Category: Uncategorized

Our New Year’s holiday week was interrupted by the killing of Iranian General Soleimani. The mass-murderer Islamic leader had rained down terror on the Middle East for more than 20 years, killing at least 600 Americans. Not everyone was pleased. A couple of candidates for president thought we should have arrested him and brought him here to stand trial.

Iran has been on a rampage for 40 years to dominate the region all the way to the Mediterranean and the Red Sea. You may remember when Iranians stormed our Embassy in Tehran in 1979 and held more than 50 Americans hostage for more than a year. Their goals have not changed.

Now, it’s debatable whether we should be in there. One view is that we should just leave ‘em alone. We don’t need the Middle East and their oil anymore. The other view is that we still have friends there, and we generally support our friends.

Today the Iraqi Parliament called an emergency meeting and a few of them showed up. They voted to expel all American military from Iraq. I have a feeling that if it had been put to a vote of the whole country, instead of expelling Americans they would have voted to throw out the Iranians.

Speaker Pelosi still has the two Articles of Impeachment stuffed in her handbag. She has been waiting for the voters to get riled up against President Trump. Maybe you can blame it on the holidays but so far nobody seems to care. (Well, not nobody. But very few in addition to the ones who already wanted him impeached on Inauguration Day.) One reason is the idea of a President obstructing Congress once in a while has been around since Washington. Another reason is there’s nothing unusual about a “quid pro quo” in politics.

There’s a rumor Speaker Pelosi is digging around for another Article to add on. If she uncovers something serious, then that changes the story completely. But does she really think killing an Islamic terrorist General without telling her and the Islamic members of Congress is impeachable? I got my doubts.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“Did you read all the New Year’s optimism in the papers today by all our leading men and bankers? Every one either a millionaire or an officeholder… Looks like just for the novelty one paper would print just what some poor man saw in store for the coming year.” DT #448, Jan. 2, 1928

The big rush to a quick impeachment hit a roadblock.

Speaker Pelosi, who was never enthusiastic about impeachment, is kinda like a substitute quarterback put in late in the game, somewhat unhappily.

Nevertheless her team has moved the ball downfield to the 5 yard line with only 10 seconds left in the game. She takes the snap, rolls out to the far left and spots a wide open receiver in the back corner of the end zone. Easy scoring pass, right? No, she holds the ball, takes a knee, and calls timeout with 2 seconds remaining.

Her exasperated Coach yells, “Why didn’t you throw the ball?”

Her response: “I don’t trust that receiver. He won’t follow my instructions. I wanted him closer to me, just across the goal line.”

“Ok, one more play. What do you want?”

“I want him to do exactly as I instruct him in the huddle and I’ll pass the ball to him.”

“But what if he doesn’t follow your exact instructions?”

“I’ll just hold the ball. At this point, what difference does it make? We’re 27 points behind!”

Well, you might say the last play is still under review, but that’s the story of Pelosi vs. the Senate. She knew the outcome long before she reluctantly took the helm of the impeachment team.

(If you don’t like this analogy, blame it on a solid week of watching football. There would be more humor and joy if my favorite teams had won.)

What does the Constitution say? Here are the exact words about responsibilities of the House and Senate (Article 1, Sections 2 and 3).

“The House of Representatives shall choose their Speaker and other Officers; and shall have the sole Power of Impeachment.”

“The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments. When sitting for that Purpose, they shall be on Oath or Affirmation. When the President of the United States is tried, the Chief Justice shall preside: And no Person shall be convicted without the Concurrence of two-thirds of the Members present.”

The writers of the Constitution kept it short and simple. The House shall have the sole power of Impeachment. The Senate shall have the sole power to try all impeachments.  Could it be any clearer? The only problem was those wise writers expected future members of Congress to have common sense. They did not anticipate that two hundred years later Congress would be full of lawyers looking for weasel words they could interpret to their own desires.

So here we are. Has the President been impeached or not?

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“Football is getting all the play now.” WA #353, Sept. 29, 1929

“It’s pitiful when you think how ignorant the founders of our Constitution must have been. Just think what a Country we would have if men in those days had the brains and forethought of our men today!” WA #107, Dec. 28, 1924

I’m taking a week off and turning the whole thing over to Will. After all, President Trump is playing golf in Florida and Congress is off to who-knows-where. Now, if by chance you read these quotes originally 90 to 95 years ago, I figure you have forgotten half of ‘em and they will appear fresh.

