Tag Archives: Bill Clinton

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!

It’s Open Season on Non-Career Politicians in Washington, D.C.!

I will make no bones about it….I supported and voted for Donald Trump.  Why?  Well, after living through the terms of more Presidents than I care to count, I decided that maybe career politicians did not make the best Presidents.  (Okay.  I confess.  Trump makes number 13 during my lifetime!)

In the good old days, many of our Presidents were elected because of having military experience.  During my lifetime, that would have been Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, George H. W. Bush, and George W. Bush.  Ten of the thirteen Presidents during my lifetime had some form of military experience.  The three that have not served in the military are: Clinton, Obama and Trump.

So, for the last three that did not have military experience, which were the professional career politicians?  That would be Clinton and Obama.  That leaves just one person left and he was a career businessman as opposed to a career politician, Donald Trump.  And Washington, D.C., the political muck-hole and swamp of the political world cannot tolerate a non-career politician in the Oval Office.  Thus he, and anyone associated with him, have become targets in a political assassination game that the majority of this country finds detestable.

So what were the significant contributions and accomplishments of William Jefferson Clinton, the first non-military experienced president during my lifetime?  He was the Attorney General for the State of Arkansas, before becoming the Governor of Arkansas.  He then became the third youngest POTUS in 1993 and was POTUS until 2001.  In today’s political arena, he would have been considered a moderate. With some of his legislation, by today’s Democratic socialist yardstick, he may have even been considered slightly moderate to conservative!  But Bill also had the distinction of being only the second POTUS to ever be impeached.  (The first POTUS to be impeached was Andrew Johnson.)  Yup.  Bill had an affair with a White House intern and lied about it before congressional committees.  He lied about the affair before the 1996 election, which he won, and was impeached in 1998 after scathing evidence was presented concerning the affair.  Because the Republicans did not want to give Al Gore, the Vice President, presidential exposure and experience before the next election, Bill was allowed to finish out his term.  Bill was a lawyer.  As scandalous as his affair was, it pales in comparison as to what he and his wife have done since his presidency.

Barack Obama had a different career path.  Initially, he was a community organizer.  I am not sure for what organization, but that is what he did.  He served 7 years in the Illinois senate.  He then won election as a U.S. Senator.  Within 150 days after becoming a U.S. Senator, Obama began his campaign to become POTUS.  Amazingly, he won the Democratic nomination for POTUS, defeating the well-entrenched, well-funded Hillary Clinton.  He served as POTUS from 2009 to 2017. He was also a lawyer.  (And, from the day he was inaugurated until the day he left the presidency, his net worth increased 30 times!  Wow! )

Now along comes the billionaire and successful businessman, Donald Trump.  The one big advantage for Trump was that because he was not a career politician, he did not owe his political success to any particular lobby group or voting bloc.  Thus, unlike Clinton and Obama, he could not be controlled by campaign contributors or lobbyists.  He spent half of what Hillary Clinton spent on her campaign.  Hillary was the first politician in the United States to spend over a BILLION dollars on a campaign. The Washington smut machine does not like independent players on its field.  They are considered uncontrollable, and….they can be dangerous because you just never know what they can do.  When I was a teenager, I asked my dad why he voted for John F. Kennedy.  My dad’s reply?  I voted for JFK because “its tough to bribe a millionaire.”  Big Daddy G was ahead of his time without knowing it.  Now Trump is in the same position, except he is a billionaire.

Then, Trump had the audacity to place the best and brightest in his cabinet positions and his advisory positions.  As he was making these selections, I said to Grandma P, “This country could not afford to hire the people that Trump is appointing.”  They were the best and the brightest people that could be gotten.  They were paragons of industry, high level military leaders; and the best at everything.  He made these appointments without having to settle political debts, with one exception.  He even appointed Ben Carson, a former political opponent, to be Director of Housing and Urban Development.  How many people would do that?

But the media and the denizens of the deepest part of the ‘swamp’ reared their ugly heads and wasted no time in doing it.  The new word of the day became the ‘I’ word….impeachment.  And they began using this word before he was inaugurated!   But wait…for impeachment to take place, one would have to commit some impeachable offense.  So, in the truest tradition of fake it or make it up news,  we ended up with the Mueller investigation.  It is difficult to remember that this investigation began to determine the Russian influence and tampering in our last election.  It now has become an extended ‘witch hunt’ into Donald Trump and anyone associated with, or close to Donald Trump.

