“We do not believe any group of men adequate enough or wise enough to operate without scrutiny or without criticism. We know that the only way to avoid error is to detect it, that the only way to detect it is to be free to inquire. We know that in secrecy error undetected will flourish and subvert.” –J. Robert Oppenheimer
Welcome to the Friday OPEN THREAD at the QTree! What a week in Trump time. It’s the weekend and time to crack open a beer and put some steaks on the grill! We’re going to remember this week……for a long time………. Thank you for the Thursday hand-off TrumpIsMine. Thank you to Wolfie for keeping us all organized, up and running. What would we do without FLEP’s News Roundup to keep up? Thank you, Flep. Hat tip and a hearty thank you to all contributors and the lurkers!
President and First Lady walk into the Blue Room after the Presser on Acquittal. ShaMMMpeachment FAILED!
We don’t believe in political correctness at QTree. Free Speech is practiced here. ENJOY IT. Use it or lose it. Important Guidelines are outlined here in the January 1st open thread, with an addendum on 20191110. In other words, please keep it SOMEWHAT civil. We have a new board – actually a new SITE – called The U Tree – where people can take each other to the woodshed without fear of censorship or moderation. NOT HERE. This board will remain a REFUGE for those who need civility, either some or all of the time.
Make no mistake, we’ve been SMOKIN’ hot at QTREE this week. No peaceful classical music today, we need some rock and roll.
What a week we’ve had. How does President Trump do it all? We started with the ShaMMMpeachment for several days, but our team was terrific in DC, across social media, and banging the boards here. The Iowa Caucus was a disaster for the Dems and the Repubs turned out in force. We went into a President Trump SOTU which made us laugh, cry, and cheer, with a Nancy implosion at the end. The President was ACQUITTED on Wednesday. It’s been such a LONG TIME in coming….. and it’s over with. Time to turn up the volume on the media and political opposition.
Thursday we had a National Prayer Breakfast which made headline news AND a White House Presser on Acquittal which solidified our team. President was kind and gracious to give attribution where due, and deliberate when assessing blame. The President and the Repubs are enjoying their highest polling numbers in years and the Dems are falling apart. And Thursday night, we learned our Military and Commander in Chief have removed the Leader of Al-Qaida in Yemen. Poooooffff, he’s gone! The President is growing stronger and our team is growing bigger. Competent leadership gives us all Peace of Mind.
We learned more about the Coronovirus this week. Wolfie put the CV Thread on the sidebar and a special thank you to all who contribute and update. “Golden Week” in China has been extended for another week = no factory workers and about 80% of the country’s export production has shut down. The Hyundai Factory in South Korea has CLOSED due to lack of parts, and North American auto manufacturers estimate they have a few weeks of parts inventory remaining before drastic measures begin.
Tonight, the Dems have a debate, and I’m watching this one. We’re going to do a thread. The circular firing squad has already formed and it’s time to perform or drop out. Should be fireworks!
We also have a MAGA Rally in New Hampshire coming up! Let’s make sure we rest up this weekend in Wheatie’s Treehouse and hang out with BakoCarl on Sunday. We’re expected on the field in full uniform by Monday morning!
SPEAK THE FIVE WORDS BOLDLY TO OUR PRESIDENT!, “I AM PRAYING FOR YOU!“ He needs our prayers and help more than ever before! ….. and unlike others, we mean it!!
And remember….. it is time to drain the swamp in DC and LOCALLY. Please make a commitment in the new year to attend a LOCAL board meeting for your town or municipality or school board. Get involved and make your presence known. Put your local officials phone numbers in your cell phone and call them once a week (or more often).
“Our movement is about replacing a failed and corrupt political establishment with a new government controlled by you, the American People.” Candidate Donald J Trump
Remember Wheatie’s Rules:
No food fights.
No running with scissors.
If you bring snacks, bring enough for everyone.
Remember, the President likes Ice Cream!
Across Conservative social media, we’re detecting a change in the game plan going forward. Can you feel the shift? We sense a new offensive coming from the White House. The Storm is here. We ready. We’ll meet at the ole saw mill… We’re moving ahead towards prosperity. Don’t look back.The sun is shining and the clouds are breaking…… there’s no more time to criticize….. I see myself in a brand new way. Oh, the sun is shining and I’m on that road. Don’t look back. A new day is breakin’. It’s been so long since we felt this way!
Since most of us were BANNED for strange reasons from another website and found comradery here, found a song for us all. “We’re just another BANNED…..” out of America?
See you all on Saturday morning at Wheatie’s Treehouse!
Today at High Noon, the President will give a speech on his Acquittal from the Impeachment Process. Judging from his temperament at the SOTU, and especially this morning at the Prayer Breakfast, this speech may be one for the ages.
Hat Tip to Dora, she found the Nancy Pelosi presser given conspicuously an hour before the President’s speech takes place. It’s a presser like no other. Pelosi is visibly rattled and seething in anger. DO NOT LOOK AWAY. Nancy has cracked.
REMARKS BY PRESIDENT TRUMP TO THE NATION
East Room
————————————————————
** 12:21 P.M. EST
THE PRESIDENT: Well, thank you very much. (Applause.) Thank you. Thank you. Wow. (Applause.) Well, thank you very much, everybody. Wow. We’ve all been through a lot together, and we probably deserve that hand for all of us, because it’s been a very unfair situation.
I invited some of our very good friends. And we have limited room, but everybody wanted to come. We kept it down to a minimum. And believe it or not, this is a minimum.
But a tremendous thing was done over the last number of months, but really, if you go back to it, over the last number of years. We had the witch hunt. It started from the day we came down the elevator, myself and our future First Lady, who’s with us right now. Thank you, Melania. (Applause.)
And it never really stopped. We’ve been going through this now for over three years. It was evil. It was corrupt. It was dirty cops. It was leakers and liars. And this should never, ever happen to another President ever. I don’t know that other Presidents would have been able to take it. Some people said, no, they wouldn’t have. But I can tell you, at a minimum, you have to focus on this because it can get away very quickly. No matter who you have with you, it can get away very quickly. It was a disgrace.
Had I not fired James Comey — who was a disaster, by the way — it’s possible I wouldn’t even be standing here right now. We caught him in the act. Dirty cops. Bad people. If this happened to President Obama, a lot of people would have been in jail for a long time already. Many, many years.
I want to start by thanking some of — and I call them friends, because, you know, you develop friendships and relationships when you’re in battle and war, much more so than, “Gee, let’s have a normal situation.”
With all that we’ve gone through, we’ve done, I think, more than any President and administration, and really, I say, for the most part, Republican congressmen, congresswomen, and Republican senators. We’ve done more than any administration in the first few years, if you look at all of the things we’ve done.
I watched this morning as they tried to take credit for the stock market from — (laughter) — from — think of that. Let me tell you, if we didn’t win, the stock market would have crashed. And the market was going up a lot before the election because it was looking we had a good chance to win, and then it went up tremendously from the time we won the election until the time we took office, which was November 8th to January 20th. And that’s our credit. That’s all our credit. And leading up to that point was our credit because there was hope.
And one of the reasons the stock market has gone up so much in the last few days is people think we’re doing so well. They liked the State of the Union speech. (Applause.) It really is — it’s a true honor to give it.
Making the State of the Union speech, I was with some people that have been around; they’ve been all over the world. And one of them, a highly sophisticated person, said, “You know, no matter where you go in the world, it doesn’t make any difference — there is nothing like what I witnessed tonight.” The beauty, the majesty of the Chamber. The power of the United States, the power of the people in this room.
Really, an amazing — I don’t think there is anything like that anywhere in the world. You can go to any other country, you can go to any other location, any other place. It’s the beauty of everything. It’s what it represents and how it represents our country.
I want to start by introducing some of the people that are here. I know some are going to be left out. But they work so hard. And this is really not a news conference. It’s not a speech. It’s not anything. It’s just we’re sort of — it’s a celebration, because we have something that just worked out. I mean, it worked out. We went through hell, unfairly. Did nothing wrong. Did nothing wrong. I’ve done things wrong in my life, I will admit. (Laughter.) Not purposely, but I’ve done things wrong. But this is what the end result is. (Applause.)
(The President holds up the front cover of The Washington Post newspaper.)
We can take that home, Honey. Maybe we’ll frame it. (Laughter.) It’s the only good headline I’ve ever had in the Washington Post, I’ll tell you. (Laughter.) But every paper is the same. Does anybody have those papers? Does anybody have them? Because they’re really like that. So I appreciate that.
But some of the people here have been incredible warriors. They’re warriors. And there’s nothing, from a legal standpoint — this is a political thing. And every time, I’d say, “This is unfair. Let’s go to court.” They’d say, “Sir, you can’t go to court. This is politics.” And we were treated unbelievably unfairly.
And you have to understand, we first went through Russia, Russia, Russia. It was all bullshit. (Laughter.) We then went through the Mueller report. And they should have come back one day later. They didn’t. They came back two years later, after lives were ruined, after people went bankrupt, after people lost all their money.
People came to Washington to help other people. “Bright-eyed and bushy-tailed,” I say. They came — one or two or three people in particular, but many people.
We had a rough campaign. It was nasty. It was one of the nastiest, they say. They say Andrew Jackson was always the nastiest campaign. They actually said we topped it. (Laughter.) It was a nasty — it was a nasty — both in the primaries and in the — in the election.
But, you see, we thought, after the election, it would stop. But it didn’t stop; it just started. And tremendous corruption. Tremendous corruption.
So we had a campaign. Little did we know we were running against some very, very bad and evil people with fake dossiers, with all of these horrible, dirty cops that took these dossiers and did bad things. They knew all about it. The FISA courts should be ashamed of themselves.
It’s a very tough thing. And then we ended up winning on Russia, Russia, Russia. It should have taken the one day, as I said, and it took years.
Then Bob Mueller testified. That didn’t work out so well for the other side. (Laughter.) But they should have said, that first week — because it came out. Is that right, Jim Jordan? They knew in the first two days actually. Devin, is that right? Two days. They knew that we were totally innocent.
But they kept it going, Mark. They kept it going forever because they wanted to inflict political pain on somebody that had just won an election that, to — a lot of people were surprised. I mean, we had polls that said we were going to win. We had Los Angeles Times and a few — a few papers, actually, said it was — we were going to win but it was going to be close.
And we did win. It was one of the greatest wins of all time. And they said, “Okay, he won.” And, you know, I wrote this down because that was where a thing called the “insurance policy” — to me, when I saw the insurance policy — and that was done long before the election. That was done when they thought that Hillary Clinton was going to win.
And, by the way, Hillary Clinton and the DNC paid for millions — millions of dollars — the fake dossier. And now Christopher Steele admits that it’s a fake because he got sued by rich people. I should have sued him too. But when you’re President, people don’t like suing.
I want to thank my legal team, by the way — not for that advice, but for other advice. (Applause.) Pat, Jay. Pat. You guys stand up, please. (Applause.) Great job. (Applause.)
Right at the beginning, they said, “Sir, you have nothing to worry about. All of the facts are on your side.” I said, “You don’t understand. That doesn’t matter. That doesn’t matter.” And that was really true.
They made up facts. A corrupt politician named Adam Schiff made up my statement to the Ukrainian president. He brought it out of thin air. Just made it up. They say he’s a screenwriter — a failed screenwriter. He tried to go into — unfortunately, he went into politics after that. (Laughter.) Remember he said the statement, which is a mob statement: “Don’t call me. I’ll call you.” I didn’t say that.
Fortunately, for all of us here today and for our country, we had transcripts. We had transcribers — professional transcribers. Then they said, “Oh, well, maybe the transcription is not correct.” But Lieutenant Colonel Vindman and his twin brother — right? — we had some people that — really amazing.
But we did everything. We said, “What’s wrong with it?” “Well, they didn’t add this word or that one.” It didn’t matter. I said, “Add it. They’re probably wrong, but add it.”
So now everyone agrees that they were perfectly accurate. When you read those transcripts, Tim Scott — I don’t know if Tim is here, but he said, “Sir…” He was the first one to call me. “Sir, I read the transcript. You did nothing wrong.” And, Mitch, he stayed there, right from the beginning. He never changed.
And, Mitch McConnell, I want to tell you: You did a fantastic job. (Applause.) Somebody said, “You know, Mitch is quiet.” I said, “He’s not quiet. He’s not quiet.” These are the — he doesn’t want people to know him. And they said, “Is Mitch smart?” I said, “Well, let’s put it this way: For many, many years, a lot of very smart — bad, in many cases, sometimes good — but people have been trying to take his place. And to the best of my knowledge, I’ve never even heard the subject come up, because they’ve been wiped out so fast. (Laughter.) This guy is great, and I appreciate it, Mitch. (Applause.)
And he’s also given us 191 now. (Applause.) A hundred and ninety-one federal judges. Two Supreme Court judges, right? It’s up to 191. (Applause.) True.
Great guy. Great guy. He’s a tough guy to read. I’m good at reading people. A tough guy to read. I’d call him. My wife would say, “How did you do with Mitch?” “Uhh, I don’t know.” (Laughter.) That’s what makes him good — when you can read somebody. Fantastic job.
And he understood, rightfully, that this was crooked politics. This was crooked politics. How about all these people, they’re running for office. They’re saying the worst things about me, like eight senators on the Democrat side. Most of them got wiped out. You know, they got their 1 percent or less. Most of them got less. They decided to go home. “Let’s go back to California.” Let’s go back to wherever they came from. “Let’s go back to New York.”
How about that one? Our New York senator, Gillibrand. “Let’s go back to New York,” after they get nothing. And then they take an oath that they will be fair, that they will be reason- — and all of the different things. And they had to sign. They’re not fair.
But here’s the beauty: So we have four left. They’re saying the most horrendous things about me. It’s okay, it’s politics. And then they’re supposed to vote — on me. They’re trying to replace me, and then they’re supposed to be voting. So I think it’s — I mean, I think it’s incredible.
But — so, Mitch, I want to thank you very much. Incredible. And you have some of your folks here, and they’re incredible people — and they’ve been, right from the beginning.
