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Helen & Moe Lauzier’s
Issues of the Day
Write us at: mvl270@yahoo.com
Sat. April 29, 2017
Keep the day job guys…Laugh time...
President Donald Trump’s promised and much-anticipated tax reform proposal was announced on Wednesday and it’s pretty much exactly like what conservatives have been clamoring for for years.
“Nothing embodies the Washington DC swamp better than the U.S. tax code,” noted Richard Viguerie of ConservativeHQ. “The Congressman and Senators who write it, the lobbyists who work to manipulate its arcane rules to benefit the inside few and the Internal Revenue Service that enforces it – or not – form one of Washington’s most fearsome iron triangles.
“And yesterday, President Donald Trump took them all on.”
The number of tax brackets would be reduced from seven to three. Bye-bye marriage penalty. Bye-bye death tax. Bye-bye alternative minimum tax.
The corporate tax rate would be slashed from 39% to 15% - which will further fuel domestic employment. The capital gains tax would shrink from 28% to 20%. And the absurd number of deductions – other than home mortgage and charitable – that have allowed mostly wealthy individuals to escape higher taxation would be 86’ed.
“President Trump has re-energized the drive for fundamental tax reform that creates growth and jobs,” said Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform and scheduled speaker at the 2017 Conservative Leadership Conference.
“The plan cuts taxes for businesses and individuals and simplifies the code so Americans can file on a postcard. Reducing taxes on all businesses down to 15% will turbocharge the economy.”
The deal still has to pass Congress…but Republicans control Congress. So the only thing standing in the way of this dramatic tax reform overhaul is
Republicans in Congress.
We’re doomed.
Cheers.
Dr. Chuck Muth, PsD
Professor of Psephology (homeschooled)
Nevada’s #1 Irritator of Liberals and RINOs
Professor of Psephology (homeschooled)
Nevada’s #1 Irritator of Liberals and RINOs
P.S. In case you missed it, ObamaCare REPEAL is alive and kicking. But now it’s the MODERATE Republicans in the House who are complaining instead of the conservatives…as it should be.
One of the big sticking points reportedly is that moderates think old, sick people should be charged the same rate for health insurance as young, healthy people. That’s like charging non-smokers the same rate as smokers. It simply makes no sense.
If ObamaCare repeal doesn’t happen now, it won’t be President Trump’s fault and it won’t be conservatives' fault. And moderates WILL pay the price at the polls in 2018. Bank on it.
“God Bless Texas!” The Lonestar State Moves to Defund, Criminalize, and Ban Sanctuary Cities
Texas is once again leading the way in American prosperity and success.
In recent years, the largest conservative state in the nation has led the way economically, and socially… but now they’re taking steps to lead the way in law and order.
Early Thursday morning, around 3am, Texas state legislators finally voted to approve a bill that would defund sanctuary counties, cities, and localities and could lead to Texas becoming the first state to end the scourge of sanctuary cities.
The bill would allow Texas to withhold funding from county and local governments for acting as sanctuary cities – even as the Trump administration’s efforts to do so nationally have hit roadblocks. Other Republican-led states have pushed for similar policies, but Texas would be the first in which police chiefs and other officials could face criminal charges and be removed from office for not helping enforce immigration law…
The Texas House bill originally allowed local law enforcement officers to inquire about federal immigration status only if someone is arrested. A version passed in March by the state Senate went further, permitting immigration inquiries of anyone who is detained, including during traffic stops.
But a Tea Party-backed floor amendment extending the House version to apply to those detained as well as those arrested passed on an 81-64 vote, bringing the full bill closer to what the Senate approved previously…
The state Senate’s version is different enough from what the House passed that the two chambers must compromise before sending a bill to the governor. Similar efforts have collapsed in the past, though, meaning the issue isn’t yet fully settled.
Earlier this year Texas Governor Greg Abbott defunded Travis County for refusing to abide by state and federal immigration laws.
Then the Senate showed their support by passing a bill that treated Sanctuary Cities even tougher than the one the House passed early this morning.
While the media continues to highlight the opponents of these bills, please allow me to shed some light on the matter at hand. The Texas legislature is DOMINATED by Republicans who were elected to do exactly as they are now doing.
Governor Abbott is a popular Governor, both chambers of the legislature are overwhelmingly Republican, most of the state’s national politicians (like Senators Ted Cruz and John Cornyn) are Republican… the voters in Texas are REPUBLICAN. The media can focus on the opponents of these bills but the truth is that the vast majority of Texas’ citizens want to put an end to Sanctuary Cities. Which is why these legislators will be re elected when the time comes, because while the media may not like these bills… the people do.
Consider this, in a poll taken earlier in April (a month after he defunded Travis County) Governor Abbott was the 7th most popular Governor in America and had an approval rating of 64%! Even more telling – only 24% of Texas voters “disapproved” of the job he was doing. Abbott is leading the way in the fight against Sanctuary Cities and illegal immigration and the voters in Texas LOVE HIM for it.
Get ready folks, because as soon as the Texas state Senate and House can compromise on a deal between their two bills… the Lonestar State will be defunding, criminalizing, and banning Sanctuary Cities.
RNC Chair: GOP Base Will ‘Walk Away’ in Midterms If Border Wall Is Not Built
by PAM KEY
Wednesday on the Laura Ingraham’s nationally syndicated radio show, Republican National Committee Chair Ronna Romney McDaniel said if Congress doesn’t help President Donald Trump begin to build the U.S.-Mexico border wall, voters will walk away from the GOP in 2018.
