This is another of those weeks. For anyone interested in reading or writing
about currents events, the list of relevant topics is both inviting and
long.
·
If you have a Right-leaning
religious bent, the now famous Kentucky Clerk, Kim Davis, was released from
jail yesterday.
·
For the tennis fans, Serena
beat Venus (no last names necessary) in the U.S. Open Quarterfinals last night. She’ll play Roberta Vinci in the semifinals Thursday.
·
For those for whom politics
is their wheel-well, Round 2 of the Republican Party Presidential Debate series
kicks off a week from today…Part I at 6:00 p.m., followed by the Prime Time
nightcap at 8:00 p.m.
·
If you are just dying for the
juiciest details of the latest violent jump-off, a pair of Atlanta teens landed
in jail for allegedly attempting to murder their parents.
·
If you love Hillary…or you
love to hate Hillary, she has executed yet another tack in an effort to subdue
or escape e-mailgate; she apologized.
·
If you’re a tech titan, Apple
releases the new 6S today.
·
If you are a football fan, over
the weekend, two Texas high school football players executed blindsided tackles
on an unsuspecting referee, allegedly after he uttered a slur.
·
For fans, and perhaps
detractors of Pope Francis, on yesterday, the Holy Father radically revised the
process by which Catholics may annul their marriages, streamlining steps that
many in the church considered too cumbersome and costly.
·
If you are a hoops fan, yesterday
was huge…because President Obama entertained the reigning NCAA National
Champion Duke Blue Devils. As an aside,
I must note, that in itself was not the top aspect of that news, though it
certainly was newsworthy.
The actual significance of the encounter
stemmed from the fact Duke’s Coach, Mike Krzyzewski, actually praised President Obama. It was well delivered, well deserved, and
surely setting appropriate. Coach K
said:
"On behalf of our Duke community, we want to thank you for
serving our country over these last two terms.
You've been an amazing leader for our country. And it's not just you,
but your family and the sacrifices. So thank you very much for your
service."
He even urged
the crowd to give the President a standing ovation.
Of course, the
reputedly conservative Duke Coach has publicly expressed other opinions about
President Obama. Krzyzewski is the same
man who criticized the administration's
strategy regarding ISIS and said in 2009
when Mr. Obama didn't choose Duke for the Final Four:
"The economy is something he should focus on, probably more
than the brackets."
Coach K may
very well be an ideologue. But he is
suave, and capable of being glib, despite his fiery on court persona. I’ve seen him deliver the goods in
person. He did a good job yesterday.
·
Of
course, if you are a student of history, you know that Friday marks the 14th
Anniversary of the September
11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th,
or 9/11). These attacks were a
series of four coordinated terrorist attacks by the Islamic terrorist group al-Qaeda on the United States on the
morning of Tuesday, September 11, 2001. The attacks consisted of suicide attacks used to
target symbolic U.S. landmarks.
That’s an
auspicious Top 10 for considering a blog topic.
Yet, none cut the mustard in terms of my choosing today’s subject. I believe the President phenomenal
accomplishment gets the nod. At least it
gets mine. As I’ve noted before, to use
a basketball analogy…my court my rules.
To wit,
despite historic measures and wide-ranging attacks by opponents of the Iran
Deal, President Obama and his team have not just withstood the often vicious
and ad hominem attacks from with the borders of the United States and abroad,
they have managed to construct a coalition that is not merely capable of
sustaining a veto, as of yesterday, the President attained enough votes (41) to
prevent a Senate vote against the Deal from occurring.
It is without
question, the Iran Deal is controversial.
Republicans have initiated a number of desperate attempts to scrap the
deal before it ever materialized, including issuing an unprecedented invitation
to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to speak before Congress, without
first advising the President…just weeks before the Prime Minister’s election in
Israel
That affront
took place prior to the completion of the Deal.
So did a broadside attack in the for of an open
letter to the leaders of the Islamic Republic of Iran signed by 47 senators and instigated by Sen.