And, again, you’re out of session. Unfortunately, I didn’t — you know, I only told these folks, “Let’s do this today.” We did a prayer breakfast this morning, and I thought that was really good. In fact, that was so good it might wipe this out. But by the end — by the time we finished this, we’ll wipe that one out — those statements. (Laughter.)
I had — I had Nancy Pelosi sitting four seats away, and I’m saying things that a lot of people wouldn’t have said — (laughter) — but I meant every — (laughter) — I meant every word of it.
But we have some of the folks that are going to be leaving right after this, and they work hard — and they did work hard. Bill Cassidy, Senator. Stand up, Bill. What a guy. (Applause.) Great man. When I need to know about health insurance and preexisting conditions and individual mandates, I call Bill or I call Barrasso. We get those two guys; they know more than anybody.
A man who just became a senator — he’s a little bit like me; we have a couple of them. A very successful guy in business, and he said, “What the hell, I’ll run for the Senate” — from Indiana. And he ran. And I saw him on television, destroying his opponent in a debate. I said, “You know, this guy could win.” And I got behind him. And, Mike Braun, you have done some great job. Thank you very much. (Applause.) Tough. Tough. Thank you.
A man who got James Comey to choke, and he was just talking in his regular voice. He is the roughest man. He’s actually an unbelievable — and I appreciate the letter you sent me today. I just got it. But he’s got this voice that scares people. (Laughter.) You know, people from Iowa can be very tough. We’re doing very well in Iowa.
But I’ll tell you, Chuck Grassley — he’s looking at Comey: “Well, you tell me, what did you say?” (Laughter.) Now, he wasn’t being rough. That was just the way he talked. (Laughter.) And that was when Comey — I think that was when Comey announced that he was leaking, lying, and everything else, right? He choked because he never heard anybody talk like that. (Laughter.)
You know, you should have gone — I wish you got angry. You could have gotten the whole ballgame. He would have said, “I give up.” (Laughter.) Chuck Grassley is an incredible guy. (Applause.)
And a man who — you know, he was running against a tough, smart campaign and we learned how good she was, right? She was a great campaigner. In fact, by the end of the campaign, she was actually — I thought she was more for me than you were, Josh. I was worried. (Laughter.) I saw her ad; she was saying the greatest things about me. And you know who I’m talking about.
And I went to a great place — Missouri — and I said, “Who do you have to beat her?” And they said, “Well, we have four people.” I said, “Let me see them. I’m got to interview…” — can you imagine? I’m interviewing people for the United States Senate. This is what I do. Where have I gone? But I love it. I love it because we’re getting great people.
The first one I met was Josh Hawley. After about 10 minutes, I said to the people, “Don’t show me anybody else. This is the guy.” He was the attorney general. Did a phenomenal job in the state. Highly respected. And — Claire McCaskill.
So, the theory was you couldn’t beat her. Great campaigner. Remember the last campaign, she was going to be taken out. She was always going to be taken out, then she wins and people say, “How did that happen?” Didn’t happen with him.
But she got so friendly toward me. In fact, one of the ads I still have. I’m putting it in the archives as one of the best ads I’ve ever made. (Laughter.) And she tried to convince people that we were best friends. But Josh ended up winning by five or six points.
You were unbelievable. You were tough. And you are something. And one of the greatest supporters on the impeachment hoax was Josh Hawley. He was incensed actually; I watched it. He was incensed at what they were doing and what they were saying.
And those were the ones — you know, I had some that said, “Oh, I wish you didn’t make the call.” And that’s okay, if they need that. It’s incorrect. It’s totally incorrect. And then you have some that used religion as a crutch. They never used it before. An article written today: “Never heard him use it before.” But today, you know, it’s one of those things. But, you know, it’s a failed presidential candidate, so things can happen when you fail so badly running for President.
But, Josh Hawley, I want to thank you. You were right from the beginning. Man, did I make a good choice. (Applause.) Thank you, Josh. Tremendous future. A man who is brilliant and who actually was deceived, to an extent, comes from a great state, Utah, where my poll numbers have gone through the roof. And one of the senators’ poll numbers, and not this one, went down big. You saw that. You saw that, Mike?
But Mike Lee is a brilliant guy. He’s difficult. (Laughter.) Whenever I sign bills — you know, we do sign a lot of legislation that’s — it’s big and it’s powerful, but it’s sort of everybody has to approve it. And I see 99 to 1 — (laughter) — 99 to 1. I say, “Don’t tell me who’s the one.” (Laughter.) “Is it Mike?” “Yes.” (Laughter.) And he always has a good reason for it too, by the way. But he is — he’s incredible. And right at the beginning, he knew we were right, Mike, and I appreciate it very much. You’re just fantastic. And say hello to the people of Utah and tell them, “I’m sorry about Mitt Romney. I’m sorry.” (Laughter and applause.) Okay?
We can say that Mike Lee is, by far, the most popular senator from the state. But you’ve done a fantastic job, Mike, in many ways. In many ways.
A young woman who I didn’t know at all, but she’s been so supportive — and I’ve had great support from other people in that state. And she’s been so supportive, and she’s been downright nasty and mean about the unfairness to the President. And Kelly Loeffler, I appreciate very much. Thank you. (Applause.) Great.
She saw it very early on, and we have — I don’t know if we have other senators here, but we got a hell of a lot of congressmen. And I’ll go over them quickly, but they have — they have also been — you know, it helped when we won 197 to nothing. That’s got to be a first, Kevin. Right? Is that, like, a first?
The Republicans have this image. See, I say Democrats are lousy politicians because they have lousy policy: open borders, sanctuary cities. They have horrible policy. Who the hell can win? Oh, their new policy is: Raise taxes. They want to raise taxes. You know, all my life, I wasn’t in politics, but I’d say, if you’re a politician, you want to say, “We’re going to lower taxes.” They want to raise taxes.
So they have open borders, sanctuary cities. “Raise everybody’s taxes. Get rid of everybody’s healthcare.” A hundred and eighty million people in the United States. And they’re really happy. “And we’re going to give you a healthcare that’s going to cost more money than the country could make in 30 years if it really does well.” That’s one year.
So I’ve always said they’re lousy politicians, but they do two things: They are vicious and mean. Vicious. These people are vicious. Adam Schiff is a vicious, horrible person. Nancy Pelosi is a horrible person. And she wanted to impeach a long time ago. When she said, “I pray for the President. I pray for the…” — she doesn’t pray. She may pray, but she prays for the opposite. (Laughter.) But I doubt she prays at all.
And these are vicious people, but they do two things: They stick together, historically. I’m not talking now. They stick together like glue. That’s how they impeached, because they had whatever the number is — 220 people. So if they don’t lose anybody, they’ll be able to impeach anybody. You could be George Washington. You could have just won the war, and they say, “Let’s get him out of office.” And they stuck together, and they’re vicious as hell. And they’ll probably come back for more, but maybe not because the Republican Party’s poll numbers, Mitch, have now gone up more than any time, I think, since 2004, 2005, and you know what happened then.
But in normal times — decades, you would call it; that was a little unusual time; it was for a very short period — the Republicans [sic] Party — Party’s poll numbers and Donald Trump’s poll numbers are the highest I’ve ever had them. So maybe they were. It’s no way to get your poll numbers up. It’s not worth it — because from my family’s standpoint, it’s been very unfair for my family. It’s been very unfair to the country.
Think of it. A phone call. A very good phone call. I know bad phone calls. This is a phone call with many people. I think Mike Pompeo was probably on the call. Where is Mike? Mike Pompeo was on the call. Many people were on the call. I know there were many people. They even have “apprenti,” bringing up an old favorite word of mine. “The Apprentice.” They have “apprenti.” They have people on these calls. And I know there are many.
When I speak to the head of a nation — and they have many people on. I mean, also on — do you think they just — in the case of Ukraine, he’s a new president, seems like a very nice person, by the way. His whole thing was corruption. He’s going to stop corruption. We even have a treaty — 2001, 1999. It’s a treaty — signed treaty — that we will work together to root out corruption in Ukraine.
I probably have a legal obligation, Mr. Attorney, to report corruption. But they don’t think it’s corrupt when a son that made no money, that got thrown out of the military, that had no money at all, is working for $3 million up front, $83,000 a month. And that’s only Ukraine. Then goes to China, picks up $1.5 billion. Then goes to Romania, I hear, and many other countries.
They think that’s okay? Because if it is — is Ivanka in the audience? Is Ivanka here? Boy, my kids could make a fortune. (Laughter.) They could make a fortune. It’s corrupt. But it’s not even that; it’s just general corruption.
And the other thing, as mentioned in the call and something that I’ve told Mike Pence, our great Vice President — I would tell him all the time, and I told him when he went on the trip, because he was over there. He never mentioned anything about this when you had your meeting. It’s a terrible thing.
But I told Mike. I said, “Mike, we’re giving them money, and, you know, you’re always torn about that because we have our country to build, we have our cities to build and our roads to fix. But we’re giving them money. Tell me, why isn’t Germany paying money? Why isn’t France? Why isn’t United Kingdom paying money? Why aren’t they paying money? Why are we paying them money?” Is that a correct statement, Mike?
I say, “Find out what the hell is going on.” And I told that to all of my people, OMB. I said — I asked that question: “How much is Germany paying? Why isn’t Germany paying?” Why is the United States always the sucker? Because we’re a bunch of suckers. But that’s turning around fast. But it makes it harder when stuff like this happens, because you want to focus, and you want to focus perfectly.
Think what we could have done if the same energy was put into infrastructure, prescription drug prices. Think of what we could have done. And I’m now talking both sides. Think of what we could have done if we had the same genius — because it’s genius.
I will say, it’s genius on the other side — maybe even more so because they took nothing and brought me to a final vote of impeachment. That’s a very ugly word to me. It’s a very dark word. Very ugly. They took nothing. They took a phone call that was a totally appropriate call. I call it a “perfect call” because it was. And they brought me to the final stages of impeachment.
But now we have that gorgeous word — I never thought a word would sound so good. It’s called “total acquittal.” (Applause.) Total acquittal.
So — so I want to, if I could, real fast, just introduce a few of the people. I have to start with — I have to start with Kevin. Man, did you do a job. Lucky you’re there. Lucky you’re there because it wouldn’t have worked out. If you don’t have the right people — I’ll tell you, Kevin McCarthy has done an incredible job. (Applause.) Really. Stand up.
And he loves this job, and he loves this country. I’ll tell you what: Mitch and Kevin, they love what they do. Now, Mitch wouldn’t even tell you he liked it. (Laughter.) I’d say, “Mitch, do you like it?” “I don’t know.” (Laughter.) He’s the greatest poker player, right?
Kevin will say, “I love it.” Right? And I will say that you’re going to be Speaker of the House because of this impeachment hoax. (Applause.) I really believe it. I really believe it. And I’m going to work hard on it. I’m going to try and get out to those Trump — those Trump areas that we won by a lot.
And, you know, in ’18, we didn’t win. We just won two seats in North Carolina — two wonderful seats in North Carolina that were not supposed to be won. But I went and I made speeches, and we had rallies, and we did a great job and we won. We took two seats. Nobody writes about that. If we lost them, it would have been the biggest story of the year.
But we’re going to go, we’re going to do a job, and we’re going to win a lot of seats. We’re going to win a lot of seats. People are very angry that Nancy Pelosi and all of these guys — I mean, Nadler — I know him much of my life; he’s fought me in New York for 25 years. I always beat him. And I had to beat him another time. And I’ll probably have to beat him again. Because if they find that I happen to walk across the street, and maybe go against the light or something, “Let’s impeach him.” (Laughter.)
So we’ll probably have to do it again because these people have gone stone-cold crazy. But I’ve beaten them all my life, and I’ll beat them again if I have to. (Applause.) But what they’re doing is very unfair. Very unfair.
So Kevin McCarthy has been great. So, a few names, right? And there’ll be a few you forget. If you want, you can raise and I’ll say, “Great. Love to have you. Wonderful.” (Laughter.) But we’re going to do the best we can. And I have my Cabinet, but my Cabinet is different — I appoint them. Okay? I didn’t see all of them helping so much. (Laughter.) You know, they were running their various bureaucracies, right? (Laughter.) No, my Cabinet is great, and they’re all here.
But today is the day to celebrate these great warriors, right? These are great warriors. They really fought hard for us. And —
So I’ll start: Kelly Armstrong, North Dakota. Kelly, thank you. Great job. (Applause.) Great job.
Jim Banks of Indiana. Jim, thank you. Great job. (Applause.)
Andy Biggs. Where is Andy? Boy, oh, boy, Andy. He got — (applause) — there’s a guy. He’s tough. I hear we’re doing well in Arizona, huh? It’s going good, yeah? I think so. I think I saw a poll that was very good for me. I think we have to make sure Martha is going to do — I think Martha is going to do good. But we have some states that are going to be not easy, but Arizona has been great.
And we’re stopping illegal aliens from coming in. We’re putting up walls. New Mexico, too, a state that’s never been in play for Republicans, is totally in play. Right? Nevada is really looking good. We’re doing well. We’re doing well. We’re going to have a great — there’s more spirit. I will say this: There’s more spirit now for the Republican Party, by far, than the Democrats.
You know, Mike Pence just got back from a place — a beautiful place that Chuck Grassley knows well: Iowa. And he was talking about these fiasco — the Democrats, they can’t count some simple votes, and yet they want to take over your healthcare system. Think of that. (Laughter.) No, think of it.
But we also had an election out there, and we got 98 percent of the vote. We have two people running, you know, and I guess they consider them non-people, but they are running. I mean, one was a governor. One was a congressman. They’re running. We got 98 percent of the vote.
And everybody from the media was saying, “Who are those crowds over there?” You know, they expect it to be one of these competitive — where everybody is running because they want to win, they want to win. And it was Trump. Right, Mark Meadows? It was Trump. This was a Trump crowd.
And a lot of — actually, a lot of my guys went there. They went to Iowa. And a lot of friends went there, and we had tremendous — they say the spirit — the spirit for the Republican Party right now is stronger, I think, than it’s ever been in the history of our country. I think it’s stronger than it’s ever been. (Applause.)
And that includes Honest Abe Lincoln. You know, a lot of people forget Abe Lincoln. I wish he were here. I’d give him one hell of an introduction. Right? (Laughter.) But he was — he was a Republican. Abe Lincoln. Honest Abe.
