Painting, above:  Chinese Year of the Horse [credit: paintings chinese]

JOHN BATCHELOR SHOW

Co-host: Thaddeus McCotter

Hour One

Monday  3 February 2014  / Hour 1, Block A: Bill Roggio, Long War Journal and FDD, and Thomas Joscelyn, Long War Journal senior editor, in re:   "The Obama Administration's Middle East policy is a failure in Syria" – Assad is "slow-rolling" the UN in connection with getting rid of chemical weapons.   There are 26K Islamists on the battlefield, both a regional and an intl threat: many  have Euro and US passports. Ongoing dispute between al Baghdadi and al Q senior leadership – al Baghdadi has tried to declare himself the new caliph over the whole Muslim world, which has displeased almost everyone else.  Delusions of grandeur; eventually, they cut him off.   [more]  Transnational threat: al Nusrah Front et al., al Q leadership has multiple hands to play, never wanted al Baghdadi and ISIS to take over.  Other groups, some with 20,000 fighters.  Obama speaks of al Q as obliterated, on the run, etc. – patently doesn’t conform to facts.  . . .  Stretches to the Hindu Kush.  The very notion of "core al Qaeda" is meaningless. 

Monday  3 February 2014  / Hour 1, Block B: Bill Roggio, Long War Journal and FDD, and Thomas Joscelyn, Long War Journal senior editor, in re: al Qaeda in Teheran.  Sanctuary, hospitality to an al Q leader in Teheran.    . . .    Afghan  elite are preparing for the inevitable, getting ready to bug out. Kabul real estate used to be sky-high, now is in a ditch. 

Monday  3 February 2014  / Hour 1, Block C: Lara M Brown, George Washington University, political analyst and author; Francis Rose, Federal News Radio; Salena Zito, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review & Pirates fan, in re:  . . . both parties scared themselves last fall – shutdown Obamacare; by December, most Americans don't even want to identify with a political party: 42% call themselves independent. Neither side enjoys trust, so must take small steps to rebuild.    . . .   Democrats's "keep the lights on" strategy may be a good idea; GOP also can't move.   ACA appeals process: You're supposed to be able to say that a decision rendered about me in the ACA needs to be challenged – I want my case reexamined. About 22,000 people have filed for an appeal; Feds have appeal requests stored on computer but is entirely unable to deal with any – no process has been established.  "Wrong insurance program," or "I qualify for a subsidy not available." People are just sitting waiting for help that can’t arrive.   HHS failed everywhere else, then ignored everything in favor of racing to accomplish the Act (which of course hasn’t happened).   . . .  Whack-a-mole.   . . .  Boehner doing his Dean Martin imitation.   Maryland politics.  Legislature moves to audit the website; State law calls for an audit this summer; Lt-Gov Brown says let's wait; other legislators say there's no time. Spider web. Status of Detroit bailout.  Obama must be responding to the weak Senate race numbers for Peters . . .  Detroit sues, challenging legality of massive pension debt deal.  Obama to visit East Lansing on Friday, address economy, White House says.

Monday  3 February 2014  / Hour 1, Block D: Rep Thaddeus McCotter, in re: Pres Obama is travelling to East Lansing, Michigan State University. 

Senators: Kerry Admits Obama's Syria Policy Is Failing   In a closed-door meeting, two senators say, the Secretary of State admitted to them that he no longer believes the administration’s approach to the crisis in Syria is working. Peace talks have failed, he conceded, and now it's time to arm the moderate opposition—before local al Qaeda fighters try to attack the United States.  Secretary of State John Kerry has lost faith in his own administration’s Syria policy, he told fifteen U.S. Congressmen in a private, off-the-record meeting, according to two of the senators who were in the room.

Kerry also said he believes the regime of Bashar al Assad is failing to uphold its promise to give up its chemical weapons according to schedule; that the Russians are not being helpful in solving the Syrian civil war; and that the Geneva 2 peace talks that he helped organize are not succeeding. But according to the senators, Kerry now wants to arm Syria's rebels—in part, to block the local al Qaeda affiliates who have designs on attacking the U.S. (Kerry's spokesperson denied that he raised the issue of supplying weapons, but did not dispute the overall tenor of the conversation.)  “[Kerry] acknowledged that the chemical weapons [plan] is being slow rolled, the Russians continue to supply arms, we are at a point now where we are going to have to change our strategy,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham, who attended Kerry's briefing with lawmakers on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference. “He openly talked about supporting arming the rebels. He openly talked about forming a coalition against al Qaeda because it’s a direct threat.” Kerry’s private remarks were a stark departure from the . . .  [more]

