As a retired pastor of 14 years, I resent the use of "Christ" as a reason to support a political candidate, and here is why :

Editor's notes:  I am a retired minister and a 11 year student of a theologian named Karl Barth  (pronounced "bart")    . . . . But,  more than this,  I have been a declared Christian for 58 years and a student of the biblical message for 50 of those years.  None of this means anything to anyone except to me.  Because of my background,  I believe I have a personal understanding that is qualified,  and, it is this:  Christianity is about the person of Christ in his followers,  I say "in" his followers.  It is not about a personal politic but, rather,  a personal moral sense that is driven and defined by His personhood.  

As such,  Cruz's call to "waken the body of Christ"  (he references the Christian Church) is out of place precisely because this call has nothing to do with the singular purpose of the body of Christ.  Instead of supporting a divisive political process  (and it is divisive because of the existential nature of "politics"), the call of the Christian can be express on three levels;  the call is for reconciliation, the acceptance of others, even the "sinner" (aren't we all) , and, in the face of diversity,  unity on some meaningful level.  While I am a poor example of this, that does not change the perimeters of this actionable defining.  

Cruz,  in his use of this call,  perverts the Message and renders the Faith to be nothing more than a tool of the politician.  Pathetic   . . . . .    and Cruz should actually know better.  
_______________________
(AP) -   Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is infusing his closing argument to Iowans with Biblical references as his campaign visits some of the state's conservative strongholds.
Cruz has made courting Iowa's evangelical Christians a cornerstone of his campaign and he has long tapped the Bible in his stump speech.
At a stop Saturday at Darrell's Place in Hamlin, Iowa, Cruz urged his supporters to "awaken the body of Christ that we may pull back from the abyss."

The smoking gun: Whether or not a document was noted as classified was never the question . . . . and Hillary knows this . . . . . and we can prove it, leaglly speaking.

Editor's notes:  Turns out she knew that a document did not have to be marked as "classified" to be classified.  We know this because she signed a declaration to that effect.  The Washington Free Beacon reported on this,  three months ago. 


BY:

As the nation’s chief diplomat, Hillary Clinton was responsible for ascertaining whether information in her possession was classified and acknowledged that “negligent handling” of that information could jeopardize national security, according to a copy of an agreement she signed upon taking the job.
A day after assuming office as secretary of state, Clinton signed a Sensitive Compartmented Information Nondisclosure Agreement that laid out criminal penalties for “any unauthorized disclosure” of classified information.
Experts have guessed that Clinton signed such an agreement, but a copy of her specific contract, obtained by the Competitive Enterprise Institute through an open records request and shared with the Washington Free Beacon, reveals for the first time the exact language of the NDA.
“I have been advised that the unauthorized disclosure, unauthorized retention, or negligent handling of SCI by me could cause irreparable injury to the United States or be used to advantage by a foreign nation,” the agreement states.

This morning I report on the "Cruz Threat." Tonight, it appears to be worse than I originally reported.

Ryan Lizza / New Yorker:
Ted Cruz's Iowa Mailers Are More Fraudulent Than Everyone Thinks  —  Ted Cruz's Presidential campaign prides itself on being data-centric and on integrating insights from political science into its tactics   . . . .    
 

In 2008, academics at Yale published an influential paper showing that one of the most effective ways to get voters to the polls was “social pressure.” Researchers found that registered voters in a 2006 primary election in Michigan voted at a higher rate if they received mailers indicating that their participation in the election would be publicized. The mailer that had the biggest impact included information about the two previous elections and whether the recipient and his or her neighbors participated or not. “We intend to mail an updated chart,” the mailer warned. “You and your neighbors will all know who voted and who did not.”
 
Insights from the Yale study have since been adopted by several campaigns, including MoveOn, which also faced criticism when it used the tactic to turn out voters for Barack Obama’s reĆ«lection, in 2012. Given its obsession with political science, it’s no surprise that the Cruz campaign decided to adopt the “social pressure” techniques to turn out voters in Iowa for Monday night’s caucuses. On Saturday, Twitter came alive with pictures from voters in the state who received mailers from the Cruz campaign. At the top of the mailers, in a bold red box, are the words “VOTING VIOLATION.” Below that warning is an explanation:
You are receiving this election notice because of low expected voter turnout in your area. Your individual voting history as well as your neighbors’ are public record. Their scores are published below, and many of them will see your score as well. CAUCUS ON MONDAY TO IMPROVE YOUR SCORE and please encourage your neighbors to caucus as well. A follow-up notice may be issued following Monday’s caucuses.
 

Conservatism defined . . . . brilliantly (see the video)


Now Cruz is threaten his opponents. Here is a window into the character of Ted Cruz: Me thinks the man is in trouble via his internal polling.

<<<  This was sent to a number of Iowan voters the past three days.  Just another reason by I believe Cruz is a plastic banana  (read:phony) candidate.   

“You are receiving this election notice because of low expected voter turnout in your area.  Your individual voting history as well as your neighbors’ are public record. Their scores are published below, and many of them will see your score as well. Caucus on Monday to improve your score and please encourage your neighbors to caucus as well.”

Campaign ad for Rubio. This blog fully supports his candidacy with Kasich and Fiorina being excellent alternatives.



The 3 minute anti-Trump video that promises to make a difference in Iowa.

Its brutal.  This just goes to show that as bad a choice as is Trump,  he is a world ahead of any Marxist opponent.  And,  Obama is done.  Good riddance

Comprehensive anti-Trump ad out today, in Iowa.




Of the 1236 votes needed to win the GOP primary process, Iowa counts for . . . . .

Of the 1236 votes needed to win the GOP primary process,  Iowa counts for the following: 

8 votes total,  goes to the winner.

The runner-up gets 6 votes 

And,  third gets 4.  

That's it   . . . . . .   plus a little momentum.  

Turns out Iowa, with its 18 primary vote offering,   is only "important" because it is the first primary event   . . . . .   period.  We have a long way to go.  South Carolina is considered a bellwether primary state.  Over the past four decades,  only one GOP candidate did not win in South Carolina.  

