In His Own Words

Forget the debates. Forget the pundits. Forget the press. Forget even the other candidates....for a minute. I want you to judge a man based on his words. This is important, because it's his words that reveal his ideas, his character, and more importantly for us as Americans, how this man would govern. The following quotes came straight from the the guy who's leading the pack in the GOP race to the White House, Donald Trump.


The other thing with the terrorists is you have to take out their families, when you get these terrorists, you have to take out their families.

They won’t refuse, they’re not going to refuse me — believe me. (upon hearing that the military would refuse to take out families because it's illegal)

I could stand in the middle of 5th Avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn't lose voters.

Paul Ryan, I don’t know him well, but I’m sure I’m going to get along great with him. And if I don’t, he’s going to have to pay a big price.

I’ll tell you what we’re going to do, right? We get greedy, right? Now we’re going to get greedy for the United States. We’re going to grab and grab and grab. We’re going to bring in so much money and so much everything.

I'd bring back waterboarding, and I'd bring back a hell of a lot worse than waterboarding.

I’m very capable of changing to anything I want to change to.

I hear the Rickets family, who own the Chicago Cubs, are secretly spending $'s against me. They better be careful, they have a lot to hide!

I don't know anything about what you're even talking about with white supremacy or white supremacists, so I don't know. I don't know -- did he endorse me, or what's going on? Because I know nothing about David Duke; I know nothing about white supremacists.
I have to look at the group. I mean, I don't know what group you're talking about. You wouldn't want me to condemn a group that I know nothing about. I'd have to look. If you would send me a list of the groups, I will do research on them and certainly I would disavow if I thought there was something wrong. You may have groups in there that are totally fine -- it would be very unfair. So give me a list of the groups and I'll let you know. (referring to the Ku Klux Klan)

Honestly, I don't know David Duke. I don't believe I've ever met him. I'm pretty sure I didn't meet him. And I just don't know anything about him.

I have black guys counting my money. … I hate it. The only guys I want counting my money are short guys that wear yarmulkes all day.

Hey, I watched when the World Trade Center came tumbling down. And I watched in Jersey City, New Jersey, where thousands and thousands of people were cheering as that building was coming down. Thousands of people were cheering.

We’re going to have to do things that we never did before. And some people are going to be upset about it, but I think that now everybody is feeling that security is going to rule. Certain things will be done that we never thought would happen in this country in terms of information and learning about the enemy. And so we’re going to have to do certain things that were frankly unthinkable a year ago. (referring to requiring American Muslims to register with a govt database)

(I'm calling for) total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country's representatives can figure out what is going on.

When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending their best. They're sending people that have lots of problems. They're bringing drugs. They're bringing crime. They're rapists, and some, I assume, are good people.

(Citing an alleged story about Gen. Pershing executing Filipino Muslim fighters in the early 1900's, Trump said): He took 50 bullets, and he dipped them in pig's blood and he had his men load his rifles and he lined up the 50 people, and they shot 49 of those people. And the fiftieth person he said 'you go back to your people and you tell them what happened.' And for 25 years there wasn't a problem, okay?

I think eminent domain is wonderful.

I will be the greatest jobs president that God ever created.

I paid millions and millions of dollars in refunds. (referring to Trump University)

Apple ought to give the security for that phone, OK. What I think you ought to do is boycott Apple until such a time as they give that security number. How do you like that? I just thought of it. Boycott Apple.

We’re gonna get Apple to start building their damn computers and things in this country, instead of in other countries.

How stupid are the people of Iowa?

We won with poorly educated. I love the poorly educated.

You’ve got to give him credit. How many young guys — he was like 26 or 25 when his father died — take over these tough generals, and all of a sudden — you know, it’s pretty amazing when you think of it. How does he do that?  Even though it is a culture, and it’s a cultural thing, he goes in, he takes over, he’s the boss. It’s incredible. (referring to North Korea's despotic dictator, Kim Jong-un)

I would get China to make that guy disappear, in one form or another, very quickly.
(Do you mean assassinate him? he was asked.) No, well, you know, I’ve heard of worse things, frankly. This guy’s a bad dude.

It is always a great honor to be so nicely complimented by a man so highly respected within his own country and beyond. (referring to Vladmir Putin)

Do you know the names of the reporters that he’s killed? Nobody has proved that he’s killed anybody. (referring to claims that Putin has killed many journalists)

He’ll pay. Trust me, he’ll pay. (referring to ex-President of Mexico who said they would never pay for the wall)

Look at those hands, are they small hands? And, he referred to my hands -- 'if they're small, something else must be small.' I guarantee you there's no problem. I guarantee.


