DOD's "Malicious Compliance" on DEI
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth's efforts to eliminate the racist and sexist Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) policies of his predecessor Lloyd Austin are being undermined by hold-over Biden Administration bureaucrats. Their strategy is "malicious compliance." Hegseth's intent is to elevate merit and competence over DEI's racial, ethnic, and gender quotas for hiring and promotion.
However, this intent has been twisted by a moronic effort to eliminate the word gay and African-Americans from all Department of Defense photos. Examples include photographs of the B-29 Superfortress that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima because "Enola Gay" appears on the nose of the plane, photos of troops where the name Gay appears on any shirt, and photos in which there are any Black servicemen.
Hegseth asserted that "any employee engaged in this sabotage is either too disloyal or too stupid to be employed by the DOD. We're going to identify the individuals responsible and separate them from their employment if they are civilians or separate them from the military if they are servicemen. Defending America from foreign threats is one of the most important functions of the federal government. Like the weapons we deploy, our personnel must be the best we can obtain. We shouldn't settle for sub-par performers just so we can fulfill arbitrary quotas."
Austin rejected Hegseth's "inhumane insistence on standards that would exclude persons of lesser abilities. A nation's armed forces should be comprised of persons from all walks of life. Not every American is highly intelligent, physically fit, or mentally stable. Former President Biden was allowed to be Commander-in-Chief of our armed forces even though he couldn't be said to have met any of these criteria. Why should those who serve in lesser roles be held to a higher standard? Those who serve in the government should resemble the American people. This is the goal that DEI is meant to achieve. We will regret throwing this goal away in a single-minded pursuit of excellence."
Trump Using Tariffs to Bully Others
Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif) went on NBC to complain about "President Trump using the threat of tariffs to bully other countries into doing what he wants them to do. Take his beef that Mexico and Canada should do more to stop fentanyl from coming into the United States from their countries. Why should they? These drugs are smuggled in by criminals. How is that the responsibility of the Mexican or Canadian governments?"
NBC's Kristen Welker asked "didn't the President's threat produce some positive results? Didn't they extradite almost 30 high-ranking cartel members to the US where they can be prosecuted? Hasn't cartel criminal activity at the border been reduced? What's wrong with that?"
Schiff said "since when do the ends justify the means? Since the men were arrested by Mexican police do we even know if they were read their Miranda rights at the time of their arrest? What proof do we have that any of the crimes they committed occurred inside the United States?"
"Well, isn't sending illegal drugs across the border a crime?" Welker asked. "Technically, isn't smuggling people across the border also a crime? Isn't it better to have these suspects behind bars while a case is being built?"
"Under our laws, everyone is considered innocent until proven guilty," Schiff asserted. "Many states and cities in our country have enacted laws calling for no bail release of mere suspects. I have no confidence that Trump and his ICE goons will have the kind of respect for this concept that we Democrats have."
In related news, according to records left by the Biden Administration, more than 100 men with ties to ISIS were apprehended illegally entering the US from Mexico. Only eight of them were deported or are still in custody. The rest were all let go inside the US. Former Attorney General Merrick Garland explained "we had no evidence they had committed any crimes. So we had to let them go. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard contradicted Garland, pointing out that "illegally entering our country is a crime. Considering that ISIS routinely murders anyone they please, men linked to this terrorist organization who have been caught illegally crossing into our country should have been deported--not set free to potentially prey upon innocent Americans."
Zelensky Finds New Marks to Scam
Before Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky met with President Trump last week he met with a bipartisan group of senators that included: Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn), Roger Wicker (R-Miss), Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) Chris Murphy (D-Conn) Peter Welch (D-Ver) Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) Chris Van Hollen (D-Md). As Sen. Murphy described the meeting, "President Zelensky left here persuaded that he should not accept a fake peace agreement where Putin gets everything he wants without any security arrangements for Ukraine."
Less than an hour later Zelensky was thrown out of his meeting with Trump empty-handed. He had no additional US military aid and no hope for peace. Zelensky later asserted that the "war would go on for a very very long time" and demanded that "since the US will no longer provide the funds to help us win the war, Europe must. An immediate down payment of $250 billion is urgently needed."
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced a "ReArm Europe plan which would allow European countries to spend up to $840 billion on defense in the coming years. This will help Member States to pool demand and to buy together. With this equipment, Member States can massively step up their support to Ukraine."
