The Fall of Robert Mugabe

This is excellent, from Robyn Dixon, at the Los Angeles Times, "The Shakespearean excesses and political intrigues that drove Africa's oldest strongman out of power":

The story of hubris and arrogance that drove Robert Mugabe's epic fall. This story is African opera, and there are few true heroes in it--other than the courageous people of Zimbabwe, who insisted on better from their leaders. https://t.co/7TdMENbBPn

— Kim Murphy, LA Times (@kimmurphy) November 19, 2017

In a glitzy Johannesburg nightclub earlier this month, a wealthy young playboy poured an entire $660 bottle of Ace of Spades Armand de Brignac Champagne over his diamond-studded watch: It was Bellarmine Chatunga, the youngest son of President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe.

He had bragged about the watch and chunky gold bracelet on an earlier social media post: “$60,000 on the wrist when your daddy run the whole country ya know!!!”

As Zimbabweans struggle to afford food, when many find themselves sleeping outside banks in the hope of withdrawing $10 in cash, the video drew outrage, even among the ruling elite that had propped up the 93-year-old Mugabe for 37 years.

It hadn’t been an isolated incident. Mugabe’s wife, Grace, and her son from a previous marriage, Russell Goreraza, recently imported two Rolls-Royces, and she was caught up in a legal battle over a $1.35-million diamond ring.

Members of the ruling ZANU-PF party were furious that the first lady had seized majority control of a $1-billion government road contract. Then there was the incident involving a model who had been partying with her sons in South Africa: Grace Mugabe left an ugly gash when she hit her with a power cord and, facing charges of assault, she claimed diplomatic immunity and high-tailed it out of the country.

“It angered people. There have always been reports of the high living by these boys, high living by the mother, the father looking aside. They became arrogant and thought ‘No one can do anything to us,’ ” confided one ruling party figure, who wouldn’t be named for fear of reprisals. “There’s palpable anger in the military.”

The alarm over Grace Mugabe was magnified by her escalating power. When she attacked, government ministers fell. She said she could be president. “Give me the job and see if I fail!” she declared recently.

Zimbabwe’s fate came to a head this fall, according to numerous interviews with those close to the political intrigue, when Grace Mugabe turned her sights on former Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa and his close allies among military commanders. At that point, sources say, those with any power to stop what was happening knew they would be finished — unless they toppled her. That meant removing Robert Mugabe.

Mugabe’s slow-motion downfall — planned for months by the military — is a story of his own hubris and arrogance, and his conviction that he was Africa’s last great liberation hero, with no living peers. For decades he chipped away at democracy and crafted the militaristic state that kept him in power, but he forgot that he was there at the military’s whim, not the other way around.

It was grand opera crossed with “The Sopranos,” full of scandal and treacherous turns, entertaining and dangerous. Accusations flew of poisoning, plotting, CIA espionage, military desertion and the theft of $15 billion in diamonds.

As the economy shriveled without foreign investment and a hard currency crisis sent prices of staples soaring 30% in a single week, many in the rank-and-file government felt hopeless at the prospect of going into elections in 2018 led by a president who could hardly stay awake in public meetings.

As Mugabe grew frail, he turned to promoting and protecting Grace, repeatedly warning the generals to stay out of politics, even as armed forces leaders were beginning to talk darkly of intervention.

*****

One of the ironies of the unfolding drama is the extent to which the army now confronting Mugabe has been one of the president’s chief weapons of terror over the years.

The military carried out massacres in Matabeleland in the 1980s on Robert Mugabe’s orders to eliminate opposition. Some 20,000 people were reportedly killed.

The army and war veterans evicted white farmers from their land soon after 2000 and got farms in return. Mugabe used the military to violently crush the opposition in successive elections and in Operation Murambatsvina in 2005, when up to a million people were displaced in opposition areas, their homes bulldozed.

Mugabe, say those who know him best, has always had an instinctive manipulative cunning and an acute understanding of how to wield force to break an opponent. When he saw a threat, he either crushed it or consumed it whole.

But as he aged, he grew more remote, stubborn and out of touch, and was loath to trust or consult his generals.

“He forgot the nature of the state that he himself helped to create, which is a militaristic, securocratic state,” said opposition figure Tendai Biti, a former finance minister. “He forgot that the militaristic state could just dump him when he stopped serving their interests. He could be fired, like anyone.”

Independent analyst Earnest Mudzengi said the closed, oppressive state Mugabe created likely will outlast him.

“He was made by the same guys who now want to do away with him. He made them, and he was made by them. Big people tend to overreach themselves,” he said.

“Basically what they [the generals] want is a return to the status quo,” he added. “People are celebrating, but it’s premature.”

RTWT.

Hillary Clinton and Surrogates to Run DEFCON3 Campaign Against 'Racist Bigot' Donald Trump

The Clinton machine is gearing up to the highest stages of political warfare to destroy Donald Trump in the general election campaign.

