{"id":75757,"date":"2019-12-15T20:36:40","date_gmt":"2019-12-16T01:36:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/?p=75757"},"modified":"2019-12-18T09:16:48","modified_gmt":"2019-12-18T14:16:48","slug":"the-daily-gouge-archive-friday-december-13th-2019","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/?p=75757","title":{"rendered":"The Daily Gouge Archive, Friday, December 13th, 2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>It&#8217;s Friday, December 13th, 2019&#8230;but before we begin, courtesy of Bill Meisen, one of the few Conservatives left in Portland, here&#8217;s the inaugural installment of the Tom Smykowski Memorial&#8230;<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/sDEL4Ty950Q?start=37&amp;end=39&amp;\" width=\"420\" height=\"235\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong>&#8230;segment, courtesy today of the latest prevarication peddled by an utter idiot, as&#8230;<\/strong><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"mb-6 xl:mb-10 leading-tight font-oswald font-medium\" style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2019\/12\/11\/joy-behar-new-jersey-shooters-white-nationalists\/\" class=\"broken_link\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><span style=\"color: #800000; text-decoration: underline;\">Joy Behar Implies New Jersey Shooters Were \u2018White Nationalists\u2019\u2026There\u2019s Just One Problem<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/h1>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/4cNXzuz6sAU?start=62\" width=\"420\" height=\"235\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong>The &#8220;one problem&#8221; cited in the headline above?\u00a0 The shooters were neither &#8220;White&#8221; nor &#8220;nationalists&#8221;; rather David Anderson and Francine Graham&#8230;<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/David-Anderson-and-Francine-Graham.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75576\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/David-Anderson-and-Francine-Graham.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"400\" height=\"266\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/David-Anderson-and-Francine-Graham.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/David-Anderson-and-Francine-Graham-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>&#8230;were members of the\u00a0Black Hebrew Israelite movement, the same group which harassed the Covington Kids in front of the Lincoln Memorial.\u00a0 And the bovine Behar wasn&#8217;t alone in her haste to inaccurately assign blame:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/asswipe.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75605\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/asswipe.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"400\" height=\"369\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/asswipe.png 400w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/asswipe-300x277.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>We understand complete nincompoops like Behar and Tlaib rashly jumping to incorrect and unfounded conclusions regarding the involvement of White nationalists,\u00a0<\/strong><strong>but one would expect Chris Christie to exercise more judgement before knowing the facts&#8230;his thoughts and prayers for the murdered detective notwithstanding.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Now, here&#8217;s <em>The Gouge<\/em>!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Since we&#8217;re on the subject of deranged Dimocrats (do they come any <em><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">other<\/span><\/em> way?!?), we lead off the Friday the 13th edition with a real shocker:<\/strong><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"headline\" style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #333399;\"><a style=\"color: #333399;\" href=\"https:\/\/townhall.com\/tipsheet\/juliorosas\/2019\/12\/11\/another-house-democrat-says-they-are-open-to-impeaching-trump-again-if-he-wins-in-2020-n2557821\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Another House Democrat Says They Are Open to Impeaching Trump Again if He Wins In 2020<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/h1>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/bassackwards.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75581\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/bassackwards.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"400\" height=\"211\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/bassackwards.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/bassackwards-300x158.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">&#8220;<span style=\"color: #333399;\"><strong>Rep. Karen Bass (D-CA) revealed House Democrats are open to impeaching President Trump <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>again<\/em><\/span> if he wins the presidential election in <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>2020<\/em><\/span>.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">&#8230;<strong><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">&#8220;So, you know, <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>yes<\/em><\/span>, but <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>I don&#8217;t think it would be exactly the same<\/em><\/span> and here&#8217;s why: Because even though we are impeaching him now, <em>there&#8217;s still a number of court cases, <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">there&#8217;s a ton of information that could come forward<\/span><\/em>.<\/span> <span style=\"color: #333399;\">For example, <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>we could get his bank records<\/em><\/span> and <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>find out that&#8217;s he&#8217;s owned a 100 percent by the Russians<\/em><\/span>,&#8221; Bass said.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">&#8220;So you are absolutely right in your scenario, but the only thing I would say&#8230;is <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>it might not be the same articles of impeachment because the odds are we&#8217;d have a ton more information<\/em><\/span>,&#8221; she continued.<\/span> <span style=\"color: #333399;\">&#8220;And then the odds of that, sadly enough, you know, <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>he has other examples of criminal behavior<\/em><\/span>.&#8221;<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">Bass is not the first House Democrat to say they will continue with impeachment if Trump wins a second term.<\/span>\u00a0<span style=\"text-decoration: underline; color: #0000ff;\"><em><a style=\"color: #0000ff; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/townhall.com\/tipsheet\/juliorosas\/2019\/12\/05\/house-democrat-gives-the-game-away-no-limit-to-the-number-of-times-we-will-try-to-impeach-trump-n2557544\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Rep. Al Green (D-TX) said<\/a><\/em><\/span>\u00a0<span style=\"color: #333399;\">there &#8220;<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>is no limit<\/em><\/span><em> on the number on the times the Senate can vote to convict or not a president<\/em>.