The Border & Illegal Aliens, And What We Are Doing About It.

[Bullheaded Texan]

Attorney General Jeff Sessions said.

“We are not going to let this country be invaded!

We will not be stampeded!

We will not capitulate to lawlessness!

This is NOT business as usual.

This is the Trump era!," the Attorney General said.
 

[Bullheaded Texan]

Here's the latest Ways the White House Says It Will Pay For the Wall.

 12/19/018    Katie Pavlich

The White House has climbed down from President Trump's assertion last week that he would shut down the government if he doesn't get funding for a border wall. 

 As a reminder: https://youtu.be/J5as4eQCFi8

Over the past few days, the language has changed as White House officials replace the term "wall" with "border security." 

 During a briefing at the White House Tuesday, Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said President Trump has asked each of member of his cabinet to look for extra cash. She also argued the new trade agreement with Mexico and Canada, which hasn't made it through Congress, will pay for a wall. "We're looking at every avenue available to us possible. The President has asked every one of his Cabinet Secretaries to look for funding that can be used to protect our borders and give the President the ability to fulfill his constitutional obligation to protect the American people by having a secure border," Sanders said.

"The President has been clear that the USMCA deal would provide additional revenue through that deal that would show that Mexico was paying for the wall," Sanders continued. "He's saying that the revenue provided and the money that would be saved through the USMCA deal, we could pay for the wall four times over.  And by doing that new trade deal, we have the opportunity to pay for the wall."

 President Trump is also making this case: "Mexico is paying (indirectly) for the Wall through the new USMCA, the replacement for NAFTA! Far more money coming to the U.S. Because of the tremendous dangers at the Border, including large scale criminal and drug inflow, the United States Military will build the Wall!"

 Counselor to the President Kellyanne Conway argued on Fox and Friends Wednesday morning that the President isn't backing down on his promises for border security.

VIDEO:   https://youtu.be/Qk9UvKx9n1c

 Meanwhile, Republicans and Democrats appear to have made a deal to avoid a government shutdown.

[Bullheaded Texan]

Here Are The Six Most Corrupt Congressmen Of 2018, According To A Watchdog Group.

 12/17/18 Luke Rosiak | Investigative Reporter

A conservative-leaning watchdog group says House Speaker Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell are the biggest congressional scofflaws of 2018, for their anemic handling of the settlement slush fund that used an unlimited pot of taxpayer money to pay off congressional staff in exchange for signing legal papers barring them from taking public their claims of sexual harassment and other mistreatment by their congressional employers.

Congress members briefly claimed to be shocked at the victim-gagging slush fund when the media reported on it, but in reality, members of both parties in the House’s leadership oversaw it for years.

 The Committee on House Administration voted on each settlement and put out statistics that severely understated the scope of the problem. Former Democratic Michigan Rep. John Conyers, whose settlement sparked the initial furor, resigned, and the media moved on from the story.

 A bill by then-Rep. Ron Desantis that would have named the congressmen who benefited from these payoffs in past years went nowhere, while the bill agreed to by the administration committee and the Senate is more anemic.

“Incoming House Speaker nancy pukelosi now has an opportunity to act further and we will be encouraging her to finally bring an end to this systematic cover-up. Every day that goes by without releasing the names of Members who have received taxpayer money to settle harassment and discrimination claims is another day of cover-up and another day more innocent people are put at risk of becoming victims,” said Kendra Arnold, executive director of the Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust (FACT).

  FACT was once led by now-acting attorney general Matthew Whitaker.

Others on FACT’s list of worst ethics violators of 2018 include:

