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Just a few American sayings

No wonder they say English is the hardest language to learn!

I noted that “fat chance” meant the same as “slim change”. I don’t know if that is a uniquely American idiom but it got me thinking. Here are some others. 

1. Bless your heart
2. Happy as a clam
3. Clean as a whistle
4. Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth
5. Sick as a dog
6. Working like a dog
7. Hot as hell
8. Cold as hell
9. Bite the bullet

10.Sweating like a pig

11.Lipstick on a pig

12.Healthy as a horse

13.Slept like a baby

14.The proof is in the pudding

15.S— for brains

16.Have your cake and eat it too

17.Pull yourself up by your bootstraps

18.Pushing the envelope

19.Head over hills

20.Break a leg

21. It’s not my first rodeo

22. Got a burr under your saddle

23. Don’t have a dog in this fight

24. Sign your John Hancock

25. That dog won’t hunt

26. I don’t have a horse in this race

27. Bottom of the ninth

28. On first base

29. A bump on a log

30. Between a rock and a hard place

31. The whole nine yards

32. More than one way to skin a cat

33. Early bird gets the worm

34. Hurry up and wait

35. Don’t judge a book by its cover

36. Beware of Greeks bearing gifts

37. The squeaky wheel gets the grease

38. Can’t teach an old dog new tricks

39. Fly on the wall 

40. Guinea pig

41. Tailgating (two very different meanings)

42. Drinking the kool aid

43. Just sayin’

44. Get off your high horse

45. “Holy cow”

