HALF-FULL REPORT 07/19/13

The acquittal of George Zimmerman brought "deep heartache" to PIAPs, but Jimmy Carter is down with it.  So is Charles Barkley, and a substantial plurality of Americans.  Despite the media frenzy, Americans had only a "modest" interest in the trial.

The 6 women on the jury demonstrated judgment, integrity and courage lacking from the prosecutors, the judge, and the news media.  For liberal pundits William Saletan (Slate) and Richard Cohen (Washington Post), the evidence and justice were more important than politics or ideology. Liberal blogger Jeralyn Merritt (TalkLeft), a criminal defense attorney, offered commentary throughout that has been fair, evidence-focused, and insightful.

No one would accuse lead prosecutor Angela Corey of being fair, evidence-focused, or insightful. Maybe the most despicable thing she did was fire Ben Kruidbos, the information technology director for the state attorney’s office, for informing the defense of potentially exculpatory evidence Ms. Corey had a duty to disclose, but did not.  Kruidbos is going to sue.

She ought to be disbarred, says Alan Dershowitz. That’s not likely, but "After this debacle, Corey’s future as a prosecutor looks bleak. If she wants to keep calling Zimmerman a murderer, she will have to do it as a panelist on MSNBC, that final destination point for disgraced demagogues," said George Neumayr.

MSNBC, incidentally, got killed in the ratings.

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No discussion of race baiting scoundrels would be complete without reference to Attorney General Eric Holder.  Will he charge Mr. Zimmerman with having violated Trayvon Martin’s civil rights?

Most observers think not, because he’d have an even weaker case than Ms.Corey did.

In a speech to the NAACP in Orlando Tuesday, the attorney general attacked "Stand Your Ground" laws, which seemed odd, because Florida’s Stand Your Ground law had absolutely no role in Mr. Zimmerman’s defense. But blacks have benefited disproportionately from it.

This was "a very powerful person speaking dishonestly and threateningly about the exercise of power," said University of Wisconsin law professor Ann Althouse.  A "disgusting combination," but a good sign:

"Holder wants relief from the pressure to prosecute Zimmerman, so he’s shifting to a topic that has nothing to do with Zimmerman but that low-information people think has to do with Zimmerman. ‘Investigating’ is code. As we saw with Benghazi, it means: We’re hoping that if enough time passes, you’ll forget about it."

But Bryan Preston thinks a political show trial may be in the offing: "The end game is not to convict Zimmerman, but to put the concept of self-defense on trial."

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Journalists – by asserting a racial motive for the slaying when there is absolutely no evidence (other than that of their own manufacture) to support it – have been the most despicable.  The "evidence" NBC manufactured could cost the Peacock big money.

In pursuit of their narrative, journalists have made a celebrity of Trayvon Martin’s girlfriend, Rachel Jeantel, often with hilarious results, as when Ms. Jeantel explained to CNN’s Piers Morgan why it wasn’t racist for Mr. Martin to call Mr. Zimmerman a "nigga."  (Kevin Williamson expounds on the etymology of the N word here) 

Or counterproductive, as when she told the Huffington Post "I believe Trayvon hit first." 

If Mr. Martin did start the fight, it may have been because she told him Zimmerman might be a gay rapist, Ms. Jeantel told Piers Morgan. In must see TV, Larry Elder – who also has melanin in his skin, reads the Riot Act to Piers Morgan for his racial pandering here:

In pursuit of "justice for Trayvon," protesters assaulted a woman in Houston who was taking her granddaughter to the hospital, beat up a Hispanic guy in Baltimore, trashed a Wal Mart in Los Angeles, and occupied the office of Florida Gov. Rick Scott.

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Detroit declared bankruptcy yesterday (7/18), the largest city ever to do so.  David Freddoso explains why. So much for President Obama’s claim his auto industry bailout would revive the Motor City.

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In the IRS scandal, it’s  "rogue employees" all the way to Washington, to the doorstep of the White House.

Evidence and testimony presented at the House Oversight Committee hearing yesterday (7/18) linking the IRS chief counsel to harassment of Tea Party members "was a bombshell. And Democrats know it. Which is why they are so desperate to make the investigation go away," said Peggy Noonan.