<\/span> <span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>No limit<\/em><\/span><em> to the number of times a House can vote to impeach or not a president<\/em>,&#8221; adding he believes Speaker of the House <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Nancy Pelosi will continue with more investigations into Trump<\/em><\/span><\/span><\/strong>&#8230;&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Thus does life once again imitate art, as the Dimocrats&#8217; view of their ability to conduct continuous impeachment inquiries is something out of <em>Caddyshack<\/em><\/strong><strong>:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Gf3QIkQRGtI?start=115&amp;end=118&amp;\" width=\"420\" height=\"235\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong>Here&#8217;s the juice:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/fGoekw7e-3U?start=120&amp;end=124&amp;\" width=\"420\" height=\"235\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong>&#8230;an impeachment machine.\u00a0 Like the Terminator, the Dimocratic Party is out there:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/ZKbZMIP4XUE?start=89&amp;end=102&amp;\" width=\"420\" height=\"235\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong>&#8230;until Donald Trump has been hounded from office!!!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Which is precisely what <\/strong><strong>Jim Jordan&#8217;s must-see summation of the entire three-year witch hunt highlights:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/cuUsX0crxkc\" width=\"420\" height=\"235\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong>Meanwhile, Pelosi and company have sown the wind, and Dimocrats in districts less secure than those of Bass and Green, such as Abigail Spanberger in Dave Brat&#8217;s old stompin&#8217; grounds, are already reaping the whirlwind:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/YskP0WRZd38\" width=\"420\" height=\"235\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong>Next up, we offer several of the more informative and insightful articles we&#8217;ve read on what the IG report <em><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">does<\/span><\/em> and <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>doesn&#8217;t<\/em><\/span> say.\u00a0 First,\u00a0<em>Townhall.com<\/em>&#8216;s Guy Benson relays the observations of one of the last honest reporters on the planet:<\/strong><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"headline\" style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/townhall.com\/tipsheet\/guybenson\/2019\/12\/11\/lefty-writer-the-ig-report-is-damning-for-the-fbi-adam-schiff-and-much-of-the-media-n2557826\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><span style=\"color: #ff0000; text-decoration: underline;\">Lefty Writer: Let&#8217;s Face It, the IG Report Is Damning for the FBI, Adam Schiff, and Much of the Media<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/h1>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/ELindhnUEAAgyxU.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75623\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/ELindhnUEAAgyxU.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"400\" height=\"369\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/ELindhnUEAAgyxU.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/ELindhnUEAAgyxU-300x277.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Second, again courtesy of\u00a0<em>Townhall.com<\/em>, Matt Vespa relays a Twitter volley from Kim Strassel:<\/strong><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"headline\" style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/townhall.com\/tipsheet\/mattvespa\/2019\/12\/11\/wsj-columnist-dissects-the-doj-ig-report-and-finds-it-really-blows-up-adam-schiff-n2557709\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff; text-decoration: underline;\">WSJ Columnist Dissects the DOJ IG Report and Finds It Really Blows Up Adam Schiff&#8217;s FISA Memo<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/h1>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/hot-air-dt-600b.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75627\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/hot-air-dt-600b.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"400\" height=\"286\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/hot-air-dt-600b.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/hot-air-dt-600b-300x215.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong>Last, and certainly not least, courtesy of the <em>WSJ<\/em>, Dan Henninger reminds us&#8230;<\/strong><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"wsj-article-headline\" style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/what-horowitz-actually-debunked-11576107645?mod=opinion_lead_pos8\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><span style=\"color: #800080; text-decoration: underline;\">What Horowitz Actually Debunked<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/h1>\n<h3 class=\"sub-head\" style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><a style=\"color: #ff6600;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/what-horowitz-actually-debunked-11576107645?mod=opinion_lead_pos8\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">The report refers 19 times to Crossfire Hurricane\u2019s threat to \u2018constitutionally protected activity,\u2019 including the First Amendment<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/h3>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Image-12-11-19-at-9.32-AM-1.jpeg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75640\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Image-12-11-19-at-9.32-AM-1.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"400\" height=\"357\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Image-12-11-19-at-9.32-AM-1.jpeg 400w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Image-12-11-19-at-9.32-AM-1-300x268.jpeg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">&#8220;&#8230;<span style=\"color: #800080;\"><strong><em><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Christopher Steele\u2019s primary FBI handler<\/span> even told the Horowitz investigators \u201cit was <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">obvious to him<\/span>\u201d\u2014<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">as early as July 2016<\/span>\u2014that the producer of the famous anti-Trump dossiers \u201c<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">was politically motivated<\/span>.<\/em>\u201d<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\"><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">True, Mr. Horowitz asserted no \u201cdocumentary or testimonial evidence\u201d of anti-Trump bias inside the borders of this investigation.<\/span> <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>But one has to be obtuse to read this report and not see its authors are incredulous at the idea that the only explanation possible is incompetence and misjudgment on an unimaginable scale by trained FBI professionals<\/em><\/span>. <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">As Mr. Horowitz puts it <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>with almost bemused understatement<\/em><\/span>, \u201c<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>We did not receive satisfactory explanations for the errors or problems we identified<\/em><\/span>.\u201d<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\"><strong><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>As it did with the Mueller report<\/em><\/span>, the media is <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>abandoning the actual content<\/em><\/span> to push the public\u2019s attention toward <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Attorney General William Barr\u2019s \u201cdisagreements\u201d with Mr. Horowitz<\/em><\/span>. <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">This is <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>a sham<\/em><\/span> issue, a <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>red herring<\/em><\/span>.