Highlights of the News

"This debate is giving dumpster fires a bad name," according to the National Dumpster Fire Association.

— GregGutfeld (@greggutfeld) February 26, 2020

Apparently the last Democrat debate was chaotic, disorganized, and unpleasant. In other words, it was an accurate portrayal of the Party Of Obama.

ITEM 1: Jennie Taer reported, "A federal appeals court in New York ruled Wednesday that the Trump administration has the right to withhold law enforcement grants to sanctuary cities.

"The case involved seven states: New York, Connecticut, New Jersey, Washington, Massachusetts, Virginia and Rhode Island.

"All of those states sued the Trump administration for withholding over the Justice Department’s April 2017 letters requiring proof of compliance with U.S. immigration law for funding."

These are law enforcement grants. If you don't enforce the law, you don't get one.

ITEM 2: The Department of Justice announced "the creation of a section dedicated to investigating and litigating revocation of naturalization.  The Denaturalization Section will join the existing sections within the Civil Division’s Office of Immigration Litigation — the District Court Section and the Appellate Section.  This move underscores the Department’s commitment to bring justice to terrorists, war criminals, sex offenders, and other fraudsters who illegally obtained naturalization.

"While the Office of Immigration Litigation already has achieved great success in the denaturalization cases it has brought, winning 95% of the time, the growing number of referrals anticipated from law enforcement agencies motivated the creation of a standalone section dedicated to this important work."

Denaturalization is not just for Nazi war criminals anymore. But will brother marrying congresswomen be hardest hit?

ITEM 3: Politico reported, "Lawmakers pressured Trump officials Wednesday to ramp up their response to the Corona Virus threat with far more funding and better coordination through a new czar, a move the administration debated throughout the day until President Donald Trump appointed his vice president to serve that role.

"At a closed-door huddle between Republican and Democratic spending leaders on Wednesday, lawmakers began to map out the congressional response with a massive emergency funding package that would far exceed Trump’s own spending request earlier this week."

The way you avoid an expensive perpetual bureaucracy is to not start one. It's an emergency, so the president sent in Mike Pence. He's the backup president. Use him once in a while. He did a fine job in June negotiating with Mexico to get it to protect our border.

It's the flu. Wash your hands, cover your coughs, quarantine those who get it, and -- pay attention San Francisco -- arrest people who dare poop in the street. Soap and water save plenty of lives.

Oh and stock up on toilet paper. You can never have too much toilet paper.

ITEM 4: Yahoo Finance reported, "A global outbreak of the new strain of Corona Virus has put a stick in the spokes of many supply chains that rely on China’s manufacturing.

"However, some companies may be in a slightly better position than they otherwise might have due to the China-US trade war, a major market narrative since January 2018 when President Trump announced additional tariffs on Chinese imports.

"Because of the protracted trade war, some U.S. companies sought to get shipments out of China ahead of previously scheduled tariffs, according to a note from Wells Fargo securities."

President Donald John Trump was three chess moves ahead. He knew there would be a problem with the Red China supply line someday.

ITEM 5: The Associated Press reported, "Flush with cash, President Donald Trump’s campaign is stepping up its outreach to black Americans as it tries to claw away support from the traditionally Democratic voting bloc ahead of November’s general election.

"Trump’s campaign is announcing Wednesday that it is opening 15 Black Voices for Trump Community Centers in the coming weeks in major cities in battleground states.

"'While the other side is focused on beating up each other, we’re focused on growing the party,' said Trump senior adviser Jared Kushner. 'You’re never going to get the votes you don’t ask for.'

"The offices will feature a line of campaign swag adopting the woke label, and videos of prominent Trump surrogates like Diamond and Silk explaining their support for the president and pamphlets outlining the president’s record.

"A spin on the traditional field office, the centers will help spread the world about Trump’s efforts on criminal justice reform and support for historically black colleges and universities. They will also showcase the overall state of the economy under Trump. Unemployment for black Americans has hit record lows in recent months."

The biggest beneficiary may be Mike Pence when he runs in 2024. The Donald is laying a foundation for the future.

