The Presidents and Iran

 

Who is Susan Kokinda?

Times of Israel, blogs by Avi Schwartz

"Susan Kokinda is not a typical media pundit. She represents a school of political and economic thought that sees today’s events not as isolated headlines, but as part of a long historical struggle over sovereignty, industry, finance, empire, and national destiny.

Promethean Action describes itself as a movement dedicated to “defying oligarchy” and unleashing human creativity. Promethean Action has spent decades arguing for the revival of the American System: industry, infrastructure, productive labor, scientific progress, tariffs, national banking, and the rebuilding of the real economy."

Maybe the American Revolution isn't over?

The Blogs: Susan Kokinda, the American System, and the Battle Behind the Headline | Avi Schwartz | The Times of Israel

Lake Ontario

President Trump amazes me with the ways he tweaks the noses of both his Democrat Party challengers and our global trading partners. Like renaming Lake Ontario. For decades our woke and DEI advocates have been changing names of schools, sports teams, even pronouns and biological functions (like "chest feeding") to promote their philosophies. They've demanded we call Fred Frederica or lose our jobs. Well, he's a patriot, Has been as long as I can remember. TV -- I remember seeing him on the Oprah show when he was just a Democrat celebrity--maybe 40 years ago.

 
https://youtu.be/bFrpsx3r--Q?si=dYjeUX7-ECU8FIYX

Donald Trump's wardrobe hasn't changed, his beliefs about other countries "Ripping us off" haven't changed but look at that audience. 40 years later we all look like we're dressed for a circus or working in the garden.

Soccer. World Cup.

Trump made it happen; the nay sayers have to eat their words. And even I watched yesterday--although I didn't have a favorite and I really didn't understand much. At lunch today our table of 5 ignored politics (some were Democrats) and had a lively conversation on how much FIFA and the World Cup has contributed to not just the sports world but to the U.S. (to say nothing of the economy of the localities).

We also talked about how expensive it is to raise up a little one to play soccer. One couple has a granddaughter entering the teen years and decisions have to be made NOW and it will be very expensive. Another at the table has a granddaughter who is a soccer coach on the side at $50/hour so her players can qualify just for the middle school level.

I wonder why politicians aren't factoring in costs of private lessons and travel to games into the "affordability" school/family costs conversation. All I hear about are houses.

FIFA World Cup 2026 Task Force – The White House

Trump vs. Smithsonian

President Trump didn't attack the Smithsonian; the Smithsonian attacked the United States, so being a patriot, President Trump is suggesting more fairness and honesty in a Report.

Smithsonian-Report-Saving-Americas-Story.pdf
The United States government legally owns the Smithsonian Institution, holding its land, buildings, and collections as a perpetual public trust. Congress created the Institution by statute in 1846 after accepting a private bequest from British scientist James Smithson, and its charter is codified at 20 U.S.C. Chapter 3.

The Board includes members drawn from all three branches of government and the private sector:
The Vice President of the United States
The Chief Justice of the United States
Three Senators, appointed by the President of the Senate
Three Representatives, appointed by the Speaker of the House
Nine citizen members, appointed by joint resolution of Congress (two must reside in Washington, D.C., and no two of the remaining seven may be from the same state). Sounds like the Board needs a shakeup.

Who Owns the Smithsonian Museum? A Federal Trust - LegalClarity

Read through the report and the riots and attacks on police and the DEI in the classroom might become clearer. No surprise we're being taken over by Communists dressed up like Democrats

President Trump prays in statement for USCCB for 250th birthday of nation

Considering how anti-Christian the Communists in the U.S. are (colluding with the Democrat Party who were booing God 3 decades ago) and how anti-Catholic the far Right and some Evangelicals in the U,S. are, I suppose I can understand how difficult this story was to find in the news, even with the help of AI. But here it is. A revolutionary action by the current President.

"Members of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops — which is currently gathered in Orlando, Florida, for its spring assembly — came together for the consecration service on Thursday (June 11) in honor of the nation’s 250th anniversary. The occasion, marked by a presidential statement, is seen as a high point in acceptance of the Catholic Church in the historically Protestant country.

"Today, Melania and I join in prayer with Catholic Bishops gathered in Orlando, Florida, as they consecrate the United States of America to the Sacred Heart of Jesus on the occasion of our 250th year of American Independence — a powerful moment in our national story and a poignant reminder that America has always been guided by the loving hand of God,” the president said in a statement from the White House."