I am not sure what Paul Manafort is guilty of, but I am sure it was not something that required a 4:00AM arrest at his home, and incarceration without bail.  His arrest, when he answered the door in his underwear, was well recorded and publicized.  How convenient.  Manafort was the former campaign chairman for the Trump campaign.  In the good old days, those being any days before the Obama presidency, Manafort would have been subject to an IRS audit, not a publicized arrest by the FBI.

Some of Trump’s former friends and associates have come under scrutiny because of the Mueller investigation and are pleading guilty and plea bargaining to circumstances that are not really criminal.  Why would they do that?  Well…it is really quite simple.  Once the Justice Department, the IRS or the FBI wants to get into your knickers, they can do it with a battalion of attorneys that are all on the government payroll and at tax payer expense.  The accused, on the other hand, has to pay for a defense out of their own pockets.  With the Mueller investigation now rapidly approaching two years of existence, it is evident to any accused to what lengths our misguided legal system will go to harass.  A lengthy court battle would put most people into financial ruination.  Or, you could get a get out of jail card if you turn on Trump?  You would have to be some kind of person not to take a plea deal and turn on Trump with the alternative being financial ruination.  Our misguided legal/judicial system is using this sentiment to their advantage.  Rather than handling the accused persons with ‘kid gloves,’ they come at them with a sledge hammer.

But now as the skins of the onion are being peeled away, we are learning that this ‘witch hunt’ has been coordinated between three departments within the US Government; Justice, FBI and the CIA.  All of this dependent on a fictitious Fusion GPS dossier that was funded by the Clinton campaign.  If I am reading the tea leaves correctly, John Brennan, former head of the CIA, submitted the Fusion GPS report to the FBI while knowing it was all baloney.  The well entrenched FBI Obamaites/Clintonites could not pass up the opportunity to take this to the mat and received all kinds of judicial support, all the while knowing it was baloney, also.  Remember in an earlier paragraph where I said Trump appointed people without political debt except for one?  That one person would be Jeff Sessions, the current Attorney General .  Sessions was an early Trump supporter, and was rewarded with the appointment.  When the issue of the Mueller investigation gained steam, Sessions recused himself.  Big mistake for him and for Trump.  The now steam-rolling Mueller investigation has proceeded unencumbered because the Attorney General has taken a ‘hands off’ approach to the whole affair and the investigation is in the hands of entrenched ‘Anti-Trumpers.”

The arrogance of some of the key people concerning this investigation is breath taking.  John Brennan, the head CIA ‘spook’, has not found a TV camera he doesn’t like in his jihad to belittle Donald Trump and his presidency.  (Aren’t ‘spooks’ suppose to keep their mouths shut?)  Peter Strzok, the most arrogant piece of beetle dung that is collecting a government paycheck, said in a congressional hearing that, he “knew what was best for Americans.”  This was suppose to justify his nefarious actions and his office affair?  Peter, I know what is best for America today…not having our governmental agencies politically weaponized to influence this nation, favor a political party, or chastise and harass a candidate/elected official.  Brennan was CIA, Strzok was FBI, and Bruce Ohr was at the DOJ.  It was Ohr’s wife that worked at Fusion GPS and submitted the fictitious report that worked its way through all three agencies.  

Why are some of the leaders of these three organizations (and the all-to-willing media) attacking Trump and his associates with such ‘heavy  handedness?’  In football parlance, ‘the best defense is a good offense’ and there is not anyone more offensive than the above mentioned individuals.  They are up to their crooked necks in a highly illegal and treasonous  cabal at the highest levels of our government.

If I had a genie in a lamp and could rub it three times for three wishes (did I mention my genie would look like Sandra Bullock?) I would wish for the following.   Wish one:  Jeff Sessions is replaced by Trey Gowdy as Attorney General. Wish two:  Brennan, Strzok and Ohr all lose their jobs, lose their retirements and have their security clearances stripped.  Wish three:  The legal process will finally investigate that the Clinton money machine and Barack Obama are behind all the ‘Anti-Trump’ machinations taking place in ‘Swampington, D.C.’  One can only hope for justice…finally.  Obama may have only been a community organizer, but he certainly is excellent at organizing resistance.

