On January 8, 2021 at 4:01 pm, Al Man from CA wrote:
Mark, I am old enough to remember practicing hiding under our desks in grammar school in the 1950's because of the Soviet nuclear threat. Where do we hide to protect ourselves from the upcoming attack on our economic system, basic freedoms and rights?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:02 pm, David Kelley-Wood wrote:
Mark, I'm trying to anticipate some of the changes we can expect under one-party rule. One might be with the Pledge of Allegiance. Since the "flag" is an object of scorn, the "States" are not united, the "republic" has been rendered irrelevant, and "under God" and "with liberty and justice for all" have been inapplicable for some time, perhaps going forward, simply "I pledge allegiance" should pretty much cover what the Democrats will require of us, right?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:03 pm, Sal Tessio wrote:
Regarding impeachment. If at first you don't succeed try, try again. It's not like there are other pressing needs that Congress should be working on. Now that Americans' six-hundred buck stipend is on the way, thereby solving the economic catastrophe caused by many states' overreaction to the China virus, Congress can get on to the vital work of settling political scores and enriching foreign countries.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:04 pm, Carolinan wrote:
Absent Trump, the Dems will have to entertain themselves. Can the marriage of superannuated bloviators and infantile wokelings be a happy one? Or, heaven forfend, a fruitful one?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:05 pm, Gregory Laughton wrote:
What has me concerned is the reaction of our country's enemies to current events in DC in which our collective "leadership" projects a combination of weakness and stupidity. President Xi has been patiently waiting for the opportune time to seize Taiwan; Iran wants to blow up Tel Aviv; Kim Jong-un can't wait to try out his new nuclear warheads; and Putin wants to re-establish the USSR. Something is going to blow up, figuratively or literally, during the Biden administration, do you have any guesses?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:06 pm, Tom Lewis wrote:
So what are the odds that Mitt Romney or Lisa Murkowski decide to caucus with the Dems?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:07 pm, Michael Cavino wrote:
Mark,
I must applaud you for being prescient in laying out what the Left would do if Biden won and captured the GA Senate seats. However, the speed at which they are acting is just breathtaking. How bad you think it is going to get when it comes to free speech?
Also, what are your thoughts on the theory that the Dems are rushing to impeach and convict Trump prior to Jan. 20 because (a) they fear his potential as a candidate in 2024 and (b) worry he is about to declassify tons of documents regarding Biden, et. al?
Thanks for being a guiding light in this bleak period.
Best regards,
Michael Cavino
On January 8, 2021 at 4:08 pm, Dan and Lynda Phillips wrote:
Hi Mark
You're a considered and thoughtful guy...where do you see Donald Trump a year from now?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:09 pm, Kelly Dennison wrote:
I'm a brand spankin new member...have really appreciated seeing you on Tucker. My question is...where do we go from here? I'm worried about the cancel culture becoming much much worse. I don't want to stand out...but I'm also not going to cower from the woke mob. Any suggestions? Thank you!
On January 8, 2021 at 4:09 pm, Karen Shapiro wrote:
What is the most relevant historical reference, in your opinion, for where we are now and where we will be in 10 years? Rome?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:10 pm, Victor Selby wrote:
Democrats are very likely to attempt what amounts to a constitutional coup in the next couple of months. If they succeed in the court packing, the immigration amnesty and the addition of the two new Democrat states America will effectively be a permanent one party state.
It sounds pretty bad but would it really be any different than what exists now?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:11 pm, Michael Seth wrote:
Mega-prayers for Rush and many thanks to you Mark, for making the past week almost bearable. Now that all other avenues of expression to patriotic Americans have been closed, the violence craved by the Left seems bound to continue and increase. We know violent Leftists will continue to act with the support of our institutions, especially the media. But we also know, I think, that at some point a real backlash is coming. My question is whether you believe that backlash will come sooner or much later down the road? And what do you think might be the catalyst, as well as the resolution? I realize that's a lot to deal with in one question but is there really anything else left to talk about?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:11 pm, John Marovic wrote:
There is almost a panicked mentality among some pundits to call for: expelling Cruz and Hawley (David French), shutting down OAN, Newsmax, and Fox News (Oliver Darcy), and cleansing the Trump movement (ABC's Rick Klein). I predict the heat out in the open will die down, but a covert cancel campaign will be carried out, with Soros-type funds to primary Republican Trump supporters in Congress, to use financial leverage against conservative media, and then to go after Trump supporters and donors (like me).
