Tuesday, February 26, 2019

God help us. The Democratic Party officially endorses infanticide

"We now have a Democrat Party that wants to take the wealth of our citizens and transfer it to others, a Party that wants to destroy private industries, and a Party that embraces and promotes infanticide. This is called fascism!" ~ MLS 1/30

America, this is your postmodern, post-American, post-LIFE Democratic Party...and it's sickening to the core...
Killing babies is murder and the so-called moderate Governor of Virginia has showed us just how radical he really is with this new abortion bill he’s touting and NY Governor Andrew Cuomo is the new Kermit Gosnell hiding late-term abortion behind “reproductive rights.” When America doesn’t protect its babies you know that it’s a corrupt dying culture.
Related link: Virginia Governor Defends Letting Infants Die

Not mincing words, Levin called this barbarism precisely what it is: MURDER.
“You would think everybody would agree, right, that during labor, that during the birth process, it’s not a mother’s choice. It’s not a mother’s choice in consultation with her doctor. It’s God’s choice! That’s a baby! That’s a baby! What kind of animals have we become?! How inhumane have we become!? Where does this end!?”



“We men love our children too. We men would die for our children. We would kill for our children. We also provide for our children. They’re also our flesh and blood, and I don’t want to hear ever again, period, that I’m a man and I don’t get to have a decision in this. I sure as hell do, and so do you!

Murder is murder! This is a murder bill! That’s what it is. Call it what it is!”
I honestly don't understand how in the world Democrats sleep at night?
The constant drumbeat of “for the children,” “for the little guy,” and the ultimate insult to God and our collective intelligence, “doing the Lord’s work,” that the Democrat propagandists repeat to pacify the dimwitted and the disturbed can only be true if turned upside down.

We’re told it’s a woman’s right to have an abortion in America, at the point of birth, without any second opinions. Is that “for the children” too? Maybe it’s for the “little guy?” Let’s hear about how late-term abortion is “doing the Lord’s work.”

Whenever a Democrat says that what they’re doing is “for the children,” it is most certainly for the exploitation of children.

Whenever a Democrat says that their focus is on “the little guy,” it means it’s for the mammoth drug cartels or the fat pigs at the labor trough.

And whenever a Democrat says they’re doing “the Lord’s work,” they mean Lucifer himself.
And if that wasn't enough from January, Senate Democrats doubled down on EVIL before this month was up by BLOCKING a bill to protect babies born ALIVE after botched abortions. So, YES, leaders of the Democratic Party just openly endorsed INFANTICIDE...
The United States Senate voted 53-44 Monday evening in favor of legislation to guarantee medical care to babies who survive botched abortions, but failed to reach the 60 votes necessary for the bill to overcome the current filibuster rules and pass.

Originally introduced in 2015 and proposed in the current session in response to comments by Virginia Democrat Gov. Ralph Northam defending the prospect of letting a disabled or “non-viable” infant die after a failed abortion attempt, the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act would require abortionists to provide medical care for such babies. Under the 2002 Born-Alive Infants Protection Act, babies who survive abortions are recognized as human beings with human rights, but how specifically to handle them isn’t defined.

“Public officials, at all levels and in every party, should be able to condemn infanticide and come to the defense of the weakest members of our society,” Sen. Ben Sasse (R-NE), who re-introduced the bill’s Senate version, wrote Monday in a Fox News op-ed. “Recognizing the equality of every person shouldn’t be a cheap campaign line. It is a core American promise. My colleagues know this. They have attested to it eloquently and powerfully in recent weeks. Now is the time to make good on those promises.”
Related link: Senate Democrats Block Bill to Protect Babies That Are Born Alive After Surviving Abortions

This is beyond disturbing, and I couldn't have put it any better than President Trump's comment on the matter...
...or Matt Walsh's address this morning...
"After a vote like this, if you still remain affiliated with the Democrat Party, then you are a bad person."

"The media is calling this an 'anti-abortion' measure, which is just simply a lie. It actually has nothing to do with abortion at all. It deals with infants that are born alive, already born infants!"
If there's any light in all this darkness, it has to be that these radical abortion laws are causing a dramatic spike in Americans identifying as pro-life...
A new Marist poll finds that just as many Americans consider themselves “pro-life” as “pro-choice,” representing a surprising increase from a poll the same organization released just a month ago.

Last month, Marist released its annual abortion survey, which found that just 38% of Americans considered themselves “pro-life” versus 55% “pro-choice,” with an additional 7% unsure. 48% of Americans said they would either completely ban abortions or limit them to cases of rape, incest, or to save a mother’s life...