"We’re starting to understand why Lois Lerner took the Fifth," said the editors of the Wall Street Journal.

You can watch the hearing here.  Guy Benson summarizes what happened here.  Especially worth watching is how rising star Trey Gowdy, R-SC, dismantles the excuses Ms. Lerner and other IRS officials have made.

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I described what happened to NSA whistleblowers who went through channels in a column this week.  At a hearing Wednesday, House Judiciary Committee Chairman and Patriot Act co-sponsor Rep. James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis, warned those running the Surveillance State that if they don’t clean up their act, the laws that authorize their snooping will not be renewed.

The surveillance programs "strike the right balance" between liberty and security, said Deputy Attorney General James Cole, but neither Republicans nor Democrats were buying that.

 "If you’re collecting information about my telephone whenever I use it, that’s abuse, even if you file it away somewhere," Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-NY, told Cole.

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BENGHAZI RALLY!  TTPer and American hero Captain Larry Bailey writes to inform us that Special Operations Speaks will hold a rally on the steps of the U.S. Capitol at noon next week on Tuesday, July 23^rd, to encourage House Speaker John Boehner to form a Select Committee to investigate what happened at our consulate there on 9/11/2012.  I wrote here why this is a good idea.

At the rally Capt. Bailey – who used to run the Navy SEAL training school in Coronado, California – and other SOSers will unveil a 60-foot scroll containing the signatures of 1,000 Special Operations veterans in support of H. Res. 36, which would establish the Benghazi Committee.  Drafted by Rep. Frank Wolf, R-Va, it has 156 cosponsors.  The Washington Times wrote a story in April about the questions Special Operations Speaks want answered.

Speakers at the rally in addition to Capt. Bailey and SOS co-founder Dick Brauer Jr., a retired Air Force colonel, will include TTP friends Reps. Steve Stockman, R-Tex, and Louie Gohmert, R-Tex.

"Please help us demonstrate that we will not tolerate the murder-by-neglect of four of America’s finest on September 12, 2012," Capt. Bailey asks. "Please help us send a message to our nation?s leaders that we demand full accountability for this national crime."

Capt. Bailey apologizes for the short notice, but the need is urgent. If you haven’t visited the Web site of Special Operations Speaks recently, now would be a good time. And if you can’t come to the rally Tuesday, you can make a contribution to help these great patriots carry on the work they’re doing.

But if you can come, please do.  Let’s show Zero that no matter how much time has passed, we haven’t forgotten about what happened in Benghazi. If you need help in finding accommodation, or would like more information about the rally, contact Alex Rosenwald or Amanda Flontek here.

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Meanwhile, the coverup continues.  Benghazi survivors have been forced to sign non-disclosure agreements. The Marine colonel whose task force was responsible for special operations in northern and western Africa at the time of the attack is still on active duty despite claims that he retired (and thus could not be compelled to testify before Congress), the Marine Corps Times reported Wednesday.

The State Department has done little to improve security at other high risk diplomatic missions. But it’s been boosted in Norway and the Netherlands.

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This guy is a Marine!

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In an "unusually harsh" letter to Dingy Harry and Nancy Pelosi, James Hoffa of the Teamsters and leaders of two other big unions expressed  "deep concerns" about Obamacare:

"Time is running out. Congress wrote this law; we voted for you. We have a problem; you need to fix it. The unintended consequences of the ACA are severe. Perverse incentives are already creating nightmare scenarios."

They bitched especially about how Obamacare is causing employers to cut back on worker hours, and because it will clobber many union health insurance plans.  They want their members exempted from taxes everyone else must pay.

According to this survey, 74 percent of small businesses will lay off workers or cut their hours as a result of Obamacare.  Delaying enforcement of the employer mandate will cost taxpayers about $62 billion, Betsy McCaughey estimates.

Obamacare "leaves unions in a state of desperation and disappointment," Charles Krauthammer said. The loss of Labor support and the announcement last week the administration plans to delay enforcement of the employer mandate for a year signal "the beginning of the collapse," thinks Dr. Ben Carson.