On January 8, 2021 at 4:12 pm, Scott Barnhouse wrote:
Hi Mark
I am a last day founding member of the club, and I appreciate all of your work, and particularly your defense against Michael Mann. You need to succeed.
I would like your thoughts on whether anyone in America can ever trust each other again. The last four years have only accomplished that neither side has any trust in the other. The media is not trusted. Our politicians are not trusted.
How can we ever fight an external enemy without a cohesive trust, and a country cannot survive without trust between its citizens.
Is it possible to get it back?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:13 pm, Rosette wrote:
Mark. A kind of censorship totalitarian style is going to invade the internet with the advent of the Democrats. I don't know anything about the technicalities but I understand that you run the Club on the web outside any interference of Big Tech. In any eventuality, can you manage to stay safely out of the reach of these vicious people? Thanks a lot.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:13 pm, Diana Brazeale wrote:
Hello Mark,
I'm a long time fan and have lurked here for years, but the events of this week made me decide to join the Mark Steyn Club. It's obvious that the left wants to crack down on free speech, but how will it happen under the Biden/Harris regime? Will they be content to let Big Tech do their dirty work, or will we see a "Department of Information Integrity" or some such agency with a stated mission of combating "misinformation" and "hate speech"? If there's a government agency, I see court challenges ahead, but will our federal courts uphold the First Amendment? I rather doubt it.
Diana Brazeale
On January 8, 2021 at 4:14 pm, Robert wrote:
Mark,
You've often raised the question - and it's one of the best - regarding futuristic novels describing dystopias that you're always curious to know how things got that way.
Currently we're living the "how it got that way" stage.
Comments?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:15 pm, Edward Lake wrote:
Mark,
When your vote is negated (by fraud), how does a law-abiding citizen ensure their opinions are listened to? Are mass rallies enough or are the disenfranchised forced to adopt the riotous tactics of the left?
Thank you for your courage and insight,
Ed
On January 8, 2021 at 4:16 pm, Ian Chandler wrote:
Assuming we can't win a game in which the Left set the rules, direct the officials and write the match reports, how do we mount a viable challenge to their hegemony?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:16 pm, AlyM wrote:
Is there no eleventh hour rescue coming from the cavalry? The Texas Rangers? The Canadian Mounties? Is this our last stand?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:17 pm, Tara Johnson wrote:
I have been thinking a lot about those who entered the capitol building, how their faces are plastered on news stories and the hunt for them is on. What kind of "federal violations" (like ripping up your mail) will be written upon them? Will these people end up as sort of political prisoners? (How many people were arrested in BLM protests for property damage? ) I feel sick for a lot of people who got sucked into a crowd and made a poor choice to enter the capitol building - but will they face lifelong repercussions?
I saw on the news last night someone say it was because of the great bravery of the police that no congressman was injured - no, it was because no one intended to injure any! Clearly they were not going in there lighting things on fire.
Feeling very disheartened.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:18 pm, Penns Woods wrote:
Don't forget Ashli Babbitt
On January 8, 2021 at 4:19 pm, James Crosbie wrote:
In the snowiest winters of Montreal, the island runs out of places to plough the snow to. Will it ever be likewise with the shifting of blame with the the dark winter of Biden, et al?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:19 pm, Julia V wrote:
Do you think there is any hope of taking back the house and senate in 2022, given that the GOP seems to have abandoned Trump and his supporters, and rolled over to allow democrats to conduct blatant, massive voter fraud? And do you, like me, think the greatest blame lies with the feckless GOP, particularly Paul Ryan, for failing to enact voting integrity laws when they had full control of both houses of Congress, and a perfect justification provided by the democrat hoax of Russian election interference?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:19 pm, Terry wrote:
Mark, what's your view of Trump's latest statement yesterday?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:20 pm, Peter Marsh wrote:
Hi Mark,
Would you say it was a 'mostly peaceful' protest there in DC? I don't think I heard anyone else report about it in those terms. I wonder why - can you enlighten me?
