Guard the Children

1. Guard the Children

2. 
   

   Precious ones will be trick-or-treating this evening. Be sure that you drive extra cautiously and slowly to assure their safety.

3. 
   

   Remember that they will be wearing masks and cumbersome costumes so they won't be as able to watch for themselves as they usually are. Also, many of them are too young to be out normally after dark so the activity will be quite different than what they're accustomed to doing.

4. 
   

   ...

   Extra care on your part will assure that everyone will have a fun time -- and remember that if you ask kindly, they'll share their candy with you.

6. 
   

   

   
   
7. 
   
8. 
   

Cleansing

Cleansing by Bill Wilson

The Mueller Special Counsel handed down indictments of two former campaign staffers of President Donald Trump. None of the counts were about Russia, but rather about business dealings in Ukraine. The political world in our nation's Capitol is very nervous.

So much so that Tony Podesta, brother of former campaign chairman for Hillary Clinton and big-time Democratic lobbyist and donor, has stepped down from his company because of ties to the very same entities in Ukraine at the center of the indictments.

Meanwhile, in Hollywood, dozens of women and some men are coming forward with sexual harassment or rape charges against entertainment industry moguls. The same is happening in the news industry.

 

In politics, news, and entertainment, there is a massive exposure of vile and distasteful events that appear to be systemic in those cultures.

Money laundering, tax evasion, bribery, influence peddling are all being exposed in the political arena. We are seeing both Democrats and Republicans participating in the most scandalous and corrupt practices in recent history.

When President Trump said he wanted to drain the swamp, no one knew the extent of vile corruption that would be exposed. We are seeing a little bit of it. Many people are angry about the Mueller investigations, but as bad as they are, and as politically motivated as they are, they are exposing unthinkable dishonesty to the American people.

 

Hollywood has similar problems. It long has been common knowledge about the casting couch-how upcoming stars sleep their way to the top. It's cliché. And many of those stars don't have any problem with depictions of sex and nudity in the movies they make.

Yet, America is finding out how deep the sexual perversion and immorality is in the entertainment industry. We are even seeing the same sexual harassment charges bubbling up from the button down veneer of the news industry where several news organizations have had to fire people because of sexual harassment accusations.

Fox, NBC, ABC, CNN, and MSNBC are all interrelated with various people coming forward with claims of sexual harassment.

 

The news media, politics and the entertainment business mainstays in American culture are interwoven in political agreement as well as corruption, scandal and immorality.

Immoral Hollywood supports corrupt politicians and unethical and immoral news hounds revel in their relationships with these depraved people. Now they are being exposed. And they are nervous as to who will be uncovered next.

This represents a prophetic cleansing of America.

In Matthew 10:26, Jesus says, "Fear them not therefore: for there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; and hid, that shall not be known."

Given enough time, evil self-destructs. But we, as Christians, must fill this darkness with the light of Christ.

Today in History

1517

Martin Luther Posts 95 Theses

On this day in 1517, the priest and scholar Martin Luther approaches the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany, and nails a piece of paper to it containing the 95 revolutionary opinions that would begin the Protestant Reformation.

In his theses, Luther condemned the excesses and corruption of the Roman Catholic Church, especially the papal practice of asking payment—called “indulgences”—for the forgiveness of sins. At the time, a Dominican priest named Johann Tetzel, commissioned by the Archbishop of Mainz and Pope Leo X, was in the midst of a major fundraising campaign in Germany to finance the renovation of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.

Though Prince Frederick III the Wise had banned the sale of indulgences in Wittenberg, many church members traveled to purchase them. When they returned, they showed the pardons they had bought to Luther, claiming they no longer had to repent for their sins.

Luther’s frustration with this practice led him to write the 95 Theses, which were quickly snapped up, translated from Latin into German and distributed widely. A copy made its way to Rome, and efforts began to convince Luther to change his tune.

He refused to keep silent, however, and in 1521 Pope Leo X formally excommunicated Luther from the Catholic Church. That same year, Luther again refused to recant his writings before the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V of Germany, who issued the famous Edict of Worms declaring Luther an outlaw and a heretic and giving permission for anyone to kill him without consequence.

Protected by Prince Frederick, Luther began working on a German translation of the Bible, a task that took 10 years to complete.

