Ramping up the class warfare

Hit and Run: "Bernie Sanders Wants To Seize 77% of Dead Billionaires’ Estates" - "The estate tax is a form of double taxation."

We'll always have Prague

So much for that theory: "New evidence destroys Adam Schiff's theory about Trump tower meeting."  "The Senate Intelligence Committee obtained phone records showing Donald Trump Jr. did not speak with his father from a blocked telephone number in the days before the infamous Trump Tower meeting in June 2016."  Just like Don Jr. testified.

That happened

Turtleboy: "The Jussie Smollett Attempted Lynching By Trump Supporters Is One Of The Most Fantastic Works Of Fiction I’ve Ever Heard But It Fits The Narrative So It Doesn’t Matter."

Here’s how this story ends. The perpetrators will never be caught because this never happened. The Chicago Police will find out that he made this all up but he will not be arrested for it, because it’s bad PR for cops in the city where Laquan McDonald was killed 5 years ago by a cop to call out a gay black man for lying about a hate crime. There will be more fake hate crimes in the future and democrats running for President will throw this in the pile with them as part of their narrative that they are the antidote for Trump-inspired hate crimes. The media will do its part to not investigate whether or not any of this true, because the lie is better for business than the truth.

I left for work late today (snow) so I had the misfortune of seeing the "Today" show chowderheads reporting this "attack" without a hint of doubt that it really happened.  And then the topper was seeing a tweet by race huckster Al Sharpton.  I grew up in the metropolitan New York City area when Al Sharpton and his cohorts were peddling the ridiculous Tawana Brawley story and setting race relations back decades.

You and Meathead and Spartacus can shove it.  When this is exposed for the hoax it is, I'm sure AOC will tell us that the facts don't matter because Smollett was morally right.

She's willing to sacrifice to achieve her goals

If you know what I mean.  Ace: "Kamala Harris: I'm Coming for Your Guns and Your Private Medical Insurance."

Let's put that on a T-shirt.

She's got an economics degree, yo

Wrap it up

Daily Caller: "Matthew Whitaker: Mueller probe close to being completed." 

Nothingburger

Too good to excerpt.  Andrew McCarthy: "Stone Indictment Underscores That There Was No Trump-Russia Conspiracy." 

Liz is coming for your silverware

Kevin Williamson on Liz Warren's scheme to seize assets: "The Kulaks Must Be Liquidated as a Class."  (HT: Maggie's Farm).

Senator Warren apparently has found her guiding spirit and has announced along with her presidential campaign a campaign of economic terror based on force, not law. Specifically, she has proposed to begin seizing a portion of the assets of some wealthy Americans, a course of action that the federal government has no constitutional power to undertake. The seizure of assets is a fundamentally different thing from the taxation of income, which itself took a constitutional amendment to implement. What Warren is proposing is essentially a federal version of the hated asset-forfeiture programs that have been so much abused by law-enforcement agencies — minus the allegation of criminal misconduct and made universal and annual.

The senator is in a bit of a panic: She hadn’t expected to face a challenge from her left in her quest for the Democratic nomination, but as her entire party lurches in a chávista direction, she has been forced to go one step farther lest she fall into the “moderate” class, whose members almost certainly will be slaughtered in the 2020 Democratic primary. And so she proposes this ridiculous and illegal course of action.

I'm silently rooting for a Warren candidacy because if I know one thing about Americans they love a hectoring left-wing Northeast female Senator who lies constantly. 

Buzzfeed: "You'll never guess what happened to the Newseum!"

Newsbusters: "Self-Indulgent Journalistic Shrine to Close After Hemorrhaging Money."

Repentance

Hot Air: "Covington Bishop Apologizes To Students: “We … Allowed Ourselves To Be Bullied"

This thing is still going on?

Hit and Run: "Roger Stone Indictment Describes a Cover-Up of a Nonexistent Crime."

As I like to say: The Mueller investigation now exists to prosecute people who lie to the Mueller investigation.

The media realizes its own bias. Conservatives pounce.

There were so many mea culpa articles today where the mainstream media admitted they screwed the pooch on the Covington kids story.  This was typical: "NY Times Opinion: Twitter Is Ruining Journalism, Mostly By Revealing The Smug Partisans Who Make Up Its Ranks."