• Former Rep. Elizabeth Esty of Connecticut, for her role in the sexual harassment scandal. When the female Democrat learned that her chief of staff was accused of  “physically beating, sexually harassing and threatening to kill another one of the Congresswoman’s staff members, Esty tried to cover it up,” FACT wrote. She continued to employ him for months, then gave him a golden parachute.
• Democratic senators Elizabeth Pocahontas warren of Massachusetts and kamala harris of Mexifornia, who solicited campaign funds based on their involvement in the confirmation hearings of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, while they were still ongoing. “Senators are prohibited from campaign fundraising tied to their official duties,” FACT wrote.
• Former Republican congressional candidate Russell Taub of Rhode Island, for operating an illegal “scam PAC” that raised and failed to distribute $1.5 million to candidates.
• Florida Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson, who claimed that voting machines in Florida were tampered with by Russia. Since there is no public evidence of this, FACT said he either lied or improperly disclosed classified information.
• New York Democrat Rep. Yvette Clarke, for having 10 percent of her taxpayer-funded office budget go missing in what her own deputy chief of staff believed was a theft scheme between the chief of staff and the IT aide, Abid Awan. Since Clarke failed to take action and refused to discuss the incident publicly, she managed to win re-election by 1,000 votes. The missing funds would be enough to buy 20 iPads for every employee, and the former chief of staff, Shelley Clarke, signed off on the invoices. Clarke later had the missing items removed from the House inventory as if they never existed.
• (RELATED: Clarke’s Chief Of Staff Tried To Expose Suspected Theft R...

[Bullheaded Texan]

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL MY FRIENDS!

 This poem was written by a Peacekeeping soldier stationed overseas. The
following is his request. 
  "PLEASE. Would you do me the kind favour of sending this to as many people as
you can? Christmas will be coming soon and some credit is due to all of the
service men and women for our being able to celebrate these festivities. Let's
try in this small way to pay a tiny bit of what we owe. Make people stop and
think of our heroes, living and dead, who sacrificed themselves for us.
Please, do your small part to plant this small seed."

 T'WAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS,
HE LIVED ALL ALONE,
IN A ONE BEDROOM HOUSE,
MADE OF PLASTER AND STONE.
...
I HAD COME DOWN THE CHIMNEY,
WITH PRESENTS TO GIVE,
AND TO SEE JUST WHO,
IN THIS HOME, DID LIVE.

I LOOKED ALL ABOUT,
A STRANGE SIGHT I DID SEE,
NO TINSEL, NO PRESENTS,
NOT EVEN A TREE.

NO STOCKING BY MANTLE,
JUST BOOTS FILLED WITH SAND,
ON THE WALL HUNG PICTURES,
OF FAR DISTANT LANDS.

WITH MEDALS AND BADGES,
AWARDS OF ALL KINDS,
A SOBER THOUGHT,
CAME THROUGH MY MIND.

FOR THIS HOUSE WAS DIFFERENT,
IT WAS DARK AND DREARY,
I FOUND THE HOME OF A SOLDIER,
ONCE I COULD SEE CLEARLY.

THE SOLDIER LAY SLEEPING,
SILENT, ALONE,
CURLED UP ON THE FLOOR,
IN THIS ONE BEDROOM HOME.

THE FACE WAS SO GENTLE,
THE ROOM IN DISORDER,
NOT HOW I PICTURED,
A TRUE AUSSIE SOLDIER.

WAS THIS THE HERO,
OF WHOM I'D JUST READ?
CURLED UP ON A PONCHO,
THE FLOOR FOR A BED?

I REALISED THE FAMILIES,
THAT I SAW THIS NIGHT,
OWED THEIR LIVES TO THESE SOLDIERS,
WHO WERE WILLING TO FIGHT.

SOON ROUND THE WORLD,
THE CHILDREN WOULD PLAY,
AND GROWNUPS WOULD CELEBRATE,
A BRIGHT CHRISTMAS DAY.

THEY ALL ENJOYED FREEDOM,
EACH MONTH OF THE YEAR,
BECAUSE OF THE SOLDIERS,
LIKE THE ONE LYING HERE.

I COULDN'T HELP WONDER,
HOW MANY LAY ALONE,
ON A COLD CHRISTMAS EVE,
IN A LAND FAR FROM HOME.

THE VERY THOUGHT BROUGHT,
A TEAR TO MY EYE,
I DROPPED TO MY KNEES,
AND STARTED TO CRY.

THE SOLDIER AWAKENED,
AND I HEARD A ROUGH VOICE,
"SANTA DON'T CRY,
THIS LIFE IS MY CHOICE;

I FIGHT FOR FREEDOM,
I DON'T ASK FOR MORE,
MY LIFE IS MY GOD,
MY COUNTRY, MY CORPS.."