46. Pull back the curtain

47. Working the graveyard shift

48. Got your goat

49. Elephant in the room

50. Walking on eggshells

51. Take a rain check

52. Table it

53. Can’t put my finger on it

54. Piece of cake

55. A fish out of water

56. Ballpark figure

57. Shoot the breeze

58. Water under the bridge

59. Put up your dukes

60. Every dog has its day

61. Spill the beans

62. Knock on wood

63. It’s not rocket science

64. Hit the books

65. I’m from Missouri

66. We’re not in Kansas anymore

67. Madder than a wet hen

68. If you don’t care

69. Worn slap out

70. Tore up

71. Might have could

72. Happy as a pig in mud

73. Fixin to

74. Til the cows come home

75. Let me let you go

76. A month of Sundays

77. Knee high to a grasshopper

78. Hill of beans

79. More than Carter’s got little pills

80. Can’t make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear

81. Plumb

82. Hotter than blazes

83. Pretty as a peach

84. Gimme some sugar

85. Gussied up

86. Hold your horses

87. Well I do declare

88. Funny as all get out

89. Heavens to Betsey

90. Hush your mouth

91. Sho nuff

92. Well I swannie

93. Tell you what

94. I reckon

95. It’ll make you want to slap your momma

96. Oh my stars

97. Too big for his britches

98. Livin in high cotton

99. Porch lights on but nobody’s home

100. Blowing up a storm

101. Hissy fit

102. Three sheets to the wind

103. Can never could

104. Preaching to the choir

105. It’ll all come out in the wash

106. For the birds

107. Til the cows come home

108. Don’t be such a wet blanket

109. Long in the tooth

110. Green thumb

111. Plead the fifth

112. It’s a keeper

113. Go Dutch

114. Crying over spilled milk

115. Bought the farm

116. Behind the eight ball

117. Jump on the bandwagon

118. Take a raincheck

119. Cold turkey

120. Riding shotgun

121. Under the weather

122. That’s the way the cookie crumbles

123. The cat’s out of the bag

124. More bang for the buck

125. Shoot the breeze

126. A bat out of hell

127. Nosebleed seats

128. Monday morning quarterback

129. Sounds like a broken record

130. Know what I’m saying

131. Get your ducks in a row

132. Elbow grease

133. Knock it out of the park

134. My two cents

135. Hit the hay

136. A no brainer

137. The whole kit and kaboodle

138. The whole enchilada 

139. Smack dab

140. Slow as molasses

141. Snowball’s chance in hell

142. Two fries short of a happy meal

143. Two bricks shy of a load

144. Bite me

145. Its in the bag

146. On second base

147. Beat me to the punch

148. Going bananas

149. Crazy as a loon

150. Mark my words

151. Hit the nail on the head

152. Cut corners

153. Cost an arm and a leg

154. Bit off more than you can chew

155. Mouth write a check that your butt can’t cash

156. A fly in the ointment

157. Kill two birds with one stone

158. Let the cat out of the bag

159. Pull one’s leg

160. Burn the midnight oil

161. Call it a day

162. Steal one’s thunder

163. Speak of the devil

164. Caught red handed

165. Once in a blue moon

166. Hold your horses

167. Go the extra mile

168. Straight from the horse’s mouth

169. Take with a pinch of salt

170. In for a penny, in for a pound

171. A penny for your thoughts

172. Cost a pretty penny

173. Like a bad penny

174. Penny wise pound foolish

176. Plug nickel

177. Play hardball

178. Home run

179. Touch base

180. Out of left field

181. Step up to the plate

182. Bush league

183. Go to bat

184. Slam dunk

185. Lay up

186. Strike out

187. Bat a thousand

188. Right off the bat

189. In the big leagues

190. Keep the ball rolling

191. Play ball

192. Brand new ball game

193. Swing for the fences

194. Throw a curve

195. Throw for a loop

196. Cover your bases

197. On deck

198. Couch potato

199. Keep the ball rolling 

200. Raining cats and dogs

201. Cool as a cucumber

202. Selling like hotcakes

203. Paint the town red

204. In a pickle

205. Turn a blind eye

206. When it rains it pours

207. Barking up the wrong tree

208. Bitter pill to swallow

209. Sour grapes

210. Tough cookie

211. Throw in the towel

212. Hit the road

213. Off the beaten path

214. Take a hike

215. Break the bank

216. Bringing home the bacon

217. Time is money

218. Grinning like a Cheshire cat

219. Born with a silver spoon in your mouth

220. Feels like a million bucks

221. I’ll be a monkey’s uncle

222. Gravy train

223. Cash cow

224. Money talks

225. Hair of the dog

226. Money doesn’t grow on trees

227. Flat broke

228. Nest egg

229. Pay through the nose

230. In the black

231. Go whole hog

232. Bet your bottom dollar

233. Burning a hole in your pocket

234. Filthy rich

235. Don’t amount to a hill of beans

236. Busy as a bee

237. Albatross around one’s neck

238. As cute as a bug’s ear

239. As snug as a bug in a rug

240. As the crow flies

241. Barking up the wrong tree

242. Bee in your bonnet

243. Monkey see monkey do

244. Cat got your tongue

245. Cat’s pajamas

246. Counting sheep

247. Chickens come home to roost

248. Curiosity killed the cat

249. Dropping like flies

250. Kangaroo court

251. In a pig’s ear

252. Fine kettle of fish

253. Paper tiger

254. Pony up

255. Red herring

256. Bad apple

257. Sour grapes

258. Stool pigeon

259. Swan song

260. Top dog

261. White elephant

262. Will goose chase

263. If pigs could fly

264. More than one way to skin a cat

265. People in glass houses should throw no stones

266. Even a blind pigs can find an acorn once in a while

267. A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush

268. Hold your horses

269. Up s—-t’s creek without a paddle

270. Let the horse out the barn after closing the door

271. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out

272. Bulls—-

273. Go jump in the lake

274. Bread and butter

And my grandmother’s favorite

275. He ain’t got the sense that God gave a goose

Trump sics the DoJ on Powell

When I first saw that Trump’s Department of “Justice” had opened a criminal investigation of the Fed’s Jerome Powell and the renovations of the Fed’s headquarters buildings I thought it was an April Fool’s joke. Only it was January 12^th. My reaction was “This has got to be a joke.” Only it isn’t. It is just the latest in a long line of actions by a president who seemingly alternates muscular initiatives with childishness. The renovations were initially projected to cost $2.5 billion but the new estimate is $3.1 billion. In the parlance of the Federal government, that is underbudget. I am fairly certain that Powell, himself, did not make the estimate of the cost. Trump knows this but is going after him anyway. Trump should know better and be ashamed – if possible. His new ballroom was supposed to cost $200 million but now is estimated to cost $400 million. So Trump should have his “Justice” Department open a criminal investigation of himself. Hardly.

Pam (Blondie) Bondi’s spokesperson’s statement regarding Powell was as hilarious as it was ignorant. It was “The Attorney General has instructed her U.S. Attorneys to prioritize investigating any abuse of taxpayer dollars.” Well the Fed is not abusing taxpayer dollars since it is self funding through assessments and earnings on its own portfolio, Much like Trump said that his new Taj Mahal will be paid for with private monies and not that of the taxpayers, the same can be said for the Fed. But Powell insists this is no Taj Mahal.

All of this renovation nonsense came about because of a New York Post article describing the changes as akin to the “Palace of Versailles.” Powell responded at a congressional hearing that “There’s no VIP dining room. There’s no new marble. There are no special elevators. There are no new water features. There’s no beehives, and there’s no roof terrace gardens.” Powell even gave the president a tour of the facilities to show the state of repairs. 

We all know the reason behind all of this. The president despises Jerome Powell for not bending to his will. He has vilified Powell, called him every name imaginable, continuously personally insulted him, cajoled and berated him for not immediately lowering interest rates to one percent. It is no coincidence that the notice of inquiry from the “Justice” Department comes right before the next Fed Open Market Committee meeting on January 27 and 28. Intimidation anyone? We know that Trump’s governor Miran will vote for a decrease in the Fed funds rate of 50 basis points before leaving on January 31st. If I were Powell I would recommend increasing the Fed funds rate by 100 basis points. But Powell is to much a gentleman to strike back at the president.

However, Thom Tillis (R-NC) who is on the Senate Banking Committee did say “If there were any remaining doubt whether advisers within the Trump Administration are actively pushing to end the independence of the Federal Reserve, there should now be none. It is now the independence and credibility of the Department of Justice that are in question.” Wow!

Tillis then said that he will “oppose the confirmation of any nominee for the Fed—including the upcoming Fed Chair vacancy—until this legal matter isfully resolved.” That means no hearing when Miran’s term ends on January 31^st and no hearing on a new chairman. Speaking of which, Bessent is supposed to interview BlackRock’s chief investment officer’s Rick Reider for the Fed chair. I don’t know about you but I wouldn’t want any employee of Larry Fink’s near the Fed.

Powell who has shown remarkable restraint toward the president issued a statement in part saying “This is about whether the Fed will be able to continue to set interest rates based on evidence and economic conditions, or whether instead monetary policy will be directed by political pressure or intimidation. I have deep respect for the rule of law and for accountability in our democracy. No one, certainly not the chair of the Federal Reserve is above the law, but this unprecedented action should be seen in the broader context of the administration’s threats and ongoing pressure.”

