It’s time to Break It Down!

Words matter; any number of words can be used to signify the Pathos of American culture. However, perhaps none does so more aptly than Capitalism. It is arguably, the spirit, zest, and emotion that propel us to so frequently achieve greatness. There are most certainly terms that better reflect the American Ethos, and our sometimes, slippery connection to communal ethics. In addition, we can point to more poignant vessels to accurately capture the Logos that is the essence of the way we in America reason. Today’s word, however, is Capitalism, so perhaps we will examine those other elements of persuasion at another time.

In this election season especially, a number of politicians are poised to place an extra fine point on the distinction between Capitalism and other primary systems of organizing and managing government’s economies. The term Capitalist means owner of capital. Capitalism is an economic system that emphasizes that trade, industry, and the means of production are largely or entirely privately owned and operated for profit. Central characteristics include private property, capital accumulation, wage labor and, in some situations, fully competitive markets. In a capitalist economy, the parties to a transaction typically determine the prices at which they exchange assets, goods, and services.

The degree of competition, the role of intervention and regulation, and the scope of state ownership vary across different models of capitalism. These models include laissez-faire or free market capitalism, welfare capitalism, crony capitalism, corporatism, “third way” social democracy and state capitalism.

The American Way, purists will insist, is punctuated by free enterprise. At its core, in a free enterprise system, business is governed by the laws of supply and demand; not restrained by government interference, regulation or subsidy. This apparatus is also referred to as free market.

The American combination of Capitalism and Free Enterprise is considered to be one of the most successful economic experiments in the history of the world. The United States is the world’s largest national economy, representing 22% of nominal global GDP and 17% of global GDP (PPP). The United States’ GDP was estimated to be $18.124 trillion as of Q2 2015. The U.S. dollar is the currency most used in international transactions and is the world’s foremost reserve currency. Several countries use it as their official currency, and in many others it is the de facto currency. The United States has a mixed economy and has maintained a stable overall GDP growth rate, a moderate unemployment rate, and high levels of research and capital investment. Its seven largest trading partners are Canada, China, Mexico, Japan, Germany, South Korea, and the United Kingdom.

The US has abundant natural resources, a well-developed infrastructure, and high productivity. It has the world’s ninth-highest per capita GDP (nominal) and tenth-highest per capita GDP (PPP) as of 2013. Americans have the highest average household and employee income among OECD nations, and in 2010 had the fourth highest median household income, down from second highest in 2007. It has been the world’s largest national economy (not including colonial empires) since at least the 1890s. It’s abundantly clear that our national economic bona fides are firmly entrenched and indelibly established.

The numbers are not just staggering on the macro level. The United States, not surprisingly, also has a number of incredibly wealthy individuals. Our Country has more billionaires than any other. As of 2015, the U.S. was home to more than twice as many billionaires, 536, as the second closest Country, People’s Republic of China, 213. In fact, to sharpen the focus to an even higher degree, the State of California has more billionaires than every Country, except China and the U.S.

California spawned 23 new billionaires over the past year, bringing its total count to 131 — or nearly a quarter of America’s 10-digit club. It not only has more billionaires than any other U.S. state, but also tops Germany, India, Russia and the UK. In fact, if California were a country, it would be home to the third-highest number of billionaires in the world, surpassed only by the United States and China. California’s billionaires own a combined $560.1 billion in wealth, which is more than the GDP of 49 countries, including Argentina, Poland and Taiwan. All in all, it is fair to say, that is good!

Not surprisingly, the United States is home to the world’s wealthiest man. In 2014, Bill Gates, the Microsoft Tech Titan, was the world’s richest man, according to Forbes. As of July 2015, Gates remains at the top of the list.

While you have undoubtedly heard of Bill Gates, the name of a very wealthy man that has bludgeoned its way into the consciousness of Americans this week is Martin Shkreli. He is the CEO of a company known as Turing Pharmaceuticals, which bought the 62-year-old drug called Daraprim in August of this year. The company immediately raised the price of one pill from $13.50 to $750. Just for the record, I’ll submit, that is bad!

This increase drew protests in the medical community from those concerned that many patients will no longer be able to afford the drug. According to Mr. Shkreli, however, the move is simply a smart business decision.

“Why was it necessary to raise the price of Daraprim so drastically?” CBS News correspondent Don Dahler asked Shkreli.

“Well, it depends on how you define so drastically. Because the drug was unprofitable at the former price, so any company selling it would be losing money. And at this price it’s a reasonable profit. Not excessive at all,” Shkreli responded.

Daraprim was developed in 1953 as a treatment for toxoplasmosis, an infection caused by a parasite. It comes from eating under-cooked meat or drinking contaminated water, and affects those with compromised immune systems, like AIDS and cancer patients.

As one might imagine, there were stark economic repercussions stemming from Mr. Shkreli’s “reasonable profit” motive. When Turing Pharmaceuticals raised the price of Daraprim to $750 per tablet, the average cost of treatment for patients rose from about $1,130 to $63,000. For certain patients, the cost can go as high as $634,000.

While Shkreli acknowledged that the move might look “greedy,” he said there are “a lot of altruistic properties to it.”

“This is a disease where there hasn’t been one pharmaceutical company focused on it for 70 years. We’re now a company that is dedicated to the treatment and cure of toxoplasmosis. And with these new profits we can spend all of that upside on these patients who sorely need a new drug, in my opinion,” he added.

Oncologist and CBS News medical contributor Dr. David Agus disagreed.

“Patients shouldn’t be taxed and charged for future research and development. Patients should pay for the drug they’re getting and what they need in the situation that they are” Agus said.

“It’s predatory practice and it’s inappropriate,” he added.

The topic entered the political debate on Monday, with Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton tweeting: “Price gouging like this in the specialty drug market is outrageous.”

Her rival Bernie Sanders sent a letter to Shkreli demanding information on the price increase and called the rate hike “…the latest in a long list of skyrocketing price increases for certain critical medications.”

Sanders and Congressman Elijah Cummings have been investigating drugs that have seen jumps in prices.

Suffice it to say, Mr. Shkreli got the message. The 32-year-old Shkreli has been called everything from a boy genius to a vulture. Take your pick, but one thing the wealthy Capitalist is not is slow on the uptick.

Turing’s increasing the price of Daraprim from $13.50 to $750 a pill represented an increase of over 5,500%. Democratic Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton generously called that drug “price gouging.” OK, you knew it was coming; that is ugly!

The Daily Beast declared Shkreli the “most-hated man in America,” surpassing the dentist who killed Cecil the Lion.

Mr. Shkreli insists he has heard the outcry.

“We’ve agreed to lower the price of Daraprim to a price that is more affordable,” Shkreli said on ABC World News Tonight.

He didn’t say what that “affordable” price would be, but stressed that the company already gives away the drug for free to about half the patients who use it and that Turing plans to expand its charitable drug program.

In a somewhat ironic confluence of circumstances, Pope Francis (Jorge Mario Bergoglio), the former Cardinal of Buenos Aires, and the 266^th Roman Catholic Pope is visiting the United States this week, week stops scheduled in Washington DC, Philadelphia, and New York. While there is no real expectation that Pope Francis will delve into or weigh in on Shkreli-gate, the Pontiff is a well-known critic of Capitalism.

In fact, this Pope’s Socialist posture, and his affinity for an array of issues including Climate Change/Global Warming, Restoration of formal Cuban-American relations, abolition of the death penalty, and a duty to the poor and marginalized has resulted in many Conservative politicians, a number of whom are seeking the GOP Nomination for the Presidency, to openly state their opposition to positions taken by the Pope. This just heightens the irony for a number of folks who happen to be Catholic, but do not bond with the 266^th Pope.

Neatly summarized, there you have it…”Capitalism: The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly!”

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com or http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com. Find a new post each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Follow in the bottom right hand corner of my Home Page at http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com; enter your e-mail address in the designated space, and click on “Sign me up.” Subsequent editions of “Break It Down” will be mailed to your in-box.

Consult the links below for more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capitalism

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/capitalism

http://www.investorwords.com/2085/free_enterprise.html

https://www.quora.com/Whats-the-difference-between-capitalism-and-free-enterprise?share=1

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Shkreli

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/09/21/martin-shkreli-is-big-pharma-s-biggest-asshole.html

http://www.salon.com/2015/09/22/martin_shkreli_on_his_altruistic_motives_im_a_capitalist_i_want_to_create_a_big_drug_company/

http://gawker.com/pharmaceutical-greed-villain-martin-shkreli-will-fight-1732104723

http://www.turingpharma.com

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Francis

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_the_number_of_US_dollar_billionaires

http://www.forbes.com/sites/katiasavchuk/2015/03/04/california-has-more-billionaires-than-every-country-except-the-u-s-and-china/

It’s time to Break It Down!

Almost everyone I know well who purports to follow politics avers that they believe the Donald Trump phenomenon will eventually dissipate, evaporate, or in some form or fashion, just go away. I should amend that statement to note I have not had this conversation with persons who admit to being Republicans. Therefore, it is certainly not meant to be representative of how a typical Republican feels about the situation.

Nevertheless, if that affirmation proves to be an eventuality, it surely cannot come too soon for the GOP Establishment, nor for the other GOP Presidential candidates, regardless of whether they consider themselves to be a part of the Establishment. Three weeks ago I wrote a post discussing the conundrum that the Republican Party faces in dealing with Mr. Trump and the immigration issue (https://thesphinxofcharlotte.com/2015/08/26/the-team-gop-conundrum-trumping-the-immigration-issue/).

The bigger story, undoubtedly, is that it is not just the Club Leader’s position on immigration that is troubling to the Party hierarchy. It’s his deep pockets money stream; his prickly, mercurial, unpredictable nature, it’s his penchant for “counterpunching” anyone with the temerity or effrontery to take him on in mano a mano terms.

The first 2015 GOP Presidential Debate was held six weeks ago tomorrow on August 6^th at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. I wrote about the pending festivities on August 5^th (https://thesphinxofcharlotte.com/2015/08/05/and-then-there-were-10-lets-get-ready-to-rumble/).

The abundance of contestants for the GOP Nomination, in concert with predetermined Party Rules, resulted in a split debate format for the first Debate. The schematic consisted of 7 candidates appearing in what amounted to the Early Show, and the remaining 10 candidates appearing at the Prime Time event later that evening.

This evening’s Debate will operate in a format slightly altered from the first contest. It will convene at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum in Semi Valley, California. At 6:00 p.m., 4 candidates, down from 7, will appear in the first session. Those individuals are George Pataki, Rick Santorum, Bobby Jindal, and Lindsey Graham. CNN amended the Debate Criteria by adding this caveat:

“In the event that any candidate is polling in the top 10 in an average of approved national polls released between August 7th and September 10th, we will add those candidates to our top tier debate, even if those candidates did not poll in the top 10 in an average of approved national polls between July 16th and September 10^th.”