The New York Times reports, "Inside the Clinton Team's Plan to Defeat Donald Trump":

In the days after Donald J. Trump vanquished his Republican rivals in South Carolina and Nevada, prominent Democrats supporting Hillary Clinton arranged a series of meetings and conference calls to tackle a question many never thought they would ask: How do we defeat Mr. Trump in a general election?

Several Democrats argued that Mrs. Clinton, should she be her party’s nominee, would easily beat Mr. Trump. They were confident that his incendiary remarks about immigrants, women and Muslims would make him unacceptable to many Americans. They had faith that the growing electoral power of black, Hispanic and female voters would deliver a Clinton landslide if he were the Republican nominee.

But others, including former President Bill Clinton, dismissed those conclusions as denial. They said that Mr. Trump clearly had a keen sense of the electorate’s mood and that only a concerted campaign portraying him as dangerous and bigoted would win what both Clintons believe will be a close November election.

That strategy is beginning to take shape, with groups that support Mrs. Clinton preparing to script and test ads that would portray Mr. Trump as a misogynist and an enemy to the working class whose brash temper would put the nation and the world in grave danger. The plan is for those themes to be amplified later by two prominent surrogates: To fight Mr. Trump’s ability to sway the news cycle, Mr. Clinton would not hold back on the stump, and President Obama has told allies he would gleefully portray Mr. Trump as incapable of handling the duties of the Oval Office.

Democrats say they risk losing the presidency if they fail to take Mr. Trump seriously, much as Republicans have done in the primary campaign.

“He’s formidable, he understands voters’ anxieties, and he will be ruthless against Hillary Clinton,” said Gov. Dannel P. Malloy of Connecticut. “I’ve gone from denial — ‘I can’t believe anyone would listen to this guy’ — to admiration, in the sense that he’s figured out how to capture everyone’s angst, to real worry.”

During the first Republican debate last summer, Mrs. Clinton’s campaign manager, Robby Mook, shushed a room full of people at the campaign’s Brooklyn headquarters when Mr. Trump started to speak, almost giddily captivated by the wildness of his remarks. “Shh, I’ve got to get me some Trump,” he said.

Now, Mr. Mook and his colleagues regard Mr. Trump as a wily, determined and indefatigable opponent who seems to be speaking to broad economic anxieties among Americans and to the widely held belief that traditional politicians are incapable of addressing those problems. Publicly, the Clinton operation is letting the Republicans slug it out. But privately, it and other Democrats are poring over polling data to understand the roots of Mr. Trump’s populist appeal and building up troves of opposition research on his business career.

“The case against Trump will be prosecuted on two levels,” said Geoff Garin, a Democratic pollster and Mrs. Clinton’s chief strategist in 2008. “The first is temperament,” and whether he is suited to be commander in chief, Mr. Garin said, echoing conversations that have dominated Democratic circles recently. The second “will be based on whether he can really be relied on as a champion for anyone but himself.”

But the tactics the Clintons have used for years to take down opponents may fall short in a contest between the blunt and unpredictable Mr. Trump and the cautious and scripted Mrs. Clinton: a matchup that operatives on both sides predicted would be an epic, ugly clash between two vastly disparate politicians...

It's going to be a brutally close election, but the one thing we know now for sure, the Democrats aren't coming anywhere near the GOP in turnout for the primary elections. Trump even mentioned it during his press conference Tuesday night.

I'll have more on that. If folks thought both 2008 and 2012 were bad (for racist attacks by far-left Democrat Party extremists), they better brace for an even nastier campaign this year. It's going to be at nuclear war levels. Complete annihilation of the adversary, and all the Democrat surrogates, including the leftist MSM outlets, will be down for Donald Trump's complete and utter obliteration.

More.

PREVIOUSLY: "Democrats Fear Dead-Serious Threat in Donald Trump Nomination."

So, Jimmy Fallon Totally Missed Nicole Kidman's, Ahem, Enticements in 2005

Big mistake.

And Ms. Kidman hasn't seen him since then. He's just now finding out about his epic douchenozzle fail.

Pretty hilarious.

Watch, from last Tuesday's Tonight Show, "Jimmy Fallon Blew a Chance to Date Nicole Kidman."

Madcap Martin Longman, a.k.a. @BooMan23, Provides Epic Election Projection Lulz — FTW!

Our good old friend Martin Longman is almost as narcissistic as The One, and just like president loser, it all came off the rails Tuesday night at the Booman Tribune.

Here's Martin's midterm projections, "2014 Senate Forecast." The dude's a rank and useless hack. He had Democrats winning Senate races in Kansas, North Carolina, and Alaska --- and he expected Georgia to go to a runoff with Michelle Nunn picking up the seat.

Well, let's just say, er, major fail brother. Republicans flipped all those seats (although the dirtbag Begich in Alaska has so far refused to concede).