Who is watching the top policemen (FBI), when its top hierarchy is loaded with crooked cops?

Hopefully, God and the midterm election will save this great nation.

Barack Hussein Obama…The Worst President Ever???

I am not a sexist!  My realtor and my investment adviser are both women.  During my stint with cancer, two of my three doctors were women.  One of these women, Dr. White, performed three surgeries on me.  During one of my surgeries, my entire operating staff was women.  I know of many fine female officers and female enlisted people in the military and have had the privilege of serving with them.

I am not a racist.  I get along famously with people of all races that share my values.  During my experiences in the military, I was ‘color blind.’  That is because the military is truly an ‘equal opportunity employer.’  An officer or an enlisted person of color had to reach the same milestones, perform to the same standards and obtain the same educational standards as us ‘white guys.’  Everyone was held to the same standard.  Period.  No one was more or less privileged because of race.

I am not any other ‘phobe’ or ‘ism’ as interpreted in today’s media.  So, now if you have read this far, you are wondering why the wordy introduction.  Well….it’s because I am going to say and write something that very few people have the courage to say or even discuss.  I believe Barack Hussein Obama will go down as the worse POTUS this country has ever had and grossly abused his presidential powers while in office.

TEA PARTY

Prior to the 2010 midterm election, there was a movement afoot that was called the ‘Tea Party.’  The purpose of this organization and its increasingly popular movement was to basically cut taxes and spending within the federal government.  They derived their name from the infamous tea party during the Revolution, in protest of the Brits placing taxes on tea and other British imports.  Many of the chapters of the growing Tea Party movement applied to the IRS for tax exempt/non-profit status.  This was so they could raise funds and purchase advertising to advance their conservative cause.  The result?  Lois Lerner, then head of the IRS refused tax exempt status, and then started promoting IRS investigations and audits into the founders!  Personal vendettas were waged by the IRS!  Do you remember Lois Lerner?  She was the one called before a congressional inquiry and pleaded the fifth amendment when asked questions!  A government official, paid by us tax payers pleaded the fifth.  She immediately resigned her position and began collecting a golden parachute retirement.   Lois Lerner was not smart enough or ‘ballsy’ enough to wage this vendetta on her own.  It had to come down from her boss and from her bosses boss.  That would have been Barack Obama.

URANIUM ONE

While Hillary was Secretary of State, the United States decided to sell a large portion of its uranium reserves to…of all the people in the world…the RUSSIANS!  Oh yeah!  These are the same Russians that are being investigated for tampering in our elections.  But during this marvelous deal, the Russians got the uranium and the Clinton Foundation got a $147 million contribution.  Where did that uranium go?  Who will use it and for what purpose?  Will it be used in weaponry against us or our allies?  So, who is ultimately responsible for this deal?  That would be Barack Obama.  And, dear readers, what will be the consequences if a nuclear explosive device is used and the device reads, “This uranium was graciously provided by the people of the United States.”  (As a speculation, do you think all of the $147 million stayed with the Clinton’s, or could some of it been used to grease the wheels of this transaction in Washington?)

BOWE BERGDAHL and BENGHAZI

Do you remember what the reasoning was for exchanging the AWOL Bowe Bergdahl for five Taliban commanders being held in Guantanamo Bay?  Well, according to Carolyn Hayden, spokesperson for the National Security Council, it was for “protecting the lives of Americans abroad and protecting US soldiers.”  (Three of those five Taliban commanders immediately joined the battle against America.  How is that for protecting US soldiers?)   By law, Congress was to be notified 30 days in advance of any releases to be made from Guantanamo Bay.  How long a notice did the White House give Congress?  TWO HOURS!

