Jeb Bush is a total hypocrite about eminent domain, taking an old man's home from him in 2005 when he was Florida Governor

As Governor of Florida, Jeb Bush in 2005 used eminent domain to take 70 year old Jesse James Hardy's house and 160 acres he built and owned since 1976.

From the stories here and here:

It was harsh, unlovely land, miles from anything, with rocky ground, slash pines, swamp cabbage and sand gnat swarms so thick he had to hold his breath. No electricity or sewer or water. Hardy built a shed, then a house. Dug a well. For 30 years, nobody bothered him. Now they won't leave him alone. ... 

Hardy spits fire when he talks about having to move next month to his new $750,000 house that has just a few more amenities than the rustic cabin he built in the Everglades with his own sweat more than a quarter-century ago.

Here's Bush in last night's New Hampshire debate:

But what Donald Trump did was use eminent domain to try to take the property of an elderly woman on the strip in Atlantic City. That is not public purpose, that is down right wrong. And here's the problem with that. The problem was, it was to tear down -- it was to tear down -- it was to tear down the house...

If Drudge had paid attention to the Emerson poll he'd have known Bush has DROPPED in it

The story here from Emerson which Drudge links to reports Bush in second with 16%. The trouble is a week ago he was second in the Emerson poll at 18%, so he's fallen!

Actually Bush has dropped in the latest Emerson poll to 16%, tho still in 2nd

Bush was in second with 18% previously in the Emerson poll

With voting in New Hampshire to begin in just hours, Real Clear Politics has Trump winning by +15.9 points in the polling average

Trump claims he had just 20 tickets for his New Hampshire Debate audience: Is the RNC treating him fairly?

Here:

"I had supporters," Trump responded. "I had 20 tickets. They gave me 20. All of those people in that crowd, 90 percent of them, were people that gave to the various candidates, and mostly to Bush."

John Hart says the pro-legalization of illegals Sen. Ben Sasse is the real conservative, not Donald Trump

Of course, Hart never mentions Sasse is pro-legalization.

Here.

The last thing we need is another Rubio posing as a conservative.

Like pornography, Donald Trump may not be able to define conservatism, but he knows it when he sees it.

Do you think National Review's candidate is Marco Rubio or what?

Headlines about Marco so far today at The Corner are 50% of the fourteen since the debate began last night at 8:00 PM (the other 50% are mostly about Hillary):

"Rubio Better Buckle His Chin Strap" 

"Rubio vs. Christie and Bush on Life" 

"Rubio's Tough Night"

"On Marco Rubio and Chris Christie's Brutal Exchange" 

"Christie Bests Rubio in GOP debate while Cruz and Trump Coast" 

"How Much of a Stumble?" 

"What a Bad Debate Night Means for Marco Rubio". 

Don't blame the Flint River for Flint's water problems

So says the Flint River Watershed Coalition, here:

"It was improper treatment of the water, rather than the health of the river itself, that sparked the suite of issues with Flint’s drinking water."

For more photos see "The Flint River isn't what you think it is, and here's why you should check it out".

clear waters

diverse habitat

thriving wildlife

Jeb Bush resurrects Bush Doctrine: "if a preemptive strike is necessary to keep us safe, then we should do it"

Video here.

Jeb Bush is just like his brother in this respect.

"Michigan Man" (aka "Not the face of Islam") arrested in terror plot against Christian church

Mlive reports here:

A 21-year-old man charged in federal court with illegal firearm and drug possession is also accused of making threats and planning a terrorist attack on a church congregation.

Khalil Abu-Rayyan has not been charged with crimes directly related terrorism, but the complaint filed against him in Detroit federal court includes allegations of threats made to a Detroit church and a Dearborn police officer.

The FBI has been watching Abu-Rayyan, of Dearborn Heights, since May 2015, because of what federal agents called "increasingly violent threats he has made to others about committing acts of terror and martyrdom -- including brutal acts against police officers, churchgoers and others -- on behalf of the foreign terrorist organization Islamic State of Iraq and Levant."

