Greetings! Alex Pretti was not a “protestor,” he was an agitator. So opines National Review editor-in-chief Richard Lowry in a guest column for the NY Post. “Now that we’ve seen videos of an earlier struggle with federal agents and learned more about the organized nature of the anti-ICE resistance” Lowry writes, “it’s become clear that the better word for Pretti was agitator, or perhaps even operative.”  Amplifying Lowry’s blame the victim op-ed, Trump wrote in a Truth Social post this morning that he also believes that Pretti was an agitator and perhaps even an “insurrectionist.”  My view? ICE agents were the agitators and Pretti’s actions were in reaction to an over-the-top assault on his city by Trump storm troopers...Weekend Watch: I’m  two episodes into HBO’s new series A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms and so far it’s a winner.  A  prequel to the wildly successful “Game of Thrones,” the two main characters in the series, Sir Dunk, the giant-like would-be knight, and his young, but wise-beyond-his-years sidekick will steal your heart...Weekend Whatever: Melania, the $40 million documentary about you-know-who lands in 1,500 North American movie theaters today. After an anticipated weak weekend box office and skewering by critics, I predict that the First Lady may feel like a chicken at a shish kebob fest...Weekend Laugh: Award-winning humorist Andy Borowitz  claims in his latest column that the nation’s dogs have urged President Trump to fire Kristi Noem as Secretary of Homeland Security.  “This is not a partisan issue,” writes Borowitz. “Cats agree”...If you keep reading, I’ll keep Righting. Howard

Greetings! Gotta love Bruce Springsteen. The Boss penned the protest song Streets of Minneapolis over the weekend and it dropped yesterday. Stark echoes of when Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young released the song Ohio a month after the killing of four Kent State University student protesters at the hands of National Guardsmen in May 1970. (BTW: millions of college students went on strike after the shooting and hundreds of schools closed for the semester demonstrating the power of protest.) Here’s the opening verse of  “Streets of Minneapolis” and Springsteen nails it:  Through the winter's ice and cold, Down Nicolett Avenue, A city aflame fought fire and ice, 'Neath an occupier's boots, King Trump’s private army from the DHS, Guns belted to their coats, Came to Minneapolis to enforce the law, Or so their story goes. Strong lyrics really lift this ode. With predictable snark,  Outkick says “it sounds like a parody of a Springsteen song” ...Emmy-award-winning actor and activist John Leguizamo throws heat on ICE.  “If you follow ICE, unfollow me. Don’t come to my shows, don’t watch my movies,” he wrote on social media last week. The right-leaning Hollywood in Toto wishes Tinseltown studios would cancel the outspoken Leguizamo...Book Beat: A Tucker Carlson biography just hit bookshelves. Hated by All the Right People, by Jason Zehgerle, examines how the smug nationalist became one of the most influential voices on the right.  It’s getting some good press in the NY Times and NPR. Love the tome’s title BTW...More lit news: Josh Shapiro’s memoir, Where We Keep the Light, was released this week. The Pennsylvania Governor’s book received a tepid review from The Washington Post. Lousy title BTW... Thanks to everyone who gave so generously to TheRighting’s semi-annual funding drive. Still time to make a donation (hint, hint)....If you keep reading and donating, I’ll keep Righting. Howard