Friends, Enemies, and Party Discipline

The Obama administration, through its Eric Holder DoJ, has decided to prosecute Senator Robert Menendez (D, NJ) on various charges of misbehavior, charges which the administration and the NLMSM have been bruiting about for roughly three years. Why bring the charges now? Because we’re in the end game of the Obama “negotiations” with Iran over the latter’s nuclear weapons program, and the deal being talked about will codify Iran’s ability to build nuclear weapons. Menendez is a powerful Democrat, and he’s been a vocal critic of Obama and his Iran “negotiations.”

The attack on Menendez already has borne fruit: he’s stepped down from his position as Ranking Member of the Senate’s Foreign Relations Committee. This committee will have a strong input on pending legislation that will give Congress an oversight say on that pending deal with Iran (or force Obama’s veto of oversight of him and his actions); the prosecution and Menendez’ withdrawal from the committee dilute Democrats’ participation in that legislation.

On the other hand (just across the street, as it were), the Obama administration, through its Eric Holder DoJ, has declined to prosecute the administration’s IRS’ Lois Lerner on the contempt of Congress charges brought by Congress. Lerner is a friend of the administration; she’s the one who headed up the IRS’ attacks on conservative political organizations, “lost” emails regarding those attacks, and then refused to cooperate with Congress’ investigation.

I often say at this point, and I say now: this is the level of integrity of the Democratic Party; remember this in 2016.

Some might say, though, that there are honest Democrats in the party. For instance, isn’t Menendez, a target of Party persecution [sic] one such? Of course, there may well be. But where is their integrity when they associate themselves with a fundamentally dishonest organization? What does their silence on this sort of thing say about them?

Those honest Democrats in the Party can show themselves in one of two ways. One is to end their shameful silence, even in the face of the present Chicago-style Party discipline. The other, more powerful, way (especially since, honest or not, they’re badly tainted by their association with this Party) would be to leave the Democratic Party and form their own political party to compete against the Republicans and Democrats from a platform built explicitly on integrity.

Certainly, third parties generally don’t do well in American elections. The Republican Party began as a third party, and the Bull Moose Party was a third party with a powerful impact on our national elections. However, since then third party attempts since have failed (Nader’s and Perrot’s attempts, while famous, were ephemeral). The difference between those failures and the prior successes, though, is not an evolved political environment. The difference is that the lately third party attempts did not have established politicians as members or in their leadership, and aside from an ability to self-fund, they didn’t have the finances.

The honest members of the Democratic Party, however, both are well-known and established politicians, and they have effective and stable fund-raising capacity. A New Democracy Party, formed of these honest, now ex-, Democrats would be in an excellent position immediately to compete on the local and State level, and in just a few election cycles (see the Republican Party) to compete on the national level.

It’s not at all an insurmountable problem. If those honest Democrats are willing fight Party discipline and to show themselves.

Remember this, too, in 2016.

My Irony Meter

…is pegged.

It seems that Israel spied on the US’ nuclear weapons “negotiations” with Iran. From a “senior US official:”

It is one thing for the US and Israel to spy on each other. It is another thing for Israel to steal US secrets and play them back to US legislators to undermine US diplomacy.

It certainly is terrible that Congress should find out from an ally what the Obama administration is doing instead of finding that out directly from the administration.

Another carefully anonymous (secretive?) US “official” added this:

If you’re wondering whether something serious has shifted here, the answer is yes[.]

Indeed. This administration has become nearly as dangerous to Israel as Israel’s official enemies.

Too Little, Too Late

Responding to pressure from Congress and veterans groups, the Department of Veterans Affairs is relaxing a rule that makes it hard for some veterans in rural areas to prove they live at least 40 miles from a VA health site.

The relaxation consists of the VA using mapping facilities (vis., Google Maps) to measure actual driving miles rather than simply plotting straight line distances. Here’s Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert McDonald:

We’ve determined that changing the distance calculation will help ensure more veterans have access to care when and where they want it[.]

Well, NSS. Of course you’ve known that right along, but it’s good you’re finally acting on it.

The problem with this, though, is that what the Veterans Administration chooses to relax today it can choose to retighten tomorrow. In addition to that, this VA has in place most of the same bureaucratic leadership that’s been misbehaving right along, excepting only a couple of high profile resignations (not firings). They can’t be trusted.

Disband the VA, and use its erstwhile future budgets for vouchers with which our veterans can select their own doctors and medical facilities.

In the meantime, a suitable interim step would consist of Congress legislating the distance calculation while also legislating a shorter distance to travel—20 miles would be a better maximum. That would still be a 40-minute round trip on the open highway, and closer to 90 minutes’ time in ordinary city traffic. Most folks have other things to do with their time than sit in their cars for an hour and a half—or sit in someone else’s car if the veteran isn’t in a position to drive himself.

It Would Be All Right if He Did

President Barack Obama, in a Huffington Post interview, had this to say about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s pre-election remarks about a Palestinian state:

We take him at his word when he said that it wouldn’t happen during his prime ministership, and so that’s why we’ve got to evaluate what other options are available to make sure that we don’t see a chaotic situation in the region[.]

It would be good if Obama really did take Netanyahu at his word; this is what the PM actually said:

I think that anyone who is going to establish a Palestinian state today and evacuate lands is giving attack grounds to the radical Islam against the state of Israel.

Anyone who ignores this is sticking his head in the sand.

Nothing in there about “no Palestinian state on my watch.” This is just what Israeli governments have been saying ever since they agreed to the principle. The only way there can be a two state solution is if the second state also is committed to two states and not to the destruction of Israel. At present, that’s not the case.

Obama also said in that interview,

[I]t is going to be hard to find a path where people are seriously believing that negotiations are possible.

As long as Obama continues to distort other people’s statements, it truly will be hard for people seriously to believe that negotiations are possible.

These Explain a Lot

Joseph Clancy, Secret Service Director, testified before a House Appropriations subcommittee, and this loose exchange between Clancy and Congressman Chris Stewart (R, UT) ensued:

Clancy: It’s going to take time to change maybe some of this culture. There’s no excuse for this information not to come up the chain. That’s going to take time because I’m going to have to build trust with our workforce. And the best way for me to work or earn that trust with our workforce is by my actions.

Stewart: I understand what you’re trying to do. I really do. But when you say, I have to set an example, I have to earn their trust. Dude, you don’t have to earn their trust. You’re their boss. They’re supposed to earn your trust.

And this:

The Secret Service director said he didn’t learn about the March 4 incident until five days later from an anonymous email, a delay he described as unacceptable. He said he delivered a “good, stern talk” to his staff upon learning he was kept in the dark.

“Good, stern talk?” Why is the head of that staff still on Clancy’s payroll?

Hmm….