Radio America Online News Bureau

GOP Thrashed in Virginia, Dems Romp in NJ & NYC, Flake’s Redundant Gun Bill

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Jim Geraghty of National Review and Greg Corombos of Radio America break down how the Democrats easily swept the statewide races in Virginia and even reversed a huge GOP majority in the state assembly.  They also discuss easy wins by Democrats in New Jersey and New York City, where the Republicans hardly appear to be a factor anymore.  And they roll their eyes as Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake proposes a law to ban gun sales to people convicted of domestic violence – because that exact law already exists.

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Saudis, Iran on Path to ‘Very, Very Bloody’ War

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While the world tries to interpret Saudi Arabia’s moves to clamp down on corruption and and watches the kingdom accuse Iran of an “act of war,” a former Reagan administration Pentagon official says Saudi Arabia is gearing up for the very real possibility of a “very, very bloody” war with Iran.

Within the past several days, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is next in line to the Saudi throne, has ordered the arrests of many government officials, including 11 princes, on allegations of corruption.  More recently, the crown prince accused Iran of an “act of war” after Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen launched an Iranian missile towards the Saudi capital of Riyadh.

The Houthis admit firing the missile and Saudi investigators say the fragments prove the missile is from Iran.  Furthermore, the Saudi-friendly prime minister of Lebanon abruptly resigned and many other elements of the Lebanese government are loyal to the Shia regime in Iran.

So are the events of the past week just the latest developments in an unstable region or something far more significant?

Frank Gaffney is president of the Center for Security Policy and served as an assistant secretary of defense in the Reagan administration.  He says these recent events are very significant.

“Something is moving for sure.  I think this is a lot bigger than chess pieces.  I think this is nothing less than tectonic shifts taking place throughout the region,” said Gaffney.

Gaffney says Iran’s goal of creating a “Shi’ite Crescent” is greatly disturbing to the Saudis.  The crescent is a continuous stretch of Iranian-dominated areas that stretches from the southern end of the Red Sea through Yemen to Iran, Iraq, Syria and Lebanon, all the way to the Mediterranean Sea.

He says Crown Prince Salman is bracing for a major fight to prevent Iran control of the entire region.

“I think what is teeing up, as I see it, is probably a very, very bloody war in that part of the world and it may not be confined to that part of the world,” said Gaffney.

He says the Iran threat is growing in multiple respects.

“The Iranians are establishing hegemonic control of large parts of this very strategically significant region.  They aspire to do more and I think they are willing to do everything from Shi’ite militia in Iraq and Syria through their own Quds force and Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps,” said Gaffney.

He also also suspects Iran is prepared to use ballistic missiles with non-conventional warheads (chemical, biological or nuclear) in order to assert an iron grip on the region, and he would not be surprised to see the fighting spread to other parts of the Middle East.

“It could go beyond that.  Turkey is a factor in all of this.  The central Asian republics beyond (are also at risk).  This could get extraordinarily messy and then it goes without saying that Israel may be drawn into it,” said Gaffney.

So is this “tectonic shift” a result of the natural tides of history in the region, dating back to the Shia-Sunni divide over a thousand years ago or have specific policies accelerated the specter of an ugly sectarian war in the region?

Gaffney says the forces of history are obviously a major factor but he says policy moves made in the Obama and George W, Bush administration are also coming back to haunt the neighborhood.  Gaffney blasts Obama for the 2015 nuclear deal and slams the Bush administration for eliminating the Iraq army in the early days of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

“The principle impediment to Iranian ambitions (the Iraqi army) was removed.  The damage done during the Bush years in that respect has been greatly compounded by the policy of Barack Obama in greatly enhancing the power of the Iranian regime,” said Gaffney.

But why the crown prince focused on rooting out corruption when so many national security concerns are on the front burner?

“It seems pretty clearly aimed not so much at dealing with the corrupt officials, because if that were in fact the object, I think every single one of them would be rounded up.  It’s about power.  It’s about consolidating his hold on it before his father (King Salman) passes from the scene,” said Gaffney.

“He’s clearing the decks for action against the principal, and increasingly existential threat to the kingdom, which is the Islamic Republic of Iran,” he added.

Gaffney insists that labeling Iran an “existential threat” against Saudi Arabia is not an exaggeration.

