HALF-FULL REPORT 04/03/15

President Barack Obama has got a deal with Iran, sort of, for which he paid a terrible price.

The P5+1 countries (the five permanent members of the UN Security Council – the U.S., Britain, France, China and Russia – plus Germany) and Iran "have agreed on the outlines of an understanding" to limit Iran’s nuclear programs, the AP reported.

In plainer English, the parties have agreed to keep on talking to each other. To get this nothingburger, the P5+1 agreed to lift economic sanctions the UN imposed on Iran.

President Obama held a news conference yesterday to crow about his "historic" deal, and to warn Congress not to mess with it. It "cuts off every pathway Iran could take to develop a nuclear weapon," he said.

The mullahs interpret the deal very differently. So do Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, leading Members of Congress of both parties, and most experts.

The terms really don’t matter very much, because Iran will not abide by any provisions it doesn’t like, said Bret Stephens of the Wall Street Journal. And if the mullahs are caught cheating, neither President Obama nor the leaders of the other P5+1 countries will do anything about it.

But America’s enemies must be delighted, our dwindling number of friends dismayed by the cluelessness, spinelessness and ineptititude of this president, his secretary of state, and their crack negotiating team.

* * * *

Obama hasn’t capitulated to all of Iran’s demands. But there is a lot of time between now and June 30, the new deadline for reaching a substantive agreement.

"The Iranians are running circles around the Americans here," MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell reported the day before the deal was struck.

In their pathetic eagerness for a deal – any deal — Zero and Lurch pursued the mullahs like lovesick teenagers stalking a high school prom queen.

"The U.S. negotiating team are mainly there to speak on Iran’s behalf with other members of the 5+1 countries and convince them of a deal," said Amir Hossein Motaghi, the top media aide to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, who defected to Switzerland during the talks.

Team Obama threatened allies who think the concessions go too far, the Washington Free Beacon reported.

* * * *

Zero may be misreading public reaction as badly as he did last year, when he expected "euphoria" to break out after he traded five senior Taliban leaders for "one deserting weasel."

 Iran is untrustworthy, said 83 percent in a Fox News poll Wednesday. Congress should have the final say on any deal, said 76 percent, including nearly two thirds of Democrats.

"A nuke deal Iran could love," said the New York Daily News.  "Get ready for a nuclear Iran," said the New York Post. The deal falls "well short" of the goals President Obama set, said the Washington Post.

"Clearing the way for Iran to get nuclear bombs may — probably will — be the most catastrophic decision in human history," said Thomas Sowell. "It can certainly change human history, irrevocably, for the worse."

* * * *

Republicans think President Obama poses a more "imminent threat" to the United States than Vladimir Putin, according to a Reuters-Ipsos poll Monday. Liberals are aghast, but I’d say his appeasement of Iran proves us right.

* * * *

The Shia Houthi rebels backed by Iran have captured the presidential palace in the port city of Aden in Yemen, the AP reported Thursday.

If the Houthis – and therefore Iran – gain control of Aden, they could cut off shipments of oil to Europe through the Suez canal, I noted in last week’s HFR. Ambrose Evans-Pritchard explained in a column this week what that would mean for the world economy.

The Saudis have been bombing the Houthis – so far to little effect – have assembled a coalition of Sunni Muslim countries to fight them. A ground war will begin very soon.

The Saudis have never been much good at military operations more complicated than raiding caravans, so Ambrose wonders if Yemen will be Saudi Arabia’s Vietnam.

The participation in it of Egypt and Jordan, who have the best (of the not very high) military reputations among Arabs gives the Saudi coalition credibility, says retired Army Reserve colonel and war game designer Austin Bay. The Pakistanis – who with the Turks have the best military reputations in the Muslim world – also have joined the coalition.

* * * *

A virulent flesh eating skin disease has reached epidemic proportions in Raqqa, which ISIS has made its capital. Has God sent a plague?

* * * *

Nigeria elected a new president Tuesday. Muhammad Buhari, 72, a Sunni Muslim from Nigeria’s north, defeated President Goodluck Jonathan, a Christian from the south.

A former major general who ruled Nigeria as a military dictator for two years in the 1980s before being himself ousted in a military coup, Buhari describes himself as a "converted democrat."

