Five Observations on the Politics of Impeachment

From Sean Trende, at RCP:

Why no one should be confident about who will benefit from impeachment:https://t.co/6dt6Xsk9Ih

— Sean T at RCP (@SeanTrende) October 2, 2019

Plus:

When reading impeachment polls, it is important to read the question wording carefully. That Monmouth poll that some see suggesting plurality support for impeachment is about an impeachment inquiry (q11X). Impeachment itself is at 44-52 (q4) for now.https://t.co/t2slQcAxxA

— Sean T at RCP (@SeanTrende) October 2, 2019

Photo Shows Joe Biden Golfing with Top Ukraine Oil Executive in 2014

Yes, Joe and his son Hunter.

At the Washington Examiner, "Photo shows Joe and Hunter Biden golfing with Ukraine gas company executive in 2014."

LOOK AT THIS PHOTOGRAPH! pic.twitter.com/QQYTqG4KTt

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 2, 2019

Biden's a liar.

See the Daily Beast, "Joe Biden: ‘I’ve Never Spoken to My Son About’ Ukraine Business Deals."

Actress Elizabeth Gillies

At Celeb Jihad, "ELIZABETH GILLIES BIG BOOBS ASSAULT."

Eady Van Acker

At Drunken Stepfather, "EADY VAN ACKER OF THE DAY":

Eady Van Acker literally only has 500 followers on Social Media.

You can google her to find her if you’re so inclined, I am not going to bother posting her links. I tried to make a rule years ago to not make fun of local everyday girls, even if they were doing their best to become a fame whore.

She's on Instagram.

Trump's Campaign Cashes In

Who didn't see this coming?

The Democrats are deranging themselves to political oblivion.

At LAT, "Trump’s reelection campaign cashes in on impeachment woes."

Teaching That America is Hopelessly Racist

A great piece, from Peter Wood, at Minding the Campus.

Fixing Congress?

I don't know if Congress needs fixing so much as parties need to win the majority to get anything done, and that's not mentioning that you'd better have a president of your party in the White House. If you get that, you'll have a fully functional Congress. Absent that, you'll get what we're having: lots of people unhappy at the slow pace of "progress" and continued moaning about the dysfunction of our government. Sounds like a never ending cycle.

In any case, an interesting piece, at Politico, "When Impeachment Meets a Broken Congress":

The most essential branch of the U.S. government is collapsing before our eyes — right as it faces a historic showdown https://t.co/6HBdUg46XO

— POLITICO (@politico) September 30, 2019

Even before getting into the weeds of its myriad other problems—poor staff retention, centralized decision-making, generational logjams—it’s not difficult to understand why the legislative branch is struggling to function. From the moment they launch their first campaigns, future members of Congress are entering into one giant warped incentive system that deters any meaningful challenge to The Way Things Work in Washington. Most members will profess to despise The Way Things Work in Washington, of course, especially when they first get here. But it tends to grow on them over time—not because it’s working, but because it’s comfortable. Where else can someone draw a salary of $174,000; have a staff of several dozen catering to their (and their family’s) every whim; enjoy special access to information and resources at the highest levels of government; forge lucrative relationships with people of immense power and influence; take taxpayer-funded jaunts to all corners of the country and the world; and command constant attention from the local and national media—all in exchange for producing little in the way of tangible outcomes?

None of this is to say that all members of Congress are bad people who are bad at what they do. To the contrary, many of them are fine people who came here for the right reasons. And some of them are really, really good at what they do, hustling 16 hours a day to deliver for their constituents. But even honorable people with honorable intentions look out for themselves, for their families, for their careers. Members of Congress are no exception. They have wonderfully important jobs. They don’t want to lose them.

Few people come to Congress wanting to be enforcers of the status quo. Every two years, Washington welcomes a new crop of wide-eyed, idealistic lawmakers who believe—really, truly believe—that they’ve been sent to shake things up in the nation’s capital. They are going to take the tough votes. They are going to stand up to the special interests. They are going to do what’s right by their constituents, even if that means getting the boot after one term.