Hour Two

Monday  3 February 2014  / Hour 2, Block A:  David M Drucker, Washington Examiner Sr Congressional correspondent, and John Fund, National Review Online, in re: John Kerry in a mtg w Sen Cain declares that Obama's foreign policy is a failure; 26,000 Islamists fighters; president's casual chat with Bill O'Reilly.  Kerry's comments are astonishing in two ways: unheard-of, and they’re true!  Kerry seems to have concluded that the Russians have pulled the wool over our eyes; we're in a heap of trouble.   President's inability to get the Secy of State in line.  This Administration is out of gas. Everyone is nonplussed, can’t figure out how we’ve become becalmed so quickly GOP: "Let's not mess this up." 

Monday  3 February 2014  / Hour 2, Block B: David M Drucker, Washington Examiner Sr Congressional correspondent, and John Fund, National Review Online, in re:  Democrats likely to retiling-serving Representatives expect never to achieve leadership. Waxman and Miller. If Pelosi left now it'd devastate the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.  She's tactically forced the GOP into  . . .  they're all in their seventies. If the Dems won the House in 2014 and kept the Senate – it'd be déjà vu again.  Keystone XL pipeline: Friday report said there's no reason not to build it.  Louisiana and Alaska. Mary Landrieu is in political trouble every six years; votes as a lib dem, but explains to her constituents. At election time, she does a few high-profile things and gets re-elected, but e=she's never had something like the ACA shackling her around her neck.   Has the president checked out? No, he's going through fatigue with Congress and focused on his legacy – currently, Obamacare.

Monday  3 February 2014  / Hour 2, Block C: Tom Church , Hoover Advancing a Free Society, in re: Immigration Reform: Initial Thoughts on the Republican Party’s Principles for Immigration Reform  100% secure? the perfect is the enemy of the good.   Entry-exit visa tracking system. Forty per cent of illegals here arrived legally and overstayed their visa.  e-Verify: voluntary program for employers to submit potential Soc Sec nos. by the feds too see if an applicant is legit.  Do we want to give the feds oversight on who's hiring whom? Six per cent of Green cards given to workers (13%? no – half go to people with jobs and the rest to "family preferences").In Germany, 70% of Green Cards given to actual workers, people who are educated and have high skills.  They pay taxes, have low crime rates, are good citizens.  The Dream Act.

Monday  3 February 2014  / Hour 2, Block D:  Gordon Chang, Forbes.com,  in re: The Chinese at this very moment are traveling in unprecedented numbers, but not all forms of transportation in China are assured of success.  China's new plane, the C919, could end up not selling well inside the country.  Here's why: [more]    CCTV Lunar New Year gala – more than half of China watches this program every year: has always been a five-hour variety show – Vegas, Superbowl, everything rolled into one.  Was on last Thursday, New Year's eve. This year, in addition to all the cheesy propaganda, brought in Maoist themes – incl a ballet once introduced by Mao's first wife, Jiang Qing (of the Gang of Four, later branded the "Lin Biao and Jiang Qing Counter-revolutionary Cliques"). Also had a song, "The Chinese Dream," with revolutionary ballads.  Many people complained: not amusing; bor-ing. Many of these Red themes were brought in to placate the army – maybe the military is the master of Xi Jinping. Suggests that the military has [gone Maoist].   Thailand: Shinawatras are nasty; and the people who want them out of office are very unpleasant. Only the elderly king is unifying; when he goes, his son will inherit the throne, but the son is repellant.

Hour Three

Monday  3 February 2014  / Hour 3, Block A:  Michael Daly, TheDailyBeast, in re: Inside Philip Seymour Hoffman’s ApartmentThe actor who died Sunday morning was found with a needle in his arm and five empty heroin envelopes, according to police on the scene.  Philip Seymour Hoffman lay dead on his side on the bathroom floor clad in a T-shirt and shorts, a hypodermic needle sticking out of his left arm.  In the trash, police found five empty heroin envelopes. Nearby were two full envelopes.  Some of the envelopes were . . .

Monday  3 February 2014  / Hour 3, Block B:  Josh Rogin, TheDailyBeast, in re: Senators: Kerry Admits Obama's Syria Policy Is Failing   In a closed-door meeting, two senators say, the Secretary of State admitted to them that he no longer believes the administration’s approach to the crisis in Syria is working. Peace talks have failed, he conceded, and now it's time to arm the moderate opposition—before local al Qaeda fighters try to attack the United States.  Secretary of State John Kerry has lost faith in his own administration’s Syria policy, he told fifteen U.S. Congressmen in a private, off-the-record meeting, according to two of the senators who were in the room.

