Some Bad News, More Bad News, And Some GOOD News *Open Thread*

Oh, where to begin? I have had to narrow down the “bad” and “more bad” news because, unfortunately, there is just way too  much of both. Thankfully, though, there is some good news, too, which I will get to soon enough.

First to the “bad” news. I am sure this will not surprise many of you, but Prof. Larry Sabato of the Center for Politics at UVA, made this dire prediction. From the Weekly Standard (h/t Facebook friend):

The rise of Donald Trump and the general “polarization” of politics have pushed six Senate seats toward the Democrats, according to Larry Sabato and his “Crystal Ball” forecast.

Sabato’s updated forecast bodes particularly ill for Sens. Rob Portman and Pat Toomey, Republicans who are defending their turf in major purple states. Because there is a strong correlation between the success of a presidential candidate and Senate hopefuls of the same party, Sabato argues that the GOP could endanger itself if it nominates a general election candidate unpalatable to the general public.

“Considering the rise of Donald Trump, the polarization in U.S. politics, and a higher rate of straight-ticket voting, this could be bad news for the GOP,” Sabato writes.

“Assuming the GOP nominee for the White House is either Trump or Ted Cruz, we think the Democrats will fare reasonably well down-ballot (more so with Trump than Cruz, though Cruz will also have a difficult time carrying many swing states).” […] (Click here to read the rest.)

Oh, AWESOME. That’s just jake. Another reason to dislike Trump and the minions who mindlessly support him. And on that note, they claim to support him because he is “anti-Establishment,” despite the many and numerous connections he has TO the Establishment. Nowhere is that more glaringly obvious than the recent vile comments from Reps. Boehner and King, as PJ Media highlights (h/t Helen).

And as Carly Fiorina noted, there is a reason Boehner is no longer the Speaker (h/t Facebook friend for link) OR in the House. Yeah, no kidding. Guess he’s never heard the “people in glass houses” adage before.

But hey, the Republicans weren’t using those majorities ANYWAY, so, yeah. As Clinton famously said, “What difference at this point does it make?” Ahem. Of course, it WOULD make a difference if a Republican actually becomes President, which means Ted Cruz since he is the ONLY Republican running right now. Just sayin’. (Cartoon by Michael Ramirez at Townhall.com.)

Bottom line, though, it ain’t gonna be pretty if Trump goes against Clinton and seems like it may give the Democrats all three houses AGAIN. Because that worked out SO well the last time. Can you say, “OBAMACARE“???  Uh, yeah.

And that brings up “more bad news.” This is what happens when there are no checks and balances on the Executive Branch by the Congress. That would be this newsflash about what ICE officials, paid for with YOUR tax dollars to fulfill the LAW on Immigration are doing. Hint: Not their jobs. From the Daily Signal:

More than 19,000 criminal illegal immigrants were released from custody in 2015, according to new figures disclosed by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency.

The 19,723 criminal releases—as the government refers to them—represent a 35 percent decrease from fiscal year 2014.

The phrase “criminal releases” can apply to a wide range of crimes, including traffic violations—such as driving without a license—to more serious offenses like sexual assault, rape, and murder. Their crimes include misdemeanors and felonies.

According to the Center for Immigration Studies, which advocates for less immigration, the 19,723 criminal releases had a total of 64,197 convictions among them. More than 200 of those were homicide convictions. Most are traffic offenders. […] (Click here to read the rest.)

I don’t give a damn if they are JAYWALKING tickets. The “ILLEGAL” part should be sufficient to deport them, much less the additional criminal activity on their parts. Thanks, Obama and Congress for NOT keeping us safe and protecting our borders! If Clinton becomes the President, the borders are going to become even more like a sieve than they already are. Ugh.

But you know I am not gonna leave you on such a down note. I have some GOOD NEWS to report! I wrote about this story some seven months ago, the Green Beret who was on the verge of being separated from service for taking it to an Afghan commander who was raping boys. That would be Sgt. 1st Class Charles Martland, an HIGHLY decorated Green Beret I was delighted to see this article at Military.com:

Sgt. 1st Class Charles Martland confirmed the Army’s decision to retain him when reached by Fox News, which has been covering the story in depth for the past eight months and first broke the story of the Army’s decision in August to kick out Martland over the incident, which occurred in northern Afghanistan in 2011.

“I am real thankful for being able to continue to serve,” said Martland when reached on the telephone by Fox News. “I appreciate everything Congressman Duncan Hunter and his chief of staff, Joe Kasper, did for me.”

As first reported by Fox News, while deployed to Kunduz Province, Afghanistan, Martland and his team leader confronted a local police commander in 2011 accused of raping an Afghan boy and beating his mother. When the man laughed off the incident, they shoved him to the ground.

Martland and his team leader were later removed from the base, and eventually sent home from Afghanistan. The U.S. Army has not confirmed the specifics of Martland’s separation from service, citing privacy reasons, but a “memorandum of reprimand” from October 2011 obtained by Fox News makes clear that Martland was criticized by the brass for his intervention after the alleged rape. Asked for comment in September 2015, an Army spokesman reiterated, “the U.S. Army is unable to confirm the specifics of his separation due to the Privacy Act.”

An Army spokesman said Thursday that Martland’s status has been changed, allowing him to stay in the Army, in a statement to Fox News. […] (Click here to read the rest.)

Wahoo!!! Now that is some good news indeed, is it not? For whatever reason the Army decided to do the right thing, I am glad they did. That gives me a bit of hope, and gives our Army back a man who is not just highly decorated, but highly respected. That is no small thing.

That’s it for me. What’s on your minds today? This is an Open Thread.

Tags: Donald Trump, ICE, President Obama, Sec. Hillary Clinton, Sen. Ted Cruz, Sgt. 1st Class Charles Martland, US Army