On Monday, Marist released another poll, which now finds the “pro-life” and “pro-choice” labels tied at 47% with 6% unsure, and a combined 58% of Americans who would ban all or most abortions.

[The numbers] appear to be a reaction to a month’s worth of national attention on a series of bills proposed in several states that would allow effectively unrestricted abortion up until birth, as well as congressional Democrats’ opposition to legislation that would mandate medical care for infants who survive attempted abortions.
God help us. God help them. Save our humanity.
O GOD, by whom the meek are guided in judgment, and light riseth up in darkness for the godly; Grant us, in all our doubts and uncertainties, the grace to ask what thou wouldest have us to do, that the Spirit of Wisdom may save us from all false choices, and that in thy light we may see light, and in thy straight path may not stumble...
O HEAVENLY Father, who hast filled the world with beauty; Open, we beseech thee, our eyes to behold thy gracious hand in all thy works; that rejoicing in thy whole creation, we may learn to serve thee with gladness; for the sake of him by whom all things were made, thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Posted by an ebb and flow at 10:28 PM

Friday, February 22, 2019

Happy 287th, President Washington!

Today we celebrate our first, and inarguably greatest, president, George Washington, who was born Feb. 22, 1732...the true reason we even have a Presidents' Day! As I was about to post all the usual generalities that make the man such a legend, I pondered one of the great titles that's given to our first president, The Father of our Country. Considering his place in history, his accomplishments and his legacy, it's easy to see why that title would apply, but is there more to it? Oh, yes, indeed there is...
Did you remember Washington's birthday? Most of us will probably celebrate the holiday as part of a generic 'Presidents' Day' -- and we probably did so in the all-American way...

[But] if we want to instill in our children a deeper reverence for the ideals upon which our nation was founded, let's use occasions like this to teach them about the character of our Founders. In the case of Washington, we ought to understand that our first President was not only the Father of our Country, but also a man of profound Christian piety.

Journey back with me 242 years to the terrible winter of 1777 at Valley Forge. The British had just captured Philadelphia, and the Continental Army was struggling to keep itself alive. Lacking food and clothing, the men were dying of exposure and starvation. Certain political leaders -- many of them jealous of Washington -- began to whisper that the general's cause was hopeless.

But the men who served under Washington felt differently. As William Bennett writes in his book, Our Sacred Honor, "The brutal conditions of Valley Forge could not suppress a spirit of comity that arose among the officers and their men."

These men were inspired to go on because of the moral example Washington provided. His ability to inspire through his character is illustrated by a story told by a Quaker farmer. Walking in the woods near Washington's headquarters, this farmer heard a human voice. The farmer happened upon General Washington, alone and on his knees in the snow. He was praying to God while tears ran down his cheeks.

After witnessing this humble act of faith, the farmer returned home in great excitement. He told his wife that Washington would not only prevail, but would "work out a great salvation for America."

This respect for Washington was a direct result of Washington's personal virtue, which was cultivated his entire life. As Bennett points out, "Washington wasn't born good. Only practice and habit made him so." The general was keenly aware of his faults, especially his temper, and from an early age, he worked at controlling this and other shortcomings.

In today's "anything goes" culture, this intense striving after moral excellence is rare. But it's the reason Washington's men were willing to sacrifice for him -- even when their cause appeared hopeless. And it's the reason he was later chosen as our first president.

Washington's stature, you see, is of the biblical kind. When the Old Testament writers judged a leader, it was always in moral, not political, terms. Rulers might conquer a vast empire -- but if they neglected their spiritual duties, they were dismissed as men who "did what was evil in the sight of the Lord."

Let's make a resolution. Next year for Washington's birthday, instead of rushing out to the malls, let's teach our kids that Washington was not just our first president, but a man of moral excellence. Teach them that they should seek after the kind of moral excellence in their lives that Washington personified: the kind that arises, not only from accomplishment, but from character.

Otherwise, we may forget why Washington is remembered as "the Father of our Country"—and that would be a terrible loss.
AMEN! America salutes you, Mr. President. We thank you for your lasting legacy, and may we be so bold as to continue that pursuit of greatness.

Related link: When is George Washington's Actual Birthday?
Posted by an ebb and flow at 2:33 PM

Monday, February 18, 2019

Happy Presidents' Day!

Today is Presidents' Day. It's a time set aside to honor all those who've served as America's Commander-in-Chief, whether honorably or otherwise.