THE SOLDIER ROLLED OVER,
AND DRIFTED TO SLEEP,
I COULDN'T CONTROL IT,
I CONTINUED TO WEEP.

I KEPT WATCH FOR HOURS,
SO SILENT AND STILL,
AND WE BOTH SHIVERED,
FROM THE COLD NIGHT'S CHILL.

I DID NOT WANT TO LEAVE,
ON THAT COLD, DARK, NIGHT,
THIS GUARDIAN OF HONOR,
SO WILLING TO FIGHT.

THEN THE SOLDIER ROLLED OVER,
WITH A VOICE SOFT AND PURE,
WHISPERED, "CARRY ON SANTA,
IT'S CHRISTMAS DAY, ALL IS SECURE."

ONE LOOK AT MY WATCH,
AND I KNEW HE WAS RIGHT.
"MERRY CHRISTMAS MY FRIEND,
AND TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT."
 
 

[Bullheaded Texan]

Stephen Miler Video:

   https://youtu.be/aLnHYFTad8I

[Bullheaded Texan]

Stephen Miller: Trump Will ‘Absolutely’ Shut Down the Government Over Border Wall Fight.

 12/16/18

16 Dec 20181,806

 Sunday on CBS’s “Face the Nation,” White House senior policy adviser Stephen Miller said President Donald Trump would shut down the federal government if he doesn’t get funding for a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border.

 When asked about a shutdown, Miller said, “We’re going to do whatever is necessary to build the border wall to stop this ongoing crisis of illegal immigration. If it comes to it, absolutely.”

 He added, “This is a very fundamental issue. At stake is the question of whether or not the United States remains a sovereign country, whether or not we can establish and enforce rules for entrance into our country.

 The Democrat party has a simple choice; they can either choose to fight for America’s working class or to promote illegal immigration. You can’t do both.”

  NOW THIS:  

Fed Fear: Dow Drops by More Than 500

[Bullheaded Texan]

Good Riddance to obumacare!

 12/14/18  By Roger L Simon 

Surprise, surprise. obumacare, aka the Affordable Care Act, is dead, pending a possible Supreme Court review.

 U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor in Fort Worth sided with the argument put forward by a coalition of Republican-leaning states, led by Texas, that obumacare could no longer stand now that there's no penalty for Americans who don't buy insurance.

 The U.S. Supreme Court had upheld the law in 2012, by classifying the legislation as a tax. But since Congress removed the individual mandate in 2017, O’Connor ruled, there's no way the ACA can be allowed to stand.

 Arrivederci, sayonara, good-bye, we hardly knew ya.

Is there anybody currently breathing who actually understands the details of obumacare?

 nancy "You Had to Pass It, but still don't Understand It" pukelosi certainly didn't and I doubt she does now, even as she presumably ascends once more to speaker of the House.

 Maybe Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel — the putative architect of the ACA —  does, but he was about as intelligible as a Martian speaking Sanskrit when trying to explain it on television. (Giving Emanuel his due, he's said some pretty interesting things about the obsolescence of hospitals lately.)

 Actually, the legislation was the kludge of kludges, the Rube Goldberg machine of Rube Goldberg machines. Neither unfettered free market, nor socialist single payer, it was nothing. Just an inscrutable headache, some say that was deliberate.

 It was built to fail so that it could be replaced by single-payer. But they didn't think a judge would disallow it.

 The only part of this legislation people seemed to like — in fact, the only part they seem to remember, if you listen to the talking heads — was the requirement to insure those with pre-existing conditions (cancer, heart disease, etc.). This one aspect of the ACA remains crucial and is considered just by a large percentage of the population.

 Republicans would be well-advised to move on preserving this requirement immediately and find a way to codify it with new legislation. 

 Yes, this judicial decision was a surprising turn of events, but that should be the impetus to act more quickly, even during the lame-duck session. 

 Indeed, the GOP would be smart to move swiftly to draft new targeted healthcare legislation that includes one or two other popular favorites, such as the ability to seek insurance across state lines, creating competition, and lowering prices.

