E-Censorship

 art credit: 2012patriot.wordpress.com

Most days I visit several news aggregators to find reports, analyses, and commentary. A couple of weeks ago, one of the aggregators, Lucianne.com, was down for several days. It wasn’t the first time it went down, and I wonder about why it happened. For the last two days, another aggregator, Politipage, has gone blank. Hmm. Maybe these were just technical crashes. Both these aggregators lean conservative.

In what are probably related developments, some prominent conservative voices have been demonetized or blocked from Facebook or other platforms. Among them are Diamond and Silk, Pamela Geller, Robert Spencer, and Avi Yemini.

Glenn Reynolds (Mr. Instapundit) has an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal today titled “When Digital Platforms Become Censors: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other tech giants say that they’re open forums. What happens when they start to shut down voices they consider beyond the pale?”:

Call 2018 the “Year of Deplatforming.” The internet was once celebrated for allowing fresh new voices to escape the control of gatekeepers. But this year, the internet giants decided to slam the gates on a number of people and ideas they don’t like. If you rely on someone else’s platform to express unpopular ideas, especially ideas on the right, you’re now at risk. This raises troubling questions, not only for free speech but for the future of American politics and media.

That’s his opener. The rest of his commentary is here.

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The Media’s war against President Trump escalates

image credit: thatbookwormgirl.wordpress.com

It is difficult to equate a “free press” with the dishonest Mainstream Media that produces negative propaganda round-the-clock. Legal Insurrection has the latest anti-Trump strategy:

Since election day in 2016, various media outlets have attacked Trump and his supporters on a near daily basis. Yet when Trump refers to fake news as an enemy of the people, they become outraged and claim he is attacking the free press.

The Boston Globe has decided to organize a protest in print, proving once again that the media thinks it is part of the resistance. Brian Stelter of CNN is pretty excited about this:

More than 100 newspapers will publish editorials decrying Trump’s anti-press rhetoric

“The dirty war on the free press must end.”

That’s the idea behind an unusual editorial-writing initiative that has enlisted scores of newspapers across America.

The Boston Globe has been contacting newspaper editorial boards and proposing a “coordinated response” to President Trump’s escalating “enemy of the people” rhetoric.

“We propose to publish an editorial on August 16 on the dangers of the administration’s assault on the press and ask others to commit to publishing their own editorials on the same date,” The Globe said in its pitch to fellow papers.

The effort began just a few days ago.

As of Saturday, “we have more than 100 publications signed up, and I expect that number to grow in the coming days,” Marjorie Pritchard, the Globe’s deputy editorial page editor, told CNN.

The rest of the report is here. Sad to see that cleveland.com is on board the anti-Trump Train, such as here. Let's see if it runs an editorial tomorrow.

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Update on the Ohio District 12 election

100percentfedup reports:

It looks like there was a big blue bust when the so-called “blue wave” trickled into town during Ohio’s special election. Reports are suggesting that there were over 170 people listed in Ohio’s 12th Congressional District who were registered as being over 116-years-old. How does that happen? Well, that’s a very good question, especially in a town where voter fraud is thought to run rampant and a Republican might just barely defeat their Democratic opponent.

It was Republican Troy Balderson who won (so far) by a very slim number of votes, close to 1,600, and that accounts for less than 1% of the votes in the district. That means the election is so close that law demands a recount. Of course, that’s Ohio law, specifically. It’s also reported that there are at least 3,000 provisional ballots yet to be counted. That number is higher than the number by which Republican Balderson has apparently won, which likely contributes to the further demand for a recount. It’s like you can’t win an election if you’re Republican without people wanting a recount and some invisible person who is 116-years-old, or older, shows up magically to defeat you.

Full report is here. No wonder Danny O’Connor has not conceded (see here).