There have been 45 Chief Executives, ranging from the first (and arguably best!), George Washington, in whom the day was originally created in celebration of, to our current officeholder, Donald Trump. And I believe it is more by Providence than not that Presidents' Day resides within the month of not just the best's birth, but that of three of America's greatest presidents' birth: Washington, Lincoln and Reagan. So it is with this divine coincidence that we celebrate the day with quotes from these historical American leaders.
February 22, 1732 - George Washington
(First President, 1789-1797)

“In politics as in philosophy, my tenets are few and simple. The leading one of which, and indeed that which embraces most others, is to be honest and just ourselves and to exact it from others, meddling as little as possible in their affairs where our own are not involved. If this maxim was generally adopted, wars would cease and our swords would soon be converted into reap hooks and our harvests be more peaceful, abundant, and happy.”

"The foundation of our Empire was not laid in the gloomy age of Ignorance and Superstition, but at an Epoch when the rights of mankind were better understood and more clearly defined, than at any former period, the researches of the human mind, after social happiness, have been carried to a great extent, the Treasures of knowledge, acquired by the labours of Philosophers, Sages and Legislatures, through a long succession of years, are laid open for our use, and their collected wisdom may be happily applied in the Establishment of our forms of Government."

"Government is not reason, and it is not eloquence; it is force! Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master: never for a moment should it be left to irresponsible action."

"It appears to me, then, little short of a miracle, that the Delegates from so many different States (which States you know are also different from each other in their manners, circumstances and prejudices) should unite in forming a system of national Government."

“However [political parties] may now and then answer popular ends, they are likely in the course of time and things, to become potent engines, by which cunning, ambitious, and unprincipled men will be enabled to subvert the power of the people and to usurp for themselves the reins of government, destroying afterwards the very engines which have lifted them to unjust dominion.”

"The Citizens of the United States of America have a right to applaud themselves for having given to mankind examples of an enlarged and liberal policy: a policy worthy of imitation. All possess alike liberty of conscience and immunities of citizenship. It is now no more that toleration is spoken of, as if it was by the indulgence of one class of people, that another enjoyed the exercise of their inherent natural rights. For happily the Government of the United States, which gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance requires only that they who live under its protection should demean themselves as good citizens, in giving it on all occasions their effectual support."

"The Constitution, which at any time exists, till changed by an explicit and authentic act of the whole People, is sacredly obligatory upon all."

"The blessing and protection of Heaven are at all times necessary but especially so in times of public distress and danger. The General hopes and trusts that every officer and man will endeavor to live and act as becomes a Christian soldier, defending the dearest rights and liberties of his country."

"I now make it my earnest prayer that God would… most graciously be pleased to dispose us all to do justice, to love mercy, and to demean ourselves with that charity, humility, and pacific temper of the mind which were the characteristics of the Divine Author of our blessed religion."

February 12, 1809 - Abraham Lincoln
(Sixteenth President, 1861-1865)

"The world has never had a good definition of the word liberty, and the American people, just now, are much in want of one. We all declare for liberty; but in using the same word we do not all mean the same thing. With some the word liberty may mean for each man to do as he pleases with himself, and the product of his labor; while with others, the same word may mean for some men to do as they please with other men, and the product of other men's labor. Here are two, not only different, but incompatible things, called by the same name -- liberty. And it follows that each of the things is, by the respective parties, called by two different and incompatible names -- liberty and tyranny."

"The prosperity of the United States is not the result of accident. It has a philosophic cause. Without the Constitution and the Union, we could not have attained the result; but even these are not the primary cause of our great prosperity. There is something back of these, entwining itself more closely about the human heart. That something, is the principle of "Liberty to all"—the principle that clears the path for all—gives hope to all—and, by consequence, enterprise and industry to all."

These communities, by their representatives in old Independence Hall, said to the whole world of men: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." This was their majestic interpretation of the economy of the Universe. This was their lofty, and wise, and noble understanding of the justice of the Creator to His creatures. Yes, gentlemen, to all His creatures, to the whole great family of man. In their enlightened belief, nothing stamped with the Divine image and likeness was sent into the world to be trodden on, and degraded, and imbruted by its fellows. They grasped not only the whole race of man then living, but they reached forward and seized upon the farthest posterity. They erected a beacon to guide their children and their children's children, and the countless myriads who should inhabit the earth in other ages. Wise statesmen as they were, they knew the tendency of prosperity to breed tyrants, and so they established these great self-evident truths, that when in the distant future some man, some faction, some interest, should set up the doctrine that none but rich men, or none but white men, were entitled to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, their posterity might look up again to the Declaration of Independence and take courage to renew the battle which their fathers began -- so that truth, and justice, and mercy, and all the humane and Christian virtues might not be extinguished from the land; so that no man would hereafter dare to limit and circumscribe the great principles on which the temple of liberty was being built.