Now you know. 

Guest list for the Sunday shows. Me? I am going riding on my man bike. See ya tomorrow.


 
WASHINGTON (AP) — Guest lineups for the Sunday TV news shows:
___
"Fox News Sunday" — Trump, Cruz.
___
ABC's "This Week" — Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders; Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.
___

NBC's "Meet the Press" — Sanders; Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz.
___
CBS' "Face the Nation" — Trump; Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio.
___
CNN's "State of the Union" — Rubio, Cruz, Sanders.

Final polling results before the Iowa Caucus ( D and R). Let's see how accurate these results really are.

120,000 + is a good but nominal/average  turn-out for the GOP in the Iowa Caucus primary; Democrat turn-out will be considerably more.     New Hampshire is February 9;  the Nevada Democrat Caucus and the bellwether Republican primary of South Carolina are February 20;  Nevada's Republican Caucus is February 23; Democrat primary in South Carolina is February 27.  For a complete schedule in March and beyond,  click on this link, here.  

Advice:  learn the lesson on polling data versus reality.  Note this fact: if the polling data does not match the reality (nominally speaking),  the polling data was ALWAYS wrong, its (the polling data) value,  in this case,  is/was good for one reason only   . . . . . .   raising campaign money.  


Polling trends going into the Monday Caucus:  Trump up 4%,  Cruz down 3%, Rubio up dramatically (from 12% to 18%), Carson trending up slightly (1%).  . 



This group of candidates will be most impacted by the Iowa Caucus. 



If Hillary does not win with a healthy margin.,  it means she is weak with the Millennial vote.

Think Hillary will be unaffected by her email scandal? Think again, Comrade.

Bradley Klapper / Associated Press:
APNewsBreak: Gov't declares 22 Clinton emails ‘top secret’  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration confirmed for the first time Friday that Hillary Clinton's unsecured home server contained some of the U.S. government's most closely guarded secrets, censoring 22 emails with material demanding …

Alzeiheimer can be transmitted. I mean, just look at . . . . . .

ALZHEIMER'S CAN BE TRANSMITTED FROM ONE PERSON TO ANOTHER, NEW EVIDENCE SUGGESTS...

Editor's notes:  Read that headline again as you think of the Marxist Progressive thought process.  They forget that they already dealt with equal pay in the 2009 Lily Ledbetter legislation. They forget that they already dealt with our infrastructure issues in their 2009 Stimulus bill.  They forget that Al Qaeda is dead.  They forget that ISIS is only the JV team.   They forget that they have already solved the poverty issue via redistribution.  They forget that they did nothing to "fix" Ford,  Toyota, Honda,  Mercedes and they are fine.  They forget that an average of 1.7 GDP is as poor an economic record as exists (don't tell anyone but we are currently in a recessionary period as of the 4thQ of 2015.  

I could go on,  but the point is this: those with Alzheimer demonstrate a profound inability to remember their past, hence my criticism.  

Trumps Protest Rally took in 2 million versus the Fox debate without Trump, scoring 13 million !!! So much for Trump's drawing power.

At the time of the original headline,  we were being told there would be no Neilsen rating for the Trump Protest Rally because it was not covered from beginning to end.  Turns out that was wrong. 

Updated:   So,  how did Trump do?  I mean,  he opined his sorrow at what his departure from the GOP stage was going to do Fox News.  "How sad,"  were his exact words.    Now we know.  Fox and the GOP never needed Trump for its record setting debate numbers. 

Look at the numbers: 

The very first GOP debate of the primary season, was a second tier debate on Fox.  It scored 12 million viewers while the "top tier" debate,  same stage - same night,  scored 26 million viewers.  Understand that the first debate with its 12 million,  was an all-time  record for political debates and it was done without Trump.

That second debate with its 26 million,  would have been huge,  without Trump, scoring some 18 million viewers,  again,  if Trump had not been there.  We know this because all of the GOP debates have outscored the Democrat debates,  and that first Democrat debate took in nearly 16 million    . . . . . . . .  without Trump. 

Why do we not hear Trump bragging about his victory versus Fox,  on Thursday night?   Because he got his butt kicked up to his eyeballs   . . . . .   2 million versus 13 million. 

So,  how bad was this butt kicking?  The most recent Sunday night Democrat debate was on NBC and it took in 10 million folks     . . . . . . . . . .   on major network television.  Cable Fox, without Trump, took in 13 million and was the highest rated debate of the three debates held since the first of January  (10 million for the NBC debate,  12 million for the Fox Business debate with Trump on stage,  and 13 million on Thursday night, without the Blowhard). 

Now you know. 

Seven emails, 21 pages - classified emails that State admits are on Hillary's server:

For the first time since this email scandal has been developing,  the State Department has admitted that Hillary has classified emails on her private server.  

But that is not the problem.  Rather,  they are sooo classified that they cannot be revealed to anyone.  Seriously.  

Conclusion:  Now,  for the first time,  everyone who can think and supports Hillary is more than worried.  

Hillary's daughter tried a little fundraising. She had to drop the "suggested" donation from 2500 dollars to 50.

Hillary stumped to a half-empty room in Dubuque, Iowa.


A Hillary supporter posted this detailed comment after I charged that she accomplished next to nothing as Senator.

Editor's notes:    I made three comments to the following list before I stumbled onto the same list on the web.  As it turns out,  the following 14 points,  in defense of Hillary's record,  were a cut and paste plagiarism sent to my comment line.  Embellishment of Hillary's record is what this list is all about as can be seen in the first three statements.  Plagiarism is something else,  especially when the "author" is a college grad with a PhD in music.  Now we know why he went for a music degree;  his personal literary/critical thinking  skills are so poor that he cannot compete with folks who actually think for a living.  
 
She played a leading role in the development of State Children’s Health Insurance Program, which provides the much-needed state support for children whose parents cannot afford nor provide them with adequate healthcare coverage.  

