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OCTOBER 28,  2018

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 10:55 P.M. ET:

DO US NO FAVORS – FROM THE HILL:   Former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, during an event over the weekend, left the door open to a possible 2020 run, saying that even though she doesn't want to run, "I'd like to be president."   Clinton's comments come as speculation has increased over whether she will launch another bid after the midterm elections.   "Do you want to run again?" Recode’s Kara Swisher asked during a Friday night Q&A with Clinton.  "No," Clinton replied quickly, sparking laughter from the audience. But when Swisher pressed her further, she added: "I’d like to be president."  Clinton went on to say that "there’s going to be so much work to be done" after a Democrat "hopefully" wins the next presidential election.  "The work would be work that I feel very well prepared for having been in the Senate for eight years, having been a diplomat in the State Department," she said, listing off the qualifications that she often touted during her previous run.  She added that she's not going to think about a possible run until after the upcoming midterm elections.   Stop thinking.

INCLUDE ME OUT – FROM FOX:   The Titanic is back – and it’s ready to complete the voyage its predecessor attempted over 100 years ago.  The Titanic II, a replica of the original “ship of dreams,” will be setting sail in 2022, following the same Southampton, England, to New York route the famed Titanic tried in 1912.  “The ship will follow the original journey, carrying passengers from Southampton to New York, but she will also circumnavigate the globe, inspiring and enchanting people while attracting unrivalled attention, intrigue and mystery in every port she visits,” Clive Palmer, chairman of Blue Star Line wrote in a statement.  The new luxury liner was announced in 2012 to honor the ship’s 100-year anniversary, but the inaugural voyage was ultimately postponed due to a reported financial dispute between Blue Star Line’s parent company, Mineralogy, and the Chinese government.  Now Blue Star Line has released a statement, saying the detailed building on the ship has recommenced.  Talk about creepy.  Who would want to go on the maiden voyage?  Is this a new, strange kind of nostalgia?

BRAZIL RESULT – FROM REUTERS:  BRASILIA, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Far-right lawmaker Jair Bolsonaro won Brazil's presidential election on Sunday, riding a wave of frustration over corruption and crime that brought a dramatic swing to the right in the world's fourth-largest democracy.  With 94 percent of ballots counted, Bolsonaro had 56 percent of the votes in the run-off election against left-wing hopeful Fernando Haddad of the Workers Party (PT), who had 44 percent, according to the electoral authority TSE.
"We cannot continue flirting with communism ... We are going to change the destiny of Brazil," Bolsonaro said in an acceptance address in which he vowed to carry out his campaign promises to stamp out corruption after years of leftist rule.  The former army captain's rise has been propelled by rejection of the leftist PT that ran Brazil for 13 of the last 15 years and was ousted two years ago in the midst of a deep recession and political graft scandal.  We hope it works out, and that our relations with Brazil are strengthened.

October 28, 2018       Permalink

MIDTERMS – AT 5:15 P.M. ET:   On Tuesday we'll be at the one-week mark.  The campaigning will be intense.  We must always remember that something unexpected can happen just a few days before an election that can have an effect on the vote.

New polling suggests that what we've seen for week continues – tight races all over the country, little sign of a blue wave.  However, virtually all important analysts believe the Democrats will take the House.  The only issue seems to be the number of seats they'll hold.  Again, a surprise can occur.

In the Senate races there is some potential good news in Indiana and Missouri, where our candidates appear to be edging out the incumbent Democrats.

In Florida we have a shot, as the great Rick Scott is battling incumbent Dem Bill Nelson in a tied race. 

While Ted Cruz is six or seven points ahead in Texas, we cannot put that race away.  Beto O'Rourke has won some last-minute endorsements from major newspapers, and has vast amounts to spend.  Ted must get his voters out.

Very nervous about Arizona.  We assumed our Martha McSally was ahead by a few points, but Dem certified nutbag Kyrsten Sinema is three points ahead in a new CBS poll.  Arizona may be our heartbreak.  The state of John McCain has been moving steadily left, under the weight of massive immigration.

Possible upsets, though long shots:  New Jersey, where corrupt Dem Senator Bob Menendez is being effectively challenged by GOP candidate Bob Hugin.  Caution:  We often see potential revolts against Democrats in New Jersey, but they rarely happen.  The most delightful long shot is Michigan, where GOP African-American candidate John James is within six points of "safe" incumbent Debbie Stabenow.  Again, a tough one, but I'd love to see a miracle happen in Michigan.