This is a small sample of a multitude of quotes from Trump. As we all have seen, he has also personally insulted many of the people he crosses paths with, ranging from women to those in the media, and of course, to other candidates in the race. Aside from the fact that he alone has lowered the standard for any decorum in a presidential race, his words have given us insight into who this man really is. His supporters and those yet to decide, must look objectively at his character and think about whether he should be the one to lead this country.  Do you really trust him? Donald Trump wants to be the most powerful man in the world. Let's think very carefully about with whom we entrust that power.

The Best Candidate, The Worst Candidate

Ok, I admit it. I have a dog in the race. I have now watched nine debates, have watched many interviews, both short and full length, and have come away from all of it with a strong affirmation. My dog, or candidate, is Ted Cruz. Cruz has shown himself to be, time and time again, a voice of reason and thoughtfulness. When asked about how he would govern this country, he articulates his positions clearly and eloquently.  He is consistent in his stances because his positions are based on core principles of Constitutional conservatism, and he steadily draws upon this core. When challenged to prove it, he points to times when he has stood up in Congress to oppose policies that stray from these principles, and likewise, he has stood for policies which have supported these principles.

While Cruz has had to endure accusations of being a liar, of being nasty and of being dishonest, these characterizations couldn't be further from the truth. While other candidates have pointed to inconsistencies in his positions, one need only dig a little to realize that sometimes what appears to be a reversal in position, is merely one that is nuanced - perhaps too nuanced for public consumption which feeds on sound bites.

One example of this is the amnesty issue Cruz and Rubio spar over in every debate. Rubio accuses him of changing position, while fully knowing that his accusation is a sound bite taken out of context. Even Megyn Kelly (no obvious fan of Cruz) admitted on air to Cruz in a post debate interview a couple of weeks ago, that she did a lot of research on this subject to investigate this apparent 'lie' of his. She came away, however, agreeing that Cruz has been very consistently against amnesty. Yet in every debate, Rubio brings it up as though this issue wasn't settled. And Rubio, in a blatant lie that was on display for all to see, was when he stated quite affirmatively, (after Cruz accused him of saying one thing about amnesty in Spanish on Univision, and another in English), that Cruz doesn't even speak Spanish. Embarrassing for him, was when Cruz responded to him in Espanol. Rubio just smirked and had to swallow his lie whole. Such is the dishonesty at these debates.

The controversy over the Cruz campaign trying to attain Carson's Iowa voters, was due to the Carson campaign putting out the information in the first place of their candidate not moving on to the next couple of states. CNN, in turn, reported as "Breaking News" that it was odd that Carson would do such a thing, unless he was dropping out. And while one could argue that Cruz's campaign should've confirmed this (proving now that CNN cannot be trusted for information), Cruz took full responsibility and apologized to Carson both privately and publicly; no one was fired because of it (as Carson desired) because the campaign was merely doing its job of securing voters.  Let's not even mention that Rubio's supporters did the same but that wasn't talked about at all, except on social media. Nothing to see there, of course, for Carson or anyone else that continues to call Cruz a liar. Carson, much to his own dismay if he would admit it, has become political. And Carson himself, while seemingly aligning with Trump who praises him at every turn, has evidently forgotten when Trump accused him of being pathological and a child molester. Those accusations cost Carson the most votes of all, for it was after that his numbers started dropping precipitously.

While there doesn't seem to be any fighting between Cruz and Bush, Kasich, and the other candidates who have since dropped out, the Cruz vs Trump fights are turning out to be quite sensational.

Which brings me to Donald Trump; the worst candidate in this race.

Donald Trump employs the politics of destruction. At this point, that seems to be a fact. His anger, which is justified when speaking about the state of the union over the past several years, has instead been focused on his GOP opponents.

If you wonder where Trump stands on issues, you can listen to him in debates, or you can go back to interviews and listen to him there. If you do that however, you will find that his positions have been inconsistent and very much dependent on where, when and with whom he is speaking. He doesn't seem to have a true ideology, no political philosophy, no core from which he takes positions.  This is why he is all over the map with opinions.

When Cruz points this out, as he did in the most recent South Carolina debate, Trump goes beserk over it, and in his fieriest of fiery exchanges, then starts his trademark name calling, interrupting and shouting, as if the person who shouts the loudest wins. Trump simply cannot stand to be called out on his own lies and reversals. And when he yells out that Cruz is nasty and lying, the irony is just too much to bear.