But wait! There's added lulz in that our crack election-projection master's calls for the governors' races around the country. Well, they're not actually "calls," but Madcap Martin thought the Republicans were going down hard among the following:

1. Paul LePage of Maine
2. Tom Corbett of Pennsylvania
3. Rick Snyder of Michigan
4. Scott Walker of Wisconsin
5. Sam Brownback of Kansas
6. Rick Scott of Florida.
7. Sean Parnell of Alaska

With the exception of Tom Corbett in Pennsylvania and Sean Parnell in Alaska (where they're still counting ballots), the GOP took all the remaining states Booman expected to go to the Dems. And Rick Scott in Florida and Scott Walker in Wisconsin are especially demoralizing wins for the GOP. Indeed, Walker was automatically propelled to the front ranks of the 2016 GOP presidential field. And Florida will remain one of the biggest of battlegrounds heading into the next election, to the epic consternation of the dumbshit Democraps.

.@BooMan23 I'm drinking your tears, Martin. You're one of the very bastards I wanted to see crushed. Congratulations.

— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) November 5, 2014

.@BooMan23 You suck, Martin.

— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) November 5, 2014

By that time, perhaps Madcap Martin will have honed his projection methods a bit more. Priceless, either way. Behold the wallowing Booman here: "I Lost the Argument With Myself."

More later...

American Bridge, Media Matters Smear Outfit, Achieves Epic Fail with Despicable Attack on David Perdue

American Bridge, according to the Center for Public Integrity, is a far-left super PAC whose key principal is David Brock of Media Matters. See, "PAC Profile: American Bridge 21st Century":

American Bridge 21st Century was started by former journalist and liberal activist David Brock, who staffed the super PAC with former Hill staffers and employees of his nonprofit, Media Matters for America.

Media Matters describes itself as a “progressive research and information center dedicated to comprehensively monitoring, analyzing and correcting conservative misinformation in the U.S. media.” American Bridge’s mission is similar, with a strong focus on opposition research to help Democratic candidates and other allied super PACs.

It's worth noting then how badly these losers screwed up today with their ill-considered attack on Georgia Senate candidate David Perdue.

Here's their tweet, which links Evan McMorris-Santoro of BuzzFeed, followed by the latter's tweets and retractions, and related posts. F-king scumbag losers:

Presented without comment. #gasen http://t.co/DE1zZkRy7a https://t.co/IoyNQNdnkr
— American Bridge (@American_Bridge) October 24, 2014

#GASen Watch A Republican Senate Candidate Sign A Young Woman’s Torso http://t.co/DQNzp8Piup
— E McMorris-Santoro (@EvanMcSan) October 24, 2014

staff try to block camera as David Perdue signs a young woman’s torso and says “no pictures on this.” Video: http://t.co/DQNzp8Piup
— E McMorris-Santoro (@EvanMcSan) October 24, 2014

if you think the tracker was excited to capture this David Perdue footage, you are right http://t.co/DQNzp8Piup
— E McMorris-Santoro (@EvanMcSan) October 24, 2014

“No pictures on this.” #GASen http://t.co/DQNzp8Piup
— E McMorris-Santoro (@EvanMcSan) October 24, 2014

no pictures brian RT @brianbeutler: Send the Pulitzer directly to @EvanMcSan c/o BuzzFeed's DC bureau http://t.co/DQNzp8Piup
— E McMorris-Santoro (@EvanMcSan) October 24, 2014

.@American_Bridge Perdue tracker footage missed Perdue signing girl’s insulin pump, says GOP. Vid backs them up: http://t.co/jPqhAFDhWY
— E McMorris-Santoro (@EvanMcSan) October 24, 2014

UPDATE: Perdue footage from @American_Bridge did not capture the whole story in that #GASen signing http://t.co/jPqhAFDhWY
— E McMorris-Santoro (@EvanMcSan) October 24, 2014

Another angle on the Perdue signing, not captured by Republicans, backs up Perdue’s explanation for torso signing. http://t.co/jPqhAFDhWY
— E McMorris-Santoro (@EvanMcSan) October 24, 2014

http://t.co/jPqhAFDhWY pic.twitter.com/qiz8GFOlZG
— E McMorris-Santoro (@EvanMcSan) October 24, 2014

http://t.co/jPqhAFDhWY pic.twitter.com/9jOSgsmKb8
— E McMorris-Santoro (@EvanMcSan) October 24, 2014

.@American_Bridge tells BuzzFeed News they will be pulling down the Perdue tracker video
— E McMorris-Santoro (@EvanMcSan) October 24, 2014

#FF RT @morningmoneyben: "If they claim it's a torso, get more than one source-o." #unfollow
— E McMorris-Santoro (@EvanMcSan) October 24, 2014

American Bridge posted this video as it was recorded without commentary. We regret any confusion it caused.
— American Bridge (@American_Bridge) October 24, 2014

Boy, Evan McMorris-Santoro (@EvanMcSan) screwed the pooch on that Perdue hit piece. And @American_Bridge is total fail. #DavidPerdue #DEMS
— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) October 24, 2014

RT @famblog: Buzzfeed hack falsely claims David Perdue signs woman’s torso http://t.co/5eSayYVXwR #tcot #tgdn pic.twitter.com/dwBjDk8g7i
— ┌П┐(•_•) (@exposeliberals) October 24, 2014

Dems accuse David Perdue of signing girl’s “torso.” Was signing insulin pump - Hot Air http://t.co/o9hZXKLAhD
— Ed Morrissey (@EdMorrissey) October 24, 2014

Seriously, Evan McMorris-Santoro's nothing but a leftist political hack with a byline. This isn't journalism. It's character assassination, brought to you by David Brock's Democrat-allied Media Matters for America, and sleazily enabled by the BuzzFeed political assassination unit.