If the White House was so concerned about American citizens abroad, then we should have sent at least two naval armadas to rescue the US ambassador to Libya and the American protection staff.  But, sadly, we did nothing.  Rumors persisted from the Pentagon and through military channels that a relief flight of planes were dispatched from Italy, but were ordered to return to base.  The rumors also stated that the stand-down order came from the Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton.  But, the Department of Defense and the Pentagon do not take orders from, or answer to the Secretary of State.  They take orders from one person only; the Commander in Chief, Barack Obama.

So let me get this straight.  One AWOL for five experienced terrorists represented good American policy, but rescuing Americans in Libya from terrorists was not.

PAYMENT FOR AMERICAN HOSTAGES and THE IRANIAN NUCLEAR DEAL

I will be the first to say I am confused about the two events mentioned above.  Supposedly, we shipped $400 million to Iran to release Americans held by the Iranians.  Rumor has it that they were not released until a cargo plane loaded with pallets full of $100 bills arrived in Tehran.  The chiropractors in Iran were busy for weeks adjusting the backs of those poor individuals that had to carry all that money.

Then there is the murky Iranian Nuclear agreement.  Supposedly, for a paltry $1.7 billion, the Iranians would discontinue nuclear material production.  Who provided that money?  Did France, Germany or England provide any of that money?  Now, they are criticizing Trump for leaving this deal?  Also, the Iranians are threatening us by stating they are going to step-up production of nuclear material.  Do you believe for one New York minute that they ever stopped?  I surely don’t, and, we gave them enough money to fund terrorism for quite some time.  Look at what they are doing in Syria and what they have continually attempted to do in Iraq.  There weren’t any teeth in that initial Iranian nuclear agreement for non-compliance and now the Iranians are waving the stupidity of that deal in our faces using our money.

ROBERT MUELLER INVESTIGATION

Are you getting tired about this investigation?  I know I am.  But here is the spin coming out of the people trying to hide the real intent of this politically motivated witch hunt.  The US government was concerned about the Russian interference in US elections. So where did they decide to look for glaring examples of this Russian interference?  Well, the best place to look would be in the campaign headquarters of the new Republican candidate for President, Donald Trump.  They must have thought there were Russians under every desk and borscht and cheap vodka running down the hallways.

But wait…what was the basis of looking only at the Trump campaign headquarters, and not the Democratic presidential headquarters?  Well, it was a document put together by a former British, disgraced agent working for a company called Fusion GPS.  The purpose of this company is to dig up smut on political opponents. And the Fusion GPS policy is that if smut cannot be found, then make it up.  This matches most of today’s media coverage.   The FBI, under the watchful eye of its egotistical leader, James Comey, received warrants from the Justice Department allowing wiretaps of Trump staffers.  And now, we have learned lately that the FBI placed a mole within the Trump organization.

This whole affair is politically motivated from top to bottom.  How can I say that with certainty?  If the FBI was indeed looking for only Russian influence in US elections, wouldn’t they inform Trump or someone on his staff about what they were doing and ask their cooperation?  From the reaction by the Trump administration, I am sure no one knew about any FBI informant and wire tapping.   And who was the first national politician to use Fusion GPS?  That would be Barack Obama, as he hired them to find smut about Mitt Romney in the 2012 presidential elections.  Who do you think authorized this witch hunt and allowed the placement of a mole in Trump headquarters?  Again, I contend that would be Barack Obama.  This, my fellow Americans, is strictly against the law!

SUMMARY

If, as I suspect, Barack Obama ordered or allowed the placement of an informant in Trump’s campaign headquarters, he broke the law.  He has used the Justice Department as his battering ram because of two weak attorney generals that would acquiesce to any of his wants, Eric Holder and Loretta Lynch.  This could ultimately make Watergate look like a pizza party in comparison.

Barack Obama bypassed congressional procedure by releasing five dangerous Taliban commanders without proper notification.  This is a dereliction of duty and an over reach of presidential power.

Barack Obama stifled political freedom by utilizing the IRS as a battering ram to squelch the emergence of the Tea Party movement during a mid-term election.    This, my fellow Americans, is against the law.  And with Lois Lerner pleading the fifth amendment to direct congressional inquiry questions, the obvious link between her and Obama was never established.

