It was very difficult watching the evening news Wednesday night. Left-wing reporters and big spending politicians were having nervous breakdowns over the impact of President Trump’s tax reform plan on the budget deficit.

It’s one thing coming from deficit hawks in the GOP. At least they are consistent in fighting against excessive spending. But to hear those like Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren expressing shock over growing deficits was too much.

Progressive politicians spent the past eight years helping Barack Obama pile up more debt than any president in history. They have no credibility to complain about the deficit now.

And what about those on the Right concerned about the deficit? While I am far more sympathetic to their arguments, the deficit hawks in the GOP should wake up to the fact that big media and the big spenders are simply trying to blowup tax reform. Period. That is their sole objective and they will use any argument they can.

If they succeed, the deficit hawks in the GOP will likely find themselves in the minority in the next Congress with the big spenders in control. If the Republican Congress fails to enact tax reform or pass significant tax cuts AFTER floundering on Obamacare, conservative voters may take a pass on the 2018 elections.

The huge deficits that were run up in the Obama years happened at the same time we were gutting national defense. They were deficits that pushed the progressive agenda — transferring wealth from people who create it to people who vote for the Left. Not surprisingly, Obama earned the dubious distinction of being the first two-term president without a single year of 3% economic growth.

The fact is you can’t cut or tax your way out of these deficits. Certainly there are things that can be cut and our system could be more efficient. But the best way to solve the deficit problem is to get our economy growing again. President Trump’s proposal has a decent chance of making that happen.

Absurd Criticism

An immediate and oft-repeated criticism of Trump’s tax reform plan was that it lacked details. That is absurd.

Several times during his briefing Wednesday, Treasury Secretary Mnuchin stressed that they were outlining “core principles.” The White House is not responsible for writing legislation. Congress writes legislation and that’s where the details will be hammered out.

Some have suggested that Trump’s plan to lower corporate taxes to 15% tax is a non-starter, so why bother? They should understand that the president sets the tone of the debate. He is telling his party in Congress and the American people what it is he wants to sign. What he is ultimately able to get passed may well be different.

It’s the art of the deal. Wednesday’s presentation of core principles was the opening bid in the negotiating process. And if the Left really doesn’t like it, let’s see its plan.

Israel Victory Caucus

I had the pleasure Thursday morning of speaking on Capitol Hill to the inaugural meeting of the Congressional Israel Victory Caucus (CIVC). The meeting was sponsored by Dr. Daniel Pipes of the Middle East Forum, who played a significant role in encouraging the formation of the caucus.

CIVC was started by Rep. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) and Rep. Bill Johnson (R-OH) and it is based on a simple concept: Decades of diplomacy based on moral equivalency have failed. As Rep. DeSantis put it, “American policy must ensure that Israel emerges victorious against those who deny or threaten her existence.”

The reality is that one side of this dispute is never going to be satisfied with any concession because it refuses to concede that the other side has a right to exist. Rep. DeSantis and Rep. Johnson understand that building activity in East Jerusalem or so-called “settlements” in Judea and Samaria can’t possibly be the impediment to peace because the Palestinians see all of Israel as an illegitimate settlement. That is the impediment to peace.

CIVC is built on the truism that if you see a conflict between barbarism and civilization, you should do everything you can to ensure that civilization wins. That means you should support Israel and hope for its victory instead of lecturing Israel on what it must give up.

Alas, the progressive ladies of Code Pink showed up Thursday taking the side of the barbarians. Thankfully, they were quickly removed by the professional officers of the Capitol Hill Police Department.

Fascism Prevails in Portland

An annual parade in Portland, Oregon, has been cancelled after progressives threatened to physically attack some of the marchers, specifically members of the Multnomah County Republican Party.

After receiving an email that read, “You have seen how much power we have downtown and that the police cannot stop us … so please consider your decision wisely,” parade organizers felt they had no choice but to cancel the parade.

Once again the progressive fascists have prevailed in denying innocent Americans their First Amendment rights.

THIS MUST STOP!

I hope Portland police and the FBI are investigating this threat. Those responsible should be prosecuted to the fullest extent possible. It is time the government brought the RICO statutes to bear against this violent left-wing mob.

Isn’t it striking just how much today’s progressives are like the racist Democrats of the past? They wear masks like the KKK.

They are the descendants of Orval Faubus, who stood in the schoolhouse door blocking young black children. Today’s progressives stand in the university door blocking conservative speakers.

They use threats of violence and intimidation. Just like Bull Connor.

The old segregationists wouldn’t let a preacher like Martin Luther King, Jr., go into schools. Today’s progressives don’t want preachers in the schools or the public square.

It’s no wonder the Left is so obsessed with fundamentally transforming America. It has no clue what America is.

The Patriotism Gap

Political pundits identify several fault lines when attempting to describe the political and cultural divisions in America today based on sex, race, age, political ideology, geography, and more.

But another fault line has emerged between those who feel an instinctive love of country and those whose feelings toward their county depend on which way the political winds are blowing. This patriotism gap is getting far less attention than it deserves.

Read more in my latest opinion piece at The American Thinker.