And to think, Perdue was signing a kid's insulin pump to help raise awareness for diabetes. Nothing's too scuzzy for the desperate and depraved Democrats these days. Absolutely nothing.

Leftists Sour on Obama

Well, not all leftists have soured on him. Some idiot progs will take their dying breath defending this epic fail of a presidency.

But O's hardcore support has definitely been eroding, especially among young people and moderate- to middle-class income Americans.

At the Hill, "Liberal base sours on Obama."

Majority of Americans Says Obama's an Epic Fail

It's a 52 percent majority, and Aaron Blake is sure to point out the question offers a "binary" choice between success and failure (and not other options, like perhaps he's only partially fail).

At the Washington Post, "A majority of Americans say Obama’s presidency is a ‘failure’."

New Poll Shows Hagan and Tillis Statistically Tied in #NCSEN

Most analysts have been crowing about how little effect the outside ads have been having on Kay Hagan's standing in the race. Although now, with the new survey from USA Today and Suffolk University, folks are going to have to come up with another deflection point for the left's epic Democrat Party fail.

And remember, Tillis is supposed to be an objectively bad candidate, having supposedly alienated North Carolinians with a take-no-prisoners conservative reform agenda as Speaker of the North Carolina House (remember "Moral Mondays"?). Well, I guess that argument's not holding much water anymore either.

I noted the race was tightening the other day, when we had the blatantly partisan Democrat Party survey out from Public Policy Polling. But USA Today has long run a very reputable series of public opinion polls. And now they've got #NCSEN deadlocked.

Here's the report, from Susan Page, "Poll: In a sour N.C. Senate race, it's all but a tie":

ICYMI: In a sour #NCSen race, it's all but a tie http://t.co/mI8tyX3sKA via @SusanPage pic.twitter.com/dGR0br6Smj
— USA TODAY Washington (@USATWashington) August 21, 2014

North Carolina Sen. Kay Hagan is all but tied with Republican challenger Thom Tillis in a midterm showdown likely to help determine control of the Senate, a USA TODAY/Suffolk University poll finds.

The Tar Heel State survey, which launches a series looking at key Senate and gubernatorial contests across the country this fall, shows an electorate that is feeling a bit better about the economy but decidedly negative toward politics. Voters are inclined to have an unfavorable view of each candidate and overwhelmingly disapprove of the legislative bodies in which they serve.

Hagan leads Tillis, the speaker of the North Carolina General Assembly, 45%-43%, an edge within the poll's margin of error of +/-4.4 percentage points. Libertarian candidate Sean Haugh could hold the balance: His supporters, 5% overall, disproportionately identify Tillis as their second choice.

The impact of the hard-fought campaign already has left some scars.

Frazier Manning, a 75-year-old retiree from Hope Mills who was among those surveyed, is voting for Tillis in large part because he's dismayed by Hagan, especially for her support of the Affordable Care Act. "She voted for it, but she won't respond to me about how she's going to fix it," he says. "I think he'll do more to repeal it and replace it." ...

North Carolina has been a Republican-leaning state but one Democrats increasingly see as competitive. Hagan, elected in 2008, is one of the GOP's prime targets in its effort to gain six seats and with it control of the Senate. After Tuesday's primary in Alaska, where Dan Sullivan won the Republican nomination to challenge Sen. Mark Begich, the most closely watched Senate races now are set. Sullivan and other establishment-backed contenders defeated Tea Party primary opponents, a development expected to boost GOP prospects in November.

The USA TODAY/Suffolk University poll of 500 likely voters, interviewed by landline and cellphone, was taken Saturday through Tuesday. Other recent statewide surveys also have shown a tight race. Tillis had a lead of 1.7 points in four surveys over the past month tracked by realclearpolitics.com.

More.

Epic Blog-Traffic #Fail at Chuckles Johnson's Little @Green_Footballs

LOL!

Oh, how the once-mighty have fallen.

My post the other day, "Frazier Glenn Miller, Jr., Kansas Jewish Murder Suspect, Made Democrat Congressional Bid in 2006," received lots of attention, and heavy linkage among the TCOT crowd, including an Instalanche.

My SiteMeter was rolling over pretty good, but not because of the Husky Ponytailed Loser Charles Johnson of Little Green Footballs, who happened to come across my post while trolling Instapundit.







I noticed the sad little Chuckles link on Monday.