Historic quotes on Christmas by Will Rogers:

“And a Merry Christmas to…the Senate and the House. May the literacy test never be applied to your constituents.” DT #752, Dec. 24, 1928

“I am too busy replacing presents to write today. I bought some mechanical and electric things for the kids and wore ’em out playing with ‘em myself.” DT #120, Dec. 23, 1926

“Merry Christmas, my constant readers… No scandal today. There is some, but it will be more scandalous by tomorrow.” DT #121, Dec. 24, 1926

“This was a very merry Christmas for me, in fact the best I have enjoyed in years. The shirts my wife gave me were the right size. Of course they were the wrong color, but if married, one must not be too particular. For a while it looked like I would spend a perfect Christmas. Then about noon a necktie arrived.” WA #108, Jan. 4, 1925

“It just don’t look like there is much left to the old time Christmas but socks, neckties and handkerchiefs. Mothers’, children’s and friends’ presents have undergone a great change, but the old Father still can rest assured that he can dig in the ribbon-wrapped package and dig out three handkerchiefs, a misfit pair of socks or a red tie.” WA #315, Jan. 6, 1929

“Well the Christmas spirit is over now… If we spent as much with the Salvation Army as we do with the telegraph companies every Christmas, why the poor would be fat all Winter. [replace “telegraph” with internet, cell phone, cable and live streaming] But we can all go back to work with a clear conscience. We fed ’em Christmas and New Years; now all the poor have to do is just to fill in a few meals till next Christmas.”  DT #753, Dec. 25, 1928

Did you watch all 13 hours of the Judicial Committee on Thursday? To review: Chairman Nadler began the meeting with two “Articles of Impeachment,” charging Trump with abusing his power as President, and obstructing Congress. He began with 23 in favor and 17 against impeachment.

After spending all day and half the night debating and arguing over five amendments (all defeated 23 to 17) Nadler got sleepy about midnight and announced, “Boys, we’re gonna wait till tomorrow to vote.”

The vote Friday morning was… you guessed it… 23 to 17, exactly the same as if they had voted Thursday morning. So except for the Congress reps who love to hear and see themselves on TV, it was a total waste of everyone’s time.

You may not agree with Trump, but the folks that voted for him want him to exert his power and, if necessary, obstruct an obstinate, do-nothing Congress.

In their wisdom the Democrats decided that Trump did not commit bribery or treason or collude with Russia. And they found that the handful of voters who speak Latin associate quid pro quo with Biden more than Trump.

Speaker Pelosi decided last week would be a perfect time to announce the trade agreement with Mexico and Canada (USMCA). It was the same agreement that’s been on her desk for a year, except for a couple of recent changes that Mexico now objects to. The delay cost us millions, if not billions, in lost revenue, especially for farmers and several manufacturers.

Soccer star Megan Rapinoe was honored by Sports Illustrated and immediately endorsed Elizabeth Warren for President. That upset Mayor Pete of South Bend who figured she would naturally support him. I think the drawback for Pete is that Megan only associates his town with Notre Dame football, not soccer.

Meanwhile, 16-year old Greta Thunberg is Time’s Person of the Year for her passion on global warming. You may remember she spent a month last summer sailing across the Atlantic in a million dollar yacht with a crew of five. I think the Mayflower sailed it quicker, and the Pilgrims didn’t have the option of British Air. Next summer I hope she sails across the Pacific and scolds China for being the worst contributor to global warming. Is there a Chinese version of Time?

Joe Biden (might have) promised that if elected he would leave after 4 years. That’s a great Platform: Elect me and I’ll go away quicker than my fellow candidates. Of course Will Rogers topped that in his 1928 campaign for President: “If elected I will RESIGN.”

As it turned out, Herbert Hoover wiped out both Will and Al Smith in ’28. Considering what happened in October 1929, Mr. Hoover probably wishes he had immediately resigned.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“Congress even has slogans: “Why sleep at home when you can sleep in Congress?”  “Be a politician—no training necessary.”  “It’s easier to fool ‘em in Washington than it is at home.” WA #122, Apr. 12, 1925

“Party Politics is the most narrow minded occupation in the World.” WA #120, March 29, 1925

It’s been three years in the making and several in Congress got their wish last week. Impeachment of President Trump.  In three years they have collected a bunch of Trump’s crimes. By Christmas they will decide which ones to charge him with: Ukraine, Russia, Syria, abusing power, withholding military aid promised by Obama, quid pro quo, bribery, high crimes, misdemeanors, treason, and, finally, obstructing Congress from firing him on the spot.

The Judicial Committee brought in four Constitutional Law Professors to explain exactly what’s in the Constitution about impeachment. I’ll admit to being a bit ignorant of the process; I thought they were to teach Congress what the Founding Fathers meant by “treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.” Based on what I saw, Congress would have been better served by inviting a couple of high school English teachers.