When Cruz really becomes a thorn in Trump's side, Trump vows to sue him over his eligibility to run for President (Cruz was born in Canada to an American-born mother). So far, two courts have struck this down, but Trump himself keeps threatening to sue if Cruz doesn't behave like a nice little boy. Although a non-issue, as it has been looked at many times, Trump keeps it alive merely to cast doubt and to try to silence him.

Of course, Cruz isn't the only one who has had to put up with Trump's overbearing and narcissistic behavior. To date, it's been Carly Fiorina, Ben Carson, Rand Paul, Chris Christie and Jeb Bush. At this point, we await the attacks on Rubio if he gets too close to Trump's numbers. And the attacks have all been personal. Why? Because Trump cannot debate on substance. He has none. So the politics of destruction sets in. To date however, that strategy seems to work for him, as the masses seem to want blood. The debate stage has become his Coliseum.

For many of us, Donald Trump has been exposed for the person he is. There are no more excuses for his behavior. There are no more excuses for his tantrums and no more excuses for his personal attacks on his GOP opponents. There are also no more excuses for his shallow and repetitive responses on issues. He has proven over and over he is not presidential by any means; he is unpredictable, vicious, and uneducated on many issues. How would he govern? Hopefully we will not find out.

It's a Wonderful World (?)

Americans have been given a gift. Recall George Bailey from the film "It's a Wonderful Life" who had the chance to see what the world would've been like had he not been born. For the last 7 years under Obama's tenure, Americans are getting the chance to see what the world would be like when America is NOT leading on the world's stage, (thereby leaving a vacuum for non-benevolent nations to fill). After decades of questioning, why America? Why do we have to be the world's policeman? Why do we have to be the world's superpower? Here's why:

We are seeing what happens when we pull out of countries too soon (Iraq and Afghanistan) and our enemies take over cities we had previously liberated from a ruthless dictator who was a threat to our own security.

We are seeing what happens when the largest sponsor of terror in the world, Iran, is given consent to develop nuclear weapons, much to the horror of Israel and its Arab neighbors in the region who see a a dismal future with Iran in control of that region. 

We are seeing what happens when our once closest ally in the Mideast, Israel, is left alone to deal with threats to their very existence.

We are seeing what happens when we draw lines in the sand that we don't adhere to (Syria), and tyrants like Assad are allowed to murder innocent civilians by the hundreds of thousands.

We are seeing what happens when the most savage barbarians in the form of ISIS are beheading, crucifying, torturing, burning alive, drowning, and raping Christians and other Muslims in the Middle East, men, women and children alike, in their quest to build their long awaited caliphate, and we do nothing to stop them. 

We are seeing what happens when we sit back and do nothing while Russia is emboldened to move in on Crimea and Ukraine, blatantly violating international law, and then intervenes with military aid to Assad's regime, while also partnering up with Iran. 

We are seeing what happens when millions of refugees in that region flee to Europe and the United States to escape the savages of extreme Muslim radicals and brutal dictators, and we can imagine how the influx will profoundly impact these cultures and societies. Included in the influx are countless young, single Arab men who are joining the refugees because they know they are not being carefully screened. 

We are seeing what happens when our own Secy of State is allowed to have a private email server with which to conduct official state business, only to have China and Russia able to hack into confidential messages and compromise our national security.

We are seeing what happens when our own President may be siding with the UN in its condemnation of laws passed by the U.S. congress when it comes to lifting the trade embargo with Cuba. While Cuba has not changed its abuses on human rights, Obama seeks to ignore that and normalize relations with the Castro regime anyway.

So, this is our gift. We get to see what the world would be like without America at its helm. Boy, we really did have a wonderful life before we relinquished our leadership position.

You Call These Debates?

In the last GOP debate, CNN moderators pitted one Republican against the other all night long. If your name was mentioned in a previously stated criticism of Donald Trump, you got to speak. If you had the restraint not to put him down, you didn't get called on as much. Such became the new rules of debate for the GOP as seen through the prism of the liberal media. Trump this and Trump that.

Did we hear about the candidates views on the economy and how to generate jobs, reduce govt dependency, bring down the debt and deficit, lower our taxes, and strengthen our currency? Nope. It was as though there was nary a thing to discuss regarding the economy, since things, in that liberal world, are moving along swimmingly.

Did they discuss healthcare and how Obamacare has caused millions to lose insurance, premiums to rise, deductibles to skyrocket, and doctors to retire early? Nope. It was as though Obamacare was a huge success and now all Americans have affordable health care.

Did they discuss the divisive culture which has been fueled by an administration, who once promised to unite all people, and instead, has fomented resentment among its citizens in many different ways: race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, politics? Nope. It was as though Americans were all holding hands, singing "Kumbaya" and living in purple states.

