True to form, Rep. Josh Harder is proving to be in lockstep with Nancy Pelosi.

If the freshman Democrat congressman was truly interested in bipartisanship he wouldn’t have decided to slam the president in his “Statement Responding to The State of the Union Address.”

Harder – who has great socialist leanings – said: “If we want to make progress on the issues that matter to the hardworking families of the Central Valley, we cannot allow gridlock, lies, and fear-mongering to rule as they so often do these days.”

“Lies” and “fear-mongering” are strong words not reflective of someone who wants to get along with the president who’s State of the Union address received widespread and favorable reaction. If Harder considers it “fear mongering” when the president points out obvious truths about the amount of crime and drugs creeping across our porous border then I have a huge problem with Harder and those in his party who refuse to build a border wall.

* * * * *

Did you catch this? During the State of the Union, there was newly elected U.S. Senator Kyrtsen Sinema standing with hands raised in applause after Trump said his White House passed the “Right to Try” Act to give critically ill patients access to life-saving cures. As she applauded Trump, Rep. Jacky Rosen stood to her feet and slyly mouthed – if lip-reading is correct – for Sinema to “watch you’re a--.” It appeared that the Democrat was warning Sinema to tone down her enthusiasm for Trump in front of the tribal elders.

But did you see who was sitting two rows behind Rosen and captured by the camera, lips pursed like he had just sucked on a tube of Preparation H? Yep, Joshie Boy, AKA Congressman Josh Harder, D-Turlock. He looked as sullen and as mad as a boy who had been scolded for taking cookies out of the cookie jar. Josh couldn’t even show he supports life, but then again, in the campaign we learned that he thinks late-term abortion is perfectly acceptable.

* * * * *

Even as Trump celebrated ICE Special Agent Elvin Hernandez – he’s rescued more than 300 girls and women from sexual predators on the way to the border and arrested more than 1,500 human traffickers – Democrat women like Alexandria Orcasio-Cortez would not applaud. That says a lot about their concern about the safety of Americans.

Conservative columnist Todd Starnes was in chamber that night and concluded “There is something demonic happening within the ranks of the Democrats.”

* * * * *

Believe this. California State Attorney General Xavier Becerra, who last April issued guidelines for public schools to protect undocumented immigrants on campus from federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, had the audacity to say last week – in answer to Trump’s State of the Union address – that his parents “trusted in the promise of this country that all those who work hard and play by the rules, have earned the opportunity to get ahead.”

Somebody tell Mr. Becerra that border- and visa-jumping illegal aliens is not playing by any of the rules whatsoever – and neither is the state when it harbors illegal aliens from federal agents.

Becerra delivered his address in Spanish, not English. Apparently his audience doesn’t know what assimilation means.

I’ve never seen a public official act as a walking billboard for the politics of division. Becerra said the GOP is “putting a wall between you and the voting booth.” What is this demagogue talking about? Do you know of any Republican who is trying to keep people from voting? It is true, however, that Republicans do want to keep elections honest by having voters show ID so that voter fraud can’t occur but Democrats don’t want to ensure clean and fair elections. Just like Becerra is opposed to outlawing ballot harvesting because that was the Democrats’ path to turn around key GOP congressional races last November. The practice should stop for any party.

* * * * *

Democrats in New Jersey must be clones of California Democrats. They just came up with a “rain tax” to help pay for storm drainage systems.

A CBS affiliate there of 18,000 survey respondents said it’s a horrible idea. (So is Gov. Nuisance’s water tax he wants to make us drink.) New Jersey has one of the highest tax rates in the nation.

Just remember the words of Harry Hopkins, one member of FDR’s New Deal Brain Trust. Hopkins said, “Tax, tax, tax, spend, spend, spend, the public is too damned dumb to know the difference.”

Particularly true in California where people keep going back for more.

* * * * *

I have a good idea. Let only those who bother to take the initiative on their own to register to vote in California to actually be the ones who can vote.

There’s too many shenanigans in forcing every Tom, Dick and Harry who wants to drive to automatically be signed up to vote. Why in the heck is one of the biggest bureaucratic red-tape agencies in California signing people up to vote anyway? The DMV has proven to be inept to sign people up to vote.

I’ve long held that if a person has to be coaxed into voting – or even sign up to vote – they are the least informed of voters and likely will only favor candidates who mollycoddle them and give them freebies and we all know which party that tends to be. If you’re too dumb to figure out how to register to vote on your own – there were forms at every DMV and library in the country – then you probably shouldn’t be casting votes for public policy decisions.

* * * * *

This is more than disturbing. A YouTube channel for kids is facing controversy after posting a video of a pro-choice activist working to convince children it’s just fine to have an abortion. Amelia Bonow compares having an abortion to a bad dentist appointment and a bodily procedure that’s “kind of uncomfortable.” She also tells one child that she believes abortion is “all part of God’s plan.”

Anyone who thinks that God condones innocent lives being taken out of personal convenience obviously has never explored Scripture.

* * * * *

Want to know why the American public rolls its eyes on the embarrassing national media? Because it gloats when they catch Trump misspeaking during a speech. MSN gleefully reported last week that Trump accidentally said, “Since the founding of our nation, many of our greatest strides – from gaining our independence to abolition of civil rights to extending the vote for women – have been led by people of faith.” They know damned well what he was trying to say – abolition of slavery. Their juvenile reporting tactics are so tiring – and it’s not working. Trump’s approval ratings are higher than Obama’s this far into the first term.

* * * * *

Gene Yeakley did not receive much support in his complaints about signage posted by the Ceres Lions Club. We wrote the story about his complaints to the council and people didn’t like Yeakley’s focus. Joyce Goblirsch suggested that “Evidently this man has no life Just running around finding something to complain about … he needs to get a life.” This from Shirley Rogers: “Every two weeks new Yeakley problem. Lions Club is least of the city’s problems. I must start attending council meetings again. They are amusing.”

The posting caused Andie Kat to support the club and direct focus on “the ridiculous illegal racing, reckless driving and dumping of garbage, that is destroying our neighborhoods.” She noted how impaired and/or reckless drivers cause problems on River Road, in fact, a car running into her yard, hitting 60-year-old brick and stopped by a chain-link fence from hitting an older couple asleep in their bed. It was a hit-and-run.

It is amazing to see mostly young people, mostly unlicensed drivers, mostly intoxicated drivers wreaking havoc on our roads.

This column is the opinion of Jeff Benziger, and does not necessarily represent the opinion of The Ceres Courier or Morris Newspaper Corp. of CA. How do you feel about this? Let Jeff know at jeffb@cerescourier.com