Marco Rubio was in the tank for illegal immigrants before he became the junior senator from Florida

From a Politico story in March 2010 here which should have put off Republicans on his candidacy but didn't:

A leader for a progressive group that used to heap praise on Rubio says there’s been a clear change in his approach to complex issues. Arturo Vargas, the executive director for the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials, said Rubio, the son of Cuban exiles born in Miami, blocked “scorched-earth” legislation that sought to clamp down on illegal immigration. “He, as speaker, kept many of those from coming up to a vote,” Vargas said. “We were very proud of his work as speaker of the House.” In 2006, Rubio even voted for a bill that would have allowed the children of illegal immigrants to pay the same tuition rates at Florida colleges as residents.

Vargas now says Rubio, the candidate, takes a more pointed, less nuanced tone as he stresses border enforcement and his opposition to amnesty. “He’s become your typical candidate in terms of playing to his primary election base,” Vargas said, acknowledging he’s more disappointed than surprised.

Bobby Jindal endorses the anchor baby

Here:

“Marco can unify our party. His optimistic message is bringing voters from across the party lines, from across different demographic groups. He can unify our party, he can win this election in November,” Jindal said.

Phyllis Schlafly slams Marco Rubio as an agent of the Republican establishment who has wanted amnesty all along

Here:

“When Marco Rubio ran for the Senate in Florida, I think I was the first one to endorse him."

“I made a trip down to Florida in 2009 just for the purpose of helping him.”

“Once he got elected, he betrayed us all."

“He said he was against amnesty and against the establishment. And once he got in, right away, he became an agent of the establishment. And now, of course, he’s big for amnesty and letting all the illegal immigrants in. He betrayed us a number of times on that issue.”

“Immigration right now is the biggest issue. All you need to do is look at Europe, and you can see that."

“But there are other issues like trade where Rubio has aligned with the establishment against the American worker.”

"Trade is a big issue."

"The whole thing with how they are pushing these trade agreements and mass immigration is a cheat and a lie to the American people. And Rubio has joined the group that is pushing it."

Ben Domenech says Trump and Cruz stole Rand Paul's libertarian foreign policy

Here for The Federalist.

But Domenech never mentions how Trump stole something else: attracting hordes of people to his appearances who come from all walks of life, but especially blue collar independents and Democrats.

That's what Rand Paul hoped to do all along, recreating the Republican brand.

Trump is succeeding at what elite libertarians have only been able to dream of politically, but now that they've got what they wished for they want nothing to do with it because Trump is uniting people through a conservative value: patriotic American nationalism.

Rand Paul doesn't get it, and neither does Domenech: Americans are conservative much more than they are libertarian.

As usual, Republicans carry the liberal water for Democrats on social issues

FOX's Frank Luntz was paid over $345,000 by Florida's Republican Party when Marco Rubio was Speaker of the Florida House

Story here, questioning Luntz's objectivity in his current role praising Rubio in the debates.

Luntz was caught in an audio recording in 2013 complaining that conservative radio talkers Rush Limbaugh and Mark Levin were destroying Rubio over the Gang of Eight immigration amnesty bill which Rubio co-sponsored.

It's safe to say that Luntz has been loyal to Rubio for a long time for a reason.

Will the Texas cross be big enough to crucify Donald Trump?

After all, it will be only 210 feet tall.

Story here.

The two candidates with no accomplishments

excels at falling down

excels at mouth breathing

Rush Limbaugh never mentioned the Karl Rove expose of Ted Cruz' lying today

Rush Limbaugh did his best to cover for Ted Cruz today by not mentioning the bombshell story which should persuade every honest observer that Ted Cruz is a lying sack of shit.

Real Clear Politics had video of the story here for at least 11 hours already, but Rush wouldn't touch it today.

As far as I can tell, neither did Laura Ingraham, Sean Hannity nor Mark Levin, whose shows I could not listen to in their entirety. However Mark Levin spent considerable time ridiculing Karl Rove in the second half hour for some reason, but you can guess why.