The Obama administration policy concerning dealing with anything Muslim was very muddied.  We trade five Muslim extremists for one AWOL soldier, pay $400 million for the release of our hostages from Iran, do not attempt a rescue in Benghazi from Muslim extremists, and give $1.7 billion to Iran in the hopes that they will abide by ceasing the production of nuclear materials.  If this were a game, the score would be: Muslim extremists – 4, USA – 0!

But the one act that is the most serious is the Uranium One deal.  That deal should never have happened and it did by bypassing Congress.  If the Russians sold that uranium to North Korea, Iran, or any other country for nefarious purposes, then I would say that Barack Obama has performed a treasonous act.

The one thing that concerns me the most about Barack Obama and his administration?  With very few exceptions, he has been given a pass by the media for all of these events.  Real reporting, real journalism should have uncovered these events and exposed the gross negligence of his administration.  He has been given the presidency and excuses, because of his race.  Did he get a pass because anyone who criticized him would have been branded a ‘racist’ during his politically correct administration?   He should not have had a second term.  In a word, he made the ‘swamp’ deeper and wider.  I am confident history will prove me right.

There you have it and I will no doubt be called a racist for my remarks.  But just like a stalwart statue in the wind, I am not going to waver even though I may have some pigeons crap on me!

Sexual Harassment. The New ‘Political Weapon of Choice?’

As a child, did you ever go into the deep end of a pool, when you knew it was wrong?  We all have experienced the reckless sense of adventure at one time in our lives, and that is what I am experiencing as I write this blog.

As I reflect on 2017, I am intrigued and concerned that the new ‘political weapon of choice,’ is the accusation of sexual harassment.  Oh, don’t get me wrong, there are definitely some first class slime balls in this world that use their position and authority, such as Harvey Weinstein.  But are there innocent people being accused?  And what the heck entails sexual harassment anyway?  Does it involve physical actions or can it be words?  So here I am, Grandpa T, wading into the deeper water without my pink and lime green water wings.

One of my concerns about the subject of ‘sexual harassment’ is that it can be almost indefensible if you are accused of sexual harassment.  Let me provide a scenario.  Accuser: “I was subjected to sexual harassment from my boss at my workplace.  Response: “Why didn’t you report this?”  Accuser:  “I was afraid I would lose my job.”  Whether it be true or not, how does the accused defend themselves against such an accusation?  No witnesses.  No proof.  But the accusation itself receives the prominence of a verdict without a trial.  This is especially so in today’s over-reactive society.

The first person that set the stage for sexual harassment was our POTUS, Donald Trump.  If you remember, during the Republican primaries, about a dozen women jumped on the bandwagon and accused Donald Trump of sexual harassment.  What was intriguing about these accusations was that they all were within about 36 hours, and they were made only when it appeared Donald was a viable candidate to receive the Republican nomination.  Donald’s response?  After denying the accusations, he said he would sue each and every accuser. (When you are a billionaire, you can afford such things!)  The result?  The accusers disappeared…almost miraculously!  Hmmmm.

But now, Trump did receive the Republican nomination.  So, the media had to jump into the sexual harassment foray.   The Washington Post, one month before the November election, released a 2005 video of Donald Trump discussing his ‘lewd treatment of women.’  Admittedly, Donald did shoot his mouth off when he said that, “if you grab a woman by her xxxxx, you can get anything you want.”  Lewd?  Absolutely!  Sexual Harassment?  I’m not so sure.  Doesn’t sexual harassment involve the occurrence of an actual physical act?  The reason why I mention this, is that in my lifetime, I have had occasion to be in a locker room or two.  The conversations in those locker rooms seldom were about such subjects as global warming, world peace or balancing the federal budget.  They were usually about the physical attributes of the opposite sex, the desire to be able to study those attributes more closely, or the desire to initiate contact with those physical attributes.  All kinds of ‘locker room’ talk, but no action.  Is that sexual harassment? (Does this kind of talk not take place in female gatherings?  Why are the Chippendale’s so popular?)

