Today’s scary read: the moving dictatorship

Image credit: trump.news

Daniel Greenfield redefines the “Deep State” and it’s scary. The full transcript of his speech to the  South Carolina Tea Party Coalition Convention in Myrtle Beach is also posted at Zero Hedge (h/t Instapundit).   Here are a few extracts:

the Democrats have rejected our system of government

…

You can hate the other party. You can think they’re the worst thing that ever happened to the country. But then you work harder to win the next election. When you consistently reject the results of elections that you don’t win, what you want is a dictatorship.

Your very own dictatorship.

The only legitimate exercise of power in this country, according to the left, is its own. Whenever Republicans exercise power, it’s inherently illegitimate.

The attacks on Trump show that elections don’t matter to the left.

. . .

It’s the moving dictatorship. It’s the tyranny of the network.

You can’t pin it down. There’s no one office or one guy. It’s a network of them. It’s an ideological dictatorship. Some people call it the deep state. But that doesn’t even begin to capture what it is.

To understand it, you have to think about things like the Cold War and Communist infiltration.

A better term than Deep State is Shadow Government.

Parts of the Shadow Government aren’t even in the government. They are wherever the left holds power. It can be in the non-profit sector and among major corporations. Power gets moved around like a New York City shell game. Where’s the quarter? Nope, it’s not there anymore.

The shadow government is an ideological network. These days it calls itself by a hashtag #Resistance. Under any name, it runs the country. Most of the time we don’t realize that. 

. . .

Civil wars swing around a very basic question. The most basic question of them all. Who runs the country?

Is it me? Is it you? Is it Grandma? Or is it bunch of people who made running the government into their career?

America was founded on getting away from professional government. The British monarchy was a professional government. Like all professional governments, it was hereditary. Professional classes eventually decide to pass down their privileges to their kids.

America was different. We had a volunteer government. That’s what the Founding Fathers built.

This is a civil war between volunteer governments elected by the people and professional governments elected by… well… uh… themselves.

In the intro, Greenfield acknowledges and thanks “anyone and everyone still fighting the good fight.” Including Tea Party people volunteering in their communities. Read the rest here.    # # #

Trump Supporters Protest Bill Kristol Fundraiser In The Rain

Cleveland Deplorables

This just in: Patrick Howley at Big League Politics reports:

 A handful of indefatigable Deplorables protested Bill Kristol’s appearance at a $300-a-plate luncheon for the Cuyahoga County Republican Party in Ohio Friday.

#NeverTrump town crier Kristol’s speech at the luncheon inflamed Trump-supporting Ohio Republicans, who remember the difficulties of taking on the GOP Establishment to elect Trump on John Kasich’s home turf.

Brian Wollet, an executive committee member of the Cuyahoga County party, had his Trump sign ready to go to meet Kristol and the luncheon guests.

Wollet described it as “A cold and rainy morning that felt more like November than May.”

Nevertheless, Wollet told Big League Politics that the protest was “fun.”

Cleveland Tea Party and Main Street Patriots co-founder Ralph King told Big League Politics that the public appreciated the protest, which took place outside the Marriott East.

“The weather was literally terrible. It was cold, it was windy, it was rainy. But we had a good reception among the cars that were driving by. So we were well received by traffic and the public. Friday morning, raining, nasty, blowing, I was happy with the response,” King said.

“I’m still floored that they had William Kristol to come in to address anybody. When you read this guy’s stuff or look at what he stands for, two things come to mind. The snobbery of the Establishment elite is why the American public rejected both the Democrat and Republican parties and elected Donald Trump. William Kristol, listening to him talk, you would think the Democrat Party would bring him in to talk. The way he continually criticizes President Trump? He should be used as a fundraiser for the Cuyahoga County Democrats.”

King pointed to Kristol’s current Weekly Standard article “After Trump,” which he calls “absolutely ridiculous.”

