic.  Left-wing commentator Chris Matthews is calling for "vengeance."  You could hear the wailing and gnashing of teeth on a DNC conference call when the news broke.
 
Predictably, the left is putting out a lot of disinformation as it tries to control the narrative.  Many liberals yesterday were insisting that the Senate follow the "McConnell standard" in order to justify delaying any consideration of a Supreme Court nominee.  Here's how Senate Democrat Leader Charles Schumer put it:
 
"Our Republican colleagues in the Senate should follow the rule they set in 2016: Not to consider a Supreme Court justice in an election year." 
 
Schumer would like nothing more than to stall the Senate until next year, hoping that after the November elections he will be the new Majority Leader in 2019 and can call the shots on Trump's nominee.  But his version of events is a big distortion of the facts.  Senator McConnell simply followed the Biden rule. 
 
In 1992, then-Senator Joe Biden (D-DE), chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, demanded that then-President George H.W. Bush avoid making any Supreme Court nominations during that presidential election year.  Biden claimed he was trying to take politics out of the process.
 
Well, 2016 was also a presidential election year.  And Senator McConnell thought it was only fair to let the American people decide who should get to nominate the justice who would replace Antonin Scalia.
 
2018 is not a presidential election year.  If Schumer had his way, the Senate would only consider Supreme Court nominations in odd numbered years.  That's just absurd.  Moreover, the voters already decided who they wanted nominating Supreme Court justices.  They chose Donald Trump.
 
Don't fall for the left's spin, my friends.  Even the Washington Post is calling Schumer's argument "bogus." 
 
 
 
"Not Believable"
 
Disgraced FBI agent Peter Strzok testified behind closed doors yesterday before members of the House of Representatives for 11 hours.  As a result we do not know precisely what Strzok said. 
 
But House Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte told Fox News that many of Strzok's responses were "not believable."  Moreover, Goodlatte said that a FBI lawyer accompanied Strzok to the hearing and repeatedly stopped him from answering questions -- even behind closed doors. 
 
This morning, Chairman Goodlatte called an emergency hearing of the House Judiciary Committee and grilled FBI Director Christopher Wray and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein over the Justice Department's continued stonewalling.
 
Frustration on Capitol Hill is reaching a breaking point.  Chairman Goodlatte had to recess this hearing so members could vote on a resolution that accuses the Justice Department of "non-compliance" with various subpoenas and demands full compliance by July 6th.  The resolution was approved on a party line vote of 226-to-183. 
 
The resolution increases the pressure on the Justice Department, and sets the stage for a contempt of Congress citation against Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.
 
 
 
Pence Delivers A Message
 
Democrats may not be serious about securing the border, but President Trump is.  So much so, in fact, that he dispatched Vice President Mike Pence to deliver a message to our southern neighbors. 
 
Speaking in Brazil earlier this week, Pence directly addressed the migrant crisis that has caused so much hysteria on the left.  Here's a brief excerpt of his remarks:
 
"In recent days, a flood of migrants from Central America have been entering the United States illegally.  In the first six months of this year, nearly 150,000 Guatemalans, Hondurans, and Salvadorans abandoned their homes and made the often-dangerous journey to the United States in the misguided belief that they could enter our country illegally.
 
"And to all the nations of this region, let me say with great respect: Just as the United States respects your borders and your sovereignty, we insist that you respect ours. . .
 
"To the people of Central America, I have a message for you. . .  You are our neighbors.  We want you and your nations to prosper and thrive across Central America.  Don't risk your lives or the lives of your children by trying to come to the United States on a road run by drug smugglers and human traffickers.  If you can't come legally, don't come at all.
 
"If someone tells you they can bring your child to America, don't believe them.  Hold on to your children.  Build your lives in your homeland.  And be confident that your neighbors in the United States and across this New World are all working together to ensure a brighter future for all of the nations of this hemisphere."
 
 
 
Left-wing Hypocrisy
 
Conservative commentator Molly Hemmingway made an observation that is worth repeating. 
 
Yesterday morning, the left was still in full-throated outrage over the children who were "ripped away from their parents" at the border.  Around 2:30 yesterday afternoon, the news broke that Anthony Kennedy was resigning, giving President Trump the chance to nominate a second constitutionalist to the high court. 
 
Immediately, the same liberals who were crying about children being ripped from their mothers were screaming about the right to rip babies from their mothers' wombs.  I don't think any of them paused to consider the stark contradiction of those statements.
 
By the way, these same leftists who are demanding that women be allowed to illegally enter the country with their children are also demanding that pregnant women who do come into the country illegally be allowed to abort their children at taxpayer expense.
 
The radical Women's March movement is calling for a day of unrest and "mass civil disobedience" in Washington, D.C., today.  At least 1,000 women have reportedly vowed to risk arrest.  Among their many demands, the Women's March is joining the left's call to abolish ICE.
 
Let's be clear about what that means: These radicals are demanding that we let thousands of criminals roam our streets. 
 
According to a recent study by the Pew Research Center, "Immigrants with past criminal convictions accounted for 74% of all arrests made by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in fiscal 2017."  We're talking more than 100,000 illegal immigrants with DUIs, drug charges, sexual assaults and even homicides.
 
 
 
Be Not Afraid
 
We're just a few days away from celebrating Independence Day.  The July 4th holiday is time to remember the extraordinary group of leaders who risked everything to form this nation, founded on the principle of liberty under God. 
 
At this moment, we need to remember their courage and example.  We need be certain that we do not allow the extremism we are seeing on the left to make us fearful. 
 
Whether you are deep in the belly of blue state California or living in red state Alabama, we are called as men and women of faith to "Be not afraid."