So last night (Thursday, February 8, 2024) a few things were highlighted in the media. One was Tucker Carlson’s interview with Vladimir Putin (in Russia at the Kremlin) and another was the Justice Department Special Counsel Robert Hur’s 388 page report on his 13-month investigation – and President Biden’s response to that report.
That report was quickly likened to James Comey’s report about Hillary Clinton where he laid out all the evidence for indictment but decided not to charge her – even though he also admitted were it someone else, they probably would indict. Only this most recent report and result is worse. Why? For what it revealed. No, not the crimes of Biden or Trump, but the other more subtle truths encoded therein.
Yes, the report found that President Biden “willfully retained and disclosed classified materials after his vice presidency when he was a private citizen,” yet it also explained why no charges would be pursued…why not?
One of the reasons was Hur’s concern about competency and how Biden would “likely present himself to a jury”: “as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.”
That is putting it mildly.
Not only was the argument made that President Biden would come across as sympathetic to any jury (meaning it would be difficult to convict), but he wasn’t mentally capable of being held responsible for criminal activity.
From the special counsel report: “In his interview with our office, Mr. Biden’s memory was worse. He did not remember when he was vice president, forgetting on the first day of the interview when his term ended […] and forgetting on the second day of the interview when his term began.”
That seems significant. One would hope a mentally fit president would be able to remember the years he was vice president, especially considering it wasn’t that long ago.
Also from the report: “He did not remember, even within several years, when his son Beau died.”
That seems fairly troubling. The death of a child is usually one of the most memorable events for a parent – and it’s not like he couldn’t just remember the exact day or the month or the season – but he could not remember the year, or even close to the year.
And maybe the most troubling statement from the report: “And his memory appeared hazy when describing the Afghanistan debate that was once so important to him.”
This statement seems to indicate that he was having trouble remembering something that not only happened during his current tenure as president, but is related to his actual leadership and presidency.
And then when addressing his memory in the press conference last night, he resorted to emotional and irrational attacks to defend his inability to remember when his son died. Another red flag about intellectual capacity to deal with even low-level stress.
Now, if you’ve been tracking what appears to many to be his mental decline, President Biden has been getting names of world leaders – and legislators and leaders within his own party – wrong since he took office in 2021. But I have to say, when you mix up the leaders of Mexico and Egypt in the same address where you are trying to defend your memory: Things don’t look good.
So why is this worse than Comey’s report regarding Hillary Clinton? Well, President Biden isn’t running for president. He is president. And one of the reasons he will not be charged is because he isn’t mentally capable of taking responsibility. But how is it then possible he is mentally capable of diplomacy? Of understanding complex legislation? Of directing a Cabinet?
He’s been saying things like, “I’m not supposed to…” and “I’m gonna get in trouble…” Who is telling the President of the United States what he is supposed to do or not do? Is he not capable of curbing his impulses? Who is he going to get into trouble with?
Who is running the executive branch of this current administration? Who is making decisions for this administration? Who will the American people actually be voting for if they vote for Joe Biden come November?
And there is another question we should all be asking – because if this were an ordinary citizen and it had to be determined whether or not the accused was competent to stand trial, there would be a cognitive evaluation to determine that, not just an opinion in a report .
Where is that official evaluation?
And if it were an ordinary citizen as the accused, both sides could present an expert opinion/evaluation. Why is that not happening here?
Not only should we be asking what happened to equality under the law, but, where is the watchdog media? Where is the demand from the president’s Cabinet?
This special counsel's report and the president’s response is, to me, in stark contrast to what I saw in Tucker Carlson’s two-hour interview with Putin.
I need to bring this back around to freedom, so hang with me just a little longer.
Putin did not have a teleprompter. Putin was asked questions. I don’t believe he knew in advance what those questions would be, but by his lengthy answers, I think he made sure he was able to say whatever he wanted to…like a good politician.
But more than that, there were some pointed questions that seemed to give him a moment's pause - but only a moment because he then gave excellent answers to even those surprising queries.
I am not saying we attribute truthfulness or sincerity to every answer, like Tucker appeared to do – but I will say this, Putin was quick witted and was easily able to come up with very competent responses – or non-answers that seemed persuasive at face value. Much like a good politician has become accustomed to doing without slipping up. Putin did not slip up. He masterfully manipulated the message.
Putin also did not get flustered or emotional - or slur any words. And when he was asked about dates, he may not have known exact dates or years, but he did know who was president during which conversation – and he was able to give a detailed and lengthy account of Russia’s history. AND, he knew what information was too sensitive to discuss with a media personality
that has been ousted from the mainstream back in his own country.
Again, this is in stark contrast to the report, the words, and the behavior of the current sitting President of the United States.
Although, if we are to believe Putin (if you have not seen the interview, you can verify what I say next by going and watching it), not only is President Biden not really in charge of foreign policy and diplomacy (as required by the U.S. Constitution), but President Obama was not either. Nor was President George W. Bush. Nor was President Clinton.
Keep in mind, President Trump also made some promises regarding Ukraine that went unmet. Just like promises to the Kurds went unmet. And the Yazidis were ignored. And why did we not come to the defense of Hong Kong? I know President Trump was under impeachment pressure in 2019, but the season was ripe for freeing Lebanon (and maybe Iran itself) from the grasp of the terrorists. Who stopped that from happening?
We must take government-driven media as propaganda, as a narrative they desperately want us to believe. Whether it is an emotional plea from a cognitively unfit American president or a perfectly crafted political response from an authoritarian, we should always question the reasons behind the words. What is the real message that is being sent? And why are they conveying that message?
So how do I bring this back around to freedom principles? Well, this time, I’m not going to address constitutionalism, which would be easy to do.
Instead, I’m going to tell readers: You are smart enough to figure this one out on your own. The fundamental right to private property is wrapped up in the right to have a personal opinion. You have a right to freedom of thought, freedom of conscience.
So let's embrace that freedom and think. What do you think is going on in the U.S. Government? Who is leading us? Do the presidential elections even matter? Is the campaign a WWE match? Was Donald Trump really a wild card in 2016? Is he again in 2024? Or is RFK, Jr. the distraction we should all be looking into? Why?
What do you think is going on in the Republican Party? What is the infighting all about? Is it all for show? And this time around – have you looked into anything that the DNC is doing? Before you look into 2024, why not go back and investigate the 2016 DNC? And then maybe investigate the 2016 GOP. I know we may not want to do the work. It's time consuming and disheartening when we think there is nothing we can do about what we find.
But mental exercises like connecting dots and complex logic puzzles strengthen our cognitive capabilities and may just yet lead to actual solutions. So let's use the innate God-given right to freedom of thought before that, too, is taken from us…
Kommentarer