The Patriot Post® · Shutdown Averted

Well, we narrowly averted a government shutdown this weekend. After days of contentious wrangling, Congress finally approved a short-term continuing resolution to fund the government for 45 days — no thanks to Rep. Jamaal Bowman, who did his best to derail the whole process by pulling a fire alarm.

What a mess!

I think everyone who receives this daily report broadly agrees that America is on the edge of a cliff on multiple fronts. Overwhelming majorities believe our country is headed in the wrong direction. Many fear we’re losing America, that our country is turning into a “police state.”

There is an ethical and moral meltdown in the country — from the rampant crime in our city streets to corruption in public office.

Our borders are wide open to our enemies.

We’re facing the possibility of tripping into a nuclear war over Ukraine.

Our current fiscal policy is totally unsustainable. We’re spending $2 trillion more than we take in every year.

We know the political left, embodied in the Democrat Party, has no answers. In fact, their neo-Marxist policies are responsible for most of our problems.

That’s why it is so disheartening to see the muddled situation among Republican ranks on Capitol Hill. It looks like another famous GOP circular firing squad is taking shape. Matt Gaetz will not be elected Speaker of the House. It’s also hard to see how anyone better than Kevin McCarthy can be elected.

For his part, McCarthy has repeatedly promised to restore normal order and move 12 appropriations bills through the House. His inability to do that contributed to last week’s rebellion among some House conservatives.

The Senate GOP caucus is worse. There are 49 Republican senators. On a good day, 20 of them are worthy of the battle — people like Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), Josh Hawley (R-MO), Mike Lee (R-UT), Rand Paul (R-KY), Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), J.D. Vance (R-OH), and Marco Rubio (R-FL), who understands populist conservatism better than most.

On the political scene, Donald Trump continues to be the example of how to fight the left. But there are reasons to remain hopeful outside of traditional party politics.

One big reason (thanks to Donald Trump) is the Supreme Court. For the first time in 30 years, we have a conservative majority that is solidly in our corner on most issues.

Another example is Elon Musk. While he is certainly not with us on everything, his willingness to defend free speech and use his platform to outflank the leftist media is an incredible asset we did not have two years ago. His video at the southern border has been viewed more than 100 million times.

There are rising young grassroots leaders like Charlie Kirk, Riley Gaines and Matt Walsh. Influencers like Joe Rogan and academics like Jordan Peterson are powerful voices against the left’s neo-Marxism.

There are spontaneous grassroots movements, like Moms for Liberty, rising up to defend our history and reclaim our schools.

There is a spate of movies with conservative themes that are vastly exceeding expectations.

There are new voices in the music industry writing songs that rally Middle America.

And normal American kids are rebelling against the LGBTQ mafia and trans insanity, showing a toughness that is still all too rare from America’s pulpits.

There will be bumps in the road along the way, but we must persevere. We cannot give up on America!

Kennedy’s Big Announcement

Late Friday, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. posted a video teasing a major announcement he plans to make at an address in Philadelphia on October 9th. The speculation is that Kennedy will announce he is leaving the Democrat Party and running as an independent candidate for president.

As we have reported, Kennedy is furious over the various ways the DNC has rigged the primary process. If Kennedy does in fact run as an independent candidate, he presents a serious threat to Joe Biden’s reelection.

According to a recent Rasmussen poll, 33% of Democrat voters suggested they would consider supporting Kennedy as a third-party candidate, including 14% who said they would “very likely” vote for him.

We will keep you posted.

Newsom’s Choice

California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who is also the subject of much presidential speculation, has announced his choice to replace Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who died last week. Laphonza Butler, a former union boss and current president of Emily’s List, will take Feinstein’s seat.

In making his announcement, Newsom celebrated Butler as “the first openly LGBTQ person to represent California in the Senate. She will also be the first Black lesbian to openly serve in Congress in American history.”

How do her bedroom activities have anything to do with governing our country or advancing the best interests of the American people?

As the head of Emily’s List, one of the largest pro-abortion groups in America, it’s safe to say that Butler will do nothing to “moderate” her party’s extremism on the issue of abortion.

She has devoted herself to electing more people whose main priority is convincing women to kill their preborn children. It’s probably not too much of an exaggeration to say she would be happy if abortion was mandatory. She certainly wants it to be mandatory that you pay for someone else’s abortion.

How long Ms. Butler holds the seat remains to be seen. There was a fierce primary battle already underway for Feinstein’s seat, and there is no guarantee that any of the previously declared Democrat candidates will bow out in deference to Newsom’s appointee.

Dirty Disney

Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd announced the arrest of more than 200 people after an extensive undercover investigation into human trafficking in central Florida. Among those arrested were 35 illegal aliens and three Disney employees.

Something is rotten at Disney. We know what has happened to the entertainment the once-family friendly media giant is producing.

Disney CEO Bob Iger recently suggested that he wanted to “quiet the noise” in the culture war. He needs to conduct a thorough housecleaning! I realize Disney is a huge corporation with tens of thousands of employees. But this isn’t the first time that Disney employees have been busted in sex stings.

Walt Disney must be rolling over in his grave!