Voicemail left by the Ted Cruz campaign to Iowa precinct captains at 7:29pm caucus night proves Cruz has been lying for the last 48 hours

From the story quoting a voicemail here:

"Dr. Ben Carson will be [garbled] suspending campaigning following tonight’s caucuses." 

According to Breitbart:

"The calls were placed after the Carson campaign had already clarified that Carson was not suspending his campaign. ... [T]he Carson campaign had already clarified at 6:53 p.m. that he was not dropping out."

Jimmy Carter tries to give Donald Trump the kiss of death, preferring him over Ted Cruz

Story here.

Des Moines Register says something smells in the Iowa Democrat Party

From the story here:

“Too many of us, including members of the Register editorial board who were observing caucuses, saw opportunities for error amid Monday night’s chaos.”

Iowa Governor accuses Sen. Ted Cruz and Rep. Steve King of unethical and unfair behavior during Iowa Caucus

Here:

“This thing that they distributed on Caucus night saying that Dr. Carson was likely to drop out and his supporters should support Cruz, that is, I think, unethical and unfair,” Branstad said this morning. “I think there’ll be repercussions to that.” Cruz has apologized to Carson, the retired neurosurgeon who finished fourth in the Caucuses on Monday night.

Iowa Congressman Steve King, a Cruz backer, helped spread the drop out rumor and Branstad said King owes Carson an apology. “You know, we have a strong sense of fairness in Iowa,” Branstad said during an interview with Radio Iowa. “Distributing information that was not true about a candidate right at the time people are voting in the Caucuses is an inappropriate thing.”

Republican Iowa Caucus polling was off on average by 23%

Republican Iowa Caucus actual final results v Real Clear Politics poll averages on the day of the election:

Trump: 24.3 v 28.6, overestimated by 17.7%

Cruz:    27.6 v 23.9, underestimated by 13.4%

Rubio:  23.1 v 16.9, underestimated by 36.7%

Carson:  9.3 v   7.7, underestimated by 17.2%

Paul:      4.5 v   4.1, underestimated by 8.9%

Bush:     2.8 v   4.1, overestimated by 46.4%

Average miss for the top six: 23.4%

Average miss for the top three: 22.6% 

Smoking gun: Here's the message Ted Cruz sent to 1500 precinct captains before Iowa voting began

From the story here:

"There are 1,500 precincts. Do the math… If that message cost Carson four votes per precinct to switch to Cruz, then Cruz beats Trump. If he doesn’t switch four, then he loses."

Santorum drops out of GOP presidential primary, endorses RUBIO

CNN has the story here.

That tells you what kind of president Santorum would have made: A president who, like Rubio, would have settled for the Gang of Eight amnesty bill because it was all he could get at the time.

Rush Limbaugh can protest all he wants about Rubio giving up his Senate seat as a sign he's not committed to time-serving the establishment. The truth is as president Rubio would disappoint on illegal immigration to the point of destroying the Republican Party and the country as we have known it.

Establishment support for Rubio will now accelerate. The conservative vote will be split between Cruz and Trump.

Rubio will win the nomination like Romney did, through attrition on the right as neither Trump nor Cruz wins enough delegates to secure the nomination just as Santorum and Gingrich and Paul did not.

In this election, Ted Cruz, the illegal immigration flip-flopper, will be Donald Trump's spoiler.

In the immortal words of Mickey Kaus, Cruz is just in it for Cruz.

Sarah Palin accuses Rep. Steve King of being Ted Cruz' dirty little trickster

Here:

'Cruz's campaign chairman, U.S. Representative Steve King, is lying, and good for Dr. Ben Carson for calling this out. King, who's previously asked for and received my endorsement, time and resources to support his own election, is still lying about my altruistic support of Mr. Trump, and he's refused to provide any evidence to the contrary. And, this U.S. Congressman actually lied to his own constituents on behalf of Cruz, regarding a good man, Dr. Carson. He told voters Carson was dropping out of the Presidential race immediately before the Iowa caucus, causing a relative uproar inside the process, so the word would spread and he could rack up more votes for his candidate, Cruz. That's a dirty trick. Dr. Carson deserved better. The voters deserved better!'

