Saturday's Final Word

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Now every time I go for the tab link, I've gotta hold myself down ...

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Ed: It's the Tehran Two-Step, and it's closely related to the Hamas Hokey Pokey. If anyone expected any other outcome from this MOU, they just have not paid attention to the IRGC and its proxies over the last 47 years. David had more on this earlier today. The question is whether Trump will act to enforce the terms of the MOU. 

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Reuters: Emerging outlines of a deal between Washington and Tehran to end their war contain a stinging paradox: sweeteners to coax Iran into compliance may strengthen an adversarial force that the US and its Western allies consider a terrorist organization.

For years, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards thrived in the shadow of sanctions, building a sprawling commercial empire spanning oil and construction, shipping, telecommunications, and ports.

Now, as Tehran and Washington prepare for talks on a deal to end the war that could unlock billions of dollars for Iran and reopen its economy to global investment, the elite force is poised to be one of the biggest beneficiaries.

Four senior Iranian sources described how the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps was uniquely positioned to capture a large share of any financial rewards that would accrue from sanctions relief, renewed oil exports, and foreign investment.

Ed: Any relief of any kind will benefit the IRGC most, because the IRGC controls nearly half of Iran's economic activity. This is not a huge revelation. That's why regime change is likely the only way to ensure that doesn't happen. It's also a good reason to keep sanctions in place, especially with the regime demanding control of the Strait of Hormuz.

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Ed: I have my suspicions. However, the bigger issue here is that Iran's proxies are not honoring the ceasefire and truce agreements, and that is being funded by the Iranian regime with which we're negotiating in the framework of the MOU. 

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Glenn Reynolds: One industry in America pumps out toxic waste day and night, but suffers no penalty for the damage it causes. 

It operates at enormous public and private expense, sucking up hundreds of billions of dollars in government money. 

Its toxic bilge poisons much of society, but those who complain about it are often dismissed as ignorant or bigoted. 

Its product is largely free of state and federal regulation.

That industry is higher education.

Ed: Well, two industries in America fit that description, with the other being the mainstream news media. At least that industry is getting the proper consumer signals for the poor product it offers. Be sure to read all of this, and don't forget my comprehensive solution: Decolonize Academia Now. 

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Ed: Ellison is a malignant force in politics, whose statewide election victory more or less sounded the death knell for effective governance in Minnesota. He's getting cranky because he's suddenly at risk of real accountability. 

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Free Beacon: One month before Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico said that his "faith" requires him to reject big money in politics—he likened it to Jesus Christ resisting the Devil's temptation while fasting in the wilderness—his campaign updated a buried page on its website that tacitly coordinates with super PACs, laying out instructions about what media markets to run ads in, where to send mailers, and what messages to include in them. Lo and behold, two days after the update, a super PAC led by Talarico's former chief of staff began running ads that followed the campaign's exact instructions, a Washington Free Beacon review found.

The page, titled "What Voters Need To Know About James," is not among the sections pinned to the top of the Talarico campaign's site, like "Meet James" and "Why I'm Running." Visitors can only access it by scrolling to the bottom of the site, near the privacy policy and terms of service, and clicking on a nondescript link titled "Information."

The page lays out the campaign's media and messaging strategy, and super PACs are picking up what the campaign is putting down. 

Ed: That's been the modus operandi for progressive Democrats in every cycle. And, for that matter, Democrats and Republicans of every stripe. This is newsworthy because Talarico cast this in a claim to theological superiority, which runs afoul of other scriptural warnings about hypocrites and self-congratulation. 

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Crockett also said she’s not sure whether Democrats, particularly Black voters, have united fully behind Talarico and the rest of the ticket.

She said the lack of a Black nominee for major statewide office could dampen enthusiasm among some voters.

Ed: That's an obviously self-serving claim, but that doesn't make it untrue. I suspect that Crockett's loss in the primary, which was something of a surprise, may really dampen enthusiasm among black voters in Texas, particularly in Houston. Crockett also objects to what she claims was an "afterthought invite" from Talarico to speak at the convention, although Crockett could clearly have chosen to attend on her own. The state party would have been delighted to get Crockett on stage for the reasons stated above. 

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Jonathan Turley: The Wisconsin Supreme Court struck down a state-funded scholarship program that awarded financial aid based on the race of college students. The Democrat-controlled court followed the precedent laid out by the United States Supreme Court in finding that Gov. Tony Evers and the state were violating the Equal Protection Clause of the United States Constitution. Two of the most liberal justices, however, wrote a concurrence denouncing the bar on the use of race for such scholarships. If Democrats are able to pack the Supreme Court as demanded by many party leaders, this concurrence is an example of the likely changes that a packed court will bring in reversing anti-discrimination and other rulings.

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The Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty represented the taxpayers in this successful challenge of the Wisconsin Minority Undergraduate Retention Grant Program. That program administered taxpayer-funded grants of up to $2,500 per academic year to eligible students of Black American, American Indian, Hispanic, or certain Southeast Asian backgrounds. ...

Citing the 2023 U.S. Supreme Court decision Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, the Court reaffirmed that “The Constitution requires that every person ‘must be treated based on his or her experiences as an individual — not on the basis of race.’”

While many have heralded the new bright line against racial discrimination in higher education, two of the most liberal justices, Chief Justice Jill Karofsky and Susan Crawford, lamented the loss of racially discriminatory programs.

Ed: Why write a concurrence rather than a dissent? The reason is the strength of the ruling in the Harvard and North Carolina cases by the Supreme Court, grounded firmly in the text and intent of the 14th Amendment. Even the more liberal jurists can't get around it; they can only complain about it and (as Prof. Turley notes) whine about how we should be able to discriminate based on race for an indefinite period as long as white Americans suffer from the consequences of it. It's sheer idiocy, and you won't be surprised at all who they quote in this concurrence. Like, not surprised in the least. 

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Ed: To be clear, this is no one's business in the first place. Conservatives should be cheering Hathaway for choosing life and family, being married for 14 years, and having all her children with her husband, Adam Shulman. Wish her health and joy on the journey, and let her life be a quiet example to others. 

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... And when we feel that and and and not allow an election or an individual to dampen that light, and instead light, let that light kind of carry us in particular through moments of darkness, that that we not only act on that hope, but we inspire that hope in each other. And in particular, at this moment, it is so important that we not only have hope, but that we understand that that should be a verb."

Ed: This is actually coherent. It's also as trite and clichéd as a Hallmark greeting card knock-off, but at least it's coherent. Also, hope is both a noun and a verb already. It sounds like Kamala got a little overwhelmed at the Barack Obama Presidential Apocalyptic Monolith. 

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Ed: Most of us aren't angry. We just don't get the same level of media coverage for our equanimity. Let's give our World Cup visitors a big welcome and make sure they get a chance to see the real American experience. 

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Last night's lyric: "I Want to Know What Love Is" by Foreigner.

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