Regards,
Pete
On January 8, 2021 at 4:21 pm, Kris Dray wrote:
Hi Mark. After Obama, I am really not looking forward to the next four years.
What are the choices here, Mark? For me, there seem no good choices. Either the left has managed to corrupt yet another American institution, Election Day, or 80 million Americans actually think a country with our national debt can actually bear the weight of a disastrous system like socialism. The differences between us are grim and beyond reconciliation. The treatment of Trump and the disaster of the Capitol gave us a nice view of what the elites have in mind for Americans who cross their lines and shake up their privileged worlds. What does this leave people who just want freedom and small government? Two Americas...one far too civil and one corrupt and demented...not good.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:22 pm, Todd Lewis wrote:
Mark, I believe I read a few days ago that Chairman Xi had ordered the Chinese military to be ready to go to war on a moments notice. If this is true does that mean that the first international incident of the "Biden" administration will be the annexation of Taiwan? Furthermore, does it mean that America and Europe have now so subverted and exhausted themselves that the all the arbiters of international affairs will henceforth be Asiatic. Will China, India, Russia, Pakistan, and a few others now set the agenda for the entire world order of the 21st century? Is this the end of the West in this regard and the full ascendancy of the East? What do you think?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:22 pm, Martha M. wrote:
Are Nancy's fabricated concerns about Trump having the nuclear codes, a dress rehearsal for old Joe being pushed aside because he is too demented to have access to the nuclear codes? Or would she be in danger of becoming like the little boy who yelled wolf once too often.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:23 pm, Neil Robertson wrote:
Mark, hello from Ulster! A couple of questions for you: first, how do you explain the near-universal refusal of the media (including in the UK the Telegraph and Spectator) to even consider that the so-called "mob" may be fully justified in their protest and even taking the Capitol is a legitimate warning to the Congress that they have had enough. Second, isn't it very hypocritical for the US legislative assembly to curl their lips in horror at the revolutionary instinct they saw unfold. After all the entire US nation was founded on insurrection! Doesn't this rather undermine any future attempts?
Keep up the great work!
N
On January 8, 2021 at 4:25 pm, Elisa Angel wrote:
Explain how the ANTIFA gang, the one recognized BLM activist, and the Trump supporters who entered the Capitol building on January 6 weren't invited in. The security was lax, the perimeter barriers were substandard for routine crowd control, and the doors were opened to them. Is that not an invitation? Paraphrasing Nancy Pelosi, "It was a set up."
The Capitol Police have 2300 officers and an annual budget of approx. $460 million.* They have successfully protected those grounds and that building for many moons, so what's the skinny on the so-called storming and breach on Wednesday? And in the end, who, if anyone, was arrested? It doesn't add up.
*Those numbers are from the USCP . gov webpage.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:27 pm, David Coats wrote:
Mark, Now that COVID-19 has been allowed to wreck major segments of the arts and entertainment industry, how long will it be before the incoming Big Government commissars see this as an opportunity to aggressively increase their ownership and control of these industry segments by greatly increasing government financing and underwriting with our tax dollars? Think NPR and National Endowment for the Arts on steroids furthering the government's ability to increase its indoctrination of the nation through even greater increased control over what we see and hear. -- Dave Coats, Santa Ana, CA
On January 8, 2021 at 4:28 pm, Midwestern Tim wrote:
What's Tucker's take on your Potemkin Congress column? Is he the same guy off as he is on camera?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:28 pm, Matthew Brazil (from Colorado) wrote:
With Trump seemingly on the way out the door (likely to be hounded in perpetuity by his enemies), are there any individuals or groups on the horizon that can carry the nationalist, populist, and/or traditionalist mantle that he carried? After all, the GOP and Conservative Inc seem to have no interest in actually doing anything meaningful.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:29 pm, John Weston wrote:
Why does everyone only seem to refer to the last few months, or the violence committed by left-wingers over the summer? Philadelphia and Washington DC burned four years ago, before Trump had taken a single action as President. Innocent people were left unconscious and bleeding in the streets and campus sidewalks of Berkeley back in 2017. This is not just a "Summer of 2020" phenomenon.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:30 pm, Kevin Clark wrote:
Mark, they spent a total of $800 million on the Georgia Senate races, and all four candidates were, to be charitable, underwhelming. It's like buying Super Bowl ads to sell Yugos. Why can't either party field good candidates?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:31 pm, John Saunders (UK) wrote:
Mark. To re-iterate my question on a previous comment section: how long (in your opinion) do you think Joe Biden will last, given that he is almost synonymous with Hindenburg(1933)? Do you expect the Democrats to burn down Capitol hill and blame it on the Republicans? When do you think the book-burning is going to start in the light of Senator Hawley's book being banned?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:33 pm, Ray Winchester wrote:
Hi Mark and team,
Just got suspended from Twitter for asking Matt Hancock a question.