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Erasing History

A.F. Branco’s cartoon via www.wnd.com

Rename America

Most of us are aghast at the destruction of our history, whether the result of indoctrination taking the place of education in schools, or Confederate statues being torn down, or a commemorative plaque of George Washington being removed, etc. etc. Daniel Greenfield looks down the road that we are on, and it is scary. From his article “Rename America”:

Austin’s Equity Office has recommended renaming the Texas city because of Stephen F. Austin's alleged views on slavery. But why stop at just renaming Austin when Amerigo Vespucci took and sold slaves. 

Austin, Texas is named after Stephen F. Austin, but America is named after Amerigo Vespucci. 

. . .

History cannot be purified, only learned from. 

Read the rest here.

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Ohio District 12: “finding” ballots

image credit: headlineoftheday.com

We’ve seen this movie before. Leah Barkoukis reports at Townhall:

Election officials in Ohio found 588 uncounted votes Wednesday in a suburb of Columbus, county officials said.

After counting the ballots, Republican Troy Balderson received 198 votes; Democrat Danny O’Connor got 388 votes; and Joe Manchik, 2 votes. Thus, O’Connor gained 190 on Balderson, who currently leads by 1,564 votes in the close race.

Full report is here. If this follows the usual plot, election officials will keep “finding” ballots until O’Connor wins. At any rate, O'Connor has not conceded.

More on potential Ohio voter fraud is at Breitbart here.  Eric Eggers reports:

Consider that 170 registered voters listed as being over 116 years old still existed on the rolls of Ohio’s 12th Congressional when GAI accessed the data last August. That’s 10 percent of Balderson’s current margin of victory, pending provisional ballots. And 72 voters over the age of 116 who “live” in Balderson’s district cast ballots in the 2016 election.

But the Left hasn’t given up trying to create conditions favorable for voter fraud in Ohio. As former Ohio Secretary of State Ken Blackwell has pointed out, “hyper-partisan liberals…have their eyes on Ohio.” Electing a Democrat as the state’s top elections official would undoubtedly roll back the hard-won safeguards Ohio has implemented. And as Blackwell points out, as goes Ohio, so goes the Presidency.

I had previously linked to Ken Blackwell’s article in the Cleveland Tea Party blog here.

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Special Election tomorrow 12th District

map credit: ballotpedia

12^th District, outside of Columbus includes Zanesville and Mansfield

Cleveland Tea Party members: Do you have family, friends, or colleagues who live in the Ohio 12^th District ?  Tomorrow, Tuesday, Aug. 7 is the Special Election for the US House seat recently vacated by Rep. Patrick Tiberi. State Sen. Troy Balderson (R) is running against Danny O'Connor (D).

Easy Action Alert: call, email, text, or otherwise encourage those you know to VOTE tomorrow.

Click here for more information.

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Dinesh D’Souza’s Death of A Nation

Roger L. Simon posted his review of Dinesh D’Souza’s new documentary film Death of A Nation. The review concludes:  

. . . Dinesh is definitely not premature in assessing the moment we are in as critical to the future of our nation, even its existence as we know it.  And he has made the most impassioned film he could to help move people in the right direction. This alone makes it compelling.  Most films are made for no reason at all but wealth and self-aggrandizement and show it.

The question remains -- as it is with all works of this nature -- will anybody see it who doesn't already agree with it?  Reporting from my new home in Nashville, I am not optimistic.  I was alone in the theatre with one other couple.  Whatever the case, D'Souza has to be applauded for his effort.  He's a patriot and an immigrant who makes a great case for legal immigration all by himself.

The full review at PJ Media is here. The documentary is currently at several Cleveland area theaters (Valley View, Beachwood, Middleburg Hts.). Click on the movie website here; when you select “Get Tickets” the area theater details will pop up.

I have not seen the movie, but I have read a related article that Mr. D'Souza published the other day at American Greatness here; entitled “The Switch That Never Happened: How the South Really Went GOP,” it is adapted from the book.