“This new threat is not about my testimony last June or about the renovation of the Federal Reserve buildings. The threat of criminal charges is a consequence of the Federal Reserve setting interest rates based on our best assessment of what will serve the public, rather than following the preferences of the President.”

His full statement is here: https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/speech/powell20260111a.htm

Not only is this so-called investigation an act of vengeance it is also incredibly stupid. Powell is a short-timer with his term as chairman ending in May. Although he could continue as a governor until 2028, he most likely will resign from the Board leaving Trump with another nominee. Trump of course was pushing for low interest rates first to stave off a possible economic downturn and now to lower the cost of borrowing on the Federal debt (so he can borrow more). This action of his against Powell may backfire leaving the Treasury with higher borrowing costs if the markets think that Fed independence has been compromised. Indeed, the markets fell, the dollar sank and gold rose as overnight markets reacted to the news of the Fed subpoenas, a sign of investor concern about central bank independence.

Farm to your table at Hardin Valley

My other half loves to drag me to farmers’ markets. She is really going to love the one hosted by a former student Dale Akins at his Hardin Valley Event Center. here in Knoxville. What I have always wondered when I go into Whole Foods, Publix and the other grocery stores is “Where is the ugly produce?” Often at the farmers’ markets, the produce sometimes isn’t as pretty as it is at the Fresh Market. It is often bruised, wrinkled and actually looks like it was home grown rather than industrially produced. I also remember my grandfather’s crops. They weren’t necessarily pretty but they sure tasted good. So I might have gotten an answer to my question when I ran across the website Misfits Markets.

https://www.misfitsmarket.com/hp55

They say that ugly food should not be thrown away and wasted. Rather they work with farmers to send you fresh produce, meat, seafood and dairy at prices lower than you pay at the grocery stores. Sort of an online farmers’ market. The headline on their website is “Groceries sourced for flavor, not appearances.” It says that 40 percent of food grown is wasted. That is astounding if true. It also says “Industrial agriculture is detrimental to the environment” (see my post on Roundup), “Animals are raised for efficiency instead of welfare” (see the post on eggs), “Small makers are shut out if they can’t pay for shelf space” (so much for buying local), “You overpay for food that’s stripped of quality and taste” (my mother’s lament), and “Familiar labels dominate, leaving no room for fun, unexpected finds” (that may be true but have you ever tried looked at the local beer selection at Total Wine?).

But hey. I am all in favor of ugly food especially if it tastes better than the pretty stuff and is cheaper. So go check out the website and more importantly go check out your local farmers’ markets, especially Dale’s at Hardin Valley. I salute him for bringing us our own farm to table.

Join the invite list to receive a monthly email about upcoming events: 

Follow social media to find vendor information:  

https://www.facebook.com/pavilionfarmersmarket

Thanks Dale!

Requiem for this deer season (2025)

I love to hunt but I only hunt deer and turkeys unlike my grandfather who mostly hunted rabbits and squirrels. That was because in those days there were no turkeys and precious few deer in Georgia. I used to tag along behind him with my little 22. And although he has been gone since 1971, I feel he is still with me when I venture into his woods. Maybe it is in his memory that I don’t eat store bought red meat.

It is time for my annual report on deer hunting. The deer that live on my farm are lucky. I passed on over 50 shots this season because of my unwavering standards. I do not shoot immature deer. I do not shoot fawns with their mothers even if the fawns are weaned. I shoot no buck under six points. As a result only took one nice doe during bow season with my Wicked Ridge RDX 400 and none during gun season. During the last week of gun season I was tempted to break my rules since that one doe is almost gone being consumed on occasion by me and daily by Lili, my remaining German Shorthaired pointer. I was seeing about 8 deer per day moving near my ground blind. But none to shoot. There was a momma doe with three smaller does, a spike, a button buck and a buck with one two point antler only on one side. I passed on them all. Now that the season is over I will have to coax Lili to eat lean chuck and I will make do with fish and fowl.

Five years ago I had to have around 70 acres timbered because of pine beetles. The loggers had to widen the two trails to the backside of the farm to get in their equipment. The result is that the trails have now become impassable due to severe erosion because the loggers removed the topsoil and vegetation. I cannot even get my ATV down them. I will get a bulldozer and try to repair the damage this winter. But my hunting has significantly deteriorated since the land was timbered. I have had four poor seasons in a row. Some decent does but no big bucks.

I cannot get to my stands on the backside of the farm where I hunt late in the season. I can only hunt three spots instead on the frontside. One is a great place during bow season with plenty of does but I have only seen one shootable buck there in 30+ years (except at 2:30AM on my trail cameras). Where I have consistently shot big bucks during the rut has been a disaster since the timbering. Now all the big deer stay on the adjacent property where the guy who leases it says he killed a nice 8 pointer this season. I envy him. 

I generally will see deer on the ridgeline when the acorns fall. It has no pines but only hardwoods. This year we had one of the best mast crops ever and I saw almost zero deer and no big ones. Too much food is a good thing for the deer but a bad thing for hunters since the deer move less. They are staying on the adjacent property. Georgia now allows you to bait and I have pictures of both (small) deer and hordes of turkeys walking past the corn to eat the (white) acorns. Naturally since it is deer season I have been overrun with turkeys and during turkey season I will be overrun with deer. But if anything, the photo of the turkeys shows that at least they are on the property in abundance.

