I believe that the Democratic Party’s hostility to Israel represents a deeper and more dangerous shift away from the center and toward a radical approach that is bad for America and the free world. So I intend to work hard to prevent the Democrats from gaining control of the House and Senate, and I urge those who share my concerns about the increasing influence of radicalism in the Democratic Party to vote, campaign and contribute for continued Republican control of Congress.
Dersh finally pulled the trigger. Welcome to the party, pal.
Took long enough…
Good for Dersh, but absolutely none of the people I know who are D’s and infected with TDS will pay a bit of attention to him.
physicsguy, thank you very much for reporting from the front lines.
Your personal is multiplied by many millions.
Given how long it took Dersh to surface his inner Republican, I don’t expect a stampede among other Jewish voters. I didn’t have a problem switching parties as I had already split my preferences: domestic policy/Democrat, foreign policy/Republican. However, many Jews seem to take voting for Democrats to be part of the Jewish identity.
Chuck (1:15 pm) said: “many Jews seem to take voting for Democrats to be part of the Jewish identity.”
Yes. Back before my time, Jews were quite content to have “Democrat” be an essential part of their identity, even when factions of that party were aligned with Jim Crow / Ku Klux Klan bigotry (“Dixiecrats”). Today is little different — except, to my perception, a somewhat larger proportion of Jews have become or are becoming Dershified.
Dersh finally pulled the trigger
I’d be happy for him, except for he said this:
By registering as a Republican rather than an independent, maybe I can have some influence on moving some Republican policies toward the center.
Another entryist, I’m afraid. Not much different from fleeing to Texas from California and then voting to make Texas like California. The GOP’s problem is not that it’s too conservative. America’s problems are not due to too much conservatism.
He just wants to stop on the slippery slope at the place he was comfortable: he wants to move the GOP toward the Dems on taxes social programs, the open border, abortion, LGBT rights.
Shirehome:
Growing up in northern VA, I recall ain’ts and y’alls but not aboots. Met Canadians who used aboot not about much later in life.
In fact, Dershowitz should have said ONLY (and CLEARLY) that the Republicans, generally, aim to preserve and strengthen the USA and all its its law-abiding citizens whereas the Democrats aim to destroy the country.
IOW, keep it simple…
(Israel should NOT have entered the conversation…though I would make the claim that those who insist on a strong and secure USA can generally be counted on—as a corollary—to also be supportive of the Jewish State.)
Read polling that shows the Virginia gerrymander ballot measure is about evenly split. If you know any Republicans in Virginia, urge them to get out and vote against the gerrymander.
The Canadian side of my family all said “aboot.” Cute, eh?
I’m very glad Dershowitz has taken the red pill. May his conversion influence others to do likewise.
Trump extends the ceasefire. All I see from the other side is TACO! TACO! TACO!
Good lord, if the bombing had started again they would be screaming genocidal maniac.
Liz Wheeler unwraps another long set of X.com posts by DataRepublican (small r), giving excellent background of the Far Left and Dem Operatives involved along the way.
Her video title accurately sums the Deep State plot against the duly elected President: “ Hegseth Stops SECRET COUP Against Trump | Ep 254” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DWUCaVkMcwM
I’m certain that discussion of DRs latest posts on Instapundit and Ace of Spades will appear, if it hasn’t already. Liz Wheeler is a few hours fresh.
As I often state here, Trump’s biggest task is rarely properly identified. His as President is Sweeping out the Augean Stables of the many layers and hidden levers of corruption in the Federal, and even State, governments.
Getting the manure to the level small piles is perhaps the most we can hope for. But without it —and I’m adding the SAVE America Act — American liberty remains ever inperaled.
PS physicsguy: two hours ago I read that Trump was prepping to restart bombing Iran! Of course, with this evil child (Theocratic totalitarian Iran), both may be called for. Let the Hormuz Straits travellers decide which it is! Yesterday, a shipping blogger had video of some 30 ships doing it, even as on ship was hit by Iran and another one detained by the USN. Fractional but decisive progress, ans 2.4X more than earlier. Some of half dozen cruise ships escaped the Gulf.