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Gov. Kasich on Trump’s “chaos”

Breitbart reports:

Sunday on ABC’s “This Week,” Gov. John Kasich (R-OH) said President Donald Trump’s “chaos” was turning off “suburban women.”

Kasich said, “First of all, the chaos that surrounds Donald Trump has unnerved a lot of people. Suburban women in particular here are the ones that are really turned off. And you add to that the millennials you have it very close.”

(More of the report with video is here.)

Let's see. Chaos defined as “complete disorder and confusion” vs President Trump’s record since his election.  Below are a few accomplishments out of over 50 cited by Sean Hannity here:

• ·         Neil Gorsuch on the Supreme Court
• ·         Stock Market reached an all-time high
• ·         Consumer confidence at 17-year high
• ·         More than 2 million jobs created
• ·         Mortgage applications for new homes rise to a 7-year high
• ·         Unemployment rate at 17-year low
• ·         Ended war on coal
• ·         Bids for Border Wall underway
• ·         Changed rules of engagement against ISIS
• ··        Withdrew from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)
• ·         Removed The United States out of The Paris Accord
• ·         Authorized the construction of The Keystone Pipeline
• ·         Food Stamp use at lowest level in 7 years
• ·         Would not certify the Iran Nuclear Deal
• ·         Recognized Jerusalem as Israel's capital
• ·         Passage of Tax Reform Bill

If that’s “chaos,” some voters will want more chaos.

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President Trump rally in Ohio

Here's the live stream link via Right Side Broadcasting Network for President Trump's rally today (Saturday, August 4), scheduled to begin at 6:30pm (h/t Sundance).

Or go to the YouTube link at 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MVknMa_m8FU

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Ohio Secretary of State and election integrity

From Ballotpedia:

Heading into the 2018 election, the sitting secretary of state is Jon Husted (R), who was first elected in 2010 and was re-elected in 2014. Husted is prevented by term limits from seeking election to a third term in 2018.

State Senator Frank LaRose is the GOP candidate for Ohio Secretary of State. His website has his bio, and I am not pleased to read that he introduced legislation to make it easier for Ohioans to go online to register to vote. From LaRose’s website:

Senate Bill 318 will simplify absentee voting for all Ohioans by allowing voters to go online and request a vote-by-mail ballot. Currently, voters must mail requests for an absentee ballot to their local board of elections. This bill will make the process more efficient and more secure all while improving speed and convenience for voters. 

More efficient and secure? Or maybe more opportunities for voter fraud. (Remember the Soros-funded Secretary of State Project? To paraphrase Stalin, it’s not who votes; it’s who counts the votes.)

So conservative voters may be looking at another hold-your-nose election.

Former Ohio Secretary of State Ken Blackwell published an article at American Thinker, “The Left Wants to Control Ohio Elections,” that takes a longer view at the race for Ohio Secretary of State:

Hyper-partisan liberals once again have their eyes on Ohio.  This time, they want to take over the office in charge of making sure the state's elections are fair, honest and transparent.  Judging from the money they're spending and false outrage they're spewing, leftists will stop at nothing until they have one of their own in charge of counting votes in Ohio.  We have to stop them. 

. . .

[C]apturing the Ohio secretary of state's office is vital to the left's master plan of electing America's next president.  No Republican has won the presidency without winning Ohio.  A critical swing state, Ohio has voted for the winner in presidential races in twenty-eight out of the last thirty elections.  As Ohio goes, so goes the nation.

They have full access to the Clinton Money Machine and the Obama Operation.  While it may seem strange to witness millions of dollars pouring into a down ballot race in the heartland, there is a method to the Democrats' madness.  Delve below the surface, and you will see that the Democrats have their sights set on 2020, defeating Donald Trump, taking back the presidency.  Winning the [Ohio] secretary of state's race is a means to that end.

