Trump Derangement Syndrome is real – Former journalist Jake Tapper and former ODNI James Clapper conduct a broadcast couples therapy discussion on the impact of Washington DC’s swamp draining.

Their collective grief session included a discussion of how President Trump was resetting the system of checks-and-balances by firing political appointees of the prior executive administration.  You have to watch the segment to fully grasp the level of stupid.

Sad faces abound as they console each other that a new administration actually removed the political appointees of the prior administration.  This action, according to their logic, is akin to the removal of one of the three branches of co-equal government; though they never actually do get around to explaining how the Legislative branch, or Judicial Branch have been removed by the Executive branch.  Funny that.

You cannot make this level of moonbattery up.  Virtuous defender of the republic Jake Tapper actually said: “because he’s firing the checks and balances“.  Don’t believe me, watch:

.

I’m assuming the CNN audience was never exposed to grade-school civics, and probably don’t comprehend the FBI Director and Attorney General are appointed by the President and serve at the whim of the elected President, who IS The Executive Branch.

Despite what former ODNI James Clapper says, I promise you the FBI and DOJ are not “co-equal branches of government”.

(more…)

Former Defense Secretary Robert Gates appears on (de)face The Nation for an interview with John Dickerson.

Within the overall interview former Defense Secretary Robert Gates speaks direct confidence about President Trump’s intelligence and foreign policy appointments.  Gates also uses common sense to shoot down the media’s narrative about Michael Flynn etc.

.

Did Gates pop his head up to present himself as a potential FBI Director candidate?

(more…)

U.N. Secretary Nikki Haley appears on ABC This Week with George Stephanopoulos to discuss the vast Russian planetary electoral conspiracy theorem.

(more…)

Andrew Breitbart truthfully stated: “politics are downstream from pop culture”.  However, what Andrew never fully digested was that “Pop Culture” is downstream from “Economics”.  Show me the opposition to President Trump and his policy objectives, and I’ll show you an entity with a vested financial interest in that opposition.   Domestic or foreign opposition, it matters not – the financial motives are the same.

Last week commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross delivered remarks at the 47th Annual Washington Conference of the Americas.  Within his remarks Wilburine explains the new U.S. administration’s strategy to increase overall commerce while reducing the trade deficit.

The Q&A begins around 19:00 and Secretary Ross explains what the Chinese “One-Belt One-Road” means to U.S. Trade.  If you are interested in economic policy and how it will effect your daily lives this is a great watch.  Remember, this is raw source material where you can make your own judgements about what is said/happening without the filter of the media telling you what is said/happening.

.

When you understand what is outlined in honest explanations like this you can destroy the talking points of oppositional voices.  This is the intellectual armament that helps you to discuss with your friends and families and cut through the media nonsense.  The important battle-space is between our ears.

(more…)

Good grief.  NBC’s Chuck Toad spent two-thirds of his interview opportunity with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson asking repeated questions about the preferred Democrat narrative known as the ‘Muh Russian conspiracy’.

However, Tillerson did have the opportunity to push back against Senator John McCain’s ridiculous attacks against Secretary T-Rex.   Anyone who watched the T-Rex talk to the State Department on May 3rd can fully understand the context of Tillerson’s outline of distinction between “U.S. policies” and “U.S. Values”.   If you haven’t watched or read the speech you should, SEE HERE.

Senator John McCain was furious that Secretary Tillerson would not accept the McCain/Powers “Responsibility to Protect” doctrine which mandates U.S. foreign policy as interventionist around the globe.  Senator McCain wrote an op-ed opposing Tillerson and demanding that U.S. policy must include creating more wars around the world.

.

Here is Secretary Tillerson’s actual words in context, that Senator McCain finds so fundamentally abhorrent:

(more…)

To understand the China ‘One-Belt / ‘One-World’ economic trade forum it becomes necessary to understand how structurally weak the Chinese economy was created.

.

People often talk about the ‘strength’ of China’s economic model; and indeed within a specific part of their economy -manufacturing- they do have economic strength.  However, the underlying critical architecture of the Chinese economic model is structurally flawed and President Trump with his current economic team understand the weakness better than all international adversaries.

Lets take a stroll and lightly discuss.

China is a central planning economy.  Meaning it never was an outcropping of natural economic conditions.  China was/is controlled as a communist style central-planning government; As such, it is important to reference the basic structural reality that China’s economy was created from the top down.

This construct of government creation is a key big picture distinction that sets the backdrop to understand how weak the economy really is.

(more…)

This post was written in 2012. I have made some additions, but left the bulk of the post intact. For clarity, since my changes involve people and time, the additions are in italics.

This has been a very special year in our family, this past year since Mother’s Day 2011. First, we had a beloved addition to our family in May 2011, Sarah Isabella. She arrived several months early, and many of you Treepers prayed for her and her mother after her birth. Then, in March of this year, the arrival of Sadie made me a grandmother for the first time. These two births, as well as some challenges other friends and family members have faced being mothers has made me think a great deal about motherhood, and the unique challenges it brings. A recent conversation with another mother whose children are now adults added more perspective. Last year, I did a post about the history of Mother’s Day. Most people think about their mother or grandmother, or perhaps a favorite aunt,  when the topic is Mother’s Day. We adults tend to think of our mature mothers, or perhaps even an elderly mom. Because two young mothers have been in my thoughts and prayers this year, as well as my heart, I thought about writing something to honor those young women, the mothers who struggle so hard with the demands only a young family faces. A recent conversation inspired me to take it a little further. So, I would like to write about the stages of motherhood, and perhaps, for the sake of coherence and the story, I will make assumptions about families that may not match everyone’s experience. That does not mean I value your experience less.

With the first baby comes overwhelming love, awe, fear, joy, and the gushing happiness specific to motherhood. You have had 9 long months to prepare for this precious little miracle God is entrusting to you, and yet you are not ready, you can never really be prepared. How can you be prepared for that first embrace, the soft, sweet skin, the way your heart just stops at the first cry? How can you anticipate  the perfection of the unfocused stare of your baby? The completion of your family, the way your love for your husband, and his for you, is multiplied and increased, the way that three people have become a little universe of love? How can you possibly imagine the utter weariness of night upon night without sleep? The fear at the first cough or hiccup? The inner warrior woman you never knew existed who is ready to leap into action at any threat to that child? The hopes, the dreams, the plans you and your husband share as you hold that little part of you? (more…)

In an effort to keep the Daily Open Thread a little more open topic we are going to start a new daily thread for “Presidential Politics”. Please use this thread to post anything relating to the Donald Trump Administration and Presidency.

This thread will refresh daily and appear above the Open Discussion Thread.

President Trump Twitter @POTUS / Vice President Pence Twitter @VP

Sean Spicer Twitter @PressSec

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name. Thy kingdom come. THY WILL BE DONE, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but DELIVER US FROM EVIL.

For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever and ever. Amen †

Tonight Fox broadcast an extensive and much discussed interview with President Trump and Judge Jeanine Pirro.  The interview was conducted/recorded in the cabinet room of the White House between 12:00pm and 2:00pm on Friday May 12th.

(more…)