The term “Protestant” first appeared in 1529, when Charles V revoked a provision that allowed the ruler of each German state to choose whether they would enforce the Edict of Worms. A number of princes and other supporters of Luther issued a protest, declaring that their allegiance to God trumped their allegiance to the emperor. They became known to their opponents as Protestants; gradually this name came to apply to all who believed the Church should be reformed, even those outside Germany.

By the time Luther died, of natural causes, in 1546, his revolutionary beliefs had formed the basis for the Protestant Reformation, which would over the next three centuries revolutionize Western civilization.

Words to Ponder

Words to Ponder

The BIBLE                                                                                                                        "There was a woman...bent over...when JESUS saw her, HE called her to HIM and said, 'Woman, you are freed from your disability,' and HE laid HIS hands on her and immediately she was made straight and glorified GOD." Luke 13:11-13

Quotes of Presidents                                                                                                "Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country." John Fitzgerald Kennedy

Wise Words                                                                                                                    " It ain't braggin' if you can back it up." Mohammed Ali

Halloween Prayer Points

PRAYER POINTS FOR CHRISTIANS DURING HALLOWEEN

Regardless of a believers’ particular understanding of Halloween or the spiritual implications associated with its celebration, all Christians can take an active part through prayer. Even as some in the world use this holiday to celebrate darkness and highlight evil, believers have the opportunity to spread a different message through our prayers, praises, and conduct.

In the natural world, we do not dispel darkness from the room by cursing it; instead, we turn on the light. Darkness and light cannot coexist; when light is introduced, darkness vanishes. In the same way, as Christians bathe their lives, their homes, and their families in the light of God’s presence and His word, they raise a standard against the evil implicit in “celebrating” Halloween. Here are some specific and practical ways to pray during Halloween and the “season” leading up to the calendar date:

Lift up praise and worship to the only true God.

“For great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; He is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the nations are idols, but the Lord made the heavens.” (1 Chronicles 16:25-26).

Magnify the name of Jesus above all other names (Luke 10:17, Phil 2:9-11).

Declare His Lordship in your community, region, and nation (2 Kings 19:19).

Read psalms of praise to displace the voices of darkness (Psalm 33, 35, 65, 67).

Declare your home, community, and nation to be a habitation of God’s Presence.

“There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells. God is within her, she will not fall; God will help her at break of day. Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall; He lifts His voice, the earth melts” (Psalm 46:4-6).

Thank God for the wall of protection surrounding His people (Zechariah 2:5).

Praise Him for the power of His Presence that disarms the enemy (Psalm 31:20).

Declare His rule and reign over all who seek His face (Acts 17:27).

Christian parents can teach their older children the truth without judging neighbors, etc., who may not share their convictions (Proverbs 22:6).

Praise God for the power of His blood to cleanse, redeem, and restore.

“You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel” (Hebrews 12:23-24).

Declare the blood of Jesus over your life, home, community, and nation (1 Peter 1:1-2).
Cancel any evil intent to offer blood sacrifices unto wickedness (Hebrews 10:29-31).
Pray that the blood of Jesus would cleanse deceived and defiled minds (Hebrews 9:14).

Disarm any plans of the enemy to “trick” or deceive.

“While evildoers and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of” (2 Timothy 3:13-14).

Declare God’s righteous boundaries that prevent deception from entry (Psalm 101:7).

Renounce (refuse to recognize) and cancel any threats of harm or false accusations sent to cause damage or ill-will (Acts 4:29).

Pray that communications of the enemy would be confused and canceled (Psalm 55:9-10) and counter negative words spoken with the promises of God (2 Corinthians 10:2-6).

Declare that the light of Truth will dispel any darkness and expose the lies.

“I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness” (John 12:46).

Pray that self-proclaimed witches and Satanists would encounter Jesus (Acts 8:12-13).

Pray that counterfeits would be exposed bringing the fear of the Lord (Acts 19:14-17).

Pray that every evil practice would collide with Truth and Life (Acts 8:4-8).

Speak God’s blessings and protection over transportation and communication lines.

“You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out. The Lord will grant that the enemies who rise up against you will be defeated before you” (Deuteronomy 28:6-7).

Pray protection over city streets and citizens young and old (Psalm 121:7-8).

Pray that the Spirit of truth would be proclaimed and heard (John 16:13-14).

Bless the roadways and highways with the holiness of God (Isaiah 35:8-10).

Pray for the Word of God and message of the cross to be shared with power.