Bradley Byrne, Alabama. What a great place. (Applause.) Thank you, Bradley.
A man who has been an unbelievable friend of mine and spokesman, and somebody that — that I really like. And I know, Kelly, you’re going to end up liking him a lot. Something is going to happen that’s going to be very good. I don’t know. I haven’t figured it out yet. But Doug Collins — where is he? Where is Doug? (Applause.) You have been so great. Thank you very much, Doug. Thank you very much. Thank you. Really amazing job.
A young man who is — born with a great gene, because I know his father and how great a politician he was. But he’s from Florida. Sometimes controversial, but actually, he’s not controversial. He’s solid as a rock and he’s a friend of mine. Matt Gaetz. Matt? (Applause.) Thank you, Matt. Thank you. Great job.
All right, this guy. So he’s the NCAA — meaning, a couple of years ago, when he was in college — wrestling champion. NCAA. That’s the big deal. That means, in all of college, you’re the champ, you’re the best. His record was ridiculous. Nobody would — nobody could beat him. And I see it. You know, every time, I see it. When I first got to know him — Jim Jordan — when I first got to know Jim, I said, “Huh, he never wears a jacket. What the hell is going on?” (Laughter.) He’s obviously very proud of his body. (Laughter and applause.)
And they say where he works out — you know, where the congressmen, senators, they work out — they say, when Jim works out — even though he’s not as young as he was, but he works out — the machine starts burning. You know, it’s just a different form of a workout than us. Right, Sonny? And — there he is. Look at that guy.
But one day I’m looking, and he looks tough. And I’m looking, and I’m looking at those ears. And I say, “Those ears have something going on there.” I said, “Did you ever wrestle?” “Yeah, I did.” But he doesn’t talk. But I checked. This guy was a world — this guy was a champion, top, top wrestler. And when I had the top — I had all of the teams.
And, by the way, your Super Bowl champions are coming, I think next week or soon. Very soon. And every one of them want to be here. (Applause.) And the coach loves us. The coach is great. Andy Reid. And every one of them want to be here. We have — people love it.
But we had all of the NCAA championship teams here. They had the golf, the basketball. They had every team here. And one of the teams was wrestling. The wrestling team. Was that Penn State? And Penn State won the title. They have a great team.
And I walked up with Jim, and it’s like I didn’t exist. (Laughter.) Those wrestlers, they grabbed him. They love Jim Jordan, and we love you too because you are some warrior. (Applause.) True. True.
A woman who became a star — we have a couple of women that became stars. You two. And I always liked the name of her — you know, I liked the name, “Lesko.” I liked it. That’s how I picked it. I liked the name. I saw that face. I saw that everything. They gave me cards. She had like seven opponents, right?
And you have no idea how much the public appreciates how smart, how sharp you are. This I can’t tell. I can’t tell. They just said, “You know, she’s really good. She’s really talented.” And I said, “Let’s go.” We worked with her. She won her race. Tough race. It’s no longer tough. Because what she does out there is incredible. Arizona loves her.
But you were so incredible, representing — I don’t say “me” — representing our country and getting it out of this impeachment hoax. What you did was incredible.
So, Debbie, please stand up. Debbie Lesko. (Applause.)
A man who I — I became very friendly with — I don’t know why. Do you ever have where — I’ll ask the media: If certain people call, you take their calls. Other people call — if they don’t have information, they won’t take anybody’s call. But other people call, and you don’t.
This is a guy — he just — he’s just a very special guy. His wife I actually like better than him, to be honest. (Laughter.) Because he doesn’t know that I know that he didn’t actually support me right from the beginning, but she did. (Laughter.)
And on my worst day — right? — on my worst day, my worst — I won’t tell you why it was my worst, but it was not one of those good days — she got on a bus, got many other buses and women all over North Carolina, and they toured North Carolina. Well, Mark was back sort of semi-supporting another candidate, which he ended up leaving very quickly. I don’t think you had a choice, because of your wife, but thank her.
And Mark Meadows, he’s an extraordinary guy. I mean, the only problem is, I guess, he’s announcing — he’d only win by 40 points, but he’s announcing that he’ll be not running this time. Do you have somebody good to run? Somebody going to win your district by at least 20 points, please? Okay? But he’s a tremendously talented man, not just as a politician. As a human being, he’s incredible.
And during these horrible times — I mean, the way he worked and Jim and all of you guys — the way they worked so — it was like their life was at stake. So many.
Ron DeSantis is another one. He worked so hard. Then he called me. He said, “Sir, I’d like to run for governor.” I said, “Governor? I don’t want you to run. I like you staying.” “No, I want to run for governor.” And I said, “Well, if you have to.” “I’d like your support.” I said, “How can I support you? You’re at three.” He was at three. He had no money. Somebody was at 38 and they had $22 million cash, right? I said, “Look, if it’s important, I’ll do it,” because they — he’s been another great warrior. And he’s — by the way, he ran. I endorsed him. His numbers went through the roof.
The man who we beat, who was expected to win easily, called me after the race. He said, “You endorsed him, and it was like a nuclear bomb went off. There was nothing I could do.” He never even spent his money. He saved it.
But Ron DeSantis is another one, and now he’s the governor of Florida. And, by the way, he’s a great governor. He’s a very popular governor. His numbers are in the 70s. And he’s done a great job.
But, Mark, I want to thank you very much. Fantastic job. Thank you very much. Mark Meadows. (Applause.)
And Mike Johnson of Louisiana. Where’s Mike? Central casting. What a job. You can represent me anytime. (Applause.) You can represent me anytime. Thank you. What a job you’ve done. Thank you, Mike.
And a man nobody has ever heard of, except the other side. He’s the other side’s worst nightmare. This guy goes down into dungeons and basements; he’ll find a document, no matter what. He’s the most legitimate human being. He’s the hardest worker. He’s unbelievable. He took tremendous abuse. I mean, abuse.
The — the media and, you know, the other side, and the bad ones, the leakers, the liars, the dirty cops — they wanted to destroy him. They tried. They got close, but he wouldn’t let it happen. And, honestly, in a certain way, he was the first one. Wouldn’t you say, Jim and Mark and everybody? This was the first guy. He came out of nowhere. He’s saying, “These people are corrupt.” He’s still saying it. And he was unbelievable. Devin Nunes. He was unbelievable. Unbelievable. (Applause.) That’s so true, Devin.
He’d come in and say — I didn’t even know hi;, I just heard there were like — there was this congressman who kept going into a basement — into files. (Laughter.) He knew something was wrong. You felt it, right? And now we know a lot more than we knew then, right? You never thought it was as bad as it is. And hopefully we’re going to take care of things, because we can never, ever allow this to happen again. (Applause.)
Scott Perry of Pennsylvania. Scott, thank you. (Applause.) Thank you, Scott. Really great. And you’re doing very well over there, by the way. Just saw your numbers. A man who is a — I mean, central casting. If I’m going to pick Perry Mason, I’m going to do a remake of Perry Mason — other than Bill Barr, I’d pick this guy. But I have to say, I’ll pick Barr. I pick Barr first, right? (Laughter.) John Ratcliffe, right? But I have to tell you, if we’re doing a remake of Perry Mason, the man I get — there’s nobody in Hollywood like this — John Ratcliffe, right? (Applause.) Stand up, John.
So — such a great lawyer. Incredible guy. Incredible talent. But just a great lawyer and we appreciate it. He gets on that screen, and everyone says, “I agree.” The other side folds up so fast. We’ll probably be using a lot of you in the next year. But you have been fantastic, John. We appreciate it. Thank you very much.
A man who’s braver than me and braver than all of us in this room. He got — he got whacked. He got whacked. My Steve, right? I went to the hospital with our great First Lady that night. Right, honey? And we saw a man that was not going to make it. He was not going to make it. He was — the doctor — and I told him his wife — I said, “She loves you.” “Why do you say that?” Because she was devastated.
A lot of wives wouldn’t give a damn. (Laughter.) A lot of — a lot of wives — a lot of wives would have said, “Oh, yeah.” I said, “How’s he doing?” “Oh…” She couldn’t even talk. She was inconsolable. Most wives would say, “Not good. Listen, I’m going home now.” (Laughter.) But the doctor came in — the wife is like — she was a total mess. She was really devastated. And he really — it looked like he had a 20, 25 percent chance. I think you set a record for blood loss.
And, Steve Scalise, I — actually, honestly, I think you’re better looking now. You’re more handsome now. (Laughter.) You — you weren’t that good looking. You look good now. (Laughter.) He looks better now. Can you believe it? I don’t know what the hell that is. (Applause.) It’s true. Better now. (Applause.) What a guy.
And he was practicing — he was practicing for the baseball game against, I guess, the Democrats, right? And this whack-job started shooting. Hurt Roger — I don’t know if Roger is here. But hurt a number of people — hit them. But really hit Steve. He — Steve was at second base. He was the second baseman. And he went down and it was terrible. I mean, I saw the whole thing and it was terrible.
Fortunately, you had two brave policemen with you. Because of your high position in Congress, you had two policemen and they were amazing — the man and a woman. And they came and they didn’t have rifles. They were against a, supposedly, pretty good sharpshooter with rifles — good equipment. And all they had was a gun. And they started coming in from the outfield, shooting. And they’re so far away that a handgun is not preferred. This guy has the rifle and he’s hitting people. And he was going to move up and there was no out. I mean, if he would have been able to move up, there was no way to get out. The entrance was a single entranceway on the other side, where he was.
So everyone went into the dugout — ran into the dugout, but Steve was really hit badly in the stomach, and — with a bullet that rips you apart. It was supposed to do that. It rips — it rips you apart.
And these two people came charging forward. Boom. Boom. Boom. And one of them — you know who — one of them — him? — got the shooter. Hit him. And then got him. Killed him from the long distance. It was amazing. If you didn’t have those two people — you can imagine, right? You could imagine what would happen.
So Melania and I went to the hospital that night. And he was in such bad shape, and he’s been working ever since, so hard. But six months ago, they had a baseball game at the Nationals Park. And I’m watching and it’s — it’s on television. And it’s just, you know, a game. People — you want to win it, right? And Steve’s at second base. The poor guy can’t even walk.
Do you remember Bobby Richardson for the New York Yankees? He was known for range, Louie. Range. He had the greatest range. If a ball is hit to shortstop — Bobby Richardson is the second player, the second baseman — Bobby Richardson would field the ball. If it’s hit to first base, he’ll throw it to the first baseman. He had unbelievable range. This was not Steve Scalise. (Laughter.) Steve had no range. (Laughter.) One foot and he has to fall down, right? Because, you know, he was trying to get better. I don’t know who the hell put you on the field. (Laughter.)
And this is a true story. So the game starts and the first pitch — Steve is standing at second base and the guy is really in bad shape. And I said, “This is terrible.” A shot — groundball shot is hit to second and Steve. I say — I didn’t have time to think too much, but I said, “This is not good. That ball is going toward him.”
And this guy stopped that ball, caught the call. He’s now laying down. He throws the ball to first base. He gets him out. I said, “It’s the most incredible thing.” I’ve never seen — athletically — (applause) — I’ve never seen anything like it, right?
And he gets him out and they then took him out of the game, which was a very wise thing because you could never do that again in a million years. (Laughter.) But you weren’t going to let that ball go through. I don’t care if it was hit by the greatest of all time, right? That ball was not going through you, because you are a warrior. Steve is — he is fantastic. You are fantastic. You and Liz and Kevin.
What a great — what a group. I mean, what a group. I got lucky. I got lucky because you need the right people. If I had the wrong people there, he — maybe a different story. Maybe we’d be celebrating something else. But I really want to thank you, Steve Scalise.
And, Elise, you — I just read this story; she’s the most incredible — what’s going on with you, Elise. So I even said — you know, I was up campaigning for her, helping her. But I thought, “She looks good. She looks like good talent.” But did I not realize, when she opens that mouth, you were killing them, Elise. (Laughter.) You were killing them. (Applause.)
Elise — and there’s a big story in the New York Post — I love the New York Post because they treat me well. There aren’t too many of you that do. But today, you’re treating me well. I even had a great headline — New York Times, Washington Post. I had all of these great headlines. Maybe we should just end it right there. (Laughter.)
But you had the greatest story, yesterday in the Post, that people from all over the country are contributing to her campaign. They were so enthralled with the way you handled yourself, what you said, the way you said it. And I’ll always be your friend. I think it was — it’s really an amazing story. What a great future you have. What a great future. Thank you. (Applause.) The First Lady agrees, by the way. The First Lady agrees.
And Michael Turner, you can represent me anytime. Where’s Michael? Where is he? (Applause.) Or you can represent me. How good were you? There’s another — there’s another Perry Mason type, I think. Right? What do you think, John? But, Michael, you were fantastic and we appreciate it.
Brad Wenstrup. Where’s Brad? Brad. (Applause.) Great, great job. This is a big day for lawyers. You notice only the lawyers stayed? All the lawyers stayed behind.
Lee Zeldin. How good are you? How good are you? (Applause.) Man.
And, Louie, your name is not down. They didn’t give me your name. Do you know — if I didn’t announce Louie — (laughter) — whoever the hell made this list, I got to get rid of because I — if I wouldn’t have announced Louie, it might have been the end of the presidency. (Laughter.) Louie, you have been so great. So tough and so smart. I got it just — (laughs) — I got it. But Louie has been amazing. He’s a tough guy. He’s a smart guy. He’s streetwise like crazy. We love Texas, and we’re with you all the way, Louie. We’re with you all the way. Thank you very much. (Applause.)
So that’s the story. We have a great group of warriors, and there are others left, and, I guess, probably, I’m sure I didn’t mention a few, and I apologize if that’s the case. How’s CPAC doing? Good? Huh? My man, stand up please, will you? He’s the one who said, “You should run.” (Applause.) Right?
Matt said — it’s like five years ago, six years ago. And I made a speech, and then they do some kind of a straw poll: “Who made the best speech?” And he said, “I made the best speech.” With all this professional — I hate to say this: With all these professional politicians, they voted, by far, the best speech was Trump. He calls me, he says, “You should run for politics.” I say, “What do I know about politics?”
