The MSM is saying 90,000 attended the Kirk memorial and 20 million watched – the reality looks like 200,000 attended (including the overflow) and as many as 100 million watched it live or streamed it via various platforms. It was a gigantic national event – Super Bowl in scope. And for a man who just…talked. I have to admit, I was deeply moved. If you didn’t choke up while Erika Kirk spoke then you simply aren’t human. Trump was, of course, Trump: he’ll never be what he isn’t. And while he seemed to drift at times into a typical Trump speech, he always came right back to the matter at hand: Charlie Kirk and the message of restoring America.
And how did the Left view it?
Well, over on Bluesky they started noting there are three k’s in Erika Kirk and they ran with that. They are some very sick people…pathetic. I do feel sorry for them. Sure, I know they have to be stopped…but to live your life like that, to give up any semblance of truth and beauty just so other twisted people will pretend to like you? I just don’t understand it. It is outside my experience and, indeed, my imagination. It is something I can’t really comprehend.
Pollsters who matter have started to notice a big shift in Party ID among respondents – one pollster has the American electorate at R +6. Maybe that will slip back a bit but I’m thinking it won’t – the Left at long last revealed itself for what it is over the past week: just hatred and lies. It doesn’t matter what high-minded phrasing they cook up, everyone knows they’re just lying…just hating. Just trying to latch on to power and wealth and justifying it by a bizarre (insane, really) belief that they are worthy of it all. This polling shift is being confirmed in the continued increase in GOP registration – the GOP, for instance, had a net gain of 3,000 in Pennsylvania last week. There is an even money chance that PA is a Red State by registration in time for 2028.
Vance really helped himself a lot – his speech was very impressive. While we will have a primary in 2028, it is probably Vance’s for the taking. He’d have to really blow it to fail…and then it will all come down to who is the Veep, with plenty now plugging for Gabbard. I think we all have some doubts about her on policy, but none of us doubt her deep patriotism. As I’m now fully entering into old age, I’ll leave that for the young to decide. I’ll back whomever they pick.
Can we still lose? Of course we can. We’re human. We’ll make our mistakes. Things may happen to derail the train…but with the Left exposed and the GOP shedding the last aspects of Corporate Establishment, I think our side has the edge…that we will prevail, and perhaps for a generation. And this will be Charlie’s monument…a future for his children.
Blogs For Victory 
Andrew Kolvet said on Fox yesterday that 277,000 devices (phones) pinged their receptors near the event as they were monitoring it. I was there, and I can honestly say I think it was more than that. I’ve never seen so many people in one place and I was so happy to see it. What really made me happy was seeing the people who you have never thought would be Faithful or a Trump supporter. I saw some of the most tattooed, ear pierced, long hair biker people with MAGA hats and Crosses on … heart warming. Also, the people behind us in line were from Los Angeles, another couple was from Vegas, one from Tucson, and St. George. They came from everywhere.
This event gave me cause to strengthen my Faith. When Erika spoke of the woman’s role in marriage it was beautiful, But when Erika spoke of the man’s role, it was clarity … “Men, be WORTH following”. That hit me right in the solar plex. My role in the family .,. Although my kids are grown and I have grandkids, is still to be the spiritual leader and to guide by example while watching over and protecting all of them from harm. I plan to recommit to that role.
Re: the Democrat Left, they have now proven to me what I always thought of them. Soulless people who virtue signal without any substance behind it, people who take and never give, people who judge and never understand, and people who lie repeatedly without shame. These people will never prevail as long as we stand strong in Faith and fight back. It is our responsibility to do that.
One last thing … I can’t help to think that Charlie was a messenger, maybe even a Prophet. And we witnessed it in our lifetime. I feel truly blessed.
And I failed to mention the most stirring part of the entire event:
”I forgive you” – Erika Kirk
The greatest display of Christian love that echoed around the world. Incredible. It was also wonderful to hear our nations leaders speak so boldly of their Christian Faith.
Here we are God; send us.
Hopefully by the time we need to consider a vice presidential candidate we will be back to looking at policy and less distracted by personality. Gabbard is great, in her lane, filling a need that has to be filled. I like her. But her core political philosophy is that of the Left, and it is scary to think that this might be overridden because she is pretty and articulate and charismatic. Next thing we know someone will be talking about Noem as a candidate.
We’ve got a serious president. We’ve got a serious vice president who looks like he might very well be the next president. We need to follow through on that with a serious vice president fully qualified to step up a level when called. One term of Trump is not going to get the job done. Eight years with Vance, will help cement the progress and lock it in, but we have to understand that this must be an unbroken sequence of serious competent leaders. Face it, we got lucky with Vance. He had no experience and had never been tested as a leader. He got chosen because he was a follower, but one with a lot of promise. He conveyed the impression that he could be a leader, and so far has not disappointed, though his leadership has not really been tested. The last thing we need to do is fall back into Identity Politics and start being distracted by the Next Shiny Thing.
