The Patriot Post® · Thursday Short Cuts

Insight: “A man always has two reasons for what he does — a good one, and the real one.” —J. P. Morgan (1837-1913)

Upright I: “You can’t be cowed by … woke corporations from doing the right thing. … And so if the price of having a [sports] tournament is that I have to deny equal opportunity to hundreds of thousands of young girl and women athletes throughout Florida, I am much more willing to stand with the girls. And to hell with these events.” —Florida Governor Ron DeSantis

Upright II: “Parents of all ethnicities who never dreamed of getting involved in politics need to step up now. Parents are already outraged by the indoctrination their kids are getting in school. … It’s time to shift from complaining to fighting for control of local school boards. These boards hire superintendents, set policies and have the clout to stop critical race theory. Except in large cities, such as New York, school boards are where the power is. … Of course, schools should teach about America’s past failures, along with its triumphs, and probe racial injustice where it still exists. But of paramount importance, young people should learn that their character and deeds matter more than their race.” —Betsy McCaughey

For the record: “If there is one reason why problems associated with race in America persist, it is because we pretend to address problems caused by one sin by exchanging them with other sins. … As a starter, let us consider that … [Biden] sent an unprecedented $6 trillion federal budget to Congress that, for the first time ever, omits the longstanding Hyde Amendment. … So, while Biden issued one proclamation recalling the tragedy of a massacre of Black Americans [in Tulsa], he now wants new federal policy that would use federal funds to subsidize another massacre. … Abortion undermines the values of the traditional family. And traditional family values provide the offramp from the cycle of poverty. The persistence of problems in Black communities stems from federal policies that pretend to fight the sin of racism with the sins of the destruction of life and family.” —Star Parker

Re: The Left: “The goal of many on the left these days is not clarification but obfuscation, particularly on racial issues. Data is not only unnecessary; it’s reviled. If the left wishes to promote the argument that racial inequalities are the result of historic injustices, one would hope that someone would bother quantifying to what extent those inequalities are the result of individual decisions versus the result of other factors.” —Ben Shapiro

Political theater: “The Democratic opposition to legislative minorities using whatever leverage they have to block legislation is highly situational. In Washington, D.C., where Democrats control the White House and both chambers of Congress, the Senate filibuster is portrayed as a Jim Crow relic that is profoundly undemocratic. In Austin, Texas, where Republicans control the governor’s mansion and both chambers of the legislature, House Democrats walking out to prevent the passage of a bill with majority support is portrayed as a heroic act preserving our democracy.” —Rich Lowry

Exactly: “[Donald Trump] touched the nerve of people who felt left out by globalization, who felt diminished by elites. He touched the hearts of people by saying, ‘You know, you contribute too, and they’ve forgotten you. They look down on you.' And that’s something that we need to still pay attention to.” —Condoleezza Rice

The BIG Lie: “This sacred right is under assault with incredible intensity like I’ve never seen. … It’s simply un-American.” —Joe Biden criticizing state legislation to ensure election integrity by identifying who is voting

Straight from the horse’s mouth: “Joe and the administration are essentially finishing the job.” —Barack Obama

And last… “To save religious liberty, we must save our families and their children from the extreme secular-progressivism that pervades our current system of public schools.” —former Attorney General William Barr