But you know what? We learned quickly, and our country has never done better than it’s doing right now. (Applause.) So it’s been good. (Applause.) But thank you, Matt. Great. Say hello.
So that’s the story. We’ve been treated very unfairly. Fortunately, we have great men and women that came to our defense. If we didn’t, this would have been a horrific incident for our country. When you have Lisa and Peter, the lovers, the FBI lovers: “I want to believe the path you threw out for” Deputy Director Andrew McCabe. That’s the office. “There’s no way he gets elected” — meaning me. “There’s no way he gets elected.”
This is Peter, to Lisa. He’s probably trying to impress her, for obvious reasons. (Laughter.) “There’s no way he gets elected. But I’m afraid we can’t take the risk.” Now, think of this. In other words, if I get elected, they can’t — “they”; two low-lifes — they can’t take the risk. They can’t take the risk. Think of it.
And that’s where it came up, the greatest word of all: “insurance policy.” So he says, “But I’m afraid we can’t take the risk. She may lose.” It’s like an insurance policy. In the unlikely event you die before you’re 40 — in other words, if I won, they were going to do exactly what they did to us. They were going to try and overthrow the government of the United States — a duly elected president.
And if I didn’t fire James Comey, we would have never found this stuff. Because when I fired that sleazebag, all hell broke out. They were ratting on each other. They were running for the hills. Let’s see what happens. Let’s see what happens. It’s in the hands of some very talented people. We’re going to have to see what happens.
But I can tell you, in my opinion, these are the crookedest, most dishonest, dirtiest people I’ve ever seen. They said — this is Strzok: “God, Hillary should win 100 million to one.” This is about me. This is an agent from the FBI. Look how they let her off. Thirty-three thousand emails deleted. Nothing happens to her. Nothing happens. It’s unbelievable.
But think of that — “God, Hillary should win” — when these guys are investigating Hillary. Then they go to work for Mueller — the two of them — and when Muller found out that everybody knew that they were 100 percent this way, he let them go. But they deleted all of their emails and text messages.
So when we got the phone, they were all deleted. Could you imagine the treasure trove? They illegally deleted. So they left. They left Bob Mueller. He had the look, but he didn’t have a lot of other things. Always had the look. Mr. G-Man.
And I love the FBI and the FBI loves me — 99 percent. It was the top scum. And the FBI people don’t like the top scum.
So think of that: 100 million to one. And he’s investigating me. And then, “God, Trump is a loathsome human being, isn’t he?” These are the people looking at me. I’m really not a bad person. And Page said, “Yes, he’s awful.” How would you like to have that? This is just — this is the good stuff. There’s stuff a hundred times worse than that. These are all dirty people.
And now, I just heard that they’re suing the United States of America because they were interfered with. We’re not going to let it happen. Just not going to let it happen. We cannot let this happen to our country. We can’t. (Applause.)
So, I’m going to leave now. And I don’t know if any of you have anything to say. You could say it. But this is sort of a day of celebration, because we went through hell.
And I’m sure that Pelosi and Cryin’ Chuck — I’ve known this guy all the — the only time I ever saw him cry was when it was appropriate. Known him for a long time. Cryin’ Chuck. But I’m sure they’ll try and cook up other things. They’ll go through the state of New York. They’ll go through other places. They’ll do whatever they can. Because instead of wanting to heal our country and fix our country, all they want to do — in my opinion, it’s almost like they want to destroy our country. We can’t let it happen.
Jim Jordan, did you want to say something? Go ahead. Huh? Mark?
REPRESENTATIVE MEADOWS: No, I just — I wanted to just say that this reflection today, it is a small reflection of the kind of support you have all across the country. We’ve got your back. (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: Well, thank you. Thank you. Thank you. (Applause.)
This was a highly partisan situation. Pelosi said — I copied it down exactly. Before the impeachment — she wanted to impeach from day one, by the way. Don’t let it fool you. You know, she said, “No, the impeachment is a very serious thing.” I said, “She wants to impeach. Watch.”
Impeachment is so divisive to the country that unless there’s something so compelling and so overwhelming and bipartisan — bipartisan. It was 197 to nothing. And other than one failed presidential candidate — and I call that “half a vote” because he actually voted for us on the other one. But we had one failed presidential candidate. That’s the only half a vote we lost. So, we had almost 53 to nothing. We had 197 to nothing. And the only one that voted against was a guy that can’t stand the fact that he ran one of the worst campaigns in the history of the presidency.
But she said, “There’s something so compelling — it has to be so compelling and so overwhelming and bipartisan. I don’t think we should go down that path, because it divides the country” — she was right about that — “and it’s just not worth it.” That was Nancy Pelosi a year ago. Right?
And I think it’s a shame. I think it’s a shame. But as I said, if we can put this genius to work on roads and highways and bridges and all of the things we can do — prescription drugs. You know, we had — Secretary Azar is here and I want to thank him for this, but we had — first time in 51 years, where drug prices actually came down last year. First time in 51 years. But what we can do, working with both parties in Congress, is — would be unbelievable. It would be unbelievable — all we can do.
And I know Chuck Grassley is working very hard on it and Mitch is working very hard on it. But what we can do is — is incredible. What we can do, just generally. We’ve done so much without it. We’ve rebuilt our military. We’ve cut regulations at a level that nobody thought possible. We’ll always protect our Second Amendment; we all know that.
But I just want to tell you that it’s an honor to be with you all. I want to apologize to my family for having them have to go through a phony, rotten deal by some very evil and sick people. And Ivanka is here, and my — my sons and my whole family, and that includes Barron. (Applause.) That includes Barron, who is up there as a young boy.
Stand up, honey. (Applause.) Ivanka, thank you, honey. Come. Come. (Applause.) (The President hugs Ivanka Trump.)
Come here, baby. (Applause.) (The President hugs the First Lady.)
So I just want to thank my family for sticking through it. This was not part of the deal. I was going to run for President, and if I won, I was going do a great job. I didn’t know that I was going to run, and then when I got in, I was going to have to run again and again and again. Every week, I had to run again. That wasn’t the deal, but they stuck with me.
And I’m so glad I did it because we are making progress and doing things for our great people that everybody said couldn’t be done. Our country is thriving. Our country is just respected again. And it’s an honor to be with the people in this room.
Thank you very much, everybody. (Applause.) Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you. (Applause.) ————————————————————
We need to be grateful and a little humble. Still a LOT of work to do!
REMARKS BY PRESIDENT TRUMP AT THE 68TH NATIONAL PRAYER BREAKFAST
Washington Hilton Washington, D.C. ————————————————————
**
9:11 A.M. EST
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. Well, thank you very much. I’m working very hard for you, I will tell you. (Laughter.) And sometimes you don’t make it easy, and I certainly don’t make it easy on you. (Laughter.) And I will continue that tradition, if I might, this morning. And, Arthur, I don’t know if I agree with you. (Laughter.) But I don’t know if Arthur is going to like what I’m going to say. (Laughter.) But I love listening to you. It’s really great. Thank you very much.
And thank you, congressmen, for the great job you’ve been doing and the relationship and the help. You’re a warrior. Thank you very much. And, Kevin, you’re a warrior. Thank you. The job you’ve done is incredible. It wasn’t supposed to be that way. A lot of extra work. Unnecessary work.
It’s wonderful to be with the thousands of religious believers for the 68th annual National Prayer Breakfast. I’ve been here from the first one, where I had the privilege of being asked. I’ve been with you for a long time before then. And we’ve made tremendous progress. Tremendous progress. You know what we’ve done. I don’t think anybody has done more than all of us together during these last three years. And it’s been my honor.
But this morning, we come together as one nation, blessed to live in freedom and grateful to worship in peace. As everybody knows, my family, our great country, and your President, have been put through a terrible ordeal by some very dishonest and corrupt people. They have done everything possible to destroy us, and by so doing, very badly hurt our nation. They know what they are doing is wrong, but they put themselves far ahead of our great country.
Weeks ago, and again yesterday, courageous Republican politicians and leaders had the wisdom, the fortitude, and strength to do what everyone knows was right. I don’t like people who use their faith as justification for doing what they know is wrong. Nor do I like people who say, “I pray for you,” when they know that that’s not so.
So many people have been hurt, and we can’t let that go on. And I’ll be discussing that a little bit later at the White House.
We’re joined today by two people whose faith inspires us all: our amazing, wonderful friend, Vice President Mike Pence — (applause) — and his wonderful wife, Karen. (Applause.) Thank you. Thank you.
Thank you to all of our great political leaders out there — so many that I’ve been working with so hard over the last three years. And we’ve accomplished so much. And to members of my Cabinet in attendance — Secretary Mike Pompeo, Mark Esper, David Bernhardt — (applause) — Gene Scalia, Alex Azar, Ben Carson, Dan Brouillette, Betsy DeVos, Robert Wilke, and Administrator Jovita Carranza.
Joining us — (applause) — for this cherished tradition are a lot of friends in the audience. And many, really, have become friends. They are political leaders. They’ve become great friends. That’s all I get to meet anymore. (Laughter.) That and the enemies and the allies. And we have them all. We have allies. We have enemies. Sometimes the allies are enemies, but we just don’t know it. (Laughter.) But we’re changing all that. But thank you all, and thank you all for being here.
I also want to welcome foreign dignitaries from more than 140 countries. That’s something. (Applause.) That’s something. Everyone here today is united by a shared conviction. We know that our nation is stronger, our future is brighter, and our joy is greater when we turn to God and ask him to shed his grace on our lives.
On Tuesday, I addressed Congress on the state of the Union and the great American comeback. That’s what it is. (Applause.) Our country has never done better than it is doing right now. Our economy is the strongest it has ever been. And for those of you that are interested in stocks, it looks like the stock market will be way up again today.
According to the latest Gallup poll that just came out a little while ago, a few minutes ago, American satisfaction is at the highest level ever recorded. Can you imagine? And that’s from Gallup — no friend of mine. (Applause.) Ninety percent of Americans say they are satisfied with their personal lives. How about that? Isn’t that something? Just came out today. (Applause.) They must have known I was going to be here. (Laughter.)
In everything we do, we are creating a culture that protects freedom, and that includes religious freedom. (Applause.)
As I said on Tuesday in the House Chamber, “In America, we don’t punish prayer. We don’t tear down crosses. We don’t ban symbols of faith. We don’t muzzle preachers.” We don’t muzzle pastors. “In America, we celebrate faith, we cherish religion, we lift our voices in prayer, and we raise our sights to the Glory of God.” (Applause.)
So much of the greatness we have achieved, the mysteries we’ve unlocked, and the wonders we’ve built, the challenges we’ve met, and the incredible heights that we’ve reached has come from the faith of our families and the prayers of our people.
Before America declared independence, patriots in all 13 colonies came together in days of fasting and prayer. In the bitter cold of Valley Forge, Washington and his men had no food, no supplies, and very little chance of victory. It reminded me a little bit of 2016. We had very little chance of victory. (Laughter.) Except for the people in this room and some others believed we were going to win. I believed we were going to win. But what they did have was have an unwavering belief that God was with them. I believe that too. God is with the people in this room.
Before a single skyscraper rose up in New York City, thousands of poor American families donated all they could to build the magnificent St. Patrick’s Cathedral. (Applause.) When Buzz Aldrin landed on the Moon, he said, “Houston, I would like to request a few moments of silence.” Then, he read from the Bible. (Applause.)
At every stage, our nation’s long march for civil rights was inspired, sustained, and uplifted by faith, prayer, and devotion of religious believers.
To protect faith communities, I have taken historic action to defend religious liberty, including the constitutional right to pray in public schools. (Applause.)
We can also talk about the Johnson Amendment. We can talk about Mexico City Policy. We’ve done a lot. But I also recently took executive action to stop taxpayer dollars from going to colleges and universities that spread the poison of anti-Semitism and bad things about Christianity. (Applause.)
We are upholding the sanctity of life — sanctity of life. (Applause.) And we are doing that like nobody has ever done it before from this position. You better get out and vote on November 3rd — (laughter) — because you have a lot of people out there that aren’t liking what we’re doing.
And we’re pursuing medical breakthroughs to save premature babies because every child is a sacred gift from God. (Applause.)
Together, we are building the world’s most prosperous and inclusive society. We are lifting up citizens of every race, color, religion, and creed. We are bringing hope to forgotten communities. And more Americans are working today — 160 million. A little bit short. Just a little bit. One hundred and sixty million. We’ve never been even close — than ever before. Think of it: More Americans are working today — almost 160 million — than ever before. Our unemployment numbers are the best in the history of our country. (Applause.)
A more specific number and numbers that you hear me say, if you listen: African American, Asian American, Hispanic American — the best unemployment numbers in the history of our country. Women — best in 71 years. Sorry. We’ll have you there soon. Soon, it will be “historic.” I have to apologize to the women; it’s only 71 years.
But the best unemployment numbers, we have — we’re doing things that nobody thought possible. We’re setting records that nobody thought achievable.
And to give former prisoners a second chance at life, which so many people in this room have worked on for so long — (applause) — we passed criminal justice reform into law, and I signed it nine months ago.
And it’s proving more and more that America is indeed a nation that believes in redemption. What’s happened with prisoners is a miracle. Prisoners would come out and nobody would give them a job. And oftentimes, most of the time — almost all of the time — they’d go back into prison. They’d get caught doing something bad. They had no money. They had no hope. They had no job. Now they’re coming out into a booming economy. And employers are hiring them, and to a certain extent, maybe because they’re having a hard time getting people.
First time in our country’s history, actually, we’re running out of people. We have plants moving in by the thousands. We have car companies coming from Japan and from Germany, from lots of other places, and we need people. And employers are hiring prisoners, and they would have never done it, except for what we’ve done with criminal justice reform. But even before that, because the economy has become so powerful.
And these prisoners have done an incredible job. The employers are saying, “Why didn’t I do this 20 years ago?”
So it’s an incredible thing what’s happening to people that are given a second chance, and sometimes a third chance, in all fairness. And it’s something that everybody in this room should be very proud about, because you’ve always felt that way long before it was fashionable. So I want to thank you for that. (Applause.)