This change opened the door for Carly Fiorina to be promoted to the main stage. Rick Perry suspended his campaign, and therefore dropped out of the field. Jim Gilmore failed to attain the necessary threshold for inclusion.

That means the Prime Time Show expanded from 10 to 11 participants. The post-debate polls, which were used to determine the participants, were also used to determine the order that the candidates would appear on stage. Trump will anchor the center of the stage for the 8:00 p.m. debate, flanked by Carson to his right and Bush to his left. Walker, Fiorina, Kasich and Christie, in that order, will stand to Bush’s left, while Cruz, Rubio, Huckabee and Paul will appear to Carson’s right.

Up to this moment in the campaign, which many experts continue to insist is still early, The Donald has been the straw that stirs the GOP Presidential Candidates’ Drink. There is a fair amount of speculation that a number of the candidates may actually try to gain traction by attacking Donald Trump. This has been a largely unsuccessful, and in some cases fatal flaw in strategy for those with the gumption to try it. See Rick Perry, who no longer lists himself among active candidates, and Lindsey Graham, whose campaign has appeared to limp along.

One of the next, certain to take up the gauntlet is Bobby Jindal. Governor Jindal wrote an Op-Ed that appeared on CNN’s website yesterday, in which he lambasted Donald Trump as, among other things, “a madman who must be stopped.”   Are you ready yet?

So in the Apprentice, Donald Trump ran the show. When a contestant didn’t live up to his lofty standards, Trump would, with great fanfare and bluster, utter the phrase, “You’re fired!” It will be interesting to see if Trump tweets some scathing message about/to Jindal between now and the Debate this evening, or whether he will take the opportunity to launch a broadside attack (he likes to say he only counter punches) during the Debate.

Here’s the opening salvo from Jindal’s CNN commentary:

“President Trump today announced that the first season of “The Apprentice: White House Edition” will air on CBS this fall. Contestants, including Gary Busey, Ted Cruz and Kanye West, will vie for Cabinet positions. The announcement came as the newly renamed “Hair Force One” touched down in South Dakota for the unveiling of President Trump’s face on Mount Rushmore. Meanwhile, first lady Melania had reason to celebrate as her White House-branded perfume, Trump, by Trump, hit Macy’s shelves …”

No, this is not a story from The Onion. It’s a vision of our future. The only people who would enjoy a Trump presidency are Trump, Jimmy Fallon and Stephen Colbert. The jokes, as he said, will write themselves.

Jindal is clearly, desperately seeking a breakout moment. So much so that he did not limit his targets to Mr. Trump. What Right Wing/Tea Party diatribe would be complete without a nod to President Obama? Definitely this one, by Governor Jindal, will not be the first. To further shore up his macho Trump imitation bona fides, he said:

“The liberalism and incompetence of the Obama administration have pushed us to the edge of a socialist abyss.”  So much for creativity.

In analyzing The Donald, Jindal proclaims not only that he will never be President, but that his nomination would be tantamount to delivering the White House to Mrs. Clinton, at least in part because he is sure to self-destruct in a general election. Apparently, Trump is venom and he (Jindal) has, or is the antidote.

He insists that everyone knows Trump is not the answer, but…no one has the courage to say so…except him, of course. He noted that he said last week:

“Donald Trump is a shallow, unserious, substance-free, narcissistic egomaniac. It’s pointless arguing policy with someone not intellectually curious enough to care and who makes it up on the fly. According to him, his plans will be “fabulous” and “something terrific. His problem with Washington isn’t big government, it’s that he’s not running it. He’s not liberal, moderate or conservative. He’s not Republican or Democrat. Donald Trump is for Donald Trump. He believes only in himself.”

Jindal did eventually concede that Jeb Bush, Rand Paul, and the aforementioned “no longer a candidate,” Rick Perry called out Trump for lacking adherence to conservative values. Alas, it was a fruitless gambit because Trump is not a conservative.

He panned Ted Cruz for “clinging to Trump like a limpet to an oil tanker, hoping to suck up his votes when Trump eventually sinks.” Senator Cruz may be hoping to jet with Trump’s votes, should he falter, or he may be making space for a Trump-Cruz ticket, but it’s not likely he and Bobby will be making up anytime soon.

Showtime is 8:00 p.m. There may be more histrionics and fireworks when the lights come up. In fact, I’d say you could depend on it. Put the kids to bed early, get the beer and your popcorn. It’s about to be on and poppin’. “Next on Deck The Apprentice II: Otherwise Known As the GOP Debates!”

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com or http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com. Find a new post each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Follow in the bottom right hand corner of my Home Page at http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com; enter your e-mail address in the designated space, and click on “Sign me up.” Subsequent editions of “Break It Down” will be mailed to your in-box.

Consult the links below for more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anchor_baby

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bobby_Jindal

http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/15/opinions/jindal-debate-donald-trump/index.html

https://twitter.com/BobbyJindal

http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/14/politics/2016-cnn-republican-debate/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marco_Rubio

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marco_Rubio

http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/reagan-debate-gop-cnn/2015/08/11/id/669509/

http://www.dailynews.com/government-and-politics/20150908/simi-valleys-reagan-library-prepares-for-gop-debate-with-more-than-400-staff-volunteers

http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/01/politics/cnn-debate-criteria-amendment/

It’s time to Break It Down!

This is another of those weeks. For anyone interested in reading or writing about current events, the list of relevant topics is both inviting and long.

• If you have a Right-leaning religious bent, the now famous Kentucky Clerk, Kim Davis, was released from jail yesterday.
• For tennis fans, Serena beat Venus (no last names necessary) in the U.S. Open Quarterfinals last night. She’ll play Roberta Vinci in the semifinals Thursday.
• For those for whom politics is their wheel-well, Round 2 of the Republican Party Presidential Debate series kicks off a week from today…Part I at 6:00 p.m., followed by the Prime Time nightcap at 8:00 p.m.
• If you are just dying for the juiciest details of the latest violent jump-off, a pair of Atlanta teens landed in jail for allegedly attempting to murder their parents.
• If you love Hillary…or you love to hate Hillary, she has executed yet another tack in an effort to subdue or escape e-mailgate; she apologized.
• If you’re a tech titan, Apple releases the new 6S today.
• If you are a football fan, over the weekend, two Texas high school football players executed blindsided tackles on an unsuspecting referee, allegedly after a slur was uttered.
• For fans, and perhaps detractors of Pope Francis, on yesterday, the Holy Father radically revised the process by which Catholics may annul their marriages, streamlining steps that many in the church considered too cumbersome and costly.
• If you are a hoops fan, yesterday was huge…because President Obama entertained the reigning NCAA National Champion Duke Blue Devils at the White House. As an aside, I must note, that in itself was not the top aspect of that news, though it certainly was newsworthy.

The actual significance of the encounter stemmed from the fact Duke’s Coach, Mike Krzyzewski, actually praised President Obama. It was well delivered, well deserved, and surely setting appropriate. Coach K said:

“On behalf of our Duke community, we want to thank you for serving our country over these last two terms. You’ve been an amazing leader for our country. And it’s not just you, but your family and the sacrifices. So thank you very much for your service.”

He even urged the crowd to give the President a standing ovation.

Of course, the reputedly conservative Duke Coach has publicly expressed other opinions about President Obama. Krzyzewski is the same man who criticized the administration’s strategy regarding ISIS and said in 2009 when Mr. Obama didn’t choose Duke for the Final Four:

“The economy is something he should focus on, probably more than the brackets.”

Coach K may very well be an ideologue. But he is suave, and capable of being glib, despite his fiery on court persona. I’ve seen him deliver the goods in person. He did a good job yesterday.

• Of course, if you are a student of history, you know that Friday marks the 14^th Anniversary of the September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th, or 9/11). These attacks were a series of four coordinated terrorist attacks by the Islamic terrorist group al-Qaeda on the United States on the morning of Tuesday, September 11, 2001. The attacks consisted of suicide attacks used to target symbolic U.S. landmarks.

That’s an auspicious Top 10 for considering a blog topic. Yet, none cut the mustard in terms of my choosing today’s subject. I believe the President’s phenomenal accomplishment gets the nod. At least it gets mine. Moreover, as I’ve noted before, to use a basketball analogy…my court my rules.

To wit, despite historic measures and wide-ranging attacks by opponents of the Iran Deal, President Obama and his team have not just withstood the often vicious and ad hominem attacks from within the borders of the United States and abroad, they have managed to construct a coalition that is not merely capable of sustaining a veto; as of yesterday, the President amassed enough votes (41) to prevent a Senate vote against the Deal from occurring.

It is without question, the Iran Deal is controversial. Republicans have initiated a number of desperate attempts to scrap the deal before it ever materialized, including issuing an unprecedented invitation to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to speak before Congress, without first advising the President…just weeks before the Prime Minister’s election in Israel

That affront took place prior to the completion of the Deal. So did a broadside attack in the form of an open letter to the leaders of the Islamic Republic of Iran signed by 47 senators and instigated by Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.). It was, in modest terms, a stunning breach of protocol. While many observers insist, it would be beyond the pale to characterize or dub the signers as “traitors,” it was definitely another slap in the face of President Obama and an affront to the presidency,

When the question was put to retired Major Gen. Paul D. Eaton for perspective, he wouldn’t say Cotton and Co. were “traitors.” However, he did not hold harmless the Senator from Arkansas. As he put it:

“I would use the word mutinous.”

Eaton has had a long career, which includes training Iraqi forces from 2003 to 2004. He is now a senior adviser to VoteVets.org. He went on to say:

“I do not believe these senators were trying to sell out America. I do believe they defied the chain of command in what could be construed as an illegal act.”

Eaton certainly had stern words for Cotton. As he framed it:

“What Senator Cotton did is a gross breach of discipline, and especially as a veteran of the Army, he should know better. I have no issue with Senator Cotton, or others, voicing their opinion in opposition to any deal to halt Iran’s nuclear progress. Speaking out on these issues is clearly part of his job. But to directly engage a foreign entity, in this way, undermining the strategy and work of our diplomats and our Commander in Chief, strains the very discipline and structure that our foreign relations depend on, to succeed.”

The consequences of Cotton’s missive were plainly apparent to Eaton. He went on to say:

“The breach of discipline is extremely dangerous, because undermining our diplomatic efforts, at this moment, brings us another step closer to a very costly and perilous war with Iran. I think Senator Cotton recognizes this, and he simply does not care. That’s what disappoints me the most.”