I guess it would have been a frustrating season if I did not enjoy being on my ancestors’ land so much. For the past few years I have said that maybe I will take the momma doe after the little ones have been weaned. But I never can bring myself to do that. The one time that I did was some years ago during bow season. The two fawns never left the momma doe’s side after I shot her. I could not even chase them away. Since then I cannot bring myself to break up a family unit. So I still look for that single barren doe and that six point or greater buck. That I come home empty handed brings back memories of my sainted mother who loved to ridicule me saying “You might have well stayed at home working your jig saw puzzle!” My mother was never wrong and she was delighted that I loved her home place where she had so many cherished memories. But I ready do love being in the words if only being entertained by squirrels, chipmunks and woodpeckers.

I once told the wildlife ranger that I had too many little deer on my property. He said “Shoot the little ones. They taste better anyway.” He then said “You have too many deer and the only way you are going to get bigger ones is to thin out the herd. That is why we let you take 10 does during the season.” I know he is right. I know that other hunters do this. You should see what they bring into my processor. Maybe I will have to modify my standards due to my advancing years. I replaced all my hang on stands with ladder stands since I had one sabotaged by some yahoos that resulting in my falling twenty feet and having total shoulder replacement. Now my arthritic knees balk at going up and down the ladder stands. I have instead put ground blinds in two locations and plan to put in three more if I can again access the backside of the farm after I get the trails repaired.

I have in my basement a metal table, a meat saw, all the knives, a refrigerator with hooks for hanging meat in it and a vacuum sealer. I could shoot those little deer and process them myself without feeling shame of taking them to the processor. But I haven’t so far. Again, I tell myself “maybe next year.” 

Home ownership = white supremacy? Real cocaine smugglers. HHS

White folk against “white supremacy”

I am not going to spend a significant amount of time on Mamdani and New York City. But true to his word he is going to govern like a socialist. That shows up in his appointments some of whom appear to be on the lunatic fringe of the far far left. Particularly noteworthy is his choice of activist Cea Weaver for the “Office to Protect Tenants” – yes there is such a thing. Weaver, who is white, is on record as saying that home ownership is “a weapon of white supremacy” – whatever that means. She, like Mamdani, wants to seize private property. For her, now being the rent control czar, this means denying rent increases to drive down the value of rental housing to the point where the landlords will be forced to sell to the city. When Weaver was confronted by the fact that her mother, a professor at Vanderbilt, is living in a home in Nashville valued at $1.4 million, Weaver reacted by crying and running away from the reporter. Now we all know that a $1.4 million house in Nashville is no mansion – neither are the ones in Knoxville for that matter. I wonder if Weaver thinks her mother being a homeowner is also a “white supremacist?” Why is Weaver, like Mamdani, and all these socialists children of privilege? This woman is clearly another poster child for the left’s lunatic fringe.

Real cocaine smugglers versus alleged ones

Have you noticed that all the reports of the navy blowing up those speedboats in the eastern Caribbean say that they were “alleged” cocaine boats? Isn’t there any evidence? Well it seems that it is better to be a real one than an alleged one. For decades the Coast Guard has the task of apprehending those running cocaine in the Caribbean. They still do. Between September 1 and November 30, the Coast Guard reported stopping 38 boats carrying drugs. During the same period the navy blew up 22 boats killing 83 people. What happened to the people captured by the Coast Guard? They were set free! The “Justice” Department’s Pam (Blondie) Bondi chose not to prosecute them. WTF? For example, on November 19, a Coast Guard cutter returned to Port Everglades after seizing 49,010 pounds of cocaine in 15 boat interdictions. Guess the navy didn’t have a chance to blow them up. “The cutter took custody of 36 smuggling suspects during the mission, repatriated 29 to Ecuador for prosecution and referred the others to the Justice Department.” I wonder if the “Justice” Department will seek the death penalty? Oh wait, they can’t. Under U.S. law, the death penalty generally is not available in drug cases. The only death penalty that is enacted is if the navy sees them first.

Now the latest from HHS

Robert Kennedy’s HHS has just unveiled a new vaccine recommendation and a new food pyramid. No longer are 17 shots recommended to be taken by our children. The new number is 10. Kennedy said this was emulating peer nations. In this case the “peer” nation is Denmark which has a smaller and more homogeneous population. I am not saying that Denmark’s schedule is inappropriate for the US but let’s not call it a “peer.” Kennedy has long been in the anti-vax camp but as HHS points out “No vaccine is being banned or removed. Every vaccine currently recommended by the CDC remains available, fully covered by insurance, without cost sharing. No family will lose access to vaccines.” 

The vaccines removed are for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), hepatitis A, hepatitis B, dengue, meningococcal ACWY, and meningococcal B. Those can be included through consultation between parents and their doctors. I would be shocked if the majority of the doctors did not recommend that their patients continue with the old full vaccine schedule. In large part the medical establishment has criticized HHS for removing these vaccines. Also the states, not the federal government, have the authority requiring the vaccinations of school children. It will be interesting to see which, if any, adopt HHS’s recommendations. The doctors’ groups without exception have said that the changes were made without evidence that the current schedule was harming children. It was pointed out that one, rotavirus, could return if vaccination ended, he added. That diarrheal disease once hospitalized thousands of children each winter, something that no longer happens. BTW, the decision was made without input from an advisory committee that typically consults on the vaccine schedule. 