"Let it [the Constitution] be taught in schools, seminaries and in colleges; let it be written in primers, in spelling books and in almanacs; let it be preached from the pulpit, proclaimed in legislative halls, enforced in courts of justice. In short, let it become the political religion of the nation."

February 6, 1911 - Ronald Reagan
(Fortieth President, 1981-1989):

"The Founding Fathers established a system which meant a radical break from that which preceded it. A written constitution would provide a permanent form of government, limited in scope, but effective in providing both liberty and order. Government was not to be a matter of self-appointed rulers, governing by whim or harsh ideology. It was not to be government by the strongest or for the few. Our principles were revolutionary. We began as a small, weak republic. But we survived. Our example inspired others, imperfectly at times, but it inspired them nevertheless. This constitutional republic, conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal, prospered and grew strong. To this day, America is still the abiding alternative to tyranny. That is our purpose in the world -- nothing more and nothing less."

“Ours was the first revolution in the history of mankind that truly reversed the course of government, and with three little words: 'We the people.' 'We the people' tell the government what to do, it doesn't tell us. 'We the people' are the driver, the government is the car. And we decide where it should go, and by what route, and how fast. Almost all the world's constitutions are documents in which governments tell the people what their privileges are. Our Constitution is a document in which 'We the people' tell the government what it is allowed to do. 'We the people' are free."

"I hope we once again have reminded people that man is not free unless government is limited. There's a clear cause and effect here that is as neat and predictable as a law of physics: As government expands, liberty contracts."

"The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of these United States are covenants we have made not only with ourselves, but with all mankind. Our founding documents proclaim to the world that freedom is not the sole prerogative of a chosen few. It is the universal right of all God's children”

"Now I realize it's fashionable in some circles to believe that no one in government should encourage others to read the Bible. That we're told we'll violate the constitutional separation of church and state established by the Founding Fathers and the First Amendment. The First Amendment was not written to protect people and their laws from religious values. It was written to protect those values from government tyranny."

"Without God, there is no virtue because there's no prompting of the conscience. And without God, democracy will not and cannot long endure. If we ever forget that we're one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under."
May we learn more day by day from the wisdom of these great men, wisdom undoubtedly drawn from and reflective of the Word...
“For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; he will save us.” — Isaiah 33:22 KJV (The three branches of government reflected in the divine words spoke by the Hebrew prophet Isaiah)

”Moreover choose able men from all the people, such as fear God, men who are trustworthy and who hate a bribe; and place such men over the people as rulers of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens.” — Exodus 18:21 RSV
Happy Presidents' Day!
Posted by an ebb and flow at 1:46 PM

Friday, February 15, 2019

Building up Trump's action on the border crisis

So, before the Senate, then House, passed their crappy border bill, news broke that President Trump will sign the damn thing...but he's also declaring a state of emergency at the same time AND he's freed up 8 billion for the border wall! Awesome sauce.

Of course, as soon as news broke, rumblings of Dems running to their favorite lib judges seeking injunction suits revved up, ya know, to halt the efforts of the President and his allies who seek to maintain law, order and national sovereignty. And he addressed it this morning as well (the lower lib courts will try to stop it, but the SCOTUS will affirm it).



So, according to the left, never mind this, I guess?


Just think about how insane this effort towards a borderless nation sounds. Every nation in the world has a border! But screw the safety, security and liberties of the American citizenry? If you dig into this, it's easy to see that 1.) much of this is about keeping the hate on against the man (how tolerant?), 2.) following lockstep with the whims of the Democratic establishment and their propagandist mediaites in their efforts towards perpetual power (i.e., the vote), and 3.) digging just a little deeper, a wayward desire to erase any notion of orderly assimilation and American culture. But as Trump stated this morning to one reporter, and as many, many have said before him, including the Gipper (who was bamboozled in his own time)...

“A nation that cannot control its borders is not a nation.”

That's the simple fact of the matter that too many on the left either don't consider, don't bother to acknowledge, or I fear worse, choose to purposefully rebel against. And it's with that last one that I'll never find agreement with progressive, socialist leanings of the American left. Paraphrasing Milton Friedman, you cannot simultaneously have open borders and a welfare state.