That’s among the more frightening aspects of this entire episode. The freshman senator from Arkansas and 46 of his Republican colleagues sought to Bigfoot Obama on a deal not yet done whose details are not yet known. This demonstrates in a classic fashion how contemptuous so many members of the Radical Right are of this President. Yet to paraphrase the late Maya Angelou, “And Still He Rises!”

In yesterday’s edition of the Washington Post, Michael Gerson makes a point that one would think would have been clear to all 47 signatories of Senator Cotton’s letter.

“If Republican senators want to make the point that an Iran deal requires a treaty, they should make that case to the American people, not to the Iranians. Congress simply has no business conducting foreign policy with a foreign government, especially an adversarial one (See the Netanyahu invitation). Every Republican who pictures his or her feet up on the Resolute Desk should fear this precedent.”

There was a time one could have imagined Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) making this point. That was back when he fancied himself a statesman. Instead, he signed the letter.

In wrapping up his thoughts on Senator Cotton, General Eaton said:

“I expect better from the men and women who wore the uniform. And the American people deserve better from the Senate.”

So the huge, in Joe Biden parlance, “Big eff’n deal,” news is, three Democratic senators announced Tuesday they will vote in support of the nuclear deal with Iran, paving the way for a possible filibuster of Republican-led attempts to disapprove of the controversial agreement. Given the pressure on Democrats, on Jewish legislators in both Houses, on anyone in a heavily Jewish precinct, district, or state, that the President whom Republicans targeted from his first day in Office, in an attempt to deny him any political victories at all…ever, could marshal the requisite number of Senators to potentially avoid even having to issue a veto is a simply amazing feat of nuanced Presidential leadership. Add it to the list!

Pro-deal statements from Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) mean 41 senators are now publicly backing the deal, enough to keep a disapproval resolution from emerging from the Senate and making its way to President Obama’s desk and forcing a veto.

In related news, a fourth Democrat making an announcement Tuesday, Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), said he would vote to disapprove of the deal, as did the last undecided Republican, Susan Collins of Maine, thus dashing White House hopes for bipartisan Senate support.

Republicans are still engaging in discussions designed to avoid a 60-vote minimum requirement to scuttle the Deal. Democrats, understandably oppose such a move, in part due to precedents set by Republicans when they were in the Minority. It appears likely at this point that the 60-vote requirement will stick, and that Democrats will filibuster attempts to bring the measure to a vote.

Who would have thunk it possible? President Obama is wearing this Lame Duck thing extraordinarily well thus far. “Game, Set, Match: POTUS Style!”

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com or http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com. Find a new post each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Follow in the bottom right hand corner of my Home Page at http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com; enter your e-mail address in the designated space, and click on “Sign me up.” Subsequent editions of “Break It Down” will be mailed to your in-box.

Consult the links below for more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2015/09/08/sen-joe-manchin-opposes-iran-deal-making-obama-veto-more-likely/?wpmm=1&wpisrc=nl_evening

http://abcnews.go.com/US/kentucky-clerk-kim-davis-set-released-jail/story?id=33601309

http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/08/tennis/serena-venus-williams-us-open/index.html

http://wn.com/cnn_changes_criteria_for_next_gop_debate

http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/08/us/georgia-brothers-charged-attack-parents/index.html

http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/08/politics/hillary-clinton-private-email-abc-news-apology/index.html

http://money.cnn.com/2015/09/07/technology/apple-ipad-pro/index.html

http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/08/sport/texas-football-official-hit/index.html

http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/07/living/pope-francis-annulments-preview/?iid=ob_homepage_deskrecommended_pool&iref=obnetwork

http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/08/politics/obama-duke-coach-k/index.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_11_attacks

http://www.smh.com.au/world/iran-nuclear-deal-democrats-have-enough-us-senate-votes-to-stifle-opposition-20150908-gji4cz.html

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-partisan/wp/2015/03/13/tom-cotton-picked-apart-by-army-general-over-mutinous-iran-letter/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Cotton

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Netanyahu

It’s time to Break It Down!

This week President Barack Obama became the first sitting President to visit Alaska and the Arctic. While there, he’ll discuss climate change and its effects, evident in Alaska and elsewhere.

In addition, he is set to appear on a Survival TV Show, “Running Wild with Bear Grylls,” NBC and the White House announced Monday. The show will be aired later this year, as will the interview filmed when he visited the Oklahoma Prison.

PETA, among others, criticized him for his decision to appear on the show. For good measure, however, the President took another action, an Executive Action; one that left Conservatives peeved. He changed the Name of Mt. McKinley, the highest peak in the United States, in fact, the highest in North America (20,237 feet), to Denali, or Great One. The U.S. Government renamed Denali, Mt. McKinley in 1917.

The President’s opponents immediately condemned him for acting like a dictator, taking unconstitutional action, overstepping his authority, engaging in a partisan stunt and, of course, exhibiting racial animus.

Rep. Bob Gibbs (R-Ohio), said:

“I hope my colleagues will join with me in stopping this constitutional overreach,” vowing to work with the House natural resources committee to reverse Obama. “President Obama has decided to ignore an Act of Congress in unilaterally renaming Mount McKinley in order to promote his job-killing war on energy. This political stunt is insulting to all Ohioans.”

Former Rep. Ralph Regula, also from former President McKinley’s home state of Ohio, weighed in too, in an interview with the Columbus Dispatch, saying:

“Obama “thinks he is a dictator and he can change the law.”

Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) framed it as:

“Yet another example of the president going around Congress.”

Rep. Mike Turner (R-Ohio) scolded Obama for moving to:

“Undermine a prior act of Congress.”

Ohio Gov. John Kasich, a GOP Presidential candidate utilized social media, and:

Tweeted that “POTUS once again oversteps his bounds.”

House Speaker John Boehner, also from Ohio, pronounced himself:

“Deeply disappointed.”

However, lest the surge of exuberance by Ohio Republicans deludes you into thinking this matter was simply a provincial dispute, fostered by individuals from a State that had its local hero’s name decommissioned, and removed from a Mountain 3,000 miles and several Time Zones away, au contraire mon frère! It was no such thing.

One Representative, Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill), said on Fox News, he thought the move might be related to McKinley having been a Republican. He noted:

“People feel like this president is constantly trying to, like, stick it in our eye, and put his thumb in our eye.”

The conservative website Gateway Pundit posted an item titled:

“Obama Renames Mt. McKinley (Named After Some White Guy) to Denali.”

At the conservative outlet Breitbart.com, Ben Shapiro asked:

“Why did Obama choose to change the name now? Presumably because Obama has now solved all the world’s problems, and decided against his second choice, Mt. Trayvon.” He continued a “more serious” explanation was that Obama “opposes the legacy of President McKinley,” which includes the Spanish-American war and annexing various territories. Asked Shapiro: “[W]hen will President Obama change the name of the American Southwest to Aztlan?”

The deeper one wandered into the conservative blogosphere and Twitterverse, the uglier the messages became – about President Obama’s presumed anti-American views, his Muslim practices, and his primal and unquenchable urge to defecate on his predecessors.

Here’s the almost comical, truly ironic, best-kept non-secret. The President is actually perfectly within his authority to make this change. If his opponents are really outraged, they can overrule him in Congress, or they can elect a president who will change the name back.

The sticky-wicket, tricky little problem with both of these possible options is that Alaska, run by Republicans, wants the name to be Denali and have been trying to make the change for decades. The Alaska delegations — Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan and Rep. Don Young, Republicans all — heralded the move (even as Democratic Rep. Tim Ryan, who represents McKinley’s hometown, joined the opposition).

That, however, is not the only fly in the proverbial ointment, in this case. There is the (elephant in the room) not so small matter of Conservatives professing to support local control, and lamenting the devolution of power at the local level. Yet, oddly, it seems to this casual observer, in this particular case, they are demanding the federal government overrule a state’s wishes. Oh what a conundrum, a tangled Web, I believe Mr. Shakespeare dubbed these kinds of matters. As Washington Post Columnist Dana Milbank said in an Opinion piece Monday, perhaps a more ideologically suitable solution would be to rename something actually in Ohio for McKinley. A city, a river, an Interstate…the possibilities are endless.

As for Denali, Mr. McKinley hadn’t even visited the Mountain, named for him by a prospector before McKinley was elected the 25th president. A prospector, William Dickey began proposing the name Mt. McKinley in 1896, after traveling the Mountain Range. Eventually, sixteen years later, after McKinley’s assassination on September 14, 1901, Congress renamed the Mountain. For hundreds if not thousands of years of years prior to that, natives of the land had referred to it as Denali.

In 1959, Alaska gained Statehood. Afterward, Alaskans – many of whom had never stopped referring to the mountain as Denali – started wondering why their State’s natural crown jewel was named for a President from Ohio. The Alaska Legislature has been backing a proposal to change the name back to Denali since 1975. To wit, it’s fair to say, this idea is not only not some egomaniacal, brainchild of President Obama, since it predates his 1961 birth (in Hawaii, by the way). In point of fact, the most fervent backers of the idea are republicans. Go figure.

Mr. Milbank speculates, and I believe, that the dustup over renaming the mountain will be added to the other molehills of the President’s supposed overreach, which have been turned into mountains, and already includes:

• Obamacare
• The Stimulus
• Dodd Frank
• The IRS
• Immigration
• Executive Appointments
• Saving General Motors
• Contraception
• The ATF
• Prosecution of Low Level Drug Offenses

That’s just to name ten; not necessarily a Top 10, just ten, although Obamacare is likely at the top of almost everyone’s list. I’m sure any Conservative worth his or her salt could tick off another dozen without drawing a second breath. The real rub here is, the common objection to all of these is less about what was done…than who did it. IJS!

Yes, Conservatives’ heads will once again spin due to an action taken by President Obama. Ultimately, though, the rest of us can be at peace knowing…”The Mountain Wouldn’t Come To Obama…So The President Changed Its Name!”

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com or http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com. Find a new post each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Follow in the bottom right hand corner of my Home Page at http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com; enter your e-mail address in the designated space, and click on “Sign me up.” Subsequent editions of “Break It Down” will be mailed to your in-box.