As we revive our economy, we are also renewing our national spirit. Today we proudly proclaim that faith is alive and well and thriving in America. And we’re going to keep it that way. Nobody will have it changed. (Applause.) It won’t happen. As long as I’m here, it will never, ever happen. (Applause.)
Something which wasn’t done nearly enough — I could almost say wasn’t done at all — we are standing up for persecuted Christians and religious minorities all around the world — (applause) — like nobody has ever done.
Last year, at the United Nations, I was honored to be the first President to host a meeting of religious freedom. It was based all on religious freedom. That was the first meeting of its kind ever held at the United Nations. There I called upon all nations to combat the terrible injustice of religious persecution. And people listened.
And countries that we give billions of dollars to, they listened because they had to listen. (Laughter.) It’s amazing how that works, isn’t it? (Laughter.) That nobody ever played that game before. (Laughter.)
Weeks ago, a 21-year-old woman, who goes by the name of Mary, was seized and imprisoned in Iran because she converted to Christianity and shared the Gospel with others.
In Venezuela, the dictator Maduro has arrested church leaders. At the State of the Union, I was honored to host the true and legitimate President of Venezuela, Juan Guaidó. (Applause.) Good man. I told him that all Americans stand with the Venezuelan people in their righteous struggle for freedom.
Yesterday, our administration launched the International Religious Freedom Alliance, the first-ever alliance devoted to promoting religious liberty. It was something. Really something. (Applause.)
More than 25 countries have already joined our campaign. I want to thank Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, along with Ambassador Sam Brownback, who are both here this morning, for leading this historic initiative. Thank you very much. Thank you, Mike. (Applause.) Thank you.
All of us here today reaffirm these timeless truths: Faith keeps us free. Prayer makes us strong. And God alone is the author of life and the giver of grace. (Applause.)
With us this morning is a pastor who embodies the miracle of faith and the power of prayer: Reverend Gerald Toussaint from Louisiana. Reverend Toussaint is an Army veteran, a truck driver, and a pastor. He leads the same church that his father led, Mount Pleasant Baptist Church, which has been a pillar of the community for more than 140 years.
Last year, Mount Pleasant was one of three African American churches in Louisiana that was destroyed in a fire set by a wicked, hate-filled arsonist.
Yet, in the wake of such shocking evil, America witnessed the unshakable unity, devotion, and spirit of Reverend Toussaint and his entire highly spirited, beautiful congregation. Families quickly came together in prayer. Soon, people from all across Louisiana came to help any way they could. Americans in all 50 states and 20 different countries heard about it and they donated more than $2 million to help rebuild Mount Pleasant — (applause) — and the other two churches that were (inaudible).
On Easter Sunday, just days after he lost his church, Reverend Toussaint preached about what it all meant. What does it mean? “The Easter season,” he said, “is a fitting metaphor for recent events. It was dark the day that Jesus was crucified. It was dark [at] night when they burned our church. What has happened since is like a resurrection.” Old things are gone, but it’s going to be a brand-new start, and it’s going to be better than ever, Reverend. (Applause.) Better than ever. Fantastic.
And today, just 10 months later, the ground is cleared. Careful plans have been made, and they’re beautiful plans. And construction is about to begin on the new and very, very magnificent Mount Pleasant Church. Congratulations. (Applause.)
You know, the Reverend says that we’re rebuilding because that’s what Jesus does. He rebuilds, he lives, and he breathes. It’s what he does. He wants it to be rebuilt. It was torn apart, but it’s being rebuilt again, and I’ll bet you it will indeed be bigger, better, and nicer than before. What do you think, Reverend? Yes? And it’s going to have your mark on it. It did have and now it will have even great. And your father is looking down on you right now and he’s very, very proud of the job that you’ve done. Thank you very much. (Applause.) Very much inspire us, Reverend. Thank you.
Well, I want to just thank everybody. This has been very special. Tell your congregation that — and all of your people — that we have 350 million people in our country. They’re proud Americans. And they respect what we’re doing, even those that you don’t think so much like us, respect us, want to be with us. They’re respecting our fight, and we are in a fight.
Religion in this country and religion all over the world — certain religions in particular — are under siege. We won’t let that happen. We are going to protect our religions. We are going to protect Christianity. We are going to protect our great ministers and pastors and rabbis and all of the people that we so cherish and that we so respect.
America is eternally in the debt of our nation’s African American churches all throughout this country. That’s why it’s so fitting and so — it’s one of the reasons we chose this particular church in Louisiana. For generations, they bravely fought for justice and lifted up the conscience of our nation. And we’re grateful beyond any measure.
But I can say that going beyond that, we’re grateful to the people in this room for the love they show to religion. Not one religion, but many religions. They are brave. They are brilliant. They are fighters. They like people. And sometimes they hate people. I’m sorry. I apologize. I’m trying to learn. (Laughter.) It’s not easy. It’s not easy. (Applause.) When they impeach you for nothing, then you’re supposed to like them? It’s not easy, folks. (Laughter.) I do my best.
But I’ll tell you what we are doing: We’re restoring hope and spreading faith. We’re helping citizens of every background take part in the great rebuilding of our nation. We’re declaring that America will always shine as a land of liberty and light unto all nations of the world. We want every nation to look up to us like they are right now. We were not a respected nation just a few years ago. We had lost our way. Our country is respected again by everybody. (Applause.)
This morning, let us ask Father in Heaven to guide our steps, protect our children, and bless our families. And with all of our heart, let us forever embrace the eternal truth that every child is made equal by the hand of Almighty God.
Thank you. God Bless you. And God bless America. Thank you all very much. Thank you. Thank you. (Applause.)
I read the article, and something strange happened. There was the most awful smell in the air………. like a big dead rat, like a Schiff smell, with Andrew Weissman cheap cologne mixed in….. It smelled familiar….. I’ll admit, I’m scanning the horizon for clues of the next wild hoax, waste of time, brought to us by Nancy and Lawfare.
Notice to Dems: We’ve been through ShaMMMpeachment and Muh Russia. We know the playbook by now. You need a new scam. This one won’t work…… and the people you may deem as dumb and deplorable can see it coming from a mile away. We’ve learned!!
Here’s the story: In an article from MSM, Tony Capaccio at Bloomberg (note – this is Bloomberg reporting in an election year where Michael Bloomberg is prepared to spend billions to defeat our President), wrote a story about the “stark increase in accounting changes at the Pentagon”, changes of 35 Trillion in 2019, 30.7 trillion in 2018, and 29 Trillion in 2017. Note the phrase “accounting changes”.
Tony Capaccio, to make this a bigger story and imply wrongdoing, using all the MSM approved salacious adjectives, interviews the GAO about the “problem” of the increase in accounting changes. Note, we’re supposed to be concerned about an increase in accounting entries but NO ONE said any money is missing. Plus, remember, GAO is an arm of CONGRESS (read as Pelosi), and the Pentagon in the Executive Branch (read as Trump).
Status check: So far, we have an article with an incendiary headline, written by a Bloomberg reporter, and it involves the Pentagon and the GAO – which we now know is partisan. Spidey senses tingling? Suspicious cat?
What is an “accounting change”, you ask? Answer = Moving money from one place to another, allocating it to a different folder. Easy peasy. BUT RARELY do two people do it the exact same way. If I buy a First Aid kit for the car, I would classify it as medical supplies. Big T would call it Auto Expense. Neither is right or wrong, just different.
Example: Let’s say your house is the Pentagon. Everything you have in bedroom #1 has a value. Bedroom #1 might contain a bed, mattress, linen, dresser, nightstands, lamps, mirror, tv, and a couch. Each item would have a line item price. Total of Room #1 is $10,000. Okay, fine.
Well, Christmas comes along and you expect out of town company. You need to move the couch from Room #1 to Bedroom #2. The couch is worth $1,000. Thus, you make an “accounting change” for the value of Bedroom #1 subtracting the value of the couch, and another accounting change to add to the value of Bedroom #2. We moved the couch. We just made $2,000 worth of “accounting changes” for a $1,000 couch. After Christmas, we might move the couch back to Bedroom #1, making another $2,000 worth of accounting changes for the same couch. Heck, over Christmas holidays, we have $4,000 worth of accounting changes for one couch.
Then, imagine we move the same $1,000 couch, every Christmas, Easter, and Thanksgiving……. when the relatives come to visit. In 30yrs, we’ve made $120K of accounting changes on one $1000 couch…… which we already depreciated in year #7…… but that’s another accounting course.
Now imagine we’re moving F-35 jets, or ships, or men, or toilet seats…… Imagine we assign a whole task force to General Smith, for Operation ABC in the Persian Gulf. We move all the assets into an accounting folder making all the “accounting changes”. Then, President Trump fires General Smith. General Jones takes over and makes a few changes, Task Force XYZ,……. time for more accounting changes.
From the article: “As an example of how the dollar figures multiply, Pentagon spokesman Christopher Sherwood said recognizing $800 million due a contractor in previously unrecorded payments “requires multiple accounting adjustments that net to $0 but could total over $5 billion” in movement between accounts.
Normally, contractor billion for the government goes 1/3, 1/3, discretionary payment, 10% reserve until job is done, final 5% paid in a year when guarantee runs out. Well, I know how to do contractor billing for the government, but I’m guessing less than 1% of the readership knows the details. Yet, it’s EASY to explain. Yeah, it’s just like moving our couch to another bedroom…….. So, why didn’t Bloomberg’s Capaccio explain it simply? Why didn’t Capaccio make it clear there was no inference of wrongdoing? Why the incendiary headline?
More suspicious cat. It doesn’t mean the Pentagon has lost 35 TRILLION dollars or doing anything wrong. We’re arguing about “my paperwork is not sufficient for you”.
According to the article:
There were 546,433 adjustments in fiscal 2017 and 562,568 in 2018, according to figures provided by Representative Jackie Speier, who asked the Government Accountability Office to investigate.
Wait a minute. What is this? Jackie Speier, rabid leftist “asks” the GAO to do an investigation? Why does this look familiar to us? Ohhhhhh, we remember, it was Maryland Congressman Chris Van Hollen who “asked” the GAO to investigate President Trump for violations of the “Impound Control Act” for withholding funds to Ukraine. Yeah, and the GAO issued a press statement which coincided with Schiff’s position the President withheld funds from Ukraine with specific purpose to benefit his election in 2020. The press made a big deal out of it, until we learned there was no penalty, and Obama was in violation 7 times for legit reasons……. yeah, THAT GAO, pushed to investigate by a rabid lefist Congressman.
Would this be two times we have the Dem party in Congress using the GAO to “dig up dirt” on a political opponent? Abuse of power? Misuse of taxpayer dollars? Is the media setting up THE PENTAGON to be the next big hoax?
And we now KNOW how the left uses media story plants to create an investigation. Fool me once, shame on you……..We won’t be fooled twice. We’ve caught on to how the left operates.
Let’s see now……. So far, we have a Bloomberg reporter, an incendiary headline, The compromised GAO, a rabid leftist Congresswoman with an agenda who is giving free access to a Bloomberg reporter, and an inference of a money missing at the Pentagon…. the military…… the thing Trump loves the most.
????? Can you smell the stench? Am I dreaming, here?
This is interesting…….
Let’s look at the words here. “The watchdog agency will release a report on the subject Wednesday after reviewing more than 200,000 fourth-quarter 2018 adjustments totaling $15 trillion.” A “watchdog agency” is exactly the same terminology used by the MSM for the GAO when they tried to sell us the story on Impound Control Act, and the press release by GAO couldn’t have been more partisan. GAO is NOT neutral.
Momma smells a rat.
THEN —- the Bloomberg acolyte interviewed Congresswoman Jackie Speier. LOOK at this statement……. which further establishes the narrative of something wrong with trillions of dollars at the Pentagon. “The “combined errors, shorthand, and sloppy record-keeping by DoD accountants do add up to a number nearly 1.5 times the size of the U.S. economy,” said Speier, a California Democrat. The report shows the Pentagon “employs accounting adjustments like a contractor paints over mold. Their priority is making the situation look manageable, not solving the underlying problem,” she said.
Plus, Jackie’s statement the most SUBJECTIVE statement we’ve seen in a while. What the heck is Jackie talking about? And since the GAO is not really done with their VAST investigation, how can she make a qualified and credible evaluation? Did Jackie review the 15 trillion in accounting changes?
Ohhh, you didn’t know Jackie Speier was from California? Are you surprised? And the report is released on Wednesday, same DAY as Trump acquittal. You know how long it takes to examine 15 trillion in accounting entries? They’ve been working on this one for a long time.
Here we go, more big rats.
From the article: “The GAO estimated based on a sample that at least 96% of 181,947 automatic adjustments made in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018 “didn’t have adequate supporting documentation.” LOOK at the words carefully. First, they only did a sample? Is this like the Florida polling firm who only samples female college grads who are on the alumni list from the sociology department? Because we’ve been there already……. That one really happened. Second, “don’t have adequate” is subjective, again.
Reading further, the auditors want accounting adjustments which are supported, but the accounting system at the Pentagon does not have a system which allows for supporting docs or whatever it is the auditors or GAO or Jackie Speier wants. And it does not mean anything is wrong……….. despite Jackie, Bloomberg and the GAO attempts to imply wrongdoing.
Supporting docs, eh? Hmmmm. When we all used checks, I used to write a note in the memo section on every check, as to which account or party I was working on at the time…… it was a “support”/explanation for my allocation of money. Yet, when we all went to bank cards, I have a heck of a time sorting out grocery bills for various parties. My “system” does not allow for supporting docs. Gee whiz, my house is just like the Pentagon.
Here is the part which makes me bang my head against the wall.
No one cares whether or not the Pentagon has lost 35 trillion dollars or a single dollar. Jackie Speier, the GAO, Bloomberg guy, are only worried about the NUMBER of accounting changes. That’s the headline. Who cares how many accounting changes there are? We DO CARE if we’ve LOST MONEY! It’s a fake concern from Jackie Speier….
Just like Ukraine.
I could be wrong, you know, just making muffins, out here in the hinterland of a red state….. Yet, there are too many coincidences to ignore.
