DeSantis in Iowa

At high noon on May 31, 2023, Governor Ron DeSantis appeared at Council Bluffs, Iowa’s famous Grass Wagon event center.  The last time I was at the Grass Wagon was to hear Joe Biden.  Joe’s address was way too short while Ron’s address was 5 to 10 minutes too long.  DeSantis, however, had much of substance to talk about.  He had two main themes: His record of achievement running the state of Florida and contrasting himself with the leader in the polls without ever once mentioning the name Trump.

Elon Musk has said that he wants a “normal person” as president.  DeSantis actually said, “We’re regular people.”  DeSantis is very much a normal person with extraordinary accomplishments. He listed them.

• Went hard against the consensus regarding Covid.
• He won his first term by 32,000 votes, but by 1.2 million for his second term.
• Constitutional carry.
• Heartbeat abortion bill.
• Largest tax relief package in the nation.
• Kneecap ESG.
• All conservative members on the Florida Supreme Court.
• No pornographic books in school libraries.
• Eliminated CRT in K-12.
• No sex changes on minors.
• “We don’t play the pronoun sweepstakes in schools.”
• Took on the Disney company. No compromise in protecting children.
• School choice.
• The Chinese Communist Party can’t purchase land in Florida.
• No sales tax on any baby items.
• Parental right to know what is being taught in schools.
• One school day devoted to explaining the evils of communism.

DeSantis says he is a leader who is not captive to the polls.  He was told to back down on Covid and not rock the boat, but he wanted to save the jobs of the people who put him in office rather than save his job.  He’s learned that boldness is rewarded and results matter.  He went on to say that people appreciate when you fight for them.

I spoke to a sixth-grade teacher who is originally from Chicago.  She is fed up with Republicans (e.g. Senator McConnell) who don’t fight effectively against the Democrats.  She was very pleased with this speech as it very much resonated with her.

Casey DeSantis spoke briefly.  She reassured the crowd that Ron won’t back down and he won’t be captured by the D.C. swamp.

The sideswipes against former President Trump were:

• Ron would be an energetic and focused President.
• Leadership is not about entertainment.
• He would have fired Fauci.
• His kids are 6, 5 and 3.
• He’d hire the “right” people to help him.  

If elected President, he promised to do the following:

• Close the border.
• American energy independence.
• Fire FBI director Chris Wray on day one.
• Rein in the administrative state; the unelected fourth branch of government.
• Reverse all of Biden’s destructive economic policies.

He closed by noting that America’s decline is not inevitable; it is a choice.  When DeSantis first heard Ronald Reagan’s comment that freedom could be lost in a generation, he thought it was hyperbole.  But after the last 4 to 5 years, we can see that freedom is very fragile.  By nominating Ron DeSantis, the GOP would dispense with its culture of losing.

Truth

“The single biggest thing that separates people is the consistent ability to show up and do the work.

The consequences of failing to show up consistently are getting the results you deserve but not the ones you want.”

Farnam Street blog.

Vivek in Iowa

If elected President, Vivek Ramaswamy would be historic.  He would be the first Jesuit high school graduate elected to the highest office in the land.  See what I did there?

I saw every single candidate, from both parties, during the 2016 and 2020 campaigns.   Vivek gave the single best stump speech and, at least for me, is the most impressive and accomplished candidate.  He received a standing ovation from a crowd of about 200.  I can’t recall another standing O.

Since this author and the candidate were both beneficiaries of a Jesuit high school education, I asked him how this influenced him.  He gave me a fascinating answer.

The Jesuits speak of magis; Latin for more.  Vivek said that he learned that magis means striving to do more and to be better.  As a country, we have ideals but we will fall short.  But both personally, and as a country, we continue to keep seeking perfection.

Vivek is not Christian.  But he believes in God.  He became pro-life at his Jesuit high school.  One of the Jesuit’s precepts is to see God in all things.  Vivek put it this way, “God resides in all of us.”

My other question was about a New York Times negative story about him this week.  He said he’s not a whiner and was somewhat glad for the attention.  He expects to take hits during the campaign as part of the vetting process.

