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U.S. civil liberties group to challenge Trump's new travel ban | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The American Civil Liberties Union on Friday launched the first legal challenge to President Donald Trump’s new restrictions on people entering the United States from eight countries. The civil rights group said in a statement that it will seek to amend an existing lawsuit in Maryland federal court that was filed against Trump’s previous March 6 ban. In a letter filed with U.S. District Court Judge Theodore Chuang, the ACLU said the new proposal announced on Sunday violates the U.S. Constitution as well as federal immigration law. Trump’s new ban places indefinite restrictions on travel to the United States for citizens from Iran, Libya, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Chad and North Korea. Certain government officials from Venezuela will also be barred. The ACLU will seek an injunction that would block visa and entry restrictions on those affected. Challengers of Trump’s immigration restrictions have said the bans are aimed at following through on a pledge he made on the campaign trail in 2016 to block Muslims from entering the country. “President Trump’s newest travel ban is still a Muslim ban at its core, and it certainly engages in discrimination based on national origin, which is unlawful,” said the ACLU’s executive director, Anthony Romero. “We’ll see President Trump in court - again,” he added. The new ban, Trump’s third, could affect tens of thousands of potential immigrants and visitors. Trump has argued that the restrictions fulfill his campaign pledge to tighten immigration and security. “The Department of Justice will continue to vigorously defend the president’s inherent authority to keep this country safe,” said Justice Department spokesman Ian Prior. The ACLU represents several nonprofit groups, including the International Refugee Assistance Project as well as individuals who say they would be affected by the ban, which goes into effect on Oct. 18. Chuang was one of two district court judges who blocked Trump’s second travel ban, saying “it is likely that its primary purpose remains the effectuation of the proposed Muslim ban.” Legal experts say the new ban is likely on more solid footing than the previous bans, in part because it was implemented following a detailed review by federal agencies. Trump’s first travel ban aimed at seven Muslim-majority countries, issued soon after he took office in January, was blocked by courts following chaotic scenes at airports. The second ban, targeting six countries, was blocked by lower courts and partially revived by the Supreme Court in June. | 0fake |
GEORGE WASHINGTON PROFESSOR On Soros Activists Shutting Down Roads: Why It’s Time To Start “Suing the Bastards” | Americans better start fighting back against these people who are shutting down our public roads by hitting these thugs where it really hurts in their wallets. Otherwise, we will continue to see increased violence that is being blamed on pro-Trump supporters in the media Anti-Trump activists who protested his planned appearance in Arizona today by blocking a limited access highway and creating a traffic nightmare with cars backed up for miles [N.Y. Daily News] could be sued in class action law suits for massive damages modeled after suits filed against those who similarly illegally blocked traffic at the George Washington Bridge, and judgments against other illegal protesters, says public interest law professor John Banzhaf.With the mainstream media continuing to blame Trump supporters for the efforts of their opponents to shut down their free speech rights, it may be time to adopt the tactics the left favors to get its way: lawsuits. That s the suggestion of John Banzhaf, a George Washington University law professor who defies categorization politically but is often labeled a gadfly. He explains:Anti-Trumpers Block Highway; Face Class Actions For DamagesSuits Filed re Blocked GW Bridge Provide Precedenthttps://t.co/LN17FGakCw John Banzhaf (@ProfBanzhaf) March 19, 2016Why and How to Sue Anti-Trump Protesters and Other Disruptors"Sue The Disruptors" More Effective Than Criminal Lawhttps://t.co/9MMiZtE5wq John Banzhaf (@ProfBanzhaf) March 21, 2016As Banzhaf had predicted and later helped inspire, two different class action law suits seeking millions in civil damages were brought by persons stuck in the massive traffic jams at NYC s GW Bridge which were illegally caused by former aides to Governor Chris Christie.Suing protesters Suing the Bastards may be the most effective way to help deter illegal protests, says Banzhaf, noting that slap-on-the-wrist criminal fines usually aren t very effective, especially since it sometimes also helps give illegal protesters a soap box to air their grievances in criminal trials.The lead protester who chained her neck to a pickup truck was George Soros paid operative, Jacinta Gonzalez from New Orleans.But the tide may already be turning, says Banzhaf, citing these examples.When other groups see that the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society has been forced to pay $2.55 million to Japanese companies for illegally using acid and smoke bombs to disrupt their whaling, they may think twice before blocking traffic to advance their agenda, says Banzhaf, who has promoted the idea and the very slogan of Suing the Bastards when the law is broken.In another example, a student who illegally chained himself to some construction equipment because he opposed an oil pipeline was forced to pay out big bucks for his criminal conduct.As NPR reported it, he was apparently ready to accept a relatively painless conviction for trespass, but not to pay the pipeline company $39,000 in restitution.Similarly, eleven protesters who allegedly engaged in illegal activities at the Mall of American are facing restitution claims from the City of Bloomington.In these and many similar situations, protesters are often willing to accept a small misdemeanor fine and conviction for a chance to focus attention on their cause, especially if it means they get to have a criminal trial which generates even more publicity for them and for their grievance, argues Banzhaf.While most of these actions against criminal protesters have been brought by businesses, there s no reason why similar legal actions cannot also be brought by any person falsely imprisoned on that Arizona highway as was the case with one of the two GW-Bridge suits.Using the threat of legal actions is a far better and more American way of deterring illegal protests than engaging in physical violence against them, as some Trump supporters have apparently already done, says Banzhaf.Via: PRLOG | 1real |
Visiting Beijing, Myanmar’s Aung San Suu Kyi Seeks to Mend Relations - The New York Times | BEIJING — Hillary Clinton considers her a friend. President Obama has invited her to the White House next month. But on her first visit to a major capital since becoming leader of Myanmar, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi chose a different destination: Beijing. With her arrival here late Wednesday, Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel Peace Prize winner credited with pushing Myanmar from a military dictatorship toward democracy, offered a potent signal that her foreign policy would be more friendly toward China, which is eager to strengthen its foothold in the country. Her move risks unsettling Washington, however, since the Obama administration considers the democratic changes in Myanmar that brought Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi to power one of its major foreign policy victories in Asia. “Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has long expressed her desire for friendly relations with China, and it’s not insignificant that she has chosen to travel to Beijing before any other major capital,” said Thant the author of “Where China Meets India: Burma and the New Crossroads of Asia. ” He added: “The Chinese, whatever wariness they may have had, definitely sense the possibility of improved relations and will go to make this visit a success. This will be a historic visit that could well shape relations for many years to come. ” China’s welcome contrasts with how Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi was treated when she was Myanmar’s opposition leader. Last year, she was 20 minutes late for a meeting with President Xi Jinping, who reportedly told her that she was the first person ever to have kept him waiting so long. Now, China is making amends for that reprimand as it pushes to install itself as the foremost power in Myanmar. It is tailoring investment projects to suit the impoverished country and assuming an influential position as mediator in peace talks between rival ethnic groups and the government this month. It is also hoping to restart the $3. 6 billion Myitsone Dam project, which was suspended in 2011 and is a major source of friction between the two countries. China views Myanmar as a strategic asset, so much so that some policy makers see Myanmar’s long shoreline as China’s west coast. Its position close to the Indian Ocean offers a shortcut for oil and gas imports from the Middle East, and its rich mineral deposits and proximity make it a logical part of China’s sphere of influence on the mainland of Southeast Asia. Even though China recently built oil and gas pipelines from Myanmar’s coast into southern China and has access to the Kyaukpyu port on the Bay of Bengal, trade between the two nations dropped in 2015, and relations cooled during the transition from a military junta, which China backed, to elections last year. The two sides are seeking to repair the friendship, though Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi, who has praised the old tradition of a neutral foreign policy, is likely to be vigilant that China is not too overbearing. In the days before her visit, Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi sought to ease tensions over the suspension of the Myitsone Dam. After appointing a commission to review the suspension decision and look at other hydro projects, she can tell China that Myanmar no longer has a closed mind on the project, analysts said. “She needs good relations with China, but were she to approve the dam, she would lose massive internal support among many groups,” said David I. Steinberg, distinguished professor emeritus at Georgetown University. The new panel was a smart way to deflect pressure on her from China as well as her domestic constituency, he said. The commission could decide that the dam — which Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi resisted as opposition leader because of the environmental impact it would have on the nation’s main artery, the Irrawaddy River — should not be built. But it would most likely consider other projects that would be to China’s liking, Mr. Steinberg said. For its part, Beijing has become more flexible on the dam, opening the way for the easing of tensions, analysts said. Negotiations are underway for Myanmar to pay China if the dam is not built, or to use the money for other projects, officials close to Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi said. Numbers have already been put on the table, they said, including $800 million in compensation to China if the dam is not built, they said. In exchange, Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi has told the Chinese that she wants a series of smaller hydro projects that are less of a threat to the environment and enjoy popular support, her spokesman, U Zaw Htay, said. “In the end, the dam construction could be halted, resumed, adjusted, replaced by another project, or maybe there are other ideas,” said Fan Hongwei, a specialist on Myanmar at Xiamen University. As part of its ambition to secure more access to the Indian Ocean, China has proposed a new trading route — a waterway from the town of Bhamo in northern Myanmar to the Irrawaddy Delta — and this is likely to come up in the talks in Beijing, Myanmar officials said. Derek J. Mitchell, the former American ambassador to Myanmar, said that Washington recognized the country’s urgent need for hard infrastructure and that it had never opposed China’s delivering major infrastructure projects to Myanmar as long as they are transparent, acceptable to the people and environmentally sound, as the new government has indicated. It would also be preferable if infrastructure that crossed borders connected Myanmar to the wider region and not just to China, Mr. Mitchell said. One of Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi’s major objectives is to seek China’s help as she starts peace talks on conflicts in northern Myanmar between the ethnic groups and the military. The roiling small wars there have long been a barrier to economic development in the region, and Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi has scheduled a peacemaking gathering, called the Panglong Conference, for Aug. 31. She has offered China a role as mediator, Myanmar officials involved in the talks said. Two groups in northern Myanmar near the Chinese border — the Kachin and the Wa, who are ethnic Chinese — receive arms from across the border. The Kachin Independence Army and the United Wa State Army, the largest ethnic army in Myanmar, refused to sign a agreement last year. At the time, a Burmese government negotiator said China had pressured the two groups along its border not to sign the deal in order to wield more influence over them. By offering China a key role at the talks, to be held in the capital, Naypyidaw, Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi is asking China to halt its arms supplies, a Myanmar official involved in the process said. Recent talks with a flurry of top Chinese officials who have visited Myanmar — including the minister of state security, Geng Huichang the head of the International Department of the Chinese Communist Party, Song Tao and the foreign minister, Wang Yi — have concentrated on China’s role in the peacemaking, the official said. “China holds many of the keys to ending decades of armed conflict,” Mr. Thant said. “The question is what the price of increasing dependence on China will be. ” | 0fake |
Elizabeth Warren Calls Trump A ‘Two-Bit Dictator,’ Slams His RNC Speech | America got i s first true glimpse of a Trump presidency on the final night of the RNC. Instead of a speech focused on the economy and bringing back jobs to the United States, the charade delivered by the Republican presidential candidate was filled with hate and fear, resembling an almost Nixon-esque rhetoric not seen in almost fifty years.The nation needs to wake up. Luckily, we have Elizabeth Warren to help us do that.While appearing on CBS Late Night with Stephen Colbert immediately following Trump s speech, Warren (who has been rumored as a potential VP choice for Hillary Clinton), slammed the Republican candidate for sounding like a two-bit dictator and chided him for his divisive rhetoric: What Donald Trump says is there s a problem out there and what you have to understand is that it s all about each other. What you need to be afraid of is every other American. I ve got to tell you, that speech tonight, he sounded like some two-bit dictator of some country that you couldn t find on a map. Through the applause and a hilarious defense of Trump from Colbert, Warren doubled down: He sounded like a dictator of a small country rather than a man who is running for the highest office of the strongest democracy on the face of the earth. That s what he sounded like. And just like that, Elizabeth Warren summed up exactly how we all feel. To put it plainly, as Warren did, Donald Trump is a bad guy. Elizabeth Warren has been a special thorn in Donald Trump s side. No one, not the media or even Hillary Clinton, has gotten under Trump s skin more than she has. An attack dog in her own right, Warren has been absolutely spot on in her criticism of the potential fascist-in-chief: he s a thin skinned, dictating fraud.We learned earlier this week that Trump has no plan to actually take on the domestic or foreign roles needed to make a great president. That s what Mike Pence will be for.Hopefully Warren will reiterate her observations come the Democratic National Convention, where substance (not just venom) will be front and center for the whole country, and indeed the whole world, to see.Featured image via Win McNamee/Getty Images | 1real |
Trump Allies Dismayed by Huge Number of White House Leaks - Breitbart | The Hill remarks on the high volume of leaks from the Trump White House, to the dismay of President Trump’s allies and the delight of adversarial journalists:[Barely a day goes by without some unusual tale emerging from 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. Recent examples in a single New York Times story included the assertion that White House aides have held meetings in the dark because they can’t figure out how the lights work and that the president is fond of watching television alone in his bathrobe. Trump took to Twitter to assert that the Times “writes total fiction” about him, while White House press secretary Sean Spicer insisted that the president does not even own a bathrobe. More serious matters have been leaked as well, such as descriptions of Trump’s call with Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. Trump apparently said a U. S. deal on refugees, agreed to by President Obama, was “the worst deal ever,” and told Turnbull their conversation was “the worst call by far” among several he had held with world leaders that day. “There have been a ton of leaks. It seems that everyone has their own leaking apparatus,” said one of the dismayed Trump allies. “I don’t know how it affects morale, but it is certainly a distraction. They have 55 firehoses aimed at them. Enough of the palace intrigue!” The Hill reports on speculation the leaks are part of a struggle for supremacy between White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus and strategist Steve Bannon (formerly of Breitbart News). “Insiders” shot this theory down as an “oversimplification,” arguing that Priebus and Bannon get along much better than the press tends to portray them. Another theory is that knives are coming out for White House press secretary Sean Spicer, whose friends are presumably pushing back to protect him. The Huffington Post proposes that the leaks are coming from veteran officials who are “alarmed by the president’s conduct,” because while some of the leaks are “based on opposition to his policies,” many others “appear motivated by a belief that Trump’s words, deeds, and Tweets pose a genuine threat. ” Actively sabotaging an administration one is supposedly concerned about would be a remarkably selfish and even dangerous strategy, which makes it entirely plausible for Washington lifers. The Huffington Post implies that “widespread leaks and warnings from the national security establishment” over Steve Bannon’s membership in the National Security Council might have played a role in the Yemen raid that went wrong on January 29th. The American people should feel no sense of appreciation or gratitude for those who put American troops in jeopardy and harm our national interests because they want leverage over the president. CNBC cites the advent of an encrypted messaging platform called SecureDrop during the 2016 election cycle, plus the increasing use of various other secure communication systems, as one reason for the high volume of leaks. “It’s hard to name a news organization that has not gotten in touch with us about installing SecureDrop in the past six weeks,” Trevor Timm, executive director of the Freedom of the Press Foundation, said of his organization’s popular tool. He said he thought “general fear that Trump could turn the U. S.’ surveillance on the press” combined with “unrest” in the administration was driving interest in SecureDrop. That’s an interesting contrast with how the press managed only a few days of outrage after President Barack Obama really did turn government surveillance systems on them. “I don’t think it’s impossible that a combination of leaks, and whistleblowers and investigative journalism eventually lead to the downfall of Trump,” Timm added. There might be some manufactured drama in all that talk of encrypted communications. As Randy Evans of the Republican National Committee pointed out to the Huffington Post, leakers aren’t usually caught by wiretapping or email monitoring. The preferred method is the “ test,” in which bits of juicy information are given to suspected leakers, and the boss watches to see which tidbits turn up in the press. President Trump himself has blamed the leaks on “Obama people” left over from the previous administration, in particular citing his leaked phone conversations with the leaders of Australia and Mexico. “It’s a disgrace that they leaked because it’s very much against our country. It’s a very dangerous thing for this country,” Trump told Fox News. | 0fake |
Factbox: Trump on Twitter (December 15) - Quantico | The following statements were posted to the verified Twitter accounts of U.S. President Donald Trump, @realDonaldTrump and @POTUS. The opinions expressed are his own. Reuters has not edited the statements or confirmed their accuracy. @realDonaldTrump : - To each member of the graduating class from the National Academy at Quantico, CONGRATULATIONS! [1235 EST] - You are always there for us – THE MEN AND WOMEN IN BLUE. Thank you to our police, thank you to our sheriffs, and thank you to our law enforcement families. God Bless you all, and GOD BLESS AMERICA! #LESM [1428 EST] - Today, it was my tremendous honor to visit Marine Helicopter Squadron One (HMX-1) at the Marine Corps Air Facility in Quantico, Virginia. I am honored to serve as your Commander-in-Chief. On behalf of an entire Nation, THANK YOU for your sacrifice and service. We love you! [1658 EST] - DOW, S&P 500 and NASDAQ close at record highs! #MAGA [1900 EST] -- Source link: (bit.ly/2jBh4LU) (bit.ly/2jpEXYR) | 0fake |
NEW LOW: NYT’s And CBS Used FAKE NEWS To Smear Wounded Warrior Project…Triple Amputee Vet And Freedom Daily Expose Them | Freedom Daily The Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) has been helping injured veterans since its inception in 2003, 2 years after the deadly terror attacks that rocked the nation on 9-11. Since its inception, the organization became the #1 veterans charity in the world. This year, WWP surpassed the 100,000 mark in terms of veterans they provide assistance to. Work the Wounded Warrior Project does has seen billions of dollars go to help severely injured veterans, and that doesn t even include the charity s day to day operations.After being attacked by the New York Times and CBS News last year, Wounded Warrior Project has fallen on hard times, and many severely wounded veterans are no longer receiving assistance. But now the truth has come out. The reports by the Times and CBS that Wounded Warrior Project was misusing funds has been completely debunked. Not only were tens of thousands of wounded veterans harmed by the lies maliciously told about WWP, but two of the founding members were fired by the board of directors, and now they re speaking out.Freedom Daily spoke exclusively to Al Giordano, a Marine vet & co-founder and former Chief Operating Officer of WWP.In 2009, Steve Nardizzi, another co-founder, became CEO of WWP. Both he & Giordano have been credited with building the Wounded Warrior Project into a charity powerhouse for injured veterans. That s when MSM began running fake news about the organization.On Wednesday, January 27, 2016, the New York Times ran a story based on the testimonies of several employees of WWP who were disgruntled over their termination from the charity. The former employees who had been fired had created a private Facebook page with which to communicate with one another. There they plotted to take down Wounded Warrior Project, and the New York Times was more than eager to help.Here is a response that was published by the NYT s to their article:To the Editor:I read with disgust your slanted article on the Wounded Warrior Project. The saddest part is that it endeavors to hurt an organization that does so much to help our wounded soldiers.I have been involved with the Wounded Warrior Project for over 12 years. I have met over 1,000 soldiers and their caregivers whose lives have been positively affected by the organization. Many soldiers have told me they would have committed suicide were it not for the Wounded Warrior Project.Your article zoned in on some disgruntled former employees rather than the roughly 500 staff members who work tirelessly to honor and empower our wounded. You do not reflect the sentiments of the more than 80,000 wounded soldiers we have helped, focusing instead on a few malcontents. For fiscal year 2015, Wounded Warrior reported a 92.9 percent satisfaction rate with the organization s services.PETER HONERKAMPAmagansett, N.Y.Giordano steered us to Professor Doug White, an author, recognized expert on charities, and former Director of the Masters of Science in Fundraising Management program at Columbia University. Professor White became aware of the hit piece done by the New York Times and compiled a 79-page independent report on the matter.White pointed out in his independent report that the Facebook group included Len Stachitis, Executive Vice President of Strategic Giving of WWP. Stachitis was terminated for covering up the theft of donor dollars from his direct reports including Teresa Nichols, Manager of Major gifts, another member of the Facebook group.Dave Philipps, a reporter for the Times, had been contacted by the group of fired WWP employees in June of 2015. Giordano relayed to us that while some former employees spoke glowingly about what WWP had done for them personally, they lied about how the charity was being managed. They had a score to settle. And Philipps ate it up.Nothing good that Philipps was told about WWP made it into his final article for the New York Times.What did Philipps leave out of his hit piece? Employees told him that WWP saved their lives and even their marriages. Dan Nevins, an Army vet who lost both of his legs in Iraq literally cried about what WWP had done for him. Philipps laughed about it. WWP had awesome morale and the lowest employee turnover for any charity half the industry standard. WWP had been voted the best non-profit to work for 3 years in a row Philipps said it was worst. WWP set up a private health care network with $70 million over three years to 4 hospitals for injured veterans to receive free mental health counseling. WWP set up a Trust Fund with $100 million to take care of veterans whose parents couldn t so they wouldn t have to have the government put them into nursing homes. Al Giordano and Steve Nardizzi got rave reviews from the WWP Board of Directors for how they did their jobs Every. Single. Year. A third party company was even brought in to do the internal polling in order to avoid the possibility of employees feeling pressured to rate their bosses in a favorable light.None of these things made it into the New York Times hit piece on the Wounded Warrior Project. Everything that was perceived to be negative about the charity, even the lies the disgruntled, fired employees told Philipps, made the cut, though. Imagine that.The New York Times cited a report from charity auditor Charity Navigator that WWP spent lavishly on executives & administration rather than on vets. It turns out, the reporting was completely bogus, and just recently, WWP was afforded a 4-star rating by Charity Navigator, it s top rating, for the fiscal year 2015. Of course, for the New York Times, the story is all that matters, regardless of who is hurt if the story is 100% BS.Professor White explained in his report how the inaccurate reporting came about. His conclusions are damning for the Fake News New York Times that is. In his report, he states that:The disgusting thing about all of this? Despite being proven wrong, neither the New York Times nor CBS will publish a retraction of their false stories. The Wounded Warrior Project is on schedule to lose $300 million in donor funds since the fake news stories came out. This has devastated WWP and its ability to help more wounded veterans, according to Giordano. Millions of veterans have been affected.Even the uber-liberal Washington Post reported on WWP being cleared of any wrongdoing under Nardizzi & Giordano.Houston Chronicle After reports they were spending lavishly on things like travel, dinners and team building exercises at posh resorts instead of the needs of combat veterans, the Wounded Warrior Project has been given a clean bill of fiscal health from the Better Business Bureau.The BBB s Wise Giving Alliance said this month that the Florida-based Wounded Warrior Project meets their 20 point standard of charity accountability. According to their report, the WWP gets a passing grade for proper finances, governance, effectiveness and funding raising. WWP provided details of expenses and expense areas to demonstrate there was no evidence of lavish spending, according to the report which found the organization s spending to be consistent with its programs and mission. One of the issues that drew critical attentionin 2016 was a so-called All Hands meeting for WWP s employees at a five-star hotel in Colorado Springs. The audit from the BBB determined that the event cost $1 million and not the $3 million that was reported in the media. That amounted to less than $440 per day for the five-day training for 415 staff members, including hotel, food, travel and conference cost, according to the report.Fox News Bill O Reilly covered the news. Watch at 3:48 into the video.https://youtu.be/JHY3G1r3VSQ | 1real |
Jason Day, World’s Top Golfer, Pulls Out of Olympics Over Zika Fears - The New York Times | Jason Day, the No. golfer in the world, became the latest player to pull out of the Olympics because of concern over the Zika virus. “The reason for my decision is my concerns about the possible transmission of the Zika virus and the potential risks that it may present to my wife’s future pregnancies and to future members of our family,” he said in a statement. Day, 28, of Australia, won last year’s P. G. A. Championship for his first major title. Golf is in the Olympics this year for the first time since 1904. But with a large number of key players pulling out, its future may be in doubt. Barry Maister, an International Olympic Committee member from New Zealand, this week blasted the golfers who have dropped out of the Games. “I think it is appalling,” he told the radio station Newstalk ZB. “I don’t like it, and I don’t think the sport should be allowed to continue in the Games under that scenario. ” Maister added, “Just getting in with your name and then putting up some or players is so far from the Olympic ideal or the expectation of the Olympic movement. ” With Day out, the top three golfers from Australia (Day, Adam Scott and Marc Leishman) have decided not to go to the Olympics. And the top three golfers from South Africa are all not going: Branden Grace, Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel. Shane Lowry also pulled out of the Olympics on Tuesday, citing Zika, meaning the top three golfers who could represent Ireland are also out: Lowry Rory McIlroy, ranked No. 4, who also cited the virus and Graeme McDowell, who said he wanted to be with his wife, Kristin, during her pregnancy. Vijay Singh of Fiji has also pulled out. Gary Player, the captain of the South African team, joked last week that he was ready to step in and play if needed. In addition to Zika fears, golfers have cited a busy schedule as a concern. The British Open and the P. G. A. are both being held in late July, just before the Games. Golf has been the sport, but the American cyclist Tejay van Garderen also withdrew from the Games over the virus. Some athletes and coaches have said they will preserve sperm for possible future pregnancies before traveling to Rio. Zika is a virus linked to severe birth defects. Hundreds of thousands are infected in Brazil, and the virus has been tied to thousands of cases of microcephaly, which causes unusually small heads and brain damage in newborns. The virus can be sexually transmitted. Some scientists have called for postponement or cancellation of the Games because of the health emergency. Olympic officials say the risk is minimal. The American, Jordan Spieth, No. 2 in the world, is still expected to compete. None of the world’s top female golfers have backed out of the Olympics, even though they ostensibly face a greater health risk. Since the decision to add golf to the Summer Olympics program, the reaction of the top players has been lukewarm. With many major events on the annual calendar, the value of an Olympic medal is not the same as it is for athletes for whom the Olympics is the pinnacle of their sport. Plenty of athletes in those sports are still eager to compete. “Everyone keeps dropping off one by one,” said the gold medalist Michael Phelps, who is competing in the United States swimming trials in Indianapolis. “Nobody wants to go. But hopefully I get to go soon. ” Serena Williams, speaking at Wimbledon, acknowledged that “it’s difficult for someone that’s in a sport like golf because their main goal, like tennis, is to win slams,” but said of playing at the Olympics, “It is really one of the best experiences that I’ve ever had. ” | 0fake |
Sean Spicer: Trump Family Has ‘Made It Very Clear’ What They Think of Kathy Griffin | The White House declined to respond to comedian Kathy Griffin for her widespread public meltdown after her decision to feature herself holding the bloody, decapitated head of President Donald Trump in a photo. [“The president, the first lady, and the Secret Service have all made it very clear their view on those thoughts,” Spicer said in response to a question from Breitbart News, asking if the family wanted a personal apology from the comedian: Melania Trump called the photo “very disturbing” and questioned Griffin’s mental health. “When you consider some of the atrocities happening in the world today, a photo opportunity like this is simply wrong and makes you wonder about the mental health of the person who did it,” she said in a statement on Wednesday. The president also condemned the photo in a Twitter message. “Kathy Griffin should be ashamed of herself. My children, especially my 11 year old son, Barron, are having a hard time with this,” he wrote. “Sick!” During her press conference on Friday, Griffin accused the president and his family of ruining her career and her life after she posed with the photo and said the family “picked the wrong redhead. ” “He broke me,” Griffin said tearfully. | 0fake |
Trump says North Korea problem 'will be taken care of' | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that Pyongyang is a problem that “will be taken care of,” as speculation rose that North Korea might be on the verge of a sixth nuclear test. Trump, responding to a question about what his message is for North Korea, said, “North Korea is a problem. The problem will be taken care of.” He said he believed Chinese President Xi Jinping would “work very hard” to help resolve the challenge. The president said he had spent a lot of time with Xi last week in Florida. “I have really gotten to like and respect President Xi. ... He’s a very special man. I think he’s going to try very hard.” | 0fake |
