Billy Roach: Fill & Download for Free

This is a funny question.Hunter Biden was not a federal employee. He didn’t have a security clearance, ever that I can discern. He wasn’t even overtly political outside of supporting his dad.Taking an official position on Hunter Biden’s role on Burisma is effectively taking a position on private citizens taking jobs overseas.Hunter Biden was an American trained lawyer with some business experience. He had no energy sector experience but neither did the people on the board prior, this is a frequent problem in corrupt oil states. Russia has this problem too, it’s why EXXON signed a trillion dollar deal in Russia. The Russians are bad at actual oil exploration because everyone involved is a corrupt appointment. Hunter Biden did apparently help secure several large loans from foreign investors for Burisma so he is not utterly incompetent, they needed that.What is the Trump Administration’s official position on Elaine Chao’s parents’ shipping company?What is the Administration’s official position on Betsy DeVos’s brother’s foreign military contracts?What is the official position on Ivanka’s Chinese trademarks?The Bush Administration didn’t have a position on Billie Bush’s anchor job at Access Hollywood either. Or the Carter Administration’s position on Billy Carter’s beer company? Not that either was a foreign gig but it illustrates my point.All of these people had successful gigs outside of government. Ivanka actually works in the White House and got a bunch of those trademarks while serving as a Presidential Advisor but the Administration has no official position on them.There is a false dichotomy here. If Obama needed to have an official position on Hunter Biden’s role then every administration needs to have an official position on every relative’s professional choices.That is insane.Erik Prince’s companies have actually killed foreign citizens. He has taken contracts for dictators and questionable governments.We can make an argument that Hunter Biden is a lifelong screwup with no functional job skills but that’s just not true. He never shined as bright as Beau Biden publicly but that’s not an infrequent dynamic in powerful, successful families.Neil Bush is not Jeb and Jeb is not George W.Ted Kennedy was a big deal but he never became a second Jack.On the topic of screwups, George W Bush was awful at everything until he got into politics. He was great at politics.Trump has bankrupted more companies than most Americans will ever own. He bankrupted not one, not two, but three casinos, which should not be possible given that business model.We elected both of these guys as President.Obama had like three total jobs and only won two statewide elections before we made him President.If Hunter Biden’s role in Ukraine is that big of an issue, then we need to prep ourselves that there are very likely hundreds if not thousands of relatives to elected officials who will need to be scrutinized from the federal down to the municipal level. An official position will need to be rendered for each one.That might be a good idea but doing it retroactively for just Hunter Biden is nonsense. For one thing, no one in the family is currently on a government payroll. Plenty of other people currently are.The whole entire time Hunter Biden worked for Burisma, the Republicans held both houses of Congress. They could have investigated this in real time but chose not to. Back then though there was some sense of balance. That’s gone now.Those very same Republicans probably don’t want to have to take positions on their siblings, brothers-in-law, and their own children. Understandably so.

THE SKINNY ONE AND THE FAT ONEStan Laurel “the thin one” came from England and was in an acting troupe with another soon to be famous comedian Chaplin. Laurel came to AmericaOliver “Babe” Hardy,who was from the South, was in the movies sometimes playing a villain. He was in a silent and bizarre version of WIZARD OF OZ in 1925. Somehow they were teamed up for PUTTING THE PANTS ON PHILLIP and the rest was historyStan Laurel was the “brains” of the team coming up with the gags. Hardy contributed but liked gambling at the racetrack a whole lot more. Their common “enemy” was Hal Roach who kept the team on separate contracts.I am sure they had their disagreements. What teams do not argue? But you do not stay together that long just for the money. I believe they cared for each other. Laurel’s daughter, Lois remembered Hardy with fondnessA fan club for the skinny one and fat one still existsBilly Gilbert, Hardy, Laurel and the fourth performer the piano THE MUSIC BOX (‘32)Their classic version of BABES IN TOYLAND/MARCH OF THE WOODEN SOLDIERS (‘34)High spots from: BLOTTO and FRA DIAVOLO/DEVIL’S BROTHER as they get drunker and drunker

Yes.But also No.Yes she meets all of the eligibility requirements. As such she could run.No because she has not been shy about her willingness to spend any more time at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. She isn’t having it.Michelle Obama is not a politician. Her poker face is one that throws shade. When she sees something she doesn’t like, she calls it. When someone lies, she busts them. When everyone gets into Political gobbledygook speak she tunes out.She married a politician and she gave up 8 years of her life to the office of POTUS. Being in the First Family is work and it is an enormous sacrifice. You have no privacy, little personal agency and you get attacked for just being adjacent to a sitting President.Michelle Obama has already served the country. She did extremely well in the role of First Lady. So much so that she might be the new standard.I don’t think she wants to be President, or a Senator or a Congressional Representative. She wants her life back. She has earned that. We owe her that.I don’t understand this recent fascination with establishing an American Aristocracy. The two Presidents Adams were separated by more than a generation. The two Roosevelt’s were a generation apart and from different parties. Those two families were separated by a century.We don’t have royals. We deliberately got rid of the concept. Now it’s seemingly a job qualification to be a direct relation to a President.This should stop.George W Bush had been a Governor and the Grandson of a Congressman as well as being the son of a President. He was not a great President. He’s a good guy but the country went a little haywire during his tenure.Hillary Clinton was always a political animal. She was her husband’s primary policy wonk on several issues and served on the Watergate inquiry years before. She had been a Senator and Secretary of State on top of being First Lady but she was an awful campaigner.Jeb Bush was terrible on the Campaign trail. Rand Paul is about half as likable as his old man.We should avoid another Bush, we should avoid another Clinton. We should also avoid another Obama and we absolutely should avoid another Trump.Ron Reagan (jr.), is a political guy but he operates outside of elected office. Robert Kennedy Jr. is a motivated and influential environmentalist. JFK jr ran a political magazine, Maria Shriver was a journalist, Billy Bush got on TV.All of them have had an influence on American Politics, none sought the big chair. There’s a new Kennedy in office but he is far removed from that older generation. Maybe Jenna or young Barbara Bush or one of their cousins will run in 30 years, that’s ok.I wouldn’t vote for Hillary in 08 because the idea of alternating the Presidency between two families seemed really dumb. If she’d won and served two terms we would have had either a Clinton or a Bush since 1988, that’s basically 30 years and it’s not counting the 8 years that Poppy Bush was Reagan’s VP.Thats pretty damn close to hereditary title.Screw that.There’s 350 million American Citizens, there has to be a couple of decent candidates who aren’t related to a former President.Maybe after a few new bloods we could deal with President Sasha or President Jenna. Chelsea should take a pass and maybe let one of her kids take a stab at it.I do know that the only Trump kid that won’t make my head explode is Barron and he’s too young to evaluate.I get liking Michelle Obama but if you think about it, you like her because she is not a politician. She has done her time in the box, let her have a semi-normal life now.