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\"><strong>From reading this report, it is clear that what has had the attorney general in a seething white heat <em>has little to do with defending Donald J. Trump <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">and a lot to do with protecting John Q. Public<\/span><\/em>.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\"><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">The abuses identified in the Horowitz report\u2014by the Crossfire Hurricane team and others at FBI headquarters\u2014<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>are a potential threat to the civil liberties of any American who becomes a target<\/em><\/span>.<\/span> In a better world than we\u2019ve got now, <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>the press<\/em><\/span>\u2014or <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>some<\/em><\/span> of it\u2014<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>would step back from the Trump-Barr obsessions and revisit its historic role of protecting individual freedoms from such raw, unaccountable government power<\/em><\/span>. <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">The Horowitz report contains at least <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>19 references<\/em><\/span> to the <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>status quo\u2019s threat to \u201cconstitutionally protected activity<\/em><\/span>,\u201d <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>notably<\/em><\/span> the \u201c<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>First Amendment<\/em><\/span>.\u201d<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The report has several references to the Justice Department\u2019s \u201clow threshold\u201d for commencing inquiries. Surely that low threshold was intended to give agents the room to get to the bottom of important investigations.<\/span><strong> This report makes clear that <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>under its recent leadership<\/em><\/span>, the bureau <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>lost the ability to exercise prudential judgment or prosecutorial discretion<\/em><\/span>. <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">The consequence going forward is likely to be an <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>even more bureaucratized FBI<\/em><\/span>.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\"><strong>What we\u2019ve had <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>for more than three years<\/em><\/span> is the <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Washington establishment gone wild<\/em><\/span>. <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">For <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>that<\/em><\/span>, <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>the country<\/em><\/span> will pay a <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>high price<\/em><\/span> for [a] <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>very long time<\/em><\/span>.<\/span><\/strong><\/span>&#8220;<\/p>\n<p><strong>For those a little slow on the uptake&#8230;or blinded by NeverTrump fever&#8230;Idaho&#8217;s Mike Crapo gets to the heart of the IG&#8217;s findings in less than a minute:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/T2OmuVbtGRo?start=390&amp;end=447&amp;\" width=\"420\" height=\"235\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong>Also, before we forget, it&#8217;s worth remembering, as <span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><a style=\"color: #0000ff;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.breitbart.com\/politics\/2019\/12\/09\/nadler-failed-to-swear-in-witnesses-at-judiciary-impeachment-hearings\/\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Breitbart&#8217;s Joel Pollak<\/em><em>\u00a0reminded us a few days back<\/em><\/span><\/a><\/span>, why Jerry Nadler conveniently chose <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>not to swear in<\/em><\/span> two his last two witnesses during the House Judiciary hearings:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">&#8220;&#8230;<span style=\"color: #800080;\"><strong>Both Democrat counsel Barry Berke and Republican Counsel Stephen Castor delivered opening statements. Berke in particular made several factual assertions \u2014 <em>many of which were <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">dubious at best<\/span>, and <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">outright false at worst<\/span><\/em>.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">&#8230;<\/span><strong>Nadler\u2019s failure to swear in the witnesses <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>was significant<\/em><\/span> because <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>it allowed the counsels to make claims without fear of perjuring themselves<\/em><\/span>.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\"><strong>It was also significant for another reason: when Republicans raised a point of order, objecting to Berke impugning the president\u2019s motives, which is forbidden under House rules, Nadler ruled that the point of order was invalid because Berke was not a witness.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\"><strong>Later, Nadler described Berke and Castor as witnesses, prompting Republican objections that he had contradicted himself.<\/strong><\/span>&#8220;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Speaking of those who consistently contradict themselves, <em>NRO<\/em>&#8216;s\u00a0<\/strong><strong>Kevin Williamson shines the harsh light of reason and fact on&#8230;<\/strong><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"article-header__title\" style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalreview.com\/2019\/12\/fbi-corruption-how-dirty-cops-spied-on-trump-campaign\/\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><span style=\"color: #ff6600; text-decoration: underline;\">The FBI\u2019s Corrupt Cops<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/h1>\n<h3 class=\"article-header__title\" style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span class=\"article-header__subtitle\" style=\"color: #800080;\"><a style=\"color: #800080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalreview.com\/2019\/12\/fbi-corruption-how-dirty-cops-spied-on-trump-campaign\/\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">The falsified documents and the many errors all disadvantaged one side. That\u2019s not bias<\/span><\/a>?<\/span><\/h3>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/3ja3w3.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75618\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/3ja3w3.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"400\" height=\"301\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/3ja3w3.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/3ja3w3-300x226.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span class=\"drop\">&#8220;<span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><strong>W<\/strong><\/span><\/span><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><strong>hite-collar criminals should hope for one thing this Christmas: that <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>they<\/em><\/span> get to live under the Horowitz rules.