Tag Archives: border security

To Investigate or to Legislate. What Will Congress Do?

Grandma P and I just got home ten days ago from a 60 day cruise that went around the Pacific Rim.  It was a marvelous, bucket-list cruise that included Alaska, Japan, China, Taiwan, South Korea (North Korea was not conducting excursions that day, or any day!), Viet Nam, the Philippines, Guam and Hawaii.  Whew!  There were to be 22 ports of call, but two were cancelled as we were dodging a typhoon on our way from Alaska to Japan.  There are nothing like 40 foot waves to get your attention on a ship!

Meanwhile, back in the good ole’ US of A, all kinds a ‘goings on’ were occurring.  There were deadly fires taking place in California.  Hurricane Michael, a very late in season hurricane, came ashore just east of Panama City, Florida.  Were we concerned?  Being the eye of that category 5 hurricane came ashore just 59 miles from our house, you could surmise that we were very concerned.  We would have been more concerned if we were not dodging a typhoon at the same time creating the 40′ waves.

The ship did not really have to be concerned about entertaining us for 60 days.  Why?  Because we had the Brett Kavanaugh hearings on three different news channels.  We could watch it on MSNBC, Fox, or the BBC.  As you are aware, the coverage was relentless; almost as relentless as the accusations against Kavanaugh were ridiculous and repulsive.  I am sure that in her mind, Christine Blasey Ford believed something did happen to her.  Without the corroboration of any of her ‘best friends’, the accusations were weak at best.  The whole affair turned beyond ridiculous when the accusation was made that he was the ‘leader of a gang of rapists!’   After 6 FBI background investigations without a blemish?  I don’t think so.   Trust me when I say that I do not enjoy writing about those senatorial proceedings any more than I, and many others, enjoyed watching them.  But the one takeaway from those proceedings that sends a shiver down my spine is the thought that those proceedings, with senators mugging for TV time, with senators posturing to be a presidential nominee, with senators acting as if they are the clowns in a whole new circus firing off ridiculous accusations, that all of this becomes …….the new ‘political reality TV.’  

Oh.  There was one more event that took place during our cruise.  We had the midterm elections.  Was there any drama surrounding that event?  We were not sure who the governor or US senator from Florida would be until almost two weeks after election night.  We got off the ship on November 18, and I believe Ron Desantis and Rick Scott were declared the winners the day before.  (If those damn Russians would quit meddling in our elections, we would have had the results sooner!)  Anyway, after a run-off in Mississippi for senator, and a bucket load of close elections around the country, the end result is that the Republicans picked up two seats in the Senate, and lost about 30 seats in the House of Representatives, giving the Democrats the majority.

So now, dear readers, I have finally gotten to the meat of this blog.  Will our new Congress legislate, or investigate?

I have some suggestions for our Congress if they feel like performing their jobs and decide to  legislate.  Firstly, that caravan of immigrants, that caravan that the media tried to convince us was imaginary, has now appeared at our borders.  Recently, things turned ugly when bottles and rocks were thrown at our border security people.  Not only that, it is confirmed that there are more caravans on the way.  We have all heard different stories as to the composition of these caravans.  The most reliable information for me comes from the Mexican government.  I am skeptical of our media coverage, so the Mexican government has no reason to sugarcoat the caravan composition.  They are reporting that 75% are working age males.  The remaining 25% is divided between women and children.  Less than 5% of these people have a tinge of a case for political asylum.   The Mexican government has offered jobs.  But yet, they decline and keep coming.  The Mexican government has offered ‘political asylum.’  But yet, they decline and keep coming.  The Mexican government in conjunction with our border security people cite that a full 10% of these people have criminal records.  Do you want these people as your neighbors?  If these people are really trying to escape bad countries in the hope of entering our country, why are they carrying the flags of the country they left and not the flag of our country.  To me, this indicates they do not really want to assimilate and contribute to our society as Americans, but abuse our benevolence as immigrants.

