Right Opinion
The best of conservative opinion and commentary, updated daily.
God Save Us From King Obama
It's taken more than 200 years, two world wars, an industrial revolution, and the dawn of the Internet, but the United States once again finds itself at the mercy of an intolerant king. Instead of a tax on tea, King Barack Obama and his Democrat Knights of the Fast Food Table seem intent on imposing a penalty on chicken -- but not all chicken. They are only targeting poultry prepared by Chick-fil-A.
Cruz Missile
Language, in politics, gets you only so far, but sometimes "so far" is far enough. Take 2008. I trust we all remember "hope and change"? We should. It helped propel a previously unknown community organizer into the White House, hence into our lives, as reorganizer-in-chief. Ted Cruz, "the Republican new man of the moment," according to Fox News' Chris Wallace, has his own gifts as a wordsmith: less sugary, more to be compared with a boxing glove. In the runoff for U. S. senator from the great state of Texas, the previously unknown Cruz whammed the well-known David Dewhurst, talking hard-edge language that seemed right, to many, for the necessities of the moment. Like Dr. Samuel Johnson, he "talked for victory." Victory, it turned out, was what Cruz voters yearned for after three years of imposition by the Obama administration, as well as Congress, on their liberties and prosperity.
Mitt Romney, Chick-fil-A, and Ben & Jerry's
The Democratic mayors of Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C. gave Mitt Romney and the Republican Party the greatest gift possible. They provided the American people with as clear an example of the unbridgeable differences between left and right, between Democrat and Republican, as could be hoped for. And it was largely wasted. The Democratic mayors of Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C. announced that Chick-fil-A is not welcome in their cities because the owner/founder of Chick-fil-A supports preserving the man-woman definition of marriage. Aside from free speech issues, the mayors did something dangerously un-American: they declared their cities open only to businesses whose ownership holds political positions they approve of.
Hundreds of Millions in Taxpayer Losses Are Just 'Minor Blips'
President Obama's disgracefully corrupt policies on green energy alone should be enough to ensure his defeat in November -- even apart from his war on reliable energy sources, which is unspeakably outrageous. Recently revealed emails show the extent of the abject corruption and reckless waste surrounding Obama's Solyndra project. The Heritage Foundation has compiled a list of the 10 most revealing emails referred to in the House Energy and Commerce Committee's investigative report, many of which I wrote about in my book "The Great Destroyer." A number of these will make your blood boil. We know that taxpayers lost more than $600 million in the debacle, but how many knew that the administration never even intended the business to be wholly self-supporting? Obama's "you didn't build that" slander could certainly be applied to this government-created and -dependent monstrosity.
Who's Afraid of Wealthy Politicians?
Scurrilous would be a step up for Harry Reid. If he were a Republican ... you know the drill. The word "McCarthyite" would be on everyone's lips and the thoroughly contemptible accusation -- based (ha!) on an anonymous "investor" who supposedly phoned Reid -- would be the story of the day. Reid's fetid slander, and not Romney's response, would preoccupy everyone interested in politics. For Romney to release his tax returns now would seem to reward this sort of disgraceful tactic. And yet, it may be worth doing anyway.
Sports Versus Politics
It has long seemed to me that there is far more rationality in sports, and in commentaries on sports, than there is in politics and in commentaries on politics. What has puzzled me is why this is so, when what happens in politics has far more serious effects on people's lives. To take one common example, there are many people who believe that if the market fails, the government should step in. But, if Robinson Cano strikes out, does anyone suggest that the Yankees should send in a pinch hitter for him on his next time at bat? Everyone understands that a pinch hitter can also strike out, and is less likely than Cano to get a hit or a home run. But the very possibility that the government can fail when it steps in to substitute for a failing market seldom occurs to many people. Even among some economists, "market failure" is a magic phrase that implies a need for government intervention.
The 'Boring' 2012 Campaign
PLYMOUTH NOTCH, Vt. -- Two of my pundit colleagues -- David Brooks of The New York Times and Peggy Noonan of The Wall Street Journal -- have written about this "boring" and "inconsequential" presidential campaign. Perhaps the reason is that we've heard it all before. "There is nothing new under the sun," wrote the author of Ecclesiastes, but that doesn't mean old ideas that worked in the past can't be updated and applied to our time.
Napolitano: Terrorists Enter America 'From Time to Time'
The secretary of Homeland Security makes a startling admission.
Supporters of Ted Cruz and Chick-fil-A Break News
Americans keep behaving in ways that baffle the liberal mainstream media. Two examples figured prominently -- or should have -- in last week's news. One is the runoff primary for the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate in Texas. Former state Solicitor General Ted Cruz thumped incumbent Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, 57 to 43 percent. Cruz won even though the Texas Republican establishment, from Gov. Rick Perry on down, endorsed Dewhurst. So did the Austin lobbying community, since Dewhurst as lieutenant governor has run the state Senate for the last 10 years (and, having lost this race, will do so for at least the next two).
The War on Women and Commonsense
The one thing that must be said for Nancy Pelosi is that she is always good for a chuckle. Although she has been known to say some of the funniest lines ever heard in Congress, such as "You'll have to pass ObamaCare in order to find out what's in it," she doesn't have to rely on funny dialogue in order to have people rolling in the aisles. All she has to do is give us that famous Pelosi look, the one that resembles an elderly deer caught in the headlights, the eyebrows up around her hairline, with those startled eyes that, thanks to one too many facelifts, have lost the ability to blink. But just because she doesn't have to depend on dialogue doesn't mean that when the circumstances call for it, she can't deliver a knee-slapper with the best of them. For instance, after Eric Holder spent a year and a half stonewalling Congress, refusing to hand over documents related to Fast and Furious, a botched Department of Justice operation that resulted in the murder of two American agents and thousands of Mexican civilians, Nancy Pelosi predictably sprang to the Attorney General's defense.
