Now we know where Jim Jordan stands

 

The Freedom Caucus can now re-brand as the RINO Caucus.  Politico reports:

Jim Jordan and other key conservative firebrands have caused a fair share of House Speaker Kevin McCarthy‘s biggest headaches. But instead of leading the rebellion this time, they helped him quash it.

As the House Freedom Caucus was preparing to discuss whether to officially oppose the speaker’s bipartisan debt deal — a move that would potentially galvanize conservative opposition — Jordan (R-Ohio) phoned several fellow members with a request, according to a person familiar with the calls. The former chair of the group urged them to hold back, effectively giving conservatives who wanted to vote with McCarthy license to do so.

Jordan, a longtime McCarthy antagonist turned ally, almost got his wish. The group took no official position until hours before the vote, when most members had already made up their minds.

The beloved House Freedom Caucus co-founder — who gravitated toward McCarthy after the now-speaker tapped him for a senior spot on the Oversight Committee — helped out in other ways. The Ohio lawmaker spoke up in favor of the deal in private calls and meetings, including taking the mic at a closed-door huddle on Tuesday night, just hours after many of his fellow conservatives had spent the day trashing the deal.

This report concludes with this:

If most Republicans get on board, it means threats against his speakership won’t gain real traction. And with two-thirds of the GOP conference backing the deal Wednesday, it seemed to be working.

“We didn’t do it by taking the easy route,” McCarthy said in a celebratory post-vote press conference. “It wasn’t an easy fight, I had people on both sides upset.”

But he added: “I think we did pretty damn good for the American people.”

No debt ceiling.  No serious budget process.  J D Rucker considers this bill an existential threat.  His take is here.

# # #

The Day After the Election: Phantom votes

 

   

Jay Valentine led the team that built the eBay fraud engine and the foundational technology for the TSA No-Fly List.  His team also built the Undeliverable Ballot Database.  His organization, Omega4America.com, has been working to clean voter rolls in swing states.  He published another column at AmericanThinker the other day, and it sounds to me like he’s no longer optimistic:  

RINOs, psyops, controlled opposition like Breitbart and Fox and the grifter consultant class are selling the narrative that Trump wins the nomination bigly -- then takes the Electoral College.

Joe Biden is on wobbly knees, at the edge of the actuarial life chart, leaving America with the most ridiculous replacement president.  His own party doesn’t want him to run -- but the party owners are stuck with him. That too favors Trump.

Blissfully count the new Senate majority, the expanding House majority, and the keys to a White House that will finally drain the swamp. 

Then, have a coffee, sit down and remember 2022.  That felt great too -- until the day after the election.

To become president, Trump must win a bunch of swing states.  To win each state he needs more ballots in his pile than the other guy.  It’s baked into the data -- which we look at every day -- that Trump is not going to win those swing states.  None of them.

It’s not his fault.  He will probably get more votes, just not more ballots.

Mr Valentine then takes a close look at some of the swing states.  Below is just one, Arizona, from his column:

Arizona (11 [electoral votes]). We have multiple sources of Arizona data. In Arizona, people can vote from hotels, RV Parks, vacant lots (literally).  We have data showing elected officials in Arizona changed voter rolls when mail-in ballots were being mailed out.  Those voters did not get their ballots.  Where did they go?

In 2020, the state was run by Republicans -- RINOs for sure -- but not leftists. Now the leftists run everything. 

In the 2022 election, they changed the print settings in Republican districts.  They had thousands of ballots that did not signature match -- yet they accepted them!

So, in 2024, do you think Trump is going to overcome this with rallies?  There are enough fake votes in one county in Arizona to overcome any advantage Trump gets statewide.

At least one Arizona election commission will make sure Trump loses in case the phantoms are not enough.  Scratch Arizona.

Here’s Mr Valentine’s conclusion:

Voter fraud will screw you on election day!

Why?  Political consultants make money on ad placements and retainers -- not by dealing with baked-in fraud. If the RNC spent as much on election fraud remediation in each swing state as it did on flowers and booze, Trump might win some of these states. If the Trump campaign paid attention to the election integrity teams and took seriously the threat of election commission-instigated fraud, it could make a difference.

Unfortunately, the RNC is about raising dough and having elaborate meetings with mediocre minds.  The Trump campaign thinks rallies, flags, and red hats can overcome the Left’s complete control of election apparatus. . . .

Read the rest here. 

# # #

Lizards vs MAGA

 

At American Thinker, J B Shurk has encouraging words for conservatives:

In So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish (the fourth book in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy "trilogy of six books"), Douglas Adams brutalizes "democracy" in a hilarious exchange:

"On its world, the people are people.  The leaders are lizards.  The people hate the lizards and the lizards rule the people."

"Odd," said Arthur.  "I thought you said it was a democracy."

"I did," said Ford.  "It is."