How many people have died or crippled from the rushed out vaccines?
I have heard so much. 2 nurses in US and Portugal. One doctor in US.
Then 65,000 nurses in Holland who refused to take it.
With our crappy MSM I do not know if these are true.
I also heard about 28 year who died in Brazil.
Trust you.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:33 pm, Sean Morehouse wrote:
"... you've got a choice between a radical transformative Democrat Party, and a weak-tea Chamber of Commerce cheap-labor go-along-to-get-along Republican Party..."
I'm afraid this is a little optimistic Mark. I don't think any republican, no matter how tame, will be allowed to win an election of consequence in this country again. They will try to run some useless Jen Bush type surely... and he will be called Hitler, kicked off Facebook, denied any ability to hold a public campaign, and any votes he receives will be subject to being "misplaced" in some inner city counting room. Going forward America is a one party state.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:33 pm, Richard Caskey wrote:
Now that the disloyal opposition is poised to take power, what form can the new opposition take? If the debate is phony, the news is corrupted, big tech, business and pharma are driving policy, who or what can be the opposition? The only way I see is to do it on the state level, district by district, face to face where our voices and our dollars count the most. Trying to win big set piece battles in Washington is a fools errand since the deck is stacked against us. Start winning the small battles and perservere.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:35 pm, Susan Maguire wrote:
Rules for Radicals, Saul Alinsky's guide book (Hillary's senior thesis praised) is the dems dark guiding light. How about if conservative writers point out which rule is being amplified by each preplanned anarchist action?
I think the Capitol breach (and the fake "policemen" who let people in and their lookout frantically signaling people to hurry) was following -"Accuse your opponent of what ONLY you are doing, as you are doing it to create confusion, cloud the issue & inoculate voters against any evidence of your guilt." Kommie Harris was praising burning, looting, statue wrecking and saying we need to keep the anarchy up (and she bails such criminals out). Isn't she following Alinsky's rule?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:36 pm, Terry wrote:
The history of history, ancient and modern, is one of democratism - that's us, the demos - versus institutional diktatism. Isn't it time we started 'presenting' ourselves via a direct democracy system instead of being misrepresented by corrupt, self-serving institutional dictatorships masquerading as 'democracies'?
What say you to a new Direct Democracy party?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:36 pm, Kate Smyth wrote:
Mark, Will Chamberlain has summed up your warning about the malign alliance of "liberal" Big Government and Big Tech to bring about "unity" (through the elimination of opposition): "We're about to face a public-private partnership of conservative censorship." Is National Review likely to be spared?
PS. More than any other conservative, you've always made the distinction between Trumpism and Trump, and openly voiced your criticisms of the latter in failing to achieve the former. If you have time, could you please address the recent fake news comment (by "Zack") that suggested otherwise.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:37 pm, Matthew McWilliams wrote:
Mark,
Asking about your post about the "pseudo legislature" and about other current matters like lockdown and the sad state of our electoral system. Below is a quote from the Declaration of Independence.
"That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security."
I have a simple question. We have just witnessed a government being established by fraud. That government already seems to be gearing up to persecute its political enemies. We have been locked down for going on ten months. This is all aside from the ongoing abuses of the DC uniparty legislature and deep state. If we are not there yet, exactly how long does the train of abuses have to be to get us to the point laid out above?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:37 pm, Paul Nachman wrote:
Mark, you've talked about the superiority of simple paper ballots, hand counted where they're cast. Nolo contendere.
But even though you've lived in New Hampshire for decades, I wonder if you're carrying over too much from your Canadian experience, wherein an election consists of a **single** race: the choice of the MP for a provincial or federal riding. (To clarify for non-Canadians, that's one or the other, **not both**. I checked with James Fulford, editor at VDARE. James lives in Toronto.)
