[Yesterday], President-elect Trump announced his selection of Rep. Tom Price (R-GA) to be secretary of Health and Human Services. This is a crucial appointment given that HHS is one of the largest federal departments, with 78,000 employees.

The appointment of Rep. Price, who currently serves as chairman of the House Budget Committee, also sends a strong signal that Trump’s commitment to repeal Obamacare is ironclad.

Before entering public office, Tom Price was a doctor. He understands the practice of medicine far better than government bureaucrats. Price has not only talked about repealing Obamacare, he has proposed legislation to do it.

In a statement announcing the selection of Rep. Price, President-elect Trump said, “Chairman Price, a renowned physician, has earned a reputation for being a tireless problem solver and the go-to expert on healthcare policy… He is exceptionally qualified to shepherd our commitment to repeal and replace Obamacare.”

The Trump transition team also announced the selection of Elaine Chao as Transportation secretary. Chao served as deputy secretary of Transportation during the first Bush administration and as secretary of Labor under President George W. Bush.

Are We Learning?

Twenty-four hours after the latest radical Islamic terror attack in America, it is worth asking what lessons, if any, we may be learning about this threat to our country.

Abdul Razak Ali Artan, the jihadist who attacked students at Ohio State University [Monday], had been ranting against America on social media. He demanded that America stop interfering in Muslim countries. Well, that’s interesting because our “interfering” is limited to fighting against Islamic extremist groups like ISIS and Al-Shabaab, a Somali terror group.

Artan also didn’t like the way people looked at him when he prayed in public. (Devout Muslims are required to pray five times a day.) He felt people would jump to the conclusion that he was a terrorist. Well, if anyone thought that, in view of his actions, they were not jumping to conclusions.

In 2007, Artan and his family moved from Somalia to Pakistan. I can understand why someone might choose to leave Somalia. But Pakistan isn’t exactly the first choice of those yearning for pluralism and freedom. Seven years later, under our refugee program, Artan and his family arrived in the United States, joining 38,000 Somalis in Columbus, Ohio. (Did you know there were 38,000 Somali Muslims in Columbus, Ohio?)

Artan’s atrocities are just the latest in a string of incidents, all of which point to a significant problem with terrorism in the Somali-American community. In February, a Somali national attacked a restaurant in Columbus owned by an Israeli Christian.

In June, three Somalis in Minneapolis were convicted on terrorism charges. The Somali community in Minneapolis is a hotbed of Islamic radicalism, producing at least three suicide bombers.

I could go on, but you get the point. All of which leads to this question: Why do we continue to import hundreds of thousands of Muslims from Third World countries who despise Judeo-Christian civilization and everything America stands for?

President-elect Donald Trump says he wants “extreme vetting” of new refugees. It remains to be seen what that process will look like. Among the many questions we should ask potential immigrants is whether they support mutilating their daughters.

The Left’s Sickness

As I noted above, Abdul Artan came to America in 2014. Fairly quickly he earned a spot at Ohio State University. Was he admitted as part of some affirmative action program? Did he receive preference due to his refugee status?

Artan was recently interviewed by the student newspaper. (How many people can be interviewed in Somalia or Pakistan and speak freely without fear of reprisal?) Artan was clearly consumed with concerns about his treatment as a Muslim.

Where did Artan get the idea that he was being mistreated in America? From the political left and the media, which are constantly telling Muslims that they are victims of America’s oppressive culture.

For example, National Public Radio [yesterday] aired a story about how horrendous [Monday’s] attack was … for other Muslim students. Less than 24 hours after the latest jihadist attack, NPR thought it was really important for Americans to focus not on the victims, but on the impact of the attack on other Somalian Muslims.

The Muslim student NPR spoke with said he immediately worried about the “snide comments, peering eyes and a feeling of uneasiness” he would experience the day after the attack.

I couldn’t help but wonder whether NPR has ever bothered to interview Jewish students about the “snide comments, peering eyes or feelings of uneasiness” they experience as a result of the growing Muslim and left-wing anti-Semitism and anti-Israeli sentiment on American college campuses.

Artan and his family were brought into America in the name of compassion. In the name of political correctness, we obviously did not do effective vetting. As a result, 11 people have suffered terrible wounds and will bear that trauma for the rest of their lives.

Those worried about safe spaces on campus should apologize to those victims. They lost their safe space on campus [Monday] and it wasn’t caused by exposure to conservative ideas.

What is the price the rest of America is supposed to pay in order for us to satisfy left-wing political correctness and corporate demands for greater and greater numbers of people coming into the country from the Islamic world?

While it is easy to attack the left and blame Barack Obama, Republicans in Congress are not blameless. Far too many of them voted for policies and programs that brought large numbers of people from places like Somalia to places like Columbus, Ohio. This foolishness must end.

Reform Our Refugee Policy

If our leaders are committed to bringing in more refugees, let me be the first to remind them that there are hundreds of thousands, perhaps even millions of Christians throughout the Middle East and Africa who are persecuted and facing genocide. They live daily in fear of their Muslim neighbors.

Moreover, they often avoid refugee camps because they may be beaten and raped by the Muslims in those camps.

I can see why ideologues on the left tolerate this. But there is no excuse — with a Republican Congress and president — to continue the disgusting refugee policy that gives Christians the back of our hand while letting in a significant number of people who despise our values.

President Obama has claimed that a “religious test” for our refugee policy betrays our values and doesn’t represent who we are. But it is Obama who is not representing our values.

Our refugee policy was intended to protect persecuted religious minorities. It specifically cites “religion” as one of the key considerations. And when it comes to helping persecuted religious minorities in the Middle East and much of Africa, Christians should be first in line.

Stupidity of the Day Award

Before any information was in about [Monday’s] attack at Ohio State University, several Democrats quickly jumped to conclusions. For example, Virginia Senator Tim Kaine tweeted his condemnation of “senseless gun violence.”

Unfortunately for Kaine, the facts did not fit the narrative he wanted to promote. Artan turned his car into a weapon and attacked students with a butcher knife.

But a good guy with a gun — a police officer — used his firearm to bring the senseless violence to an end.