Category: Uncategorized

COLUMBUS, Ohio: I’m a day late because I got home last night from a conference (more details below) in Herndon, Virginia, a suburb of Washington. We didn’t see any National Guard or federal officers in the vicinity of our Marriott. And I didn’t hear of any murders or stolen cars there either. My Ford pickup sat in the parking lot for four days, unscathed.

According to President Trump, Washington has gone 12 days without a murder. That just shows what an extra thousand heavily armed officers can do in a city that’s only 10 miles across. The want-to-be criminals are getting a clear message: if there’s a guy in DC you want to kill, first you have to come up with a plan to lure him to Baltimore.

Did you see the latest idea to stop illegal immigration? The 30-foot wall of steel I-beams along the Rio Grande apparently is not stopping intruders who are experienced climbers. Homeland Secretary, Kristi Noem, came up with a plan. She found a hot deal on black paint and ordered a million gallons. I’m not sure if she intended to buy a million gallons, or just hit the wrong button on her Amazon order.

Secretary Noem knows from growing up on a ranch in South Dakota that black steel can get mighty hot in the summer sun. She decided that painting those tall I-beams black would get ‘em so hot it would curtail the climbers. On paper, it looks like a good plan. But she and her partners forgot a couple of minor details. When the sun goes down, black steel is the same temperature as plain old rusty steel. And prospective illegal immigrants who can’t wait until sundown can buy a pair of oven mitts. Or insulated work gloves.

President Trump and the Trump family got good news from a New York court. You may remember that NY Attorney General Letitia James demanded they come up with $500,000,000,000.00 (including interest) before Trump could appeal the ruling. The Appeals Court threw out the excessive fine.

Since that $500 Billion load is off his back, the President can help Secretary Noem buy more paint. And he might kick in enough to buy a couple of high-powered paint sprayers so she doesn’t have to use a roller with a telescopic handle to reach the top.

The conference I attended in Herndon, VA, is the Veteran Speakers Retreat. In this case, “veteran” means older, not military. The founder of this great group, however, is a veteran of WWII, 97-year-old Dave Yoho. He continues to speak with a strong voice, and is often called on to speak for, and represent, those who served in WWII. (Do the math and you’ll realize he lied about his age to join the Merchant Marines.)  For our annual 4-day retreat, the group is limited to about 75, including a few spouses. Many are still in their prime as professional speakers. Eleven attendees are past-presidents of the National Speakers Association. I feel honored to be included.

Historic quote by Will Rogers:

        “I am not going to tell you any jokes today. A comedian is not supposed to be serious nor to know much. As long as he is silly enough to get laughs, why, people let it go at that. But I claim you have to have a serious streak in you or you can’t see the funny side in the other fellow.” WA #13, March 11, 1923

The meeting between Trump and Putin in Alaska on Aug. 15 was about as successful as the flight 90 years earlier by Wiley Post and Will Rogers. The difference is no planes crashed and no one died.

But Trump learned the deep-down honest truth about Putin: He is a ruthless, brutal, uncivilized Communist dictator. He smiles, and can utter nice words, but it’s a coverup. Unlike Trump, who wants to end the war against Ukraine to save lives, Putin places no value on a human life. He doesn’t care if he has lost a million soldiers fighting Ukraine. He cares even less about Ukrainian lives. The more Ukrainians who die or leave the country, the better. Putin wants to take over ALL of Ukraine, and if the remaining 35 million people leave, that means Putin will have fewer enemies and can repopulate Ukraine with Russians.

Will Rogers had insight about Hitler, and a good understanding of Russia. As you will see near the end of this series of quotes, Will predicted World War II.