Trump says skipping the last debate was a mistake, and that he should have had a ground game in Iowa

Statements here.

It was the ground game, that's all. He didn't have one, and others did. The massive turnout proves that.

Taking the battle to FOX remains important, especially when they insult you. Skipping the debate was the right thing to do.

Media remains the enemy.

The howler of the day comes from Pamela Anderson: Intellectuals were at the Playboy Mansion, you know, like politicians

What a train wreck this woman is.

Here:

"I loved being at the Playboy Mansion. Intellectuals were at the Playboy Mansion. You were talking to the best artists and musicians and actors and politicians." ... I ask Anderson about rumors she might want to segue into politics one day. “No, I don’t!” she laughs. “Politicians are evil. No, no, no, no, no. Just look at some of Vivienne Westwood’s blogs. Politicians are criminals."... She previously threw her support behind President Obama, but hints at her frustrations as she looks toward November’s election. “I think politicians’ hands are tied a lot of the time,” she says. “I’m a Democrat. You have to vote. I love Bernie, but I don’t think he’ll get the nomination. I still think Hillary has a better shot. I think she’s going to be the President. A female President would be pretty awesome. We need that kind of energy in the world.”

Intellectuals? Politicians? Evil? Criminals? Obama? Bernie Sanders? Hillary? Energy?

Awesome.

Well, at least we know Pamela can read:

Rand Paul drops out of the presidential race to concentrate on reelection to the Senate

Story here.

And so dies his dream of uniting libertarians from all parties, which Donald Trump seems to be doing in spades but people like Rand Paul still don't get.

Override of Obama's veto of Obamacare repeal fails in the US House along party lines

"The result was expected, given that an override would have required Democratic support to succeed, but Republicans praised the vote as showing what could happen next year if their party wins back the White House. The veto override failed by a vote of 241 to 186."

More here. 

Trump live right now from New Hampshire promoting Ann Coulter

Here. Coulter spoke here for about nine minutes.

Stupid white liberals: Our insane leaders are preparing to require women to register for the draft

The Military Times reports here:

The Army and Marine Corps' top uniformed leaders both backed making women register for the draft as all combat roles are opened to them in coming months, a sweeping social change that could complicate the military’s gender integration plans. ...

Navy Secretary Ray Mabus Jr. said there needs to be “a national debate” over what the changes mean, balancing social concerns over the idea of drafting women with the reality of national security and military readiness. ...

“It's my personal view in light of integration that every American physically qualified should register for the draft,” Neller said. Milley echoed those remarks, saying “all eligible men and women” should be required to register.

The faces of the insane:

Sec. Ray Mabus

Gen. Robert Neller

Gen. Mark Milley

The dirty tweeter: Republican US Rep. Steve King (IA-4) was Ted Cruz' dirty trickster last night

King spread a rumor in a tweet that Ben Carson was dropping out of the race, even though he wasn't, in order to queer the vote.

Story here:

"The tweet was sent at 8:20pm EST, when the caucuses were ongoing."

That's right. Real Clear Politics did not call the race until 10:30pm EST.

Up on average by 7.5 points in four poll reversals, Trump loses to Cruz by 3.4 points in Iowa after atypical 50% higher turnout

Before Trump reversed them, Cruz had been ahead in 4 polls by an average of 5.8 points per Real Clear Politics

The Cruz campaign made a liar of the polls which showed his lead reversed by Trump in the weeks leading up to the Iowa Caucus last night. His superior ground game helped spur a massive turnout in excess of 185,000 when closer to 120,000 typically show. Trump had nothing similar on the ground and narrowly came in second ahead of the surging Marco Rubio. Look for more establishment money to get behind Rubio in coming days in an effort to stop Trump in New Hampshire and South Carolina. It's gut check time for Trump.

Meanwhile Bernie Sanders is making life very difficult for Hillary Clinton.

Trump is speaking right now on The Savage Nation

He's thanking Savage for his support from the beginning.

Grand Rapids, MI begins 2016 with January 1.6 degrees F above normal on average at 26.0

Precipitation was 0.06 inches above normal, coming in at 2.15 inches.

