No Reverse
 
As we reported yesterday, President Trump felt compelled to walk out of a meeting with Democrat leaders because the negotiations were going nowhere.  It was a very revealing moment because it shows that Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer have been misleading the American people.
 
They have repeatedly gone to the cameras and said that they were willing to talk to the president about border security after he opens the government.  That was the message their aides gave to Vice President Mike Pence last weekend -- no negotiations on security until the government reopens.
 
Yesterday, being a good negotiator, the president got down to specifics.  Trump directly asked Speaker Pelosi whether, if he agreed to open the government as she wants, she would agree to fund the border wall he wants.  She said, "No." 
 
So the negotiations, according Schumer and Pelosi, simply mean that Trump surrenders while they give nothing.  There is zero compromise being offered by the Democrats, and that is why the president walked out.
 
Republicans don't have a good track record on shutdown fights.  Democrats and their media allies know that.  But the worst possible outcome is to go through this battle, take all the hits and bruises for it, only to surrender and walk away empty handed. 
 
I don't think this president will do that. 
 
Earlier this week, Vice President Pence held a private meeting to buck up wavering House Republicans.  Asked about the possibility of Trump backing down, Pence replied, "That pickup ain't got reverse in it." 
 
I'm glad to hear it.  If anything is worth this fight, it's the security of our borders.
 
I was also pleased to hear that Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC), who doesn't have the best track record on immigration-related issues, is standing firmly behind the president.  Graham told Sean Hannity:
 
"This is the best chance we'll ever have to help President Trump get border wall funding, steel barrier funding, and at the same time, fix the loopholes.
 
"The only way we'll lose is to give in.  If we stand firm . . . we will win this on behalf of the American people.  But, if we undercut the president, that's the end of his presidency, and the end of our party.  And we deserve to be punished if we give in now."
 
 
 
Crisis, Anyone?
 
As we noted yesterday, many left-wing pundits and politicians refuse to admit there is a crisis on the southern border.  They often point to 2017 statistics of border apprehensions to justify their assertion.
 
But here's what they are not telling you:  Illegal immigration surged last year and continues to do so.  By October, arrests were up by 100,000 compared to 2017. 
 
As we have noted, even the Washington Post acknowledged last week in a moment of unguarded candor that "Record numbers of migrant families are streaming into the United States, overwhelming border agents." 
 
Now the Pew Research Center is reporting:
 
"There were nearly 416,000 apprehensions at the U.S.-Mexico border in the first 11 months of 2018, the most in any January-November period since 2014."
 
In addition, the Department of Homeland Security reports that December apprehensions of migrant families set a record and marked "the third month in a row that more than 50,000 people have illegally crossed into the U.S."
 
President Trump is visiting the border today.  Given that Schumer and Pelosi refuse to consider serious border security measures, it seems increasingly likely that the president may be forced to declare a national emergency at the southern border.
 
 
 
Law Enforcement Appreciation Day
 
A police officer was killed in Louisiana last night as she was about to begin her shift.  A police officer in North Carolina was shot multiple times last night. 
 
It goes without saying that thugs are not going to recognize National Law Enforcement Appreciation Day, which was yesterday.  But sadly, increasing segments of our society refuse to do so as well. 
 
Remember Chelsea Manning?  Manning served in the military, stole thousands of classified documents and was sent to prison for violating the Espionage Act. 
 
On his way out of office, President Barack Obama pardoned Manning.  After serving just seven years of a 35-year sentence, Manning was released from prison.  Last year, Manning got 6% of the vote in the Maryland Democrat Senate primary. 
 
Yesterday Manning tweeted photos of a burning Thin Blue Line Flag with the captions, "f--k the police" and "yearly reminder we live in a domestic military occupation in every major city."
 
But hatred of our police officers has gone mainstream.  In recent years, we have seen millionaire football players demonstrate their disdain for law enforcement by kneeling during the National Anthem. 
 
And, as we noted yesterday, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) denounced Border Patrol and ICE officers as human rights violators.
 
Sadly, law enforcement has increasingly become a dangerous and thankless job because of the so-called "progressive" left. 
 
Police departments all over the country are finding it difficult to recruit men and women willing to put their lives on the line only be disrespected, demonized and worse.  The same is true for the Border Patrol and ICE, which isn't surprising given the abuse they receive from left-wing activists and politicians.