is it that you don’t get?  Much part of the base’s angst is often due to the perception that the Establishment “picks” the Party’s candidate, this is just craziness (emphasis mine):

GOP donors wanted Bush, Rubio, and Walker to boycott debates unless Trump was disqualified

So, so dumb, but that’s our donor class for you.

Many national Republican officials are increasingly resigned to Mr. Trump’s looming presence. At a meeting of the Republican Governors Association this week in Aspen, Colo., donors and operatives mused about how to prevent him from hijacking the debate.

One idea that came up was to urge three leading candidates — Jeb Bush, the former Florida governor; Mr. Walker; and Senator Marco Rubio of Florida — to band together and state that they would not participate in any debate in which Mr. Trump was present, using his refusal to rule out a third-party bid as a pretext for taking such a hard line. The thinking, according to a Republican involved in the conversations, was that the lesser-funded prospects who have been eclipsed by Mr. Trump would follow suit, and the TV networks airing the debates would be forced to bar Mr. Trump in order to have a full complement of candidates.

Allahpundit has is own reasons why this is such a dumb reason.  Mine is different (and I already gave away the spoiler):

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Why?  When you FORCE some people into Medicaid, costs go up.  When you give something to people, they say “Someone ELSE is paying for it?  Fine!”.  North Dakota did that…and now the expense to taxpayers is now becoming seen.  And can you guess who (and which Party) is saddling the N.D. taxpayers with this (emphasis mine and reformatted):

Surprise! It seems the costs associated with the expansion of Medicaid in North Dakota are higher than what was originally projected. Yet, Republican North Dakota Gov. Jack Dalrymple’s decision to expand this awful government-run health care program that’s an integral part of Obamacare is a “win-win” for him, according to Say Anything’s Rob Port:

Yup, Republican!  And wait – it gets better!

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Great example from Instapundit (in its entirety, emphasis mine, reformatted):

KASICH REVEALS HILLARY CAME TO HIS ENGAGEMENT PARTY:

Sean Hannity, who interviewed Kasich after his announcement on Tuesday, asked the Ohio governor about comments he’s made downplaying the IRS and Benghazi scandals.

“You said, ‘I’m more worried about how we’re going to fix America than Hillary’s email server and you said, ‘I don’t believe you beat her by talking about Benghazi or her emails–”.  “No, you don’t,” Kasich interrupted Hannity.

While he said these issues would likely come up in a campaign, Kasich said, “My opinion, the Republican that can best articulate a big  message…Look, I’ve known Hillary a long time. When I got engaged to be married she came to the party, OK? ”

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For full disclosure, I was honored to be AFP’s Activist of the Year for New Media in 2011 while he was it’s NH Executive Director and Steve was selected as one of their Bloggers of the Month; take that for what you will.  Anyways, I’ve known Corey for a few years now and while we haven’t agreed on every jot and tittle on policy and issues, I think this piece at Politico is a fair one with just a couple of “shots to the back” that are unwarranted.  Hard working, always on the go, juggling multiple things at the same time; the one thing I can say is probably the best that can be said of a political operative, at least in my dealings with him: honest broker.  I emailed him back a few weeks ago and told him, after I had heard he was going to be working for Trump to “hold on tight, this is going to be the wildest rocket ride you’ve ever had”.

So far, it seems, that prediction is coming true.  And living up to #2!  A couple of excerpts (reformatted, emphasis mine):

The man behind Donald Trump’s presidential campaign has a knack for spectacle, an eye toward making money and a proven willingness to defy the Republican Party.  In other words, Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski is a lot like his new boss.  Lewandowski, who has been advising Trump since January and managing his improbable — and, for many Republicans, headache-inducing — run to the top of the GOP primary field in national polls has spent the past decade and a half drifting away from the party establishment.

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A pack, not a herd – De Tocqueville example where regular citizens see a need, and go fill it.  No Government necessary to provide “guidance” – in this case, Government has been running away from it.  Given the anger that many have towards their Government (re: Obama Administration) is more for itself, a fundamental transformation, and now Obama’s legacy, and seeing that this Administration is all too willing to throw those that have given much to protect the rest of us, ordinary citizens are doing the job that Government won’t do.  So they have, all over the country, gone and stand guard at recruiters’ offices.

