The high price of open borders

My biggest fear is that after Trump, we will elect another clone of Obama or Biden. Then all the idiocy that we practiced during the Obama and Biden years will return. Up is down, right is left, and evil is good. Here we will go again. That is my fear, and I pray it will never happen again.

To the people who hate ICE today, but did not hate ICE during our yesteryears, hear this out. ICE is the same organization with the same charter it always was. They are now and have been enforcing the same laws that Congress has had on the books. Then why in the world is ICE villainized today by the secular humanists who protest just about everything? Why? Because, for four long years, our borders were wide open. With millions pouring in, unvetted and unchecked, ICE now has to clean up that mess. And often times, it is not pretty.

But now, thanks in a large part to fraud (and our growing awareness of it), we are finding out that open borders may have only been the tip of the iceberg. Meaning what? There seems to be a cottage industry in both China and India of making fraudulent credentials for people who wanted to get a work visa to come to the states. And it has worked very well. In fact, many of the females who received fraudulent documents came here just to have a baby. Why? Our birthright citizenship. Result? An instant citizen who should have never been born here in the first place. 

The more I hear about the way our borders and visa system were twisted, the more I realize just how important our Border Control and ICE agencies are, and how much we need them. The money we spend while going after people who snuck into this country as well as rooting out the fraud which let illegals come here under false documents, is staggering. All that money, which could have been spent on bettering life for our citizens, is used instead for remedy purposes. We need to remedy the malice and misuse which was visited upon our country by not only the fraudsters, but also by Biden, Mayorkas, and Garland.

I don't know how much we pay ICE officers, but it is not nearly enough. All they are doing is enforcing the laws on the books which Congress (made up of many Democrats) - passed. They are part of the cadre of federal LEOs in our country. But the way = the way they are treated by the mutts in many of the big, blue city is less than awful. Result? Because of our toxic media, we villainize the federal LEOs and lionize the anarchists. Like it was foretold, in the final days good will look evil and evil will look good.

My biggest fear is that after Trump, we will elect another clone of Obama or Biden. Then all the idiocy that we practiced during the Obama and Biden years will return. Up is down, right is left, and evil is good. Here we will go again. That is my fear, and I pray it will never happen again. 

  

Time for another holiday - a gas tax holiday

"High prices or not, summer is summer and time is a wasting. If you close your eyes just for a second, it seems like another month in the summer has slipped by. What am I going to do about it? In about two hours or so, we will head north to our camper. Why? Time is flying by. Time to enjoy what little summer we have in this state."

Had to fill up my truck the other day. Went to the cheapest gas station in the area. And even with that, my durable old Chevy truck took almost $100 to fill it up. I know, I know - it is nobody's fault but the Iranians for giving the Strait of Hormuz a stopper. Meanwhile, gas in the states averages about $4/gal, and in Europe it is much worse. Short of turning Iran into a sheet of glass, is there not anything that we can do to lower our gas prices this summer? 

Actually, there is. Donald Trump first floated this idea. How about a tax holiday from paying the federally mandated 18.4 cents per gallon on gasoline? I know - a drop in the bucket, but it would help. But - Trump would need the help of Congress on this one, and since the TDS and vile hatred is so strong in Washington, that would never happen. How do I know? Just look at the Save America Act, which is a 90-10 piece of legislation. Should have been a slam dunk in the Senate. But it failed. Something that 90% of Americans would favor -- failed due to four RINOs and every single Democrat. Thus, a tax holiday would stand the same chance as a snowball in you know where.

Okay, okay. How about in Minnesota? Surely, we could do a tax holiday here. We are after all, paying a sky-high rate of 31.8 cents a gallon. Whoops - I misspoke. The Democrats raised our gas tax to an even higher rate of 32.6 cents a gallon. Between federal and state, people in Minnesota are paying over 50 cents a gallon in tax! Ouch!

Would Taxing Timmy ever consider giving his residence a break on their gas tax? When pigs fly is my answer. All he cares about is fixing up George Floyd square and getting ICE out of Minnesota. Other than that, with his terminal TDS, he cares not about the pain and suffering his political party has hoisted upon Minnesota's citizens (subjects). Meanwhile, trips up north to the cabin or camping have gotten to be very expensive - very expensive indeed.

