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1.) Barack Obama, exploiting children since 2013 — While pushing for greater gun control, President Obama exploited children to make his case. TheDC’s Neil Munro reports:
“President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden revived the emotional impact of the Newtown, Conn., school massacre of 20 children to boost their campaign against ‘gun violence’ — and also to portray Democratic politicians as the best guardians of the nation’s vulnerable children. ‘These are our kids … what we should be thinking about is our responsibility to care for them, and shield them from harm, and give them the tools they need to grow up and do everything that they’re capable of doing — not just to pursue their own dreams, but to help build this country,’ he said, likely aiming his pitch at swing-voting suburban mothers who could be critical to a Democratic success in the 2014 midterm election. ‘This is our first task as a society, keeping our children safe. This is how we will be judged. And their voices should compel us to change,’ he declared while being flanked by children.”
TheDC Morning has no problem with the president bringing up the Newtown massacre — it’s a tragic but relevant event to the gun control debate. But flanking himself with children? Revolting.
2.) Rand Paul to the rescue? — For those who don’t like President Obama’s executive orders on guns, Rand Paul is your man. TheDC’s Alex Pappas reports:
“Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul plans to introduce legislation in Congress soon nullifying the executive orders on guns announced by President Barack Obama on Wednesday, a source familiar with the plans confirmed to The Daily Caller. … The news was first reported during the Fox News show ‘The Five’ on Wednesday by anchor Eric Bolling. ‘I’m told Sen. Rand Paul will introduce language within hours, within hours, to call for the nullification and prohibition of funding for the president’s executive actions announced today and possibly even using the federal courts to nullify and defund some of the things that he plans on doing,’ Bolling said.”
3.) In search of clarity — Speaking of Rand Paul, he just got back from Israel, where he made an interesting and compelling case for his brand of how to be pro-Israel. But Paul should now answer broader questions about his foreign policy world view. TheDC’s Jamie Weinstein opines:
“So I am less concerned about Paul’s position on Israel than I am with what he believes America’s role in the world is. Wanting to cut defense and foreign aid are legitimate positions — but only if you explain how you would scale back America’s role in the world. His father wanted to dismantle many of American military bases around the world. Does Paul the Younger share his father’s ‘come home America’ foreign policy? Or is his vision of America in the world less radical? My suggestion for Rand Paul is to give a major foreign policy address — like Marco Rubio has done — laying out his vision for America’s role in the world. Paul is smart and a good debater. He should be specific and comprehensive, and make his case. And if he decides to run in 2016, Republicans can decide if his vision for America in the world is something they can get behind.”
If Rand Paul and Marco Rubio run for the GOP presidential nomination in 2016, the foreign policy debates could be quite compelling — and, if we are lucky, substantive, with two well-informed and talented candidates debating serious foreign policy questions from different perspectives.
4.) Memo to the president — As President Obama prepares for his second inauguration, legendary humorist P.J. O’Rourke has a message for him: “Zero-sum makes zero sense.” He writes in World Affairs:
“But the worst thing that you’ve done internationally is what you’ve done domestically. You sent a message to America in your reelection campaign. Therefore you sent a message to the world. The message is that we live in a zero-sum universe. There is a fixed amount of good things. Life is a pizza. If some people have too many slices, other people have to eat the pizza box. You had no answer to Mitt Romney’s argument for more pizza parlors baking more pizzas. The solution to our problems, you said, is redistribution of the pizzas we’ve got—with low-cost, government-subsidized pepperoni somehow materializing as the result of higher taxes on pizza parlor owners. In this zero-sum universe there’s only so much happiness. The idea is that if we wipe the smile off the faces of people with prosperous businesses and successful careers, that will make the rest of us grin.”
5.) Tweet of Yesterday — Blake Hounshell: Mostly cloudy with a chance of terrorism. RT @joshgreenman: How is Mali this time of year?
6.) Today in North Korean News –BREAKING: “Cooking Website Opened”
VIDEO: Congressman calls for debt ceiling repeal, likes GOP to suicide bombers