The Patriot Post® · Monday Short Cuts

The Gipper: “Any time you and I question the schemes of the do-gooders, we’re denounced as being opposed to their humanitarian goals. It seems impossible to legitimately debate their solutions with the assumption that all of us share the desire to help the less fortunate.” —Ronald Reagan

Hot air: “You know what? I don’t care anymore. I don’t care anymore, because again, I’m at least trying, and they’re not. So the power is in the person who’s trying, regardless of the success. If you’re trying, you’ve got all the power. You’re driving the agenda.” —Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez telling critics of the Green New Deal “I’m the boss”

Braying Jenny: “There’s no question we have to be practical. But being practical also recognizes that climate change is an existential threat to us as human beings. … Of course we can afford it. … It’s not about a cost. It’s about an investment.” —Kamala Harris

Non Compos Mentis: “It’s likely Trump will be able to build some of his wall — with America footing the bill. The next president should demolish whatever Trump manages to erect.” —The Week’s Peter Weber

Alpha Jackass: “We have a problem in America called spatial geographic inequality, which means that the most affluent and educated people are clustered in just a few cities. … The blue parts of America are having a big prosperity party while the big sea of red feels like their invitation got lost in the mail — and they still use the mail. … We have orchestras and theaters districts and world-class shopping. We have Chef Wolfgang Puck. They have Chef Boyardee. … The fly-over states have become the passed-over states. That’s why red-state voters are so pissed off. They don’t hate us. They want to be us.” —Bill Maher

Non sequitur: “This is the fall of an icon and I don’t think people understand how important [Jussie Smollett] has been in the black community. … The fact that he has been celebrated and you see homophobia in the black community through his eyes on the show, this is a Jackie Robinson against homophobia.” —Van Jones

Confirmation bias: “The circumstances and the way [Jussie Smollett] told the story and what he said happened to him sort of fit in with a — not a narrative, but a reality for a lot of people in this country since President Trump was inaugurated.” —Washington Post opinion writer Jonathan Capehart

And last… “Smollett staged a hate crime yet still has a job. Northam wore blackface and advocated infanticide yet still has a job. Fairfax was credibly accused of rape by two women yet still has a job. Don’t tell me about privilege. No one is more privileged in modern America than a leftist.” —Matt Walsh