wnd--2020-09-07--Trump, veterans and outrageous media lies

Editor 's note : Maj. Gen. Patrick Henry Brady is a Medal of Honor recipient and former president of the Medal of Honor Society .
It has been said that the only difference between a cat and a lie is that a cat has only nine lives .
The latest media lies about Trump – that he called America 's warriors losers and suckers – will soon fade as the media learns that our veterans are not only not losers and suckers , they are not stupid .
They see this calumny for what it is , an effort to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 's most admired cohort – our veterans and our military .
Veterans are not influenced by what the enemy , our dishonest media , says our president said , but only by what he has actually done .
I am amazed that anyone would give this lie a second 's notice .
Has anyone heard of a VA scandal under Trump ?
Or a hollow , feckless military under Trump ?
Both were routine during Obama/Biden ( O-Biden ) .
Veterans are bottom-line people , much like our president .
Unfortunately , we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 's go back and look at the bottom line between Trump and our veterans – not what he is accused of saying , which his accusers know is unprovable , but what he has done .
During Obama/Biden , endless queues to VA care were virtual death sentences .
Some VA employees disrespectful , even hostile , to our veterans were un-fireable .
Both are gone .
Many veterans remember carpooling their buddies past civilian health care centers to reach the nearest VA facility often many miles away .
Veterans ' care in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ undoable and had been for years .
Now , because of Trump , at-hand health care facilities are available and saving lives .
Trump extended GI Bill benefits from 15 years to life , and ordered that student debt for totally disabled veterans be forgiven .
President Trump 's bottom line on VA spending is a record strongly focused on mental health and suicide prevention .
And , unlike so much federal spending , Trump 's has resulted in record low veteran unemployment , 2.5 % at one point ; it averaged 6.6 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as focused on our security as our veterans ; they have skin in the game – some much more than skin .
I was part of Jimmy Carter 's notorious `` hollow military '' ( remember Desert One ) which was a grave threat to the safety of our people .
O-Biden took us beyond hollow .
In my eight decades as an American , and 35 years of service , I never saw as impotent a military as the one fielded by O-Biden .
Do you remember ISIS and the O-Biden Caliphate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
And the atrocities against Christians and helpless citizens ?
The public beheadings ?
The human incinerations ?
All this was rampant during O-Biden leadership and readiness .
Trump quickly eliminated the caliphate , and we hear little of ISIS today .
Ronald Reagan took us out of Carter 's hollow military and Donald Trump has done the same for the beyond hollow military of O-Biden .
O-Biden actually funded – specifically billions to Iran , the premier sponsor of terrorism in the world – terrorists who kill our soldiers ; and in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ warriors , traded an American traitor for terrorists .
Unlike Biden 's left , no veteran I know was distraught by Trump 's execution of the two premier terrorists in the world .
Veterans have seen , side by side with freedom , the evils of socialism , communism , totalitarianism and terrorism in Germany , Korea and across the world .
They realize that Biden is a puppet in the hands of those who seek to impose those disastrous systems on America .
Biden supported a president who loathed the military .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ not know the difference between a corps and a corpse , who invented the term `` leading from behind , '' the greatest oxymoron of all time .
Forget what this guy says , what has he done for veterans or for the military in half a century on the public teat .
The media has painted Trump as a four-letter word , actually he is J-O-B-S. Biden is a two-letter word , B-S. Biden boasts about what he will do , but he did n't do in half a century ; Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and therefore can do again .
In the face of unprecedented riots and thuggery , when law enforcement is stretched to its limits and our people 's safety is at risk , Biden 's left wants to eliminate the police , our only source of law enforcement and safety .
Who in the hell can explain such lunacy ?
The one thing veterans understand above all else is leadership .
They have a strict criterion for judging people : Would I want this person with me in combat , or as commander @ @ @ @ @ @ @ want Joe Biden with them in combat ?
Or in any crisis ?
In his condition ?
Who could believe , based on actual track records , that Biden cares more about veterans and our military than Trump , that Biden is qualified to be a leader , our commander in chief ?
Come on , man !
It is time for us to ignore the scurrilous lies of unnamed sources and focus on the evil of these media people .
As a former spokesman for the Army , I can say we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ source of the unnamed source was a coward .
Most people do n't like to be named as cowards , and that is why these people are unnamed .
As children we were taught that our most precious possession was our good name .
And a most grievous evil was to defame , to commit calumny or slander , against the good name of another person .
In fact , we were warned not to even tell the truth of another 's faults , or sins , without sufficient cause .
In either @ @ @ @ @ @ @ restitution .
One of God 's Big Ten is the admonition to never bear false witness against our neighbors .
Bearing false witness has become the raison d'être of today 's media .
Surely they will pay a price for this one day .
I was honored to serve my country in uniform for 35 years during which I flew over 2,500 combat missions and helped rescue over 5,000 wounded men , women , children – enemy as well as friendly .
I dearly loved that country I served .
It was the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that respects our flag , our Constitution and our heritage , loves our military , our police , our God and life , that is dedicated to the security of our borders and our people .
For that America , for Trump 's America , I would gladly give my life .
For Joe Biden 's America , an America that burns Old Glory , despises our heritage and our Constitution , hates our police , burns our churches , would kill a baby on its birthday , weakens our military and demeans @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people and our cities , while taking our guns – for Joe Biden 's America , I would not give one drop of my blood .
To paraphrase : The media demons whisper to the Trump warriors , you can not withstand the storm .
And the warriors whisper back , we are the storm .
Stand by for a monumental ass kicking .

Editor's note: Maj. Gen. Patrick Henry Brady is a Medal of Honor recipient and former president of the Medal of Honor Society.
It has been said that the only difference between a cat and a lie is that a cat has only nine lives. The latest media lies about Trump – that he called America's warriors losers and suckers – will soon fade as the media learns that our veterans are not only not losers and suckers, they are not stupid. They see this calumny for what it is, an effort to influence Trump's strongest supporters and America's most admired cohort – our veterans and our military.
Veterans are not influenced by what the enemy, our dishonest media, says our president said, but only by what he has actually done. I am amazed that anyone would give this lie a second's notice. Has anyone heard of a VA scandal under Trump? Or a hollow, feckless military under Trump? Both were routine during Obama/Biden (O-Biden).
Veterans are bottom-line people, much like our president. Unfortunately, we have a media-driven memory, so let's go back and look at the bottom line between Trump and our veterans – not what he is accused of saying, which his accusers know is unprovable, but what he has done.
During Obama/Biden, endless queues to VA care were virtual death sentences. Some VA employees disrespectful, even hostile, to our veterans were un-fireable. Both are gone.
TRENDING: Is this the 'Final Battle'?
Many veterans remember carpooling their buddies past civilian health care centers to reach the nearest VA facility often many miles away. Veterans' care in those nearby civilian medical facilities was thought undoable and had been for years. Now, because of Trump, at-hand health care facilities are available and saving lives.
Trump extended GI Bill benefits from 15 years to life, and ordered that student debt for totally disabled veterans be forgiven.
President Trump's bottom line on VA spending is a record strongly focused on mental health and suicide prevention. And, unlike so much federal spending, Trump's has resulted in record low veteran unemployment, 2.5% at one point; it averaged 6.6% under O-Biden.
Few Americans are as focused on our security as our veterans; they have skin in the game – some much more than skin. I was part of Jimmy Carter's notorious "hollow military" (remember Desert One) which was a grave threat to the safety of our people. O-Biden took us beyond hollow. In my eight decades as an American, and 35 years of service, I never saw as impotent a military as the one fielded by O-Biden.
Do you remember ISIS and the O-Biden Caliphate? And the ridiculous rules of engagement? And the atrocities against Christians and helpless citizens? The public beheadings? The human incinerations? All this was rampant during O-Biden leadership and readiness. Trump quickly eliminated the caliphate, and we hear little of ISIS today.
Ronald Reagan took us out of Carter's hollow military and Donald Trump has done the same for the beyond hollow military of O-Biden.
O-Biden actually funded – specifically billions to Iran, the premier sponsor of terrorism in the world – terrorists who kill our soldiers; and in an amazing display of disrespect to our warriors, traded an American traitor for terrorists. Unlike Biden's left, no veteran I know was distraught by Trump's execution of the two premier terrorists in the world.
Veterans have seen, side by side with freedom, the evils of socialism, communism, totalitarianism and terrorism in Germany, Korea and across the world. They realize that Biden is a puppet in the hands of those who seek to impose those disastrous systems on America.
Biden supported a president who loathed the military. He worked for a president who did not know the difference between a corps and a corpse, who invented the term "leading from behind," the greatest oxymoron of all time. Forget what this guy says, what has he done for veterans or for the military in half a century on the public teat.
The media has painted Trump as a four-letter word, actually he is J-O-B-S. Biden is a two-letter word, B-S. Biden boasts about what he will do, but he didn't do in half a century; Trump boasts about what he has already done, and therefore can do again.
In the face of unprecedented riots and thuggery, when law enforcement is stretched to its limits and our people's safety is at risk, Biden's left wants to eliminate the police, our only source of law enforcement and safety. Who in the hell can explain such lunacy?
The one thing veterans understand above all else is leadership. They have a strict criterion for judging people: Would I want this person with me in combat, or as commander in chief?
Would anyone out there want Joe Biden with them in combat? Or in any crisis? In his condition? Who could believe, based on actual track records, that Biden cares more about veterans and our military than Trump, that Biden is qualified to be a leader, our commander in chief? Come on, man!
It is time for us to ignore the scurrilous lies of unnamed sources and focus on the evil of these media people. As a former spokesman for the Army, I can say we taught our media personnel that at the source of the unnamed source was a coward. Most people don't like to be named as cowards, and that is why these people are unnamed.
As children we were taught that our most precious possession was our good name. And a most grievous evil was to defame, to commit calumny or slander, against the good name of another person. In fact, we were warned not to even tell the truth of another's faults, or sins, without sufficient cause. In either case, we were required to make restitution. One of God's Big Ten is the admonition to never bear false witness against our neighbors. Bearing false witness has become the raison d'être of today's media. Surely they will pay a price for this one day.
I was honored to serve my country in uniform for 35 years during which I flew over 2,500 combat missions and helped rescue over 5,000 wounded men, women, children – enemy as well as friendly. I dearly loved that country I served.
It was the country of President Trump, an America that respects our flag, our Constitution and our heritage, loves our military, our police, our God and life, that is dedicated to the security of our borders and our people. For that America, for Trump's America, I would gladly give my life.
For Joe Biden's America, an America that burns Old Glory, despises our heritage and our Constitution, hates our police, burns our churches, would kill a baby on its birthday, weakens our military and demeans the security of our country, our people and our cities, while taking our guns – for Joe Biden's America, I would not give one drop of my blood.
To paraphrase: The media demons whisper to the Trump warriors, you cannot withstand the storm. And the warriors whisper back, we are the storm. Stand by for a monumental ass kicking.