But in U.S. elections, there can easily be a dozen candidate races on the ballot as well as ballot questions.
(e.g. In Montana, besides the presidential, U.S. senator, and congressional rep races, we just elected governor, attorney general, secretary of state, superintendent of public instruction, regional member of the Public Service Commission, state legislators, some local officials, plus we voted on several ballot questions.)
In principle, you could go to a separate piece of paper for each contest, but I think the resulting blizzard of paper would likely yield chaos that might well be as fraught as what we're stuck with now.
So, regarding your recommended elections regime, am I missing something obvious?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:38 pm, John Wilson wrote:
Mark, refresh my memory. Did our founding fathers win our independence by "peaceful protests" or did they employ some other method?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:38 pm, Michelle Dulak wrote:
Dear Mark, I have a question about the 25th Amendment. As I understand it, all the actual instances of its use (and hypothetical ones, like that time Woodrow Wilson spent most of a year flat on his back, while his wife ran the country) involve the President being physically incapacitated or mentally ill. But the Democrats don't think that Trump is mentally ill; they think he's stone-cold *evil.* We are supposed to be considerate to, even affectionate towards, the mentally ill. Can the Democrats invoke an Amendment that implies that the President is literally not responsible for his own actions? Or does that fly in the face of their view that he's a clear-eyed, no-possibility-of-error, totally-not-joking-here evil bastard?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:38 pm, George Pereira wrote:
Mark,
One of the most disconcerting things that have occurred in the age of Trump is the discovery that the police, in all its iterations, that as long as there is a paycheck and a pension will do anything they are told to do; oath to uphold the constitution, the oath to protect and serve be dammed.
I fear it's not most are good cops; I fear it's most are getting a taste for blood and the old ultra-violence and they like it.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:39 pm, Nicola Timmerman wrote:
Will you ever interview Gad Saad? Another wonderful Canadian fighter for free speech with a bestselling book. And he also has a great sense of humour.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:39 pm, Jamie Marsh wrote:
Towards the end of the 1992 movie The Last of the Mohicans, the Huron Chief says" Since I was a boy, our council has asked, what are the Huron to do?"
He says this as he sees his tribes history and way of life threatened by the coming of the white man and end of life as he has known it.
As an American, I feel somewhat the same way with what is happening to our country, but with other forces at play of course. Am I overreacting?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:39 pm, Jay Barney wrote:
In 1973, I returned from Europe carrying all I owned in a backpack. I went to Washington, D.C., and discovered I could leave my pack in a storage locker inside the Supreme Court Building. It was never inspected. I went to the Capitol Building just as Spiro Agnew had resigned and Gerald Ford had been tapped to fill the Vice Presidency. I walked right up to his office, never challenged. Now there is more permanent security at the smallest federal government building in the nation.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:40 pm, MichiCanuck wrote:
Hi Mark:
I begin with a brief quote from an email from the Dean of Literature, Sciences and Art (a big faculty) at the University of Michigan to the tens of thousands of students, faculty and alumni concerning the events in DC:
"In addition to these events being violent and unlawful, we witnessed a stark contrast between the security response to this assault and the show of force for the recent Black Lives Matter peaceful protests in our nation's capital and elsewhere. This added an additional level of anger, hurt, and frustration to a dark day in history for many."
I'm not sure if this Dean is aware of the woman who was shot at close range and killed by Capitol police. And I'm reminded of the Babylon Bee headline stating that the riot was not a success because no Trump supporters acquired big screen TVs.
The fact that this Dean is so tone deaf that she can give the middle finger to the hundreds, nay thousands of Trump supporters within the University is chilling. The news and information "lights" seem to be turning off all over the world. I'm digging out old scanners and printers as we may have to revert to Soviet style life in the near future. What say you about the dark curtain descending? Should we adopt Rev. Al's old call to action: Resist We Much?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:40 pm, Eric Dale wrote:
Hey Mark,
What are your thoughts on what the rest of the world are thinking with the capitol protests? Our members of congress are allegedly some of the most powerful politicians in the world, voting on issues that affect so much of the globe, yet everyone of them, senator and representative hid from the crowd, not one stood their ground.