The main thrust of the NYT piece was that the President doesn’t have the executive power to take certain actions such as abolishing the Department of Education.  We know that.  But that claim is shorthand for the direction Vivek would take.

He deviated from his stump speech after an impressive recitation of part of the Declaration of Independence by a group of young people.  It was a brilliant impromptu riff.  Vivek’s favorite president is Thomas Jefferson.  No surprise there as they are both Renaissance men.

Jefferson’s original draft used the words “we hold these truths to be sacred and undeniable.”  Ben Franklin changed it to “we hold these truths to be self-evident.”  I know that this is accurate.

Vivek’s point was that what our country was founded on was not at all self-evident at the time.  The rest of the world was mostly under authoritarian rule.  We were a new beginning.

One of his themes was that the United States is still a relatively young country and that we are going through an adolescent identity crisis.  To resolve that, we need to get back to our founding ideals such as individualism, free speech, God, family and the common ideas that unite us.  Currently, there is a void in our country that is created by people’s lack of belief in God.  We were founded as one nation under God.  God’s hand guides us.  People want to believe in something bigger than themselves to put meaning into their lives. The Cults of Net Zero, Tribalism and Transgenderism (my words, not his) are used by the Left to fill the void.   

One of our country’s cornerstones is Free Speech.  As he put it, “this is not a liberal arts college luxury.  It is necessary for this country.  It is a requirement for discovering the truth.”

Vivek made a number of points and I agreed with all of them. I’ve seen these ideas expressed at length on his Twitter feed and I refer you to it.  I’ll bullet point them here.

• Put an end to affirmative action.
• End illegal immigration.
• Abolish the Department of Education.
• An 8-year term limit on federal bureaucrats.
• Reign in the Administrative state; the Fourth Branch of government
• Take on Communist China. Declare our independence from the ChiComs.
• Hold China accountable for covid.
• Unshackle us from the climate cult.
• Pardon all political prisoners convicted of non-violent crimes; including Donald Trump.
• Shut down the FBI. It is still Hoover’s FBI.
• Reform the DOJ; make it enforce the law fairly.
• Reform the Federal Reserve; stabilize the dollar.
• Grow GDP to 4-5%; not the current 1%.
• Unleash American energy.

A smart friend of mine is of the opinion that in order for the GOP to win, it is necessary to get the votes of blue-collar voters.  I agree.  To do so, the candidate needs to persuade people in a tutorial manner without talking down to them.  I saw that with my own eyes.

I sat next to a woman who, by appearance, could not be more different from me.  She was a former atheist from California.  She had a full complement of tattoos.  She also had facial piercings.  Unlike me, she is not a lawyer.  She discovered Vivek via Glen Beck’s show.  We had a long, and pleasant dialogue, and she agrees with Vivek down-the-line.

She told me that we don’t need another 80-year-old President.  For me, we also don’t need a President with excessive baggage who is despised by many in swing states.

After the verdict yesterday in Manhattan federal court, I’m convinced that our former President will be indicted in the District of Columbia.  I’m also convinced that he will be convicted regardless of the facts and law. That’s how bad things have become.

But why select a nominee who is, frankly, unelectable? I say America needs a fresh start under the leadership of a brilliant young man.

One final note.  I invest in biotech stocks.  This is very complicated stuff.  It is also risky as there is a high failure rate.   As a young man, Vivek founded Roivant Sciences.   He made a fortune reportedly of $600 million before the age of 40.  He’s already lent his campaign $10 million and he will spend more.  Vivek’s business success at a young age is exceptionally impressive.  It shows what can happen in America if one is smart, hardworking and takes calculated risks.  As the saying goes, only in America.  

Vivek is just an exceptional leader and the guy I want across the table from other world leaders, the Democrats and the media.

Fools

Fools are stubborn, and the stubborn are fools, and the more erroneous their judgment is, the more they hold on to it. Even when you are right, it is good to make concessions: people will recognize you were right but admire your courtesy. More is lost through holding on than can be won by defeating others…. Be firm in will, not in judgment.