Consult the links below for more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post:

http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/31/politics/obama-bear-grylls-running-wild-survival-show/index.html

http://dailycaller.com/2015/08/31/petas-reaction-to-obama-bear-grylls-appearance-is-pure-gold/

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/obama-highlight-climate-change-first-ever-presidential-visit-alaskan-arctic/

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/mt-mckinley-becomes-the-newest-conservative-molehill/2015/08/31/057ae37e-5014-11e5-933e-7d06c647a395_story.html

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/obama-will-rename-the-highest-us-peak-dropping-mckinley-for-denali/2015/08/30/c9f822ee-4f4b-11e5-8c19-0b6825aa4a3a_story.html

http://newsone.com/3173014/president-obama-renames-alaskas-mt-mckinley-to-denali/

http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-alaska-obama-climate-change-20150831-story.html

http://www.inquisitr.com/2382623/president-obama-running-wild-with-bear-grylls-in-alaska-first-president-to-visit-alaskan-arctic-for-global-warming-awareness/

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/01/us/us-makes-urgent-appeal-for-climate-change-action-at-alaska-conference.html?_r=0

https://ca.news.yahoo.com/obama-warns-almost-too-climate-change-041419471.html

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/obama-says-climate-changing-faster-011427093.html;_ylt=A0LEVvJvN.ZV5FMAmZcPxQt.;_ylu=X3oDMTEzZjZpNzAxBGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDRkZVSUMwXzEEc2VjA3Nj

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/31/us/politics/obama-to-urge-aggressive-climate-action-in-visit-to-arctic-alaska.html

http://www.ibtimes.com/obama-visits-alaska-itinerary-events-presidents-trip-addressing-climate-change-2075470

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denali

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_McKinley

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barack_Obama

It’s time to Break It Down!

A funny thing happened as the GOP race for the Presidency got out of the gate. A candidate whom many were not convinced would even run, and whom others figured would bow out quickly, if he did run, and whom others still, presumed would be minimized, if not nullified, by the time the campaign began in earnest, is in fact, leading the race. The Donald, who boldly and frequently proclaims the American Dream is dead, and only he can bring back sexy…I mean the American Dream, has all but made a mockery out of the race to determine the Republican nominee for the White House, in the early going.

He leads his nearest opponent by a nearly 2:1 margin in most polls, more in some. Mr. Trump appears to be single-handedly redefining the playbook for GOPolithink. It was not that long ago, the collective wisdom of the Grand Old Party was, “that Barack Obama guy took us to the woodshed twice by dominating the Hispanic vote. In 2008, Senator Obama garnered 62% of the Hispanic vote. In 2012, the President’s number rose to 71%.

After the November 2012 Presidential Election, the GOP Mantra was, we are going to plan and execute a brand new policy initiative expressly for 2016. We’ll show ‘em.”

Wow, did they ever! On the evening of June 16, 2015, Mr. Trump announced his candidacy for President of the United States in the 2016 election at the Trump Tower in New York City with the slogan “Make America Great Again.

Part of his formula for making America Great Again included plans to complete the Mexican border fence, or wall, as he calls it, and make Mexico pay for it. But he did not stop there. He went on to say:

“When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best…They’re sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems with [them]. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people.”

In the immediate aftermath of the Trump announcement, a number of entities severed ties with the mogul candidate. Several businesses and organizations – including NBC, Macy’s, Univision, and NASCAR (along with sponsor Camping World) – cut ties with Trump over his comments. The response among his fellow GOP candidates was mixed. Two of them, Senator Lindsey Graham, of South Carolina, and former Texas Governor, Rick Perry, quickly squared off against Trump and his stinging remarks. Interestingly, for all practical purposes, they both dropped off the political radar.  A number of other candidates opted to invoke a “see no evil, hear no evil posture.”

Trump, alternately, zoomed to the top of the polls, and has held a commanding lead for the first two months of the campaign. Of course, we are talking about Donald Trump; so naturally, he was not through with the issue. In fact, he has since doubled and tripled, perhaps even quadrupled down on the idea. He has promised to build the biggest most sophisticated and effective wall imaginable. He has referenced the Great Wall of China as just one example of what’s possible. What a novel and potentially historic idea.  I kid!

Most of us know there are 17 candidates that the media and GOP Polling sites consider serious. However, there are more than twice that many declared candidates for the GOP Ticket. Since you have almost surely not seen the list, and will likely never see it again, I thought it would be instructional to share it here. So, for your edification only, here it is. First there is the list, in polling order, based on the first debate. This is the list with which most of us are familiar. The first 10 made it to the Prime Time Main Stage:

• Donald Trump, 23.2 percent
• Jeb Bush, 12.8
• Scott Walker, 10.6
• Ben Carson, 6.6
• Mike Huckabee, 6.6
• Ted Cruz, 6.2
• Marco Rubio, 5.2
• Rand Paul, 4.8
• Chris Christie, 3.4
• John Kasich,8

The second group includes the 7 candidates who appeared in the Matinee edition of the GOP Debate:

• Rick Perry, 2.0
• Rick Santorum, 1.4
• Bobby Jindal, 1.2
• Carly Fiorina, 1.0
• Lindsey Graham, 0.4
• George Pataki, N/A
• Jim Gilmore, N/A

And then you have the list of declared candidates in its entirety, in Alpha Order:

As a frontrunner, one thing about Trump no one can say is, that he has been forced to tone it down, or play it timidly. In fact, some of his best stuff has almost surely not even been uttered yet. However, one of the most recent “get the eff outta here ideas he has released so far, came up just few days ago when he suggested that the 14^th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States is actually “illegal.” Newsflash; the Constitution is illegal! This comes from the frontrunner of the Party that feigns irreducible fealty to the Constitution. For a point of reference, just think Second Amendment and gun rights. Say what?

In addressing the matter with Fox News’ Bill O’Reilly, Mr. Trump said that the 14th Amendment – which guarantees citizenship to all people “born or naturalized in the United States,” including children whose parents came to the country illegally is unconstitutional.

“It’s not going to hold up in court.”

The key language, found in the first section of the 14th Amendment is as follows:

Section 1. All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

A central element of this section is the Citizenship Clause, which overruled the Supreme Court’s Dred Scott decision that black people were not citizens and could not become citizens, nor enjoy the benefits of citizenship. Some members of Congress voted for the Fourteenth Amendment in order to eliminate doubts about the constitutionality of the Civil Rights Act of 1866, or to ensure that no subsequent Congress could later repeal or alter the main provisions of that Act. The Civil Rights Act of 1866 had granted citizenship to all persons born in the United States if they were not subject to a foreign power, and this clause of the Fourteenth Amendment constitutionalized this rule.

So, suddenly, Donald John Trump, turned Constitutional scholar, has declared an Amendment, adopted July 9, 1868, invalid. One more element of this facet of the conversation is the use of the term Anchor Baby. The term is a pejorative description for a child born to an illegal immigrant mother to the United States.

There is a popular misconception that the child’s U.S. citizenship status (acquired by jus soli) legally helps the child’s parents and siblings to quickly reclassify their visa status (or lack thereof) and to place them on a fast pathway to acquire lawful permanent residence and eventually United States citizenship. Current U.S. federal law prevents anyone under the age of 21 from being able to petition for their non-citizen parent to be lawfully admitted into the United States for permanent residence. At best, the child’s family would need to wait for 21 years before being able to use their child’s US citizenship to modify their immigration status

The term is generally used as a derogatory reference to the supposed role of the child, who automatically qualifies as an American citizen and can later act as a sponsor for other family members. The term is also often used in the context of the debate over illegal immigration to the United States to refer to children of illegal immigrants, but may be used for the child of any immigrant.

The pyrotechnics over the use of the term has spilled over into the jousting between Jeb Bush and Trump. According to Mr. Trump, Mr. Bush has issued a memo dictating that the term should not be used.  However, when he (Trump) used it, and surged even more in the polls, Mr. Bush quickly pivoted, and employed the term.  Moreover, he has been adamant about refusing to relinquish it.

That’s cute and all, but the real elephant (GOP symbol) in the room is that several of the current GOP Presidential candidates have direct ties to immigrants.  In fact, Mr. Trump’s mother, the former Mary Anne MacLeod, was a Scottish immigrant, born on the Isle of Lewis, off the west coast of Scotland.  Two of his three wives, the former Ivana Zelníčková, a native of the Czech Republic, and Melania Knauss, a native of Slovenia, were also immigrants.

As for the current slate of candidates, one, Ted Cruz, was not born in the United States, though he gets his citizenship from his mother, who was an American citizen. His father is Cuban born; his American mother gave birth to Rafael Edward “Ted” Cruz in Calgary, Alberta (Canada).

A second candidate, Marco Antonio Rubio, would, by Jeb Bush and Donald Trump’s definition, be considered an Anchor Baby. Marco was born in Miami in 1971. His parents applied for Citizenship, and were Naturalized in 1975.

Yet another candidate, Piyush “Bobby” Jindal, also fits the profile. His parents moved to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, from Malerkotla, Punjab, India, in January 1971, a few months prior to Bobby’s birth on June 10^th. Jindal’s case is particularly curious in that he has voiced support for the effort to end the practice, born in the 14th Amendment. Upon reflection, I must wonder, if the practice is in fact ended, is there a way to make it retroactive. That would help thin out the GOP field of candidates. At least it would eliminate a couple of candidates polling in single digits anyway.

For the sake of full disclosure, it’s important to note Trump and Jindal are not the only GOP candidates to board the Anchor Baby bandwagon. Governor Scott Walker, whom I wrote about last week, Governor Chris Christie, Senator Lindsey Graham, Senator Rand Paul, and former Senator Rick Santorum have all embraced the questionable and controversial position. I will reiterate my most fervent plea. Do your research, and by all means, vote. Your very way of life may depend upon it.

As for that GOP Mantra referenced earlier, and the commitment to devise and execute a new initiative to turn the tide, we will see. At this point in the race, it’s difficult to be anything other than dubious about its prospects.

A common phrase related to the race is, “it’s early;” and it really is. There is still a lot of time for the “Change We Believe In” to occur. At this point in 2007, Hillary Clinton and Mitt Romney led the polling for their respective Parties. Of course, neither of them went on to win. So, perhaps that bodes well for those who hope not to have to contend with the likes of President Trump. Although, for whatever it’s worth, that fact shouldn’t instill much confidence for Clinton backers either. But that’s a discussion for another day. Right now, just sit back and contemplate “The Team GOP Conundrum: “Trumping” the Immigration Issue!”

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com or http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com. Find a new post each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Follow in the bottom right hand corner of my Home Page at http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com; enter your e-mail address in the designated space, and click on “Sign me up.” Subsequent editions of “Break It Down” will be mailed to your in-box.