As you can see, iOWNTHEWORLD was throwing a mini IOTW-alanche, and Fire Andrea Mitchell sent over a few hits as well. Ed Driscoll also linked, and even Barcepundit --- throughout the day --- threw more traffic than the late-great LGF.

You see there at #73 at the SiteMeter page? That's the lone blog hit Chuckles sent my way all day on Monday. I've literally seen two more hits from the Lizardoid loser since then, at most.

Seriously. Does anyone even read that blog anymore? I don't think so.

I'm not linking the stalking asshat, although for some lulz check out Diary of Daedalus, "Charles attacks Bloggers for mentioning Frazier Glenn Miller was a Democrat:

Nowhere in his rant, does Charles contradict the fact that Frazier Glenn Miller was a Democrat at one point. At the end he once again ... ties Ron Paul into this whole shooting to prove Miller was not a Democrat. Charles presents no evidence an[d] once again just flings poo...

Well, of course.

Fact is, Frazier Glenn Miller first ran for office as a Democrat and returned home to racist party of hate in 2006. And most important, Miller was a grand dragon of Ku Klux Klan, the home of the Democrat Party since Reconstruction. And further, ideologically, hardline Jew hatred is virtually exclusively found on the far-left of the spectrum, and thus it's no surprise that Miller found inspiration in the vile ravings of Democrat Max Blumenthal.

It's not a pretty picture, which explains why Chuckles just won't go there and instead had to settle for squealing about some non-existent "right-wing" racist threat.

UCLA Students Reject Israel Divestment Resolution

William Jacobson had this on Wednesday, at Legal Insurrection, "UCLA Student Council rejects anti-Israel divestment resolution."

Also a MSM report at the Los Angeles Times, "UCLA student government votes against divestment from Israel."

The highlight of this is the meltdown of student notetaker Danielle Dimacali, seen in the video (with a transcript) at Elder of Ziyon, "The epic meltdown of an Israel hater at UCLA (NOW WITH MUSIC VIDEO!)."

And see Daniel Greenfield, at Frontpage Magazine, "Leftists Melt Down Over Failure of UCLA Israel Boycott Resolution":

In the comments section at the Daily Bruin, [student notetaker] Danielle Dimacali accused critics of “obvious blatant racist microaggression”.

I must have never learned civility? Am I supposed to remain submissive? No, I just know when to stand up for what I believe in and what I believe is right. I will not silence myself or censor my language to make you feel more comfortable.

For the record, my job ends after the meeting has been adjourned. I used to consider good and welfare as a safe space for dialogue with the council members, some of those who I consider my closest friends. I am just as justified as getting impassioned over something as the public commenters. The heat of the moment and the intense emotions I felt led to the deluge of tears and strong diction. How dare you call me uncivil, you don’t even know me outside of my reaction to something I found extremely upsetting.

Later Danielle claimed that she was reacting to how upset her friends were and wasn’t against Israel.

Twitter was full of equally vocal meltdowns by BDS supporters upset that their latest racist assault on the Jewish State had fallen short of its goals.

The inevitable Hitler "Downfall" parody video is here, "HITLER REACTS to BDS FAIL at UCLA."

And at the Jewish Press, "The flood of anti-Israel hatred on campuses seems to be losing some of its strength." Well, never count these people out.

Enormous loss for #BDS as #UCLA student council defeats #UCLAdivest resolution >> too bad haters, but we know you'll be back
— Legal Insurrection (@LegInsurrection) February 26, 2014

Still more at Big Government, "Breitbart's Ben Shapiro Crashes UCLA Hearing, Anti-Israel Divestment Fails."

White House Delays #ObamaCare Premium Payments Until December 31st — Wants Insurers to 'Retroactively Cover' Consumers Who Miss Payments

And to think, leftists were all jazzed about that so-called enrollment surge.

I dare say this news might kill the buzz.

At the Hill, "HHS extends another ObamaCare deadline":

The Obama administration on Thursday pushed back the deadline for consumers to make their first payment for coverage under the healthcare law.

Rather than a deadline of Dec. 23, insurers will be required to accept premium payments through Dec. 31 for people who are seeking coverage that starts on Jan. 1.

In a conference call with reporters, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said insurers have the latitude to accept premiums even beyond Dec. 31, and that the administration was “strongly encouraging” them to retroactively cover consumers that submit late payments.

In addition to the one-week extension for premium payments, the administration on Thursday formalized its announcement that consumers have until Dec. 23, instead of Dec. 15, to sign-up for healthcare coverage that goes into affect Jan. 1.

Thursday’s announcement is the latest in a string of unilateral delays the administration has implemented to buy time after the disastrous rollout of HealthCare.gov.

More epic fail at that top link.

New York Times Propaganda: Obama 'Misspoke' About Keeping Your Plan

This is really a bit much.

The editors at the New York Times richly deserve the mockery now pummeling them.

Here's the editorial, "Insurance Policies Not Worth Keeping":

Congressional Republicans have stoked consumer fears and confusion with charges that the health care reform law is causing insurers to cancel existing policies and will force many people to pay substantially higher premiums next year for coverage they don’t want. That, they say, violates President Obama’s pledge that if you like the insurance you have, you can keep it.