Am I the only one who finds something disgraceful and cowardly about us is being broadcast to the whole world?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:41 pm, Steven Payne wrote:
What motivates billionaires to support a party that supposedly wants to raise their taxes? Have they really bought into the social justice BS?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:41 pm, Gabriel Garcia Moreno wrote:
With the cacophony of protest levelled at pantomime villain Donald Trump this week, the feminists and liberals have been conspicuous in their comparative silence in response to the 21st century's authentic tyrant Xi Jumping's local ambassador tweeting out the most brazen justification of the CCP's subjugation of the Uighur population:
"Study shows that in the process of eradicating extremism, the minds of Uygur women in Xinjiang were emancipated and gender equality and reproductive health were promoted, making them no longer baby-making machines. They are more confident and independent."
Top trolling indeed, but just as for antifa and BLM, and indeed the Wu-Flu, there's a proportionality gap in outrage and condemnation. In the post-Trump era will it ever be thus?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:42 pm, Terry wrote:
Mark, you think America is bad? Do you know that your old 'conservative' newspaper, the Telegraph, is refusing to allow any of its readers to comment on any of its coverage of Trump? America is NOT alone - it's exactly the same or worse everywhere else throughout the liberal West!
On January 8, 2021 at 4:43 pm, Midwestern Tim wrote:
Would you mind placing Biden in the proper historical context? For instance where does he fall on the presidential hierarchy? Somewhere between Andrew Johnson and Obama? Or does he occupy the last spot all to himself?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:43 pm, Robert Fox wrote:
Speaking of pip squeaks, do you think Paul Ryan is laughing his arse off watching the chaos in DC this week while he counts his millions of dollars of consulting and lobbying fees?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:44 pm, Jennifer Dunn wrote:
Is it time to go Galt? After they erase Trump's name from history, they will come after everyone who stood with him. For a brief moment, I felt courageous and started signing my real name to comments like these. I'm not important--there's no reason for me to be canceled, but I'm wondering if I should go back to a pseudonym to protect my family. Once they implement social credit scores and mandatory vaccines, I'll never be allowed to travel again, so should I start prepping to go off grid now? You are a public figure, Mark, and they have attempted to cancel you numerous times. How do you do it?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:44 pm, Brian from Minneapolis wrote:
Dear Mark,
I'm still upset over the fact that when our base has any moment like on Capitol Hill, we get condemned and it's the worst moment in US history. They also say they condemn political violence. They didn't denounce the riots and the creation of CHOP last summer as you mentioned that in turn resulted in the defunding of police departments. They didn't denounce Islamic extremist attacks that caused us to erect bollards, shuffle through TSA shoeless and welcome in millions of immigrants from the Middle East. They didn't condemn China regarding the virus, instead of praising them, even when it got to the highest levels in our government. They get upset when legitimate anger over a stolen election is shown but show no concern when the president gets a foreign virus that has caused millions to die and millions more to lose their jobs. I don't know about you but I'm sick of seeing my base having to be reduced to apologizing again while others get to do what they want with impunity. Your thoughts Mark.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:45 pm, Scott Schertzer wrote:
Dear Mark,
It becomes clearer to me by the day that the Republican party is the true culprit in national politics. While I despise the Democrats and where they are taking the country at least they are honest about their intentions. Instead of being the opposition, and fighting for those that elected them, the Republicans (on a good day) merely spout platitudes about the Constitution while hiding under their desks.
Even after an election that saw massive amounts of fraud Republicans, both at the federal and state levels, couldn't muster up the courage to conduct any serious inquiry pertaining to voting irregularities. It almost seems as though they were happy with the results. I guess the GOPe were as anxious to rid themselves of Trump as were the Democrats.
I have voted for Republicans my entire life. In the early 80's I was honored to vote for Ronald Reagan. He wasn't shy about being proud of America. My enthusiasm for the party began to diminish with Bush 41 and continued to sag until the arrival of Donald Trump. We finally got another president willing to fight for the traditional view of our country and his own party turned on him. Members of his cabinet are now defecting and the jelly spined senators are making speeches denigrating the president.
I do not feel as though I have a political home at this time. I am past the point of believing that the Republican party is capable of reforming itself. It might finally be time for a serious third party to come to the fore. What do you think?