Naturally, that sort of idealism doesn’t last. Once a member of Congress realizes he or she will never find a better job — and most of them know they will never find a better job — many will accept that some compromises are necessary to keep it. They adjust. They adapt. They play the game. They convince themselves that a mindless vote here, or a hurtful decision there, is worth it to sustain their career. They hang around long enough to amass more power, to win a chairmanship, to exert influence over certain issues, to cash out and take a life-changing paycheck from a lobbying firm, all the while believing their ends were justified by their means.

“I won’t miss a lot of things about this place,” Raul Labrador, an Idaho Republican who agitated constantly against his party’s leadership, said prior to his retirement last year. “I think some people lose their soul here. This is a place that sucks your soul. It takes everything from you.”

More at that top link.

U.S.-Mexico Border Barrier Proves Walls Work

The U.S. Border Patrol beefed up San Diego's border enforcement in the early 1990s, to rousing success. But now, as evidenced by this L.A. Times piece, you'd think it was all a failure. The story laments the "humanitarian" impact of actually reducing the flood of illegal aliens. (San Diego locals were stoked though, having gotten their neighborhoods back and not living in constant fear of crime and violence on their streets.)

Bottom line: Walls work and leftists don't like it.

Operation Gatekeeper at 25: Look back at the turning point that transformed the border https://t.co/ezRgFVsHby

— L.A. Times: L.A. Now (@LANow) September 30, 2019

What John Durham Has Found May Be Quite Different From What Democrats Are Looking For

See former Attorney General Michael Mukasey's op-ed at the Wall Street Journal.

And Roger Simon has the breakdown, at Pajamas, "Mukasey Op-ed Should Strike Fear in Democrats."

Really worth a read. What U.S. Attorney John Durham has found on Ukraine may be quite different from what the Democrats are looking for, writes Michael B. Mukasey https://t.co/tqKwlmuhcF via @WSJ

— Mollie (@MZHemingway) September 30, 2019

Brad Ausmus Fired

I wasn't invested in Brad Ausmus either way, but seems to me he's getting a raw deal. It's not like the Angels were coming off a contending season in 2018 or anything. Mike Scioscia quit after more than a decade of mediocrity. (The Angels won the 2002 World Series.)

Anyway, it's hard out there, I guess.

At the Los Angeles Times, "Angels fire manager Brad Ausmus; Joe Maddon expresses interest in job."

Today, the Los Angeles Angels announced that Brad Ausmus will not return as manager in 2020. pic.twitter.com/XDGVCiG1gx

— Los Angeles Angels (@Angels) September 30, 2019

Jessica Simpson for Ladies' Night (PHOTOS)

At Drunken Stepfather, "JESSICA SIMPSON SKINNY TITS OF THE DAY."

NYC Ladies’ Night ✨ pic.twitter.com/OtVRMJFNu1

— Jessica Simpson (@JessicaSimpson) September 25, 2019

Natalie Portman at the 'Lucy in the Sky' Premiere

At Popoholic:

Natalie Portman Showing Off A Ton Of Her Sexy Braless Cleavage And Chest, Oh My! https://t.co/x3Ospj2dQl #NataliePortman #LucyInTheSky pic.twitter.com/3OsEsCx6Kp

— Popoholic (@Popoholic) September 27, 2019

Aaron Calvin 'is portraying himself as the victim here...'

Heh.

From Ed Driscoll, at Instapundit, "THE REPORTER FIRED IN THE “BUSCH LIGHT GUY” SCANDAL SAID HE FEELS “ABANDONED” BY THE DES MOINES REGISTER."

Previously, "Cowardly Aaron Calvin."

Laura Ingraham on Democrats' Impeachment Hysteria (VIDEO)

I don't watch Fox as much as I used to, but I did tune into Tucker, Hannity, and Ms. Laura this week.

It's positively sane compared to CNN, which I also watched. (I rarely ever watch MSNBC; the last time was when I tuned into Maddow the day the Mueller report dud landed, and I could barely sit through.)

Rafaella Consentino

At Drunken Stepfather, "RAFAELLA CONSENTINO OF THE DAY."