Then there is the food pyramid. The new one actually inverts the old one, deemphasizing grains and low-fat foods and placing more importance on dairy and meat proteins. Gone are ultra-processed foods and added sugars. Some of the multitude of folk who dislike RFK, Jr have pointed out that half of the panel making the recommendations have ties to the dairy and meat industries. But seriously, does anyone pay any attention to the government’s food pyramid? But hey, maybe if you adopted this new food pyramid you too could look like Robert Kennedy, Jr.!

Venezuelan takeover with this bunch? ICE in Minneapolis

Venezuela takeover with this bunch? 

One of the consequences of our takeover of Venezuela is for other countries to claim a Trump-like Doctrine in their own back yards. Obviously what comes to mind is Russia’s invasion of Ukraine or China’s threatening to seize Taiwan. We and NATO have aided the Ukrainians to defend themselves against the Russians. Russia may rattle its sword but the Ukraine folly has proven the Russian army to be a joke. But what if that Russian submarine sent to escort the tanker from Venezuela had interceded to prevent the boarding of the boat by the US military. What then? Will the exerting of supremacy in the western hemisphere make the world safer or will it make it riskier? Time will tell. China keeps acting like its going to attack Taiwan. If so it would pay a high price even if we did not intervene. Presumably we would move to deter the Chinese hoping that the result would not ignite a war. But the Chinese have disputes with India along their shared border and with Viet Nam and the Philippines in the South China Sea. What if they tried their version of the Trump Doctrine there? Would Australia do anything or Japan or US? 

The president said that the U.S. is going to “run” Venezuela “until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition.” But then why did we leave intact the bad actors behind Maduro rather than replacing the government and forcing out their military leaders? I know that this was the recommendation of the CIA but I am not certain why. Trump said that Machado and Gonzalez who defeated Maduro in two elections were too weak to govern even though the polls show them with high approvals. Elevating Delcy Rodriguez to interim president and keeping Jorge Rodríguez Gómez, Vladimir Padrino López and Diosdado Cabello in power may prove to be a mistake. Rodriquez’ socialism may be worse than Maduro’s. Her brother Gomez is head of the National Assembly and was Maduro’s voice in the legislature. Lopez is defense minister and Cabello is head of the police, military and intelligence forces. Cabello has been called the most ideological and violent member of the regime and the most likely to stage a counter offensive against the US forces. Seems to me that keeping these three in place is just asking for trouble. 

The president has said that we are going to sell 30 – 50 million barrels of Venezuelan and he will determine how the receipts are spent. He tweeted “This Oil will be sold at its Market Price, and that money will be controlled by me, as President of the United States of America, to ensure it is used to benefit the people of Venezuela and the United States!” Somehow it is not a surprise that the president will decide who gets what from the sale. Any for Don Jr and the rest of the family? Just asking.

One interesting development has been the reaction of Mexico’s president Claudia Sheinbaum to the takeover. She has sought good relations with Trump despite his imposition of tariffs and occasional threats to invade Mexico. Yet after the seizure of Maduro she said “The Government of Mexico energetically condemns and rejects the military actions unilaterally executed by the Armed Forces of the United States of America.” Historically, Sheinbaum’s Moreno party has not be a friend of America and Sheinbaum in particular has supported Maduro in Venezuela. Now will Trump seek to remove Sheinbaum and her party? Stay tuned.

The Minneapolis shooting

A few Somalis in Minnesota scammed the country out of $9 billion and the president and the republicans went bonkers. Medicaid fraud is over $100 billion per year and where are the outrage and legions of investigators and investigations to send those fraudsters to jail?  In Minneapolis there have been over 80 arrests and the investigation is on-going. It seemed like the FBI and the Department of Justice were proceeding nicely despite the best efforts of Minnesota officials not to assist in the effort. Evidence is coming out that many state and local officials were complicit in the fraud. But what was the justification for the president ordering 2,000 ICE personnel to descend on Minneapolis? Isn’t this a bit much?

Yes there may be some illegals among the Somali population but most are citizens. Was this just intended to be harassment? Regardless, it was a situation ready to explode and explode it did. Minneapolis prides itself as a sanctuary city. The state and local politicians are mainly left wingers who hate Trump and detest ICE. It was no surprise that when ICE arrived an instant mob of protestors appeared to deter them. One of the protestors was shot and killed. ICE claims that she was weaponizing her car and tried to run over one of them. The others say otherwise. 

Naturally all the democrats say the shooting was akin to murder while all the republicans say it was justified. There have been shouting matches in the halls of congress and democrats calling for the impeachment of Kristi Noem, the head of Homeland Security. House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries called Noem a liar and said “There’s no evidence that has been presented to justify the shooting of an unarmed woman in Minneapolis. The so-called Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem has zero credibility.”

Minneapolis’ mayor has said of ICE “Get the f—- out of Minneapolis” (BTW, “comedian” Jimmy Kimmel said as much on his show – see the Youtube video https://www.newsbreak.com/mediaite-520570/4431258467359-get-the-f-ck-out-jimmy-kimmel-puts-minneapolis-mayor-s-furious-ice-killing-rebuke-on-a-t-shirt).

