Saturday, February 28, 2026

The Usual Idiots Are on the Job As America Crushes the Iranian Tyrants

The Usual Idiots Are on the Job As America Crushes the Iranian Tyrants

The Usual Idiots Are on the Job As America Crushes the Iranian Tyrants
AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite

The only thing unpredictable about the devastating air and naval campaign against the Iranian mullahs who have murdered so many people – including Americans – was the timing. We hit those bastards in broad daylight. Even though those sociopathic clowns knew it was coming, they didn't expect to be blasted into oblivion over breakfast. Now, there are some people I respect who have doubts over the mission – but they have no doubts about our country or our troops. What was sadly predictable were the puny wails of the weak, stupid, and treacherous who have zero clue about what's going on, yet immediately howled in indignation over Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu's decisive decision to settle all family business. In case you missed it, Maduro was Tartaglia, Cuba will be Barzini, and the mullahs will be Moe Green relaxing on the massage table and reaching for his glasses. That Moe was Jewish will just make the jihadi goat molesters madder during the short time they have left.

Of course, the Jewish thing is front and center with the haters. "No war for Israel!" they impotently shout as if this was some profound sentiment instead of a giant sign announcing to the world they ignored Robert Downey, Jr.'s famous admonition from "Tropic Thunder."

That particular stupidity has its tangents, both of which I saw demonstrated when I pointed out that Rep. Thomas Massie was a useless piece of garbage who can always be counted on to stab us in the back (more about that dingus later). There was the classic "Shutup, Zionist," which is kind of like calling me smart, rich, and sexually powerful. I'd explain to them how insults are supposed to work, but they might end up crying, and then their mommies will have to spend all morning comforting them. Another variation is the perennial "Totally disagree with you, are you taking Israel money, too?" Yeah, I need to be paid by a foreign country to want to defeat our enemies – nothing gets by you geniuses!

Oh, and, of course, Thomas Massie was in the House – but not for long, if his patriotic war hero primary opponent has his way – sharing his tiresome and wrong opinions that this is some sort of illegal war. Now, to share these insights required him to take a break from enforcing the newly minted libertarian principles of trashing the reputations of people based on hearsay and innuendo and demanding the arrests of unnamed people for victimizing unnamed people with unspecified evidence. Massie informed his coterie of slack-jawed supporters: "Acts of war unauthorized by Congress. The U.S. is attacking Iran according to AP."

Here's the problem – he's wrong. First, the Constitution does not require Congress to authorize every single military action by the guy the Constitution named commander-in-chief. It has the power to declare war; every war need not be "declared." The CINC has wide latitude to engage in armed conflict. Now, Massie may not like that or even agree with that, which is fine. But he's still wrong. And even if he wasn't wrong – and he is – there's still the matter of both the War Powers Act and various use of military force authorizations that Congress has passed that would allow this to happen even if Massie's bespoke interpretation wasn't ridiculous. So, he's got his authorization – but no, he's decided he needs another because reasons. In terms of talking about war powers, Massie is the equivalent of the weirdo who spent too much time on the interwebs telling the judge he has no authority over him because he wrote "SOVEREIGN CITIZEN" on his driver's license and because the flag in the court has a gold fringe and that makes it a flag of admiralty and the court therefore has no jurisdiction over him because he is not a sailor, just before the bailiff hauls him back to his cell. But Massie's fan club of constitutional dyslexics has their dumb opinions, and boy, are they eager to share them.

This flows into the "I'm against the war because I love the troops" play. Someone named Natalie tweeted, "How does 'War needs to be authorized by Congress' = Thomas massie (sic) is undermining our troops? Patriotism is protecting our troops and wishing to keep them out of harm's way." Of course, the Iranians have killed and maimed thousands of Americans and will do it again, given the chance – when they chant "Death to America," they mean it. Let me tell you, as a guy in theater when the ground war went off in Desert Storm 35 years ago last week, our guys are more than happy to unleash on these seventh-century savages.