Snowfall was 20.8 inches, 2.3 inches above the mean average of 18.5 for the month calculated going back to the beginning of the record. January is typically the snowiest month, followed by December at 15.9 and then February at 13.1.

Heating degree days were nearly normal for January at 1200 but cumulatively for the season are running 652 below normal, about 17.6% to date, thanks to the El Nino.

Trump adviser Sam Clovis lost to Joni Ernst in the Iowa US Senate Republican Primary election in 2014

For more see here.

The Trump Doctrine: not neoconservative meddling like Bush, but Realpolitik like Reagan instead

From the story by Josh Rogin, here:

“This is a long game; it’s not a short game,” [Sam] Clovis said. He faulted neoconservatives who "think you can go out there and in three weeks after Iraq collapses you can create a constitutional democracy over there." ... 

Sam Nunberg, who advised Trump on foreign policy early in the campaign before having a falling out with [Corey] Lewandowski, told me that Trump’s foreign policy was “Reagan-esque realpolitik,” a stance designed to be able to make policies based on circumstances without being burdened by ideology.

Sam Clovis, chief policy adviser to Donald Trump, calls himself a Russell Kirk conservative

Just now on the Laura Ingraham show.

Sam Clovis said as much on Anderson Cooper on January 22nd here, defending Trump against National Review's anti-Trump issue.

WaPo editorial board half-truths about Trump illustrate why circulation continues to decline

Here's just one:

'Early on, he touted his unprincipled past as a demanding financial supporter of both parties — “I give to everybody; they do whatever I want” — as if acknowledging participation in corruption qualified him to fix it.'

I'd call it a hopeful sign if the editorial board of The Washington Post painted every contribution to a political candidate as participation in corruption if it meant especially to Hillary Clinton, but it didn't. 

R. Emmett Tyrell of The American Spectator comes out . . . for Trump

Here:

'I am for the candidate with a sense of humor, of showmanship, and a proven record for getting things done. Now on the “Today Show” this week Donald Rumsfeld, a veteran conservative, has come forward and said that Trump has “caused people to respond in a way that most politicians have not been able to do.” Rumsfeld is no vulgarian.

'I agree with him. Trump is a new and promising participant in American politics, and he is on the conservatives’ side. Here is history in the making.'

In Iowa Quinnipiac poll Trump's lead goes from +2 to +7 on the eve of the caucus

Former editor of National Review thinks Ted Cruz is the leader of the Tea Party: Sarah Palin would beg to differ

Here:

'Mr. Obama’s conservative opponents, on the other hand, have responded to his bold assertion of executive prerogative in two quite different ways. Some cite it as an argument for stronger checks on presidential power; others plainly believe that this unchecked power would be a fine thing if only it were exercised in pursuit of their interests.

'The first of those reactions produced the Tea Party movement, which advocated fiscal discipline, limited government and fidelity to the Constitution. Half of it joined the conservative wing of the GOP and fought elections with mixed success; the other half became an independent conservative faction out of frustration with a Republican leadership they believe has betrayed them. Many Tea Partiers now tell pollsters that they are “independents.” But the obvious leader of the entire movement is Sen. Ted Cruz.'

The Hegelian dialectic was never so useful for so little.

Ted Cruz adopts Obama voter intimidation tactics in Iowa

From the story here:

'In 2008, academics at Yale published an influential paper showing that one of the most effective ways to get voters to the polls was “social pressure.” Researchers found that registered voters in a 2006 primary election in Michigan voted at a higher rate if they received mailers indicating that their participation in the election would be publicized. The mailer that had the biggest impact included information about the two previous elections and whether the recipient and his or her neighbors participated or not. “We intend to mail an updated chart,” the mailer warned. “You and your neighbors will all know who voted and who did not.”

'Insights from the Yale study have since been adopted by several campaigns, including MoveOn, which also faced criticism when it used the tactic to turn out voters for Barack Obama’s reëlection, in 2012. Given its obsession with political science, it’s no surprise that the Cruz campaign decided to adopt the “social pressure” techniques to turn out voters in Iowa for Monday night’s caucuses.'