What Friedman didn't predict unfortunately is that we have leftist legislators who have begun to open up entitlements and benefits that were established for the impoverished citizen now offered to the illegal alien! And with no allegiance to our nation, we now enter into a recipe of cultural rot and societal failure. There's compassion, and it has its place in working with our neighbors, finding cooperation with governments, and helping to improve worldwide conditions. But this is not compassion; this is foolish and immoral in so many ways, and worse, ultimately leads to ruin.



It's good that President Trump sees that, strives towards the betterment of our nation (even if imperfectly executed with a signature on that crappy bill), and is willing to go to bat for the American people. It's been too long since we've had that in leadership.

 ADDENDUM: Levin added via FB post:
While the National Emergencies Act of 1976 should be rarely used for real emergencies, it has in fact been used over fifty times without controversy. The fact is the leftwing media and the RINOs do not view illegal immigration and the cumulative importation of millions of aliens into our country in violation of federal law as a big deal. If they did, they would’ve acted long before Trump became president. The president rightly does view it as an emergency. The law itself, as used by the president, does not violate separation of powers in this instance as it is applied quite narrowly, with the president moving around funds which he is empowered to do by Congress.

Meanwhile, the leftwing media and the RINOs don’t mind at all the creation of the entire massive bureaucracy and the delegation of law-making to it by Congress, over the period of the last century, which delegation has always violated separation of powers. We now call it the administrative state or swamp. Not a single conservative in Congress has even tried to do anything effective about it. And the pseudo-constitutionalists of today haven’t given a damn about it either.
Great point.
Posted by an ebb and flow at 12:51 PM

Tuesday, February 12, 2019

Happy 210th, President Lincoln!

Today marks our 16th President's birthday, and if there's one thing we can learn from Lincoln, it's that he never let criticism get in the way of the good of the country...
In these times of extreme rhetoric and deep political divisions, consider the words of President Lincoln, whose birthday we celebrate today: “Folks are usually about as happy as they make their minds up to be.”

Abraham Lincoln’s contemporaries attacked him in editorials, speeches, journals, diaries, and private letters. Even without Twitter and social media, they criticized his upbringing, his lack of formal education, and even his appearance.

Harper’s Weekly told readers: “He is not a brilliant orator; he is not a great leader.” An Ohio Congressman agreed: Lincoln “is universally an admitted failure, has no will, no courage, no executive capacity . . . .”

A New Yorker wrote Lincoln was “a barbarian, Scythian, yahoo, or gorilla.” After a Cabinet meeting, Lincoln’s own Attorney General wrote in his diary: “I greatly fear he has not the power to command.”

Union commanding general George McClellan called him “a coward,” “an idiot,” and “the original gorilla.” McClellan once slighted Lincoln who was waiting in the general’s house: McClellan ignored the President and went to bed, leaving him in the parlor.

Some Northern newspapers actually called for Lincoln’s assassination. In the days after the assassination, William Lloyd Garrison Jr. called his murder “providential.”



Nonetheless, Lincoln was gracious in dealing with his critics: “Do I not destroy my enemies when I make them my friends?” He would add: “Let us speak no more of these things.” He also met with detractors, asking: “Why does he not come and have a talk with me?”

Meetings were important to Lincoln. No matter how busy he was, he found time to meet, often using stories to make points: “They say I tell a great many stories. I reckon I do; but I have learned from long experience that plain people, take them as they run, are more easily influenced through the medium of a broad and humorous illustration than in any other way.”

While contemporary criticisms of Lincoln have long been forgotten, his words haven’t, like the conclusion of his Gettysburg Address: “. . . government of the people, by the people, for the people shall not perish from the earth."

Likewise, his second Inaugural Address (with future assassin John Wilkes Booth in attendance): “With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in; to bind up the nation’s wounds; to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan – to do all which may achieve and cherish a just, and a lasting peace, among ourselves, and with all nations.”

Despite the attacks on him, Abraham Lincoln always remained focused on the good of the county: “America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.”

Hopefully, we can do the same in the face of our critics.
AMEN! America salutes you, Mr. President. We thank you for your lasting legacy, and may we be so bold as to continue that pursuit of greatness.
Posted by an ebb and flow at 6:11 PM

Wednesday, February 6, 2019

Happy 108th, President Reagan!

Can't let this day slip by without a big HAPPY BIRTHDAY to one of America's most beloved presidents! A president whose legacy still resides with us, even today...
It has been 30 years since Ronald Reagan left the White House and nearly 15 since he died. As a second generation reaches adulthood since his time in Washington, it is important to remember what he meant to our country and how we still benefit.