A couple of weeks ago, on her NBC morning show, Megyn Kelly had a program interviewing women about  sexual harassment.  I caught part of that program.  One of her guests spent an inordinately amount of boring time relating that she had been ‘ogled’ in the workplace.  Ogled?  Are you kidding me?  So let me get this straight.  This woman thought that because of the way men look at her, she is being sexually harassed?  Call me old-fashioned, call me ignorant, but in all the days I have walked on planet Earth, I thought women wanted to be noticed by men.  If you are married and your wife just gets back from having her hair and nails done, what do you think you are having for dinner if you don’t notice said hair and nails and make a positive comment about the beautiful results of those treatments?  I’m smart enough to know where my bread is buttered as I always notice and make a positive comment that is always appreciated by Grandma P.  My personal Grandpa T theory is that if women did not want to be noticed, they would all dress like the Amish!  I have never been accused of sexual harassment, by any woman, when I commented on how lovely they looked, how nice their hair looked, or the beauty of her dress.  I was thanked every time.

2017 has become a milestone year for the accusations of sexual harassment as the ‘political weapon of choice.’  Look at all the men who have fallen from grace this year.  Representative John Conyers of Michigan, Senator Al Franken of Minnesota, and senate candidate Roy Moore of Alabama have all been in the cross-hairs of sexual harassment accusations.  Each of the circumstances for these three men are different.

John Conyers is the most interesting in that he has been a Congressman for over 50 years.  He was the first black person to achieve this goal.  But, one of his staffers accused him of sexual harassment, and was paid a $27,000 settlement with the use of public funds.  A second accuser came forth, and after an investigation by the House Ethics Committee, it was determined that these accusers, plus sexual harassment allegations by others, were true.  The Democrats in Congress withdrew their support and called for his resignation.  He resigned on December 5.

I am not exactly sure of what Republican senatorial candidate Roy Moore did in Alabama.  During Moore’s election campaign for the Senate, a total of nine women accused Moore of inappropriate sexual or social conduct.  Three of the women said they had been sexually assaulted by Moore when they were aged 14, 15, and 28.  The other six described him pursuing a romantic relationship with them while he was in his 30s and they were as young as 16, (the age of consent in Alabama) but said there had not been any inappropriate sexual contact.  I find a couple of disturbing items about the Roy Moore affair.  Firstly, Roy Moore had been in 8 previous elections in Alabama.  Why did these accusations not surface at an earlier election?  Secondly, these accusations were made 40 years after the events occurred.  Should there be some kind of ‘statute of limitations’ on sexual harassment accusations?  Don’t think for one minute that I am defending Roy Moore.  I am not and I am glad he lost even though I would have appreciated a different Republican candidate in the race.

But my favorite victim of sexual harassment allegations is that mental giant from Minnesota, Senator Al Franken.  Al has a distinction among the disgraced and fallen that the others do not….proof.  Lots and lots of pictures as proof.  Forgetting that he was no longer a writer on Saturday Night Live, and was a U.S Senator, Al thought it would be hilarious to have a picture taken with his hands cupped over the breasts of a sleeping beauty while on a USO tour.  Now there is a display of class!  After this picture became public, more accusers came forth describing how he grabbed their buttocks while having their pictures taken with him at the Minnesota State Fair.  After that admission, numerous other accusers have come forth.  Apparently, Al had roaming hands and an inquisitive tongue.  He has appropriately resigned the Senate, and will be replaced on January 2 by the female Lt. Governor from Minnesota.  In a resignation speech that contained no apology and absolutely no remorse for his actions, the fallen Senator took the podium to point out the faults of the POTUS.  Apparently, Mensa Al was drug-addled during the Bill Clinton administration.

Most of these guys got what they deserved.  But that still does not adequately define sexual harassment.  Should a woman be required to tolerate unwanted ‘touchy feely?’  Absolutely not! (I am being sexist here, and assuming all victims are female.)   And I would believe that a stern verbal warning would stop 95% of the men in their tracks.  The other 5%, as repeating offenders need their faces slapped!  A woman always has the option of reporting the harassment.  If it cannot be reported to the boss (because he is the accused!), report it to the authorities.  With the temperament of intolerance in today’s society, the authorities will definitely get involved.

The real gray area in the sexual harassment equation is the unwanted verbal harassment.  Are words really harassment?  The receiver may not appreciate the words, but at least there is no physical contact.  My advice?  Refer to the paragraph immediately above.