"So," said Arthur, hoping he wasn't sounding ridiculously obtuse, "why don't the people get rid of the lizards?"

"It honestly doesn't occur to them," said Ford.  "They've all got the vote, so they all pretty much assume that the government they voted in more or less approximates to the government they want."

"You mean they actually vote for the lizards?"

"Oh yes," said Ford with a shrug, "of course."

"But," said Arthur, going in for the big one again, "why?"

"Because if they didn't vote for a lizard," said Ford, "the wrong lizard might get in."

That is America's Uniparty system in a nutshell!  Republican, Democrat, whatever — they're all lizards.  Then someone who doesn't speak lizard comes along — Donald Trump — and the "democracy" loses its collective mind.  The Intelligence Community spies on his campaign.  The FBI insinuates that he's a Russian spy.  The press calls for his removal and incarceration.  Unethical prosecutors and judges go after anyone who might be called his friend.  The Uniparty harasses him with endless investigations.  The Pentagon and agency bureaucrats ignore his lawful orders and spread gossip and lies.  The Department of (in)Justice and left-leaning local tyrants persecute his supporters with spurious criminal charges that ruin lives but, more importantly, blare a warning to all Americans: if you dare to vote for a non-lizard, we will target you as extremists, lock you up as insurrectionists, threaten all you hold dear, and terrorize your lives!  All this calculated Uniparty and Deep State destruction because so many in Washington so despise the idea of making America great again that they choose to imbecilically slander that notion as racist!

When President Trump took the stage at this year's Conservative Political Action Conference and pledged to "totally obliterate the Deep State" if voters re-elected him, he made it crystal-clear that the war between the people and the lizards will be one for the ages.  "In 2016, I declared I am your voice.  Today, I add, I am your warrior.  I am your justice.  And for those who have been wronged and betrayed, I am your retribution."  If you didn't already know he was wearing his iconic navy suit, white shirt, and red tie, you'd have thought that Johnny Cash's "Man in Black" had just walked in announcing, "There's a man going around taking names / And he decides who to free and who to blame."  He might as well have just admitted to the crowd that he's Batman, looked through the cameras and directly into the watery eyes of the RINOs wobbling in front of their televisions, and roared, "I'm vengeance."  It was a great speech, but all I heard was, "Listen to the words long written down / When the man comes around."  Just like last year, he won the CPAC straw poll overwhelmingly. . . . .

For the full column, go here. 

RINOs in Cuyahoga County

Ralph King and President Trump

Ohio’s Ralph King: Establishment Republicans
are Trying to Take over Local GOP
to Help Matt Dolan in Primary

The “Ralph King” in the Breitbart headline is Cleveland Tea Party founder Ralph King :

Ralph King, the co-founder of Cleveland Tea Party Patriots, told Breitbart News Saturday that establishment Republicans with close ties to Democrats are trying to infiltrate the Republican Party of Cuyahoga County in order to help U.S. Senate candidate Matt Dolan early in the primary process and wrest control away from conservatives who have taken command in recent years.

King, who has been active in Cuyahoga County Republican politics since 2001, explained that the establishment Republicans are trying to infiltrate the local county party in an effort to help Dolan in the upcoming 2024 Senate race’s Republican primary after his failed attempt in 2022 when he came in third behind now-Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) in the GOP primary.

“The activists and the conservatives, you know, we’ve been fighting for a long time,” King acknowledged. “We just stopped a lobbyist from taking over the Ohio Republican Party. There’s a huge fight between the lobbyists and the conservatives in the Ohio House over the Ohio speaker. And in Cuyahoga County, which I’ve been on for many, many years, you know, we continually fought against the liberals, the establishment, the donor class, and until recently, we finally got a good chair to put a stop to all that. And the liberals and the RINOs in the establishment, you know, they are pushing back. And at this moment, what they’re trying to do is they’re trying to hold illegal meetings … to try to get rid of a new chairman that we have [who] has given voice to the members and has stopped putting their finger on the scale, to tip it towards the establishment, and they’re mad they no longer control the party.”

“Between [former] President [Donald] Trump coming out [in support] for J.D. Vance and us on the Cuyahoga County Republican Party, Matt Dolan tried to steal that endorsement,” King continued. “Cuyahoga County Republican Party is one of the largest GOP parties in the state of Ohio. Although we’re in the pit of the Democrat heart of Ohio, we do have the largest party. It is Matt Dolan’s home party. That’s the importance, so between President Trump and the Cuyahoga County Republican Party slapping Matt Dolan down in that last election — between the two — we ultimately killed his chances to win the primaries. That’s why Matt knows he needs control of the GOP in Cuyahoga County at this point. So what he did, he’s vowed revenge since that time.”

King ultimately said that the “illegal meeting” the establishment Republicans are trying to hold for the Cuyahoga County Republican Party is to remove the current chair, Lisa Stickan, halfway through her four-year term to put Lee Weingart in as chair to help Dolan be better placed in the 2024 Republican primary.