Consult the links below for more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Trump_presidential_campaign,_2016

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XXcPl4T55I&src_vid=pe6r7IUAIkA&annotation_id=614b5acf-3e7e-4337-96af-f619272e6f07&feature=cards

http://2016.republican-candidates.org

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fourteenth_Amendment_to_the_United_States_Constitution

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anchor_baby

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Trump

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ted_Cruz

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bobby_Jindal

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marco_Rubio

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_presidential_election,_2012

http://www.republishan.com/e/6931439999182732/Donald-Trump-and-other-GOP-candidates-want-to-radically-alter-a-150yearold-cornerstone-of-American

http://article.wn.com/view-lemonde/2015/08/22/Trump_Bobby_Jindal_want_anchor_babies_deprived_of_citizenshi/#/related_news

http://teapartyorg.ning.com/forum/topics/scott-walker-echoes-donald-trump-end-birthright-citizenship-build

http://www.salon.com/2015/08/21/white_people_were_americas_real_anchor_babies_a_history_lesson_for_the_republican_party/

http://www.businessinsider.com/anchor-babies-term-donald-trump-jeb-bush-2015-8

It’s time to Break It Down!

Anniversary Edition | Celebrating 8 Years of Continuous Publishing 

Approximately seven years ago, Senator John McCain made a fateful decision that Democrats would come to view as “the gift that kept on giving.” On Friday, August 29, 2008, the GOP Nominee for President announced that he had selected 44 year-old Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate. McCain, a long serving member of the United States Senate, had reportedly considered several candidates on his short list, not including Mrs. Palin. It’s fair to say, her selection was more than a little surprising.

In introducing her, Senator McCain said, “She’s not from these parts, and she’s not from Washington, but when you get to know her, you’re going to be as impressed as I am.”

In retrospect that was high-octane wishful thinking. The Senator’s prediction would never come to pass. Of course, to her credit, she tried to deliver for him.

Within moments of McCain’s announcement, Ms. Palin made an explicit appeal to the disappointed supporters of Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton by praising not only Mrs. Clinton but also another woman who has been on a major presidential ticket, Geraldine A. Ferraro, Walter F. Mondale’s Democratic running mate in 1984. Governor Palin said, “Hillary left 18 million cracks in the highest, hardest glass ceiling in America, but it turns out the women of America aren’t finished yet, and we can shatter that glass ceiling once and for all.”

The bold proclamations of this political odd couple were among the high points of the campaign. When it came to political seasoning, Katie Couric revealed, just one month later, on September 29, 2008, that this empress wore no clothes.

Ms. Couric conducted interviews with both Vice Presidential candidates that were scheduled to air leading up to the election. Her interview with Governor Palin altered the trajectory of the remainder of the Campaign. It is a near certainty that for many Americans, the exchange provided a gasp-worthy insight into the depth, or lack thereof, of Mrs. Palin. It was a moment no less sobering than the one in which Toto pulled back the curtain to reveal that the supposed great and powerful Wizard was but a mere mortal, desperately trying to create the illusion of legerdemain.

The crux of the question, the shot heard around the world, as it were, was a basic one. What newspapers have you read to stay in touch with world events? It unfolded, as follows:

CBS Evening News, host Katie Couric asked Sarah Palin which sources she relied on for the news consumption that shaped her worldview. On three separate occasions, Couric tried to elicit a response from Palin about which specific newspapers she read. Seemingly caught off guard, Palin could not name a single news source:

COURIC: And when it comes to establishing your worldview, I was curious, what newspapers and magazines did you regularly read before you were tapped for this — to stay informed and to understand the world?

PALIN: I’ve read most of them again with a great appreciation for the press, for the media.

COURIC: But what ones specifically? I’m curious.

PALIN: Um, all of them, any of them that have been in front of me over all these years.

COURIC: Can you name any of them?

PALIN: I have a vast variety of sources where we get our news.

View the video:

https://search.yahoo.com/search?ei=utf-8&fr=aaplw&p=Katie+Couric+asks+palin+what+newspapers+she+reads

Fast forward to present day, and there is an inviting temptation to conflate Sarah Palin, the Quixotic 2008 Vice Presidential candidate, and Donald Trump, the megalomaniacal 2016 GOP Presidential Poll Leader. Mr. Trump, as I briefly mentioned last week, continues to flout convention and flummox his rivals. Moreover, he has captivated a plurality of those voters who identify themselves as Republican.

It’s still reasonably early, but in the really early going, many if not most, of the so-called experts predicted that The Donald would be a flash in the pan player that would ultimately not even be considered “a thing.” Clearly, we are past that point. From the outset he has made waves. Some theorized he would never submit to completing and releasing Campaign Finance statements necessary to officially join the campaign. It appears he relishes the moment…at least for the moment. He has made himself a proverbial media magnet by making/engaging in what seems like a continuing series of unusual, if not outrageous statements and actions, including:

• Making an initial Xenophobic statement about Mexicans
• Revealing Senator Graham’s cell phone number
• Asserting Senator McCain is not a war hero
• Making controversial remarks about Fox News analyst Megyn Kelly
• Suggesting he would erect a wall along the entire U.S. – Mexican border
• Proposing to bomb Iraqi oil fields
• Providing constant reminders that he is the richest guy ever to run for President
• Turning his cell message into a Campaign Ad after the Blog Site Gawker revealed his number

He has run an unorthodox campaign. Up to this point, he has proceeded in the best Sinatra-like tradition; he has “done it his way.” If you have spent more than a minute or two listening to, and being informed (I use the term loosely) by the Trump Worldview, you have no doubt heard some, if not all of the tropes listed above.

All of this Trump magic has propelled him to a significant lead in most major polls. His average lead is roughly 24% to 12% to the second highest polling candidate, which varies from poll to poll, with Jeb Bush, Scott Walker, or Ben Carson coming in second place. In other words, he is doubling his nearest opponent.

His lead is firmly entrenched when subject matter is considered, for example, the economy, Isis, and immigration. He also rules the gender roost, at the moment, polling 57% favorable with men, and 60% favorable with women (both among likely Republican voters).

So this past Sunday, I had, for all practical purposes, a déjà vu moment. Mr. Trump was a guest on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” When host Chuck Todd questioned Mr. Trump on his military positions, Trump said he watches television shows for military advice.

Todd asked, “Let’s go foreign affairs. You want to knock the hell out of ISIS, how?”

Trump said, “I want to take away their wealth. And as you know, for years, I’ve been saying, don’t go into Iraq. They went into Iraq, they destabilized the Middle East. It was a big mistake. Okay, now we’re there, and you have ISIS. And I said this was going to happen. I said Iran will take over Iraq, which is happening, as sure as you’re sitting there, and ISIS is taking over a lot of oil in certain areas of Iraq. And I said, you take away their wealth. You go and knock the hell out of the oil, take back the oil. We take over the oil, which we should have done in the first place.”

Todd continued, “What you’re talking about is ground troops, maybe 25,000.”

Trump answered, “That’s okay. We’re going to circle it. We’re going to circle it. We’re going to have so much money. And what I would do with the money that we make, which would be tremendous. I would take care of the soldiers that were killed, the families of the soldiers that were killed, the soldiers, the wounded warriors that are — I see — I love them. And they’re walking all over the streets of New York, all over the streets of every city, without arms, without legs, and worse than that. And I would take care of them.” (I presume they have an abundance of pretty good prosthetics…doing all that walking “with no legs). I digress.

Todd pressed, “So, America should take over these oil fields. [They] shouldn’t be given to the Iraqis?”

Trump added, “Well, we can give them something, but we should definitely take back money for our soldiers. We’ve had soldiers that were decimated, so badly hurt, the wounded warriors, and killed, of course. But we’ve had soldiers that were so badly hurt and killed. I want their families to get something. Because we got nothing out of that war. We spent $2 trillion, Chuck. We had thousands of people killed, wounded warriors all over the place. They got nothing, and they can’t even say we had a victory.”

Todd asked, “Who do you talk to for military advice right now?”

Trump answered, “Well, I watch the shows. I mean, I really see a lot of great — you know, when you watch your show, and all of the other shows, and you have the generals, and you have certain people –.”

Okay, it was right about there I though, this guy is channeling Sarah Palin…circa 2008.

Todd continued, “But is there somebody, is there a go-to for you? Every presidential candidate has a go-to.”

He was really trying to help him regroup, as Ms. Couric did for Mrs. Palin, over, and over again. This is borderline scary.

Trump answered, “Probably there are two or three. I like Bolton. I think he’s a tough cookie, knows what he’s talking about. Jacobs is a good guy –.”

Todd asked, “You mean Ambassador Bolton? You mean Colonel Jack Jacobs?”

Trump confirmed saying, “Colonel Jack Jacobs is a good guy, and I see him on occasion.”

Really? Last week, I wrote about the contemporary Republican bent toward anti-intellectualism; even anti-higher education. That was aimed at several of Mr. Trump’s GOP cohorts, but most notably, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, who left Marquette University without obtaining a degree. Let’s be clear, Scott Walker is no Donald Trump. Mr. Trump holds a B.S. Degree from the University of Pennsylvania, a prestigious Ivy League school.

However, his admitted penchant for extracting military advice from TV is more than mildly disconcerting. While he did not list stations by name, the network of choice for most self-respecting Conservatives is Fox News. I hate to think of where extrapolating might lead, using that factoid. So I won’t. I suspect most of those experts I referenced earlier still expect Mr. Trump’s Campaign to fade as we get into more debates and the Primary Season.  We’ll see.

When I think of the prospect that Governor Palin made it to the Candidate’s Final Four in 2008, so to speak, and that Mr. Trump is leading his Party at the moment, I realize what a tenuous hold we have on the land of the free and home of the brave. Now is certainly the time for all good men and women to come to the aid of their country…and vote (Make sure you have your valid ID at the ready). After all, we have already witnessed “The Donald: Introducing TV Inspired Military Doctrine!” Who could predict what might be next?

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com or http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com. Find a new post each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Follow in the bottom right hand corner of my Home Page at http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com; enter your e-mail address in the designated space, and click on “Sign me up.” Subsequent editions of “Break It Down” will be mailed to your in-box.

Consult the links below for more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2015/08/17/donald-trump-on-meet-the-press-annotated/

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/08/29/palin.republican.vp.candidate/index.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/30/us/politics/30veep.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uONsMnlRucU

http://www.msnbc.com/the-ed-show/watch/donald-trumps-foreign-policy-45143107523

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2015/08/17/1412675/-Donald-Trump-Gets-His-Foreign-Policy-From-TV-Shows#

http://article.wn.com/view/2015/08/12/Donald_Trump_says_hell_release_policy_specifics_soon/

http://www.breitbart.com/video/2015/08/16/trump-i-get-my-military-advice-from-watching-shows/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xRkWebP2Q0Y

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YC79WhGdBXM

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/09/30/sarah-palin-answers-what_n_130706.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarah_Palin_interviews_with_Katie_Couric

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/one-on-one-with-sarah-palin/

Time to “Break It Down!”

And just to be clear, right off the bat, that’s not “G,” as in Gangster, but G as in GOP. OK, perhaps the distinction is fuzzier than most would consider ideal.