“(They) began to argue with Stephen. But they could not stand up against the wisdom the Spirit gave him as he spoke” (Acts 6:9-10).

Pray for boldness to declare the truth of the gospel (Acts 4:31).

Pray for opportunities to reach non-believers (Acts 17:16-17).
Pray for oneness of spirit in the community of believers (Acts 18:9-10).

Thank God for His delivering power in defeating all His enemies.

“The Lord says to my lord: ‘Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet’” (Psalm 110:1).

Thank the Lord for the angelic host who work on our behalf (2 Thessalonians 1:7-10).

Thank God for the battle that has already been won (John 16:33).

Praise Him for the victory that is already ours (1 Corinthians 15:57).

Some Practical Considerations for Neighborhood Living:

“Trick-or-Treat” door-knocking is diminishing due to safety concerns for children. This helps the witness of those families choosing to refrain from the “trick-or-treat” practice.

Christians are entitled to similar concerns without being judgmental. Parents need not be intimidated if they do not want their children accepting “treats” from other homes.

Churches can offer an alternative “open house” with snacks (“treats”), games, and a Christian film. Christian parents can invite their neighbors to participate.

Christian homes displaying a loving, prayerful witness to neighbors all year will have less “explaining” to do when refraining from Halloween activities for conscience’ sake.

This is a great opportunity to “love your neighbor as yourself,” which Jesus said was a corollary to loving God with all [our] heart and soul and mind (Matthew 22:37).

Trump to Bypass U.N.

1. From CHPP
2. 
   
3. Trump to bypass U.N. and send aid directly to persecuted Christians in Middle East - Washington Times
4. 
   
5. Vice President Mike Pence announced Wednesday night that President Trump has ordered the State Department to shut off funding for "ineffective" United Nations programs to help persecuted Christians in the Middle East, saying the administration will take over those efforts directly. "From this day forward, America will provide support directly to persecuted communiti...es through USAID," Mr. Pence said at the In Defense of Christians annual solidarity dinner in Washington.
6. 
   
7. "We will no longer rely on the United Nations alone to assist persecuted Christians and minorities in the wake of genocide and the atrocities of terrorist groups."
8. 
   
9. Saying Christians have been victims of a genocide at the hands of the Islamic State across the Middle East, Mr. Pence said the "sad reality" is that the U.N. spends about $1 billion per year on humanitarian aid in the region that doesn't help Christians enough.
10. 
    
11. "While faith-based groups with proven track records and deep roots in these communities are more than willing to assist, the United Nations too often denies their funding requests," Mr. Pence said. "My friends, those days are over. This is the moment. Now is the time. And America will support these people in their hour of need."
12. 
    
13. The vice president said the U.S. will "stand with those who suffer for their faith because that's what Americans have always done because the common bond of our humanity demands a strong response." 
14. 
    - Lord, thank You for this bit of good news! We pray that Your power and encouragement will flow through our brothers and sisters, granting them hope.
15. 
    
16. - "We know that we have passed form death to life, because we love the brethren..." 1 John 3:14

Hillary's Fools

1. From CHPP
2. 
   How Team Hillary played the press for fools on Russia - New York Post
3. 
   
4. Hillary Clinton's campaign didn't just pay for the Kremlin-aided smear job on Donald Trump before the election; she continued to use the dirt after the election to frame her humiliating loss as a Russian conspiracy to steal the election.
5. ...
6. Exhibit A is the book "Shattered: Inside Hillary Clinton's Doomed Campaign," by Jonathan Allen and Amie Parnes. In light of this week's revelation that Hillary's campaign funded the dirty anti-Trump "Steele" dossier, the book takes on a new significance.
7. 
   
8. It reveals: "Within 24 hours of her concession speech, [campaign chair John Podesta and manager Robby Mook] assembled her communications team at the Brooklyn headquarters to engineer the case that the election wasn't entirely on the up-and-up.
9. 
   
10. For a couple of hours, with Shake Shack containers littering the room, they went over the script they would pitch to the press and the public. Already, Russian hacking was the centerpiece of the argument."
11. 
    
12. The plan, according to the book, was to push journalists to cover how "Russian hacking was the major unreported story of the campaign," and it succeeded to a fare-thee-well. After the election, coverage of the Russian "collusion" story was relentless, and it helped pressure investigations and hearings on Capitol Hill and even the naming of a special counsel, which in turn has triggered virtually nonstop coverage.
13. 
    