“So what [Dolan’s] done is we have a gentleman by the name of Lee Weingart,” King explained. “Lee Weingart is a lobbyist. Lee Weingart has a history of donating to [Rep.] Marcy Kaptur [(D-OH)], [Sen.] Sherrod Brown [(D-OH)], a long history of donating to [former Rep.] Tim Ryan [(D-OH)] — actually made $3,000 donations to Tim Ryan in 2021 and was actually campaigning for Tim Ryan in Iowa [during his failed presidential run] — which would be par for the course for Matt Dolan to team up with a guy and a lobbyist like Lee Weingart. Lee Weingart tried to hold an illegal meeting. He used Matt Dolan’s firm to give some outrageous legal opinion supporting this illegal meeting. And what people need to realize is there’s a key between Matt Dolan and Lee Weingart and the donations to the Democrats and supporting Democrats. Matt Dolan was originally a Democrat before he started calling himself a Republican. … We are in a fight for the life of the Cuyahoga County Republican Party against the establishment likes of Lee Weingart and Matt Dolan.” . . .

Ralph King: fighting the good fight.  Full report is here.

# # #

Bidenomics

A F Branco cartoon seen at Flopping Aces:

# # #

Congress: a Confederacy of Traitors

   

Sad to wrap up the Christmas weekend with more bad news from Washington.  You will already be aware that Congress just passed another 4,000+ page Omnibus spending bill that does nothing for conservative Americans. Actually, it’s worse than nothing, as so much of your tax dollars will be funding progressive projects and agendas that will make your blood boil. 

So it is no surprise that Julie Kelly is beyond disgusted with Congress.  She’s furious at both (D) and (R) members of the Uniparty.  She closes her recent American Greatness column with outrage:

. . . No group of politicians has licked the boots of President Zelenskyy more than Republican senators. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is among Zelenskyy’s biggest supporters, insisting this week that “providing assistance for Ukrainians to defeat the Russians is the number one priority for the United States right now according to most Republicans. That’s how we see the challenges confronting the country at the moment.”

And there you have it. One of the most powerful—albeit most unpopular—leaders in Washington thinks lining Zelenskyy’s army-green pockets with more U.S. tax dollars is a greater need than tackling any number of ongoing crises roiling the country right now.

In a last bit of symbolism Wednesday night, Zelenskyy exited the House chambers carrying the case holding the folded American flag. A two-bit actor and international con man walked out with billions of American dollars and a cherished token of America’s sacrifice and in the real fight for freedom, justice, and security.

And the fiends in the hall systematically destroying that legacy for the people they are elected to represent cheered again.

Traitors.

She’s right.  Read her column here.   

# # #

Rebuild America First

 

J D Rucker is fired up.  Here’s an extract from “Rebuild the America First Movement or Die Trying” at America First Report:

Recognize the Enemies

We cannot fight an enemy if we do not recognize exactly who they are. It’s easy to say that the massive, widespread voter fraud as well as legal but dirty tactics used to sway elections are all the fault of Democrats, but this is inaccurate. It’s the Uniparty Swamp that’s truly behind the theft of the “red tsunami” in 2022 and the presidential election in 2020. Mitch McConnell was just as responsible (in fact, probably more so) for Republicans losing elections as Chuck Schumer.

The RINOs would rather the party lose than win with America First patriots. They despise Donald Trump, but more importantly they despise those of us who supported him. This is why they managed to lose a seat in the Senate despite the state of the nation being more abysmal than it has been in modern history. The party in charge of the House, Senate, and White House does NOT get rewarded with more seats under normal circumstances, but the Uniparty Swamp made it happen. The GOP may have won a razor-thin majority in the House, but that’s just because it’s too challenging for them to subvert so many elections across the country. The Uniparty Swamp is okay with a House led by Kevin McCarthy since he’s one of them.

. . .

Localize

This doesn’t just have to do with the America First movement. We should be striving to localize nearly every aspect of our lives with so many threats coming together around us. But the original plan of the Tea Party was to establish localized chapters. The America First movement should do something similar with one caveat. If we’re going to operate locally, we need to maintain that stance.

The Tea Party was killed by several groups of grifters who nationalized the movement. Some of the Tea Party groups were okay, but most were not. Unfortunately, being “okay” isn’t good enough for the long haul and being a grifter group is counterproductive. We cannot allow that to happen to the America First movement. If should form locally in areas across the country. It should stay local. It should operate locally [emphasis added]. Otherwise, it will be corrupted. . . .

Read the rest here.  Mr Rucker outlines some of the things patriots can DO to try to reverse course and undo some of the damage.   