Ingraham asked, “The President comes out yesterday and says there’s going to be a wall. So what is the RNC doing specifically to push the Trump agenda and help it get traction in Congress?”
McDaniel replied, “Well I think part of it is communicating to our lawmakers what we are seeing on the ground. And I’m from Michigan. I was part of the Trump movement as a Michigan chair, and I know that our voters are going to hold us accountable in 2018 if we do not keep the campaign promises that were made. When you get to Washington, sometimes you forget what was said outside and it’s important that we bring that back to Washington and let them hear what the voters expect of this government and of the president.”
She added members of Congress would “lose the trust of our base if we don’t keep our promises.”
“Our base is going to walk away,” she continued. “They’re going to feel like, ‘Hey, you said one thing on the campaign trail to get elected and you didn’t act on it.’”
Trump: I may break up the 9th circuit court
The 9th circuit court has attempted to sabotage Trump at every turn. First with his travel ban and most recently with his pledge to revoke federal funding from sanctuary cities.
And now he’s he officially had it.
President Donald Trump says he’s considered breaking up the West Coast-based 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.
Asked during a White House interview by the Washington Examiner if he’d thought about proposals to break up the court, Trump replied, “Absolutely, I have.” He added that “there are many people that want to break up the 9th Circuit. It’s outrageous.”
And he’s right. In fact, 79% of cases from the 9th circuit court have been reversed between 2010-2015, according to Politifact, which legal experts say proves the ninth circuit regularly misrules.
It’s no wonder politicians would want this court broken up – it’s wasting the time of lawmakers and money of taxpayers all attempting to fulfill a liberal agenda.
The comments echoed his Twitter criticism of the court Wednesday morning.
Trump called U.S. District Judge William Orrick’s preliminary injunction against his order stripping money from sanctuary cities “ridiculous” on Twitter. He said that he planned to take that case to the Supreme Court. But an administration appeal of the district court’s decision would go first to the 9th Circuit.
And now he’s he officially had it.
President Donald Trump says he’s considered breaking up the West Coast-based 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.
Asked during a White House interview by the Washington Examiner if he’d thought about proposals to break up the court, Trump replied, “Absolutely, I have.” He added that “there are many people that want to break up the 9th Circuit. It’s outrageous.”
And he’s right. In fact, 79% of cases from the 9th circuit court have been reversed between 2010-2015, according to Politifact, which legal experts say proves the ninth circuit regularly misrules.
It’s no wonder politicians would want this court broken up – it’s wasting the time of lawmakers and money of taxpayers all attempting to fulfill a liberal agenda.
The comments echoed his Twitter criticism of the court Wednesday morning.
Trump called U.S. District Judge William Orrick’s preliminary injunction against his order stripping money from sanctuary cities “ridiculous” on Twitter. He said that he planned to take that case to the Supreme Court. But an administration appeal of the district court’s decision would go first to the 9th Circuit.
Bits and Pieces from our old friend CV
♦ I read that 4,153,237 people got married last year, not to cause any trouble but shouldn't that be an even number?
♦ I want to die peacefully in my sleep, like my grandfather. Not screaming and yelling like the passengers in his car.
♦ I find it ironic that the colors red, white, and blue stand for freedom until they are flashing behind you.
♦ When wearing a bikini, women reveal 90% of their body.. men are so polite they only look at the covered parts.
♦ A recent study has found that women who carry a little extra weight, live longer than the men who mention it.
♦ Relationships are a lot like algebra. Have you ever looked at your X and wondered Y?
♦ America is a country which produces citizens who will cross the ocean to fight for democracy but others who won't cross the street to vote.
♦ You know that tingly little feeling you get when you like someone? That's your common sense leaving your body.
♦ Did you know that dolphins are so smart that within a few weeks of captivity, they can train people to stand on the very edge of the pool and throw them fish?
♦ My therapist says I have a preoccupation with vengeance We'll see about that.
♦ I think my neighbor is stalking me as she's been googling my name on her computer. I saw it through my telescope last night.
♦ Money talks... But all mine ever says is good-bye.
♦ You're not fat, you're just... easier to see.
♦ If you think nobody cares whether you're alive, try missing a couple of payments.
♦ I always wondered what the job application is like at Hooters. Do they just give you a bra and say, “Here, fill this out?”
♦ I can’t understand why women are okay that JC Penny has an older women’s clothing line named, “Sag Harbor.”
♦ My therapist said that my narcissism causes me to misread social situations. I’m pretty sure she was hitting on me.
♦ My 60 year kindergarten reunion is coming up soon and I’m worried about the 175 pounds I’ve gained since then.
♦ Denny’s has a slogan, “If it’s your birthday, the meal is on us.” If you’re in Denny’s and it’s your birthday, your life sucks!
♦ The pharmacist asked me my birth date again today. I’m pretty sure she’s going to get me something.
♦The location of your mailbox shows you how far away from your house you can be in a robe before you start looking like a mental patient.
♦ Money can’t buy happiness, but it keeps the kids in touch!