          “Russia is starving her own people in order to feed propaganda to the rest of the world. A guy named Hitler has Germany like Capone has Chicago.” (DT #1320, Oct 16, 1930)

           “Well, we just wake up in the morning to see who will get the headlines. ‘Mussolini is moving into Abyssinia,’ ‘Stalin builds up the Red army to one million,’ but today Hitler took the play away from not only the dictators but away from St. Patrick.” (DT #2687, March 17, 1935)

        “Hitler broke out on me and tore up the Versailles Treaty. It wasn’t a good treaty, but it was the only one they had.  And he tore it up.  And they had been about a year fixing it all up, all these nations. We got in on the signing of it.  We got nothin’ out of the treaty, outside of the pen that we signed with. And last week England sent a delegation over to talk with Mr. Hitler, and see if they couldn’t get some other understanding with him. But England didn’t get to say a word.  Hitler talked all day, and it wasn’t in English, and England didn’t know any more when they went home than they did when they got there. What they was tryin’ to do was to see if they couldn’t get him to make some other arrangements about the treaty.  So now, another man named Mr. Eden from England has gone on to talk to Russia. No nation don’t like Russia, and they don’t like communism and all that, but they would use them in case a war come around. Well, they’ve told Russia, ‘Now, you’re communistic, and you believe in dividing up everything.’  And they said, ‘Ordinarily, we don’t. We don’t believe in it.  But it looks like we’re going to have a war over here and we would like to split it with you boys.’ So they’re going to let Russia in on a good thing in case it shows up.” Radio, March 31, 1935

So, Putin is today’s Hitler. He has been in power in Russia for 25 years, which is longer than Stalin. He expects to stay in power as long as it takes to restore the old USSR. No matter if he only wrangles 20% of Ukraine today, he will eventually capture the entire country. And then Poland will be in his gun sights.

Tomorrow, Trump will meet with Zelensky and several European leaders at the White House. What can they do to stop or slow down Putin’s invasion of Eastern Europe? Will economic sanctions work? Can they cut off Putin’s access to the international banking system? Can they eliminate the export of Russian oil and gas, except to China?

Speaking of China, watching all of these negotiations is Xi Jinping. If Putin is rewarded with 20% of Ukraine, he may launch an invasion on Taiwan. Grabbing 20% of the island would give him a foothold. Like Putin, he doesn’t care about the lives of his own people. Even if an invasion cost him two million of his own military (highly unlikely), he still has over a billion people. And if all 20 million on the island die or leave, like Putin in Ukraine, Xi would be thrilled.

Let me close by admitting I don’t have any special insights on Putin, Russia or China. This Will Rogers quote is a good summary, “If I wanted to start an insane asylum that would be 100 percent cuckoo, I would just admit applicants that thought they knew something about Russia.” (DT #1291, Sept. 12, 1930)

President Trump and Russia’s Putin will meet to negotiate peace in Ukraine in Alaska on August 15. Yes, August 15, in Alaska.

Exactly 90 years ago (Aug. 15, 1935), Will Rogers and Wiley Post died at Point Barrow, Alaska when Wiley’s airplane lost power on takeoff and crashed, nose first, into a few feet of water along the coast.

You might wonder what clout Trump has over Putin and Ukraine President Zelensky? Putin’s Army controls about 22% of Ukraine territory. And Zelensky says he will not give up any territory to Russia. None!

Trump mentioned a possible “swap” between the two countries. But what is there to swap? Putin is determined to eventually take back all the Eastern European countries that were behind the Iron Curtain after WWII, including Ukraine. I’m sure he’s mad that his predecessors, in 1867, sold Alaska to the U.S. for a pittance, only $7,200,000. He may try to convince Trump that that payment barely covered the value of the barren land, and Russia actually kept the mineral rights to the oil and gas.

President Trump has used the economic power of the U.S. to force peace between other warring rivals. In this case, he has indirect influence over the amount and price of oil that Russia exports because 40% of it goes to India. Trump figures he can convince India to stop buying Russian oil through increased tariffs and other trade restrictions.

Back to Zelensky’s point… Since Russia invaded Ukraine and is singularly responsible for the billions in damages and loss of life, why should they get to keep ANY of Ukraine territory. After WWII, did Germany get to keep a piece of France? Did Japan get the Philippines? Of course not.

Let’s go farther. Ukraine should get to take over an area of Russia equal to the 22% of Ukraine that Russia has occupied, and largely destroyed. Land adjoining Ukraine is some of the best farmland in the world. Seems totally fair compensation.  Of course, this common horse sense solution will never be accepted, or even proposed.

Texas Democrats are in a quandary. To keep Republicans from redrawing Congressional district boundaries to favor Republicans, they flew off to Illinois, California and New York. Those 3 states are experts at Gerrymandering district lines to favor Democrats.

