Liberty & Prosperity Blog

At his campaign rallies, President Trump frequently told people that they'd get tired of winning. At this point, people are tired of negotiations. Thankfully, today's early guests (Marc Thiessen and Aaron Cohen) told Kudlow that President Trump gave Iran a veto over winning by giving Iran the opportunity to negotiate. In this interview , Aaron Cohen said something that popped Kudlow out of Kudlow's bubble. Cohen said "Larry, I want to tell you where my head is really at right now. Right now, we're treating this like it's conventional warfare and it's not. This is a low-intensity conflict, Larry. This is what special operations and clandestine intelligence units were set up for. They were set up to go after terrorist organizations masked as states, which is what the mullahs are. So if I were advising President Trump, here's what I'd tell him to do. I'd tell him to take a look at what the Shah warned 50 years ago. You can not approach the mullahs ...

It's astonishing that the Trump administration has spent more days negotiating with Iran than it's spent waging war against Iran. That's particularly astonishing considering the fact that the U.S. just hit Iran 13 straight days. Yesterday, President Trump said " We're Going to Beat the F--king S--t Out of Them ." It's fun hearing that type of machismo from the commander-in-chief but I'd rather that he just take out Iran's theocrats and the people who protect them, aka the IRGC and the Basij. Wipe them out and the regime topples. We've proven that we can take out Iran's Air force and Navy. It's time to finish the job. If there's a theocrat still breathing inside Iran, then the job isn't finished. FINISH THE JOB! We don't need an endless war, which we aren't close to. We don't need endless negotiations, either, with an enemy that isn't negotiating in good faith. That's what's happening right now. Take out t...

It isn't easy outdoing Joe Biden when it comes to opening the U.S.'s borders but Mike Lindell's given it a good shot. Lindell didn't smash it. He didn't even break it. Still, Lindell gave it a good shot. According to quotes in this Alpha News article , one "of the most prominent immigration think tanks in the United States is calling out Mike Lindell’s recent proposal to provide permanent work visas to illegal aliens." In short, CIS is calling Lindell out. CIS resident fellow Andrew Arthur said "This proposal is an amnesty. It’s an amnesty for a population of undetermined size. It has all of the deficiencies of any amnesty, and it threatens to have a huge impact on the working population in the United States." First, let's dig into some of the particulars of Lindell's proposal. According to the article, "Lindell, a Republican candidate for governor of Minnesota, has proposed the creation of a six-month deportation moratorium during w...

Minneapolis is getting softer on crime by the day. I'm convinced of that after reading this Alpha News article . According to the article, "A north Minneapolis man now charged with murder in connection to a fatal shooting earlier this month should have been serving time in prison, court records show, but was instead free due to sentencing departures on two prior violent crime convictions." This time, the culprit isn't Mary Moriarty. The article continues, reporting "A witness later told police that the two men were arguing before Cole lifted a black bag wrapped around his hand and apparently shot Byrd. Cole then fled on foot but was located by police a short time later. Police also found a discarded drawstring bag on Washington Avenue with a gun inside and a hole in the bottom corner where the muzzle was pointed." That's bad anough but it gets worse: Cole was charged in September 2020 with second-degree attempted murder for seriously injuring a man in a ...

Which Came First? Input or Output? Facts or Narratives? by Ramblin’ Rose American linguist and educational researcher Stephen Krashen advocates some theories that are research based but also make a lot of sense. Let’s start with his theory related to input vs. output. Parents and other caregivers speak to babies/children before the children speak. They also use language at a comprehensible level. They speak using vocabulary and structures that children can understand and imitate in their own attempts at communication. The caregivers also tailor their language slightly above what the child can produce. According to Krashen, this is the Input Hypothesis with comprehensible input + 1 (i + 1). For caregivers that means naming food, clothing, and family before espousing political or economic opinions. The child receives beneficial input. Nor does a caregiver expect a child to speak automatically (output) without first hearing and processing words before attempting to imitate them and months...