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/world/4605151/catholic-bishops-consecrate-us-trump-melania-prayer/

Trump highlighted the role of faith in shaping the nation’s identity, from Christian missionaries and settlers to chaplains and churchgoers throughout history. He linked the consecration (by the Bishops) to the nation’s founding principles of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, and noted that the Sacred Heart of Jesus would bless the U.S., protect families, strengthen the Church, and guide the nation for generations.

Even so, 8 states opted out of participating in the 16-day “Great American State Fair” in Washington, D.C., which celebrates the United States’ 250th birthday. They just wanted to thumb their noses at Trump. Those governors denied their own citizens the right to tell the others how great their people and products are (which is what state fairs have been doing since 1841).

I see it as just one more way President Trump has brought warring sides together--the far Left and the far Right--not since the Founding Fathers has a leader managed to so clearly make a shout out to our First Amendment--he didn't establish a religion and he didn't prohibit its exercise and he honored a religious group the right to peaceably assemble.

President Trump's speech on the National Mall

A powerful storm front postponed the speech and fireworks about 2 hours.  The Fox hosts did a valiant job of ad-libbing and singing and small talk, but eventually, a few minutes before midnight, the show went on.

https://www.youtube.com/live/6MgYQnkldTA?si=fjOsLF51lL85jCvK

The President honored many military--one even 107 years old. He spoke out against Communism, which is again rearing its ugly head.  100,000,000 dead in the 20th century, and most of its victims were its own citizens.  He honored Artemis II, with Astronaut Apollo 17 Jack Schmitt and Gold Star Families. 

On not dining in tents

On June 17 President Trump had dinner with President Emmanuel Macron at the Palace of Versailles. Democrats probably would have preferred a tent as we do it in Washington.

Trump and Macron to dine together at Versailles after G7 summit | AP News

Dinner at Versailles, alpine air and an Iran agreement: How Trump made it through another G7 | CNN Politics

They can't help it.

The Trump and Xi summit

Although I understand the economics of the deal and why Trump is chatting it up with Xi, I haven't forgotten the millions of Chinese citizens that were killed by Xi's party, and the millions of baby girls who were aborted for years in China's one child policy. The various popular Communist ideologies by our own leftists--climate extremism, trans-whatever, racist hate, Covid lockdowns, pro-Palestinian riots, worship of big tech and big pharma, anti-Christian bias, all in the name of chaos, not a better life for Americans. Although we can see through the virtue signaling and complain about it, their leaders too know that it causes long term chaos even when the poorly educated 20 somethings grow up or move on to the next big thing. Some people believe this took off in 2008 with the recession and the election of Obama, but I retired in 2000.  Wokeism and the leftist ideologies were firmly in place in academe even if it was called something else like political correctness or multiculturalism.   

The nervous Nellies in the Republican party (written to them)

I expect Democrats to be hypocrite socialists and to be all prissy and shocked face at Trump's language, even though they feel entitled to cheer at the outcomes of sanctuary cities, putting our nation in peril with the results of their illegals invasion, maiming children, soaring costs of everything and marching for the assassination attempts (aka NoKings Day) on our president's life.

But I do draw the line at hearing that same shock and outrage about his language (on EASTER no less) from so-called Conservatives who have never really been his fans, but have reluctantly enjoyed his policy successes. Well, gosh and golly ladies, have you never been on a construction site, or in a bar or even a Buckeyes or NFL game? No one worries about language while worshiping those idols. Have you never felt shame at how your girlfriends carry on (often about each other) after a few glasses of wine or think it's cute to be a potty mouth in public just to impress someone? What a bunch of phonies! You didn't elect a Pope, you elected a President.

You knew going into this that the garbage truck he was driving during the campaign was full of political Dem SH*% and he would shed blood for doing it. You watched the Dems charge him with 34 felonies on a fake misdemeanor, and that 99% of the media were against him. Did you think this was a garden party?

You knew, you shaking in your boots conservatives, or should have, that for almost 50 years Iran was trying to destroy Israel and us and was supporting Hamas, Hezbollah and Houthis as proxies. Those navy and army and ground forces Trump is blowing up was paid for by Obama with our blessings. Obama got all this going by enabling their buildup of power, now able to reach us here. Obama, btw, stayed at war for 8 years, and you're getting puny and sickly after 4 weeks?