Natalie pivoted into another phase of the stupidity sweepstakes with, "The U.S. government will seriously go to war with Iran rather than release all the Epstein files." There are a lot of people pretending that this mission is really a cunning distraction to take people's attention away from the vaunted files, which have revealed exactly zero substantive, admissible, believable evidence that there was some giant pervo conspiracy or that Donald Trump did anything wrong. The only thing a distraction would protect is the Democrat-adjacent figures who still partied with Epstein after his conviction. The Epstein thing was always an IQ test; adding the Iran attack to it really separates the merely stupid from the transcendentally moronic.

And then there's Tanner, who identifies himself as an Army chaplain candidate (!) and whose timeline includes weird Charlie Kirk truthing, who makes the bold choice to make the chickenhawk play to a retired Army colonel who had his right shoulder patch long before his mom and dad lit some candles and spun that Al Green CD: "If you love our troops so much come put on a uniform and put YOUR life on the line. No one who actually understands war wants this war. You are a bloodthirsty hawk." Thanks for the insight, Punky Brewster. You're dismissed.

I regret to inform you that the pod bros of Alleged America First are at it again. Let me tell you about America First – if that means allowing a bunch of dark age degenerate sociopaths to murder and maim Americans with impunity, then count me the hell out. I never signed up to let a pack of foreign savages kill and mutilate my people, which these mullahs have been doing for nearly half a century. MAGA is not pacifism; pacifism is not MAGA, and it is certainly not manly.

And if you doubt it, it was Mr. MAGA himself, Donald J. Trump, who had the courage to finish this war – this war did not start yesterday at approximately the same time these dummies first became aware of politics. One of the most tiresome of these is Comic Dave Smith, who, to my knowledge, has never actually told a joke and has somehow installed himself as some sort of relevant commentator supplying the full benefit of his foreign policy insights gained while opening for an Eskimo prop comic at the Quebec Le Giggle Works. He weighed in with this doozy:

"By launching this illegal war of aggression against Iran, Donald Trump has betrayed the American people and his own base, none of whom wanted this. He has sided with Lindsay Graham, Mark Levin and Benjamin Netanyahu, the most despised laughingstocks on the planet. By announcing that this is indeed a regime change war (as anyone paying attention and being honest has known all along) he has tied his entire legacy to this action. If he isn't able to achieve a regime change, he will have killed a bunch of people for no reason. If the regime does fall, we have already admitted that we have no one to install and without boots on the ground, it is difficult to install a regime even if you had someone. Trump will be responsible for what comes next- the thing war hawks never consider."

OK, not "illegal" and not a "betrayal" – Donald Trump never promised anyone to let our enemies win. If you think "Lindsay Graham, Mark Levin and Benjamin Netanyahu" are "the most despised laughingstocks on the planet," you need to get out around the planet more. For example, Comic Dave's Hamas buddies in Gaza, to the extent they are still breathing, are most definitely not laughing. And oh no – Trump will be responsible for his actions! You think? Gosh, if only CDS could have warned the president before he made the decision to attack that he would be responsible for his decision! And the whole post-war thing – I'm sure he never thought of that, especially when Trump was elected after criticizing his predecessor for never thinking of that. Oh, and by "War hawks," I think Comic Dave means "men."

There are also various Democrats who are mad and frightened – not for our troops but because they know Trump's track record of success and are terrified that he pulls off this incredible strategic coup. Senator Fetterman was the exception; the rest were craven enough to whine about Trump even though they know this mission is both necessary and just. Then there are our foreign enemies who are mad – the Russians are ticked because their Persian pals are going away and they will probably have to put the survivors up in Moscow in perpetuity. And then there are our alleged allies, like the U.K., who are begging for further pointless negotiations. They hate the idea of defeating their enemies rather than submitting to them.