Editor's notes:  The Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP, formerly the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP)) was created by the Balanced Budget Act of 1997.
 ______
She was also instrumental in the creation of the Adoption and Safe Families Act and the Foster Care Independence Act.

Editor's notes: She was Senator from 2000 - 2006.   While she work with two Republicans (Tom Delay and Dave Thomas of Wendy's fame),  she did not create the first, it being legislated in 1997 and was no more involved than Delay and 9especially) Dave Thomas.  But she does have an interest in this sort of thing.  The Foster Care Independence Act was poor written and had this problem:  "

National Study Faults Federal "Adoption & Safe Families Act" for Consigning Children to Permanent Separation from Parents


Successfully fought to increase research funding for prostate cancer and asthma at the National Institute of Health (NIH)  . . . . .   Edtior:  not a major accomplishment and that is what I am talking about.  

Trumps prediction for the Thursday night debate . . . . if wrong, many of us will show no mercy.


Editor's notes: we will know before the weekend,  if Trump's fantasies about "victory" will win the day. Update:  Trump's protest rally capture 2 million viewers versus the Fox debate with 13  (see the story at http://jds-midknightreview.blogspot.com/2016/01/trumps-protest-rally-took-in-2-million.html, for the full story.


The "debate" tonight will be a total disaster - low ratings with advertisers and advertising rates dropping like a rock. I hate to see this.

Trump is out to destroy Megyn Kelly and Fox News. Tonight will be a good test:

The New York Blowhard has quit the Thursday debate because he is offended by the existence of Megyn Kelly.  So,  what does he do?  Hold an event for wounded warriors and hold that event just blocks away from the debate site,  same night, same time   . . . . . . .   and,  of course,  the money changers at CNN are going to air the event.  

So let's compare the two events with ratings numbers   . . . .   understanding that Trump wants to out rank the debate tonight.  In my book,  only the highest ratings for the night will vindicate Trump.  Anything less will spell defeat.  

Secondly,  The Blowhard repeatedly charged that he is the only reason the Fox debates are among the highest in history.  Not true.  Remember the first Fox debate?  26 million viewers during the main-stage debate   . . . . .   a wild record with Trump at center stage.  But the debate immediately prior to the Main Stage,  was that second-tier debate without Trump.  It brought in 12 million viewers,  without Trump, and, that was a record,  as well.  The Main Stage debate broke THAT record.  

The cud chewers and exDemocrat Confederates who follow Trump around like he was the hero of a 3rd grade flag football game,  constitute Trumps candidacy. 

When the numbers are available,  I will compare the two events.  Its time to cut the crap as far as Trump is concerned.  

Washington Post: Trump will ‘definitely not’ participate in Fox debate, campaign says —

Our headline is the content of a tweet sent to FoxNews during the Megyn Kelly program.  All of my comments would be predictable,  so I will leave it with this word:  Childish   . . . . .   Hope it hurts his chances  . . . . . .   Will will know by Tuesday morning. 

Update:  Before I went to sleep,  last night,  every candidate running for the presidency had spoken out against the childishness of Trump.  The folks over at CNN simply do not understand why he did what he did.  Apparently they don't get that Trump is a hater of women who stand up against him.   THAT is why he hates Rosie.  The Confederate One Toothers think it is because she is gay.  Nope.  It is because she gets in his face.  

Him quitting the Thursday night debate means that Megyn Kelly won,  and she didn't even know she was in a fight.  Hats off to Kelly for remaining in control of herself and Trump  !!!  

So why is she in hiding during those silly debates and soft-ball interviews?

She debates in time slots when comparative few are watching,  is never given follow-up questioning for her answers regarding Benghazi, money laundering in her quid-pro-crow scandal, her criminal involvement with her email server and has enlisted the support of her party in her fight against Sanders and that other guy running against her.  Why?  When we roll in the scandals of her "husband,"  she knows, full well,  how volatile she is as a candidate and how difficult these issues are when the campaign season begins (after the primary season).  Her hiding is an admission of her own volatility. 

Here is why Jeb Bush will not be the GOP candidate in 2016.

Breitbart:  

Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush praised former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg today, calling him a “good man” and a “patriot.”

During an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper this morning, Bush was asked what he thought of the news that Bloomberg was considering entering the 2016 presidential race.
“Mike Bloomberg is a good man,” Bush said. “We disagree on a whole lot of things, but he’s a good person and he’s a patriot and wants the best for the country.”

Palin jumps in to support Trump and his lead over Cruz jumps 11 points. Is she still an important political force? Ain't it obvious? (no article).

It may come as a surprise, but there are plenty of actors who do not agree with latest example of whiny liberal victimnhood.

Not all of Hollywood agrees with the latest bit of whiny victimhood.  You might read the article, here,  for a more unbiased point of view.   

Off the top of my head,  here is a partial list of notable black actors.  Included are Samuel Jackson (a hater of cops and white America) and Will Smith who joins his wife in this whiny episode   . . .   actors I appreciate in spite of their personal opinions: 

Pam Greer,  Denzel Washington, Halle Berry, Samuel L. Jackson, Jamie Foxx,  Whitney Houston, Tyler Perry, Ice-T, Will Smith, Ophra, Chris Rock,   Zoe Saldana  (Avatar),  Maria Carey,  Queen Latifah,  Taraji Henson (of Empire)  . . . .   and on and on.  

Good grief,  blacks in Hollywood have their recognition and fame and,  even our appreciation.  Like Ice T said last week,  folks are mad because they got their cake but not as much icing as they wanted. 

Obama capitulates to Cuba and here is what happened next:

In his announcement on December 17, 2014,  Obama, Hussein said he was “convinced that through a policy of engagement, we can more effectively stand up for our values and help the Cuban people help themselves as they move into the 21st century.”  This is what Obama dreamed he was doing in re-establishing relations with the commies in Cuba.  Understand this:  he capitulated to the Castros,  not to the Cuban people.  Note: the reader should look up the term "capitulate."

The U.S. State Department has confirmed that Cuba has made no advances towards improving their human rights situation since President Obama announced the policy change in 2014. 