We’ve got a solid, tested, leader in the wings, ready to step up. Someone with legislative experience, executive experience, a proven leader, decisive and competent, and with a military background no other candidate has or is likely to have. A Commander In Chief (or a vice president to a Commander in Chief) who has had the responsibility of making life and death decisions for people in combat should not be overlooked for a pretty face or a winning demeanor or skill at PR. (Thinking here of Noem in various costumes showing up in so many photos of raids, etc.)
Noem would be better than Gabbard, I’m sure – but the kids love Gabbard. We’ll have to see how it comes out! But the bottom line is that we do need 20 years of Trumpism to really cement the changes…after that long, even a spell of Democrats in power won’t be so bad because, like the GOP until Reagan, the only way a Dem will get in is by essentially conceding GOP policy. The current lunatic Left Dem party cannot, IMO, win – though, of course, if it does it will signal complete disaster for the USA. If after all this, an electoral majority goes Dem before the Dems actually change, then our country is done.
“better than Gabbard” is a low bar, and based solely on political philosophy. Factor in good judgment and Noem gets knocked out of the game. And we don’t really know much about Noem other than that dog-killing episode which transcends animal cruelty into a series of bad judgment calls poor impulse control and illustration of a variety of examples of sheer ignorance. She’s OK at what she is doing now. But we need to remember the Peter Principle, and I think she has pretty much topped out at her level of competence. She is the putative head of a large agency surrounded by competent decision makers where she can posture as Big Boss Lady but can’t get into too much trouble because she has a safety net around her. Let her be, let her get the glory and photo ops, and let her use this to segue into some cushy private sector job afterward but we need to stop with that breathless “OMG! S/HE SHOULD BE PRESIDENT !! fanboi stuff we have been seeing for years. For years I’ve been watching giddy swooning over every shiny new thing that has come down the pike, and never once heard any of it related to serious analysis of a serious Constitutional governance belief system.
I’ve done it, too. At one time I liked the idea of Noem as a VP candidate, for the optics. I don’t do that any more. Marco Rubio has done well since he started wearing his Big Boy Pants, and has impressed, but he is still not a Natural Born Citizen so can we just draw a line through his name on that list of possibles and move on?
The two people most qualified to cement that 20 years of Trumpism are Ron DeSantis and Ted Cruz. They are not flashy, they don’t ring any Identity Politics bells, but they are the only two I can think of with the kind of solid, proven history of competence and commitment to unvarnished Constitutional governance that I find essential.
RDS and Cruz would each of them be excellent – though I often think that putting RDS first in charge of a federal department for a year each…just have him go through and clean them up. He’s a very effective Executive!
I agree, a year or so running a major federal agency would be a good experience for DeSantis. But he has already served in Congress, already been governor of a large and important state with a lot of inherited problems, already navigated the Byzantine politics of the military, evidently also had experience dealing with terrorism (based on his involvement at Gitmo), already had the responsibility for sending men into battle and making life-and-death decisions, already gone head to head with a powerful corporation (powerful both financially and politically) and won in spite of massive popular opposition without wavering, already proven himself a competent administrator (look how quickly he got those two important bridges operational again after Hurricane Ian as well as the other hurricane disasters he has handled smoothly and effectively) and in general already proven himself in every arena in which a president must excel except that of head-to-head dealings with foreign heads of state.
The Sanibel Causeway, linking an island to the mainland, was rebuilt in 15 days. The bridge to Pine Island was due to reopen in mid-October after the massive hurricane that destroyed it at the end of September, and within days about 95% of the state had power restored.
The scope of important experience required to be an effective president is far broader and deeper than just international relations, and it also depends on an unwavering commitment to specific political concepts. There are a lot of people, Rubio included, who check off some of these boxes, but none who check them all—including Vance.
Cruz has too much hostility toward him to be able to overcome it. His genius at law would make him an invaluable SCOTUS justice because he not only knows the law, he knows the Constitution and is fiercely dedicated to it, and has the force of character and disposition to deal with the inane babblings of Jackson or the pseudo-legal wrangling of Sotomayor and Kagan—though he would probably be replacing Sotomayor, given her health problems. She won’t voluntarily retire as long as there is even a faint chance of a Dem winning the next presidential election but once that possibility is gone I think she will be, too—if she lasts that long. She is only four years younger than Alito but in much worse health and her diabetes has already affected her ability to put in long hours and requiring her to travel with a doctor.
I think Rubio is proving himself to be an excellent steward of the country.
Vance/Rubio 2028
Sure, what the hell does the Constitution have to do with eligibility to be president? Rubio is, undoubtedly, doing a good job as Secretary of State but that doesn’t make him a natural born citizen. Ignoring or dismissing important Constitutional requirements for eligibility for the presidency is just more fanboi Identity Politics. I like Rubio, I think he is doing a good job, but I’m not willing to ignore or dismiss a Constitutional requirement or put the nation through the inevitable legal wrangling that trying to nominate someone who is not eligible would inevitably occur.