Sincerely,
Scott Schertzer
Miami Beach
On January 8, 2021 at 4:46 pm, Elisa Angel wrote:
Anytime before the Oklahoma City Bombing in April 1995 (Mr. Clinton was the US President then) we could get into various statehouses with very little supervision. When I was in college, we used to go up to the Texas Capitol Building in Austin and walk through the place like we owned it! On Halloween we would dress in our costumes and run through the empty hallways to the amusement of the few guards who were there at night. It was harmless fun, and we never damaged a thing. It was after the Oklahoma City Bombing that the locking up public buildings began in earnest. That's my memory.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:46 pm, Michael Trueblood wrote:
If we're going to abolish national borders, I think we should also get rid of state boarders. Then, we can just the State of America. Or, the Deplorable State of America. Or, the USA could be the Undefended State of America.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:46 pm, Tom Gelsinon wrote:
Now, can we expect Democrats to be all for National Guard and heavy, heavily armed police presence in areas where they opposed it when Antifa et al. was burning down and occupying town squares across the nation?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:48 pm, Terry wrote:
The Big Question, Mark! What is YOUR solution? A summary will do.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:50 pm, Johnny B wrote:
For Mike Pence, it's probably worth remembering that should he invoke the 25th Amendment to remove President Trump, Maxine Waters promised in 2017 that they would impeach Pence next. As Mark points out, when your enemies are telling you what they intend to do to you, it's best to heed them. I hope President Trump judiciously declassifies a few select files on his way out the door.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:50 pm, Robert Bridges wrote:
Submission is highest form of patriotism starting January 20, 2021. There is always "2020 Hindsight" which in this case will be heavily redacted and spun into a glorious triumph of socialist progress over reactionary rightist wrongthink. (Double plus good...don't you think?)
On a serious note, the Left is setting up hearings (and show trials?) over the sacrilegious storming of the Temple of Democracy last Wednesday. It's too good an opportunity to miss. With the "Big Guy" or better yet, Big Sibling in power at 1600 I am sure we will have an Emmanuel Goldstein to hate that looks a lot like DJT.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:51 pm, Scot A wrote:
I hope I can get a chance to ask a question for this Q&A. If not, I will definitely listen to the action filled replay. I just wanted to post on here that my selected news feed websites are dwindling. I have deleted the links to sites like PJ Media and other sites that I have read for over 10 years. I am tired of hearing spin from weak kneed establishment supporters. Why support the establishment when they are letting our rights and liberties get taken away from us without a fight?
I am proud to be a founding member of the Mark Steyn Club member. Hopefully, we can do a meet up in the reeducation camp?
I have no link to these people but I do want to mention them. These two comedians are on YouTube and they are actually speaking more truth to power than anyone in the mainstream media. It is a very depressing world we in live in which two YouTube comedians, one a yoga naturalist and the other a raunchy Canadian, can give you more truth about the times we are living through than any pundit (except Mark Steyn) on 24 hour cable news. The two comedians are JP Sears and Ryan Long (this guy can get a little raunchy). There are voices out in the wilderness speaking and hopefully they can be heard for they are silenced.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:51 pm, Patrick Sullivan wrote:
If you wanted gasoline poured onto the fire, you couldn't do better than removing Trump from his office right now. Which is exactly what Schumer and Pelosi think is in their political advantage; more violence from Trump supporters.
Political pros are always thinking ahead to the next election. However, they might consider that the USA was born in rebellion, and there are still people living who know that fact.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:51 pm, George Pazin wrote:
Hi Mark -
Great job this week, as always.
I don't know if you saw it, but I asked a question the other day on one of the Tucker posts. Basically, I observed that Tucker rightly criticises our elites, but imo it seems as though he is calling for better elites. I personally think we don't need elites. Can you comment on if my read on Tucker is correct?
Thanks, George P
On January 8, 2021 at 4:52 pm, Joseph Dornisch wrote:
I really wish you and one of these anti trump republican types (like say Jonah Goldberg or David French), could debate about the election. They seem to suggest nothing fishy happened in the election, and that Trump obviously called for a violent insurrection - of course without citations. All I can find is that, when trump told them to be peaceful, he also said "we love you." And earlier in the year, he tweeted things like 'Liberate Virginia" which doesn't really seem that much of a hateful call to me.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:53 pm, Midwestern Tim wrote:
Who'd you rather have as president: Rubio, Sasse, Cotton, or that one sheriff from Orange Country, CA who won't enforce Newsom's lockdown rules?
