BloggeRhythms

Personal reaction to reports yesterday that the “W” Bush’s and Clinton’s will attend Trump’s inauguration places this writer in a very small, perhaps singular, minority. That’s because the general consensus feels strongly that a show of harmony and togetherness of former rivals is better for the nation than bitterness, animosity and hostility between all of those involved. 

To me, however, this temporary bond of togetherness is purely cosmetic, unrealistic and means absolutely nothing in the long run. What’s more, if all the negativity hurled during the presidential campaign can be forgotten now, everything said was fraudulent.       

Competition itself by nature is pure and sincere, and if not, it's meaningless. In my own case, others faced were obstacles that had to be dealt with in order to secure business deals. 
Despite competitors involvement in the same or similar endeavors, at no time were we ever personally “friendly,“ nor did we interact socially or in any other way. Striving for success isn’t a part time effort and doesn’t have an “On” and “Off” switch. 

In Clinton's case in particular, she'll be doing her best to undo and undermine Trump's presidency in any way she can every day in the future. Trump himself spent a whole year accurately calling her “Crooked Hillary,” among a daily dose of other blistering epithets.

On “W’s” part , he abstained from participating or commenting on Trump’s behalf during the entire presidential campaign. Nonetheless, in August he critiqued Trump's views at a fundraiser without naming him specifically.

According to The Wall Street Journal, Bush “went after Trump's policies of "isolationism, nativism and protectionism" at a Cincinnati fundraiser for [Ohio] Senator Rob Portman.

Trump himself bucked party orthodoxy by advocating a policy of revisiting military alliances and renegotiating trade deals, vocally criticizing Bush on those matters.

All of which leads to the reasonably logical conclusion that the inauguration attendance by the Bush’s and Clinton’s is not only purely cosmetic, it’s insultingly phony to intelligent people. However, if there are those out there who believe the past is now forgotten and from here on out these relationships will all be rosy, I’ve got a bridge I can sell them that connects Manhattan to Brooklyn, and I’ll let it go for a very, very reasonable price.    

Staying on the subject of phony’s, Jillian Kay Melchior writes @heatst.com via Drudge today about MSNBC’s hosts that have a tax problem.

Heat Street reviewed public records showing that six current, prominent MSNBC pundits have recently settled federal or state tax liens. One still has tax problems, while “at least two other hosts who recently left the network have also had massive tax liens filed against them.” 

Foremost is Al Sharpton who currently owes about $1.5 million in state and federal taxes, interest and penalties, according to public records. 

Then there’s Chris Matthews and his wife, against whom Maryland took out a lien for nearly $4,000 before Matthews paid up. 

In 2012 it was he who said “the key element” of a political battle between John Boehner and Barack Obama was “that there be tax fairness—the people at the top, who now get a tax break of about 5 percent, should not get that anymore because they don’t need it.” 

Another is daytime anchor Craig Melvin, who held out settlement until the final weeks of the year. And, it’s not the first time he’s run into tax problems. “In 2010, South Carolina — where he used to anchor local news — filed a tax warrant against him for more than $3,300, which has since been resolved. Melvin has also run into other financial problems, with Discover Bank taking him to court in 2005 over a $3,200 debt.” Yet, he’s spoken out on the air and on social media about the need for the wealthy to pay more taxes. 

Joy-Ann Reid also recently settled a 2015 New York tax lien for nearly $5,000, while “Kristen Welker finally paid off $6,700 in California tax liens. Though she’s offered little personal commentary about tax policy, Welker's reported on the issue saying in November 2012: “[The] majority of voters agree with me" when it comes to wealthy paying more in taxes, quoting the POTUS’s “subtle suggestion that he's got a mandate.” 

“Two other recent MSNBC personalities have also grappled with massive tax debt. Touré Neblett, fired by MSNBC in 2015, has had significant tax problems. “According to public records from the NYC Department of Finance Office of the City Register, the IRS filed two separate tax liens against him for more than $257,000, covering the years from 2008-2012.” 

Melissa Harris-Perry, who left the network in 2016, had a federal tax lien taken out against her for around $70,000 in 2015, paying it off the following year. 

So here again we have another glaring example of the insidiously hypocritical practices and premises of those on the left. As they demand equality under the law, demonizing the selfishness of the “rich, and continually clamor for the redistribution of wealth, tax evasion is commonplace among their leading pundits.  

However, the real pity isn’t the evasion of taxes or commission of illegalities by a group of elitist leftist commentators. What’s far worse is the lack of knowledge, absence of understanding and gullibility of those who listen to them. 

And then, a Facebook friend sent this one: 

 

That's it for today folks.

Adios