 It was not yet “morning in America” when Reagan took office. His predecessor, Jimmy Carter, talked of a national malaise. The Iranians held American hostages, and OPEC had us over a barrel. Our economy was sclerotic, and America’s foes doubted our national will – our determination to stand up for our interests and principles around the world.

 Then came Reagan, a man of sunny disposition, can-do attitude and unshakeable belief in the goodness, ingenuity and determination of the American people.



His legacy is with us, even today. Communism is all but on the ash heap of history. Its last embers are dying in Venezuela, Cuba and North Korea.

Growth and prosperity have returned – thanks to the current administration’s Reaganesque tax cuts and deregulation.

 Once again, America is pursuing – and achieving – “peace through strength,” rebuilding our worn out military and dealing with ISIS just as the Gipper would have done.



Reagan faced no shortage of detractors in his day. Many on the left sought to dismiss him as nothing more than “a B movie actor,” an intellectual lightweight.

 But those who knew the man knew that was not the case at all.
  • He restored the federal system (though some of his efforts to devolve power to the states were overturned by later administrations).
  • He launched “privatization” of government – a practice that’s still saving taxpayers billions of dollars annually.
  • He appointed judges who respected the Constitution – just as President Trump is doing today.
  • He strengthened a military that been allowed to atrophy and decay – again, an area where Trump has had to follow Reagan’s example.
  • He knew how to deal with the Russians. He proclaimed the Reagan Doctrine – that American would come to the aid of freedom fighters to throw off Soviet tyranny – and ended the Brezhnev Doctrine, which claimed that all socialist countries would fight any effort to introduce capitalism to on their turf.
But Reagan’s legacy extended beyond policy matters. He challenged us to believe in ourselves, not government, to meet our challenges. He talked to Americans about the values we all hold dear – faith and family, work and community, peace and freedom. He urged them to aspire, to be creative and heroic and forward-thinking.



And he gave voice to a healthy skepticism about the notion that Washington can solve all the nation’s problems.

 “The nine most terrifying words in the English language are, ‘I’m from the government, and I’m here to help.” Reagan said that in 1986, and it’s still being talked about.

A liberal Washington Post columnist recently complained that America’s “core problem is a dogmatic antigovernment attitude, reflected in Reagan’s quip. … This makes it impossible for us to have a constructive debate about what government is for, what tasks it should take on and what good it actually does.”

Actually, without Reagan, there might be no debate at all.

And without Reagan, the Soviet Union – in all its menacing malevolence – might yet exist. It was he who correctly assessed its economic and social vulnerabilities and saw a chance to end its reign of terror and tyranny.



Without Reagan, the notion that cutting taxes can lead to more growth, more prosperity and even more government revenue – the notion guiding our current economic resurgence – might never have been attempted.

Without Reagan, America’s place in the world – as the pre-eminent superpower no nation dares take on in a conventional war – might not be secure.

Ronald Reagan changed all that with commonsense policies, his unshakable faith in American ideals and the American people, and with boundless optimism. His legacy still lives, and America and the world are the richer for it.
AMEN! America salutes you, Mr. President. We thank you for your lasting legacy, and may we be so bold as to continue that pursuit of greatness.

Related link: Ronald Reagan, born exactly 108 years ago, was right in so many ways – Just ask Tom Brady
Posted by an ebb and flow at 9:43 PM

Reviewing the State of our Union and the Greatness we must strive towards

"It was the best speech he has given and if he can consistently use the discipline he showed last night, he will be on track for re-election." ~ Erick Erickson
Trump's second SOTU speech may have been his best thus far. Every topic, every highlight, whether delivered perfectly or with a few awkward segues, whether crossing a faux pas here or a caveat there (yeah, I know, his tie was jacked #facepalm), all spoke to one centralized ideal: Greatness. And Americans took note with networks choking back their rage at both CNN and CBS polls showing 76% approval ratings! Unapologetically, Americans got it, guys.

These speeches are so peculiar to watch sometimes. I get that opposition parties are going to disagree with policies and stances of the party or president in power. I get that there's a significant partisan divide driven by the political classes and passed down to the country's citizens. Yet it still baffles me that Democrats simply don't want the common sense idea of greatness for our nation or its people.