Do you want to go back to being fired for your pronouns and having your churches closed because Trump's got bad language when talking about war? Gracious, put on your big girl pants and stop being such cry babies. Yes, you Conservatives. Democrats are lost. Now get back on the horse and stop slipping off on the left side.

The State of the Union, February 24, 2026

Can't believe we watched the whole thing--the SOTU--one hour and 48 minutes (I can hardly stand for 10 minutes). Even Spectrum Cable early news today led with the beating up of the few Democrats that showed up, and not the important news of Trump's successes. Usually, it is a rather bland and middle of the road source, good for weather, but the lead matters whether in print, video or audio. Every news program, writer, essayist, dramatist and entertainer has a bias, but please be a bit more subtle and remember who pays your salaries. You are a capitalist.

I have a 2" x 3" 60 p. "The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States of America" on the desk behind me. I just read it--very short and sweet put together by a genius class from the past. Democrats were absolutely wrong in not agreeing that their responsibility is to represent the citizens of the U,S, and not foreign and alien peoples, criminals and agents of other nations. But not a one of them would stand when the President asked them who they represented. Shocking. Outrageous. But completely in character by the (no longer) fringe element of their party. Their hatred for Donald Trump is being manipulated to destroy the Constitution and everything it says.

Affordability and inflation

I'm not sure why anyone thought that if Trump stopped the rampant inflation that things would actually go backwards. We crunched numbers when we sold our home in September which we bought in 2001 and based on 2 decades of inflation and all our improvements and repairs, we lost money. Yes, prices were up, but it just wasn't a recent thing.

 
The Biden era inflation was real--I saw food increase 40% on items I was accustomed to buying. I didn't buy a house or a car or fancy clothes, so I can't speak to that. Those grocery prices have not increased under Trump but they haven't gone down either, and I don't think they will.

 
Also real was the Covid shut down of the economy and throwing money at people who could have been working but weren't. Both parties (remember PPP--that was Trump) were responsible for the irresponsible throwing free money at people who wanted to be at work. It also created the ripe fraud atmosphere such as we have now in Minnesota and California, but which probably is robbing us all.

My advice is the same as it was 25 years ago. If prices are too high and you don't feel rich, stop eating out, taking destination vacations, buying clothes you don't need, and give up those manicures. Maybe someday if you work hard and save like your grandparents did, you'll live like they do,

Finally, know that Democrats will scream no matter what. Don't listen to their complaints. They are sliding into the Communist mind set of their fringe. They hate Trump (and their fringe are using that mental state against them) and if he could walk on water they would complain he can't swim.

Diane's question about Presidents Obama and Trump

"Here's a question for all of my Democrat/liberal friends who are decrying the US capture of Maduro in Venezuela. What’s the difference between President Obama ordering US forces to enter a sovereign nation, without their permission, to intentionally kill Osama Bin Laden, who was under a US indictment (issued in 1998, under the Clinton administration) and President Trump ordering US forces to capture Nicolas Maduro—unharmed--to prosecute him under a US indictment for narcotrafficking issued in 2020? If you have a cogent answer other than “Orange Man Bad,”

I would be delighted to hear it.

Don't forget Manuel Noriega in Panama when George HW Bush ordered troops on the ground to capture him."

No fake civility from Trump for Rob Reiner

 This was written by Carl and appeared on Facebook comment.

"Trump issued a statement that did two things at once, and that’s what broke people. He acknowledged the tragedy, and he told the truth about who Rob Reiner was and how he lived. He didn’t sugarcoat it. He didn’t play the fake civility game. He didn’t suddenly pretend the last ten years never happened. People on the right wanted Trump to give them a pause button. A soft moment. Something they could hold up to the media and say, “See, we’re better people.” Not because it mattered, but because they’re tired. Tired of defending. Tired of being attacked. Tired of living in a constant political war they never signed up for. That exhaustion is real. But it’s also part of how we got here. For decades, many of us trusted institutions that didn’t deserve it. We believed in a two-party system that wasn’t real. We believed wars were necessary because officials said so. We believed men like Romney and McCain were opposition when they were just controlled alternatives. We went along to get along, and the country paid the price. Trump didn’t create this mess. We did, by falling asleep at the wheel. He forced us to wake up and see it. And when he speaks plainly, especially in moments where polite fiction would be easier, it makes people nervous. Not because it’s wrong, but because it removes the comfort blanket. It reminds us that this fight never pauses just because tragedy happens."