♦ The reason Mayberry was so peaceful and quiet was because nobody was married. Andy, Aunt Bea, Barney, Floyd, Howard, Goober, Gomer, Sam, Earnest T Bass, Helen, Thelma Lou, Clara and, of course, Opie were all single. The only married person was Otis, and he stayed drunk.
♦ I want to die peacefully in my sleep, like my grandfather. Not screaming and yelling like the passengers in his car.
♦ I find it ironic that the colors red, white, and blue stand for freedom until they are flashing behind you.
♦ When wearing a bikini, women reveal 90% of their body.. men are so polite they only look at the covered parts.
♦ A recent study has found that women who carry a little extra weight, live longer than the men who mention it.
♦ Relationships are a lot like algebra. Have you ever looked at your X and wondered Y?
♦ America is a country which produces citizens who will cross the ocean to fight for democracy but others who won't cross the street to vote.
♦ You know that tingly little feeling you get when you like someone? That's your common sense leaving your body.
♦ Did you know that dolphins are so smart that within a few weeks of captivity, they can train people to stand on the very edge of the pool and throw them fish?
♦ My therapist says I have a preoccupation with vengeance We'll see about that.
♦ I think my neighbor is stalking me as she's been googling my name on her computer. I saw it through my telescope last night.
♦ Money talks... But all mine ever says is good-bye.
♦ You're not fat, you're just... easier to see.
♦ If you think nobody cares whether you're alive, try missing a couple of payments.
♦ I always wondered what the job application is like at Hooters. Do they just give you a bra and say, “Here, fill this out?”
♦ I can’t understand why women are okay that JC Penny has an older women’s clothing line named, “Sag Harbor.”
♦ My therapist said that my narcissism causes me to misread social situations. I’m pretty sure she was hitting on me.
♦ My 60 year kindergarten reunion is coming up soon and I’m worried about the 175 pounds I’ve gained since then.
♦ Denny’s has a slogan, “If it’s your birthday, the meal is on us.” If you’re in Denny’s and it’s your birthday, your life sucks!
♦ The pharmacist asked me my birth date again today. I’m pretty sure she’s going to get me something.
♦The location of your mailbox shows you how far away from your house you can be in a robe before you start looking like a mental patient.
♦ Money can’t buy happiness, but it keeps the kids in touch!
♦ The reason Mayberry was so peaceful and quiet was because nobody was married. Andy, Aunt Bea, Barney, Floyd, Howard, Goober, Gomer, Sam, Earnest T Bass, Helen, Thelma Lou, Clara and, of course, Opie were all single. The only married person was Otis, and he stayed drunk.
China Delivers Humiliating Slap to Kim Jong Un
Tensions on the Korean Peninsula have reached dangerous levels over the past few weeks, sparking concern in China that a second Korean War may be right around the corner.
China has no desire to see the United States topple the North Korean regime and plant a pro-Western government right on China’s borders. In fact, it appears that China may be taking actions to rein in North Korea.
An editorial published in the Global Times, a newspaper widely believed to be the unofficial mouthpiece of China’s Communist Party, warned that North Korea would suffer if it conducted another nuclear test.
“The game of chicken between Washington and Pyongyang has come to a breaking point. If North Korea carries out a sixth nuclear test as expected, it is more likely than ever that the situation will cross the point of no return. All stakeholders will bear the consequences, with Pyongyang sure to suffer the greatest losses,” the editorial read.
The editorial seemed to suggest that China wouldn’t be surprised if the U.S. launched a strike against North Korea if the country conducted another nuclear test — and perhaps more importantly, the article never suggested that China would respond to such an action.
“Once the US launched surgical strikes against North Korea’s nuclear and missile facilities, the Pyongyang regime will be forced to make a life-or-death decision. By then, if North Korea does not resort to strategic retaliation, its deterrence will lose ground and Washington will play it like a fiddle,” stated the article.
China has already taken unprecedented action to show its displeasure with North Korea, such as turning away coal shipments from the country.
President Donald Trump has repeatedly stated that he wants the Chinese to do more to stop North Korea, but that if they are unwilling to help him, he is willing to go it alone against North Korea.
China is in a tough spot right now. Right now, their best option is to exert whatever pressure they have to get North Korea to calm down before the United States takes action.
The end of the Global Times editorial — urging Pyongyang to step back — might be just that kind of pressure:
“Yet given North Korea’s current national strength as well as its peculiar geopolitical circumstances, it must learn how to be flexible as well as resolute. Taking a small step back will make a conflict easier to solve. This does not mean being a coward, but being courageous to face the challenge in a different way.
“The North Korean nuclear issue is like a puzzle filled with bombs. Pyongyang must not strike a match and detonate it. What it needs is big wisdom to realize a soft landing.”
The question is whether the North Koreans will listen.
China has no desire to see the United States topple the North Korean regime and plant a pro-Western government right on China’s borders. In fact, it appears that China may be taking actions to rein in North Korea.
An editorial published in the Global Times, a newspaper widely believed to be the unofficial mouthpiece of China’s Communist Party, warned that North Korea would suffer if it conducted another nuclear test.
“The game of chicken between Washington and Pyongyang has come to a breaking point. If North Korea carries out a sixth nuclear test as expected, it is more likely than ever that the situation will cross the point of no return. All stakeholders will bear the consequences, with Pyongyang sure to suffer the greatest losses,” the editorial read.