CNN's Brian Stelter wondered if journalists should sign off Twitter since they were fooled so badly by a refrigerator mechanic.  Ace said "heavens no, don't sign off Twitter!"

What twitter exposed was that you were also dumb, easily duped, eager to believe self-justifying conspiracy theories, thin-skinned, arrogant, incompetent, disgracefully lazy, psychologically (and almost certainly physically) inadequate, dunderheadedly unimaginative and unwilling to consider any idea not within the braindead leftwing Incela Corridor Conventional Wisdom Bubble, prone to the most cowardly go-along-to-get-along sort of groupthink, and weak.

I can't believe Ace said that about Time's Person of the Year.  Here's some more conservative pouncing from City Journal:

Reporters have always made errors, but mistakes should occur independent of ideology. What we’re seeing instead is a pattern—media miscues always occur in the same direction, in favor of the liberal perspective. Over the last two years, countless “bombshell” reports have signaled grave danger for the Trump presidency, up to and including impeachment or resignation. Trump’s son got an early look at the Wikileaks pages; Anthony Scaramucci was tied to a dodgy Russian hedge fund; Michael Cohen met Russians in Prague; Paul Manafort met Julian Assange in the Ecuadorian embassy in London; James Comey would testify that Trump was under investigation; and so on. As outrage ebbs from each discredited story, it is relegated to the memory hole in time for the next one to emerge.

Strangely left off this list: Buzzfeed's super-exclusive on Trump's coaching of Michael Cohen.  Let's all shed a tear for Buzzfeed and Huffpost's beautiful, diverse, inclusive baby.  Sad!

Finally, let's conclude with this clear-headed admission from the Atlantic: "The Media Botched the Covington Catholic Story."

I am prompted to issue my own ethics reminders for The New York Times. Here they are: You were partly responsible for the election of Trump because you are the most influential newspaper in the country, and you are not fair or impartial. Millions of Americans believe you hate them and that you will casually harm them. Two years ago, they fought back against you, and they won. If Trump wins again, you will once again have played a small but important role in that victory.

Finally: all the news that's fit to print.

"I haven't seen Conservatives so united since the last time we tried to destroy an innocent person's life." https://t.co/5ClalGTqbw

— Eric Spencer (@JustEric) January 23, 2019

Full Metal Maytag

Red State: "Nathan Phillips’ DD-214 RELEASED – And Shows He’s Not Quite What He Claims."  He was a refrigerator mechanic in Nebraska, if we're to believe this DD-214 form.

"I can't wait to see this display of wokeness"

"The one that was too #Metoo for Kevin Hart" - nobody.

Even Variety noticed that the most important component of an Academy Award nomination is having a social message.  Prepare yourself for a new ratings low. 

Guy gets around

Zero Hedge: "Native American "Harassed" By MAGA Kids Exposed As Outrage-Culture Grifter."

Super Bowl 53

I can't remember the last time a Boston-based professional sports team beat Los Angeles.

Oh, wait, now I remember.

Let us now praise famous men

Like this guy:

And this guy:

See you at Super Bowl 53!

They're all Buzzfeed

Hit and Run: "The Media Wildly Mischaracterized That Video of Covington Catholic Students Confronting a Native American Veteran."  "Journalists who uncritically accepted Nathan Phillips' story got this completely wrong."

Extra - From Instapundit.

"Not even a pillow or blanket"

This memo from "Mark" ordering employees to get their ass to work was making the rounds on Reddit yesterday.  Now the owners of the ski resort are letting everyone know that - no - you can't force people to snowshoe to work. 

(Sad trombone)

And just like that, a million dreams of impeachment went up in smoke.  Fox News: "Mueller team disputes BuzzFeed report claiming Trump told Cohen to lie."

Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s office on Friday issued an extraordinary statement disputing a bombshell news report claiming President Trump directed Michael Cohen to lie about the timing of discussions over a proposed Trump Tower project in Moscow.

“BuzzFeed’s description of specific statements to the Special Counsel’s Office, and characterization of documents and testimony obtained by this office, regarding Michael Cohen’s Congressional testimony are not accurate,” Peter Carr, a spokesman for Mueller’s office, said Friday.

What a great day.  This turd of a report didn't last 24 hours.

Sad trombone.