Yeah, the usual suspects are in full effect, but at the end of the day, who cares? Not the men and women of the American and Israeli armed forces, who are finally going to rid us of these barbarian druids after we let them exist for far too long. And certainly not for President Donald Trump, who – unlike his ankle-nibbling critics – knows what needs to be done and has the testosterone to do it.

https://townhall.com/columnists/kurtschlichter/2026/02/28/the-usual-idiots-are-on-the-job-as-america-crushes-the-iranian-tyrants-n2672066?utm_source=thdailypmvip&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=nl

SOTU Psychosis in the Press, and the USA Hockey Team Continues to Enrage With Patriotism

SOTU Psychosis in the Press, and the USA Hockey Team Continues to Enrage With Patriotism

SOTU Psychosis in the Press, and the USA Hockey Team Continues to Enrage With Patriotism
Townhall Media

Get access to Brad Slager's "Riffed From the Headlines," a daily VIP feature where he looks to bring accountability to the mainstream media. Use promo code POTUS47 to get 74% off your VIP membership!

Prose & Contradiction – CNN

  • They never saw a display like this one because they never looked.

As expected, the press regarded last night’s State of the Union address as bad. And dark. And negative. Huh, seems you might only take that viewpoint if you were a Democrat, given that party was his primary target in his speech.

At CNN, Jake Tapper was rather miffed to see the president regard the opposition party as “crazy.” Use of that word seems to have set Jake off, which is mildly surprising from the journalist crowd. After all, they are the crowd that has no compunction in hurling Nazi references at the man. We could also bring up the Democrats who do not hesitate to call the president a pedophile. 

But we will highlight another discrepancy. Considering Jake was appalled at the use of “crazy” during the SOTU, he was not so bothered when Democrat Ilhan Omar was seen yelling out that Trump was a murderer. Seems a very sinuous line to draw for this standard, Jake.

DNC PR Firm – CBS NEWS

  • He was very successful in his speech, which is what makes it so unacceptable.

In the network’s post-speech analysis, veteran analyst Major Garrett was brought on to give his impressions. He referenced one portion of the speech, where the president made a distinction between supporting American citizens and illegal aliens, and he seems to have been quite successful in delivering it. And this is…a bad thing?

Garrett explained that the president made this very plain and clear for the audience, and this somehow displayed a “dark” skill that Trump used:

It oversimplifies the issue dramatically. But if anyone has learned how to master that art, some call it a dark art, in American presidential politics, it's Donald Trump that was on full display to tonight.

Gilded Reframe – CNN

  • So you really thought trivializing war heroes was a good look, AP?

A fair portion of the SOTU involved the president handing out a number of honors to military vets and other true heroes. These displays always seem to rankle Democrats and the press, but they manage to grasp that being critical does not sit well with the public. They usually try to deliver a specific critique, where they do not demean the honorees but come off as only opposing how Trump managed the display.

One who was unable to thread this needle was Abby Phillip, who came off sounding like a bitter crone as she compared recognizing these heroes to winning a dishwasher on “The Price Is Right.”

Matching Media Memorandum – GLOBE & MAIL

  • One day soon, the Syrupeans will understand we are savoring their bitterness.

Look, we completely grasp this. Hockey is a national passion for Canada, so losing the gold medal to the U.S. last weekend was going to have an impact. But the imbalanced reactions have been reaching crisis levels. The outrage is in two main forms: declaring the team is not celebrating properly, and losing their minds over the political connections.

Continuing this hysterical trend was the Globe & Mail, as it saw the team brought out during the speech last night, and collapsing into a new surge of tears into their Labatt's Blue.

Demo-lition Project – HUFFINGTON POST

  • You guys are just married to this anti-American position, aren’t you?

Recently, we covered how HuffPo had come out with a hot take over the weekend about feeling bad seeing all of the pro-USA imagery and great results coming from the Olympic Games, and getting that post ratioed into the sun as a result. Well…the outlet is not content that it has driven off enough potential customers on this matter.

Not only was an attempt made to insult the U.S. hockey team, but in so doing it features a socialist account that is also pro-Palestinian to deliver this sub-patriotic messaging.

Matching Media Memorandum – MS NOW

  • Truly, we do not want them to stop with this bitterness…

Adding to the media distemper over the hockey team was Symone Sanders, someone we have full confidence in saying is completely oblivious to the nuances of the game. If she were able to explain how the delayed offside rule worked, we might entertain her opinion on the game.

As it is, just drink in her disdain for the heroic team daring to attend the SOTU.