The editorial seemed to suggest that China wouldn’t be surprised if the U.S. launched a strike against North Korea if the country conducted another nuclear test — and perhaps more importantly, the article never suggested that China would respond to such an action.
“Once the US launched surgical strikes against North Korea’s nuclear and missile facilities, the Pyongyang regime will be forced to make a life-or-death decision. By then, if North Korea does not resort to strategic retaliation, its deterrence will lose ground and Washington will play it like a fiddle,” stated the article.
China has already taken unprecedented action to show its displeasure with North Korea, such as turning away coal shipments from the country.
President Donald Trump has repeatedly stated that he wants the Chinese to do more to stop North Korea, but that if they are unwilling to help him, he is willing to go it alone against North Korea.
China is in a tough spot right now. Right now, their best option is to exert whatever pressure they have to get North Korea to calm down before the United States takes action.
The end of the Global Times editorial — urging Pyongyang to step back — might be just that kind of pressure:
“Yet given North Korea’s current national strength as well as its peculiar geopolitical circumstances, it must learn how to be flexible as well as resolute. Taking a small step back will make a conflict easier to solve. This does not mean being a coward, but being courageous to face the challenge in a different way.
“The North Korean nuclear issue is like a puzzle filled with bombs. Pyongyang must not strike a match and detonate it. What it needs is big wisdom to realize a soft landing.”
The question is whether the North Koreans will listen.
WHOA: Trey Gowdy Might Get a VERY Powerful New Job
American Action News by: Dre S. Judson, Washington Correspondent
A new report out indicates that Trey Gowdy might be in the running for the powerful Chairmanship of the House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. This is the same committee that made Hillary Clinton testify on Benghazi. Additionally, they hosted high-profile hearings to hold the Obama administration accountable, such as a hearing on the IRS' targeting of conservative groups.
As we noted before, current Oversight Chairman Jason Chaffetz plans to retire from the House during his current term.
According to Politico, this is leaving a power vacuum:
House Oversight Chairman Jason Chaffetz’s announcement last week that he might soon resign from Congress has triggered a behind-the-scenes battle for one of the highest-profile chairmanships on Capitol Hill. And the power vacuum has the potential to cause GOP leaders serious heartburn.
Right now the favorite for the post is Jim Jordan, one of the top conservatives in the house. However, some are unsure whether or not Jordan can win due to his rocky relationship with GOP leadership -- who have a powerful say in the matter:
But sources told POLITICO that they’re not sure Jordan can win the post, and not just because of his rocky relationship with GOP leaders. Many members of the House Steering Committee that chooses chairmen — and is composed entirely of leadership loyalists — don’t like him, either.
Enter Gowdy:
GOP leaders and their allies are so worried about a Jordan candidacy that they've begun buttonholing Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) — the former chairman of the House Benghazi Committee and a dark-horse candidate for the Oversight post — to run, according to multiple House sources. While Gowdy often jokes that he hates the high-profile nature of his job and would rather be home watching Hallmark movies with his wife, insiders say he is now considering a bid.
Gowdy's congressional office declined to comment on the matter. American Action News will stay on top of this possibility as we know a large contingency of our readers are huge Trey Gowdy fans. Stay tuned…
As we noted before, current Oversight Chairman Jason Chaffetz plans to retire from the House during his current term.
According to Politico, this is leaving a power vacuum:
House Oversight Chairman Jason Chaffetz’s announcement last week that he might soon resign from Congress has triggered a behind-the-scenes battle for one of the highest-profile chairmanships on Capitol Hill. And the power vacuum has the potential to cause GOP leaders serious heartburn.
Right now the favorite for the post is Jim Jordan, one of the top conservatives in the house. However, some are unsure whether or not Jordan can win due to his rocky relationship with GOP leadership -- who have a powerful say in the matter:
But sources told POLITICO that they’re not sure Jordan can win the post, and not just because of his rocky relationship with GOP leaders. Many members of the House Steering Committee that chooses chairmen — and is composed entirely of leadership loyalists — don’t like him, either.
Enter Gowdy:
GOP leaders and their allies are so worried about a Jordan candidacy that they've begun buttonholing Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) — the former chairman of the House Benghazi Committee and a dark-horse candidate for the Oversight post — to run, according to multiple House sources. While Gowdy often jokes that he hates the high-profile nature of his job and would rather be home watching Hallmark movies with his wife, insiders say he is now considering a bid.
Gowdy's congressional office declined to comment on the matter. American Action News will stay on top of this possibility as we know a large contingency of our readers are huge Trey Gowdy fans. Stay tuned…
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THIS IS MOST CERTAINLY TRUE.
Part I: A. Back off and let those men who want to marry men, marry men.
B. Allow those women who want to marry women, marry women.
C. Allow those folks who want to abort their babies, abort their babies.
In three generations, there will be no more Democrats.
Part II:
10 Poorest Cities in America (How did it happen?)
City, State, % of People Below the Poverty Level
1. Detroit, MI 32.5%
2. Buffalo, NY 29.9%
3. Cincinnati, OH 27.8%
4. Cleveland, OH 27.0%
5. Miami, FL 26.9%
5. St. Louis, MO 26.8%
7. El Paso, TX 26.4%
8. Milwaukee, WI 26.2%
9. Philadelphia, PA 25.1%
10. Newark, NJ 24.2%
What do these top ten cities (over 250,000 pop.) with the highest poverty rate all have in common?