 The Democrats are likely — scratch that — certain to yell and scream about the "unfairness" of the end of obumacare but will (eagerly) instantly move on to their beloved socialized medicine. (Cue Ocasio-Cortez.)

 Republicans have to head this off at the pass if they wish to preserve free market medicine. Free market (capitalist-based) medicine has been vastly more important to everyone's health than most realize, because it has been the impetus for many of the extraordinary high-tech inventions and advanced pharmaceuticals that have driven the life expectancy of Americans ever higher (until now, with the opioid crisis, alas).

 Moreover, it has induced many of our most intelligent people to be doctors. Don't we want our best and brightest in that role? Without a free market, it wouldn't be that way.

[Bullheaded Texan]

Why a Judge Ruled obumacare Unconstitutional, and What Policymakers Should Do Next.  

 12/16/18 Marie Fishpaw / John G. Malcolm / @malcolm_john

A judge has declared obumacare unconstitutional—but the case is far from over.

U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor, a George W. Bush appointee, granted a motion for summary judgment Friday in favor of 20 states led by Texas that had filed a lawsuit seeking to strike down the Affordable Care Act.

 Now that O’Connor has ruled, the losing side is sure to appeal to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, and ultimately the Supreme Court.

 However, as the case continues to wind its way through the legal system, it is imperative that policymakers pursue real health care reform. obumacare isn’t working for too many American families and individuals slammed with high premiums and few choices. Rather than looking for ways to keep obumacare in place amid these legal challenges, lawmakers should pursue real solutions.

The Judge’s Reasoning in Striking Down obumacare.

 As part of the last year’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, Congress repealed the financial penalty associated with failing to comply with the individual mandate, effective in 2019.

 In 2012, in NFIB v. Sebelius, the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the individual mandate by the narrowest of margins when Chief Justice John Roberts, providing the deciding vote, devised a novel theory construing the penalty associated with violating the individual mandate as a tax that Congress has the power to levy under the Constitution.

 Texas argues that once the penalty is reduced to $0, it can no longer be considered a legitimate tax, and that therefore the individual mandate would no longer have a constitutional leg to stand on.

 Moreover, Texas argues, in upholding the individual mandate, the Supreme Court appeared to rely on the argument that Congress considered the individual mandate to be a central—indeed, indispensable—component of obumacare that is not “severable” from the rest of its provisions, and that without it, the rest of the law should be invalidated.

 A group of 17 states led by Mexifornia are defending the law, arguing that even a tax of $0 is still a tax, and that it was never Congress’ intent to get rid of the rest of obumacare when it repealed the financial penalty associated with the individual mandates as part of last year’s tax bill.

 In granting the plaintiffs’ motion, O’Connor stated, showing his agreement with Texas’ argument:

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act eliminated that individual mandate tax. The Supreme Court’s reasoning in NFIB—buttressed by other binding precedent and plain text—thus compels the conclusion that the individual mandate may no longer be upheld under the tax power. And because the individual mandate continues to mandate the purchase of health insurance, it remains unsustainable under the Interstate Commerce Clause—as the Supreme Court already held.

 Finally, Congress stated many times unequivocally—through enacted text signed by the president—that the individual mandate is “essential” to the ACA. And this essentiality, the Affordable Care Act’s text makes clear, means the mandate must work ‘together with the other provisions’ for the Act to function as intended. All nine justices to review the Affordable Care Act acknowledged this text and Congress’s manifest intent to establish the individual mandate as the Affordable Care Act’s ‘essential’ provision. The current and previous administrations have recognized that, too. Because rewriting the ACA without its ‘essential’ feature is beyond the power of an Article III court, the Court thus adheres to Congress’s textually expressed intent and binding Supreme Court precedent to find the individual mandate is inseverable from the Affordable Care Act’s remaining provisions.

What Should Be Next.

 But the legal fight aside, we need a better health care solution than obumacare.

One of obumacare’s core conceits was that what (allegedly) worked in Massachusetts would also work on a national scale. That hasn’t borne out.

 Instead, obumacare led to years of increasing costs and decreasing choices. Premiums doubled in the first four years of the program. Millions lost the coverage they used to have. Americans found it harder to pick the right plan and doctor, as health plan choices declined and provider networks narrowed. Frustrated providers are drowning in red tape and increasingly feeling burned out. Meanwhile, taxpayers are on the hook for the money needed to paper over obumacare’s flawed structure.