We go through this all the time. As soon as someone shows a lot of skill or success, there is a surge of HE SHOULD BE PRESIDENT!!! In this case, based on the way Rubio has handled his new job, he could probably do a decent job as president. But that is not enough, nor is he the MOST qualified possible contender. Nothing against him, but not every competent or skilled person should be president. To be successful a president needs a team of Rubios, all good at what they do.
More shootings this morning in Dallas. A white male who ultimately shot detainees, yet we all pretty much know who he was shooting at. Democrats will spin this again to be MAGA completely ignoring their hateful and violent rhetoric towards ICE agents. We simply cannot hate these people enough.
They are seriously broken and confused people who deserve our prayers, but also deserve our justice.
Until we get aggressive and proactive against these people they will continue to escalate their violence. But to paraphrase Mike Tyson, everyone has a cause to protest until he gets handcuffed and charged with a felony. 8 U.S. Code § 1324 – Bringing in and harboring certain aliens has a couple of parts I think could easily be used to support arresting and charging every single person trying to block ICE officers, including mayors and governors and DAs. The moment anyone steps up to block an ICE official from entering a building where illegals are known to be hiding, Code § 1324 could and should be brought into play.
(A) Any person who—
(iii) knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that an alien has come to, entered, or remains in the United States in violation of law, conceals, harbors, or shields from detection, or attempts to conceal, harbor, or shield from detection, such alien in any place, including any building or any means of transportation;
(iv) encourages or induces an alien to ….. reside in the United States, knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that such coming to, entry, or residence is or will be in violation of law; or
(v)
(I) engages in any conspiracy to commit any of the preceding acts, or
(II) aids or abets the commission of any of the preceding acts,
shall be punished as provided in subparagraph (B).
(B)A person who violates subparagraph (A) shall, for each alien in respect to whom such a violation occurs—
(ii) in the case of a violation of subparagraph (A)(ii), (iii), (iv), or (v)(II), be fined under title 18, imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both.
“Shall be” is a legal imperative. It does not allow for waffling. It is not “can be” or “might be”—it demands SHALL BE.
The words or phrases I think would be the most dangerous to the “protesters” are: “harbors, or attempts to …..harbor, : or ” encourages or induces an alien to …. reside in the United States, knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that such ….. residence is or will be in violation of law;” “or
(v)
(I) engages in any conspiracy to commit any of the preceding acts, or
(II) aids or abets the commission of any of the preceding acts,”. and “for each alien in respect to whom such a violation occurs”. That is, block access to harbor ten illegal aliens, face ten separate counts of violation of Code § 1324. That will get some attention.
This law is clear. One does not have to bring people here illegally to violate the law, though that is an element of the law. But merely ATTEMPTING to harbor an illegal, to shield from detection, and what I think is easiest to prove, encouraging or inducing an alien to RESIDE here are all violations of an existing federal law.
So hit the media headlines with simultaneous arrests and perp walks of a dozen or so governors, mayors, DAs, sheriffs, etc. and immediately arraign them on these clearly stated charges, so they can be held for trial. The next time a mob tries to interfere with ICE, nab every single person trying to block access and handcuff them all, in front of their friends and their cameras, citing the federal law against conspiring to encourage or induce people to RESIDE here illegally and load them into vans to be immediately arraigned.
I am tired of always being on the back foot, on defense, when these things happen, doing after-the-fact catch-up. Screw that. Go in proactively and aggressively enforce the law.
Challenge the screechers: “Are you trying to prevent the detention of people who are here illegally?” Any response in the affirmative calls for immediate handcuffs, arrest, rights being read and escort to the paddywagon on the charge of encouraging or inducing an illegal to RESIDE here in violation of the law.
I think the words “reside” and “conspire” would be the words to break up this whole performative mob action because they are so easily defined and proved. Did you live here? Then you RESIDED here. Do the protestors want you to continue living here? Then they are encouraging you to RESIDE here. Are you working with anyone else to accomplish this? Then you are CONSPIRING to do this.
And BTW when a judge tries to intervene I would charge him with conspiracy.
Yes, it would create a massive legal free-for-all. Yes, some charges would be dismissed. But in the weeks immediately following this ICE would be able to do its job, illegals would be on notice that they would no longer be able to hide behind mobs, and when the smoke clears a lot of people would have been scared, a lot of people would have had a close-up view of what can happen to scofflaws, a lot of people would have been fined, a lot of officials would be facing political consequences for being arrested for violation of federal laws, the whole illusion of being able to flout federal laws by being able to establish “sanctuary” cities and states would be demolished, and I think the emotional carnage would be worth it.
Jeff Childers has an excellent recap and analysis of Trump’s UN speech this morning.
Under Biden, America’s global image was represented by its failing leadership: old, corrupt, flaccid. The country was running on Autopen. Refineries, farms, and manufacturing centers mysteriously burned across the continent. Wayward ships knocked bridges down. Chemical tankers spilled toxic swamps into the heartland. America picked a cowardly fight with Russia while hiding behind Ukraine. Drones and spy balloons crisscrossed top-secret military installations without consequence— all while the country’s chief executive partied with cross-dressers.
One of the most concise and powerful paragraphs yet written about the Biden Era.
Yup!