One of the professors began by saying that Trump is guilty. The lawyer from Stanford did not wear her pink kitty hat from January 2017, but she had it in her purse. After a full day of explaining, arguing and accusing, I couldn’t tell if anyone changed their mind.

I think Congress might resort to finding a dedicated Democrat volunteer to go up on Fifth Avenue and be shot by Trump. Whether that would get 67 Senators to vote him out of office I’ve got my doubts. Maybe if the target is from one of their states it would upset ‘em.

After her sorrowful, almost tearful announcement of Impeachment, Speaker Pelosi was asked by a reporter, “Do you hate President Trump?” She had a forceful denial that got her mixed reactions. I think she should have said simply, “I agree with Will Rogers. I never met a man I didn’t like.”

Now, I’m not taking sides or guessing the outcome. I would just remind ‘em there are a few important matters to attend to: trade agreement with Mexico and Canada, the Budget, illegal immigration, China tariffs. And Democrats need to get serious about selecting a Presidential candidate for 2020.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“… there is a likely chance of (Hoover) being impeached for treason, indicted for bigamy and subpoenaed for crossing a boulevard (jaywalking).” DT #1160, Apr. 14, 1930

“The minute you read something and you can’t understand it you can almost be sure that it was drawn up by a lawyer… If it’s in a few words and is plain and understandable only one way, it was written by a non-lawyer.” WA#657, July 28, 1935

I hope you have plenty to be thankful this week. Maybe you and your family will make a list.

Do you know the traditional turkey dinner will cost the same as last year? The government estimates that a family of 10 can eat a hearty meal for $50.

How about other bargains in 2019?  Two are milk and natural gas.

You may not make a connection between a Holstein cow and a gas well, but I’ll give you one. Thanks to genetics for milk cows and technology for gas production, we are saving a bundle. We get more milk from fewer cows at less cost. Unfortunately we have lost a lot of dairy farms that had 50 to 500 cows. Big farms are getting bigger. For those milk producers who had to sell their herds or went bankrupt, these last few years have been mighty rough.

For natural gas and oil production, technology has saved Americans over a Trillion dollars in ten years. Picture this example: on 5 acres of ground, 4 wells drilled about a mile deep, then turned horizontally to extend 3 or 4 miles (yes, miles) in multiple directions. Hydraulic fracturing, which has been around more than 60 years, releases more product from those horizontal wells. That’s why families are saving a few thousand dollars a year on heating, electricity, gasoline, and through lower prices for products we buy that are manufactured and transported. Like many small dairy farmers, some workers in gas, oil and coal production have lost jobs because of those lower prices.

Of course, you may live in a state that does not believe in drilling technology and pipelines so you can only dream of the savings across the state line. But that’s politics and I promised myself to avoid politics during this week of Thanksgiving.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“Thanksgiving Day. In the days of its founders they were willing to give thanks for mighty little, for mighty little was all they expected. But now neither government or nature can give enough but what we think it’s too little. Those old boys in the Fall of the year, if they could gather in a few pumpkins, potatoes and some corn for the winter, they was in a thanking mood. But if we can’t gather in a new Buick, a new radio, a tuxedo and some government relief, why we feel like the world is agin us.” DT #2594, Nov. 28, 1934

Did you study Latin in school? No one else has either lately.

Adam Schiff and Nancy Pelosi finally gave up trying to translate Latin to American voters and instead are speaking plain English: “President Trump needs to be impeached because he committed BRIBERY!”

Apparently someone on the House Intel Committee read the Constitution (probably for the first time) and saw that a President can be impeached for “treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.” Nowhere does it say quid pro quo. In case you’re wondering, I’m sure James Madison and Thomas Jefferson knew some Latin, but they were smart enough to keep it out of the Constitution.

Even the word bribery confused a few Congressmen. The writers of the Constitution meant that a President could be impeached if he accepted a bribe to take some official action. The idea of a President bribing a country never came up because in George Washington’s day no president had any excess cash. And neither did Hamilton’s Treasury.

Speaking of excess cash, Elizabeth Warren decided that Billionaires have enough extra cash lying around to pay for all the grandiose plans she has promised. She calculated that she can convince a hundred million voters that all their wants and wishes can be paid for by a few thousand Billionaires.

Clearly, Elizabeth Warren loves Billionaires. Only problem is if she is President for 4 years, there won’t be any Billionaires left. Then to get re-elected in 2024 she will promise that Millionaires can pay for all our wants and wishes.

