Important headlines for February 7th
Bottom Line: These are stories you don't want to miss and my hot takes on them...
Excerpt: After watching the first year of Donald Trump’s presidency, Florida voters are deeply divided over his performance.
A Florida Atlantic University Poll scheduled for release Wednesday found 41 percent of Florida voters approve and 44 percent disapprove of Trump’s performance, a net negative of 3 percentage points.
Hot Take: Outside of the headline - which is nearly enough to land in it in the Hysterical Headlines instead...It was full of relevant information. Consider:
The new poll shows a slight downward trend in Florida voters’ disapproval of his performance.
He continues to score better in Florida than nationwide
The decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel — changing decades of U.S. policy in the Middle East — was supported by 44 percent of Florida voters and opposed by 31 percent.
But then there's the thing. This thing...
Four out of 10 Florida voters want to see Trump impeached.
Now it never says why. Just that they do. Ok, got it. Here's the thing. Do you ever recall that kind of question being asked by pollsters of Barack Obama? I don't either. I never once came across a Florida poll where that question was asked. I wonder why? Additionally, do you think there would have been large numbers of Floridians who might have answered yes if they had?
So, ask a baseless question to get a predictable answer from detractors so you can score a negative story. Well played guys. I know you tried. You'll have to work harder however because I don't miss much.
Jeff Sessions: FBI Needs 'to Have a Fresh Start' Salena Zito, Washington Examiner
Hot Take: This statement by Jeff Sessions is the closest thing I've had to a faith restoring moment since the entire dossier scandal was revealed. In the Nunes memo we still have 30 statements of fact that if any are true demonstrate utter corruption by the highest level officials at the Department of Justice and FBI in 2016. None have been refuted as of now. The question then becomes one of accountability. I want to believe justice will be served but have little confidence unfortunately. This strong statement by Sessions at least provides a bit of hope.
The FISA-Gate Boomerangs Victor Davis Hanson, National Review
Excerpt: 1) Progressives and Democrats warned on the eve of the memo’s release that it would cause havoc throughout the intelligence agencies, by exposing classified means and processes. When no serious intelligence expert claimed that the released memo had done such damage, the official response to the memo was suddenly recalibrated by progressives. It went from being radioactive to a “nothingburger.” The obvious conclusion is cynical: Cry Armageddon to prevent its release, then, after the release, resort to yawns to downplay its significance. An even more cynical interpretation is that Rod Rosenstein, James Comey, and other officials stridently objected to the release of the memo because they are named in it.
Until tomorrow...