Wine Label and wine connoisseur’s descriptions—is what they describe really there? I can’t tell.
Decades ago, an unfortunate series of sinus infections and a couple of bouts of pneumonia—due, most likely–to the certified “sick building” I worked in for 25 years in Washington, D.C., resulted in the apparently permanent loss of both my senses of smell and of taste.
I can sort of taste and smell a few things—coffee, chocolate, steak, beer–but it’s like everything I taste and smell is filtered, it’s faint, and sometimes only the first taste or smell comes through at all and then it’s, well, I taste something sort of sweet or smell something, but I’m not sure what.
Enter wine, which I can sometimes taste a little. Thus, good wine is, I guess, essentially wasted on me.
Nonetheless, I do read wine labels, and below is the most–what would you call it, florid? inflated? bragging, over the top? description of a wine, which, I might add, I paid around $10 or $15 bucks for at a big box store, to wit—
“This Stags Leap District Cabernet Sauvignon captivates the senses with vibrant notes of black raspberry, blackcurrant, and blackberry preserves, elegantly complemented by floral undertones of violets. Upon tasting, rich flavors of dark plum and black cherry harmonize with redcurrant and hibiscus, while subtle layers of lavender and bay leaf add complexity to the medium-to full-bodied wine crafted with a silky texture, velvety tannins, and a finish marked with elegance and indulgent charm. Pairs well with grilled meats, barbeque, or favorite cheeses.”
To me the wine tastes good but, as for all of the above, I detect none of it.
This one floored me. The DOJ says the Southern Poverty Law Center has been funding white supremacists, including the leadership of the “Unite the Right” fiasco in Charlottesville in 2017. $3 million in total to several groups.
Correction, I paid $17 and change, and my wife says it’s excellent.
The Dems pulled it off in Virginia. Close but this not horseshoes.
Hi, Snow on Pine. That’s a fairly jam-packed label. I wonder if that wine is trying to be too many things to too many people. I’ve had a couple of wines like that which try to cram in too many flavors and end up having no real discernible personality.
If some of the projections of legal wrangling are valid for forestalling any meaningful implementation of the SAVES Act, if it were in fact to be passed by the Senate, cannot the same kind of action against the VA Gerrymander enhancement be available as well? At least until beyond the 2026 election?
I now see Neo is addressing the gerrymander legal challenge in a later posting.
Snow on Pine,
I lost my sense of smell to chemo 20+ years ago. Sad to live in tropical paradise and not smell the flowers I tend to every day.
Can still taste though.
Most wines are either smooth or rough AFAIC. But I did once have a glass of the famous ’66 Margaux and even I could tell it was really something special. Fully deserving of a paragraph about it. Suffice to say, it was the Nessun Dorma of wines.
I like champagne better and I am a snob about that, finances permitting.
Pro tip, Costco’s Kirkland Prosecco Rose – around $8 bottle – is as good as Veuve Clicquot.
You’re welcome!
I do love the “playful hints of oak and sassafras” style of wine writing.
I never got past pairing $8 Shiraz with pepperoni pizza.
Best of luck to Snow on Pine on some recovery of taste and smell.
@ Kate in re the SPLC blockbuster claim – I’m somewhat pleased to see the Left’s LIVs getting shafted by the fraudulent use of their donations; I’m appalled that the White Supremacists got money from anyone at all; and I’m wondering if the SPLC has been a KKK front group from the beginning.
Political thriller writers are going to be able to mine the last 20 years for plots until the end of the world.
I am, however, glad to see that our FBI is concerned about fraud no matter who is being defrauded. That the SPLC will probably be taken down because of this is icing on the cake.
Anyone who remembers the incident in Alice in Wonderland where the Queen of Hearts declares, “Verdict first, trial after!” will relate to this story.
Democracy Forward, a group that supports left-wing policy positions in court on issues like DEI, immigration and abortion, sent a 16-page Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the Justice Department on Tuesday. It asks for documents, schedules and communications that seek to prove allegations made against Patel in a recent article published by The Atlantic.
Couldn’t they just ask the Atlantic’s writers to give them some leads to the 70 or so sources for their story?