B. Gracian, S.J.

Joe Biden, traitor.

If we, as Americans, can’t distinguish between male and female, then we are finished. That’s the most basic fact of life. Right in the Bible, “God made them male and female.” We can’t change that regardless of the amount of money and surgery. It’s all fake, manufactured.

Imagine what the Chinese and Russians are doing with this. I wouldn’t be surprised if they had tapes showing Dylan Mulvaney in our front-line defense forces. Hey, we can whip these pansies! So weak! So confused!

The larger issue goes back to Biden. America needs to face facts. We have a traitor in the White House.

Biden leaves behind billions of our best equipment in Afghanistan. The Taliban sells it around the world. It’s a signal for Vlad to invade Ukraine. Putin does. Biden then sends billions to Ukraine and picks up $50m in diamonds for his troubles.

Since we left behind our armaments, we have to buy new stuff. The military-industrial complex thanks Joe.

China has the green light to invade Tawain. It will happen in 2024. Biden will do nothing. He’s been bribed.

As Rumsfeld said, “Weakness is provocative.”

The real harm happens when the dollar is no longer the reserve currency. The Fed won’t be able to print money like it has in the past. That giant debt then becomes real. Our standard of living goes to hell. All thanks to Joe Biden, the traitor, and the Dems.

The Nebraska Jacobins

I was elected to public office as a Democrat and it saddens me to see what has become of the Nebraska Democrat party. My friend, the late Mike Dugan, was an example of how the Democrats used to think and vote. He served as the NDP chairman. Dugan was of the group I call the FDR/JFK Democrats. But today’s Nebraska Democrat party has been captured by a group of radical extremists who are completely disconnected from Nebraska voters and values. I call them the Nebraska Jacobins.

During the French Revolution, the Jacobins were the most radical and extreme members of the French Assembly. The Jacobins set up two religions: The Cult of Reason and the Cult of the Supreme Being. Today’s Jacobins have set up the Cult of Net Zero Carbon and the Cult of Transgenderism. They are both divorced from reality.

The longtime chairwoman of the NDP is Jane Kleeb. Mrs. Kleeb is best known for her opposition to the Keystone Pipeline. If it would have been built, many rural Nebraska counties would have received millions in property tax money. More importantly, the US would have lower oil prices and energy security. The primary beneficiaries of stopping the Keystone pipeline are OPEC and Russia. Those people are not our friends. When gasoline was over $4.00 per gallon last summer, Nebraskans certainly could have used a break.

I knew the Nebraska Dems were off the rails when the party approved a motion calling Don Kleine, another friend and the Douglas County Attorney, a white supremacist. Mr. Kleine has served all of Douglas County with great distinction. He quit the Democrat party after that disgraceful and dishonest action.

The main Jacobin leaders in the Unicameral are Senators Machaela Cavanaugh, Megan Hunt and Danielle Conrad. In the second tier are Senators John Cavanaugh, Jen Day, Wendy DeBoer, George Dungan and Jane Raybould. 

Senator M. Cavanaugh has received much national media attention for opposing Senator Kathleen Kauth’s LB 574, the Let Them Grow Act. Cavanaugh’s mantra has been “don’t legislate hate.” Since LB 574 passed the first round of voting, the Nebraska Jacobins are filibustering every single bill. They filed 742 motions on the remaining bills in the Unicameral. Important legislative business has ground to a halt.

Senator Hunt said, “We are blowing up this session. The session is over…. Hating trans kids in Nebraska was more important to you than the rest of the session.” That’s the talk of a vengeful radical.

Is LB 574 about hate? What would the bill exactly do? It would prevent children, their parents and unethical doctors from altering the gender of minors via surgery and powerful drugs. The surgery on women is especially radical. In order to create a facsimile of male genitalia, a significant amount of skin must be removed from the woman’s forearm. That’s voluntary mutilation. Same thing for removing healthy breasts.  

Part of the reason Senator Hunt is willing to burn this legislative session to the ground is because her daughter is now her trans son. Nebraska Medicaid has refused four times to pay for the medical services to accomplish the transition.

