Paul Ryan, what are you thinking?

I’ve always had a lot of respect for Paul Ryan as a person and politician. I had the privilege of hearing him speak and interviewing him a few times during my newspaper days in southeastern Wisconsin and was always struck by how genuine he could be and how well he connected with constituents.

So I was disappointed by Thursday’s news that he was endorsing Donald Trump.

I get it. It’s all politics and it’s an attempt to unite the Republican Party.

But seriously. Paul Ryan, what are you thinking?

“So Ryan’s singular act of appeasement in the face of the Trump juggernaut sends a loud and clear message about the kind of rhetoric that Republicans are willing to accept in trade for hanging onto the House of Representatives and securing their thin margin in the United States Senate.

Instead of breaking with other establishment Republicans, Ryan, threw in with a man who has pushed what used to be racist, dog-whistle language from the darkness where it belongs, to the center of our civil debate.

Ryan has thrown in with a man who, with his support for a travel ban on the members of one of world’s largest religions, has cast aside the very religious freedoms that Republicans claim to staunchly defend.”

There’s this, too. A Donald Trump presidency would threaten the U.S. rule of law.

(Updated 06.09.16)

Here's more: Donald Trump does not have a campaign

And more: Poor Paul Ryan

"So in his efforts to placate the right wing of his right-wing party, Ryan just sold out the principles of the Republican Party to a reality TV show host and ethically challenged businessman.

Now Ryan can no longer separate himself from Donald Trump and his dubious positions and policies. Ryan can step back from or criticize some of Trump’s positions, but he won’t be able to do that every day or his endorsement becomes a total joke. We had many months and many debates to watch and learn who Mr. Trump is, so we can assume that Paul Ryan knew what he was doing personally and what he was doing to the Republican Party when he made his endorsement. Now, for the next five months Paul Ryan has to live with the consequences."

Carpool Karaoke with Gwen Stefani

Surfing around YouTube this morning and came across this video.

James Corden, whose Carpool Karaoke sessions have become somewhat of a sensation since his ride with Adele, has done it again -- and this time he picked up a couple special guests.

Enjoy.

Break Out the Chewbacca Mask and You Won’t Laugh Alone

So I awoke last Saturday, opened Facebook while I was still lying in bed and saw this video my friend Gina had shared …



The longer I watched, the more engrossed I became in Candace Payne’s glee and the harder it got to control my own laughter. I was nearly laughing so hard that the side of my body was hurting.

Well, in the ensuing days the video continued to light up the internet. And pretty soon Candace and her family were basking in the glow of gifts from Kohl’s to appearances on the morning talk shows. She appeared on the The Late Late Show with James Corden, took him to work with J.J. Abrams and will meet Chewbacca himself, Peter Mayew.

The phenomenon of it all reminds me of the wedding dance video that went viral several years ago.

Here’s a good read I caught from The New York Times last night. 

Admit it: You laughed. We laughed. Everyone laughed. But ... why? https://t.co/hNmzr84wT1 pic.twitter.com/e5fIvHA620

— The New York Times (@nytimes) May 27, 2016

Another day, another Royals comeback

Just when I start thinking this Royals’ season is going down the tubes and I should be investing more time in watching or listening to the Cubs, they do something remarkable and remind me why I fell in love with this current cast of Kansas City baseball players.

I had returned to my office this afternoon after coming a commencement ceremony at the college and checked the Royals score. They were down 7-1 in the seventh inning.

I groaned. Not a chance, I thought and proceeded with my work.

Then I saw this tweet during the top of the ninth.

If it's as bad as it looks...see you all in April. We're not winning anything with a Drew Butera/Tony Cruz platoon. https://t.co/gehxBHbNxD

— Rany Jazayerli (@jazayerli) May 28, 2016

Now what, I thought, and scrolled a little further down my TweetDeck to see Salvador Perez was involved in a collision and had to be carried off the field.

The collision during the top of the ninth inning here at the K: https://t.co/KRpSeGnnYP

— Rustin Dodd (@rustindodd) May 28, 2016

But then …

And now the Royals have the tying run at the plate in the ninth. So this day is off the rails. 7-4, White Sox

— Rustin Dodd (@rustindodd) May 28, 2016

What!? … That was enough to get me to turn it on. We watched their miraculous comeback last night, and now they were doing it again.

I’ll just let Rustin’s Twitter feed take it from here.

Eric Hosmer hits a gap shot. It's 7-6, White Sox. The Royals trailed 7-1 entering the bottom of the ninth.

— Rustin Dodd (@rustindodd) May 28, 2016

And, of course, Drew Butera is now hitting.

— Rustin Dodd (@rustindodd) May 28, 2016

Drew Butera just ripped an RBI double and did the hair flip thing at second base. The Royals have scored six runs in the ninth. It's 7-7.

— Rustin Dodd (@rustindodd) May 28, 2016

By this time, I had finished my work for the day and had packed up my belongings, ready to go home. But Brett Eibner, whose Major League debut we watched last night along with his first Major League hit, was at the plate with two outs and the winning run on third base. And I wasn’t going anywhere until he made the third out and drove in the winning run.

After an epic at-bat that seemed more destined to result in a walk-off walk, he lined a base-hit for the walk-off win.
I pumped my fist and walked out of my office with the radio feed still playing on my phone, my head high as listened to the roar of the Kauffman Stadium crowd.

The Royals beat the White Sox, 8-7. They scored seven runs in the bottom of the ninth. I can't believe that just happened. KC is 26-22.

— Rustin Dodd (@rustindodd) May 28, 2016

That was the largest ninth-inning comeback in Royals history.

— Rustin Dodd (@rustindodd) May 28, 2016

Tonight it appears as though Salvy’s injury is a relatively minor one, considering how severe the collision appeared. Thank goodness.

Depending on how severe the quad contusion is, Perez could be looking at DL stint, Ned says. But looks like Royals avoided total disaster.

— Rustin Dodd (@rustindodd) May 28, 2016

Art Stewart, who has been in baseball more than 60 years, bounced into the clubhouse after the game: "You had to see it to believe it."

— Rustin Dodd (@rustindodd) May 28, 2016

Here's Rustin's full recap. ... And here's MLB's recap.

I love that Eric Hosmer said "It was one of the craziest regular-season games I've played in." Because we all know which game was THE craziest.