wnd--2020-09-08--Leftists blame America. decent people blame themselves

As long ago as the 1970s , I came to a major realization .
While watching fellow students at Columbia University demonstrate not just against the war in Vietnam but against America – `` Amerika , '' as many spelled it , the `` imperialist , '' `` colonialist , '' `` mass-murdering '' country – I kept wondering what made these people so hostile to the freest country in human history .
Then , one day , as a result of my having attended a yeshiva ( an Orthodox Jewish day school ) through high school , the reason @ @ @ @ @ @ @ day was devoted to religious studies in Hebrew , and the other half was devoted to secular studies in English .
This meant that I had been immersed in a religious worldview until college .
Though it was Jewish , this worldview could also be called `` Judeo-Christian . ''
Students at traditionally Christian schools were immersed in essentially the same worldview .
We were all taught that the most important battle we need to wage in life was with our own nature .
Jews and Christians learned from the same Scripture that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is evil from his youth '' ( Genesis 8:21 ) .
Therefore , being a good person involved a constant battle with our flawed human nature : our urges , appetites and innate weaknesses .
This battle was also the only real route to a better world .
Every individual had to work on him or herself to be decent , strong , courageous and self-controlled , and every parent had to work , first and foremost , on raising such people .
One day , I came to realize that this was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fellow students were raised .
They were raised to believe that the great battle in life was not with one 's nature but with outside forces – with parents , in many cases , but most of all with society , i.e.
, America .
All of us , whatever our political outlook , have to confront personal failure , loss , disappointment and unhappiness .
When confronted with these challenges , religious Jews and Christians are taught to look inward for both the primary source of their problems and the primary solutions @ @ @ @ @ @ @ done wrong ?
What can I change in my life to solve my problems ?
Of course , some nonreligious liberals and conservatives also have this attitude .
But most of them likely inherited it from religious parents or , at the very least , from parents who were raised in a religious home or a home that retained the remnants of such an upbringing , which was common in pre-1960s America .
( It is therefore questionable how many secular parents will succeed in passing this attitude on to their children .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Judeo-Christian values , has adopted the opposite of the Judeo-Christian view regarding pain in life .
Leftists ( as opposed to liberals ) hold outside forces responsible for their pain .
That is the reason for the litany of left-wing enemies : capitalism , patriarchy , misogyny , systemic racism , homophobia , transphobia , Islamophobia , sexism , xenophobia .
So , then , if you are an unhappy American woman , you can work on yourself and your nature , or you can blame sexism and patriarchy , i.e.
, men @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you are an unhappy gay American , you can work on yourself , or you can blame society 's homophobia for your unhappiness .
And , most significantly , if you are an unhappy black American , you can work on yourself and your life , or you can blame systemic racism and whites for your anger and unfulfilled life .
All this explains why the left encourages every group except for white , Christian , heterosexual males to regard themselves as oppressed .
The more oppressed women , gays , blacks , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they are alienated from America and its values , and the more they gravitate left .
In light of this , I came up with a riddle : Q : What do you call a happy black person ?
Without an exception I can recall , over the course of decades , I have guessed the political affiliation of every black caller to my radio show within a minute of talking to them .
If they sounded happy , I knew they were a Republican ; if they were angry , I knew @ @ @ @ @ @ @ held true for male and female callers .
America has been a great country because it was built on the belief that we must all fight against our natures ( and fight for our country ) .
It is difficult to overstate the damage the left is doing to this country by abandoning the fundamental Judeo-Christian teaching that we must fight our natures in order to lead a more decent and happy life and replacing it with the belief that we must battle America instead .
This replacement inevitably leads to a population @ @ @ @ @ @ @ beings – precisely the type of individuals you see rioting and looting , the type of elected officials who do nothing to stop rioters and looters , the columnists and academics who devote their lives to spewing hate-filled lies about America , and the Twitter mobs who comprise the toxic cancel culture .
It will lead to what the left acknowledges it seeks : the end of America as we have known it .

As long ago as the 1970s, I came to a major realization. While watching fellow students at Columbia University demonstrate not just against the war in Vietnam but against America – "Amerika," as many spelled it, the "imperialist," "colonialist," "mass-murdering" country – I kept wondering what made these people so hostile to the freest country in human history.
Then, one day, as a result of my having attended a yeshiva (an Orthodox Jewish day school) through high school, the reason became clear. Half of each school day was devoted to religious studies in Hebrew, and the other half was devoted to secular studies in English. This meant that I had been immersed in a religious worldview until college.
Though it was Jewish, this worldview could also be called "Judeo-Christian." Students at traditionally Christian schools were immersed in essentially the same worldview. We were all taught that the most important battle we need to wage in life was with our own nature. Jews and Christians learned from the same Scripture that "the will of man's heart is evil from his youth" (Genesis 8:21).
Therefore, being a good person involved a constant battle with our flawed human nature: our urges, appetites and innate weaknesses. This battle was also the only real route to a better world. Every individual had to work on him or herself to be decent, strong, courageous and self-controlled, and every parent had to work, first and foremost, on raising such people.
One day, I came to realize that this was not how the vast majority of my fellow students were raised. They were raised to believe that the great battle in life was not with one's nature but with outside forces – with parents, in many cases, but most of all with society, i.e., America.
TRENDING: Is this the 'Final Battle'?
All of us, whatever our political outlook, have to confront personal failure, loss, disappointment and unhappiness. When confronted with these challenges, religious Jews and Christians are taught to look inward for both the primary source of their problems and the primary solutions to those problems: What have I done wrong? What can I change in my life to solve my problems?
Of course, some nonreligious liberals and conservatives also have this attitude. But most of them likely inherited it from religious parents or, at the very least, from parents who were raised in a religious home or a home that retained the remnants of such an upbringing, which was common in pre-1960s America. (It is therefore questionable how many secular parents will succeed in passing this attitude on to their children.)
The left, which proudly rejects Judeo-Christian values, has adopted the opposite of the Judeo-Christian view regarding pain in life. Leftists (as opposed to liberals) hold outside forces responsible for their pain. That is the reason for the litany of left-wing enemies: capitalism, patriarchy, misogyny, systemic racism, homophobia, transphobia, Islamophobia, sexism, xenophobia.
So, then, if you are an unhappy American woman, you can work on yourself and your nature, or you can blame sexism and patriarchy, i.e., men, for your pained state.
If you are an unhappy gay American, you can work on yourself, or you can blame society's homophobia for your unhappiness.
And, most significantly, if you are an unhappy black American, you can work on yourself and your life, or you can blame systemic racism and whites for your anger and unfulfilled life.
All this explains why the left encourages every group except for white, Christian, heterosexual males to regard themselves as oppressed. The more oppressed women, gays, blacks, etc., see themselves, the more they are alienated from America and its values, and the more they gravitate left. In light of this, I came up with a riddle:
Q: What do you call a happy black person?
A: A Republican.
Without an exception I can recall, over the course of decades, I have guessed the political affiliation of every black caller to my radio show within a minute of talking to them. If they sounded happy, I knew they were a Republican; if they were angry, I knew they were a Democrat. This has held true for male and female callers.
America has been a great country because it was built on the belief that we must all fight against our natures (and fight for our country). It is difficult to overstate the damage the left is doing to this country by abandoning the fundamental Judeo-Christian teaching that we must fight our natures in order to lead a more decent and happy life and replacing it with the belief that we must battle America instead. This replacement inevitably leads to a population of unhappy, ungrateful and mean-spirited human beings – precisely the type of individuals you see rioting and looting, the type of elected officials who do nothing to stop rioters and looters, the columnists and academics who devote their lives to spewing hate-filled lies about America, and the Twitter mobs who comprise the toxic cancel culture.
It will lead to what the left acknowledges it seeks: the end of America as we have known it.