Affordable. We've heard this before about health care.

Although President Trump is best in his field as a business man, he's fast becoming a politician. The latest plug about cars being affordable if the government gets involved is a page out of Obama's book on affordable health care. Barack gave us neither affordable nor healthy and left it to others to write the gazillion rules and stab us in the back. With cars, remember what they did the last time to make them "green?" They destroyed the older non-green models so there were no used cars to be "affordable." Only the rich benefitted. What will they do now? Manufacturers are owned by investors, and although it always looks like they go along with whoever is in power, they need to dance with the one who brought them.

https://youtu.be/ZCPId-2CABs?si=nvfIOwpJ-8kAsPAEAsPAE

You got to dance with who brung you
Swing with who swung you
Don't be a fickle fool
You came here with a gal, who's always been your pal
Don't leave her for the first unattached girl, it just ain't cool

You got to dance with who brung you
Swing with who swung you
Life ain't no forty-yard dash
Be in it for the long run
In the long run you'll have more fun
If you dance with who brung you to the bash

I had a friend in Texas
He really had some style
He sang that good old Western Swing and drove 'em wild
Then a talent scout from Vegas said,
"Boy, play and sing this way"
And in one short year he was broke in L.A

You got to dance with who brung you
Swing with who swung you
Life ain't no forty-yard dash
Be in it for the long run
In the long run you'll have more fun
If you dance with who brung you to the bash

You gotta be real careful what you wish for
'Cause you just might get
The whole darn thing
Be sure what you want is really something you can use
Or you might wind up half dead
Just singing the Blues

You got to dance with who brung you
Swing with who swung you
Life ain't no forty-yard dash
Be in it for the long run
In the long run you'll have more fun
If you dance with who brung you to the bash (yeah)

Dance with who brung you to the bash (yeah)

The White House Ballroom

" . . . But the biggest White House remodel to date started in the 1940s. That's when President Harry S. Truman fully gutted and rebuilt the interior in response to concerns about severe structural damage. When the Trumans moved into the Executive Mansion in 1945, engineers warned them that the building was on the verge of collapse. His family relocated to temporary quarters nearby during construction, which took around three years.

 
Other presidents have directed smaller projects, like President Barack Obama. He adapted an existing tennis court so it could be used for basketball. In his second term, President Trump has already undertaken several projects — including an entirely remodeled Rose Garden. That feature was first added by First Lady Edith Wilson in 1913 and updated to its most iconic form during the Kennedy administration." (WPTZ)

And here's what Teddy Roosevelt did to it.  https://www.whitehousehistory.org/theodore-roosevelts-white-house?  

And because of the hissy fits, the WH put out a complete list.  https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/10/white-house-ballroom-proud-presidential-legacy/?   

Let's face it, folks, If President Trump had regrouted the bathroom tile, the Demikratz would have been screeching because this is about hate, not remodeling, not even money, They stomp on the unborn, mutilate children, import sex slaves, allow thousands to be poisoned by drugs, ignore terrorists crossing our borders, and elected an auto-pen to lead us. Do you really think they are bothered by some bricks and mortar?

Market Outlook, October 2025

 From our broker's report. "U.S. stocks extended their rally into the third quarter, led by strong recoveries in technology, consumer discretionary, and communication services-sectors previously pressured by tariff concerns. The S&P 500 has surged over 30% since the April 8th low, highlighting the resilience of markets and investor confidence amid ongoing uncertainties like tariffs, Federal Reserve scrutiny, cooling consumer spending, softening job growth, and the recent government shutdown.  Despite volatility, our strategy remains anchored in broad diversification, deliberately avoiding overconcentration in any one sector or stock, while hedging against inflation and stagflation risks."

Then says Yahoo. S&P 500 INDEX (^SPX) Historical Data - Yahoo Finance

Then says U.S. Bank:  "President Donald Trump has prioritized domestic manufacturing while extending key tax cuts from the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, leading investors to question the stock market’s direction. After the inauguration, President Trump announced and implemented numerous tariffs, causing the S&P 500 to drop nearly 20% in just seven weeks. However, the market rebounded strongly; after reaching its lowest point of 2025 on April 7, the S&P 500 has surged more than 34% and remains near all time high."  Stock Market Under the Trump Administration | U.S. Bank.