"The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated . . .."

Hooah Trump = Reagan w/o the amnesty!

Trump's tone is the least of our problems: 43% of Democrats in Iowa describe themselves as socialists

Bloomberg poll, here.

The triumph of ideological thinking on both the left and the right can be seen in the equal disdain both have for "isolationism". Poking our noses into other people's business is evidently now synonymous with being an American.

And the Republicans obviously haven't read Eric Hoffer.

Wake up people: Ted Cruz in 2013 advocated giving 325,000 American STEM jobs to cheaper foreigners

The full story is here.

Go back to Canada, Ted!

So Obama learned of clintonemail.com through news reports like everyone else while e-mailing her there 22 times

Sounds like someone's lying again and needs to be impeached. Otherwise things could get a little out of hand, no? I mean that's what happens when people get in the habit of flouting the law.

March 7, 2015:

'Obama, after delivering a Saturday speech in Selma, Ala., was asked when he found out about Clinton’s personal email system run from her Chappaqua home. “The same time everybody else learned it through news reports,” he told CBS News.'

January 29, 2016:

'The State Department on Friday said for the first time that “top secret” material had been sent through Hillary Clinton’s private computer server, and that it would not make public 22 of her emails because they contained highly classified information. The department announced that 18 emails exchanged between Mrs. Clinton and President Obama would also be withheld, citing the longstanding practice of preserving presidential communications for future release. The department’s spokesman, John Kirby, said that exchanges did not involve classified information.'

Mark Levin's conservativereview.com gives Sen. Ben Sasse, who supports legalizing illegal aliens, an "A"

Here.

Hey, if Ben Sasse is good enough for Mark Levin, so is Ted Cruz.

Doh!

Trump surges in Iowa in Des Moines Register poll from 22 to 28, Cruz drops two to 23: The 4th notable poll in which Trump has erased Cruz' lead

Politico agrees Rand Paul "eviscerated" Ted Cruz on amnesty

Here:

Cruz once filed an amendment to Rubio’s bill that would have created a path to “legalization,” but he has argued that it was really a poison pill designed to kill reform. Last night, though, Kelly effectively quashed that argument, playing several clips of Cruz insisting that he did want reform to pass. “Was that all an act?” Kelly asked him. “It was pretty convincing!” After Cruz flailed around for a few minutes, arguing that it was unfair for Kelly to focus on 38 words in a 1,000-page bill, Kelly turned to Rand Paul, yet another frequent target of Trump’s barbs. “Senator Paul, you know how Washington works,” she said. “Do you buy that?”

Paul—who has denounced Trump as unfit for office, and who has been mocked by Trump for his poll numbers and even his looks—obligingly continued the evisceration of Cruz. “He can’t have it both ways,” he said. “What is particularly insulting is, he’s the king of saying ‘You’re for amnesty.’ Everyone’s for amnesty except for Ted Cruz. But it’s a falseness, and that’s an authenticity problem … I was for legalization. So was Ted—but now he says he wasn’t. That’s not true.”

Libertarian leaning IBD poll shows Trump giving up a few points to Cruz

The amnesty of a lesser god: Senator Rand Paul eviscerated Ted Cruz who was for legalization of illegal immigrants in 2013

From the transcript of last night's debate, here, where Senator Rand Paul called BS on Cruz' poison pill argument and showed that Cruz was sincerely for legalization, a lesser form of amnesty but an amnesty no less:

PAUL: I was there and I saw the debate. I saw Ted Cruz say, "we'll take citizenship off the table, and then the bill will pass, and I'm for the bill."

The bill would involve legalization. He can't have it both ways. But what is particularly insulting, though, is that he is the king of saying, "you're for amnesty." Everybody's for amnesty except for Ted Cruz.

But it's a falseness, and that's an authenticity problem -- that everybody he knows is not as perfect as him because we're all for amnesty. I was for legalization. I think, frankly, if you have border security, you can have legalization. So was Ted, but now he says it wasn't so. That's not true.

---------------------------------------------------------

Trump not participating last night did two useful things:

It made the debate Pig Pile on Cruz night.

