The Week Just Passed:

• Terrorist Armies Overrunning Iraq; Are We Losing the War on Terror?
• Sluggish Economic Recovery Hits Young People Especially Hard
• Former Vietnam POW, Congressman Sam Johnson, Slams Bergdahl Deal
• VA Healthcare System Failure is Widespread
• New Jersey’s Role in the Constitutional Convention of 1787
• Salute: New Jersey’s Fallen Honored at Picatinny
• Salute: Liz Parker, publisher of the New Jersey Hills Media Group
• Salute: LTC Jason Mackay, Picatinny Arsenal Garrison Commander
• Salute: Happy 90^th President George H.W. Bush
• Salute: Dr. Henry Kissinger Turns 91

Terrorist Armies Overrunning Iraq; Are We Losing the War on Terror?

As Daniel Henninger points out in the Wall Street Journal, the inability of the Iraqi Army to defeat the terrorist insurgents who are undoing everything that the United States was able to accomplish in Iraq was entirely predictable.  It is exactly what happens when an American president bases his foreign policy and military strategy on political expediency rather than listening to the diplomats and military commanders on the ground. 

Remember the Marines who took Fallujah at great cost of so many lives and the soldiers that fought in Anbar Province (which has been held by Al Qaeda for the past six months)?  Now the terrorists have taken Mosul and Tikrit, bringing them as close to Baghdad as Philadelphia is to Washington, D.C.  Hundreds of thousands of refugees are fleeing the terrorist surge, creating what will become another tragic humanitarian crisis.

Foreign Policy magazine has one of the most comprehensive analyses of worldwide terrorist threats available to the public.  You have to register for limited access to the site, but it’s well worth doing.

Sluggish Economic Recovery Hits Young People Especially Hard

In this insightful Wall Street Journal article, Andrew Puzder examines why the worst economic recovery since the Great Depression is hitting young people especially hard.

He reports that “In February the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) recorded the lowest percentage of 16- to 19-year-olds working or actively looking for work (32.9%) since the bureau started tracking the data in 1948.”  The numbers since then have improved only slightly.

The House has passed 40 bills designed to stimulate economic growth and create jobs.  The Senate has yet to act on any of them.  What will it take for the Senate Majority Leader to finally move these bills to the Senate floor for consideration – another recession? 

Former Vietnam POW, Congressman Sam Johnson, Slams Bergdahl Deal

My colleague, Congressman Sam Johnson from Texas, spent almost seven years under brutal and inhumane conditions as a POW in North Vietnam.  In this impassioned letter he lays out why he thinks it was a mistake to release five senior Taliban leaders to achieve the release of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl.

VA Healthcare System Failure is Widespread

This Wall Street Journal editorial clearly defines the widespread nature of the failures of the Department of Veterans Affairs health care system.  The situation is simply unacceptable and the President’s failure to appointment a new head of the VA is baffling.  He needs to nominate someone with the skills and abilities to manage the system and set it right.  Our veterans deserve nothing less.

New Jersey’s Role in the Constitutional Convention of 1787

I was honored to be asked by the official website of the NJ 350^thAnniversary Celebration to contribute a blog recalling New Jersey’s key role in breaking the gridlock that threatened to scuttle the Constitutional Convention in 1787.  Our state’s leadership at that crucial hour is one of the highlights of New Jersey’s history, and in the history of the United States.

You can read my blog post here. 

Salute: New Jersey’s Fallen Honored at Picatinny

I was honored to participate in a moving ceremony at Picatinny Arsenal this past Sunday honoring the three New Jerseyans who lost their lives in the service of our country in 2013: Sgt. Derek McConnell of North Caldwell; Staff Sgt. Eric D. Christian, of Ramsey; and, Staff Sgt. Timothy R. McGill of Ramsey.

Three red oak trees – New Jersey’s state tree – were planted as an enduring memorial to each of these brave men who made the ultimate sacrifice in defense of our liberty and way of life.

Salute: Liz Parker of the New Jersey Hills Media Group

Congratulations to Liz Parker, co-publisher and executive editor of the New Jersey Hills Media Group, for being named this year’s recipient of the Emma C. McKinney Award, given by the National Newspaper Association.  Liz is being recognized for her many years of leadership to the community through the community press.  Several of the NJ Hills Media’s Group’s 15 local papers cover much of the 11^th Congressional District.  Best wishes to Liz on this well-deserved honor.

Salute: LTC Jason Mackay, Picatinny Arsenal Garrison Commander

LTC Jason Mackay, Garrison Commander at Picatinny Arsenal, is wrapping up his tour of duty there.   Over the past two years as Garrison Commander, he contributed much to ensure that Picatinny remains a world-class facility for developing the weaponry that gives our troops the winning edge on the field of battle.

There’s no doubt that his previous service overseas, especially in both Iraq and Afghanistan, made LTC Mackay acutely aware of the importance of the work done at Picatinny.  I have been grateful for his partnership with me in our shared mission of ensuring that Picatinny has the resources it needs to continue to carry out its vitally important mission.

Salute: Happy 90^th President George H.W. Bush

President George H.W. Bush celebrated his 90^th birthday on June 12^thby making a parachute jump from 6,000 feet above his home in Kennebunkport, Maine!  This was the 41^st president’s eighth parachute jump.  The first was during World War II, when his fighter plane was shot down on a mission in the Pacific.  Happy birthday, Mr. President!

You can watch his jump here.

Salute: Dr. Henry Kissinger Turns 91

Former Secretary of State and one-time National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger recently celebrated his 91^st birthday.  Senator John McCain, recalling his captivity as a POW in North Vietnam, offered this moving toast to Dr. Kissinger at a party in his honor last week.