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Programming alert 🚨: “On Balance” will be live from Dallas, Texas, tonight and tomorrow for the Republican Midterm Convention.
Texas-Sized Problems ‼️‼️‼️‼️
‼️Everything is bigger or better in Texas — even the sandwiches — see above from the meat shop in Dallas.
☑️By all measures, Texas is a Texas-sized Republican success
Economic boom
Banishing Woke
Low crime
Massive migration from blue states
The Mexican strawberry and sugar frozen popsicles in every gas station
🤦Yet that’s not the story Donald Trump wants to talk about here in Texas — he wants to talk about Donald Trump
And since he’s president — they will
Look back🔙: Yesterday, I told you about the anger from Republican operatives over Trumpapalooza
“Trumpapalooza is beyond frustrating to guys like me working day and night to win these races!” he wrote in a text message and then went on to bash the two-day affair
This is a story repeated over and over.
Be fair⚖️: Trump became president two of the three times by being himself, making the election about himself and defying every pundit — he knows his supporters.
On the ballot📃: Like Obama voters, Trump supporters are “low propensity” voters — they only turn out for the man.
Trump believes he can convince them to turn out by putting himself on the ballot
Watch tonight📺: Bill O’Reilly on what the midterms are REALLY about — watch his talking points memo here
He makes the point that “no one is voting for a person”; they are voting for a “movement”
So compare the movements — Republicans vs. Democrats — and make a decision
👀In other words — the best thing Republicans have going for them is “un-American” Democrats.
‼️There is a Texas-sized civil war in the Democratic Party over America
Half still says they believe America is a force for good
Half aggressively support policies that are diametrically opposed to American exceptionalism
Watch tonight📺: Marc Short, Corbin Trent and Christian Pascucci on whether Democrats can stop fighting each other long enough to focus on things Americans care about.
Turning up the Heat 💣
💥US forces struck Iranian oil tankers today around Kharg Island.
This is a two-pronged approach — squeeze Iran economically while opening the Strait of Hormuz to traffic America wants and needs to go through.
From a movie‼️: US Navy SEALS spent the last four months secretly blowing up all the mines Iran placed in the Strait of Hormuz.
“Mostly at night, it sent Navy Seal divers, robot boats and specialised underwater craft into the perilous strait for a four-month mine-clearance mission, said people familiar with the operation. The fraught process of explosive device disposal was carried out underwater and in darkness in an attempt to eliminate a crucial factor deterring ships from carrying vital cargoes through the strait since the US and Israel attacked Iran in February,” writes the Financial Times.
Must read📰: The Financial Times headlines: “The risk mission to de-mine the Strait of Hormuz”
Dig deep: This was leaked for a reason —
They’re trying to send a message to Iran ahead of the midterms.
Tonight📺: Vice Adm. Robert Harward on what it’s like doing this kind of mission and why it is being released now.
NAME WARS‼️
🤦Republicans and Democrats have finally figured out how to solve our most important problems — change the name!!!
President Trump gave us the latest example — changing Lake Ontario to Lake America and now wanting to do the same to New Mexico.
Must see📱: “South Park” was quick to jump on it — renaming their show to “South America”
📺Cue the freakout — Democrats and the media have spent the last week freaking out over Trump’s renaming
But guess it becomes all okay when Seattle gunmen are now called “trigger pullers”
Reality‼️: Changing names to change minds has long been a favorite tactic of the Left.
Look back🔙: The Biden administration thought stripping the names of men who’d been dead for 150 years from military bases was going to somehow cure racism.
Or changing the House chairman to “chair” was supposed to cure sexism
Names feed culture wars and do nothing to solve the problems that Americans say over and over they care about.
Tonight📺: My sister Liberty Vittert Capito and NewsNation’s Batya Ungar-Sargon on why our politicians continue to fail us.
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Leland, I love War Notes because the contents are all about right from wrong....not left vs right! You present things in a nonbiased way, which is something hard to come by in today's goofy world. You do a tremendous job with great respect and much thought. I LOVE your show, On Balance, too. Keep up the incredible work. Thank you for all you do, Leland. You are very much appreciated 👍♥️