Senator Machaela Cavanaugh said on the floor of the Unicameral that LB 574 is “genocide.” That’s off the rails talk. When the average person hears the word “genocide” they most likely think of the Holocaust, Rwanda or Cambodia. During the Holocaust, six million Jews, Catholics, Roma and the developmentally disabled were intentionally murdered by the National Socialist party of Germany. The word “genocide” comes from the Latin word “cide” which means killing. By passing LB 574, the State of Nebraska would not be killing anyone.

Federal law defines genocide as undertaking actions with the specific intent to destroy a national, ethnic, racial or religious group. 18 U.S.C. §1091. The trans community doesn’t meet the statutory definition.

Jews were the primary victims of the Nazi Holocaust. Every Nebraska Jew should be angry and insulted by Cavanaugh’s wildly inappropriate and wrong comparison of the Shoah to this proposed law.

So, there you have it. A small cadre of Democrat state senators are opposing the will of the vast majority of Nebraska voters. These radical few Jacobins have gone so far to filibustering every single bill to possibly stop a bill that would protect children. That’s undemocratic. Today’s Democrats want to sacrifice the health and future of kids on the altar of political dogma. That’s what the Cult of Transgenderism is all about. 

---

Senator Carol Blood Must Repent for Her Sin

March 27, 2023

By David D. Begley

On Friday, March 24, 2023, Senator Carol Blood used the “n” word during a Judiciary committee hearing.[1] The context was the publication of the “n” word in Mark Twain’s Life on the Mississippi.  I have seen no reporting on this despite the fact that she was the Democrat candidate for Governor and is a sitting state senator.

I’ll remind readers that in 2021 national media attention was focused on Creighton basketball coach Greg McDermott for using the word “plantation” in a private conversation with his team. There were many calls for his dismissal. He was punished by a four-day suspension which, given his salary, cost him over $25,000.

The contrast between the two cases is stark. Senator Blood is an elected public official. She made her comment in an official hearing of a Nebraska legislative committee. It is on tape.

Senator Blood tried to apologize for her remark on Facebook. That, however, is inadequate.

I won’t discuss how the media routinely covers for Democrats. That happens every day with Joe Biden in the White House. It is old hat.

I also won’t call for the resignation of Senator Blood because it is futile. There is no way the Democrat party would allow Governor Pillen to appoint her replacement. The Democrats need every vote in their quest to block The Let Them Grow Act, LB 574. For the liberals, it is important to their governing philosophy to allow children to have their healthy body parts removed and be injected with powerful hormones.

As partial atonement for her sin, Senator Carol Blood should donate her entire $12,000 Unicameral salary to the Jesuit Academy of Omaha. Jesuit Academy is a Catholic school in North Omaha. One of my high school teachers was its founder. It serves boys in grades 4 through 8. The student body is 93% Black. Nearly three-fourths of the children come from families at or below the poverty line. The school is very successful as 98% of its students graduate high school.

 As the Jesuits would say, Senator Blood’s serious mistake can be a learning experience and something good might come out of it. Donating her salary to a successful private enterprise that educates Black children would be a good thing.

---

[1] https://www.facebook.com/1126268805/videos/215662924464757/

The Day I Realized the Left was Insane.

It was about a dozen years ago. I was at an eating establishment with a committed member of the Left. I had picked up an Omaha World-Herald. On the front page, below the fold, was the story about baby Storm. Storm lived in Canada and her parents were raising her without any gender information; gender-neutral as it were. The kid could pick her gender later; at least according to her parents.

They had done the same with Storm’s sibling, Jazz. At age 6, Jazz went trans. No surprise there.

My comment was that this was child abuse and the parents should be arrested.

My childless Lefty friend flew into a rage and started screaming at me. “The kid could be intersex!” Followed by non sequiturs and other irrational claims.

I had no idea, at that time, that this trans business was a thing. It is now a cause and a hill that the Left will die on.