14. - Lord, we praise You that the truth is coming out, and that the mainstream media is finally being called out for their bias. You are the God of truth, so we ask that every ounce of truth, as horrid as it may appear, be revealed.
15. 
    
16. - "And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another." (Matthew 24:10)

Activist Judges Slammed

1. From CHPP
2. 
   
3. Jeff Sessions slams 'activist' judges for ruling against Trump - Washington Examiner
4. 
   
5. Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Thursday blasted federal judges for making decisions against President Trump's executive orders, and said those rulings represent an unacceptable level of interference.
6. 
   
7. ...
8. "This is especially problematic when district courts take the dramatic step of issuing activist nationwide injunctions - orders that block the entire United States government from enforcing a statute or a presidential policy nationwide," Sessions said in remarks to the Heritage Foundation.
9. 
   
10. He was referring to rulings against Trump's travel ban executive order, and nationwide injunctions issued by Washington, Maryland and Hawaii courts.
11. 
    
12. Sessions said he feels "strongly" about judges acting strictly "because of a political agreement. Today, more and more judges are issuing nationwide injunctions and in effect single judges . . . are making themselves super-legislators for the entire United States," he said.
13. 
    
14. "A single judge's decision that can enjoin the entire federal government from acting is an extreme step, and too often, district court judges are doing it without following the law."
15. 
    
16. Sessions noted that the U.S. Constitution does not allow for judges to "veto a president's action because they disagree with him on policy grounds."
17. 
    
18. - Father, we thank you for a strong stand from Attorney General Sessions in what we've all seen as partisanship in the rulings of activist judges. We pray that You will correct this problem quickly, and that new judges will replace the anti-Constitutional ones set by Obama.

The Deep State

1. From CHPP
2. 
   
3. US Antifa and other Leftist groups met in Germany with al-Qaeda and ISIS to plot Trump's destruction - Jihad Watch
4. 
   
5. These hard-Leftist groups, although they claim to be against fascism, are fascist to the core, wanting to shut down, violently if necessary, anyone who disagrees with them.
6. 
   
7. ...
8. They claim to be against hate, but are more hateful than anyone, and so they see natural allies in al-Qaeda and the Islamic State.
9. 
   
10. Both hate the West, both hate the U.S., both hate the Judeo-Christian tradition, so they see each other as kindred spirits.
11. 
    
12. - Lord, we pray that You will destroy these plots in every corner of the world where they have arisen, from Islamists to Federal employees involved in the "Deep State."

Bait and Swith

Mueller Bait and Switch by Bill Wilson

Special Counsel Robert Mueller is investigating Russian meddling in the 2016 election. He has handed down indictments of two of President Donald Trump's former campaign officials-Paul Manafort, former campaign chairman, and Rick Gates, former Trump advisor and partner of Manafort.

According to the indictment, these men laundered money, failed to register as foreign agents, evaded taxes, and misled the Department of Justice. Interesting though, that these 12 counts of indictments are only for dealings with the Ukranian pro-Russian political Party, the party of Regions, and the Ukraine government. The indictment indicates that Manafort and Gates are big time crooks, but Mueller is quite off topic.

 

These counts are related specifically to these two men's dealings with Ukraine, not about Russia meddling in the 2016 elections. The indictment mentions "Russia" only in the following context: "In 2005, Manafort and another partner created Davis Manafort Partners, Inc. (DMP) to engage principally in political consulting.

DMP had staff in the United States, Ukraine, and Russia...The Party of Regions was a pro-Russia political party in Ukraine...In 2010, its candidate for President, Yanukovych, was elected President of Ukraine. In 2014, Yanukovych fled Ukraine for Russia in the wake of popular protests of widespread governmental corruption."

 

Mueller also announced that former Trump campaign aid George Papadopoulos pleaded guilty to lying to FBI agents about the timing and detail of his attempts to line up meetings between Russian government officials and the Trump campaign.

According to AP, "The plea by George Papadopoulos marked the first criminal charges that cite interactions between Trump campaign associates and Russian intermediaries during the 2016 presidential campaign...In court papers, he admitted to lying about the nature of his interactions with "foreign nationals" who he thought had close connections to senior Russian government officials."

To date, there are no allegations of Trump and Russia coordinating efforts to influence the elections.