October 28, 2018       Permalink

BRAZIL VOTES – AT 2:18 P.M. ET:  Brazil has one of the fastest-rising economies in the world.  It is the largest country in South America, and votes today.  Americans seem unaware of the election.  From Reuters: 

BRASILIA (Reuters) - Brazilians began voting on Sunday in the most polarized election in decades as anger over corruption and crime were expected to carry Jair Bolsonaro to the presidency, marking a dramatic swing to the right in the world's fourth-largest democracy.

Bolsonaro's sudden rise was propelled by rejection of the leftist Workers Party (PT) that ran Brazil for 13 of the last 15 years and was ousted two years ago in the midst of the country's worst recession and biggest-ever political graft scandal.

His leftist rival Fernando Haddad, standing in for the jailed PT founder and former Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, has been trailing Bolsonaro since the first-round vote three weeks ago.

"I want to take the PT out," said Celina Ceccon, who previously supported Lula and his successor Dilma Rousseff but voted for Bolsonaro in this election

"There was a lot of corruption, bad things, so much stealing. There's got to be a change," said the 74-year-old resident of the capital Brasilia.

The last round of opinion surveys on Saturday showed Haddad narrowing a wide polling gap.

Endorsements from leading legal figures in Brazil's unprecedented fight against political corruption also raised hopes among Haddad's supporters that he can pull off what would be a stunning upset win.

Haddad has reduced Bolsonaro's lead from 12 to 8 percentage points in five days, according to the Ibope polling firm that gave him 46 percent of voter support compared with Bolsonaro's 54 percent.

A Datafolha poll also released late Saturday showed Bolsonaro had 55 percent and Haddad 45 percent. 

COMMENT:  A shift to the right would be dramatic, and could have an influence on South American politics generally.  It would also probably be good for U.S.-Brazilian relations.

October 28, 2018       Permalink

DOIN' WHAT COMES NATURALLY – AT 1:26 P.M. ET:  Maybe it was too much to ask that the Sunday news shows would show the same level of restraint that the news reporters showed yesterday in covering the horror in Pittsburgh.

Yes, it was too much to ask.  Fareed Zakaria was on with his usual phoniness and his crocodile tears about PIttsburgh.  You'd think from his variety show today that all hatred comes from the right.  The left is pure.  The phrase "colleges and universities" was not mentioned, despite the fact that many of these institutions of lower learning have become cesspools of hatred and division.  Many Jewish students have reported that they feel fearful and isolated on these campuses, which are dominated by Israel haters.  Hey, why notice?

And, true to form, the talking heads bring everything back to Trump.  He has set the tone, we're told.  No, the tone of hatred and division was set in the late 1960s, whose graduates now control American journalism.  Name a single violent attack against speakers on college campuses that has been launched by conservatives.  The hate comes from the left.

And Donald Trump is probably the most pro-Jewish president in American history.  His daughter is an orthodox Jew, and he honors that.  He moved the American embassy to Jerusalem.  He has always had high-ranking Jewish advisers.  But the talkers suggest that he sends out anti-Semitic messages.  He does not.

The left we will always have with us.  It has taken over the Democratic Party, and its narrow view of America is dangerous. 

October 28,  2018     Permalink

OCTOBER 27,  2018

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:55 P.M. ET: 

AFTERMATH – Another sad day for America. But one thing I did notice might give us a bit of hope.  At times like these some of our news organizations resort to vulgar, tasteless Trump bashing, trying to pin some blame for every tragedy on the president.  I didn't see much of that today.  Maybe the magnitude of the occasion led to more subdued coverage.  Or, we hope, maybe some journalists are starting to understand that they, too, bear responsibility for the national tone.  Most of the coverage was pretty decent.  Some of the weekend staffs performed better than their weekday counterparts.  Overall, I think the tragedy was professionally handled.