When discussing the successes of employment being way up and more Americans off the government dole, particularly with regard to minorities...nothing from Dems. Not even applause. One of the few times Democratic hubris mustered a genuine will to vigorously celebrate came with Trump's acknowledgement of the freshmen sorority and general success stories of working women as of late (which is something of note, having Dem women who've otherwise displayed hatred for the man actually on their feet to his congratulatory pronouncements of 58% of women filling the new workforce and a bunch of them winning Congress! Oh, sweet irony). Otherwise... Tax reform? Historic regulation cuts? A leading exporter in energy for the first time in 60 years? Nope. They'd seem to rather tie up Congress with meaningless investigations leading nowhere and further keep the country and its people suppressed from true progress. Nonetheless, that didn't stop the President from trying to unite the room with these ideals of greatness.
The President really did a great job of delivering an uplifting speech. It was made more so by his careful use of guests to tell stories.

The President reminding us all of the nation’s great accomplishments while also saying our best accomplishments are still to come was a great moment. He found moments of bipartisanship that made a very divided room come together.
Nonetheless, Democrats were determined to display a divided state. Just with the hotbed of illegal immigration, where Dems demonstrate united support for the lawlessness of unfettered and unprotected open borders, and the repercussions resulting thereof, over the citizenry or those legally immigrating to our nation, becoming productive members of society and upholding the rule of law, consider the President's compelling remarks on the topic:
No issue better illustrates the divide between America’s working class and America’s political class than illegal immigration. Wealthy politicians and donors push for open borders while living their lives behind walls and gates and guards. Meanwhile, working class Americans are left to pay the price for mass illegal migration — reduced jobs, lower wages, overburdened schools and hospitals, increased crime, and a depleted social safety net. Tolerance for illegal immigration is not compassionate — it is cruel. One in three women is sexually assaulted on the long journey north. Smugglers use migrant children as human pawns to exploit our laws and gain access to our country. Human traffickers and sex traffickers take advantage of the wide open areas between our ports of entry to smuggle thousands of young girls and women into the United States and to sell them into prostitution and modern-day slavery. Tens of thousands of innocent Americans are killed by lethal drugs that cross our border and flood into our cities — including meth, heroin, cocaine, and fentanyl. The savage gang, MS-13, now operates in 20 different American States, and they almost all come through our southern border. Just yesterday, an MS-13 gang member was taken into custody for a fatal shooting on a subway platform in New York City. We are removing these gang members by the thousands, but until we secure our border they’re going to keep streaming back in.
These were compelling points by the President. They were not soundbites, but reasonable statistics and data that actually do back up his point. Then he made a reasonable compromise. It should be noted that when the President first suggested compromising, Nancy Pelosi leaned over to applaud as close to his ear as she could get. President Trump said
My Administration has sent to the Congress a commonsense proposal to end the crisis on our southern border. It includes humanitarian assistance, more law enforcement, drug detection at our ports, closing loopholes that enable child smuggling, and plans for a new physical barrier, or wall, to secure the vast areas between our ports of entry. In the past, most of the people in this room voted for a wall — but the proper wall never got built. I’ll get it built. This is a smart, strategic, see-through steel barrier — not just a simple concrete wall. It will be deployed in the areas identified by border agents as having the greatest need, and as these agents will tell you, where walls go up, illegal crossings go way down.
That bolded part is the President’s reasonable compromise. Instead of a coast to coast wall or a major expansion, he’ll just take what the border patrol says it needs and it has said, since the Obama Administration, that it needs more.
Yet, as compelling as those points are, you've still got leaders of the I-gotta-be-against-him gang finding disagreement with the President's words to instead side with lawlessness?!
President Trump should take this message to the campaign trail now to assure he'll have no problem running against and defeating Democratic candidates this radical.

An integral element, as well as a moral and ethical imperative, of greatness should always be Life. For without Life first, there can be no liberty, property or pursuit thereof. One would think that a cultural celebration of life in its most innocence would be a defining component of a successful society. The President attempted to bring the chamber's members together in this positive realization towards an agenda of Greatness. Unfortunately, Dems are still resistant to such an agenda. Why in hell would you not want to be Great in the celebration of Life together with Liberty? As my brother-in-law so succinctly stated, they can't celebrate life and liberty while murdering children at the same time. And make no bones about it: the utter insanity that the President called out with regard to NY and VA officials can no longer be sanitized with the mere coinage of 'reproductive rights' or even the word 'abortion'. This is infanticide. This is murder. And it is evil.
President Donald Trump gave a clear and forceful message on pro-life issues during the State of the Union Address.

He slammed the governors of New York and Virginia for promoting abortion up to birth and infanticide. And he called for Congress to pass a ban on late-term abortions on babies who are capable of feeling pain.
There could be no greater contrast to the beautiful image of a mother holding her infant child than the chilling displays our nation saw in recent days.

