B-Man

IT CAN BE DONE, YOU JUST HAVE TO WANT TO DO IT BADLY ENOUGH: Javier Milei Ended a DC-Sized Deficit in…Nine Weeks. “Argentina’s Javier Milei is racking up some solid wins, with the fiscal basket case seeing its first monthly budget surplus in 12 years. Apparently, it took Milei just nine and a half weeks to balance a budget that was projected at 5% of GDP under the previous government. In US terms, he turned a 1.2 trillion-dollar annual deficit into a 400 billion surplus. In 9 and a half weeks. How did he do it? Easy: he cut a host of central government agency budgets by 50% while slashing crony contracts and activist handouts. For perspective, if you cut the entirety of Washington’s budget by 50%, you’d save a fast 3 trillion dollars and start paying off the national debt. It turns out it can be done, and the world doesn’t collapse into chaos.” The cronies getting the contracts and the activists getting the contracts won’t be happy, but honestly, a world in which they are unhappy is likely a much better world. https://mises.org/wire/javier-milei-ended-dc-sized-deficit-innine-weeks?

FEBRUARY: Qatar announces new gas output boost with mega field expansion. “The overall expansion of North Field from 77mtpa currently to 142mtpa by 2030 represents an 85 percent increase in production.” For export, of course. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/2/25/qatar-announces-new-gas-output-boost-with-mega-field-expansion JANUARY: Joe Biden Halts Natural Gas Exports Over ‘Existential’ Climate Threat. “The move was welcomed by environmentalists as a step toward tackling climate change that would incentivize other nations to switch to renewables, but one urged the Biden administration to consider broadening the measure to other fossil fuel exports.” https://www.newsweek.com/joe-biden-halts-natural-gas-exports-climate-change-threat-1864247 It’s fair to ask if the Big Guy got a cut for crippling US exports. .

Biden Botches Lincoln Quote, Brands Xi Leader of Russia, Gets Confused Without Handler By Nick Arama https://redstate.com/nick-arama/2024/02/25/biden-governors-black-tie-event-n2170555

We CAN defend ourselves. Imagine that. Federal Judge Clobbers California's Silly Ban on Billy Clubs in Devastating Ruling by Jeff Charles A federal court has made a critical ruling related to the Second Amendment and the concept of self-defense. The decision strikes at the heart of California laws intended to limit one’s ability to protect themselves against violent criminals. Judge Roger Benitez handed down a ruling in the case of Fouts v. Bonta on Friday, striking down a ban on citizens possessing or carrying billy clubs and other forms of less lethal weaponry. In his decision, Benitez questioned the legality of the statute, which criminalized Californians simply for owning a billy club, a tool that is commonly used by members of law enforcement, but is also used by civilians for personal defense. "Americans have an individual right to keep and bear arms, whether firearms or less lethal arms,” the judge wrote, also arguing that “The Second Amendment to the United States Constitution ‘guarantee[s] the individual right to possess and carry weapons in case of confrontation.'” The ruling underscores a fundamental tenet of American liberty: The right to keep and bear arms. It is commonly assumed that this only refers to carrying firearms, but the reality is that it protects one’s right to possess the means by which someone can protect life and property. In this case, it allows people to use alternatives to guns to safeguard themselves and others. {snip} The fact that this legislation ever existed in the first place further demonstrates California’s dedication to shielding criminal elements by making it harder for their victims to defend themselves. Let’s hope we see more rulings like this one. https://redstate.com/jeffc/2024/02/25/federal-judge-clobbers-californias-silly-ban-on-billy-clubs-in-devastating-ruling-n2170556 .

More on the above. Robert Hur Couldn’t Determine Who Had Access to Biden’s Stolen Classified Docs Because Security at Penn Biden Center DELETED All Visitor Logs From 2017-2021 by Cristina Laila https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2024/02/robert-hur-couldnt-determine-who-had-access-bidens/ .