Democrats have traditionally been better at Gerrymandering than Republicans. But look at Oklahoma today. Kamala Harris got 36% of the vote but not one of the 5 Representatives in Congress is a Democrat. Every county voted for Trump, meaning it would take some incredible manipulation of boundaries to make up a majority-Democrat district. Maybe a couple of my Democrat friends can work on that for 2030.

In case you are wondering, my recovery from heart surgery on July 15 is pretty amazing. No pain. I’m walking 30 to 40 minutes a day. Driving a little, and should have no driving limits in a week or so. Still being cautious so my chest bone gets welded back together. Even my scars are nothing to brag about.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“This Alaska is a great country. If they can just keep from being taken over by the U. S., they got a great future… There is only 30,000 white people in Alaska and there is seventy commercial planes operating every day, in winter on skis… There may be some doubt about the Louisiana purchase being a mistake, but when Seward in ‘67 bought Alaska for $7,000,000 he even made up for what we had overpaid the Indians for Manhattan Island.” DT #2815, Aug. 13, 1935

“Well, we had a day off today and nothing to do, so we went flying with friend Joe Crosson, Alaska’s crack pilot, who is a great friend of Wiley’s, and Joe Barrows, another fine pilot. In a Lockheed Electra we scaled Mount McKinley, the highest one on the American Continent. Bright sunny day and the most beautiful sight I ever saw… Flew right by hundreds of mountain sheep, flew low over moose and bear down in the valley.” DT #2816, Aug. 14, 1935

Weekly Comments: Random News: Jeans, Jobs, Russia, and Food for Gaza

#1270    Aug. 3, 2025

COLUMBUS, OHIO: Catching up on News this week. Congress adjourned for their August recess (vacation?) which removes one source of frivolous news.

President Trump announced a rebirth of the Presidential Fitness Test for students. I suggest he extend it to adults. Continuing with muscle building exercises and weight control has many benefits. One we seldom think about: if I’m in good physical shape I’ll be in much better condition to survive major surgery or illness and recover quicker. And more likely to avoid knee or hip replacement.

Meanwhile, an attractive young woman in excellent shape appeared in an ad promoting denim jeans. Critics jumped on Sydney Sweeney because she credits her “genes” with helping her look great in “jeans.” Where were these critics when Gloria Vanderbilt invented and modeled “designer jeans” fifty years ago? Beyonce, Brooke Shields, and other beautiful women with good genes have helped sell billions of pairs of over-priced denim. Not to brag, but I get my favorite “Rustler” denim jeans at Walmart for $25. So far, no one has criticized my choice in fashion.

Speaking of critics, the Bureau of Labor Statistics is being criticized for publishing inaccurate jobs numbers each month. The numbers are typically off by 40%. A former official defended the statistics, saying that teams of “hundreds” compile the monthly data. Here’s a suggestion for the President: fire the entire department. Bad data is worse than no data. Stop announcing a monthly jobs number that is a wild guess.

In a similar vein of inaccurate information, we’re just now learning the source of the fake Trump-Putin love affair story that partially derailed the first Trump Administration. Our top intelligence officials (Comey, Brennan, Clapper) and Democrats on the House Intelligence committee constantly spouted off about the Russians providing votes to Trump that helped him defeat Hillary Clinton in the 2016 election. Even John Durham’s multi-million-dollar investigation could not get access to secret messages between these top officials and Clinton.

You might wonder, why didn’t investigative journalists with the “mass media” dig into the details of the “Steele Dossier” and determine the logic of Putin’s opposition to Clinton. The simple answer is they all wanted Clinton to win. In Weekly Comments, I brought up an economic fact: Russia depends on crude oil sales for a major part of gross income. Would Putin prefer a U.S. president who wanted oil to sell for more than $100 a barrel (Clinton), or one who wanted a low price of $60 (Trump)?

One more contentious news item. In Gaza you have seen videos of tractor-trailers loaded with food entering the country and pallets dropped by parachute. Yet, we are hearing horrifying reports of children starving. So, who’s fault is it that food is not getting to the ones who need it? Is it Israel, the U.S., moms and dads, or Hamas? The only answer is Hamas terrorists. They use Gaza civilians as human shields, with no regard for their safety. The more civilians, especially children, Hamas can claim have starved in Gaza, the worse they make is sound for Israel and the U.S. Unfortunately, Hamas propaganda is winning. College students and European countries are taking the pro-Hamas side against Jews and Israel.