However, all becomes clear further on: it’s a fishing expedition, and the Atlantic piece may have been a deliberate “hook” for it.
Of course, if they lose the lawsuit, it will be an expensive expedition, but maybe the powers behind the curtain think there is something in Patel’s schedule they can serve up on a platter with the parsley.
Democratic Party leadership warned the FBI and DOJ about its duty to preserve all records related to alleged incidents involving Patel that could become subject to a potential congressional inquiry. Then came the FOIA filing.
“Democracy Forward Foundation seeks records that would help the public understand the issues raised in the Atlantic article as it relates to previous reporting on potential concerns surrounding Director Patel’s ability to run a key law enforcement agency and his use of taxpayer dollars,” the group’s letter to the Justice Department states.
The group is interested in Patel’s calendars, schedule, text messages and other electronic communications between himself and his staff. Democracy Forward also specifically asks for any records reflecting “a request for or use of ‘breaching equipment’ that was made by or used by Director Kash Patel’s security detail.”
Time was, the Democrats could just go to the FBI and get surveillance on anyone they wanted, no matter who, no matter why.
Good times, good times…..
Thanks Kate! For the LINK, too. An excellent new find from Fox News.
Prog groups and Socialist NGOs are also, very plausibly, funding White Supremacists.
Why? Because there isn’t enough actually threatening racism aro7nd to meet the demand for the grievance industry.
Once you see the substance of the decision, you see where the Atlantic’s lawyers are placing their bets on the Patel hit piece.
From today’s by Judge George C. Hanks, Jr. (S.D. Tex.) in Patel v. Figliuzzi, which stemmed from his exchange on MSNC’s Morning Joe with defendant Cesare Frank Figliuzzi, Jr., “the former assistant director for counterintelligence at the FBI”
…
Patel claimed the “been visible at nightclubs far more than he has been on the seventh floor of the Hoover building” was actionable defamation, but the court found that it was nonactionable rhetorical hyperbole instead:
Also from Instapundit, via Sarah Hoyt: DataRepublican once more brings the receipts for a purchase I didn’t even know had been made.
https://instapundit.com/791654/
FROM DATA REPUBLICAN: THREAD: The true reason Pete Hegseth is being targeted is because he’s standing between President Trump and a coup.
X-cancel. [A link for getting around X’s rules to see a complete thread, kind of like “Thread Reader” used to do.
I expect that the real story about SPLC legitimizing their fraudulent activities is missing here. What say you?
One of our sons pointed out this post on Sunday, observing that, “If your article begins by saying “What Clarence Thomas doesn’t understand” maybe you ought to just stop right there.
TJ: Seriously? NBC and the SPLC think they can get away with claiming those payments were for “confidential informers?” $3 million worth?
Re: SPLC
The SPLC’s main claim to fame is legally taking down the KKK and neo-Nazi groups in the 80s. It mostly worked.
But what does the left do when it achieves a major objective? It doesn’t proclaim, “My work here is finished” and, Lone Ranger-style, gallop off into the sunset. No, it finds or creates more opposition for it to attack.
So the SPLC has broadened its scope to include groups like “Turning Points USA” and “Moms for Liberty.”
It shouldn’t be surprising that the SPLC would fund hate groups to create more opposition.
As we have seen, when the demand for hate crimes exceeds the supply, such hate crimes must be faked.
Chuck (1:15 pm) said: “many Jews seem to take voting for Democrats to be part of the Jewish identity.”
Yes. Back before my time, Jews were quite content to have “Democrat” be an essential part of their identity, even when factions of that party were aligned with Jim Crow / Ku Klux Klan bigotry (“Dixiecrats”). Today is little different — except, to my perception, a somewhat larger proportion of Jews have become or are becoming Dershified.
— M J R
Part of the problem is that the institutions of Jewish cultural identity have been more or less absorbed into the Democratic Party power structure. (Same thing with black institutions and the labor movement), the people manning those institutions are Democrats first, Jews second. So they echo the party line.
It is finally cracking, but it comes agonizingly hard to change tribes, or accept that your tribe has exiled you.