# # #

Text for your letter to the judiciary & RINOs

 

Yesterday, I scrolled through an article at Citizen Free Press headlined “President Trump Speaks With Ashli Babbitt’s Mother Outside J6 DC Gulag.”  And in the comments I found this:

Here’s a letter to send to your State Appeals Court, State Supreme Court, and U.S. Supreme Court. Also the last sentence isn’t appropriate if you’re sending to a FIGHTER, but it’s very appropriate if you’re sending to a RINO:

PIO@supremecourt.gov

Dear Judge [or name of RINO]

The fact that we have political prisoners being held without substantial charges, without bail, and literally starting to die like neglected animals is a stain on the Judicial System that has seared itself into the minds of the American People.

Now this is what happens when you allow people to openly steal an election. They just move on to the next outrage. We’ve got a real problem now, we’ve got people at the highest levels sick in the head with what they perceive as power.

This is going to stop, I don’t know how but I can assure you it is going to stop. The problem’s going to be how to deal with these “Socialists” while that process is taking place; because with their hearts hardened like Pharaoh’s, they won’t stop. The sooner we address this the better, that’s all we know for sure.

So do something; if you can’t uphold the Oath of Office, don’t take the job.

Sincerely concerned citizen,

Copy. Paste. Send. Share. And thanks to the commenter posting as “Action.”

# # #

Daniel Horowitz has a plan

 

The ship of state is sinking, but Daniel Horowitz has a plan to counter the Biden Administration’s ongoing power grabs. His outline is at Conservative Review, and here’s his rationale:

. . .If Biden’s speech [the demonic one in Philadelphia] is really to be a turning point in this one-sided cold war that is heating up, conservatives should resolve to use the power they already wield over Republican governors and demand united action for states to protect constitutional rights from this thuggish Biden administration and national security deep state apparatus that threatens our liberties more than any foreign enemy in our history. Rather than making idle promises of winning back the House with RINOs or winning back the presidency years from now when it’s too late, we should be demanding action now from 20 or so GOP trifecta-controlled state governments. If they fail to take action now, then the entire point of federal elections with divided government is moot.

What would a coalition of federalism look like? A group of prominent governors, attorneys general, and state legislative speakers and majority leaders would initiate a declaration in one state – let’s call it the “Miami Declaration,” for example. The declaration would lay out a list of grievances and examples of the federal government violating the rights of the individual: from medical freedom and bodily autonomy to privacy infringement, collusion with big tech against First Amendment rights, and using federal agencies to persecute political opponents. The declaration would pronounce these states to be constitutional sanctuaries that protect all constitutional rights, including against the federal government. . . .

And in closing:

From now until the election, Republicans will seek to distract us with flaccid promises of deliverance in the future. The best way to verify their sincerity is by demanding that they actually use the power they currently hold to counter deeply destructive and unpopular policies from this regime.

The full column is here, and it includes specific suggestions on provisions and recourses that could be in a Declaration.  

As an Ohio voter, I have to wonder if Gov DeWine et al have the backbone and motivation to sign on to such a Declaration. So many in the GOPe are Uniparty.  Still, if you think Mr. Horowitz’s plan could be viable, please share the link with family and friends.

# # #

Nigel Farage at CPAC: video and extracts

 

File photo of Mr. Farage at Trump Tower

Shane Trejo at Big League Politics posted the video of Nigel Farage’s speech at CPAC-Texas.  Here’s most of Shane’s report with excerpts:

Brexit hero Nigel Farage gave a rousing defense of Western Civilization during his speech at CPAC Texas on Saturday.

“Ladies and gentlemen, we are under attack, under attack as never before, and that threat is not external, no, not even Nancy Pelosi’s one-woman attempt to start the third World War is the biggest threat we face, and it’s not Putin. The biggest threat we face is from within. The biggest threat we face is the fifth column inside all of our countries,” Farage said.

Farage explained how “educational institutions” have been captured by this fifth column to wage war against families, Judeo-Christian values, and our very civilization.

“Kids are not being taught critical thinking, kids are not being taught there are two valid approaches to a problem. Our children are being indoctrinated. Our universities have become madrassas of Marxism, and it needs to change,” he said.

“White privilege did not exist as a term. You didn’t hear about white privilege 10, 20 years ago, and yet, mainstream media ram it down our throats every single day. And that’s just one little example,” Farage added.

He derided the divisive racial agenda from the far left that is meant to pit groups against each other and make young people hate their families and their country.

. . .

“This is a Marxist attempt to break Western Civilization, a Marxist attempt to destroy everything we are, and we are going to fight back hard against it, aren’t we?” he asked, to an overwhelming applause from the audience.

Farage refused to let modern conservative leaders off the hook for their weakness in pushing back against far-left extremism. He said conservative leaders have shown “cowardice” and “fear” in recent years, empowering the Marxists.

“. . . To save Western Civilization, this is the battleground. Because if America falls, we all fall!” he added.

Source link is here.  This Tea Party person loves Mr. Farage. 

