Political Junkie

In many ways, this week proved quite a disappointment for the so-called “Resistance”, especially when you consider that they thought they had a very good week last week; when President Trump’s Former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn plead guilty to lying to the FBI and indicated that he would “cooperate” with the Special Counsel investigation.   Yet their fortunes began to change when a producer handed The View’s Joy Behar a note that suggested that President Trump directed Flynn to make contact with the Russians.   Behar reacted with glee , thinking that this news proved the left’s theory that the Trump campaign colluded with the Russians in order to win the elections.   However, ABC News’s Brian Ross, who wrote that report, initially neglected to mention that President Trump directed Flynn to contact the Russians after he had already won the election.   ABC News, in an effort to ensure that they did not win the President’s promised “fake news trophy”, s...

As Americans all over the country prepare for Christmas, The White House has promised the American people a very special Christmas present.   President Trump has promised the American people that he would sign the tax reform bill into law before Christmas.   The House has already passed its version; the Senate has yet to vote on its tax bill, which differs slightly from the House version.   Besides the confirmation of Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court and about a dozen lower court judges, the Senate has yet to pass any consequential legislation into law.   Deficit-conscious conservatives, Never Trumpers and moderates threaten the passage of the Senate’s tax bill, which requires 50 votes to pass.   In the event of a 50-50 tie, Vice President Pence will cast the tie-breaking vote.   The Republicans hold 52 Senate seats; therefore they can only afford two Republican defectors unless they manage to get support from a Democratic Senator, a scenario which see...

Throughout his short-lived Presidential Campaign, Gov. Bobby Jindal (R-LA) lamented the fact that many conservatives feel that they have to “hide their principles” in order to win elections.   I happen to find it even sadder when conservatives continue to “hide their principles” after they have won their elections.     For one thing, Republicans appear to have completely lost confidence in the idea of free-market healthcare reform.   They tried passing a “skinny repeal” in order to appease the Moderate Republicans; that didn’t work.   A majority of Republicans could not even agree on a clean repeal of Obamacare despite the fact that nearly all of them had voted in favor of it when they knew President Obama would veto it.   When they actually had a chance to axe the healthcare law and provide relief to millions of Americans, they chickened out.   On Capitol Hell (sic), Republicans in both houses of Congress have released their tax reform p...

In the midst of the tax reform debate taking place on Capitol Hill, many who live in high-tax states such as New York , Illinois , New Jersey and California do not like one of the proposals that would eliminate the state and local tax deductions.   Those states, along with Connecticut , Maryland and Massachusetts , receive more than 50 percent of the value of the deduction on federal income tax returns for state and local taxes; according to the Daily Signal.       Eleven of thirty-five Republicans who represent these high-tax states in the House of Representatives voted against the Budget Resolution designed to clear the way for tax reform, citing their concerns over the abolition of state and local tax deductions as part of the tax reform package.   The resolution still managed to pass the House in spite of their objections.   Those in favor of abolishing the state and local tax deductions argue that the deductions encourage state and local gov...

It looks like Rep. Pat Tiberi (R-OH) will become the third Republican Congressman to leave office before his term expires.   This number does not include the people who resigned to take positions in the Trump Administration.   Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) resigned in June, expressing disgust with “The Swamp.”   “Pro-life” Congressman Tim Murphy (R-PA) resigned from Congress on Saturday after committing political suicide by asking his mistress to abort their unborn child.   All of the resignations have caused special elections, which Democrats have poured millions of dollars into.   Their efforts backfired as the Democrats failed to pick up any of the four House vacancies where Republicans resigned to take posts in the Trump cabinet; including the seat formerly held by Tom Price, whose district President Trump carried by only one point.   Chaffetz, Tiberi, and Murphy all represent districts that President Trump carried by double-digit margins; which makes ...

The Thousand Islands is one of the most notable tourist attractions in Upstate New York.   Located on the border with Canada along the St. Lawrence River , the site draws thousands of visitors each year. Those who participate in the boat tours have the opportunity to tour Boldt Castle .   Boldt Castle ’s first floor is completely finished, decorated with ornate furniture reflective of the time period when its construction first began.   George Boldt, the castle’s namesake, intended to build the castle as a present for his wife.   After his wife died, Boldt ordered the construction workers to stop working on the castle. To this day, Boldt Castle ’s upper floors remain unfinished.       Unfortunately, Boldt Castle serves as a perfect metaphor for the Republican agenda in Washington .   The finished parts of Boldt Castle represent the Neil Gorsuch appointment to the Supreme Court, by far the biggest success of the GOP-held S...