Detroit, MI - (1st on poverty rate list) hasn't elected a Republican mayor since 1961
Buffalo, NY - (2nd) hasn't elected one since 1954
Cincinnati, OH - (3rd) not since 1984
Cleveland, OH - (4th) not since 1989
Miami, FL - (5th) has never had a Republican mayor
St. Louis, MO - (6th) not since 1949
El Paso, TX - (7th) has never had a Republican mayor
Milwaukee, WI - (8th) not since 1908
Philadelphia, PA - (9th) not since 1952
Newark, NJ - (10th) not since 1907
Einstein once said, 'The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.'
It is the poor who habitually elect Democrats... yet they are still POOR.
Part III: ~~~You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.
~~~You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
~~~You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.
~~~You cannot lift the wage earner up by pulling the wage payer down.
~~~You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred.
~~~You cannot build character and courage by taking away people's initiative and independence.
You cannot help people permanently by doing for them, what they could and should do for themselves."
~~~Abraham Lincoln
"Any man who thinks he can be happy and prosperous by letting the government take care of him had better take a much closer look at the American Indian."
~~~Henry Ford
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The average American has absolutely no idea what the FTC is, what it’s supposed to do or even what the letters “FTC” stand for. But almost every business owner in American knows exactly what the Federal Trade Commission is.
In short, the FTC is supposed to protect consumers from unfair trade practices and foster competition in our free market. But like any other government program or department, the FTC over recent years has suffered from what in the military is called “mission creep.”
Actually, it hasn’t been the FTC itself that has “suffered,” but the business community that has been saddled with an avalanche of new bureaucratic regulations and accompanying paperwork. Thankfully, and not a moment too soon, that appears to be changing with the changing of the guard at the White House.
In January, President Donald Trump appointed Maureen K. Ohlhausen as Acting Chairman of the FTC.
“In pursuit of (the FTC’s) mission, I will work to protect all consumers from fraud, deception, and unfair practices,” Ohlhausen said at the time of her appointment. “I will safeguard competition while preserving American innovation and promoting economic liberty for all citizens. Finally, I will ensure the Commission minimizes the burdens on legitimate business as we carry out this vital work.”
Amen and hallelujah!
Cheers.
Dr. Chuck Muth, PsD
Professor of Psephology (homeschooled)
Nevada’s #1 Irritator of Liberals and RINOs
P.S. It’s not what President Trump does in this media-driven “first 100 days” that means a darned thing. It’s what he does and accomplishes (or doesn’t accomplish) between now and Labor Day 2018, when the campaign season for congressional seats officially begins.
Professor of Psephology (homeschooled)
Nevada’s #1 Irritator of Liberals and RINOs
P.S. It’s not what President Trump does in this media-driven “first 100 days” that means a darned thing. It’s what he does and accomplishes (or doesn’t accomplish) between now and Labor Day 2018, when the campaign season for congressional seats officially begins.
Remember, Rome wasn’t built in a day. And we ain’t gonna make America great again in 100 days. Too much damage has already been done over too long of a period of time.
P.P.S. You know how various governments jack up “sin” taxes on behaviors they don’t like – especially cigarette taxes? Well, get ready for the next nanny-state crusade: A 10% tax on…STEAKS!
This meat-headed “meat tax” idea comes to us, naturally, from the clods over at PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), who obviously have just WAY too much time on their hands.
Trump complains Saudis not paying fair share for U.S. defense
By Stephen J. Adler, Jeff Mason and Steve Holland | WASHINGTON
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during an interview with Reuters in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C. REUTERS/Carlos Barria
President Donald Trump complained on Thursday that U.S. ally Saudi Arabia was not treating the United States fairly and Washington was losing a “tremendous amount of money” defending the kingdom.
In an interview with Reuters, Trump confirmed his administration was in talks about possible visits to Saudi Arabia and Israel in the second half of May. He is due to make his first trip abroad as president for a May 25 NATO summit in Brussels and could add other stops.
"Frankly, Saudi Arabia has not treated us fairly, because we are losing a tremendous amount of money in defending Saudi Arabia,” he said.
Trump’s criticism of Riyadh was a return to his 2016 election campaign rhetoric when he accused the kingdom of not pulling its weight in paying for the U.S. security umbrella.
"Nobody’s going to mess with Saudi Arabia because we’re watching them," Trump told a campaign rally in Wisconsin a year ago. “They’re not paying us a fair price. We’re losing our shirt.”
The United States is the main supplier for most Saudi military needs, from F-15 fighters to control and command systems worth tens of billions of dollars in recent years, while American contractors win major energy deals.
The world's top oil exporter and its biggest consumer have enjoyed close economic ties for decades, with U.S. firms building much of the infrastructure of the modern Saudi state after its oil boom in the 1970s.
Saudi officials could not immediately be reached for comment on Trump's latest comments.
But Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir rejected similar comments from Trump during his election campaign, telling CNN during a visit to Washington last July that the Islamic kingdom "carries its own weight" as an ally.
Saudi Arabia’s powerful deputy crown prince Mohammed bin Salman met with Trump last month in a meeting that was hailed by a senior Saudi adviser as a “historical turning point” in relations. The talks appeared to signal a meeting of minds on many issues, including their shared view that Iran posed a regional security threat.