So Congress, if you want to listen to the electorate and legislate:  build the wall, establish border security and pass legislation for allowing people to apply for and establish rules for becoming US citizens.  This should apply to new immigrants, and to the ‘dreamers.’

If that sounds like a boring prospect, how about addressing the problem of Russian aggression in the Ukraine and the military build-ups by both Russia and China.  Still boring?  Well, then throw in North Korea and Iran to boot.  That should keep Congress busy for a while.  Our past politicians have failed to address these issues for years and now this has festered into a bigger, global problem.

Here is a thought.  How about establishing voting requirements for elections.  You know.  Simple stuff like being a US citizen to vote in our election.  How about a photo ID to vote?  I know this would inconvenience the average US citizen about 10 minutes to prove they are actually a US citizen, but I believe that the inconvenience is well worth it.  It gores my bull when I think that my vote could be cancelled by someone not remotely eligible to vote in this country.  And with that in mind, Robert Mueller is still, after two years, trying to determine how the Russians influenced the 2016 election.  Let me help you with that Robert.  They didn’t.  After $40 million, you still cannot pinpoint Russian influence on that election.  Yet, I am sure that many non-citizens voted in our election.  The Russians could only dream of affecting our elections as much as states allowing illegals to vote.

Have you heard one item that the Democrats plan for legislation after they control the House of Representatives?  One item?  Anyone?  Naw….me neither.  What I have heard is that they plan to ‘investigate.’  What do they plan to investigate?  Well, they are foaming at the mouth about being able to investigate Donald Trump’s tax returns for the period when his father passed the corporation from himself to Donald.  Considering Fred Trump died in 1999 at the age of 93, and retired from business in the 70’s, that would be one helluva IRS investigation.  How many corporations or individuals keep records for almost 50 years!  But wait!  This investigation would make great ‘political reality TV,’ and maybe, just maybe we could create enough skepticism to get Trump impeached!

Believe it or not, I am OK with the IRS doing an audit on Donald Trump.  Because America is the land of opportunity and fairness, I would want an IRS audit done on each and every member of Congress!  I would want to know how a person gets elected to Congress as a pauper and walks away as a ‘gabillionaire.’  Wouldn’t you want to know?  How is it that Barack Obama is elected POTUS with a net worth less than mine and now has a net worth of $135 million. (Yes. That net worth is more than mine.  But I wrote this blog and what did he do?)  Don’t you want to know?

And, to make this really fair and equitable, as long as the Trump Organization is being audited, I would want the Clinton Foundation audited.  I would want the Uranium One deal investigated.  (I would actually like to see ‘all things Clinton’ investigated!)

I have this nagging feeling that far too many people in this country like and enjoy ‘political realty TV.’  I think that because of some of the candidates that won in the last midterm election.  For example, New York elected a socialist.  Furthermore, a senator from Arizona says it is OK to fight for the enemies of the US such as ISIS.  Are these people really qualified candidates?  Were they the best candidates available?  Or, were they elected to create more dissension and confusion within Congress, thereby creating more opportunities for more ‘political reality TV?’

After watching the Kavanaugh hearings (And the new Murphy Brown show!  But, more on that later.), I hope that ‘political reality TV’ is not the new norm.  If it is, heaven needs to help us through the next two years.

A lesson learned from all of this?  Grandma P and I cannot leave the country for extended periods of time.  It goes to hell in our absence and political programming like Murphy Brown appears on TV, attempting to pass itself off as a comedy.  You failed, and you have been canceled.  Thankfully, good judgement prevailed in that decision.

I am beginning to think that I, too, may be a ‘dreamer.’  I dream that maybe one day, our Congress will legislate, and eventually do what is right for America.  Legislate, not investigate.  GET TO WORK!

God Bless America, Land Filled with Debt

Today is the Fourth of July!  Or, if you just pressed 2, Quattro de Julio.  Happy BIrthday America!