Mr. Obama clearly misspoke when he said that. By law, insurers cannot continue to sell policies that don’t provide the minimum benefits and consumer protections required as of next year. So they’ve sent cancellation notices to hundreds of thousands of people who hold these substandard policies.

Once again, the editors, as cutout ideological leftists, just don't get it: People liked their plans, or they wouldn't have purchased them. They like the affordability and flexibility, and especially the power to choose their doctors and hospitals. Listen to Natalie Willis, who was featured in the blockbuster CBS report a couple of weeks back, now making appearances on Fox News:



Ms. Willis says "I did a lot of research before I picked the plan that I had in the first place, and if I had wanted more coverage I would have just gotten another plan. So I really like the plan ... you know, I don't want more. That's why I didn't have more in the first place."

In other words, she bought the insurance policy that was right for her.

But now under ObamaCare she can't have what she researched, purchased, and liked. She's got to have much more coverage, and so far she's been unable to purchase a new plan because the healthcare website she's using in California is kinky, confusing, and difficuly to use.

Democrats can't spin this epic consumer dissatisfaction away. It's despicable for the New York Times to blame Republicans for stoking "consumer fears." Republicans didn't go searching for disgruntled Americans. The mainstream media outlets have been bursting at the seams with story after story of unhappy customers. Nearly a month ago, the San Jose Mercury News published the devastating piece detailing the "winners and losers" in California's shift to ObamaCare. It's been an avalanche of bad news for the left since then. Just last week, the the Los Angeles Times came out with the devastating piece outlining massive frustration with skyrocketing premiums in the state.

So the left, once again, is back to lying. And by now it's gotten so transparent it'd be funny if the stakes weren't so high.

Here's more at Twitchy, "Boot-licking fail: You won’t believe NYT’s excuse for Obama’s ‘you can keep your plan’ lie."

NYT on broken Obama promises: "Mr. Obama clearly misspoke" Nope; he clearly lied. Deliberately, repeatedly, to the people who voted for him.
— David Gaw (@davidgaw) November 3, 2013

Almost universal mockery of the NYT's apology. This propaganda effort really isn't going well—wherever it's tried.
— Charles C. W. Cooke (@charlescwcooke) November 3, 2013

The NYT has gone too far claiming Obama "misspoke" re keeping your insurance plans. The NYT LIED, exactly like Obama did. <toilet flush>
— Jane Sherry Gardner (@JaneESGardner) November 3, 2013

just when i was about to re-subscribe, the nyt gives me another reason to save my money.
— Dana Perino (@DanaPerino) November 3, 2013

More at Viking Pundit, "The New York Times beclowns itself again." And Patterico, "The New York Times is beyond parody" (via Memeorandum).

Added: The Other McCain has more, "Obama and the New York Times Decide Which Health Plans Are Worth Keeping."

'You Can Keep Your Plan' — The Left's #ObamaCare Lies

Following up from yesterday, "Leftists Cheer as Anthem Blue Cross Boots Michelle Malkin From Company's Individual Insurance Market."

I'd be remiss if I didn't update with the clip from Linkmaster Smith, at the Other McCain, "Mrs. Malkin Misapprehends: The Underside of the Bus *IS* Your Healthcare Plan."



Keep in mind this "you can keep your plan" lie is just one lie in an epic campaign of lies designed to socialize and destroy the American healthcare market.

Leftism is predicated on lies. Most everyday citizens have little time or inclination to do the enormous fact-checking required to fully expose the deceits of the left. But it is being done by patriots who saw this coming a mile away. Of course, the leftist cluster-k media keeps the lies going for the Democrat-Socialist usurpers -- the clusterf-k media is key to the entire Big Lie deception underwriting the left's totalitarian project for the fundamental transformation of America.

It's all lies. Anti-Americanism and lies. And that's why no matter how successful are the defunding efforts this week, the long-term project of exposing Democrat lies never ends. Patriots will turn this around. So much of the system is working to screw the average person, and the smokescreens of "fairness" have been spread so far and wide that it takes a Herculean effort to bust through. But it's happening. The health care law is a miserable failure. Only epic Orwellian lies have been keeping it going. But we're approaching the reckoning. And patriots don't give up. We can see the whites of their eyes now.

More from Darleen Click, at Protein Wisdom, "#ObamaCare — designed to fail."

Historic Left-Wing Clusterf-k Media Falsely Reports AR-15 Used in #NavyYardShooting

Here's Emily Miller, at the Washington Times, "New York Times gets it wrong, media obsessed with linking AR-1."

And at Twitchy, "Emily Miller: Aaron Alexis made no effort to purchase AR-15, media ‘obsessed’ with idea."

And it wasn't just the New York Times but virtually the entire leftist MSM complex.

Here's the cover yesterday's New York Daily News:




A total, complete leftist clusterf-k.

Sick.

More at Twitchy, "NY Daily News called out for epic front-page fail, absurd ‘AR-15 made for murder’ column."

