[guest post by Dana]

Let’s go!

First news item

Relatives of Ukrainian prisoners of war returned home testify to the ongoing atrocities committed by Russian soldiers as the war grinds on:

The return to Ukraine of the bodies of prisoners of war without internal organs may be evidence that they are used in Russia for transplantation. “We receive not only tortured bodies, but also bodies that, unfortunately, have no organs,” a wife of one of the prisoners said.

”This confirms the fact that the black market of organ transplantation in the Russian Federation is working. And, unfortunately, it works with our prisoners of war. That is why I believe that this should be reported to the whole world in order to stop this crime,” said the wife of one of the prisoners of war.

. . .

She emphasized that Russia refuses to return and include prisoners of war from the Mariupol garrison in the exchange lists.

Of course when considering the Ukraine-Russia war and the upcoming election, concerns run to the seeming indifference of JD Vance. I saw this excerpt from an interview he did with Ross Douthat last month. In part:

First, he argued that weapons being sent to Ukraine were needed to deter China from invading or blockading Taiwan.

That is not an isolationist argument, but one very close to Elbridge Colby’s in the book “Strategy of Denial.”

Second, he reiterated that he had been skeptical of the viability of Ukraine’s counteroffensive last year, which the Biden administration backed despite the obvious military difficulties of what was being attempted.

. . .

No. 1 . . . you freeze the territorial lines somewhere close to where they are right now.

No. 2 is you guarantee both Kyiv’s independence but also its neutrality. It’s the fundamental thing the Russians have asked from the beginning. I’m not naïve here. I think the Russians have asked for a lot of things dishonestly, but neutrality is clearly something that they see as existential for them.

And then No. 3, there’s going to have to be some American security assistance over the long term.

Asked by Douthat, “You agree it’s not in our interest right now for the Russians to roll through the rest of Ukraine?”

Vance replied: “No, it is not in our interest.”

Second news item

I would think every American would pounce on this:

Republicans seized immediately on images of burning U.S. flags and vandalism at Washington, D.C.’s Union Station following Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech as evidence of widespread antisemitism and a harbinger of what can happen under Democratic control of government.

“Pro-terror, anti-Israel agitators are vandalizing federal property, removing American flags, and replacing them with Palestinian flags steps away from the United States Capitol,” said Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), a member of Senate GOP leadership, on X. “This is inexcusable, and I expect them to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

Per the report, two Democrats chimes in with the Republican complaints:

“I never imagined seeing the flag of a terror group holding eight Americans hostage for 292 days waved in the streets of our nation’s Capitol,” Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.) wrote alongside an image of a protester waving the Hamas flag.

“The Jew hate and anti-American garbage coming out of college campuses this spring didn’t end with the last day of school,” wrote Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-Mass). “College presidents, you’re on notice: Enforce your codes of conduct from day one of the fall semester.”

The de facto Democratic presidential nominee weighed in too:

“I condemn any individuals associating with the brutal terrorist organization Hamas, which has vowed to annihilate the State of Israel and kill Jews. Pro-Hamas graffiti and rhetoric is abhorrent and we must not tolerate it in our nation,” the vice president said in the statement issued by her office. “I condemn the burning of the American flag. That flag is a symbol of our highest ideals as a nation and represents the promise of America. It should never be desecrated in that way.”

It’s so easy to break and destroy things. Any fool can do it. The harder task is to build something that will last and reminds Americans and the world, that the land of the free and the brave is, still.

Third news item

Why wasn’t Harris given more power?:

Harris was not empowered to oversee the administration’s policing efforts on the border, spearhead negotiations on the Hill to reform U.S. asylum law, or negotiate deportation regimes with the nations beyond Mexico’s borders from which most migrants were coming. She was charged with “talking” to the leaders of Mexico and the nations that make up Central America’s “Northern Triangle” to address the “root causes” of migration. You know, “gang violence and trafficking and cartels,” the president said at the time, but also “natural disasters, hurricanes, floods, earthquakes.” If the vice president had the power to mitigate phenomena like that, she’d be overqualified to merely preside over the Senate.