ITEM 6: The Daily Beast reported, "Following MSNBC contributor Dr. Jason Johnson’s inflammatory remarks about supporters and campaign staffers of Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), the academic has been temporarily benched by the network, sources confirmed to The Daily Beast.

"In recent months, Johnson — a regular fixture of the network’s Democratic primary analysis — has drawn considerable heat for his relentlessly anti-Sanders commentary on MSNBC, which has also come under fire from the left for its skeptical and largely negative coverage of the democratic-socialist senator.

"During an interview last week on SiriusXM’s The Karen Hunter Show, Johnson claimed 'racist white liberals' support Sanders and that the senator has done 'nothing for intersectionality.'"

Sigh.

Let's go over this again. It is OK to call Republicans racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic – Islamophobic – you name it. But Lord help the commentator who calls a Democrat that. Being black did not save Doctor Johnson for being punished for calling Breadline Bernie racist.

ITEM 7: CNBC reported, "President Donald Trump’s campaign sued The New York Times on Wednesday for libel over an opinion article, saying the newspaper published its allegedly false claims last year with the 'intentional purpose' of damaging Trump’s chances for reelection this year.

"The campaign said that the Times falsely reported 'as fact a conspiracy with Russia' in the op-ed written by Max Frankel, which was published on March 27, 2019, under the headline 'The Real Trump-Russia Quid Pro Quo.'

"Frankel is a former executive editor of the newspaper."

America needs tougher libel laws -- and better newspapers.

ITEM 8: The Boston Globe endorsed Elizabeth Warren. It said, "But one candidate stands out as a leader with the qualifications, the track record, and the tenacity to defend the principles of democracy, bring fairness to an economy that is excluding too many Americans, and advance a progressive agenda."

So far, no major newspaper has endorsed the Honeymooner in Moscow.

In 2016, the score was Hillary 500, President Donald John Trump 28 in newspaper and magazine endorsements. Looks like the papers are aiming to be just as irrelevant in 2020.

ITEM 9: NPR reported, "With An Election On The Horizon, Older Adults Get Help Spotting Fake News."

Honey, we can spot it better than a recent Boston College graduate. The article itself is Fake News.

ITEM 10: Jonathan Chait of New York magazine reported, "Bernie: I’d Rather Lose Than Let Bloomberg Spend Money on Me."

Voters will grant his wish then.

The article ended, "This is definitely a principle. If you truly, deeply object to the idea of billionaires exerting disproportionate influence over political campaigns to the point that you’d rather lose than let one of them help you, then Sanders deserves credit for ideological consistency. But Democrats should consider the possibility that Sanders is not merely pretending to be a fanatic. He may be prepared to follow his convictions to their logical conclusion, at whatever cost. And the message to Democratic voters is, if you want your nominee to have the tailwind of Bloomberg’s billion, nominate anybody but Sanders."

Democrats used to oppose Big Money in politics.

Now they mock those who will not accept it.

ITEM 11: John Solomon reported, "The FBI agent who ran the bureau’s warrantless spying program said Wednesday he warned ex-Director James Comey and his deputy, Andrew McCabe that the program was a useless waste of taxpayer money that needlessly infringed Americans’ civil liberties but his bosses refused to take action.

"Retired Special Agent Bassem Youssef ran the FBI’s Communications Analysis Unit from late 2004 until his retirement in late 2014. He told Just the News he fears the deeply flawed program, which was started in response to the Sept. 11 attacks, was allowed to keep going to give Americans a false sense of security in the war on terror and possibly to enable inappropriate spying, such as that which targeted President Trump’s 2016 campaign.

"'I have no doubt, or very little doubt, that it was used for political spying or political espionage,' Youssef said during a lengthy interview for the John Solomon Reports podcast.

"Youssef confirmed that the FBI performed an audit of the highly classified program (also known as the NSA program because it searched call records captured by the National Security Agency) after Edward Snowden leaked its existence.

"The audit showed that while the program had generated two moderate leads for counterterrorism cases, it had not helped thwart dozens of terrorism attacks as officials had claimed, despite costing tens of millions of dollars per year."

Get rid of FISA. Now. And begin phasing out the FBI. It's too big and too powerful.