More important for CNN, the so-called neutral and objective news channel for all Americans, was that the Republicans fight amongst themselves, that they make each other look foolish in front of the world, that one by one, they are invalidated in the eyes of the voters, so that the eventual Democrat nominee will have a clear path to the White House.

Additionally, the Fox News debate was not much more elevated. Those moderators (whom Republican voters had prior expectations of fairness and objectivity) were vicious in going after each and every one of the candidates. Unabashedly they went for the jugular - finding their respective weaknesses and bringing them to the surface. Don't kid yourself Republicans: Fox has an agenda too, in that they have a dog in the race. Their dog is anyone from the establishment of the party, not the outliers, not the oppositional voices. The only difference is that Fox is not looking to bring them all down, just most of them. As a result, Fox viewers were left feeling betrayed and angry at Fox hosts for not rising above the smut. We expect it from liberal media, not from our own.

Here's a prediction: you won't find moderators in the upcoming Democrat debate pitting the candidates against each other hoping to incur as much infighting as possible, as they did with the others. No, you will find the moderators pitting them against Republicans, so as to give voters yet another chance to smear the GOP candidates. They will invoke Republican statements about Clinton or Sanders, thereby offering the Dems an opportunity to respond to their Republican opponents and straighten out any voter 'misperception', unlike in the GOP debates, in which the candidates all did the job for the liberal media by criticizing each other.

The media has become (for a while now) advocates and participants in the political process. This must end and the viewers and prospective voters must demand it. GOP candidates must learn not to take the bait from any media, liberal or otherwise. Don't want to answer another Trump question? Then don't. Insert your own viewpoint on an important issue and force the moderators to do their job fairly. Call the media out on their nonsense. Raise the bar and let's really find out where these candidates stand on real problems facing this country.

The Narcissists

narcissist - a person who is overly self-involved, and often vain and selfish

For years, Obama's critics have accused him of being a narcissist. And rightfully so, since Obama has a record of publicly ostracizing those who dared to criticize either him or his policies. He even went so far as to name particular people, not just whole networks - he has called out Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity; he has had the IRS go after conservative groups applying for tax-exempt status; he has had the DOJ spy on Fox News' James Rosen and the Associated Press. Obama has acted the bully to the Supreme court before an important decision that would impact on his policies; he even scolded them in front of the world during a State of the Union address. Not to mention his countless insults hurled at Republicans or the Tea Party. Obama's speeches have been overwhelmingly in the first person - accomplishments are his, goals are his, actions and reactions are his and his only. Never does he credit anyone else, yet blame is always on someone else. His thin skin has been problematic, as a powerful and uniting leader needs a truly thick skin. These examples go on and on; it is very apparent to those willing to say it, our president is a narcissist at the very least.

Now comes along a whole new crop of people wanting that same privilege of leading this country. In the first Republican debate, hosted by Fox News moderators, Donald Trump has shown himself to possess very similar characteristics as that of our thin-skinned president. Not that this wasn't apparent before the debate, but there was a sense that he was simply calling it like it is, pulling no punches and putting on display an ego that has been a part of his personality forever. Yet until the debate, the ego didn't seem quite that problematic.

Trump, like all the other candidates, got some tough questions from the moderators. But unlike all the other candidates, he fought back by attacking the moderators, the network, and the other candidates. And now we watch as he excoriates anyone who criticizes him, how he punishes anyone whom he deems is 'against' him. The night after the debate he gave a long interview to rival network CNN during Megyn Kelly's time slot. He gets personal. He gets petulant...like a child. He is having tantrums before our eyes. When he speaks, it is about him. And it's all about the thin skin. The toughness of Trump we don't mind. The lack of political correctness we don't mind. But if this 'enemies list' is his tactic of dealing with those who oppose him and how he would lead as the next president, then this is a big problem. And this is without examining his ideas on how to run the government or his political philosophy or vision for the country. Sure, we have some general idea about him getting tough with other countries, about cracking down on illegal immigration, but it has become about his ego at this point.

Seems like the very last thing we need as a country is more of the same from our president as we've had for the last two terms. Judging by Trump's reaction to whatever he sees as negative pushback, his narcissism is the quality that will prevent him from being an effective and uniting leader. How do we know? We've already seen this show.

A Moral Convergence

This past week two stories in the news have converged in an interesting way.

One story which has received much press coverage, has been the killing of a lion in Africa by an American hunter. Not that big game in Africa aren't hunted and killed all the time, (legally), but here are some of the unusual points about this story.