The update on Kate’s share of Fox News reporting I’d DOJ charges and my link from Propaganda NBC News implying innocence of the SPLC, here’s the next shoe to drop:
“PoIiMath
@politicalmath
There is a pending community note on this, but it is infuriating that a huge newspaper will just flat-out lie about the news
“SPLC was not “indicted for paying sources”. They were indicted for wire fraud and making false statements. Just tell us the truth! It’s not that hard!”
— X.com post shared on Instapundit
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Tender shoots and buds aboot, eh?
Spring has sprung.
OM, you used “aboot”. I had a College Prof say it that way. He was from VA I believe.
In today’s WSJ
Alan Dershowitz: Why I’m Becoming a Republican
https://archive.fo/1QKKK
Dersh finally pulled the trigger. Welcome to the party, pal.
Took long enough…
Good for Dersh, but absolutely none of the people I know who are D’s and infected with TDS will pay a bit of attention to him.
physicsguy, thank you very much for reporting from the front lines.
Your personal is multiplied by many millions.
Given how long it took Dersh to surface his inner Republican, I don’t expect a stampede among other Jewish voters. I didn’t have a problem switching parties as I had already split my preferences: domestic policy/Democrat, foreign policy/Republican. However, many Jews seem to take voting for Democrats to be part of the Jewish identity.
Chuck (1:15 pm) said: “many Jews seem to take voting for Democrats to be part of the Jewish identity.”
Yes. Back before my time, Jews were quite content to have “Democrat” be an essential part of their identity, even when factions of that party were aligned with Jim Crow / Ku Klux Klan bigotry (“Dixiecrats”). Today is little different — except, to my perception, a somewhat larger proportion of Jews have become or are becoming Dershified.
Dersh finally pulled the trigger
I’d be happy for him, except for he said this:
Another entryist, I’m afraid. Not much different from fleeing to Texas from California and then voting to make Texas like California. The GOP’s problem is not that it’s too conservative. America’s problems are not due to too much conservatism.
He just wants to stop on the slippery slope at the place he was comfortable: he wants to move the GOP toward the Dems on taxes social programs, the open border, abortion, LGBT rights.
Shirehome:
Growing up in northern VA, I recall ain’ts and y’alls but not aboots. Met Canadians who used aboot not about much later in life.
In fact, Dershowitz should have said ONLY (and CLEARLY) that the Republicans, generally, aim to preserve and strengthen the USA and all its its law-abiding citizens whereas the Democrats aim to destroy the country.
IOW, keep it simple…
(Israel should NOT have entered the conversation…though I would make the claim that those who insist on a strong and secure USA can generally be counted on—as a corollary—to also be supportive of the Jewish State.)
Read polling that shows the Virginia gerrymander ballot measure is about evenly split. If you know any Republicans in Virginia, urge them to get out and vote against the gerrymander.
The Canadian side of my family all said “aboot.” Cute, eh?
I’m very glad Dershowitz has taken the red pill. May his conversion influence others to do likewise.
Trump extends the ceasefire. All I see from the other side is TACO! TACO! TACO!
Good lord, if the bombing had started again they would be screaming genocidal maniac.
Liz Wheeler unwraps another long set of X.com posts by DataRepublican (small r), giving excellent background of the Far Left and Dem Operatives involved along the way.
Her video title accurately sums the Deep State plot against the duly elected President: “ Hegseth Stops SECRET COUP Against Trump | Ep 254”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DWUCaVkMcwM
I’m certain that discussion of DRs latest posts on Instapundit and Ace of Spades will appear, if it hasn’t already. Liz Wheeler is a few hours fresh.
As I often state here, Trump’s biggest task is rarely properly identified. His as President is Sweeping out the Augean Stables of the many layers and hidden levers of corruption in the Federal, and even State, governments.
Getting the manure to the level small piles is perhaps the most we can hope for. But without it —and I’m adding the SAVE America Act — American liberty remains ever inperaled.