OVERLOOKED – Overlooked in this week's tumult was a remarkable meeting at the White House between President Trump and young black leaders.  From Fox:   Chants of ‘We love Trump, U-S-A!’ echoed across the East Room of the White House before, during, and after President Donald Trump’s address to hundreds of young black conservatives.  The President’s address was part of the Young Black Leaders Summit (YBLS), a four-day conference focused on millennial-aged, conservative black Americans. The student-activist group, Turning Point USA, is hosting the event.  Brandon Tatum is Director of Urban Engagement at Turning Point USA, and he told Fox News that the YBLS is symbolic for black voters. “YBLS is important because it gives an example to this country that black voters are not monoliths and think for ourselves,” said Tatum.  They certainly do, and President Trump is the first Republican president to reach out seriously to them.  The president has made important progress in attracting Hispanic support.  The black community is next.

THE CARAVAN MOVES ON – FROM THE NEW YORK POST:   Thousands of Central American migrants vowed Saturday to continue pressing north to the US border after many of them rejected an offer of refugee status from Mexico.  Mexican officials had promised shelter, medical attention, schooling and jobs to members of the Central American caravan who would ditch their plans to reach the States. The offer came as the Trump administration moved to send 800 extra troops to the border to help keep the migrants from entering the US.  Authorities said some 1,700 migrants accepted Mexico’s offer, but thousands more took a pass.  “Our goal is not to remain in Mexico,” 58-year-old Oscar Sosa, a migrant from Honduras, told the Associated Press. “Our goal is to make it to the [United States]. We want passage, that’s all.”  Okay, we're sympathetic, but you must follow American laws and enter the country legally.  This is building to a serious confrontation.

October 27,  2018     Permalink

WHAT WE KNOW – AT 5:56 P.M. ET:  The Pittsburgh shootings dominated today's news.  Here is what we know so far.  From Fox:

A gunman opened fire in a Pittsburgh synagogue on Saturday morning, killing 11 people and injuring six others, including four police officers, before being taken into custody, authorities said.

Pittsburgh Public Safety Director Wendell Hissrich said police were dispatched to Tree of Life Synagogue at 9:55 a.m. after receiving calls that there was an active-shooter situation at the scene, in the city's predominantly Jewish Squirrel Hill neighborhood.

In all, he confirmed, 11 people died -- none of them children. As for the injury tally, he said it did not include the shooter, who was taken to the hospital after being taken into custody.

Law enforcement officials identified the suspect in the shooting as Robert Bowers, 48.

University of Pittsburgh Medical Center officials said a 61-year-old woman was among the injured. Her injuries were described as “extremity soft tissue injuries that required cleaning in the operating room.” She is said to be in good condition and recovering.

Another victim was ID'd as a 70-year-old male with gunshot wounds to his torso “involving major organs in his abdomen.” He was undergoing his second operation and in critical condition, hospital officials said.

Police Chief Scott Schubert said that two police officers were hit during initial contact with the shooter and that two SWAT team members were also struck “during an engagement inside the building.” He confirmed that all four law enforcement officials are in stable condition.

COMMENT:  We know almost nothing about the alleged shooter at this hour, except that he has posted anti-Semitic messages on social media.  We don't know if he has a family, or is politically active.  he is believed to have acted alone.

October 27, 2018       Permalink

SHOOTING – AT 12:16 P.M. ET:  There has been a multiple-death shooting at a synagogue in Pittsburgh.   Preliminary reports say that 12 individuals in the synagogue were shot, with at least four known dead.  In addition, three police officers rushing to the scene were shot.

The gunman, assuming there was only one, is in custody.  We have no idea who he or she is.  As in all cases like this, we urge readers not to jump to conclusions.  This could of course be a terrorist attack, but it could also be a personal grudge. 

Nearby Carnegie-Mellon University is on lockdown.  Even in New York, police are sending units to synagogues in an abundance of caution.

Both Fox and CNN got on the story early, using weekend anchors, and, in Fox's case, the wonderful financial reporter, Charles Payne.  All did a fine job.  But it doesn't take long for the journalistic left to swing into action.  On CNN, a personality noted a recent report that anti-Semitic crimes had increased since President Trump took office.  (In fact, anti-Semitic activity, most from the political left, has been increasing for years.)  And a reporter just asked the president, who is leaving Washington on a trip, whether this incident showed the need for more gun laws.  Nothing ever changes, does it?

UPDATE:  Press reports now say that the shooter shouted "All Jews must die" as he went about his killing.  The incident is being treated as some kind of hate crime.  We don't know if this was an act of bigotry, or related to the Mideast situation.  Nor do we know the ethnicity of the alleged shooter.

October 27,  2018     Permalink