“William Kristol is a cheerleader for the Democrats. You know, being in DC, that the Democrats and establishment Republicans are the same. There’s no difference,” King said.

“The party was doing everything they could to increase attendance. Most of the people I associate with would never go to anything like this,” he continued.

“They don’t get why Donald Trump was elected. They think it was because of the Republicans. No! It didn’t have anything to do with you. Conservatism? That was rejected too. Ted Cruz didn’t win. People wanted somebody to get things done. If they wanted conservative ideology, they would have elected T-shirt Ted Cruz, the T-shirt preacher.”

Kristol, his preferred candidates vanquished in the primaries, led a harebrained scheme to run a third-party challenger against Trump in the general election to help Hillary Clinton’s chances. General James Mattis, now the Defense Secretary, considered Kristol’s offer but turned him down. After a lot of searching and speculation — involving Mitt Romney among others — Kristol backed no-name National Review writer David French for president. French declined to run. Kristol then supported the independent bid of Evan McMullin, who ran in Utah to peel off Mormon votes from Trump to try to stop the Republican nominee from reaching 270 in the Electoral College.

McMullin, known colloquially as “McMuffin,” and Kristol failed.

Kristol’s star has dimmed considerably since the Iraq War, a failed experiment based to a large degree on Kristol’s own inaccurate and dishonest projections. But despite helping to tank a Republican administration and fighting tooth and nail against a Republican nominee, Kristol still lingers in Republican circles, talking to people for $300 a pop. 

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Culture wars, Uniparty, and Deep Values research

artwork from Conservative Treehouse

  

A few days after the election, the William A. Jacobson (Legal Insurrection blog) interviewed "Deep Values" researcher Anne Sorock, since she predicted a Trump candidacy and a Trump win before he even rode down the escalator. Her comments intersect in many places with the Conservative Treehouse’s ongoing exposure of “the Uniparty” and why Trump’s candidacy was an alternative. He was unique in offering the potential to destroy the unholy alliances between the donor class, the political class, and corporate media. Some extracts from the interview appear below:

WAJ [William A. Jacobson]: When I asked you who you supported at CPAC 2015, what made you not just respond, “Trump,” but insist upon it when no one else thought he would run much less win?

Anne: I remember that day we spoke at CPAC. The giddy atmosphere of insiders and wannabe-insiders  was almost ominous. I had been working at The Frontier Lab on mapping disaffiliation by conservatives from using the term “Republican” to describe themselves. These conservatives had had enough after 2012, being told to get in line and vote for Romney, and then the RNC Autopsy report came out basically as a rubber stamp to keep pursuing the same tired strategies.

Those aware of the Autopsy felt it simply confirmed what the Romney debacle had already shown them – that the GOP and its parasites were incapable of reforming themselves. The only answer was an outsider to blow it all up.

. . .

At the time, I was following these threads about conservatism:

The desire for a concrete way to demonstrate the action of “standing up for your beliefs”

Concern that they had been enabling “bad behavior” of the GOP in the same way that a parent enables a child. A taste of empowerment that had come from interaction with the Tea Party movement, but yearning for more.

WAJ: What about this outsider aspect?

Anne: That was the functional part — being an outsider would allow him to do what previous candidates, and all candidates being considered, were incapable of. And that was absolutely reject the king-makers at CPAC and in DC in general.

There was so much anger I had been cataloging at those in charge. There was a seething sense of being disrespected by those in charge. One of the insights from my research at the time was that when people were asked to “choose the lesser of two evils,” they were basically dropping like flies from the Republican label. They might vote that way, but they resented it even more each time. They were looking for an anti-hero.

. . .

WAJ: So why didn’t all the others predict Trump, especially in the consultant/market research community?

Anne: Polling about the economy, jobs, national security, etc., might reveal superficial insights, even move the needle a few important points, but it failed in one major respect. They were asking about issues that are, at best, the outgrowths of their deeper concerns, but not explanatory or helpful in making predictions. What you don’t know about, you can’t ask about.