I ran across a couple of memes in the past several months that jumped out at me as fodder for a blog post. One re-surfaced today, and not being in the mood to write about another unarmed African American catching a bullet from an overzealous law enforcement officer (Arlington, Texas), or about the fact that Donald Trump continues to simultaneously flout the rules and flummox his GOP opponents, or about Hillary Clinton reversing field, and releasing her e-mail server, or about Bernie Sanders’ next bout with the Black Lives Matter Movement, or about the on-going chess match between President Obama and Congress on the issue of the Iran Deal, I decided I’d take a stab at what I consider at least tangential circumstantial evidence that Republicans are not just anti-intellectual, but also anti-higher education.

Let me begin with Exhibit A. Consider these bona fides of Arizona’s most recent former Governor:

22^nd Governor of Arizona

18^th Secretary of State – Arizona

Member of Maricopa County Board of Supervisors (Where Phoenix is located)

Arizona State Senate

Arizona House of Representatives

Allow me to add Exhibit B. Also consider the bona fides of Utah’s current Governor:

17^th Governor of Utah

Chairman of the National Governors Association

Lieutenant Governor of Utah

Finally, permit me to include Exhibit C. To the items above, consider the bona fides of the Governor of Wisconsin:

45^th Governor of Wisconsin

5^th Milwaukee County Executive

Member of the Wisconsin State Assembly

So let’s keep this real. On the face of it, any one of those three sets of credentials is impressive. Any man or woman who manages to rise to position of Chief Executive Officer of a State’s Government (Governor) has demonstrated substantial political chops. Nothing I write after this point will change that fact.

However, the one thing that connects the dots between and among these three impressive politicians is pretty stunning, at least to me. The single credential none of these well-connected, politically astute, successful men and one woman possesses is an earned college degree.

• Jan Brewer, the most recent former Governor of Arizona is an alumna of Glendale Community College. She did not earn a degree.
• The Honorable Gary Herbert is the Governor of Utah. A Mormon, he is an alumnus of Brigham Young University. He did not graduate.
• The Honorable Scott Walker is the current Governor of Wisconsin. He is an alumnus of Marquette University. He left before graduating.

Obviously, all three of these individuals were able to find and secure gainful employment, and to forge a path to steady and continuous career advancement. They are living breathing manifestations of the American Dream (Coincidentally, the aspiration Donald Trump declared dead). I salute them.

However…Governor Walker has decided to take his talents to the next lever. To clarify, he has defined the White House as the address of his next promotion. While I do not expect him to achieve his desired goal, I am mindful that he is in the discussion. I’m not sure whether to be drawn to my natural inclination to be amused by the Super Seventeen, and by his placement within the group, or to default straight to despair, due to the potential that a major Party would actually consider elevating someone, who does not at a minimum possess a college degree, to the highest office in the land.

Before anyone deigns to school me, I understand, college attendance is not a Constitutional requirement. The baseline for qualifying to become President, aside from securing the requisite votes, is as follows:

Qualifications for the Office of President

• Age and Citizenship requirements – US Constitution, Article II, Section 1
• No person except a natural born citizen, or a citizen of the United States, at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the office of President; neither shall any person be eligible to that office who shall not have attained to the age of thirty-five years, and been fourteen years a resident within the United States.
• Term limit amendment – US Constitution, Amendment XXII, Section 1 – ratified February 27, 1951
• No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice, and no person who has held the office of President, or acted as President, for more than two years of a term to which some other person was elected President shall be elected to the office of the President more than once.

As you can see, from a Constitutional perspective, this is not a matter of concern. However, in the 227 years since the U.S. Constitution was ratified, a lot has changed. For example, we now have automobiles, trains, and airplanes, not to mention rockets that make space travel possible. It’s fair to say the bar has been raised.  I for one, would like my President to have a college degree, and I don’t think that’s asking too much.

If Governor Walker were to ascend to the Presidency, he would be the first President in more than 60 years without at least a bachelor’s degree. In fact, of America’s 44 Presidents, only 25% (11) didn’t graduate from college, and that number is heavily weighted toward the pre-20^th Century years.

Actually, there was only one, Harry Truman, from the 20^th Century (April 12, 1945 – January 20, 1953), and he essentially inherited the job, rising to the office after the death of President Roosevelt. He withdrew from Spalding’s Commercial College in Missouri.

The last non-college graduate President to be elected to the Presidency in his first term was William McKinley…in 1897 (March 4, 1897 – September 14, 1901). President McKinley had previously left Allegheny College in Pennsylvania, after one year.

Presidential historian H.W. Brands, of the University of Texas, said, unless you’re someone like Bill Gates or Steve Jobs (both college dropouts), not having a college degree would be “a serious handicap” in running for President. He went on to say:

“Nowadays a college degree has become the entry credential to nearly all jobs requiring any skill at all. A candidate lacking one would have some heavy explaining to do.”

The other former Presidents without a college degree were:

• George Washington (April 30, 1789 – March 4, 1797)
• Andrew Jackson (March 4, 1829 – March 4, 1837)
• Martin Van Buren (March 4, 1837 – March 4, 1841)
• William Henry Harrison (March 4, 1841 – April 4, 1841)
• Zachary Taylor (March 4, 1849 – July 9, 1850)
• Millard Fillmore (July 9, 1850 – March 4, 1853)
• Abraham Lincoln (March 4, 1861 – April 15, 1865)
• Andrew Johnson (April 15, 1865 – March 4, 1869)
• Grover Cleveland (March 4, 1885 – March 4, 1889)

The meme that drew me to this subject basically asserted that former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin has a better education than Governor Scott Walker. Without comparing the collegiate rankings of the University of Idaho and Marquette University, the point was that Mrs. Palin, despite her frequent shallow appearance during the 2008 Presidential campaign, actually managed to secure a college degree. Governor Walker, not so much. On some level, even the possibility that Governor Walker could be Governor Palin redux plus, should be a scary proposition.

Alas, the inescapable nugget to which I am attempting to draw your attention is, this anti-education theme appears to be a pervasive element of the way Republicans see the world. Republican-led State legislatures have voted to take much of the history out of American History classes. Policymakers in Georgia, Texas, South Carolina, North Carolina and Colorado have agitated to scrap or doctor the AP History course, citing its “liberal bias” and supposed focus on U.S. “blemishes.” Those blemishes include things such as discussions on the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, and even the fact that Barack Obama was elected President of the United States. Blemishes…really?

To wit, electing Governors without college degrees, and possibly, even a President, in the 21^st Century, no less, is in my view evidence of a clear and dangerous fact-phobia; anti-intellectualism at its unfettered worst. My most fervent desire is that American patriots will rise up and defeat this backward thinking madness. However, clearly, there is an element of our society who thinks differently. If that segment is left to its own devices, we will devolve to… “No Degree, No Problem: It’s a Straight Up G-Thang!”

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com or http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com. Find a new post each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Follow in the bottom right hand corner of my Home Page at http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com; enter your e-mail address in the designated space, and click on “Sign me up.” Subsequent editions of “Break It Down” will be mailed to your in-box.

Consult the links below for more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/in-the-loop-is-a-degree-a-prerequisite-for-the-presidency/2015/02/12/eb11e508-b2d1-11e4-827f-93f454140e2b_story.html

http://time.com/3709341/scott-walker-education-2016/

http://www.presidentsusa.net/qualifications.html

http://www.answers.com/Q/Do_any_states_have_governors_without_college_degrees

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jan_Brewer

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gary_Herbert

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scott_Walker

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarah_Palin

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Constitution

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/an-unflattering-history-lesson/2015/02/19/3be9cb0c-b878-11e4-a200-c008a01a6692_story.html

It’s time to “Break It Down!”

There are numerous monikers ascribed to the unwieldy array of candidates currently seeking the Republican nomination for President. In its infinite wisdom Fox News (FN), the entity sponsoring tomorrow night’s debate has, for all practical purposes given the group a new name, “Ten.” To be fair, the Republican National Committee did that when it established the rules that would govern the Party’s debates, during the road to selecting the GOP Nominee for the 2016 Presidential Race. FN, based on calculations using five National Polls, simply identified which candidates made it into the Top 10 by 5:00 p.m. yesterday.

This decision was based on collective Party soul-searching after President Obama handed the GOP its second consecutive Presidential loss in the 2012 Race for the White House, all while handily winning a number of key demographics Republicans vowed to do better with in 2016. The Party Leaders concluded that its debates leading to the 2012 Primary Season had been poorly staged, and as such detracted from the GOP’s ability to come out of the debated fortified, unified, and strategically prepared to take on the Democrats.

There are currently 17 declared GOP Candidates. According to FN, in a release after yesterday’s deadline, the candidates qualifying for Thursday’s Prime Time event are Donald Trump, Jeb Bush, Scott Walker, Mike Huckabee, Ben Carson, Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, Rand Paul, Chris Christie and John Kasich. To the continued surprise of most Americans, at least most Americans without Tea Party, and/or ultra-Conservative leanings, Donald Trump leads, comfortably, the cavalcade of proud, mostly pious patriots seeking the GOP’s Holy Grail.

Mr. Trump, an avowed Birther, who seems to regularly admit that his principal qualification for the job is that he, in his own words, is very rich. He has, however, promised to make America “great again,” and that’s got to count for something. The Donald entered the campaign as someone whom most thoughtful Republicans and Democrats alike, figured would have been an afterthought in the dynamics of serious politics, such as claiming a place on the main Debate Stage. That he is not only among tomorrow night’s 10 Prime Time Players, but will claim Center Stage, as the person with the highest cumulative polling numbers is perplexing and frustrating for Republicans, the other candidates at least, and perplexing and amusing to Democrats; candidates and voters.

Most of the other GOP candidates have observed, suggested, or flat out complained that Mr. Trump has taken virtually all the air out of the room, and left little, if any, space, time, and most importantly, media coverage for them to articulate their “genuine/serious” policy initiatives and proposals. Instead, reporters seem consumed with the latest Trump gaffe, e.g., Mexicans are rapists, and Senator McCain is not a war hero, or favorite refrain, “I’m very rich,” or which staffer he will, or will not fire today, or issuing his favorite assertion…that this person or that person is a loser.

He does have a lot of money, and as a result, campaign finance, a key harbinger for most other candidates’ ability to stay in the race is a non-issue for him. A point he reiterates often, and with relish. He is also an unconventional campaigner. When he went to South Carolina, Senator Lindsey Graham’s home State, to campaign, he not only launched a frontal assault on the Senator on his home turf, he released the Senator’s personal cell phone number. Senator Graham subsequently destroyed the phone, and played it off by using the occasion to upgrade to a Smart Phone. When the blog site Gawker later released Mr. Trump’s cell phone number, he quickly changed the message on his answering machine to a campaign ad. This is just one example of how Trump adroitly takes the negative energy that others, including candidates, attempt to use against him, and transforms it into his advantage.