The Cuban government has remained steadfast in insisting they will not alter their disposition towards violating the human rights of their citizens, decrying outside pressure to abide by international human rights norms. “Decision of an internal nature are not negotiable and will never be on a conversational agenda with the United State to negotiate over,” top Cuban diplomat for U.S. affairs Josefina Vidal said in August, following a series of talks between diplomats of the two nations.

(Text source:  Breitbart.com and Midknight Review)

Just to be clear, Chuck Grassley was "teaparty" decades before there was a teaparty.

Anna Palmer / Politico:
Chuck Grassley introduces Donald Trump at Iowa rally  —  PELLA, IOWA — Sen. Chuck Grassley gave a rousing introduction speech at a Donald Trump rally, but he didn't go so far as to endorse the 2016 Republican candidate.  —  “We have an opportunity once again to make America great again,” …

Well, I guess that depends on who he shoots.

Ben Kamisar / The Hill:
Trump: I could shoot people in streets and not lose support  —  Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump thinks there's not much he could possibly do to erode his support.  —  Lauding his fans' loyalty at a campaign event in Sioux Center, Iowa, on Saturday, Trump said he could kill people and still be popular.

Who knows, this might help Rubio as he continues to campaign.

John McCormick / Bloomberg Business: Des Moines Register Endorses Rubio and Clinton in Iowa Caucuses

At least one actress believes the complaint of racism leveled against the Academy Awards is, itself, a racist act.

The Guardia   Oscar nominee Charlotte Rampling has claimed the current campaign to boycott the 2016 Academy Awards over claims of a diversity deficit is racist to white people.

Rampling, 69, is up for the best actress prize for her role in the British drama 45 Years, from director Andrew Haigh, where she will compete against Room’s Brie Larson, Carol’s Cate Blanchett, Joy’s Jennifer Lawrence and Brooklyn’s Saoirse Ronan. Asked for her take on the current furore over all-white lists of nominees on French Radio network Europe 1 on Friday morning, the British actor did not mince her words. “It is racist to whites,” she said.

“One can never really know, but perhaps the black actors did not deserve to make the final list,” added Rampling. Asked if the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences should introduce quotas, a proposal which no current advocate of increased diversity has mooted, she responded: “Why classify people? These days everyone is more or less accepted … People will always say: ‘Him, he’s less handsome’; ‘Him, he’s too black’; ‘He is too white’ … someone will always be saying ‘You are too’ [this or that] … But do we have to take from this that there should be lots of minorities everywhere?”

Editor's notes:  Sorry but I find uber-liberal Hollywood "a racist institution in this day and time," to be a ridiculous proposition.  We all need to stop thinking as if we were members of an ethnicity,  because,  in the end,  that consideration will get you nothing that is meaningful.  I am not successful in my trade because of my skin color.  And if you are,  you do not deserve your success.

Look at Jamie Foxx or Will Smith.  They are not where they are because they are black.  They are great actors because each has chosen to do what is necessary to be great   . . . .    period.   But more than this,  if the Hollywood Elite is racist,  that needs to be dealt with apart from requirements to honor a certain number of [black] actors,  regardless of their individual successes as actors.  I hasten to add that this last concern appears to have been addressed.  I have heard some in the black community voice the same concern.  

Is bias a serious problem against black actors   . . . .   in Hollywood?   They point to the last two years,  but two years out of decades does little to accurately define a problem.  Is there a problem?  Well, there is something wrong,  but if we do not properly define the problem,  we will not see meaningful solution.  Again,  I find it difficult to believe that liberal Hollywood is prejudice.   

In the end,  however,  it is a black-0in-Hollywood issue.  Looking forward as to how this is solved   . . . .     could be an example of how to solve other race-based issues.   

Who is "Establishment?"

Establishment Candidates:
Top of the list is Hillary.  When she announces that she supports all of Obama's major accomplishments  . . . .   all three of them,  she is saying,  I belong to the existing status,  I am Establishment in spades. 

Second on my list is Jeb Bush.  He has announced that he has no intentions of tearing down progressive programs initiated or supported by Obama, Hussein.  We are not talking about illegal executive orders,  but we are talking about progressive programs of the Left.  He will make no serious changes to the IRS,  Planned Parenthood and will support Common Core on a state level.  His Supreme Court selections will be split "fairly" between the Left and the Right.  He is the most Establishment minded candidate running for the GO.

Third on the list is Ted Cruz.  There is an assumption that a Tea Party radical cannot be "Establishment."  But he is no less holden to the Confederate Right Wing than Hillary is to Marxist in her party.

Non-Establishment Candidates: 
Top of this list is Bernie Sanders.  While this is not a recommendation of any kind,  it is an admission that Bernie leads the pack in his claim to be anti-establishment   . . . . . .   I mean,  he is an admitted socialist and NO ONE in either party joins him in that claim.  You can't be "establishment" if no one in Washington politics agrees with your political point of view   . . . .    period.

Trump comes in second on this list.  He is not running as a conservative ideologue.  He is a populace conservative.  A populace conservative is a person who works for a living,  has a beer or cocktail on the way home, and really has no clue who is the leader of either party or how you define "teaparty."  These folks just do not care about any of that.  But they do care about the America that is framed in The Star Spangled Banner,  who get a bit emotional when that song is sung,  wants his personal freedoms, and,   has no clue why libs will blame him for mass shootings and terror attacks,     

Third on this list is Carly Fiorina.  It is a shame she did not capture the support of the GOP,  A brilliant women who cares about this country,  profoundly,  and is as educated on "America" as any candidate who has ever run for the High Office. 

By the sheer nature of his background and peace of mind,  Dr. Ben Carson must be high on this list. 

Finally,  I would put Rubio on this list.  When the Establishment spends 25 million dollars trying to "take you down,"  no one can claim you are "establishment." 

Worst case scenario for Hillary Clinton . . . . three options, you choose.