Kerry also said he believes the regime of Bashar al Assad is failing to uphold its promise to give up its chemical weapons according to schedule; that the Russians are not being helpful in solving the Syrian civil war; and that the Geneva 2 peace talks that he helped organize are not succeeding. But according to the senators, Kerry now wants to arm Syria's rebels—in part, to block the local al Qaeda affiliates who have designs on attacking the U.S. (Kerry's spokesperson denied that he raised the issue of supplying weapons, but did not dispute the overall tenor of the conversation.)  “[Kerry] acknowledged that the chemical weapons [plan] is being slow rolled, the Russians continue to supply arms, we are at a point now where we are going to have to change our strategy,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham, who attended Kerry's briefing with lawmakers on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference. “He openly talked about supporting arming the rebels. He openly talked about forming a coalition against al Qaeda because it’s a direct threat.” Kerry’s private remarks were a stark departure from the . . .  [more] Kerry also said that Russia is not helping. Truth is, Russians are unwilling, not unable, to pressure Assad. 

Monday  3 February 2014  / Hour 3, Block C:  Richard A Epstein, Hoover Institution [Defining Ideas is a journal of the Hoover Institution], Chicago Law, in re: President Obama faces a tricky situation. Jarring uncertainty in the financial markets presages more sluggish economic performance in the months ahead. But in crafting his message, the President must resist populist, redistributionist rhetoric. Efforts to narrow income inequality are likely to make the rich poorer, not the poor richer, and to result in the decline of investment capital that could spur the creation of new jobs. The President needs to recognize that the first order of business is growth, not transfer payments . . .

Monday  3 February 2014  / Hour 3, Block D: Richard A Epstein, Hoover Institution, Chicago Law, in re: The Fragile State of the Union  Should the President champion populist policies in times of economic stagnation? In the run-up to Tuesday evening’s State of the Union Address, President Obama faces a tricky situation. Jarring uncertainty in the financial markets threatens to bring about a serious retreat of all the major stock indices, which in turn presages more sluggish economic performance in the months ahead.  It is never easy for a President to rebuild his base in the second year of his second term. Indeed, the President has special vulnerabilities, especially with the deeply hostile public response to Obamacare, which has revealed one unhappy surprise after another. The President could talk about the fixes that tantalizingly lie around the corner, but that strategy will backfire so long as administrative glitches remain, coverage is uncertain, and premium increases are the order of the day. There is not much traction here.

Krugman, Jobs and Inequality    Another possibility is for the President to play the populist card yet again. So advises Paul Krugman, for whom income inequality and unemployment are the dominant issues of our time.  [more]

Hour Four

Monday  3 February 2014  / Hour 4, Block A: Coral Davenport, NYT, in re:   Report Opens Way to Approval for Oil Pipeline  Secretary of State John Kerry, who has never publicly offered his personal views on the pipeline, now must make a recommendation on the international project to President Obama.

Monday  3 February 2014  / Hour 4, Block B: Reed Watson, PERC, in re:  Water From the Desert: Entrepreneurs Tap into Unlikely Water Sources  With less than a foot of rainfall each year, the Mojave Desert is not an obvious place to look for water. Reed Watson explores an innovative proposal to pump groundwater from the Mojave and move it to nearby Southern California municipalities could change that perception.  [more>]

Monday  3 February 2014  / Hour 4, Block C:  Philip Terzian, Weekly Standard literary editor and The Eliot Ness Monstrosity, in re: Naming federal buildings is not a matter of life and death, but sometimes the proposals are just too silly to pass without comment. Philip can talk about the recent history of how federal buildings get named, and why Eliot Ness — yes, that Eliot Ness – is not exactly an inspired idea for one federal headquarters.

Monday  3 February 2014  / Hour 4, Block D:   Jodi Schneider, ‎Congress team leader at Bloomberg News, in re: Obama Retirement Plan More Limited Than 401(k) Benefits  President Barack Obama’s proposal for encouraging low-income Americans to set money aside in accounts with tax advantages is a limited step that may help bolster retirement savings.  The proposal, detailed today by the administration, would let Americans with as little as $25 open individual retirement accounts that invest in government bonds. The principal, funded with post-tax contributions, would be protected and could be withdrawn without penalty at any time.  Such accounts would lack the broader investment options and employer match of workers’ 401(k) retirement accounts. Obama’s proposal is a narrower version of the . . .

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Music

Hour 1:  Underworld. Revolution.  AI. 

Hour 2:  Call of Duty.  Lost. 

Hour 3:  Breaking Bad.  Elysium. 

Hour 4:  Breaking Bad. The Recruit.