The Hugh Hewitt Show

Interrupting vacation one more time to bring this message to House GOP leadership. On Wednesday I was encouraged by Speaker Boehner’s message to Harry Reid about a House bill on the border.  I tweeted as much.

Today I read Bill Kristol’s assessment and realize that the House GOP leadership has no idea what they are doing on the topic of border security, which absolutely requires a long, strong, high, double-sided fence with a road running between the two fences.  This “fence project” is a necessary though not sufficient condition to border security, emphasis on “necessary.”  Other things, like visa reform, are also key, but the double-sided fence is what voters want to see built.

Consultants and pollsters have told the House GOP leadership that they must be for “border security,” but that they cannot be for the only thing on which genuine border security depends –a fence.  This creates the dilemma of having to pretend to be for border security when in fact you are doing nothing to advance it because without the fence project, nothing will work.

Because the elected lack the courage to make the common-sense argument that a law forbidding unpermitted entry is in fact a “legal fence” that assumes physical fences where necessary, the electeds lose the argument with their base and with the undecided public that knows the score. Bill Kristol is right.  Kill the fake border security bill and go home until the House leadership gets serious about passing a real border security bill.  The president is already losing the election single-handedly by allowing the world to slide towards chaos.  It would make sense for the House GOP to pass a bill based on good policy –a fence– but it makes no sense to throw the president a rope via a self-inflicted political wound over a pretend border security bill that everyone knows is a fake bill.

Courtesy of Santiago Floresena (@FloresCisco on Twitter), the Spanish translation of my Monday Washington Examiner column, addressed to Pope Francis:

Querido Papa Francisco: Dirígete al Oeste para que conozcas la verdadera esencia de los Estados Unidos.

Querido Papa Francisco:

Su Santidad, Entiendo que su viaje a los Estados unidos aun no ha sido confirmado oficialmente, y aunque muchos tienen esperanzas de que en septiembre, seas bienvenido a Filadelfia por el arzobispo Charles Chaput; El Arzobispo ha sido muy cauteloso al enfatizar que en este corto tiempo hay muchas cosas que pudieran suceder las cuales pudieran interferir en su visita, lo cual comprendo perfectamente.

Asumiendo, que usted si podrá venir a Estados Unidos para participar en el Encuentro Mundial de las Familias, Usted será presionado por cantidad de lados con invitaciones de muchas ciudades y recibirá consejos sobre que temas embarcar mientras está en EEUU.

Como Católico, Periodista y radiofusionista, Educado por las hermanas de la humildad de Maria y los Franciscanos, pero también como locutor Conservador, me encantaría ofrecerle unas Sugerencias. Usted, en el Arzobispo Chaput, tiene como posible anfitrión a uno de los líderes mas distinguidos y venerados de la Iglesia Americana, y el Cardenal Sean Patrick O’Malley es miembro de “El Gabinete de Cardenales,” no cabe duda que con ellos dos, usted tendrá excelentes asesores, lamentablemente el Arzobispo Chaput es hincha de los Acereros de Pittsburgh y el Cardenal O’Malley, hincha de los Medias Rojas de Boston, lo cual creo que los descalifica a ambos de ser guías confiables de la Cultura Americana. Continue Reading

That’s Pope Francis, Philadelphia Archbishop Charles Chaput and Philly Mayor Michael Nutter on a visit to Rome in March.

The prospect of a visit from the Pope inspired my Monday Washington Examiner column and thus this break from vacation non-posting.

Then there’s this new sticker, which goes to last week’s column:

Jamie Weinstein did a great job for me last week.  Ed Morrissey is in this week, and I think Guy Benson on Monday next before I return Tuesday.  Thanks to them all for making a vacation possible.

The weekly column from Clark Judge:

Waiting For Hillary To Implode? by Clark S. Judge: managing director, White House Writers Group, Inc.; chairman, Pacific Research Institute

Last Saturday, the Washington Post (http://wapo.st/1ntGSZf) reported that California governor Jerry Brown is contemplating a White House run.  What is going on here?

We have been hearing for months that former senator and secretary of State Hillary Clinton is a shoo-in for the 2016 Democratic Party presidential nomination.  She has the resume.  She has the money.  And solidly behind her, she has the second biggest draw in the Democratic Party, her husband Bill.

So why are Massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren and now Governor Brown giving thought to jumping in?  Others the Post says are testing the tides include senators Amy Klobuchar (Minnesota) and Kirsten Gillibrand (New York), governors Andrew Cuomo (New York) and Martin O’Malley (Maryland) and, of course, Vice President Joe Biden.

Part of the answer, of course, is that the liberal wing of the party is not happy with Secretary Clinton.  Among numerous complaints, they see her as too close to their nemesis, not the GOP but Wall Street.  This is ironic, as, in 2008, at least, a big part of the financial community signed up with the left side of the party’s favorite of that election cycle, then senator, now president Barack Obama.  But six years later things have changed.  Left Democrats are in no mood for such an odd-fellows alliance.  Continue Reading