Key figures in future Austrian coalition talks | VIENNA (Reuters) - Austria s electoral system makes it difficult for any one party to obtain a majority, and the winner of Sunday s parliamentary election will probably need to form a coalition to govern. Support for the frontrunner, the conservative People s Party led by Sebastian Kurz, running at about 33 percent. A coalition between two of the three largest parties is the most likely outcome. Several smaller parties are polling at around 6 percent or lower. The 31-year-old foreign minister expects to lead his party to victory and has avoided committing himself to anything other than holding talks with all sides after the election. He has campaigned on a platform of ending the old compromises of centrist coalitions with the Social Democrats, suggesting he might lean toward the Freedom Party. But he has also said there could be leadership changes within the losing parties after the election, which could be a hint at a tie-up with the Social Democrats under a new chief. He has repeatedly praised SPO Defence Minister Hans-Peter Doskozil. The former head of the national rail company has been chancellor for less than 18 months and already cuts an embattled figure, his party having been involved in a smear scandal it blames on an adviser he hired. A poor showing on Sunday could put his position at risk. He and Kurz can barely hide their contempt for each other, making it unlikely they would work together. He and Heinz-Christian Strache of the Freedom Party have had some cordial head-to-head debates, though Kern says their parties are still worlds apart . HEINZ-CHRISTIAN STRACHE, FREEDOM PARTY (FPO) The trained dental technician who has headed the far-right Freedom Party for more than a decade has cut an unusually relaxed figure this election, perhaps because he and his party have a good chance of being kingmaker. He has praised Kern for a more open approach to dealing with him and he has led a campaign that has kept his options open, railing against immigration but also calling for social fairness , a core issue for the center left. Kurz has accused the FPO and the Social Democrats of holding early talks on forming a coalition, but Strache is a political veteran who is eager to become vice chancellor and is likely to seek real concessions before forming an alliance. Doskozil shot to fame in 2015 as a provincial police chief who oversaw Austria s biggest influx of people during Europe s migration crisis. He was soon appointed defense minister and made his party s pointman on immigration. Doskozil has taken a tougher stance on securing the country s borders, prompting a diplomatic spat with Italy but earning praise from both Strache and Kurz. He is also from the eastern province of Burgenland, where his party and the FPO share power. He would be a strong contender to take over the party leadership if Kern were weakened, though he would most likely be opposed by the party s left wing, based in the SPO stronghold of Red Vienna . The former Greens leader won a close-fought election against an opponent from the Freedom Party and has said he would seek to prevent Strache from becoming chancellor. He has since rowed back, saying he would merely want any government to be pro-European. What that means for Strache is unclear. His party calls for Brussels to transfer power to member states and says a currency union only makes sense between countries with similar economies. As head of state Van der Bellen has the power to appoint and dismiss governments, and presidents have previously played a crucial role in forming coalitions. (For a graphic on Austrian parliamentary election, click tmsnrt.rs/2hKIi65) | 0fake |
Trump’s Own Diversity Council Member Fact-Checks Him On DACA: ‘He’s A Liar’ (VIDEO) | Donald Trump s team is turning against him at record speed, and he s just been sent a strong message by a member of his own diversity council.Recently, Trump announced that he is going to get rid of the DACA program, marking his latest attack on immigrants. While much of America is furious over this, it seems like Trump has pissed off even his own team. Javier Palomarez, president of the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and diversity council member to Trump, just destroyed Trump for recently claiming that he loved the 800,000+ people in the program. Palomarez pretty much tore Trump apart on CNN as he told Jim Acosta: If he gets rid of DACA, he s showing that he s a liar. He has said to this country that he is going to try to protect the people in the DACA program, that he was focused on getting rid of criminals. Palomarez made sure to point out the positives of DACA recipients, which includes high graduation and employment rates far from the drug dealers and rapists labels that Trump had made up for immigrants during his 2016 presidential campaign. Palomarez even stated that he was so disgusted with Trump s announcement that he is considering resigning from Trump s diversity council. He said: I m gonna work right up until the bloody end to try to convince this president to do the right thing by these 800,000 Dreamers who reside in this country. Trump s policies and plans are disgusting even members of his own team. So far, any of Trump s staff have resigned over his inhumane ideas, and there aren t any signs of this pattern slowing down. Trump is a nightmare for any administration members that give a damn about human rights, and it s clear that many members are struggling with the lack of morale. You can watch the interview below:Featured image via Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images | 1real |
Ft. Lauderdale Shooter Booked, Then Canceled, New Year’s Eve Flight to New York | Esteban Santiago Ruiz, the gunman who killed five and injured six in Fort Lauderdale Airport last week, had previously booked a flight to New York on December 31, but he canceled the flight and flew to Florida instead. [ABC News cites law enforcement authorities confirming that Santiago bought a ticket to New York City for New Year’s Eve. They do not have a clear reason why he decided to change his trip, though they suspect that “the highly visible presence of NYPD officers throughout the city on New Year’s Eve could have been an effective deterrent. ” There is no evidence that Santiago went beyond buying the plane ticket, such as arranging for lodging. He did not appear to book lodging in Florida, either, though he has family in the area. Older brother Bryan Santiago told the Orlando that Esteban Santiago has a in Naples, Florida, due west of Fort Lauderdale, and that the two had spoken shortly before the attack. “He called my older brother, and my brother told him ‘Come to Naples anytime you want. There is always a place for you to stay with me,’” Bryan Santiago said. The FBI has yet to confirm a motive for Santiago’s attack. On Saturday, the FBI special agent in charge of the investigation, George Piro, told reporters that they had not found any evidence that Santiago had been consuming jihadist content on social media. “We’re looking over all of his social media, things like that. It’s giving us a picture of the individual, but it’s way too early for us to rule out anything,” Piro said. Santiago had mentioned the Islamic State to authorities before the attack, however. In November, Santiago visited the FBI offices in Anchorage, Alaska, where he had been living, to declare that the U. S. government was forcing him to watch Islamic State videos and fight for the Islamic State. The FBI confiscated his registered firearm and, after a psychological evaluation, eventually returned it. Police have not confirmed whether this weapon was the one used in the attack. Aside from the Islamic State references to the FBI, few leads appear to indicate that Santiago was a radicalized terrorist. Alaska’s only mosque, the Islamic Community Center of Alaska, told the Miami Herald it has “no connection with this guy whatsoever,” and no witnesses have claimed Santiago ever attended the mosque or spoke of Islam to them. Bryan Santiago told the Santiago has “never been a Muslim. He’s always been a Christian,” and that the keffiyeh scarf he is seen wearing in a photo circulating online was a “souvenir he bought in Iraq when he was serving in the military. ” Bryan Santiago did confirm that his brother had confided in him about his concerns regarding the CIA. “He started talking to me, you know, that he’s seeing … weird things, that he’s hearing voices, that the government is using him … that the CIA is sending him secret codes to his laptop, and that he don’t want to do that. ” Bryan Santiago said he told his brother to “go to the church or to psychologist or something. ” Santiago served nearly a decade in the U. S. armed forces, first in the Puerto Rico National Guard and then the Alaska National Guard. He was deployed to Iraq in 2010, reportedly diffusing improvised explosive devices, and two of his company were killed in that deployment. Multiple relatives have told various news outlets that his deployment to Iraq appeared to change him. Michelle Quiñones told ABC News that Santiago sought help from the Department of Veterans Affairs following his return from Iraq in 2011. “We had let veterans know that he was having some mental problems, that he wasn’t feeling alright and they did nothing,” she asserted. Santiago is facing the death penalty for the mass murder he allegedly committed on Friday, and is currently being held on suicide watch. With no more than $10 in his bank accounts, Santiago cannot afford a lawyer, and the government has provided public legal counsel. His family hopes to save him from capital punishment given years of apparent mental illness. “We are struggling to prove that he had mental problems, that he communicated them and asked authorities for help, and due to that these criminal charges are not viable,” Brian Santiago told the Primera Hora. The mayor of the Santiago family hometown of Peñuelas, Puerto Rico, Walter Torres Maldonado, has offered financial aid to the family should they seek to travel to Florida, as well as psychological counseling should they need it. | 0fake |
ALAN DERSHOWITZ RIPS MAXINE WATERS On Constant Racism Rhetoric: “Maxine Waters ought to be ashamed of herself!” | Esteemed Democratic Attorney Alan Dershowitz UNLOADED on left-wing sensation Maxine Waters on FOX and Friends Sunday. Dershowitz responded to Waters calling him a racist on MSNBC:Alan Dershowitz: Well, she doesn t know what she s talking about. First of all, I wasn t talking about the grand jury I was talking about the petit jury. Grand jury doesn t matter. Grand jury will indict a ham sandwich. But if there were to be an indictment it would matter greatly where the trial was. Maxine Waters should know better and does know better If I d have said race didn t matter she would have called me a racist. She throws around the term so loosely and so inappropriately and it weakens her credibility by calling everybody a racist. When she calls real racists racists, nobody is going to believe her Race matters. Maxine Waters ought to know that and Maxine Waters ought to be ashamed of herself. | 1real |
FLASHBACK! BILL CLINTON: “I did not have sexual relations with that woman” [VIDEO] | 1real | |
The Colombian Hit Man Who Became a YouTube Star - The New York Times | Imagine if the former Mafia boss John Gotti, who went to prison for murder and cultivated the public’s fascination with his flamboyant New York lifestyle and menacing charm, had a YouTube channel. Imagine if he used that channel to become a video star by portraying himself as a penitent hit man and regaling viewers with tales of violence while seeking forgiveness for homicides past. For Colombians, the equivalent of such an unlikely YouTube sensation can be found in John Jairo Velásquez. He is a former enforcer for the Medellín drug cartel who has boasted of committing hundreds of murders on behalf of his boss, Pablo Escobar. Mr. Velásquez spent more than 20 years in prison for plotting the killing of a Colombian presidential candidate in 1989 and goes by the nickname Popeye. Now, Mr. Velásquez, 54, is trying to rebrand himself as a sort of evangelist in a series of videos he began posting on YouTube last year. The underlying message (there were 81 videos as of Sunday) is one of forgiveness. Now, he is known as Popeye Arrepentido, or Remorseful Popeye. “It’s not about monetizing my life story but about telling the stories, the things that happened,” he said in an interview on Sunday. “I’ve been famous for 30 years. I only want to have an opinion because I am an activist. I am against the Venezuelan and Colombian government. I am against Donald Trump because of his hatred of Latinos. I just want my opinion heard. ” His audience cannot seem to stop watching. The videos have gained more than 117, 000 subscribers and 9. 5 million views. The comments are filled with praise and admiration. One person signed off with “Hugs. ” But not all people are enthralled by Mr. Velásquez’s budding stardom — least of all the victims touched by the cartel’s acts of mayhem. The son of one victim — a man who was among 107 people killed by a bomb planted by the cartel on a plane that exploded over Bogotá, Colombia, in 1989 — said Mr. Velásquez’s popularity overshadowed the harm he had unleashed, The Guardian reported. The son, Gonzálo Rojas, said that the former hit man had shown no real remorse and that he was trafficking in a perverse sort of celebrity because of his crimes. Most hit men do not turn up on YouTube seeking a second act by spilling secrets about past misdeeds. (Mr. Gotti died in 2002 while serving a life sentence.) But one expert described Mr. Velásquez as “an astute ” who had capitalized on his infamy by claiming to have been reformed while glorifying . Mr. Velásquez, however, said he felt reborn after being released on parole in 2014, according to a description of his YouTube account. “I created this channel with the intention to be able to talk day to day about my process reintegrating into society as well as my process with true remorse,” he wrote. “Being an assassin is not normal,” he said in the interview. Now, he said, he “respects life and society. ” “I was resocialized: When I changed my way of thinking, I changed my way of being,” he added. In one video, he seeks forgiveness from a relative of one of his victims. When a viewer asked, “When can the victims of the drug war of the Medellín cartel meet you — the ones who lost brothers or fathers in the police force?” Mr. Velásquez said he found the question painful. But he asserted: “It was the war that killed your brother, but I am not going to justify that. I am going to assume responsibility because your brother was defending a country, an institution, and we were murderers paid by the cartels. ” If Mr. Velásquez, who uploads videos out of his apartment in Medellín, is troubled that his stated contriteness is at odds with the opening graphics of gunfire and bullet holes in his videos, he is not showing it. And he revels in the limelight. Some viewers have responded by welcoming him back to society. “Hello, Popeye,” one wrote. “I love all of your statements because they are full of honesty and courage. Hugs. ” Others celebrate his flair and ability to talk directly to the people: “You have the personality to be able to tell the truth to the Colombian society. ” Vincent T. Gawronski, a professor of political science at College in Birmingham, Ala. said in an email: “In a twisted way, we celebrate ‘successful’ criminals, even killers in Hollywood movies, cable television shows and soap operas: ‘Scarface,’ ‘Blow,’ ‘Breaking Bad,’ ‘The Sopranos,’ Netflix’s ‘Narcos. ’” Dr. Gawronski noted that nearly a dozen “narconovelas” had aired on television and that there were many “narcocorridos,” or ballads, celebrating drug traffickers. “We mythologize those that challenge authority and do whatever they want and get away with it,” he said. He added: “Of course, Velásquez’s fame is directly tied to his relationship with Pablo Escobar. The stories he can tell will keep him popular, but they might also get him killed. ” In an interview published in The Telegraph in 2014, Mr. Velásquez, who said he had a wife and son living in the United States, declared that he could take care of himself if anyone came after him. In a video, Mr. Velásquez recalled where he was in 1993 when the authorities killed Mr. Escobar, the ruthless cocaine trafficker who ran the Medellín cartel. When one viewer wanted to know what Mr. Escobar had written in his notepads, Mr. Velásquez said: “Those notepads were simply to write the names of the people who he wanted to kill. If he wrote your name in those notepads, you were a dead man. ” If the mobsters from Mr. Gotti’s day had a strict code of silence about criminal activity, Mr. Velásquez seems unconcerned about revealing the inner workings of the cartel. In a video posted in October, he said he would always be an assassin. He boasted about his reputation on the streets, calling himself the living memory of the cartel. He said he would never speak ill of Mr. Escobar. “For me, Escobar was a terrorist, a drug dealer, a kidnapper — but he was also my friend he treated me with kindness and respect,” he said. “He was the kind of man that would look you in the eyes and do what he says. Everyone knows what he was, but with me he was good. ” “I loved Pablo,” he said. “He never owed me money for any of my hits. ” | 0fake |
Frank Luntz: Obama on a ’FU Tour,’ Trying to ’Settle Scores’ With Republicans - Breitbart | Over the weekend, pollster Frank Luntz blasted President Barack Obama during a Fox News appearance, accusing the president of “trying to settle scores before he leaves. ” Luntz compared Obama’s final days as president to Donald Trump’s “thank you” tour, calling it a “FU tour. ” “If Trump did this great tour of the country, they called it a victory tour or thank you tour, Obama seems to be doing a … uh … trying to figure out the right language so I don’t get fined by the FCC, a FU tour. I guess that’s the best way to put it,” Luntz said. He explained, “What he has said about Hillary Clinton and her campaign and drawing that contrast. What he has done to Israel and to Benjamin Netanyahu. That there are people that he has had political difficulties with — and by the way, Republican members of the house and senate — the people who he’s disagreed with over the last eight years. He’s gone to great pains to draw a contrast between the things that he says and the things that they have done that makes me think he’s trying to settle scores before he leaves, and that’s not presidential. ” Follow Breitbart. tv on Twitter @BreitbartVideo | 0fake |
Cuba denies involvement in incidents concerning U.S. diplomats | HAVANA (Reuters) - Cuba’s government said on Wednesday it would never allow actions against diplomats and their families on the island, after the U.S. State Department reported “incidents” had caused physical symptoms in Americans serving at the U.S. Embassy in Havana. “Cuba has never, nor would ever, allow the Cuban territory to be used for any kind of action against accredited diplomats or their families,” the foreign ministry said in a statement. Earlier on Wednesday, the U.S. State Department said it had expelled two Washington-based Cuban diplomats in May after the unspecified “incidents” in Havana. | 0fake |
John Kasich Decides To Say EVEN WORSE Things About Rape Victims (VIDEO) | There was once a time that John Kasich seemed like the only sane, somewhat reasonable Republican candidate in the presidential race, but those days are long gone. Kasich is starting to sound more and more like Trump and Cruz as time goes on.It was just a few days ago that Kasich said that if women wanted to avoid being raped, they should just not go to parties where there is alcohol. He of course experienced tons of backlash for that comment, but instead of apologizing and admitting that it was a victim-blaming, insensitive remark, he s doubled down instead.In a Sunday morning interview on CNN s State of the Union, Kasich made an attempt to rectify his controversial comments, and ended up making it much worse. In trying to explain his misogynistic reasoning, Kasich said that having alcohol at a party makes it more difficult for justice to be rendered for a whole variety of reasons. Host Dana Bash tried to give Kasich another chance and pressed him further, but the Ohio governor just simply couldn t grasp why his comments would be so controversial or problematic. Bash was generous and even explained to the presidential hopeful that his comments would discourage women from reporting their assaults if they re told that the presence of alcohol makes their story less valid or believable. But Kasich once again failed to understand and continued to dig himself into a deeper hole. He said: Actually, I don t know how anybody would take it that way. Bash answered, Because it s taken a while to change the stigma of getting people to come out. Kasich, apparently forgetting that the infamous, tragic Steubenville rape case took place in Ohio, shot back: Dana, I have led the way in the country to fight this and to get justice served in these conditions. I think even if, in fact, there is alcohol involved, you still have you still can find the perpetrator. I just don t want justice to be denied because something comes up that a prosecutor looks at it and says, well, I can t figure this thing out. And no matter what Bash countered back with, Kasich had an equally offensive answer.Certainly, Kasich s speech would be much more effective in preventing sexual assaults if he told potential rapists to avoid alcohol at parties instead of victims. But, you know, that s just not the GOP s style. You can watch the baffling interview below: Featured image via Getty Images / Andrew Burton | 1real |
Media Links Domestic Drone Surveillance to Trump with ZERO Evidence | 21st Century Wire says This is why nobody takes the mainstream media seriously.Foreign Policy has released a new article hyping up the dangers of mass surveillance, specifically talking about the relatively unknown National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. It talks of the potential for drones to be able to track the movements of every person in a city, and 90% of the article is solely concerned with generating fear.Then, in literally the final two paragraphs the author links the fear and problems, which they have just spent the previous twelve paragraphs hyping up, saying that Trump could use these systems against, innocent American citizens . This is not journalism.Stuart J. Hooper examines the propaganda piece in the following video, and also discusses which candidate Foreign Policy supported during the election. Can you guess who it was? READ MORE TRUMP NEWS AT: 21st Century Wire Trump FilesSUPPORT 21WIRE SUBSCRIBE & BECOME A MEMBER @21WIRE.TV | 1real |
EDUCATION SECRETARY BLOCKED And Harrassed Trying To Enter D.C. School [Video] | 1real | |
House GOP leaders unveil two-year budget deal with White House | House Republican leaders have unveiled a tentative two-year budget agreement with the Obama White House aimed at preventing a partial government shutdown and forestalling a debt crisis.
The text of the deal was posted to the House Rules Committee's website late Monday, setting up a final debate and vote on the plan Wednesday. Sources told Fox News the House GOP leadership will likely require the support of almost all House Democrats and between 90 and 100 Republicans to see the agreement through.
The measure was to be discussed further at a GOP meeting Tuesday morning.
The budget pact, coupled with a must-pass increase in the federal borrowing limit, would solve the thorniest issues awaiting Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., who is set to be elected Speaker of the House on Thursday. However, sources told Fox that conservatives opposed to Ryan as speaker may use the proposed budget as a reason to vote against the House Ways and Means committee chair. Not enough members were expected to defect to imperil Ryan's ultimate election.
The deal would also take budget showdowns and government shutdown fights off the table until after the 2016 presidential election, a potential boon to Republican candidates who might otherwise face uncomfortable questions about messes in the GOP-led Congress.
Congress must raise the federal borrowing limit by Nov. 3 or risk a first-ever default, while money to pay for government operations runs out Dec. 11 unless Congress acts. The emerging framework would give both the Pentagon and domestic agencies two years of budget relief of $80 billion in exchange for cuts elsewhere in the budget.
Outlined for rank-and-file Republicans in a closed-door session Monday night, the budget relief would total $50 billion in the first year and $30 billion in the second year.
"Let's declare success," House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., told Republicans, according to Rep. David Jolly, R-Fla., as the leadership sought to rally support for the emerging deal.
A chief selling point for GOP leaders is that the alternative is chaos and a stand-alone debt limit increase that might be forced on Republicans. But conservatives in the conference who drove Boehner to resign were not ready to fall in line.
"This is again just the umpteenth time that you have this big, big, huge deal that'll last for two years and we were told nothing about it, and in fact even today, were not given the details" said Rep. John Fleming, R-La. "And we're probably going to have to vote on it in less than 48 hours."
"I'm not excited about it at all," said Rep. Matt Salmon, R-Ariz. "A two-year budget deal that raises the debt ceiling for basically the entire term of this presidency."
The agreement was panned by two prominent conservative groups, Heritage Action and the Club for Growth. The two organizations issued a joint statement saying the deal was "brokered by a lame-duck speaker and a lame duck president [and] represents the very worst of Washington – a last minute deal that increases spending and debt under the auspices of fiscal responsibility."
The measure under discussion would suspend the current $18.1 trillion debt limit through March 2017. The budget portion would increase the current "caps" on total agency spending by $50 billion in 2016 and $30 billion in 2017, offset by savings elsewhere in the budget. And it would permit about $16 billion to be added on top of that in 2016, classified as war funding, with a comparable boost in 2017.
Among the proposed spending cuts are curbs on Medicare payments for outpatient services provided by hospitals that have taken over doctors' practices, and an extension of a 2 percentage-point cut in Medicare payments to doctors through the end of a 10-year budget.
The budget side of the deal is aimed at undoing automatic spending cuts which are a byproduct of a 2011 budget and debt deal and the failure of Washington to subsequently tackle the government's fiscal woes. GOP defense hawks are a driving force, intent on reversing the automatic cuts and getting more money for the military.
The focus is on setting a new overall spending limit for agencies whose operating budgets are set by Congress each year. It will be up to the House and Senate Appropriations committees to produce a detailed omnibus spending bill by the Dec. 11 deadline.
There's also a drawdown from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, reforms to crop insurance, and savings reaped from a Justice Department funds for crime victims and involving assets seized from criminals.
The legislation also would clean up expected problems in Social Security and Medicare by fixing a shortfall looming next year in Social Security payments to the disabled, as well as a large increase in Medicare premiums and deductibles for doctors' visits and other outpatient care.
The deal, which would apply to the 2016-17 budget years, resembles a pact that Ryan himself put together two years ago in concert with Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., that eased automatic spending cuts for the 2014-15 budget years. A lot of conservatives disliked that measure.
"It is past time that we do away with the harmful, Draconian sequester cuts," said Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. "We must also ensure that there are equal defense and nondefense increases."
The deal would make good on a promise Boehner made in the days after announcing his surprise resignation from Congress last month. He said at the time: "I don't want to leave my successor a dirty barn. I want to clean the barn up a little bit before the next person gets there."
Some of the more moderate Republican members welcomed the emerging deal and applauded Boehner.
"The outline that was presented seems like a path forward," said Rep. Charlie Dent, R-Pa. "He said he was going to try to clean the barn and this is a good start."
Fox News' Chad Pergram and the Associated Press contributed to this report. | 0fake |
Pastor Caught Trump’s Spiritual Advisor Stealing From Her Own Church Collection Plate | It seems that Donald Trump s spiritual advisor is exactly as ethical as he is. Paula White, a prosperity gospel minister who prayed at The Donald s inauguration, has regularly been criticized by Trump s evangelical followers as a charlatan who essentially sells tickets to Heaven and other God-related non-products.White sells, for instance, a resurrection seed a delivery from a spiritual death sentence for $1,144 (a number that was totally chosen by God). But apparently, the money she scams from her people by selling a la carte divine services isn t quite enough for White.Hector Gomez, who was a pastor at White s former Without Walls ministry in the 90 s, told HeatStreet that he once saw the Christian huckster cherrypicking the offering plate:Hector Gomez, a pastor who worked at Without Walls from 1993 to 2000, told Heat Street that on several occasions, Paula and Randy White invited people to put not only money in the offering plate but valuables, too. Darryl Strawberry, the famed outfielder, once caused a stir by putting his World Series ring in the offering plate and donating it to the church, Randy White told ESPN in 2009. People would give them jewelry, diamonds, watches, Gomez said. One day, he said, he watched in horror as Paula White sifted through the collection plate after church, picking out the jewelry that looked valuable.White told him to take the less valuable collections to a jeweler who bought second-hand pieces to resell or melt down, he said; he watched her lock up the more valuable jewelry in her desk, and he never saw it again.Gomez said he felt ethically uncomfortable reselling congregants jewelry. Not only was he unsure about what became of the most valuable items collected, he said; he also felt uneasy asking people for treasured jewelry, especially after his own wife donated a bracelet he d given her when they first got married. It wasn t worth much, Gomez said. It was a nice little bracelet. But it has sentimental value. He said he thought about that bracelet as he watched White sort through the jewelry. I was so grieved. I was like, This belongs to the people in the church. They worked very hard. Trump says that he surrounds himself with the very best people but that phrase is quickly proving to be synonymous with huckster. Here s a video of her selling salvation for your viewing displeasure:Featured image via screengrab | 1real |
Even Angela Merkel’s Top Political Rival Is Livid With Trump – SLAMS His Treatment Of Her | German Chancellor Angela Merkel is up for reelection in September, and she s locked in a pretty tight race against Martin Schulz, the former president of the European Parliament. Following the G7 summit, where Trump s childish arrogance was on full display, Schulz simply shredded Trump for his treatment of Merkel: Election campaign or no election campaign, in this situation let me be entirely clear: the chancellor represent all of us at summits like these. And I reject with outrage the way this man takes it upon himself to treat the head of our country s government. That is unacceptable. It is, but it s hard to expect Trump to understand that at this point. In his mind, he s the most important person ever to walk the planet. As such, he was, more or less, a complete asshole during his visit to Europe. He called Germany who, up until now, was our most powerful European ally bad, very bad, for their trade policies. He said that German sells millions of cars in the U.S. and implied that we get nothing from it, so it is going to stop. He proved with those statements that he has no idea that German automakers actually employ thousands of U.S. workers inside U.S. borders.Trump had the gall to castigate NATO, too, for allegedly freeloading off the U.S. as though we make up for the money they aren t spending (in truth, that two percent mark that NATO allies are supposed to reach refers to the percentage of their individual GDPs they need to commit to their national defenses). He also yelled at them for the cost of their new headquarters, almost acting as though we paid for it without voting for it.For her part, Merkel has since said that Germany (and probably NATO) can t rely on us as a partner anymore. That s a dangerous position for us to be in Trump is throwing away everything we ve worked towards with Europe because he s a dickbag.Elsewhere, he showed his total asshattery by shoving the prime minister of Montenegro aside to get to the front of a photo op. His body language there read, Do you know who I am? according to one body language expert who analyzed his postures during that and two other incidents at the summit.Those other two incidents involve French President Macron. The first is when Macron arrived in Italy as he was walking towards the leaders who were already there, Trump stuck his hands out to greet him, but Macron veered toward Merkel to greet her first. He greeted two other leaders before making it to Trump, who then yanked him toward him as though to show him who was boss.Then there was the now-famous white-knuckled handshake with Macron, who admitted that wasn t totally innocent. He wanted to show Trump that France, and by extension, Europe, would not allow Trump to bully them.Some have interpreted Schulz s comments as an attack on Merkel he did appear to also say that she shouldn t have allowed Trump to treat her the way he did but the bottom line is this: When someone s chief political rival takes their side against someone else, that someone else has royally screwed up.Featured image by Olivier Douliery Pool via Getty Images | 1real |
Walling them out, or walling us in? | Walling them out, or walling us in? Shall we wall off Canada, too? By Jim Hightower Posted on November 3, 2016 by Jim Hightower
Evading security cameras in the remote expanse along the U.S. border, three Guatemalans waited till dusk to slip illicitly into our country.
This is the stuff of Donald Trump nightmares—and if he were to witness such a scene, we can only imagine the furious rants that would follow.
But Trump will never see this scene or even know about it, because he’s facing south, fulminating against Mexicans and assuring his faithful followers that he’ll stop illegal entry into the U.S. by building a “ beautiful, impenetrable wall ” across our 2,000-mile border with Mexico.
Meanwhile, the scene described took place way up north, where rural Vermont connects to Canada. As the New York Times recently reported , “This area is a haven for smugglers and cross-border criminal organizations.”
With so many of our nation’s political and security officials obsessed with the southern border, more and more criminal action—including the smuggling of people, drugs, and weapons—has plagued our 5,500-mile Canadian border, the longest in the world between two countries.
Running from the Atlantic to the Pacific through sparsely populated and heavily wooded terrain, there’s often no clear demarcation of where Canada ends and the U.S. begins. Some farms, homes, and businesses actually sprawl across the border.
Only about 2,000 agents patrol this vast stretch, and officials concede they don’t even have a good guess of how many people and how much contraband is coming across, or where.
So, the question for Mr. Trump is: Shall we wall off Canada, too? And how much of our public treasury, democratic idealism, and international goodwill shall we dump into the folly of militarizing both borders?
By simply thinking we can wall the world out, we’ll be walling ourselves in—and that’s suicidal.
