The left likes to portray President Trump as an ignorant buffoon. It did the same thing to Ronald Reagan, who was often derided as “an amiable dunce.” But at the end of the day, what matters most is not whether people like you, but whether they respect you.

In spite of all the negative press here at home and all the late night jokes, it seems many countries are coming to respect America more because they realize we have a serious leader in the White House.

The latest example came Wednesday when Caitlin Coleman, her husband, Josh Boyle, and their children were rescued from the Taliban by Pakistani special forces. They had been held as hostages since 2012.

During a speech Wednesday in Pennsylvania, President Trump said this:

“Something happened today where a country that totally disrespected us called with some very, very important news. And one of my generals came in, they said, ‘You know, I have to tell you, a year ago they would have never done that.’ …

"You’ll probably be hearing about it over the next few days. But this is a country that did not respect us. This is a country that respects us now. The world is starting to respect us again.”

You may recall that several weeks ago, President Trump announced a new strategy for Afghanistan. A major part of his address, largely overlooked by the media, was the president’s call for new approach to Pakistan. President Trump said, “It is time for Pakistan to demonstrate its commitment to civilization, order, and to peace.”

Wednesday’s rescue of American hostages is a good start.

Lying Media

NBC News reported Wednesday that President Trump this summer demanded “what amounted to a nearly tenfold increase in the U.S. nuclear arsenal.” Top officials in the room “were surprised” by this demand. NBC supposedly got this information from “three officials who were in the room.”

President Trump blasted the NBC report as “Pure fiction made up to demean,” to make him look like a warmongering idiot. At a press conference Wednesday, President Trump said, “Right now, we have so many nuclear weapons. I want them in perfect condition, perfect shape. That’s the only thing I’ve ever discussed.”

Secretary of Defense James Mattis also condemned the NBC report as “absolutely false,” “erroneous” and “irresponsible.”

Chief of Staff John Kelly told the White House press corps this afternoon that the president has said repeatedly that it would be wonderful if the world could get rid of nuclear weapons.

By the way, Kelly also denied fake news reports that he was frustrated in his job and about to be fired. He said that what frustrated him most was reading the fake news. “It is astounding to me how much is misreported,” he said. Kelly also told reporters to “develop some better sources.”

I am a staunch proponent of the First Amendment and free speech. But big media should be held accountable.

Who were these sources – the three officials in the room? Did they even exist? The so-called “journalists” who produced this report have an obligation to defend their reporting or NBC should fire them.

Not a week goes by without major media outlets publishing totally false information. There has to be some accountability somewhere.

Let me remind you that when former FBI Director James Comey testified before the Senate Intelligence Committee, he said, “There have been many, many stories … about Russia that are dead wrong.”

The president has every right to criticize the left-wing fake news media when they lie about him and try to make him look like an idiot. Sadly, Sen. Ben Sasse (R-NE) is attacking Trump for fighting back!

What is wrong with these GOP politicians? Apparently, they have learned nothing from the 2016 elections. Donald Trump defeated 16 of them and Hillary Clinton because conservative voters wanted a fighter!

We are sick and tired of weak-kneed politicians who care more about what media elites say about them than they do about actually advancing conservative values!

Lying Politicians

A major left-wing talking point on the president’s tax reform plan is that Republicans are lowering taxes on the rich while raising taxes on the poor. Their argument goes like this: Trump’s plan calls for lowering the top tax rate from 39.6% to 35% while increasing the bottom rate from 10% to 12%.

Here’s why this is false. The top marginal rate has not yet been determined. The president has said he is willing to keep a high top tax rate. On the lower rate, Chuck Schumer and other progressives are counting on average Americans not getting into the details.

The first rate in the tax code is in fact a zero rate. Due to the personal exemption, an individual pays no tax on the first $6,000 of income and a married couple pays no tax on the first $12,000 of income. President Trump wants to double that. So he is dramatically expanding the zero rate.

The left is suggesting that lower income people will be paying more under Trump’s plan, but that is simply a lie and they know it.

Know Your Base

As I wrote Wednesday, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell is like a scrambling quarterback right now, desperately trying to avoid being tackled. He allowed the Kaepernick protests to fester for over a year and he appeared oblivious to the outrage of fans.

Now he’s written a memo that appears to favor requiring players to stand for the national anthem. But I sincerely doubt he has the courage to tell the players that they will face fines unless they stand. We will have to see how this plays out.

But here’s the bottom line: Donald Trump knew the fan base of the NFL better than the commissioner of the NFL – just like he knew the base of the Republican Party better than the professional consultants and politicians who run the Republican Party. Trump really deserves the title “Billionaire Populist.”

SPLC vs. VVS

The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) attacked the Values Voter Summit today in a full page Washington Post ad. In fact, the SPLC has an entire website devoted to smearing the Summit and its co-sponsors, including yours truly.

Why? Because we believe marriage is the union of one man and one woman. We believe that children should not be introduced to “alternative lifestyles” in the schools at inappropriate ages. We don’t think we should be importing bigotry into America and we believe that hateful Islamic supremacists should be kept out of the country.

The SPLC specifically highlighted this quote from one of my September 2015 End of Day reports: “If the United States is going to take in 10,000 Syrian refugees, they should be Christians and we should make no apologies for that.”

Well, I’m not apologizing. The SPLC is a left-wing hate group that is bigoted against Christians and traditional American values. It has also had a rash of bad publicity lately. Not surprisingly, the FBI and the Pentagon have severed ties with the radical group.​

Chag Same'ach

Carol and I wish all of our Jewish friends and supporters celebrating Simchat Torah a happy and joyous holiday!