Below is a piece from HuffPo about this. I wonder how Jazz and Storm are doing today. And what they will be like in 10 years.

https://www.huffpost.com/archive/ca/entry/baby-storm-now-dad-david-stocker-on-the-uproar-and-storms-gend_n_10756806

Beyond Acceptable Norms.

Off the rails. Beyond the pale. Off the deep end. These are all common expressions that are used when someone’s words, actions and behavior are beyond acceptable norms.

The decision earlier this year of the Nebraska Democrats – lead by Senator Machaela Cavanaugh – to filibuster every single bill in this year’s legislative session is beyond the pale. She began doing this because she feels that LB 574 – the Let Them Grow Act – is about hate. It is actually about love, patience and maturity. It simply prevents unscrupulous doctors from duping children and their parents into sex change operations and drug taking until the child reaches age 19. When parents won’t protect their own minor children from permanent physical harm, then the government has to step in. A parent can’t give a kid a note and allow him to buy liquor or cigarettes. It has always been the public policy of Nebraska to protect kids from their own bad judgment. And for good reason. Science shows that the human brain isn’t fully developed until about age 25.

Last week Senator Machaela Cavanaugh said on the floor of the Unicameral that LB 574 is “genocide.” That’s off the rails talk. When the average person hears the word “genocide” they most likely think of the Holocaust, Rwanda or Cambodia. During the Holocaust, six million Jews, Catholics, Roma and the developmentally disabled were intentionally murdered by the National Socialist party of Germany. The word “genocide” comes from the Latin word “cide” which means killing. By passing LB 574, the State of Nebraska would not be killing anyone.

Federal law defines genocide as undertaking actions with the specific intent to destroy a national, ethnic, racial or religious group. 18 U.S.C. §1091. The trans community doesn’t met the statutory definition.

Jews were the primary victims of the Nazi Holocaust. Every Nebraska Jew should be angry and insulted by Cavanaugh’s wildly inappropriate and wrong comparison of the Shoah to this proposed law.

I testified in favor of Senator Kathleen Kauth’s Let Them Grow Act. My contribution was that I am of the legal opinion that any written consent that a parent gives for a sex change operation on a minor is not legally effective.

Luka Hein also testified in favor of LB 574. Her testimony was that the doctors at Nebraska Medicine removed her two healthy breasts at age 16. Her parents were asked, “Would you rather have a dead daughter, or a living son?” Hein went on to note that such language is that of political activists and not of medical professionals who are trying to help people. She now regrets what Nebraska Medicine did to her as a child as she tries to rebuild her life.

In a bizarre way, it is a good thing that the Nebraska Democrats have chosen LB 574 as the hill they want to die on. In their mind, grinding all legislative business to a crawl is worth the squeeze. But what it really does is show all Nebraskans that today’s Democrat party has gone off the deep end. The Democrats in the Unicameral are some of the most extreme and radical people imaginable. They have little concern for the general welfare of all Nebraskans. Thus, the people’s important legislative business has ground to a near halt. 

A recent poll of Minnesotans showed that 67% of voters opposed sex changes for minors. That’s of Minnesotans; a decidedly liberal state. A poll of Nebraskans would probably show that 80% are in favor of LB 574. Notwithstanding that poll, Senator Megan Hunt claimed, “This body is much more radical right than Nebraska. They aren’t asking us to do this.”

Senator Hunt also made the absurd claim that “kids know who they are.” Every parent knows that is dead wrong. Senator Hunt is acting like a child. If she loses the vote on LB 574, she will resume filibustering every single bill. She will punish the entire state if she doesn’t get her way.

So, there you have it. A small cadre of Democrat state senators are certainly opposing the will of the vast majority of Nebraska voters. These radical few have gone so far to filibustering every single bill to possibly stop a bill that would protect children. That’s undemocratic. Today’s Democrats want to sacrifice the health and future of kids on the altar of political dogma. That’s morally wrong.

Nikki Haley in Council Bluffs. First candidate for the 2024 race.