wnd--2020-09-09--Trump tweets video of Joe Rogan comparing Biden to a dying flashlight

( MEDIAITE ) -- President Donald Trump took another shot at Joe Biden on Twitter Tuesday sharing a video of @ @ @ @ @ opponent .
Rogan recently said he thinks there ’ s a “ large group of @ @ @ @ @ with a man who seems to be mentally compromised winning the election and doing so @ @ @ @ @ said earlier this year he ’ d rather vote for the president than Biden .
@ @ @ @ @ , has taken a number of shots at Biden ’ s mental fitness , and @ @ @ @ @ Rogan saying during a discussion with Matt Taibbi , “ Biden , to me , @ @ @ @ @ with a dying battery and going for a long hike in the woods , ” @ @ @ @ @ tweet with that quote earlier .
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(MEDIAITE) -- President Donald Trump took another shot at Joe Biden on Twitter Tuesday sharing a video of Joe Rogan mocking his Democratic opponent.
Rogan recently said he thinks there’s a “large group of people that are very uncomfortable with a man who seems to be mentally compromised winning the election and doing so by hiding,” and said earlier this year he’d rather vote for the president than Biden.
Trump himself, of course, has taken a number of shots at Biden’s mental fitness, and tweeted out a clip of Rogan saying during a discussion with Matt Taibbi, “Biden, to me, is like taking a flashlight with a dying battery and going for a long hike in the woods,” after RT’ing another tweet with that quote earlier.
TRENDING: Is this the 'Final Battle'?
Read the full story ›


wnd--2020-09-09--3 risky choices facing Joe Biden

3 risky choices facing Joe Biden

[ Editor 's note : This story originally was published by Real Clear Politics . ]
Joe Biden ’ s quick trip to Pittsburgh and his speech there Monday condemning urban violence show Democrats now recognize they made a major mistake in ignoring the problem at their convention .
They ’ ve read the polls and finally realize voters care about the arson , shootings , and looting -- and their own safety .
That ’ s a problem for the Biden campaign , which had almost nothing to say about the violence all summer .
Now , they are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and there ’ s a lot of broken glass around .
`` Rioting is not protesting , ” the Democrats ’ presidential nominee told the Carnegie-Mellon University audience .
“ Looting is not protesting .
Setting fires is not protesting .
...
It 's lawlessness , plain and simple . ''
That ’ s true , but it was no less true two weeks or two months ago .
Even now , Biden ’ s main thrust is less against the violence than against President Trump for “ fomenting it ” and “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , `` The simple truth is Donald Trump failed to protect America .
So now he 's trying to scare America.
” TRENDING : Kaepernick nominated for NFL Hall of Fame , and a USA Today columnist supports the move That Biden was willing to leave home on short notice , fly to a swing state , and speak out about the rioting is the clearest indication yet that the election is tightening .
Discussing the violence is one of three big , difficult decisions Biden faces as the campaign heats up .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ who must hold together a fractious coalition and avoid major gaffes .
First , Biden must figure out a way to condemn urban violence without alienating his party ’ s activist base , which strongly supports Black Lives Matter .
The political dilemma is straightforward .
Everyday voters -- the centrists Biden must capture to win -- are appalled by looting , arson , and attacks on police , which the news media has only reluctantly begun to cover honestly .
It ’ s one thing when it takes place in very progressive @ @ @ @ @ @ @ happens in Portland stays in Portland , at least politically .
Not so in Minneapolis or Kenosha .
What happens there hits much closer to home , especially in the swing states of the Upper Midwest .
When the Democrats refused to acknowledge the rioting during their four-day convention , they not only appeared to be on the wrong side of the issue .
They appeared aloof and tone-deaf , clueless about what average Americans think is important .
It shouldn ’ t take polls and focus groups to tell politicians that burning @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and attacking courthouses is wrong .
It shouldn ’ t take CNN ’ s Don Lemon or the New York Times to say , “ Look at the polls .
This is hurting our party.
” But it did .
Now , Biden must craft a winning message about the violence , even as Republicans pound him for waiting so long .
He faces the Goldilocks problem .
If his message is too strong , he ’ ll receive pushback from the left wing of his own party .
They still don @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he needs their enthusiastic support to win .
But if his message is too weak , he won ’ t convince centrist voters he intends to restore law and order on streets near them .
They don ’ t want to hear his familiar message that Trump is to blame or that we can only have social order after we solve problems that have lasted for decades .
Americans want to know they can walk safely to the corner store , shop downtown , or just sit on their front steps .
They @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bad cops held accountable .
They don ’ t want to see excessive force used , and they want peaceful protesters protected .
But they think wholesale efforts to defund the police are downright dangerous .
They ’ re not sure what Biden thinks , and that ’ s a problem for him .
It ’ s not enough to blame Trump or waver on whether the police are systemically racist or their budgets need to be cut .
They don ’ t like the idea that Biden waited weeks to speak about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and simple.
” Second , Biden must lay out an affirmative agenda on a whole range of prominent issues .
It ’ s not enough just to say , “ Trump is dreadful.
” That ’ s all the Democrats said at their convention , and the verdict is in .
They got no bounce from it .
The party faithful loved it , but Democrats need more than that to win .
This silence raises an important question : Why have Democrats been so reluctant to depart from that negative message , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ platform ?
Because what holds the party together is their opposition to Donald Trump , not a common agenda .
Take their platform .
Although it was the most progressive of any major party in American history , it didn ’ t go far enough for supporters of Bernie Sanders , Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez , and Elizabeth Warren .
Some 1,000 convention delegates voted against it .
Even so , the party ’ s prime-time speakers said very little about it .
It was simply too far left to pitch to average voters .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ tout the Democratic platform .
Third , can Biden risk leaving the comforting blanket of his teleprompter and notepad ?
To rev up enthusiasm , he ’ ll need to get out on the campaign trail and do more than read from prepared remarks .
But doing so presents very different risks from those of explaining his policies .
It ’ s not just his lifelong tendency to make gaffes .
The problem is also that the 77-year-old former vice president ’ s gaffes are often accompanied by confusion , forgetfulness , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he is the man they remember from 2008 or 2012 .
Does he have the vitality and mental acuity to tackle the world ’ s most demanding job ?
If voters start to think , “ I wouldn ’ t hire him to manage the local Walmart , ” that would be devastating .
Biden must prevent that image from sinking in .
Staying home wasn ’ t helping .
That ’ s why he traveled to Pittsburgh and has another trip scheduled later this week .
There ’ s a potential price @ @ @ @ @ @ @ talk shows and avoiding any situation that would require him to answer hardball questions .
In the past two months , he has only taken questions from reporters twice .
He favors softball interviews and , even then , he needs notes to answer .
He glances , embarrassingly , to see what he ’ s been told to say .
He tries hard to avoid impromptu responses and , when he does give them , makes unforced errors : “ You ain ’ t black.
” “ Take a test for cocaine.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ those mistakes and Biden ’ s refusal to speak off-the-cuff are “ tells ” revealing deeper problems .
They note that Biden ’ s supporters , from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to New York Times columnist Tom Friedman , don ’ t want him to debate Trump .
Perhaps these insiders know something we don ’ t .
Perhaps not .
In any case , Biden needs to stop these questions from building and overshadowing his campaign .
The only way to do that is to get out , take hard questions , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
When he refused to do that , voters were bound to ask why .
Those questions linger , and they hurt .
Trump is eager to exploit these vulnerabilities .
He wants to take the race to Biden and drive a very public wedge between the Democratic base and centrist voters .
That ’ s Politics 101 .
The Republicans ’ decision to speak to live convention audiences is part of that strategy .
So is Trump ’ s decision to go on the road and campaign .
The goal is to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ speak unfiltered to reporters , explain his policies to voters , and show he is truly up to the job .
If Biden can do that , voters might hire him .
If he can ’ t , they probably won ’ t .
Resolving those doubts is Biden ’ s most pressing task .