Historic quote by Will Rogers:

“I am just like a politician. The less I know about anything, the more I can say about it.”  Jan. 27, 1935

COLUMBUS, OHIO: I’m happy to be home, in Hilliard, since Monday. Making remarkable progress since surgery July 15. I appreciate all the notes, calls, cards, emails, and support.

In case you are wondering, nothing yet from President Trump. He’s been in Scotland selling our oil and gas to the European Union countries while playing golf. But he could have asked the Vice-President to drop in. I thought his main job is to attend funerals, county fairs, and keep tabs on recovering comedians.

Last week I dabbled in the subject of satire. One simple definition of satire is: “the art of making someone look ridiculous, raising laughter in order to embarrass or discredit.” I think that’s a narrow, one-sided view of satire.

I prefer the Will Rogers version of satire. In preparing satirical commentary, will the “target” of the satire laugh or at least smile?

Here are three quotes that could serve as a guide for anyone writing and delivering satire:

“I have often said in answer to inquiries as to how I got away with kidding some of our public men, that it was because I liked all of them personally, and that if there was no malice in your heart there could be none in your ‘Gags.’”  WA #392, June 29, 1930

“The first thing is the remark you make must be founded on facts. You can exaggerate and make it ridiculous, but it must have the plain facts in it. Then you will hear the audience say: ‘Well, that’s pretty near right.’” How To Be Funny, July 1917

“I don’t think I ever hurt any man’s feelings by my little gags. I know I never willfully did it. When I have to do that to make a living I will quit. I may not have always said just what they would have liked me to say but they knew it was meant in good nature. I never go to Detroit that I don’t spend an entire day out with Henry Ford and I don’t suppose there is a man living, barring the owners, that have told any more jokes on him than I have.” The Illiterate Digest, 1920

 

 

OHIO HEALTH RIVERSIDE METHODIST HOSPITAL. COLUMBUS: First, a quick update. I’m headed home tomorrow. No need for a rehab facility. No pain. Easy walking, climbing stairs. Fantastic heart surgeon and entire medical crew. More at the bottom.

CBS announced they will end their late-night show in May. Steven Colbert is known as a brilliant satirist. He has a huge staff and production crew to make the show funny and interesting. But when the star is paid $20 million and the show loses $40 million (instead of making the expected substantial profit for CBS), it’s no surprise that the show will be cancelled.

Will Rogers was also known for political satire. He joked about Presidents, Senators, Congressmen, Governors, and lower-level officials. His satire was based on their policies and not “personal appearance.” If he said something negative about a person, he usually ended with a compliment. He is known for, “I joked about every prominent man of my time, but I never met a man I didn’t like.”

Let me mention two prominent men he didn’t like because of policies. One was a southern senator who was a devout racist. Another was Mussolini. Will interviewed the Fascist leader of Italy. Will intended to include comments from Mussolini in his newspaper column, but decided against it. Will knew the quotes from Mussolini would make his policies sound far better than they were in practice.

Colbert suffered from a declining “live” audience, and therefore declining revenue from commercials. (ABC and NBC late-night shows are facing similar declines.)

As to Colbert’s satire in the last 10 or 12 years… how much of his humor do you remember directed at Biden, Obama, or other prominent Democrats? How about Trump and other Republicans?

Back to me…On Tuesday, the portion of the aortic artery at the top of my heart was replaced. Six days later, I get to go home. I’ll need someone with me 24 hrs. a day for a week, in case of an emergency. Obviously, still some restrictions. Plus, walking and other exercises.

I’m mentioning the following only because it might help a few of you make a life-saving decision or at least reduce health problems and cost. If my aortic aneurysm had popped up two years ago, my recovery would have taken longer than expected today. In those two years I built up muscles (arms, chest, legs) and lost 50 pounds. These changes for me, and others in a similar situation, can reduce the need for (or severity of) health issues such as heart surgery, knee and hip replacement. If you are young, make changes in lifestyle and maintain it. I wish I had been motivated to make these changes 40 or 50 years ago.