High prices or not, summer is summer and time is a wasting. If you close your eyes just for a second, it seems like another month in the summer has slipped by. What am I going to do about it? In about two hours or so, head north to our camper. Why? Time is flying by. Time to enjoy what little summer we have in this state.

President Kamala Harris (oh no!)

"The good news is that we do not live in that universe. In our universe, Donald Trump saved us from economic slavery that Biden left us with. The bad news is if the multiverse is real, President Harris could exist in at least one of those universes. If that is true, I can hear that kackle and a giggle from here..."     

There are some scientists who believe in the multiverse theory. That would be instead of a single universe, we would be living in a realm of countless universes. And as the theory progresses, each universe would look similar to the others, except different things would have different outcomes. For example, the 2024 election would have had President Kamala Harris in at least one of those universes. And this morning, we will explore what that universe might look like.

What would that world look like? First off, the southern border would still be wide open. Illegals, drugs, gangs, terrorists, you name it - would continue to come pouring in. All unfettered, unchecked. DHS Mayorkas was kept on for the administration following President Biden. Why? In the eyes of the Democrats, Mayorkas was doing a fantastic job.

Gas would be over $5/gal nationwide - in California, closer to $10/gal. President Harris has continued on with many of the Biden energy policies. Shuttering coal mines and abrogating drilling leases for starters. Natural gas has become all but illegal in most states, and the electric grid is strapped from running on mostly renewables. Brownouts and blackouts are as common as afternoon thunderstorms. The mandate for everybody to drive an EV has stuck and charging stations are few and far between. The United States, while sitting on a caldera of oil, is headed back to the 1800s with Obama/Biden/Harris energy policies.

More and more police departments are being defunded. Another hangover from Biden. Police nationwide are being replaced with Anger Management Specialists and Violence Disrupters. In most cities crime is so rampant that normal citizens refuse to go out at night. Some fear even the daytime. Money to fund the FBI and ATF has been redirected to fund more agents for the IRS. Why? With the mandatory minimum tax now being 40%, tax cheating is endemic. The IRS (if they catch and convict you) will have you put away for 20 years for even the smallest of errors or omissions on your tax forms.

Finally, President Harris, (who gets along famously with the socialists in Canada and Europe), has suspended the requirement that NATO self-fund their militaries. We will take care of it. In fact, all tariffs on all goods we ship to them are now suspended. We will continue to pay Euro tariffs, but they will not pay any to us. President Harris has a motto - "Uncle Sugar, first, last and always!" She is so popular in Europe, there are statues of her in just about every country. And her former motto of "lead from behind" has been replaced with "MASLA - Make America Stay Last Always". 

The good news is that we do not live in that universe. In our universe, Donald Trump saved us from the economic slavery that Biden left us with. The bad news is if the multiverse is real, President Harris could exist in at least one of those universes. If that is true, I can hear that kackle and a giggle from here...     

Our sequence of events - sadly...

"With three carriers, dozens of support ships, and our Air Force in the area, we should be able to finish this job long before the 4th of July. We should have free transit through the Strait by the middle of June. But to make all of this happen, we really do need to unleash our dogs of war. No halfway measures. We need to go all out."

I think many of us have figured it out so far. The sequence of events which have led us to this temporary spike in prices (especially with gasoline). Ready? Here it goes: Hezbollah, who hates Israel, continues to lob missiles at them from Lebanon. Israel, who has no time for any more of this crap, retaliates with air strikes. Iran, who is the father of the proxy Hezbollah, accuses the US and Israel of breaking the peace, and stalls the talks for a lasting peace. Then nothing happens, and the Strait of Hormuz stays closed. With the Strait closed, inflation ticks up and gasoline prices stay high.

Meanwhile, our feckless Democrats have passed a war powers resolution (with the help of a handful of RINOs). What does that mean? Time is up, for the president. If this bill became law, we would have to pull our forces out of the area. Of course, in order for this bill to become law, President Trump would need to sign it. That will happen on the 12th of Never. Thus, the beat goes on. The sequence of events leading up to higher gas prices stays intact.