Which makes me further believe there’s a big dead fish here. The GAO does not launch into an investigation of 35 TRILLION dollars in Pentagon “accounting changes” (or 15 Trillion or a smaller sample depending on the extent of work done) without approval from on high……… like Nancy Pelosi, backed up by Lawfare. Such an investigation would take extraordinary manpower and matching budget to accomplish.
SOMEONE is making a big stink. Who? Why? And timed to be finished on the Wednesday of Trump’s acquittal? Targeting the Pentagon’s money would make sense, coming from vindictive Dems. Attack the things he loves, the military.
This part is fairly bizarre. According to “Mark Easton, the Defense Department’s deputy chief financial officer, wrote the GAO that in response to its audit the department “is actively developing strategies” to reduce accounting adjustments.”
What in the living heck does THAT MEAN? We’re not going to make as many entries,…… so instead of accounting for ALL the pillows in Bedroom #1 we should just make one entry for “pillows”. Would that make Jackie Speier happy? What the heck? The Pentagon is working on more supporting docs (they imply later on), but we’re still not missing any money.
Again, from the article: “While auditors found no evidence of fraud in the review of finances that Congress required, they flagged a laundry list of problems, including accounting adjustments.”
Common sense, let alone good accounting, tells us that the more entries we have, the better we are able to track the bedroom couch……… Why in the HECK would anyone object to the number of entries and why would it be an issue?
This is the kind of thing which would infuriate President Trump, any business person, any taxpayer. We would start to ask questions. What a waste of time. There are probably a million ways an Oversight Committee could effectively reduce spending in the Pentagon, or MAKE LIFE EASIER for our soldiers. Nah, Jackie Speier is not doing that part.
And SOMEONE needs to explain why in the heck the auditors for the Pentagon and Inspector General of the Pentagon are having their work duplicated by the Congressional GAO, as ordered by Jackie Speier.
Of course, if a bunch of auditors legitimately tracked a Pentagon slush fund, which paid foreign retired spies, to entrap our President, we would be most interested in their results…………. Maybe? No? Wouldn’t it be terrific if they were looking for real waste and fraud?
ShaMMMpeachment ends at 4:00pm Eastern Time! We’re proud of the President’s team in DC and our Congressman. Thank you to every single person who slugged it out on these threads. Thank you for contributing and passing important links up to the main thread. It’s astounding how we all help each other out and make QTree better. Thank you…..
When you’re done singing, it’s time to dance with the Crabs! In honor of Michael’s kids!
They were terrific and worked hard!
And …….a personal note …… I’ve made an executive decision. It’s time to take back all the bad things I’ve said about McTurtle over the years. When we needed him, he was there. Yes…….. I’m going to send him a VALENTINE’S Day Card! Full Mea Culpa! (Until he messes up again!)
What a fabulous SOTU speech delivered by our President! Repubs unified as never before and President takes the opportunity to reach out to the other side of the aisle, with programs and issues important to us all. His litany of successes is impressive……….. and our political enemies are defeated and miserable. Success is sweet. Those who criticized safely from the sidelines have been proven…. WRONG!
Wolfie warned us all. He said it would be a Roller Coaster once we got on that Trump Train. He said there would be good days and bad days. He said we were moving at a new speed with President Trump, faster than before.
Wolfie said, sometimes, a whirling dervish like President Trump may cast off a few people, or could draw a few people in by sheer magnetism. Yes, Wolfie warned us all, but we hung on for the ride of our lives. For those with determination and conviction………. the reward was well worth the effort. Every day with our President is an adventure. It’s exciting. What a glorious time to be alive!
Today/Yesterday was the best Twitter day EVER. This is ice cream with sprinkles while riding a Ferris Wheel. This is a brand new Porsche for your 16th birthday when your folks are middle class. This is getting a first job as a corporate VP This is your high school crush asking you out. This is going into labor with a first child and having the whole thing take about 20 minutes, WITH your lipstick still intact and no sweating. This is the high school nemesis asking YOU for a job.
It’s vindication! America is succeeding like never before and those who wanted to bring America to our knees……… are scared!
This is a long life, with “above average” kids who don’t fight, great health for the family, and prosperity under a President who fights for the people of the USA!
Muh Russia = failed Muh Ukraine ShaMMMpeachment = failed Iran = FailLLLLLINGGG Middle East Peace = maybe, perhaps, closest we’ve ever come. USMCA / China Phase One = done Military redone and re-tuning, Bad folks at the VA purged and Vets have choice Israel is doing well Border Wall = lawsuits over with, full speed ahead
Consumer confidence, home buying hitting records Unemployment at record lows Jobs available at record highs = real choice and opportunity Blue collar wages rising faster than exec wages = “inequality” in wages/gap in wages has NEVER been closer = REAL OPPORTUNITY. Manufacturing in USA is UP and gaining, while other countries falter. China in the toilet – Panda mask has slipped America is jamming Europe is worried, globalists on the run BREXIT!!!!!!!!
Gallup polls for President hit all time high…….. on the day he gives the SOTU speech! GOP at highest approval since 2005!And the Dems are in utter disarray!
Never Trumpers in the toilet Rasmussen approval for President Trump at 53% MSM is yelling at the Dems = Does it get any better?
And the Dems in Iowa are imploding, creating ripples of failure, ……… total catastrophic failure…. Caucus Chaos. And wait for this…… Bernie wins popular vote with 28K votes, Pete has 27K votes, but Pete gets more delegates and wins Iowa, …… according to the DNC? And wait for it….. the Iowa DNC only released 62% of the vote……… after 24 hours? It’s an EPIC failure.
On our side, the market was up 400 points today. It’s strange, because we’re so used to fighting, tooth and nail, with the Dems. Yet, today was sheer perfection. Like having a giraffe over for breakfast. Like election night all over again. It’s a terrific day!!!!!!! Time to be glad and rejoice in it.
NEW YORK, NY – NOVEMBER 08: Presidential elect Donald J. Trump walks on stage at his election night event at The New York Hilton Midtown on November 8, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Neilson Barnard/WireImage)
Can’t wait to see what happens tomorrow!
We’ve been on this “Roller Coaster” with President Trump for years. Sometimes, we take a “whole ride” in a single day. Still, after SOTU, we loudly proclaim, “Again, Again, Again”. We want to stay on the Roller Coaster.
Here is the famous Wolfie Roller Coaster Essay (thank you, Crossthread):
WolfM00n1776 wrote: Well, I don’t really have to do any holding together, now that I figured out what Trump is up to. He is shaking things out, but counting on Trump gravity to pull things back together as he moves along. He is moving “forward” at speeds Obama could not even dream of.
You and I will be anti-Trump trolls one day and MAGA heroes the next. Get used to it. Trump speed is the new normal. Some will call it flip-flopping, but that’s not what it is. Trump is dodging and weaving through reality faster than the reality can react to disrupt his plans.
I was explaining this to my wife. This is a roller-coaster now. Trump is no longer waiting for people to keep up. He is taking his bewildering art-of-the-deal campaign schtick into geopolitics, and for a lot of people who can’t keep up or hold on, it will be a rough ride.
Trump is no longer playing only with evil and cunning players who are still predictable, easily beatable dopes, like Hillary. He is playing against killers, with his own team of killers, and all the while he has scheming creeps like Hillary, BGI, SPLC, and the neocons gunning for him. Snake Ryan ready to bite when nobody is looking. “Warhead” McCain screaming for Russian blood. Psycho Kim and Samoa Obama plotting some kind of intrigue to take him down. And THOSE are the lightweights.
This is the majors now. Trump has to outwit world-class adversaries and “frenemies” by defining the deals that they will agree to. One minute they will think Trump is their friend – the next minute, a cunning, bitter foe.
And he has to do this with evil cheerleaders like Warhead, Linderace, Dipsy Dowd, Maggie Haterman, and Fake Yapper trashing him or praising him alternately, no matter which way he goes. They can’t keep up, either.
Neither can many around him. I think that half of the problem with advisers crashing into each other is they don’t realize what Trump is doing.
And people will trash you, and they will trash me. Get used to it. I’ve already caught plenty of people mocking me. Well, just wait a week in Trump time. Look stupid and conned by Trump one minute, and you look like a sage three days later. Trump will not find perfect solutions. He will find OPTIMAL solutions. We cannot ask for more. Trump has stood by and watched Perfect murder Good for 8 years – maybe longer. He’s not gonna do it. He’s going to deliver the best outcome possible, and he’s not waiting for us to feel relaxed about it.
Best presidency ever! Just hang on. More winning is coming, but a lot of people are going to scream that it’s all over at EVERY turn.
The best way through this is to define viewpoints, not people, because people will shift as they change position and velocity in Trump gravity. Bash the neocon, warmonger, and dopey globalist positions – not the people who are going to hold them one moment and come loose from them later.
Trump is Jupiter moving through the asteroid belt. He is going to pull people into his orbit. A few will get slung off into space, but most will come along for the ride of their lives.
I am ON the Trump Train for good, even if I scream that I want off and can’t take it.
In the end, I only want to scream “TOO MUCH WINNING!!!”
Wolfmoon! 4th of April, 2017
(My add) (From Crossthread).. AND He WILL be Acquitted TODAY!
Article II, Section 3 of the Constitution lays out that the president “shall from time to time give to the Congress Information of the State of the Union, and recommend to their Consideration such Measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient.”
A SOTU Speech is a big day. It’s a joint session of Congress and requires weeks/months of planning and security prep work.
History of the State of the Union: https://www.foxnews.com/politics/what-is-the-history-of-the-state-of-the-union In the past, Presidents submitted a written report to Congress. Woodrow Wilson began the tradition of a speech before a joint session of Congress in 1913. The Phrase “State of the Union” was popularized by FDR in 1942, officially in 1946.
Bill Clinton gave the top two longest in-person speeches: 1 hour and 28 minutes in 2000; and 1 hour and 24 minutes in 1995.
William Henry Harrison and James Garfield are the only presidents who did not give a State of the Union address. Garfield was in the White House for a little more than six months before he was assassinated; Harrison was president for only one month before succumbing to pneumonia.
Calvin Coolidge gave the first radio broadcast of his address on Dec. 6, 1923
Harry S. Truman delivered the first televised address on Jan. 6, 1947
Jan. 4, 1965 that Lyndon B. Johnson gave the first address on primetime television.
George W. Bush is the first president to have his State of the Union address broadcast via the internet.
“Designated Survivor” the idea of leaving one member of the Cabinet to live on, was started during the cold war of the 60’s. Officially, Reagan was the first to designate Ed Sec Terrel Bell to be the “designated survivor.
(Original Caption) President Truman appearing before a joint session of the new Republican controlled Congress is shown here to deliver his annual State of the Union message. He recommended a strong and sweeping legislative program to halt disastrous labor strife and called upon the G.O.P. Congress to work with him for the common good.
Thought it might be interesting to take a look at past SOTU speeches by President Trump.
Speech for 2017
Speech for 2018
Speech for 2019
Security procedures for the SOTU include no-fly-zones and all KINDS of procedures which will not be discussed here, of course!
According to Wikipedia: Speaker of the HouseNancy Pelosi sent an invitation to President Trump on December 20, 2019, two days after his impeachment by the House of Representatives.[2][3] …… The State of the Union Address is expected to take place at 9:00 p.m. EST and be televised on all major U.S. broadcast and cable television networks. The tentative date for the address falls one day after the Iowa caucuses in the 2020 presidential election, and one day before the Senate votes on whether or not to convict Trump in the current impeachment trial.
The timing of the Senate Impeachment Acquittal vote is highly suspicious, as it will come one day AFTER the State of the Union. Normally, President’s receive a boost in approval ratings in the week after the SOTU speech. It’s suspected the timing is designed for media outlets to broadcast the headline “Under a Cloud of Suspicion/Controversy of Impeachment…. The President delivers SOTU”. Typical behavior for Dems who seek to divide the country for political goals.
“Eight in 10 Americans who watched tonight felt that the president was trying to unite the country, rather than divide it. Two-thirds said the speech made them feel proud, though just a third said it made them feel safer. Fewer said the speech made them feel angry or scared.”
“After hearing his State of the Union address, most viewers think the policies they heard tonight would help them personally, though Democrats disagree.”
“And after hearing him speak tonight, 54 percent of speech watchers give him a lot of credit for the current state of the nation’s economy, up from 51 percent before they watched the State of the Union.”
After the division and hatred from MSM, years of “Muh Russia” and “ShaMMMpeachment”, it’s time to bring the country together. President Trump will try, once again.
Madam Speaker, Mr. Vice President, Members of Congress, the First Lady of the United States, and my fellow citizens:
Three years ago, we launched the great American comeback. Tonight, I stand before you to share the incredible results. Jobs are booming, incomes are soaring, poverty is plummeting, crime is falling, confidence is surging, and our country is thriving and highly respected again! America’s enemies are on the run, America’s fortunes are on the rise, and America’s future is blazing bright.
The years of economic decay are over. The days of our country being used, taken advantage of, and even scorned by other nations are long behind us. Gone too are the broken promises, jobless recoveries, tired platitudes, and constant excuses for the depletion of American wealth, power, and prestige.
In just 3 short years, we have shattered the mentality of American decline, and we have rejected the downsizing of America’s destiny. We are moving forward at a pace that was unimaginable just a short time ago, and we are never going back!
I am thrilled to report to you tonight that our economy is the best it has ever been. Our military is completely rebuilt, with its power being unmatched anywhere in the world — and it is not even close. Our borders are secure. Our families are flourishing. Our values are renewed. Our pride is restored. And for all these reasons, I say to the people of our great country, and to the Members of Congress before me: The State of our Union is stronger than ever before!
The vision I will lay out this evening demonstrates how we are building the world’s most prosperous and inclusive society — one where every citizen can join in America’s unparalleled success, and where every community can take part in America’s extraordinary rise.
From the instant I took office, I moved rapidly to revive the United States economy — slashing a record number of job-killing regulations, enacting historic and record-setting tax cuts, and fighting for fair and reciprocal trade agreements. Our agenda is relentlessly pro-worker, pro-family, pro-growth, and, most of all, pro-American. We are advancing with unbridled optimism and lifting high our citizens of every race, color, religion, and creed.