In fact, Harris wasn’t granted any power at all, and she treated the role with which she’d been saddled like the burden it was. Within weeks, her conspicuous failure to even visit the border she’d been tasked to oversee became a political liability — one her lack of political talent only made worse. But within a few months of her accession to the role, Harris started producing the only results she could: A commitment from twelve private companies to “invest” in the region, the deployment of a USAID disaster team to provide “food assistance” and “poverty reduction,” and roughly $300 million in humanitarian assistance.

Readers are reminded: If Harris’s own boss could not trust her with some of the awesome duties and powers of his office, why should we?

The border must be secured:

I don’t know where this idea came from that you have to look the other way on illegal immigration or you’re racist, but every other country on earth secures their border and America should too. It’s utterly reasonable to want a functional border, and don’t let anyone convince you otherwise.

Democrats should make securing the border and fixing our immigration system a top priority.

Drugs. Sex trafficking. Terrorism. There are a million risks to doing nothing on the issue. And, the drain on local resources is real.

Fourth news item

Repellant, indeed:

It is both moronic and morally bankrupt and since this sort of thing does not help the Palestinian cause at all and actually turns people against it, it is another example that some of this movement regard the Palestinians as just one banner in a wide and egregious charge…

— S Sebag Montefiore (@simonmontefiore) July 26, 2024

Fifth news item

Barack and Michelle Obama endorsed Kamala Harris this morning:

I’m so proud of my girl, Kamala. Barack and I are so excited to endorse her as the Democratic nominee because of her positivity, sense of humor, and ability to bring light and hope to people all across the country. We’ve got your back, @KamalaHarris! pic.twitter.com/xldcZeDXuS

— Michelle Obama (@MichelleObama) July 26, 2024

Sixth news item

California Gov. Newsom moves on homelessness in the state:

California Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered state agencies Thursday to start removing homeless encampments on state land in his boldest action yet following a Supreme Court ruling allowing cities to enforce bans on sleeping outside in public spaces.

This executive order directs state agencies “to move urgently to address dangerous encampments while supporting and assisting the individuals living in them.” It also provides guidance for cities and counties to do the same, which applies pressure on them, though they are not legally bound to the order.

Republicans are less than impressed by what they call a PR move”:

California Senate Republicans are calling out Gov. Gavin Newsom for what they say is a “PR stunt,” after he announced a new initiative to dismantle homeless encampments across the state through an executive order. . . Senate Minority Leader Brian W. Jones [said] “I introduced a proposal earlier this year that would have provided even greater and more immediate solutions. While I am cautiously optimistic that the governor has finally taken note of the urgency of this problem, albeit many years later than needed, Californians deserve government for the people, not the PR hits.” Senate Bill 1011, introduced by Jones and all Senate Republicans in February, was a bipartisan effort that would have gone even further in clearing homeless encampments but was rejected by Democrats in the Senate Committee on Public Safety.

Seventh news item

If President Biden is too old and too cognitively challenged to run again, how do you defend a 78-year old man who wants to become the next president but simply cannot stop babbling about Hannibal Lecter, whom he seems to believe was a real person?:

Former president and Republican candidate Donald Trump has addressed his repeated references to the fictional murderer and cannibal Hannibal Lecter, from the book and movie “The Silence of the Lambs.”

During his Wednesday rally in Charlotte, North Carolina, Trump appeared to explain why he keeps praising the character, saying it was because they are “real stories.”

“They go crazy when I say the late, great Hannibal Lecter. They say, ‘Why would he mention Hannibal Lecter? He must be cognitively in trouble.’ No. These are real stories. Hannibal Lecter from ‘Silence of the Lamb,’ is a lovely man. He wants to have you for dinner,” he said.

Trump has mentioned the character several times before during speeches.

The too-old guy gets it:

He praised Hannibal Lecter.

Donald, Hannibal Lecter is not real. And he is a cannibal.pic.twitter.com/8BwtOnIDoV

— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) July 20, 2024

Have a great weekend.

—Dana