I'm tired of hearing pundit after pundit talk about the supposed socialist takeover that the DSA Revolution is enacting. Since I refuse to believe that the U.S. is a nation of idiots, I choose to believe that nobody taught people the art of communicating. First, communicating is one thing. The art of communicating is quite different. The art of cummunicating starts with winning word wars. You win word wars before the first word is spoken. You win word wars through preparation and studying the underlying principles of the issue. For instance, if you want to defeat a Democrat Socialist of America, aka a member of the DSA, you start by studying socialism. Socialism doesn't create wealth. It redistributes wealth. That comes with an asterisk. It redistributes the serfs' wealth. It doesn't redistribute the oligarchs' wealth. I'm not certain but I think that's where the saying comes from that 'what's mine is their's and what's their's is their...

If there's anything that I love more than a ribeye from Thielen's in Little Falls made medium rare to medium, it's the sight of a full-fledged DFL Civil War . In most years, the DFL has polite fights before voting in lockstep. This feels different, with the DSA hoping to push establishment out of the picture. In this situation, State Sen. John Hoffman claimed that Congresswoman Angie Craig "sought his endorsement when he was still in the hospital recovering from a shooting." This has the makings of the start of a bar-room brawl. According to the Alpha News article, "Last week, DFL state Sen. John Hoffman spoke at a rally in support of Flanagan’s campaign for U.S. Senate. At that rally, Hoffman claimed that Craig sought his endorsement when he was still in the hospital recovering from a shooting." That certainly wasn't going to go without response from Craig's campaign. Here's how Craig responded: "Emphatically, what has been asserted is...

Back in mid-January, I asked if Minnesota was experiencing a populist uprising after reading about a group of mayors, led by Crosslake Mayor Jackson Purfeerst, wrote a letter to Gov. Walz and the legislature. Mostly, though, it was aimed at the DFL's Trifecta. This weekend, I wrote this article about Title IX MN's activism on behalf of changing the MSHSL's consatitution and bylaws to ban boys from participating in girl's sports. For conservatives, those are virtual uprisings. The question now is whether GOP politicians will take up these fights on behalf of their constituents. If GOP candidates take up these populist agendas, GOP turnout might be better than anticipated. Motivate populists to turn out by actually adopting their agenda and they'll turn out. If Republicans are smart for a change and actually listen to people with real problems, then follow the listening up with providing solutions, the sky's the limit. This lletter, signed by 261 mayors now, go...

When Mike Lindell proposed amnesty for illegal aliens , he set off a firestorm for the ages. The question quickly turned to why Lindell put the issue on his priority list in the first place. Congress, not governors, set immigration and naturalization policy.This issue isn't in the top 50 of issues for Minnesota's future. I just visited Lindell's campaign website platform page . Let's just say that he's cpompertitive with Sen. Klobuchar in talking in platitudes while saying nothing. For instance, on the subject of "Jobs and Minnesota's Economy," he wrote "Mike Lindell knows the economy runs on real people—Moms juggling schedules, business owners signing paychecks, professors shaping the next generation, urban church leaders holding communities together, young workers chasing a first big opportunity, and farmers betting everything on the next season. He built a national brand from a Minnesota factory floor, so when he sees bureaucracy slowing everyt...

I'm a happy camper after reading this Alpha News article about a grassroots organization titled Title IX MN. According to the Alpha News article, "A new grassroots campaign is encouraging schools and local communities to come together and change Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL) policy that currently allows boys to participate in female sporting events. The campaign, dubbed Make It Fair MN, is organized by Title IX MN, an organization named after the federal law which mandates that women and girls must be given equal access to educational opportunities and extracurricular sporting activities." I love this! This isn't astroturfed activism with tons of Soros dark money funding the rent-a-mob 'activists'. These are moms and dads, aunts and uncles and grandparents showing the powers-that-be where the real power lies. HISTORY AS IT'S GETTING MADE According to the article, " Title IX MN was informally launched last year as a group of more than 3...

