1.) Obama knew, cartels slew? — “Bush lied, people died,” that’s how the chant used to go. Is it time for a new one? TheDC’s Matthew Boyle and David Martosko report:
“A White House spokesman pointed Friday to an account published by the left-wing advocacy group Media Matters for America in its denial of three online claims that President Barack Obama was briefed about the failed ‘Operation Fast and Furious’ gun-walking program in 2010. According to recently released White House visitor logs, then-Deputy Attorney General Gary Grindler was admitted to the White House four times in 2010 between May 7 and May 19. The Los Angeles Times has reported that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives program was at its peak during May 2010. Grindler was briefed in depth about Fast and Furious on March 12, 2010. At least three different investigators on the political right have suggested that those visitor logs indicate Obama met with Grindler personally, since the president was identified as Grindler’s ‘visitee’ on the visitor logs. But on the dates in question, the logs specifically referred to formal arrivals and receptions related to a State Dinner for Mexican president Felipe Calderón… In response to questions from The Daily Caller on Friday, Obama spokesman Eric Schultz pointed to a Media Matters attack on the same three writers… Schultz added that Obama has repeatedly denied involvement in, and knowledge of, Fast and Furious.”
So he has. And now he’s relying on Media Matters to defend him. How about that.
2.) Guns ambulated, Holder prevaricated — In other Fast and Furious news, those mean Republicans just won’t stop criticizing Eric Holder for saying things that aren’t true. Matthew Boyle reports:
“Arizona Republican Rep. Paul Gosar, among the first Congressmen to demand Attorney General Eric Holder’s resignation over the Operation Fast and Furious scandal, told The Daily Caller he thinks Holder is on the ropes and feeling increasing pressure from Congress and the American people. Fifty-two House members, two Senators, four presidential candidates and two sitting governors have already demanded Holder’s ouster. Gosar was the third congressman to call for his resignation, and held a press conference on Nov. 15 during which several members of Congress followed suit. ‘I don’t know how he [Holder] could have allowed this to occur,’ Gosar told The Daily Caller. ‘When you go back in the timeline — and I’m very meticulous about timelines — back in 2009 he [Holder] talked about changing the whole mantra of following gun-walking and trying to follow these guns. The president even followed up by utilizing false numbers. He said 90 percent of all the guns going into Mexico come from the United States, when that didn’t occur. You can see that this was on their radar screen.’ Over the weekend, Republican presidential candidate and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney became the latest to call for Holder to step down.”
As you may recall, last week Holder publicly blamed the Daily Caller for all this, going so far as to stick his finger in our reporter’s face. He’s the victim here, you see. Meanwhile, Border Agent Brian Terry and at least 300 people in Mexico are still dead.
P.S. Last week the Obama Administration sealed court records containing details about Terry’s murder. Why do you suppose they did that?
3.) Who will tell us how to pick a candidate? George Will — Now that Herman Cain has dropped out of the 2012 presidential race (sort of), what does it mean for the rest of the GOP field? Let’s ask smart person George Will! TheDC’s Jeff Poor reports:
“In his regular appearance on ABC’s ‘This Week,’ Washington Post columnist George Will discussed the fate of former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, saying that Cain’s departure and Donald Trump’s relevance raise a larger issue pertaining to how to prevent the debate process from being ‘hijacked.’ ‘I think there’s an interesting contrast between Santorum’s fate and Cain’s fate,’ Will said. ‘We want a process that allows a dark horse like Santorum — someone who has been seriously engaged in national politics — to gain traction, if he has time. Hence, a small state like Iowa should lead this process. I think, however, … both parties have to do some serious thought as whether they can develop some filter to prevent this process — particularly with mad proliferation of debates — from being hijacked by charlatans, entrepreneurs and entrepreneurial charlatans.’ Will pointed at Cain, who he said had a ‘fundamentally disrespectful approach’ to campaigns and said he was worried that with real estate mogul Donald Trump’s proposed splash into the debate process, it will be tainted.”
And to think, some people call George Will an elitist! Yes indeed, who let this common rabble into the electoral process? It should be up to people like Will to decide which Republican is least likely to win.
4.) Research stemmed — The science is settled. As in inert. TheDC’s Neil Munro reports:
“The Democrats’ decade-long strategy of hyping embryo stem cell research crashed into a hard fact on Nov.15. That’s when Geron Corp., the world’s leading embryo research company, announced it was closing down its much-touted stem cell program, despite the guarantee of more government aid from Democratic-affiliated sources. The political battle waged over embryonic stem cell research burst onto the front pages in 2001, when many reporters and scientists began touting stem cells as medical miracles that would offer cures for Alzheimer’s, diabetes, Parkinson’s and other diseases. From 2000 onwards, ‘Democrats and liberals were hyping the research absurdly,’ Princeton professor Robert George, a member of President George. W. Bush’s Council on Bioethics, told The Daily Caller. ‘There was no real prospect of therapeutic uses of [Geron’s] embryonic stem cells…’ Social conservatives and some liberals were appalled by the prospect of companies, such as Geron, manufacturing embryos so their parts could be sold to the highest bidder. Democrats, however, eagerly used the prospect of miracle cures to lure sick voters and retirees, flatter professionals and stigmatize conservatives as being anti-science.”
Which was the whole point. Oh well, yet another utopian dream destroyed by contact with reality.
5.) Occupy DC: urine trouble — Occupy DC isn’t hurting anybody and isn’t doing anything wrong, except for the people they hurt and the things they do wrong. NBC Washington reports:
“Police have made arrests after members of the ‘Occupy DC’ protest group constructed a wooden structure without a permit in McPherson Square overnight. Park Police and DC police initially gave protestors one hour to dismantle the structure, but their request was refused. A few protestors began scuffling with police, after which arrests were made. Officers on horseback were also seen pushing the crowd back. A group of six protestors were seen on the roof of the 30-foot-high building while police kept the crowd back with caution tape and tore out pieces of wood from the bottom of the structure. 15 other protestors were seen inside the structure. More arrests were made after protestors attempted to break through the tape to aid the protestors on the roof.”
Why not just build a jail and save the cops the trip? Some late-breaking news on this from the DC Examiner’s Aubrey Whelan: “The remaining protester on the roof is urinating on the structure.” As is customary.
6.) Today’s words of wisdom from Alec Baldwin’s Truther, er, Twitter feed — “Human Centipede 2 could lead to a lot of profiling.”
VIDEO: When a Democrat says “revenue,” he means “higher taxes”
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