Since my election, we have created 7 million new jobs — 5 million more than Government experts projected during the previous administration.
The unemployment rate is the lowest in over half a century.
Incredibly, the average unemployment rate under my Administration is lower than any administration in the history of our country. If we had not reversed the failed economic policies of the previous administration, the world would not now be witness to America’s great economic success.
The unemployment rates for African-Americans, Hispanic-Americans, and Asian-Americans have reached the lowest levels in history. African-American youth unemployment has reached an all-time low.
African-American poverty has declined to the lowest rate ever recorded.
The unemployment rate for women reached the lowest level in almost 70 years — and last year, women filled 72 percent of all new jobs added.
The veterans’ unemployment rate dropped to a record low.
The unemployment rate for disabled Americans has reached an all-time low.
Workers without a high school diploma have achieved the lowest unemployment rate recorded in United States history.
A record number of young Americans are now employed.
Under the last administration, more than 10 million people were added to the food stamp rolls. Under my Administration, 7 million Americans have come off of food stamps, and 10 million people have been lifted off of welfare.
In 8 years under the last administration, over 300,000 working-age people dropped out of the workforce. In just 3 years of my Administration, 3.5 million working-age people have joined the workforce.
Since my election, the net worth of the bottom half of wage-earners has increased by 47 percent — 3 times faster than the increase for the top 1 percent. After decades of flat and falling incomes, wages are rising fast — and, wonderfully, they are rising fastest for low-income workers, who have seen a 16 percent pay-increase since my election. This is a blue collar boom.
Real median household income is now at the highest level ever recorded!
Since my election, United States stock markets have soared 70 percent, adding more than $12 trillion to our Nation’s wealth, transcending anything anyone believed was possible — this, as other countries are not doing well. Consumer confidence has reached amazing new heights.
All of those millions of people with 401(k)s and pensions are doing far better than they have ever done before with increases of 60, 70, 80, 90, and even 100 percent.
Jobs and investment are pouring into 9,000 previously-neglected neighborhoods thanks to Opportunity Zones, a plan spearheaded by Senator Tim Scott as part of our great Republican tax cuts. In other words, wealthy people and companies are pouring money into poor neighborhoods or areas that have not seen investment in many decades, creating jobs, energy, and excitement. This is the first time that these deserving communities have seen anything like this. It is all working!
Opportunity Zones are helping Americans like Army Veteran Tony Rankins from Cincinnati, Ohio. After struggling with drug addiction, Tony lost his job, his house, and his family — he was homeless. But then Tony found a construction company that invests in Opportunity Zones. He is now a top tradesman, drug-free, reunited with his family, and he is here tonight. Tony: Keep up the great work.
Our roaring economy has, for the first time ever, given many former prisoners the ability to get a great job and a fresh start. This second chance at life is made possible because we passed landmark Criminal Justice Reform into law. Everybody said that Criminal Justice Reform could not be done, but I got it done, and the people in this room got it done.
Thanks to our bold regulatory reduction campaign, the United States has become the number one producer of oil and natural gas in the world, by far. With the tremendous progress we have made over the past 3 years, America is now energy independent, and energy jobs, like so many elements of our country, are at a record high. We are doing numbers that no one would have thought possible just 3 years ago.
Likewise, we are restoring our Nation’s manufacturing might, even though predictions were that this could never be done. After losing 60,000 factories under the previous two administrations, America has now gained 12,000 new factories under my Administration with thousands upon thousands of plants and factories being planned or built. We have created over half a million new manufacturing jobs. Companies are not leaving; they are coming back. Everybody wants to be where the action is, and the United States of America is, indeed, where the action is.
One of the single biggest promises I made to the American people was to replace the disastrous NAFTA trade deal. In fact, unfair trade is perhaps the single biggest reason that I decided to run for President. Following NAFTA’s adoption, our Nation lost one in four manufacturing jobs. Many politicians came and went, pledging to change or replace NAFTA — only to do absolutely nothing. But unlike so many who came before me, I keep my promises. Six days ago, I replaced NAFTA and signed the brand new United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) into law.
The USMCA will create nearly 100,000 new high-paying American auto jobs, and massively boost exports for our farmers, ranchers, and factory workers. It will also bring trade with Mexico and Canada to a much higher degree, but also to a much greater level of fairness and reciprocity. This is the first major trade deal in many years to earn the strong backing of America’s labor unions.
I also promised our citizens that I would impose tariffs to confront China’s massive theft of American jobs. Our strategy worked. Days ago, we signed the groundbreaking new agreement with China that will defend our workers, protect our intellectual property, bring billions of dollars into our treasury, and open vast new markets for products made and grown right here in the United States of America. For decades, China has taken advantage of the United States, now we have changed that but, at the same time, we have perhaps the best relationship we have ever had with China, including with President Xi. They respect what we have done because, quite frankly, they could never believe what they were able to get away with year after year, decade after decade, without someone in our country stepping up and saying: Enough. Now, we want to rebuild our country, and that is what we are doing.
As we restore American leadership throughout the world, we are once again standing up for freedom in our hemisphere. That is why my Administration reversed the failing policies of the previous administration on Cuba. We are supporting the hopes of Cubans, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans to restore democracy. The United States is leading a 59-nation diplomatic coalition against the socialist dictator of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro. Maduro is an illegitimate ruler, a tyrant who brutalizes his people. But Maduro’s grip of tyranny will be smashed and broken. Here this evening is a man who carries with him the hopes, dreams, and aspirations of all Venezuelans. Joining us in the gallery is the true and legitimate President of Venezuela, Juan Guaidó. Mr. President, please take this message back to your homeland. All Americans are united with the Venezuelan people in their righteous struggle for freedom! Socialism destroys nations. But always remember, freedom unifies the soul.
To safeguard American Liberty, we have invested a record-breaking $2.2 trillion in the United States Military. We have purchased the finest planes, missiles, rockets, ships, and every other form of military equipment — all made in the United States of America. We are also finally getting our allies to help pay their fair share. I have raised contributions from the other NATO members by more than $400 billion, and the number of allies meeting their minimum obligations has more than doubled.
And just weeks ago, for the first time since President Truman established the Air Force more than 70 years earlier, we created a new branch of the United States Armed Forces, the Space Force.
In the gallery tonight, we have one of the Space Force’s youngest potential recruits: 13-year-old Iain Lanphier, an eighth grader from Arizona. Iain has always dreamed of going to space. He was first in his class and among the youngest at an aviation academy. He aspires to go to the Air Force Academy, and then, he has his eye on the Space Force. As Iain says, “most people look up at space, I want to look down on the world.”
Sitting beside Iain tonight is his great hero. Charles McGee was born in Cleveland, Ohio, one century ago. Charles is one of the last surviving Tuskegee Airmen — the first black fighter pilots — and he also happens to be Iain’s great-grandfather. After more than 130 combat missions in World War II, he came back to a country still struggling for Civil Rights and went on to serve America in Korea and Vietnam. On December 7th, Charles celebrated his 100th birthday. A few weeks ago, I signed a bill promoting Charles McGee to Brigadier General. And earlier today, I pinned the stars on his shoulders in the Oval Office. General McGee: Our Nation salutes you.
From the pilgrims to our Founders, from the soldiers at Valley Forge to the marchers at Selma, and from President Lincoln to the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Americans have always rejected limits on our children’s future.
Members of Congress, we must never forget that the only victories that matter in Washington are victories that deliver for the American people. The people are the heart of our country, their dreams are the soul of our country, and their love is what powers and sustains our country. We must always remember that our job is to put America first!
The next step forward in building an inclusive society is making sure that every young American gets a great education and the opportunity to achieve the American Dream. Yet, for too long, countless American children have been trapped in failing government schools. To rescue these students, 18 States have created school choice in the form of Opportunity Scholarships. The programs are so popular, that tens of thousands of students remain on waiting lists. One of those students is Janiyah Davis, a fourth grader from Philadelphia. Janiyah’s mom Stephanie is a single parent. She would do anything to give her daughter a better future. But last year, that future was put further out of reach when Pennsylvania’s Governor vetoed legislation to expand school choice for 50,000 children.
Janiyah and Stephanie are in the gallery this evening. But there is more to their story. Janiyah, I am pleased to inform you that your long wait is over. I can proudly announce tonight that an Opportunity Scholarship has become available, it is going to you, and you will soon be heading to the school of your choice!
Now, I call on the Congress to give 1 million American children the same opportunity Janiyah has just received. Pass the Education Freedom Scholarships and Opportunity Act — because no parent should be forced to send their child to a failing government school.
Every young person should have a safe and secure environment in which to learn and grow. For this reason, our magnificent First Lady has launched the “Be Best” initiative — to advance a safe, healthy, supportive, and drug-free life for the next generation, online, in school, and in our communities. Thank you, Melania, for your extraordinary love and profound care for America’s children.
My Administration is determined to give our citizens the opportunities they need regardless of age or background. Through our Pledge to American Workers, over 400 companies will also provide new jobs and education opportunities to almost 15 million Americans.
My Budget also contains an exciting vision for our Nation’s high schools. Tonight, I ask the Congress to support our students and back my plan to offer vocational and technical education in every single high school in America.
To expand equal opportunity, I am also proud that we achieved record and permanent funding for our Nation’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
A good life for American families also requires the most affordable, innovative, and high-quality healthcare system on Earth. Before I took office, health insurance premiums had more than doubled in just 5 years. I moved quickly to provide affordable alternatives. Our new plans are up to 60 percent less expensive. I have also made an ironclad pledge to American families: We will always protect patients with pre-existing conditions — that is a guarantee. And we will always protect your Medicare and your Social Security.
The American patient should never be blindsided by medical bills. That is why I signed an Executive Order requiring price transparency. Many experts believe that transparency, which will go into full effect at the beginning of next year, will be even bigger than healthcare reform. It will save families massive amounts of money for substantially better care.
But as we work to improve Americans’ healthcare, there are those who want to take away your healthcare, take away your doctor, and abolish private insurance entirely. One hundred thirty-two lawmakers in this room have endorsed legislation to impose a socialist takeover of our healthcare system, wiping out the private health insurance plans of 180 million Americans. To those watching at home tonight, I want you to know: We will never let socialism destroy American healthcare!
Over 130 legislators in this chamber have endorsed legislation that would bankrupt our Nation by providing free taxpayer-funded healthcare to millions of illegal aliens, forcing taxpayers to subsidize free care for anyone in the world who unlawfully crosses our borders. These proposals would raid the Medicare benefits our seniors depend on, while acting as a powerful lure for illegal immigration. This is what is happening in California and other States — their systems are totally out of control, costing taxpayers vast and unaffordable amounts of money. If forcing American taxpayers to provide unlimited free healthcare to illegal aliens sounds fair to you, then stand with the radical left. But if you believe that we should defend American patients and American seniors, then stand with me and pass legislation to prohibit free Government healthcare for illegal aliens!
This will be a tremendous boon to our already very-strongly guarded southern border where, as we speak, a long, tall, and very powerful wall is being built. We have now completed over 100 miles and will have over 500 miles fully completed by early next year.
My Administration is also taking on the big pharmaceutical companies. We have approved a record number of affordable generic drugs, and medicines are being approved by the FDA at a faster clip than ever before. I was pleased to announce last year that, for the first time in 51 years, the cost of prescription drugs actually went down.
And working together, the Congress can reduce drug prices substantially from current levels. I have been speaking to Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa and others in the Congress in order to get something on drug pricing done, and done properly. I am calling for bipartisan legislation that achieves the goal of dramatically lowering prescription drug prices. Get a bill to my desk, and I will sign it into law without delay.
With unyielding commitment, we are curbing the opioid epidemic — drug overdose deaths declined for the first time in nearly 30 years. Among the States hardest hit, Ohio is down 22 percent, Pennsylvania is down 18 percent, Wisconsin is down 10 percent — and we will not quit until we have beaten the opioid epidemic once and for all.
Protecting Americans’ health also means fighting infectious diseases. We are coordinating with the Chinese government and working closely together on the Coronavirus outbreak in China. My Administration will take all necessary steps to safeguard our citizens from this threat.
We have launched ambitious new initiatives to substantially improve care for Americans with kidney disease, Alzheimer’s, and those struggling with mental health challenges. And because the Congress funded my request, we are pursuing new cures for childhood cancer, and we will eradicate the AIDS epidemic in America by the end of the decade.
Almost every American family knows the pain when a loved one is diagnosed with a serious illness. Here tonight is a special man, someone beloved by millions of Americans who just received a Stage 4 advanced cancer diagnosis. This is not good news, but what is good news is that he is the greatest fighter and winner that you will ever meet. Rush Limbaugh: Thank you for your decades of tireless devotion to our country. Rush, in recognition of all that you have done for our Nation, the millions of people a day that you speak to and inspire, and all of the incredible work that you have done for charity, I am proud to announce tonight that you will be receiving our country’s highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom. I will now ask the First Lady of the United States to please stand and present you with the honor. Rush, Kathryn, congratulations!
As we pray for all who are sick, we know that America is constantly achieving new medical breakthroughs. In 2017, doctors at St. Luke’s hospital in Kansas City delivered one of the earliest premature babies ever to survive. Born at just 21 weeks and 6 days, and weighing less than a pound, Ellie Schneider was born a fighter. Through the skill of her doctors — and the prayers of her parents — little Ellie kept on winning the battle for life. Today, Ellie is a strong, healthy 2-year-old girl sitting with her amazing mother Robin in the gallery. Ellie and Robin: We are so glad you are here.
Ellie reminds us that every child is a miracle of life. Thanks to modern medical wonders, 50 percent of very premature babies delivered at the hospital where Ellie was born now survive. Our goal should be to ensure that every baby has the best chance to thrive and grow just like Ellie. That is why I am asking the Congress to provide an additional $50 million to fund neo-natal research for America’s youngest patients. That is also why I am calling upon the Members of Congress here tonight to pass legislation finally banning the late-term abortion of babies.
Whether we are Republican, Democrat, or Independent, surely we must all agree that every human life is a sacred gift from God!
As we support America’s moms and dads, I was recently proud to sign the law providing new parents in the Federal workforce paid family leave, serving as a model for the rest of the country. Now, I call on the Congress to pass the bipartisan Advancing Support for Working Families Act, extending family leave to mothers and fathers all across the Nation.
