Cal Thomas: Ferreting out the truth

MARY REICHARD, HOST: Today is Thursday March 7. Good morning! This is The World and Everything in It from listener-supported WORLD Radio. I’m Mary Reichard.

MYRNA BROWN, HOST: And I’m Myrna Brown. Up next: WORLD commentator Cal Thomas says President Biden has some explaining to do.

CAL THOMAS: Politicians aren’t good at much, but they do excel at one thing – lying. For one thing, both parties refuse to acknowledge the danger of a growing and unsustainable debt. (CNBC reports it’s increasing by $1 trillion about every 100 days.)

Another case in point–President Biden had his annual physical exam last week. When asked if a cognitive test was part of it, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre stated it wasn’t “because the doctor doesn’t believe he needs one….”

If a police officer sees a car swerving, the officer will usually pull the driver over. If the driver smells of alcohol, the officer proposes a sobriety test. If the driver refuses, the driver can still be found guilty based on the appearance of drunk driving.

What evidence would be necessary to conclude without a test that President Biden has cognitive issues? Falling down? Shuffling? Slurred speech? Forgetting names? The public sees all these and more. Polls show a majority say Biden is too old for a second term. It’s not the age, but the condition of the mind.

Need another example of lying? Last week, President Biden’s son Hunter Biden testified before the GOP-led House Oversight and Judiciary Committees. He claimed again that Joe Biden was not involved in his business dealings. But Hunter didn’t explain where he got the money for a new sports car which critics say was payment for “influence-peddling.” And Chairman James Comer cited the committee’s investigation when he claimed, “Joe Biden attended dinners, spoke on speakerphone, showed up to meetings, and had coffee with his son’s foreign business associates.”

The Wall Street Journal summarized depositions by Hunter and his uncle James Biden this way: “the testimony confirms the story of political influence peddling and family profiteering. Even if he didn’t get a dime himself, Joe Biden willingly assisted his son Hunter and brother James in schemes to cash in on the Biden family name.”

This recalls another president who was good at lying. Bill Clinton claimed he did not have sex with intern Monica Lewinsky. “There is nothing going on between us,” he asserted, as reported by online magazine Slate. Later and under oath, Clinton was asked before a grand jury about his behavior with Lewinsky. His famous reply: “It depends on what the meaning of the word ‘is’ is…”

Hairs then and now have never been split so finely.

In 1998, several Clinton defenders left a Cabinet meeting with the president and buttressed his claims of innocence. The group was led by Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, who said: “I believe that the allegations are completely untrue.” Commerce Secretary William Daley said, “I’ll second that.” Education Secretary Dick Riley added, “I’ve already said that.”

The same kind of deceit is at work today. When it comes to Washington (the city, not George), if you never trust a politician, you will never be disappointed.

I’m Cal Thomas.

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