“If they don’t do something about this, presumably with the help of the United States, they will be encircled and the resources on which they still rely on very heavily – namely the sale of petroleum – can be cut off at will through the Persian Gulf or the Red Sea by the Iranians or their proxies,” said Gaffney.

Even with massive military resources courtesy of the U.S., Gaffney does not believe the Saudis can match the Iranians without help.  He says Egypt and Jordan would be heavily recruited to join the fray, along with possible U.S. air power.

Her says the Saudis don’t have the personnel to do the job.

“They’ve got an enormous amount of very advanced equipment.  They just don’t have many people who have either the skills or the will to wield it in defense of the kingdom or their interests more broadly,” said Gaffney.

As for the Trump administration’s position as events unfold in the Middle East, Gaffney says the U.S. ought to be publicly on the side of the Saudis.  However, he says the most important tactical policy is to stop Iran’s nuclear program.

“Our interests at the moment lie with trying to deprive the Iranians of their nuclear and other ambitions.  And that’s going to be vastly harder today than it was before Barack Obama started greatly enabling those ambitions,” said Gaffney.

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Huge Air Force Error, Media Yawn as Rand Paul Assaulted, McMullin’s Tired Act

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It’s all crazy martinis today.  Jim Geraghty of National Review and Greg Corombos of Radio America are furious as the Air Force discovers it never forwarded the court martial information on the Texas church shooter that would have prevented him from legally purchasing guns and Jim also details how the federal government often seems disinterested in prosecuting gun crimes.  They also discuss the bizarre assault on Sen. Rand Paul by his neighbor in Kentucky and how the media just don’t care when GOP lawmakers are targeted for violence.  And they unload on 2016 independent presidential candidate Evan McMullin, who has spent the past year focused on criticizing President Trump at every turn while advancing nothing of value to conservatism – his latest move being to urge people not to vote for the GOP candidate for governor in Virginia.

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‘They Really Don’t Understand Prayer’

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A church family in Texas is devastated and other congregations need to lift them up in prayer and take the necessary steps to protect their own worshipers, according to a Virginia pastor who says church leaders have a responsibility to “protect their flocks”.

Steve Holley is pastor of ministries at Immanuel Bible Church in Springfield, Virginia, near Washington, D.C.  He is also speaking out in response to the many activists who bristle at messages of prayer for the victims of mass shootings, such as those impacted by Sunday’s horrific assault on First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, where at least 26 people were killed at another 20 were injured.

Those activists, most of whom want to see new gun control legislation, suggest that people stop praying and “do something” to prevent future atrocities.

For example, House Speaker Paul Ryan urged all Americans to pray for the people of Sutherland Springs in a tweet sent Sunday afternoon.

“Reports out of Texas are devastating. The people of Sutherland Springs need our prayers right now,” stated Ryan.

Reactions from prominent critics were fierce.  Former cable news host Keith Olbermann urged Ryan to “shove your prayers” in a vulgar way and then urged him to “do something with your life besides platitude and power grabs.”

Actor Wil Wheaton also raised eyebrows in response to Ryan by tweeting, “The murdered victims were in a church.  If prayers did anything, they’d still be alive…,” tweeted Wheaton,who later apologized to people of faith for insulting them but not for his views on prayer.

Pastor Holley says there is clearly a great misunderstanding of prayer.

“I don’t think it’s platitudes at all.  It’re really beseeching God to help out nation in its time of need.  That is what’s taking place.  It seems like every two weeks these events erupt and they’re horrific,” said Holley.

He also strongly disagrees with the idea that the prayers didn’t do anything.

“Prayer accomplishes much.  The scriptures say that.  The scriptures encourage people to pray.  The psalms are a songbook of prayer in many ways.  So I think they’re really having a limited view of what prayer can do,” said Holley.

“Prayer sustains the spirit of those who endure and persevere through it.  Prayer helps to readjust our focus, to understand that God is sovereign and that His will is in effect so we need to trust in Him and to seek after Him,” said Holley.

Holley says prayer should not be seen as a time of expecting all our prayer requests to be instantly granted.  He says it’s something far more powerful.

“It shows that they really don’t understand prayer, that prayer is actually talking to the Creator of the universe, who called all things into existence, who loves us, who cares for us, cares for our every need and sent His Son into this world to die for our sin, and then by the power of His resurrection to give us life for eternity,” said Holley.