# # #

The Uniparty: a refresher course

 

Our household cut the cable many months ago, so we see only a few segments on cable or network news that get linked on various aggregators.  JD Rucker at America First linked to yesterday’s Tucker Carlson segment calling out the RINOs in DC (especially Mitch McConnell and Kevin McCarthy, but all the RINOs signing on to, e.g., the pending gun control legislation).  What was significant is that Mr. Rucker’s report was based on Sundance’s commentary at Conservative Treehouse – a good sign that Sundance’s analyses are increasingly popping up on alternative media. 

Sundance has been pointing out the corruption in the Uniparty for years, but this update from him the other day spells out the dynamics:

. . . what Tucker Carlson outlines in this monologue is accurate insofar as it merely scratches the surface of the DeceptiCons in Washington DC. {Direct Rumble Link}

The UniParty issue does not start in Washington DC, it surfaces in Washington DC.

The UniParty agenda, the origin of the crap that we see surface in a toxically corrupt federal government, starts IN YOUR STATE.

The UniParty is an outcome of the private organizations that run the political parties known as the RNC and DNC.  This is where almost all voters and political followers get lost.  The Republican and Democrat parties are not affiliated with any construct of the United States government.  They are private entities, private clubs, that can establish any set of rules and regulations for the people within the club/party.   That’s where the origin of the feces begins.

The club can accept or deny membership for any person who wants to run for political office.  The RNC and DNC clubs essentially select the politicians.  There is nothing within this process that is even remotely democratic, representative or even visible in the framework of the U.S. constitution.

Private corporations known as the RNC and DNC run the professional political apparatus, and from that origination all of the corruption in the body politic -as outlined in the visible UniParty agenda- surfaces.   Two clubs, both funded by Wall Street power brokers, globalists and ultra-rich mega-donors, select the members who will represent their interests in Washington DC.   That’s the root of the issue.

The Republican National Committee (RNC), and the Democrat National Committee (DNC), are private clubs.

The RNC and DNC are corporations, private businesses; and just like all private businesses, they have the ability to make rules, bylaws, terms and conditions of membership and association that are completely arbitrary according to their charter.

The RNC and DNC are not entities of government.  The RNC and DNC are not affiliates of government.  The RNC and DNC have absolutely no connection to government, other than their arbitrary business model for helping politicians enter and remain within government.

. . .

Nothing within the business system of DC and club politics has anything to do with the constitutional framework of U.S. government.

Read the whole thing here. Links to Fox News' Tucker Carlson segment are at the Treehouse.

# # #

RINO Rob Portman does it again

 

Strictly speaking, it’s not on the Tea Party agenda, but the latest gun-grab attempt is on everyone’s radar screen.  Don Surber links to the UPI report on legislation working its way through committee and congress:

"The 20 lawmakers -- 10 Democrats and 10 Republicans -- led by Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., and Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, announced the package they said would 'protect America's children, keep our schools safe, and reduce the threat of violence across our country.'"

The compromise is to take your guns more slowly.

93% of guns used in crime are illegal. Enforce that law before you dare try to deprive me of my rights.

And guess who is one of the 10 Republicans are supporting the package?  Why yes, Ohio Senator Rob Portman (OH-RINO). 

RELATED:  Brandon Morse on red-flag laws at Red State here.  The law sounds reasonable, but it is too easily weaponized (pun intended) for political purposes.  And Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb is on board with so-called "common sense gun reforms.  

# # #

   

Trump’s endorsement of Dr Mehmet Oz

 

Last weekend, when President Trump announced his endorsement of Dr. Mehmet Oz’s campaign in the Pennsylvania race for Senator, the conservative world gasped in shock.  Had Trump made a really bad call?  On Townhall, John and Andy Schlafly (sons of the late great Phyllis Schlafly), explain why Trump’s endorsement is sheer “wizardry” -- and one does have to dive into the local politics to understand:

Pro-China Dave McCormick currently holds a narrow lead in the polls for the open U.S. Senate seat in Pennsylvania. . . . As Philadelphia just became the first major city to reinstate a mask-wearing requirement indoors, McCormick’s deep ties to the communist country that brought us Covid are unhelpful. 

. . .

His rival, Dr. Mehmet Oz, spoke out strongly against mask and vaccine mandates last year, and two years ago Oz helped save lives by promoting hydroxychloroquine. Dr. Oz received a backlash from liberal public health authorities but courageously spoke the truth they suppressed.

. . .

Dr. Oz is almost alone among physician politicians opposing Fauci’s fake science. Last December, Dr. Oz stated that “Dr. Anthony Fauci has lost the faith and confidence of the American people.”

The column closes with:

Trump further overcame his critics [at the recent North Carolina rally] by inviting 26-year-old Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-NC) onto the stage after the Republican Establishment shunned and tried to defeat him for his blunt criticisms. Rep. Cawthorn nearly stole the show with his inspiring words that concluded with his standing up from his wheelchair.