 

To me, this is very interesting considering there are mountains of evidence that the Democratic National Committee and the Clintons had intimate business dealings specifically with Russia and Russian agents.

The Special Counsel, however, hands down indictments on crooked dealings from work with Ukraine that doesn't appear directly related to Russia or to Trump.

Jesus' words in Luke 8:17 come to mind with all this: For nothing is secret, that shall not be made manifest; neither anything hid, that shall not be known and come to light."

Did Russia meddle in the US elections? As in elections past, Russia probably tried. With whom did Russia conspire with and were they successful? The plot thickens as the light hits the darkness. 

Is This Learning from History?

1. Those who refuse to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.

3. 

   
   
4. Thomas Jefferson

   · 

   Taking these statues down is not right.

Effective Leadership

The most important quality of effective leadership by Dr. Jim Denison

Adam Bryant has interviewed 525 chief executives for his "Corner Office" column in the New York Times. In his final article, he identifies the most important characteristic of effective leadership: trustworthiness. He quotes a CEO who notes, "If you want to lead others, you've got to have their trust, and you can't have their trust without integrity."

This observation is on my mind today as I reflect on my weekend spent at The Cove, Billy Graham's conference and retreat center in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. If you were to cite one characteristic that defines the famed evangelist, I would guess that "integrity" would be at the top.

And you'd be right.

What explains his godly character? His amazing global ministry? His enduring legacy?

Reflecting on a remarkable legacy

The Cove is one of the most beautiful and worshipful places I've ever visited. It is just one facet of Dr. Graham's continuing ministry.

The famed evangelist will turn ninety-nine years old next week; his beloved wife went to her eternal home ten years ago. Their ministry has led more people to Christ than any other in history. God's work in my soul this past weekend is just one more example of the Lord's work through their faithfulness.

Billy Graham's story proves that we can rarely see the end from the beginning. When Dr. Graham preached his first sermon eighty years ago, it went so poorly that a man in the church told him, "Boy, you better go back to school and get a lot more education because you're not gonna make it."

But God had a plan for this son of a North Carolina dairy farmer. Neither Billy nor Ruth Graham ever sought worldly wealth or status. Their sole desire was to be faithful to their Kingdom calling. And God has done far more with them than they could have done for him.

Paradoxically, the key to their global acclaim has been their personal humility. The key to their power has been their powerlessness.

I have observed the same pattern in numerous places around the world. In Cuba, Brazil, Bangladesh, China, and other nations, I have witnessed remarkable conversions, healings, and cultural impact from churches with very few material resources. I can point to only one common denominator: a passionate hunger for the power of God.

In my travels, I have seen impoverished churches pray all day and night for God to move in their cities. I have seen pastors weep for the lost in their community and beg God to bring them to salvation. I have seen desperate Christians pray fervently for the sick in their churches to be healed.

The God who answers their prayers is waiting to answer ours.

Who is building your house?

Many Christians in America want God to bring spiritual awakening to our nation. But will we pay the price to see his power?

Will we pray in utter humility and dependence? Will we serve in absolute submission to his word and Spirit? Will we live with a passionate desire to seek his glory and not our own?

Scripture is clear:

• "Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain" (Psalm 127:1). Who is building your house?

• "Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD of hosts" (Zechariah 4:6). Have you submitted your life to the Spirit yet today?

• Jesus stated: "Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing" (John 15:5). Are you bearing spiritual fruit?

• Paul could testify, "I can do all things through him who strengthens me" (Philippians 4:13). Can you say the same?

• The apostle worked "with all [God's] energy that he powerfully works within me" (Colossians 1:29). Whose energy is at work within you today?

I've been reading Mark Batterson's terrific book, Wild Goose Chase: Reclaim the Adventure of Pursuing God. Mark makes this observation: Right now, you have no sensation of motion. You're sitting still as you read this article.

But the reality is that you're sitting on a planet that is spinning around its axis at approximately a thousand miles an hour. You are also hurtling through space at approximately sixty-seven thousand miles an hour. Before your Monday is done, you will have traveled 1.3 million miles in your annual trek around the sun.

All the power of the God who made all of that is available to those who trust him fully and obey him courageously. Will you be that person today?

Beverage of Choice, But...

1. It's the world's most desired beverage, but not at bed time!
3. 

   Analytical Grammar

   
   

   Good morning, my favorite grammarians!
5. 
   

Too Soon Old...