Rather than immediately promoting a political agenda in the wake of horrific shootings like the one in Texas, Holley says more valuable steps could be taken much closer to home.

“What are some things we can do to help people even curtail this, maybe even teaching our children that there is a God and that He has plans and purposes for everyone’s life, and that there is a right and there is a wrong and that human life is valuable and that we cherish human life,” said Holley.

On Monday, authorities said the killer came to the church because that’s where his mother-in-law worshiped, although it turns out she wasn’t there.  Holley says another takeaway here is to seek conflict resolution long before it could escalate into the carnage we saw on Sunday.

“I think it’s training children along the way.  how do you handle conflict?  How do you handle difficulty?  How do you work through those things and not have it end up with many people killed because you couldn’t resolve the issues you were struggling with?” said Holley.

Holley is no stranger to ministering to families suffering from terrorist attacks.  One member of his church was killed in the 9/11 attack on the Pentagon and another severely injured.  Another church member was killed in the 2013 attack at the Navy Yard in Washington.

He says there’s no magic formula for consoling believers devastated by the sudden loss of loved ones.

“We immediately try to get to their homes and just put our arms around them and love them and stay with them through the shock and horror that they’re facing.  You try to comfort them with God’s word because His word brings comfort,” said Holley.

He encourages those around the grieving families in Texas to reach out and to know the families will need that kind of ministry for a very long time.

“This is going to be a hard road for a long time for some of those families.  There won’t be a day that somebody goes by that church from now on that they don’t think about what took place in there yesterday.

“So the larger community around that small town need to think, ‘What can we do to stand by these folks and to encourage these folks and to show them God’s love.  That’s what I would encourage them to do,” said Holley.

He says the most important thing is to be available.

“Just be there as sort of an anchor, as a means of encouragement, and just express your love for them and that you’re with them,” said Holley.

Holley says Sunday’s massacre is another reminder that none of us know how long we have to live.  He says that should raise eternal questions in everyone’s mind?

“The hard news is it is appointed once for man to die and after that there’s a judgment.  So each of us, somewhere in God’s day timer, has an appointment where we will face Him.  The real issue is did I seek forgiveness of my sins through His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ and am I ready for that time?

“There nothing that can prevent our death.  We will not live one day longer than God wants us to or one day shorter.  He will have us at His appointed time.  People need to understand that’s a significant thing.  We don’t live forever.  We need to make sure that our eternal security is taken care of and that we’ve placed our faith and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ,” said Holley.

At the same time, Holley says church leaders have a responsibility to protect their family when they gather for worship.  In the wake of the Sandy Hook school murders, Immanuel Bible Church got even more serious about security.

“At Immanuel Bible Church, we’ve done everything that we possibly can to try to provide an environment where people can worship Christ and also where they can be safe,” said Holley, noting that approach requires a security team made up of volunteers.

“It requires putting together a safety and security team that will be vigilant, that will be communicating with each other, that will be keeping an eye on things as people come to worship,” said Holley.  “They have helped tremendously in the past with various situations that have arisen and many in the congregation never hear about or never know about.”

Holley also recommends churches work together with law enforcement to develop the best possible security strategy.

“I would encourage churches to run through various scenarios and maybe contact your local law enforcement agencies and see if they would come out and do an assessment of your church to see what things you may need to consider as you try to bring about security to your church,” said Holley.

Holley grew up in the same church he now pastors.  He says attacks like the one in Texas never even crossed his mind until recent years, but he says good leaders will take the steps needed to keep their people safe.

“This is the world we are living in and so have to respond to it.  We have to do it in love but we have to do it with very wise precautions and providing an environment for our congregation to enjoy a good worship experience,” said Holley.

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Heroes in Texas, Gun Control Push Ignores Facts, Leftists Mock Prayer

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David French of National Review and Greg Corombos of Radio America applaud the courage and heroism of the Texas man who exchanged gunfire with the Texas church murderer and the driver who happened upon the scene and chased the killer at high speeds to make sure no one else was harmed.  They also shake their heads at the instant gun control demands coming in the wake of yet another massacre, when the murderer should already have been ineligible to own firearms.  And they react to the increasingly common refrain from the political left for people of faith to stop praying in response to such carnage and “do something” instead.