“We have so many in the national party who believe that the key to saving our nation is cheapening our platform and going after these non-existent middle-ground voters,” Cawthorn declared. “My friend, there is no middle ground with Marxists.”

The full column is here.  And especially for those who were not happy with President Trump's reliance on Faux Fauci and the the Scarf Lady Deborah Birx, the Oz endorsement provides a counterweight. 

# # #

Brandon Straka, conservative values, and red pills

 

Mr. Straka

The Jeff Dornik Show at FreedomFirstNetwork hosted an interview with “Walk Away” founder Brandon Straka.  Mr. Straka has been hounded for over a year by the FBI for being present at the January 6 protest in DC. 

Why Did Conservative Inc Turn Their Back
on Brandon Straka and Walk Away?

Brandon Straka has created a lot of enemies for all the right reasons. Despite standing on the east side of the Capitol Building on January 6th for only eight minutes, the FBI targeted him and has attempted to self-admittedly make an example of him by punishing him to nth degree.

He’s been an effective force to be reckoned with in leading the charge to red-pill Democrats to leave their party after launching Walk Away, which makes him a primary target of the establishment. This has turned into a massive movement that has seen results in Democrats realizing their party does not represent their values.

Mr. Straka pulls back the curtain on the GOP elite -- the Republicans who do not stand for conservative values.  The RINOs.  Jeff Dornik continues:

Most conservative influencers and politicians talk a big game. They create viral videos ranting and raving about how they’ll never compromise and they are willing to take on the system to defend the truth, our country and the Constitution. But, when push comes to shove and the going gets tough, they are nowhere to be seen.

Some of it is simply just a lack of spine. These influencers care more about their social media following and their paychecks than actually doing what’s right.

But there’s another angle to this, and that’s the fact that the Republican Party is actively working against the true conservative and MAGA Movement. There’s a huge group of supposed conservatives that are entrenched and owned by The Swamp.

These are the swamp dwellers that Sundance at Conservative Treehouse labels as the “R” wing of the Uniparty vulture.  Sundance recently posted one of his Uniparty updates, this one on the upcoming annual RINO / DeceptiCon conference at Sea Island this weekend;  click here for more. 

# # #

Conservatives: beware of Conservatism, Inc.

 

Ned Ryun at American Greatness cites Michael Anton’s Caveat Emptor for conservatives:

[Michael] Anton says, 

Now I’ll name names. If you’re at National Review, AEI or Heritage Foundation, your job is to pretend to oppose but really support; your whole business model as staff and management collapses if you don’t do that. It’s an open question why the donors donate to these places. I actually believe they’re deceiving their donors for the most part; that is I’d like to believe most donors to Conservatism, Inc. (NRO, AEI, Heritage) are writing checks because they believe these guys are fighting bad leftists, socialists, Communists, America-haters, critical race theory. They’re standing athwart yelling ‘Stop!’ They really think this. They don’t think, ‘I’m writing this check so that Rich Lowry, Ramesh Ponnoru, Jonah Goldberg and other fat useless grifters can have six-figure jobs to do nothing but sell out my country and pretend that they’re saving it.’ I don’t think they’re doing that, but to be completely clear, that’s what they’re doing.

There’s a lot to unpack just in that one 60-second statement, but Anton is absolutely correct: The overwhelming majority of “conservative” donors, knowingly or unknowingly, are getting played by Conservatism, Inc., which is really about 90 percent of the so-called “conservative” think tanks in D.C. but, quite frankly, it happens even in the smaller ones across the country.

. . .

If, as Anton says, donors think they’re funding these entities to actually fight the leftists, the question should be very simple: proof please of your work. Strongly worded statements and white papers don’t count, for the record. Show us the action items. . . .

If you contribute to conservative organizations or individuals, make sure the recipient(s) really is/are conservative.  Full article is here. 

# # #

Josh Mandel: just another dishonest RINO

 

Josh Mandel and William Kristol.  Photo credit: wksu.org

This latest report from BigLeaguePolitics --

"Ohio Senate Candidate Josh Mandel Pocketed Donations Intended for 2018 GOP Nominee, Paid Tens of Thousands to Mistress"

-- will come as no surprise to readers of this blog, although it is of concern that an Ohio liberty group has endorsed Mandel's candidacy for the US Senate seat presently held by RINO Rob Portman.  Richard Moorhead reports:

Ohio Republican Senate candidate Josh Mandel paid tens of thousands of dollars to a woman he was dating during his 2018 Senate campaign, while married to another woman.

FEC reports show that Rachel Wilson, Mandel’s finance director and mistress, was paid more than $100,000 between his 2018 campaign and a PAC supporting his candidacy.

. . .