[Editor's note: This story originally was published by Real Clear Politics.]
By Charles Lipson
Real Clear Politics
Joe Biden’s quick trip to Pittsburgh and his speech there Monday condemning urban violence show Democrats now recognize they made a major mistake in ignoring the problem at their convention. They’ve read the polls and finally realize voters care about the arson, shootings, and looting -- and their own safety. That’s a problem for the Biden campaign, which had almost nothing to say about the violence all summer. Now, they are doing “cleanup on Aisle 6” and there’s a lot of broken glass around.
"Rioting is not protesting,” the Democrats’ presidential nominee told the Carnegie-Mellon University audience. “Looting is not protesting. Setting fires is not protesting. ... It's lawlessness, plain and simple." That’s true, but it was no less true two weeks or two months ago. Even now, Biden’s main thrust is less against the violence than against President Trump for “fomenting it” and “sowing chaos.” As Biden put it, "The simple truth is Donald Trump failed to protect America. So now he's trying to scare America.”
TRENDING: Is this the 'Final Battle'?
That Biden was willing to leave home on short notice, fly to a swing state, and speak out about the rioting is the clearest indication yet that the election is tightening. Discussing the violence is one of three big, difficult decisions Biden faces as the campaign heats up. Each entails significant risks for a candidate who must hold together a fractious coalition and avoid major gaffes.
First, Biden must figure out a way to condemn urban violence without alienating his party’s activist base, which strongly supports Black Lives Matter. The political dilemma is straightforward. Everyday voters -- the centrists Biden must capture to win -- are appalled by looting, arson, and attacks on police, which the news media has only reluctantly begun to cover honestly. It’s one thing when it takes place in very progressive cities on the West Coast. What happens in Portland stays in Portland, at least politically. Not so in Minneapolis or Kenosha. What happens there hits much closer to home, especially in the swing states of the Upper Midwest.
When the Democrats refused to acknowledge the rioting during their four-day convention, they not only appeared to be on the wrong side of the issue. They appeared aloof and tone-deaf, clueless about what average Americans think is important. It shouldn’t take polls and focus groups to tell politicians that burning down police buildings, smashing store windows, and attacking courthouses is wrong. It shouldn’t take CNN’s Don Lemon or the New York Times to say, “Look at the polls. This is hurting our party.” But it did.
Now, Biden must craft a winning message about the violence, even as Republicans pound him for waiting so long. He faces the Goldilocks problem. If his message is too strong, he’ll receive pushback from the left wing of his own party. They still don’t quite trust him, and he needs their enthusiastic support to win. But if his message is too weak, he won’t convince centrist voters he intends to restore law and order on streets near them. They don’t want to hear his familiar message that Trump is to blame or that we can only have social order after we solve problems that have lasted for decades.
Americans want to know they can walk safely to the corner store, shop downtown, or just sit on their front steps. They want race-neutral policing, and they want bad cops held accountable. They don’t want to see excessive force used, and they want peaceful protesters protected. But they think wholesale efforts to defund the police are downright dangerous.
They’re not sure what Biden thinks, and that’s a problem for him. It’s not enough to blame Trump or waver on whether the police are systemically racist or their budgets need to be cut. They don’t like the idea that Biden waited weeks to speak about an issue he now calls “plain and simple.”
Second, Biden must lay out an affirmative agenda on a whole range of prominent issues. It’s not enough just to say, “Trump is dreadful.” That’s all the Democrats said at their convention, and the verdict is in. They got no bounce from it. The party faithful loved it, but Democrats need more than that to win.
This silence raises an important question: Why have Democrats been so reluctant to depart from that negative message, and so eager to downplay their party platform? Because what holds the party together is their opposition to Donald Trump, not a common agenda. Take their platform. Although it was the most progressive of any major party in American history, it didn’t go far enough for supporters of Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Elizabeth Warren. Some 1,000 convention delegates voted against it. Even so, the party’s prime-time speakers said very little about it. It was simply too far left to pitch to average voters. It’s the Republicans who will tout the Democratic platform.
Third, can Biden risk leaving the comforting blanket of his teleprompter and notepad? To rev up enthusiasm, he’ll need to get out on the campaign trail and do more than read from prepared remarks. But doing so presents very different risks from those of explaining his policies. It’s not just his lifelong tendency to make gaffes. The problem is also that the 77-year-old former vice president’s gaffes are often accompanied by confusion, forgetfulness, and loss of concentration. Voters wonder if he is the man they remember from 2008 or 2012. Does he have the vitality and mental acuity to tackle the world’s most demanding job? If voters start to think, “I wouldn’t hire him to manage the local Walmart,” that would be devastating.
Biden must prevent that image from sinking in. Staying home wasn’t helping. That’s why he traveled to Pittsburgh and has another trip scheduled later this week. There’s a potential price to be paid for declining the Sunday talk shows and avoiding any situation that would require him to answer hardball questions. In the past two months, he has only taken questions from reporters twice. He favors softball interviews and, even then, he needs notes to answer. He glances, embarrassingly, to see what he’s been told to say. He tries hard to avoid impromptu responses and, when he does give them, makes unforced errors: “You ain’t black.” “Take a test for cocaine.”
Voters are beginning to wonder if those mistakes and Biden’s refusal to speak off-the-cuff are “tells” revealing deeper problems. They note that Biden’s supporters, from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to New York Times columnist Tom Friedman, don’t want him to debate Trump. Perhaps these insiders know something we don’t. Perhaps not. In any case, Biden needs to stop these questions from building and overshadowing his campaign. The only way to do that is to get out, take hard questions, speak extemporaneously, and brave the risks. When he refused to do that, voters were bound to ask why. Those questions linger, and they hurt.
Trump is eager to exploit these vulnerabilities. He wants to take the race to Biden and drive a very public wedge between the Democratic base and centrist voters. That’s Politics 101. The Republicans’ decision to speak to live convention audiences is part of that strategy. So is Trump’s decision to go on the road and campaign. The goal is to force Biden to leave his house, speak unfiltered to reporters, explain his policies to voters, and show he is truly up to the job. If Biden can do that, voters might hire him. If he can’t, they probably won’t. Resolving those doubts is Biden’s most pressing task.