Does sexual harassment exist?  Absolutely!  I am concerned that it has become the ‘political weapon of choice.’  There seem to be no time limits, as witnessed in the Roy Moore case.  It seems to appear when it is politically convenient and makes the most impact, such as for Roy Moore and Donald Trump.  And, the accusation itself can have the prominence of guilt without trial. All of these items make it the perfect ‘political weapon of choice.’

There you have it for 20017.  I completed two grueling laps around the pool after I found my pink and lime green water wings.  Should I be concerned when I caught Grandma P attempting to pull the air plug?

PS:  Happy New Year everyone!  May everyone have a healthy and prosperous year.  Yesterday, on the anniversary of my blog, I received over 200,000 additional unique hits over the last year.  Thank you for allowing me to indulge in my hobby.

Is Donald Trump Right About Election Fraud?

Donald Trump has been pounding on the podium recently contending that there is ‘election fraud’ during this upcoming election.  Is he right?

I believe that there could be election fraud, but not for the same reasons as Trump.  Are you familiar with the Voter ID Laws?  A voter ID law is a law that requires some form of official identification in order for a person to register to vote, receive a ballot for an election, or to vote.

In the United States, voter ID laws have been passed in thirty-three states.  At the federal level, the 2002 Help America Vote Act requires a voter ID for all new voters in federal elections who registered by mail and who did not provide a driver’s license number or the last four digits of a Social Security number that was matched against government records.

Voter ID laws first generated controversy in 1999 when Virginia attempted to implement an ID requirement in a pilot program.  Proponents argue that the laws are a common-sense effort to reduce voter fraud and place little burden on voters.  Opponents argue that voter fraud is extremely rare and has been magnified as an issue to create barriers to voter registration and voting that discriminates against minority groups and others who are statistically less likely to possess photo IDs.

So here are the ways that the states have dealt with voter ID requirements.  Seven states require strict photo ID in order to vote.  Three states have a strict non-photo ID requirement.  Nine states have a non-strict photo ID requirement, which includes my state.  I find this interesting as my home state would not issue us a ballot without a picture ID, so I am confused as to what non-strict photo ID requirement actually means.  It’s not the first time I have been confused.  I digress. Thirteen states have a non-strict non-photo ID requirement.  Appallingly, there are eighteen states and the District of Columbia that do not require any ID to vote at the ballot box.

By now, you realize that the voter ID requirements are certainly diverse and nondescript. If I could provide simple definitions for those five levels of voting requirements, I would.  But here is where I become concerned.  I view my vote as being precious as it is a part of the great democratic process by which we elect our political representatives.  Nowhere in any of these laws does it require proof of citizenship.  There are many states that will issue photo IDs without requiring proof of citizenship.  Thus, with the photo ID, an illegal alien is now voting in our elections.  With the number of illegal aliens now in the United States, there is little doubt that they will influence this election.

I have needed a photo ID to board a plane, to board a cruise ship, to renew my car insurance, to use a credit card, to write a check, to buy Sudafed, to see a doctor, to check in to a clinic or hospital and to vote.; to name a few.     How is this discriminatory as people of all races and backgrounds do at least two or three of what I have listed.  Provide a birth certificate and get a photo ID.  How difficult is that?  Yet, I have seen people vote by presenting an electric bill with an address that is located in the polling place precinct.  No ID was required as to whether the voter was the name on the electric bill.  How many times could that electric bill be used to vote?  How many times can dead people continue to vote?  No, I am not making this up.

Minnesota has had two election recounts in recent years.  In both instances, the Republican candidates where leading by small margins.  After the recount, both candidates lost.  In both cases, uncounted ballots were suddenly located in the heart of the liberal metropolitan area.  Surprisingly, just enough Democrat votes were found.  Voter fraud?  Ballot box stuffing?

Also in Minnesota, a young reporter went into a courthouse in a Minneapolis suburb with a hidden mini-camera.  He went into the courthouse with the following story, “I work in a nursing home, and I am concerned that some of our patients will have difficulty getting to the polling places.”  The result? The clerk handed him 25 absentee ballots without question, without proof.  What happened next? He was able to do it again with the same results at another courthouse!  Voter fraud?   That little item appeared on 60 Minutes.