Buhari vowed to crush Boko Haram. He likely owes his victory to President Jonathan’s unwillingness to use the military against the vicious Islamist terror group.

If he means what he says, "Buhari has an unprecedented opportunity to recast the Muslim face of Africa at a time when violent terrorist movements have perverted Islam," American University Prof. Carl LeVan, who monitored the election, told Fox News.

* * * *

The big news at home this week was the hysterical, hypocritical, fact free assault of the fascists (we really must stop calling them liberals) on the Religious Freedom Restoration Act Indiana  passed the week before.

Under immense pressure from hundreds of business leaders in Indiana and from the dominant newspaper in the state, as well as from the Usual Suspects, Gov. Mike Pence wilted.

Leading the business side of the lynch mob was Apple CEO Tim Cook, who wrote a thoroughly dishonest op ed for the Washington Post. He’s a shameless hypocrite, I noted in a column this week.

The Lying Swine were the worst offenders. Most vile was the trolling of the ABC affiliate in South Bend in tiny Walkerton, (pop 2,300) for a business owner unwilling to serve gays.

Reporter Alyssa Marino struck paydirt when Crystal O’Connor, owner of Memories Pizza and a devout Christian, said in response to her question: "If a gay couple came in and wanted us to provide pizzas for their wedding, we would have to say no."

Ms. Marino did a standup in front of the pizza parlor. The chyron on the screen during her report said: "Restaurant denies some services to same-sex couples." It wasn’t until near the end of her story that Ms. Marino mentioned: "The O’Connor family told ABC 57 News that if a gay couple or a couple belonging to a different religion came in to the restaurant to eat, they would never deny them service."

Ms. Marino’s slanted, deceptive, incendiary "report" triggered an avalanche of threats against the O’Connors, who were forced to close their pizza parlor. The vultures at ABC 57 News used the death threats on Facebook and Twitter as a pretext for another slamming the O’Connor family the next day.

"Not only did ABC-57 manufacture the story with an ambush interview, it then doubled-down by making the reaction to the story into another story to give the sense of momentum, as if it were growing at its own impetus," said Scott Ott. "Yet, everything about it is a fabrication."

* * * *

It’s dismaying so many business leaders joined the fascist mob. But nearly all prospective GOP presidential candidates stood tall for religious freedom, and on Tuesday (3/31) Arkansas passed its version of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

The vote in Arkansas in the midst of this firestorm is another indication the younger conservatives in state legislatures will be the salvation of the GOP. While (many of) their elders temporize and equivocate, they fight back.

The upside to the downside of the disgraceful behavior of so many corporate chieftains is that it will put more daylight between the Republican Party and big business, which is vitally important if Republicans are to attract more votes from the workers and consumers big business often screws. Those in the GOP Establishment who carry water for the Chamber of Commerce will be put on the defensive.

The faithful won’t yield on religious liberty, predicts David French. Nor should they. This is a hill to die on. But this is a fight we can win. When the facts emerge after the fascists have attacked with a torrent of lies, there’s often a backlash against their excesses and dishonesty. Withstand the initial assault, fight back calmly, and good things can happen.

Democrats have turned against religious freedom laws, but most Americans don’t agree with them, notes Journolister Dave Weigel.

Middle class whites, especially younger ones, are down with gay marriage. But Hispanics, and especially blacks, are more socially conservative. Republicans are more likely to get more votes from them by standing firm for traditional religious values.

* * * *

The Justice Department indicted Sen. Bob Menendez, D-NJ, the leading critic among Democrats of Obama’s Iran policy, on corruption charges Wednesday.

Justice has "a political motive to silence me," Sen. Menendez said. "I will not be silenced."

* * * *

He decided to retire because he feared his race would consume campaign money Democrats would need in other competitive races, Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid told the New York Times.

It’s really because a long series of corruption scandals were catching up to him, said Judicial Watch.

Dingy Harry announced his retirement the day after a conservative group demanded the Justice Department open a criminal investigation into the most recent one.

 "I think Harry Reid’s getting out of town ahead of the posse," said former U.S. Attorney Joe diGenova.

A Nevada brothel has offered to host his retirement party.

* * * *

Dingy Harry said he injured his eye when an elastic exercise band broke. There are three reasons why that almost certainly isn’t true, said Breitbart News. People in Vegas think he ran afoul of organized crime.