PS physicsguy: two hours ago I read that Trump was prepping to restart bombing Iran! Of course, with this evil child (Theocratic totalitarian Iran), both may be called for. Let the Hormuz Straits travellers decide which it is! Yesterday, a shipping blogger had video of some 30 ships doing it, even as on ship was hit by Iran and another one detained by the USN. Fractional but decisive progress, ans 2.4X more than earlier. Some of half dozen cruise ships escaped the Gulf.
Wine Label and wine connoisseur’s descriptions—is what they describe really there? I can’t tell.
Decades ago, an unfortunate series of sinus infections and a couple of bouts of pneumonia—due, most likely–to the certified “sick building” I worked in for 25 years in Washington, D.C., resulted in the apparently permanent loss of both my senses of smell and of taste.
I can sort of taste and smell a few things—coffee, chocolate, steak, beer–but it’s like everything I taste and smell is filtered, it’s faint, and sometimes only the first taste or smell comes through at all and then it’s, well, I taste something sort of sweet or smell something, but I’m not sure what.
Enter wine, which I can sometimes taste a little. Thus, good wine is, I guess, essentially wasted on me.
Nonetheless, I do read wine labels, and below is the most–what would you call it, florid? inflated? bragging, over the top? description of a wine, which, I might add, I paid around $10 or $15 bucks for at a big box store, to wit—
“This Stags Leap District Cabernet Sauvignon captivates the senses with vibrant notes of black raspberry, blackcurrant, and blackberry preserves, elegantly complemented by floral undertones of violets. Upon tasting, rich flavors of dark plum and black cherry harmonize with redcurrant and hibiscus, while subtle layers of lavender and bay leaf add complexity to the medium-to full-bodied wine crafted with a silky texture, velvety tannins, and a finish marked with elegance and indulgent charm. Pairs well with grilled meats, barbeque, or favorite cheeses.”
To me the wine tastes good but, as for all of the above, I detect none of it.
This one floored me. The DOJ says the Southern Poverty Law Center has been funding white supremacists, including the leadership of the “Unite the Right” fiasco in Charlottesville in 2017. $3 million in total to several groups.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/doj-says-southern-poverty-law-center-funneled-3m-white-supremacist-extremist-groups
Correction, I paid $17 and change, and my wife says it’s excellent.
The Dems pulled it off in Virginia. Close but this not horseshoes.
Hi, Snow on Pine. That’s a fairly jam-packed label. I wonder if that wine is trying to be too many things to too many people. I’ve had a couple of wines like that which try to cram in too many flavors and end up having no real discernible personality.
If some of the projections of legal wrangling are valid for forestalling any meaningful implementation of the SAVES Act, if it were in fact to be passed by the Senate, cannot the same kind of action against the VA Gerrymander enhancement be available as well? At least until beyond the 2026 election?
I now see Neo is addressing the gerrymander legal challenge in a later posting.
Snow on Pine,
I lost my sense of smell to chemo 20+ years ago. Sad to live in tropical paradise and not smell the flowers I tend to every day.
Can still taste though.
Most wines are either smooth or rough AFAIC. But I did once have a glass of the famous ’66 Margaux and even I could tell it was really something special. Fully deserving of a paragraph about it. Suffice to say, it was the Nessun Dorma of wines.
I like champagne better and I am a snob about that, finances permitting.
Pro tip, Costco’s Kirkland Prosecco Rose – around $8 bottle – is as good as Veuve Clicquot.
You’re welcome!
I do love the “playful hints of oak and sassafras” style of wine writing.
I never got past pairing $8 Shiraz with pepperoni pizza.
Best of luck to Snow on Pine on some recovery of taste and smell.
@ Kate in re the SPLC blockbuster claim – I’m somewhat pleased to see the Left’s LIVs getting shafted by the fraudulent use of their donations; I’m appalled that the White Supremacists got money from anyone at all; and I’m wondering if the SPLC has been a KKK front group from the beginning.
Political thriller writers are going to be able to mine the last 20 years for plots until the end of the world.
I am, however, glad to see that our FBI is concerned about fraud no matter who is being defrauded. That the SPLC will probably be taken down because of this is icing on the cake.
