The annual Congressional Baseball Game, a tradition dating back to 1909, went on as planned Thursday night. A record crowd turned out and raised more than $1 million for charity. According to CNN, Ivanka Trump presented a $50,000 check from “Friends in the Trump Administration.”

President Trump delivered a powerful message of unity to the crowd. Watch it here. Democrats trounced the GOP team 11-to-2. And in a sign of unity, they gave the trophy to the GOP team and asked that it be kept in Rep. Steve Scalise’s office. 

Before the game, Democrat and Republican members of Congress joined each other on their knees in prayer. It was an encouraging scene. Those of us who work in Washington know there are quite a few believers in both parties and there are frequent Bible studies.

But the scene was also a reality check, especially given Sen. Bernie Sanders’ bigoted and disgraceful attack against one public servant’s faith last week.

If legislation makes it to the House or Senate floor guaranteeing that religious institutions don’t have to pay for abortions or contraception under Obamacare, many of the Democrat Christians kneeling Thursday night would likely vote against it. The reason comity is so hard is that the things dividing the two sides are not minor matters.

Religious liberty. Secure borders. The Second Amendment. Whether cities can violate federal law. The sanctity of life. On some issues, compromise is extremely difficult.

There are deep divides between the Left and Right over what America stands for, what it means, how to confront the threat of radical Islam and the role of religious liberty in our society. As I have said and written many times before, we are in the midst of a great culture war over the values we will pass on to our children and grandchildren, and only one side can prevail.

More Left-Wing Violence

Shots were fired at a truck Thursday in Indianapolis. This wasn’t road rage, but left-wing political rage. The truck was flying two flags — an American flag and a “Make America Great Again” flag.

Hours after Rep. Steve Scalise was shot, a Democrat operative in Union County, New Jersey, tweeted, “We are in a war with selfish, foolish & narcissistic rich people. Why is it a shock when things turn violent? #HuntRepublicanCongressmen.”

A top official in the Nebraska Democrat Party posted on social media that the trauma Republican congressmen experienced during Scalise’s shooting was “so funny” to watch. She’s refusing to resign.

Time Warner, which owns CNN, is standing by its sponsorship of a disgusting play depicting Donald Trump’s assassination. Would Time Warner sponsor a play showing Barack Obama’s assassination? I think we all know the answer.

I am glad that the stands were full at the Congressional Baseball Game, but I wish the seats were empty in Central Park. Sadly, Fox News host Martha McCallum said that the crowd at Wednesday night’s showing was packed — the very day of Rep. Scalise’s shooting. 

Here's a column featuring quotes of 20 liberals calling for violence against conservatives. Here’s a list of recent left-wing attacks against conservatives.

The “tyrants of tolerance” are intolerant of normal American values and they are becoming increasingly violent as they attempt to impose their values on the rest of society. Sadly, it seems that the brief moment of unity we experienced Wednesday afternoon is unlikely to last.

I urge the Trump administration, which is committed to law and order, to immediately form a task force at the Justice Department to investigate violent political extremism on the Left.

How is the anarchist "Black Bloc" organized and funded? Same for the Revolutionary Communist Party.

How strong are the links between the Black Lives Matter movement and radical Islamic groups?

Use the RICO statutes against groups fomenting violence. Smash them like we smashed the mob.

Welcome Home, Otto

Lost in the wake of Wednesday’s shooting was the news that Otto Warmbier had returned home to his family in Ohio. Warmbier, as you may recall, was seized by North Korea in 2015 for attempting to steal a propaganda poster. He was sentenced to 15 years hard labor. Unfortunately, he sustained a severe brain injury while in captivity.

Thursday, Otto’s father, Fred Warmbier, spoke to reporters about his son’s condition and the family’s ordeal. He blasted the Obama administration and praised President Trump for bringing his son home.

Not surprisingly, Warmbier had harsh words for the Stalinist North Korean regime, calling it “brutal” and “terroristic.” But when news of his son’s arrest broke, he said the Obama administration advised the family “to take a low profile while they worked to obtain his release.”

Warmbier said that they were told “it was important that you don’t upset the North Koreans. We followed that logic.” He added, “We did so, without result.”

Referring to the efforts of the Trump administration, Warmbier said, “They have our thanks for bringing Otto home… I think the results speak for themselves.”

Good News

Just a few hours ago, President Trump, Vice President Pence, Sen. Marco Rubio and Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart addressed a raucous crowd in Miami, Florida. All the speakers, but especially President Trump, issued compelling indictments against the oppression of the Cuban people by the Castro family.

Friday, President Trump rolled back Obama's "one-sided deal with Cuba" and vowed to “expose the crimes of the Castro regime.” Ronald Reagan would have been proud of Trump’s speech.

Piece by piece, President Trump is repealing and replacing Obama’s legacy. Here’s more good news.

• In spite of everything the Left and its media allies have thrown at him in recent days, President Trump’s approval rating has increased to 50%.

• The Trump administration continues its crackdown against violent illegal immigrant gangs. More than 40 gang members, including many MS-13 members, were arrested in New York City this week.

• President Trump signed an executive order dramatically expanding apprenticeships in order to get more Americans back to work.

• The Trump administration formally repealed one of Barack Obama’s unconstitutional executive orders granting amnesty to millions of illegal immigrants.

• The House of Representatives voted to ensure that illegal immigrants cannot receive Obamacare tax credits. (Only seven House Democrats voted for the bill.)

• The Senate this week voted 98-to-2 to impose new sanctions against Iran for its ballistic missile program and support for terrorism. (Sens. Bernie Sanders and Rand Paul voted against the sanctions.)  

• Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signed legislation preventing the use of foreign law in state courts.

• The Trump administration is battling wasteful government bureaucracy. For example, the president ordered the government to stop reporting on its various efforts to combat the Y2K bug — you know, the non-event that happened 17 years ago!