United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer offered to "lead a coalition of the willing to enforce peace in Ukraine. I envision a 30,000-strong European force that would include boots on the ground and planes in the air to ensure that Russia doesn't breach a ceasefire."
French President Emmanuel Macron urged all Europeans to "prepare for war with Russia. We can use our nuclear weapons to deter Russian aggression. We must let the Russians know that Europe will not accept capitulation of Ukraine under the guise of 'peace negotiations.'"
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock gave an impassioned speech urging her countrymen "to prepare for war now. We cannot afford to wait until April for the formation of the incoming government under Chancellor Merz."
President Trump admitted "I'm surprised at Europe's newfound determination to provide for its own defense. This is something I tried to induce them to do during my first term. I am pleased they are finally taking on this responsibility. If they do go to war with Russia the Russians will probably stop selling them oil and gas. I hope they have alternate sources of supply. We have substantial supplies. Maybe they will consider buying from us."
In related news, it turns out that previous to his meeting with Trump, Zelensky had already signed an exclusive 100-year minerals deal with the UK. Zelensky defended his double-dealing, saying "we are fighting for our lives and our country. Churchill said he would make a deal with the devil if that was what was needed to defeat the Nazis. How can I be faulted for the lesser sin of merely selling the same asset to two different countries?"
Differing Assessments of State of the Union Speech
This week President Donald Trump gave the longest ever State of the Union speech to Congress and the American people. Some were favorably impressed. Others were not.
Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Tx) did not like it. "All of us elected to offices in the government took an oath to uphold this government. Trump, though, is tearing the government apart--canceling programs, firing employees, and cutting spending. As far as I'm concerned he is an enemy to the United States. He should be impeached, jailed and executed."
Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Ca) professed herself "skeptical of Trump's so-called efficiency improvements. He's firing civil servants with decades of experience, but then goes and hires a 13-year-old boy to be on the Secret Service. He pretends to care about parents whose children were raped and murdered by immigrants, but forgets that reminding them of their loss only worsens how they feel. It's best for a person's mental health if such senseless tragedies are forgiven and forgotten as quickly as possible."
Rep. Al Green (D-Tx) took issue with Trump declaring he had a mandate, saying "he don't have no mandate to eject me, an elected member of Congress, for trying to exercise my freedom of speech. I know what it's like to have people disagree with me. A few years back Lucinda Davis accused me of sexual assault. We were both going through a difficult period in our lives at that time, but thanks to a special secret fund set aside by Congress I was able to withdraw $875,000 to pay her to be happy. Now we are great friends. If President Trump were to pay me $875,000 I'd be happy and not go forward with my idea to impeach him for ejecting me from Congress."
Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) accused Trump of "blatantly lying about Social Security checks being sent to 157-year-old retirees. No one lives that long. These checks are being mailed to much younger folks who have stolen the Social Security numbers of people who are dead. It's not as if his lies are new. Republicans have been trying to do away with Social Security since FDR created the program. It just hurts me to hear these lies repeated over-and-over. I say let's let the 390 million who paid into the system continue to get their checks without being hassled by Musk and his minions in the bogus Department of Government Efficiency."
Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa) called his fellow Democrats complaints and demonstrations against Trump "a sad cavalcade of unhinged petulance that only makes Trump look more presidential and restrained. Too many in our Party are becoming the metaphorical car alarms that nobody pays attention to — and it may not be a winning message."
After the speech, a CBS News poll revealed that 76% of those who heard it approved. 91% said Trump spent time on issues they cared about. 74% said the address was presidential and entertaining. 71% said the speech was inspiring. 62% said it was unifying. 46% said it was divisive. When asked how the speech make them feel, 68% said "hopeful," 54% said "proud," 27% said "worried," and 16% said "angry." When asked about Trump's plans for waste in government 77% liked the plans, 23% disliked them. When asked about immigration and the border 77% liked what they heard, 23% didn't. Asked about Ukraine and Russia 73% liked what they heard, 27% didn't. On tariffs 65% liked what they heard, 35% didn't. 68% said Trump described the country's crime problem accurately.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) insisted that this poll "shows the American people are with us in our opposition to Trump. All across the country people are rising up to push back against the assault on the economy, the assault on hardworking families, the assault on our democracy and the assault on Medicaid."
Mark Penn, a former pollster for former President Bill Clinton and former Democrat presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, says "my data show the Democrat Party's popularity has fallen off a cliff. To the question, who has done or is doing a better job as president, Biden or Trump? Trump is winning that 57% to 35%."