This particular lion, known as Cecil, was protected and followed for several years for research purposes by Wildlife Conservation. The hunter, with his African guides, had lured Cecil out of the protected park (illegal) and shot him with a crossbow, watching him for 40 hours until he was shot dead. This made the killing more brutal than necessary. Additionally he was decapitated and skinned to become the trophy this hunter was after. Supposedly, this hunter was unaware of the protected nature of this lion. Because of the method in which he handled this animal, this particular hunt seemed egregious.

The reaction to the killing of this lion was no less than international hysteria. So much so, that the American hunter had to go into hiding, as his own life had been threatened. Warranted? I think not. However, it does call into question some issues to ponder:  Should big game trophy hunting be legal? Are there benefits to the local villages by taking the life of an animal, especially a predatory one?

The other story to come to our attention was in the way of video exposes on Planned Parenthood (PP), in which executives from the company were caught discussing the sale of fetal parts to a fictional research company.

While PP maintains that they have not done anything illegal by receiving money to cover the cost of the procedure and to transport the tissue/organs, the videos tell a different story.

They show executives negotiating the price of tissue/organ procurement and 'then some', (illegal profiting) and in the latest video, there is discussion as to how to procure a fully intact fetus for the said research company. In one of the videos, it is revealed that PP does change the method of abortion (illegal) to fulfill the request of the research company, while claiming to reassure the mother that the procedure will follow protocol and not do anything different in their care for her.

To add insult to injury, the cavalier attitudes of the PP executives shown on camera was truly offensive. Casual and incidental, they discussed the dismemberment of the fetus, the crushing of some body parts, and the subsequent extraction of the fetus. All this without an iota of humanity, gravity or respect. Whether one agrees with fetal tissue donation or not, one should not treat a prenatal life with such brutality as illustrated here.

Again, some other questions arise:
What is PP's primary focus - giving the woman the best care she can get, or doing whatever needs to be done to sell tissue/organs to a business?

What is the ethical nature of fetal tissue procurement even if done for supposedly noble purposes?

Should taxpayers fund an organization whose practices are morally questionable at best?

While one may have outrage over both stories, it was the contrast in the press coverage that was troubling.  The lion story was covered way more in the media, while the PP story got little coverage (other than Fox News, which covered the PP story extensively). Something seems wrong with this picture. Clearly the politics of protecting PP by not giving this horrific story the proper attention was evident.

Finally, if one has outrage over an animal getting killed in a hunt, then shouldn't one have outrage over thousands of human fetuses whose lives are reduced to spare parts? If not, and that appears to be the case with many expressing anger over the lion, but not the fetuses....it begs the question: if it were animal fetuses that were being extracted in ways so as to sell its parts, would then these people get angry?

Speeding To The Cliff

With just over a year left in office, Obama is stepping on the gas pedal hard. He is accelerating as fast as he can, this fundamental transformation of America. In the beginning, it seemed as though he was gradually changing things, and that with enough resistance from the people, we would be able to slow him down. But as time went on, the pace picked up. It seemed as though every day there was another outrage to deal with, coming from his policies, his lawlessness, his rhetoric. Now it's as though the speed limit just got higher on the highway and he wants to take advantage of it. With the higher speed limit, watch out though, and make sure you're buckled up.

The latest in his transformation is the giving away of the world's security with concessions to Iran. The largest sponsor of terrorism in the world just got permission to develop nuclear weapons, which they will be able to showcase in several years. I'm sure Israel can't wait for that one. Essentially Obama has started an arms race in the Mideast, since Iran's neighbors are not going to sit still for them to power up. With this new deal, economic sanctions on Iran are lifted, paving the way for them to purchase all kinds of war toys from Russia and China, including intercontinental ballistic missiles; oh goody, then they can reach the United States. If that's not all, inspections of these building sites do not come with unfettered access. While we are told they can be inspected 24/7, the deal gives them up to 14 days to 'prepare' for the visit. But the dagger in the heart, is that Obama, the great negotiator, left 4 Americans in Iranian jail cells. How dare he. While our thin-skinned President scolded a reporter for inquiring about that in a way that left him uncomfortable, the truth is, he really doesn't care about the hostages. After all, how could he let a few Americans get in the way of his agenda.

What about that agenda? Remember, he has been working very hard at undermining every institution, every tradition, and every pillar that held up this once great country.

Time is running out for him. And he promised us he will continue to affect change until he leaves. When he does leave, if he leaves (tyrants tend to stay), he will have left us a much, much, weaker nation. The question is, will anyone be able to turn the car around before it drives off the cliff?