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‘This Judge is a Disgrace’

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Retired U.S. Navy Captain Chuck Nash is blasting the military judge who ordered no jail time for admitted U.S. Army deserter Bowe Bergdahl as a “disgrace” and says the actions of both men strike a serious blow to good order and discipline in the U.S. military.

He also says this episode is just the latest wound absorbed by the military due to the advancement of political correctness and social engineering.

Bergdahl is the U.S. Army soldier who recently pleaded guilty to charges of desertion and misbehavior before the enemy for walking away from his unit in Afghanistan in 2009.  He was subsequently captured by the Taliban.  Six U.S. service members were killed looking for Bergdahl and others were severely wounded.

In 2014, the Obama administration agreed to free five high-value detainees from Guantanamo Bay in exchange for Bergdahl, whom then-National Security Adviser Susan Rice said “served honorably.”

On Friday, the judge in Bergdahl’s court martial, Col. Jeffrey Nance, decided there would be no jail time for the crimes of desertion and misbehavior before the enemy.  Instead, Bergdahl’s rank will be lowered from corporal to private, he must pay $10,000 in fines, and he is to be dishonorably discharged from the Army.  Bergdahl plans to appeal the dishonorable discharge.

Bergdahl’s attorney repeatedly tried to have the case dismissed based upon statements from presidential candidate Donald Trump since 2014 suggesting Bergdahl is a traitor and that past traitors were shot as punishment.  Judge Nance said that was not grounds for dismissing the case but said it would be a mitigating factor in sentencing.

Regardless of the rationale, Nance’s decision is hitting a very raw nerve in the military community.

“It’s insane,” said retired U.S. Navy Captain Chuck Nash, who is also a military analyst for the Fox News Channel.  “This judge is a disgrace.  He should have recused  himself.  By doing this, he just brings more discredit upon himself.”

Nash says the military will suffer as a result of Nance and Bergdahl.

“The rules are the rules and everybody in the military is held to the standards,” said Nash.

“The whole thing about the military and good order and discipline and all of that is just taken a serious hit today by this guy’s actions,” said Nash.  “And I mean both of these guys: Bergdahl for doing what he did and this judge for doing what he did.  Just disgusting.”

Nash further asserts that the military is built on the understanding that orders will be followed and rules enforced.  He says the overwhelming majority of American service personnel fulfill their oaths despite countless tours and immense disruptions for their families and Nance’s decision shows a lack of respect for that.

“You have someone who admits he did two really heinous things – desertion and cowardice in front of the enemy – and this judge says Donald Trump, when he was a candidate, said something that actually affected [his] ability to sentence?” said Nash, who would not be surprised if Bergdahl wins his appeal on the dishonorable discharge sentence.

“He’ll probably find some Obama appointee who will back him on it,” said Nash.

The Bergdahl sentencing comes just months after President Obama commuted the sentence of Bradley Manning, who was convicted on 19 charges – including six counts of espionage, for illegally leaking nearly 500,000 military reports to Wikileaks.  Manning was sentenced to 35 years in military prison but immediately announced he was identifying as a woman named Chelsea.

As a result, Manning became a popular figure in the LGBT community.  President Obama commuted Manning’s sentence earlier this year, less than four years after the convictions.

Nash says Bergdahl is just the latest example of a cultural agenda infecting the military.

“If this were the only thing to have happened, that would be one thing,” said Nash.  “But it’s not.  It has been a constant erosion and politicization of the military.  And it’s got to stop, because the military is that shield for this nation.”

He says the erosion has been underway for decades.

“It has been since the early ’90s.  What you’re seeing is social engineering that is corrupting the military ethos.  It’s corrupting good order and discipline.  It is the political left in this country that has always been trying to weaken America and now they’ve gotten to the last vestige of true meritocracy,” said Nash.

Nash contends that the politically correct bedrock of dividing people based on gender, race, and other criteria is a direct contradiction with the message drilled into the armed forces.

“It doesn’t matter what service.  They all have one thing in common, and that is the training programs.  Those are to soften personal identity and build team identity, where it’s “us,” it’s “we,” it’s “team.”  Once that is inculcated, then that person fits into that military organization,” said Nash.