Minnesota’s governor Walz actually said that he may call out the national guard to “protect” his citizens from ICE. Walz said that the state “was at war” with the federal government (shades of Jefferson Davis!). Now isn’t that an act of rebellion? How would that be handled by Trump? Will he try to arrest Walz and have him tried for treason? BTW, the woman shot was white. Can you imagine what would have happened if she has been a person of color. It would have been George Floyd all over again.

Meanwhile the president said he wanted to deport the fraudsters and strip any citizen of their citizenship. Tennessee’s Marsha Blackburn is accommodating him by introducing legislation to do just that. She says “The fraud schemes we have seen in Minnesota and across the country are a betrayal of hardworking American taxpayers, and individuals like the Somali scammers in Minnesota should be subject to both deportation and denaturalization for these crimes.” But why pick only on the fraud of a few Somalis? Why not make the law read for automatic deportation and denaturalization of anyone convicted of committing a felony? Medicaid anyone?

Alaska, free at last. Bye, bye some tariffs. Hegseth vs Kelly

Alaska, free at last, free at last. Kudos to the Trump administration for freeing Alaska from the warm cuddly clutches of the left who have treated the state as its own personal national park. It was a no development, no extraction, no mining, no drilling, no nothing, just stay poor policy. Alaska’s vast stores of gas and oil will be liberated as well as the state’s minerals so desperately needed by US industry and the military. The hope is that all this will start to happen before the democrats come back into power. It makes no sense that we are dependent upon China for these minerals when we have them within our own borders. Are the democrats getting a cut from the Chinese and the Russians? 

If the administration is smart – and on this issue I think that they are – they will threaten to shut off the gas, oil and mineral spigot from Venezuela going to China. Then make the Chinese cool their aggression worldwide and especially to Taiwan. Yes I know that the weenies out there will say that all of this would threaten China and they would increase their belligerence rather than decrease it. I think that misses the point. The Chinese are used to being a bully with the might of its economic engine. But the Chinese economy is in trouble. Being export driven has screwed its people who are still poor. Chinese per capital income is a little more than $13,000 or 17 percent of the per capita income in the US. China’s mercantile policy is only good for the Chinese government not the Chinese consumer. If Trump thinks exports are great all he needs to do is look at China with its $1 trillion trade surplus and multitude of poor. As to the Russians, all Trump needs to do is to tell Putin that if he doesn’t stop his Ukraine folly and quit rattling his sword toward NATO that we will flood world markets with oil which would drive down its price and bankrupt Russia. Then the carrot: free trade agreements with both.

Furniture and pasta tariff retreats

Trump’s tariffs continue to change almost daily. After imposing a ridiculous 50% tariff on imported cabinets and vanities, 25% on upholstered furniture and 30% on wooden furniture, the president has delayed these for a year. Instead of protecting the US furniture industry – mainly in North Carolina and Mississippi – the results were threatening of the financial viability of the American companies while US furniture prices are increasing by almost 5 percent. The American firms buy many of their components from foreign sources that we don’t produce here. The tariffs caused their costs to increase. One North Carolina company CEO said that his tariff costs increased from $900,000 to over $3 million and for a full year may be $7 million. One company has actually said that it may be forced to move to Southeast Asia. I have previously pointed out that the tariffs would not cause manufacturing to move back into the states simply because skilled labor is not here anymore. These tariffs like so many more just were not well thought out and the unintended consequences are causing the administration to retreat.

The president also rolled back the announced increase in tariffs on Italian pasta. Buono! Here the tariffs were an unbelievable 92 percent (and I thought he liked Meloni) meaning that Italian pasta would disappear from American shelves. The administration said that Italian pasta was being dumped on the American market at artificially low prices that undercut U.S. manufacturers. The tariffs will now be 2.26 percent. Now we need someone in the administration to explain the logic of pricing at “artificially low” rates and how the Italian companies could profit from such an action. BTW, don’t “artificially low prices” benefit the American consumer?

Hegseth versus Mark Kelly

Defense Secretary Hegseth has decided to go after Arizona senator Mark Kelley. Kelly and a few others in Congress foolishly did a video urging members of the military to disobey orders they considered unlawful. Hegseth tweeted that “in response to Senator Mark Kelly’s seditious statements — and his pattern of reckless misconduct — the Department of War is taking administrative action against Captain Mark E. Kelly, USN (Ret).” Kelly was sent a letter of censure and the administrative action which involves a reduction in rank and in his military pension. Kelly told Hegseth to pound sand saying “If Pete Hegseth, the most unqualified Secretary of Defense in our country’s history, thinks he can intimidate me with a censure or threats to demote me or prosecute me, he still doesn’t get it.” “Over twenty-five years in the U.S. Navy, thirty-nine combat missions, and four missions to space, I risked my life for this country and to defend our Constitution – including the First Amendment rights of every American to speak out. I never expected that the President of the United States and the Secretary of Defense would attack me for doing exactly that.”

Again, I don’t know what would constitute an “unlawful act” and how an enlisted military person would know it. Also what are the consequences of disobeying a direct order? Kelly should know all of this and the impossible position that he is putting his fellow warriors in. I think Hegseth is right on this one and Kelly is wrong. As to his military pension he is obviously double dipping given his senate pay.

National guard deployments, Warm bosom of collectivism and Bourbon’s decline

No more national guard deployments?