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><strong><span style=\"color: #800080;\">Michael Horowitz has testified that he <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>found no evidence of political bias<\/em><\/span> on the part of the decision makers who, under the Obama administration, relied on hilariously implausible \u201cevidence\u201d and\u00a0<span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em><a style=\"color: #0000ff; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcnews.com\/politics\/justice-department\/ig-report-shows-way-fbi-gets-warrants-spy-americans-mess-n1098666\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">falsified evidence of their own<\/a><\/em><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>in order to launch a federal investigation of the Trump campaign.<\/span> Rather than <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>political bias<\/em><\/span>, Horowitz says, the investigation uncovered a series of \u201c<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>basic and fundamental\u201d errors<\/em><\/span>. <span style=\"color: #800080;\">Democrats are cheering that aspect of the report, because they believe that Horowitz\u2019s words can be used to silence charges that the investigation of the Trump campaign was, as the president charges, part of a politically inspired \u201cwitch hunt.\u201d<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><strong>Here\u2019s Horowitz in his <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>own words<\/em><\/span>:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><p><span style=\"color: #800080;\"><strong><em>Errors were made by three <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">separate<\/span>, <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">hand-picked<\/span> investigative teams; <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">on one of the most sensitive FBI investigations<\/span>; <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">after the matter had been briefed to the highest levels within the FBI<\/span>; <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">even though the information sought through the use of FISA authority related so closely to an ongoing presidential campaign<\/span>; and even though <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">those involved with the investigation knew that their actions were likely to be subjected to close scrutiny<\/span>.<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><strong>No <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>bias<\/em><\/span>, just <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>honest incompetence<\/em><\/span>. <span style=\"color: #800080;\">Or <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>so we are expected to believe<\/em><\/span>.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><strong>Imagine an investigation of <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>racial bias in a bank<\/em><\/span>, with investigators discovering <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>a long series of serious errors and departures from ordinary standards and practices, violations of business norms, etc., not by a single loan officer but by three separate business units overseen by the highest levels of management<\/em><\/span> \u2014 with <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>all<\/em><\/span> of those errors <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>disadvantaging African-American mortgage borrowers<\/em><\/span>. <span style=\"color: #800080;\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Would we need texts and emails documenting active racial bias on the part of the bankers to conclude that there was racial bias at play<\/em><\/span>?<\/span> If we found that a <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>police department<\/em><\/span> had violated its own standards on a regular basis in its treatment of African-American suspects <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>but uncovered no texts or emails documenting racial intent<\/em><\/span>, would we be <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>satisfied that no racial bias existed<\/em><\/span>?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\"><strong><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Of course not<\/em><\/span>.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><strong>And, in the case of the <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Obama<\/em><\/span> administration, <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>using investigative agencies as political weapons fits a well-established pattern of behavior<\/em><\/span><\/strong><span style=\"color: #000000;\">&#8230;<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">&#8230;<\/span><strong><span style=\"color: #800080;\">In a free society, <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>there is very little that is as dangerous as a corrupt cop<\/em><\/span>.<\/span> The <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>FBI<\/em><\/span> under the <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Obama<\/em><\/span> administration <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>falsified documents in order to get legal permission to spy on a Republican presidential campaign<\/em><\/span>. <span style=\"color: #800080;\">But there was <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>no \u201cbias<\/em><\/span>.\u201d<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Only corruption<\/em><\/span>.<\/strong><\/span>&#8220;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Corruption which has one, central source:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/D21rNPsUYAEcvNC.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75607\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/D21rNPsUYAEcvNC.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"400\" height=\"333\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/D21rNPsUYAEcvNC.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/D21rNPsUYAEcvNC-300x250.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>For <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>once<\/em><\/span>, the former Narcissist-in-Chief <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>is right<\/em><\/span>: it <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>IS<\/em><\/span> all about <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>him<\/em><\/span>!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Put another way<\/strong><strong>&#8230;<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/xvqtrhjsghQ?start=1&amp;end=3&amp;\" width=\"400\" height=\"235\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong>In THIS case, LOTS of someones.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>In a related item, you can catch Kim&#8217;s latest column on <em>The FBI&#8217;s Fusion Fiasco<\/em>\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/the-fbis-fusion-fiasco-11576195213?mod=opinion_lead_pos9\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline; color: #0000ff;\"><em>here<\/em><\/span><\/a>.\u00a0 As she notes, one heretofore overlooked aspect of the Dimocratic conspiracy to overthrow the results of a lawful election has long been overlooked.\u00a0 To wit:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">&#8220;<span style=\"color: #800080;\"><strong>Now Mr. Horowitz has exposed the many fictions. <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">His report notes that Mr. Steele was hired <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>from the start<\/em><\/span> to find Trump-Russia collusion.<\/span> Mr. Steele told the inspector general that Mr. Simpson asked him <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>in May 2016<\/em><\/span> to determine \u201c<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>whether there were any ties between the Russian government and Trump and his campaign<\/em><\/span>\u201d and \u201c<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>whether Russia was trying to achieve a particular election outcome<\/em><\/span>.