“Now all of a sudden it’s, ‘Let’s go back and break that cohesion up.  Let’s identify the differences.’  It’s not differences that really help in a team.  It’s one team, one fight.  That’s what helps,” said Nash.

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Hillary Rigged the System, Northam’s Troubling Ties, Trump’s Twitter Turned Off

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David French of National Review and Greg Corombos of Radio America discuss former Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Donna Brazile’s revelations that Hillary Clinton funded and controlled virtually every aspect of the 2016 Democratic primaries, concluding that the system was rigged against Bernie Sanders.  They also pop some popcorn after Virginia election filings show the Ralph Northam campaign considered media work from the Latino Victory Fund an in-kind contribution, which seems to include the horrific ad showing a supporter of Ed Gillespie trying to murder dark-skinned children.  And they are stunned and a bit amused as a departing Twitter employee briefly shuts down President Trump’s Twitter account.

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‘This is Gonna Be Worse for Hollywood than the Church Scandal was for the Vatican’

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The sexual assault accusations against Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein and now actor Kevin Spacey have Hollywood bracing for a “flood” of abused actors to come forward in the coming days and name the predators who targeted them, a scandal that one activist says will reach epic proportions.

“This is big.  I consider this is going to be worse for Hollywood than the church scandal was for the Vatican,” said Matt Valentinas, one of the executive producers behind the 2015 documentary, “An Open Secret,” which pulled back the curtain on the sexual abuse of children in Hollywood and named many producers, agents and other figures who work with kids in show business.

The effort to unmask the predators gained even more steam on Sunday, when actor Anthony Rapp accused Oscar-winning actor Kevin Spacey of sexually assaulting him three decades ago, when Spacey was 26 years old and Rapp was just 14.

Spacey says he does not remember the alleged incident but suggested in a statement that alcohol would have been a factor if something did happen.  Spacey also used the statement to confirm that he is homosexual.

Valentinas says for those in the know, the allegations against Spacey did not come as a shock.  He says Spacey’s name came up in the research for “An Open Secret.”

“Yes, it did, in the sense that he’s very close friends with Bryan Singer.  Bryan Singer is the director of “X-Men” and is currently shooting the movie on (the rock band) Queen.  That’s how we came upon some of these rumors about Kevin Spacey.  It wasn’t really the focus of our investigation, but his name was definitely brought up all the time for sure,” said Valentinas.

In addition to directing “X-Men” and it’s five sequels, Singer also directed “The Usual Suspects,” “Valkyrie,” “Star Trek: Nemesis,” and “Superman Returns,” among many other films.  In recent days, Singer has been accused of sexual abuse.

In a series of Twitter posts on November 1, actor Justin Smith accused Singer of repeatedly inviting Smith to expose himself and inviting him to parties with his “posse” with an obvious purpose.

“This was always him, 2-3 older 50-70 year old men who were obviously on drugs but still wearing their dress shirts & pants (he introduced them as producers) and at least 5 to sometimes 10 young men. I should really say boys, none of them could’ve been older than 16 or 17,” tweeted Smith.

“They were all aspiring models/actors who were always doped up & partially naked. Bryan always made a point to tell me they were going to his place for a ‘private party’ & asked me to come with them. I said no every time,” added Smith.

Smith says Singer eventually thrust his hands down Smith’s pants and violated him.  In 2014, two other actors accused Singer of similar predatory behavior when they were child actors.  Even on set, underage extras say Singer forced them to strip naked and remain that way for hours while shooting the 1998 film “Apt Pupil.”

Valentinas believes Rapp and Smith will only be the beginning of an avalanche of current and former child actors coming forward to name their abusers.

“We’re already getting calls from many other survivors so I think we’re going to start seeing floods of survivors coming out in the next couple of weeks or even days with stories,” said Valentinas.  “The truth cannot be kept back.”

High-profile Hollywood child talent agent Tyler Grasham is also under the microscope, accused of sodomy by former child actor Tyler Cornell.

“Just last week, one of the largest child actor agents in Hollywood, named Tyler Grasham at APA Agency, was fired for inappropriate behavior.  He represents some of the biggest child actors out there today, who are currently starring in things like “It,” which was just the biggest horror movie possibly ever, and “Stranger Things,” which is now on NetFlix.

“Stranger Things” star Finn Wolfhard severed ties with APA upon learning of the Grasham news.