OtherWords columnist Jim Hightower is a radio commentator, writer, and public speaker. He’s the editor of the populist newsletter, The Hightower Lowdown . Distributed by OtherWords.or g . Commentary . Bookmark the permalink . | 1real |
Brexit talks progressing, but issues remain - May | BRUSSELS (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Theresa May said on Friday that Brexit talks were making progress but that there were outstanding issues on the divorce settlement and the border with EU member Ireland. After meeting European Council President Donald Tusk in Brussels, May described their discussion as positive and painted a picture where the two sides were edging towards agreement to move Brexit talks onto a discussion of future trade. But shortly afterwards, Tusk again repeated that Britain had 10 days to deliver on all the major areas of the initial divorce talks, something he said on Twitter was possible but still a huge challenge . May told reporters after their meetings: There are still issues across the various matters that we are negotiating on to be resolved. On one of the major sticking points how much Britain should pay when it leaves the European Union May said the two sides were making progress, but declined to offer any figures which could unlock the talks. I said that we would honour our commitments, and that s what we ve been talking about, she said. Referring to Britain s border with Ireland, where the government is set to collapse, May said her government was talking to Irish officials about solutions for that. We have the same desire, we want to ensure that movement of people and trade across that border can carry on as now. | 0fake |
Factbox: Trump on Twitter (August 3) - Stock market, Russia | The following statements were posted to the verified Twitter accounts of U.S. President Donald Trump, @realDonaldTrump and @POTUS. The opinions expressed are his own. Reuters has not edited the statements or confirmed their accuracy. @realDonaldTrump : - Business is looking better than ever with business enthusiasm at record levels. Stock Market at an all-time high. That doesn’t just happen! [0808 EDT] - I am continuing to get rid of costly and unnecessary regulations. Much work left to do but effect will be great! Business & jobs will grow. [0812 EDT] - Our relationship with Russia is at an all-time & very dangerous low. You can thank Congress, the same people that can’t even give us HCare! [0818 EDT] - See you tonight Huntington, West Virginia!#MakeAmericaGreatAgain Tickets: www.DonaldJ.Trump.com [1204 EDT] - Today, I announced another historic breakthrough for the VA. We are working tirelessly to keep our promises to our GREAT VETERANS! #USA [1403 EDT] - Our GREAT VETERANS can now connect w/ their VA healthcare team from anywhere, using #VAVideoConnect - available at: mobile.va.gov/appstore. [1507 EDT] - Just arrived in West Virginia for a MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN rally in Huntington at 7:00pmE. Massive crowd expected - tune in! #MAGA [1852 EDT] -- Source link: (bit.ly/2jBh4LU) (bit.ly/2jpEXYR) | 0fake |
Is it possible that Saudi King be tried in US courts by JASTA Law? | Email
According to the JASTA law which allows government and leaders of foreign governments’ harassment by families of victims of the terrorist attacks, it is so likely that Saudi king be tried. According to experts, the passing of JASTA may cause international chaos. Especially after some governments threat they will pass similar legislation to prosecute US officials if US do so.
Is it possible that Saudi King Salman bin Abdul Aziz being tried for potential liability in events of September 11? The trial is possible by the legislation of Jasta. By Jasta law the families of the victims could sue governments and this will lead to chaos in international relations.
In late September, United States Congress ignored President Obama’s advice and his veto and passed JASTA law, the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act. This law made US-Saudi relation more chaotic.
US confederate states expressed concern to JASTA legislation
Not just Saudi Arabia expressed concerns to JASTA, US confederate states also expressed concern about breaking the US quasi-sacred treaty with Saudi Arabia and asked for appealing. France and the Netherlands have threatened to pass similar laws which lead to a series of judicial complaints against USA and its military and diplomacy allies.
John Kerry, United States Secretary of State, showed his displeasure and called it a huge risk. A few days ago Kerry and Adel al-Jubeir discussed about the ramifications of JASTA and pointed out the negative impact on the diplomatic immunity of US interests. He said: “there are ways to fix the problem.” While experts agreed that it is only possible to reduce the strength of America in complaining by circumvent the law.
Even Saudi minister warned the danger of chaos in the international system.
According to Hussein ibish, an expert on the Persian Gulf littoral states, JASTA will cause chaos at the international level.
Last September, European Union warned: “Other countries may also want to pass similar legislation and discuss impunity. This threat was an addition written letters to US government.
Also France, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom representatives discussed about the feedback of this law. The Gulf littoral states, Turkey, Iraq, Jordan, Pakistan and Japan Protested against JASTA.
The Saudi-US Relations in danger of Jasta
Bernard Haykel, Princeton University Professor, said: “If Saudi king does not appear in New York court to be interrogated, warrant will be issued against Saudi Arabia.” Riyadh and Washington relations declined over the past three years especially with Obama's policies on Syria.” JASTA shows Saudi ruling that Obama turned his back to its allies in the Middle East,” he added.
Riyadh strictly denies his involvement in 9/11, While 15 of the 19 were from Saudi Arabia. Turki al-Faisal, the former head of Saudi intelligence, also comments:” America wants to invade his most loyal friend over the past 70 years.”
Jasta law does not refer to Saudi Arabia. It would allow families of the victims of the September 11 terrorist attacks to sue the perpetrators of the attack. | 1real |
Putin hails Russia's destruction of chemical weapons, accuses U.S. | MOSCOW (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin said Russia was destroying its last supplies of chemical weapons on Wednesday, three years ahead of schedule, hailing the development as an historic event . In televised remarks broadcast by the Rossiya 24 TV channel, Putin also complained that the United States had not fulfilled its own obligations to destroy chemical weapons, saying it had put off doing so three times citing a lack of financial resources. | 0fake |
Trump Supporters Caught Making Anti-Semitic Chants At Official Rally (VIDEO) | Donald Trump and his political campaign have become, over the last year, ground zero in America for anti-Semitic activity from white supremacists, neo-Nazis and others who hate Jews and ethnic minorities.The latest example comes from a Trump rally in Phoeniz, Arizona, where a man was caught on video yelling JEW-SA to reporters sitting in the cordoned off section of Trump s rally.Guy chants "Jew-S-A" in front of press pen pic.twitter.com/2yqgA6dD4k Nick Corasaniti (@NYTnickc) October 29, 2016The video was recorded by Nick Corasantini who is covering the Trump campaign for the New York Times.Trump s campaign has been embraced and supported by the so-called alt-right, a rebranding of white nationalists who seek to remove the influence of anyone who isn t a white Christian from America. The alt-right regularly promotes Nazi memes online and off, and has repeatedly abused reporters and commentators who are Jewish with death threats, online attacks, and more.Instead of rejecting these people, Trump s campaign has supported them. Trump has re-posted their messages through retweets on his Twitter account, while he has also given them official credentials to cover his campaign and to report from the floor of the Republican National Convention in Cleveland.Additionally, Trump s son Donald Jr. gave an interview to a white supremacist radio show, where he and the host lamented political correctness. Trump s policies have been lauded by white supremacists, specially his anti-Muslim policies, especially his proposal to ban immigration to the United States by Muslims.Former KKK member and leader David Duke has endorsed Trump, and said he was inspired by the support for Trump and decided to run for the U.S. Senate from Louisiana. Duke has attracted enough support within the Republican Party there to qualify for an invitation to a Senate debate, which is being held at a historically black university.In a CNN interview, Trump refused to directly rebuke or renounce Duke s support, choosing to do so only after he was on TV. Many white supremacists took this as a sign of support from Trump for their movement.Featured image via screen capture | 1real |
Russian military: Syria government troops control 85 percent of Syria - agencies | MOSCOW (Reuters) - Syrian government forces have to date cleared 85 percent of the country s area from militants, Russian news agencies cited Alexander Lapin, the head of the Russian troops headquarters in Syria, as saying on Tuesday. Islamic State fighters are still in control of around 27,000 square km of Syria s territory, he said. | 0fake |
Drudge, Koch, Soros, Bezos: These 4 non-politicians will determine the next president | They’re approximately 20 percent accurate. While this list would have held water prior to the Supreme Court’s 2010 decision in Citizens United v. FEC, The Hill places undue value on social media.
“Twitter, Snapchat and other social media tools are also playing a role in the race,” the story argues for Zuckerberg’s influence, “but they do not have the reach of Facebook.”
If “likes, posts, comments and shares” were a valid metric, Bernie Sanders would be king of the world right now.
Citizens United invalidated any sort of grassroots political buzz (e.g. Sanders). Even the master of media manipulation, Donald Trump, won’t be able to translate his Twitter-momentum into a general election win against establishment collage Hillary Clinton, unless he can unite the GOP behind him.
The ability of nonprofits to accept unlimited individual donations to push a political agenda is far more important than whether or not the “money-losing” Huffington Post covers Trump under its “entertainment” or “politics” section.
So-called dark money, in conjunction with a wide-reaching “mouthpiece,” paves the road to the Oval Office — and even a brilliant John Oliver expose can’t change that.
Special interest groups — like the NRA — can scrounge up a good chunk of change for the candidate most likely to maintain the status quo, but Super PACs are the best source of dark money.
PACs have the added benefit of keeping their donors anonymous, which is a nice feature for people who don’t want their tennis partners to know they bet on the wrong horse or, worse yet, backed Trump.
As the face of the Koch Brothers — the infamous proprietors of libertarian-leaning Freedom Partners Action Fund — Charles Koch deals with the client-facing aspects of Koch PR.
In an interview with ABC on Sunday, Charles Koch explained his and his brother David’s decision to withhold their much-coveted endorsement of the remaining candidates. In so doing, Charles condemned what he called a “two-tiered system” (i.e. a regressive tax) and suggested Hillary Clinton might make a better president than Cruz or Trump.
Koch’s Hillary support isn’t necessarily as out-of-left-field as it may seem, considering the brothers’ recent embrace of criminal justice reform.
Last spring, Politico Magazine reported that “Koch had decided to help pull together a new coalition of left-right advocacy groups in Washington, including the Hillary Clinton-aligned Center for American Progress” with an aim towards eradicating prison overcrowding.
Among the major donors to the Center for American Progress is billionaire George Soros, who’s given $7 million to the Hillary Clinton-endorsing Priorities USA Action Super PAC during the 2016 cycle.
Soros was the top individual donor during the 2008 cycle as well, giving $5 million to four 527 organizations. In 2012, however, he gave just $1 million to Obama reelection PAC, Priorities USA. Soros has invested a relatively significant amount of personal money into this cycle, and is likely to up the ante when the general election rolls around. There’s a limit to how far PAC money can keep a candidate afloat (e.g. Jeb! Bush and Li’l Marco Rubio). For lack of a less conspiratorial word, every special interest needs a mouthpiece. Not a known political financier, Amazon’s Jeff Bezos took a less direct route to political influence in purchasing the Washington Post in 2013. And though WaPo is a humongous organization, editorial leanings in the media tend to have a top-down effect. Despite his nearly $55 billion net worth, Bezos has donated relatively small amounts to Democrats ($28,000) and Republicans ($4,000). Some, however, claim he’s similar to other tech entrepreneurs who support a libertarian, small-government platform. The Post hasn’t formally endorsed Clinton, but its Editorial Board unmistakably condemned her primary opponent, Bernie Sanders, in a January article titled “Bernie Sanders’s fiction-filled campaign.” In the months since the Editorial Board’s unendorsement, the Post has been accused of repeatedly parroting Clinton’s agenda. As the namesake of prominent news aggregation site, Drudge Report, Matt Drudge wields his right-wing influence through the careful curation of what appears on the site’s homepage. In their book, “The Way to Win,” Mark Halperin and John F. Harris call Drudge “the single most influential purveyor of information about American politics” for his role in John Kerry’s loss in 2004. Drudge Report reader polls, conducted after each televised debate this primary cycle, consistently declared Trump the winner. And a when asked who they’re supporting for the presidency, participating Drudge readers voted overwhelmingly in favor of Trump (60% to second place Ted Cruz’s 19%). And though these polls are decidedly unscientific, they did capture the intensity of Trump’s support — the real story of the GOP campaign — and people are starting to give Drudge more and more credit as the Trump train chugs towards Cleveland. In a radio interview earlier this month, Cruz complained that Drudge Report “has basically become the attack site for the Donald Trump campaign.” “By all appearances, Roger Stone now decides what’s on Drudge, and most days they have a six-month-old article that is some attack on me,” Cruz added. “Whatever the Trump campaign is pushing that day will be the banner headline on Drudge.” | 0fake |
Russian pipeline monopoly says will weather well U.S. sanctions | NIZHNEBUREISKY, Russia (Reuters) - New U.S. sanctions imposed on Russia will do no harm to Russia’s pipeline monopoly Transneft, Transneft CEO Nikolai Tokarev said on Thursday, echoing a similar optimistic statement by the head of Russia’s largest oil firm Rosneft. U.S. President Donald Trump grudgingly signed into law new sanctions against Russia on Wednesday, a move Moscow said amounted to a full-scale trade war and an end to hopes for better ties with the Trump administration. “This will not affect us in any way. We have already considered and studied all this,” Tokarev told reporters, commenting on the U.S. sanctions law. “I believe these sanctions will not acquire a painful and sensitive form to hurt us.” About 94 percent of the equipment used by Transneft is produced in Russia, while some electronic equipment that the company need it buys in the Asia Pacific region, Tokarev said. “Furthermore, we do not attract external financing, we take no loans, we have enough of our own funds.” Igor Sechin, chief executive officer of Russia’s largest oil producer Rosneft, also played down on Thursday the impact of the U.S. sanctions, saying they would rather have negative consequences for the United States and backfire on U.S. energy majors. | 0fake |
Italy's 5-Star Movement votes for leader, Di Maio seen winning | ROME (Reuters) - Members of Italy s anti-establishment 5-Star Movement, which leads most opinion polls before a national election early next year, began voting on Thursday to elect their leader and candidate for prime minister. Barring a colossal surprise the winner will be Luigi Di Maio, the 31-year-old lower house deputy who has been groomed as leader over the last few years by Beppe Grillo, the comedian who founded 5-Star as a protest movement in 2009. The party s supporters are voting online on a dedicated platform linked to Grillo s blog, reflecting 5-Star s credo of internet-based direct democracy. Voting will end at 7 p.m. (1700 GMT) on Thursday, but the result will not be known until Saturday, when it is announced at 5-Star s annual three-day gathering in the Adriatic coastal town of Rimini. There are eight candidates, but Di Maio s victory is considered a formality. He is one of Italy s most prominent and popular politicians and his seven rivals, mostly local councillors, are virtually unknown even to 5-Star supporters. The only people seen as having any chance against him decided not to run, opening the party up to accusations of failing to run a proper contest. Roberto Saviano, author of the best-selling novel Gomorra, said on Facebook that he wanted to run for the post to help 5-Star out of a pathetic situation . Saviano is not a party member and so is not eligible. Probably the only risk for Di Maio would be if voting were distorted by another hacking attack against 5-Star s internet platform. In August an anonymous hacker revealed he had broken into the system to obtain secret data on 5-Star s members and donors. | 0fake |
Ben Carson Makes BOLD Claim That He’d Be The Real First Black President (AUDIO) | One thing in life you never want to do is pretend you know something about another person s life experiences. You ll never know the moments and quality of life someone had unless you actually hear it from that person themselves. However, now, in a last-ditch effort to appeal to voters, Republican presidential candidate Dr. Ben Carson has decided to tell us all about how President Obama grew up. In fact, Carson s gone so far as to allude to the fact that actually he would be the real first black president, because Obama was raised white, and that Obama doesn t actually understand what it s like to be black.He told the Politico podcast: He s an African American. He was, you know, raised white. Putting an emphasis on African however, continuing: I mean, like most Americans, I was proud that we broke the color barrier when he was elected, but he didn t grow up like I grew up Many of his formative years were spent in Indonesia. So, for him to, you know, claim that, you know, he identifies with the experience of black Americans, I think, is a bit of a stretch. Carson also seems to believe that the racism many are experiencing now, such as young unarmed men being gunned down in the street by those paid to protect and serve, as well as every reason Black Lives Matter needs to exist, isn t really racism as compared to what he went through. Carson implies that his life experiences are the ones that should really count as racism and other people, well, they just don t know. He said: Remember now, I ve been around for 64 years, you know. I ve had a chance to see what real racism is. Carson also claims that he doesn t think the Republican Party is racist. I don t find any particular problem being an African-American in the Republican Party. The people I know that in the progressive side of things, they like to say that the Republicans are racist. I know that. I haven t experienced that. So, because he hasn t experienced it. Well, then, it must not exist. Right?It s as though he believes he s the be all and end all in the discussion of racism. Perhaps if he ever took the time to get out of his own egotistical, self-serving mind, he d understand that racism now, is real racism, too. Every experience is valid. Every experience needs to be heard. And to undermine President Obama, and to make the bold claim that he s not really black because he was raised white is not only presumptuous and disrespectful, but outright wrong.Listen to the whole podcast here:[soundcloud url= https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/248401712 params= color=ff5500 width= 100% height= 166 iframe= true /]Featured image: Flickr | 1real |
Senate Asks For Defense Secretary’s E-mails After NYT Article [Video] | There must be something in the water in Washington how idiotic are these people? The Senate Armed Services Committee has asked for copies of Defense Secretary Ash Carter s personal emails after Carter acknowledged in a statement that he had used a personal email. The statement followed a New York Times article saying it had obtained 72 of Carter s work-related emails that he sent or received from a personal email account. The Times said it was given the emails in response to a Freedom of Information Act request. After reviewing his email practices earlier this year, the secretary believes that his previous, occasional use of personal email for work-related business, even for routine administrative issues and backed up to his official account, was a mistake, the statement from spokesman Peter Cook said. As a result, he stopped such use of his personal email and further limited his use of email altogether. With all the public attention surrounding the improper use of personal email by other Administration officials, it is hard to believe that Secretary Carter would exercise the same error in judgment, Sen. John McCain, an Arizona Republican and committee chairman, said in a statement.. The Senate Armed Services Committee has requested copies of the emails and will be conducting a review to ensure that sensitive information was not compromised. It s a mistake, and it s entirely my own, Carter said, adding that I stopped when it was clear the practice was against policy. Just listen to our Defense Secretary apologize for using his personal e-mail for Defense Department business: | 1real |
Photos of Jupiter From NASA Spacecraft, Both Near and Far - The New York Times | NASA is getting new looks at Jupiter, from close up and far away. Its Juno spacecraft made its fifth dive of Jupiter on March 27, its eight instruments gathering data on the planet’s interior as it accelerated to 129, 000 miles per hour. On each flyby, the public nominates and then votes on the atmospheric features Juno’s camera should record. This time, one of the winning targets was a boundary between two atmospheric regions. The bluish streak on the right is part of a persistent storm. Juno snapped this image 7, 900 miles from the planet. This week, NASA released an image of Jupiter taken by the Hubble Space Telescope, which is in orbit around Earth. The distance, 415 million miles, is the closest that Earth gets to Jupiter, which makes it a good time for Hubble to perform a survey of the solar system’s largest planet. The space telescope is able to discern features on Jupiter as small as 80 miles across. “We can map out the full planet,” said Amy A. Simon, an astronomer at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. who led the observations. “On a first glance, the Great Red Spot is still strikingly colored. It stands out quite well. ” Dr. Simon said that Jupiter’s atmosphere appears to be more turbulent than in the past couple of years. “That’s telling us something about the deeper atmosphere,” she said. “We’re going to be analyzing this over the next few months. ” Because the Hubble observations roughly coincided with Juno’s flyby, scientists will be able to match the with a wider view of the planet. “We could do a there and help out Juno at the same time,” Dr. Simon said. | 0fake |
BOILER ROOM – EP #51 – Social Rejects & Political Pessimists Club | Tune in to the Alternate Current Radio Network (ACR) for another LIVE broadcast of The Boiler Room starting at 6 PM PST | 9 PM EST every Wednesday. Join us for uncensored, uninterruptible talk radio, custom-made for barfly philosophers, misguided moralists, masochists, street corner evangelists, media-maniacs, savants, political animals and otherwise lovable rascals.Join ACR hosts Hesher, & Spore along with Randy J of 21Wire, Andy Nowicki from Alt Right Blogspot and Daniel Spaulding of Soul of the East. Tonight the Boiler Gang brings the internet show with more twists and turns than Space Mountain! Listen in as we discuss the absurd social agendas rampant in universities that project the concept of inanimate objects being racist. We break down Andy Nowicki s hypothesis that the Ted Cruz sex scandal could actually be a PR stunt to improve his alpha male cred and talk about the CIA influence in movements like the 60s counter culture and a thought provoking conversation about the perils of 3rd wave feminism. If you want to participate, bring something interesting to throw into the boiler Join us in the ALTERNATE CURRENT RADIO chat room.BOILER ROOM IS NOT A POLICTALLY CORRECT ZONE! LISTEN TO THE SHOW IN THE PLAYER BELOW ENJOY! REFERENCE LINKS: | 1real |
Trump's Paris decision followed debate between moderates, anti-globalists | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump’s decision to pull out of the Paris climate deal followed an internal debate that pitted anti-globalist advisers like Steve Bannon against more moderate voices such as Trump’s daughter, Ivanka, and top economic adviser, Gary Cohn. In the end, Trump stuck to a promise that he had made on the campaign trail last year aimed at helping blue-collar workers who he feels are under siege in a changing U.S. economy. “I was elected to represent the citizens of Pittsburgh, not Pars,” he said on Thursday in making his announcement. But Trump’s intentions concerning the Paris accord were unclear even to some of his aides until the last day or so, since he has shown flexibility on some campaign promises and had gotten an earful about the need to stay in the agreement from key allies at a Group of Seven summit last week in Sicily. At the White House, the behind-the-scenes debate about whether to stay in Paris or bolt was an intense one that dragged on for weeks. Ivanka Trump, whose husband, Jared Kushner, is a senior White House adviser, had been quietly urging her father to keep the United States in the Paris agreement, and had sought to ensure her father heard all sides in the debate, an official said. Cohn last week suggested Trump might be softening on his outright hostility toward the accord, telling reporters the president’s position was “evolving” based on input from world leaders who wanted the United States to remain in the agreement. Kushner, on the other hand, came around to the view that the standards set out in the agreement did not work for the U.S. economy, a senior administration official said. The official said the question for Kushner was whether to try to change those standards within the agreement or pull out. Consistently in favor of pulling out were Bannon and Trump speechwriter Stephen Miller, who was involved in writing Trump’s Paris remarks, and Scott Pruitt, administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. Both Bannon and Miller are seen as key architects of Trump’s “America First” agenda, which is aimed at ensuring U.S. interests are taken into account over a globalist view. Although there had been some discussion of keeping the United States in the Paris accord, while changing its carbon emissions commitments, as a way of maintaining global unity, in the end, Trump decided to cut the cord entirely. “I think the president’s legal team felt very strongly that it was best, that the cleanest way to address it was to just get out,” a senior administration official told reporters. | 0fake |
Macron avoids 'lecturing' Egypt on rights, Sisi defends his record | PARIS (Reuters) - French President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday it was not up to him to lecture Egypt on civil liberties, but told its visiting leader Abdel Fattah al-Sisi that strengthening human rights was in its interest. Sisi, denying accusations by human rights groups that he had allowed his forces to use torture, told a Paris news conference: We do not practice torture and ... we must be wary of all the information published by rights organizations. With both France and Egypt concerned by the political vacuum in Libya and the threat from jihadist groups in Egypt, the two countries have cultivated even closer economic and military ties during Sisi s rise to power. But rights organizations have accused France under Macron of turning a blind eye to what they say are increasing violations of freedoms by Sisi s government as the 2018 presidential elections approach. I believe in the sovereignty of states, and therefore, just as I don t accept being lectured on how to govern my country, I don t lecture others, Macron said at a joint news conference with Sisi in Paris following talks. My deeply held conviction is that it s in President Sisi s interest to accompany the defense and consolidation of human rights by the Egyptian state, in the context that only he can be the judge of, the French president said. During their 50-minute meeting, Macron brought up the issue of a dozen cases of alleged abuses of freedoms, in particular relating to Egyptian journalists and human rights activists, sources close to Macron said. Sisi, replying to journalists questions, said he was responsible for 100 million Egyptians who lived in turbulent times and alongside people who followed extremist thought and did not like to co-exist in peace. When it comes to human rights, we re not evading an answer but I hope that we understand it in its true context of a country in Egypt s situation. We are not in Europe, with its intellectual, cultural, civilization and human advancement. We re in a different region. In a report in September, Human Rights Watch (HRW) denounced widespread and systematic use of torture by Egyptian security forces. The United Nations on Oct. 13 condemned an anti-gay crackdown in Egypt. It also slammed French indulgence towards repression in Egypt. Rights groups accuse France of abandoning principles in favor of economic and security interests. They are particularly critical of the relationship between Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian who in his previous role as defense minister developed a personal relationship with Sisi. French officials dismiss the criticism and say the new administration is following a policy of not openly criticizing countries over human rights so as to be more effective in private and work on a case by case basis. Reacting to a lack of progress in respecting human rights and on democratic standards, the United States decided in August to freeze the payment of $195 million in military aid to Egypt. Under the previous government, France concluded several major military agreements with Egypt, including the sale of 24 Rafale combat aircraft, a multi-mission frigate and two Mistral warships in contracts worth some six billion euros. France will discuss the possible sale of more Rafale aircrafts with Sisi, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said earlier on Tuesday. | 0fake |
Kansas judge extends voting rights for those registered at motor vehicle offices | (Reuters) - A Kansas judge extended voting rights through the Nov. 8 election of about 17,500 people who registered to vote at motor vehicle offices, court documents showed on Tuesday in one of the cases highlighting a political battle over identification laws enacted in Republican-led states. The ruling impacts people who submitted voter applications through Kansas motor vehicle offices but failed to provide proof of U.S. citizenship. The ruling by Judge Larry Hendricks of the third judicial court in Shawnee, Kansas, extends the temporary injunction he issued last month. Under a state law that took effect in 2013, they were required to present a document such as a birth certificate. The judge’s ruling made on Friday said that the Kansas Secretary of State, Kris Kobach, must instruct election officials to allow the around 17,500 residents to “...vote for all offices on the ballot and to count all the votes cast on that ballot.” Kobach, a Republican who has become a national leader in pushing for anti-immigration and voting changes, said on Tuesday that his office would continue with the case. Hendricks has not made a final ruling. “The state will proceed with discovery as directed by the court. As is normal, the temporary injunction remains in place until a final order is issued by Judge Hendricks,” Kobach said in a statement. Kansas’ law is one of the strictest voter identification statutes in the country, making the state a symbol for mostly Republican Party supporters who say the rules are meant to prevent voter fraud. Opponents, mostly Democrats, say they discriminate against minorities. The American Civil Liberties Union has argued that the statute conflicts with a federal law designed to make it easier to register to vote while getting a driver’s license. Kobach asked the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to place on hold a decision in May by a lower-court judge ordering the state to begin registering the roughly 17,500 residents affected by the law. [nL1N19301N] In requesting the stay, the state said the order to begin to register voters would “result in extraordinary confusion on November 8, 2016.” But the Denver-based court rejected this argument in June. The law will not affect the state’s status as a safe Republican stronghold in the presidential election being contested by Democratic Party candidate Hillary Clinton and Republican Party candidate Donald Trump. | 0fake |
The Senate Intelligence Committee Has Bad News For Flynn After He Requested Immunity | Disgraced former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn has asked for immunity in exchange for testifying in the FBI s continuing investigation into possible ties between the Trump campaign and Russia and he has an answer from the Senate Intelligence Committee. Two Congressional sources told NBC News that the committee declined Flynn s lawyer s request.According to a senior congressional official with direct knowledge of the case, Flynn s lawyer was told it was wildly preliminary and that immunity was not on the table at the moment. Another source weighed in to say that the committee communicated that it is not receptive to Flynn s request at this time. The senior congressional official added that Flynn s lawyer had conveyed the offer of testimony in exchange for immunity from prosecution to the Justice Department.Alleged president Donald Trump tweeted this morning:Mike Flynn should ask for immunity in that this is a witch hunt (excuse for big election loss), by media & Dems, of historic proportion! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 31, 2017The thought is that either the authorities have nothing on Flynn or they have bigger fish to fry and there s only one person above the former National Security Adviser in this scenario: Donald J. Trump. Or, the evidence already collected on Flynn is damning and they don t need to make a deal the latter of which is possible.Flynn was fired after lying about speaking with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak about Obama-era sanctions. From there, things got worse for Flynn. He also met with Kislyak for about 20 minutes at Trump Tower in December. Just one week later, Flynn registered with the Justice Department as a foreign agent for $530,000 worth of lobbying work he did before the 2016 election that could be construed to have principally benefited the Republic of Turkey. In a statement Thursday, Flynn s lawyer Robert Kelner said no reasonable person would get questioned in such a highly politicized, witch hunt environment without assurance against unfair prosecution. However, in 2016, Flynn was seen at a Trump rally leading Lock her up! chants then saying that if he did one tenth what Hillary Clinton did, he would be in jail. In addition, on Meet the Press last year, Flynn said, When you are given immunity, that means that you ve probably committed a crime. Ouchies! Life sure comes at you fast AF, huh?Photo by Andrew Harrer-Pool/Getty Images. | 1real |
We’re Officially At The ‘My Wife Is Hotter Than Your Wife’ Part Of The Election (TWEETS) | Almost every day, this year s presidential election is becoming more and more like a high school election, or rather middle school, at least on the Republican side. Empty promises of walls and this and that being thrown all over the place. They might as well be promising free French fries and all-day recess. Then there s the name-calling from every direction. The only thing left, really, would be a food fight at the next debate.Now, we ve officially gotten to the my wife is hotter than your wife part of the election.It all started when an anti-Trump/pro-Cruz group had an ad in Utah featuring Melania Trump in her GQ spread where she was pretty much naked. Trump, and actually rightfully so, was less than pleased. However, he responded in the Middle School fashion that we ve now become accustomed to seeing and went directly after Ted Cruz s wife Heidi, claiming he ll spill the beans on her.Taking this ridiculousness a step further, Trump has now retweeted an image that quite honestly screams, look at my wife, she s so much more attractive than your wife. "@Don_Vito_08: "A picture is worth a thousand words" @realDonaldTrump #LyingTed #NeverCruz @MELANIATRUMP pic.twitter.com/5bvVEwMVF8" Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 24, 2016As much as it pains me to defend Ted Cruz and his wife, this really isn t okay. And Cruz was spot-on with his response to the image.Donald, real men don't attack women. Your wife is lovely, and Heidi is the love of my life. https://t.co/pprXhIMzUT Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) March 24, 2016All of this makes it all the clearer that we, as a nation, need to be voting for the adults in this election. So, no matter who, folks vote blue.Featured image via Flickr/Flickr | 1real |
The man who spoke softly but carried a big stick | The man who spoke softly but carried a big stick Bill Federer remembers military philosophy of Theodore Roosevelt Published: 16 mins ago Print Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt was born Oct. 27, 1858. His wife and mother died on Valentine’s Day, Feb. 14, 1884. He wrote in his diary “The light has gone out in my life.” Depressed, he left to ranch in the Dakotas.