1.  Bill falls in love with one of the 18 women he has molested. 

2.  A recording will surface with Hillary screaching,  "Who gives a damn about Bengahazi.  None of them were related to me  !!!! "  

3.  The FBI will recommend prosecution but the compromised DOJ will refuse to indict   . . . . . . .   and she will campaign on this, as if she was found "innocent" of all wrong doing.  

Bloomberg considering a third party run for president. The Right cheers, the Left fears.

Bloomberg exploring plans for independent presidential bid...

Michael R. Bloomberg has instructed advisers to draw up plans for a potential independent campaign in this year’s presidential race. His advisers and associates said he was galled by Donald J. Trump’s dominance of the Republican field, and troubled by Hillary Clinton’s stumbles and the rise of Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont on the Democratic side.

She has stonewalled the email investigation from the beginning and, now, she wants to do it again.



The Hill:   The State Department on Friday sought to delay its final release of emails from Hillary Clinton’s personal server, blaming a massive snowstorm hitting Washington as well as an internal “oversight.”
In a court filing, the department asked a federal court to delay by a month the Jan. 29 deadline for it to release the last batch of roughly 55,000 pages of Clinton’s emails believed to be work-related.
The emails, thousands of which have been released on a monthly basis since last year, have become a constant headache for Clinton’s front-runner Democratic presidential campaign. More than 1,300 of the emails from the former secretary of State's private email account and server have been classified — some at a level higher than top secret.   Roughly 82 percent of Clinton’s emails have been released, the State Department says.

Common Core and Fundamental Transformation: It is the tool of the Elitist Left. (Our evidence is the following video).

What is Common Core all about?  In a few words,  many involved in it's creation/writing (not the teachers) despise the truth about the founding of this nation.  They will stop at nothing to teach our kids AGAINST American Exceptionalism,  and,  the intense debate that gave rise to our founding documents.  And,  they intend to (eventually) use Common Core to corrupt the historical record and "fundamentally transform" the United States of America  (no,  Obama was not alone). 

These  video moments may be of interest to you:  2.40 (Santorum's explanation was excellent),  3.40 (Fox viewers are uneducated),  4.20  (Common Core needs to be a single educational agenda for the nation  -  see if you agree with my analysis), 6.28 (Republicans want to influence what is being taught and Common Core " . . . .  will not put up with that")  .  

You cannot listen to this video without seeing the rank disgust,  approaching hatred,  of this educator for this nation.  These people do not love this country nor are they,  in any way,  patriots.  They are intellectual leaches,  attaching themselves to the profound idea for self government by a people,  for a people, and of a people.  These clowns have no intellectual ideas of their own,  choosing,  rather,  to infect this nation with the poison of Marxist socialism,  working hard to enslave an entire people save for the elitist ruling class.  

Common Core as it is,  today,  is not what the "enemy within" wants it to be.  Incrementalism is the key tool of these folks and they are willing (but impatient) to wait for the time they can expand this program  on a national level.  That is what is going on   . . . . .    start off slow and innocent,  and,  then,  years down the road,  make the Common Core Agenda the educational law of the land, and BAM,  you have a rewrite of American history being taught as fact,  and the takeover of this nation for Marxism is complete.  

Now you know. 

Obama a Muslim? Well, "no" but "kinda."

click on image to enlarge
Editor's notes:  When you read the following from the Wa/Post,  you need to understand the following:  "Obama was a Muslim 'deep down'"  means to imply that Obama is a committed Muslim sympathizer.  That is my position   . . . .   that Obama is not a Muslim but a Muslim apologist, and evidence for that conclusion is overwhelming.  The more important point is the FACT that the outside Muslim world sees Obama as a Shiite Muslim (sympathizer).  His association with Al Jazeera from the very first days of his administration,  his assertion that this nation is not a "Christian" nation,  his immediate lifting of the FBI red-flagging of  CAIR, his inclusion of the Muslim Brotherhood as advisers in his Administration, his nuclear treaty with Sharia Iran,  his refusal to take out Assad, and,  his United Nation statement demanding honor for Mohammad all go to establishing his allegiance to Sharia Islam. 

From the Wa/Post:   When Barack Obama stepped onto the national political stage almost a decade ago, rumors swirled that he was secretly a Muslim. These rumors have frequently been debunked — the U.S. president is a practicing Christian — but they persist nonetheless: In a poll conducted in 2014, 54 percent of Republicans were found to believe that Obama was a Muslim "deep down."

The endurance of these conspiracy theories can probably be attributed to Obama's position as the first African American president of the United States — his two terms as president have been wrapped up in issues of race and identity. But it's also worth noting how these theories have mutated as they traveled abroad, adapting in unexpected ways to fit regional arguments.

One of the most persistent and widespread of these conspiracy theories gets more specific than its American variant: Obama isn't just a Muslim, this theory goes.... he's a Shiite Muslim.

This week, as the Obama administration announced that it was lifting sanctions on Iran as a result of a U.S.-led nuclear deal with Tehran reached in July, Dhahi Khalfan Tamim, the head of general security for the emirate of Dubai, suggested that Obama's "Shiite roots" had helped him get elected in a bid to bring the United States and Iran closer.
"Mission accomplished," he added.

