Today's Standard

• January 6, 2017

House GOP Revives Rule Allowing Them To Slash Salaries of Corrupt Federal Workers

The most significant civil service reform in decades.
5:45 AM, Jan 06, 2017
The Washington Post reports that House Republicans have revived an obscure rule that could prove to be the most significant civil service reform in decades: Read more

On Her Way Out, Barbara Boxer Flips Out

Shadowboxing with Trump.
5:15 AM, Jan 06, 2017
When it comes to pushing the Donald J. Trump panic button, hardly anyone has been more industrious than just-retired Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-California). Read more

Notes on the Substandard: Scorsese Edition

4:30 AM, Jan 06, 2017

Endnotes and digressions from the latest show:

* Sonny starts out by talking about something called Pappy Van Winkle bourbon. He said it was a collector’s item, but boy, howdy, I had no idea. If you go on eBay people are paying $50 for an empty bottle of the stuff. Empty.

* Also, early on I mention t-shirts from a brand called Lost; they're the apparel side of Mayhem, a company that makes very fine surfboards. I've never surfed a Mayhem board (though I really want to ride a 6'6" Quiver Killer) but I'm here to tell you that Lost t-shirts are among the finest pieces of clothing in the world. And pretty much the only shirts I wear.

 Read more

A Bipartisan Repudiation of President Obama

House Democrats and Republicans condemn Anti-Israel U.N. Vote
7:39 PM, Jan 05, 2017
The House of Representatives on Thursday voted to condemn a United Nations resolution critical of Israeli settlements as anti-Israel and one-sided, in a rebuke of the Obama administration’s decision to allow the resolution to pass. Read more

Funny How? The Substandard Tackles Scorsese

4:49 PM, Jan 05, 2017
As far back as we can remember, we always wanted to be a podcast. But tempers flare: Sonny tells Jonathan to go get his shine box. Achievement Unlocked for JVL! And Vic claims his favorite Christmas present was a summer sausage--can you beat it? Designer jeans, bourbon at sea, and yet even more Rogue One. All on this week's Substandard! Read more

Reports: Dan Coats Tapped for National Intelligence Chief

4:26 PM, Jan 05, 2017
Former senator and U.S. Ambassador to Germany Dan Coats is President-elect Donald Trump’s choice for Director of National Intelligence, according to multiple reports, with a formal announcement expected as soon as Friday. Read more

Intel Chiefs Now 'More Resolute' About Russian Election Interference

Clapper, IC raise stakes amid tension with Trump.
2:39 PM, Jan 05, 2017
Top U.S. intelligence officials doubled down Wednesday on assessments that the Kremlin led a campaign to influence the 2016 election, with the country’s intel chief blaming Russia for more than just data "hacking." Read more

Top U.S. Intelligence Officials Say Assange Has No Credibility

11:10 AM, Jan 05, 2017
Two of the country's top intelligence officers say the man behind the WikiLeaks organization, Julian Assange, has no credibility and has done damage to the United States. Read more

The Washington Post's 'Express,' With an Error for the Ages

10:39 AM, Jan 05, 2017
Far be it for me to mock another publication's typos. But this screamer from Thursday's Express, a free daily tabloid put out for the Washington Post for subway commuters, deserves some kind of recognition. Read more

Kristol Slams Trump's Public Doubt of U.S. Intel on Russia, Siding with Assange: 'Foolish, Irresponsible'

10:30 AM, Jan 05, 2017
Bill Kristol warned Trump supporters against justifying President-elect Donald Trump’s doubts about intelligence assessments affirming Kremlin attempts to sway the results of the 2016 election. Trump has reaffirmed those doubts in recent days by siding with WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who released tranches of the Democrats' hacked emails on his website, and denied that the source of those emails was the Russian government. Read more

Chicago Police Considering Hate Crime Charges in Facebook Live Attack

10:20 AM, Jan 05, 2017
Police tell the Chicago Tribune that four black people who earlier this week broadcast live on Facebook their violent attack on a white man with special needs could be charged with hate crimes. The attackers were shown to be yelling about Donald Trump and race. The Tribune has more: Read more