In the wrong hands, that office will become a de facto arm of the Ohio Democratic Party and the Democratic National Committee.  Eric Holder and a laundry list of presidential wannabes know that.  Realizing what our rivals are capable of, Republicans should be on high alert.  They mean business.  They've got millions.  They don't fight fair.  It's that serious.

Their candidate for this high office is Kathleen Clyde.  She fits the pattern of coming from the far left of the political spectrum and being loud and confrontational in her style.  She is advancing the preposterous and obviously unconstitutional notion that if a presidential candidate does not release his taxes, he is immediately and irrevocably kept off the ballot in Ohio.  You can see how far-fetched and far left her agenda is.

 . . . 

The person the Democrats nominate, whoever it is, will target Ohio as the missing piece to the puzzle they need to claim the Oval Office so they can pick up where Barack Obama left off.  If they seize control of the Ohio secretary of state's office and they control the machinery of government in the Buckeye State, they will set to work pressing their advantage.  That is why Republicans are taking action: because winning the Ohio secretary of state's race is absolutely vital to the integrity of our elections and the future of our country.

You can read Blackwell’s full article here. I plan to re-post this shortly before Election Day.

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Obama's Ohio endorsements

From cleveland.com today:

Former President Barack Obama unveiled his list of initial endorsements Wednesday, including backing Democrat Richard Cordray for governor of Ohio.

. . . 

Here is the full list of Obama's Ohio endorsements:

·         Richard Cordray for governor

·         Betty Sutton for lieutenant governor

·         Steve Dettelbach for attorney general

·         Kathleen Clyde for secretary of state

·         Zack Space for auditor

·         Aftab Pureval for Congress in the 1st Congressional District

·         Jill Schiller for Congress in the 2nd Congressional District

·         Phil Robinson, Stephanie Howse, Mary Lightbody, Beth Liston, Allison Russo, Erica Crawley, Tavia Galonski, Casey Weinstein and Taylor Sappington for the Ohio House of Representatives

Obama's endorsement of Cordray comes after Republican President Donald Trump endorsed Cordray's opponent - Republican Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine - in the gubernatorial race.

The full report is here.

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Mike Rowe on average Americans

 image credit: nbcnews.com

Mike Rowe is one of my favorite guests on news and opinion programs. Ben Shapiro has a one-hour interview accessible at Legal Insurrection here(scroll to the bottom). Here’s the appetizer:

This week, Shapiro spoke with TV host and entrepreneur Mike Rowe. Their conversation covered a number of topics such as work and higher education. In the segment below, Ben asks Rowe about the divide between elites and average Americans.

The FOX News Insider reports:

Mike Rowe to Ben Shapiro: ‘Profound’ Disconnect Exists Between Elites and Many Americans

Reality TV star Mike Rowe told Ben Shapiro that he believes there is a widening gap between the so-called “elites” and everyday Americans.

Rowe said the gap has always existed to varying degrees, but he now sees a growing “disconnect” and a lack of appreciation of things that are basic in everyday life…

“If we’re not blown away by the miracle that occurs when we flick the switch and the lights come on; if we’re not gobsmacked by flushing the toilet and seeing all of it go away; when we start losing our appreciation for those things, the gap deepens. And I think the gap right now is extraordinary,” said Rowe.

He has a way of hitting the nail on the head. Link here.

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National Korean War Veterans Armistice Day

Photo by USAF Tech Sgt Ashley Tyler

I am a day late with this tribute; via Don Surber:

Friday was a national day to honor the American sacrifice in the Korean War. It coincided with the 65th anniversary of the cease-fire. It remains America's longest war, at 68 years and counting.

Kim Jong Un returned what is believed to be the remains of 55 American soldiers who died in combat. Forensic tests will determine just who these men are.

“For 3 brutal years, our Armed Forces and allies fought valiantly to stop the spread of communism and defend freedom on the Korean Peninsula. On National Korean War Veterans Armistice Day, we remember the bravery and sacrifices of those who fought and died for this noble cause,” President Trump said in his proclamation.