Riyadh and other Gulf allies see in Trump a strong president who will shore up Washington’s role as their main strategic partner and help contain Riyadh's adversary Iran in a region central to U.S. security and energy interests, regional analysts said.
ISLAMIC STATE "HUMILIATION"
Asked about the fight against Islamic State, which Saudi Arabia and other U.S. allies are confronting as a coalition, Trump said the militant group had to be defeated.
"I have to say, there is an end. And it has to be humiliation," Trump said, when asked about what the endgame was for defeating Islamist violent extremism.
"There is an end. Otherwise it's really tough. But there is an end," without detailing a strategy.
A visit to Israel would reciprocate a White House visit in February by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is due to meet Trump next Wednesday in Washington.
Trump has set a more positive tone with Israel than his Democratic predecessor, Barack Obama, who often clashed with the right-wing Israeli leader, and has raised concerns among Palestinians that their leaders may not get equal treatment.
RELATED COVERAGE
Trump has also asked Israel to put unspecified limits on its building of Jewish settlements on land the Palestinians want for a state, and has promised to seek a Middle East peace deal that eluded his predecessors. However, he has offered no new diplomatic prescriptions.
“I want to see peace with Israel and the Palestinians,” he said. “There is no reason there's not peace between Israel and the Palestinians - none whatsoever.”
Trump brushed aside a question of whether he might use a possible trip to Israel to declare U.S. recognition of the entire city of Jerusalem as Israel's capital, a reversal of longstanding U.S. foreign policy likely to draw international condemnation.
"Ask me in a month on that," he said, without elaborating.
If Trump ties an Israel visit to next month's Brussels trip, it would be around the time Israelis are celebrating the 50th anniversary of the reunification of Jerusalem, when Israel captured Arab East Jerusalem in the 1967 Middle East war.
Successive U.S. administrations as well as the international community have not recognized Israel's annexation of the eastern part of the city, and the future status of Jerusalem remains one of the thorniest issues in the Israeli-Palestinian dispute.
Israel claims all of Jerusalem, which contains sites sacred to the Jewish, Muslim and Christian faiths, as its capital. Palestinians want East Jerusalem as the capital of a future state of their own.
President Donald Trump complained on Thursday that U.S. ally Saudi Arabia was not treating the United States fairly and Washington was losing a “tremendous amount of money” defending the kingdom.
In an interview with Reuters, Trump confirmed his administration was in talks about possible visits to Saudi Arabia and Israel in the second half of May. He is due to make his first trip abroad as president for a May 25 NATO summit in Brussels and could add other stops.
"Frankly, Saudi Arabia has not treated us fairly, because we are losing a tremendous amount of money in defending Saudi Arabia,” he said.
Trump’s criticism of Riyadh was a return to his 2016 election campaign rhetoric when he accused the kingdom of not pulling its weight in paying for the U.S. security umbrella.
"Nobody’s going to mess with Saudi Arabia because we’re watching them," Trump told a campaign rally in Wisconsin a year ago. “They’re not paying us a fair price. We’re losing our shirt.”
The United States is the main supplier for most Saudi military needs, from F-15 fighters to control and command systems worth tens of billions of dollars in recent years, while American contractors win major energy deals.
The world's top oil exporter and its biggest consumer have enjoyed close economic ties for decades, with U.S. firms building much of the infrastructure of the modern Saudi state after its oil boom in the 1970s.
Saudi officials could not immediately be reached for comment on Trump's latest comments.
But Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir rejected similar comments from Trump during his election campaign, telling CNN during a visit to Washington last July that the Islamic kingdom "carries its own weight" as an ally.
Saudi Arabia’s powerful deputy crown prince Mohammed bin Salman met with Trump last month in a meeting that was hailed by a senior Saudi adviser as a “historical turning point” in relations. The talks appeared to signal a meeting of minds on many issues, including their shared view that Iran posed a regional security threat.
Riyadh and other Gulf allies see in Trump a strong president who will shore up Washington’s role as their main strategic partner and help contain Riyadh's adversary Iran in a region central to U.S. security and energy interests, regional analysts said.
ISLAMIC STATE "HUMILIATION"
Asked about the fight against Islamic State, which Saudi Arabia and other U.S. allies are confronting as a coalition, Trump said the militant group had to be defeated.
"I have to say, there is an end. And it has to be humiliation," Trump said, when asked about what the endgame was for defeating Islamist violent extremism.
"There is an end. Otherwise it's really tough. But there is an end," without detailing a strategy.
A visit to Israel would reciprocate a White House visit in February by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is due to meet Trump next Wednesday in Washington.
Trump has set a more positive tone with Israel than his Democratic predecessor, Barack Obama, who often clashed with the right-wing Israeli leader, and has raised concerns among Palestinians that their leaders may not get equal treatment.
RELATED COVERAGE
Trump has also asked Israel to put unspecified limits on its building of Jewish settlements on land the Palestinians want for a state, and has promised to seek a Middle East peace deal that eluded his predecessors. However, he has offered no new diplomatic prescriptions.
“I want to see peace with Israel and the Palestinians,” he said. “There is no reason there's not peace between Israel and the Palestinians - none whatsoever.”
Trump brushed aside a question of whether he might use a possible trip to Israel to declare U.S. recognition of the entire city of Jerusalem as Israel's capital, a reversal of longstanding U.S. foreign policy likely to draw international condemnation.
"Ask me in a month on that," he said, without elaborating.
