Another Mass Shooting and Killings

This time in a Jewish synagogue in Pittsburgh that killed 11 and wounded 6 others including 4 police officers.  The shooter possessed an assault rifle and several hand guns according to reports.  Early reports indicate the shooter held extreme views against the Jewish people and posted inflammatory remarks about them on line.  President Trump gave the standard NRA answer when asked about the attack and said it would not have taken place if there were armed people inside the synagogue.

The President's divisive comments and attacks on people and our institutions ever since becoming President and even during the campaign has brought the White House where no other President would dare go.  In fact both the President and Vice President had to defend Trump for not being responsible for the shooters actions.  No other President has been so divisive they though they had to make such a statement to defend themselves.  Trump and his VP both understand just how corrupt Trump carries himself on a personal level.

It was reported that progressive Jewish leaders in Pittsburgh published an open letter urging Trump not to visit until you fully renounce white nationalism; stop targeting and endangering all minorities; cease your assault on immigrants and refugees and commit yourself to compassionate democratic policies that recognize the dignity of all of us.

This latest mass shooting and killings should remind all that the FBI reported mass shootings were at their highest level ever in 2017 going back to when the FBI first started keeping records.  And Trump is the one who bragged and said it would all stop when he became President. Well it has not done so despite his usual tough talk.  And to top it off, the mass shooting and killings in Las Vegas in 2017 was the worst of all since the FBI began to keep records.  And it happened on Trump's watch.

All signs seem to say that after the November 6 elections special counsel Robert Mueller will release his report with sweeping indictments that will touch the President.  If that becomes fact, hopefully the elections will provide a democratic controlled congress.  That would justify their actions to hold Trump accountable and return the democratic process to governing.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

Will The Outcome Of The November 6 Congressional Election Have Its Roots In The 2016 Election?

To this very day, the outcome of the 2016 Presidential election in which we also elected members of congress, a proper evaluation has never been made because the news media and the political pundits were all about Trump.  And now with the November 6 election only a week away the pundits are all over the map with their predictions.  This writer believes the 2016 election is a clue to what will take place on November 6.

Hillary Clinton won the popular vote 48% to 46% over Donald Trump and her margin of almost 2 million more votes than Trump set a record.  The other Presidential candidates received 6% of the vote so 54% of those voting preferred some one other than Donald Trump and most of those favored Clinton.  And in that same election, the news media and the pundits seem to have forgotten that the democratic party gained 6 seats in the U.S. House and 2 seats in the U.S. Senate.  Those 8 seats that were picked up are not a large number but indicate the democratic party in the popular vote did very well.  And the November 6 election will be decided by the popular vote.

According to the latest polls, Trump and his party have not gained any popular advantage since the 2016 election and Trump's approval ratings have been between the 30 and 40% range.  And there are no indication that the republican controlled congress has convinced democratic voters they are better at running the country.  And to top it off the approval rating of the republicans in congress are in the 20% range.  Losing the Presidency in the 2016 election because of the electoral process, the news media and the political pundits never understood how the voters preferred the democrats to lead.

This writer feels that nothing has changed the voters minds since the 2016 election and that enough republicans and independents have changed their mind to make a difference and vote democratic on November 6.  What happened with the popular vote in the 2016 election will end up being a plus for the democratic party.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

A Lying President and A Lying Saudi Arabia Monarchy: And Both Deserve Each Other. But The People of America and Saudi Arabia Deserve Better

President Trump in his autocratic rule uses lies, division, fear and other autocratic means to govern.  He treats the news media as fake news and the enemy of the people.  One of his very first foreign visits in 2017 as President was with Saudi Arabia and he let it be known to their monarch that he had no interest in their human rights abuses.  He also reminded Saudi Arabia of his company's business relationship with that country.