1. The Amish Dutch have a saying regarding the words penned by Ben Franklin ... they observe that we are, "too soon old and too late smart."
2. 
   
3. May we recognize that it is not earthly knowledge that we need to extract us from the quicksand of devastation to our nation and our culture that is sucking us into oblivion, but rather, GODLY WISDOM that can be imparted only by the HOLY ONE as we give ourselves to HIM in prayer and fasting and steadfast praise to the ONE WHO INHABITS ETERNITY.
4. 
   

Angelic

1. The WORD of GOD that cannot fail and cannot lie tells us that the LORD "inhabits the praise of HIS people."
2. 
   As a people, this nation once bowed only before the LIVING CHRIST and this nation was blessed and prospered beyond any other in history.
3. 
   In II Chronicles 7:14 we read, "IF MY PEOPLE, WHO ARE CALLED BY MY NAME, WILL HUMBLE THEMSELVES AND PRAY AND SEEK MY FACE AND TURN FROM THEIR WICKED WAYS, THEN WILL I HEAR FROM HEAVEN AND FORGIVE THEIR SIN AND HEAL THEIR LAND."
   ...
   

   May we follow HIS admonition, may we lift up HIS HOLY NAME in praise and thanksgiving; may we again be, as de Tocqueville observed, "a nation with the soul of a church," so HE may indeed, "heal our land."

This Economy is ‘Trump Strong’

This Economy is ‘Trump Strong’

By Wayne Allyn Root

There’s been a lot of negative stories in the news. Have you noticed?

America needs to heal. We have suffered four consecutive body blows in the past six weeks. Hurricane Harvey, Hurricane Irma, Hurricane Maria and now the Vegas mass murder. The media lives by the mantra "If it bleeds, it leads.” And they have served us nonstop headlines of crisis, death, and destruction.

But amidst all these negative headlines, we missed some remarkable positive economic news. What Vegas and America need now is some great news. The kind of news that makes you smile and pound your fist in the air. And I’ve got it.

At least IF you’re a Trump Fan. The rest of you might want to run and hide now.

Donald Trump has already produced arguably the greatest economic results in American history. You might have missed that in the media. But here are the facts.

First, Trump’s remarkable stock market performance. The DOW has risen almost 25% since Election Day. That’s an increase of over 4,300 points in about 11 months. That’s the biggest increase in that period of time in the history of the stock market.

The S&P 500 has passed $20 trillion in value for the first time in history.

President Trump is also the only President in history to oversee two nine-day or longer stock rallies (where new highs are reached each day). Included in that record is the 12-day rally ending on February 28th- matching the all-time record set by President Reagan in 1987.

Since the election of President Trump, the stock market has hit 63 closing highs, with 46 since Trump’s inauguration. On the other hand, Obama had exactly -0- stock market highs in his first four years in office.

In total President Trump has added over $5 trillion to the U.S. economy since his election. Remarkable. That’s called star power. That’s real hope and change.

A humble reminder- in previous RJ columns before the election, I predicted Trump would be our Reagan- the greatest economic president of our generation. As Mohammed Ali said, "It ‘aint bragging if you can back it up.”

But I’m just getting started.

Trump’s GDP. As I’ve always argued, GDP is a far more important economic indicator than the stock market. GDP is hard evidence of how "mom and pop” are doing on Main Street. Under Obama, America suffered the eight worst consecutive GDP years in history. Obama’s eight-year GDP average was 1.3%- the exact same GDP number as the period of the Great Depression.

According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. GDP has now been adjusted to a remarkable 3.1% growth in the second quarter (Trump’s first full quarter as president). That’s almost THREE TIMES HIGHER than Obama’s average GDP over his two terms.

That grew our total U.S. GDP to almost $20 trillion- the highest GDP in history.

Trump’s jobs explosion. President Trump added 1.33 million jobs from January through September versus Obama’s record of losing 4.59 million jobs in that same first nine months. Remarkable.

But the latest jobs report just came out on Friday. According to the Bureau of Labor Household Survey, the number of employed Americans increased by an amazing 906,000 for the month of September. But that’s not even the highlight.

Remember that almost every single job created in eight years under Obama was a crappy, low-wage, part-time job. Well under President Trump last month, full-time jobs (the kind we all want and need) increased by 935,000- the most in one month in the 21st century.

It was also one of the four highest increases in American history.