Football's Big Problem
The opening of the NFL training camps coincided with the closing of the investigation into the April suicide by gunshot of Ray Easterling, 62, an eight-season NFL safety in the 1970s. The autopsy found moderately severe chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), progressive damage to the brain associated with repeated blows to the head. CTE was identified as a major cause of Easterling's depression and dementia. In February 2011, Dave Duerson, 50, an 11-year NFL safety, committed suicide by shooting himself in the chest to spare his brain tissue for research, which has found evidence of CTE. Brain tissue of 20-season linebacker Junior Seau, who was 43 when he killed himself the same way in May, is being studied. The NFL launched a mental health hotline developed and operated with the assistance of specialists in suicide prevention.
Of Free Speech and Chick-fil-A
Dan Cathy could have saved his company, Chick-fil-A, a lot of trouble. All he had to do was keep his views about family to himself. Instead, he answered a question honestly. In a recent media interview, the company's president and COO said what he believes and why he believes it. But his politically incorrect views are intolerable, judging from the anger of many on the left, including several big-city officials who are dead-set against his views. In the interview, Cathy said he is "very much supportive of the family, the biblical definition of the family unit." Chicago Mayor Rahm Emmanuel took exception: "What the COO has said as it relates to gay marriage and gay couples is not what I believe. But more importantly, it's not what the people of the city of Chicago believe." Now, spirited debates about controversial topics are an American tradition. But it didn't stop there. The politicians began threatening to block Chick-fil-A's plans to expand in their cities.
Knee-Jerks and Other Jerks on the Left
Under normal conditions, I would not address the tragic events that took place in Aurora, Colorado. For one thing, it was the insane act of a single psychotic, as opposed to the sort of stuff I generally deal with, such as Obama's destructive policies and the loony legislation enacted by the left-wing pinheads in Congress. I am only making an exception in the case of James Holmes because of what it tells us about liberals. Understand, I'm not laying his massacre at the feet of leftists. I leave that sort of thing to the media. You know, the folks who announced that Jared Lee Loughner was a conservative as soon as they heard that he had gone on a murderous rampage in Tucson, Arizona, that left Rep. Gabrielle Giffords wounded and several people dead. In similar fashion, we all got to hear that James Holmes was a member of the Tea Party even before the smoke had cleared.
From The Comedy Store
North Korea's women's soccer team walked off before a recent match. Organizers accidentally displayed the South Korean flag and the North Koreans were outraged. They will never be able to go home now that they know what it is like to be angry and have food.
The Jobs Report Bad News
Stocks loved today's jobs report, rising well over 200 points at this writing. But equities may be suffering from a certain irrational exuberance. Yes, nonfarm payrolls rose by 163,000 in July. That's better than the prior two months and probably signals no double-dip recession -- at least for now. But there are a lot of negatives in this report. For one, the small-business household survey dropped 195,000. That's what drove the unemployment rate up to 8.3 percent. These two factors virtually cancel out the better-than-expected rise in nonfarm payrolls. By the way, the labor force shrunk by 150,000. The participation rate slipped to 63.7 percent. And the overall U-6 discouraged-workers unemployment rate increased to 15 percent.
Horse Hockey: The Left's Rafalca Derangement Syndrome
Rafalca is the name of Ann Romney's show horse, which competed in Olympic dressage this week. Rafalca Derangement Syndrome is the name of a debilitating partisan disease that is raging among snotty "progressives" posing as populists. On Thursday, the George Soros-funded henchmen of MoveOn promoted a new TV ad that "features a talking Rafalca Romney, who tells us Mitt would treat many Americans worse than a horse!" Interspersed with scenes of a dressage competition, the talking Rafalca mimics a faux British accent and lashes out at the Romneys' privately earned wealth...
Taking Syria Seriously
Former Secretary General of the United Nations, Kofi Annan, abruptly resigned as the special peace envoy to Syria. Abrupt is the correct word, because Annan's brief only extended until the end of this month. The current UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon said he would try to find a replacement for Annan to complete the term of the "mandate." Annan said, in his statement of resignation: "At a time when we need -- when the Syrian people desperately need action -- there continues to be finger pointing and name calling in the Security Council."
Iran Amps Up Its Genocidal Rhetoric
Islamic Republic calls for annihilating the great "plight" on humanity, the Jewish State.
The Palins Versus the Critics
From our seats in front of the television, it certainly feels like the TV network programmers have all the power to entertain us. But the press gatherings of the Television Critics Association in Tinseltown suggest that others audaciously think they should be in the driver's seat, and they're not shy about saying so. The latest TCA press tour showed off the intimidating power of the television critics flailing away at young, shy Bristol Palin, who's returning to ABC for an all-star version of "Dancing with the Stars." Look, there's no doubt that Sarah Palin has figured out a way to benefit from all the media attention -- mostly negative, often vicious -- after the 2008 presidential race. The enemy of my enemy is my friend -- and her support has grown by the millions. Her supporters across America made Bristol a fan-favorite on "Dancing," even if she was hardly Ginger Rogers on the season debut. But the Palin-haters who dismissed her as being on the show only because of her famous mother proved their real agenda when Chastity "Chaz" Bono took a turn (as a "male") on the program, and the crickets chirped.