Category: Politics

Mr. Biden Has Effectively Rebutted His Own Campaign Warnings

Mr. Biden Has Effectively Rebutted His Own Campaign Warnings

In the days leading up to the November elections, Joe Biden told some whoppers on the subject of health care. Perhaps that’s to be expected in the heat of a political campaign.

Mr. Biden’s recent Covid-19 vaccination in Delaware proves he now understands that his consistent skepticism about the Trump administration’s Operation Warp Speed was misguided. This is probably excusable in an election as the words that come out of a politician’s mouth are rarely correlated to reality. Trump is responsible for his inability to convince the American public that he set up the apparatus to get us out of the global pandemic. That failure of communication is probably reason enough to lose an election.

Candidate Biden claimed that the president had no plan for addressing the virus and warned that Americans couldn’t trust Mr. Trump to oversee a quick and safe vaccine approval. This wasn’t true and Candidate Biden probably knew it, but it was the responsibility of Mr. Trump to make that case. Mr. Biden was not obligated to explain the effectiveness of the Trump administration if the Trump administration couldn’t explain their accomplishments in a convincing way.

With yesterday’s vaccination, Mr. Biden has effectively rebutted his own campaign warnings.

His acknowledgment of the vaccine and the public display of its use was designed to inspire Americans to trust the vaccine. The act is an admission that his candidate claims were made for purely political positioning and not based on scientific or logistical evidence. He lied on the campaign trail (or at least used Fear/Uncertainty/Doubt – FUD) to convince people that Mr. Trump was failing at this important task and therefore they should hire him. Admitting that Mr. Trump was doing a good job at getting the vaccine to the American public would not have been in Mr. Biden’s best interest at getting hired to run the country.

The outstanding work of the pharmaceutical industry, encouraged and enabled by President Trump, has already resulted in two approved vaccines, and yes, there is a distribution plan.

Drug distributor McKesson Corp. began picking up doses of the vaccine from manufacturing plants on Saturday for distribution around the country. United Parcel Service Inc. and FedEx Corp. trucks started rolling out Sunday to deliver the doses to hospitals and other sites.

The federal government plans to distribute over the coming week a total of 7.9 million doses of vaccines from Moderna and Pfizer Inc., which developed the first Covid-19 shot authorized for use in the U.S.

Vaccinations will continue, without Mr. Biden having to do anything. And there are still more vaccines in the pipeline which could soon come to market, as long as he doesn’t get in the way. The J&J vaccine is a one-dose treatment and the preliminary results have been fantastic.

Yet despite his own vaccination experience, Mr. Biden is still talking as if there’s a huge problem he will be called upon to solve. According to a Bloomberg report on Washington’s latest massive goring of taxpayers, Mr. Biden seems to think there’s much more Covid spending to come.

The economy is awash in money; politicians just need to let people use it. Americans suffering economically are suffering from shutdowns, which never worked as intended, inflicted enormous collateral damage, and are now becoming untenable with the arrival of vaccines.

Washington’s work is over. Washington didn’t do enough to save many businesses as they were tied up in the politics of helping things that didn’t really get hurt. That was a shame, but that is the political reality of our country. Republicans and Democrats spent far too much time discussing how to not let a good tragedy go to waste. But now we see the light at the end of the tunnel.

By the time that Mr. Biden is inaugurated, 50-60M people will have been vaccinated (that is about 1/7 of the US population). Combined with the existing survivors of natural infections, this will now probably exceed 25% of the US population.

Within the first two months of Mr. Biden’s reign, we will have vaccinated or infected over 50% of the US population and may reach 60-70%. By the time of opening day of the MLB season, it is reasonable to assume that we will be at 80% which is effectively full herd immunity. We should still try to reach 90% and that should happen in early summer.

Due to Operation Warp Speed, we could have approximately a dozen manufacturers of vaccines for the COVID-19 in a few more months. All we need to do is wear masks and social distance for another couple of months and then the US participation in the global pandemic will be over. This has nothing to do with the leadership of Joe Biden, it is purely a function of the continuity of the efforts of the Trump administration.

Biden should simply sit back and enjoy the ride back to a fully functional economy. The Trump train will get him there without him having to do anything. All he can do now, is screw it up.

This analysis is based on the fine reporting of the Wall Street Journal’s James Freeman.

Department of Energy Issues Final Rules to Ensure American Families Have Access to High-performance, Labor-Saving Clothes Washers, Dryers, and Showerheads

Department of Energy Issues Final Rules to Ensure American Families Have Access to High-performance, Labor-Saving Clothes Washers, Dryers, and Showerheads

When I first saw a story about this, I checked my calendar as I was certain it was a joke and this happened to be April Fools Day. I was disappointed in both regards: yes, it is still 2020; and no, the story was true.