Likely as a result of the recent Supreme Court ruling the president has announced that he is pulling the national guard out of Chicago, Los Angeles and Portland. Curiously he tweeted “We are removing the National Guard from Chicago, Los Angeles, and Portland, despite the fact that CRIME has been greatly reduced by having these great Patriots in those cities, and ONLY by that fact. We will come back, perhaps in a much different and stronger form, when crime begins to soar again – Only a question of time!” The reason this is curious is because the guard was sent into these cities to protect ICE and its facilities, not to deter crime. Crime deterrent was the reason the guard was sent into Washington DC, Memphis and New Orleans. That the president would omit the protection of ICE and only mention crime instead is a bit puzzling.

Socialism is for the warm and cuddly

When Zohran Mamdani was sworn in as mayor of New York, his inauguration speech contained all the promises he made on the campaign trail – universal childcare, free buses, government run grocery stores a tax on the wealthy and all the rest. Even getting rid of the gifted and talented program in the public schools. He promised to turn New York City into an affordable socialist paradise. He said “We will govern without shame and insecurity, making no apology for what we believe. I was elected as a democratic socialist and I will govern as a democratic socialist. I will not abandon my principles for fear of being deemed radical.”

But the phrase that generated the most buzz was “We will replace the frigidity of individualism with the warmth of collectivism.” Hey, give me that frigid individualism any day to the warm cuddly arms of collectivism. Where is collectivism warm? Where is it compassionate? Where does it lift the impoverish to prosperity? Even where it promises cradle to grave security, where does it provide it? And at what cost? Mamdani sounds like a latter day version of Maduro, reading from the same socialist playbook. Promise them equity. Promise to tax away the billionaires. Promise justice (where was defund the police?). Promise abundance in the face of scarcity. Promise everything and when he fails to deliver, blame it on the rich (and of course Trump) for setting impediments in his path as his city deteriorates around him. Mamdani needs Governor Hochul and the state legislature to acquiesce to his demands or else he will blame them to being in the pockets of the dastardly capitalists who resist him.

What will happen? One observer says that if Mamdani is really serious then Miami will replace New York City as the financial capital of the world. He (David Sacks) also predicts that Austin will replace San Francisco as the tech capital. And speaking of San Francisco, Mamdani also is going to quit trying to getting rid of the homeless encampments. This earned the praise of the homeless advocates. – yes there is such a thing. Hum. I wonder if the homeless advocates are themselves homeless?

Fall of the House of Bourbon

Speaking of warmth, what is happening in the market for bourbon? Jim Beam, the largest bourbon distiller, is shutting down production as inventories pile up, demand and exports fall (see Canada). Demand accelerated during the pandemic (isn’t that interesting?) and production in the industry ramped up. Now demand has fallen, there is the impact of Trump’s tariffs (again see Canada) and inventories have shot up. There are an estimated 16.1 million barrels of bourbon sitting in Kentucky warehouses. Distillers actually pay a barrel tax on those barrels which was $75 million in 2025. Beam will likely survive but many of the smaller distillers won’t. Sadly, one of them may be Uncle Nearest which is under court ordered receivership after a $108 million loan default. Uncle Nearest is named after the slave who taught a young Jack Daniel how to distill. Supposedly, his original formula is the basis for the premium liquor bearing his name. BTW, I don’t drink liquor but if I did, it would be Uncle Nearest.

One of my few regrets in life is that I don’t have the formula of the moonshine crafted by my great grandfather (Pop) Milous Towles. I could have had one of the Tennessee moonshine distillers (I have a former student who is the president of one) bottle and distribute it. It would be a fitting tribute to a truly remarkable man.

What do you mean that I have to pay the import fee?

I placed an order on ebay. Apparently it is being shipped from overseas because I got this message: “Due to US Customs policies, you will need to pay import fees for this order to the shipping carrier prior to delivery.” What? Didn’t President Trump say that the country of manufacture had to pay the import fees and not us? Weren’t countries going to pay to have to export goods to us? Say it ain’t so. This notice reminded me that everyday my old friend Professor Don Boudreaux posts on the tariffs. Those most interested in that matter should go to his website https://cafehayek.com as I do daily. Don is a regular contributor to the Wall Street Journal, often with my old economics tutor, Phil Gramm and to AEI today – see his “The Case for Economic Freedom” https://www.aei.org/multimedia/the-case-for-economic-freedom/. Here is his post – a letter to the “Tariff Man” on January 5^th.

Mr. Donald J. Trump
President, Executive Branch
United States Government
1600 Pennsylvania Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20500

Mr. Trump:

On New Year’s Eve your office released a “Fact Sheet” stating that you “imposed reciprocal tariffs to take back America’s economic sovereignty, address nonreciprocal trade relationships that threaten our economic and national security, and to remedy the consequences of nonreciprocal trade.”

Two things.

First, by its nature, all trade is reciprocal. Each party gives something to the other party and receives in exchange something that each party values more highly. Therefore, your punitive taxes – a.k.a. tariffs – on Americans’ purchases of imports are aimed at correcting a problem that doesn’t exist.

Your only possible retort that would retain as much as a tenuous connection to logic would be to insist that foreigners regularly dupe us Americans into buying things that we don’t want to buy – that is, to insist that we Americans are incurably stupid at conducting our own economic affairs, while foreigners are so astonishingly clever that they routinely swindle us out of our own money. Do you, sir, really believe that your fellow Americans are generally the intellectual inferiors of foreigners?