WAJ: What should we understand about the Americans who supported Trump that we still continue to miss?

Anne: They may care about all these conservative issues too, but they recognize that the enemy is within the gates. Our culture is what’s being eroded. Small government may be the mechanism to restore much of our country’s greatness but it isn’t the emotion, the value, that drives our country’s unique role in the world.

Read the rest here.

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Steyn: Laws are for the Little People

art credit: zazzle

Mark Steyn has been on hiatus for several months, but he popped up yesterday and posted a column before the debate. As usual, he knocks it out of the park. The entire article is here, but here’s a small sampling:

As I've said for years - on radio, TV and in print - for me the overriding issue in American politics is the corruption. In the Obama era, we have seen the remorseless merging of the party and the state - in the IRS, in the Justice Department and elsewhere. Whatever one feels about, say, Scandinavia, they at least come to their statism and socialism more or less honestly. Not so the United States.

It's bad enough that Democrats aren't agitated about this corruption - but then it works to their advantage. Slightly more mysterious is why so many of my friends on the right aren't incensed by it.

. . .

Needless to say, if you get your news from ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, The Washington Post, The New York Times, etc, etc, you will be entirely unaware of all this. 

. . .

The present arrangements work for the political class, the permanent bureaucracy, their client groups, and the lawless. But not for millions of the law-abiding. Consider illegal immigration, for example, which pre-Trump was entirely discussed in terms of the interests of the lawbreakers - how to "bring them out of the shadows", how to give them "a path to citizenship", celebrate their "family values" and "work ethic" - and never in terms of the law-abiding, whose wages they depress, whose communities they transform, and, in too many criminal cases, whose lives they wreck.  . . .

. . .

Hillary is the most known known in the history of knowns. And what we know of her is that she's stinkingly corrupt, above the law, and able to suborn entire government agencies in the cause of her corruption. Where do you think we're gonna be after eight years of that?

As Trump says repeatedly. “We will never fix a rigged system by relying on the people who rigged it in the first place.” The full article is on Steyn's website here. 

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Volunteer on Election Day, November 8

Volunteer on Election Day, November 8

If you are a registered Republican voter in Cuyahoga County, then you may have received the information posted below. I am posting the information for those Tea Party people who are thoroughly disgusted with the Republican Party, and who understandably might have tossed out the envelope unopened.

The letter appears over the signatures of Robert Frost and Jeff Hastings, both Cuyahoga County Board of Elections Republican Board Members:

Each Election Day, the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections strives to ensure all aspects of the election are carried out in a fair, transparent, accurate and bi-partisan manner. The upcoming election on November 8, 2016 will be bigger than ever, and we need your to help make this a reality.

Based on your voter history, we know you are already engaged in the democratic process and invite you to be part of this historic election by sharing your time and talents in a variety of paid positions. Opportunities include:

•      Precinct Election Official: Staffs the polls on Election Day, assists voters, and ensures the election process is handled in an orderly, professional and lawful manner. Earns up to $200.00.

•      Rover: Travels to various polling locations to assess and assist with problems, safeguards sensitive documents and supplies, and delivers election materials. Earns $11.00 per hour.

•      Ride Along: Maintains political balance on election night by riding with law enforcement officials to and from drop-off locations and the Board of Elections warehouse to deliver ballots. Earns $10.00 per hour.

•      Temporary Election Clerk: Performs duties at the Board of Elections leading up to, during and/or after Election Day. Earns $10.00 per hour.

More than 6,000 people are needed to fulfill these duties, and we do our very best to place an equal number of Republicans and Democrats in each position. By participating, you are serving your country and community, taking an active role in our system of government and making sure every vote counts. This is your front row seat to experiencing what is sure to be one of the most historic elections of our time.

We thank you for your assistance in this important matter and appreciate your willingness to help. To participate, please return the form below. Together, we can make sure that Cuyahoga County is ready for Election Day!