Now, if that all works out for the Democrats, in 2028 the next bright star, candidate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, will guarantee that, since we cleaned out all our Billionaires and Millionaires, our four hundred million poor and undernourished citizens and immigrants can live off our surviving Thousandaires.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“Poor Democrats, I love ’em. I guess it’s because some are so dumb. Now they are dying to scare up an issue by trying to discredit Mr. Hoover, because some lobbyist wrote a letter saying that he knew President Hoover’s secretary, and that the secretary was very partial to Cuban sugar in his coffee in the morning, and that in view of this dastardly plot Mr. Hoover should really be impeached. Then they wonder why they don’t get anywhere.” DT #1064, Dec. 23, 1929

“I don’t suppose [there is] the most unemployed or the hungriest man in America [that hasn’t] contributed in some way to the wealth of every millionaire in America.” Radio, Oct. 18, 1931

“And on [accumulated wealth] of say $10  million, why  the  government  will  take  about 90 percent of it. And then on [wealth] of a 100 million, 200 million, a billion, and like that, well, the government just takes all of that.” Radio, April 28, 1935 (Note: Will was talking about estate taxes. I took the liberty of replacing estate with wealth.)

I was in Claremore, Oklahoma last weekend celebrating “my” 140^th birthday. Even Google.com got in on the celebration all day November 4.

Jennifer Rogers Etcheverry (great-granddaughter) was there as usual. Joel McCrea (represented by grandson Wyatt McCrea) and Barry Corbin received major awards from the Memorial Museum. I asked Barry Corbin how many movies he has made. He said, “Oh, between 200 and 300, starting with Urban Cowboy.”  He’s no stranger to television either, including starring in Northern Exposure.

The Oklahoma Legislature has a bill that would rename part of historic U.S. Route 66 for President Trump. Now I don’t want to sound egotistical but that road already has a name: the Will Rogers Highway. Maybe the Legislature can find an anonymous stretch of highway out in the panhandle and name it the Trump Road.

Did you ever hear a preacher deliver a sermon based on Route 66? You may know that Route 66 goes right through downtown Claremore. Rev. Ray Crawford at the First United Methodist Church figured out a way to tie the 22^nd Chapter of 1 Chronicles, which is about David preparing resources to leave for his son Solomon, to kind of a marathon relay race the whole length of Route 66. Personally, if I had to be in a relay race, I would run my part on horseback. Well, Dr. Crawford said the relay is more about time (years) rather than distance. We need to pass the faith and our resources to the ones following along behind us.

I think that’s a great idea even if you’re not a Methodist. What we do with what we have is a powerful measure of who we are. As two examples, I think Jennifer Rogers and Wyatt McCrea have been well prepared and accepted the baton passed down from their famous ancestors.

I heard that CNN completed some essential investigative reporting on President Trump’s tweets. CNN’s team of journalists unearthed 186 misspelled words in three years of Trump tweets.

Lord, I’m glad CNN wasn’t around when I was writing daily and weekly newspaper articles in the 1920s and 30s. English teachers was the only ones back then concerned about my lack of interest in proper grammar and spelling. Everybody else that could read understood what I aimed to say except mayby the professors at Harvard.

Tomorrow is Armistice Day, November 11, a day to honor our military and have a parade. They changed the name to Veterans Day, but were practically forced to keep it on Nov. 11, even when it’s not a Monday. We’re also celebrating the end of the Berlin Wall 30 years ago. You’ll remember President Reagan saying, “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” And he did.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“Been reading editorials on President Coolidge’s armament speech. Several papers have asked, ‘What would Europe do if we were in difficulties and needed help?’ (My) reply to those inquiries: Europe would hold a celebration.” DT #717, Nov. 14, 1928

“If we really want to honor our (veterans), why don’t we let THEM sit in the reviewing stands and make the people march by?”  WA #36, Aug. 19, 1923

[I received this nice compliment: “Randall Reeder really does a nice job –I heard it said when a person dies ,he is soon forgotten –not in Will’s case ! Thank you very much!”   Yes, we try to keep Will alive.]

California is a leading producer of nuts. That’s great news if you like almonds. But the nuts I’m talking about are in Sacramento.

There have been a lot of wildfires in California, and the electric company gets blamed for most of them. These fires often start on windy days from a spark in dry hill country.  You would think the electric company would be encouraged to spend all available funds to clears trees and brush and upgrade their equipment to improve safety, and residents would get rebates for “fireproofing” their houses and surrounding land. But no, not in California.

The homeowners are encouraged to install solar collectors. Then the electric company is required to buy the solar kilowatt-hours and pay retail rates instead of wholesale.

What happens when the electric company shuts off electricity for a couple of days to prevent fires? Aren’t these homeowners lucky to have solar electric? No, the solar systems are inter-connected so they only work when the electricity is on.