Anyone who remembers the incident in Alice in Wonderland where the Queen of Hearts declares, “Verdict first, trial after!” will relate to this story.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/left-wing-group-chases-proof-kash-patels-alleged-excessive-drinking-dems-eye-fbi-directors-ouster
Couldn’t they just ask the Atlantic’s writers to give them some leads to the 70 or so sources for their story?
However, all becomes clear further on: it’s a fishing expedition, and the Atlantic piece may have been a deliberate “hook” for it.
Of course, if they lose the lawsuit, it will be an expensive expedition, but maybe the powers behind the curtain think there is something in Patel’s schedule they can serve up on a platter with the parsley.
Time was, the Democrats could just go to the FBI and get surveillance on anyone they wanted, no matter who, no matter why.
Good times, good times…..
Thanks Kate! For the LINK, too. An excellent new find from Fox News.
Prog groups and Socialist NGOs are also, very plausibly, funding White Supremacists.
Why? Because there isn’t enough actually threatening racism aro7nd to meet the demand for the grievance industry.
Let’s dub it “Supply-Side Racism.”
The dots line up. From Glenn Reynolds at Instapundit.
https://reason.com/volokh/2026/04/21/fbi-director-kash-patel-loses-defamation-lawsuit-over-morning-joe-statements/
Once you see the substance of the decision, you see where the Atlantic’s lawyers are placing their bets on the Patel hit piece.
Also from Instapundit, via Sarah Hoyt: DataRepublican once more brings the receipts for a purchase I didn’t even know had been made.
https://instapundit.com/791654/
FROM DATA REPUBLICAN: THREAD: The true reason Pete Hegseth is being targeted is because he’s standing between President Trump and a coup.
X-cancel. [A link for getting around X’s rules to see a complete thread, kind of like “Thread Reader” used to do.
https://xcancel.com/DataRepublican/status/2046425132814713144
Tim O’Brien works through DR’s thread her:
https://pjmedia.com/tim-o-brien/2026/04/21/datarepublican-exposes-how-color-wars-ops-have-been-used-to-target-pete-hegseth-n4952046
Kate.
NBCNews carries the SPLC defense, saying Trump is harassing them for using confidential informers! https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/southern-poverty-law-center-says-targeted-trump-administration-rcna341237
I expect that the real story about SPLC legitimizing their fraudulent activities is missing here. What say you?
One of our sons pointed out this post on Sunday, observing that, “If your article begins by saying “What Clarence Thomas doesn’t understand” maybe you ought to just stop right there.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/opinion/what-clarence-thomas-doesn-t-understand-about-democracy/ar-AA21f4KW
TJ: Seriously? NBC and the SPLC think they can get away with claiming those payments were for “confidential informers?” $3 million worth?
Re: SPLC
The SPLC’s main claim to fame is legally taking down the KKK and neo-Nazi groups in the 80s. It mostly worked.
But what does the left do when it achieves a major objective? It doesn’t proclaim, “My work here is finished” and, Lone Ranger-style, gallop off into the sunset. No, it finds or creates more opposition for it to attack.
So the SPLC has broadened its scope to include groups like “Turning Points USA” and “Moms for Liberty.”
It shouldn’t be surprising that the SPLC would fund hate groups to create more opposition.
As we have seen, when the demand for hate crimes exceeds the supply, such hate crimes must be faked.
— M J R
Part of the problem is that the institutions of Jewish cultural identity have been more or less absorbed into the Democratic Party power structure. (Same thing with black institutions and the labor movement), the people manning those institutions are Democrats first, Jews second. So they echo the party line.
It is finally cracking, but it comes agonizingly hard to change tribes, or accept that your tribe has exiled you.
The update on Kate’s share of Fox News reporting I’d DOJ charges and my link from Propaganda NBC News implying innocence of the SPLC, here’s the next shoe to drop:
“PoIiMath
@politicalmath
There is a pending community note on this, but it is infuriating that a huge newspaper will just flat-out lie about the news
“SPLC was not “indicted for paying sources”. They were indicted for wire fraud and making false statements. Just tell us the truth! It’s not that hard!”
— X.com post shared on Instapundit