The Daly Weekly (3/20)

The Senate filibuster, FBI firings, administration officials leaving, and more.

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Hi everyone.

Welcome to this week’s Daly Weekly, where I answer whatever questions you throw my way.

Let’s get right to your questions…

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John: Simple question this week - Are you for or against keeping the senate filibuster? — Steve R.

I’m for keeping it. I’ve been consistent on that position, regardless of which party holds the Senate majority. I think Senate approval should require a stronger consensus than that of the House.

Sir John, Do you think it would be a beneficial strategic move for the U.S. military & the IDF to take control of Kharg Island in this current conflict? Also why did Trump ask for assistance from our NATO allies with keeping the Straits of Hormuz safe if, as Trump claims, “we really don’t need their help? — “Strait FLUSH Kharg-GO!” Regards from The Emperor

I don’t know enough about the pros, cons, and military logistics to offer an educated opinion on Kharg Island, Emperor. As for Trump, he loves to treat our NATO allies like crap, and claim the alliance has been useless to the United States (despite lots of examples — including deceased soldiers — that prove otherwise). Now, he’s mad that some of those allies, after all the bullying and berating he’s done of them since returning to office last year, are reluctant to help with a war he didn’t even bother consulting them on beforehand. It’s a mess of his own creation, and if he doesn’t effectively kill NATO before the end of this term, the alliance will likely require years of repair by future U.S. presidents.

John, Given that Iran vowed retaliation for decades to come, do you see another military action taking place when Pres Trump is out of office? No one will ever be as brave, bold, and ballsy as this administration. — Susan H.

I would love to believe, Susan, that by the end of this Trump term, the current regime will be no more, and Iran will no longer be a state sponsor of terrorism or a nuclear threat. However, there are too many unknowns (at this point) for me to say, with confidence, that that will be the case. (I certainly hope it will). If not, I can definitely picture a future administration taking another military action against Iran. I don’t buy that no other administration would have done what Trump’s doing right now (I think Haley and DeSantis both would have). And now that it has been done, with much weaker retaliation than most people would have probably guessed, I think there’ll be less of a stigma with doing it again (if needed).

Two former FBI employees are suing the FBI, DOJ, Pam Bondi, and Kash Patel over being fired simply because they were previously assigned to investigate things that Donald Trump didn’t want investigated. Do you think their case stands a chance? — Alex D.

I don’t know, Alex, mainly because I’m not sure what legal protections such people have. I’m interested to see where this case goes, because what you’re correctly describing has happened to A LOT of people over the last 14 months. Think about the insanity of it: You’re an impressive individual who was hired and trained by the FBI, but was later fired (and had your career derailed) — not for incompetence — but because you were assigned to investigate January 6, efforts to overturn the 2020 election, Trump’s illegal handling of classified documents, or some other case that upset Donald Trump. This has been happening not just to FBI officers, but also DOJ employees and Secret Service agents. Meanwhile, new potential hires for these agencies are being asked whether they believe the 2020 election was stolen, as some kind of litmus test. It’s gross and glaringly unethical, and it’s weeding out competency and character in our federal government. But whether it’s illegal, I guess we’ll find out.

Mr. Daly, I was interested in your RINO answer. I avoid cable news and only subscribe to one other .com and one internet daily newsletter. I would be interested to know what your and Mr. Goldberg's top 5 news sources are. — Michael P.

The Dispatch is my go-to source for news, Michael, but I think National Review is still pretty good too (Audrey Fahlberg has been doing some great reporting there). I also think there’s value in checking out what legacy publications are putting out, like the Wall Street Journal and New York Times. Like you, I avoid cable news (it’s mostly garbage these days).

With Noem and Kent now gone, who do you think will be the next high ranking cabinet official to be axed or quit? — Ben G.

My guess would be Tulsi Gabbard, which would be a great thing for our country.

Thanks everyone! You can send me questions for next week by leaving a comment in the comment section.