On January 8, 2021 at 4:53 pm, Tina Trent wrote:
FWIW (maybe not much) some Georgia stuff:
Since 2012, Democratic voting in Georgia soared, if unevenly. Between 2012 and 2016, Clinton outperformed Barack Obama by 116K (slightly rounded) votes, a 6.5% increase. Between 2016 and 2020, Biden outperformed Clinton by 550K (slightly rounded) votes, a 29% increase. That's a 35.5% increase in Democratic voters in 8 years. Lower level races reflect this.
In 2018, using ES&S, not Dominion, Brian Kemp and Stacey Abrams were separated by only 54,723 votes out of 3,939,328, a 1.4% margin (the rest went to libertarian nuts like Ted Metz).
Georgia's population grows more than 1% a year. We currently have the fastest growing South Asian immigrant population in the nation, high-ranking professionals who live conservative but vote Democrat. The South Asian population relocation to suburbs north of Atlanta is, by itself, currently the largest non-refugee population transfer from one region to another. South Asian population growth in my large, previously conservative county is 12% this year alone. Influx from China is huge too.
I don't discount voter machine and old-school voter fraud, but these demographic and voter trends preceded Dominion machines and are enormously exacerbated by immigration and the youth vote, which is more radicalized (and registered) by the day.
For the record, Brian Kemp not only opposed switching to Dominion machines when he was Secretary of State, but he was the social conservative champion, defeating GOP Chamber squishes much more likely to win. In contrast, Doug Collins, now a Trump darling, didn't support Trump in 2016 -- Collins was openly the open-borders, anti-Trump Kochs' darling boy. I witnessed this personally as the first pick by the Trump campaign to run Doug's district (I had to turn it down) and later at the district convention, where I was a Trump delegate who helped prevent a coup against Trump there. Doug's district (mine) has the city with the single highest per capital illegal population in the nation thanks to the poultry industry. Doug (with Newt) is also the GOP face for the toxic Koch/Soros "criminal justice reform" movement, working with Eric Holder, the NACD, Van Jones, the ACLU, PFAW and so on.
Kemp was wrongfully vilified. Trump was a fool to trust him. And anyone who supports Doug Collins now is ill-informed. Doug is a dishonest, open-borders, pro-criminal grifter posing as a conservative.
On January 8, 2021 at 4:54 pm, Elisa Angel wrote:
As a follow-up note to my earlier comment here: I think we have a moral obligation to not invite chaos, misconduct, or crime like was, in my estimation, invited by the Capitol Police and the body that oversees the Capitol Police (i.e., the US Congress).
As a simple rule, I lock my doors and I put away valuables. I do this for two reasons: I don't want to be robbed, and to not tempt others to rob me. So, for example, I won't leave an expensive watch sitting on the locker room bench while I go inside the gym to exercise. The watch might be stolen. It might not be. Most people generally do not commit crimes or do wrong, but I think we have a moral obligation not to tempt people who would otherwise not do wrong but for a weak moment where a temptation can be overwhelming for them. Why invite trouble?
I don't want a big discussion about blaming the victim of a crime. There are true criminals who spend their lives doing nothing but harm, but I'll argue most people don't. My point is that we play a role in each others lives where we should try to help everyone be socially acceptable and not do wrong.
I'll add here that I read the President's tweets and I did not think those were an invitation to violence. I know that when I walked by the Capitol on Jan. 5, that I thought the fencing was subpar considering that a large group of frustrated people were coming to DC. The National Gallery of Art (NGA) put up better, taller fencing around the perimeter of the East Building which can be broken into much more easily than the NGA West Building. I thought that was a prudent decision by the NGA. What happened inside the Capitol on the Jan. 6? I don't know, I read varying reports, but I can tell you that on the Mall side of the Capitol where I went to observe, it was crowded, quiet, and peaceful. And then on Jan. 7, after the chaos and alleged criminal behavior inside the Capitol building, there was taller, more secure fencing plus a large police presence.