And it gave Rand Paul a spot to come back to the main stage and make this argument.

Trump wins again.

James Pethokoukis on China trade reminds me of my doctor pushing statin drugs

As everyone knows, statin drugs for cholesterol inhibit CoQ10 synthesis. So now the doctors push a CoQ10 supplement on you at the same time they push the cholesterol drug.

As George W. Bush famously said, "That doesn't make any sense."

So along comes James Pethokoukis confronted with the study showing how the opening to China trade destroyed many American jobs and lives.

His solution?

An expanded earned income credit, wage subsidies, and other government safety net initiatives to encourage work over retirement.

And relocation assistance to where the jobs are.

Never mind we don't want to move to China, India, Pakistan, Thailand or Indonesia.

Like Keynesians and MDs pushing drugs libertarians can never be proven wrong.

Top ten 2015 online news providers

"Overall, the top 10 publishers -- together owning around 60 news sites -- account for 47% of total online traffic to news content last year, with the next-biggest 140 publishers accounting for most of the other half, SimilarWeb found. ...

"MSN.com accounted for all of MSN’s traffic, again with 27 billion page views, followed by ESPN.go.com, with 23 billion; CNN.com, with 8.8 billion; Drudge Report, accounting for all of Matt Drudge’s traffic at 8.5 billion; Buzzfeed.com, at 6.8 billion; Foxnews.com, at 6.9 billion; NYtimes.com, with 6.3 billion; News.yahoo.com, at 6 billion; Cnet.com, at 5.2 billion; and Huffingtonpost.com, at 4.3 billion."

More here.

Rupert Murdoch, owner of FOX News and The Wall Street Journal, doesn't care illegals cut in line or about jobless Americans

Rupert Murdoch is working on wife #4

Here in The Wall Street Journal in "Immigration Reform Can't Wait" from June 2014: 

"We need to give those individuals who are already here—after they have passed checks to ensure they are not dangerous criminals—a path to citizenship so they can pay their full taxes, be counted, and become more productive members of our community.

"Next, we need to do away with the cap on H-1B visas, which is arbitrary and results in U.S. companies struggling to find the high-skill workers they need to continue growing."

Trump fires FOX News

h/t tony h.

We're going to find out what John Kasich means by "buried"

Quoted here December 29th:

 “If I get buried in New Hampshire, it’s over.”

Kasich is running on average -19.6 behind Trump in New Hampshire and -0.5 behind Cruz.

Thirty years ago today

'It appears that there are enormous differences of opinion as to the probability of a failure with loss of vehicle and of human life. The estimates range from roughly 1 in 100 to 1 in 100,000. The higher figures come from the working engineers, and the very low figures from management. What are the causes and consequences of this lack of agreement? Since 1 part in 100,000 would imply that one could put a Shuttle up each day for 300 years expecting to lose only one, we could properly ask "What is the cause of management's fantastic faith in the machinery? .. It would appear that, for whatever purpose, be it for internal or external consumption, the management of NASA exaggerates the reliability of its product, to the point of fantasy.'

-- Richard Feynman

Shut up Mark Levin you dummy! Trump has reversed Cruz' lead in Iowa in THREE polls ... count 'em

Poof!

Donald Trump doesn't need any advice from you, Levin.

At the beginning of January Cruz was ahead in Iowa by 4 in the NBC poll, but now Trump is ahead by 7 in the same.

Cruz was ahead in Iowa by 5 in the Monmouth poll at the beginning of December, but now in the same poll Trump is ahead by 7.

And in the FOX poll Cruz was ahead by 4 at the beginning of January, but Trump is now ahead by 11 in the FOX poll.

Trump obliterates Cruz' lead in Iowa in NBC poll, going from behind by 4 to ahead by 7

Libertarian Megan McArdle is a miserable cretin, a female Henry F. Potter

Libertarian Megan McArdle's got hers, tough nuggies to you if you don't. What a miserable cretin she is.