Three dozen Republican women, including three women who left Mandel’s campaign citing a toxic work environment created by Wilson in her continuing duties with Mandel’s 2020 campaign, have urged Ohio Republicans to reject Mandel, warning he’ll “embarrass” the party if nominated as a candidate for the US Senate.  Mandel has run for statewide office five times in the past 12 years, with some Ohio Republicans criticizing Mandel, who has served in elected office since 2003, as a career politician who’ll put on the act he needs to in pursuit of the next political gig.

. . .

Questions of Mandel’s ethics go beyond his financial arrangements with his girlfriend while he was married to another woman. Mandel broke onto the scene of national politics as a protege of war criminal Bill Kristol, handpicked as an instrument to advance the nefarious neoconservative’s political views in the United States Senate in an ultimately failed 2012 campaign against Sherrod Brown. Kristol, an advocate of Middle East regime change wars Donald Trump partly ran against in 2016, had recruited Mandel as a candidate in Ohio’s 2012 US Senate election to challenge Sherrod Brown.

Read the full – ugly - report here.  Mr. Mandel says all the right things in front of the camera, but he is obviously just another self-serving hack.  Candidate Mike Gibbons looks better and better.

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Josh Mandel or Mike Gibbons for U.S. Senate ?

 

This blog previously reported on two candidates for the U.S. Senate, Jane Timken and Josh Mandel – to replace retiring RINO Rob Portman.  Both campaigns are attempting to run on President Trump’s coat-tails.  This was the envelope containing the first solicitation from Mandel's campaign a month or two ago:

Apparently the Mandel campaign has now backed off, as Mr. Trump’s name does not appear in his most recent solicitation, which our household received last week. But instead of having Trump’s name (and implied endorsement) on the envelope, look at what’s at the top of his letterhead:

"America First" appears prominently --  twice -- on President Trump’s office website here. 

Some Ohio liberty groups are endorsing Mandel. Cleveland Tea Party traditionally does not state a preference until after the primary, but prior to the primary, we would not support Mr. Mandel’s candidacy; see also here. We’re still looking at Mike Gibbons.

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RINO alert: Ohio candidates for Senate claim Trump endorsement

 

Matthew Boyle reports at Breitbart:

‘People Close to the President Are Not Happy’:
Trump Team Fuming as Ohio’s Jane Timken Website
Appears to Falsely Claim Endorsement

Ohio Senate candidate Jane Timken had a photograph on her website’s “endorsements” page of her with former President Donald Trump, something an aide for the former president told Breitbart News displeases his team.

The photograph, which first received public attention from Timken’s website on Friday, made it appear as though she was claiming Trump’s endorsement — which she does not have. After a number of the other GOP campaigns for U.S. Senate in Ohio flagged it to Trump and his inner circle on Friday morning, Timken removed the photograph from her website.

. . .

The Ohio GOP Senate primary in the race to replace retiring Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH) is a crowded one. In addition to Timken, the former chairwoman of the Ohio GOP, other declared and likely candidates include former state Treasurer Josh Mandel, businessman Bernie Moreno, Hillbilly Elegy author J.D. Vance, businessman Mike Gibbons, and more. Virtually all of them are vying for Trump’s endorsement in the state he won twice in the general election and in which he remains popular.

Lots more here.  It's not just Ms. Timken. Our household received a campaign mailer from candidate Josh Mandel, such as the one Breitbart published:

These attempts to claim President Trump’s endorsement and support are alienating some Ohio conservative voters.  No more RINOs!

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Mike Gibbons for Ohio

 

Our household just received a campaign letter from Mike Gibbons.  It’s 5 pages long, and here’s the text of the first page:

My name is Mike Gibbons, and last week I launched my campaign for United States Senate.

I wanted to take this opportunity to introduce myself. Frankly, too much of politics these days is 30-second television commercials and canned sound bites. However, this election is far too important.

The first thing you need to know about me is that I'm not a politician. I'm a businessman. (Frankly, I don't even like politicians.)

But I need to warn you: I'm blunt. I tell it like it is. That might get me into trouble now and then, but that's who I am, how I'm going to campaign, and how I'll be if you elect me.

I grew up in Parma, a working-class suburb of Cleveland. My father was a high school teacher and a wrestling coach. My grandfather was president of the laborers' union.

I went to work at an early age. I had a paper route. I worked a bandsaw on the factory floor. I poured concrete.

Sometimes people hear "Cleveland businessman" and make assumptions. Well, you might as well say, "concrete Finisher," because I've done plenty of that as well. I guarantee you that I'll be the only Senator who can finish your driveway.

I started my own company at the age of 37, working alone with a desk and a phone in a small space above a dentist's office.

Today, I've achieved success beyond my wildest imagination. I've achieved my American dream.

I'm running for Senate because I want to help more people achieve their American Dreams.

On the 5^th page, he closes:

More than anything, however, I hope this is the beginning of a conversation between concerned Ohioans.  It’s a job interview, and I hope to earn your support and your vote.