If Trump ties an Israel visit to next month's Brussels trip, it would be around the time Israelis are celebrating the 50th anniversary of the reunification of Jerusalem, when Israel captured Arab East Jerusalem in the 1967 Middle East war.
Successive U.S. administrations as well as the international community have not recognized Israel's annexation of the eastern part of the city, and the future status of Jerusalem remains one of the thorniest issues in the Israeli-Palestinian dispute.
Israel claims all of Jerusalem, which contains sites sacred to the Jewish, Muslim and Christian faiths, as its capital. Palestinians want East Jerusalem as the capital of a future state of their own.
Sarah Palin on Donald Trump’s First 100 Days
Sarah Palin, former Alaska governor and Republican vice presidential candidate, looked at the first one hundred days of President Trump’s administration on Thursday’s Breitbart News Daily with SiriusXM host Alex Marlow.
“I’m extremely pleased, of course, that our new president is in there building the team that he believes he needs in order to fulfill promises to the American electorate, to make America great again, and I’m very, very happy that he’s there,” said Palin.
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She said she found the idea of giving a simplistic letter grade to the Trump administration annoying, preferring to say President Trump is doing “very well.”
“Remember, those of you who maybe still aren’t aboard the Trump Train but know that the Trump movement had to be ushered in, in order to get rid of the status quo that was harming America, keep doing your ABCs and remember what that was: it was Anybody but Clinton,” she said. “So stick with your little alphabet analogy there. Those who are asking for a grade of this administration, just keep remembering it could have been Clinton.”
Palin applauded Marlow’s point that arguing over the fine points of Trump’s policy, and even dealing with some disappointments, should be vastly preferable for conservatives over fighting for their political lives – and even basic constitutional freedoms, like free speech – under a Clinton presidency. She suggested imagining what sort of Supreme Court justice would currently be taking the late Antonin Scalia’s place under President Hillary Clinton.
Marlow noted that Palin has been “quite critical in recent days” of President Trump’s pick for Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos.
“She said, ‘Common Core now doesn’t exist’ or something, and you went buck wild on her,” Marlow recalled.
“I sure did!” Palin cheerfully agreed. “She said that, in fact, Common Core hasn’t really existed for the past couple of years. I would ask, do these politicians, do these elitist bureaucrats, do they even send their children or grandchildren, are they in public schools? When our kids and our grandkids come home and we sit down with them each night, still to this day, and we work with them on their homework, the Common Core curriculum is alive and not well in the classroom.”
“If the leader now of the education sector of our country would deny that Common Core is in existence, she needs to try to tell that to our really, really great public school teachers, who still have to explain and kind of apologize to the public school parents – I’m one of them – as to why the curriculum is as confusing and burdensome and less freeing for our teachers, who know what our students need best, as do the parents. Good schoolteachers still have to explain to us that under Common Core, these requirements are quite burdensome and nonsensical,” she said.
She accused DeVos of being “really out of touch” for denying all of this was happening.
Palin followed up with some of the highlights of Trump’s first hundred days, beginning with the confirmation of Judge Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court.
“I’m extremely thankful – we all should be – that he’s in there now,” she said.
She also praised Trump’s commitment to change President Barack Obama’s “lead from behind” foreign policy, “which made the world a less safe place to be.”
“Trump quashed that. He said no more leading from behind. America is that ‘beacon of hope.’ We are a country … of just this perfect storm, if you will, with the natural resources to be developed, with the manpower, and with the intellect, and with the patriotism, the unity that a country needs in order to be so successful, to be great and to be a leader that other countries would wish to emulate. America has all that, and we can put it into play for the greater good of the world by leading, and not leading from behind, which is kind of Orwellian-speak,” said Palin.
“Leading again on the global stage and the Supreme Court pick, those are two specifics – but Alex, we need to make sure to remind our friends, our supporters, people who are really tuned in to what’s going on today and get frustrated under any administration. Maybe they’re frustrated with what Trump does, some of the wrinkles that are certainly part of the agenda that we’ve witnessed,” she suggested.
“We can never put our faith and our hope in man, in any one man, certainly not a politician,” Palin counseled. “Man is fallible. We’re going to be disappointed if we put all of our hope and faith in one man – a politician, a government that cannot make us happy, healthy, wealthy, and wise. We need to look at the bigger picture here, as you suggested in your opening.”
Another highlight of the first hundred days for Palin was the “quote-unquote massive tax cut proposals that will come from the White House.”
“I’m extremely happy about that. That’s another promise fulfilled,” she said. “We know that to allow us to be solvent and sovereign, we need to see jobs created. The way that jobs are going to be created and people will be productive again in this country is for tax cuts that will really benefit the middle class, especially the working class. More jobs will be created with tax cuts, so I’m excited about that coming down the pike.”
“We have to cut taxes,” she stressed. “Look at that corporate tax rate we have that is, what, second highest in the developed world? Our corporate tax rate certainly is one of the job creation prohibiters that we’re suffering under. So that has to be done, and certainly people with our income taxes, we realize it’s taxation without representation. The government is taking from us the fruits of our labor, and we’re not receiving the services in return that are on par with the amount that they’re taking from us. It’s a given: taxes must be cut in this country, and I would think that everybody knows that.”