wnd--2020-09-09--Tables turned: Biden NOW distrusts intelligence advice

[ Editor 's note : This story originally was published by Real Clear Politics . ]
It ’ s no secret that President Trump has spent nearly his entire time in office at war with his own intelligence community after discovering unprecedented government surveillance of some of his campaign ’ s advisers .
Joe Biden and his team have countered Trump ’ s skepticism by repeatedly castigating the president for dismissing intelligence community warnings as politically motivated .
One of the condemnations from the Democratic presidential nominee came in late July after Trump said he hadn ’ t received a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to pay the Taliban bounties for killing American troops in Afghanistan .
TRENDING : Kaepernick nominated for NFL Hall of Fame , and a USA Today columnist supports the move Biden said he didn ’ t believe the administration wasn ’ t briefed and suggested the president and his national security team weren ’ t paying close enough attention to such vital matters .
“ The idea that somehow he didn ’ t know or isn ’ t being briefed , it is a dereliction of duty if that is the case , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Trump ’ s criticisms of him to underscore his argument : “ He doesn ’ t seem to be cognitively aware of what ’ s going on.
” Now that the president has John Ratcliffe , a trusted loyalist , installed as director of national intelligence , the shoe is on the other foot for team Biden .
The former vice president is now discounting major aspects of official intelligence assessments – especially as they pertain negatively to his campaign .
He ’ s also getting help from the media .
Politico @ @ @ @ @ @ @ undermining the most recent intelligence report regarding China ’ s efforts to influence the November election , quoting “ officials who have seen the underlying intel.
” There ’ s no disputing , however , that in early August , the U.S. intelligence community ’ s top election security official concluded that America ’ s greatest adversaries , Russia and China , are on opposite sides of the 2020 election , with Moscow favoring a Trump win and Beijing hoping for his loss .
As National Public Radio ’ s headline bluntly put @ @ @ @ @ @ @ China Opposes Trump Reelection ; Russia Works Against Biden.
” William Evanina , who heads the National Counterintelligence and Security Center , is quoted as saying that U.S. intelligence agencies have determined that China wants Trump to lose because Beijing is unsettled about where it stands with him and considers him “ unpredictable.
” Meanwhile , Russia is working to promote Trump and undermine Biden in the final two months of the election , Evanina said .
The Biden campaign only accepts half of those findings – that Russia is working to promote @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , it issued a press release asserting that Trump is “ the weakest president in U.S. history when it comes to China ” and that “ Chinese officials are pulling for [ Trump ’ s ] re-election.
” How can Biden ’ s campaign square that with the official intelligence report claiming the opposite ?
It doesn ’ t really try .
And outside Democratic national security experts suggest the reasons run deeper : They argue Ratcliffe isn ’ t running the official assessments about election interference in an above-board way .
Contacted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cited a litany of reasons why Trump is weak on China , including his early statements downplaying the coronavirus threat “ to justify inaction , disregarding warnings from the intelligence community and Joe Biden not to take their word.
” “ As a consequence of Donald Trump 's failures , by every metric , China 's position is stronger and ours is diminished , ” campaign spokesman Andrew Bates told RCP .
“ He has hurt our alliances , left a vacuum in the world for China to fill , offered support for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for a reelection bailout , and leveled the strong economy we left him .
“ That is precisely why numerous Chinese officials are openly pulling for Donald Trump to win , and why the American people absolutely ca n't afford that outcome .
Joe Biden -- who has been tested in the world -- will invest in our people and our competitiveness so that we can build back better , ” he added .
Ned Price , a former CIA analyst who served as a senior director on the Obama administration ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ involved in the Biden campaign , offered another explanation .
In an interview with RCP , Price said the most recent assessment claiming that China wants Biden to win isn ’ t convincing because it relies on open-source public comments from Chinese officials , not more penetrating intelligence .
The intelligence community conclusion that China prefers Biden is based on concerns over the Trump administration ’ s criticism of Beijing ’ s handling of COVID-19 and its efforts to derail China ’ s aggression in the South China Sea , according to an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ highlighted those findings during the Republican convention last week -- without adding that the intelligence also showed Russia continuing to support his campaign .
“ Just In : Chinese Sate Media and Leaders of CHINA want Biden to win ‘ the U.S. Election , ” Trump tweeted on August 26 .
“ Beijing Biden is so weak on China that the intelligence community recently assessed that the Chinese Communist Party favors Biden , ” Donald Trump Jr. said during his convention speech .
Many Democrats are discounting those assertions , Price said , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ statements from Chinese officials .
In a press release issued late last week , the Biden team cited articles arguing that China is warming to a Trump victory , including a July Bloomberg report stating that current and former Chinese officials say the Communist Party leadership wants to see Trump reelected , “ fearing that Biden would be able to unify Eastern allies to resist China ’ s influence.
” With both campaigns squaring off over the issue , Chris Krebs , the Department of Homeland Security ’ s top cybersecurity official , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the last two months , arguing that his team had seen “ nothing at the directed , focused level of 2016.
” This year ’ s election , Krebs asserted , will be “ the most protected and most secure election in modern history.
” Krebs on Tuesday said DHS ’ s cybersecurity arm has seen no cyberattacks on voter registration databases this year .
“ My main takeaway : It ’ s going to be critical over the next few months to maintain our cool and not spin up over every claim @ @ @ @ @ @ @ last measure of resilience is the American voter.
” But that hasn ’ t stopped both sides from getting spun up over the claims of foreign support for each candidate .
In arguing that Chinese officials are actually “ pulling for ” a Trump victory , Team Biden was responding to Trump ’ s assertions during the GOP convention that Biden is a “ gift ” to China , citing the former longtime senator ’ s decades-long support for giving China favored trade status , which Trump has criticized for sending U.S. jobs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s nomination last week , Trump emphasized his “ tough approach toward China ” in terms of trying to ease U.S. trade deficits and blaming Beijing for allowing the coronavirus to escape its borders .
“ Joe Biden ’ s agenda is made in China .
My agenda is made in the USA , ” Trump asserted .
In a press release rebuttal , the Biden camp cited 15 instances in which Trump praised China for its handling of the virus in the early weeks of the pandemic before abruptly reversing course and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was fully revealed .
The Biden campaign also argued that Trump struck a weak trade deal with China that it ’ s not living up to , along with claims from former Trump ’ s adviser John Bolton ’ s book that the president “ begged ” Chinese leader Xi Jinping to help him win and that Trump encouraged him to force millions of Uyghurs into concentration camps .
The statement also pointed to Trump ’ s public encouragement that China begin investigating Biden and his son last fall when the president was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he tried to extort Ukraine into investigating his opponent .
Moreover , Price and others say they simply don ’ t trust Trump-appointed officials not to sway intelligence reports in Trump ’ s favor .
“ There needs to be a healthy skepticism of John Ratcliffe , who sits atop this [ intelligence ] structure , ” Price told RCP earlier this week .
“ In some ways , this sort of ability of the intelligence community under President Donald Trump to remain unbiased and to continue producing assessments that are informed only @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we ’ ve seen some cautionary tales.
” Price pointed to an early August New York Times magazine article accusing top intelligence officials last year of altering a sensitive document ’ s wording about Russia ’ s support of a 2020 Trump win to avoid upsetting the president .
More simply , Price questioned as highly suspect the most recent intelligence assessment putting China and Russia on the same plane when it comes to potential election interference .
Price also assailed what he called Ratcliffe ’ s “ scant ” intelligence experience – @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on the House Intelligence Committee for only six months before Trump nominated him to head the ODNI last summer .
By comparison , Dan Coats , Ratcliffe ’ s predecessor , had spent a quarter-century in Congress , including years on the Senate Intelligence Committee , and four years as ambassador to Germany , one of America ’ s most important foreign security allies .
“ What he doesn ’ t have in national security and intelligence experience , he has made up for in loyalty to President Trump , ” Price said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , he essentially auditioned for the job.
” On Fox News and during congressional hearings , Ratcliffe regularly accused then-Special Counsel Robert Mueller of illegally smearing Trump in his Russian investigation .
During the 2016 election , the former federal prosecutor also called for special investigations into Hillary Clinton ’ s use of a private email server , and during congressional testimony skewered former Attorney General Loretta Lynch for her meeting with Bill Clinton on an Arizona tarmac amid the email scandal .
Price ’ s dim view of Ratcliffe ’ s ability @ @ @ @ @ @ @ way reflects sentiments Biden himself expressed over the weekend .
Both were reacting in part to Ratcliffe ’ s announcement late last week that he would no longer provide in-person intelligence briefings to all members of Congress about foreign election interference .
Ratcliffe said his decision stems from past selective leaks following the broader briefings , namely Democratic lawmakers ’ stressing the threat posed by Russia while discounting intelligence suggesting China supports a Biden victory .
Ratcliffe said he would still meet the statutory obligations to brief Congress by providing written assessments , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ leaks .
Biden reacted by impugning Ratcliffe ’ s motives , calling the decision “ nothing less than a shameless partisan manipulation to protect the personal interests of President Trump ” and a “ betrayal of the oath sworn to the American people and our Constitution .
… President Trump , though his hand-picked DNI – chosen for loyalty , not experience — is attempting to deprive Congress of the information they need to do their part.
” Ratcliffe over the weekend defended his decision .
“ Within minutes of one of those @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Congress went on a number of different outlets and leaked classified information for political purposes , ” he told Fox News ’ Maria Bartiromo .
“ To create a narrative that simply isn ’ t true – that somehow Russia is a greater national security threat than China.
” Ratcliffe insisted he wasn ’ t minimizing Russia ’ s side of the equation .
“ They are a serious national security threat , but day in and day out , the threats that we face from China are significantly greater , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ otherwise is just politicizing intelligence for their own narrative.
” No matter who wins in November , the unprecedented distrust of the intelligence community on both sides will no doubt continue long after the last votes are counted .
Just how much that harms U.S. national security will be up to the historians to decide , but for now , it ’ s another example of the fallout over the government ’ s unprecedented decision to investigate the Trump campaign and continue the spying months after he was inaugurated .