Extra - Gateway Pundit: "Mueller’s Team NUKES BuzzFeed’s Latest Junk Report."

More - Long post at Instapundit.

Back by popular demand: the dumbest woman in Congress

Federalist: "Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Is Setting Women Back Light Years In Politics."

In mere minutes, Ocasio-Cortez managed to affirm nearly every negative stereotype about the female sex, from the trope that we’re no good at math to the notion that you shouldn’t trust us with a credit card. If all you saw was her example, you’d think we’re all just emotional dreamers who need to be reined in by reality.

Ocasio-Cortez is not the feminist hero most media coverage has made her out to be. If anything, her time in the spotlight has set women in politics back.

When Alex saw this blog post, she accused me of being a "snowflake" who gets triggered by strong women and that she had seen guys like me when she used to bartend so she sees right through me.  Then she offered up a detailed explanation how she's going to pay for programs that equal the total tax revenue the federal government collects every year:

You're in control now, Adam!

How're things going as the new head of the House Intelligence Committee?  Daily Caller: "Bruce Ohr testimony undercuts Adam Schiff's defense of FBI."  "Justice Department official Bruce Ohr’s testimony about his meetings with FBI officials regarding dossier author Christopher Steele severely undercuts claims made in 2018 by California Rep. Adam Schiff and his fellow Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee."

Extra - Gregg Jarrett: "Mueller's team knew 'dossier' kicking off Trump investigation was biased and defective."  This was hidden from the FISA court to launch this whole farce.

Here's your luggage, Nancy

Ace has some photos from Nancy's cancelled junket.  It's still funny.

Tell me again how Pelosi is some kind of 4-dimension chess player and master of the Washington game.  First she suggests cancelling the State of the Union because the Secret Service can't provide security.  When that lie was exposed, she said she was uncomfortable asking security personnel to work when they weren't being paid.  Then she decided to get out of Dodge with her Secret Service detail along with all the military security that would attend a trip to Afghanistan.

Trump brilliantly exposed this hypocrisy and twisted the knife by reminding Pelosi she could fly commercially if she liked.  I'll bet Nancy hasn't flown commercial since high school back when zeppelins were still a thing.

But don't call it a witch hunt

Rich Lowry: "When Did It Become the FBI’s Job to Act as a Check and Balance to the President?" "The proximate cause of the FBI investigation, if the Times reporting is correct, wasn’t any new information about Russia’s activity. It was Trump acting entirely within his powers to fire his FBI director. This might be the first time that a FBI counterintelligence investigation was triggered by a lawful domestic action. This is crazy."

Bring back the nukes

Hit and Run: "Green New Deal Will Try Anything Except Nukes, Hydro, Markets ..." "Using climate change as an excuse to pursue other social and economic goals."

Sweet intentions

National Review: "Philadelphia's soda war."  "A tax on sweetened beverages harms businesses and achieves none of its goals."

You shouldn't let other people get your kicks for you

Via Reddit: "Brewery offering free beer to anyone who can hit the 43-yard FG missed by Chicago kicker Cody Parkey."  Nobody made it but, as the video show and the comments reveal, the whole thing was rigged.  The kickers couldn't plant their feet on the ice-rink astroturf and the brewery banned amateur kickers.

Still sometimes it's nice to see some people get their come-uppance:

The FBI investigation as a tautology

Andrew McCarthy: "FBI Russia investigation was always about Trump."

But all of these steps were just a matter of finally being overt about something that had been true for over a year: The FBI was conducting a probe to try to make a criminal case on Trump. Because they did not have solid evidence of a crime, they did it under counterintelligence authority rather than criminal authority – calculating that the cover of probing Russia’s interference in the 2016 election would enable them to keep investigating while they tried to tighten up the obstruction case or find some other criminal offense.
Make no mistake, though: The investigation was always about Donald Trump, from Day One.

McCarthy details the revelation of this week that the Obama Justice Department opened an investigation on an incoming President under the guise of a "counterintelligence" effort, all the while telling Trump that he was not under investigation.  But the investigation itself was the vehicle to set a trap for Trump where he would be called out for obstruction.

Somebody asked why this investigation is being revealed now and answered that the FBI's conclusion that there is no evidence of collusion with the Russians is a way to telegraph to the anti-Trumpers that the Mueller report is going to be a huge nothingburger.