A short history of the presidential process by Larry Sabato


The presidential nomination process has a history of being fuzzy. For much of the nation’s political existence, starting in the 1830s, national party conventions selected nominees for the highest office in the land. At these events, the oft-used term “smoke-filled rooms” described the sometimes behind-the-scenes activity that led to the final selection of a nominee. Sometimes this person was an obvious, well-known national figure; other times, an unexpected, relative unknown captured the nomination.
As time passed, more and more states began to use presidential primaries to either determine the delegate commitments of their state’s representatives at these conventions or to at least indicate the electorate's preferences (non-binding events that have been referred to as “advisory primaries,” “beauty contests,” or, in the case of many caucuses, “straw polls”). Still, many states continued (and continue now) to use a series of caucuses, mass meetings, and conventions to pick their delegations, a process that can be murky and complicated. Historically, the candidate preferences of these caucus-determined delegations were more fungible and flexible, as they weren’t necessarily “bound” to any choice. The efforts by different news organizations to estimate delegate support for each candidate were as much art as science.
After the chaotic and controversial 1968 Democratic National Convention, when Vice President Hubert Humphrey won the nomination after not running in a single primary, the national Democratic Party sought to reform its nomination process. It began to set down an increasingly nationalized set of rules that each state party had to obey, particularly certain guarantees for participation by women and minorities in state delegations and the distribution of delegate support to candidates in proportion to their vote support. This is why many view the 1972 Democratic primary as the first campaign of the “modern” era of presidential politics, as it was the first contest to feature many of these rules.
While the Republican Party also went on to adopt many reforms as well, it importantly has never adopted proportionality as a universal rule, largely leaving delegate allocation methods to the state parties. This has led to a variety of systems, ranging from plurality winner-take-all states, to hybrid proportional states with winner-take-all thresholds, to states that allocated by only the statewide result or others that chiefly use the results in each congressional district, to variants of what are known as “loophole primaries,” where most or all delegates are named individually on the ballot (sometimes without a listed presidential preference) and directly elected by the voters in a congressional district and/or statewide. Although 2016 will see more stringent rules regarding the binding nature of Republican presidential preference votes under many of these systems, the GOP’s delegate allocation process is still incredibly diverse. Philosophically, this corresponds with each party’s political inclinations: Democrats have embraced a more top-down approach over the last four decades than Republicans, who have left more up to the states.
As such, laying out the winners of individual state primaries and caucuses on the GOP side is harder to do. Yet the maps below seek to present the state-by-state outcomes for competitive Republican presidential nomination contests since 1976, as best can be recorded by election results, newspaper accounts, and election histories. Importantly, the maps attempt to set all things equal by recording the presidential preferences of states in primary elections or, in most cases, the first step in the nomination process in caucus states. In the case of the latter, individual delegates are often selected over the course of many months, and their presidential preferences are not always well defined. In 1976, for example, the first-step presidential preferences in many caucuses were not well documented, were based mostly on speculation, or featured small samplings of precincts that were sometimes highly disputed. Generally, it would have been easier to use the final delegate support votes at the GOP conventions. However, the preferences of delegations in most caucus states (and some primary states, too) shift over time as candidates withdraw from the race. So by using earlier points in the process to measure presidential preference, these maps somewhat diminish the effect of withdrawals on states that decided their eventual delegate support levels late. This standard attempts to make every election a time stamp of sorts on where the race stood in a respective cycle.
In the end, there is no perfect way of determining who won what state if there wasn’t a binding primary result. There are exceptions and notes below some of the maps explaining complications. The maps also attempt to denote (with an asterisk) results that had little or no bearing on the eventual delegate support of the states. Besides most caucuses during this period, such contests also include the aforementioned “beauty contests” and uncommitted delegates elected in “loophole primaries.”
Of the seven nomination cycles presented below, the most noticeable pattern is that one candidate tends to dominate in the end. At least, this has been true since the heavyweight GOP tilt fought between incumbent (but unelected) President Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan in 1976, the last time a nomination for either party went into a convention truly up for grabs. Perhaps the 2016 nomination battle will be the same, with one candidate eventually breaking away from the rest of the pack to win most primaries and caucuses. Or perhaps it will be the next 1976. Election watchers naturally hope for the latter!
As the latest presidential voting begins in 11 days, here’s a look back at the past 40 years of competitive Republican primaries and caucuses. As you survey these maps, note one thing: Despite some big GOP fields over the years, only two or at most three candidates won a state caucus or a primary in a given nomination contest. In other words, many seemingly-promising candidates didn’t even win a single state. It’s something to keep in mind as the 2016 race begins with a dozen candidates. If history is a guide – and it might not be this time -- only two or three of 2016’s candidates will ever finish first.

Map 1: 1976 Republican nomination contest

Map 2: 1980 Republican nomination contest

Map 3: 1988 Republican nomination contest

Map 4: 1996 Republican nomination contest

Map 5: 2000 Republican nomination contest

Map 6: 2008 Republican nomination contest

Map 7: 2012 Republican nomination contest

The donor class is coming on board for Donald Trump.

Jonathan Swan / The Hill: Donors changing tune on Trump  —  Republican donors are quietly coming around to the idea that Donald Trump could be their party's nominee for president.  —  While many major Republican donors still cannot abide the idea 

Editor's notes:  Understand that the GOP Establishment did this to themselves.  For Cruz to pretend that Trump is "establishment" is too simple minded a pejorative effort to be considered "intelligent."  The conservative wing,  exDemocrat Confederate nutbags and all,  gave the GOP its increasing power during the Obama Era . . . . . . . . .    and got nothing but rejection in return.  And now,  it is time to pay the piper.  

All this talk about the party being destroyed   . . . .    sorry, but I thought McCain did that back in 2008 when he ran a feckless "but fair" election and lost the farm and the house to the Marxist Progressives.  

You would think that GOP leadership would say,  "Hey this bunch of passionate Right Wingers gave us our power.  How do we appease them while maintaining control of the party? "   But that was never the discussion.  Democrats appease its Left Bank (the Al Sharptons,  Louis Farrakhans, and the thousands of anarchist who hate this country) somehow remain competitive in spite of their history of promising one lie after another to its membership.  

Well,  the GOP has been doing the same thing for decades:  "smaller government,"  balanced budgets,  a healthy VA and on and on   . . . .   one lie after another.  The base is done with that and has made it clear that if cutting their collective nose off their face,  they are willing to do it.  

Both parties are at a serious crossroads.  Maybe it will turn out to be good.  I mean,  there was (clearly) a divine aspect to the creation of this nation and I assume God has not walked away but there is nothing that says,  "He will not walk away." He has done it before,  in different times.  So we must wait,  and see how this works out.  

This is the Obama position, as well.