Conventional wisdom holds that the Trump phenomenon is a mirage, and will eventually dissipate, just as any number of poll leaders did in 2012. It could still happen, but frankly I sense an increasing level of concern among his GOP colleagues. At least one has to feel that he displaced them as a member of tomorrow’s Top 10.

That same erstwhile wisdom held from the outset that Jeb Bush would likely prevail as the eventual GOP nominee. Mr. Bush doesn’t have Trump’s money, but his PAC’s have raised nearly $100 million. Now all he has to do is improve his poll numbers.

In several polls, Mr. Trump leads him significantly, more than doubling his projected numbers in a couple of them. Behind Mr. Trump, and (former) Governor Bush, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker is 3^rd, polling at just a shade over 10%. No one else, not even the seven additional candidates appearing at the Prime Time dais tomorrow night, reached double digits. Among the Top 10 finishers, the average poll numbers break out this way, according to REAL CLEAR POLITICS:

• Donald Trump, 23.2 percent
• Jeb Bush, 12.8
• Scott Walker, 10.6
• Ben Carson, 6.6
• Mike Huckabee, 6.6
• Ted Cruz, 6.2
• Marco Rubio, 5.2
• Rand Paul, 4.8
• Chris Christie, 3.4
• John Kasich, 2.8

That leaves Perry and the six other major declared candidates — Rick Santorum, Bobby Jindal, Carly Fiorina, Lindsey Graham, George Pataki, and Jim Gilmore — to appear together during a debate earlier tomorrow evening.

As for the jayvee, excuse me, I mean the pre-Prime Time players; these seven luminaries include one candidate who polled 2%. Three of them polled 1%, but less than 1.5%. One polled 0.4%, and two did not register on a numerical scale. They fell this way:

• Rick Perry, 2.0
• Rick Santorum, 1.4
• Bobby Jindal, 1.2
• Carly Fiorina, 1.0
• Lindsey Graham, 0.4
• George Pataki, N/A
• Jim Gilmore N/A

In the initial plan, there was going to be one debate. Those who did not make the Top 10 were effectively going to be SOL. However, it became clear that the also-rans would literally be a Who’s Who Among Elected and former Elected Officials, and Business Moguls. Included were former Governor Rick Perry, former Senator Rick Santorum, Governor Bobby Jindal, Senator Lindsey Graham, former Governor George Pataki, and former Governor Jim Gilmore…as well as the field’s only woman, Carly Fiorina, former Chief Executive Officer at Hewlett-Packard, and the first woman to lead one of the Top 20 U.S. companies. At that point, FN blinked, deciding that it could not totally divest the process of that much potential talent (on paper).

I have heard several people say they normally do not watch Republican debates, but admitted they were looking forward to the “Trump Show.” I haven’t decided yet whether I will tune in. I must confess, at this point, I am not leaning in that direction. While my best guess is Mr. Trump will surprise with the degree to which he adheres to a script, I just do not anticipate anything new emanating aside from the standard anti-Obama rant. I get enough of that daily.

So how did FN work it’s magic formula to produce the results above? According to Fox News spokeswoman Irena Briganti, they used five polls, including:

• Bloomberg
• CBS News
• Fox News
• Monmouth University
• Quinnipiac University

According to Fox, these were the most recent national polls from non-partisan, recognized organizations. As a passing observation, I find it interesting that they included Fox, but not CNN’s poll as a non-partisan tool. IJS!

They used standard methodology, live interviews, random digit-dial sampling techniques, and included both landlines and cellphones. Their GOP primary vote question mirrored the ballot by reading all candidates names in random order and without honorifics, according to FN.

As the debate cut-off period neared, several candidates pursued attention-grabbing strategies with the hope of rising into the Top 10. Almost all the candidates used national media appearances, even though most had criticized national polls as having little to do with how they might perform in New Hampshire and Iowa. Well, so much for initial strategies. As Mike Tyson was fond of saying, “Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.”

We now know that Donald Trump packs quite a punch. If you intend to watch tomorrow, the prelims start early. However, if you are interested in the Big Boy’s Match, remember… “And Then There Were 10: Let’s Get Ready to Rumble!”

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com or http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com. Find a new post each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Follow in the bottom right hand corner of my Home Page at http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com; enter your e-mail address in the designated space, and click on “Sign me up.” Subsequent editions of “Break It Down” will be mailed to your in-box.

Consult the links below for more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post:

http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/04/politics/fox-debate-cleveland-announcement/index.html

http://www.richmond.com/news/latest-news/ap/article_d7804208-a95f-58f4-90cd-76ac51bcb163.html

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2015/08/04/gop-debate-buzzer-beater-in-cleveland/

http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-gop-fox-debate-20150804-story.html

http://www.cbs19.tv/story/29710361/fox-news-announces-gop-debate-field

http://fivethirtyeight.com/datalab/the-fox-news-gop-debate-lineup-looks-pretty-set/

http://www.politico.com/story/2015/07/fox-republican-debate-lowers-threshold-120748.html

http://www.tampabay.com/news/politics/elections/debate-field-is-set-trump-bush-in-santorum-fiorina-out/2239967

http://www.cnn.com/2015/07/21/politics/donald-trump-lindsey-graham-cell-phone/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gawker

It’s time to Break It Down!

Last week I discussed the San Antonio Spurs and their historic association with Becky Hammon. At that moment, it seemed to represent quite a leap for the world of sports. Staying in the realm of athletics, in today’s post I am invading the rarified (for me) air of the NFL.

My close friends and associates know I am a huge basketball fan, and as such, I’ve written about basketball, both college, and professional, on numerous occasions. Alternately, I’ve written sparingly about football.

I wrote about Michael Vick, but it had much more to do with his legal issues than with football. I also wrote about the exigencies of playing Super Bowl XLVIII outdoors in cold weather. That game was played on February 2, 2014, at MetLife Stadium at the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, New Jersey,^‪ the first Super Bowl played outdoors in a cold-weather city.

For the record, the Seahawks defeated the Broncos 43–8, the largest margin of victory for an underdog and the third largest point differential overall (35) in Super Bowl history. It was the first time the winning team scored over 40 points, while holding their opponent to under 10. This became the first Super Bowl victory for the Seahawks and the fifth Super Bowl loss for the Broncos, the most of any team.

Today, for fans of the game, the big story circulating is likely centered around N.F.L. (NFL) Commissioner Roger Goodell upholding the four-game suspension of New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, one of football’s biggest stars, after finding that he destroyed potential evidence as the league investigated his role in the deflation of game balls to gain competitive advantage in the A.F.C. championship matchup last January. The saga is referred to as Deflate-gate.

The League, in a 20-page statement, said yesterday that it based its decision on Brady asking an assistant to destroy a cellphone that he had used before, during, and after the week of the game. According to the League, the destruction of the phone eliminated what investigators believed to be 10,000 texts. This revelation came to light during Brady’s testimony at an appeals hearing in June, several months after investigators had requested text messages and emails.

NFL rules did not require Brady to surrender the materials. However, his failure to do so, compounded by the destruction of the phone, raised the question of obstructing the investigation. It was a compelling factor in leading Commissioner Goodell to uphold the suspension rather than reduce it, as he has often done in past disciplinary cases.

All that is interesting enough, but it’s not my focus. Football has for some time been elevated to the status of “America’s Game.” The game is intricate, complex, even cerebral, to be sure, but the things that often resonate about football are the elements of raw strength, power, and a level of physicality that frequently define the game.

Becky Hammon’s emergence on the scene as a successful basketball coach for the San Antonio Spurs is a rare air kind of development. It was surprising a year ago when she arrived, it was surprising last week when she led her team to the Las Vegas Summer League Championship, and it will certainly be surprising should she ever actually assume the reins of an NBA Head Coaching post.

But that’s basketball, a lofty perch, but a completely different kind of game. This weeks surprise comes from the NFL. On Monday, Jennifer Welter was hired as a training camp and preseason coaching intern for the inside linebackers position for the National Football League’s Arizona Cardinals. The signing made her the first female coach in the NFL. This is her third “first” for men’s football in 2014 and 2015.

On February 12, 2015, the Indoor Football League’s Texas Revolution named Welter their linebackers and special teams coach making her the first woman to coach in a men’s professional football league.

On January 24, 2014, the Revolution announced signing 5-foot-2, 130-pound Jennifer Welter as a running back. This made her the second female player for a position other than kicker or placekick-holder on a men’s professional football team, and the first at running back.

Welter is a veteran of several women’s “semi-pro” football teams (including the Dallas Diamonds and Dallas Dragons). She was a gold medal-winning member of Team USA at the International Federation of American Football’s (IFAF) Women’s World Championship in 2010 and 2013.

Cardinal’s Coach Bruce Arians had this to say about the landmark decision to bring Dr. Welter (that’s right, Dr.; I’ll get to that later) into the organization:

“Coaching is nothing more than teaching. One thing I have learned from players is, ‘How are you going to make me better? If you can make me better, I don’t care if you’re the Green Hornet, man, I’ll listen. I really believe she’ll have a great opportunity with this internship through training camp to open some doors for her. She came for an OTA and I met her, and I thought she was the type of person that could handle this in a very positive way for women and open that door. Welter has earned this.”

For her part, Dr. Welter took to Twitter to express her appreciation:

Dr. Jen Welter @jwelter47

Thank you ‪@AZCardinals & ‪@BruceArians & everyone here in ‪#Phoenix. I am honored to join this amazing ‪#footballfamily

8:26 PM – 27 Jul 2015

Mike Freeman, of Bleacher Report, shared a text he received from a player in the AFC on Welter:

“The truth is, she has more playing experience than some of the coaches who coach me now.”

The NFL may traditionally be a man’s league, but Welter has the background to handle the spotlight. She played football professionally for 14 years and most recently served as an assistant coach for the Indoor Football League’s Texas Revolution. She also entered a game as a running back for the Revolution last year, becoming the first woman to appear in a men’s pro football contest at a contact position.

The Cardinals hiring Welter is fitting for a franchise that has embraced progress and created an exciting brand of football as a result. Adding Welter figures to breed more positive energy and enthusiasm within the organization. The Cardinals have experienced quite a culture change since Arians took the reins in 2013. Arians is known for his vertical passing-based offense, aggressive style and overall confidence, which has evidently rubbed off on his players and earned their respect as they’ve compiled a 21-11 record over the last two seasons.

