AMERICAN GREATNESS: PERSONIFIED

REFRESHING HONESTY…FROM ROLLING STONE? I’d imagine Matt Taibbi isn’t being invited to the “right” parties anymore after his second story about The Hoax That Was Russiagate. A remarkably clear-headed read, he calls out the clueless who are actually convinced they did a good job:

[I]t’s shocking to see national media voices after the release of Robert Mueller’s report patting each other on the back, congratulating themselves for a three-year faceplant they must know will haunt the whole business for a long time.

Then Taibbi goes on to deflate the “conventional wisdom” the MSM is selling each other in terms of what the Mueller Report actually says:

You know what was fake news? Most of the Russiagate story. There was no Trump-Russia conspiracy, that thing we just spent three years chasing. The Mueller Report is crystal clear on this.

He didn’t just “fail to establish” evidence of crime. His report is full of incredibly damning passages, like one about Russian officialdom’s efforts to reach the Trump campaign after the election: “They appeared not to have preexisting contacts and struggled to connect with senior officials around the President-Elect.”

As the Good Professor says, “Read The Whole Thing.”™️

IT DEPENDS WHO YOU ARE EXPOSING: The pro-life activists who filmed a Planned Parenthood staffer negotiating the price of fetal body parts in a crowded restaurant will soon find out if they have to face trial:

First Amendment attorney Matthew Strugar predicted a liberal San Francisco jury will convict Daleiden and Merritt even if the evidence comes out in their favor – greenlighting judges to chip away at the investigative tools available to journalists. “CMP to me are despicable actors who seem to be grossly misstating what happened,” Strugar, who is not affiliated with the case, said by phone from Los Angeles. But he said the group’s undercover methods “are tried-and-true investigative techniques” long used by journalists in the United States to gather evidence of misconduct, from animal abuse on farms to auto mechanics ripping off customers.

The sad part is that the mainstream media and their lawyers — who have a lot to lose here — are avoiding fighting for the right to do this kind of undercover filming because of their liberal pro-Planned Parenthood agenda. If you’re looking for honesty and commitment to principles, the media bar ain’t what it used to be. But secret film of Mitt Romney talking about the 47% who won’t vote for him? No problem.

#NotAllMedia: “WHAT THE PRESIDENT GETS WRONG ABOUT THE PRESS.” My latest column in The Daily Caller…

“Enemy” is a strong word, and when it comes from the bully pulpit of the White House, I suspect it’s taken a little too far in these polarized times. Nonetheless, the damage to public trust in journalism — which is its lifeblood — should be laid at the feet of the political pundit class.”

Guest appearance by Andrew Klavan, who makes unsurprisingly sharp and accurate points.

WORD OF THE WEEK IS “NIMBY”: Forget the Categorical Imperative for a second. If I save a drowning person in hopes of getting a big reward, is she no less saved? It seems to me that the hubbub about Trump’s sanctuary plan is simply “we don’t like his motives.” This is the worst NIMBY I’ve seen since Ted Kennedy blocked wind energy farms off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard.

It’s more than a masterstroke of trolling by Trump, it’s actually a lesson in “be careful what you ask for.” But NIMBY is old chapeau for the faux-liberals. There is no more solidly Democrat neighborhood than the People’s Republic of the Upper West Side. Yet, when the beloved “diversity” (virtuous!) was proposed for THEIR schools, these Hillarybots went markedly Galt: Said one parent: “You’re talking about telling an 11-year-old, ‘You worked your butt off and you didn’t get that, what you needed and wanted.”

I simply cannot help but be reminded of this Christopher Guest classic:

Liberal Monday: “We need sanctuary laws to ensure that immigrants can contribute to our gorgeous mosaic.”
Liberal Tuesday: NOT IN MY BACK YARD!

PEN v. TRUMP: All The President’s Riposte. In October of last year, left-leaning PEN America, a 501(c)(3) organization whose stated mission is “to ensure that people everywhere have the freedom to create literature, to convey information and ideas, to express their views, and to access the views, ideas, and literature of others” filed suit against President Trump, alleging that “The president’s conduct harms PEN America’s members by forcing them to do their work against the backdrop of credible threats of retaliation by the president.”

Late yesterday, the U.S. Attorney in Manhattan filed a Motion to Dismiss the case, stating among other things that PEN does not have standing to bring the suit, and the only person alleged to have suffered harm was CNN’s Jim Acosta, but in fact Acosta voluntarily withdrew his suit against Trump after his White House credentials were reinstated. Of course, Acosta said the credentials were revoked as viewpoint discrimination because the president didn’t like his “reporting.” The White House responded (in not so many words) that his credentials were revoked for acting like a jerk in the Briefing Room.

The standing argument is pretty well-articulated, but fellow constitutionalists may wonder if the Complaint might be saved by the long-standing doctrine that a seemingly “moot” case may still be heard if it is “capable of repetition, yet evading review.” Southern Pacific Terminal Co. v. ICC, 219 U.S. 498 (1911).

If I were a betting man, I’d wager that’s going to be PEN’s reply. Other than that, the Complaint seems to be little more than “Trump is a mean old meanie.”

IRONIC HYPERBOLE ALERT: PEN’s website states that:

“While many media outlets are unrelenting in their robust coverage, individual writers may think twice before publishing pieces or commentary that could put them in the White House’s crosshairs.”

I thought “crosshairs” was a dogwhistle for violence and was considered by our moral superiors to be an uncivil use of language. Or is PEN actually saying that teams of rooftop snipers are locked in on the entrances of America’s newsrooms? When Conservatives use that word: it’s a threat. When liberals use that word it’s “mere rhetoric.” 

JUST FIGURING THIS OUT NOW, ARE THEY? The memo never got to HRC and the Brooklyn Mothership of Social Media Geeks in 2016.

SUPER FUN TIME BONUS: One more nail in the coffin for those bitter clingers who still insist Russia “stole” the election with $100,000 of Facebook ads…

JOURNALISM DEAN TEACHING HOW TO BUILD A STORY OFF A LIE: Michelle Ferrier, Dean of the School of Journalism & Graphic Communication at Florida Agricultural & Mechanical University pens an Op/Ed that starts out with a whopper:

“Violence against journalists has become routine, and attacks on social media and in real life have intensified because of the violent rhetoric coming from the White House, calling journalists “enemies of the people.””

Op/Ed or not, you’d think a “Dean of Journalism” would know better than to build her whole argument on a canard. Note the word “BECAUSE.” She has no more basis than to say that Steve Scalise was shot BECAUSE of Maxine Water’s rhetoric. Trump’s rhetoric might be heated, off-the-rails, rude or even nutty. But this is TDS at work in the journalism education industry.

HYPOCRISY, THY NAME IS TIM COOK: Apple never forgets to remind us how “woke” they are, how caring and morally enlightened they are, especially on LGBT issues. The openly gay CEO of Apple has no problem virtue signalling:

But he has a problem withdrawing Apple from OIC nations that hang people for the crime of being gay. (Four stores in Brunei alone!) Not on the list of companies boycotting Brunei. Apple’s Investor Relations team would love to hear from you, I’m sure.

REPEAT A LIE OFTEN ENOUGH: Granted, Variety Magazine is hardly the stuff of insightful or particular detailed reporting, but using Christine Amanpour as a springboard to repeat a canard is pretty low. Being a Hollywood-based publication, it’s not surprising how a sly but false anti-Trump innuendo would show up:

“To Amanpour, it’s no surprise that violence against journalists has grown. This is a world where the man with the biggest bully pulpit of them all, President Trump, actually uses it to bully, denouncing the news media as the “enemy of the people.” Last year, a gunman killed five people in the newsroom of Maryland’s Capital Gazette, propelling the U.S. into a tie with Mexico as the fourth-deadliest country for journalists.”

That’s all fine and dandy…except it’s a strawman: The shooter had in fact targeted the staff members over a long-running feud with the newspaper that stemmed over a 2012 defamation lawsuit. Even Reuters was forced to discipline an editor who repeated the talking point.

WAITAMINNIT, WAITAMINNIT, WHAT? The New York Post reports that “The New Boss” is complaining about the cost of croissants at LaGuardia Airport. Forget the cost of croissants, what the hell is she doing at an airport? Why isn’t she taking Amtrak? After all, in demanding the cessation of air travel she said:

“We’re like, ‘The world is going to end in 12 years if we don’t address climate change,’ and, like, this is the war; this is our World War II.”

Would that make her a Vidkun Quisling or a Pierre Laval?
#Nomenklatura

CRUSHINGLY SAD: A second Parkland School shooting student has committed suicide. I can’t help but wonder why the press hasn’t interviewed David Hogg. He leveraged this tragedy into popular acclaim, a book deal and a Harvard admission, but I have to ask why he wasn’t as focused on helping his classmates as he seems to be on his political ambitions.
Oh, of course, it’s Donald Trump’s fault.

LOOKING BEHIND THE CURTAIN: The usually left-leaning Columbia Journalism Review takes a thoughtful and fair look and what Rep. Nunes’ Twitter lawsuit really means, and makes a fair case that the data giants should be treated just like any publisher and not behemoths immune from responsibility:

“The definition of a publisher should more closely mirror the expectations that journalists face in their work each day. Organizations that outline expectations and ethics for what is published and edit or delete certain accounts and posts, should be considered publishers. In other words, social media outlets should be expected to take some responsibility for what they publish – just as news organizations are.”

THIS. A HUNDRED TIMES THIS: Sharyl Attkisson says “I dream of a world without smears.”

“Bork, Thomas, Hill, Clinton, Clinton, Beck, Imus, Palin, Biden, Obama, O’Reilly, Sanders, Trump, Hannity, Kavanaugh, Northam, Klobuchar, Carlson … Smears have become a distasteful staple in our media diet. The nonprofits, LLCs, super PACs, PR firms, crisis management companies and global law firms that organize and promote smears have formed a multibillion-dollar industry. They’re profiting beyond imagination. Are we?”

As the Professor says, “Read the whole thing.”™

IF THE APP TRACKED GAYS FOR THE PURPOSE OF HUNTING THEM DOWN, WOULD TIM COOK WOULD STILL BE DRAGGING HIS FEET?: “Saudi app criticized for feature to control women’s travel“

THE BABYLON BEE MUST BE BUTTER: because they’re on a roll!

“Ilhan Omar Withdraws Support From Bill To Save The Earth After Learning That’s Where Israel Is.”

BREAKING NEWS: MPAA announces new category of “Best Hate Crime Hoax.”

IS THIS ONE OF THOSE INCONVENIENT TRUTHS I KEEP HEARING ABOUT? So an IRS employee was charged in leaking private info to Michael Avenatti. But check out the demotion: now Avenatti is described by CNN as “just” an attorney. They seem to be forgetting something:

“Avenatti, a ubiquitous presence on cable television for the last two months, has appeared on CNN 65 times and MSNBC 43 times between March 7 and May 10.”

We have always been at war with Eastasia.

WHEN INMATES RUN THE ASYLUM: Isn’t the most important question: How did this dimbulb get hired in the first place?

“Yesterday, HuffPost fired a recently hired, Los Angeles-based social media editor after her managers were alerted to the fact that an Instagram account belonging to the new hire was spewing racist rants online. Using a now-deleted Instagram account, Ashley Rose, who was hired earlier this month, targeted a number of people with the sort of racist invective you’d expect to find in the darkest 4chan threads.”

You can read  the specific posts here. This garbage isn’t the product of faux-outrage or identity politics: It’s out and out nasty. So how did they hire her, as a social media editor, no less? Unthinking application of white feminism, perhaps?

Forget it, Jake, it’s Huffingtontown. 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO CHUCK YEAGER: 96 years old today and a genuine American badass.

TRY THE VEAL, IT’S HERE ALL WEEK: We can now redefine what it means to get an “Amazon package.” 

Just a few days ago The Official Newspaper of The Resistance was tossing out bait for every gullible reporter that the photos were obtained by “a government source”, possibly the Saudis.

I don’t think the Saudis would let Bezos’ girlfriend (or any woman, for that matter) dress in public like this.

SORT OF. NBC “professional journalist” Marianna Sotomayor makes an awkward attempt to “clarify” her insanely off-base tweet that proves Ben Rhodes was right. They just don’t know anything.

LAYERS OF FACT CHECKERS, PART DEUX: “Professional political reporter” Marianna Sotomayor swings and misses:

Not only did 2016 see Hillary and Jill Stein and Carly Fiorina in the race, but in 1972 both Patsy Mink and Shirley Chisholm were declared candidates for the Democratic nomination. Ben Rhodes was right about the political reporters in DC: they don’t know anything. It’s a shame researching something like this is soooo difficult.

SUPER BONUS: Although her error has been pointed out dozens of times on her twitter feed, NBC *still* has refused to correct.

ANOTHER “PRESENTED WITHOUT COMMENT”: Except to add that nobody outheadlines the New York Post.