The House passed bills Wednesday to delay both the employer and individual mandates for a year.  Thirty five Democrats voted to delay the employer mandate, 22 voted to delay the individual mandate.  President Obama has threatened a veto.

That was good politics for House Republicans, said Investors’ Business Daily, but is "largely meaningless," because Obamacare’s exchanges, subsidies and regulations would still be in place.

It’s a start, said Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis, chairman of the House Budget Committee. "Delaying these core provisions shows that the law has fundamentally failed, it puts Democrats in the hot seat, and it helps us ultimately get to repeal."

The bills, and Obama’s threat to veto them, put Democrats in an "impossible situation," said Michael Cannon of the CATO Institute. 

The implementation date for Obamacare exchanges probably will have to be delayed, an auditor for the Treasury Department testified Thursday.

Obamacare is "doing what it’s designed to do," President Obama said yesterday (7/18).  That’s probably true. Nothing else he said was.  Even the AP noticed. Zero is planning to spend lots of our money to convince the (dwindling) ranks of the gullible that Obamacare will be good for them.

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The Muslim Brotherhood blames the U.S. for the ouster of Egyptian President Mohamed  Morsi.  But an Egyptian politician charges that U.S. Ambassador Anne Patterson is a member of an Ikhwan sleeper cell.

Matt Vadum outlines here the support "Obama’s enforcer in Egypt" has given the Muslim Brotherhood.

The "Glazov Gang" discusses the Ikhwan’s role in the attack on our consulate in Benghazi here.  Exposing that connection is another reason why you should be at the Special Operations Speaks rally Tuesday.

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A burglary at a law firm in Dallas June 29 may become Hillary Clinton’s Watergate.

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A third federal appeals court has ruled President Obama’s recess appointments to the National Labor Relations Board were unconstitutional.

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BIG SIS is leaving the Department of Homeland Security to become president of the University of California.  That’s good news for us, but "disastrous" for the University of California, says the president of the National Association of  Scholars.

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Elizabeth Cheney, 46, elder (and straight) daughter of former Vice President Dick, will run for the Senate against Sen. Mike Enzi, 69, in the GOP primary in Wyoming next year. Wyoming is the most Republican state in the union, so there’s little likelihood a primary contest would jeopardize GOP control.

Sen. Enzi has a solidly conservative voting record, and by all accounts is a good guy.  But he was elected to the Senate in 1996, and this is the first time I’ve written about him, which suggests he hasn’t been an impact player. Liz Cheney could be.  But there is something carpetbaggerish about relocating to Wyoming just in time to run.   

The National Republican Senatorial Committee will support Sen. Enzi, as it should.  I tilt a little in favor of Ms. Cheney, both because of her potential to be a player nationally, and because Sen. Enzi will be 70, and will have served three full terms, before the next Senate is sworn in.  Even for the good guys, this shouldn’t be a lifetime sinecure.

Popular former Democrat governor Brian Schweitzer said he won’t run for the Senate seat being vacated next year by Sen. Max Baucus (D) in Montana, boosting GOP hopes for a pickup.

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The best educated children in America don’t go to school, I noted in a column this week.  They sure don’t go to Chicago Public Schools, where only 52.5 percent of elementary students met or exceeded the academic standards set by the state last year.  This was a 21 percentage point plunge from the year before.

"Students didn’t suddenly get less intelligent," said the Chicago Tribune. "They were not doing as well in the past as everyone was led to believe. The state had dumbed down the tests and lowered cut scores to avoid sanctions from the federal No Child Left Behind Act."

Chicago Public Schools will lay off 2,110 teachers and support staff.

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China’s economic problems are now so bad, even Paul Krugman has noticed.

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There’s more, but this HFR is already too long.  My heroes of the week are the Zimmerman jury, and Ben Kruidbos. 

I mark the glass this week as exactly half full.  The fascists have suffered embarrassment, but keep marching along. 

"This is the moment things go forward or stall," Peggy Noonan said of the IRS scandal. "Republicans need to find out how high the scandal went and why, exactly, it went there. To do that they’ll have to up their game."

What she said is true about Benghazi and Obamacare too.  But we need to help Congressional Republicans out, not just bitch about them.  A good place to start would be at the Special Operations Speaks rally Tuesday.