That bold attitude includes the front office and general manager Steve Keim, who’s been unafraid to take risks in the draft. Defensive back Tyrann Mathieu and wide receiver John Brown were both polarizing third-round picks, but they’ve emerged as playmakers.

Welter has a long way to go to climb the NFL coaching ladder, but she’s already broken new ground. Although she isn’t in the position San Antonio Spurs assistant Becky Hammon was in recently when she led the squad to an NBA Summer League title, Welter’s gig in the desert provides the vital foundation for something greater.

She also brings a full Monty of educational qualifications to the table. Dr. Welter graduated from Boston College and has a master’s degree in Sport psychology and a PhD in psychology from Capella University, a for profit school in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

By the way, this is not the only NFL “first” recently. It’s the second such barrier to be broken this year. The league announced in April that Sarah Thomas would be the first woman to be a full-time NFL official. Just for the record, the NBA has had women Referees since 1997, when Violet Palmer and Dee Kantner entered the League’s pool of Referees. But, be that as it may, today is “Jen’s Turn: Apparently, It’s in the Cards!”

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com or http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com. Find a new post each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Follow in the bottom right hand corner of my Home Page at http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com; enter your e-mail address in the designated space, and click on “Sign me up.” Subsequent editions of “Break It Down” will be mailed to your in-box.

Consult the links below for more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jennifer_Welter

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2532774-jen-welter-hired-by-cardinals-believed-to-be-1st-female-coach-in-nfl

http://www.latimes.com/sports/sportsnow/la-sp-sn-arizona-cardinals-hire-jen-welter-first-female-nfl-coach-20150727-story.html

http://www.foxnews.com/sports/2015/07/28/arizona-cardinals-hire-woman-to-coach-inside-linebackers-in-training-camp/

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/sports/arizona-cardinals-hire-first-female-coach-nfl-history-n399386

http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/13328608/jen-welter-hired-arizona-cardinals-assistant-coach

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Bowl_XLVIII

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/29/sports/football/tom-bradys-four-game-suspension-is-upheld.html?_r=0

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000504258/article/roger-goodell-upholds-tom-brady-suspension

http://abcnews.go.com/Sports/wireStory/bradys-suspension-upheld-nfl-commissioner-roger-goodell-32739017

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Full_monty_(phrase)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarah_Thomas_(American_football_official)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Violet_Palmer

http://www.alternet.org/story/13647/just_one_female_nba_referee_left/

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/ball-dont-lie/nba-added-two-female-referees-leaguewide-crew-144557424–nba.html;_ylt=AwrBTzqTRLhV8YMAAhVXNyoA;_ylu=X3oDMTEycWhzdGs3BGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwM1BHZ0aWQDQjA1NzdfMQRzZWMDc3I-

It’s time to Break It Down!

Last August, I wrote a post entitled, “First The Spurs Won The Title: Now They Are Making History!” (http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com/2014/08/first-spurs-won-title-now-they-are.html) It heralded the introduction of Ms. Becky Hammon to the NBA, after her hiring by the then World Champion San Antonio Spurs.

Coach Gregg Popovich and the Spurts made Ms. Hammon the NBA’s first full-time Regular Season female Assistant Coach on August 5, 2014. It was clear at that time she had cultivated a history with the Spurs, and that she had established a relationship with both Coach Popovich and a number of Spurs’ players. Other women had served in support roles, one as an Assistant during the Summer League, and another as a Volunteer Assistant during the Regular Season. Hammon, however, assumed full coaching responsibilities, and traveled with the team.

The NBA Summer League is a series of off-season competitions designed to bring National Basketball Association teams together to try out different summer rosters instead of their regular season line-ups. Usually, participants include a mix of rookies, second year players, and unsigned free agents. The current summer league consists of three separate leagues: the Las Vegas Summer League, the Utah Jazz Summer League, and the Orlando Pro Summer League.

Summer leagues have existed for decades. Historically, there was not an organized structure, with leagues sometimes overlapping and not officially coordinated. In 2004, the league held the Las Vegas Summer League for the first time; it is by far the largest league, with 23 NBA teams plus an NBA Development League all-star team participating as of 2015.

The Orlando Pro Summer League has been held since 2001. The Utah Jazz Summer League began play in 2015, replacing the Rocky Mountain Revue, an event held from 1984–2008 before going on a lengthy hiatus due to declining participation.

On Monday evening, Ms. Hammon led the Spurs to the Championship of the Vegas Summer League, as the Spurs beat the Phoenix Suns 93-90. By doing so, she became the feature attraction in yet another chapter in the annals of history, after having added one just two weeks ago, when she became the first woman to serve as Head Coach of an NBA Summer League Team. The Spurs lost their first Summer League game to the NY Knicks, but rallied from that point, winning the rest of their games, including in the end, persevering in a hotly contested Title Game.

In describing the experience, Hammon said:

“It was a grind. They’ve been together about 17 days. They really started to kind of gel here these last two or three games. They listened, and they played really hard for me. So I’m just really [appreciative of] their attentiveness and alertness and their desire to win.”

Along the way, Becky Hammon has diffused a number of the lingering concerns about whether her instincts and experience connected effectively with the rigors of the men’s game. The end result of her performance in this highly competitive environment, in which all the actors recognized her unique role, with no place to hide, should silence some of those concerns. It probably won’t, but it should.

A number of Hammon’s players recognize the value of her voice on the bench. Former Tar Heel Danny Green lauded Hammon when the Spurs hired her. At that time he said:

“Everybody here respects her. She’s a really good player and also a good person to have around. She understands the game.”

He had this to say in an interview with NBA TV during Monday’s game:

“She gives another perspective on the sidelines for us. She sees some things that we don’t see. She’s obviously a player, everybody respects her, she’s well respected. She knows the game. She understands the game. She sees it from a point guard perspective, but a female perspective [too], which is very different for us.

She’s one of my favorites … She’s doing very well. I’m happy for her.”

Jonathon Simmons won the Championship’s MVP honors. As he described it, it was “amazing” to have Hammon on the sidelines. He said:

“She’s a real cool coach and she’s a player coach and that’s what guys like my age — we like that. She’s experienced, you can’t take that away from her.”

Simmons later addressed the importance of Hammon’s trailblazing role in the league, when he told Sports Illustrated (SI):

“It’s always good to be a part of history. This day will go down in the books for years to come … I love her. I barely know her and I love her already.”

Hammon, in turn, acknowledged the relationship she’s forged with her players, when she noted, also to SI:

“I’m just thankful that [Popovich] trusted me with the guys in that locker room, and that those guys trusted me back.”

One writer at YAHOO Sports, Kelly Dwyer, (Editor Ball Don’t Lie Blog), has already opined that Ms. Hammon is “ready” to become an NBA Head Coach. Admittedly, I don’t write or follow sports for a living, but I think Mr. Dwyer is wrong about that. Yes, her accomplishments are impressive. She has played the game in college, in Europe, in the WNBA, and in the Olympics. She has the background, skills, and experience that ensure she could be ready in the not too distant future. In fact, I would not be surprised if she becomes the NBA’s first female coach, though not likely in the coming year.

Yesterday, Mr. Dwyer wrote:

“These basketball reasons are why the NBA needs to get the novelty of the first hiring of a female head coach out of the damn way. Becky Hammon can coach your favorite team, and she can coach it well. And when she is hired and when she does coach it well, we can move on to more important things. Like gender equality in jobs that actually matter.”

In his blog, he suggested if Jason Kidd can be trusted running a $100-plus million dollar payroll weeks after retiring (Milwaukee Bucks), or Derek Fisher can survive a 17-win season, Hammon deserves a shot. Dwyer noted Steve Kerr is a Gregg Popovich protégé, as is Ms. Hammon. Moreover, absent coaching experience on any level, he led the Warriors to a Title in his first year.

While all of that is true, their disparate records demonstrate wildly different outcomes. At the very least, those results suggest that the potential of the team a coach goes to, any coach, plays a key role in the outcome of the coaching effort. And, as we know, and Mr. Dwyer conceded, Ms. Hammon won’t be coaching the Spurs in the near future.

Let me frame it this way. The Spurs have long since established themselves as a savvy franchise. They have assembled a mixture of veterans, free agents and young skilled players from around the world, all with an abiding willingness to accept “winning” as the preeminent mission. When they hired Becky Hammon, it was fair to presume she was or would become adept at coaching. By all accounts, she is doing just that. After Monday night’s Summer League Title, that factoid is in clearer focus than ever before.

No, she’s not ready to assume the reins of a Franchise when the NBA Season begins in November. But don’t sleep on her; she will be in the foreseeable future. I wrote last August, “Welcome to the NBA Ms. Hammon. “First The Spurs Won The Title: Now They Are Making History!” Today, “The Spurs and Becky Hammon: Another Chapter Added!”

I’m done; holla back!

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Consult the links below for more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post:

http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com/2014/08/first-spurs-won-title-now-they-are.html

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gregg_Popovich

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Antonio_Spurs

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Becky_Hammon

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/early-lead/wp/2015/07/21/becky-hammon-leads-spurs-to-nba-summer-league-tournament-title/

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/becky-hammon-summer-league-championship_55ae3a1ee4b0a9b948526cd8

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/hammon-spurs-las-vegas-summer-league-championship-034206127–nba.html;_ylt=AwrBTzgu5q5VikMAGVJXNyoA;_ylu=X3oDMTEyaHJtYTdyBGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDQjAyNDVfMQRzZWMDc2M-

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NBA_Summer_League

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nba-ball-dont-lie/becky-hammon-is-ready-to-be-a-head-coach-in-the-nba-154752499.html;_ylt=AwrBTzgu5q5VikMAG1JXNyoA;_ylu=X3oDMTEyaHJtYTdyBGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDQjAyNDVfMQRzZWMDc2M-

http://www.reddit.com/r/nba/comments/1s3i7p/i_am_kelly_dwyer_editor_of_yahoo_sports_ball_dont/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milwaukee_Bucks

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jason_Kidd

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_Knicks

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Derek_Fisher

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_State_Warriors

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Nash

http://www.cnn.com/2014/08/05/us/spurs-becky-hammon-coach/index.html?hpt=hp_t2

http://www.nba.com/2014/news/08/05/spurs-becky-hammon.ap/

http://ftw.usatoday.com/2014/08/spurs-hire-becky-hammon-female-coach

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nba/2014/08/05/spurs-female-assistant-becky-hammon/13623937/

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/11312366/becky-hammon-hired-san-antonio-spurs

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/eye-on-basketball/24649084/spurs-hire-becky-hammon-nbas-first-female-assistant-coach

http://www.npr.org/2014/08/02/337359843/coaching-the-big-leagues-natalie-nakase-makes-nba-history

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natalie_Nakase