Returning to New York, he entered politics and rose to assistant secretary of the Navy. He resigned during the Spanish-American War, organized the first Volunteer Cavalry, “the Rough Riders,” and captured Cuba’s San Juan Hill. Elected Vice-President under William McKinley, he became America’s youngest president in 1901.
Republican Theodore Roosevelt was the first president to invite an African-American, Booker T. Washington, to dine in the White House on Oct. 16, 1901. A Southern Democrat newspapers condemned him it, as printed in the Memphis Scimitar: “The most damnable outrage which has ever been perpetrated by any citizen of the United States was committed yesterday by the President, when he invited a n- to dine with him at the White House. It would not be worth more than a passing notice if Theodore Roosevelt had sat down to dinner in his own home with a Pullman car porter, but Roosevelt the individual and Roosevelt the president are not to be viewed in the same light.”
In 1909, Theodore Roosevelt warned: “The thought of modern industry in the hands of Christian charity is a dream worth dreaming. The thought of industry in the hands of paganism is a nightmare beyond imagining. The choice between the two is upon us.”
In 1917, the New York Bible Society had Theodore Roosevelt write a message which was inscribed in a pocket New Testament & Book of Psalms given to World War I soldiers: “The teachings of the New Testament are foreshadowed in Micah’s verse (Micah vi. 8): ‘What more does the Lord require of thee than to do justice, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?’ Do justice; and therefore fight valiantly against the armies of Germany and Turkey, for these nations in this crisis stand for the reign of Moloch and Beelzebub on this earth. Love mercy; treat prisoners well, succor the wounded, treat every woman as if she was your sister, care for the little children, and be tender to the old and helpless. Walk humbly; You will do so if you study the life and teachings of the Saviour. May the God of justice and mercy have you in His keeping. – (signed) Theodore Roosevelt.”
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Theodore Roosevelt, in his book “Fear God and Take Your Own Part” (NY: George H. Doran Co., 1916), wrote:
Armenians … for some centuries have sedulously avoided militarism and war … are so suffering precisely and exactly because they have been pacifists whereas their neighbors, the Turks, have not been pacifists but militarists. (T. Roosevelt, Fear God, p. 61, 64)
Armenians, have been subjected to wrongs far greater than any that have been committed since the close of the Napoleonic Wars…the wars of Genghis Khan and Tamerlane in Asia. Yet this government has not raised its hand to do anything to help the people who were wronged. … This course of national infamy … began when the last Administration surrendered to the peace at-any-price people, and started the negotiation of its foolish and wicked all inclusive arbitration treaties. Individuals and nations who preach the doctrine of milk-and-water invariably have in them a softness of fiber which means that they fear to antagonize those who preach and practice the doctrine of blood-and-iron. (T. Roosevelt, Fear God, p. 111)
American eye-witness of the fearful atrocities, Mr. Arthur H. Gleason (New York Tribune, Nov. 25, 1915)… Serbia is at this moment passing under the harrow of torture and mortal anguish. Now, the Armenians have been butchered under circumstances of murder and torture and rape that would have appealed to an old-time Apache Indian. …
Even to nerves dulled and jaded by the heaped-up horrors of the past year and a half, the news of the terrible fate that has befallen the Armenians must give a fresh shock of sympathy and indignation. Let me emphatically point out that the sympathy is useless unless it is accompanied with indignation, and that the indignation is useless if it exhausts itself in words instead of taking shape in deeds. … If this people through its government had not shirked its duty … we would now be able to take effective action on behalf of Armenia.
Mass meetings on behalf of the Armenians amount to nothing whatever if they are mere methods of giving a sentimental but ineffective and safe outlet to the emotion of those engaged in them. … The principles of the peace-at-any-price men, of the professional pacifists … will be as absolutely ineffective for international righteousness. … This crowning iniquity of the wholesale slaughter of the Armenians … must be shared by the neutral powers headed by the United States for their failure to protest when this initial wrong was committed. … The devastation of Poland and Serbia has been awful beyond description and has been associated with infamies surpassing those of the dreadful religious and racial wars of the seventeenth-century Europe. …
Weak and timid milk-and-water policy of the professional pacifists is just as responsible as the blood-and-iron policy of the ruthless and unscrupulous militarist for the terrible recrudescence of evil on a gigantic scale in the civilized world. The crowning outrage has been committed by the Turks on the Armenians. They have suffered atrocities so hideous that it is difficult to name them, atrocities such as those inflicted upon conquered nations by the followers of Attila and of Genghis Khan.
It is dreadful to think that these things can be done and that this nation nevertheless remarks ‘neutral not only in deed but in thought,’ between right and the most hideous wrong, neutral between despairing and hunted people, people whose little children are murdered and their women raped, and the victorious and evil wrong-doers. …
I trust that all Americans worthy of the name feel their deepest indignation and keenest sympathy aroused by the dreadful Armenian atrocities. I trust that they feel … that a peace obtained without … righting the wrongs of the Armenians would be worse than any war. …
Wrongdoing will only be stopped by men who are brave as well as just, who put honor above safety, who are true to a lofty ideal of duty, who prepare in advance to make their strength effective, and who shrink from no hazard, not even the final hazard of war, if necessary in order to serve the great cause of righteousness. When our people take this stand, we shall also be able effectively to take a stand in international matters which shall prevent such cataclysms of wrong as have been witnesses…on an even greater scale in Armenia. (T. Roosevelt, Fear God, pp. 377-383)
In his book “Fear God and Take Your Part,” 1916, Theodore Roosevelt wrote:
Christianity is not the creed of Asia and Africa at this moment solely because the seventh century Christians of Asia and Africa had trained themselves not to fight, whereas the Moslems were trained to fight. Christianity was saved in Europe solely because the peoples of Europe fought.
If the peoples of Europe in the 7th and 8th centuries, and on up to and including the 17th century, had not possessed a military equality with, and gradually a growing superiority over the Mohammedans who invaded Europe, Europe would at this moment be Mohammedan and the Christian religion would be exterminated.
A contemporary of Theodore Roosevelt was the English author G.K. Chesterton, who wrote of Western Christian civilization (“The Collected Works of G.K. Chesterton: Volume XX,” Introduction and Notes by James V. Schall, Ignatius Press): “They seem entirely to forget that long before the Crusaders had dreamed of riding to Jerusalem, the Moslems had almost ridden into Paris.”
Theodore Roosevelt continued in “Fear God and Take Your Part,” 1916: “Wherever the Mohammedans have had complete sway, wherever the Christians have been unable to resist them by the sword, Christianity has ultimately disappeared. From the hammer of Charles Martel to the sword of Jan Sobieski, Christianity owed its safety in Europe to the fact that it was able to show that it could and would fight as well as the Mohammedan aggressor.”
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WHY MOM EMPLOYED BY DISNEY Is Calling Them “Bullies”…Voting For Trump To Stand Up To Them | We can t say for sure, but we re guessing the truth about the happiest place on earth is about to be exposed by the Donald I m doing this because I don t like bullies, Dena Moore says, explaining why she as one of the American Disney workers who was laid off and forced to train her low-wage H-1B foreign replacement is now launching a discrimination lawsuit against the corporation. You can t let a bully continue to be the bully. Someone had to say: Slavery isn t right, I think I ll stand up against it. Someone had to say: We shouldn t [mistreat] our women. I think I ll stand up. Someone had to stand up. That s what I m hoping that my work is doing. There s a lot of people who are just afraid, Moore tells Breitbart in an exclusive telephone interview.Yet this sentiment also explains why Moore, a constituent of Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) now says she s casting her ballot for GOP frontrunner Donald Trump: Trump is standing up to the bullies. The American people are now the weak ones being bullied, Moore explains. The everyday working person needs a champion and you d never think to say that. Who would ever think a day would come when we would have to say that? But the middle class needs a champion we need a union that will protect us and Donald Trump is that champion. He is champion who stands up to the bullies to protect the weak, he stands up for us he stands up. When you stand up to the bullies you have to stay strong, Moore explained. You re not always going to be well-liked, and it takes you a little while to be heard. Maybe you ll make mistakes, but you have to get past the media s let me pick you apart stage and recognize that this person is standing up to the bullies. I will be voting for Trump, Moore said emphatically. If we don t want to become the next third world country to me we need somebody whose a business man to run the country. I never realized the laws behind it, Moore says of the nation s rampant visa policies that allowed her and her colleagues to be replaced by foreign workers. I didn t know what I didn t know. And Trump has brought this to the forefront. This is probably happening in more than 50 percent of workplaces. As Americans, we re becoming the minority, we re becoming the underpaid workers, who have to now go find a different position. Moore, at 53 is a mother of four and grandmother of 13. She had been working for Disney just shy of ten years, when out of the blue she was called into a meeting and informed that she along with hundreds of her American colleagues were being let go and would be replaced with foreign workers, whom they would have to train. These foreign workers had been brought into the country on the controversial wage-depressing H-1B visa.In the course of the interview, Moore discussed the toll this news took on her extended family her colleagues at Disney who could not recover from the stress of the blow. People often tell me, You don t seem devastated enough. I am, but I don t live my life that way, Moore says. I am Miss Sunshine. I m the energetic positive force. Being devastated, Moore explains, is just not in my nature. I bounce. But a lot of other people have not, she says trailing off. Most people were devastated because they had worked at Disney for 30, 40 years. I fared better because I ve been a contractor my whole life. Disney was my first real job as an employee. But I had a friend who passed away after the situation. And I had another friend who was hospitalized with a heart condition. I truly believe it was from the stressful situation that we were all in. It was a family the people I worked with it was an extended family. And it got torn part. And not only for the people who left. People were devastated you took a well-running machine and you just busted it up. We were afraid to come forward we didn t want them to hoard anything against us, Moore said of why so many of ex-Disney employees remained silent.Moore s Senator, Marco Rubio, has pushed to expand H-1B visas despite the fact that scores of his own constituents had just been displaced by the program.In 2015 Rubio introduced a bill to triple the number of H-1B visas. This bill known as the I-Squared bill was endorsed by Disney CEO Bob Iger via his immigration lobbying firm. Disney is also one of Sen. Rubio s biggest financial boosters having donated more than $2 million according to Open Secrets.While Rubio has pushed legislation that would help companies like Disney to bring in more even more H-1B foreign replacement, Trump has called on Disney to hire back all of its American employees. In October, Trump declared, I am calling TODAY on Disney to hire back every one of the workers they replaced, and I am calling on Rubio to immediately rescind his sponsorship of the I-Squared bill and apologize to every Floridian for endorsing it. I am further calling on Rubio to return the money he has received from Silicon Valley CEOs and to donate the money to a charity helping unemployed Americans whose jobs Rubio has helped to destroy. While Trump has made clear that he will champion the interests of American workers, Marco Rubio has never reached out to us, Moore explained. I do believe that politicians will always side with who pays them directly or indirectly, Moore said of Rubio s financial ties to Disney. I also believe they will say and do whatever it takes because they re not being held accountable. There s always an out for them because that is what the American people have said politicians can do. During the exclusive interview, Moore recalled the events that led her to eventually call Sara Blackwell and begin her involvement in the lawsuit.Moore said that when Disney originally gathered the American employees together: We thought we were having a party. We did fantastic work. We were excited. We thought it was going to be a party, but then when we went down the hallways. We realized it wasn t a party but a meeting, suddenly we all knew that something good was not about to happen. It was that quick suddenly there was an ominous atmosphere Nobody they brought in was better than anybody they let go. Every one they brought in were as we would describe completely green, they were like interns, fresh out of nowhere [When they originally let me go], I was offered a position it was a contract position for six months I had a start date, I was entered in to the HR system, etc. but two days before I was supposed to come in to start, HR called and said, You can t come in because executives are reviewing your position. Four weeks later after not hearing from them I called Sara [Blackwell, the attorney for American workers in the lawsuit against Disney]. Moore said that she is grateful for Trump s firm position on immigration: I m not prejudiced. I have lots of diversity in my friend group, but I don t think you can come into my country, take my resources and not only be granted to stay here but tohave the red carpet rolled out for you by my politicians What s bad is that because we have become this politically correct nation, if you say anything you sound like you re prejudiced. To me, Trump has done a really good job because it is so very easy to pull that you re prejudiced card, and that is not what this is about. It has to do with our economic resources and whether Americans get to benefit from them. I usually just vote Republican because I m a Republican, Moore said. I don t usually pay attention to politicians because they say whatever they need to say. I usually don t hold many politicians to what they say because they just say what people want to hear, but with a business person they don t play that political game. It makes you listen. They re used to being held accountable they re used to having to prove themselves and perform. Via: Breitbart News | 1real |
MUSLIM MEN WIN BIG DISCRIMINATION SUIT Against Employer For Violating Religious Beliefs, While Nuns, Christian Bakers And City Clerks All Lose Cases | Religious rights in Obama s America don t apply to Christians or Jews they only apply to Muslims.The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission won $240,000 in damages for two Muslim truck drivers after it sued their former employer for religious discrimination for firing the drivers for refusing to make beer deliveries.The EEOC said that Star Transport Inc., a trucking company based in Morton, Ill., violated their religious rights by refusing to accommodate their objections to delivering alcoholic beverages. EEOC is proud to support the rights of workers to equal treatment in the workplace without having to sacrifice their religious beliefs or practices, EEOC General Counsel David Lopez announced Thursday. This is fundamental to the American principles of religious freedom and tolerance. The case involved Star Transport s firing of drivers Mahad Abass Mohamed and Abdkiarim Hassan Bulshale, both of Somali heritage, in 2009 after they refused to make beer deliveries for the company, citing their adherence to Islamic law. For devout Muslims, consuming or even being in contact with any alcoholic beverage is prohibited.The EEOC argued that the company could have easily reassigned the drivers but did not and sued it for religious discrimination. Star Transport admitted liability in March. The jury awarded Mohamed and Bulshale $20,000 each in compensatory damages and $100,000 each in punitive damages. The judge awarded each about $1,500 in back pay. Via: Washington ExaminerThe Catholic nuns beliefs are being violated by forcing them to pay for contraception and drugs that may cause abortions:A Catholic religious order, the Little Sisters of the Poor, has filed a lawsuit against the Obama administration asking the courts to protect them from being forced to comply with the HHS abortion mandate. The mandate compels religious groups to pay for birth control and drugs that may cause abortions.Yesterday, the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty filed a lawsuit on behalf of the Little Sisters of the Poor, a religious order of Sisters dedicated to caring for the elderly poor. Without relief, the Little Sisters face millions of dollars in IRS fines because they cannot comply with the government s mandate that they give their employees free access to contraception, sterilization, and abortion-inducing drugs.The Christian couple who owned Sweet Cakes by Melissa was forced to pay $135,000 after refusing to bake a cake for a lesbian couple, as they explained it would violate their Christian beliefs.A complaint against Sweet Cakes By Melissa was filed after the owners, Aaron and Melissa Klein, turned away a lesbian couple who requested a wedding cake in 2013.The state ruled that the owners were discriminating against the couple based on their sexual orientation.Fox News reported that the state has now ordered the Kleins to pay $135,000 in damages to the lesbian couple and issued a gag order, which bans them from speaking publicly about their refusal to participate in or bake wedding cakes for same-sex unions. The couple told Sean Hannity tonight that they think the state of Oregon has violated their First Amendment rights.Christian City Clerk is jailed for refusing to issue marriage licenses to same sex couples:Kim Davis, Rowan County, KY City Clerk refused to issue marriage licenses to gay couples. The judge determined Davis should be held in contempt and felt that a fine was not a harsh enough punishment for her. She was jailed on September 3 and spent 5 days in jail.Under the threat of more jail time, Rowan County (Ky.) Clerk Kim Davis remained out of sight Monday as one of her deputy clerks issued a marriage licence to yet another lesbian couple, drawing heckles from some anti-gay protesters who questioned Davis decision to not interfere.Shannon and Carmen Wampler-Collins were the first couple to obtain a license since Davis returned to work after her high-profile release from the Carter County Detention Center last week. Davis has been at the center of the dispute about gay marriage and religious liberty.Davis said earlier in the day that, while she still refuses to authorize marriage licenses, she will not stand in the way of a deputy clerk who began providing them more than a week ago. The clerk had been jailed for six days on a contempt of court charge. | 1real |
Exclusive Clinton op-ed: I'll look for common ground | Why you should vote for me.
In January, America is going to have a new president. Things are going to change — that much is certain. The question is, what kind of change are we going to have?
We can build an economy that works for everyone, or stack the deck even more for those at the top.
We can keep America safe through strength and smarts — or turn our backs on our allies, and cozy up to our adversaries.
We can come together to build a stronger, fairer America, or fear the future and fear each other.
Everything I’ve done, as first lady, senator, or secretary of State, I’ve done by listening to people and looking for common ground, even with people who disagree with me. And if you elect me on Tuesday, that’s the kind of president I’ll be.
Here are four priorities for my first 100 days — issues I’ve heard about from Americans all over our country.
First, we will put forward the biggest investment in new jobs since World War II. We’ll invest in infrastructure and manufacturing to grow our economy for years to come. We’ll produce enough renewable energy to power every home in America within a decade. We’ll cut red tape for small businesses and make it easier for entrepreneurs to get the credit they need to grow and hire — because in America, if you can dream it, you should be able to build it. We’ll pay for it all by asking the wealthy, Wall Street and big corporations to finally pay their fair share. And this commitment will go far beyond the first 100 days. Creating more good jobs with rising incomes will be a central mission of my presidency.
Second, we will introduce comprehensive immigration reform legislation. The last president to sign comprehensive immigration reform was Ronald Reagan, and it was a priority for George W. Bush. I’m confident that we can work across the aisle to pass comprehensive reform that keeps families together and creates a path to citizenship, secures our border, and focuses our enforcement resources on violent criminals. This is the right thing to do, and it will also grow our economy.
Third, to break the gridlock in Washington, we need to get secret, unaccountable money out of our politics. It’s drowning out the voices of the American people. So within my first 30 days, I will introduce a constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United. We should be protecting citizens’ rights to vote, not corporations’ rights to buy elections.
Fourth, we need to get started on end-to-end criminal justice reform. Too many people have been sent away for far too long for non-violent offenses. I believe our country will be stronger and safer when everyone has respect for the law and everyone is respected by the law.
There’s so much more we need to do together, and we certainly won’t get it all done in the first 100 days. But we’re going to roll up our sleeves and get to work for American families — and I’ll never, ever quit.
I want to be president for all Americans — Democrats, Republicans and independents; Americans of every race, faith and background.
My opponent has run his campaign on divisiveness, fear and insults, and spent months pitting Americans against each other. I’ve said many times that Donald Trump has shown us who he is. Now we have to decide who we are.
Because it’s not just our names on the ballot this year. Every issue we care about is on the ballot, too. This is about who we are as a country — and whether we are going to have change that makes us stronger together, or change that pushes us further apart.
It all comes down to this. I love our country. I believe in our people. And I think there’s nothing we can’t achieve if we work together and invest in each other.
Hillary Clinton is the Democratic nominee for president.