The freedoms that this country enjoys did not come free.  It was gained with the sacrifice of blood and lives for over two centuries.  Our first war was the Revolutionary War.  This was the war that won our freedom from the British Empire.  For the most part, the war was fought because of, ‘taxation without representation.’  The American colonies were being taxed to support the British expansionism around the globe, without one word as to how their taxes were being used in the way of representation.  King Georgie III was not concerned about what the American colonies thought.  He was only concerned about collecting taxes.  Thus the war.

How things have changed!  {Except for the collecting of taxes!}  Now Washington, D.C. is the most powerful city in the world.  We have a strong central government which brings up the question, ‘Is our federal government focused on the proper national issues?’

Let us reflect.

Did you know that there was a petition presented recently in Washington to change the name of Ronald Reagan National Airport?  You remember Ronald Reagan.   Ronald Reagan was our 40th President of the United States.  He was  largely responsible for the downfall of the USSR and for the destruction of the Berlin Wall.  He won the Cold War!  {The Cold War was the most financially expensive war in US history.   It cost an estimated $12 trillion!}  He had many other accomplishments, but these were his biggies.

Has your curiosity been piqued?  To what do they want to change the name?  The proposed name change is the Tim Howard National Airport!  Are you excited yet?  What?  You don’t know who Tim Howard is?  Let me give you a hint,  U-S-A!  U-S-A!  Tim Howard was the goalie for the United States soccer team that just got eliminated from the World Cup competition in Brazil.  I saw the United States lose to Belgium, 2-1 in additional time.  Tim Howard made a record breaking 16 saves during that game.  Many of them were unbelievable!  The score could have been 5-0 in regulation time, but Tim Howard put up a wall in front of the American goal to force the scoreless game into extra time.

So there you have it.  Tim Howard put up a ‘human wall’ in front of the American goal, and Ronald Reagan tore down a wall between East and West Berlin.  I am sure that in the minds of some people with their ‘heads up their butts,’ these are comparable accomplishments.  Thus the proposal for the name change.  Egads!

Need another example of government focus?

Have you been following the controversy surrounding the Washington Redskins because of their name?  Yup, even our POTUS got involved with this.  He just could not pass up the opportunity to throw his weight behind a name change.

This whole incident came to a head when the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, a division of the US Patent Office, refused to extend the trademark protection of the ‘Redskins’ name.  They did this even though the US Patent Office never received one complaint about the name.  How convenient!  Some subset to the US Patent Office has decided that they are the judge and jury when it comes to a private enterprise trademark.  What happened to the good old days where patrons voted with their wallets?  If you were offended or didn’t like what you got for your entertainment dollar, you could decide not to attend and not to spend your money.  Apparently many people are not offended.   RFK Stadium is a sell out for every Redskin game.  Maybe that proposal for the Reagan National Airport name change should be targeted at RFK stadium;?  After all, Reagan was a Republican POTUS and Robert Kennedy was a Democratic Attorney General.  I think I just answered my own question.

I suspect that the owners of the Redskins will eventually change the name.  My objection is that some government autocrats think they have the authority to force this change.

Have you followed the Hobby Lobby Supreme Court decision?  The whole lawsuit was initiated because Hobby Lobby refused to provide specific types of birth control to women as a part of their health care program because of religious belief.   Hobby Lobby had an objection to the abortion component of the birth control coverage.    I find it admirable that a company provides a health care package in light of Obamacare. I find it unsettling that anyone would want to take their sex life and sex practices to a Supreme Court level.  I find it just as unsettling that the Supreme Court even reviewed this case!  Apparently we, as a nation, are willing to relinquish our individual freedoms and responsibilities.

Every time we relinquish our individual freedoms and individual responsibilities, we move one step closer to Socialism.  This explains why Hillary Clinton has come out against the Supreme Court decision.  This decision stated that closely held corporations need not support specific birth control practices.   No surprise there on the part of Hillary.

Common sense tells me that if you are mature enough to have sex, you are old enough to provide protection to avoid unprotected sex and unwanted progeny.  Somehow, I don’t think it is the responsibility of your employer to provide this protection.  It is the individual’s responsibility!  Even though I am an old fart, my last tattered biology book indicated it took two people to have sex.  That would make two people responsible.