Gotta let 'em down easy.

Update - Red State: "...this seems like the last gasp of the Russia collusion narrative. Undoubtedly, the Democrats on Mueller’s team and those in-the-know in Department of Justice have told their friends in the media what sane people have known, there is no there there in the primary focus of Mueller’s investigation and they shouldn’t dig themselves in any deeper."

Extra - This article is getting a lot of attention for good reason: "On What Grounds Can the FBI Investigate the President as a Counterintelligence Threat?"

Twitter star!

Politico: "Exasperated Democrats try to rein in Ocasio-Cortez."  They must be secretly threatened by a strong woman, or something.  It can't possibly be her insane statements and positions.

Thin skinned NY political novice suddenly catapulted to stardom despite never shedding a deep persecution complex and paranoia about the media? Is this Groundhog Day?

— Seth Mandel (@SethAMandel) January 11, 2019

It's wrong to laugh at this but c'mon

Hit and Run: "We Found a Perfect Metaphor for Government."  "Woman parks legally. 45 minutes later, workers show up, install no parking signs. Hour later, woman's car is towed away."  Video at the link.

The well runs dry for Venezuela's whore, Joe Kennedy

Every winter, socialist socialite Joe Kennedy sells himself out for some free Venezuelan oil so he can traipse around Massachusetts like the Oil Fairy.  Even the Boston Globe got uncomfortable with the moral implications of accepting handouts from a dictatorship.

I just noticed this winter...hey, where are the commercials?  Then I went to his web page:

The Joe-4-Oil Heat Program is not currently accepting applications for assistance. Please check back here for updates.

Awww, Joe, what happened?  It's almost like the collapse of the Venezuelan economy put a damper on Joe's "charity."

She's a very gullible person

Instapundit: "So it looks like AOC is either lying or being lied to."

Tell me about the $21 jillion spent by the Pentagon again.

Biden-mania?

Hot Air: "NYT On Biden’s Pitch: Democrats, I’m Your Only Hope."

I've seen this mania before where a political party wants to beat the incumbent so bad, they'll go for the guy who they think is most "electable."  Biden might be the guy, to be honest.  Maybe I'm old (perish the thought!) but Spartacus, Kamala, and Pocahontas have the gravity of Pluto and would get creamed by Trump.

Um, I mean: go Liz Warren!  All the way.

Krugman is a principled man

Whatever principles comport with his political beliefs are the ones he'll adjust.  Instapundit: "Paul Krugman 'evolves' on yet another issue to align his economic views with progressive politics."

Fake news

Twitchy: "Ratio in progress: People can’t find examples of conservatives mocking the AOC dance video in Newsweek’s ‘conservatives mock’ article."

With such high journalistic standards, I can't imagine why Newsweek was sold for a dollar.

Apparently, tomatoes in gumbo is sacrilegious

I got an Instant Pot a couple months back and since then I've been searching for good recipes.  Saw a thread on Reddit and I thought a virtual knife fight was going to break out because somebody posted a gumbo recipe that included diced tomatoes.

Mineehaha hilarious

Daily Wire: "Elizabeth Warren Compares Scrutiny Of Her 'Native American Ancestry' To 'Birtherism'."

Warren has never been able to explain away her claims of Native American heritage to land jobs at UPenn and Harvard; she won't escape ongoing scrutiny with this ploy.  Her list of lies soars like an eagle.

Extra - From Legal Insurrection.

I've been told we should listen to blue-ribbon panel experts

Legal Insurrection: "Commission Investigating Parkland School Shooting Recommends Arming Teachers."

Wait, you only meant that for climate change?  I'm so confused.

Pandering level 1000

Twitchy: "Thousands in her state have been affected by the shutdown, so Elizabeth Warren’s donating her salary to … refugees?"

Well, she's fighting against "corrupt" Washington so she doesn't want to donate any money to support the corrupt government that she's fighting and persisting against.

Happy New Year!

This is my favorite thing of 2019, so far:

Related: "Patriots finished this year 11-5...we see it as a down year. Chiefs finished this year 12-4...we see it as an amazing year... ...Does everybody realize that the reason Patriots aren't a #1 seed is cause Gronk isn't a very good safety?"