I wish I could trust Mike Lindell but that's impossible now for multiple reasons. Initially, in this Alpha News article , Lindell is quoted as saying "Now, you’re not a citizen. You can’t vote, but you have this card that now you can work and you can go be paying taxes, be functioning in society." Alpha reported "According to the Washington Examiner, Lindell’s plan would only give visas to illegal aliens without criminal records. He said illegal aliens would be fingerprinted when they receive the conditional work visas." After watching this video , though, I have difficulty trusting Lindell. This tweet says it perfectly. It says "Just that takes him off my candidate list. I don't care if Trump endorsed him." To me, the video is the thing that finishes Lindell's campaign. Here's the video: 🚨 BREAKING: Minnesota Republican governor candidate Mike Lindell is facing criticism after the Washington Examiner reported that he supports "six-...

Apparently, Keith Ellison isn't worried that socialism and communism are taking over the Democrat Party . Ellison said that people are more worried about the cost of groceries, gas or other commodity. He's right that people are worried those things. Ellison's wrong, though, in saying that people aren't worried about a lower quality of life and a major loss of freedom. What a lying sack of dirt! When the Democrat Socialists of America, aka DSA, impose strict rent controls, take over the means of production of major industries, does Ellison think that the price of groceries will stay stable? The price might stay stable but will the cost stay stable? The price might stay stable but the cost won't stay stable. The price to consumers might stay stable through subsidies, etc. but the cost will jump the minute the government takes control of production because productivity will drop when the government takes control. It has to because the incentives change significantly...

After reading this Washington Examiner article , I'm not certain that Mike Lindell, the purveyor of MyPillow, is a Republican. If he is, he's a John McCain Gang of Eight type of Republican, not a movement conservative like Ted Cruz. I've vooted before for candidates who weren't movement conservatives up and down the ticket in Minnesota. I'll enthusiastically vote for Michelle Tafoya for U.S. Senate in the primary and in the general election if she wins the primary, which I think she will. Donald Trump's endorserment of Mike Lindell isn't because Lindell is a conztitutional conservative. Based on the article, I don't think he knows the Constitution. In the article, he's quoted as saying I’d like the whole United States to do this, but let’s say I did it here in Minnesota. Six months, all the illegal immigrants would have to go get what’s going to be called a conditional work visa." First, governors aren't supposed to be involved in setting i...

Thank God for Marco Rubio's deportation of Tou Lue Vang. Secretary Rubio revoked Vang's status , thereby essentially nullifying Tim Walz's and Keith Ellison's attempt to keep a serial child sex predator (Vang) in Minnesota by pardoning him. Now the behind-the-scenes dirt is coming out. Alpha News is reporting "The Ramsey County Attorney’s Office urged Minnesota’s Board of Pardons to reject convicted child sex offender Tou Lue Vang’s request for clemency — and, in doing so, shed new light on why he never spent a day behind bars. It's disgusting that we're now finding out that "Prosecutors told the Clemency Review Commission that Vang’s crime involved ' several aggravating factors ,' including that the victim was only 10 years old when the abuse began, the abuse involved multiple forms of sexual assault, there were repeated assaults in her own home over a two-and-a-half-year period, Vang used no sexual protection, and in one case he drove the g...

All it took to return to the bad old days of Murderapolis was for the anarchists and activists to cry 'Defund the police', then let the police retire or move to a state that prioritizes law enforcement. That's what's apparently happening. According to this Alpha News article , "Two separate mass shootings in Minneapolis left at least 13 people injured by gunfire and one dead in less than 24 hours on Sunday. Nine people were injured by gunfire in a mass shooting outside Reign Event Center in Uptown Minneapolis early Sunday morning. Another mass shooting occurred Sunday evening about two miles away in the Stevens Square neighborhood, injuring another four people and killing one." Apparently, Jacob Frey, Tim Walz and Mary Moriarty don't give a damn about public safety or preventing mass shootings. Further, I can't wait to hear Tim Walz explain how an assault weapons ban would've stopped these massacres. I can explain them with ease -- too few police o...