[Editor's note: This story originally was published by Real Clear Politics.]
By Susan Crabtree
Real Clear Politics
It’s no secret that President Trump has spent nearly his entire time in office at war with his own intelligence community after discovering unprecedented government surveillance of some of his campaign’s advisers.
Joe Biden and his team have countered Trump’s skepticism by repeatedly castigating the president for dismissing intelligence community warnings as politically motivated. One of the condemnations from the Democratic presidential nominee came in late July after Trump said he hadn’t received a personal intelligence briefing on reported Russian efforts to pay the Taliban bounties for killing American troops in Afghanistan.
TRENDING: Is this the 'Final Battle'?
Biden said he didn’t believe the administration wasn’t briefed and suggested the president and his national security team weren’t paying close enough attention to such vital matters.
“The idea that somehow he didn’t know or isn’t being briefed, it is a dereliction of duty if that is the case,” Biden said, throwing in one of Trump’s criticisms of him to underscore his argument: “He doesn’t seem to be cognitively aware of what’s going on.”
Now that the president has John Ratcliffe, a trusted loyalist, installed as director of national intelligence, the shoe is on the other foot for team Biden. The former vice president is now discounting major aspects of official intelligence assessments – especially as they pertain negatively to his campaign.
He’s also getting help from the media. Politico on Tuesday published a story aimed at undermining the most recent intelligence report regarding China’s efforts to influence the November election, quoting “officials who have seen the underlying intel.”
There’s no disputing, however, that in early August, the U.S. intelligence community’s top election security official concluded that America’s greatest adversaries, Russia and China, are on opposite sides of the 2020 election, with Moscow favoring a Trump win and Beijing hoping for his loss. As National Public Radio’s headline bluntly put it: “U.S. Intelligence: China Opposes Trump Reelection; Russia Works Against Biden.”
William Evanina, who heads the National Counterintelligence and Security Center, is quoted as saying that U.S. intelligence agencies have determined that China wants Trump to lose because Beijing is unsettled about where it stands with him and considers him “unpredictable.” Meanwhile, Russia is working to promote Trump and undermine Biden in the final two months of the election, Evanina said.
The Biden campaign only accepts half of those findings – that Russia is working to promote a Trump victory. Late last week, it issued a press release asserting that Trump is “the weakest president in U.S. history when it comes to China” and that “Chinese officials are pulling for [Trump’s] re-election.”
How can Biden’s campaign square that with the official intelligence report claiming the opposite? It doesn’t really try. And outside Democratic national security experts suggest the reasons run deeper: They argue Ratcliffe isn’t running the official assessments about election interference in an above-board way.
Contacted by RealClearPolitics, the Biden campaign officials cited a litany of reasons why Trump is weak on China, including his early statements downplaying the coronavirus threat “to justify inaction, disregarding warnings from the intelligence community and Joe Biden not to take their word.”
“As a consequence of Donald Trump's failures, by every metric, China's position is stronger and ours is diminished,” campaign spokesman Andrew Bates told RCP. “He has hurt our alliances, left a vacuum in the world for China to fill, offered support for concentration camps, prostrated himself to ask for a reelection bailout, and leveled the strong economy we left him.
“That is precisely why numerous Chinese officials are openly pulling for Donald Trump to win, and why the American people absolutely can't afford that outcome. Joe Biden -- who has been tested in the world -- will invest in our people and our competitiveness so that we can build back better,” he added.
Ned Price, a former CIA analyst who served as a senior director on the Obama administration’s National Security Council staff and is not involved in the Biden campaign, offered another explanation. In an interview with RCP, Price said the most recent assessment claiming that China wants Biden to win isn’t convincing because it relies on open-source public comments from Chinese officials, not more penetrating intelligence.
The intelligence community conclusion that China prefers Biden is based on concerns over the Trump administration’s criticism of Beijing’s handling of COVID-19 and its efforts to derail China’s aggression in the South China Sea, according to an early August statement from Evanina.
Trump highlighted those findings during the Republican convention last week -- without adding that the intelligence also showed Russia continuing to support his campaign.
“Just In: Chinese Sate Media and Leaders of CHINA want Biden to win ‘the U.S. Election,” Trump tweeted on August 26.
“Beijing Biden is so weak on China that the intelligence community recently assessed that the Chinese Communist Party favors Biden,” Donald Trump Jr. said during his convention speech.
Many Democrats are discounting those assertions, Price said, because there are plenty of countervailing public statements from Chinese officials. In a press release issued late last week, the Biden team cited articles arguing that China is warming to a Trump victory, including a July Bloomberg report stating that current and former Chinese officials say the Communist Party leadership wants to see Trump reelected, “fearing that Biden would be able to unify Eastern allies to resist China’s influence.”
With both campaigns squaring off over the issue, Chris Krebs, the Department of Homeland Security’s top cybersecurity official, tried to provide some nonpartisan refereeing over the last two months, arguing that his team had seen “nothing at the directed, focused level of 2016.”
This year’s election, Krebs asserted, will be “the most protected and most secure election in modern history.” Krebs on Tuesday said DHS’s cybersecurity arm has seen no cyberattacks on voter registration databases this year. “My main takeaway: It’s going to be critical over the next few months to maintain our cool and not spin up over every claim,” he tweeted. “The last measure of resilience is the American voter.”
But that hasn’t stopped both sides from getting spun up over the claims of foreign support for each candidate. In arguing that Chinese officials are actually “pulling for” a Trump victory, Team Biden was responding to Trump’s assertions during the GOP convention that Biden is a “gift” to China, citing the former longtime senator’s decades-long support for giving China favored trade status, which Trump has criticized for sending U.S. jobs overseas.
In accepting his party’s nomination last week, Trump emphasized his “tough approach toward China” in terms of trying to ease U.S. trade deficits and blaming Beijing for allowing the coronavirus to escape its borders.
“Joe Biden’s agenda is made in China. My agenda is made in the USA,” Trump asserted.
In a press release rebuttal, the Biden camp cited 15 instances in which Trump praised China for its handling of the virus in the early weeks of the pandemic before abruptly reversing course and condemning Beijing once its campaign of disinformation was fully revealed. The Biden campaign also argued that Trump struck a weak trade deal with China that it’s not living up to, along with claims from former Trump’s adviser John Bolton’s book that the president “begged” Chinese leader Xi Jinping to help him win and that Trump encouraged him to force millions of Uyghurs into concentration camps.
The statement also pointed to Trump’s public encouragement that China begin investigating Biden and his son last fall when the president was facing a House impeachment inquiry over allegations he tried to extort Ukraine into investigating his opponent.
Moreover, Price and others say they simply don’t trust Trump-appointed officials not to sway intelligence reports in Trump’s favor. “There needs to be a healthy skepticism of John Ratcliffe, who sits atop this [intelligence] structure,” Price told RCP earlier this week. “In some ways, this sort of ability of the intelligence community under President Donald Trump to remain unbiased and to continue producing assessments that are informed only by that unvarnished analysis, I think we’ve seen some cautionary tales.”
Price pointed to an early August New York Times magazine article accusing top intelligence officials last year of altering a sensitive document’s wording about Russia’s support of a 2020 Trump win to avoid upsetting the president.
More simply, Price questioned as highly suspect the most recent intelligence assessment putting China and Russia on the same plane when it comes to potential election interference.
Price also assailed what he called Ratcliffe’s “scant” intelligence experience – the three-term congressman from Texas had served on the House Intelligence Committee for only six months before Trump nominated him to head the ODNI last summer. By comparison, Dan Coats, Ratcliffe’s predecessor, had spent a quarter-century in Congress, including years on the Senate Intelligence Committee, and four years as ambassador to Germany, one of America’s most important foreign security allies.
“What he doesn’t have in national security and intelligence experience, he has made up for in loyalty to President Trump,” Price said. “Over the course of months, he essentially auditioned for the job.”
On Fox News and during congressional hearings, Ratcliffe regularly accused then-Special Counsel Robert Mueller of illegally smearing Trump in his Russian investigation. During the 2016 election, the former federal prosecutor also called for special investigations into Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server, and during congressional testimony skewered former Attorney General Loretta Lynch for her meeting with Bill Clinton on an Arizona tarmac amid the email scandal.
Price’s dim view of Ratcliffe’s ability to run the agency in an apolitical way reflects sentiments Biden himself expressed over the weekend. Both were reacting in part to Ratcliffe’s announcement late last week that he would no longer provide in-person intelligence briefings to all members of Congress about foreign election interference. Ratcliffe said his decision stems from past selective leaks following the broader briefings, namely Democratic lawmakers’ stressing the threat posed by Russia while discounting intelligence suggesting China supports a Biden victory.
Ratcliffe said he would still meet the statutory obligations to brief Congress by providing written assessments, but he was fed up with the leaks.
Biden reacted by impugning Ratcliffe’s motives, calling the decision “nothing less than a shameless partisan manipulation to protect the personal interests of President Trump” and a “betrayal of the oath sworn to the American people and our Constitution. … President Trump, though his hand-picked DNI – chosen for loyalty, not experience — is attempting to deprive Congress of the information they need to do their part.”
Ratcliffe over the weekend defended his decision. “Within minutes of one of those briefings ending, a number of members of Congress went on a number of different outlets and leaked classified information for political purposes,” he told Fox News’ Maria Bartiromo. “To create a narrative that simply isn’t true – that somehow Russia is a greater national security threat than China.”
Ratcliffe insisted he wasn’t minimizing Russia’s side of the equation.
“They are a serious national security threat, but day in and day out, the threats that we face from China are significantly greater,” he said. “Anyone who says otherwise is just politicizing intelligence for their own narrative.”
No matter who wins in November, the unprecedented distrust of the intelligence community on both sides will no doubt continue long after the last votes are counted. Just how much that harms U.S. national security will be up to the historians to decide, but for now, it’s another example of the fallout over the government’s unprecedented decision to investigate the Trump campaign and continue the spying months after he was inaugurated.