I’m going to borrow a closing from Will Rogers. After his gallbladder surgery in June 1927, he received telegrams from President Coolidge, plus several Senators, Governors, famous actors and business folks. Well, I haven’t heard from Trump (unless an envelope might have arrived asking for a contribution).

But I have received so many prayers, best wishes and other wonderful greetings that I feel like Will when he wrote his syndicated newspaper column three days later: “People couldn’t have been any nicer to me than if I had died.”

Randall Reeder
P.S. Happy birthday to our son. On his first birthday, Neal Armstrong walked on the moon. Today, Mark’s an engineering professor and Department Chair at the Air Force Institute of Technology, near Dayton.

Weekly Comments: Health Update. Colbert of CBS. Political Satire.

#1268    July 20, 2025

OHIO HEALTH RIVERSIDE METHODIST HOSPITAL. COLUMBUS: First, a quick update. I’m headed home tomorrow (Monday). No need for a rehab facility. No pain. Easy walking, climbing stairs. Fantastic heart surgeon and entire medical crew. More at the bottom.

CBS announced they will end their late-night show in May. Steven Colbert is known as a brilliant satirist. He has a huge staff and production crew to make the show funny and interesting. But when the star is paid $20 million and the show loses $40 million (instead of making the expected substantial profit for CBS), it’s no surprise that the show will be cancelled.

Will Rogers was also known for political satire. He joked about Presidents, Senators, Congressmen, Governors, and lower-level officials. His satire was based on their policies and not “personal appearance.” If he said something negative about a person, he usually ended with a compliment. He is known for, “I joked about every prominent man of my time, but I never met a man I didn’t like.”

Let me mention two prominent men he didn’t like because of policies. One was a southern senator who was a devout racist. Another was Mussolini. Will interviewed the Fascist leader of Italy. Will intended to include comments from Mussolini in his newspaper column, but decided against it. Will knew the quotes from Mussolini would make his policies sound far better than they were in practice.

Colbert suffered from a declining “live” audience, and therefore declining revenue from commercials. (ABC and NBC late-night shows are facing similar declines.)

As to Colbert’s satire in the last 10 or 12 years… how much of his humor do you remember directed at Biden, Obama, or other prominent Democrats? How about Trump and other Republicans?

Back to me…On Tuesday, the portion of the aortic artery at the top of my heart was replaced. Six days later, I get to go home. I’ll need someone with me 24 hrs. a day for a week, in case of an emergency. Obviously, still some restrictions. Plus, walking and other exercises.

I’m mentioning the following only because it might help a few of you make a life-saving decision or at least reduce health problems and cost. If my aortic aneurysm had popped up two years ago, my recovery would have taken longer than expected today. In those two years I built up muscles (arms, chest, legs) and lost 50 pounds. These changes for me, and others in a similar situation, can reduce the need for (or severity of) health issues such as heart surgery, knee and hip replacement. If you are young, make changes in lifestyle and maintain it. I wish I had been motivated to make these changes 40 or 50 years ago.

I’m going to borrow a closing from Will Rogers. After his gallbladder surgery in June 1927, he received telegrams from President Coolidge, plus several Senators, Governors, famous actors and business folks. Well, I haven’t heard from Trump (unless an envelope might have arrived asking for a contribution).

But I have received so many prayers, best wishes and other wonderful greetings that I feel like Will when he wrote his syndicated newspaper column three days later: “People couldn’t have been any nicer to me than if I had died.”

Randall Reeder

WillRogersToday (dot) com

P.S. Happy birthday to our son. On his first birthday, Neal Armstrong walked on the moon. Today, Mark’s an engineering professor and Department Chair at the Air Force Institute of Technology, near Dayton.

A year ago, an amateur gunman tried to assassinate candidate Donald Trump. He missed killing the President-to-be by a fraction of an inch. But he did kill 50-year-old Corey Comperatore, and wounded two others.

A new report shows that the Secret Service was being run by amateurs that day in Butler, Pennsylvania. They put a new trainee in charge of protecting the Republican nominee for President. And the “drone operator” had only an hour of experience with a drone and had no idea how to fix it when it broke down. Communication with local officials onsite was non-existent.