And the Fappening, "Rafaella Consentino Topless Photoset."

Jess Greenberg, 'Jumpin' Jack Flash' (VIDEO)

From three years ago, "Jess Greenberg, 'All Along the Watchtower' (VIDEO)."

And again, covering the Stones:

Cowardly Aaron Calvin

This started at the Des Moines Register, via Memeorandum, "Meet Carson King, the ‘Iowa Legend’ who's raised more than $1 million for charity off of a sign asking for beer money."

"Cancel culture" is the absolute worst, but this episode is diabolical.

At Twitchy:

ICYMI==> 'Cowardly': Des Moines Register reporter CALLED OUT for his own VILE tweets after milkshake ducking hero Carson King https://t.co/r65ojaeDZC

— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) September 25, 2019

If journalist doesn’t use old posts to attack man going viral ~ $1M for charity, 4-6 doesn’t happen. Period. https://t.co/Yx4dap3FC8

— Stephen Miller (@redsteeze) September 25, 2019

Journalists & editors have a choice now: change how they approach these things or realize there are more of us than there are of them. It’s not hard.

— Stephen Miller (@redsteeze) September 25, 2019

Of maybe stop hiring 22 year old social justice political twigs with a privileged axe to grind.

— Stephen Miller (@redsteeze) September 25, 2019

The Cancel Culture is being lead by the media.

It's enabled by feckless corporations like @BuschBeer.

I find the companies that cave to this garbage even worse.

And for the people caught in the crosshairs: DON'T APOLOGIZE. Do not reward this malignant behavior.

— Melissa Mackenzie 🌐 (@MelissaTweets) September 25, 2019

You know what's worse than using a bad word at the age of 16?

RUINING SOMEONE'S LIFE.

— Melissa Mackenzie 🌐 (@MelissaTweets) September 25, 2019

Not a fan of journalists digging up viral celebrities' offensive high-school tweets.

The Des Moines Register did it to Carson King, the guy whose GameDay sign led to $1M raised for charity. Now it turns out the reporter has his own skeletons.

Unreal.https://t.co/go9C8VgqNI

— Stewart Mandel (@slmandel) September 25, 2019

4. If you’re going to pull up someone’s old tweets, write about them, and you have old racist tweets of your own, at least have the courage to take the heat, @aaronpcalvin.

Taking your account private is cowardly. pic.twitter.com/SdCEfg1A6Q

— Yashar Ali 🐘 (@yashar) September 25, 2019

The Unbearable Whiteness of Climate Protest

These ghouls are truly the burden of our time.

A genuine scourge.

At Instapundit, "THE PRESS WAS ALWAYS CAREFUL TO DESCRIBE TEA PARTY RALLIES AS “OVERWHELMINGLY WHITE,” BUT NEVER DOES THAT WITH THE CLIMATE RALLIES THAT ARE FAR LESS DIVERSE."

AOC's 'Just Society'

Well, we already had the "Great Society," and it wasn't "just," apparently.

At NPR, "Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Wants America to Talk About Poverty."

She's a bloody airhead.

I am proud to introduce #AJustSociety package today to begin the important work of building a more just and prosperous society.

You can read more about the legislation here: https://t.co/Cm7BdhFumU

— Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@RepAOC) September 25, 2019

Big day!

We’re rolling out our next major project: A Just Society.

It’s a 6-piece suite:

1. Recognizing Poverty Act
2. Place to Prosper Act
3. Mercy in Re-Entry Act
4. Embrace Act
5. Uplift Our Workers Act
6. Ratify the UN Covenant on Economic, Social, & Cultural Rights

⬇️ https://t.co/nPhVxIy7fQ

— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) September 25, 2019

Irving Kristol

This is really good.

At National Affairs:

Wonderful essay. Have a soft spot for Irving. He was kind to me when I was young, and his writings were always so reasonable. When he "became" a neo-conservative, it wasn't so much his thinking that changed but the culture around him. https://t.co/53gKgwsnqx via @NationalAffairs

— Bill McGurn (@wjmcgurn) September 24, 2019