The U.S. media gave scant notice to this.

Surber's full report is here.

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In the news: Richard Cordray, candidate for Governor of Ohio

art credit: telegraph.co.uk

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was set up under the Obama administration, and it was designed to be exempt from checks and balances and accountability. An overview at Competitive Enterprise Institute sums it up in an article titled “Unconstitutionally Structured and Harmful to Consumers”; article is here.

Cleveland.com has a report by Eric Heisig with the headline

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau loses lawsuit

against Cleveland debt collection firm

A federal judge has ruled against the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in a lawsuit it filed against Cleveland debt collection firm Weltman, Weinberg & Reis.

. . .

Senior U.S. District Judge Donald Nugent wrote in an opinion released Wednesday that the CFPB did not prove that Weltman, Weinberg & Reis sent demand letters that were false, misleading or deceptive.

The CFPB sued Cleveland firm Weltman, Weinberg & Reis in April 2017, saying the firm's attorneys were not sufficiently involved in sending out the letters, even though the letters prominently mention they were sent out by a law firm and occasionally raise the possibility of legal action for unpaid debts.

. . .

Nugent also wrote that Weltman, Weinberg & Reis sent out similar letters when Alan Weinberg was hired to collect debts for the state of Ohio between 2009 and 2011 under then-Attorney General Richard Cordray.

The point was significant because Cordray, a Democrat who is campaigning for Ohio governor, was the head of the CFPB between 2012 and last year. He was at the federal agency when it sued Weltman, Weinberg & Reis and authorized the lawsuit, the judge wrote.

The Cleveland firm considered calling Cordray as a witness during the trial, which took place before and after Ohio's primary elections, but chose not to do so.

…

Read the rest here. I haven’t followed this one, but I would not trust the CFPB under Cordray from here to the door. From the Wikipedia page:

On May 21, 2018, the bureau was weakened after US President Donald Trump signed into law Congressional legislation repealing the enforcement of automobiles lending rules.  On May 24, 2018, Trump signed into law further Congressional legislation exempting dozens of banks from the CFPB's regulations.

I wish President Trump would just shut the thing down. And Mr. Cordray is running for Governor. 

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Desperation at MSNBC

Art credit: quotesgram.com

Today’s headline at Breitbart:

‘Woke Nation’: Joe Scarborough Rebrands ‘The Resistance’ as Tea Party of 2018

Cultural appropriation?

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Happy birthday Cleveland

Public Square, Cleveland

Photo credit: Library of Congress via cleveland.com

Happy birthday Cleveland

Founders Day July 22, 1796

Cleveland turns 222 years old tomorrow, on July 22. For the occasion, cleveland.com recently posted a great collection of historical photos, mostly of downtown Cleveland. Click here.

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Ohio Libertarian Party regains ballot access

Splitting the vote? Here’s part of a report by Tyler Arnold from Ohio Watchdog on the upcoming elections and the consequences of Libertarian candidates qualifying to run in this cycle:

The Libertarian Party of Ohio regained ballot access this year, which means its candidates’ names will appear alongside of Republican, Democrat and Green Party candidates. This could affect the hotly contested race for Ohio governor.

“We feel fantastic that our party has support from all 88 Ohio counties and over 102,000 of our fellow citizens were willing to put their name to support the efforts of liberty and choice for all Ohioans,” Libertarian Party of Ohio Communications Director David Jackson told Watchdog.org.

The Libertarian Party of Ohio passed the signature threshold needed to regain “minor party” status, which allows its candidates to be on the ballot for the first time in four years. The party has more than 20 candidates running for state or national office in Ohio this November.

“It would not take many Libertarian votes to affect the election outcome in a close race,” Ohio State University political science professor Vladimir Kogan told Watchdog.org. One of Kogan’s areas of expertise is state politics.