Sincerely,

Mike Gibbons

Letter is paid for by Gibbons For Ohio:  https://www.gibbonsforohio.com/ 

CTP previously blogged on the Ohio Senate race in March and April.  Some liberty groups in Ohio are supporting Josh Mandel; as I wrote in the linked April blog, it would be nice if Ohio did not replace RINO Portman with another establishment GOP – such as Josh Mandel or Jane Timken.  So far, Mr. Gibbons is looking good.

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Peter Skurkiss on Rep. Anthony Gonzalez (RINO-Ohio) (with UPDATE)

 

Peter Skurkiss at American Thinker asks whether “anti-Trump RINO Rep. Anthony Gonzalez [can] survive a primary challenge?”  Gonzalez represents Ohio's 16th congressional district, which includes part of Northeast Ohio including Wayne County and parts of Cuyahoga, Medina, Summit, Portage and Stark Counties.  Mr. Skurkiss begins:

You may recall that Rep. Anthony Gonzalez (RINO-Ohio) is one of ten Republican House members who voted to impeach President Trump after he left office on the bogus charge that he had incited the riot in the nation's capital on January 6.  For this, Gonzalez was formally censured in early May by the Ohio Republican Party and asked to resign.

Far from being chastised, Gonzalez continued his vendetta against Trump and by extension MAGA supporters.  He next voted for the Democrat resolution to establish a commission to investigate the January 6 fracas.  Nancy Pelosi, chief proponent of the commission, says the commission will be "independent and bipartisan."  Who in his right mind could believe Pelosi on this?  Was there anything remotely fair or honest in the way Pelosi's House of Representatives held its two Trump impeachment trials? 

In reality, the January 6 commission will function as a red herring designed to advance the Democrat agenda going into the 2022 election.  The commission will be to focus media attention on the false Democrat argument that the events on January 6 constituted an insurrection.  By any objective standard, it did not.  All the ensuing kabuki theatrics will be a replay of the Russian collusion hoax, with the corporate media aggressively pushing the Democrat agenda.  This will be done with the intent to take the spotlight off the mounting failures of the Harris/Biden administration.  And for this, Gonzalez voted "yes."

It is interesting to hear Gonzalez's spurious argument as to why he shouldn't be purged from the Republican Party or primaried.  It's the usual trite blather: we need to be a big tent party; we can't chase voters away; dissent is healthy.  There is some truth in all those sayings, but they miss the point.  Gonzalez conflates his treason to the GOP with legitimate dissent.  Nobody would have thought ill of Benedict Arnold if he had merely disagreed with George Washington on tactics or strategy.  But Arnold went beyond the pale.  He gave aid and comfort to the enemy, just as Anthony Gonzalez has done.  Gonzalez seemingly lacks the wisdom to heed the words of Abraham Lincoln ("a house divide cannot stand") or Jesus (Mark 3:25: "and if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand").

Gonzalez is in survival mode.  He's throwing self-serving excuses around in the hope that some might stick.  Just as likely, he's also auditioning for a lucrative post-political career in the arms of those who first recruited him to come back to Ohio from California to run for office.  Gonzalez is angling to be the poster body purged by the narrow, mean-spirited Republican Party.  His big-money backers will lap that up. 

Skurkiss closes with a comparison to Jane Timken’s candidacy for Portman’s Senate seat in the 2022 election:

As to Gonzalez's vote to impeach President Trump, Timken was initially soft on Gonzalez.  . . .  But now that [Josh] Mandel, a MAGA man, has sharply criticized Timken for supporting Gonzalez, she has abruptly changed her tune.  She now is reported to favor Gonzalez out of office.  Some profile in courage that Timken is.  . . .

Anthony Gonzalez and Jane Timken typify all that is wrong with the established Republican Party.  The sooner they and their ilk are driven from power, the stronger and better the party will be.  To be a big tent party does not require that back-stabbers be tolerated.

That’s most of Mr. Skurkiss’s article, but click here for the entire article.

Update from David M. Drucker at the Washington Examiner:

Republican Max Miller is poised to ride an endorsement from Donald Trump to victory over Rep. Anthony Gonzalez in a GOP primary in Ohio, a contest unfolding as a clear test of the former president’s influence with grassroots conservatives.

Miller, a 32-year-old former Trump White House aide, was endorsed by the former president soon after announcing for the Cleveland-area 16th Congressional District. Trump was intent on getting revenge on Gonzalez, a second-term congressman among the 10 Republicans who voted to impeach him in the waning days of his administration for allegedly inciting the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

Trump’s swift endorsement of Miller has, so far, kept other Republicans who might want to challenge Gonzalez, 36, out of the race. Party insiders are skeptical that will change, setting up a one-on-one contest between pro-Trump and anti-Trump candidates on track to reveal how much punch the former president has in GOP primaries post-White House.

More here.

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