Her money is going away. NO ONE wants her (other than Anti-Trumpers) Don't bother with the "but X percent don't want a Trump/Biden rematch" nonsense. No one does, but that is the reality. Conservative megadonors Koch not funding Haley anymore as she continues longshot bid FEBRUARY 25, 2024 Sarah McCammon https://www.npr.org/2024/02/25/1233831166/nikki-haley-americans-for-prosperity-afp-koch-brothers-network-donors-trump Billionaire GOP Donors Pivot to Congress After Haley's Run Fades She will hold 10 fund-raisers ahead of Super Tuesday races https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-02-26/trump-averse-billionaire-donors-turn-to-congress-as-haley-fades?embedded-checkout=true .

There are basically two sides in the Ukraine War debate on X: Those who can see the writing on the wall and believe Ukraine should seek to negotiate a settlement while it still can. Those who, safely out of range, demand that every last Ukrainian be rounded up to fight for a doomed cause, while lying about the situation on the ground and smearing anyone who wants peace. Despite the smears now, I have no doubt which group history will look more kindly upon.

12:33 PM · Jan 12, 2024

⬆️ ⬆️ ⬆️ ⬆️ See two posts above for Thread explanation. .

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Fani Willis Offers Pathetic Response to Cellphone Data That Proved She Lied in Court MATT MARGOLIS https://pjmedia.com/matt-margolis/2024/02/25/fani-willis-responds-to-cellphone-data-proving-she-lied-n4926747 \ ,

JOE BIDEN—CHRISTIAN NATIONALIST?!?! It would be hilarious to observe the left’s sudden obsession with “Christian nationalism” if it weren’t based on an abysmal ignorance that is itself a grim threat to the continuation of our republic. I guess Thomas Jefferson was a Christian nationalist for the first sentence of the second paragraph of the Declaration of Independence, although in fairness to stupid leftists, they don’t believe in “self-evident truth” either, because they are unable to grasp the meaning of “self-evident” as Thomas Aquinas, Jefferson, Hamilton, and Lincoln learned from Euclid. But you know who else turns out to be a “Christian nationalist”? https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2024/02/joe-biden-christian-nationalist.php

DEMOCRAT DENIALISTS In 2001, 2005 and 2017, some Democrat House members objected to the certification of electoral votes for the winning Republican presidential candidate. Those objections, while “denialist,” were only symbolic. But Democrat leaders in the House are now suggesting that if they control that body following November’s election–as they well might–they may refuse to allow a victorious Donald Trump to take office. The Atlantic did the original reporting, behind a paywall. Murray and other legal scholars say that, absent clear guidance from the Supreme Court, a Trump win could lead to a constitutional crisis in Congress. Democrats would have to choose between confirming a winner many of them believe is ineligible and defying the will of voters who elected him. … In interviews, senior House Democrats would not commit to certifying a Trump win, saying they would do so only if the Supreme Court affirms his eligibility. But during oral arguments, liberal and conservative justices alike seemed inclined to dodge the question of his eligibility altogether and throw the decision to Congress. “That would be a colossal disaster,” Representative Adam Schiff of California told me. “We already had one horrendous January 6. We don’t need another.” The Democrats have become so insane on the subject of Donald Trump that it is hard to know which of their mutterings to take seriously. But if Trump wins the election and a Democrat-controlled House refuses to certify his election on the ground that he is an “insurrectionist” under the 14th Amendment, we will be past the point of a constitutional crisis. If that happens, the only realistic path forward will be disunion, possibly accompanied by civil war, but preferably not. This is one reason why the Supreme Court should put the 14th Amendment theory out of its misery, once and for all. It is obvious that the drafters of that amendment meant the just-concluded Civil War, in which 600,000 Americans lost their lives, when they referred to “insurrection or rebellion” against the United States. In contrast, the January 6 protest was not one of the 50 most destructive riots of the last few years, and the only person killed was Ashli Babbitt. Not a single participant in the protest was arrested in possession of a firearm. Some insurrection! In the interest of preserving the Republic, the Supreme Court should rule definitively that Section 3 of the 14th Amendment does not apply to Donald Trump. https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2024/02/democrat-denialists.php