Telegraph:   A British sniper is being investigated for shooting dead an Iraqi insurgent preparing to fire a rocket propelled grenade because he did not shout a warning, according to a pressure group representing former members of the armed forces.

Editor's notes:  Just to be clear,  Obama's mindless Flower Power "rules of engagement" are the reasons for never enlisting in a Democrat run military   . . . . .    Democrat leaders do not believe that the lives of American soldiers are their first priority.  And it is these rules that are costing thousands of lives across the Middle East and Aftrica, and,  the loss of two wars  (Afghanistan and Iraq after peace and success were declared by Obama) . 

You cannot command "victory" if you believe "victory" is an unfair declaration,  on the surface.  You cannot win a war when you believe saving the lives of a few innocents in exchange for the deaths of hundreds of innocents is righteous endeavor.  You cannot win a war when you are an intellectual coward.  

Now you know.  

Al Sharton's presence in Obama's inner circle proves the rank racism of this White House . . . . period.

  <<<  Anyone,  I write "anyone," who elevates Al Sharpton to a White House position of leadership,  is, by definition,  as racist an individual as anyone in this nation.  When Obama is gone,  guaranteed,  you will never see the likes of Al Sharpton anywhere near the WH.  Al  is a vagrant in a suit,  a "reverend" who has never pastored a church  (believe it or not),  a man who is as "ignent"  (his wording, not mine) as his speech reveals,  a hater of the white man and one who runs around the nation creating riot after riot,  lethal demonstration after demonstration,  and violent misconduct  --  all things Obama believes foreshadows the true overthrow of a current form of governance   . . . . . . . .   in this case,  the overthrow of the white man's creation known as the United States.  And people are waking up to a manifestation of all that I have just written:  


Rasmussen -   A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 50% of American Adults now think race relations in this country are getting worse, up from 44% a year ago  and 30% as recently as January 2014.  Only 20% believe race relations are getting better, a new low that compares to 38% five years ago. Twenty-six percent (26%) say race relations are staying about the same.
Only 18% rate race relations in America today as good or excellent, unchanged from last year at this time but down from 34% two years ago. Thirty-three percent (33%) now consider race relations poor, up from 15% in 2011 and 29% last January.
Interestingly, unlike most questions related to race, there isn’t a wide difference of opinion on these questions between blacks and whites. Other minority Americans are the least pessimistic.
But blacks are much more likely than whites and other minorities to believe the United States is headed in the right direction.

Maybe Hillary is not the only one in legal trouble?

William La Jeunesse / Fox News:
Rifle capable of taking down helicopter found at ‘El Chapo’ hideout purchased through Fast and Furious program  —  A .50-caliber rifle found at Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman's hideout in Mexico was funneled through the gun-smuggling investigation known as Fast and Furious, sources confirmed Tuesday to Fox News.

Kevin Johnson / USA Today:
Judge rejects privilege claim in ‘Fast and Furious’ inquiry

Editor's notes:  Obama has hidden behind "executive privilege"  (far worse than "white privilege") for five years.  Now the courts say his hiding place is gone.  

Did Hillary receive marked classified emails? We have the answer.

If you are following the news,  you know that two weeks ago,  emails were released showing Hillary instructing Bloomingthal (one of her closest buds) giving instruction for deleting "classified" as a designation before forwarding certain documents.  No need to do such if the "classified" does not mean "classified."  

Apparently we will know of the outcome of the FBI investigation by the end of March,  or so goes the rumor.  

Another reason for ending the existence of ISIS.


CNN:
Nearly 19,000 civilians were killed in Iraq between January 2014 and October 2015 — a toll the United Nations calls “staggering” in a new report.
The report, released Tuesday, outlined the horrific impact that Iraq’s ongoing conflict is having on its civilian population.
Much of the suffering was attributed to ISIS, the brutal Islamist terror group which has declared an Islamic caliphate across the vast stretches of territory it holds in Iraq and neighboring Syria.
The report also estimated that ISIS holds about 3,500 slaves and said it continues to subject women and children to sexual violence, particularly in the form of sexual slavery.

Rubio and his faith (video comments)


Say what you will, Hillary did not see this coming.




After years of bold-face stonewalling, Obama,Hussein is told he cannot hide behind his presidency. Next step? This law and order president will ignore the court.

Josh Gerstein / Politico:
Judge rejects Obama's executive privilege claim over Fast and Furious records  —  A federal judge has rejected President Barack Obama's assertion of executive privilege to deny Congress access to records pertaining to Operation Fast and Furious, a gunrunning probe that allegedly allowed thousands …

It is about time that NBC bear the wrath of those whom it seeks to destroy.


RNC officially breaks from NBC for next debate; awards moderator-spot to different network

The Republican National Committee made it official on Monday that it is severing its business relationship with NBC News for the upcoming GOP presidential primary debate…
 Editor's notes:   One of the more subtle, yet, harmful political arrangements of all time,  has been this business of a biased/Marxist media taking on the task of vetting all candidates for the  U.S. presidency.  What a load of garbage.  And the GOP allowed this circumstance for decades.  Time to kick the Marxist Media to the curb   . . . .   as is the case with NBC/MSNBE/CNBC.  
If the major Marxist media want the dollars for these debates,  perhaps they should learn the lesson of Wolf Blitzer moderating the CNN debate.  Most Conservatives thought Blitzer did an excellent job.  

During this campaign cycle,  clearly,  NBC is all about giving aid and a hiding place for Democrat politicians  . . . .   and this giving is profoundly obvious.  Of course,  the other major networks are in the tank for the One Worlders,  but, NBC simply cannot pretend to be objective   . . . . .     time is past for that network to be gone from GOP political positioning.  

Blacks are up in arms about Hollywood, Guess they just discovered the shallowness of Democrat race intentions.