The monarchy of Saudi Arabia has a long history of human rights abuses and really not a good friend of America.  The two countries do trade with each other and have an oil monopoly, but like Trump, they lie and use fear as policy.  And it all came to a head on October 2 when Jamal Khashoggi was murdered inside Saudi Arabia's consulate in Istanbul, Turkey.  That was 23 days ago and Saudi Arabi still can not produce Jamal's body (Turkey said it was dismembered) and Saudi Arabia's excuse given to the public for the killing is a fairy tale by all accounts.  Donald Trump's reaction to the murder of Jamal has been muted and shows more concern for the monarch's feeling than the murderous act.

The President says he has to take into consideration the arms sale to Saudi Arabia and that they are a block against Iran.  Saudi Arabia has threatened big time retaliation against the United States if sanctions are imposed.  Jamal was killed because as a journalist, he wrote commentary about the Saudi's human rights abuses and was out spoken on the matter.  Like Trump, Saudi Arabia viewed Jamal's writings as fake news and an enemy of the people.

Trump's talk about Saudi Arabia being a block against Iran's aggressive actions is simply b.s.  If that were the case, why walk away from the Iran nuclear agreement?  The fact remains that it was Iraq under Saddam that was a block on Iran but George W. Bush removed that block with his invasion and occupation of Iraq over WMD that did not exist.  And 15 years later the United States still has troops there who are trying to stabilize Iraq.

Trump's passive attitude concerning Russia and now Saudi Arabia's actions speaks loud and clear.  Is it any wonder why just yesterday Russia's Putin said the U.S. no longer has the military advantage and that Russia would target countries where the U.S. has missile bases.  Past American Presidents would never leave 23 days go by without a sound and serious reaction to such a murder that took place in the Saudi consulate.  That is why past Presidents were the leader of the free world.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

A Pitiful President, A Coward GOP Controlled Congress and Immigration Reform No Where In Sight

Trump's tough rhetoric on immigration has no bite and the republican controlled congress is still AWOL on the issue.  And to think both kicked the can down the road until the November elections are over.  In the mean time and just last week, Trump's Department of Homeland Security announced a record number of immigrants have crossed the border into America in the last 3 months since Trump's order to separate family at the border which he cancelled rather quickly.

And now Trump says he will send American troops to the border to seal the border and stop several thousand immigrants marching in caravan to the Mexico border who want to come to America.  Twenty one months in office and tough talking Trump and the GOP still have no comprehensive immigration plan to introduce to congress.  Not even to talk about and debate.  All the country has is the President's rhetoric, a few executive orders and a fairy tale called zero tolerance which sounds tough with no bite.  The bottom line is Trump and the GOP have no immigration plan and a comprehensive plan is the only answer to solve the total problem.

And to really get a feel how little immigration matters to the GOP, republican senate majority leader Mitch McConnell said just the other day the republicans will try to repeal the ACA again.  Does that sound familiar?  Immigration is not even on the GOP's radar.  Its out of their view even though they have controlled both houses of congress for the last 3 years and 10 months.

Yes my fellow Americans, Trump and the GOP are cowards on the immigration issue.  Their lack of action is proof.  And to top it off, they made it a priority with their base and then betrayed them.  Trump and the GOP blame game will no longer work.  What is taken place on their watch is of their own doing and lack of a plan and policy.  Blame is the game pitiful and coward politicians play, and both deserve Trump and the GOP.   What a shame.

Note:  History will record that the caravan from Central America moving into Mexico and looking to cross America's southern border will be known as "Trump's Caravan" for his failure to move his party to act on immigration reform and there fore encouraging immigration to America because of a lack of policy.  And the Trump administration now say they will come out with a new immigration order to replace the previous order that was cancelled that separated parents and children at the border and that it will be announced before the November 6 elections.  Just another seat of the pants order that will not solve the problem.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

President Donald Trump Continues His Traitorous Acts

First it was his request to Russia to hack into an American's email for the purpose of seeking dirt, then it was his suggested comment and cover for Russia that a rouge operation was responsible for the hacking of the American process during the 2016 Presidential election even though our intelligence community reported to Trump it was Russian intelligence who acts on orders from Putin.  And now, Trump's latest traitorous act was to suggest that it was a rouge event responsible for what happened at Saudi Arabia's consulate in Turkey concerning the disappearance of American citizen Mr. Khashoggi.  It was a suggestion for Saudi leaders to follow.