 Those who seem to benefit most from obumacare are big insurance companies that embraced the law and receive a steady stream of taxpayer subsidies and politicians who made endless promises to reform obumacare but failed to deliver.

Real Solutions for Pre-Existing Conditions.

 Regardless of these facts, expect many in Congress to call for immediate restoration of obumacare in the name of protecting the sick and people with pre-existing conditions.

 Some on the left claim Congress must protect obumacare because only obumacare allows Americans with pre-existing conditions to get coverage. That’s an irresponsible, false dilemma and Congress should reject it.  

 There are steps that states can take right now to ensure people with pre-existing conditions are protected, even if obumacare ultimately goes away.

 Congress should let states review their health care regulations and pursue innovative ways to make coverage more affordable and accessible to Americans—regardless of their income or medical status.  Every state legislature is about to go into session in early 2019, so this is both a desirable and possible approach.

Empower the States: 

Congress does have a role to play in helping families and individuals get the quality private coverage they want, and helping health care professionals meet their needs.

  Conservatives have a proposal to achieve this: the Health Care Choices Proposal, which undoes obumacare’s damage by letting states innovate.

 Under obumacare, insurance companies receive taxpayer subsidies dollar for dollar as they raise prices.  This proposal does away with that flawed spending scheme.

 Instead, it would convert existing obumacare spending into a grant that states would use to ensure chronically-ill patients have access to the health coverage of their choice. Greater flexibility and resources to the states means that all Americans, even those who are chronically sick, would have access to more health plans at better prices.

 The Health Care Choices Proposal would lower premiums up to an estimated 32 percent and ensure that everyone can access a quality private coverage arrangement of their choice.

 And everyone who gets a subsidy could decide what coverage to use it for, including private or employer-sponsored health insurance.

 Individuals and families would be able to decide what coverage arrangement works for them, and decide whether to work directly with a doctor for primary care and buy catastrophic coverage, or get a plan that covers more costs up front. The proposal would be especially helpful to the working poor, who may want to have private coverage but lack the means to pay for it.

 For most people, this is a much better option than what happens today: being pushed onto a government-controlled plan a bureaucrat thinks is best for them.

 This proposal would build on a promising, emerging trend already happening in the states. When states have been given even a little bit of freedom from obumacare’s mandates, they’ve been able to lower premiums using tools that ensure that the sick still retain access to care.

 Politicians have long promised to replace obumacare with solutions that help everyone.

It’s time to deliver—no matter which way the courts go.

 Just two short years after the end of the obuma administration’s disastrous policies, America is once again thriving due to conservative solutions that have produced a historic surge in economic growth.

 The Trump administration has embraced over 60% of The Heritage Foundation’s policy recommendations since his inauguration.

 But with the House now firmly within the grips of the progressive left, the victories may come to a screeching halt. Why? Because they are determined more than ever to give the government more control over your lives. 

 Restoring your liberty and embracing freedom is the best thing for you and the country.

President Donald Trump needs all of the allies he can find to push through the stone wall he now faces within this divided government. And the best way you can partner with him is by becoming a member of his greatest ally in Washington: The Heritage Foundation.

[Bullheaded Texan]

Interesting New Tech----

     engine-makes-a-run-at-reality/?ftag=ACQ-00-10aaa5b

[Bullheaded Texan]

black Lives Matter Splatter Protesters Chant: ‘Pigs In A Blanket, Fry ‘Em Like Bacon’.                                                                        08/29/15  

black Lives Matter Splatter protesters marching on the Minnesota state fair on Saturday spewed violent anti-cop rhetoric just hours after a Harris County, Tex. sheriff’s deputy was ambushed and executed at a Houston-area gas station.

“Pigs in a blanket, fry ’em like bacon,” activists with the St. Paul, Minn. branch of Black Lives Matter chanted while marching behind a group of police officers down a highway just south of the state fair grounds.