On a personal note, I’m having surgery this Tuesday, July 15, to repair an aortic aneurysm. It will be done by a top surgical team at Riverside Methodist Hospital in Columbus. (No amateurs allowed in the operating room!) I hope to post updates on Facebook. Recovery will keep me out of “normal” physical activities, events and travel for about a month.

(Will Rogers had gall bladder surgery in 1927. I may “borrow” comments from his newspaper articles and the little book he wrote about it, “Ether and Me.”)

For the tragic flash flood in Texas, 129 deaths are confirmed with 170 still missing. The National Weather Service did issue warnings on time. But the warnings did not get to the people along the river who were asleep.

This should serve as a reminder to organizations, businesses, governments and others to analyze “worst case” scenarios. In this flash flood example, did anyone think of the situation: 3:00 a.m., holiday weekend, flood plain packed with campers from other states, hundreds of young children at camps, several key officials on vacation or off-duty.

I’m confident the Secret Service trains over and over for worst case scenarios. But somewhat like a flash flood in hill country, or a wildfire in Pacific Palisades, or a hurricane in New Orleans, or a major injury for a farm family, being ready 99% of the time is not enough.

Historic quote by Will Rogers:

        “I am in the California Hospital, where they are going to relieve me of surplus gall, much to the politicians’ delight. I am thrilled to death. Never had an operation, so let the stones fall where they may.” DT #282, June 16, 1927

 

 

COLUMBUS, Ohio: President Trump succeeded in getting a “Big Beautiful Bill” through Congress, by the barest of margins. He signed it on July 4.

Democrats did not give up easily. They call it ugly, and claim 11 million poor Americans will lose medical care, and 5 million will go hungry. They say billionaires and millionaires will reap most of the benefits.

I have asked this question before, and have never gotten a straight answer: what percent of total income taxes should be paid by the top 10% of income earners? The only answer you’ll hear is “They need to pay their fair share!” (Meaning, pay more than they do now.)

What do you think is the “fair share?” Should the top 10% pay 60% of the total collected? That would mean the other 90% pay 40% to support the federal services we all receive.

This may surprise you. The most recent data is from 2022, and the top 10% paid 72% of the total. Should they pay more?

How about this number? The top 1% (1.5 million tax returns) paid 40% of the total.

When the dust settles on the new tax bill, these numbers won’t change much. With the continuation of the 2017 tax reductions, plus changes in taxes on tips, overtime, and child credits, many families in the $50,000 to $100,000 range will see tax benefits of $2000 to $5000. Most people on Social Security will get a $6000 bonus.

What else can we do to cheer up Democrats? A poll taken before Independence Day showed that 90% of Republicans say they are patriotic. But only a third of Democrats feel the same way, a big drop from a year or two ago.  Wages are increasing faster than inflation. Unemployment is only 4.1%. Stock market is high.

America is the land of opportunity regardless of which political party has the majority. The millions who will “lose” Medicaid and SNAP include able-bodied people without young children who get a job, and immigrants here illegally. All of us used to be against waste, fraud and abuse, but now it’s mostly Republicans.

Deporting illegal immigrant criminals fails to cheer up most Democrat leaders. They criticize the new ICE detention facility in Florida. Instead of the commonly used (funny) name, Alligator Alcatraz, one called it Alligator Auschwitz and claimed it’s a “concentration camp.” Apparently, a Democrat leader looked at aerial photos of Alligator Alcatraz and thought he spotted gas chambers beside the tents. Actually, they are huge air conditioning units.

Has our school system failed so completely that folks under 60 will accept ridiculous comparisons to the 1930s and ‘40s? Don’t they know that Hitler and the Nazis tortured, starved and killed 6 MILLION Jews, plus millions of others?

Will Rogers was a compassionate comforter for victims of fires, earthquakes, floods and other disasters. Today, Kerr County, Texas, needs our prayers and support. Almost a hundred residents and visitors died as intense rain in the hill country caused the Guadalupe River to rise 30 feet is less than an hour. The computer models that weather forecasters depend on indicated the rain would be less intense and concentrated at least 50 miles away. The storm hit overnight, about 3:00 a.m., while young girls at Camp Mystic and campers along the river were sleeping. The Salvation Army, Red Cross, and other legitimate charities are on-site providing aid and can use our generous donations.