Where does all this leave us? Kind of in a box canyon. To leave Iran before the job is done would be a fool's errand. If we left, Iran would work like crazy to get back what was lost in the bombing. They would be more committed than ever to build a nuclear bomb(s). And then, all that time, treasure and blood spilt during this war would be for naught. 

If I were in charge of this mess, what would I do? I would first put Iran on notice that we are not playing this game anymore. They have 72 hours to agree to our terms. If no agreement is reached, I would unleash Israel on Lebanon to root out Hezbollah, and I would instruct our forces to "finish the job". If it is war Iran wants, we will give it to them as well as Hezbollah. If it is peace they want, they have 72 hours to agree to our terms. And - this is the important part - the 72 hours is cast in concrete. They will be no more extensions.

With three carriers, dozens of support ships, and our Air Force in the area, we should be able to finish this job long before the 4th of July. We should have free transit through the Strait by the middle of June. But to make all of this happen, we really do need to unleash our dogs of war. No halfway measures. We need to go all out. Same way with Israel. Finish off Hezbollah. Finish off Hamas. Finish off the Houthis. And we will finish off the IRGC. 

We are tired of this stork dance Mr. President. The "perfect deal" you have been waiting for with Iran might be a bridge too far. These guys are snakes, sir. You gave them every chance in the world. Now it is our turn. Finish the job. 

 

How about - unimpeachable elections?

"Will the minions be satisfied if Lisa prevails in the primary? I believe not! The Kendall Qualls followers will think he got robbed. What about the Adam Schwarze crowd? If Michele Trafoya comes out on top? Same thing. The seeds are now sown for much discord in MNGOP. Discord? When is the last time there was discord in MNGOP? Try, yesterday..."   

Don't look now, but the DOJ is still finding suspicious stuff from the 2020 election. Not that it matters, but it might have. But what is the point? The point is simply this. We need election integrity from our general elections all the way down to our endorsement process. Why? Once the people lose faith and confidence that ALL of our elections are unimpeachable, our system of governance will be questioned. And once that happens, the wheels might start to fall off our ship of state.

Somebody the other day brought up a very valid point. With the amount of fraud which has been found in Minnesota to date (and this state is simply oozing with fraud), what makes you think there was no fraud (also) in our voting system? Like illegals voting. Like dead people voting (a fav among Dems). Voting in more than one state. Voting more than once. Voting with fake credentials. The list goes on and on and on.

Do I blame Lisa Demuth for going to the primary? Not the way the clicker voting turned out. Wait a second Bird! Are you alleging fraud or cheating in the MNGOP convention? Nope - but the seeds of doubt were sown. Michele Trafoya is a different story. I think this was her plan all along. But back to Lisa. If we had an unimpeachable vote and voting process, I really do think that Lisa would have abided by the endorsement process. That is only my view from this perch, and I may be 100% wrong.

During the 2020 general elections, there was so much wrong, or appeared to be wrong, it shook the belief system of many a voter. How in the world could Joe Biden, who ran a nothing burger campaign, have amassed such a large number of votes? Now, I am not going to go back and relitigate that election - it would serve no purpose. But I will say this - it stunk. Anybody who said there were no oddities was either lying or very insular.

Will the minions be satisfied if Lisa prevails in the primary? I believe not! The Kendall Qualls followers will think he got robbed. What about the Adam Schwarze crowd? If Michele Trafoya comes out on top? Same thing. The seeds are now sown for much discord in MNGOP. Discord? When is the last time there was discord in MNGOP? Try, yesterday...   

 

Was this the death of our endorsement process in MN?

"At one time, when the endorsing conventions were over, it was time to rally around the flag. At one time. But those days might be over. Now the time to rally around the flag might be after the primary is over. After the primary, over is finally over. That is, unless a vanquished foe decides to run as an independent in the general election. And the beat goes on..."      