And President Trump is doing it without spending record sums of taxpayer money. Trump added $400 billion (a two percent increase) to the US debt since January. In the same time period, President Obama added $1.3 trillion debt (a 12% increase). That’s almost $1 trillion more than Trump.

Yes, here in my hometown we are "VEGAS STRONG” in the face of tragedy. But start spreading the news...

THIS ECONOMY IS "TRUMP STRONG.”

Wayne Allyn Root is a Capitalist Evangelist, serial entrepreneur, and Libertarian-conservative media commentator.

Today in History

Today in History

1938

Welles Scares Nation

Orson Welles causes a nationwide panic with his broadcast of “War of the Worlds”—a realistic radio dramatization of a Martian invasion of Earth.

Orson Welles was only 23 years old when his Mercury Theater company decided to update H.G. Wells’ 19th-century science fiction novel War of the Worlds for national radio.

Despite his age, Welles had been in radio for several years, most notably as the voice of “The Shadow” in the hit mystery program of the same name. “War of the Worlds” was not planned as a radio hoax, and Welles had little idea of the havoc it would cause.

The show began on Sunday, October 30, at 8 p.m. A voice announced: “The Columbia Broadcasting System and its affiliated stations present Orson Welles and the Mercury Theater on the air in ‘War of the Worlds’ by H.G. Wells.”

Sunday evening in 1938 was prime-time in the golden age of radio, and millions of Americans had their radios turned on. But most of these Americans were listening to ventriloquist Edgar Bergen and his dummy “Charlie McCarthy” on NBC and only turned to CBS at 8:12 p.m. after the comedy sketch ended and a little-known singer went on. By then, the story of the Martian invasion was well underway.

Welles introduced his radio play with a spoken introduction, followed by an announcer reading a weather report. Then, seemingly abandoning the storyline, the announcer took listeners to “the Meridian Room in the Hotel Park Plaza in downtown New York, where you will be entertained by the music of Ramon Raquello and his orchestra.”

Putrid dance music played for some time, and then the scare began. An announcer broke in to report that “Professor Farrell of the Mount Jenning Observatory” had detected explosions on the planet Mars. Then the dance music came back on, followed by another interruption in which listeners were informed that a large meteor had crashed into a farmer’s field in Grovers Mills, New Jersey.

Soon, an announcer was at the crash site describing a Martian emerging from a large metallic cylinder. “Good heavens,” he declared, “something’s wriggling out of the shadow like a gray snake. Now here’s another and another one and another one. They look like tentacles to me … I can see the thing’s body now. It’s large, large as a bear. It glistens like wet leather. But that face, it… it … ladies and gentlemen, it’s indescribable. I can hardly force myself to keep looking at it, it’s so awful. The eyes are black and gleam like a serpent. The mouth is kind of V-shaped with saliva dripping from its rimless lips that seem to quiver and pulsate.”

The Martians mounted walking war machines and fired “heat-ray” weapons at the puny humans gathered around the crash site. They annihilated a force of 7,000 National Guardsman, and after being attacked by artillery and bombers the Martians released a poisonous gas into the air.

Soon “Martian cylinders” landed in Chicago and St. Louis. The radio play was extremely realistic, with Welles employing sophisticated sound effects and his actors doing an excellent job portraying terrified announcers and other characters. An announcer reported that widespread panic had broken out in the vicinity of the landing sites, with thousands desperately trying to flee. In fact, that was not far from the truth.

Perhaps as many as a million radio listeners believed that a real Martian invasion was underway. Panic broke out across the country.

In New Jersey, terrified civilians jammed highways seeking to escape the alien marauders. People begged police for gas masks to save them from the toxic gas and asked electric companies to turn off the power so that the Martians wouldn’t see their lights. One woman ran into an Indianapolis church where evening services were being held and yelled, “New York has been destroyed! It’s the end of the world! Go home and prepare to die!”

When news of the real-life panic leaked into the CBS studio, Welles went on the air as himself to remind listeners that it was just fiction. There were rumors that the show caused suicides, but none were ever confirmed.

The Federal Communications Commission investigated the program but found no law was broken. Networks did agree to be more cautious in their programming in the future.

Orson Welles feared that the controversy generated by “War of the Worlds” would ruin his career. In fact, the publicity helped land him a contract with a Hollywood studio, and in 1941 he directed, wrote, produced, and starred in Citizen Kane—a movie that many have called the greatest American film ever made.