Gilded Reframe – THE DAILY BEAST

  • We have moved from “he took no meetings” to “he did not take enough meetings.” Okay then…

At The Beast, they continue flogging the expired equine that is the Kash Patel locker room non-troversy. (Some advice, guys? Wanting to become Ken Dilanian is not a noble goal.) To rehash, the claim being made is that Patel flew to Italy to only watch hockey games. Then it became that he only took a couple of perfunctory meetings to make it appear it was a business trip. Now the story has morphed again.

Since the accusations have unraveled further, as it was now learned that he had taken SIX different meetings, the solution at the outlet was to crack out a stopwatch, in order to PROVE hockey was his priority. They claim to have timed out all of the minutes spent at those official meetings, and by their measurement — which conveniently excludes many portions of his schedule — he spent more time watching hockey than on official business.

Car Prices Aren't High by Accident — They're the Cost of Government Control

Car Prices Aren't High by Accident — They're the Cost of Government Control

Car Prices Aren't High by Accident — They're the Cost of Government Control
2025 Lincoln Navigator Black Label (Photo courtesy of Lincoln)

Americans are paying more for new vehicles not because of greedy dealers or temporary market disruptions, but because the modern automobile has become a government-regulated platform.

What once functioned as personal transportation is now a rolling compliance device, and the cost of that transformation is embedded into every vehicle sold.

The result is a car market where prices are high by design and unlikely to come down.

The average transaction price for a new vehicle now approaches $50,000. That figure is not driven by consumer excess or dealership markups.

It reflects a system in which federal mandates, regulatory layering, and forced technology additions steadily raise the baseline cost of every vehicle before it ever reaches a showroom.

Dealers sell what they are allowed to sell, and consumers pay for what regulators require to be built.

Vehicle prices remain elevated because the cost of building a compliant vehicle continues to rise. Federal safety rules, emissions mandates, cybersecurity requirements, and connectivity standards now dictate vehicle architecture.

Automakers no longer decide which technologies to include based solely on consumer demand. They build to regulatory specification, and those specifications grow more complex every year.

Advanced driver-assistance systems are one example. Once optional, these technologies are now effectively mandatory. Cameras, radar units, sensors, processors, and software are built into nearly every new vehicle, regardless of whether buyers want them.

These systems increase manufacturing costs, repair costs, and insurance costs, but they cannot be removed without violating federal standards.

Emissions regulations add another layer of expense. Even gasoline-powered vehicles now rely on increasingly complex emissions control systems, specialized materials, and software calibration to meet tightening federal and state requirements.

These systems add cost without adding utility for the average driver, yet they are non-negotiable for manufacturers.

Connectivity mandates have also changed what a vehicle is. Modern cars are required to support data transmission, monitoring systems, and software updates.

This infrastructure is not free. Hardware, antennas, processors, and cybersecurity compliance all increase vehicle cost, and those expenses are passed directly to consumers.

One of the most consequential and least discussed mandates is the federal requirement for advanced driver monitoring and impairment detection systems, often referred to as the vehicle “kill switch” mandate.

Embedded in federal infrastructure legislation, this rule requires automakers to install technology capable of preventing vehicle operation under certain conditions.

Regardless of how it is marketed, this mandate requires additional hardware, software, sensors, and system integration in every new vehicle. The cost of that requirement is permanent and unavoidable.

Whether or not these systems are ever activated as intended is beside the point. The expense of designing, testing, certifying, and installing them is already built into vehicle pricing.

There is no mechanism for these costs to be rolled back, and no competitive pressure forcing prices down when every manufacturer must comply with the same rules.

Tariffs compound the problem. Import duties on vehicles and automotive components raise production costs across the industry, including for vehicles assembled in the United States that rely on global supply chains.

Steel, aluminum, electronic components, and specialized materials are all affected. These costs are not absorbed by automakers and are not controlled by dealers. They are passed directly to buyers.

Labor costs are also influenced by regulation. Compliance requirements increase production complexity, lengthen assembly times, and require specialized training.

New labor agreements reflect those realities, further embedding higher costs into vehicle pricing. Once incorporated, these costs do not retreat.