Here:

"Whatever mistakes we made 20 years ago, we’re stuck with them now. ... I’m not stuck with them; I have a stable job, a lovely if somewhat decrepit row home in our nation’s capital, and a marvelously cheap smartphone manufactured in China. It’s someone else who got stuck with the decisions the elites made . . .."

Mr. Potter: [to George Bailey] Look at you. You used to be so cocky. You were going to go out and conquer the world. You once called me "a warped, frustrated, old man"! What are you but a warped, frustrated young man? A miserable little clerk crawling in here on your hands and knees and begging for help. No securities, no stocks, no bonds, nothin' but a miserable little $500 equity in a life insurance policy. 

Yesterday Rush Limbaugh told us Trump had to show up for the debate, today . . . not so much

Rush is just as clueless as everyone else.

Here is Rush today, after telling us yesterday Trump had to show up to the debate:

But the rules of the game say when there's a debate, you show up.  Screw the rules, he's saying.  Why should I willingly give them another shot at me in a circumstance they control, why should I do it?  What's the sense in it for me?  I'm leading; I'm running the pack here; why in the world should I put myself in that circumstance?  I've already seen what's gonna happen.

The depths of The Art of the Deal were there yesterday for Rush to plumb, and he didn't, but today he supposedly did all of a sudden? What, Rush read the book last night? Come on now.

Rush is just making it up as he goes, trying to make sense of it all.

But I'll tell you what. This is what Trump is really doing from my perspective as one who voted for Reagan twice.

Trump is already acting like he's the president. Everything he's doing is in the mold of Reagan. He's going straight to the people every night, flying on his jet from venue to venue like a man driven, talking directly to the people, just as Reagan did every week in his press conferences and in his Oval Office addresses. And Trump's skipping the Iowa debate like the Gipper did and going to the people instead.

That is what Trump is all about -- going over everyone's head, especially the press' head, and talking directly to the people.

That was the secret to Reagan's success, and so far it is the secret to Trump's. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

Trump sees himself as a continuation of Reagan. Both are liberals and Democrats turned conservatives and Republicans. And Reagan had just as hard a time convincing the established right then as Trump is having now. 

Just look at the reaction of Establishment Republicans. They hate them both, especially the Bushies.

But the people? The people love them.

Trump reverses Cruz' Iowa lead in Monmouth poll, surging 11 points to +7 ahead of Cruz

Just like Obama, Ted Cruz has been megalomaniacal from a young age

Video here:

“Well, other than that, take over the world, world domination, you know, rule everything,” the considerably skinnier Cruz said back then. “Rich, powerful, that sort of stuff.”

Both have been men in a hurry, using election to the Senate as a springboard to the presidency. That's called unseemly ambition, and Obama had it from the age of nine:

In A Singular Woman: The Untold Story of Barack Obama's Mother, author Janny Scott tells how young Barack - then known by the westernised abbreviation of 'Barry' - was pushed by his mother to reach for the sky right from the start. ... His mother's ambition was clearly not lost on the future U.S. president. When his Indonesian stepfather asked him once what he wanted to be when he grew up, he was probably expecting him to say an airline pilot or an athlete. '"Oh, prime minister', Barry answered,' wrote Ms Scott.

Donald Trump was on to Cruz' character in December when he said:

"I don't think he's qualified to be president," Trump told host Chris Wallace on "Fox News Sunday," adding: "Look at the way he's dealt with the Senate, where he goes in there like a — you know, frankly like a little bit of a maniac. You're never going to get things done that way."

Obama has had very few legislative achievements after seven years, hence the repeated recourse to executive action. Even Obamacare had to be shoved down our throats through legislative gymnastics and without a single Republican vote. It's how such ambition turns out.

Expect the same if Cruz somehow got elected.

FOX's owner, Rupert Murdoch, is an outspoken advocate for mass legalization of illegal immigrants, just like Rubio, Bush, Cruz

We had to wait until Debate 6 for Marco Rubio to get one question about his advocacy of legalization in his Gang of Eight bill when all along Trump's campaign has been centered on opposition to legalization.

The debates arguably have been rigged to avoid the issue because the only one against legalization is Trump and the rest are for it.

Trump is right to move on.