And at Big Journalism, "NY Daily News Shamefully Leaves Up Mike Lupica AR15 Column."

Democrat Targeting of Tea Party Groups is Part of the Left's Long-Time Assault on the First Amendment

From Bradley Smith, at the Wall Street Journal, "The IRS Attack on Political Speech":

The Internal Revenue Service's scandalous targeting of tea party and conservative groups refuses to die, as one by one the administration's explanations prove untrue.

We were told that the White House, like the rest of the country, learned about the program on May 10 through a planted question asked of then IRS official Lois Lerner at an American Bar Association conference. Turns out the White House knew earlier. We were told the targeting was the work of a few rogue IRS employees in Cincinnati. Then those employees insisted that they were being managed from Washington.

We were told that no political appointees were involved, but now we know the scandal goes at least to the office of Obama appointee and IRS Chief Counsel William Wilkins. We were told that liberal groups were targeted, too. But then the IRS's inspector general, whose report exposed the harassment, clarified that only conservative groups were targeted.

Now the administration line is that the scandal is nonetheless "phony." That assertion is part of a Democratic counteroffensive contending that the tea party and conservative groups applying for "charitable" tax status never should have sought such IRS approval.

Rep. Xavier Becerra (D., Calif.), chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, argued on "Meet the Press" on May 19 that conservative groups were, "under the guise of a charity, [using] undisclosed millions of dollars to do political campaigns." At a May hearing, Sen. Bill Nelson (D., Fla.) claimed that the groups were supposed to spend their money on "charitable activities," and demanded of the IRS, "How could you all in the IRS allow the tax breaks funded basically by the taxpayer [to be spent] on these political campaign expenditures?"

Liberal columnist Jeffrey Toobin has also taken up the theme that the groups were seeking improper tax advantages. Writing in the May 14 issue of the New Yorker, Mr. Toobin argued that if approved by the IRS, the tea party groups would not pay taxes on contributions received. "In return for the tax advantage," he wrote, these groups "must refrain from traditional partisan political activity, like endorsing candidates."

This attack is wrong on the law, and cynical as politics. As these IRS apologists well know, liberal groups, such as Moveon.org, have long had the same tax status as that requested by the tea party and conservative groups—and that status is not of a "charity."

Charities fall under Section 501(c)(3) of the tax code, and they include the Red Cross, Boy Scouts, churches, private colleges and even overtly agenda-oriented organizations such as the NAACP and the Sierra Club Foundation. Contributions are tax deductible to the donor, and for that reason the organizations are prohibited from engaging in political activities.

Yet conservative groups targeted by the IRS did not seek tax status as charities. They were applying for designation as nonprofits operating under Section 501(c)(4) of the tax code, for "the promotion of social welfare." Contributions to 501(c)(4) organizations are not tax deductible, so there is no "tax break" for their donors. Nor do the groups themselves get a "tax advantage." Mr. Toobin argues that these groups should be reclassified under Section 527 of the tax code. More on that below, but 527 organizations also pay nothing in taxes. So there is no "tax advantage" to operating as a 501(c)(4).

So why was the IRS involved at all, and why does it matter? The answer is that the IRS scandal is part of a long-term assault on First Amendment rights. Thanks to "campaign finance reform," citizen groups must navigate a maze of government paperwork and apply to the IRS for a tax license to speak on politics. People literally need a lawyer to figure it out, and not just any lawyer, but one from the highly compensated and mostly Washington, D.C.-based bar practicing "political law."

Continue reading.

Smith's a former chairman of the FEC. He knows whereof he speaks. Frankly, this is the most lucid discussion of the "Section 500" tax categories I've read. Especially good is how he calls bull on all the fat-ass leftists defending the administration's authoritarianism. But this stuff has to come out in a political campaign to really pick up traction. The facts of Barack Obama's authoritarianism and corruption should be the centerpiece of a renewed conservative drive for Congress and the presidency. The scandals along with ObamaCare should be a perfect storm of disaster for Democrats seeking election. But the disgusting JournoList media bolsters the epic fail party in power, so it's a hard road ahead, either way.

So, I continue to stand in dissent and rebellion against the leftists destroying our once great country. But I'm still optimistic that the forces of good and decency can pull us back from the brink, and drive the Democrat-Socialists into long-term oblivion. God willing.

Politico Changes Embarrassing Headline on OFA No-Shows — Hilarity Ensues

At Twitchy, "Lapdogs leashed? Politico runs cover for incredibly shrinking Obama cult, changes headline."

And earlier, "Schadenfreudelicious! More OFA Va. fail: Massive crowds in the ones attend Obama parties [pics]."

Hilarious!

“Sue Langley, faithful and dedicated @OFA volunteer starting off with introductions @OFA_VA pic.twitter.com/V4PLtE6GaL”

— OFA VA (@OFA_VA) August 4, 2013

#SadTrombone day for @OFA_Va http://t.co/HfqkLEzkjr Only one shows up? I've seen bigger crowds watch the grass grow!