You can read diverse opinions from our Board of Contributors and other writers on the Opinion front page, on Twitter @USATOpinion and in our daily Opinion newsletter. To submit a letter, comment or column, check our submission guidelines. | 0fake |
FAST AND FURIOUS IN PARIS? Why ATF Silenced Phoenix Gun Owner Of Weapon Used In Paris Attack | How crazy is it that a Fast and Furious gun was used in the Paris terror attacks? One of the guns used in the November 13, 2015 Paris terrorist attacks came from Phoenix, Arizona where the Obama administration allowed criminals to buy thousands of weapons illegally in a deadly and futile gun-walking operation known as Fast and Furious. A Report of Investigation (ROI) filed by a case agent in the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF) tracked the gun used in the Paris attacks to a Phoenix gun owner who sold it illegally, off book, Judicial Watch s law enforcement sources confirm. Federal agents tracing the firearm also found the Phoenix gun owner to be in possession of an unregistered fully automatic weapon, according to law enforcement officials with firsthand knowledge of the investigation.The investigative follow up of the Paris weapon consisted of tracking a paper trail using a 4473 form, which documents a gun s ownership history by, among other things, using serial numbers. The Phoenix gun owner that the weapon was traced back to was found to have at least two federal firearms violations for selling one weapon illegally and possessing an unregistered automatic but no enforcement or prosecutorial action was taken against the individual. Instead, ATF leaders went out of their way to keep the information under the radar and ensure that the gun owner s identity was kept quiet, according to law enforcement sources involved with the case. Agents were told, in the process of taking the fully auto, not to anger the seller to prevent him from going public, a veteran law enforcement official told Judicial Watch.Read more: Judicial Watch | 1real |
Russia calls on U.S., South Korea not to hold military drills in December | UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Russia s U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia called on North Korea on Wednesday to stop its missile and nuclear tests and for the United States and South Korea not to hold military drills in December as it would inflame an already explosive situation. We strongly call on all concerned parties to stop this spiral of tension, he told the U.N. Security Council. It is essential to take a step back and weigh the consequences of each move. | 0fake |
South Sudan rebels say army attacked them after signing ceasefire | JUBA (Reuters) - A South Sudanese rebel group on Friday accused government troops of attacking their base only a day after the parties signed a ceasefire in a four-year war that has killed tens of thousands of people. The ceasefire, that would allow humanitarian groups access to civilians caught in the fighting, formally comes into force on Sunday morning. On Friday afternoon, a spokesman for the SPLA-IO rebel group said army forces had attacked a rebel base in Deim Jalab, in the western part of the country. Lam Paul Gabriel said two rebels and five government troops were killed in the fighting. The army spokesman in the capital, Juba, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The war that began in late 2013 in the world s youngest nation has forced a third of the population to flee their homes. The United Nations describes the violence as ethnic cleansing. Earlier this year, pockets of the country plunged briefly into famine. The latest round of talks in the Ethiopian capital, convened by the East African bloc IGAD, brought the warring sides back to the negotiating table after a 2015 peace deal collapsed last year during heavy fighting in Juba. After the new agreement was signed on Thursday, South Sudan s Information Minister Michael Makuei Leuth told journalists: The cessation of hostilities will be effective 72 hours from now. As of now, we will send messages to all the commands in the field to abide by this cessation of hostilities. From now onwards, there will be no more fighting, he added. Just talks. The German foreign ministry welcomed the agreement as an important step toward bringing peace to South Sudan. We call on all participating parties to implement the agreement in a comprehensive and sustainable manner, and to ensure that humanitarian organizations are not hindered in doing their work, a ministry spokeswoman said. | 0fake |
MY FAVORITE EXCUSES…Featuring Hillary Rotten Clinton [VIDEO] | Enjoy: | 1real |
Wake Up America! “SEED COMMUNITIES” Of Muslim Refugees Are Sprouting Up All Over The U.S. | Be aware and be ready to push back on this effort by the State Department and the United Nations to spread seed communities (their term) all over the U.S. Pretty soon we ll be covered up in refugees who are mostly (90%) muslim. We already have millions of illegals from Central America that we cannot and should not support. We now know that small towns across America like Athens, GA and Spartanburg, SC are being targeted for a influx of muslim refugees. Because it s very secretive (for obvious reasons), you need to keep your ear to the ground and push back like Athens and Spartanburg. Below is a fantastic piece that will fill you in on what s REALLY going on:With Muslim immigrants streaming into the United States at a rate of 100,000 per year, some of the communities targeted for new arrivals are seeking information on their new neighbors, only to be frustrated by federal bureaucrats and their hired contractors.How does a city get on the U.S. State Department s list of 190 communities selected for refugee resettlement? How can cities find out who will be coming and when? What services will they use, and what will be the cost to taxpayers?And, the granddaddy of all questions: Can the communities be assured that foreign nationals with ties to ISIS, al-Shabab and other Islamic terrorist groups won t slip through the government s porous screening process posing as refugees ?The answers to these questions are simple. Very little information is available. And there are no guarantees that some very bad apples won t arrive in your town, says a leading expert on the refugee resettlement program. One community that is trying to get information right now is Spartanburg, South Carolina.On March 16, Ann Corcoran, author of the Refugee Resettlement Watch blog, spoke at a national security summit in Columbia, South Carolina, hosted by former Defense Department analyst Frank Gaffney. A few days before that conference, on March 9, a story broke in the local Spartanburg newspaper that World Relief, one of the nine resettlement agencies that works under contract with the federal government, was planning to open an office in Spartanburg.When an agency like World Relief opens an office in a city, it means refugees will be arriving soon. There are no public hearings or announcements in local media, Corcoran said. Typically a story will appear in the local newspaper just before or after the first arrivals appear in town.Corcoran met some activists at Gaffney s conference who wanted to find out more about the plans for resettling United Nations-certified refugees in their city. It is like pulling teeth to get any information, Corcoran said. And these are long-term grassroots activists who know how to get information. One of the activists is Christina Jeffrey, a political science professor and former U.S. House of Representatives historian who ran against Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., in last year s Republican primary. Gowdy is now chairman of the House subcommittee on immigration and refugees. He is chair of this committee, and so they want to set up a refugee office in his home district, and we still can t get any information, Corcoran said.Jeffrey has asked the federal government to prepare a comprehensive impact statement, detailing the impact the refugees will have on Spartanburg s public services. Schools, health facilities, housing, the job market and public welfare programs will all be affected, but so far nobody is saying to what extent.The mayor of Athens, Georgia, who asked for the same type of report last year, encountered the same blackout of information.St. Cloud, Minnesota, residents have also inquired about how many more Somali refugees will be arriving in light of recent problems with Somali student protests at a local community college. Dozens of other Somalis have either left the country to fight for al-Shabab or ISIS while others have been charged and convicted with sending material support to overseas terrorist organizations. They re trying to get information because residents have heard the rumor that there are 1,500 more Somalis getting ready to be resettled there in St. Cloud, Corcoran said.The resettlement agencies hold lots of meetings and place lots of phone calls with stakeholders in the targeted communities, but these collaborative efforts almost always occur outside of the public spotlight. The term stakeholders does not apply to you, the taxpayer footing the bill for all of this, Corcoran said.According to a March 8 article in the Spartanburg Herald-Journal, a partnership of faith leaders called Come Closer Spartanburg issued an invitation more than a year ago to World Relief to open a refugee office in Spartanburg. The March 8 article was the first public revelation of this effort even though World Relief had been working behind the scenes with stakeholders for a year. An initial group of 65 refugees will arrive this year, starting in April or May, from Congo, Bhutan and Syria.Jeffrey, in a March 30 op-ed in the local newspaper, shed more light on the group, Come Closer Spartanburg, and its goals: On its website, Come Closer Spartanburg describes the city of Spartanburg as home to what has been identified as the fifth most dangerous neighborhood in the United States. We have extremely high rates of unemployment, poverty and domestic violence. Overall, we were recently listed as the fourth most miserable city to live in our country. It does not take long to realize that we are a city in need of transformation. Jeffrey discovered that the objective is to plant a seed community in Spartanburg that will eventually blossom and transform the city. The federal government is creating communities within communities often pitted against each other economically and culturally.It s the same tactic that has been used for decades in Europe. Looking at other U.S. cities with new refugee communities, it appears that contractors often keep sending refugees to the same place until there is a community within a community. Unassimilated communities have created problems in Europe, and we are beginning to have similar problems here in the United States (witness Milwaukee, Wis., and Lewiston, Maine), Jeffrey writes.Corcoran said the word assimilation is no longer used by the resettlement agencies and their friends in the federal government. Rather, the new buzzword is integration. The goal of integration is to have a multitude of diverse cultures living side by side in coexistence but never assimilating.President Obama issued an executive memorandum dated Nov. 21, 2014, to all federal agencies directing them on Creating Welcoming Communities and Fully Integrated Immigrants and Refugees. This sort of backroom dealing between the federal government, its hired resettlement contractors and local officials is not designed to provide information to the people who live and work in the targeted refugee cities, Corcoran said. They don t like this whole idea that their town is being secretly selected, she said. This has been going on for over a year now in Spartanburg, and the refugees are now due to start arriving in a month or so. And these people have no information until it s actually upon them. The mayor of Athens, Nancy Denson, requested a plan. The city of Spartanburg is asking for the same consideration. That s what these people in Spartanburg are asking for, and they are asking that when you have a plan that you present it publicly at a public hearing, Corcoran said. They don t want to have to show any of that to the public. They re saying it s only 65; well, it s only 65 for the first year. It will continue to be more every year afterward once you become a seed community. Of the more than 500 Syrian refugees brought to the U.S. so far this past year, 90 percent of them have been Muslim, Corcoran said.Read more: wnd | 1real |
‘One for the Ages’ Full Video and Transcript of Trump’s Incredible UN Speech [Video] | A speech for the ages was given today by President Donald Trump. He addressed the 72nd meeting of the United Nations General Assembly in New York for the first time in his presidency. The transcript is below.PRESIDENT TRUMP: Mr. Secretary General, Mr. President, world leaders, and distinguished delegates: Welcome to New York. It is a profound honor to stand here in my home city, as a representative of the American people, to address the people of the world.As millions of our citizens continue to suffer the effects of the devastating hurricanes that have struck our country, I want to begin by expressing my appreciation to every leader in this room who has offered assistance and aid. The American people are strong and resilient, and they will emerge from these hardships more determined than ever before.Fortunately, the United States has done very well since Election Day last November 8th. The stock market is at an all-time high a record. Unemployment is at its lowest level in 16 years, and because of our regulatory and other reforms, we have more people working in the United States today than ever before. Companies are moving back, creating job growth the likes of which our country has not seen in a very long time. And it has just been announced that we will be spending almost $700 billion on our military and defense.Our military will soon be the strongest it has ever been. For more than 70 years, in times of war and peace, the leaders of nations, movements, and religions have stood before this assembly. Like them, I intend to address some of the very serious threats before us today but also the enormous potential waiting to be unleashed.We live in a time of extraordinary opportunity. Breakthroughs in science, technology, and medicine are curing illnesses and solving problems that prior generations thought impossible to solve.But each day also brings news of growing dangers that threaten everything we cherish and value. Terrorists and extremists have gathered strength and spread to every region of the planet. Rogue regimes represented in this body not only support terrorists but threaten other nations and their own people with the most destructive weapons known to humanity.Authority and authoritarian powers seek to collapse the values, the systems, and alliances that prevented conflict and tilted the world toward freedom since World War II.International criminal networks traffic drugs, weapons, people; force dislocation and mass migration; threaten our borders; and new forms of aggression exploit technology to menace our citizens.To put it simply, we meet at a time of both of immense promise and great peril. It is entirely up to us whether we lift the world to new heights, or let it fall into a valley of disrepair.We have it in our power, should we so choose, to lift millions from poverty, to help our citizens realize their dreams, and to ensure that new generations of children are raised free from violence, hatred, and fear.This institution was founded in the aftermath of two world wars to help shape this better future. It was based on the vision that diverse nations could cooperate to protect their sovereignty, preserve their security, and promote their prosperity.It was in the same period, exactly 70 years ago, that the United States developed the Marshall Plan to help restore Europe. Those three beautiful pillars they re pillars of peace, sovereignty, security, and prosperity.The Marshall Plan was built on the noble idea that the whole world is safer when nations are strong, independent, and free. As President Truman said in his message to Congress at that time, Our support of European recovery is in full accord with our support of the United Nations. The success of the United Nations depends upon the independent strength of its members. To overcome the perils of the present and to achieve the promise of the future, we must begin with the wisdom of the past. Our success depends on a coalition of strong and independent nations that embrace their sovereignty to promote security, prosperity, and peace for themselves and for the world.We do not expect diverse countries to share the same cultures, traditions, or even systems of government. But we do expect all nations to uphold these two core sovereign duties: to respect the interests of their own people and the rights of every other sovereign nation. This is the beautiful vision of this institution, and this is foundation for cooperation and success.Strong, sovereign nations let diverse countries with different values, different cultures, and different dreams not just coexist, but work side by side on the basis of mutual respect.Strong, sovereign nations let their people take ownership of the future and control their own destiny. And strong, sovereign nations allow individuals to flourish in the fullness of the life intended by God.In America, we do not seek to impose our way of life on anyone, but rather to let it shine as an example for everyone to watch. This week gives our country a special reason to take pride in that example. We are celebrating the 230th anniversary of our beloved Constitution the oldest constitution still in use in the world today.This timeless document has been the foundation of peace, prosperity, and freedom for the Americans and for countless millions around the globe whose own countries have found inspiration in its respect for human nature, human dignity, and the rule of law.The greatest in the United States Constitution is its first three beautiful words. They are: We the people. Generations of Americans have sacrificed to maintain the promise of those words, the promise of our country, and of our great history. In America, the people govern, the people rule, and the people are sovereign. I was elected not to take power, but to give power to the American people, where it belongs.In foreign affairs, we are renewing this founding principle of sovereignty. Our government s first duty is to its people, to our citizens to serve their needs, to ensure their safety, to preserve their rights, and to defend their values.As President of the United States, I will always put America first, just like you, as the leaders of your countries will always, and should always, put your countries first. (Applause.)All responsible leaders have an obligation to serve their own citizens, and the nation-state remains the best vehicle for elevating the human condition.But making a better life for our people also requires us to work together in close harmony and unity to create a more safe and peaceful future for all people.The United States will forever be a great friend to the world, and especially to its allies. But we can no longer be taken advantage of, or enter into a one-sided deal where the United States gets nothing in return. As long as I hold this office, I will defend America s interests above all else.But in fulfilling our obligations to our own nations, we also realize that it s in everyone s interest to seek a future where all nations can be sovereign, prosperous, and secure.America does more than speak for the values expressed in the United Nations Charter. Our citizens have paid the ultimate price to defend our freedom and the freedom of many nations represented in this great hall. America s devotion is measured on the battlefields where our young men and women have fought and sacrificed alongside of our allies, from the beaches of Europe to the deserts of the Middle East to the jungles of Asia.It is an eternal credit to the American character that even after we and our allies emerged victorious from the bloodiest war in history, we did not seek territorial expansion, or attempt to oppose and impose our way of life on others. Instead, we helped build institutions such as this one to defend the sovereignty, security, and prosperity for all.For the diverse nations of the world, this is our hope. We want harmony and friendship, not conflict and strife. We are guided by outcomes, not ideology. We have a policy of principled realism, rooted in shared goals, interests, and values.That realism forces us to confront a question facing every leader and nation in this room. It is a question we cannot escape or avoid. We will slide down the path of complacency, numb to the challenges, threats, and even wars that we face. Or do we have enough strength and pride to confront those dangers today, so that our citizens can enjoy peace and prosperity tomorrow?If we desire to lift up our citizens, if we aspire to the approval of history, then we must fulfill our sovereign duties to the people we faithfully represent. We must protect our nations, their interests, and their futures. We must reject threats to sovereignty, from the Ukraine to the South China Sea. We must uphold respect for law, respect for borders, and respect for culture, and the peaceful engagement these allow. And just as the founders of this body intended, we must work together and confront together those who threaten us with chaos, turmoil, and terror.The scourge of our planet today is a small group of rogue regimes that violate every principle on which the United Nations is based. They respect neither their own citizens nor the sovereign rights of their countries.If the righteous many do not confront the wicked few, then evil will triumph. When decent people and nations become bystanders to history, the forces of destruction only gather power and strength.No one has shown more contempt for other nations and for the wellbeing of their own people than the depraved regime in North Korea. It is responsible for the starvation deaths of millions of North Koreans, and for the imprisonment, torture, killing, and oppression of countless more.We were all witness to the regime s deadly abuse when an innocent American college student, Otto Warmbier, was returned to America only to die a few days later. We saw it in the assassination of the dictator s brother using banned nerve agents in an international airport. We know it kidnapped a sweet 13-year-old Japanese girl from a beach in her own country to enslave her as a language tutor for North Korea s spies.If this is not twisted enough, now North Korea s reckless pursuit of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles threatens the entire world with unthinkable loss of human life.It is an outrage that some nations would not only trade with such a regime, but would arm, supply, and financially support a country that imperils the world with nuclear conflict. No nation on earth has an interest in seeing this band of criminals arm itself with nuclear weapons and missiles.The United States has great strength and patience, but if it is forced to defend itself or its allies, we will have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea. Rocket Man is on a suicide mission for himself and for his regime. The United States is ready, willing and able, but hopefully this will not be necessary. That s what the United Nations is all about; that s what the United Nations is for. Let s see how they do.It is time for North Korea to realize that the denuclearization is its only acceptable future. The United Nations Security Council recently held two unanimous 15-0 votes adopting hard-hitting resolutions against North Korea, and I want to thank China and Russia for joining the vote to impose sanctions, along with all of the other members of the Security Council. Thank you to all involved.But we must do much more. It is time for all nations to work together to isolate the Kim regime until it ceases its hostile behavior.We face this decision not only in North Korea. It is far past time for the nations of the world to confront another reckless regime one that speaks openly of mass murder, vowing death to America, destruction to Israel, and ruin for many leaders and nations in this room.The Iranian government masks a corrupt dictatorship behind the false guise of a democracy. It has turned a wealthy country with a rich history and culture into an economically depleted rogue state whose chief exports are violence, bloodshed, and chaos. The longest-suffering victims of Iran s leaders are, in fact, its own people.Rather than use its resources to improve Iranian lives, its oil profits go to fund Hezbollah and other terrorists that kill innocent Muslims and attack their peaceful Arab and Israeli neighbors. This wealth, which rightly belongs to Iran s people, also goes to shore up Bashar al-Assad s dictatorship, fuel Yemen s civil war, and undermine peace throughout the entire Middle East.We cannot let a murderous regime continue these destabilizing activities while building dangerous missiles, and we cannot abide by an agreement if it provides cover for the eventual construction of a nuclear program. (Applause.) The Iran Deal was one of the worst and most one-sided transactions the United States has ever entered into. Frankly, that deal is an embarrassment to the United States, and I don t think you ve heard the last of it believe me.It is time for the entire world to join us in demanding that Iran s government end its pursuit of death and destruction. It is time for the regime to free all Americans and citizens of other nations that they have unjustly detained. And above all, Iran s government must stop supporting terrorists, begin serving its own people, and respect the sovereign rights of its neighbors.The entire world understands that the good people of Iran want change, and, other than the vast military power of the United States, that Iran s people are what their leaders fear the most. This is what causes the regime to restrict Internet access, tear down satellite dishes, shoot unarmed student protestors, and imprison political reformers.Oppressive regimes cannot endure forever, and the day will come when the Iranian people will face a choice. Will they continue down the path of poverty, bloodshed, and terror? Or will the Iranian people return to the nation s proud roots as a center of civilization, culture, and wealth where their people can be happy and prosperous once again?The Iranian regime s support for terror is in stark contrast to the recent commitments of many of its neighbors to fight terrorism and halt its financing.In Saudi Arabia early last year, I was greatly honored to address the leaders of more than 50 Arab and Muslim nations. We agreed that all responsible nations must work together to confront terrorists and the Islamist extremism that inspires them.We will stop radical Islamic terrorism because we cannot allow it to tear up our nation, and indeed to tear up the entire world.We must deny the terrorists safe haven, transit, funding, and any form of support for their vile and sinister ideology. We must drive them out of our nations. It is time to expose and hold responsible those countries who support and finance terror groups like al Qaeda, Hezbollah, the Taliban and others that slaughter innocent people.The United States and our allies are working together throughout the Middle East to crush the loser terrorists and stop the reemergence of safe havens they use to launch attacks on all of our people.Last month, I announced a new strategy for victory in the fight against this evil in Afghanistan. From now on, our security interests will dictate the length and scope of military operations, not arbitrary benchmarks and timetables set up by politicians.I have also totally changed the rules of engagement in our fight against the Taliban and other terrorist groups. In Syria and Iraq, we have made big gains toward lasting defeat of ISIS. In fact, our country has achieved more against ISIS in the last eight months than it has in many, many years combined.We seek the de-escalation of the Syrian conflict, and a political solution that honors the will of the Syrian people. The actions of the criminal regime of Bashar al-Assad, including the use of chemical weapons against his own citizens even innocent children shock the conscience of every decent person. No society can be safe if banned chemical weapons are allowed to spread. That is why the United States carried out a missile strike on the airbase that launched the attack.We appreciate the efforts of United Nations agencies that are providing vital humanitarian assistance in areas liberated from ISIS, and we especially thank Jordan, Turkey and Lebanon for their role in hosting refugees from the Syrian conflict.The United States is a compassionate nation and has spent billions and billions of dollars in helping to support this effort. We seek an approach to refugee resettlement that is designed to help these horribly treated people, and which enables their eventual return to their home countries, to be part of the rebuilding process.For the cost of resettling one refugee in the United States, we can assist more than 10 in their home region. Out of the goodness of our hearts, we offer financial assistance to hosting countries in the region, and we support recent agreements of the G20 nations that will seek to host refugees as close to their home countries as possible. This is the safe, responsible, and humanitarian approach.For decades, the United States has dealt with migration challenges here in the Western Hemisphere. We have learned that, over the long term, uncontrolled migration is deeply unfair to both the sending and the receiving countries.For the sending countries, it reduces domestic pressure to pursue needed political and economic reform, and drains them of the human capital necessary to motivate and implement those reforms.For the receiving countries, the substantial costs of uncontrolled migration are borne overwhelmingly by low-income citizens whose concerns are often ignored by both media and government.I want to salute the work of the United Nations in seeking to address the problems that cause people to flee from their homes. The United Nations and African Union led peacekeeping missions to have invaluable contributions in stabilizing conflicts in Africa. The United States continues to lead the world in humanitarian assistance, including famine prevention and relief in South Sudan, Somalia, and northern Nigeria and Yemen.We have invested in better health and opportunity all over the world through programs like PEPFAR, which funds AIDS relief; the President s Malaria Initiative; the Global Health Security Agenda; the Global Fund to End Modern Slavery; and the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative, part of our commitment to empowering women all across the globe.We also thank (applause) we also thank the Secretary General for recognizing that the United Nations must reform if it is to be an effective partner in confronting threats to sovereignty, security, and prosperity. Too often the focus of this organization has not been on results, but on bureaucracy and process.In some cases, states that seek to subvert this institution s noble aims have hijacked the very systems that are supposed to advance them. For example, it is a massive source of embarrassment to the United Nations that some governments with egregious human rights records sit on the U.N. Human Rights Council.The United States is one out of 193 countries in the United Nations, and yet we pay 22 percent of the entire budget and more. In fact, we pay far more than anybody realizes. The United States bears an unfair cost burden, but, to be fair, if it could actually accomplish all of its stated goals, especially the goal of peace, this investment would easily be well worth it.Major portions of the world are in conflict and some, in fact, are going to hell. But the powerful people in this room, under the guidance and auspices of the United Nations, can solve many of these vicious and complex problems.The American people hope that one day soon the United Nations can be a much more accountable and effective advocate for human dignity and freedom around the world. In the meantime, we believe that no nation should have to bear a disproportionate share of the burden, militarily or financially. Nations of the world must take a greater role in promoting secure and prosperous societies in their own regions.That is why in the Western Hemisphere, the United States has stood against the corrupt and destabilizing regime in Cuba and embraced the enduring dream of the Cuban people to live in freedom. My administration recently announced that we will not lift sanctions on the Cuban government until it makes fundamental reforms.We have also imposed tough, calibrated sanctions on the socialist Maduro regime in Venezuela, which has brought a once thriving nation to the brink of total collapse.The socialist dictatorship of Nicolas Maduro has inflicted terrible pain and suffering on the good people of that country. This corrupt regime destroyed a prosperous nation by imposing a failed ideology that has produced poverty and misery everywhere it has been tried. To make matters worse, Maduro has defied his own people, stealing power from their elected representatives to preserve his disastrous rule.The Venezuelan people are starving and their country is collapsing. Their democratic institutions are being destroyed. This situation is completely unacceptable and we cannot stand by and watch.As a responsible neighbor and friend, we and all others have a goal. That goal is to help them regain their freedom, recover their country, and restore their democracy. I would like to thank leaders in this room for condemning the regime and providing vital support to the Venezuelan people.The United States has taken important steps to hold the regime accountable. We are prepared to take further action if the government of Venezuela persists on its path to impose authoritarian rule on the Venezuelan people.We are fortunate to have incredibly strong and healthy trade relationships with many of the Latin American countries gathered here today. Our economic bond forms a critical foundation for advancing peace and prosperity for all of our people and all of our neighbors.I ask every country represented here today to be prepared to do more to address this very real crisis. We call for the full restoration of democracy and political freedoms in Venezuela. (Applause.)The problem in Venezuela is not that socialism has been poorly implemented, but that socialism has been faithfully implemented. (Applause.) From the Soviet Union to Cuba to Venezuela, wherever true socialism or communism has been adopted, it has delivered anguish and devastation and failure. Those who preach the tenets of these discredited ideologies only contribute to the continued suffering of the people who live under these cruel systems.America stands with every person living under a brutal regime. Our respect for sovereignty is also a call for action. All people deserve a government that cares for their safety, their interests, and their wellbeing, including their prosperity.In America, we seek stronger ties of business and trade with all nations of good will, but this trade must be fair and it must be reciprocal.For too long, the American people were told that mammoth multinational trade deals, unaccountable international tribunals, and powerful global bureaucracies were the best way to promote their success. But as those promises flowed, millions of jobs vanished and thousands of factories disappeared. Others gamed the system and broke the rules. And our great middle class, once the bedrock of American prosperity, was forgotten and left behind, but they are forgotten no more and they will never be forgotten again.While America will pursue cooperation and commerce with other nations, we are renewing our commitment to the first duty of every government: the duty of our citizens. This bond is the source of America s strength and that of every responsible nation represented here today.If this organization is to have any hope of successfully confronting the challenges before us, it will depend, as President Truman said some 70 years ago, on the independent strength of its members. If we are to embrace the opportunities of the future and overcome the present dangers together, there can be no substitute for strong, sovereign, and independent nations nations that are rooted in their histories and invested in their destinies; nations that seek allies to befriend, not enemies to conquer; and most important of all, nations that are home to patriots, to men and women who are willing to sacrifice for their countries, their fellow citizens, and for all that is best in the human spirit.In remembering the great victory that led to this body s founding, we must never forget that those heroes who fought against evil also fought for the nations that they loved.Patriotism led the Poles to die to save Poland, the French to fight for a free France, and the Brits to stand strong for Britain.Today, if we do not invest ourselves, our hearts, and our minds in our nations, if we will not build strong families, safe communities, and healthy societies for ourselves, no one can do it for us.We cannot wait for someone else, for faraway countries or far-off bureaucrats we can t do it. We must solve our problems, to build our prosperity, to secure our futures, or we will be vulnerable to decay, domination, and defeat.The true question for the United Nations today, for people all over the world who hope for better lives for themselves and their children, is a basic one: Are we still patriots? Do we love our nations enough to protect their sovereignty and to take ownership of their futures? Do we revere them enough to defend their interests, preserve their cultures, and ensure a peaceful world for their citizens?One of the greatest American patriots, John Adams, wrote that the American Revolution was effected before the war commenced. The Revolution was in the minds and hearts of the people. That was the moment when America awoke, when we looked around and understood that we were a nation. We realized who we were, what we valued, and what we would give our lives to defend. From its very first moments, the American story is the story of what is possible when people take ownership of their future.The United States of America has been among the greatest forces for good in the history of the world, and the greatest defenders of sovereignty, security, and prosperity for all.Now we are calling for a great reawakening of nations, for the revival of their spirits, their pride, their people, and their patriotism.History is asking us whether we are up to the task. Our answer will be a renewal of will, a rediscovery of resolve, and a rebirth of devotion. We need to defeat the enemies of humanity and unlock the potential of life itself.Our hope is a word and world of proud, independent nations that embrace their duties, seek friendship, respect others, and make common cause in the greatest shared interest of all: a future of dignity and peace for the people of this wonderful Earth.This is the true vision of the United Nations, the ancient wish of every people, and the deepest yearning that lives inside every sacred soul.So let this be our mission, and let this be our message to the world: We will fight together, sacrifice together, and stand together for peace, for freedom, for justice, for family, for humanity, and for the almighty God who made us all.Thank you. God bless you. God bless the nations of the world. And God bless the United States of America. Thank you very much. | 1real |
What Sarah Palin Just Asked Us To Do With Trump’s Nomination Will Make You Vomit (VIDEO) | Like a stubborn cold that just doesn t seem to go away, Sarah Palin, for some reason or another, is still around and apparently relevant in our media. You know, the same lame stream media that she likes to claim silences her or mixes up what she says when they just quote her verbatim. The same media that asks her gotcha questions, which are really just questions she doesn t know the answer to and caught her looking like an idiot.Now, while appearing with Donald Trump at a rally in San Diego, California, Palin told the crowd that despite the media treating Trump like a joke at the beginning, he s still here, and not only is he here, he s going to be the Republican nominee for President of the United States.Honestly, I don t know why she s complaining about the media and Trump considering it s been a non-stop Trump show media circus since he announced his candidacy last summer.However, it was what Palin told the media, and everyone else who thought Trump was a joke, to do with Trump s nomination that was utterly nauseating to say the least.She said of her, and apparently our golden wrecking ball after trashing the media: Weeelll, he is now though. He is now we the people s nominee. So, suck it up, cupcake. Okay, first of all, he is not we the people s nominee, he is the Republican nominee, not representative of all of the nation s people. Secondly, telling us to suck up anything in regards to Trump will have most of the nation reaching for a barf bag.Oh, and Palin also said Trump wrecked what needed to be wrecked in order to shine light on the shenanigans. Well, he certainly wrecked the Republican Party and any hope of ever respecting them again, so sure, he wrecked what needed to be wrecked. However, he s not at all what the country needs, and he needs to stay as far away from the Oval Office as possible. It s up to us to make sure he s stays out of the White House.Watch her words in no particular order here:https://www.facebook.com/politico/videos/10153565461001680/Featured image via video screen capture | 1real |
What I Learned From Speaking to an R.N.C. Attendee From Every State | “I was in Kentucky when Sen. Rand Paul announced his candidacy and I worked on his campaign.”
So you're still warming up the idea of Donald?
“I’m here for a totally different reason . . .the issue I’m passionate about is medical cannabis oil to treat my autistic son. . . I was up here last week trying to get it in the platform.” | 0fake |
Freedom Rider: Obama’s Hollow Legacy | Black Agenda Report | 2016 presidential campaign by BAR editor and senior columnist Margaret Kimberley
Democrats used to value things like global peace and justice in the workplace. But, for decades they have given their votes to warmongers and job-exporters. This week, they are mourning the defeat of a politician they once would have despised. In January, lots of Black Democrats will cry over the exit of a president who “won by making himself palatable to white people while also taking advantage of undeserved black pride.” Freedom Rider: Obama’s Hollow Legacy by BAR editor and senior columnist Margaret Kimberley
“The sight of Barack and Michelle hosting a state dinner was enough to make black hearts swoon.”
Obama’s legacy is in tatters, and that is good news. Donald Trump’s victory was not just a win over Hillary Clinton, but against Democratic Party policies that silenced the rank and file. For years Democrats became convinced that the only means of keeping Republicans at bay was to go along with their party leadership without complaint. If they wanted to expand trade deals that stole workers’ jobs, so be it. The people who marched against the invasion of Iraq folded their tents when Democrats became the party of endless war. When Obama promoted austerity and “grand bargains” with Republicans not a word was uttered. Even Black Lives Matter refused to point out that the Obama Justice Department left killer cops unpunished.
Barack Obama is nothing if not consistent. While Democrats take to the streets in protest against president elect Trump, Obama declares that the man he once called unfit is not an ideologue, but a “pragmatist.” No one should be surprised about the conciliatory tone. Obama never had a problem with Republicans. They may have obstructed him, but he was always happy to assist them because he wasn’t really opposed to their policies.
The most obvious example of Obama’s lack of substance was his relationship with black Americans. His disdain and contempt for the people who loved him the most was clear to anyone who paid attention. Jokes about “cousin Pookie” and parents serving fried chicken for breakfast should have been seen as the racist screeds they clearly were. But the desire to see a black face in a prominent place endures to our detriment.
“The people who marched against the invasion of Iraq folded their tents when Democrats became the party of endless war.”
Obama won by making himself palatable to white people while also taking advantage of undeserved black pride. Hillary Clinton would be the president elect if the new voters who emerged in 2008 had remained committed to the Democratic Party. But their loyalty was to the imagery of Barack Obama as president. Their joy was confined to seeing him meet the queen of England alongside his first lady or disembarking from Air Force One with his signature swagger. The sight of Barack and Michelle hosting a state dinner was enough to make black hearts swoon. Policy initiatives need not intrude upon the love fest.
The end result of this unrequited and superficial love was six million fewer votes cast for Hillary Clinton in 2016 than for Obama in 2012. The apocryphal cousin Pookie stayed home and no one should be surprised. There is no secret to keeping voters engaged. They are engaged if their needs are met. Deliver for voters and they deliver in the voting booth.
Even the unpopular and shady Hillary Clinton could have won Michigan if the people of Flint had received the federal help they needed so badly. Not only did the Obama environmental protection agency allow the beleaguered city to be given contaminated water, but he showed up for a photo opportunity and did nothing else as residents suffered. He drank a glass of water, posed for the cameras and returned to Washington. The people of Flint are still living under conditions Americans think of as being “Third World.”
“Democratic voters must ask themselves why they said nothing when their party promoted trade deals that were against their interests.”
The response to Trump’s victory should mean more than protesting policies the Democrats now have little ability to fight. This moment presents an opportunity for much needed introspection and mea culpas. Millions of people did more than just accept Democratic Party policy. They supported actions they would have rejected if carried out by a Republican or a white Democrat. They supported Muammar Gaddafi when Republicans were president but averted their eyes to his murder when committed by a Democrat. They even voted for the person who bragged about the killing. Democratic voters must ask themselves why they said nothing when their party promoted trade deals that were against their interests. Ultimately that acquiescence led to defeat at Trump’s hands.
The Obama team’s propaganda skills were legendary but the day of reckoning revealed the emptiness of what they produced. The corporate media acted like scribes under White House direction and declared that Russia was an enemy state and its president a 21 st century Hitler. Now it is Donald Trump, the self-promoting reality television star, who declares his willingness to talk to his Russian counterpart. It is the sort of behavior that Democrats once valued.