Mr. Khashoggi disappeared at the Saudi consulate on October 3 and Saudi leaders still can not admit the truth two weeks after the fact even though it took place in their building with their own people.  They told Trump they do not know what happened and Trump said he believed them.  Trump's companies do business with Saudi Arabia and some in the news media have suggested that Trump and the Saudi leaders are trying to work out a statement to release that will satisfy both countries.  If that is true it is the worse of Trump's traitorous acts.

America's traitorous President is still putting his own self and his personal business before the interest of  the country and its people.  Until the Mueller investigation releases its report and findings, the next best hope is to elect a democratic controlled congress on November 6.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

Another Huge First For PolitiDose and Its Readers Continue To Stay Ahead Of The News Curve.

It is no coincident that the readers of PolitiDose know who the big spenders really are in Washington.  And like wise, not surprising when Trump's Treasury Secretary announced this week that the federal deficit at the end of Trump's very first fiscal year (9/30/18) came in at $779 billion, the highest deficit in 6 years and 17% higher than President Obama's last fiscal year deficit that ended on 9/30/17.  It was all predicted in commentary by PolitiDose many times because of precedent.

Other information given out by Treasury:  (1)  Corporate tax collections fell 22% in fiscal 2018.  A result of the Trump-GOP tax cut that reduced the corporate tax rate from 35% to 21%.   (2)  Interest paid on the national debt was the highest ever at $523 billion.   (3)  The total federal debt which combines annual deficits was 78% of the nations entire gross domestic product in June, the largest since WWII.   (4)  The Trump administration reported next years deficit will be over $1 trillion.

It should be remembered that President Trump and the republican controlled congress promised the tax cuts would produce more revenue and pay for themselves.  Reagan and Bush 43 promised the same fairy tale after their tax cuts but it never took place.  William Gale, a senior fellow at Brookings Institution said, by cutting taxes in 2017 when the economy was already strong, congress and the Trump administration not only missed a golden opportunity to begin to address the fiscal problem, they actually made the problem worse.  And most news media people still try to pass the republican party off as conservative and that they are the party of balanced budgets.  It is also worthwhile to remember that no republican President has balance a federal budget since Dwight Eisenhower in 1960, well over 50 years ago.

But PolitiDose told the true republican story for the last 8 years in commentary.  And Trump continues the lies of Reagan, Bush 43 and the GOP in congress.  PolitiDose also informed its readers the republican strategy is to bankrupt the federal government so as to have an excuse to repeal and or cut severely Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.   And sure enough, after the Treasury announcement concerning the deficit, Mitch McConnell, republican leader of the Senate said that after the Nov. 6 elections the republicans in congress would move to cut those programs.

In the next month or so the Congressional Budget Office and the Office of Management and Budget will come out with their final numbers for fiscal 2018.  We will then know if the numbers furnished by Treasury are accurate or not.  The shame of the republicans tax cuts since Reagan is the big lie to their own base.  And in the case of President Trump, who lies about everything, it has become policy.

PolitiDose, your daily dose of political commentary will continue to inform its readers what to expect in the future if Trump and the republicans still control both houses of congress after the November 6 elections.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

Federal Judge Slaps Down Another Attempt By The Trump Administration To Affect A Student Loan Rule

A federal judge ordered immediate implementation of a rule designed to help students cheated by for-profit colleges get relief on their education debt.  The rule was put in place by the Obama administration and delayed by education secretary Betsy DeVos after Trump took office.  Eighteen states and the district of Columbia sued DeVos over her actions.

The rule was known as the Borrower Defense Rule that outlined a way for student borrowers to apply for student loan forgiveness if they were defrauded or misled by their college.  About the same time.  DeVos actions took place, President Trump had to settle out of court a multi million dollar law suit against his Trump University brought by students.  The suit alleged fraud, false advertisement and empty promises.