March 9, 2023

By David D. Begley

The former UN Ambassador and Governor of South Carolina, Nikki Haley, appeared before a standing room only crowd on March 8, 2023 in Council Bluffs, Iowa. The personal highlight for me was when I prefaced my questions to her by stating, “Before God and this crowd, I can say that you are a woman in her prime.” And I strongly emphasized the word “prime.”

She laughed and thanked me. The crowd loved it. I was glad I did it. She has a great amount of energy and is a very hard worker. The contrast with Joe Biden is stark. She’s also no Jeb Bush.

The campaign is still new and the questions will become repetitive over time, so I wanted to ask her a timely question that dealt with Donald Trump.

Last weekend, Trump gave a long speech to CPAC. I asked her if she agreed with two promises that Trump made:

1. “To carry out the largest domestic deportation operation in American history.” and
2. Start doing mail-in ballots and ballot harvesting the way the Democrats do; fight fire with fire.

She sort of dodged the first and didn’t respond about deportation, but she did say that she would close the border and do smart immigration reform.  People will be admitted to this country based upon merit; not just numbers. During her speech she noted that her parents are legal immigrants and they very much resent people who cut the line. Her mother’s comment was that these people broke the law to enter the country so they will just continue to disrespect the law. Also, during her speech she said she would demand E-Verify for any employment. She said she did it in South Carolina and illegals aren’t that much of a problem there.

On the second question, she said “Republicans are too nice.” So, so true. She then went on to praise voter ID and how she enacted it in South Carolina. Here in Nebraska, voters approved a voter ID law but the Dems in the Unicameral are trying to muck it up.

Any person who can win a state-wide political race is an impressive person with lots of energy and smarts. I saw that first-hand in the recent campaign of Jim Pillen who is now Nebraska’s governor. He put on over 100,000 miles on his pickup and worked tirelessly.  

Having met many candidates during the 2016 and 2020 presidential campaigns, I can attest that Nikki Haley is one of the smarter ones. She has a very quick mind and is good on her feet with questions. Since I was recently grilled by the Nebraska Supreme Court, this is not easy to do well.  

My big impressions of her: She’s tough and tough-minded and very much a numbers person. But she’s also personable and likes people. On the first, she told the story about how she defeated a 30-year incumbent to win her seat in the South Carolina legislature. She then went on to win the GOP primary for Governor against a large field.

When she became Governor, she got a bill passed that increased the number of recorded legislative votes. Before that, fewer than 5% of the votes were recorded. The rest were voice votes! In Nebraska, the most prominent feature in the legislative chamber is a giant tally board.

As UN Ambassador, she worked to have other countries respect America and she did that with foreign aid. She had a book complied for President Trump (the only time she mentioned him by name) showing how much money we gave to countries that don’t help us, including China. My view is giving any money to China is crazy; much less the money that Fauci sent to conduct deadly gain-of-function research.

The Mexican cartels are no different than ISIS. China is our number one security threat. She would hold both accountable. I believe her.

Haley rightly noted that our pull-out from Afghanistan never would have happened if she was President. I’ll add that Trump never would have done it that way. My view is that stupid mistake by Biden gave Putin the green light to invade Ukraine.

Nikki Haley was trained as an accountant so numbers are important to her. Our debt is $32 trillion. Both Medicare and Social Security are in trouble. She would require a balanced budget. She’d limit benefits to the wealthy. She’d also move retirement age up for younger people. CNN latched onto that comment in its report.

Her parents are educated people and valued the American education system for their children. Our public education system is now broken. Kids would have to be able to read by the third grade. She favors school choice.

Politics is about addition; not subtraction. Younger people and minorities should be recruited to vote for the GOP. America is not a racist nation. If it was, she never would have been elected governor of the state that fired the first shot in the Civil War. Our national self-loathing must stop. No CRT in the schools.

A national purpose will unify us. That national purpose is the goal of becoming a strong and unified country. My view is that the Left doesn’t want that at all. The Left wants to manage our decline as we pay for our past sins. Many on the Left hate America. Misanthropes.

As an aside, I talked to Nebraska native and CNN broadcaster Jeff Zeleny. We had met before. Nice chat about the recent success of the Husker men’s basketball team.