The idea that prices will fall once supply improves misunderstands how regulation works. Supply constraints can ease, but compliance costs only move in one direction. Every new mandate raises the floor price of a vehicle.

Even if manufacturers wanted to produce simpler, lower-cost vehicles, they are often legally prohibited from doing so.

This is why entry-level vehicles have largely disappeared from the market. Automakers did not abandon affordable cars because consumers stopped wanting them.

They stopped building them because regulatory compliance made them unprofitable or impossible to sell at lower price points. When the baseline cost of compliance exceeds what buyers can pay for a basic vehicle, the product simply vanishes.

The used-car market offers little relief because it is affected by the same system. As new vehicles become more expensive, consumers hold onto older cars longer.

The average age of vehicles on American roads has climbed to nearly 13 years. Fewer late-model vehicles enter the used market, tightening supply and pushing prices higher. Regulatory-driven costs in the new-car market ripple outward and affect every segment.

Electric vehicles are often promoted as a regulatory solution, but they illustrate the same problem. EVs carry higher upfront prices largely because they are built to meet policy goals rather than market demand.

Mandated technologies, battery sourcing rules, and compliance requirements add cost and complexity. For many buyers, EVs increase financial exposure rather than reduce it.

It is important to separate responsibility from rhetoric. Dealers do not design vehicles. They do not set federal rules. They do not control tariffs, emissions mandates, or technology requirements.

They sell the vehicles they are legally allowed to sell at prices determined upstream by regulation-driven cost structures.

As long as vehicles are treated as platforms for policy enforcement rather than consumer goods, prices will remain high. There is no market mechanism capable of reversing regulatory cost creep. Once mandates are implemented, they become permanent fixtures, and their costs compound over time.

Consumers should not expect meaningful price relief absent a fundamental shift in how vehicles are regulated. The forces driving prices upward are not cyclical. They are systemic. Until policymakers acknowledge the cost of forced technology and regulatory layering, the $50,000 car will remain the rule rather than the exception.

High vehicle prices are not a market failure. They are a policy outcome. And unless that reality changes, so will the definition of what Americans can afford to drive.

https://www.newsmax.com/finance/laurenfix/car-prices-auto/2026/02/23/id/1247100/

Boom: MS Gov. Tate Reeves Schools Gavin Newsom on California Reading Scores vs. Mississippi

Boom: MS Gov. Tate Reeves Schools Gavin Newsom on California Reading Scores vs. Mississippi

AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) did a stop in Atlanta for his 2028 presidential run book tour and said something characteristically Hair Gel that is getting him labeled a racist. It couldn't happen to a nicer guy.

As my colleague Nick Arama wrote:

Newsom is now being accused of racism for his statements on his Atlanta book tour stop. Over 20 million people have now viewed a clip of him talking with the black mayor of Atlanta, Andre Dickens, in which he says, "I'm just like you," then goes on to say that he has a 960 SAT and can't read a speech.

It's on brand for Newsom to think he is being relatable, rather than insulting and racist. This proves that being politically savvy doesn't translate to being the brightest bulb in the box. Since 2018, Newsom claimed he struggles with dyslexia. He even dictated a 2021 children's book to a ghostwriter, who whipped it up for him and slapped his name on it. So, dependent upon the audience, Newsom has used dyslexia as an excuse, a point of relatability, or evidence of how tough life has been for him. He's nothing if not a chameleon. 


Dive DeeperGavin Newsom Steps in It Again As His GA Remarks Go Viral and He's Accused of Racism

Newsom's Epic Crashout As He Panics and Implodes in Backlash Over GA Remarks


But since that faux pas, he has been getting roasted by all the right people. Newsom's knee-jerk response is to cry ableism, claiming he is being shamed for having a disability. 

Sure, Jan.

Local and national journalists are asking legitimate questions. Heck, he's the one who keeps bringing it up. Newsom's dipsy-doodle (and foul-mouthed) comms team is feeling the pressure, as Real Clear Politics national correspondent Susan Crabtree noted.

WARNING: Language.   

It's days like these I wish I still ate popcorn. 

