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1.) Off to the gallows, err, House — The immigration debate is over in the Senate, at least for now. TheDC’s Alexis Levinson reports:
“The Senate has passed comprehensive immigration reform. In a 68-32 vote, the Senate voted Thursday afternoon to pass the ‘Gang of Eight’ bill. The bill creates a pathway to citizenship for the estimated 11 million illegal immigrants currently living in the states, but requires that certain border security measures — including a ‘surge’ of border patrol agents and the construction of another 350 miles of fencing along the border — be accomplished before any of those people can receive green cards.”
It’s now the House’s turn to deal with immigration, and from first reports it doesn’t look like the Gang of Eight bill will be particularly popular there.
2.) Rubio the rhetorician — Before the Senate immigration bill passed, Marco Rubio gave one more stirring speech in favor of the legislation:
“Sen. Marco Rubio made his closing argument for immigration reform on the floor of the Senate Thursday, invoking family, Scripture and the Constitution before the final vote at 4 p.m. ‘My father had someone phonetically write on a small piece of paper the words ‘I am looking for work.’ He memorized those words. They were literally some of the first words he learned to speak in English,’ the Florida Republican said, describing his Cuban-immigrant parents. … ‘My mother recalls how she wept on that terrible November day in 1963, at the news that her president had been slain. How on that magical night in 1969, they watched an American walk on the moon and realized that now, nothing was impossible. Because well before they became citizens, in their hearts they had already become Americans,’ Rubio said.”
The bill has its critics and supporters. Marco Rubio has certainly lost support among conservatives for pushing the bill. But whatever you think of him, his closing speech was a fine example of American political oratory.
3.) Liberals unhinged! — Every time there is a poll that shows a high percentage of Republicans or conservatives believing some cockamamie thing, the Internet explodes with liberals declaring that that the poll is proof positive the right is chock full of morons. But why isn’t this poll being trumpeted? Gabe Finger reports for TheDC:
“In a new Rasmussen poll of likely voters released Thursday, President Obama’s supporters are pretty evenly split concerning whether the tea party or radical Muslims pose the greater threat of terrorism in America. Twenty-six percent of people who approve of President Barack Obama’s job performance view the tea party as the United States’ top terror threat, compared to 29 percent who view radical Islam as the greatest concern. A plurality of those who ‘strongly approve’ of Obama’s performance believe the tea party poses a greater threat of terrorism than radical Muslims, or any other group.”
Only a complete fool believes the tea party is a top terrorist threat. But such an idiotic view has been the editorial view of several liberal publications and cable news networks since the tea party burst on the seen.
4.) Kids are as dumb (or smart) as they used to be — The Daily Caller News Foundation’s Robbie Soave reports:
“A major assessment of students’ math and reading scores found that high schoolers had not improved in the last 40 years, despite gains at other age levels and a narrowing of academic gaps between races. Kids ages 9 and 13 made modest gains in reading and math since 1971, according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress. But 17-year-olds’ scores remained constant over the 40-year time period. Brent Houston, who serves on the board for the assessment, found this surprising, given that an increasing proportion of their parents had attended college. ‘If parents are achieving more, you’d think that older students in particular would be achieving at higher levels,’ he said in a statement to U.S. News and World Report.”
5.) Tweet of Yesterday — S.E. Cupp: Huma Abedin is hosting a “Women for Weiner” fund-raiser tonight. #NoPunchlineRequired
6.) Today in North Korean News — BREAKING: “U.S. Mass Killing of Innocent People in Korean War”
VIDEO: Charles Krauthammer says Obama dismissal of Snowden exudes “arrogance”