Second, by obstructing each of your fellow Americans’ voluntary, peaceful trades with foreigners you diminish the economic sovereignty of each and every one of us. What (il)logic leads you to conclude that by obstructing – with your taxes on our purchases of imports – the economic sovereignty of 340 million Americans, you thereby “take back America’s economic sovereignty”?

Your tariffs do for us Americans the opposite of what you assert: they diminish our economic sovereignty and, in this sorry bargain, also make us poorer than we’d otherwise be.

Sincerely,
Donald J. Boudreaux
Professor of Economics
and
Martha and Nelson Getchell Chair for the Study of Free Market Capitalism at the Mercatus Center
George Mason University
Fairfax, VA 22030

Feliz Año Nuevo!

The new Trump Doctrine was in full display as American forces attacked Venezuela and sacked Nicolas Maduro. Speaking of sacks, it was a sad day as both my Ohio State Buckeyes and Georgia Bulldogs were cursed with a first round bye in the college football playoffs and lost. But the capture of Maduro and his wife was even more astounding than the losses by the Buckeyes and Bulldogs. There no loss of life or loss of equipment in the raid. The Venezuelan armed forces must have been taking a siesta and Maduro’s personal (Cuban) bodyguards must have been bought off. How else could this have happened? Trump has asserted American supremacy in this hemisphere and has flexed American might through its superior armed forces. I don’t recall if diplomacy was tried by this administration with regards to Maduro. All I remember are threats, a build up of military forces, the bombing of drug runners, the naval blockade and the shutting down of Venezuelan airspace. That, my friends, is a different type of “negotiations.” 

This operation was in direct contrast to George H.W. Bush’s seizure of Manuel Noreiga. Bush ordered the U.S. military to invade Panama in late 1989, sending 20,000 troops to topple Noriega. The operation left 23 American soldiers dead and hundreds more injured. Noreiga was convicted on charges of drug trafficking, money laundering and racketeering and was imprisoned for 17 years. Does the same fate face Maduro and his wife?

Trump told Maduro to leave. Instead Maduro put on his best “don’t worry, be happy” face. He was shown dancing at a rally in Caracas. There he vowed to stand (or dance) against American aggression. Maduro told the cheering crowd “Be certain that I will never fail you — never, ever, never.” Oops. Now he and his wife face indictments brought by Trump’s attorney general Pam Bondi. “Nicholas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, have been indicted in the Southern District of New York. Nicolas Maduro has been charged with Narco-Terrorism Conspiracy, Cocaine Importation Conspiracy, Possession of Machineguns and Destructive Devices, and Conspiracy to Possess Machineguns and Destructive Devices against the United States.” “They will soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts.”

Here is what Secretary of State Rubio tweeted “The 47th President of the United States is not a game player. When he tells you that he’s going to do something, when he tells you he’s going to address a problem, he means it… This is something that was a direct threat to the national interest.” Now I am not entirely certain how Venezuela threatened our national security but as  Rubio said “This is a president of action.” Do tell.

While at first some observers said that a transition government would be put in place headed by Nobel laureate Maria Corina Machado and Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, the president had other ideas. Corina Machado is the opposition leader who was banned by a Maduro-run court from running for president. Gonzalez ran in her place and by some counts beat Maduro 2-1 in the 2024 election. Maduro refused to concede and with the backing of the military stayed in power. Since polls indicate that Machado and Gonzalez have an approval rating of around 70 percent, some had suggested that a transition government headed by then makes sense.

Not so fast said Trump who said that the United States would “run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper, and judicious transition.” So is now Venezuela an unincorporated US territory much like American Samoa? The president also said that Venezuela’s oil is now ours which may have been the motivation all along. US oil companies will join Chevron in the country and drill, baby, drill. The country used to pump 3 million barrels a day but now only pumps 900,000. That will change. Oh and by the way, the president said that we will share some of the oil revenue with the Venezuelans being the magnanimous person that he is.

TRUMP: US Oil Companies Will Fix Venezuelan Infrastructure To ‘Start Making Money for the Country’ “As everyone knows, the oil business in Venezuela has been a bust, a total bust, for a long period of time. They were pumping almost nothing by comparison to what they could have been pumping and what could have taken place. We’re going to have our very large United States oil companies, the biggest anywhere in the world, go in, spend billions of dollars, fix the badly broken infrastructure, the oil infrastructure, and start making money for the country.”

Congressional republicans praised the president while the usual suspects are whining and condemning the snatching and take over of the country. Here is what Connecticut’s Chris Murphy said “President Trump thinks he is above the law. He steals from taxpayers. He thumbs his nose at the law. And now, he is starting an illegal war with Venezuela that Americans didn’t ask for and has nothing to do with our security.” Both House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer said that Maduro was “an illegitimate dictator” but that “launching military action without congressional authorization and without a credible plan for what comes next is reckless.” “The idea that Trump plans to now run Venezuela should strike fear in the hearts of all Americans.” Rep. Adam Smith, the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, said that “there’s no evidence whatsoever this makes America safer. This doesn’t seem to have much to do with drugs. It seems what this is about is Trump wants Venezuela’s oil.”

Of course, Trump could not have gone to congress first. Doing so would have alerted Maduro before the congressional briefing was over. And although some democrats are comparing this to the military incursions in Iraq and Afghanistan, that appears to be just a wee bit over wrought in that there is no on-going armed conflict in Venezuela to counter the American presence there. No will the cartels try to organize guerrilla forces to resist the American takeover. Only time will tell but in the meanwhile

Watch out Diaz-Canel!