If you're targeting immigration officials and you're a prosecutor, the process to get your hands on unlimited resources is to sign onto Larry Krasner's group of questionable DAs . The Washington Free Beacon is reporting "A coalition of progressive prosecutors promising to target federal immigration agents has amassed a war chest funded by secret donors with the help of left-wing networks. Legal experts said the arrangement is 'terribly corrupt' and blurs the lines between legitimate law enforcement and politically motivated prosecutions." Deeper into the article, it reports "The Project for the Fight Against Federal Overreach—or FAFO, an acronym that also stands for 'fuck around and find out' in internet lingo—was formed by two George Soros-funded prosecutors, Philadelphia's Larry Krasner and Mary Moriarty of Hennepin County, Minn., after federal officials shot and killed Renee Good and Alex Pretti as they interfered with immigration enfor...

Anytime Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty gets involved in a case, a mess is almost automatically guaranteed. After Renee Good's tragic shooting death, Moriarty insisted that the feds had to share the feds' evidence with the HCAO. That's false. Since it involved a federal border patrol agent, the feds have jurisdiction. Since Moriarty is an activist prosecutor, the Trump administration didn't see the usefulness in playing nice with Moriarty. In this interview , Jake Tapper inquired what standard procedure was. He cited the Annunciation Church shooting last August and the Hortman family assassinations as instances where state and federal authorities worked together. The thing there is that both instances involved local crimes. The municipalities asked for the feds' help in the investigation. The shooting of Renee Good involved a federal agent, thereby assigning the feds jurisdiction in that investigation. This week, the "Hennepin County Attorney’s Office...

The Democrat Socialists of America have a vivid imagination. Unfortunately for them, they made the mistake of telling people about their dream (socialist) world looks like . According to the DSA's website's opening paragraph "It might not feel as badly needed as it does now. You enjoy your work; it’s interesting to you, and you’re well trained for it. You work as much as you are able and no more than needed, and you would control your own labor and see it going to good use. It’s not just a job to pay the bills." That's the DSA's sales pitch? They start by telling us that we "enjoy" our work and that we're well-trained to do that work. Then the DSA said "You work as much as you are able and no more than needed." Western Civilization's great accomplishments didn't happen becauses groups of people worked "no more than needed." That's the socialists' great lie. George Washington's Revolutionary Army didn't ...

Graduation Standards—Bane or Blessing? by Ramblin’ Rose Some in Minnesota are celebrating for a second straight year the rise in number of high school graduates. Others contrast that news with the revelation that Minnesota, once the 'Education State,' has fallen again in the national rankings. Josiah Padley, Policy Fellow at Center of the American Experiment, cited the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s 2026 findings. Our North Star State is no longer in the top 10; it fell from 7th to 21st from 2021 to 2026, specifically '#7 in 2021, #9 in 2022, #18 in 2023, #19 in 2024 and #17 in 2025.'" How can so many more students 'earn' a high school diploma when their proficiency rates are plummeting. Let hiSTORY tell the 'story.' In the early 1990s, "experts" eliminated the Carnegie Units (course credits) with the claim that they only reflected seat time. The graduation rates were lower, but the proficiency levels were higher. The experts (politicians and...

Predictably, Sheriff Fletcher is getting criticized Too often, I've listened to DFL politicians tell us that we've got a gun violence problem. Apparently, that's the DFL's approach to ignoring Somali gang violence. Last week, a legitimate leader emerged . "Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher" spoke truth to these politicians. The Alpha News article reports "In a 'Live on Patrol' video posted Monday, Sheriff Fletcher and deputies from his office said it was time to publicly address the violence following several shootings and a murder over the July 4 weekend, which the sheriff said were connected to ongoing Somali gang violence." This is infuriating. Minneapolis ignored the gang violence while blaming inanimate objects for the city's violence crisis. Who do they think they're kidding? The DFL has a soft-on-crime reputation crisis. Sheriff Fletcher highlighted that crisis by speaking plainly. Minnesota's sanctuary city policies offer...

The Truth in Funding Minnesota Schools/Learners, plus a Proposal for $7K for Parents to Invest...at NO Cost to Taxpayers, Part I by Ramblin’ Rose This article is about Minnesota’s ESA (Education Savings Account), not the federal program of ECCA (Educational Choice for Children Act). While both advocate for education and fund special ways for parents and children to make better choices for learning, they are very different. This post focuses on an approximate $7000 savings account for students who are NOT enrolled in traditionally funded public schools. ESAs are NOT vouchers, even if some politicians intentionally misuse the term. Educated citizens were vital for our fledgling nation. Consequently, education was a priority as the USA began. The first public school opened in 1635 in Boston. Support for education and an educated citizenry continues. For decades, Minnesota was championed as a leader in education, but now half of our students cannot read nor do math at grade level, dropping...

