The Patriot Post® · Wednesday Short Cuts

Insight: “It will be found an unjust and unwise jealousy to deprive a man of his natural liberty upon the supposition he may abuse it.” —Oliver Cromwell (1599-1658)

The bottom line: “The problem with Trump has always been his highly personal view of the presidency, wherein institutions, constitutional principles and sheer propriety take a backseat to the felt needs of his ego. At times in his presidency, this failing has been made to serve worthy ends, e.g. stoking economic growth and confirming record numbers of conservative judges as bragging points. Since the election, though, this tendency has been particularly stark and unredeemed. His personal inability to accept the sting of defeat has led him, shamefully, to wage war on a legitimate election.” —Rich Lowry

The bottom line, continued: “Republicans have likely lost control of the Senate, but will have the consolation prize of being able to marinate for hours tomorrow in delusional schemes to indulge the conspiracy theories of the man who did more than his share to lose these races.” —Rich Lowry

Voter suppression: “Republicans in Georgia in November won 51% of all votes cast for congressional races; 53% for state house races; and 54% for state senate races. Then the President and the State GOP Chairman spent two months telling Republicans the game was rigged and the election was stolen.” —Erick Erickson

For the record: “Pandemics are primarily urban diseases. If you want to minimize your health risks, get out of the big cities like Chicago or New York.” —Stephen Moore

Nailed it: “The problem we have online is that an algorithm decides what we want to see, which ends up creating a simplistic, binary view of society. It becomes a case of either you’re with us or against us. And if you’re against us, you deserve to be ‘canceled.’ It’s important that we’re exposed to a wide spectrum of opinion, but what we have now is the digital equivalent of the medieval mob roaming the streets looking for someone to burn. So it is scary for anyone who’s a victim of that mob and it fills me with fear about the future.” —actor Rowan Atkinson

Friendly fire: “It’s the height of hypocrisy for people who claim to be the champions of rights for women to deny the very biological existence of women. … It’s mind-blowing because it shows just how out of touch with reality and the struggles of everyday Americans people in Congress are.” —Rep. Tulsi Gabbard regarding Pelosi’s bizarre House rules

Non compos mentis: “[I am] deeply disappointed that my prayer has been misinterpreted and misconstrued by some to fit a narrative that stokes resentment and greater division among portions of our population. Rather than reflecting on my faithful requests for community healing and reversion from our increasingly tribal tendencies, it appears that some have latched on to the final word of this conversation in an attempt to twist my message to God and demean me personally.” —Rep. Emanuel “Amen and Awoman” Cleaver

And last… “Our mandate moving forward has to be for a single national voting day, with the sole exceptions for early or mail-in voting being those that are truly, strictly necessary (active-service military, bed-ridden elderly, etc.). Republicans must pound this every day until it happens.” —Josh Hammer