wnd--2020-09-09--'Days of Our Lives' and 'Knots Landing' star Kevin Dobson dead at 77

Kevin Dobson , an actor on television and the stage , died Sunday in a Stockton , California , hospital .
He was 77 .
His agent , Arthur Toretzk , told The Hollywood Reporter that Dobson had been suffering from an autoimmune deficiency .
Dobson 's IMDb bio lists the cause of death as `` heart attack . ''
Born March 18 , 1943 , in New York City , Dobson grew up in the housing projects in Jackson Heights , one of seven kids .
He had a number of different jobs during his life , including waiter @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Long Island Railroad , military police officer in the Army and -- of course -- actor .
TRENDING : Kaepernick nominated for NFL Hall of Fame , and a USA Today columnist supports the move Being Irish , athletic and connected with the law ( in addition to his time as an MP , his grandfather was a cop in New York ) , perhaps it 's no surprise that he often gravitated toward shows about crime .
In 1968 , Dobson was in the theatrical production `` The Impossible Years , '' @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wife , Susan .
In the 1970s , he was a regular on `` Kojak , '' where he played Detective Bobby Crocker .
In 1982 , Dobson landed one of his best-known roles as district attorney Mack MacKenzie in `` Knots Landing '' -- but apparently when he first found out what part he got , he was not thrilled .
He learned to love his character .
In 2008 , he was in 15 episodes of `` Days of Our Lives '' as Mickey Horton .
He continued to land occasional @ @ @ @ @ @ @ movies until his death .
While Dobson had a passion for his craft , he also had a passion for assisting veterans .
Twice he was chairman of the National Salute to Hospitalized Veterans .
He has also participated in fundraisers to benefit the John Wayne Cancer Institute , which his wife is involved with .
He had a lot of respect for his best friend and mentor Telly Savalas , who greatly influenced his style and aspirations of becoming an actor .
`` What an opportunity ! ''
Dobson said of being @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to IMDb .
`` I am so grateful to have worked with him .
He was a hard-nosed movie star , but as sensitive as anyone could be . ''
`` He was a family man -- always -- whether it was his mother , nieces , or brother visiting the set .
We were always putting his family in the holding cell during a scene . ''
Dobson is survived by his wife , Susan , and their three children Sean , Patrick and Mariah .
This article appeared originally on The @ @ @

Kevin Dobson, an actor on television and the stage, died Sunday in a Stockton, California, hospital. He was 77.
His agent, Arthur Toretzk, told The Hollywood Reporter that Dobson had been suffering from an autoimmune deficiency. Dobson's IMDb bio lists the cause of death as "heart attack."
Born March 18, 1943, in New York City, Dobson grew up in the housing projects in Jackson Heights, one of seven kids.
He had a number of different jobs during his life, including waiter and bartender, train conductor for the Long Island Railroad, military police officer in the Army and -- of course -- actor.
TRENDING: Is this the 'Final Battle'?
Being Irish, athletic and connected with the law (in addition to his time as an MP, his grandfather was a cop in New York), perhaps it's no surprise that he often gravitated toward shows about crime.
In 1968, Dobson was in the theatrical production "The Impossible Years," and that year he also married his wife, Susan.
In the 1970s, he was a regular on "Kojak," where he played Detective Bobby Crocker.
In 1982, Dobson landed one of his best-known roles as district attorney Mack MacKenzie in "Knots Landing" -- but apparently when he first found out what part he got, he was not thrilled. He learned to love his character.
In 2008, he was in 15 episodes of "Days of Our Lives" as Mickey Horton. He continued to land occasional parts in plays, television shows and movies until his death.
While Dobson had a passion for his craft, he also had a passion for assisting veterans. Twice he was chairman of the National Salute to Hospitalized Veterans.
He has also participated in fundraisers to benefit the John Wayne Cancer Institute, which his wife is involved with.
He had a lot of respect for his best friend and mentor Telly Savalas, who greatly influenced his style and aspirations of becoming an actor.
"What an opportunity!" Dobson said of being able to work with Savalas, according to IMDb. "I am so grateful to have worked with him. He was a hard-nosed movie star, but as sensitive as anyone could be."
"He was a family man -- always -- whether it was his mother, nieces, or brother visiting the set. We were always putting his family in the holding cell during a scene."
Dobson is survived by his wife, Susan, and their three children Sean, Patrick and Mariah.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.