The actions that DeVos took was criticized by the Democrats and consumer groups.  This writer believes DeVos was following Trump and the GOP ideology as usual.  Consumer protection comes last because they cater to the wealthy.  The Trump-GOP tax cuts are another reminder.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

Orleans Parish School Board Denied A Tax Break For Bollinger Algiers

The school board voted to reject Bollinger Algiers application for a 5 year property tax exemption under Louisiana's Industrial Tax Exemption Program.  The board said they rejected the request because the application did not meet two of four rules for tax break approval by the board.  The story was carried in a Times Picayune article of 10/14.

The school board did not have the power to review industrial tax exemptions until Governor Edwards changed the process.  It was the right thing to do because before he acted other state boards could make the decisions that would cause school districts to lose out on taxes that support public education without having a say so in the matter.  It should be obvious that local government should have a say so in tax matters that affect them.

Bollinger, like other business received a 14% federal tax break when Trump and the GOP lowered the corporate income tax rate from 35% to 21%.  But the business community is never satisfied.  They always want more from the states and the federal government.  The Baton Rouge area is facing the same kind of tax relief filed by EXXON for the tax exemption.  And all know EXXON is one of the largest corporations in the world and very profitable.  The school district in that area should reject EXXONS request.  Louisiana needs the tax revenue, EXXON does not need the exemption.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

Times Picayune Opinion Writer Tim Morris: It Now Becomes Clear

Morris, in his opinion column of October 14 writes it has become clear former Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal does not have the character or instincts to be a successful politician on the national level as compared with Nikki Haley, the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations.  Really???  Morris, like other conservative writers in Louisiana loved Jindal when he served as governor and supported Jindal's policies.

Very few good things happened in Louisiana under the Jindal administration and Morris never did allow himself to realize that Jindal never had the character to be a successful governor.  Morris finally opened his eyes after Jindal left office when he could finally see clearly.  Conservative opinion writers never see the light of day when republicans are in office, they rather blame democrats for every thing.  Ideology can be blind.

Morris takes it to a new low in another column dated 10/12 titled, Our Political Choices Are Now Between Anger and Depression.  No Tim, the column describes republicans only.  Because the people do have a better choice in the November elections with the democratic party, the party of progress, accomplishments, the rule of law that respects our constitution and our institutions.  When conservative writers have nothing positive to write about republican administrations, they always try to link democrats with the republican failures.

As for Nikki Haley, she will be remembered as the U.S. Ambassador who carried out Trump's rage before the United Nations and then resigned after two years in Trump's cabinet so she could
 put some distance between her and Trump for the sake of her future political ambitions, hoping people have a short memory.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

The United States, Mexico and Canada Trade Agreement

President Trump earlier this month with Corporate America, his Treasury Secretary and trade representatives at his side announced that the U.S., Mexico and Canada had agreed to a new trade deal to replace NAFTA, the much maligned agreement.  Trump painted a bright picture for the new agreement and like a little kid took the opportunity to bash past administrations decisions on trade.

But the American people were not told that it will take several years before we actually know the results of the new trade deal if in fact turns out to be better than NAFTA.  Congress will actually hold hearings on the issue next year and that is when we will learn what the fine print says.  In the mean time Trump's commerce secretary said America's trade imbalance with Asia and Europe will probably be the largest at the end of this year than in the last 10 years even though Trump raised tariffs on trade originating in those countries.

Trump's trade war of words with China is not going well and Trump is back tracking.  His economic advisor Larry Kudlow said last week Trump is now trying to arrange a meeting with China in November at the G-20 Summit in Buenos Aires where the U.S., China and other nations will meet.  China cancelled the last trade talk meeting with the U.S. that was set up and said they would not be intimidated by Trump's threats.

Transparency concerning the agreement will not beknown until next year when congress meets to take up the issue.  And even than, if republicans are still in control of congress, the American people may still be in the dark.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio