MOTHER KNOWS BEST: Warren pledges to cancel most student loan debt without Congress.

WELL, IT IS: Tom Homan responds to Illinois county releasing illegal immigrants with criminal records: ‘That’s just stupid.’

PARIAH NATION: Iran warns Europe as diplomat says officials ‘lied’ on crash. “The downing of the Ukraine International Airlines flight last week came amid heightened tensions between Iran and the U.S. over its unraveling nuclear deal. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani for the first time Wednesday threatened Europe by warning its soldiers in the Mideast ‘could be in danger’ over the crisis as Britain, France and Germany launched a measure that could see United Nations sanctions re-imposed on Tehran.”

BECAUSE OF COURSE SHE DID: Pelosi Pulls A Schiff, Deliberately Misquotes Trump-Zelensky Call on House Floor.

RICHARD FERNANDEZ: Global Politics Becomes a House of Noise.

The oceans used to be a fluid coupling that prevented sudden external shocks from being transmitted to domestic politics. The heydays of Hydramatic were coincidentally those of the saying that “politics stops at the water’s edge,” uttered in reference to the bipartisan creation of NATO. But now the gears are fused. As foreign influence grew in Washington, the drive-train stayed clutched in with no more slip at the water’s edge. The enabling ideology for this was “multiculturalism” and a naive globalism, supposedly good for all, but which transmits the shocks directly to the political engine and may in time destroy it. It’s already led to Crossfire Hurricane, an impeachment, and on the return stroke what may be an equivalent investigation of Obama and/or his security staff. It won’t end there. There’ll be many more investigations and impeachments and no way to decouple from external forces.

Read the whole thing.

ROBERT SPENCER: Nancy Pelosi Should See These Videos From Iran.

Everybody should.

CHRISTIAN TOTO: Anatomy of a Cancel Culture Smear: Vince Vaughn Edition.

We’re told the actor once supported Libertarian Ron Paul and helped conservative talker Glenn Beck produce a documentary feature.

The horror, the horror.

Worst of all? Vaughn supports training and arming school teachers so kids aren’t sitting ducks during a school shooting.

Most controversially, he came out as vehemently opposed to gun control in a 2015 interview for British GQ, going so far as to call for firearms to be allowed in schools: “You think the politicians that run my country and your country don’t have guns in the schools their kids go to? They do. And we should be allowed the same rights.” Shaking Donald Trump’s hand is a pretty modest entry on his list of most liberally objectionable acts.

Next, The Guardian is aghast that a whiff of conservatism is still permitted in La La Land. The article cites the Oscar-nominated “Hacksaw Ridge,” directed by Mel Gibson, as an example of this curse.

“[It’s] a reminder, rather like the industry’s enduring celebration of Clint Eastwood, that Hollywood’s quiet conservative contingent can still make its presence felt.

If only that sliver of thought could be banned entirely.

I had no idea what Vaughn’s politics were when I came across this Facebook item by Colby Smith yesterday morning:

(Reposted with permission.)

When I was in Iraq, in 2005, I was stationed in an extremely dangerous area. At the time, the most hostile combat area in the world. We lost a lot of good men and our base was mortared or shot at almost daily. Leaving the wire was worse in terms of violence.

I say all of this because no one stopped at any of the FOBs under 108th Armor’s control.

No one.

We heard that comedians, actors/actresses, cheerleaders and musicians were visiting the troops in Baghdad, or in Taji, or in Tallil, but they’d never stop in Mahmudiyah. They’d never endanger themselves by visiting the Triangle of Death.

No one, except Vince Vaughn.

Vince stopped at FOB St. Michael purely because he was told that no one stopped there. He went around our base, talking with every soldier. He signed photos and took photos while holding a sign that said, “If you can dodge an IED, you can dodge a ball.”

He even sat and played me, a lowly medic, in NCAA football in our haphazard, poorly constructed smoke shack. He played as Virginia Tech, if I remember, and I played as Texas Tech.

He was relaxed even though we were mortared when he landed and he had to lay on the helipad (everyone around him was still standing as we were accustomed to it, but we won’t fault him for that.)

Here’s the thing. We had lost multiple men in the days leading up to his visit and the constant combat was exhausting… but Vince Vaughn is an entertainer, and he used his skills to enable us, for just a few hours, to forget the horrors of the conflict we were in at great danger to himself.

So, sure, nobodies behind a keyboard will fault him for shaking the President’s hand. Nobodies will say that he needs to be canceled. Hollywood hacks who flew over our base will judge him. But I, for one, know better. I know that he’s a hero and that I will support him in his endeavors as he supported me in mine.

Please, let others know about what Vince did. He deserves credit, although, I know, he’s asked for none.

Vaughn seems like one of Hollywood’s rare off-screen good guys.

SAD! The Sad Little Low-Energy ‘Resistance’ Crowds Are Dwindling at Trump Rallies.

YOU MAGNIFICENT BASTARD, I READ YOUR BOOK: New Book Shows How Trump Can Win 2020 With Black Voters in Swing States.

NEWS YOU CAN USE: The Complete Guide to Avoiding Online Scams.

SPENDTHRIFT: Biden Says He Couldn’t Afford Childcare Making $42K in 1973 (or $250K, Adjusted for Inflation).

GRADUALLY, THEN SUDDENLY: How Prince Harry Turned Into Lena Dunham.

The reason for Harry and Meghan’s departure is pure liberal-individualist narcissism. And both are equally responsible for that. Due to its symbolic and apolitical nature, British aristocracy are not supposed to publicly espouse political opinions, much less actively lecture people about mental health, toxic masculinity, or climate change. They are supposed to go to war, open hospitals, and silently take part in charitable causes. Duty, stoicism, propriety, and patriotism are supposed to be the four cornerstones of nobility.

Unfortunately, Harry has too much of Princess Diana in him, from compulsively breaking orthodoxy and tradition, to extreme and fatalistic narcissism. As Emma Freire recently wrote, with him it is all noblesse, with zero oblige. Meghan can be forgiven, as she’s American, and not used to royal protocols. But Harry was born and brought up in that discipline. There’s no excuse.

For a literal prince with a personal fortune of around $40 million to complain about mental hardship is frankly idiotic. A British prince is not supposed to be a fragile flower, capable of being wounded at the first hint of adversity, throw a hissy fit, or behave like Lena Dunham. For nobility to fly around lecturing plebs about climate change invites media scrutiny about hypocrisy.

Harsh, but fair.

“BUYBACK” IS NOTHING MORE THAN CONFISCATION WITH A CASH SWEETENER: Raid on New Zealand Activist’s Home to ‘Ensure Compliance’ with Gun Buyback Is Absolutely Chilling.

YOU CAN’T TAX THE GENTRY! Many Colorado Resort Homes Sit Empty. So Why Not Tax ‘Em For Affordable Housing?

COCAINE MITCH: ‘If the Existing Case Is Weak, House Dems Shouldn’t Have Impeached in the First Place.’

House Democrats claim both that their case for impeachment is so strong they didn’t need any more proof – and that the Senate must gather more evidence before judging the case – but, both claims can’t be true, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Tuesday.

In a Senate floor speech, Sen. McConnell told his colleagues that it’s the Senate’s job to judge the impeachment case – not to gather more evidence for it – and reminded Democrats of how they’ve changed their story.

If the House wants more witnesses, they should take it up in the House.

SNOOZEFEST: In Iowa Debate, Mild Feuding and No Fireworks. “Defying expectations, however, the gloves largely stayed on as the contenders appeared reluctant to take forceful shots and risk alienating some of their opponents’ supporters — voters they will need in the long run to have a shot of defeating President Trump.”

Or as I put it in last night’s drunkblog:

Here’s the big close, where each candidate promises that they’re the one who can take on Donald Trump on a debate stage.

But they can’t even take on each other. They can’t even get their energy up when thrown softballs by Wolf Blitzer. These folks couldn’t get it up with a hot tub, a platter of chilled raw oysters, some Barry White on Spotify, and a handful of little blue pills.

Limp debate, limp candidates, limp chances.

And:

I don’t know what my Democrat friends would say, if they were unguarded long enough to give an honest assessment. But I can’t imagine they would express much excitement.

Because how can you get excited about a bunch of contenders seemingly content with nothing more than a participation trophy?

I’m really liking Trump’s chances.

CITIZENS, YOU CAN’T CARRY LEGAL FIREARMS HERE — THIS IS A SECOND AMENDMENT RALLY! Virginia Governor to Declare State Emergency to Prevent Lawful Carry at 2A Rally.

BLUE ON BLUE: St. Louis Prosecutor Alleges ‘Racist Conspiracy’ by Police, City Officials to Force Her from Office.

Why are Democrat-run cities such cesspits of official racism?

OUT: Politics stops at the water’s edge.

IN: Democrats Block A Vote To Support Iran Protesters.

Objectively pro-mullah would be a fair assessment.

HMM: Research shows high rates of ALS in U.S. Military veterans.

KRUISER’S MORNING BRIEF: Post-Debate Creepy Porn Lawyer Edition. “Debates are the worst parts of these interminably long modern presidential primary seasons. They’re farcical affairs moderated by faux journalists who think they should get as much attention as the candidates. Last night’s nonsense was so bad that the far-left Hollywood publication Variety wrote a debate wrap-up with a headline saying that the questions from the far-left CNN hacks failed both ‘the candidates and the electorate’.”

Variety was too kind.

LAME: Iran says Trump’s Farsi tweet dishonors the Persian language.

WE’RE FROM THE GOVERNMENT AND WE’RE HERE TO HELP: US Government-funded Android phones come preinstalled with unremovable malware.

Years ago I joked that with progressive government, once you take the Danegeld, you’ll never be rid of the Dane. But that’s proven all too true, and in all kinds of new ways.

OUCH: Boeing had more cancellations than new orders in 2019.

As I’ve been saying, trust keeps passenger jets flying every bit as much as the Bernoulli effect does.

TRUMP BROKE HER, TO BORROW AN INSTAPHRASE: Even CNN Admits: ‘Pelosi Gambled and Lost on Impeachment Delay.’