Democratic presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton began the tradition of getting Democrats to support what they didn’t like. Obama perfected the art, which ultimately led to the debacle. He will certainly not be the last to tempt the party faithful but in 2016 Democrats sold their souls and ended up with nothing. Defeat creates the most hollow feelings of all. Margaret Kimberley's Freedom Rider column appears weekly in BAR, and is widely reprinted elsewhere. She maintains a frequently updated blog as well as at http://freedomrider.blogspot.com. Ms. Kimberley lives in New York City, and can be reached via e-Mail at Margaret.Kimberley(at)BlackAgendaReport.com. | 1real |
CLINTON SLIPS WHILE STEPPING Behind Biden After Awkward Lingering Hug From “Uncle Joe” Earlier In The Day [Video] | Hillary Clinton slips when stepping behind Biden during a rally today. The Dems have rolled out Biden in a desperate move to help Clinton. Joe biden then pulls the old trick out of his bag: We can t trust Trump with the nuclear codes Now that s pretty funny since Hillary has pretty much sold out the country to the highest bidder. Remember she sold our uranium to the Russians! She left 4 Americans to die in Benghazi! I could go on but this is ridiculous! Awkward and lingering hug between two slick politicians Joe just won t let go! LOL! | 1real |
Russian lawyer who met Trump Jr. seeks return to U.S. to defend money laundering settlement | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Russian lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya, who met with Donald Trump Jr. during the 2016 U.S. presidential campaign, wants permission to return to the United States to defend a claim by prosecutors that her client’s company has failed to pay a $6 million settlement in an international money laundering case. Veselnitskaya represented Prevezon Holdings Ltd, a Russian-controlled company, which in May this year agreed to pay nearly $6 million to the U.S. government to settle a $230 million Russian tax fraud case related to Hermitage Capital, an American fund that invested in Russia. In a court filing in federal court in Manhattan on Monday U.S. prosecutors said the settlement payment was due on Oct. 31, but in a letter on Tuesday filed in federal court in Manhattan lawyers for Prevezon disagreed. About half of the settlement money was supposed to come from 3 million euros owed to Prevezon that the U.S. government had asked the Netherlands to freeze. The Netherlands lifted the hold on the money on October 10, but the same day imposed a new freeze on the account based on a complaint by William Browder, chief executive of Hermitage Capital Management, the Prevezon letter said. In Monday’s court filing, U.S. prosecutors said the $6 million payment was due regardless of the new freeze on the funds and they intended to file a motion to enforce the settlement. In its letter, Prevezon asked the court to help obtain temporary U.S. immigration status for Veselnitskaya and its owner, Denis Katsyv, so she could attend upcoming hearings about the dispute. Veselnitskaya met Donald Trump Jr in New York last year while she was in the United States to represent Prevezon in the money laundering case. Trump Jr. said in a statement at the time that he and Veselnitskaya “primarily discussed a program about the adoption of Russian children” after Russia in 2012 banned adoptions of Russian children by Americans in retaliation for sanctions imposed under the U.S. Magnitsky Act. The Magnitsky Act was passed by Congress after Hermitage Capital’s Browder claimed that the tax fraud scheme involving Prevezon was uncovered by Sergei Magnitsky, an auditor for Hermitage Capital, who died in a Russian prison. Trump Jr. has released emails related to the meeting during last year’s election that described Veselnitskaya as a Russian government attorney who could provide information that would “incriminate Hillary and her dealings with Russia and would be very useful to your father.” | 0fake |
Hillary's Iowa reset: Is it enough? | On this day in 1973, J. Fred Buzhardt, a lawyer defending President Richard Nixon in the Watergate case, revealed that a key White House tape had an 18... | 0fake |
House Conservatives Planning To End Paul Ryan: ‘You Got To Stab Somebody’ | House Speaker Paul Ryan may have been hoping to be re-elected come January, but thanks to his fellow conservatives it looks like he doesn t have a chance. In fact, House GOPers are actively conspiring against Ryan to make sure that he doesn t succeed.Although these anti-Ryan conservatives don t have enough votes to oust their current Speaker of the House, they are plotting a coup movement to stop him from being elected again a move that could very well have an even bigger impact on his political career further down the line. As a conservative member explained to The Huffington Post: If he loses the speaker election, he s not going to be president. In a nutshell, Ryan s fellow conservatives are trying to kick him out of his position because he s not being the kind of conservative they want him to be. Republicans really know how to stick together in a time when they need unity to save them from Donald Trump s circus.Of course, this would be completely humiliating for Ryan and even if his conservative haters couldn t indefinitely prevent Ryan from getting on the ballot for re-election, they might use this leverage to get certain changes made for their own benefit. The Huffington Post explained that these GOPers are looking for increasing caucus representation on committees, bulking up subcommittee staff with hard-liners who could be groomed for election, allowing the GOP House campaign arm to collect contributions for the Freedom Caucus that could be directed to conservative candidates, and clarifying rules-suspension votes. And some of these House conservatives are just plain furious that the GOP has taken on more moderate candidates and they re taking their frustration out on Ryan. One member explained this by using an extremely inappropriate, strange analogy: How can you have a gang, and have one in your gang get stabbed, and do nothing? You got to stab somebody, or else what s the point of having a gang? Ryan has been House Speaker for less than a year, and his party is already going public with plans to oust him. This just shows what a mess the GOP is right now. Their Republican nominee is the worst thing to happen to the party, and this is further proof that the GOP as we know it is dividing and falling apart.Featured image via Win McNamee / Getty Images | 1real |
Factbox: Trump announces picks to fill two key healthcare posts | (Reuters) - Republican U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday named a vociferous Obamacare critic and a consultant to help him overhaul the nation’s healthcare system. Republican Representative Tom Price, an orthopedic surgeon from Georgia, will be Health and Human Services secretary, and consultant Seema Verma will lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, a powerful agency that oversees government health programs and insurance standards, Trump said in a statement. Below are details about his selections: SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES: U.S. REPRESENTATIVE TOM PRICE Price, 62, is an orthopedic surgeon who heads the House of Representatives’ Budget Committee. He has long criticized Obamacare, also known as the Affordable Care Act, and has championed a plan of tax credits, expanded health savings accounts and lawsuit reforms to replace it. Price, who is also opposed to abortion, has represented the 6th Congressional District in Atlanta’s northern suburbs since 2005. ADMINISTRATOR OF THE CENTERS FOR MEDICARE AND MEDICAID SERVICES: SEEMA VERMA Verma, 46, worked with Vice President-elect Mike Pence, the governor of Indiana, on a compromise to expand Medicaid coverage for the state’s poor with federal funding. The Indiana program requires beneficiaries to make monthly contributions to health savings accounts. She is the founder and chief executive officer of a national health policy consulting company and has provided advice on healthcare programs to Iowa, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee and Michigan. Sessions, 69, was the first U.S. senator to endorse Trump’s presidential bid and has been a close ally since. A conservative from Alabama, he is serving his fourth term in the chamber, where he is a member of the Judiciary Committee with oversight of federal courts, immigration, crime and terrorism. The son of a country-store owner, he is a former Army Reserve captain and was U.S. attorney for Alabama’s Southern District under former President Ronald Reagan and later Alabama’s attorney general. Although he was confirmed by the Senate for his U.S. attorney post in 1981, he was denied a federal judgeship in 1986 when a Senate panel failed to advance his nomination amid allegations that he had made racially charged remarks, which he denied. Sessions must secure Senate confirmation to lead the Justice Department as attorney general, but he would only need to win majority support in the Republican-controlled chamber. Sessions has long taken a tough stance on immigration, opposing any path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants. During the Republican George W. Bush administration, he blasted a bipartisan effort to create a guest-worker program, backed by the president, for illegal immigrants. NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: RETIRED LIEUTENANT GENERAL MICHAEL FLYNN Flynn, 57, was an early supporter of Trump and is vice chairman of his transition team. A former director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, he began his U.S. Army career in 1981 and served deployments in Afghanistan and Iraq. He later worked in the Office of the Director of Intelligence. Once a registered Democrat, Flynn became head of the DIA in 2012 under President Barack Obama. He retired a year earlier than expected, according to media reports, and became a fierce critic of Obama’s foreign policy. He went on to start his own consulting firm, which has come under scrutiny for its ties to a Turkish businessman. He told the Wall Street Journal on Thursday that he would sever connections with the businessman to take the post under Trump. Flynn has said the United States should work more with Russia on global security issues. In an August interview with the Washington Post, he defended a paid speech for state-run Russian Television. CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY DIRECTOR: U.S. REPRESENTATIVE MIKE POMPEO Pompeo, 52, is a third-term congressman from Kansas who is on the U.S House Select Intelligence Committee, which oversees the CIA, National Security Agency and cyber security. Pompeo also was a member of the House Select Committee on Benghazi investigating the 2012 attack on a U.S. compound in Libya. The California native graduated first in his class from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and served as a platoon leader in the U.S. Army before leaving the military as a captain to attend Harvard Law School. In 1996, he moved to Kansas to start an aircraft parts company. Its decision to open a factory in Mexico came under fire when Pompeo later ran for public office. He defended his work, saying the company had created jobs in the state. His ties to Koch Industries, owned by billionaire conservative donors Charles and David Koch, have also drawn scrutiny. He won re-election in the Nov. 8 election with 61 percent of the vote, according to Kansas’s unofficial election results online. Pompeo has criticized former U.S. intelligence contractor Edward Snowden, who leaked National Security Agency information, saying in a 2014 letter that his telecast appearance at an event undermined the ideals of “fairness and freedom.” | 0fake |
Israeli jets break sound barrier in south Lebanon causing damage | BEIRUT (Reuters) - Israeli jets flew low over the city of Saida in southern Lebanon on Sunday causing sonic booms that broke windows and shook buildings for the first time in years, security sources and residents said. Israeli warplanes regularly enter Lebanese airspace, the Lebanese military says, but rarely fly so low. The Israeli military gave no immediate comment. The sonic booms also caused panic in Saida, residents said. Tension has risen between Lebanon s Shi ite group Hezbollah and Israel, which last fought a war in 2006. Hezbollah has played down the prospects of another imminent conflict but warned it could take place on Israeli territory, and said its rockets could hit targets anywhere in Israel. Israel s air force chief has said it would use all its strength in a future war with Hezbollah. The 2006 war killed 1,200 Lebanese, mostly civilians, and 160 Israelis, mostly soldiers. | 0fake |
Zimbabwe cabinet pick to show if Mnangagwa is breaking with the past | HARARE (Reuters) - New Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa is expected to form a new cabinet this week, with all eyes on whether he breaks with the past and names a broad-based government or selects old guard figures from Robert Mugabe s era. Of particular interest is his choice of finance minister to replace Ignatius Chombo, who was among members of a group allied to Mugabe and his wife, Grace, who were detained and expelled from the ruling party. Chombo is facing corruption charges and is due to appear in court for a bail hearing on Monday. In a tentative sign that he might do things differently, ZANU-PF cut the budget for a special congress to be held next month and also slashed the duration by half from six days, the state-owned Herald newspaper reported on Monday. Mnangagwa was sworn in as president last Friday after 93-year-old Mugabe quit under pressure from the military. He vowed to rebuild Zimbabwe s ravaged economy and serve all citizens. But behind the rhetoric, some Zimbabweans wonder whether a man who loyally served Mugabe for decades can bring change to a ruling establishment accused of systematic human rights abuses and disastrous economic policies. The composition of the new government will show a clear path whether we continue with the status quo or the clear break with the past that we need to build a sustainable state. It s a simple choice, said former finance minister and opposition leader Tendai Biti. The opposition Movement for Democratic Change has called for an inclusive transitional authority to mark a break with Mugabe s 37-year rule and enact reforms to allow for credible and free elections due next year. Zimbabwe needs all hands on deck...We cannot continue reproducing these cycles of instability, Biti, who earned international respect as finance minister in a 2009-2013 unity government, told Reuters. Some economic and political analysts say Mnangagwa s choices may be limited after Cyber Security Minister and close ally Patrick Chinamasa said last week he saw no need for a coalition, as ZANU-PF had a parliamentary majority. And with Mnangagwa saying on Friday elections would go ahead next year as scheduled, the opposition would have little to gain from participating in a coalition just eight months before the vote, Professor Anthony Hawkins, a business studies professor, said. If I were an opposition politician I would say: what s in it for me? Unless I m convinced I m going to lose the election, I won t participate, Hawkins told Reuters. He (Mnangagwa) might introduce technocrats from commerce and that will send out a signal of sorts... As far as the international community is concerned legitimacy is important. It s a very delicate situation and he has very little room for maneuver. The Standard newspaper, which has been critical of Mugabe and his government over the years, said Mnangagwa would be judged on how he delivers on the bold commitments he made at his inauguration. It said he must walk the talk on graft that has exacerbated the country s economic decline. Mugabe s fall after 37 years in power was spurred by a battle to succeed him that pitted Mnangagwa, his former deputy who had stood by him for 52 years, and Mugabe s wife, Grace, 52, who has been at the couple s Blue House mansion in Harare and hasn t been seen in public since. | 0fake |
Venezuela opposition says ballot sheet unfair for Oct. 15 vote | CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela s opposition said on Friday the pro-government election board was seeking to skew regional elections in favor of President Nicolas Maduro s ruling socialists by including the names of candidates defeated in primaries on the ballot. After street protests that led to at least 125 deaths and failed to dislodge Maduro earlier in the year, the opposition has shifted its focus to Oct. 15 elections for the governors of Venezuela s 23 states. The socialists currently hold 20 states, but a crushing economic crisis has dented their popularity and the opposition now has majority support, polls show. The Democratic Unity coalition is targeting winning 18 governorships, but fears a confusing electronic ballot sheet could hurt its vote. Despite opposition primaries to choose a single candidate per state from the several dozen parties in the coalition, the election board is keeping all the original aspirants names on. So instead of seeing one opposition candidate versus one Socialist Party candidate, voters will see various faces of opposition candidates, potentially causing confusion and diluting the vote to the benefit of the government. That s the fraud the government wants to commit, coalition official Tomas Guanipa told a news conference of the election board s stance, which was ratified by the similarly pro-Maduro Supreme Court on Thursday. We invite all Venezuelans who can see how the government is trying to mock them and put up obstacles, to come out and vote massively for the unity candidate in the states. The government s tricks will become a boomerang. Election board officials did not respond to accusations of bias, but said the ballot was now set and would not be changed. Government officials have said the rules are fair, and the opposition is simply seeking to justify possible violent actions after the vote. While the opposition wants the Oct. 15 vote to demonstrate Maduro s unpopularity and undermine his power at regional level, the government is trumpeting the election as proof against growing criticism Venezuela has become a dictatorship. | 0fake |
Mitt Romney Fans Speculation Over Another White House Run | There were several reports this month, based on former and current aides, that Mitt Romney is actively weighing another presidential run. The biggest sign yet comes from a recent interview with The New York Times, where the former 2012 Republican nominee offered a less than Shermanesque response to the million-dollar question.
This was the obvious opening for me to ask if there was a chance. Romney's response was decidedly meta — "I have nothing to add to the story" -- but he then fell into the practiced political parlance of nondenial. "We've got a lot of people looking at the race," he said. "We'll see what happens."
Buoyed by good poll numbers and a wide-open prospective Republican field, Romney went farther than his "circumstances can change" reply in August, and certainly miles forward from the, "Oh, no, no, no. No, no, no, no, no. No, no, no," answer in January.
If he does throw his hat into the ring for a third time, the former governor of Massachusetts told the Times that he would employ a cameraman -- essentially his own tracker -- to follow him around in order to guard against statements that derailed his 2012 campaign. "I want to be reminded that this is not off the cuff," Romney said.
Romney said the tactic could potentially prevent another "47 percent" incident, which by his telling, was nothing more than a problem of setting.
"My mistake was that I was speaking in a way that reflected back to the man," Romney said. "If I had been able to see the camera, I would have remembered that I was talking to the whole world, not just the man." | 0fake |
An Admittedly Ingenious Low | Becky Akers https://www.lewrockwell.com/lrc-blog/admittedly-ingenious-low/
“ Before Comey’s letter to Congress, Clinton’s campaign had watched with mixed feelings as her standing in poll after poll improved and Trump faltered amid a string of sexual assault accusations. ‘In the last week, I think the Clinton campaign was worried it was going to become too easy and that people would feel that,’ said Mo Elleithee, who worked on Clinton’s failed 2008 presidential campaign. ‘Now there’s a reason for all of our supporters to believe it’s going to be hard.'”
And so Hitlary’s “campaign now has a way to convince Democrats who might have considered skipping voting that their nominee needs their support.”
Are there no depths to which the media’s blatantly biased, utterly craven curs won’t sink? 4:26 pm on October 31, 2016 | 1real |
POLITICAL SHOCKER: Barney Frank Is In Trump’s Camp On The Solution To Radical Islam | We can all agree on solutions to end terrorism but it takes something like a horrific terror attack to ditch the pc and work together to enforce common sense solutions that REALLY work. One of the best but more controversial methods of weeding out terror is surveillance. The political shocker of the week is that Barney Frank and Donald Trump are coming together in agreement on surveillance!Barney Frank, a long serving member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts, voiced concerns regarding the safety of gay Americans, an Islamic element in terrorism and an increased need for surveillance.Frank spoke of the attack at a gay nightclub in Orlando this weekend in an interview with the New York Times Monday. It s an attack against gay people but it does not reflect a general deterioration of our standing in America, he said. It reflects the virulence of the hatred in this sector of Islam. Frank represented Massachusetts in the House for 32 years, completing his final term in office in 2013. He came out publicly as gay in 1987, the first member of Congress to voluntarily do so, and has been a vocal gay rights advocate.The former Massachusetts representative said he d like to see more monitoring of people with extreme Islamic beliefs by both the Muslim community and government agencies. There is an Islamic element here, he told the Times. Yes, the overwhelming majority of Muslims don t do this, but there is clearly, sadly, an element in the interpretation of Islam that has some currency, some interpretation in the Middle East that encourages killing people - and L.G.B.T. people are on that list. And I think it is fair to ask leaders of the Islamic community, religious and otherwise, to spend some time combatting this. Frank said the mass shooting reinforces his belief that there should be significant surveillance of people identified by the FBI to have radical beliefs.The lone shooter, Omar Mateen, was interviewed by the FBI twice in recent years, but as a connection could not be drawn between him and terrorist organizations, both investigations were closed.Law enforcement officials say the gunman pledged his allegiance to ISIS during a 911 call just before the shooting.The day after 50 people including Mateen were fatally wounded, the Islamic State issued a statement claiming responsibility for the attack.President Barack Obama said Monday that there is no clear evidence the shooting was apart of a larger plot or directed by a terrorist organization. Read more: masslive | 1real |
VACATIONING LAME-DUCK OBAMA Ready To Announce Sanctions Against Russia | The Obama administration plans to announce on Thursday a series of retaliatory measures against Russia for hacking into U.S. political institutions and individuals and leaking information in an effort to help President-elect Donald Trump and other Republican candidates, two U.S. officials said on Wednesday.Both officials declined to specify what actions President Barack Obama has approved, but said targeted economic sanctions, indictments, leaking information to embarrass Russian officials or oligarchs, and restrictions on Russian diplomats in the United States are among steps that have been discussed.One decision that has been made, they said, speaking on the condition of anonymity, is to avoid any moves that exceed the Russian election hacking and risk an escalating cyber conflict that could spiral out of control. One example of an excessive step might be interfering with Russian internet messaging.Russia has repeatedly denied hacking accusations. Trump has dismissed the assessments of the U.S. intelligence community.Obama, in an interview earlier this month with NPR, said, We need to take action and we will against Russia for interfering in the U.S. election.Trump seemed to suggest the United States should not impose sanctions on Russia. I think we ought to get on with our lives, Trump told reporters in Florida on Wednesday when asked about remarks by Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, who said Russia and President Vladimir Putin should expect tough sanctions for the cyber attacks.Russia s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, promised retaliation on Wednesday against Washington in the event of new economic sanctions.Jim Lewis, a cyber security expert with the Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank, said further sanctions may be an effective U.S. tool in part because they would be difficult for Trump to roll back and because Russia hates dealing with them. For the rest of the world, it s like having scumball stamped on your forehead, Lewis said.How to respond to the growing problem of cyber attacks carried out or sponsored by foreign powers has bedeviled Obama, whose eight years in office witnessed a torrent of major hacks against the U.S. government and private organizations that were attributed to China, North Korea, Iran and Russia.In past cases, administration officials have decided to publicly blame North Korea and indict members of China s military for hacking because they decided the net benefit of public shaming and increased awareness brought to cyber security outweighed potential risks.But determining an appropriate response to Russia s actions has proven more complicated in part because Russia s cyber capabilities are more advanced and due to fears about disrupting other geopolitical issues, such as the civil war in Syria.Obama may choose to invoke an April 2015 executive order that empowered him to levy sanctions in response to cyber attacks perpetrated by foreign groups targeting infrastructure, such as transportation, or done for economic purposes.Another option would be further economic sanctions against Russia. Washington has already sanctioned Russia over the past two years to punish Moscow for its role in annexing Crimea. But former U.S. officials say the existing measures leave Washington plenty of room to slap new, tougher sanction on Russia in response to cyber intrusions. ReutersIn recent months, WikiLeaks and I personally have come under enormous pressure to stop publishing what the Clinton campaign says about itself to itself. That pressure has come from the campaign s allies, including the Obama administration, and from liberals who are anxious about who will be elected US President.On the eve of the election, it is important to restate why we have published what we have.The right to receive and impart true information is the guiding principle of WikiLeaks an organization that has a staff and organizational mission far beyond myself. Our organization defends the public s right to be informed.This is why, irrespective of the outcome of the 2016 US Presidential election, the real victor is the US public which is better informed as a result of our work.The US public has thoroughly engaged with WikiLeaks election related publications which number more than one hundred thousand documents. Millions of Americans have pored over the leaks and passed on their citations to each other and to us. It is an open model of journalism that gatekeepers are uncomfortable with, but which is perfectly harmonious with the First Amendment.We publish material given to us if it is of political, diplomatic, historical or ethical importance and which has not been published elsewhere. When we have material that fulfills this criteria, we publish. We had information that fit our editorial criteria which related to the Sanders and Clinton campaign (DNC Leaks) and the Clinton political campaign and Foundation (Podesta Emails). No-one disputes the public importance of these publications. It would be unconscionable for WikiLeaks to withhold such an archive from the public during an election.At the same time, we cannot publish what we do not have. To date, we have not received information on Donald Trump s campaign, or Jill Stein s campaign, or Gary Johnson s campaign or any of the other candidates that fufills our stated editorial criteria. As a result of publishing Clinton s cables and indexing her emails we are seen as domain experts on Clinton archives. So it is natural that Clinton sources come to us.We publish as fast as our resources will allow and as fast as the public can absorb it.That is our commitment to ourselves, to our sources, and to the public.This is not due to a personal desire to influence the outcome of the election. The Democratic and Republican candidates have both expressed hostility towards whistleblowers. I spoke at the launch of the campaign for Jill Stein, the Green Party candidate, because her platform addresses the need to protect them. This is an issue that is close to my heart because of the Obama administration s inhuman and degrading treatment of one of our alleged sources, Chelsea Manning. But WikiLeaks publications are not an attempt to get Jill Stein elected or to take revenge over Ms Manning s treatment either.Publishing is what we do. To withhold the publication of such information until after the election would have been to favour one of the candidates above the public s right to know.This is after all what happened when the New York Times withheld evidence of illegal mass surveillance of the US population for a year until after the 2004 election, denying the public a critical understanding of the incumbent president George W Bush, which probably secured his reelection. The current editor of the New York Times has distanced himself from that decision and rightly so.The US public defends free speech more passionately, but the First Amendment only truly lives through its repeated exercise. The First Amendment explicitly prevents the executive from attempting to restrict anyone s ability to speak and publish freely. The First Amendment does not privilege old media, with its corporate advertisers and dependencies on incumbent power factions, over WikiLeaks model of scientific journalism or an individual s decision to inform their friends on social media. The First Amendment unapologetically nurtures the democratization of knowledge. With the Internet, it has reached its full potential.Yet, some weeks ago, in a tactic reminiscent of Senator McCarthy and the red scare, Wikileaks, Green Party candidate Stein, Glenn Greenwald and Clinton s main opponent were painted with a broad, red brush. The Clinton campaign, when they were not spreading obvious untruths, pointed to unnamed sources or to speculative and vague statements from the intelligence community to suggest a nefarious allegiance with Russia. The campaign was unable to invoke evidence about our publications because none exists.In the end, those who have attempted to malign our groundbreaking work over the past four months seek to inhibit public understanding perhaps because it is embarrassing to them a reason for censorship the First Amendment cannot tolerate. Only unsuccessfully do they try to claim that our publications are inaccurate.WikiLeaks decade-long pristine record for authentication remains. Our key publications this round have even been proven through the cryptographic signatures of the companies they passed through, such as Google. It is not every day you can mathematically prove that your publications are perfect but this day is one of them.We have endured intense criticism, primarily from Clinton supporters, for our publications. Many long-term supporters have been frustrated because we have not addressed this criticism in a systematic way or responded to a number of false narratives about Wikileaks motivation or sources. Ultimately, however, if WL reacted to every false claim, we would have to divert resources from our primary work.WikiLeaks, like all publishers, is ultimately accountable to its funders. Those funders are you. Our resources are entirely made up of contributions from the public and our book sales. This allows us to be principled, independent and free in a way no other influential media organization is. But it also means that we do not have the resources of CNN, MSNBC or the Clinton campaign to constantly rebuff criticism.Yet if the press obeys considerations above informing the public, we are no longer talking about a free press, and we are no longer talking about an informed public.Wikileaks remains committed to publishing information that informs the public, even if many, especially those in power, would prefer not to see it. WikiLeaks must publish. It must publish and be damned. | 1real |
What Donald Trump Might Do for Working-Class Families - The New York Times | Among the rare areas of agreement in the aftermath of a contentious presidential election: Families with working parents, especially those with lower incomes, are having too hard a time. Many can no longer count on lives that look like the ones their parents led. manufacturing jobs have been disappearing, especially for men. Fewer people are marrying, and more children are growing up in unstable families. Parents are struggling to work while raising children. Donald J. Trump vowed to help the working class, and whites in particular helped propel him to victory. Although quite a few economists disagree with him on the merits of his prescriptions, he has said cutting taxes, restricting immigration and renegotiating trade deals will ultimately raise incomes of struggling families. Mr. Trump has said he understands the needs of working parents. “These solutions must update laws passed more than half a century ago when most women were still not in the labor force,” he said in September in a speech unveiling his child care proposals. His daughter Ivanka has pushed ideas like paid leave and seems to be taking a role in devising new policies. In a statement last week, she said she was distancing herself from certain aspects of her company in order to “broaden her efforts to take a stance on issues of critical importance to American women and families. ” Which policies will Mr. Trump pursue to directly address the needs of working and families? A look at what he has said — along with the wish lists of Republicans in Congress, scholars and advisers — provides some clues. A striking thing happened during the campaign: For the first time, both Republican and Democratic candidates made paid family leave a part of their policy agenda. As recently as 2014, Hillary Clinton said of paid leave, “I don’t think, politically, we could get it now. ” Now it could find bipartisan support. Mr. Trump has proposed six weeks of paid maternity leave, which he said would offer “a crucial safety net for working mothers. ” Currently, 87 percent of workers get no paid family leave, and 95 percent of those in the lowest quarter of earners get none, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Most Americans support a paid leave policy. It can ease the burdens on families with two working parents and increase the likelihood that parents stay in the labor force. Still, the details could prove contentious. Should fathers also get leave, or just mothers? What about gay or adoptive parents, and people who need to care for sick children or aging relatives? And how should it be paid for? Mr. Trump’s proposal would apply only to new mothers, and he said he would pay for it with savings from reducing unemployment insurance fraud, though it’s unclear how that would work. The Family Act, a bill stalled in Congress, proposes paying for it with a small increase in payroll taxes. Republicans have previously proposed giving businesses a tax credit for providing paid leave, but making it voluntary. “If he structures it in a way that it’s not a burden on businesses and does not work against women’s work force participation, I think more Republicans will get behind it,” said Aparna Mathur, a resident scholar in economic policy at the American Enterprise Institute. Democrats have argued that by limiting parental leave to new mothers, Mr. Trump ignores the role fathers play in raising children, exposes women to discrimination in hiring and neglects the needs of people with ailing or elderly family members. “It was fantastic to see the Republicans stepping up and having this debate,” said Heather Boushey, the executive director of the Washington Center for Equitable Growth, who was the chief economist for Hillary Clinton’s transition team. “It really spoke to how important these issues are in terms of economic policy. But I hope that the actual policies are really grounded more in the evidence of what works than what he’s put out so far. ” Another policy that analysts say is important to families is paid sick leave, so that workers can care for themselves or for ill family members. It’s unclear whether Mr. Trump will push for it. percent of workers over all and 66 percent of those in the bottom quartile of income get no paid sick leave. Some Republicans have instead proposed letting certain workers — those in the private sector who are not exempt from overtime laws — substitute time off for overtime pay. Another Democratic dream that Mr. Trump raised on the campaign trail was financial help for child care. “For many families in our country, child care is now the single largest expense, even more than housing, yet very little meaningful policy work has been done in this area,” he said in September. His proposal would allow parents earning less than $250, 000 individually or $500, 000 jointly to deduct the average cost of child and elder care from their income taxes. In a nod to social conservatives, he said parents who stayed home with children would also get the child care tax deduction. “The idea here is letting the family choose how the money is spent,” said Bradford Wilcox, director of the national marriage project at the University of Virginia. For families, Mr. Trump proposed child care spending rebates as part of the tax credit. He also said he would make pretax dependent care savings accounts available to everyone, not just people whose employers offer them, and give tax deductions to employers that offer child care. Democrats have favored refundable tax credits over deductions because they say they are more helpful to families, who might not make enough to pay income taxes. Also, credits directly reduce someone’s tax bill, while deductions reduce taxable income but not necessarily the final bill. Democrats see the ultimate goal as universal care for young children. There seems to be bipartisan support for a small step in that direction. “What we’ve got there is a tremendous amount of support from women — Democrats, Republicans, independents — to move forward,” said Representative Marsha Blackburn, a Republican from Tennessee. Mr. Trump has pledged to create 25 million jobs over the next decade. Analysts and policy makers on both sides of the aisle say one route toward that goal is apprenticeships. They are viewed as a way for people to acquire vocational skills while earning money, as opposed to attending college and building up debt. Not only would they address unemployment among people without college degrees, advocates say, but they could also lead to more stable families. The unemployment of men has been a prime reason for the decline in marriage and rise in single motherhood, researchers have found. When job opportunities are plentiful, people are more likely to marry before having their first child, Andrew Cherlin, a professor of public policy at Johns Hopkins, found in a study published in August in the American Sociological Review. “It’s likely if we can improve the job picture for young adults, they’d have family lives that are more stable,” he said. The construction industry already uses apprentices, so perhaps Mr. Trump is familiar with their benefits, said Robert I. Lerman, a fellow at the Urban Institute. They would be possible in a range of industries, like health care and information technology, he said, and in jobs like hotel management. They could also be useful in putting people to work building the new infrastructure that Mr. Trump has promised. “People want to have earnings, they want to have dignity, they want to show that they’ve been able to master a certain profession, and that gives them a kind of identity,” Mr. Lerman said. “It has both a social as well as an economic dimension. ” Though the idea has received bipartisan support, some Republicans have resisted registered apprenticeships, which are overseen by the Labor Department, because of their association with unions. Some Democrats have questioned whether apprenticeships lead to a wage system, and have focused instead on making college accessible to more people. Policy makers and researchers have a long list of other policy ideas for Mr. Trump that they believe could help families. Some have historically appealed to Republicans, like those that encourage marriage. Others, like mandating predictable work schedules for hourly workers, have been promoted by Democrats. With both parties fighting even more for the allegiance of the working class, there actually might be some movement on some or all of these issues. | 0fake |