\u201d <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>The timing is notable<\/em><\/span>: <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Mr. Simpson<\/em><em> was talking about collusion<\/em><\/span> months <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>before the FBI was<\/em><\/span>\u2014and <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>even before Mr. Steele reported it to him<\/em><\/span>.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\"><strong>The <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>report notes<\/em><\/span> that <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>the FBI didn\u2019t bother to confirm any of Mr. Steele\u2019s explosive claims before presenting them to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court in October 2016 as a reason to surveil Mr. Page<\/em><\/span>. <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">The bureau <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>also assured the court<\/em><\/span> that <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Mr. Steele was a \u201creliable\u201d source<\/em><\/span>, whose <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>prior reporting had been \u201ccorroborated and used in criminal proceedings<\/em><\/span>.\u201d<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\"><strong>Yet <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>even as the FBI prepared the warrant application<\/em><\/span>, its \u201c<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>reliable\u201d source was working with Mr. Simpson to turn their FBI plant into political gold<\/em><\/span>\u2014<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>briefing reporters, trying to gin up an October surprise against Mr. Trump<\/em><\/span>. <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">The <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>inspector general\u2019s<\/em> <em>report<\/em><\/span> says <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Mr. Steele grew frustrated that \u201cthe U.S. government had not announced that the FBI was investigating\u201d the candidate<\/em><\/span>.<\/span> So <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>on Oct. 31 he outed himself and the FBI\u2019s \u201csubstantial inquiry\u201d in a Mother Jones interview<\/em><\/span>. <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">The <em><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">inspector general\u2019s report<\/span><\/em> says <em>Mr. Simpson described this as his \u201c<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Hail Mary attempt<\/span><\/em>.\u201d<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\"><strong>Only <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>after<\/em><\/span> Mr. Steele <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>exposed the FBI\u2019s investigation<\/em><\/span> did the bureau <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>fire him and begin its overdue diligence<\/em><\/span>. <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">In <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>November and December 2016<\/em><\/span>, the FBI sent teams <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>to talk with people who\u2019d worked with Mr. Steele professionally<\/em><\/span>.<\/span> They were told <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>he\u2019d held only a \u201cmoderately senior\u201d position at MI6<\/em><\/span> and that <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>he \u201cdemonstrates lack of self-awareness,<\/em><\/span>\u201d was \u201c<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>prone to rash judgments<\/em><\/span>,\u201d and \u201c<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>didn\u2019t always exercise great judgment<\/em><\/span>.\u201d <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">Former FBI agent <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Peter Strzok<\/em><\/span> acknowledged that <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Mr. Steele was the type to \u201cfollow the shiny object<\/em><\/span>.\u201d<\/span> <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Just the sort of guy you\u2019d trust to dig up accusations of treason against a presidential nominee<\/em><\/span>.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\"><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">A source-validation review found that <em>Mr. Steele\u2019s prior work <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">had only ever been \u201cminimally corroborated<\/span>\u201d and <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">never used in a criminal proceeding<\/span><\/em>.<\/span><span style=\"color: #008000;\">\u00a0(<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Oops!<\/em><\/span>)<\/span> The FBI discovered <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>its guy worked for an attorney who represented a Russian oligarch<\/em><\/span>. <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">It tracked down the supersleuth\u2019s sources, <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>in particular his primary source who provided the allegations against Mr. Page in the FISA application<\/em><\/span>.<\/span> This <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>primary source<\/em><\/span> said \u201c<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>he\/she never expected\u201d Mr. Steele to present their discussions as \u201cfacts\u201d since there was \u201cno proof\u201d and it was \u201chearsay,\u201d the kind of \u201cconversation that [he\/she] had with friends over beers<\/em><\/span>.\u201d <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>The source<\/em><\/span> said that Mr. Steele had <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>in any event<\/em><\/span> \u201c<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>misstated or exaggerated\u201d statements and the source\u2019s access to Russian officials<\/em><\/span>.&#8221;<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\"><strong>The Justice Department was <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>similarly unimpressed<\/em><\/span> with Fusion\u2019s work product. <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">Official Bruce Ohr told the inspector general that Mr. Simpson over the years would call with tips on Russian crime figures, <em>but since most of it didn\u2019t prove \u201cactionable<\/em>,\u201d<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em> he \u201cdid not do anything with it and did not try to introduce Simpson to the FBI<\/em><\/span>.\u201d<\/span> <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Ouch<\/em><\/span>.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\"><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">With <em><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">quality like this<\/span><\/em>, it\u2019s <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>no wonder<\/em><\/span> the FBI\u2019s strenuous efforts <em><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">to corroborate the dossier proved a bust<\/span><\/em>\u2014as the <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>inspector general has confirmed<\/em><\/span>.<\/span> <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>None<\/em><\/span> of the allegations provided to the FISA court <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>were validated<\/em><\/span>. <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Others<\/em><\/span>\u2014such as Trump attorney Michael Cohen\u2019s alleged trip to Prague\u2014<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>were proved \u201cnot true<\/em><\/span>.