What if they installed wind machines instead of solar? Well, the electric company only cuts off power when Santa Ana winds are high, say 50 to 100 miles per hour. Wind machines are designed to automatically shut down at such high wind speeds.

The root cause of these problems is a Governor and Legislature in Sacramento that hate fossil fuels. But smart homeowners and businesses are buying backup generators, which are powered by… fossil fuel.

Several cities are banning new gas lines and even forcing homeowners to tear out their fuel oil furnaces.

And get this, California has banned fur coats . First they cut off your heat, then ban fur coats. People were already fleeing California to escape high costs; now it’s to keep warm.

In the World Series between Houston and Washington, it looks like the end of the “home field advantage?” The visitor has won each of the 5 games so far. President Trump attended the game tonight in DC and was booed when introduced. Maybe he would get a friendlier reception if he goes to the next game, “away” in Texas.

Facebook’s Zuckerberg was interrogated by Congress. Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez questioned him harshly, implying he should prevent political lies from getting on Facebook. Zuckerberg should have responded with the Will Rogers quote below.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“If you ever injected truth into politics you would have no politics.” WA #31, July 15, 1923

“In California, along with all these wonders we have out here is the World’s greatest collection of freak humans on earth. Just start anything out here and if it’s cuckoo enough you will get followers.”  WA #363, Dec. 8, 1929

Twelve Democrats debated in Westerville, Ohio, on Tuesday. Bernie Sanders appeared to be fully recovered from his heart attack. Elizabeth Warren, however, is still recovering from being attacked.

The other eleven candidates jumped on her for refusing to admit taxes will increase on the middle class to pay for her “Medicare for All” plan. She announced today that in a few days she will actually admit taxes will increase, and by how much. She had vastly over-estimated how many billionaires and multimillionaires we have and their ability to cover the $3 Trillion cost per year.

President Trump, on the other hand, under-estimated the furor over his invitation to the G-7 Group. He offered his Doral Country Club at-cost. Of course it’s in Miami in June, so rates are really low. Democrats led the charge despite Trump’s promise that the Trump organization would make no profit.

I imagine the leaders of these major countries were happy to find out they would not have to stay in a hot, humid place with a hurricane threat. Miami calls their basketball team the “Heat,” and they play in the Winter! These leaders would prefer a mountaintop resort with cool air and bright sunshine even if it costs ten times as much. It will be interesting to see what the total cost is at the new site (including for all officials, media and security), compared to estimates for Doral.

Back to Bernie Sanders for a moment. Somewhat surprisingly he picked up the support of the young New York Congresswoman who aspires to be the leader of the Democratic Party, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Ilhan Omar of Minneapolis joined AOC in endorsing Sanders.

This brings up an interesting possibility if Sanders is elected President. Will he name Ocasio-Cortez, with her Green New Deal, as the Secretary of Energy? Congresswoman Omar would love to be in charge of Homeland Security. Do you suppose Senator Warren would accept the position of Treasury Secretary? For laughs, he could ask Hillary Clinton to be his Ambassador to Russia. With California Senator Kamala Harris as VP, wow, what a dynamic administration that would be. (Maybe I should replace “dynamic” with “dynamite;” this would blow up our economy as we know it.)

With Brexit and Impeachment debates occurring at the same time, have you noticed a similarity? In Britain, three years ago, the voters voted to exit the European Union. In the US, 3 years ago, voters elected Donald Trump (yes, as Hillary Clinton keeps reminding us, thanks to the Electoral College). Yet in both instances, in Parliament and Congress, officials in charge are refusing to accept the will of the people.

In the United Kingdom, top politicians never believed their citizens would ever vote to exit the EU. They have been fighting to cancel that vote ever since.

In the United States, we know Democrats who thought Clinton was a shoo-in, and have wanted to take out Trump from the day after the election.

Now, there’s a value of having experienced people, with years of wisdom, to serve as a rudder of the ship of state. But when they become an anchor… not so good.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“If Socialists worked as much as they talked, they would be the most prosperous style of Government in the World… It’s absolutely impossible for any Socialist to say anything in a few words.”  There’s Not a Bathing Suit in Russia, page 58, 1927.

“Poor coffee and no bathtubs have drove more Americans out of England than unfamiliarity with their language has.” DT #849, Apr. 16, 1929

[Response: After receiving a compliment on this issue from a prominent professional speaker, I replied, “For many of these lines, I’m smiling as I write them.”  She replied, “As you should!! You are a superb writer, great wit and have to be up to date every week. A rare talent.”.   I accept those glowing comments with humility because they come from one of our best speakers and speech coaches, Patricia Fripp. I have learned much from her.]