Tom Cotton (R-Ark.). It was, in modest
terms, a stunning breach of protocol. While many observers insist, it would be
beyond the pale to characterize or dub the signers as “traitors,”
it was definitely another slap in the face of President Obama and an affront to
the presidency,
When the
question was put to retired Major Gen. Paul
D. Eaton for perspective, he wouldn’t say Cotton and Co. were
“traitors.” However, he did not hold
harmless the Senator from Arkansas. As
he put it:
“I would use the word mutinous.”
Eaton has had
a long career, which includes training Iraqi forces from 2003 to 2004. He is
now a senior adviser to VoteVets.org. He
went on to say:
“I do not believe these senators were trying to
sell out America. I do believe they defied the chain of command in what could
be construed as an illegal act.”
Eaton
certainly had stern words for Cotton. As
he framed it:
“What Senator Cotton did is a gross breach of
discipline, and especially as a veteran of the Army, he should know better. I have no issue with Senator Cotton, or
others, voicing their opinion in opposition to any deal to halt Iran’s nuclear
progress. Speaking out on these issues is clearly part of his job. But to
directly engage a foreign entity, in this way, undermining the strategy and
work of our diplomats and our Commander in Chief, strains the very discipline
and structure that our foreign relations depend on, to succeed.”
The
consequences of Cotton’s missive were plainly apparent to Eaton. He went on to say:
“The breach of discipline is extremely dangerous, because undermining our
diplomatic efforts, at this moment, brings us another step closer to a very
costly and perilous war with Iran. I
think Senator Cotton recognizes this, and he simply does not care. That’s what disappoints me the most.
That’s among
the more frightening aspects of this entire episode. The freshman senator from
Arkansas and 46 of his Republican colleagues sought to Bigfoot Obama on a deal
not yet done whose details are not yet known.
This demonstrates in a classic fashion how contemptuous so many members
of the Radical Right are of this President.
Yet to paraphrase the last Maya Angelou, “And Still He Rises!”
In yesterday’s
edition of the Washington Post, Michael Gerson makes a point
that one would think would have been clear to all 47 signatories of Senator
Cotton’s letter.
In his column
today, Michael Gerson makes a point
that should have been obvious to all the signatories of the Cotton letter.
“If Republican senators want to make the point that an Iran deal requires a treaty,
they should make that case to the American people, not to the Iranians.
Congress simply has no business conducting foreign policy with a foreign
government, especially an adversarial one (See the Netanyahu invitation). Every
Republican who pictures his or her feet up on the Resolute Desk
should fear this precedent.
There was a
time one could have imagined Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) making this point. That was back when he fancied himself a
statesman. Instead, he signed
the letter.
In wrapping
up his thoughts on Senator Cotton, General Eaton said:
“I expect better from the men and women who
wore the uniform. And the American
people deserve better from the Senate.”
So the huge,
in Joe Biden parlance, “Big eff’n deal,” news is, three Democratic senators
announced Tuesday they will vote in support of the nuclear deal with Iran,
paving the way for a possible filibuster of Republican-led attempts to
disapprove of the controversial agreement.
Given the pressure on Democrats, on Jewish legislators in both Houses,
on anyone in a heavily Jewish precinct, district, or state, that the President
whom Republicans targeted from his first day in Office, in an attempt to deny
him any political victories at all…ever, could marshal the requisite number of
Senators to potentially avoid even having to issue a veto is a simply amazing feat
of nuanced Presidential leadership. Add
it to the list!
Pro-deal
statements from Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.) and
Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) mean 41 senators are now publicly backing the deal, enough
to keep a disapproval resolution from emerging from the Senate and making its
way to President Obama's desk and forcing a veto.
In related
news, a fourth Democrat making an announcement Tuesday, Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.),
said he would vote to disapprove of the deal, as did the last undecided
Republican, Susan Collins of Maine, thus dashing White House hopes for
bipartisan Senate support.
Republicans
are still engaging in discussions designed to avoid a 60-vote minimum
requirement to scuttle the Deal.
Democrats, understandably oppose such a move, in part due to precedents
set by Republicans when they were in the Minority. It appears likely at this point that the
60-vote requirement will stick, and that Democrats will filibuster attempts to
bring the measure to a vote.
Who would
have thunk it possible? President Obama
is wearing this Lame Duck thing extraordinarily well thus far. “Game, Set, Match: POTUS Style!”
I’m done; holla back!
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