\u201d<\/span> <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Overall<\/em><\/span>, \u201cthe limited information that was corroborated related to time, location, and title information, <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>much of which was publicly available<\/em><\/span>.\u201d <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">The dossier <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>did<\/em><\/span> at least get Carter Page\u2019s <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>job description<\/em><\/span> right<\/span><\/strong><\/span>&#8230;&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/3jb3vs.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75677\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/3jb3vs.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"400\" height=\"224\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/3jb3vs.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/3jb3vs-300x168.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Directly to the Dimocrats&#8217; altogether ill-advised impeachment proceedings.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Since we&#8217;re on the subject of mindless myrmidons, in today&#8217;s installment of the <span style=\"color: #008000;\"><em>EnvironMental Moment<\/em><\/span>,\u00a0<em>NRO<\/em>&#8216;s David Harsanyi notes how&#8230;<\/strong><\/p>\n<h1 class=\"article-header__title\" style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalreview.com\/2019\/12\/greta-thunberg-is-the-perfect-hero-for-an-unserious-time\/\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline; color: #008000;\">Greta Thunberg Is the Perfect Hero for an Unserious Time<\/span><\/a><\/h1>\n<h3 style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #003300;\"><a style=\"color: #003300;\" href=\"http:\/\/Histrionic, beset by apocalyptic fantasies, and easily exploitable Who better than a finger-wagging teen bereft of accomplishment, or any comprehension of basic economics or history, to be Time magazine\u2019s Person of the Year in 2019? Greta Thunberg\u2019s canonization is a perfect expression of media activism in a deeply unserious time. Has there ever been a less consequential person picked to be Person of the Year? I doubt it. I mean, Wallis Simpson, 1936\u2019s Person of the Year, got King Edward VIII to abdicate the throne. Thunberg can\u2019t even get you to abdicate your air-conditioning. These days we celebrate vacuous fire and brimstone. \u201cGreta Thunberg\u201d \u2014 the idea, not the girl \u2014 is concoction of activists who have increasingly taken to using children as a shield from critical analysis or debate. She\u2019s the vessel of the environmentalist\u2019s fraudulent apocalypticism-as-argument. Her style is emotion and indignation, histrionics and fantasy. She is a teenager, after all. How dare you attack a poor defenseless child who suffers from Asperger syndrome! You\u2019ll notice that, on one hand, Thunberg\u2019s champions demand that the world take her Malthusian crusade seriously, and on the other, they feign indignation when you actually do. The argument that young people, because they will inherit the future, are also best equipped to comprehend it is as puerile as any of Greta\u2019s positions.\"><span class=\"article-header__subtitle\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Histrionic, beset by apocalyptic fantasies, and easily exploitable<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/greta-thunberg.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75597\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/greta-thunberg.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"400\" height=\"233\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/greta-thunberg.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/greta-thunberg-300x175.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span class=\"drop\">&#8220;<span style=\"color: #008000;\"><strong>W<\/strong><\/span><\/span><span style=\"color: #008000;\"><strong>ho better than <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>a finger-wagging teen bereft of accomplishment, or any comprehension of basic economics or history<\/em><\/span>, to be\u00a0<em>Time<\/em>\u00a0magazine\u2019s Person of the Year in 2019? <span style=\"color: #003300;\">Greta Thunberg\u2019s canonization is <em>a <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">perfect expression<\/span> of <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">media activism<\/span> in a <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">deeply unserious time<\/span><\/em>.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #008000;\"><strong>Has there <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>ever been<\/em><\/span> a <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>less consequential<\/em><\/span> person picked to be Person of the Year? <span style=\"color: #003300;\">I doubt it.<\/span> I mean, Wallis Simpson, 1936\u2019s Person of the Year, got King Edward VIII to abdicate the throne. <span style=\"color: #003300;\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Thunberg can\u2019t even get you to abdicate your air-conditioning<\/em><\/span>.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #008000;\"><strong>These days we celebrate vacuous fire and brimstone. <span style=\"color: #003300;\">\u201cGreta Thunberg\u201d \u2014 the idea, not the girl \u2014 <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>is [a] concoction of activists who have increasingly taken to using children as a shield from critical analysis or debate<\/em><\/span>.<\/span> She\u2019s the vessel of the environmentalist\u2019s fraudulent apocalypticism-as-argument. <span style=\"color: #003300;\">Her style is emotion and indignation, histrionics and fantasy.<\/span> She <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>is<\/em><\/span> a <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>teenager<\/em><\/span>, after all.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #003300;\"><strong><em>How <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">dare<\/span> you attack a poor defenseless child who suffers from Asperger syndrome!<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #008000;\"><strong>You\u2019ll notice that, <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>on one hand<\/em><\/span>, Thunberg\u2019s champions <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>demand that the world take her Malthusian crusade seriously<\/em><\/span>, and <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>on the other<\/em><\/span>, they <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>feign indignation when you actually do<\/em><\/span>. <span style=\"color: #003300;\">The argument that young people, because they will inherit the future, are also best equipped to comprehend it <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>is as puerile as any of Greta\u2019s positions<\/em><\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/span>&#8230;&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><strong>This is akin to a once-great sports magazine naming a radical, America-bashing lesbian Trump-hater Sports&#8221;woman&#8221; of the year.\u00a0 It&#8217;s the triumph of mindless political-correctness over truth.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Which brings us, appropriately enough, to\u00a0<em>The Lighter Side<\/em>:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/afb120919dAPR20191209054506.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75598\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/afb120919dAPR20191209054506.