Without a significant shake-up in Minneapolis's political leadership (Mayor Frey, the City Council) and police leadership, it looks like Minneapolis will remain a lost cause in terms of public safety. Joe Gamaldi, the national vice president of the Fraternal Order of Police, had some harsh criticisms for Mayor Frey. For instance, Gamaldi told Liz Collin that "I think Mayor [Jacob] Frey likes to talk tough with everyone, but I think we all know he is completely spineless . Because these gangs know that even if they are arrested, they’re just gonna be let right back out over and over and over again." Ms. Collin reported in her podcast that "This past weekend marked yet another violent Fourth of July in Minneapolis. Dozens of car windows were smashed, there was a homicide, and several people were injured by gunfire—with some of it caught on camera. Despite the danger to the public, many local leaders seem unwilling to publicly acknowledge that there is a Somali gang ...

Friday morning, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio ordered Criminal Illegal Alien Tou Lue Vang to be deported back to his native Laos. The Trump administration issued this statement om the deportation. The administration said "A convicted child sex offender is no longer in our country thanks to President Donald J. Trump and his Administration — defeating a sick attempt by Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison to lend him safe harbor in the so-called 'sanctuary' state." When Vang was initially arrested for assaulting the then-10-year-old girl, they removed Vang's green card. That made it easier for DHS and the State Department to deport Vang. Thank God for big favors. The DFL has focused too much on sanctuary city status. They didn't focus on putting together a coherent, popular governing agenda. That's difficult work. It's easier to flood the country with criminal illegal aliens, give them drivers licenses, then have them vote i...

Anyone that's paid attention to Minnesota politics knows that AG Keith Ellison is multiple layers beneath a dirtbag. After reading this Alpha News article , it's obvious that Keith Ellison isn't into enforcing laws. He's just a political hack with the nastiest anti-Trump bias I've ever seen. The DFL is the ultimate soft-on-crime political party in history. The proof is in the article. It says "Perhaps most shocking, despite pleading guilty to first-degree criminal sexual conduct involving a child under 13, Vang never served a day in prison . Instead, the court imposed a stayed 144-month prison sentence and placed him on probation for 30 years. He was discharged from probation in 2019." This happened before Keith Ellison was elected to Congress, which is 12 years before getting elected AG. Still, Ellison should've taken that into consideration before voting to grant Vang's pardon. The good news is that U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio revoked Va...

On Friday, July 3, 2026, an American flag was flown upside-down "at a Somali Independence Day celebration in St. Cloud." Alpha News is reporting "St. Cloud City Councilmember Scott Brodeen said he went to Lake George Municipal Park after receiving a message from a resident asking whether the city council had approved flying the American flag upside down during the event." That isn't the end of the story, unfortunately. The major part of the story is that the DFL is trying to BUY Somali votes by being disrespectful to the people who settled the land in the 1850s. According to the Alpha News article, "Brodeen urged residents to consider the incident when deciding whom to support at the ballot box, though he did not identify any specific candidates. However, the banner in the Rocks and Cows video indicated that the event was also sponsored by Democrat Minnesota House candidates Zachary Dorholt and Abdi Daisane, congressional candidate Doug Chapin and U.S. Se...

Obviously, a war that's lasted a few months isn't a forever war. Still, it isn't too soon to question President Trump's exit strategy and his accomplishment goals. The Powell Doctrine summary indicates that President Trump has anwered most of the major questions of the Doctrine: Is a vital national security interest threatened? Do we have a clear attainable objective? Have the risks and costs been fully and frankly analyzed? Have all other non-violent policy means been fully exhausted? Is there a plausible exit strategy to avoid endless entanglement? Have the consequences of our action been fully considered? Is the action supported by the American people? Do we have genuine broad international support? It's apparent that President Trump doesn't have "a plausible exit strategy to avoid endless entanglement." His approach to the negotiation phase of the war has been more of a play-it-by-ear or we'll-see-what-happens than a we'll-pound-them-into-...