— Sean O (@Sean_for_3) August 5, 2013

RT @whpresscorps: RT @BuzzFeedAndrew: Literally 1 person showed up to OFA's ObamaCare event in Virginia Sunday http://t.co/ceeBdq58wI

— HarrisFaulkner (@HARRISFAULKNER) August 5, 2013

Bet no one gets fired over this headline change RT @lachlan: Interesting headline change. http://t.co/QuloG9nhlz http://t.co/Gt865IZiQP

— Derek Hunter (@derekahunter) August 5, 2013

Man, this is getting too funny. The Dems are epic lulz!

#Zimmerman Riots Rule 5 Break

It's been pretty hilarious with all the left's whining about "no rioting" following the Zimmerman verdict.

The race-baiting left is epic fail, and President Hussein is the freakin' worst.

I'll have more later on that later. Meanwhile, here's some Sunday babe blogging.

So, check Pirate's Cove, "Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup," and "If All You See……is a horrible carbon pollution infused beer bottle, you might just be a Warmist."

Plus, at Wirecutter's, "Supper is served."


Also, from Ron Russell, "Busty Babes and ..."

And from Proof Positive, "Women of PETA XXXV."

At Izismile, "This Average Girl Is Not Average Looking Anymore" (via Linkiest).


Plus, from Drunken Stepfather, "KATE UPTON IN A BIKINI OF THE DAY."

And Soylent has "Your Afternoon Generic Ginger."

Dana Pico has more, "Rule 5 Blogging: The IDF Again!"

At Reaganite, "ACHTUNG! 'Miss Germany 2013' Caroline Noeding - ist 'Die Schönste Frau Deutschlands'~."

And at Gator Doug's, "DaleyGatorDaleyBabe Saven Mi."

Check Egotastic! as well, "Thank God It’s Funbags! Hayley-Marie Coppin Scrubs Her Kitchen Clean and Naughty."

As always, if I missed your Rule 5 entry, drop it in the comments and I'll update.

More, from Bob Belvedere, "Rule 5 News: Judy Tyler, R.I.P."

Captain 'Sum Ting Wong'

OMG, this is just way too much, via iOWNTHEWORLD, "‘Sum Ting Wong’ ‘Wi Tu Lo’ ‘Ho Lee Fuk’ and ‘Bang Ding Ow’."

ADDED: More information at Blazing Cat Fur, "Epic KTVU Fail: Anchor Reports Pilot Names Including ‘Sum Ting Wong’ and ‘Wi Tu Lo’."

Plus, Politico's Seung Min Kim is freakin' pissed off on Twitter: "BULLSHIT apology." More here, here, and here. I don't think she's done ranting. Definitely an epic racist fail at that network.

6:15pm PST: More weird all the time, but the NTSB confirms KTVU's claim of confirmation of the pilots' names. See, "NTSB statement on erroneous confirmation of crew names":

Earlier today, in response to an inquiry from a media outlet, a summer intern acted outside the scope of his authority when he erroneously confirmed the names of the flight crew on the aircraft.

Idiot Pam Spaulding Shuts Down 'House Blend' After Nine Years of Inane, Homo-Obsessed Rantings

Epic fail-blogger Pam Spaulding has thrown in the towel. The whiny LBGT bitch couldn't even make it after Jane Hamsher generously took her under her wings, providing free hosting and support.

And now Spaulding just blabbers on like a beached whale about how impossible it would be for her to continue. Cry me a freakin' river.

See, "Goodbye Pam’s House Blend: after nine years, closing the coffeehouse July 1."

Bomb Suspect Was Put on Two Watch Lists

At the Wall Street Journal, "CIA, FBI Flagged Him for Concern, Raising New Questions About Missed Opportunities to Prevent Fatal Boston Attack":

U.S. authorities put alleged Boston bomber Tamerlan Tsarnaev on two separate watch lists in 2011 after Russian security agencies twice reached out to their American counterparts, raising new questions about missed opportunities to prevent the attack.

Russian officials contacted the Federal Bureau of Investigation in March 2011, then reached out to the Central Intelligence Agency in September of that year, citing concerns Mr. Tsarnaev might have been associating with extremists, according to U.S. officials.

The FBI has said it interviewed Mr. Tsarnaev and conducted a threat assessment, but found nothing "derogatory" that could prompt further investigation. A U.S. law-enforcement official said the case was closed after three months, after which the FBI asked Russian counterparts for additional information, but received none.

U.S. officials said Wednesday that at the request of the CIA, Mr. Tsarnaev was added to a broad database called Terrorist Identities Datamart Environment, which holds hundreds of thousands of names flagged by multiple U.S. security agencies.

RTWT.

Also at the Boston Globe, "Russia alerted US repeatedly about suspect, senators say: Brothers may have planned to go to NYC next."

Plus, from Pamela Geller, "OBAMA'S EPIC FAIL: CIA WANTED BOSTON JIHADI BOMBER PLACED ON TERROR WATCHLIST."