"I hope that even my worst critics remain on Twitter, because that is what free speech means"

"Rising crime is emerging as a top issue for voters this year, adding another glaring political vulnerability to the Democrats' ledger. A Gallup poll conducted last month found concern about crime at its highest level in nearly two decades, with 53 percent of Americans saying they worried a 'great deal' about crime. Gallup found crime ranks as the third-most important issue among 14 tested, trailing only the economy and inflation. Republicans held a 15-point advantage when asked which party would handle crime better in a Fox News poll conducted this year -- the highest partisan advantage in the history of the poll.

"While the issue of crime will come up in races across the country, it will be most deeply felt in some governor races in states that have seen a large increase in violent crime, particularly in Democratic-run big cities. ...

"The fact that governor races in the bluest of states are shaping up to be competitive is a sign of the political potency of law-and-order rhetoric. President Biden's support for additional police funding in this year's State of the Union address is a clear sign that Democrats recognize the significance of rising crime in this year's midterms. But given how eagerly Democrats embraced criminal-justice reforms that turned unpopular while indulging 'defund the police' rhetoric from progressives, Republicans won't have to do much work to press their advantage."

"Not too long ago there were Democrats who were concerned about the finances of the country. They were affectionately referred to as 'Blue Dog Democrats' who were worried about deficits and debt. There is no place for them in today's Democratic Party. President Joe Biden and Vice-President Kamala Harris just introduced the largest budget ever with the largest tax increase ever requested. There are very few 'Blue Dogs' in Congress, and they are on their way to extinction."

"Hispanic voters are rapidly reevaluating their relationship with the Democratic Party, creating a problem for Democrats that, in some ways, mirrors their struggle to retain working-class voters.

A Quinnipiac poll published last week found that Hispanic voters disapproved of President Joe Biden's job performance more than any other racial group, with just 12% of Hispanics saying they 'approve strongly' of how he is handling the office. ...

'I think the single biggest reason is inflation,' Brad Bannon, a Democratic strategist, told the Washington Examiner when asked why Latino voters are shifting rightward. 'Hispanic Americans are not happy because their income is not keeping up with inflation.'

He added, 'Hispanic Americans have the same economic concerns that other Americans have, and it's a big problem.'"

Read the entire article here.

"You could say 'Happy Passover,' you could say 'Happy Easter,' but you couldn't really say 'Happy Tax Day.' Tax Day is already bad, and President Joe Biden wants to make it worse.

"If you filed for a refund, you may be waiting a while: As of March, the IRS hadn't processed more than 12 million returns. The latest appropriations bill gave the agency funding to hire 10,000 more people, but that won't solve the problem.

"Biden wanted to give it a further $80 billion and hire another 87,000 agents. We already see IRS people chase waitresses around the table to tax their tips, run up and down city streets to make sure there's no Uber hanky-panky and in their spare time go after successful small-business and gig workers.

"That's not enough for the president. Biden wants to make America No. 1 ... in taxes.

"If he had his way, the United States would have the highest individual, corporate and capital-gains taxes of all the developed nations. We'd have tax rates even higher than China's."

Read the entire article here.

"Sen. Maggie Hassan is the latest Democrat in a tough reelection fight to sound the alarm over Biden's decision to overturn Title 42, which allows U.S. authorities to turn away migrants at the border to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

"The Department of Homeland Security has warned that reversing the pandemic immigration rule will lead to up to 18,000 illegal crossings a day, up from the current pace of roughly 6,000 a day.

"While advocates for looser immigration laws have applauded Biden's decision, Hassan and several other House and Senate Democrats facing difficult midterms are leaning into the border fight with the administration. In recent weeks, they have joined forces with Republicans in backing a bill that would prevent the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from following through with an order that will stop authorizing Title 42 in late May. ...

'"Border agents were very clear with me that the end of Title 42 will lead to a steep increase of attempted crossings that they will not be able to effectively handle because they don't have enough resources,' Hassan said in a statement after her visit in early April. 'In particular, border agents told me that they need additional personnel, physical barriers, and technology at the border to stop unlawful crossings, which is especially important because they expect that smugglers will try to take advantage of the increase in attempted crossing.'"

Read the entire article here.

"Today, new sources and supplies of oil and gas are a prerequisite for getting Europe to commit to boycotting Russian supplies. Until Europe joins our boycott, it is not going to work. For now, all our boycott is doing is increasing the price at which Putin can sell his oil and gas to his regular customers. It may be the right thing, but it won't work unless our allies get involved as well, and that means providing them with alternatives.

"The best way to counter those 'Putin price hikes' at the gas pump has always been to produce the gas here at home. But the long-term beneficiaries of what we do now will be our trading partners. Many European countries listened to environmentalists for too long and made themselves too dependent upon Russian oil and gas. They are now realizing that this isn't going to work. They need to produce more of their own energy or find other non-Russia sources, lest they find themselves at the mercy of their neighborhood narcissistic bully in Moscow. ...

"Russia's most powerful weapon is not nuclear bombs, a weapon of last resort, but natural gas. We can fix that by exporting much more liquefied natural gas to European ports, weakening Russia and helping our allies at the same time."

Rad the entire article here.

Happy Easter

Happy Passover

Happy Spring

"A new law passed by Illinois Democrats over the weekend will compel private retailers to advertise lawmakers' temporary tax break. That break amounts to breadcrumbs for consumers forced to cope with record gas prices, amplified by gas taxes that are among the highest rates in the nation.

In the early hours Saturday morning, the state legislature passed a new budget that will require gas stations to post signs to celebrate Democrats' delay of a 2.2 cent increase of the gas tax scheduled for July. Residents already pay the fourth-highest gas taxes in the country at more than 40 cents per gallon, according to federal data.

Under the Democrats' new plan headed to the governor's desk, the advertisements must read, 'As of July 1, 2022, the State of Illinois has suspended the inflation adjustment to the motor fuel tax through December 31, 2022. The price on this pump should reflect the suspension of the tax increase.'

Grocery stores must also publish a note on receipts that the state suspended a 1 percent tax on groceries for a year."

Read the entire article here.

"Crime is rising, so it's time for Democrats to take aim at law-abiding gun owners. In a press conference today, President Joe Biden promised swift action, announcing a series of unilateral moves that will have virtually no effect on rising criminality. Among them is regulating so-called 'ghost guns,' which Biden claims 'are the weapons of choice for many criminals.' And by 'many,' he means 'incredibly few.' Biden also promised to fight for 'universal' background checks and 'assault-weapns' bans, two other policies that would do almost nothing to lower the crime rate and everything to do with making life more difficult for peaceful gun owners."