Happy Monday

🎙️ Weekly Roundup

 🧠 Stop Reacting. Start Thinking.

President Trump announced his plan to take control and improve public safety in Washington, D.C. He is activating the District of Columbia National Guard and taking control of the Metropolitan Police Department, and has full authority to do so. Common sense would dictate comments like “thank you”, “we really appreciate the help”, and “it will be fantastic to get things improved”. But the response from some residents included “he is overstepping his bounds” and “anything that Trump does is garbage”. TDS at its best.

The response from Democrats was equally dumb. Crime rates are down, they said. That was their one and only response. Al Sharpton said Trump was race-baiting. This is rich coming from a guy who has made a career out of race-baiting.

But even the liberal commentators had to acknowledge that Trump is doing the right thing. Chris Matthews said the Democratic Party was “falling into a trap of defending what’s indefensible”. This seems to be the Democratic mantra — criticize everything Trump does. They are all against lowering crime in DC, but they never offer a solution of their own.

ABC News anchor Kyra Phillips said that while crime numbers may be falling, there is more to crime than a discussion about statistics. In a video posted to X, she said, “We can talk about the numbers going down, but crime is happening every single day because we’re all experiencing it firsthand while working and living down here”.

The D.C. police union chief offered his thoughts on the supposed drop in crime since 2023: “That is preposterous to suggest that cumulatively we’ve seen 60-plus percent drops in violent crime from where we were in ‘23, because we’re out on the street. We know the calls we’re responding to”.

And the Democratic response is to bang pots and pans at Midnight.

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker reacted to the Texas redistricting plan by saying President Trump is a “cheater” and Texas Governor Abbott is a “joke”. Oh, and Pritzker is also concerned about the future of democracy. Apparently, he is so concerned about democracy that he gerrymandered Illinois so that Republicans hold three of Illinois’ 17 House districts, even though Trump won 44% of the statewide vote in 2024. Voting statistics from the last two Presidential elections in Illinois show an approximate 40/60 split by party line. So, three out of seventeen? How’s that for democracy?

Here is a map of the 17 Illinois districts. Can you guess which three are Republican? That’s right, districts 12, 15, and 16. And speaking of jokes, Gov. Pritzker, how did you come up with the boundaries for districts 13 and 17? Well, that’s easy. District 13’s skinny sliver conveniently includes the cities of East St. Louis, Springfield, and Champaign/Urbana. And District 17’s nonsensical boundaries include Bloomington/Normal (that little purple tip), Peoria (the other little tip into 16), the Tri Cities, and Rockford (that purple stretch to the north, just far enough to snag Rockford).

🔥 It’s Common Sense

Congressional Budget Office Updated Analysis

The New York Times reported on an updated analysis of Trump’s big, beautiful bill by the Congressional Budget Office. The headline for the Times article was “Richest Gain Most and Poorest Face Steepest Cuts…” The article also stated the CBO report estimated that after-tax incomes of the richest Americans would increase, while millions of low-income Americans could lose access to federal food assistance or Medicaid under Trump’s bill.

Let’s dig a little deeper. First, the CBO report was done in response to a request by four Democratic lawmakers, Hakeem Jeffries, Chuck Schumer, Brendan Boyle, and Jeff Merkley.

Second, the CBO report estimates that, on average, household resources in all deciles will increase, mainly because of reductions in how much households owe in federal taxes. Simple math would tell us that the highest incomes would receive the most benefit, as they pay the most in taxes.

Third, the CBO report says the steepest cuts in the lowest are mainly attributable to reductions such as Medicaid and SNAP. You have to read two pages further in the report to find a footnote in small print that says “Changes to Medicaid eligibility will affect low-income households in two main ways: through the changes’ effects on able-bodied adults without dependents who would be required to work and through the changes’ effects on certain groups of immigrants.

I guess the New York Times decided not to read the footnotes. And the Democrats are trying their hardest to claim “they’re cutting your health care”. So, let’s not react, let’s think:

1. The new bill says if you can work and you have no dependents, then you don’t get Medicaid. What is so hard to understand about this common-sense requirement?

2. I think we all know who “certain groups of immigrants” are. Why can’t the CBO just spell it out? Illegal immigrants are not eligible for any taxpayer-funded benefits like Medicaid. Just look at the budget deficits in California and Illinois due primarily to handing out freebies to those who are not eligible.

So, no, Democrats, they are not taking away your healthcare. They are making sure that Medicaid is available for deserving citizens. It is not a freebie handout.

Now let’s address SNAP. You have to read two pages further in the CBO report for another footnote in small print. This footnote refers to another letter written to Amy Klobuchar and Angie Craig, two more Democrats, for an explanation of the SNAP reductions. That letter explains that Trump’s bill would expand the SNAP work requirements to able-bodied adults through age 64 who do not live with dependent children. Also, Trump’s bill would prohibit people who are not citizens or lawful permanent residents (green card holders) from receiving SNAP benefits. The CBO letter even had a heading titled “Alien SNAP Benefits” to explain this requirement.

Trump’s bill is based on logic and common sense. The government is paying out billions in fraudulent benefits to people who are not eligible for those benefits. The bill puts an end to that nonsense. Once again, the Democrats bring nothing to the table. They don’t offer any alternative solutions or even a sensible argument as to why they oppose Trump’s bill. Their only strategy is to stir up shit, and it may get them a few votes from the TDS people. But they are also digging their unpopular hole even deeper.

 🎲 Just The Facts

Find an interesting stat from USA Facts…

🏆 Dummy of the Week

NY Post: Wild elephant tramples tourist, stripping off his pants, after ignorant selfie attempt.As reported by Adriana Diaz, New York Post:

Dumbing Down America