Happy Wednesday!

Especially if you are CNN or a late night comedy writer. Not so happy if you want a boring GOP Swamp Creature perfectly happy with getting trounced as long as he can go on Meet the Press and enjoy cocktails in Georgetown.

Donald Trump Announced He is Running in 2024: ‘America’s Comeback Starts Right Now’

Ol’ Orange Hair is Back! Start spreading the news. Last night from Mar-a-Lago, Trump declared, “In order to make America great and glorious again, I am tonight announcing my candidacy for President of the United States.” Added the former president, “I am running because I believe the world has not yet seen the true glory of what this nation can be.”

TRUMP: "In order to make America great and glorious again, I am tonight announcing my candidacy for President of the United States." #TrumpAnnouncement https://t.co/w2gicV8VMm pic.twitter.com/KM0zcvJi3n

— NEWSMAX (@NEWSMAX) November 16, 2022

Though he did list his vast accomplishments in an uncharacteristically somber and focused speech, Trump repeatedly stressed that the fight ahead is not his own.

“This will not be my campaign,” he said, “This will be our campaign all together. Because the only force strong enough to defeat the massive corruption we are up against is you, the American people.”

Trump made clear he’s not just in this to take down Biden. He’s coming for the Swamp.

I am your voice. The Washington establishment wants to silence us, but we will not let them do that. What we have built together over the past six years is the greatest movement in history because it is not about politics. It’s about our love for this great country, America, and we’re not going to let it fail.

“We must conduct a top to bottom overhaul to clean out the festering rot and corruption of Washington, D.C.,” he said, vowing to take back the corridors of power. He proposed term limits on Congress, a ban on lobbying by former members of Congress and new laws against insider trading.

Trump tattooed the never-ending failures of the Biden Administration, and the dangerous times we face. “They want you to focus on global warming that may harm us in 300 years and not nuclear war that could wipe us out in an instant. Biden is leading us to the brink of nuclear war.”

A charge that might have sounded outlandish two years ago, but given the Russian missile that hit Poland Tuesday, and the potential for a massive NATO retaliation, Trump’s pronouncement read more like last night’s evening news.

Trump closed with a plea for unity, and courage. “We need every Patriot on board. Because this is not just a campaign, this is a quest to save our country.”

“We will be attacked, we will be slandered, we will be persecuted … but we will not be intimidated,” he said. “We will persevere, we will stand tall in the storm, we will march forward into the torrent, and we, in the end, will win.”

A Russian Missile Lands in Poland, Killing Two

Two Polish citizens were killed Tuesday when a missile launched as part of Russia’s assault on Ukrainian power facilities landed in Poland. Russian weaponry killing NATO civilians is very serious business. This could trigger Article 5 of the NATO pact, which declares that an attack on one ally is an attack on all. Meaning, we might well find ourselves in a full-blown war with Russia. Thus far, Poland only seems to want to invoke Article 4 of the NATO pact, which allows member nations to gather together their fellow members to discuss responses.

So where did the missile come from? Joe Biden muddled the issue with a halting, grappling response “It is unlikely — in the minds of the trajectory — that it was fired from Russia.”

JUST IN: Biden on reported strike in Poland that killed 2: "It's unlikely — in the minds of the trajectory — that it was fired from Russia." pic.twitter.com/AMRSmpSz1n

— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) November 16, 2022

Jason Scott Jones has written a must read article warning about rushing too fast into conflict. It’s called “Remember the Fake Kuwaiti Babies ‘Thrown Out of Incubators’ Before Rushing Into World War III.”

FBI’s J6 Shenanigans

I think “conspiracy theory” is another way of saying “tomorrow’s headlines.” The New York Times confirms (begrudgingly admits?) that at least 8 FBI informants were embedded into the Proud Boys before January 6. That revelation was found in court papers, as lawyers for several of the J6 defendants argued that prosecutors withheld vital information from defendants. This comes after we learned that the VP of the Oath Keepers was an FBI informant. The question is just how much planning and pushing and prodding did these informants do to stoke up the illegal aspects of the January 6 protest?

So if there was this big insurrection planned, did these guys just come along for the ride? Hope to catch a show at the Kennedy Center? And if they knew there was no insurrection being planned, isn’t all this talk of “insurrection” and “sedition” an utter scam?

Or was there something more sinister afoot?

Don’t expect the FBI to fess up to running the same scam they ran in the Gretchen Whitmer kidnapping case. And certainly don’t expect FBI Director Christopher Wray to come clean. He was asked a fairly simple and very specific question during a hearing Tuesday.

REP. HIGGINS: "Did you have confidential human sources dressed as Trump supporters inside The Capitol on January 6th prior to the doors being opened?"

FBI DIR. WRAY: "I have to be very careful about what I can say." pic.twitter.com/COGkWCPCpY

— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) November 15, 2022

Twice Wray gave a wormy, slippery answer. The good news about the GOP taking over the House? They won’t have to settle for worms.

Not Quite There Yet, But GOP Projected to Take Over the House

Republicans were still officially one seat shy of reaching the magic 218 seats to take the House. However, several news outlets now have projected the GOP has flipped the House, dumping Speaker Pelosi on her rump.

House Leadership

Kevin McCarthy has won the vote to be the Republican nominee for Speaker, 188-31. Thirty-one Republicans voted against him and for Rep. Andy Biggs. So the question is whether McCarthy will get to the 218 votes needed when the entire chamber votes. If he can’t get 30 of those to change their minds, things could get dicey in January.

Sen. Rick Scott Announced He’ll Challenge Mitch McConnell for the Senate Minority Leader

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell who made a very good argument that he prefers Democrats controlling the Senate to letting MAGA American First candidates in the joint is facing a leadership challenge. Florida Sen. Rick Scott announced he’s running for Senate Minority Leader against McConnell.

Maricopa County: Meet the New Boss, Same as the Very Old Boss

This cartoon is 150 years old pic.twitter.com/P4LxCwch93

— BUY PILLOW (@JackPosobiec) November 13, 2022

 

Al Perrotta is the Managing Editor of The Stream, chief barista for The Brew and co-author, with John Zmirak, of The Politically Incorrect Guide to Immigration. You can follow him at @StreamingAl at GETTR, Gab, Parler, and now at TRUTH Social.