In addition to the complaints of Will Smith's wife,  we have Spike Lee's complaint following a second consecutive year in which blacks have been passed over for honors at the Oscars:  

 From Spike Less:

#OscarsSoWhite... Again. I Would Like To Thank President Cheryl Boone Isaacs And The Board Of Governors Of The Academy Of Motion Pictures Arts And Sciences For Awarding Me an Honorary Oscar This Past November. I Am Most Appreciative. However My Wife, Mrs. Tonya Lewis Lee And I Will Not Be Attending The Oscar Ceremony This Coming February. We Cannot Support It And Mean No Disrespect To My Friends, Host Chris Rock and Producer Reggie Hudlin, President Isaacs And The Academy. But, How Is It Possible For The 2nd Consecutive Year All 20 Contenders Under The Actor Category Are White? And Let's Not Even Get Into The Other Branches. 40 White Actors In 2 Years And No Flava At All. We Can't Act?! WTF!! It's No Coincidence I'm Writing This As We Celebrate The 30th Anniversary Of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr's Birthday. Dr. King Said "There Comes A Time When One Must Take A Position That Is Neither Safe, Nor Politic, Nor Popular But He Must Take It Because Conscience Tells Him It's Right". For Too Many Years When The Oscars Nominations Are Revealed, My Office Phone Rings Off The Hook With The Media Asking Me My Opinion About The Lack Of African-Americans And This Year Was No Different. For Once, (Maybe) I Would Like The Media To Ask All The White Nominees And Studio Heads How They Feel About Another All White Ballot. If Someone Has Addressed This And I Missed It Then I Stand Mistaken. As I See It, The Academy Awards Is Not Where The "Real" Battle Is. It's In The Executive Office Of The Hollywood Studios And TV And Cable Networks. This Is Where The Gate Keepers Decide What Gets Made And What Gets Jettisoned To "Turnaround" Or Scrap Heap. This Is What's Important. The Gate Keepers. Those With "The Green Light" Vote. As The Great Actor Leslie Odom Jr. Sings And Dances In The Game Changing Broadway Musical HAMILTON, "I WANNA BE IN THE ROOM WHERE IT HAPPENS". People, The Truth Is We Ain't In Those Rooms And Until Minorities Are, The Oscar Nominees Will Remain Lilly White. (Cont'd)

Comments
 
Joseph Flowers13% of the population has so much power they control every top government job. They have entire cities counties and towns throughout the nation. They have the billions of dollars in federal aid. They destroy the school systems and infrastructure on their own. No on bitches and moans about gimmes more then blacks. When the NBA is 87% non black get back with the rest of non black America. I personally no longer give a shite abiout these less talented morons. Boycott all black events. Who really needs who!!!??????
John Smithson ·
With some reservation, I agree. One additional point: I am an independent, went to seminary in Dallas (I am a California boy) and saw the racism these folks complain about. Never understood, however, why they blame the GOP and us Yankees, for what the Dems did to this ethnicity . . . I mean, the Dems funded the South in the Civil War, the KKK was an invention of the Dems; Woodrow Wilson and FDR could not have been more racist, and, the war on [Black] pverty has been an abject failure. I am a conservative but have no patience for what I call "The Confederate Right Wing." Whether you agree with all this, it is a fact that the Dems have done next to nothing for the Black Community . . . . . . and Will Smith's wife is just finding that out ????????

Notes: my comments and all of the above can be found here.  

Another Warming Myth (there are soooo many): 2000 was the year Brtis declared snow to be a thing of the past.

Britain:   Just to be clear, however: all that white stuff you can see outside your window is not actually real. It does not exist because it does not accord with the experts’ projections, as best illustrated by the most-read online story in the history of the Independent. The one from 2000 with the headline “Snowfalls are now just a thing of the past.”
Despite the story’s incredible popularity, the Independent decided last year for some strange reason to remove it from its archive so that now when you try to look it up all you get is a “Page not found” error message.

Source for photo and text: http://www.breitbart.com/london/2016/01/17/2795254/ 

Have you ever seen Hillary as tired and unhappy as she appears in this video ????

Clearly she was angered by the question as she shook her head in disgust.

Here is what the release of the Iranian hostages cost the United States:

1. The release of 7Iranian criminals in exchange for the 5 innocent civilians   . . . .   but wait,  there is more.

2. 14 warrants for Iranian international killer/criminals.

3.  $500 million times five coming to Iran from foreign countries not identified by this Islamic oriented Administration.  

This was nothing short of cash diplomacy and is not the first time for this Administration.  Obama paid  $5 million for 7 hostages held by Egyptian militant during the uprising that brought down Mubarak.  

Not only a pure example of extreme cowardice,  but an example of one the more complex sham's propagated by Hussein Obama. 

You can have those damn Israeli's. I want peace in the Middle East . . . . hence, the Obama Doctrine (aka Peace at Any Price).

Josh Feldman / Mediaite: Obama Speaks on Iran: We Achieved Deal ‘Without Resorting to Another War’

Editor's notes:  Flower Power as we have always feared it to be.  If he won't fight for Israel,  he won't fight for Taiwan, or Crimea, or Poland,  or Georgia, or the Saudi's,  or Egypt,  or the 300,000 murdered Syrians,  or the folks at Bengahzi or Navy Seal Team Six and the 30 solders shot down in Afghanistan as he screamed  "Stand down,  stand down" . . . . . . . .    or you.  




Cruz is a Confederate Partisan and Trump has no political core. Here is proof of the later.




Trumps is thinking about Scott Brown as his running mate. Good decision.

Obama ruled as a dictator,  as much as he could.  In fact,  our resident Clown, continues to do so   . . . . . .  in the end,  he is only grabbing headlines.  He has not accomplished much of anything of substance since July of 2010 and the signing of Dodd/Frank.  

There is a place for partisan politics and that "place" is on blogs such as Midknight Review.  But not as president  . . . .   a lesson that needs to be learned by the Marxist Left and the Confederate Right.  That eliminates Cruz.  

Hillary is running as a partisan and a fantasy Middle Class representative.   And Cruz is pretending to be pure conservative while preaching a partisan candidacy that may rival that of the Marxist pig,  Obama, Hussein.  

Let's not make the same mistake twice as we relearn to how to get along without compromising our basics values as conservative.