ITEM 12: Fred Lucas reported, "Retired federal judge Janice Rogers Brown warned Tuesday about the perils of the mob that views politics as all important and ignores objective truth. President Donald Trump has had to contend with a fired-up resistance of political opposition that will not recognize his presidency as legitimate, Brown suggested.

"'Prior to the 2016 election, America had a cherished tradition of peacefully transferring power. No riots in the streets. No military coups. George Washington himself set the standard,' Brown said. 'However, we now know elections have consequences only when the correct candidate is elected.'

"Brown, who served on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia from 2005 to 2017, was the honored speaker at The Heritage Foundation’s third annual Jay A. Parker Reception and Lecture.

"'Dubbing themselves the resistance, apparently with no sense of irony and perhaps unaware they were doing exactly what the White Citizens’ Council did when the decision in Brown v. Board of Education was announced, the disappointed in 2017 announced that Trump was ‘not their president,' she said."

I hope his re-election ends this sad and dangerous chapter in American history.

ITEM 13: The Daily Mail reported, "Authorities have backtracked on initial reports that a Department of Homeland Security whistle blower committed suicide after his body was found with a gunshot wound by a California highway.

"Philip Haney, who spoke out against his own agency during the Obama administration, was found dead in Plymouth, about 40 miles east of Sacramento, last Friday. His body was found in a park and ride area near Highway 16 and Highway 124.

"The Amador County Sheriff's Office initially said the 66-year-old was found with what appeared to be a 'self-inflicted gunshot wound.' They also said a firearm had been found next to Haney and his vehicle.

"The sheriff's office have since described those initial reports as 'misinformation' and said they have asked the FBI for assistance in investigating Haney's death."

The American press could not care less. Defending a whistle blower depends on what tune he plays.

ITEM 14: The Hill reported, "ABC News has suspended veteran correspondent David Wright late Tuesday after the conservative group Project Veritas released a recording that showed him saying the network doesn’t care about newsworthy stories, according to a report by The Washington Post.

"Wright, 56, reports for ABC’s World News Tonight, Good Morning America, Nightline and 20/20. His reports from hotspots in Iraq and Darfur in 2003 and 2004, respectively, earned him Emmy awards.

"An ABC News spokesperson told The Hill on Wednesday that Wright will be reassigned 'to avoid any possible appearance of bias' upon his return, the timing of which is unknown."

Speaking of appearances of bias, why is Bill Clinton's spokesman still the host of Good Morning America?

ITEM 15: The Washington Times reported, "Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s proposed Green New Deal would cost the average household nearly $75,000 in the first year in key swing states, driving the U.S. economy into a steep economic depression, according to a study released Wednesday.

"The study, conducted by the free-market Competitive Enterprise Institute, Power the Future, and the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty, examined the ambitious House and Senate resolution’s projected impact on energy costs in 11 states.

"In the first year, the Green New Deal would cost a typical household a minimum of $74,287, with annual costs falling to $47,755 per household in the next four years."

$75,000 the first year? No problem. Just raise minimum wage to $100 an hour.

ITEM 16: Fox News reported, "MSNBC host Chris Matthews questioned Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., over and over Tuesday night on whether she was sure of her accusation that billionaire presidential candidate Mike Bloomberg had told a woman at his company to 'kill it' when he found out that she was pregnant.

"During Tuesday's debate, Warren attacked Bloomberg over allegations, reported by The Washington Post, that Bloomberg had told a saleswoman to 'kill it' after he found out that she was pregnant and then complained about the number of pregnant women at his company. The Post later corroborated the woman's claim with another Bloomberg employee who said he witnessed the exchange — for which the woman sued Bloomberg in federal court. Bloomberg has flatly denied the allegation."

What is the problem?

If Democrats truly believe killing babies in the womb is moral, then they should rejoice that Bloomberg suggested this to her.

But of course we all know abortion is immoral and a sin.

ITEM 17: Why Pulitzers are worthless.

Read the @nytimes Pulitzer Prize-winning work on Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election (and stay for the @washingtonpost articles, as well) https://t.co/IZR1WuXliJ

— jimrutenberg (@jimrutenberg) February 26, 2020

The spaghetti harvest in Italy was more plausible.