PATRIOT CALL TO ACTION: A Major Storm Is Brewing In Oregon Over Fed Gov Charging Rancher With Terrorism For Insane Reason | This is a call to action You guys always talk about getting off the couch and doing something. How come things in our country doesn t change? Well now s the time to stand up and make that stand and make your voices heard. The strangers carrying the whisper of danger arrived in the vast territory of the Harney Basin just before the holidays.Ammon Bundy once helped his father repulse the government in an armed showdown on a Nevada desert. He was Tasered for his effort.Ryan Payne checks guns at his Montana home in 2014. The Army veteran created a national network of militia and recently moved to Burns to protest prosecution of a prominent ranching family. (Cathrine L. Waters, Special to The Oregonian/OregonLive)And not long ago, Jon Ritzheimer worried the FBI with his threatening rants against Muslims in Arizona and elsewhere.Now, the men say, they are in Burns to help Dwight and Steven Hammond.The Hammonds are father and son ranchers, due to report to federal prison on Monday. They were convicted in 2012 of arson for lighting public land on fire adjacent to their ranch land south of Burns. They have been imprisoned once and must return for an additional term after federal appellate judges said they had been illegally sentenced the first time.https://youtu.be/9m2UpdOxmp0Self-styled patriots and militiamen gathering in Burns don t want that to happen, declaring the Hammonds imprisonment illegal under the U.S. Constitution.They have latched on to the Hammonds as their latest cause to stand against the federal government. I am here now trying to empower and motivate the people of this community to take a stand against tyranny and show them that I will gladly stand with them, Ritzheimer said.The Hammonds don t want to be part of the outsiders cause, and neither do many in Harney County.But that hasn t stopped the strangers from summoning help from militia groups across the country. They are vague about their intention and their plans, unsettling the community and putting law enforcement on edge. The militia plan a rally and a parade on Saturday, circling the county courthouse that houses the sheriff s office.The militia members have been insisting that Harney County Sheriff Dave Ward create a sanctuary so the Hammonds will be immune from surrendering. Ward met with the militiamen and rejected that demand. The militia has since labeled him an enemy of the people. Ward said he has received emailed death threats among thousands of messages from across the country regarding the Hammonds.Two weeks ago, Bundy and Payne roused 60 or so local citizens to their cause at a community meeting. They rented the Memorial Building at the fairgrounds for the night. They taped themselves lecturing the locals on their rights, on the Constitution, and on their duty to protect themselves.The Harney County situation is the second time this year Oregon has been the national rallying point for militias. Last spring, miners fighting with the Bureau of Land Management over paperwork outside Medford found themselves enveloped with militia defenders. The miners finally issued a plea for militia members to go home. The militiamen did but only after claiming they beat back the government. An administrative law judge temporarily stopped BLM action against the miners.But the activists carrying pocket editions of the Constitution with them to Harney County are better known for the spectacle in Nevada in spring 2014.Militiamen by the hundreds flowed to Nevada that year to help rancher Cliven Bundy. The BLM was corralling his cattle that it said were trespassing on public land. The agency said Bundy hadn t paid grazing fees for 20 years, amassing more than $1 million in bills.Payne, an Army veteran, came to the rancher s defense. In later interviews, Payne said he was the militia adviser to Bundy. Payne helped array armed civilians against the federal agents. We had counter-sniper positions on their sniper positions. We had at least one guy sometimes two guys per BLM agent in there, Payne told a Montana weekly, the Independent. If they made one wrong move, every single BLM agent in that camp would ve died. Ammon Bundy, Cliven Bundy s third son, was there too.As the nation watched, the BLM called off the cattle collection and withdrew in the face of the armed militia. The Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate groups across the country, said in a 2014 report on the Bundy standoff that the government s retreat empowered the militiamen.Ryan Lenz with the law center was on the ground in Nevada and later interviewed Payne for the report. Lenz said the Harney County development isn t surprising. What s happening is very much what everyone feared would happen in the aftermath of the Bundy standoff, Lenz said. The rule of law was suspended with the barrel of a gun. Bundy and Payne say they met with both Dwight and Susan Hammond at their home in November. Bundy said he helped the ranchers move cows one day.The Hammonds initially accepted the militia s offer of help to avoid prison, Bundy said. But the Hammonds changed their minds after being warned by federal prosecutors to stop communicating with the militia, Bundy wrote in a blog post.The Hammonds declined interview requests and didn t respond to written questions about their dealings with the militiamen. A Boise lawyer representing the Hammonds said in a letter to the sheriff that Bundy didn t speak for the ranchers and that they intended to surrender as required.Bundy and Payne and their associates are persisting, though. They explain in deliberate, calm tones their reasoning.The federal government claims title to most of the land in Harney County, the ninth largest county in the United States. Bundy and Payne maintain that Article 1, Section 8, Clause 17 of the U.S. Constitution limits what the federal government can own, and that the government s claim to much of Harney County violates that limit. The federal government consequently has no authority to prosecute the Hammonds.Bundy and Payne, who said he has moved to Harney County, have pressed the matter on several fronts. They have insisted that Ward, the sheriff, protect the Hammonds. They have written other elected officials in the county and in Oregon asserting the same demand.Some residents have shown interest in the group s cause.Locals voted seven of their own onto a new Harney County Committee of Safety, including ranchers, a retired fire chief, and a tax preparer.Payne and Bundy said the committee would decide how to address the Hammond conflict. But Bundy quickly created a website for the group and drafted a sharply-worded letter to the sheriff for the committee to issue.Citizens on the committee said they authorized none of it.Chris Briels, Burns fire chief for 24 years, said he was intrigued by the constitutional arguments raised by Payne and Bundy. But he said he also felt pushed too hard by Bundy to act. Briels said he is no anarchist.The militia, Briels said, seems like a bunch of people ready to shoot. I don t want that in my county. Melodi Molt, a rancher and former president of Oregon CattleWomen, joined Briels on the new committee. She s troubled by what s happened to the Hammonds but also worried about what her community faces with the outsiders. We re not from the militia, said Molt. We re not going to come in with guns and overthrow the government. The state s largest agriculture associations have vigorously defended the Hammonds since they were charged but want no part of the brewing militia action. I don t think people lining up in front of them with weapons or any kind of threats are going to help the Hammonds at all, said Barry Bushue, Oregon Farm Bureau president.Billy Williams, Oregon s U.S. attorney, has also weighed in. In a lengthy statement to the Burns Times-Herald, Williams explained why the Hammonds were prosecuted. He then warned: Any criminal behavior contemplated by those who may object to the court s mandate that harms someone will not be tolerated and will result in serious consequences. Payne and Bundy say it s up to local residents what happens next. If the locals decide to declare the county a sanctuary for the Hammonds, the militia is ready. We re sending the message: We will protect you, Payne said.Via: Oregon Live | 1real |
CNN REPORTER EMBARRASSES Himself With Idiotic Response After Former “Face The Nation” Host Praises Trump’s Saudi Arabia Speech [VIDEO] | Bob Schieffer is an old-school newsman. There s no doubt that the former Face the Nationhost leans left, but he is still capable of reporting, you know, the news. That is too much for denizens of the modern MSM to tolerate.On today s Reliable Sources on CNN, Schieffer reported the glaringly obvious truth: that President Trump gave a good speech in Saudi Arabia today. Guest host John Berman had to push back: you know, Bob, though, that there will be people who look at that last comment you made and say you re normalizing the president. Schieffer gave the perfect response: he wasn t trying to normalize Trump, he was trying to do what reporters [are supposed to] do: report.Watch: | 1real |
REPORT: Trump Votes Tossed… Going Online to Confirm Vote Counted Is VITAL | ALERT: Texas Voter Finds Ballot Switched Inside Voting Machine
“I am a single, Republican mother of two younger kids in small town Illinois,” the email, written Thursday, read. “Within my friends, I keep seeing and hearing of all these examples of voter fraud going on right now with Trump supporters.”
“Three well-respected people within the same household in my town who mailed in their ballots in favor of Trump went online to make sure their votes were counted — only to find they were not going to be counted because the signatures on the ballot didn’t match those on their letter ,” she wrote.
“They would have never seen this if they hadn’t gone online to verify!” she added. Advertisement - story continues below
Here’s the screenshot submitted with the email as evidence:
This is yet another friendly reminder: If you want to make sure that your vote counts, go into the polling place and ask for a paper ballot.
We’ve heard enough about electronic voting and other machines keeping suspicious records, and it’s time to put an end to that. If you think there’s a possibility of crooked officials erasing your vote, the clear way to go is the paper ballot. And if enough of us do so, perhaps officials will be moved to eliminate electronic machines altogether. Advertisement - story continues below | 1real |
Putin and Trump Talk on Phone and Agree to Improve Ties, Kremlin Says - The New York Times | MOSCOW — President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia and Donald J. Trump spoke by telephone for the first time on Monday, agreeing to review what both consider the poor state of relations between the two countries, according to a statement from the Kremlin. The two agreed “on the absolutely unsatisfactory state of bilateral relations,” said the statement, and they both endorsed the idea of undertaking joint efforts “to normalize relations and pursue constructive cooperation on the broadest possible range of issues. ” The issues discussed included trade and economic ties as well as combating terrorism. Mr. Putin was one of the first world leaders to congratulate Mr. Trump last Wednesday, sending him a telegram about an hour after he had emerged the victor, but the two men have not met nor had they spoken previously. Mr. Putin repeated the congratulations over the phone. The Russian president said he hoped that Moscow could build a “collaborative dialogue” with Washington on the bases of “equality, mutual respect and noninterference in the other’s internal affairs,” the release said. The two men also discussed Syria in the context of “the need to work together in the struggle against the No. 1 common enemy — international terrorism and extremism,” the statement said. Although Mr. Putin maintained studied neutrality during the presidential race, the news media, which answers to him, clearly pulled for Mr. Trump. Among other issues, Mr. Putin blames Hillary Clinton, then secretary of state, for the mass demonstrations that greeted his return to the presidency in 2012. After Mrs. Clinton lost, the flagship state television news broadcast took to referring to her as the “blonde woman. ” During the campaign, senior United States security officials accused Russia of hacking the computers at the Democratic National Committee headquarters and releasing emails that proved embarrassing to the Clinton campaign. Mr. Putin denied any state role in the hacking. The Russian government was one of the few around the world that was openly gleeful about the American election result, with members of the State Duma, the lower house of the Russian legislature, breaking into applause at the announcement. The United Russia party, loyal to Mr. Putin, dominates the Duma. Mr. Trump and Mr. Putin developed something of a mutual admiration society during the election, particularly after Mr. Trump suggested that Crimea, which Moscow annexed from Ukraine, should belong to Russia and that the United States should ally itself with Russia and the Syrian government of President Bashar to fight the Islamic State. Mr. Trump also suggested the United States might dilute its support for NATO, which Russia considers a main threat. Much of the brief statement from the Kremlin about the telephone call echoed previous statements that Mr. Putin had made about his goals for relations with Washington, including “a return to pragmatic, mutually beneficial cooperation. ” Mr. Putin openly endorses the idea that the world should return to the era when two superpowers assumed a general responsibility for global stability and security. Some analysts, however, have suggested that Mr. Trump is unpredictable and the traditional Republican penchant for painting Russia as a dire threat could still emerge. The Putin administration is hoping that the West will lift sanctions imposed over the crisis in Ukraine. On the phone call, which the Kremlin said was arranged by mutual consent, the two men agreed to stay in contact and to meet at an unspecified date in the future. Earlier, Mr. Trump described the note on his victory that he received from Mr. Putin as “beautiful. ” For its part, Russia has continued its glowing tributes to Mr. Trump as a paragon who triumphed in what is repeatedly depicted in the Russian media as the swamp of American politics. The main weekly news program on state television every Sunday night tends to focus mainly on the United States, with Dmitry Kiselyov, the anchor, suggesting this week that Europe follow the American lead in replacing its leaders. Under President Trump, Mr. Kiselyov said, the American government would finally drop what the Russian anchor called its annoying slogans about human rights and democracy. “Russia has a lot of trust in Trump,” he said. | 0fake |
Oklahoma lawmakers approve bill to revoke licenses of abortion doctors | (Corrects first paragraph of April 22 item to show that bill has not been sent to the governor and adds third paragraph to explain status) By Heide Brandes OKLAHOMA CITY (Reuters) - An Oklahoma bill that could revoke the license of any doctor who performs an abortion may soon head to the governor, with opponents saying the measure in unconstitutional and promising a legal battle against the cash-strapped state if it is approved. In the Republican-dominated legislature, the state’s House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved a Senate bill late on Thursday. Governor Mary Fallin, a Republican, has not yet indicated whether she will sign it. The Senate needs to approve minor changes to the bill before it can go to the governor, lawmakers said. Under the bill, doctors who perform abortions would risk losing their medical licenses. Exemptions would be given for those who perform the procedure for reasons including protecting the mother or removing a miscarried fetus. “This is our proper function, to protect life,” said Senator Nathan Dahm, the Republican who authored the bill. A handful of representatives argued against the bill, saying it violated the Constitution by prohibiting a doctor from performing a medical procedure that was legal under law. “Oklahoma politicians have made it their mission year after year to restrict women’s access vital health care services, yet this total ban on abortion is a new low,” said Amanda Allen, senior state legislative counsel at the Center for Reproductive Rights. The lobbying group and several other abortion rights organizations have promised court challenges if the bill is enacted. Supporters of the bill said it will help protect the sanctity of life. “If we take care of morality,” bill supporter David Brumbaugh, a Republican, said during deliberations, “God will take care of the economy.” | 0fake |
In France, a Monument Honors the American Flyers of World War I - The New York Times | When one thinks of the First World War, which the United States entered 100 years ago this month, certain images are inevitably evoked: miles of muddy trenches, clouds of poison gas creeping over the battlefield, biplanes and triplanes jousting balletically above the clouds. If the first two sound like something you would have avoided at all costs, trust me, you wouldn’t have wanted any part of the last one, either. Aircraft back then were tiny and flimsy. Their engines stalled their guns jammed. If they had been flown even once, they were certainly grimy and probably covered with haphazardly applied patches. To merely go aloft in one was to risk your life, even if you didn’t encounter an enemy who might try to shoot you down. But you probably would, since there was no point in just flying safely behind your own lines. As for dogfights: chaos. There was no way to plan for one. Most pilots did whatever they could to get away from them as quickly as possible, which says nothing about their courage but a lot about their intelligence. Many, perhaps most, were not even issued parachutes. That we have largely forgotten all that today, and focus instead only on romantic images of fearless men in long scarves and sleek machines, redounds to a couple of culprits. There’s Snoopy, of course, but well before he ever climbed atop his doghouse and took on the Red Baron, there were the aviators themselves, tireless curators of their own legends. They were special, and they knew it they wanted you to know it, too. Almost all were highborn. Most had prepped together, gone to college together, joined up out of a sense of noblesse oblige but also a thirst for adventure. They chose to fly — went to great lengths just to get aloft — not despite the fact that it was exceedingly dangerous, but because of it. The romance of the venture was not lost on them. Nor was the fact that the eyes of the entire world were on them. It was, they firmly believed, their due. Proportionate to their small numbers, many more of them died, and much sooner, than those down below, who were subject to a daily barrage of explosive shells and mustard gas. And when they did die, their families spared little expense in commemorating them. They installed plaques in the French countryside where the airmen fell or, in at least one case, a cement bench that beckons you, explicitly, to pause, rest and consider the life that ended right there. One grieving father left a bequest to the town that buried his son that brought running water to the place for the first time. Theodore Roosevelt installed a handsome fountain in the village where his son Quentin crashed. But the grandest monument can be found deep in a verdant park called Domaine National de St. in the commune of just outside Paris. This is the one built by the fliers themselves — those who managed to survive — for their dead. I say “for,” rather than “to,” because they are actually in there. Well, most of them, anyway. A total of 68 Americans were killed flying for France in the war that’s 68 out of only 200 or so who were part of what is known as the Lafayette Flying Corps, an unofficial designation that encompassed all Americans who did so, even those who later transferred to squadrons in the American Expeditionary Forces. (The term Lafayette Escadrille applies to just one squadron under French command most in the “corps” flew as part of French squadrons.) While all 68 are commemorated on the Lafayette Escadrille Memorial — an open gallery with a central arch that is said to be a model of the Arc de Triomphe — the remains of 50 are entombed in a crypt directly beneath it. The whole thing is very French. The names of the dead — “mort pour la defense du droit et de la liberté” — are engraved on both the face of the arch and on its sides, where they are inscribed in order of enlistment. The plaza is filled with insignia, some carved into the arch, others depicted in mosaics underneath. People come to pay tribute the first time I visited there were wreaths left by, among others, French chapters of both the Sons and the Daughters of the American Revolution. The second time, the memorial had just completed a $1. 5 million restoration, the cost split by American and French benefactors. The memorial was rededicated last April 20. It fairly gleams now. The crypt, though, remains dark. If you know someone who has a key, you can stroll among its sarcophagi, which look like marble but are an impressive feat of trompe l’oeil. The 50 Americans are arrayed in chronological order, the first having fallen in June 1916, 10 months before the United States entered the war the last on Nov. 6, 1918, just five days before it ended. There are names that history and aviation buffs will recognize: Victor Chapman, the first to die, shot down, it is said, while flying oranges back to a friend wounded at Verdun Raoul Lufbery, America’s first great ace, with 17 confirmed kills and Norman Prince, a founder of the Lafayette Escadrille, whose father later had him interred in the National Cathedral in Washington. There is also a beautiful series of 13 small windows, made by the sadly defunct concern Mauméjean, depicting some of the greatest battles of the war, and featuring images of biplanes, barbed wire, howitzers, early tanks and burning cathedrals. It’s a reminder of why these sarcophagi are here, in this park outside Paris. So is the epigraph you pass on your way back up the stairs into daylight and life: And in their death they were not divided They were swifter than eagles They were stronger than lions II Samuel 1:23 Domaine National de St. is in the commune of outside Paris. For information on visiting the crypt, contact Suresnes American Cemetery: Suresnes@abmc. gov . | 0fake |
DELINGPOLE: BBC Throws Jenni Murray To The Transgender Wolves | The BBC has thrown its feminist High Priestess to the transgender wolves because she dared to suggest that a man born with a penis isn’t really a woman. [As blue on blue SJW infighting goes, you could scarcely ask for a more perfect popcorn movement. Up until now, Dame “Jenni” Murray has maintained a reputation for stern, disapproving, feminist political correctness (but is there any other kind … ?) of the most impeccably fingerwagging rectitude. Listening to her morning BBC radio show Woman’s Hour is like being subjected to a 60 minute lecture on the shortcomings of men, the superiority of women and the manifest injustice of the patriarchal hegemony, delivered by a school games mistress wearing iron underwear and a kaftan knitted by a Turkish oppressed women’s collective, while being forcefed organic breast milk laced with Hormone Replacement chemicals and the collected works of Germaine Greer, Erica Jong and Susie Orbach. So for Dame Jenni [she’s very proud of her title and uses it a lot] to find herself caught out on the wrong side by the PC Gestapo is about as deliciously unlikely as Meryl Streep raising her next Oscar statuette high and saying: “I’m dedicating this one to my hero The Donald!” But where, if anywhere, should our sympathies lie in this hilarious “Death of Little Nell on steroids” tragedy? On the one hand, it’s true, Murray has long deserved her comeuppance. She may not be quite as shrill or deranged as some of the younger generation of Third Wave feminazis, but she has definitely helped poison the wells for relationships by promulgating her grisly, joyless Marxist feminist view that any time a woman does the dishes, cooks a souffle or puts on a sexy maid’s outfit then basically she has failed as a meaningful human being. Earlier in her career, she was famed for saying that marriage humiliated women. When, in 2003 she finally married David, her partner and the father of her sons, she made it clear that she was only doing it for financial not for sentimental reasons — namely to avoid inheritance tax. The new Mrs (as she certainly did not want to be known) said she had no intention of introducing David as her husband and would not be pleased if he had the temerity to say: ‘Meet my wife.’ That put him in his place. Poor David. (Actually, bloody stupid David. What were you thinking?) On the other hand, Murray deserves credit for braving the wrath of her nauseatingly employer the BBC by stating clearly something that really ought to be said more often: that a man who has gender reassignment surgery — like the transexual she recently interviewed called India Willoughby — can never be a real woman. It’s a shame Murray had to phrase it in such a PC way, using it to have yet another dig at male privilege: “India held firmly to her belief that she was a ‘real woman’ ignoring the fact that she had spent all of her life before her transition enjoying the privileged position in our society generally accorded to a man. But at least she said it. And there’s no doubt that when an impeccably PC, uber feminist doyenne and BBC presenter says this kind of thing, it carries a lot more weight than it does when an irreverent, sexist, transphobic, polemicist like me says it. This really is a battle that needs fighting right now. Transgenderism is one of the very hottest of the many fronts of the wars which Cultural Marxism is waging on Western Civilisation. It matters so much because it goes to the heart of one of the most important and contested issues which divide right and left: is there such a thing as truth? If you believe — as the Social Justice Warriors, liberal “intellectuals” and other relativistic cretins do — that truth is just a matter of opinion then clearly, you are whatever you say you are, be it a man, a woman, polygender, intersex, trans and the rest of that nonsense list of LBGTetc terms. If, on the other hand, you subscribe to the more traditional, rational view that biological sex (not “gender” — a invention) is determined by chromosomes and organs like wombs and penises, then it’s pretty damned obvious that you’re born either one thing or the other, regardless of how much surgical mutilation you undergo or how many hormones you take. Crusading progressives want to portray this as a war between nice people who have feelings and horrid people who are stuck in the dark ages because of their vile prejudices. But it’s not that at all. Ultimately, it’s a battle over who gets to define what truth is: the rationalists or the idealistic fantasists. Murray is not, of course, the first Social Justice crusader to find herself undone by her own side’s increasingly deranged moral value system. Before her, there was fellow feminist icon Germaine Greer who in 2015 found herself berated online and for making similarly sceptical remarks about transgenderism, albeit a lot more amusingly than Murray: “Just because you lop off your penis and then wear a dress doesn’t make you a ******* woman,” Ms Greer said in a statement given to the Victoria Derbyshire show. “I’ve asked my doctor to give me long ears and liver spots and I’m going to wear a brown coat but that won’t turn me into a ******* cocker spaniel. And before that, in 2013, even the arch feminist and harridan Suzanne Moore found herself being berated by the prickly and trans activist movement for having failed to speak about trans people with sufficient reverence. One could take heart from the fact that like Murray, Greer, and Moore are finally beginning to recognise just how poisonous, and fascistic liberalism is becoming these days. But I suspect their moment of enlightenment will be shortlived. It’s not penetrating insight which has led these progressives to see the awful truth about the oppressive lunacy of their movement: it’s quite simply their age. Being all well over 50, they’ve just inherited the prejudices of their generation. Had they been born more recently with their politics, they would surely have been far less capable of resisting their contemporaries’ fashionable nonsense about “gender” being a “social construct. ” Meanwhile, if any transgender activists want to have a crack at me on Twitter for saying this stuff, I look forward to the attention. I do like a bit banter with the lads … . | 0fake |
Always under fire from designated terrorist group CAIR, former FBI agent and counter-terrorism expert, John Guandolo, is the go-to person for training law enforcement officers about the growing threat Islam poses to America | BNI Store Oct 26 2016 Always under fire from designated terrorist group CAIR, former FBI agent and counter-terrorism expert, John Guandolo, is the go-to person for training law enforcement officers about the growing threat Islam poses to America Every time Guandolo is scheduled to give a speech or a training session, CAIR thugs try to shut him down in advance. At the recent Breaking the Silence ” conference in Colorado Springs, Guandolo warned that Muslims in America are getting jobs at airports, hotels, convenience stores and cab companies as part of a growing “insurgency” and an “intentional plan” to “occupy the land.” “Why are they building huge, $100 million mosques in areas where there are like 100 or 90 Muslims?” he asked. “Because, when they build a mosque they’re claiming territory, now all they have to do is occupy it. So they’re calling Muslims to occupy the land. All of this, they have an intentional plan and it’s based in Islamic doctrine and they’re putting it to work through what they’re doing.” CAIR’s relentless harassment of John Guandolo: | 1real |
THIS COULD BE THE BEST TRUMP MOMENT TO DATE…Do You Agree? [Video] | Donald Trump called two men up on stage after the men helped toss a protester out during a rally in Sout Carolina. The two men came up and what follows is exactly why Americans have really fallen in love with Trump. No matter what candidate you support, this candidate is real and shows his flaws like no other. This is a touching moment: | 1real |
Disclose your donors, South African court tells political parties | JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South Africa s political parties should be required to disclose the source of their funding, a court ruled on Wednesday, potentially exposing the patronage networks that have influenced power in the two decades since apartheid. The ruling by the Western Cape High Court, which orders parliament to amend access-to-information laws, comes against opposition from some parties who fear disclosure could jeopardize funding. Judge Yasmin Meer said in court papers that disclosure of the private funding of political parties and independent candidates was required for the effective exercise of the right to vote in elections and to make political choices. She instructed parliament to amend the Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) accordingly. The application challenging the constitutionality of PAIA, which exempted party funding, was brought by non-profit organization My Vote Counts (MVC), which welcomed the judgment. This means that there must be a legislative mechanism that allows access to this information, MVC said in a statement. However there are concerns this could impact on funding and potentially expose parties to embarrassment, an analyst said. There s a potential of significant embarrassment. I think you going to find some people who appear to be strongly aligned to one party are actually giving money to another, said political analyst at NKC Research Gary van Staden. Main opposition party the Democratic Alliance, which was among the responding political parties, said some of its donors would not like to be made public for fear of discrimination. The ruling African National Congress party, which was also among the respondents, was not immediately available for comment. | 0fake |
Boy Scouts Forced To Apologize On Trump’s Behalf | After a fierce backlash following Donald Trump s appalling speech in front of the Boy Scouts in West Virginia, an official with the organization was forced to apologize for the former reality show star s wildly inappropriate political rhetoric. Initially, the BSA issued a statement but Trump s speech was not addressed.On Thursday, since Trump could not find it in himself to apologize for being highly inappropriate, an official with the Boy Scouts of America apologized in a message posted online to the scouting community for the political content of his speech at the National Scout Jamboree. I want to extend my sincere apologies to those in our Scouting family who were offended by the political rhetoric that was inserted into the jamboree. That was never our intent, Michael Surbaugh, Chief Scout Executive, wrote.Trump s speech was so awful that a former CIA chief said it was like watching a dictator and said it gave him the creeps. The amateur president even prompted the crowd of children to boo former president Barack Obama. The event was supposed to be about the Boy Scouts but as usual, Trump s intense jealousy of his predecessor was on full display.Surbaugh said we know the past few days have been overshadowed by the remarks offered by the President of the United States and that s putting it mildly.Trump took to the podium, not to congratulate the children, but to slam the fake news media. He promoted the repeal of the Affordable Care Act and boasted about his electoral night victory and called out the Washington cesspool. Who the Hell wants to speak about politics when I m in front of the Boy Scouts, he said, then kept talking about politics, among other inappropriate things like a New York cocktail party. The hottest people in New York were at this party, he told the children.The organization s Facebook page is inundated with comments from upset parents ready to yank their sons out of the organization. It s not a Democrat vs. Republican sort of thing. It s about decency.Image via screen capture. | 1real |