And gaining a LOT of PR and media attention.  Methinks the brass is mostly caught in the middle, but some of this is of their own political natures at the top, so now they’ve decided that they’re tired of being embarrassed.  And sent out an order to the recruiters to call the cops on these armed citizens – putting them at risk of getting SWATTED?  Emphasis mine:

Subject: USAREC Policy – Armed citizens at recruiting centers ATO’s,

Situation: The USAREC COC has received reports from two Brigade ATOs, social media and TV coverage that law abiding armed citizens are standing outside of our recruiting centers in an attempt to safeguard our recruiters.

Execution:

1) Recruiters will not acknowledge the presence or interact with these civilians. If questioned by these alleged concerned citizens; be polite, professional, and terminate the conversation immediately and report the incident to local law enforcement and complete USAREC Form 958 IAW USAREC 190-4 (SIR)

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This one is for you, Ed Naile (the foremost Voter Fraud hunter in NH), and one is accomplished with the help of your friends:  the Interstate Voter Registration Crosscheck Program.  The Heritage Foundation has documented nearly 250 cases where nefarious citizens, officials, candidates and campaign operatives conspired to commit vote fraud, compromising the integrity of our elections to achieve their ideological goals.

New additions:

Kentucky: In eastern Kentucky, Ross Harris and Loren Glenn Turner funneled $41,000 to the 2002 county judgeship campaign of Doug Hays for what the defendants claimed was a lawful operation to pay more than 1,200 people $50 each to drive voters to the polls.  But a jury determined that this alleged vote-hauling program was just a disguise for what was in reality a vote-buying scheme. The punishment reflected the severity of the fraud: Hays was sentenced to six months behind bars, and Harris was hit with a $100,000 fine.

Mississippi:

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Kathy Dunton | GrokWatch News Desk

I am sure to tick off many of my fellow conservatives with this one, but here it goes…

It was very exciting a couple of weeks ago to hear him say pretty much what every American is thinking. But now, as they say, he is sucking out all the oxygen. I DO like that he is pissing off the establishment, but this thing with McCain is getting as old as McCain’s time in the Senate.

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Lisa Brady, M.Ed. | GrokWatch News Desk

Still Waiting for Justice!

7-13-2015

Dear Governor Hassan,

I am looking forward to a response from you with regard to the following matter that I am also sending to the press:

The New Hampshire NEA (teachers’ union) has gone on record, publicly supporting you and has referred to you as a ‘tireless advocate for New Hampshire school children.’ If that were true, then why would you allow a video that exploits a non-verbal autistic student, in the state of New Hampshire, to continue to be sold for profit at the NH Institute on Disability? I am left with the impression that you may be ignoring the violations because the New Hampshire Department of Education and the NEA are considered major funders of the video? After all, you have and continue to benefit from the NEA’s political support.

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Rich, well connected men should not be able to use their power and money to attract and rape minors, and then pay them cash so they can get away with it. But that is what prominent Democrat Terry Bean has attempted, and not just once. He has a history of paying off the minor he is accused of raping to avoid criminal charges, but this time the Judge isn’t having any of that.

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“Imagine being awakened in the middle of the night by a gang of police, shouting and waving their weapons at you. They turn your house inside-out, steal your laptop and phone, then order you not to tell anyone they were there. All this happened because your political beliefs landed on the wrong side of those officials in power. This is not a scenario from China, Russia, or Iran. Welcome to the very real tyranny of modern America.”

(H/T: Instapundit, who adds:

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“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects,[a] against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.” —Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution

The Free Stater’s advocacy for open carry forced the issue of police agencies  to be educated on what the law has to say about open carry. Such advocacy also served to set clear boundaries upon which Law enforcement acts regarding open carry.

Despite this uptick in recent years toward open carry, there still remain those

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