Cuyahoga County Board of Elections | 2925 Euclid Avenue | Cleveland, Ohio 44115 | www.443vote.com 

 216-443-VOTE (8683)

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Confusion on the Ohio Primary Ballot ~ GOP

A day or two ago  Conservative Treehouse posted a 3-minute video about Confusion on the Ohio Primary Ballot for Republican voters. The Democratic party ballot is straightforward. 

Secretary of State John Husted has finally responded with a press release that includes the following:

State election leaders say there is nothing unusual about the ballots, urging voters to choose their candidates in both columns.

Cleveland Tea Party Patriots’ Ralph King confirms that a voter’s principal choice is for the Delegate-at-Large, but a second vote for a District Delegate / District Alternate does not cancel out or affect the at-Large vote. So vote twice for the candidate of your choice. 

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Presidential Primary Debates : Links

The first GOP primary debate between Republican candidates for President is in Cleveland in a couple of weeks:

Thursday, August 6, 2015

9pm ET - Republican Primary Debate 

Aired On: Fox News Channel

Location: Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, OH

Sponsors: Fox News, Facebook

Moderators: Bret Baier, Megyn Kelly and Chris Wallace

Rules: Top 10 candidates in an average of 5 national polls

Candidates: To be determined

Notes: Fox News has added a candidate forum at 1pm ET the same day for candidates who don't make the debate cut

The website with details on subsequent debates is here. 

The website for upcoming primary debates between Democrat candidates is here; details are not yet posted.

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Phyllis Schlafly on early voting, especially in Ohio

 Photo credit: dailycaller.com

Phyllis Schlafly on early voting, especially in Ohio, from Townhall:

Although the midterm elections are still two weeks away, about two million Americans have already voted. The circus of early and mail-in voting undermines the federal law, which provides: "The Tuesday next after the first Monday in November, in every even numbered year, is established as the day for the election."

When our national elections were held on one unifying day, discussions and debates could continue among family, neighbors and the media up until the day that virtually everyone voted. The one and only debate between Ronald Reagan and Jimmy Carter occurred only a week before Election Day in 1980, with the candidates tied in the polls while a television audience of perhaps 120 million people watched.

Why rampant early voting is even allowed remains a mystery. The Constitution requires that the members of the Electoral College, who elect the president, must cast their votes on the same day throughout the nation, because our founding fathers wisely sought to avoid the mischief caused by early voting.

Yet in this year's race for the U.S. Senate in Iowa, which may decide which party controls the Senate beginning January, some 170,000 Iowans had already cast their votes before the candidates held a key debate. Those votes that are cast before debates are held can hardly be desirable.

In Congress, a representative may change the vote he cast for or against a piece of legislation up until all the votes are cast and the voting period is closed. But the millions who vote early cannot change their vote based on new information, and candidates are wasting time and money campaigning in front of people who have already voted.

Because of the Ebola scandal, some may wish to change their vote, but that is impossible for those who have already voted. Some early voters may die before Election Day, and early voting allows the votes of those dead people to be included. If there is any dispute over whether their votes were valid or fraudulent, they are no longer with us to defend themselves.

Typically, there are no poll watchers during early voting, so the integrity of the casting of the ballots cannot be monitored. Many of the early votes are cast in a coercive environment, such as a union boss driving employees to the polls and watching over the process so there is no guarantee that their votes will be private.

Democrats promote early voting for the same reason they oppose voter ID: because they view early voting as helping their side. In the absurdly long 35-day period of early voting in Ohio in 2012, Democrats racked up perhaps a million-vote advantage over Republicans before Election Day was ever reached.

. . .

Romney lacked a message, too, but he was mainly defeated by the Democrats' superb ground game, which exploited early voting in key states such as Florida and Ohio. By continuously updating their computer-based information about who had not yet voted, Democrats could harass and nag low-information voters until they turned in their ballots.

Read the rest here.

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