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"462\" height=\"330\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/afb120919dAPR20191209054506.jpg 462w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/afb120919dAPR20191209054506-300x214.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 462px) 100vw, 462px\" \/><\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/impeachment.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75599\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/impeachment.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"462\" height=\"295\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/impeachment.png 462w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/impeachment-300x192.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 462px) 100vw, 462px\" \/><\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/lisa-1.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75645\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/lisa-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"462\" height=\"303\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/lisa-1.png 462w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/lisa-1-300x197.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 462px) 100vw, 462px\" \/><\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/impetuous.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75600\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/impetuous.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"462\" height=\"297\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/impetuous.png 462w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/impetuous-300x193.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 462px) 100vw, 462px\" \/><\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/gorrell-3.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75601\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/gorrell-3.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"462\" height=\"313\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/gorrell-3.png 462w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/gorrell-3-300x203.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 462px) 100vw, 462px\" \/><\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/mle191211c20191210112908.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75602\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/mle191211c20191210112908.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"462\" height=\"323\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/mle191211c20191210112908.jpg 462w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/mle191211c20191210112908-300x210.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 462px) 100vw, 462px\" \/><\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/afghanistan.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75603\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/afghanistan.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"462\" height=\"335\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/afghanistan.png 462w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/afghanistan-300x218.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 462px) 100vw, 462px\" \/><\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Treasons-Greetings.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75642\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Treasons-Greetings.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"462\" height=\"414\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Treasons-Greetings.jpg 462w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Treasons-Greetings-300x269.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 462px) 100vw, 462px\" \/><\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Postal-Disservice.gif\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75643\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Postal-Disservice.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"462\" height=\"225\" \/><\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/things-a-little-tight.jpeg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75588\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/things-a-little-tight.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"462\" height=\"456\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/things-a-little-tight.jpeg 462w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/things-a-little-tight-300x296.jpeg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 462px) 100vw, 462px\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/damn-those-sober-kids.jpeg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75589\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/damn-those-sober-kids.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"462\" height=\"649\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/damn-those-sober-kids.jpeg 462w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/damn-those-sober-kids-214x300.jpeg 214w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 462px) 100vw, 462px\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/seems-legit.jpeg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75590\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/seems-legit.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"462\" height=\"423\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/seems-legit.jpeg 462w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/seems-legit-300x275.jpeg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 462px) 100vw, 462px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Finally, we&#8217;ll call it a week with yet another sordid story straight from the pages of <span style=\"color: #800000;\"><em>The Crime Blotter<\/em><\/span>, courtesy today of Breeze Gould and a sticky-fingered Keystone State politician:<\/strong><\/p>\n<h1 style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/neonnettle.com\/news\/9673-muslim-democrat-who-says-christian-prayer-is-offensive-arrested-for-charity-fraud\"><span style=\"color: #800000; text-decoration: underline;\">Muslim Democrat, Who Says Christian Prayer is Offensive, Arrested for Charity Fraud<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/h1>\n<h3 style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #008080;\"><a style=\"color: #008080;\" href=\"https:\/\/neonnettle.com\/news\/9673-muslim-democrat-who-says-christian-prayer-is-offensive-arrested-for-charity-fraud\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Pennsylvania state Rep. Movita Johnson-Harrell charged with stealing from children&#8217;s funds<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/3ja8id.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75625\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/3ja8id.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"400\" height=\"267\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/3ja8id.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/3ja8id-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">&#8220;&#8230;<span style=\"color: #008080;\"><strong><span style=\"color: #800000;\">Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro said in a statement <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Johnson-Harrell has been charged with theft, perjury, and tampering<\/em><\/span>.<\/span> Johnson-Harrell is accused of stealing money <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>from the charity she founded<\/em><\/span>, which was <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>meant<\/em><\/span> to help children and the homeless, and <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>spending the money on luxury travel and sports cars<\/em><\/span><\/strong><\/span>&#8230;&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Reports Ms. Movita is related to two of Baltimore&#8217;s last three mayors, as well as Elijah Cummings&#8217; widow,\u00a0<\/strong><strong>remain unconfirmed.