Rip’s Newsletter
September 21, 2026
Compiled and Edited
by
Jim Reynolds
Articles in This Issue
Jay Rogers - Big Tent vs. Big Top: What the Dallas Convention Just Proved
Roger Kimball - The Political Weather Is Changing
Allan J Feifer - The Case Against Surrender
Jim Reynolds - Defund the Police: The Receipts
Overview
The left spent years telling us “defund the police” was a slogan, not a program, and the receipts say otherwise: it was explicit, organized, and politically toxic.
At the same time, Republicans are showing a harder edge and a broader coalition, with Dallas putting populist economics, former Democrats, and labor allies under one roof.
Trump’s record on the border, taxes, and DEI is still the backbone of the fight, and the real question is whether the country keeps rewarding strength or falls back into the same soft-headed surrender.
Big Tent vs. Big Top: What the Dallas Convention Just Proved
By: Jay Rogers American Greatness
Date: 2026-09-21 · Words: 1,188
RFK Jr. told Dallas Republicans Democrats have become unrecognizable from his family’s legacy.
The RNC’s first-ever midterm convention showcased a populist pitch, including $5,000 household dividends.
Republicans now include former Democrats, labor allies, and unconventional figures in their governing coalition.
Democrats, the article argues, have narrowed through purity tests, litmus tests, and internal policing.
The piece frames GOP growth as open recruitment, while Democrats risk becoming a shrinking circus.
Dallas shows which party is expanding, and which one is shrinking under its own rigidity.
🅱️ A sharp breakdown of the changing guard. It moves past the usual partisan bickering to show how the math actually works on the ground. The ‘big tent vs. circus’ metaphor hits home for anyone tired of the purity tests.
Read the full original article here
The Political Weather Is Changing
By: Roger Kimball American Greatness
Date: 2026-09-20 · Words: 1,631
The author argues Trump’s political fortunes are improving despite widespread collapse narratives.
He cites Trump’s border, tax, anti-DEI, and cultural-policy achievements as substantial wins.
Trump’s ban on hostile media outlets is framed as selective, not unprecedented, retaliation.
The Greenland agreement is portrayed as a major geopolitical victory securing U.S. control.
The Iran war is described as effectively won, with lingering resistance seen as terminal.
The piece argues Trump’s momentum is shifting the political weather and could preserve GOP control.
🅱️ Kimball isn’t just reporting; he’s reading the barometer while the elites are still checking their hair in the mirror. A sharp look at how a master negotiator plays the long game while the ‘rules-based order’ crowd is still crying over spilled milk.
Read the full original article here
The Case Against Surrender
By: Allan J Feifer American Thinker
Date: 2026-09-20 · Words: 1,125
Feifer argues political identity is often inherited, not thoughtfully chosen.
He stays Republican because he believes Americans retain agency and responsibility.
He warns fatalism about America’s decline becomes self-fulfilling surrender.
Historical change, he says, comes from people acting, not destiny.
Conservatism, for him, defends individual control, law, borders, and constitutional limits.
America’s future depends on citizens refusing resignation and acting as if change is still possible.
🅱️ A much-needed wake-up call for the ‘it’s over anyway’ crowd. It trades cheap outrage for a backbone, reminding us that fatalism is just surrender with a fancy name.
Read the full original article here
Defund the Police: The Receipts
By: Jim Reynolds www.reynolds.com
Date: 2026-09-21 · Words: 623
The article argues 2020’s “defund the police” movement was explicit, widespread, and politically consequential.
It cites AOC campaign materials urging supporters to “defund police” and invest in community services.
It quotes Bowman, Bush, and Omar endorsing defunding or dismantling police institutions.
It says BLM, the ACLU, and Mariame Kaba pushed defund, dismantle, and abolish positions.
The piece contends later distancing cannot erase the historical record of those public statements.
This matters because it documents how a once-radical policing agenda moved into mainstream politics before backlash set in.
🅱️ This isn’t a debate; it’s an audit. It lays out the paper trail of a movement that thought it could rewrite reality, only to find the bill eventually came due. Sharp, clean, and keeps the receipts where it matters most.
Read the full original article here
You may also be interested in the following selected stories:
Nothing but Hard Choices Await — Kevin McCullough, Townhall
Nikole Hannah-Jones Just Wrote the Best Case for School Choice She’ll Ever Publish — Joe Cunningham, RedState
Just Because AI Does Things That âLook Human,â That Does Not Give It Consciousness — David DeMay, American Thinker
How Hamas Controls the Story Coming Out of Gaza — Khaled Abu Toameh, The Gatestone Institute
Do COVID And AI Rhyme? — Brian C Joondeph, American Thinker
Engineering hate — Scott Johnson, Power Line
