Left-wing Intolerance, Obamacare Turmoil Intensifies, Socialist Surge

Monday, March 13, 2017

Left-wing Intolerance

The intolerance of the left was on full display this weekend. White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer was accosted when he attempted to go shopping at an Apple store. It was another disturbing incident involving the public shaming of Trump officials by left-wing fanatics.

A woman who recognized Spicer approached him in the store. She repeatedly harangued Spicer while filming the entire incident. "How does it feel to work for a fascist," she asked.

What irony! She is using fascist tactics to intimidate those she disagrees with.

"Have you helped with the Russia stuff," she continued. "Are you a criminal as well? Have you committed treason too, just like the president?"

This kind of political harassment is to be expected in banana republics run by thugs and strongmen. It is more befitting of Beijing or the streets of the old Soviet Union where free speech and open debate were not tolerated.

In a constitutional republic, we should be able to have political differences and not fear being assaulted for our opinions.

Media Bias Alert

The left-wing media outrage machine kicked into high gear Friday evening, delivering the "breaking news" that President Trump and Attorney General Jeff Sessions were firing scores of U.S. attorneys. It seems reporters have not heard of this new thing called Google.

All they had to do was Google "replacing U.S. attorneys" and they would have discovered articles from the New York Times praising Bill Clinton's 1993 purge of federal prosecutors. As the Times wrote then, "All 93 United States Attorneys knew they would be asked to step down, since all are Republican holdovers."

In 2009, Politico wrote, "Obama To Replace U.S. Attorneys." But while Obama was merely "replacing" them, Trump is "ousting" them.

The fact is U.S. attorneys are political appointees. They serve at the pleasure of the president. It is standard practice for every administration to oust, replace or seek the resignations of U.S. attorneys at the beginning of its term. But for the liberal media, "business as usual" is just another opportunity to smear Trump.

Obamacare Turmoil Intensifies

The turmoil over health care reform intensified over the weekend. Where this is headed is anyone's guess. Desperate to defend its hard won gains, the left has dug in and will defend "Fortress Obamacare" to the bitter end. Meanwhile, the attacking GOP troops are in disarray and torn between competing interests.

During a speech in Kentucky Saturday, Vice President Mike Pence made the case for swift action. In his remarks, Pence highlighted the fact that the House leadership's bill was going after the worst aspects of Obamacare -- the individual mandate and crushing taxes. But the House bill is facing fierce resistance in the Senate where it is coming under fire from moderates and conservatives.

Republicans are stuck in an unenviable position. Liberals created this mess and Obamacare is collapsing. Major insurance companies are fleeing the Obamacare exchanges, warning of a "death spiral." Something has to be done, and polls show the public clearly expects Republicans to fix it.

For example, a recent Fox News poll found that 82% of registered voters think Obamacare should be repealed only after "a replacement plan is implemented." And 74% say that the replacement plan must be something new. Going back to the way things were pre-Obama won't cut it with most voters.

I think it is safe to say that what is currently being proposed by the House leadership is not the health care reform bill that conservatives would draft on their own in a perfect world free from Obamacare. But this is not a perfect world. They must address Obamacare and the problems it has created.

Procedural rules in Congress don't lend themselves to an easy fix. Senate Democrats can still filibuster most legislation, and there are strict limits to what can be done under the reconciliation process (which avoids filibusters).

Meanwhile, Republican congressmen are caught in the middle at town hall events. Constituents on the left are attacking them for threatening to undo Obamacare, while conservatives are furious that they aren't doing enough to undo Obamacare.

Socialist Surge

Of all the disturbing headlines I read this morning, this may have been the most depressing: "Seeing Red: Membership Triples For The Democratic Socialists Of America."

As I have been warning for weeks, the left is on fire. Radical pro-abortion and environmentalist groups have reported record fundraising since the election. Now comes the news that "the nation's largest socialist organization . . . has tripled in size over the last year."

This is no time for complacency, my friends. The battle for the heart and soul of America is intensifying, and we must be ready to fight back!