The Patriot Post® · Wednesday Short Cuts

Insight: “Believe me, it is not failing to speak out with promptitude and energy that is the matter with you; it is having nothing consistent or valuable to say.” —Matthew Arnold (1822-1887)

Upright: “Trump may not have a plan. He probably doesn’t. Those around him probably have their own plans, but they’re not the president. But you know who did have a plan? The people who constructed our constitutional system, placed checks and balances in that system and ensured that no one person could wield all power in American government. That means that even the presidency that begins most chaotically can find its sea legs, and even the presidencies that remain chaotic can’t do too much damage. So let’s not panic. Everything’s not chaos, even if it feels like it.” —Ben Shapiro

Belly laugh of the week: “On February 16, ‘A Day Without Immigrants,’ thousands of people across the country refused to work and spend money in an effort to protest the Trump administration’s stance on immigration. … The following day, however, over 100 strikers found themselves in a quandary, as their employers informed them that they would no longer be employed. … Indeed, employees are free to decide for themselves if striking for a day to make their voices heard in Washington, D.C., is worth losing their jobs. But they shouldn’t complain when the consequences catch up with them.” —Austin Yack

Demo-gogues: “America is coming together like never before; we’ll stop [Trump’s] drive to divide us.” —Rep. Keith Ellison

And last… “A free country is defined less by what you can vote on and more by what rights are never up for a vote.” —Frank Fleming