San Francisco Transit Website Promotes 'Inauguration Day P*ssy March'

10:00 AM, Jan 05, 2017
President-elect Trump is set to take office on January 20th. This week, the website of the city of San Francisco's Bay Area Rapid Transit system listed an event marking the inauguration of the soon-to-be 45th president. The event is entitled "Inauguration Day P*ssy March." Read more

Prufrock: Boozy Wodehouse, Shakespeare in America, and Bad Women Writers

9:30 AM, Jan 05, 2017
The best in books and arts from around the web, including: Marco Grazzi on the 1966 Florence flood, a history of the U. S. Marshalls Service, Michael Dirda on Dumas’s The Red Sphinx, and more. Read more

How Republicans Can Avoid Being Blamed for High Premiums

8:19 AM, Jan 05, 2017
When it comes to trying to decide what the worst part of Obamacare is, there’s no shortage of contenders. From a constitutional standpoint, the worst part is its unprecedented individual mandate. From the standpoint of the republic's overall well-being, the worst part is its consolidation and centralization of power. From the standpoint of preserving the high quality of American medicine, the worst part is its determination to move doctors out of private practice and make them hospital employees (the better to control them). And from a cost standpoint, the worst part is its effective ban on the traditional idea of insurance—for since at least the Renaissance, insurance has been something that one must buy before the thing happens that one is protecting againstRead more

We Are Living in an Alternate Timeline

Sinbad, Anthea Butler, and the Mandela Effect.
7:15 AM, Jan 05, 2017
There were two stories before Christmas that pointed to the possibility that we are now living in an alternate universe, or have diverged onto a new timeline, or pick your Fringe metaphor. Read more

Obama Ally Perriello to Run for Governor of Virginia

6:00 AM, Jan 05, 2017
Tom Perriello, the one-term Democratic congressman from Virginia, will run for governor in this year’s election. Jonathan Martin at the New York Times reports: Read more

Is The GOP Really Ready For 'Repeal and Replace?'

Hosted by Michael Graham.
5:30 AM, Jan 05, 2017
The WEEKLY STANDARD Podcast with deputy online editor Chris Deaton on Obamacare's future in 2017. Read more

An Uncertain Trumpet

From the January 2 / January 9, 2017, issue of THE WEEKLY STANDARD.
5:15 AM, Jan 05, 2017
The election of Donald Trump initially seemed to be a lifeline to an American military suffering from unrelenting budget cuts—a loss of more than $250 billion in spending power from the 2009 budget alone—and an equally punishing pace of operations. The morning after the election, Forbes magazine confidently predicted the restoration of at least $500 billion in defense spending. Read more

Ted Cruz Joins Lindsey Graham to Cut United Nations Funding

"They don't really care what we have to say, but they want our dollars."
5:00 AM, Jan 05, 2017
Republican senators Ted Cruz and Lindsey Graham are joining forces to propose legislation that will cut off American taxpayer funding of the United Nations until the international body reverses its December 24 Security Council resolution on Israel. Read more

Rob Schneider's Attempt at Spanish Cooking Roasted for Being Culturally Offensive

You can't do it!
5:00 PM, Jan 04, 2017
Comedian Rob Schneider decided to make paella, and got himself into a paella pan of hot water thanks to the culinary-correctness policeRead more

Celebrating 100 Years of the National Parks Service


Safety Not Guaranteed

Yellowstone in the age of the helicopter parent

By Jonathan V. Last

The Bluest Blue

Crater Lake National Park, a volcanic jewel

By Geoffrey Norman

Mountains Alive

At Glacier National Park

By Geoffrey Norman

High Peaks and Splendid Walks

The pleasures of Rocky Mountain National Park

By Geoffrey Norman

The Most Beautiful Star

On gazing into the Grand Canyon

By Geoffrey Norman

...