It astounds me that we now have chips on our credit cards to avoid theft, but far less care is taken to protect the sanctity of our elections. If this is what Trump is referring to when he speaks of election fraud, then I certainly can concur.

Or, is Trump referring to the biased media reporting?  During the last debate, he came under fire for what he said about women in a tape from 2005.  His type of talk was referred to as ‘locker room talk.’ I have referred to it as ‘gutter talk.’  (By the way, this kind of talk would eliminate 90% of the men I have known in my life from being president, as well as an equal amount of women!)   Either way, the screaming liberals came out of the woodwork to express their disdain for such talk.  Republican politicians began jumping ship from his support. Donald scored some points during the debate by saying that talking about women was one thing, but abusing them in action was another.  Of course, this was a not so veiled reference to Bill Clinton. That pretty much rocked Hillary for the rest of the debate.   An then….and then….just as Grandma P predicted  (which I found very uncanny and somewhat frightening) women could not come forth fast enough to tell their stories of how Donald Trump groped them and made sexual advances upon them.  This was no doubt to bring Donald down to the level of Bill (he would have to practice to match Bill!) and to detract from those damn pesky deleted emails that Wikileaks keeps publishing.  As I am writing this, more of these accusation stories have proven to be fictitious.

Those deleted emails are getting more interesting by the day.  They have indicated that there is collusion between the Clinton campaign and the media.  There is plenty of evidence of what was done to erase those damaging emails.  There are references about influence peddling as Secretary of State coupled with  contributions to the Clinton Foundation.  There is now evidence that they attempted to pressure the FBI to declassify some of the emails, so the campaign can say that no classified emails were sent on a non-secure computer.  It appears Hillary received the questions concerning the debates before the debates.  Bill Clinton received a million dollar birthday gift from the country of Qatar, while at the same time, the State Department was indicating that Qatar was sponsoring terrorism!   I am waiting for the shoe to drop on Benghazi and the Clinton Foundation. The Clinton Foundation being the personal piggy bank of the Clinton family and no doubt funding a huge portion of her election campaign with foreign contributors.  Of course, this is illegal, but that has not stopped the Clinton money machine yet.

But with all of this information about the missing emails….with all the serious illegal, immoral and indecent items that are being released in these emails….the mainstream media has devoted seven times more TV air time to Trump’s female accusers than they have on the deleted emails.  In fact, some of the major TV networks are not reporting about the released emails at all!

The timing of these women accusing Trump could not be more suspicious.  If they were so concerned about how he treated women, why did they not come forth during the primaries.  Certainly these maidens of virtue would have been Ted Cruz supporters and would have wanted to do the proper Christian thing.  But noooooooo, after winning some points against Bill during the last debate, that is the response that Trump received.  I am not saying Trump is an angel, but the timing and the number of these accusations appears to be coordinated.

It is obvious to me that these ranting self-righteous Liberals are not students of history.  The Democratic party has had more than their fair share of presidential and political bad boys   When Franklin D. Roosevelt died in Warm Springs, Georgia; he was not with Eleanor, his wife.  He was with his mistress of decades, Lucy Mercer.  We all know that JFK was a presidential bad boy.  So were his brothers Teddy and Bobby.  Then we go to LBJ.  Another presidential bad boy who had mistresses in the White House.  Then there is Bill Clinton.  “I did not have relations with that woman.” Well, he did have relations with that woman and lied numerous times about it.  “People who live in glass houses should not throw stones!”

If Jesus Christ would appear on earth and run for president as a Republican, I am convinced the liberal, biased media would tear him apart.

This is the sleaziest election of my lifetime.  The personal attacks have no boundaries or limitations. I fear it will only sink further before election day.   It is very disheartening to see the media, our watch dogs of society and of truth, fall lockstep into this biased reporting and smear campaign.  Forget the issues, don’t report the relevance of those missing emails….smear, smear, smear!

Does Donald Trump have justification for saying the election campaign is rigged?  If you take into consideration the biased media, fictitious accusations, voters voting without an ID, voters voting who may not be US citizens, well, how could you disagree.

God Help America.  God Bless America.