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/BUT-WAIT-THERES-MORE-1.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-73532\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/BUT-WAIT-THERES-MORE-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"400\" height=\"179\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/BUT-WAIT-THERES-MORE-1.png 400w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/BUT-WAIT-THERES-MORE-1-300x134.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Turns out we have one more tale to tell, as we present for your perusal The Great Christmas Wrapping Paper Caper,\u00a0<\/strong><strong>a heart-warming holiday aside courtesy of the McKee Family equivalent of Curious George.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Our story begins when we recently returned home to find TLJ (aka, &#8220;Jenny&#8221;, &#8220;Jennifer Lynn&#8221; (primarily when she&#8217;s bought some unneeded-yet-expensive item of home decor) and\/or &#8220;Our Wife&#8221;) busily engaged wrapping presents in the kitchen.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>After she had gone upstairs, we happened to notice a small piece of gold-striped wrapping paper and scotch tape on the counter:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Exhibit-B.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75592\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Exhibit-B.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"400\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Exhibit-B.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Exhibit-B-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Our curiosity was piqued, as TLJ had been wrapping her gifts with a <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>different<\/em><\/span> paper, and the only present under the tree that\u00a0<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>matched<\/em><\/span> the fragment was our &#8220;big&#8221; gift to her this Christmas, which had been the <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>first<\/em><\/span>, and for the longest time, the <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>only<\/em><\/span>\u00a0present under the tree.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Picking up the present, we not only couldn&#8217;t find any tears where the fragment we found might fit, but discovered the <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>style<\/em><\/span> of wrapping and <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>tape<\/em><\/span>\u00a0used to seal it <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>didn&#8217;t match<\/em><\/span> what we remembered using.\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><strong>We confirmed our suspicions by comparing the tape from our office with the tape on the present (right and left respectively below):<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Exhibit-A.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75593\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Exhibit-A.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"400\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Exhibit-A.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Exhibit-A-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>When initially accused of such an egregious breach of Christmas etiquette, TLJ denied any involvement whatsoever in the incident.\u00a0 And even after we confronted her with the undeniable evidence of her deed, rather than admitting she suffered from PPOS (Premature Present-Opening Syndrome), she attempted to employ a variation of the classic <em>Slick-Willy Defense<\/em>: &#8220;I <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>tore open the paper<\/em><\/span> but <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>didn&#8217;t look at the present<\/em><\/span>&#8220;.\u00a0 Yeah&#8230;<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/yeahright-1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75671\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/yeahright-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"240\" height=\"184\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Only after minutes of intense interrogation&#8230;coupled with the threat of repeated waterboarding&#8230;did she admit she <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>has a problem<\/em><\/span>, confessing she&#8217;s in fact suffered from PPOS <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>for years<\/em><\/span>, and has long been aware of all our best efforts heretofore to conceal her gifts from prying eyes&#8230;<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Jenny-Keeping-a-Beautiful-Eye-on-Me.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-75674\" src=\"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Jenny-Keeping-a-Beautiful-Eye-on-Me.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"232\" height=\"309\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Jenny-Keeping-a-Beautiful-Eye-on-Me.jpg 232w, https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Jenny-Keeping-a-Beautiful-Eye-on-Me-225x300.jpg 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 232px) 100vw, 232px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>&#8230;however lovely they might be.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Thus, we&#8217;ve been forced to come to grips with the fact the advanced nature of her PPOS means even presents <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>wrapped<\/em><em> and under the tree<\/em><\/span>\u00a0aren&#8217;t safe from violation, though we must admit her uncontrollable urge to open and then rewrap her gifts has led to a marked increase in the quality of the wrapping.\u00a0 Guess our sole option henceforth is to keep TLJ&#8217;s presents in our gun safe, only placing them under the tree immediately prior to her awakening Christmas morning.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Anyhow, that&#8217;s our story&#8230;and we&#8217;re stickin&#8217; to it.\u00a0 Which reminds us: only 12 more shopping days until Christmas!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Magoo<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It&#8217;s Friday, December 13th, 2019&#8230;but before we begin, courtesy of Bill Meisen, one of the few Conservatives left in Portland, here&#8217;s the inaugural installment of the Tom Smykowski Memorial&#8230; \ufeff &#8230;segment, courtesy today of the latest prevarication peddled by an utter idiot, as&#8230; Joy Behar Implies New Jersey Shooters Were \u2018White Nationalists\u2019\u2026There\u2019s Just One Problem [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1988,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":"no","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-75757","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75757","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1988"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=75757"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75757\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":75888,"href":"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75757\/revisions\/75888"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=75757"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=75757"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=75757"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}