I wrote a post at PJ Media not too long ago about Kashich’s – uh – unseemly evolution from thinking the idea of a brokered/contested convention was “cockamamie” only a couple of months ago – to where he is these days – bringing it up in interviews as something that will be really fun – a really “cool” civics lesson for the kiddies.
In case you didn’t know, the Kasich campaign was scoffingat the idea of a brokered convention back in February:
During a conference call with reporters, the Ohio governor’s senior strategist John Weaver called the idea “cockamamie” and dismissed a New York Times story describing Kasich advisers quietly seeking support for the strategy. Instead, Weaver described a path — one that many establishment Republicans have in turn described as cockamamie — to hang on by a thread through unfriendly Super Tuesday contests and out-wait other faltering rivals to wind up in a head-to-head race with Trump.
Then, he said, Kasich could win the nomination on the convention’s first ballot.
The next day on the Hugh Hewitt Show, Kasich suggested that he hadn’t given much thought to the prospect of a brokered convention and pretended he had barely even heard of such a thing: “I don’t know what they call it — some call it brokered — there’s other names for the convention,” Kasich said haltingly. “Is that a possibility? Anything’s a possibility in this year. But I don’t really anticipate that happening,” he said, still insistent that he was the guy who would secure the 1,237 delegates needed to win the nomination (even though it was mathematically impossible at that point.)
Now, we’ve gotten to the point where not only do they “anticipate that happening,” they actually anticipate that the perennial also-ran will come out on top.
You are never going to believe this, but according to Patrick Poole at PJ Media,those Syrian rebel soldiers the US has been arming and funding for over a year – have not been working out so well.
The latest report he points to indicates that a U.S.-trained Syrian rebel leader has “deceived his American handlers and has defected to Jabhat al-Nusra — the official al-Qaeda affiliate in Syria.”
Yeah, who could have seen this coming? Besides practically everyone?
On September 17, 2014, I regretfully reported that the GOP-led Congress had very stupidly voted to authorize Obama’s (obviously underdeveloped) plan to arm and train the terrorists rebels.
I really really want to be wrong about thinking this is a huge mistake, but I have a very bad feeling about arming people with values and loyalties so antithetical to ours with American weapons. My greatest fear is that these weapons will eventually be turned on American soldiers, and will lead to more Christians and ethnic minorities being slaughtered in the Middle East.
Why on earth do we think this is a good idea?
One thing I didn’t foresee was the colossal waste of money we would spend to arm and train 4-5 dudes. I mean – I think we all could have predicted that it was not going to be cost efficient with Obama in charge – but $500 mil to arm 5 guys, huh? That is some impressive malfeasance right there – even for the Obama administration.
And it all comes courtesy of the Stupid Party.
Take your bows, Lindsey and John. Brava.
Just when you think it can not get any worse…tomorrow comes.
UPDATE:
More from the UK Telegraph:
Telegraph: Reports indicate US-trained rebels crossed into Syria, immediately handed weapons over to Jabhat al-Nusra. http://t.co/hx2TjD6zU8
….On conservative websites, anyway. The MSM never had much of an appetite for this one.
Via the Washington Free Beacon, The Washington Examiner continues itsreportingon the Clinton State Department’s efforts to cover up alleged misconduct withnew detailsabout investigations thwarted by agency staff:
State Department officials blocked investigations into potentially embarrassing allegations of misconduct from agency investigators and even inspector general staff during Hillary Clinton’s tenure as secretary of state.
A former official in the State Department inspector general’s office who was involved with preparing the sanitized report said agency officials also interfered in probes originating in the Office of the Inspector General.
The suggestions of political interference into investigations conducted at the bureau of diplomatic security first appeared in an inspector general report published in February 2013, just as Clinton was leaving the State Department. A Washington Examiner review of earlier drafts of that reportsuggested potentially damaging passages were removed from the final document. But the State Department official suggests the intervention went further.
The official, who requested anonymity, said the Bureau of Diplomatic Security initially prevented inspectors from reviewing open case files when they began their probe in late 2012.
Read the full report for all the gory deets.
Longtime readers of this blog should not be strangers to this story. I covered these allegations, and the State Dept’s retaliation against whistleblowers extensively in 2013. I’ve been wondering why it hasn’t been brought up until now.
Like so many other Clinton scandals – this one cluster-F alone (in a healthy, sane country) would be enough to derail her pathetic candidacy.
Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas), chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, is calling on the Obama administration to come up with a “more aggressive strategy” to deal with ISIS/Daesh in Iraq. The apocalyptic terrorists now control the “key, strategic” city of Ramadi, the capital of Anbar Province.
“The black flags are flying there,” McCaul told Fox News Wednesday morning. “This is a key transit point to Syria in Iraq, and now it’s fallen to ISIS.”