“But as for it then contributing to an accumulation of debt – you’re right: it’s semantics, and it’s bogus,” Palin said to Marlow’s point that the left controls the language of tax reform and treats tax cuts as an expensive indulgence that must be “paid for” somehow.
“It doesn’t have to result in accumulation of debt,” she argued. “We can’t just hand that over to those in government who hold the purse strings and keep spending more and more money that we do not have. We need to ratchet down the size of government. This government overreach in every area of our life that’s getting more and more expensive, we can’t just swallow that and say, ‘Oh, well, that’s just the way it is, and wow, we’re going to have to take more money from the people in order to pay for growing government.’”
“It always killed me when I was a city council member, I was a mayor, I was a city manager, I was a governor, and I would watch every 12 months when the government’s budget was due. I’d either help craft it, or it would come across my desk. I would always ask the bureaucrats and the politicians creating these budgets, ‘What’s going on here? Just because 365 days have passed, you just automatically inherently believe that the budget amount has to increase? Why? Are people getting more for the money that you’re taking from them? Has the population grown that much?’” she recalled.
“In each level of government, it’s just so inherent that oh, you know, government grows; that’s just the way it is. It doesn’t have to,” Palin contended.
Marlow asked Palin about the “war on free speech” conducted by masked thugs at universities, prominently including Berkeley, where he was once a student.
“Well, first, it blows me away that you’re from Berkeley. Talk about not drinking the Kool-Aid!” Palin said with a laugh.
“These Berkeley students, bless their hearts, they’re hypocrites on steroids,” she said on a more serious note. “It is amazing to me and anybody else with just an ounce of common sense in their veins to ever be able to believe that those who preach tolerance and diversity, and we’re gonna embrace diversity – but Heaven forbid you say something that might hurt our little snowflakey feelings. You know, we’ll melt there down in Berkeley if you say something that we can’t agree with!”
“In the end, they’re the most intolerant people if they are going to protest someone who is a bastion of free speech. Ann Coulter is on their side! When they are spewing the free speech rhetoric, she’s saying, ‘Exactly! And here, let’s exercise it! Let me prove to you, you guys prove with me, that we’re all for free speech!’ And yet, they’re so blinded by their hatred for anybody who does not agree just down the line with them on everything that they will not tolerate Ann Coulter speaking her mind,” said Palin.
Marlow advised President Trump to resist advice about “moderating” his positions to secure the approval of left-wingers who will never stop hating him – something Palin is well positioned to understand, as the target of an unprecedented campaign of left-wing vilification in 2008.
“Amen. Preach it, brother,” Palin agreed. “President Trump needs to realize he can’t win them over. You cannot. He can learn from our mistakes, those of us who have been in that position on a much smaller scale. We have tried to win them over, and it doesn’t work. It bites you in the butt, and it harms those who you have promised to serve.”
“Right on, too, in talking about the big tent,” she said to Marlow’s defense of an ideologically diverse Republican Party. “You know, most of us, we come from big-tent families. Our social circles even, and our communities, they’re big tents, and really, we’re better off for it. Talk about diversity and learning from other people’s perspectives that are shared and all that – that’s all great.”
“But no, when you are leading an agenda that people have put blood, sweat, and tears forth, to make sure that agenda finally is given an opportunity to be made manifest so that our lives can be made better, you have to surround yourself with people who are obviously going to help the cause and not hurt the cause,” she added.
“You cannot surround yourself, one, with a bunch of yes-men. That certainly harms the cause. You will never grow as a leader. You have to be growing as a leader as your constituents will be growing along with you. So you can’t have a bunch of yes-men. Those of us who have been in business and been in politics certainly recognize that,” said Palin.
“But also, you have to have those who at least will share your vision. Maybe some of the idiosyncrasies, maybe some of the details in how you’re going to get there, you can argue some of the ways to do that, but the vision has got to be the same,” she emphasized.
“Now, do globalists, do big government professional politicians who are in it for a season, not a reason – they’re in politics for a job, for a career, for the money, for the power – do they share the vision of average, hard-working, patriotic Americans who want government out of our lives so that we can be trusted as individuals to run our businesses the way that we know best and to raise our families the way that is best for our families?” Palin asked.
“Government, faceless bureaucrats, they don’t know how to do that. They keep screwing it up. Well, globalists and big government people, some in office today under Trump, they believe in that garbage of big government knowing best. That is the antithesis of the vision that those on the Trump Train have, and that Trump Train roared through this country so powerfully, so loudly and adamantly, that there was no stopping it. That’s why I wasn’t surprised when Trump won,” she contended.
“So those who don’t share that vision, who are there, quote-unquote, serving our president and the vision, the mission that he is on, that is shared by the majority of the voters – it’s frustrating to us because we do want to sound that warning bell that you can’t win them over. They’re certainly stuck in their ways, and if they give you lip service that they’re there with you – those are the yes-men that we don’t need around our president,” Palin advised.
In parting, Palin suggested a mission for Marlow: “I wish you would take the opportunity to get down to Berkeley and speak with your alumni. Go down there and talk to the folks down there about what tolerance really is and how healthy diverse opinions really can be. Talk about the Second Amendment. You would be one, Alex – well, they’d probably get really wee-weed up about it – but you could be a great spokesperson for the cause.”
Breitbart News Daily airs on SiriusXM Patriot 125 weekdays from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. Eastern.
G’ day…Ciao…….
Helen & Moe Lauzier
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