wnd--2020-09-09--Dems' energy plan draws flood of opposition

[ Editor 's note : This story originally was published by Real Clear Energy . ]
As a non-partisan advocate for energy policies that help our families , farmers and small businesses by keeping energy reliable , affordable , and environmentally responsible , Consumer Energy Alliance has long supported wind , solar , oil , natural gas , nuclear and all other forms of energy .
And we will continue to argue for policies that aid in our nation ’ s ability to keep energy abundant and decrease our dependence on countries with less robust environmental safeguards .
TRENDING : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and a USA Today columnist supports the move For this reason , we reluctantly offer our strong opposition to the Democratic Party ’ s recently announced policy position that would eliminate future energy development on federal lands .
Any policy which restricts U.S. energy supplies is anti-family , and will increase the already smothering financial pressure on those living on low or fixed incomes , or even worse , without incomes as a result of the pandemic .
Energy produced on federal lands in western states generates revenue for state , county @ @ @ @ @ @ @ services such as healthcare , education and infrastructure .
In CEA ’ s view , the platform as currently written includes unrealistic cost and job-creation assumptions , and fails to recognize the critical role that a robust and expansive energy policy must play in helping the U.S. recover from the COVID-19 crisis .
It also appears to ignore the fact that some of our federal lands hold our greatest resources of oil and gas as well as the critical minerals we need to build advanced renewable technologies .
One of COVID-19 ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lessons is that the U.S. needs more energy , not less .
It may seem counter-intuitive when we see headlines about low natural gas and oil prices or electricity demand hitting a 16-year low because of the dramatic consumption decline caused by the pandemic , but harnessing America ’ s energy resources and technological know-how has never been more important .
Case in point : One worry we never had throughout this pandemic is having enough reliable , affordable energy .
We owe that to America ’ s energy sector , even as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ losses .
But their ability to deliver energy via wind , solar , oil , natural gas , hydrogen , nuclear , and so many more – has allowed us to gain energy self-sufficiency at the same time we are leading the world with the best environmental safeguards .
But , COVID-19 has also exposed the weaknesses in our critical supply chains .
Key products like medicines , packaging , medical equipment , manufactured goods , cleaning supplies , toilet paper , and so many more – that used to be made here @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nations .
We are all witnessing in real time the fool ’ s errand it is to rely on China and others for these products .
Fortunately , U.S. companies have stepped up and demonstrated the best American qualities of practicality , ingenuity , innovation and collaboration to solve some of the problem , working to fill gaps and quickly meet the increased demand for disinfectants , cleaning products and hand sanitizer .
Still , an enduring economic recovery that can recreate hundreds of thousands of jobs will require rebuilding and bringing back @ @ @ @ @ @ @ factor in economic recovery will be energy .
This means that having a forward-thinking , progressive , industry-building , job-creating , economy-boosting energy policy is now more important than ever , and will require every single source of domestic energy we can find .
Name any other nation in the world that willingly forecloses its ability to benefit from its own assets , and instead chooses to make itself more dependent on outsiders .
America would be ceding her energy self-sufficiency to others at a time when we must protect and grow it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ how to curtail emissions while meeting energy demand .
Let impartial data tell the story : the U.S. has the largest absolute decrease in carbon dioxide emissions of any country since 2000 , down by more than 1 gigaton from their peak that year , according to the International Energy Agency .
In 2019 alone , America once again led the world with a reduction of 140 megatons , while Asia ’ s output increased by 320 megatons – almost entirely from China .
The U.S. is more than two-thirds of the way @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Paris Climate Accord 2025 targets , while China has only agreed to stop increasing emissions by 2030 .
It ’ s proof positive that our broad energy mix , including increased use of renewables is leading the world in emissions reductions .
Still , some shrill activists continue to attack specific forms of energy , taking joy in cheering the economic damage and job losses wrought by the pandemic on the oil and gas industry .
They misguidedly toast their success in shuttering or delaying critical infrastructure projects by rendering them economically unattractive @ @ @ @ @ @ @ now , we must view energy with a non-partisan lens .
After all , energy impacts each of us every day in more ways than any other aspect of life – from air conditioning to driving to dinner to smart phones to wearing clothes .
If we are to rebuild , re-invest , refill decimated state and federal budgets , and re-capture supply chains , jobs and economic hope , energy must play a leading role .
That means , wind and solar continue their growth path , natural gas keeps playing an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and offshore oil must continue , and nuclear power ’ s clean energy role must be recognized while we enhance our globe-leading environmental progress .
We can hit our emissions goals without needlessly harming families , farmers and small businesses with overly restrictive energy policies that rely on wishes rather than realities .
Let ’ s stop the bully politics and approach our energy future from a viewpoint of abundance , rather than a just-say-no , anti-energy platform that will raise energy costs and lower reliability .
That will only harm families , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from inside some impacted communities about moving too fast .
We must heed them , and we urge our political leaders to adopt a more non-partisan approach to energy policy that offers hope for economic growth and world-class environmental stewardship .
David Holt is president of Consumer Energy Alliance , the leading U.S. consumer advocate in support of affordable reliable energy for working families , seniors and businesses across the country .
[ Editor 's note : This story originally was published by Real Clear Energy . ]

[Editor's note: This story originally was published by Real Clear Energy.]
By David Holt
Real Clear Energy
As a non-partisan advocate for energy policies that help our families, farmers and small businesses by keeping energy reliable, affordable, and environmentally responsible, Consumer Energy Alliance has long supported wind, solar, oil, natural gas, nuclear and all other forms of energy.
And we will continue to argue for policies that aid in our nation’s ability to keep energy abundant and decrease our dependence on countries with less robust environmental safeguards.
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For this reason, we reluctantly offer our strong opposition to the Democratic Party’s recently announced policy position that would eliminate future energy development on federal lands.
Any policy which restricts U.S. energy supplies is anti-family, and will increase the already smothering financial pressure on those living on low or fixed incomes, or even worse, without incomes as a result of the pandemic. Energy produced on federal lands in western states generates revenue for state, county and tribal governments that fund essential government services such as healthcare, education and infrastructure.
In CEA’s view, the platform as currently written includes unrealistic cost and job-creation assumptions, and fails to recognize the critical role that a robust and expansive energy policy must play in helping the U.S. recover from the COVID-19 crisis. It also appears to ignore the fact that some of our federal lands hold our greatest resources of oil and gas as well as the critical minerals we need to build advanced renewable technologies.
One of COVID-19’s greatest – and perhaps least obvious – lessons is that the U.S. needs more energy, not less.
It may seem counter-intuitive when we see headlines about low natural gas and oil prices or electricity demand hitting a 16-year low because of the dramatic consumption decline caused by the pandemic, but harnessing America’s energy resources and technological know-how has never been more important.
Case in point: One worry we never had throughout this pandemic is having enough reliable, affordable energy. We owe that to America’s energy sector, even as they weathered their own downturn and job losses. But their ability to deliver energy via wind, solar, oil, natural gas, hydrogen, nuclear, and so many more – has allowed us to gain energy self-sufficiency at the same time we are leading the world with the best environmental safeguards.
But, COVID-19 has also exposed the weaknesses in our critical supply chains. Key products like medicines, packaging, medical equipment, manufactured goods, cleaning supplies, toilet paper, and so many more – that used to be made here are now made and controlled by other nations. We are all witnessing in real time the fool’s errand it is to rely on China and others for these products.
Fortunately, U.S. companies have stepped up and demonstrated the best American qualities of practicality, ingenuity, innovation and collaboration to solve some of the problem, working to fill gaps and quickly meet the increased demand for disinfectants, cleaning products and hand sanitizer. Still, an enduring economic recovery that can recreate hundreds of thousands of jobs will require rebuilding and bringing back entire industries.
The single, unifying factor in economic recovery will be energy.
This means that having a forward-thinking, progressive, industry-building, job-creating, economy-boosting energy policy is now more important than ever, and will require every single source of domestic energy we can find.
Name any other nation in the world that willingly forecloses its ability to benefit from its own assets, and instead chooses to make itself more dependent on outsiders. America would be ceding her energy self-sufficiency to others at a time when we must protect and grow it, while continuing to show the world how to curtail emissions while meeting energy demand.
Let impartial data tell the story: the U.S. has the largest absolute decrease in carbon dioxide emissions of any country since 2000, down by more than 1 gigaton from their peak that year, according to the International Energy Agency. In 2019 alone, America once again led the world with a reduction of 140 megatons, while Asia’s output increased by 320 megatons – almost entirely from China.
The U.S. is more than two-thirds of the way to its emissions reductions goals under the Paris Climate Accord 2025 targets, while China has only agreed to stop increasing emissions by 2030. It’s proof positive that our broad energy mix, including increased use of renewables is leading the world in emissions reductions.
Still, some shrill activists continue to attack specific forms of energy, taking joy in cheering the economic damage and job losses wrought by the pandemic on the oil and gas industry. They misguidedly toast their success in shuttering or delaying critical infrastructure projects by rendering them economically unattractive and more expensive for consumers.
Right now, we must view energy with a non-partisan lens. After all, energy impacts each of us every day in more ways than any other aspect of life – from air conditioning to driving to dinner to smart phones to wearing clothes.
If we are to rebuild, re-invest, refill decimated state and federal budgets, and re-capture supply chains, jobs and economic hope, energy must play a leading role. That means, wind and solar continue their growth path, natural gas keeps playing an increasing role, U.S. reliance on onshore and offshore oil must continue, and nuclear power’s clean energy role must be recognized while we enhance our globe-leading environmental progress.
We can hit our emissions goals without needlessly harming families, farmers and small businesses with overly restrictive energy policies that rely on wishes rather than realities.
Let’s stop the bully politics and approach our energy future from a viewpoint of abundance, rather than a just-say-no, anti-energy platform that will raise energy costs and lower reliability. That will only harm families, and we are already hearing the warnings from inside some impacted communities about moving too fast.
We must heed them, and we urge our political leaders to adopt a more non-partisan approach to energy policy that offers hope for economic growth and world-class environmental stewardship.
David Holt is president of Consumer Energy Alliance, the leading U.S. consumer advocate in support of affordable reliable energy for working families, seniors and businesses across the country.
[Editor's note: This story originally was published by Real Clear Energy.]