McCaul said that during his recent visit to Baghdad, Iraq’s prime minister told him after asking the White House for more military assistance, he has only received received humanitarian assistance. Whatever that means. Suitcases for impromptu road trips? Extra absorbent towels to wipe up the blood?
But it gets better. Obama’s new BFFs on the world stage now get to flex their muscles in Iraq.
“And now the prime minister of Iraq has to rely on the (Iranian) Shia militia — which is, I think, the most disturbing fact…my takeaway from the Middle East — because his Iraqi national army is so incapable of defending Ramadi, of defending Mosul…that you have to rely on the proxy of Iran, Shia militas, to come in to Iraq to fight ISIS.”
Those Shia militas of course would be our sworn enemies during the Iraq war – who American soldiers died fighting.
“This is a prescription for disaster — it will only inflame the Sunni tribes, make the sectarian divisions even deeper and wider, and I don’t see it as a long-term strategy to win.”
McCaul said the Obama’s adminsitration’s strategy — “whatever the strategy is” — is not working.
It almost looks like Obama is setting up a show-down between Iranian Shia Militias and the Islamic state.
***
John McCain took to the Senate floor today to blast administration toadies for playing down the Ramadi “set-back.”
Referring to White House Press Sec Josh Earnest’s recent comments, McCain seethed, “how could anyone say that we shouldn’t light our hair on fire when news reports clearly indicate that there are burning bodies in the streets of Ramadi, that ISIL are going from house to house – seeking out people and executing them. Tens of thousands of people are refuges. And what does the president’s spokesman say?! That we shouldn’t light our hair on fire every time there is a setback.”
Muslims in the Iraqi city of Ramadi, all members of ISIS, went door to door slaughtering innocent people at random, eventually killing 500 people at the end of their murder spree. According to one report:
ISIS fighters went door-to-door looking for military troops and security forces after taking the city, and killed 500 people in the streets, including children.
Click on the link at your own risk as there is a gruesome photo.
Muhanad Haimour, an Anbar Province spokesman, said:
There have been executions in the streets of Ramadi… The situation in the city is absolutely terrible. The city is in very bad shape.
Sheikh Rafi al-Fahdawi, a tribal leader from Ramadi who had been fighting ISIS, recounted the scene of horror:
Men, women, kids and fighters’ bodies are scattered on the ground… All security forces and tribal leaders have either retreated or been killed in battle. It is a big loss.
***
In Syria – as I’m sure you’ve heard by now – the ancient city of Palmyra fell to ISIS– and ”its grand complex of 2,000-year-old colonnades and tombs – one of the world’s most magnificent remnants of antiquity,” will soon be destroyed by the barbarians.
This comes just five days after they seized the Iraqi city of Ramadi.
But for the fighters on the ground, the city of 50,000 people is significant because it sits among gas fields and astride a network of roads across the country’s central desert. Palmyra’s vast unexcavated antiquities could also provide significant revenue through illegal trafficking.
Control of Palmyra gives the Islamic State command of roads leading from its strongholds in eastern Syria to Damascus and the other major cities of the populated west, as well as new links to western Iraq, the other half of its self-declared caliphate.
the State Department is deeply concerned about all of this and will be closely watching the destruction of the city.
***
When a reporter asked her if something could be done to save the city, State Department spokesperson Marie Harf said, “Well, we are deeply concerned about reports of ISIL’s attacks on the Syrian city, which holds the ruins of Palmyra.”
She acknowledged that “the destruction and looting of these sites has been sort of something we’ve seen in other places” and it’s “incredibly harmful,” but as to the question of what the U.S. could do, Harf only had this to offer:
“We’ll keep watching here, we’ll keep seeing what’s happening on the ground.”
Harf added: “This is the reason we’re trying to push back ISIL out of Iraq and to try and help the Syrian opposition push back ISIL in Syria.”
“This is something we’re following; we’re concerned about this. Obviously, it has been caught in the crossfire for some time and we’ll speak up about it,” said Harf. “Beyond that, I’m not sure what more can be done.”
The threat of terrorism in the homeland ranks pretty low in this president’s list of issues to be concerned about. In case you haven’t noticed.
“Climate change” is apparently the national security threat that keeps Obama up at night. And those who refuse to act on this crucial national security issue are guilty of “a dereliction of duty” and should be denounced for undermining “American readiness.”
He gave this delusional speech at the at the commencement ceremony of the United States coast guard academy in New London, Connecticut.
The only saving grace to this hot mess is the light, tepid applause Obama got at the end – which is typically what Commander in Chief gets when he speaks in front of military audiences – because they don’t buy his bullshit.
Watching Fox News’ resident liberal Richard Fowler flail around in search of a valid point is always painful to watch. But watching him attempt to debate Megyn Kelly on the issue of free speech, is downright mortifying.