I am personally elated that the Supreme Court did not sanction, or get involved with an individual’s sex life.  I do believe in birth control, especially by women that have children as a business to receive welfare.  I just do not see how it is the responsibility of government or business to provide birth control, yet 85% of health plans provide it.    It is bad enough that the federal government sanctions drug usage.  Oh?  You did not know?  Never mind the thriving pot business in Colorado and Washington state.  What I am talking about is that the State of Florida proposed that future welfare recipients and present state employees, be drug tested.  The welfare recipients would be denied benefits until ‘getting clean.’  They would then be periodically checked to assure continuation of benefits.   The state employees would be required to ‘get clean’ in a specified period of time, or lose their jobs.  All in all, a great proposed program!  Or at least it was until a Federal judge ruled it unconstitutional.  You would think that having less drug-dependent people would be a win-win for America!  Apparently not.

There you have it!  Si, senor to drugs, no sir to specific types of birth control.

I think the federal government needs help in focusing on national issues and prioritizing those issues.  Rather than proposing name changes for airports, reviewing  birth control or worrying about the name of a sports team, I propose they address some of the following issues.

Balancing the budget.  Hurray for us!  One of our elected officials is celebrating the fact that our national debt is increasing at a slower rate!  His reason for celebration?  It appears our national debt will only increase by about $700 billion this year rather than exceeding a trillion dollars as originally anticipated.  Wow.  Should we be planning a celebration party?   Let me make it perfectly clear.  We need to reduce spending and make an attempt to balance our inflated budget.  I wrote a blog recently about the fact that we have the highest corporate tax rate in the world.  Our highest corporate tax rate is 40% and that is before any state corporate taxes!  Since that blog, Medronic of Minnesota has announced a relocation to Ireland.  They will then have a 15% corporate tax rate.  Now, Walgreen’s is indicating it is moving out of the United States!  This is all because we have an inflated federal government and an inflated budget.  Thus the higher corporate taxes to fuel the overspending.  Expect more corporations to move.  For them, it is a no-brainer!

Illegal Adolescent Aliens.  Have you seen the pictures of the unaccompanied illegal adolescent aliens that are crossing the borders?  It is disturbing.  Adolescent aliens and all illegal aliens are an issue that can no longer be avoided.  It is an issue that cannot seem to get any traction or resolution in Washington.  I have a common sense solution.  Follow my thinking.  Pick up all these illegal adolescent aliens and bus them to Washington, D.C!  It is easy to avoid resolution when it is only a major problem for four border states and invisible in Washington.  Once the Washington Mall is overflowing with illegal adolescent aliens, I bet we would get a resolution pronto!  Here is my resolution to the problem.  Provide food and clothing as necessary, and then transport them back to their home countries!  Then – send an invoice to their home countries for the food, clothing and transport provided.  Do you think that if we invoice Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador and all responsible Central American and South American countries that the borders would become a little less porous?  I do.

Vladimar Putin.  Let me be perfectly clear, Vladimar Putin’s objective is to reestablish the USSR!   The Crimea is just the first step.  I also believe it is Putin’s first small step to determine world resolve and world reaction.  Our response?  We will sanction him to death.  Sanctions typically don’t stop tanks.

Vladimar Putin is the 21st century Adolf Hitler when in comes to European land-grabbing.  Hitler began by occupying the Sudetenland, then annexing Austria, followed by the occupation of the Germanic parts of Czechoslovakia.   He then occupied the rest of Czechoslovakia for good measure.  The invasion of Poland finally triggered a world response.  Putin is a dangerous and driven individual.  Forget about ‘cease fires’ in the Crimea and ‘nicey-nicey’ overtures toward the United States.  He is not interested in or honest about either and will continue on his mission of  reconstructing the USSR.

There you have it.  Three problems that need to be resolved.  So if anyone from Washington, D.C needs help with prioritizing or focusing on national issues, give me a call.  I have a hundred or so ideas.

God Bless America.  May we celebrate many more birthdays.