 

Carrying signs reading “End White Supremacy” and “black Lives Matter Splatter,” the protesters railed against racial inequality, the criminal justice system and policing. Besides issuing the chant calling cops by the pejorative “pig,” the protesters repeated the names of several blacks who have been killed by police in recent years.

 The activists sang out the violent chorus chant just hours after a lone gunman shot 47-year-old Harris County sheriff’s deputy Darren Goforth while he was getting gas.

 The suspect approached the 10-year veteran from behind at around 8:30 p.m. Friday and shot him in the back of the head. He then shot Goforth several more times as he lay on the ground.

Goforth leaves behind a wife and two children.

During a press conference on Saturday — before protesters in St. Paul called for cops’ deaths — Harris County sheriff Ron Hickman condemned what he characterized as “some of the very dangerous national rhetoric that’s out there today. So any point where the rhetoric ramps up to the point that calculated, cold-blooded, assassination of police officers happen, this rhetoric has gotten out of control,” he added.

“We’ve heard ‘black lives matter,’ ‘all lives matter’ — well, Police officers’ lives matter too!

So why don’t we just drop the qualifier and say ‘lives matter,’ and take that to the bank.”

[Bullheaded Texan]

CCW Weekend: Picking A Gun For Aging, Weaker Or Impaired Hands.

 12/15/2018 | Concealed Carry; Home Defense Guns and Gear

A number of people have conditions that impair hand strength or function, some folks are just old and some folks just don’t have much hand strength to begin with.

It goes without saying – but will get mentioned anyway – that a person who cannot safely handle or operate a firearm has no business with one.

With that said, the ravages of time spare few people, leading some folks to eventually need a different carry gun or don’t find too many carry guns to their liking. Now, some conventional wisdom actually applies, but some definitely does not, depending on circumstances.

What are the factors that can make a gun harder to operate for a person?

Dimensions are one aspect; the smaller the pistol, the more fine motor control is needed. Sheer grip strength is also required for grip and to actuate the slide, if using a semi-automatic. Recoil is also a factor, as even moderate calibers such as .45 ACP can eventually become a bit much for extended practice sessions.

As a result, the standard sort of carry gun becomes a little less viable.

For instance, snubbie revolvers can become a little more problematic. The smaller trigger guard and double-action trigger can become a little harder to operate. Additionally, the recoil of a compact, light-weight pistol can be unpleasant. Shooting .38 Special from a Model 10, old Police Positive or GP100 is easy. From an Airweight J-frame or LCR…it can get a bit livelier.

Since practice is a necessary component of defensive shooting skills, you need to have a gun you can practice with. A lightweight snubbie may not be the best option in this instance, but that will be down to the individual; for some people, it may be perfect.

Then again, there are plenty of round-butt models on medium frames available for concealed carry as well. For those that prefer a wheelgun, K-frame compacts and Ruger SP101 pistols are likely a better option.

Today’s wildly popular polymer striker pistols are fantastic, as you can get them as large or small as one likes. They’re reliable, they’re accurate, and they’re everywhere. However, the hitch there is that the striker firing mechanism requires stiffer recoil springs, making the slide harder to operate for those with declining or otherwise not ample grip strength.

In this regard, a compact or even subcompact hammer-fired semi-auto is more sensible. Some are purpose-built to require less strength to actuate the slide. Springfield Armory’s XD-E pistol was designed with easier operation in mind, as is S&W’s Shield 380 EZ, which are both excellent carry pistols.

It may also help to step down in caliber. Some folks prefer .45 ACP, but as time wears on, it can beat up the wrists. Same goes for 10mm, for .357 Magnum and so on. Going down to 9mm can make practice sessions on the range a bit easier…and as a side benefit, cheaper!

A marginally heavier pistol can also be a benefit. Whereas lighter guns are preferred for the most part (and with good reason) a pistol with a bit more heft can be easier to manipulate. Soaking up a bit of recoil can also make a gun a little easier on aging hands. Compact models from CZ and Sig Sauer are excellent choices, as are Commander and Officer model 1911 pistols, if the person carrying is familiar with or puts in time training on a single-action system.

Then again, if you find you still run that Glock 43 or Shield just fine, stick with it.

The best gun to carry is the one you use best, in all cases.