They just can't stop embarrassing themselves. One of the big stories in the New York Times today is another Clarence Thomas smear, but with a twist: “Justice Thomas Hires Law Clerk Accused of Sending Racist Text Messages.” The story is about Crystal Clanton, who graduated from the Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University in 2022. She is coming off a clerkship with Judge William Pryor of the 11th Circuit, who calls her “an outstanding law clerk.” Justice Thomas has now hired her to clerk on the Supreme Court. For the last seven years, Crystal Clanton has been dogged by reports of an email that she allegedly wrote, in which she supposedly said, “I hate black people.” The Times story admits that they have not seen any such message, and are relying on reporting by the New Yorker’s Jane Mayer, perhaps the least trustworthy source in America. {snip} Clanton didn’t respond to the Times’s request for comment in the story they published today, but back in 2017 she told The New Yorker that “I have no recollection of these messages and they do not reflect what I believe or who I am, and the same was true when I was a teenager.” So there the matter rests. The moral of the story, I suppose, is that the Left never forgets. No matter that she was cleared by an investigation by one of the nation’s courts of appeals; once the Left gets its hands on a smear it never lets go. It will never stop trying to destroy your life. And of course, The New Yorker and the New York Times are two of the worst offenders. Also, what makes this old story worthy of the Times’s A section? Only the fact that Justice Thomas is involved. The Times doesn’t care about a law clerk of whom few people have heard, but it cares deeply about smearing the country’s top conservative African-American. But what, exactly, are we supposed to infer from the Times story? That Clarence Thomas is weirdly favorable to those who hate black people? A final irony: Supreme Court justices have no doubt hired any number of clerks who have written and spoken favorably about DEI, which actually is racist. But there is no controversy there: on the contrary, endorsing that form of racism is a badge of honor. https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2024/02/clarence-thomas-racist.php .

Georgia student murder suspect confirmed to be illegal immigrant Ibarra originally crossed illegally into El Paso, Texas, in September 2022 By Haley Chi-Sing , Michael Ruiz https://www.foxnews.com/us/georgia-student-murder-suspect-confirmed-illegal-immigrant .

If Someone Asks Whether You’re a ‘Christian Nationalist,’ What Should You Say? By JOHN ZMIRAK Imagine a massive sewage treatment plant that works in reverse. It takes fresh, sparkling water through a vast, convoluted Rube Goldberg mechanism that eats up vast amounts of energy. But finally, after painstaking effort and expense, the plant produces … infectious human waste reeking with toxins. Think of all the twists and turns, ducts and filters, vats and spillways involved. And the men with advanced degrees in white coats and safety goggles who make a cozy living overseeing this facility. It pumps its repulsive product into schools, churches, and homes, whether they want it or not. It just spews out of our showerheads and faucets. Have you got that mental picture? Now you understand our media and our culture. You’re welcome. Sorry, there’s no other way to aptly express the process by which intelligent, educated people transform the most wholesome, innocent, worthy sentiments and ideas into the semblance of deadly poison. But that’s exactly what’s happening in the case of so-called ‘Christian Nationalism.’ There’s a full-on propaganda campaign underway, with massive funding from hostile billionaires and malevolent “charities” that also fund Planned Parenthood, to portray Christians who want to save babies from killing and kids from castrating surgeries as quasi-Nazi bigots who don’t deserve to vote. {snip} The sewage aggregation plant keeps pumping, night and day. And its latest product arrives in the form of a scare story in the elite political gossip journal Politico, entitled “Trump allies prepare to infuse ‘Christian nationalism’ in second administration.” The story feverishly warns its readers that a president elected by pro-life, pro-family voters might actually seek to … buckle your seatbelts before you read this … promote pro-life and pro-family policies in office. (Given the track record of Swamp Republicans in past decades, this might well come as a shock to all of us, to be honest.) The next appalling charge Politico makes is that “Christian Nationalists” believe in a terrifying concept called “Natural Law.” In a tone matching Orson Welles recounting a Martian attack on New Jersey in The War of the Worlds, the writer warns: Every bit as shocking, the article cites a prominent “Christian Nationalist” linked to Trump who holds a Are you hiding under your bed yet? Are you ready to renounce “Christian Nationalism” and all its works and all its empty promises — as the condition for getting baptized in the stuff our media are spraying? https://stream.org/if-someone-asks-whether-youre-a-christian-nationalist-what-should-you-say/ .