Grasham is not the only figure supposedly devoted to looking out for child actors to be involved in allegedly abusing their clients.  “An Open Secret” features an interview with Michael Harrah, a former child actor who spent decades leading the Screen Actors Guild’s Young Performers Committee.  That conversation took an unexpected twist.

“You had an accused pedophile running that operation.  We did an interview with him in March 2014 at SAG headquarters,” said Valentinas.  “This guy admits he was molested and was recalling how he might have tried to molest one of the survivors in our film.  It’s a jaw-dropping interview.”

What was the response from the Screen Actors Guild?

“Instead of SAG saying, ‘Oh my God, that’s a problem.  How can we help you,’ they sent us threatening letters to take out the interview from the movie, take out all mention of SAG from the movie.  It might have been the first instance of a creative guild trying to go after a director and a producer and censor content.  It was unprecedented,” said Valentinas.

In a Guardian story from October 31, actor and director Alex Winter, best known as Bill from “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure,” said he was abused as a child actor and claimed it’s virtually unavoidable for boys in Hollywood.

“I don’t know of any boys in any pocket of the entertainment industry that do not encounter some form of predatory behavior,” said Winter.  “It’s really not a safe environment.”

Valentinas says that is no exaggeration.

“There’s that many predators in Hollywood,” said Valentinas.  “He’s speaking the truth.”

Worse yet, Valentinas says the abuse epidemic in Hollywood is not just a bunch of random, independent predators.

“It’s not just a lone pedophile.  This is a highly organized group of people who all run in the same circles with a hierarchy, from people who scout for new talent to inviting kids to parties and grooming them there, to them picking who they want to be with.

“They entice these poor kids with a television role, or a role in a movie, or an invite to a premiere, or a writing job on one of their shows,” said Valentinas, who says the perpetrators are usually careful not to abuse the children on set or in public.

It’s away from the formal business of Hollywood that the attacks take place.

“A lot of Hollywood is very casual and non-corporate in the sense that a lot of the grooming and the groups that are in these pedophile operations, a lot of that stuff happens at private residences off the sets through unspoken words, through actions where you have to participate in these parties.  Then once you’re in, you’re in,” said Valentinas.

And while most survivors featured in “An Open Secret” are boys, Valentinas says little girls are preyed upon just as much.

“I can’t give you an exact percentage number, but of course it happens quite often to women as well,” said Valentinas, who estimates half of Hollywood’s sexual abuse victims are female.

While predatory behavior towards kids in Hollywood is a major crisis, Valentinas is quick to point out that the aggressors make up a rather small percentage of people in the industry.  The problem, he says, is that many of the villains in this real-life horror show wield a lot of power.

“I’m not saying that this is a large part of Hollywood, but the one or two percent of pedophiles that are out there are at a high level.  If they get involved in a project, that effects so many other people that they might not want to choose to believe the rumors that they’re hearing,” said Valentinas.

He says a scandal involving one director or leading actor can create havoc on a project.

“One person’s bad behavior on a major film can affect the careers of hundreds if not thousands of people, tens of thousands of hours of time and tens of millions of dollars,” said Valentinas.

“That’s why they really need to start getting a handle on this, because no other business is run in the way that Hollywood is right now.  I think they’re going to be bleeding money for a long time the more they act this way,” said Valentinas.

He says until the Weinstein scandal broke, few in Hollywood were interested in determining whether the rumors about alleged pedophiles were true.

“It might not be happening on the set, but somebody might be hearing about, ‘Oh, this guy might be having inappropriate relations with a minor,’ and then they say, ‘Oh that’s just gossip.  Let’s not talk about it because you don’t want it to effect your film,” said Valentinas.

Valentinas says Hollywood studio executives are largely focused on creating successful movies and television shows and may not be deliberately looking to bury allegations against their employees, but he says the lack of interest in finding answers is deeply troubling.

“They’re not really interested in combating pedophilia in the industry.  They’re focused on getting films out and being competitive and making money for the company.  At the end of the day, it comes down to they don’t want to lose money.

“It’s not maybe that they’re intentionally covering this stuff up, but they’re definitely intentionally not looking into it.  And that’s the problem,” said Valentinas.