I am a veteran of Minnesota politics. I was state delegate three years in a row. I was tightly involved both times Jeff Johnson ran for governor. I voted as a delegate - way more than once. I was a fan, a devotee of the endorsement process. I considered it to be an honor to represent my BPOU in the voting process. But those days are over for me. I decided to step aside to let some of the younger folks also taste this honor. I am still interested, and as many know, I do my part now via the Very Angry Bird Blog.

I penned a few days ago that both the DFL and MNGOP conventions left much to be desired. In fact, the MNGOP was so screwed up using the "clickers" for voting, this convention might have been the last for endorsing candidates. As much as I fought the idea of going directly to a primary a few years back, if might now be time to modify my thinking. Why? Possible shenanigans during the "clicker" voting. Please note I used the word "possible". But also, the word "trust" went out the window long before Kandall Qualls got the nod after dark on Saturday night. 

Some are saying that Qualls will have a tough time beating Amy for one reason only. Name recognition. Other are saying the same thing about Schwarze having problems beating either Flanigan or Craig. Name recognition. Truthfully - I am in the same camp. I think both Qualls and Schwarze are qualified and quality men. But who are they? That is the question many voters will ask. And truthfully, there are many voters out there who not political geeks in either political party. They are just ordinary, underinformed voters who vote for a name they recognize.

Where does that leave us this year? We are headed for a wide-open primary. Many think the only Republican who has a snowball's chance at the open senate seat is Michele Trafoya. I know, I know. Michele flunks many of the MNGOP "purity tests". But that will be a "so what" if Michele can steal that seat away from the Democrats. Is it possible that Adam could win that seat? Sure - anything is possible. But maybe not probable.

At one time, when the endorsing conventions were over, it was time to rally around the flag. At one time. But those days might be over. Now the time to rally around the flag might be after the primary is over. After the primary, over is finally over. That is, unless a vanquished foe decides to run as an independent in the general election. And the beat goes on...      

Pausing for peace; stalling for war

"The IRGC is slippery - they have been for many decades. Bottom line? Getting them to comply with promises or agreements might turn into a shell game of sorts."

Those who have ever negotiated for a living or taken a negotiation class, have heard this infamous axiom -the most, and some of the very important movements come right at the very end of a negotiation. I will confess when I first heard that, I thought it was some kind of lore or fiction. That is, I thought that until it happened to me - more than once. Now, it does not happen every time, but in my case, it seemed to happen when it really counted.

I am not only frustrated by the negotiations with Iran, I am also (in a weird kind of way), fascinated by the process. I know what Trump and team are trying to do. Wait until the right deal is scribed on paper and then try and implement it. I also (don't know but believe I know) what the Iran team is doing. It is something they have done before many times and are very good at it. Stall. Stall. And stall again. While they are stalling, work their shadow fleet, reconstitute their drones and missiles, and prepare to act like this war never happened.

The doubter in me thinks that this entire negotiation stage production might just be a "stork dance". Meaning what? Lots of sound and fury, signifying nothing. Even if an agreement is signed, and the Strait is opened up to normal traffic, how long will this fragile peace last? Will the peace also involve Lebanon, or will that dust up be the trip wire which ends the master agreement? There are so many things which could go wrong with an agreement which is signed by the snakes from Iran, that I would be amazed if it lasted a year. Maybe even a month.

What is the good part about this "pause" in the action? We are watching Iran like a hawk right now. It has slowed down or stopped any work to procure and/or enrich uranium. But Iran is a big country with lots of hiding places. Most of which we know about, but maybe not all of them. I hate the idea of having boots on the ground, but I also need to face some hard facts. Even though our intel is very good, having eyes and ears on the ground is even better. The IRGC is slippery - they have been for many decades. Bottom line? Getting them to comply with promises or agreements might turn into a shell game of sorts.

Meanwhile, not to bitch about first world problems, I filled up my truck this weekend. Almost $100. Because of the ill will in negotiations that the Iranians are showing, this might be the case for the rest of the summer. I have said this in a recent post - finish the job Mr. President. The IRGC only understands force, and lying has become an art form to them. They are playing us sir. Sorry to say, but I believe it to be true.