Joe Biden Tries to Give a Massive Gift to Hamas, Israel Tells Him to Pound Sand FTA: Any "solution" to the war in Gaza that doesn't include the complete removal of Hamas as a governing force is not a solution. It's simply a massive gift to terrorists who will inevitably strike again, leading to yet another war and yet more death and destruction. The United States, Europe, and the dictators at the UN can either figure that out or get out of the way. https://redstate.com/bonchie/2024/02/25/joe-biden-gives-israel-a-new-edict-and-a-massive-gift-to-hamas-n2170542 .

The Lasting Damage of Bidenomics Real Clear Politics, by K. S. Bruce Recently, Democratic Party-cheerleading economist Paul Krugman declared, “Inflation is over. We won.” This is like a robber shooting you and then declaring, “The coma I put you in is over! We won!” The truth is that the wild inflation, high interest rates, bank failures, and other economic harms of the last three years were all entirely avoidable and all entirely caused by President Biden and the Democrats’ arrogant and unwise policies. This is not “Monday morning quarterbacking.” Some of us were saying this well before the fact. My May 7, 2021 column (“Joe Biden, Economy Killer”) accurately forecast the inflation, rising interest rates, and rising government debt service https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2024/02/24/the_lasting_damage_of_bidenonmics_150552.html .

AS much as I dislike posting in such an op bigoted thread, this goes here with their false narrative. America can mass deport illegal aliens, and we know this because it’s done so before American Thinker, by Andrea Widburg The headlines are full of stories about illegal aliens: They’re raping children, murdering young women, crashing their cars into children, assaulting and murdering police officers…and the list goes on. However, we’re told that we’re stuck with them. Well, we’re not. In the 1950s, when there was political will—and a plea from Mexico to send its citizens home—we did mass deport illegal aliens. Like Pakistan deporting its illegal Afghan aliens, El Salvador jailing its gangs, or Argentina balancing its budget in nine weeks, it just requires political will. I made a lot of assertions about illegal aliens in my opening paragraph. Let me back them up with just a few examples. https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2024/02/america_can_mass_deport_illegal_aliens_and_we_know_this_because_its_done_so_before.html

Your Sunday Clarice. Russian Follies: The Sequel By Clarice Feldman Just days ago, on February 14 to be precise, Vladimir Putin said he prefers Biden in the 2024 presidential race. Nevertheless, the media, often with the intelligence community’s aid, seems to be trying again in the indictment of Vladimir Smirnov to hint that Donald Trump is somehow being aided by Russia. Thin gruel, indeed. A quick review of the FBI’s consistent election meddling and gaslighting of voters is the necessary background for this week’s account. In case, like me, you’re finding it hard to keep track of all the gaslighting on Russia in recent years, Adam Mill kindly documents 14 recent Russian hoaxes: (Condensed for this post, open link to read it all) 1. The Russian Co-Signers Hoax: I 2. The Trump Tower Russians Hoax 3. The Hunter Biden Russian Disinformation Hoax: 4. The Russian Bounty for U.S. Soldiers Hoax: 5. The “Russia Destroyed the Nord Stream Pipeline” Hoax: 6. The “Carter Page Is a Russian Spy” Hoax: 7. The “Trump Is a Russian Asset” Hoax: 8. The Russia/Alfa Bank Hoax: 9. The Russian Troll Farm Hoax: 10. The “Devin Nunes Is a Putin Puppet” Hoax: 11. The “James Comer Is a Putin Puppet” Hoax: 12. The Russian “Pee Tape” Hoax: 13. The Michael Cohen Paid Russian Hackers Hoax: 14. The Russian/DNC Hack Hoax: He may well be right that these hoaxes were designed in the public’s mind to deny Trump’s entitlement to free speech because, after all, he was a "Russian asset." This week, however, there’s a more immediate motive: An effort to distract and minimize the serious charges of corruption against President Biden and his son Hunter and brother James. The usual Democrat chorus line is playing roles in the by now tattered Russian script: Nancy Pelosi and Adam Schiff in the lead roles and congressmen Jamie Raskin and Dan Goldman as comic relief. https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2024/02/russian_follies_the_sequel_.html .