The Patriot Post® · Monday Short Cuts

Insight: “Nothing is easier than spending public money. It does not appear to belong to anybody. The temptation is overwhelming to bestow it on somebody.” —Calvin Coolidge (1872-1933)

Sage advice: “We are already witnessing the poisonous fruits of Biden’s programs: inflation; an overrun border that threatens America’s sovereignty and security; a constant stirring of racial resentment; foreign policy weakness and a betrayal of our ally Israel; gas hikes partially caused by a war on domestic energy; a war on cops; a war on free, fair and honest elections; a perversion of our national security by preposterously identifying white supremacy as the greatest security threat; a weakened military obsessed with identity politics; a never-ending climate of fear over the pandemic that keeps schools and businesses shut down; rampant cancel culture; and our academic, cultural and digital institutions suppressing speech, demanding conformity and smothering academic inquiry. Note to Republicans: Don’t fall for this sham for the thousandth time. Democrats will promote their agenda zealously, without compromise, and with or without your support. Please surprise us and block them at every turn. You should not set your sights on crossing the aisle for a phony photo-op but on saving the country.” —David Limbaugh

Words have power: “Unlike conservatives, left-wingers understood the importance of language. They understood their branding was all wrong. Liberals were essentially unelectable in national races. So, they changed the brand and started going with ‘progressive.’ And who doesn’t want to be progressive? What’s the opposite? Regressive? The funniest part about the liberal attempt to rebrand themselves as the ‘progressives’ is who played along without even thinking. Read any conservative publication and you will read tons of references to ‘progressives.’ Nearly all are used purely as synonyms for ‘liberal’ or ‘left-wing.’ The left must love how easy these debates are to win. … When your policies are completely out of whack with what regular Americans favor, being able to label them as ‘progressive’ as opposed to ‘left-wing’ and having that endorsed by the ‘mainstream’ media is a godsend. For some reason, conservatives are only too happy to mindlessly play along.” —Neil Patel

For the record: “Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey … saw no apparent contradiction in maintaining his permanent ban of former President Donald Trump while imposing a mere 12-hour suspension on Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh for celebrating the ‘bombing of Tel Aviv,’ and providing a platform for blue-checked Hitler nostalgia to percolate. … The American left and the media organs it controls are exporting their paroxysms of ‘1619 Project’ rage onto a foreign stage, expiating their ‘white guilt’ sins and armchair-quarterbacking a foreign conflict on a cosplayed chess board. In this perverse cosplay, Israel … is the ‘white’ Derek Chauvin; Hamas is the ‘brown’ George Floyd. And the left will not let facts or rudimentary morality get in the way of this preferred woke narrative, even if it means increasing willingness to openly side with a terrorist group.” —Josh Hammer

Re: leftist double standards: “A year ago: Harass the people in stores who aren’t wearing masks. Now: Please show grace to those who can’t give up their masks. The Pharisees always want grace for themselves and never want to extend it to others.” —Erick Erickson

Class warfare: “I feel like I’m going to have to rewire myself so that when I see someone out in the world who’s not wearing a mask, I don’t instantly think, ‘You are a threat.’ Or you are selfish or you are a COVID denier and you definitely haven’t been vaccinated. I mean, we’re going to have to rewire the way that we look at each other.” —MSNBC's Rachel Maddow

A bridge to nowhere: “I’m … conscious of the fact that we can never rest on the issue of diversity. My feeling is, no matter how much progress we’ve made, it’s never enough.” —The Washington Post’s new executive editor, Sally Buzbee

Grand delusions: “After ousting Liz Cheney, Republicans prove they’re a bigger threat than 9/11 hijackers.” —column title by USA Today deputy editorial page editor David Mastio

And last… “If you’re not trying to cheat, there’s no reason to oppose voter ID laws. So why are Democrats trying to pass H.R. 1 to ban all voter ID requirements?” —Senator Tom Cotton