Why in God’s name is our government spending time dictating how long or short a dishwashing machine can run? Don’t we have better uses for our hard-earned taxes? Throw the bums out!! I have no desire to pay ANYONE for such advice let alone an overpaid bunch of bureaucrats. The worst part is that this is a regulation so all of the dishwasher manufacturers have to hire lawyers to make sure they are compliant with this silly rule. This cost gets passed on to the consumer so therefore this is a CONSUMER TAX that would unevenly hurt poorer people (i.e. it is a regressive cost/tax).

We need our government to stop creating silly costs that are ultimately passed on to the consumer via higher prices. Big government is bad for poor people – I will never understand why poorer people tend to vote for Democrats that love big government. Next time, vote Libertarian, and let’s get Big Government out of our lives and lower our costs!

https://www.energy.gov/articles/department-energy-issues-final-rules-ensure-american-families-have-access-high-performance

Today, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) issued two Final Rules focused on quality-of-life improvements for the American people.  The first rule ensures that Americans can have access to high-performance, time-saving clothes washers and dryers. The second rule ensures access to showerheads that can provide enough water for quality showers.

“Today the Trump Administration affirmed its commitment to reducing regulatory burdens and safeguarding consumer choice,” said Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette. “With these rule changes, Americans can choose products that are best suited to meet their individual needs and the needs of their families.”

The department is concerned that cycle times for washers and dryers could become very long in the future—reducing the value of these critical time-saving devices. The final rule on washers and dryers allows manufacturers to offer new products that meet consumer demand for clothes washers and dryers that have shorter cycle times. The rule establishes separate product classes for residential clothes washers and clothes dryers with cycle times of less than 30 minutes (45 minutes for front-loading clothes washers).

DOE has used this authority in the past to create separate classes for products with specific features and configurations, including cycle time for dishwashers and top-loading clothes washers.

Joe Biden Isn’t Planning On Doing What Is Best For You

Joe Biden Isn’t Planning On Doing What Is Best For You

Not only has Joe Biden proven to be one of the least capable Senators in the past 50 years (having not sponsored any significant legislation during that time) and successfully suckled on the federal government’s teat for over 4 decades, but now he doesn’t think that you should know his plans if elected.

“You’ll know my opinion on court-packing when the election is over,” Biden said during a campaign stop in Phoenix. “It’s a great question, and I don’t blame you for asking. But you know, the moment I answer that question, the headline in every one of your papers will be on the answer to that question.”

Well duh!! Of course it will be on that question. Because it is an important question and the American citizens have every right to know the answer.

Obviously, we know the answer. It will be whatever is good for Joe Biden, Sanders, Pelosi, and AOC. It won’t be the best answer for the average citizen.

If it was the best answer for the average citizen than Biden would be shouting it from the rooftops! He would be proud of it.

Because Biden won’t profess his answer, it is going to be the answer that you don’t want. He is afraid that if he told you his answer, you wouldn’t vote for him.

So don’t vote for him. Withholding his plans is simply unacceptable. Vote for Jo Jorgensen of the Libertarian Party. Voting for Joe Biden is simply playing into his agenda for NOT helping you.

Trump Is His Own Worst Enemy When It Comes To His Taxes

Trump Is His Own Worst Enemy When It Comes To His Taxes

The New York Times has written an article claiming that Donald Trump paid little or no income tax for many years. Mr. Trump denies paying so little but won’t release his returns. The NY Times will not release its data to protect its source.

Voters can decide whom to believe, but one fact to note is that the story doesn’t assert illegal behavior. The IRS presumably signed off on the Trump returns, except in one case in which it is disputing a $72.9 million deduction claimed by Mr. Trump. This is a fight rich people have with the IRS all the time, often ending in Tax Court.

The report makes much of a deduction Mr. Trump took for business consulting fees that match payments his daughter Ivanka reported in separate filings. There may be legitimate reasons for those fee payments, and Ms. Trump ought to clear the matter up. Paying your adult offspring is not illegal – in fact, it is a good practice. This point should probably be dropped on the social media hate frenzy.

Also, it appears to be a big scandal that Trump paid a hairstylist during his reality TV days. Give me a break. Have you seen this guy’s hair? It would take a wizard to make it look decent. BTW, if you are going to make fun of Trump’s hair, please be honest and make fun of “comb over” Joe Biden also – yes, I am old enough to remember him as being bald.

Is it a scandal if Mr. Trump legally exploited the tax code’s treatment of chronic business losses to pay little tax? Hardly. Mr. Trump admitted this himself in a 2016 debate so there is no news in the NYTimes article – he already told us that he didn’t pay much in personal income taxes. Congress littered the code with loopholes aimed at assisting real-estate businesses, among others. Democrat and Republican elected officials write a tax code to please their corporate donors and then selectively attack CEOs or businesses that use the loopholes.

Here is a hint: if you are a business leader that is going to run for office and challenge the elected elite then you are not allowed to use the tax code to your advantage. But it is okay if you are simply going to take that tax-advantaged and donate to the elected elite. This is especially okay if you are donating to Democrat elected officials.

The story also claims that Mr. Trump’s empire is under financial stress and rising debt. This may be true, but the reporters can’t seem to decide if Mr. Trump is a shark exploiting the White House for personal gain or a sap who is bleeding cash while in office. Brilliant or bumpkin? Make up your mind. Many of Trump’s supporters cite his lack of tax burden as part of the reason they support him saying that he has a brilliant business mind. His enemies would do best to stick to one narrative.

The Times says it will have more such stories in the coming days, and who can doubt it? The press and most of official Washington are all-in to defeat Mr. Trump. I wonder if the FBI is doing a repeat and trying to help the Democrats as well.

Trump has made it easier for his opponents, as he often does. He danced his way through the 2016 campaign with promises to release his returns followed by claims that he couldn’t do so because of an audit. Many of his supporters advised him to do it in the public interest, but there’s no legal obligation for a candidate to release his taxes.

Trump could have controlled the political narrative by releasing his tax returns on his terms and timetable. If he would have done it soon after his election, this story would have died a slow death a long time ago. Now his opponents will do it. As in the past, Trump is his own worst adviser.

Many of the ideas in this story were sourced from this WSJ opinion article.

I Agree with T. Friedman – A Geopolitical Earthquake Just Hit the Mideast

I Agree with T. Friedman – A Geopolitical Earthquake Just Hit the Mideast

I rarely say good things about Thomas Friedman as he is typically too far left, in my opinion. However, I regularly read his columns (when the NYT doesn’t block me) and I think I have read all of his books because it is good to understand all sides of an argument.

This analysis of the recent deal in the Mideast is very well done. Probably the best that I have read. If you are not blocked by the NYT paywall, you should read it.

This deal is amazing. In a normal news cycle, this would be the top headline in every newspaper and every news site (but this isn’t a normal news cycle). This is a deal that no former POTUS has been able to pull off. Is it a Nobel worthy as what James E. Carter or William J. Clinton did? No. But it is a lot better than what George H. W. Bush, George W. Bush, or Barack H. Obama did in the Mideast (and Obama received the Nobel prize just for giving good speeches not for actually doing anything). Trump won’t get a Nobel for this because the committee hates Trump. But even if you are a Trump-hater, you have got to give credit for getting this deal done.

Thankfully, Mr. Friedman does that and kudos to him to look past politics and focus on a great result that will make the world a better place. Friedman writes a lot about the Mideast and he knows a massive move forward when he sees it.

To allay the fears of some of you that have read this far, I am still not voting for Trump for re-election even though he accomplished one of the biggest international wins of the 21st century so far. I am still supporting Jo Jorgensen, the Libertarian Party candidate as I feel that her platform is the closest to mine and I think this nation needs a change in the political discussion of something other than Left or Right but instead a focus on personal liberty and personal responsibility. If you believe in personal liberty and personal responsibility, please give an honest look at her platform and then join me in changing the US to be a better place.

Since NYT may block you from reading the article, here are the first couple of paragraphs but will keep it under 300 words to protect NYT copyright. The following are not my words but Mr. Friedman’s:

The agreement brokered by the Trump administration for the United Arab Emirates to establish full normalization of relations with Israel, in return for the Jewish state forgoing, for now, any annexation of the West Bank, was exactly what Trump said it was in his tweet: a “HUGE breakthrough.”

It is not Anwar el-Sadat going to Jerusalem — nothing could match that first big opening between Arabs and Israelis. It is not Yasir Arafat shaking Yitzhak Rabin’s hand on the White House lawn — nothing could match that first moment of public reconciliation between Israelis and Palestinians.

But it is close. Just go down the scorecard, and you see how this deal affects every major party in the region — with those in the pro-American, pro-moderate Islam, pro-ending-the-conflict-with-Israel-once-and-for-all camp benefiting the most and those in the radical pro-Iran, anti-American, pro-Islamist permanent-struggle-with-Israel camp all becoming more isolated and left behind.

It’s a geopolitical earthquake.

To fully appreciate why, you need to start with the internal dynamics of the deal. It was Trump’s peace plan drawn up by Jared Kushner, and their willingness to stick with it, that actually created the raw material for this breakthrough.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/13/opinion/israel-uae.html