* * * *

When CNN’s Dana Bash asked if he regretted his false charge in 2012 that Mitt Romney didn’t pay taxes for 10 years, Reid replied: "Romney didn’t win, did he?"

In response to Dingy Harry’s lack of contrition, Jon Ralston, the go to journalist on Nevada politics, resurrected a column he wrote about Reid’s smear that Las Vegas Sun Editor Brian Greenspun killed to protect his friend Harry.

* * * *

The inspector general for the Department of Veterans Affairs has opened a formal investigation into the $288,206 paid to Philadelphia VA Director Diana Rubens in relocation expenses for her move from Alexandria, VA to Philly, about $250,000 more than the average relocation expense paid to VA officials.

* * * *

Hillary Clinton’s lawyer said last Friday (3/27) her email server has been "wiped clean." Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-SC, has asked her to come before the Benghazi Committee by May 1 to explain why she did it. Former federal prosecutor Andy McCarthy wants to know why a subpoena hasn’t been issued compelling her to appear.

What Hillary did is flat out plain obstruction of justice, said Karl Denninger. The Congressional Research Service has assembled here a list of the laws Ms. Clinton may have violated

Hillary must be hiding something "very, very bad" if she’d rather take the heat for erasing the server, said former CBS News investigative reporter Sharyl Attkisson. Even the most ardent Clinton supporter should be concerned about it, said a reporter for the New York Times.

* * * *

Hillary was running a private intelligence network, I noted in a column this week. Sid Blumenthal, who ran it, may have been lobbying illegally for an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Sam Biddle of Gawker reported Monday (3/30).

Mark Hemingway of the Weekly Standard has background info on the key figures in Hillary’s secret spy ring. The Benghazi committee plans to talk to Blumenthal about it, said Rep. Mike Pompeo, R-Kan.

Hillary’s deleted emails probably can be recovered, computer forensic experts told Politico. This may be the only way we can find out which of our secrets have been exposed to foreign intelligence services, I noted in the column.

* * * *

Hillary was below 50 percent for the first time since April of 2008 in a Washington Post/ABC News poll published yesterday. She trails Sen. Rand Paul in Pennsylvania, Jeb Bush in Florida, is below 50 percent in Ohio, according to Quinnipiac polls released Tuesday.

The most interesting part of the WaPo/ABC poll is that when voters were asked if Hillary "understands the problems of people like you," a plurality (47-48) said she didn’t, Noah Rothman said.

This is important, he said, because the 2012 exit polls indicated Americans thought Mitt Romney was a stronger leader than President Obama, would do a better job of managing the economy.  But Obama won the empathy question by 63 percentage points.

The WaPo/ABC poll indicates Hillary could forfeit the traditional Democrat advantage on empathy against any likely GOP candidate, except for Jeb Bush, Rothman thinks.

* * * *

Ted Cruz has tripled his support among Republicans since he announced his candidacy for president, according to Public Policy Polling, a Democrat firm. At 16 percent, Cruz is now third, behind Jeb Bush (17 percent) and Scott Walker (20 percent).

The Quinnipiac swing state poll that showed support for Hillary Clinton fading indicate Scott Walker leads among Republicans in Pennsylvania, has nudged past Jeb Bush for 2^nd place in Ohio (where Gov. John Kasich leads), and is gaining on Jeb in Florida.

In a Gravis Marketing poll (with a big MOE) Tuesday, Ted Cruz –at 18 percent– has tied Walker for the lead among Nevada Republicans. Jeb Bush is 3^rd, with 16 percent.

* * * *

The Iran deal and the assault on freedom of conscience sure make the glass seem half empty. Then I remembered this is Holy Week.

Runners up for Heroes of the Week are the kind souls who raised more than $250,000 for the O’Connor family in Walkerton, whose business the Lying Swine have ruined. Putz of the Week is Mike Pence.

Hero of the Week, especially this week, but actually in every week for more than 2,000 years, is the Lord Jesus Christ. If He is for us, who can be against us?

Easter and Passover coincide. While I’m in church, my wife Pam will be attending a Seder dinner. Of whatever faith you are, I hope the blessings of the Almighty will be with you and your loved ones this weekend, and in the difficult times to come.

Discuss this item on the forum. Click Here!