Forty million American families have an average $2,200 extra thanks to our child tax credit. I have also overseen historic funding increases for high-quality child care, enabling 17 States to serve more children, many of which have reduced or eliminated their waitlists altogether. And I sent the Congress a plan with a vision to further expand access to high-quality childcare and urge you to act immediately.
To protect the environment, days ago, I announced that the United States will join the One Trillion Trees Initiative, an ambitious effort to bring together Government and the private sector to plant new trees in America and around the world.
We must also rebuild America’s infrastructure. I ask you to pass Senator Barrasso’s highway bill — to invest in new roads, bridges, and tunnels across our land.
I am also committed to ensuring that every citizen can have access to high-speed internet, including rural America.
A better tomorrow for all Americans also requires us to keep America safe. That means supporting the men and women of law enforcement at every level, including our Nation’s heroic ICE officers.
Last year, our brave ICE officers arrested more than 120,000 criminal aliens charged with nearly 10,000 burglaries, 5,000 sexual assaults, 45,000 violent assaults, and 2,000 murders.
Tragically, there are many cities in America where radical politicians have chosen to provide sanctuary for these criminal illegal aliens. In Sanctuary Cities, local officials order police to release dangerous criminal aliens to prey upon the public, instead of handing them over to ICE to be safely removed.
Just 29 days ago, a criminal alien freed by the Sanctuary City of New York was charged with the brutal rape and murder of a 92-year-old woman. The killer had been previously arrested for assault, but under New York’s sanctuary policies, he was set free. If the city had honored ICE’s detainer request, his victim would be alive today.
The State of California passed an outrageous law declaring their whole State to be a sanctuary for criminal illegal immigrants — with catastrophic results.
Here is just one tragic example. In December 2018, California police detained an illegal alien with five prior arrests, including convictions for robbery and assault. But as required by California’s Sanctuary Law, local authorities released him.
Days later, the criminal alien went on a gruesome spree of deadly violence. He viciously shot one man going about his daily work; he approached a woman sitting in her car and shot her in the arm and the chest. He walked into a convenience store and wildly fired his weapon. He hijacked a truck and smashed into vehicles, critically injuring innocent victims. One of the victims of his bloody rampage was a 51-year-old American named Rocky Jones. Rocky was at a gas station when this vile criminal fired eight bullets at him from close range, murdering him in cold blood. Rocky left behind a devoted family, including his brothers who loved him more than anything. One of his grieving brothers is here with us tonight. Jody, would you please stand? Jody, our hearts weep for your loss — and we will not rest until you have justice.
Senator Thom Tillis has introduced legislation to allow Americans like Jody to sue Sanctuary Cities and States when a loved one is hurt or killed as a result of these deadly policies. I ask the Congress to pass the Justice for Victims of Sanctuary Cities Act immediately. The United States of America should be a sanctuary for law-abiding Americans — not criminal aliens!
In the last 3 years, ICE has arrested over 5,000 wicked human traffickers — and I have signed 9 pieces of legislation to stamp out the menace of human trafficking, domestically and around the globe.
My Administration has undertaken an unprecedented effort to secure the southern border of the United States.
Before I came into office, if you showed up illegally on our southern border and were arrested, you were simply released and allowed into our country, never to be seen again. My Administration has ended Catch-and-Release. If you come illegally, you will now be promptly removed. We entered into historic cooperation agreements with the Governments of Mexico, Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala. As a result of our unprecedented efforts, illegal crossings are down 75 percent since May — dropping 8 straight months in a row. And as the wall goes up, drug seizures rise, and border crossings go down.
Last year, I traveled to the border in Texas and met Chief Patrol Agent Raul Ortiz. Over the last 24 months, Agent Ortiz and his team have seized more than 200,000 pounds of poisonous narcotics, arrested more than 3,000 human smugglers, and rescued more than 2,000 migrants. Days ago, Agent Ortiz was promoted to Deputy Chief of Border Patrol — and he joins us tonight. Chief Ortiz: Please stand — a grateful Nation thanks you and all the heroes of Border Patrol.
To build on these historic gains, we are working on legislation to replace our outdated and randomized immigration system with one based on merit, welcoming those who follow the rules, contribute to our economy, support themselves financially, and uphold our values.
With every action, my Administration is restoring the rule of law and re-asserting the culture of American freedom. Working with Senate Majority Leader McConnell and his colleagues in the Senate, we have confirmed a record number of 187 new Federal judges to uphold our Constitution as written. This includes two brilliant new Supreme Court Justices, Neil Gorsuch, and Brett Kavanaugh.
My Administration is also defending religious liberty, and that includes the Constitutional right to pray in public schools. In America, we do not punish prayer. We do not tear down crosses. We do not ban symbols of faith. We do not muzzle preachers and pastors. In America, we celebrate faith. We cherish religion. We lift our voices in prayer, and we raise our sights to the Glory of God!
Just as we believe in the First Amendment, we also believe in another Constitutional right that is under siege all across our country. So long as I am President I will always protect your Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms.
In reaffirming our heritage as a free Nation, we must remember that America has always been a frontier nation. Now we must embrace the next frontier, America’s manifest destiny in the stars. I am asking the Congress to fully fund the Artemis program to ensure that the next man and the first woman on the moon will be American astronauts — using this as a launching pad to ensure that America is the first nation to plant its flag on Mars.
My Administration is also strongly defending our national security and combating radical Islamic terrorism. Last week, I announced a groundbreaking plan for peace between Israel and the Palestinians. Recognizing that all past attempts have failed, we must be determined and creative in order to stabilize the region and give millions of young people the change to realize a better future.
Three years ago, the barbarians of ISIS held over 20,000 square miles of territory in Iraq and Syria. Today, the ISIS territorial caliphate has been 100 percent destroyed, and the founder and leader of ISIS — the bloodthirsty killer Al‑Baghdadi — is dead!
We are joined this evening by Carl and Marsha Mueller. After graduating from college, their beautiful daughter Kayla became a humanitarian aid worker. Kayla once wrote, “Some people find God in church. Some people find God in nature. Some people find God in love; I find God in suffering. I’ve known for some time what my life’s work is, using my hands as tools to relieve suffering.” In 2013, while caring for suffering civilians in Syria, Kayla was kidnapped, tortured, and enslaved by ISIS, and kept as a prisoner of Al-Baghdadi himself. After more than 500 horrifying days of captivity, Al-Baghdadi murdered young Kayla. She was just 26 years old.
On the night that United States Special Forces Operators ended Al‑Baghdadi’s miserable life, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Milley, received a call in the Situation Room. He was told that the brave men of the elite Special Forces team, that so perfectly carried out the operation, had given their mission a name — “Task Force 8-14.” It was a reference to a special day: August 14th — Kayla’s birthday. Carl and Marsha, America’s warriors never forgot Kayla — and neither will we.
Every day, America’s men and women in uniform demonstrate the infinite depths of love that dwells in the human heart.
One of these American heroes was Army Staff Sergeant Christopher Hake. On his second deployment to Iraq in 2008, Sergeant Hake wrote a letter to his 1-year-old son, Gage: “I will be with you again,” he wrote to Gage. “I will teach you to ride your first bike, build your first sand box, watch you play sports and see you have kids also. I love you son, take care of your mother. I am always with you. Dad.” On Easter Sunday of 2008, Chris was out on patrol in Baghdad when his Bradley Fighting Vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb. That night, he made the ultimate sacrifice for our country. Sergeant Hake now rests in eternal glory in Arlington, and his wife Kelli is in the gallery tonight, joined by their son, who is now 13 years old. To Kelli and Gage: Chris will live in our hearts forever.
The terrorist responsible for killing Sergeant Hake was Qasem Soleimani, who provided the deadly roadside bomb that took Chris’s life. Soleimani was the Iranian Regime’s most ruthless butcher, a monster who murdered or wounded thousands of American service members in Iraq. As the world’s top terrorist, Soleimani orchestrated the deaths of countless men, women, and children. He directed the December assault on United States Forces in Iraq, and was actively planning new attacks. That is why, last month, at my direction, the United States Military executed a flawless precision strike that killed Soleimani and terminated his evil reign of terror forever.
Our message to the terrorists is clear: You will never escape American justice. If you attack our citizens, you forfeit your life!
In recent months, we have seen proud Iranians raise their voices against their oppressive rulers. The Iranian regime must abandon its pursuit of nuclear weapons, stop spreading terror, death, and destruction, and start working for the good of its own people. Because of our powerful sanctions, the Iranian economy is doing very poorly. We can help them make it very good in a short period of time, but perhaps they are too proud or too foolish to ask for that help. We are here. Let’s see which road they choose. It is totally up to them.
As we defend American lives, we are working to end America’s wars in the Middle East.
In Afghanistan, the determination and valor of our warfighters has allowed us to make tremendous progress, and peace talks are underway. I am not looking to kill hundreds of thousands of people in Afghanistan, many of them innocent. It is also not our function to serve other nations as a law enforcement agency. These are warfighters, the best in the world, and they either want to fight to win or not fight at all. We are working to finally end America’s longest war and bring our troops back home!
War places a heavy burden on our Nation’s extraordinary military families, especially spouses like Amy Williams from Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and her 2 children — 6-year-old Elliana and 3-year-old Rowan. Amy works full time, and volunteers countless hours helping other military families. For the past 7 months, she has done it all while her husband, Sergeant First Class Townsend Williams, is in Afghanistan on his fourth deployment to the Middle East. Amy’s kids have not seen their father’s face in many months. Amy, your family’s sacrifice makes it possible for all of our families to live in safety and peace — we thank you.
As the world bears witness tonight, America is a land of heroes. This is the place where greatness is born, where destinies are forged, and where legends come to life. This is the home of Thomas Edison and Teddy Roosevelt, of many great Generals, including Washington, Pershing, Patton, and MacArthur. This is the home of Abraham Lincoln, Frederick Douglass, Amelia Earhart, Harriet Tubman, the Wright Brothers, Neil Armstrong, and so many more. This is the country where children learn names like Wyatt Earp, Davy Crockett, and Annie Oakley. This is the place where the pilgrims landed at Plymouth and where Texas patriots made their last stand at the Alamo.
The American Nation was carved out of the vast frontier by the toughest, strongest, fiercest, and most determined men and women ever to walk the face of the Earth. Our ancestors braved the unknown; tamed the wilderness; settled the Wild West; lifted millions from poverty, disease, and hunger; vanquished tyranny and fascism; ushered the world to new heights of science and medicine; laid down the railroads, dug out canals, raised up the skyscrapers — and, ladies and gentlemen, our ancestors built the most exceptional Republic ever to exist in all of human history. And we are making it greater than ever before!
This is our glorious and magnificent inheritance.
We are Americans. We are the pioneers. We are the pathfinders. We settled the new world, we built the modern world, and we changed history forever by embracing the eternal truth that everyone is made equal by the hand of Almighty God.
America is the place where anything can happen! America is the place where anyone can rise. And here, on this land, on this soil, on this continent, the most incredible dreams come true!
This Nation is our canvas, and this country is our masterpiece. We look at tomorrow and see unlimited frontiers just waiting to be explored. Our brightest discoveries are not yet known. Our most thrilling stories are not yet told. Our grandest journeys are not yet made. The American Age, the American Epic, the American Adventure, has only just begun!
Our spirit is still young; the sun is still rising; God’s grace is still shining; and my fellow Americans, the best is yet to come!
Fox 10 Phoenix may carry this as they did yesterday – then again – there have been long boring waits between Senator speeches – so they may opt out. They likely will carry the final vote, however.Fox 10 Phoenix YouTube home page – https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJg9wBPyKMNA5sRDnvzmkdg
Hat tip to Ga/FL
We’re still here. Kudos to the diligence of those still following the Great ShaMMMpeachment of the Congress. Forget Water-Boarding as a method of torture, watching ShaMMMpeachment would make criminals sing and confess loudly, anything to stop the whining of Congress critters who waste our time and money. Today will be a non-stop bloviating of 100 Senators all desperate for their chance in front of a camera.
It's day 11 of #acquitmas. On deck for today is 2 hours of talking points by the house mangers and 2 hours of closing arguments by Team Trump then a break and nonstop bloviating by 100 senators until 4:00pm Wednesday (I won't cover that part) So, let's begin pic.twitter.com/dDhQHBsBP0
Remember when you were a kid, kept in school for too long and anxious to get outside and play on the first warm day of Spring? Yeah, that’s what the American People feel like after ShaMMMpeachment. We’re ready to go back to work, buy a house, start a business, hire someone. Congress droning on and on, pushing propaganda, lying about events, considering hearsay as fact, demanding the President of the USA PROVE innocence rather than the prosecutor prove guilt. It’s an unending loop of Charlie Brown’s teacher.
We’re proud of the President’s team.
Like school-children kept inside for too long, we’re ready to play a little football.
Thanks to Duchess, we have the highlight of the day in the Senate, Rand Paul’s speech! He was great!
Rush explained he’s already received a second opinion on his diagnosis, thought about keeping his treatment secret, but will need to miss some days behind the microphone while he is being treated.
The reaction across social media was instant, with Levin and Beck openly weeping. The left celebrated as is typical of the left. Yet, nothing can burnish Rush’s star.
At one time or another, all of us have been inspired by Rush. When and where did you first hear him? Did he stop and make you think? Did he make you ask questions? Did he motivate you?
God Speed to the Limbaugh family as Rush undergoes treatment. We want to hear from him behind a microphone as soon as possible.
We’re still here. It’s still ShaMMMpeachment. The never-ending-Groundhog Day–of-a-swirl-of-crap from the Dems. The country has moved on but the Dems are still stuck. Republicans are forced into a cleanup on isle 12 for the perpetually offended.
We know the Dems will never stop. There will be another faux scandal after “Muh Russia” and “Muh Ukraine”, I wonder if we will move onto another Soviet Bloc country? Do we know anyone in Latvia? Estonia? Just sayin’……………
We’re proud of our Team!
And most of all, we’re ready for some offense from our President!
Thank you so very much for all the comments from QTreeps. The threads have been lively and informative! Thank you!