Better late than never. Still, it's too late in terms of letting Iran's theocrats and IRGC know who the boss in this relationship is. CBS is reporting "President Trump said the U.S. would likely launch more strikes against Iran Wednesday night, telling reporters at a NATO summit in Turkey 'we hit them very hard last night,' and 'we're going to hit them hard again tonight.'" CBS is also reporting "Mr. Trump said, 'as far as I'm concerned, it's over,' when asked about the ceasefire with Iran. After an exchange of strikes by both countries, Mr. Trump called Iran's leaders "sick" and declared it 'a waste of time dealing with them.'" I'm not interested in working on snother negotiated settlement. Trump is right. It's a waste of time dealing with these theocrats. They simply aren't trustworthy. My most favored outcomes would be locating the theocrats, the IRGC and the Basij, then take them out ...

Graham Platner is missing lots of thing but chutzpah isn't one of those things. He's got that in overabundance. The Maine Morning Star is reporting that "The Maine Democratic Party accused U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner’s campaign Tuesday of trying to influence the process for selecting a replacement nominee, as pressure mounts for him to leave the race." It's difficult to picture such an obnoxious man trying to play a hand that's best thrown away. Platner's political career is finished. What position is he in to demand such a change? Executive Director Devon Murphy-Anderson wrote "Unfortunately, Graham Platner’s team has repeatedly reached out to us in an attempt to put their thumb on the scale of what this process looks like. We’ve repeatedly reiterated to Graham Platner’s team that they have no role in determining our next Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate, nor in determining what this process looks like. We have also reiterated that Gr...

When you study economic models, it doesn't take long to figure out that socialism quickly leads to an affordability crisis. Though John Phelan's op-ed doesn't directly tie to socialism, it definitely highlights the difference between treating symptoms and fixing problems . In his op-ed, Phelan wrote "What can state and local governments do to alleviate this squeeze? One set of proposals is taxpayer-financed subsidies or tax credits for low-income households, but this is a misdiagnosis that doesn’t understand or tackle the problem. It regards the prices as the problem to be treated not as what they are: signals alerting us to underlying issues with supply of and demand for a good or service. These underlying issues must be treated to ease the squeeze on affordability." Socialism isn't a growth-oriented economic model. It's a redistributionist-oriented economic model. That means socialist models are based on scarcity of goods and services. Demand stays high...

Over the years, KSTP has done a fair job of covering the news. Over the past year+, I've questioned KSTP's impartiality to the point that I'm wondering if they're competing with the Star Tribune, formerly nicknamed the Star & Sickle. After reading this KSTP article , I'm questioning KSTP's impartiality more. The article opens by saying "Brian Nicholson, the running mate for GOP-endorsed gubernatorial candidate Kendall Qualls, confirms to 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS he was present on the U.S. Capitol grounds on Jan. 6, 2021. 'I was one of thousands of patriots who went to Washington DC to support President Trump after the 2020 election — I don’t apologize for being there,' Nicholson said in a statement. 'There were a lot of questions about the results of the 2020 election and I wanted to hear from, and show my support for, the greatest president of my lifetime.'" Next is the story's lede. That's where it says "Nicholson, who was n...

The weekend before America 250 Weekend, Mark Levin interviewed Jonathan Turley about our founding documents and Prof. Turley's book titled "Rage and the Republic: The Unfinished Story of the American Revolution." Levin opens the interview by saying "Your point is, I believe, they're now up for grabs. They're under attack. And if we lose these guardrails, we effectively have the French Revolution. Is that your point?" Prof. Turley replied "Yes. The fact is, we have to answer that question. What then is this America? Not just who we were then. Who are we now at this moment? And you have many that want to change who we are. That's one of the reasons Thomas Paine was so interesting for me in the book. Thomas Paine came to this country just two years before the Revolution. Two years before he wrote Common Sense. He wrote it anonymously. The man who sent him here came upon him when he had failed at everything. He had been fired from every job he held...