Fox News host Sean Hannity reposted on X the now embarrassing video and commented, "Gavin Newsom thinks a 960 SAT Makes Him 'Like' Black Americans. Let That Sink In."

Hannity knows what buttons to push to deepen Newsom's embarrassment. After all, it was Hannity who moderated a 2023 debate between Newsom and FL Gov. Ron DeSantis, where Hannity let DeSantis go for it, and DeSantis proceeded to mop the floor with Newsom, using a poop map, no less. It got so bad that First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom stepped in and cut the debate short. Shame she wasn't on that Atlanta stage to stop Newsom from chewing on his toes.


Read MoreDeSavage: DeSantis Threw Caution to the Wind in Destruction of Newsom, Including Using the Poop Map

Delicious Post-Debate Crying From Newsom HQ as Report Hints at Moment His Team Knew He Was Done


Newsom is both thin-skinned and vindictive, so he responded to Hannity's post like a three-year-old throwing a tantrum. As RedState reported, Newsom sprinkled his response with a liberal amount of foul language, making it evident where his comms team gets permission from. 

The language warning above stands.

As we also noted, Hannity replied to Newsom by making the following observations (language warning again):

Gavin Newsom, you didn’t give a shit being Joe Biden’s public spokesperson knowing Joe Biden partnered with the former Klansman Robert Byrd as they tried to prevent the integration of public schools. So spare me your F’ing fake phony feigned outrage.  

And How about you get homeowners building permits in the Pacific Palisades instead of making an ass out of yourself daily? Just a thought…..

Along with not being able to read, not knowing how to get his birth certificate, and his horrible eight-year record of governance, the reasons why Newsom is a terrible choice for president just pile higher. As if it couldn't get worse for Newsom, MS Gov. Tate Reeves (R) responded to Newsom's post. Reeves manages to level Newsom, and he didn't use one swear word to do it.

This seems like a good time to remind you that a black student in Mississippi is 2.5X more likely to read proficiently by 4th grade than if he or she lived in California. We would be happy to send one of our reading coaches to assist you, @GavinNewsom. Learning is a lifelong journey, and you might achieve some of the gains that our black fourth graders have. 

Incidentally, one nice feature of increased literacy is that you do not have to fall back on vulgarity to seem passionate. Let me know!

That's gonna leave a mark. Reeves' facts are legit. Mississippi budgeted $2.97 billion for education in 2025-26, but those dollars are bearing fruit in improved scores in reading and math. They're calling it the "Mississippi Miracle," because over an almost 10-year period, reading proficiency among Mississippi students has leapfrogged from 46th in 2017 to 7th in 2024. Quite impressive.

In 2024, Mississippi’s fourth-grade reading results on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) astonished nearly everyone who follows American education. The state, long mired at the bottom of national rankings, had risen to 7th place in the percentage of fourth graders scoring “Basic” or higher in reading—a climb of over 40 slots since the early 2000s. This was not a marginal movement or statistical noise. It was a clear, sharp trajectory visible in the national data: Mississippi ranked 46th in 2017, 29th in 2019, 17th in 2022, and finally 7th in 2024 on this single metric (Florida Department of Education, 2024). The state has leapfrogged nearly every one of its peers, including those with far greater resources, reputations, and political clout.

Which brings us to the sad and cautionary tale that is Gavin Newsom's California, which for 2025-26 has budgeted $137 billion for education.

One of California’s starkest — and most important — letdowns is the consistent failure to help elementary and middle school students achieve higher national test scores in basic educational skills, such as reading and math.

Simply put, California’s education system is not only behind most other states, but even trails those that Newsom and other Californians consider to be culturally backward. Moreover, California schools have not yet recovered from the educational losses suffered during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Not only should Newsom take Reeves up on his offer of adding a reading coach to his staff, but he might also want to replace his comms team with people who actually can communicate without the F-bombs.

Just sayin'.

https://redstate.com/jenniferoo/2026/02/23/tn-gov-tate-reeves-schools-gavin-newsom-on-california-reading-scores-vs-tennessee-and-its-chefs-kiss-n2199491?utm_source=rsmorningbriefingvip&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=nl