IVF and ART

"As Ari Schulman, editor of the New Atlantis, noted on X, “Cancer screening prevents disease by helping the patient live. Embryo screening prevents disease by killing the patient.” (The rise of consumer eugenics by Emma Waters, The World)

We're living in a society that discards imperfect or inconvenient humans, particularly the unborn and the elderly. This will not end well. What's next? Create multiple embryos through IVF to develop and implant one embryo that will have no cavities, no dysphonia, no diabetes, no blonde hair or blue eyes and discard the others? IVF and ART (assisted reproductive technology) have provided a murky and muddled mix of political and medical policies in a culture that can't even define "what is a woman?"

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/eugenic-legacy-nobel-ivf/?

Catholic bishops criticize Trump’s IVF expansion: Every life is ‘sacred and loved by God’ | Catholic News Agency

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/trumps-ivf-announcement-was-the-final-blow-to-one-of-his-wildest-campaign-promises/ar-AA1OUkcy?

Fear of Covid is alive and well, except among politicians

Fear of Covid still lives. I have friends and relatives still getting the shot. Plus, many younger parents have developed a fear of useful, life-saving vaccines.

What stays with me is my bewilderment of how that pandemic and its results seem to have been forgotten by both political parties and all the institutions that were affected--particularly education and religion.

 
Donald Trump pushed too hard for a vaccine so he could be a hero, in my opinion, and he was at the starting gate of the closings and flinging money at us with CARES ( Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act), which corrupted and compromised every aspect of our culture. Fear of Covid put Biden in the White House (in my opinion) after he had previously castigated Trump's vaccine effort and promised he had a plan to stop the spread (he didn't; no one did). The people fell for that after being terrorized by the media which hated Trump with constant fake rates and numbers.

 
Then CARES + Biden turned out to extend the closing of our economy with a crippling mandate which hardly touched the rich and powerful Democrats and got Republicans fired or cancelled. Covid cases soared so that by the end of 2021 the rate was higher than under Trump even with the vaccine. Biden buddies destroyed the economic gains made under Trump in his first term, but I think Trump moved too quickly with a science he didn't understand, then his advisors were blacklisted under Biden.

 
Both presidents fell for Dr. Fauci and his gain of function lies allowed him celebrity status. Both presidents ignored years of research on the mental health effects of locking people up and fell for the masking and distancing lies. IMO, the old folks should have stayed home and the kids should have been in school.

We're still paying for this, particularly the children who lost about 2 years of learning. Something like it but different could happen again. Where are the lessons learned?

BTW, do you know that Peter Daszak (who got the grant money from Fauci for the gain of function research in Wuhan) has a new gig on global health and is seeking donations? https://naturehealthglobal.org/nhg-signs-5-year-contract.../

Work on that, Republicans

I'm so tired of Republicans, conservatives, media mavens and "influencers" all twisted up in the Epstein files. You're being conned and the Trump haters are delighted.

 
They showed no interest in it during the Biden years, so right there is your clue. It's only being used to divide and you're falling for it again. I don't care if Tucker or Kirk or Kelly or Bannon or Bongino are chattering and unhappy. Get over it.

 
No president has ever had six months like the first half of 2025, and you are pouting on social media because your pet project wasn't solved? Pedophilia involving rich celebrities. There were thousands and thousands of women and girls trafficked for sex during Biden's open borders--work on that. Democrats are weeping and visiting those rapists in prison and complaining about their toilets and food. Give me a break! And Trump has put a stop to it by closing the border which everyone said couldn't be done. Every day in Africa's civil wars women and girls are raped, assaulted and kidnapped. Work on that! Every day our universities are getting foreign money to destroy the minds of young Americans. Work on that!. Every day hospitals are committing sexual mutilations and abortions. Work on that! There are still agencies, non-profits and colleges allowing men to beat up women in their sporting events. Work on that!

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/dan-bongino-back-at-work-as-trump-fumes-over-epstein-clash/

Tucker Carlson blames Pam Bondi for Donald Trump's Jeffrey Epstein backlash