Republicans are likely to hold onto most U.S. House seats in Ohio while the Senate seat will likely go to the Democrat, analysts predict. However, the governor’s race is closely contested with polls showing Democrat Richard Cordray ahead of Republican Mike DeWine by just 1.6 percent on average. The Green Party candidate is Constance Gadell-Newton and the Libertarian Party candidate is Travis Irvine.

Read the rest here.

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Impeachment in the news

Impeachment proceedings against President Andrew Johnson 

Image credit: TheNation.com

The word “impeachment” is being bandied about everywhere, both from the media and members of Congress screaming for President Trump’s head, and from the House judiciary panel and conservatives preparing articles of impeachment against Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein for “stonewalling their requests for documents”. So here is a link to a web page that provides an overview of the impeachment process, whether of the President or of a federal official. This overview concludes:

Historically, Congress has issued Articles of Impeachment for acts in three general categories:

·         Exceeding the constitutional bounds of the powers of the office.

·         Behavior grossly incompatible with the proper function and purpose of the office.

·         Employing the power of the office for an improper purpose or for personal gain.

The impeachment process is political, rather than criminal in nature. Congress has no power to impose criminal penalties on impeached officials. But criminal courts may try and punish officials if they have committed crimes.

The rest of the overview is here. 

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Trump blimp photo

Reports of the Trump blimp "dominating the London landscape while Trump is in England" seem to be, er, over-inflated. Spot the giant "baby Trump" blimp in downtown London:

image credit: powerline blog 

Two more photos here.

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Bad news from the UK: Brexit is dead

image credit: kapustafinancial.com

Over the weekend, while the media and chattering classes have been hyperventilating over President Trump’s scheduled announcement this evening of his Supreme Court nominee, there was an ominous development in the UK. It’s bad news for those who share the core Tea Party values of fiscal responsibility, limited government, and free [and fair] markets. 

James Delingpole reports today at Breitbart London:

Brexit is dead –  strangled at the weekend by Prime Minister Theresa May and her cabal of Remainer cronies.

It was a brilliant coup, masterfully conducted with a sadist’s attention to detail.

All the ministers in the Cabinet were hauled up to Chequers, the Prime Minister’s country residence, where their phones were confiscated, as though they were naughty children. Then the stubbornly pro-Brexit ones who were rightly disgusted by the shaming sell-out deal May had cobbled together with her virulently Remainer civil servants were given the same choice Rommel was in 1944: cyanide pill or slow career death.

. . .

In June 2016, 17.4 million people — more than had ever voted for anything in British history — voted Brexit to free themselves from the clutches of that Remainer establishment. Now the Remainer establishment has responded as only it knows how: by ignoring the democratic will and shoring up its power base by whatever means necessary.

. . .

Delingpole’s full report is here. 

President Trump is scheduled to visit the UK at the end of this week, despite planned protests (but at least the anti-Trump balloon over Parliament will now have to share the spotlight with the anti-Mayor Khan balloon).

Exit question: will President Trump be meeting with Nigel Farage this Friday?

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Unemployment up?

art credit: lindavernon.com

Good point from Stephen Green at Instapundit:

WINNING: U.S. gains 213,000 jobs in June; unemployment rises to 4%.

When unemployment goes up while the economy is adding jobs at a healthy clip, it’s great news. It means that people who had dropped out of the labor force and had stopped being counted as “unemployed,” feel confident enough to start looking for work again.

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Independence Day celebrations

Image credit: notoverthehill.com

This week we’ll be gathering for backyard BBQs and watching fireworks. The blog DC Whispers sums up what it is we are celebrating:

282 years ago this week 56 brave met to deliberate and in doing so they risked everything. A recent decree from King George declared them traitors. If they did not cease any and all attempts to thwart the authority of British rule they were to be put to death – effective immediately. These men did not cease. Instead, they voted and then signed what was both a Declaration of Independence and a declaration of war against the greatest military power in the world. 

If the rebellion failed they would surely hang.

America was born. 

Happy Independence Day.

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