For years, I’ve listened to Republican talk show hosts and politicians claim that the American “people” are profoundly conservative. These phrases appear whenever they defend “the right of the unborn,” call for closing the borders, or demand we stop the flow of fentanyl. They stand their ground, explaining, “The people demand it.”Just last week, Roger Kimball lamented the “legitimacy draining out of our governing institutions” and argued that the solution lies in turning our focus away from Washington and toward “the real source of legitimacy, which is with the people.”There is indeed a 'basket of deplorables,' though not in the sense Hillary Clinton meant. The real deplorables are 'the others.'Kimball’s reference draws from the framers of the American Constitution, who viewed power as ultimately residing with “the people.” But that was then, and now is now. In 1787, it was clear who "the people" were: Christians, regular Bible-readers, mostly property-owners, and people capable of local self-governance.Today, the concept of “the people” is far less clear. With an estimated 346 million people living within our borders and the influx of illegal immigrants actively promoted by Democrats for cheap labor and votes, it’s nearly impossible to determine who actually resides in the United States.About half of our likely voters intend to vote for Kamala Harris, a presidential candidate who has been largely responsible for our open borders and for the fact that 15,811 of the 11 to 12 million illegal aliens she and her party have welcomed into our midst have turned out to be serial rapists. According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, 662,556 of our undocumented residents, most of whom the Democrats have ecstatically welcomed, are convicted criminals. Moreover, in national polls, Harris and her party are only trailing Trump by about 13 points when respondents are asked about the candidates’ ability to address the immigration crisis.Harris leads Trump by 19 points on the abortion issue, pushing for a nationwide, unrestricted abortion right. To achieve this, she is willing to remove the Senate filibuster if necessary. This expanded right would include the ability to abort infants who survive late-term procedures — legislation her running mate, Tim Walz, already enacted as governor of Minnesota.Harris and her party also support the right to perform gender-affirming surgeries on minors, which involves genital mutilation, and allow males who claim to be female to use women's facilities and compete in girls' sports. Should we assume that half of the electorate, who support these practices, represent “the people”? If not, why?Politicians and journalists on the right may invoke the magic phrase “the people,” though they rarely specify whom they exclude from that definition. They likely hope their audience will respond to the term’s familiar sound, feeling an affinity for politicians who use it. However, we shouldn’t expect today’s populists to match the exalted tone George Washington used when appealing to “the people.”In his June 1783 circular to the states, Washington emphasized the piety and biblical virtues he believed were essential for “a happy nation.” Unlike today’s Republican politicians, Washington knew exactly who “the people” were, and their veneration for him was well-deserved.William F. Buckley Jr. is reputed to have said about Willmoore Kendall, his Yale professor and a defender of populism: “He would have preferred to be ruled by the first 2000 residents listed in the New Haven telephone directory rather than by the faculty of Yale.” As someone driven out of the Yale faculty 60 years ago, one can understand Kendall’s feelings toward his former colleagues.But even more relevant is what Kendall was saying about his own populism. Those who invoke “the people” usually have certain people in mind but not others. And from Kendall’s distinctions, it would appear that his fellow academics didn’t rate high among those who belonged to his “people.”Let me offer my own advice about defining “the people.” We should definitely exclude anyone planning to vote for the Democratic Party this fall. I can't imagine anyone but a moral lunatic or hopeless ignoramus making that terrible choice.There is indeed a “basket of deplorables,” though not in the sense Hillary Clinton meant. The real deplorables are “the others” — those who don’t care about subverting and denaturing what’s left of our constitutional republic.Maybe someday MAGA politicians will tell us that they represent the kind of people Washington had in mind when he spoke of “the people”: patriotic, God-fearing citizens.

An anonymous artist created a massive marionette depicting former President Donald Trump, and the bizarre installation is going to go on tour ahead of the election. A spokesperson for the artist contacted KSNV-TV and told the station the depiction is entitled "Crooked and Obscene." KSNV reported that numerous cars were pulling over to allow viewers a better look at the nude Trump on Interstate 15 north of Las Vegas, Nevada. The marionette is 43 feet tall and 10 feet wide, weighing more than 6,000 pounds. It's composed of foam placed on top of rebar and hangs from a large crane on an industrial site. "Is it a political statement? I don't know what it is," said one visitor to KSNV. "Hey, Vegas. Anything will happen in Vegas." The spokesperson said that the installation will be taken down on Tuesday and will go on tour in key battleground states just weeks before the election in November. The Nevada Republican Party strongly condemned the statue and described it as "deplorable" in a statement. “While families drive through Las Vegas, they are forced to view this offensive marionette, designed intentionally for shock value rather than meaningful dialogue," the statement added. “President Trump and Republicans are focused on delivering results that matter — reducing inflation, securing our borders, creating jobs, and ensuring a brighter future for all Americans."News video footage of the art installation can be viewed on the report from KSNV on YouTube. Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Stanley Milford Jr. is known as the Paranormal Ranger — and it’s a title that’s been well-earned. Milford Jr. has recounted dozens of Bigfoot sightings and has himself had a terrifying encounter with aliens in his own room. “I had an experience similar to sleep paralysis,” he explains to Pat Gray of “Pat Gray Unleashed.” Sleep paralysis, in layman's terms, is what happens when your body is in between different stages of your sleep cycle. While your mind is awake, your body is still asleep — and many of those who suffer from it end up having auditory, sensory, and visual hallucinations while they're paralyzed. “In my room I have lighting, ambient room lighting, and those lights were on,” Milford Jr. continues. “That’s how I woke up, but I couldn’t move, and I knew that I was conscious because I could look about the room and see all the details of my bedroom.” “This thing was standing at the foot of my bed and I wasn’t able to move. I was trying to fight my way out of this paralysis, and at the moment that I did come out of that, I pretty much sprang out of bed,” he continues. While the creature he saw was gone, he recalls a nauseating “strong odor” that he associated with a “petroleum kind of smell.” “So, you didn’t get a space rectal exam or anything from it?” Gray asks, half joking. “I do know that my pajamas were inside out. The shirt I was wearing was inside out,” Milford Jr. explains, warning that when you’re involved in paranormal investigations, “you do open yourself up to communication with these kinds of things.” Want more from Pat Gray?To enjoy more of Pat's biting analysis and signature wit as he restores common sense to a senseless world, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