Historic quote by Will Rogers:

        “I don’t believe our people that have never been around a flood area realize the tremendous need of these sufferers down on the Mississippi. It’s by far the worst thing that has happened in this country in years… I am going to put on my little one-man [show] for this great cause next Sunday night… They will get every cent that comes in, even if there is nobody there but my wife—who will have to pay to get in.” DT #236, April 25, 1927

The Senate is arguing over Trump’s so-called Big Beautiful Bill. Senator Schumer demanded that all 940 pages be read aloud to him and the other Senators. Did he sit there, listening intently and taking notes for the 16-hour read-a-thon? Not likely. Instead of asking a relay team of clerks to read it, they should have brought in the guy who does the disclaimers at the end of commercials for drugs. He could have finished the 940 pages in 2.5 hours flat.

After listening to the 940 pages, Republicans and Democrats act like it’s two totally different bills. Trump and the Republicans say if it is not passed, taxes will increase by $5 Trillion. Sen. Schumer and other Democrats say the bill will increase national debt by $4.5 Trillion. Both could be true. Trump cut income taxes in his first term. And Schumer is an expert at increasing the national debt.

Republicans are squabbling among themselves over the tax credits for State and Local Taxes (SALT). The current deduction limit is $10,000. That was passed in 2017. The intention was that state legislators and local officials would keep property and sales taxes low so most people would be able to deduct their entire SALT payments. But obnoxious elected officials balked, ignored taxpayers, and kept raising taxes. (The taxes on our house went up 40% in 5 years).

These officials, and many Republican Congressmen, are trying to raise the deduction to $40,000. A lot of folks in the middle of the country, especially ones who don’t even make $40,000 a year, can’t figure why residents of California, New York and New Jersey, for example, who make almost $500,000 should get to deduct all of their property taxes on their multi-million-dollar mansions. (My friends in San Francisco may remind me that a “million-dollar mansion” might be 2 bedrooms and 1 bathroom.) An analysis shows that more than 95% of a $40,000 SALT deduction benefit would go to the top 20%.

Maybe the best plan is to eliminate ALL deductions and reduce the tax rate. That would get a howl from lobbyists and almost everyone else, but would be a good plan in the long run.

Did President Trump push for the cease fire too soon? Should Israel have been allowed to blast Iran military facilities another week or two? I realize both sides were apparently running low on “ammunition” (missiles and launchers for Iran; Iron Dome anti-missiles for Israel).  Before the precise bombing of the nuclear sites, Trump had demanded “Unconditional Surrender.” The cease fire has allowed Khomeini to even claim they won. However, he knows that Trump wouldn’t hesitate to send those B-2s back again. So don’t be concerned about Iran jumping back in the “game” with their second-string nuclear scientists. (Their “first team” was eliminated by Israel.)

What happened to New York City? Out of the millions of Democrats, they could only find two interested in being mayor. You remember Andrew Cuomo. As governor during Covid he took actions that resulted in deaths of hundreds of old folks in nursing homes. Then a sex scandal led to his resignation. And the winner of the Democrat Primary, Zohran Mamdani, hates Jews and embraces illegal immigrants. He would ban the Police, close prisons, raise the minimum wage to $30, make bus rides free, and city employees would run all grocery stores.

Mamdani would raise taxes on billionaires and millionaires, especially if they live in a white neighborhood. He does not understand that those wealthy people, white and otherwise, will leave. And they will take the New York Stock Exchange, Wall Street banks, and other company headquarters with them. NYC could be the new Havana.

Florida came up with a good idea (actually a location) for a federal prison. But it’s not new. Almost fifty years ago I heard a great speaker from Kansas, Dr. Kenneth McFarland, talk about a problem facing society. I remember him saying, “You can’t rehabilitate people who were never habilitated in the first place.” He added, “They should be secured in a prison. You can easily keep them there with love, and understanding, and a ditch full of alligators.” (That last sentence is paraphrased, but I remember distinctly the line about alligators.) Instead of Dr. McFarland’s joke about bringing the alligators to the prison, Florida is taking the prison to the alligators.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“Congress is so strange. A man gets up to speak and says nothing. Nobody listens, and then everybody disagrees.” Notes, undated

        “I am going out among the people whom New Yorkers call Rubes. But these people I am going out among are the people that look at New Yorkers and laugh.” WA # 147, October 4, 1925