In an epic clash with Kelly, he found himself agreeing with Bill O’Reilly’s craven take on the issue – a take Kelly blasted as “fundamentally confused and wrong.”
“The relevant question is not ‘did those under attack say something offensive,'” Kelly declared. The relevant question is, “what do we want to do about a group that wants to kill us for exercising our constitutional rights.”
“Freedom of speech is an enumerated right that also comes with the freedom of religion, the freedom of press and the freedom of association,” Fowler intoned. “Muslims should be free to worship just like Christians are free to worship.”
“They are,” Megyn replied, non-plussed. “This group didn’t step on that.”
“Freedom of speech comes with limits and this is a clear limit,” Fowler argued in search of a point.
“No it isn’t!” Megyn countered. “You are fundamentally confused and wrong and the Supreme Court has been very clear on this.”
She cited the Westboro Baptist Church case in which the court upheld their right to picket funerals of fallen soldiers in an 8-1 decision.
Fowler countered, “this is not about case law – this is about common sense,” totally contradicting his earlier “point” that some speech should be limited – which the always razor sharp Megyn called him out on.
“It doesn’t make any sense,” Fowler simpered. ” Why would you paint a picture of someone else’s God and laugh at it and expect them not to respond?”
Setting aside the fact that Fowler just made it obvious he doesn’t have the first clue what Muslims believe about Mohammed (hint – he’s not their God!) He also exposed himself as the craven hypocrite he is for piously pretending that he believes religion should never be made fun of. Can you see Richard Fowler passionately defending Catholics when “The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence” perform their blasphemous shtick?
A troupe of anti-clerical gay provocateurs who cross-dress as bizarre nuns to insult the church and conventional morality of all sorts, stage a “Hunky Jesus” competition in San Franscisco.
You know what? I know a lot of people who are offended by this. Should we insist that they cease and desist or face {{{the consequences}}}?
Let’s start by being clear that the show is offensive in the traditional sense of the word: Four-letter words; sex jokes; sacrilege. But it’s only offensive because it wants to offend you. Ultimately, it drops a dose of vulgar, ugly and comically juxtaposed reality on the absurdity of musical theater and the incongruities of one particular religion: Mormonism.
The two-and-a-half hour show is saddled with the schoolyard humor we’ve come to expect from the men who thought up Eric Cartman. It’s riddled with profanity and even manages to make “baptism” a dirty word. It’s not for pearl-clutchers or do-gooders.
Well, we’ll just have to add Richard Fowler to the ranks of pearl-clutchers and do-gooders, I guess. Because it doesn’t make sense!!!11!! Why would someone make fun of someone else’s God and laugh at it? Whoever heard of such a thing?!
But of course – Fowler is silent about these insults because the offended parties don’t threaten to murder people who insult them. This is a craven, despicable and unsupportable position to have – which is certainly to be expected among those on the left because they are consistently craven, despicable and wrong about everything. Bill O’Reilly should be ashamed and embarrassed to be on their side on such a basic and fundamental issue.
Kelly concluded by saying, “I’m concerned about the America you would have us live in,” but Fowler whimpered in response,”I would live in an America where everybody accepts everybody and we don’t make fun of their respective gods…”
When Megyn suggested he “explain that to the jihadis,” the clearly delusional Fowler blurted out, “how we beat terrorism is with love, not hate.”
Reporters asked the governor of Maryland why he was so slow to send in the National Guard.
Maryland’s Governor Hogan said it was Mayor “Space to Destroy” Stephanie Rawlings-Blake’s call – and she didn’t call.
Some questioned why it took so long for the Guard to be activated, to which Hogan responded that Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake was slow to make the request. He said he executed the request 30 seconds after it was made. Rawlings-Blake had initially said she wanted to give to protestors the “space to destroy” their environment….
“When the mayor called me, which quite frankly we were glad that she finally did, instantly we signed the executive order. We already had our entire team prepared,” he said. “We were trying to get in touch with the mayor for quite some time, she finally made that call and we immediately took action.”
Last Fall, the Democrat Governor of Missouri was accused of holding back the National Guard (at Holder and Obama’s request) when the city of Ferguson was in flames. Now we have Democrat politicians in Baltimore doing the same stupid thing – and you have to wonder – are they getting orders from above – or is this kind of toxic stupidity endemic throughout the party? Or both?
Yeah. As I noted at PJ Tatler.This is the kind of incompetence and insanity you can count of when progressives are put into positions of power.
Whether it’s a big-city mayor giving common street thugs posing as protesters “space” to destroy a city, or the leader of the free world giving radical Islamists “space” to destroy entire countries — what you get is chaos, terror, bloodshed and tears.
Nice Deb 