Lawmakers in New York cheered with delight upon the passage of legislation that would allow a baby to be ripped from the mother’s womb moments before birth. These are living, feeling, beautiful babies who will never get the chance to share their love and dreams with the world.

And then, we had the case of the governor of Virginia where he stated he would execute a baby after birth. To defend the dignity of every person, I am asking Congress to pass legislation to prohibit the late-term abortion of children who can feel pain in the mother’s womb.

Let us work together to build a culture that cherishes innocent life.

And let us reaffirm a fundamental truth — all children — born and unborn — are made in the holy image of God.
Along with Erickson (and I'm certain Levin and a host of others), I applaud the President's strong stand on Life and calling out both that NY legislative abomination and VA Gov. Northam’s absurd remarks. Giving the Democrats’ infanticide position maximum exposure was paramount. We must seek to be a culture that cherishes innocent life!

Related links: Levin rips Virginia’s ‘murder bill’: ‘Murder is murder … call it what it is!’
76% of Americans Have a Positive View of Trump’s Pro-Life State of the Union Speech
House Republicans move to force vote on Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act

There are of course many other moments to discuss, but one final point I wanted to highlight was the President's unequivocal repudiation of socialism, to the chagrin of Bernie's mug...
President Donald Trump took on socialism in his State of the Union address, noting its failure in Venezuela and promising America that our country will stay free.
“Here in the United States, we are alarmed by the new calls to adopt socialism in our country. America was founded on liberty and independence, and not government coercion, domination, and control,” Trump said. “We are born free, and we will stay free.”
The cameras seemed to have purposefully kept their lenses off the freshman kook Ocasio-Cortez of the straight jacket brigade during the applause, but Noonan and Malliotakis took note...

Seriously, though. Trump's address of these socialist efforts and encroachments needed to be addressed and compared to the continued failures that the world demonstrates time and time again when a culture embraces the primary tenants of socialism. It's a disaster for them, and it would be a catastrophe for the United States.

President Trump ended his speech with an elegant request for unity towards Greatness, in liberty, freedom and exceptionalism...
Everything that has come since -- our triumph over communism, our giant leaps of science and discovery, our unrivaled progress toward equality and justice -- all of it is possible thanks to the blood and tears and courage and vision of the Americans who came before.

Think of this Capitol -- think of this very chamber, where lawmakers before you voted to end slavery, to build the railroads and the highways, to defeat fascism, to secure civil rights, to face down an evil empire.

Here tonight, we have legislators from across this magnificent republic. You have come from the rocky shores of Maine and the volcanic peaks of Hawaii; from the snowy woods of Wisconsin and the red deserts of Arizona; from the green farms of Kentucky and the golden beaches of California. Together, we represent the most extraordinary Nation in all of history.

What will we do with this moment? How will we be remembered?

I ask the men and women of this Congress: Look at the opportunities before us! Our most thrilling achievements are still ahead. Our most exciting journeys still await. Our biggest victories are still to come. We have not yet begun to dream.

We must choose whether we are defined by our differences -- or whether we dare to transcend them.

We must choose whether we will squander our inheritance -- or whether we will proudly declare that we are Americans. We do the incredible. We defy the impossible. We conquer the unknown.

This is the time to re-ignite the American imagination. This is the time to search for the tallest summit, and set our sights on the brightest star. This is the time to rekindle the bonds of love and loyalty and memory that link us together as citizens, as neighbors, as patriots.

This is our future -- our fate -- and our choice to make. I am asking you to choose greatness.

No matter the trials we face, no matter the challenges to come, we must go forward together.

We must keep America first in our hearts. We must keep freedom alive in our souls. And we must always keep faith in America's destiny -- that one Nation, under God, must be the hope and the promise and the light and the glory among all the nations of the world!
So again, I'd repeat myself: President Trump should take ALL of these quintessential messages (National Sovereignty, Life, Liberty) onto the campaign trail NOW, demonstrating the Greatness they exemplify as he did last night, to both invigorate the American People and to insure the defeat of these unAmerican Democratic radicals who continue to flush the nation down a cesspool of fundamental transformation, resembling something we were never meant to be, nor ever should.

Related links: SOTU review: The 6 big domestic policies Trump proposed
SOTU review: Trump’s top 8 foreign policy themes
Newt Gingrich: Trump's State of the Union changed history on Tuesday night – Here's what Pelosi must've felt
Posted by an ebb and flow at 4:00 PM
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