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Tax Cut Bill Revealed, Trump’s Execution Tweets, Northam’s Epic Flip-Flop

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Jim Geraghty of National Review and Greg Corombos of Radio America largely cheer the House Republican tax plan, which cuts business and individual tax rates, kills the death tax and simplifies the system.  They also sigh as President Trump tweets out his desire to see this week’s Manhattan terrorist face capital punishment, a public statement many Americans agree with but could complicate federal prosecution of the murderer.  And they highlight the latest development in Virginia Democrat Ralph Northam’s no good, very bad week, as the candidate for governor flip-flops and suddenly supports banning sanctuary cities in Virginia.

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Bloated Budget Limits Tax Reform Plans

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Republicans cleared a major hurdle on the march towards tax reform legislation last week when the House and Senate agreed on a budget bill, but one House member says GOP members have their heads in the sand and are limiting the scope of tax reform by scrapping their own conservative budget for a status quo approach from the Senate.

Rather than head to a House-Senate conference committee, the House agreed to vote on the Senate’s budget bill.  It passed 216-212, with 20 Republicans voting against it.  One of the them was Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Florida.

Critics accused Gaetz and the other Republicans opposed to the budget of opposing tax cuts.  Gaetz says the explanation for his vote is simple.

“While I’m all about getting the economy moving with productive tax cuts, we’ve got to be honest with ourselves about the challenged we face with spending.  I’m going to use my position on the budget committee to try to advocate for spending cuts so that wee don’t drive up deficits while we’re working to get the economy moving again,” said Gaetz.

He says the original House budget bill was one he was proud to support.

“The House of Representatives passed a conservative budget that cuts spending by over $200 billion.  We actually laid out a plan to accomplish those spending cuts, by ensuring that able-bodied, childless adults, who can choose to work, would actually have to meet a work requirement before getting benefits from the government,” said Gaetz.

He says the Senate wanted no part of that.

“When we sent these conservative ideas over to the United States Senate, unfortunately the Senate did not agree to cut a single nickel in spending.  Instead, they merely sent a budget back that kept things the way they were and preserved the status quo,” said Gaetz.

He says that not only kicks the can down the road on fiscal responsibility but chokes off a more aggressive approach to tax reform.

“I was very disappointed that the swamp creatures over in the Senate didn’t have the guts to cut spending.  We’re going to keep fighting for spending cuts in the House.  I think that’s the way that we get the full value out of tax reform.  If businesses in our country have the capital to be able to hire more people, it will all be for naught if we don’t deal with the workforce challenges that incentivize people to stay home,” said Gaetz.

He’s also tired of the House playing second fiddle to a Senate that can’t make good on the GOP agenda.

“I didn’t run for the House of Representatives to come here and be a rubber stamp for the Senate.  I think too often in the House, we’re the Senate’s lapdog.  Look at health care. We would have passed whatever the Senate passed.  Look at the budget.  We take whatever the Senate gives us.

“My hope is when we get to tax cuts, we won’t whittle down the value of tax cuts, we won’t fail to deliver on the promises President Trump has made regarding massive tax cuts, just because the Senate cannot do both things,” said Gaetz.

Gaetz is also frustrated with the Senate catering to the whims of the most liberal Republicans who he says ran on the same agenda of cutting spending, repealing Obamacare and cutting taxes only to embrace the status quo once they came back to Washington.

He says tax reform is going to present more hurdles as senators get bombarded by special interests to keep their special provisions in the tax code.

“[Fiscal conservatives} are becoming a bit of an endangered species on Capitol Hill.  It’s indicative of the environment we live in, where every special interest wants the government to spend more money because then there’s more room in the trough for their respective snouts,” said Gaetz.

He says the bottom line is lawmakers must stop piling up debt for future generations, a problem he says ought to be blamed on both parties.

“They’re all fighting for more spending in different areas.  So we’ve got to have courageous conservatives ready to stand up and say, ‘No more.  We are not going to participate in this great wave of generational theft.  In the last 15 years, we’ve stolen more than $15 trillion from the next generation.  And they’re going to have to pay that back with interest,'” said Gaetz.

He says the mounting debt is also a burden on efforts to jump start the economy.

“The debt is a wet blanket over our economy and there is no amount of tax cuts that will ever allow us to grow to meet the obligations we’ve set forth in the absence of spending cuts,” said Gaetz.

 

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