Central Texas has become a sterling example of how America can restore its manufacturing capacity and industrial strength, which is central to our defense industrial base and national security. A recent visit to meet with local and state stakeholders revealed that public-private partnerships can effectively overcome the obstacles and impediments to expand and return industrial productivity, accelerating economic growth, creating jobs, and safeguarding our military capacity. Unfortunately, our visit also made clear that the policies of the Biden-Harris administration impede growth, obstruct workforce development, constrain employment, and have placed our defense industrial base and national security at risk. Conservative policies in Texas are increasing real wages, growing the economy, and improving national security. One of the main problems is that the United States no longer trains and educates workers to sustain the needs of the defense industry. This is largely due to the federal government’s heavy subsidization of colleges and universities through federal student aid, grants, and contracts, amounting to over $100 billion annually. This outsized support has come at the expense of technical colleges and trade schools. When the federal government attempts to unlawfully forgive student loans or increase college accessibility by pouring billions into the system without guiding students toward economically viable degrees or certifications, it only makes matters worse and ultimately does the country a disservice. The United States has a great need for more doctors, engineers, and scientists, but it also has a need for welders and workers in advanced manufacturing. Unfortunately, liberal policies from the federal government are discouraging millions of Americans who are not planning on getting a four-year bachelor’s degree from training and entering the advanced manufacturing workforce. It would be better to redirect a portion of federal education funding toward instructing people in the skilled trades. Another good step would be for federal lawmakers to decouple federal financing from higher education accreditation. Colleges and universities must receive an “accreditation stamp” to access federal student aid dollars. Many colleges and universities can achieve accreditation and still offer weak academic programs. The current system of “accreditation” favors existing expensive business models for higher education, locks out innovation and competition, and prevents students from exploring atypical forms of higher education, such as paying for individual classes and courses that are more applicable to the job market. Adopting reforms such as the Higher Education Reform and Opportunity Act or the College Cost Reduction Act would provide much-needed accreditation reform, increase learning options, and lower costs. In this respect, Texas is ahead of the curve. In 2013, under the conservative leadership of Gov. Rick Perry, Texas passed the “Returned Value Formula” funding model, which evaluates and then funds technical colleges in the state entirely based on the earnings of students and employment outcomes rather than the number of people enrolled or a variety of other factors. This put the onus on the college to ensure its graduates secure good jobs and strong income potential, making the college accountable for their success in the workforce. The focus on outcome and metrics has resulted in wage growth and more degrees in high-demand occupations. It should be replicated in states across the country to ensure that taxpayer dollars are used efficiently, providing students with a strong return on their investment. Doing so would deliver tangible results for industry leaders and businesses alike, by incentivizing colleges to align their programs with industry needs and focus on producing job-ready graduates. This isn’t the only way Texas fosters a successful manufacturing ecosystem. In Central Texas, the Texas State Technical College System and industry leaders collaborate and talk to each other. Texas State Technical College campuses adapt the curriculum to ensure the skills they teach align with industry needs, making students more employable and productive. In return, the industry quickly hires graduates and even donates training equipment. Lastly, programs under the Texas Operation Welcome Home umbrella help provide workforce training and job placement to veterans transitioning out of the military and into industry. These programs should be used as a model in other states, which should replicate them to boost veterans’ employment in high-paying jobs. While the Biden-Harris Administration is raising prices, stifling economic growth, and compromising national security, conservative policies in Texas are increasing real wages, growing the economy, and improving national security. Texas is a shining example of success for the nation, and other states should follow its lead.

Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz has claimed he was in China during the infamous massacre at Tiananmen Square, but documents reportedly contradict his story. The revelation is just the latest in a series of exaggerations and outright fabrications made by the Minnesota governor to inflate his political resume. 'As the events were unfolding, several of us went in.' The discrepancy was first reported by Minnesota Public Radio’s APM Reports that said the Walz campaign was unable to "produce documentation to back up Walz’s statement that he was there during the uprising."While Walz had frequently claimed that he was visiting China when the government violently crushed a pro-democracy uprising, local reports show that he was actually at home in Nebraska during the historical event. One local news report placed Walz at a National Guard storeroom in the city of Alliance in May 1989. The reports said he didn't leave for China until August, when the protests in China had already ended. Media outlets like the New York Times, CBS News, and National Public Radio had repeated Walz' story without scrutiny. "As the events were unfolding, several of us went in. And I still remember the train station in Hong Kong," said Walz at a congressional hearing in 2014. "There was a large number of, especially European, I think, very angry that we would still go after what had happened, but it was my belief at that time that the diplomacy was going to happen on many levels."The Walz campaign has already admitted to exaggerating the number of times he had visited China, which he claimed was 30 visits, but in actually was about half that number. He also extolled the virtues of the communist system when he returned to the U.S. and taught at a high school after receiving favorable treatment that he compared to being treated "as a king." The communist regime in China was condemned for the military action against the protests, including the use of People’s Liberation Army tanks. As many as 10,000 people may have been killed, although some estimates place the number far lower. Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

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