Senate leader McConnell sees a more collegial 2018 | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Friday said a shifting landscape will lead him to work with Democrats on immigration and financial regulation early in the new year, following a year of acrimony and partisan legislation. In an end-of-year news conference, McConnell touted a list of Republican accomplishments since President Donald Trump took office in January. It started with the confirmation of Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court and ended with an overhaul of the U.S. tax code. But in January, McConnell’s already razor-thin 52-48 Republican majority will shrink to 51-49 with the swearing in of Senator-elect Doug Jones, the Democrat who surprised the political world with a win in a special election in the deeply Republican state of Alabama. Adding to McConnell’s difficulties, special Senate procedures are fading that allowed him to pass a tax bill and try to repeal the Affordable Care Act this year without any Democratic support. That means that McConnell’s victories - if he has them - will require more collaboration and less confrontation. The pivot was the centerpiece of his news conference remarks. “There are areas where I think we can get bipartisan agreement,” McConnell said. First on his list was legislation to change Dodd-Frank banking regulations that he said would help smaller financial institutions. The Kentucky senator noted that Senate Banking Committee Chairman Mike Crapo has advanced legislation that is co-sponsored by several Democrats. McConnell also pointed to bipartisan efforts to help undocumented immigrants, known as “Dreamers,” who were brought into the United States when they were children. If negotiators from both parties can come to a deal for the Dreamers that Trump’s administration can support, “we’ll spend floor time on that in January,” McConnell said. On Thursday, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer complained that throughout 2017 Republicans “have been hell-bent on pursuing a partisan agenda.” When asked by a reporter of possible bipartisan successes in 2018, Schumer pointed to the need for infrastructure improvements but said that Trump has been “all over the lot” on how to accomplish road, airport and other construction projects. With the November 2018 congressional elections approaching, Democrats might have less incentive to cooperate with Republicans, especially after Schumer’s party won decisive victories in special elections this month and last in Alabama and Virginia. McConnell hinted it would be tougher to find agreement with Democrats on some other legislative issues, including welfare reform, which Trump says he wants to push ahead with in 2018. McConnell said he would consult with Trump and House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan in January over prospects for welfare reform. | 0fake |
EU's Juncker says ready to act over new U.S. sanctions on Russia | BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said on Wednesday the European Union was ready to act “within a matter of days” if proposed new U.S. sanctions on Russia undermined the bloc’s energy security. The U.S. House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly on Tuesday to slap new sanctions on Russia, which could affect European firms. “The U.S. bill could have unintended unilateral effects that impact the EU’s energy security interests,” Juncker said in a statement after a meeting of European Commissioners. “This is why the Commission concluded today that if our concerns are not taken into account sufficiently, we stand ready to act appropriately within a matter of days. America first cannot mean that Europe’s interests come last.” | 0fake |
Fight Between Saudis and 9/11 Families Escalates in Washington - The New York Times | WASHINGTON — On Monday, a constellation of lobbyists for Saudi Arabia, which has spent more than $5 million this past year to buy influence in Washington, called a crisis meeting to try to stop legislation allowing the families of victims of the Sept. 11 attacks to sue the Saudi government for any role in the plot. On Tuesday, the families, represented in their lawsuits by lawyers including Jack Quinn, a former White House counsel with deep relationships in Washington, demonstrated outside the White House to pressure President Obama not to veto the legislation, as he has vowed to do. On Wednesday, these two powerful forces, one operating in the shadows and the other more in the open, converged on Capitol Hill in the culmination of one of the biggest and most emotional lobbying fights of the year. The battle is a reflection of the enduring dominance in Washington of the families and the diminishing clout here of Saudi Arabia, which once advanced its agenda unencumbered in the West Wing and corridors of Congress. The bill, known as the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act, unanimously passed the House and Senate, and it has major national security and diplomatic consequences for the United States. It would alter a 1976 law giving other countries immunity from lawsuits in the United States and force them to face federal lawsuits if they are found to have played a role in a terrorist attack that kills Americans on United States soil. Proponents argue that the bill closes a narrow loophole in a legal doctrine that already has exceptions for business activities and tort claims, and has no bearing on acts of war. But White House lawyers counter that the bill blows a damaging hole in sovereign immunity — a principle sacrosanct in international law, which holds that a state actor is immune from legal liability — and could lead other nations to abandon it, opening up the United States to a raft of lawsuits around the world. Mr. Obama has promised to veto the bill for those reasons, not to appease the Saudis, with whom he has had a difficult relationship. That distinction is lost on the families, who are angry with Mr. Obama. “It is reprehensible that one man is standing between justice for the murder of 3, 000 people and this legislation becoming law,” said Kristen Breitweiser, whose husband was killed in the Sept. 11 attacks. “The president and the Congress should be listening to American citizens, not a bunch of lobbyists who represent a foreign nation. ” And in a démarche on Wednesday, the European Union called on Mr. Obama to stop the measure from becoming law, warning of harm to “the international order” if it were to take effect. Saudi officials have long denied that the kingdom had any role in the Sept. 11 plot, and the Commission investigating the attacks found “no evidence that the Saudi government as an institution or senior Saudi officials individually funded the organization. ” But the commission’s narrow wording left open the possibility that less senior officials or parts of the Saudi government had played a role. The Saudi government, which is now focused on lobbying Congress not to override Mr. Obama’s promised veto, expected on Friday, has called in reinforcements. Among them are former Senators John B. Breaux, a Democrat, and Norm Coleman, a Republican. The Saudis have also added Sphere Consulting, a top public relations firm, to their already mix of lobbyists and consultants, including the Podesta Group, DLA Piper, Hogan Lovells and the BGR Group. Adel the Saudi foreign minister, is making appeals of his own. He spoke by phone on Wednesday with Senator Dianne Feinstein of California, the top Democrat on the Senate intelligence committee, who also met with families and later said she was not ready to say anything about the bill. Tom Mentzer, a spokesman for Ms. Feinstein, said she was concerned about the measure’s “unintended consequences” and was “taking a close look” at it. “It’s an intense effort,” Mr. Breaux said in an interview on Wednesday, in between phone calls and meetings with senators to encourage them to drop their support for the bill. “This is a tough vote and a very emotional issue. I think we all have great sympathy for the victims and families, but members are saying, ‘Well, we really only had one side of the story, and now we’re looking at the other side. ’” In an open letter circulated to members of Congress and reporters on Tuesday by the Saudis’ public relations forces, a prominent list of former national security officials called the measure “troublesome” and offered grave warnings about its implications for the national security of the United States. “The safety and security of our diplomats, intelligence officers, military and other senior officials of the U. S. government, and their ability to perform their duties without foreign influence or intervention, would be seriously imperiled by a process intent on denying them the international immunities that have been accepted by all civilized nations since the 16th century and earlier,” the letter said. Its signatories included William S. Cohen, a former secretary of defense Michael B. Mukasey, a former attorney general and Steven J. Hadley, who served as a national security adviser to President George W. Bush Richard A. Clarke, a top counterterrorism official under President Bill Clinton and Mr. Bush and Rand Beers, who was a homeland security adviser to Mr. Obama. Mr. Quinn and Sean Carter, another lawyer for the families, hit back scarcely an hour later with their own letter to lawmakers and journalists. “It is increasingly apparent that these false ‘reciprocity’ arguments reflect nothing more than a desire to protect the Saudis from having to answer the legitimate claims of the families, whose loved ones were murdered on September 11, 2001,” they wrote. In an interview, Mr. Quinn argued that the White House was mainly motivated by a desire to preserve the diplomatic relationship between the United States and Saudi Arabia, not by a genuine concern for international legal precedents or unintended consequences. “They’re just throwing stuff against the wall that doesn’t stand up, and they’re doing it in hopes they can give people pause and cause them to reconsider,” Mr. Quinn said. On Wednesday, top officials at the White House were meeting to plan for the veto, even as they sought to come up with an alternative that might satisfy both sides. On Capitol Hill on Wednesday, the Senate overwhelmingly rejected a bid to disapprove of Mr. Obama’s planned sale of $1. 15 billion in arms to Saudi Arabia — a public show of support for the kingdom before an expected override of Mr. Obama’s veto. “Unless there’s tremendous energy and capital put forth by the White House, and the offering of an alternative, it’s going to be overwhelmingly overridden,” said Senator Bob Corker, Republican of Tennessee and the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee. It takes of the House and Senate to override a veto, meaning that opponents must find 34 senators willing to side with the president. The votes are expected to take place next week. “There’s a chance that the president can have his veto sustained, but he’s going to have to really work it,” Mr. Breaux said. “It’s a hard thing to explain the reasoning to begin with. Having to be able to go home weeks before an election and explain it is very, very difficult. ” Terry Strada, another widow, said she and other relatives of the victims were mounting a “ assault” of visits and phone calls on Capitol Hill to make such justifications impossible. “All we need to do is keep the momentum going so the Saudis can’t come in and twist arms,” she said this week, standing in front of the White House as protesters shouted: “President Obama, you can’t hide! We’ll get Congress to override!” | 0fake |
Monsanto Weed Killer Roundup Faces New Doubts on Safety in Unsealed Documents - The New York Times | The reputation of Roundup, whose active ingredient is the world’s most widely used weed killer, took a hit on Tuesday when a federal court unsealed documents raising questions about its safety and the research practices of its manufacturer, the chemical giant Monsanto. Roundup and similar products are used around the world on everything from row crops to home gardens. It is Monsanto’s flagship product, and research has long found it to be relatively safe. A case in federal court in San Francisco has challenged that conclusion, building on the findings of an international panel that claimed Roundup’s main ingredient might cause cancer. The court documents included Monsanto’s internal emails and email traffic between the company and federal regulators. The records suggested that Monsanto had ghostwritten research that was later attributed to academics and indicated that a senior official at the Environmental Protection Agency had worked to quash a review of Roundup’s main ingredient, glyphosate, that was to have been conducted by the United States Department of Health and Human Services. The documents also revealed that there was some disagreement within the E. P. A. over its own safety assessment. The files were unsealed by Judge Vince Chhabria, who is presiding over litigation brought by people who claim to have developed ’s lymphoma as a result of exposure to glyphosate. The litigation was touched off by a determination made nearly two years ago by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, a branch of the World Health Organization, that glyphosate was a probable carcinogen, citing research linking it to ’s lymphoma. Court records show that Monsanto was tipped off to the determination by a deputy division director at the E. P. A. Jess Rowland, months beforehand. That led the company to prepare a public relations assault on the finding well in advance of its publication. Monsanto executives, in their internal email traffic, also said Mr. Rowland had promised to beat back an effort by the Department of Health and Human Services to conduct its own review. Dan Jenkins, a Monsanto executive, said in an email in 2015 that Mr. Rowland, referring to the other agency’s potential review, had told him, “If I can kill this, I should get a medal. ” The review never took place. In another email, Mr. Jenkins noted to a colleague that Mr. Rowland was planning to retire and said he “could be useful as we move forward with ongoing glyphosate defense. ” The safety of glyphosate is not settled science. A number of agencies, including the European Food Safety Agency and the E. P. A. have disagreed with the international cancer agency, playing down concerns of a cancer risk, and Monsanto has vigorously defended glyphosate. But the court records also reveal a level of debate within the E. P. A. The agency’s Office of Research and Development raised some concern about the robustness of an assessment carried out by the agency’s Office of Pesticide Programs, where Mr. Rowland was a senior official at the time, and recommended in December 2015 that it take steps to “strengthen” its “human health assessment. ” In a statement, Monsanto said, “Glyphosate is not a carcinogen. ” It added: “The allegation that glyphosate can cause cancer in humans is inconsistent with decades of comprehensive safety reviews by the leading regulatory authorities around the world. The plaintiffs have submitted isolated documents that are taken out of context. ” The E. P. A. had no immediate comment, and Mr. Rowland could not be reached immediately. Monsanto also rebutted suggestions that the disclosures highlighted concerns that the academic research it underwrites is compromised. Monsanto frequently cites such research to back up its safety claims on Roundup and pesticides. In one email unsealed Tuesday, William F. Heydens, a Monsanto executive, told other company officials that they could ghostwrite research on glyphosate by hiring academics to put their names on papers that were actually written by Monsanto. “We would be keeping the cost down by us doing the writing and they would just edit sign their names so to speak,” Mr. Heydens wrote, citing a previous instance in which he said the company had done this. Asked about the exchange, Monsanto said in a second statement that its “scientists did not ghostwrite the paper” that was referred to or previous work, adding that a paper that eventually appeared “underwent the journal’s rigorous peer review process before it was published. ” David Kirkland, one of the scientists mentioned in the email, said in an interview, “I would not publish a document that had been written by someone else. ” He added, “We had no interaction with Monsanto at all during the process of reviewing the data and writing the papers. ” The disclosures are the latest to raise concerns about the integrity of academic research financed by agrochemical companies. Last year, a review by The New York Times showed how the industry can manipulate academic research or misstate findings. Declarations of interest included in a paper on glyphosate that appeared in the journal Critical Reviews in Toxicology said panel members were recruited by a consulting firm. Email traffic made public shows that Monsanto officials discussed and debated scientists who should be considered, and shaped the project. “I think it’s important that people hold Monsanto accountable when they say one thing and it’s completely contradicted by very frank internal documents,” said Timothy Litzenburg of the Miller Firm, one of the law firms handling the litigation. The issue of glyphosate’s safety is not a trivial one for Americans. Over the last two decades, Monsanto has genetically corn, soybeans and cotton so it is much easier to spray them with the weed killer, and some 220 million pounds of glyphosate were used in 2015 in the United States. “People should know that there are superb scientists in the world who would disagree with Monsanto and some of the regulatory agencies’ evaluations, and even E. P. A. has disagreement within the agency,” said Robin Greenwald, a lawyer at Weitz Luxenberg, which is also involved in the litigation. “Even in the E. U. there’s been a lot of disagreement among the countries. It’s not so simple as Monsanto makes it out to be. ” | 0fake |
NATO Sends A Message To Russia, This Is Horrifying | Via UsualRoutine SPONSORED LINKS
They will simply point to the seizure of the Crimea and the Russian military’s continuing support for the rebels in eastern Ukraine as a sure sign of Moscow’s growing assertiveness. Mr.Putin also says that the Russian military threat is being exaggerated in the West to justify increased military spending.
Well there is certainly a good deal of hyperbole in some sections of the Western media. The transit of the small naval task force led by Russia’s sole and ageing aircraft carrier – the Admiral Kuznetsov – through the English Channel, for example, sent many British newspapers into a spin. Not a new Cold War
Frequent stories about the interception of Russian aircraft or Russian submarines all suggest a return to the more uneasy years of the Cold War. Russia has shown in the recent past that it is sometimes ready to use force in Europe to secure its goals Nato defence chiefs in Brussels want to reassure worried alliance members and send a clear message to Moscow that they can respond to aggression The recent transit of a small naval task force led by the Admiral Kuznetsov (above) through the English Channel sent many British newspapers into a spin
The simple fact is that this is not a Cold War Mark II – far from it. Russia with its declining economy is nothing like the Soviet Union, which aspired to establish a different world order to that pursued by the capitalist West. Russia is in many ways a weak country. Its leadership has a strong sense of encirclement – a view that the West is only eager to do it down – and, rightly or wrongly, this is driving Mr Putin’s more assertive approach.
That is what is making Nato allies like the three Baltic Republics and Poland so worried. That is why countries like Romania and Bulgaria worry about Russia’s behaviour in the Black Sea region. And that is why Nato has sought to provide visible and highly symbolic reinforcements to its northern and south-eastern flanks. Hard times
But Nato has to square a circle here. Despite Mr Putin’s barbs, there is no great enthusiasm for a new conventional arms race. Nato says it is responding to the threat posed by Russia through deterrence Canadian Defence Minister Harjit Singh Sajjan argues the Nato alliance is coming together and operating with greater cohesion. The economies of the European allies, for a start, are generally not in great shape. Indeed Europe is distracted by the migrant crisis sweeping in from the Middle East and the self-inflicted drama of Britain’s planned exit from the EU.
So the problem here in Brussels has been to do enough both to reassure worried Nato members and to send a clear message of deterrence towards Moscow. The Americans are sending a heavy armoured brigade to western Europe, bringing the total number of US Brigade combat teams on the continent to three.
The new brigade will initially go to Poland and then elements will deploy to Romania, Bulgaria and the three Baltic republics. Equipment for a further US brigade will be pre-deployed in Europe. But the whole point of sending a signal of deterrence is not that the US shoulders all of the burden but that as many Nato countries as possible are involved. Still in business
The method of doing this is by the deployment of four multi-national battalions – one to each of the Baltic republics and the other to Poland. Each of these units will be about 1,000 strong, comprising in most cases mechanised infantry, with a few supporting arms. The UK, for example, will lead the battalion going to Estonia.
It will have Warrior armoured fighting vehicles, a small number of tanks and additional companies of French and Danish troops. The US will lead the battalion going to Poland, along with a small number of British and Romanian soldiers. Canada and Germany will lead the remaining two battalions again with small additions to give them a multi-national character.
Canada’s Minister of National Defence, Harjit Sajjan, told me his country would be commanding the battalion going to Latvia. In his view, the deployment of these multi-national units early next year demonstrates the alliance “coming together, showing the ability to operate together and greater cohesion”. “It is”, he said, “an open and transparent message of deterrence.”
But the reassurance effort is not just northwards. Canada will be participating in a new air policing operation in the south-east – probably based out of Romania – and a Canadian warship will also be dispatched to the Black Sea to help provide an enhanced Nato presence. But I put it to him that in practice these are very small forces. Enhanced battalions are surely not going to impress Moscow? Not surprisingly the Canadian defence minister disagreed, insisting that the multi-national model sent “a very strong message to Russia”.
Nato is taking small military steps to underline to Moscow that it still is very much in business and that despite all the clouds on Europe’s horizons it can make decisions swiftly and deploy forces accordingly. Of course, there is political and military theatre in all of this. This is not a Cold War Mark II but it is a sign of an increasingly assertive Russia Are Russian tank armies ready to sweep westwards, as they were at the height of the Cold War? Probably not. But is Russia ready to use force in Europe, where it can to secure its goals? Most certainly. Countries like Georgia and Ukraine still have far more to fear from Moscow than Nato.
But the alliance’s security rests upon meaningful guarantees that its member states are all in it together, both in good and bad times. This week has been about consolidating and underlining those guarantees – the message to Moscow is clear. | 1real |
Jimmy Fallon Debuts His Bernie Sanders Impression and It’s Hilarious (VIDEO) | The Tonight Show s Jimmy Fallon debuted his impersonation of Senator Bernie Sanders, and it was hilarious and spot-on. After Sander s resounding victory in New Hampshire on Tuesday, Fallon-as-Sanders gave his victory speech. Repeatedly telling the crowd to be stop clapping, Fallon-as-Sanders said: I m speaking tonight to claim victory in the New Hampshire primary over She Who Must Not Be Named. New Hampshirites showed the world that you are good, decent people, even though you live in towns that sound like 18th-century porn stars.[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ua3aNP19ah8]Fallon-as-Sanders told the crowd that they wanted a candidate who looks like a Scooby-Doo villain before his mask is removed and that they got one in Sanders. He said that he feels like a million bucks, which of course means I will now evenly distribute myself among the middle class. Fallon already has a Trump impersonation he often does on the show but his debut of Sanders is an indication of the senator s rising star and his popularity among voters, especially younger generations, who regularly watch Fallon s show.If the resounding victory in New Hampshire is an indication of things to come, Fallon will be doing plenty of impersonations of Sanders victory speeches both in the primaries and in the general election in November. Featured image via screenshot | 1real |
After Correctly Predicting GDP Would Beat Estimates, Former Soros Associate Now Says Gold Headed Above $2,000 | After yesterday correcting predicting that the GDP number would beat estimates and telling KWN readers to buy the initial dip in gold because it would mark a low for the correction, here is what a former associate of George Soros told King World News today .
Victor Sperandeo manages over $3 billion, has been in the business 45 years, and has worked with famous individuals such as Leon Cooperman and George Soros. Below is what Sperandeo had to say .
Victor Sperandeo: “The GDP number came in at 2.9 percent, and after an initial dip, gold is acting terrific. If you look at gold and silver, they should be trading down and yet they are trading higher. This is very strong action in the gold market technically and this setup is very bullish. Gold is now set up to trade above $1,400 and then above $2,000.
And if you look at interest rates, they are rising all over the world and the stock market has topped. And in Europe, people are switching from the Swedish krona to the Norwegian krone. This action in the currency markets is a further indication that the EU is in trouble. Norway is not part of the EU, even though they have trade pacts with them. The reality, Eric, is that people are fleeing the EU into countries not affiliated with the EU. This is another point where gold wins because if the EU collapses, then the world goes into a depression.”
***ALSO RELEASED: In The Coming Financial Wipeout, This Will Figure In A Prominently, And Not In A Good Way | 1real |
House committee passes sweeping tax bill | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A Republican-led committee in the U.S. House of Representatives approved a sweeping rewrite of U.S. tax law on Thursday, setting the stage for the House to vote on it, although momentum for overhauling the tax code was fast shifting to the Senate. The House Ways and Means Committee approved a bill, voting along party lines, that could go to the House floor as soon as next week. It would cut the U.S. corporate income tax rate to 20 percent from 35 percent and make other tax changes adding substantially to the federal deficit over the next decade. | 0fake |
Trump says illegal migrants brought as children 'shouldn't be worried' | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said that illegal immigrants brought to the United States as children, known as “dreamers,” should not be worried about deportation. “They shouldn’t be very worried,” Trump said in an interview broadcast on ABC News on Wednesday. “I do have a big heart. We’re going to take care of everybody,” Trump said, adding: “Where you have great people that are here that have done a good job, they should be far less worried.” “We’ll be coming out with policy on that over the next period of four weeks,” he added. | 0fake |
Illinois governor enlists counterparts to attack Democrats in election ad | CHICAGO (Reuters) - Illinois’ Republican governor has launched an unusual attack ad in his re-election campaign that features three neighboring governors crediting their states’ job gains to Illinois taxes crafted by a state House Democratic leader. Illinois Republican Governor Bruce Rauner, who kicked off his 2018 re-election campaign this week, saw his first term marred by a political impasse that left Illinois without a budget for two years before lawmakers overrode his veto this summer to raise taxes. Governors in the new ad include Missouri’s Eric Greitens, Wisconsin’s Scott Walker and Indiana’s Eric Holcomb - all Republicans like Rauner - thanking Rauner’s political foil, Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, for blocking reforms, raising taxes and sending jobs to their states. “Hoosiers love you, Mike Madigan,” Holcomb said in the ad. Among the Democrats whom Rauner, a wealthy businessman, could face after a March primary are J.B. Pritzker, an heir to the Hyatt Hotels Corp fortune, and Chris Kennedy, son of the late U.S. Senator Robert Kennedy. The governor’s race in the fifth-largest state is expected to rank among the most expensive in the country. Experts who follow elections said the ad was unusual. “This is creative since it uses GOP governors from surrounding states to shift the blame for Illinois’ woes from Rauner to a Democratic leader,” University of Virginia political science professor Larry Sabato said. “Voters usually hold their governor responsible for the state of the state,” he added. While it is not unusual for governors to make appearances for other campaigns, they tend to take a more positive approach, highlighting an incumbent’s achievements, said Dick Simpson, a political science professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago. While the ad may resonate with rural, conservative voters, it also comes as Illinois and other states seek to attract Amazon.com’s $5 billion second headquarters. Simpson said highlighting how Illinois policies hurt the state is “probably not helpful.” Madigan dismissed the ad in a statement, calling it a “race to the bottom being led by his role models from states where middle-class wages are a fraction of what they are in Illinois.” Rauner has feuded with Democrats, who control the state legislature, over his insistence a state budget be tied to policy demands that would weaken unions, impose legislative term limits and freeze property taxes. He also has angered conservatives by signing a bill to expand state-funded coverage of abortions. Political scientists said he faces a tough re-election bid in a state often carried by the Democratic candidate in presidential elections. Spending on the race could top $150 million, a rarity, said Sarah Brune, executive director of the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform. | 0fake |
Florida Student In Deep Sh*t After Trying To Sell Black Classmates Into Slavery On Craigslist | Donald Trump hasn t even been President 100 days and already some are apparently forming the idea that it s cool to post slave sale ads on Craigslist.A Florida high school student snapped a photo of two of his African-American classmates sitting at their desks at Fleming Island High School. In a post geotagged to Fleming Island Plantation, a neighborhood in the town, the unnamed student posted an ad to Craigslist: Two healthy negro slavegals for sale. Good condition and hard work ethic! If you need another pair of hands around the farm/house, you re in luck! One of the victims sister tweeted an image of the ad:This is what happened to my sister (in the blue) who attends Fleming Island High School in Jacksonville, FL. This is NOT OKAY AT ALL!!! pic.twitter.com/vhhGyZZ5aP yossiana (@yossiana22) April 27, 2017 I never thought somebody would do this to me. I had friends texting and calling me, senior Skye Fefee, one of the students in the photo, says. Everyone started tagging me in the post, and then my mom saw it and was disturbed by it I was really upset about it because Fleming Island is known for racial slurs. This school year someone wrote on the toilets, whites only. The student who posted the ad was suspended for a meager ten days, but was referred to an alternative school by the principal. The school board will ultimately decide whether to remove the student, send him to alternative school permanently, or expel him.Superintendent Addison Davis issued a statement in response encouraging parents to take the time to inform their kids that it s not cool at all to sell your classmates into slavery: We do not tolerate this type of behavior and we are disheartened that any of our students would be subject to discrimination. Fleming Island High School administration and district leadership are working together to create a schoolwide plan of action to strengthen the climate and culture while celebrating the school s diversity. We encourage parents and guardians to take the time to talk to their child about this important matter. Feefee says she wants to see the person who posted this expelled, adding that the administration doesn t pay attention to this sort of behavior regularly.Donald Trump s election has allowed racists to express themselves as never before, as he has filled his administration with white supremacists, Nazis, and other assorted fascists, racists, and utter scumbags.What a great example for our kids.Watch a news report below:Featured image via screengrab | 1real |
EU executive warms to Franco-German call on emergency border checks | BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union s executive offered initial backing on Thursday to a Franco-German proposal to allow more permanent border checks within the bloc s free-travel zone. Five countries in the so-called Schengen travel zone - Germany, France, Denmark, Austria and Norway - restarted border controls after 2015 attacks in Paris and in an attempt to control the movement of refugees and migrants arriving in the bloc in unprecedented numbers the same year. Schengen rules allow for the reintroduction of such frontier controls for up to two years and the ones now in place expire in November. Germany and France, aiming for an extension and the ability to reinstate them in future, asked the EU to change the system to extend the maximum duration to four years. A joint proposal by Paris and Berlin, seen by Reuters, says that would be required in the context of a long-term terrorist threat after a raft of deadly Islamist attacks in Europe. The Commission recognizes that new security challenges have appeared in the past years, as demonstrated by the recent terrorist attacks in Barcelona and Turku, the EU s migration chief, Dimitris Avramopoulos, told journalists after talks with EU s interior ministers. He said the Brussels-based Commission would propose an update to the Schengen borders code later this month. French Interior Minister Gerard Collomb told journalists after the talks in Brussels: We had raised this problem some time ago with my German colleague ... and from what I heard from the Commissioner he indeed wants to make the Schengen code more flexible ... to allow us to protect our borders against terrorism. | 0fake |
EU questions Russia's 2018 vote after Navalny decision | BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The Russian authorities decision to bar opposition leader Alexei Navalny from running in next year s presidential election raises questions about the vote, the European Union s foreign service said in a statement on Tuesday. The central election commission said on Monday Navalny was not eligible to run in the March 18 election due to a suspended prison sentence. He has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and says the case is politically motivated. The decision casts a serious doubt on political pluralism in Russia and the prospect of democratic elections next year, the EU s External Action Service, or EEAS, said in a statement. Politically-motivated charges should not be used against political participation, the EEAS said. It urged the Russian authorities to ensure that there is a level playing field in the presidential vote in March and in all other votes. The EEAS said that Navalny was denied the right to a fair trial in his prosecution in 2013, according to the European Court of Human Rights, to which Russia is a signatory. Polls show President Vladimir Putin is on course to be comfortably re-elected, meaning he could remain in power until2024. Navalny has been jailed three times this year and charged with breaking the law by organizing public meetings and rallies. The European External Action Service (EEAS), set up in 2009, runs a network of diplomats around the globe, drafts policy papers for EU foreign ministers and is led by the EU s top diplomat Federica Mogherini, who visited Moscow in April this year. | 0fake |
E.P.A. Head Stacks Agency With Climate Change Skeptics - The New York Times | WASHINGTON — Days after the Senate confirmed him as administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, Scott Pruitt appeared at the Conservative Political Action Conference and was asked about addressing a group that probably wanted to eliminate his agency. “I think it’s justified,” he responded, to cheers. “I think people across the country look at the E. P. A. the way they look at the I. R. S. ” In the days since, Mr. Pruitt, a former Oklahoma attorney general who built a career out of suing the agency he now leads, has moved to stock the top offices of the agency with conservatives — many of them skeptics of climate change and all of them intent on rolling back environmental regulations that they see as overly intrusive and harmful to business. Mr. Pruitt has drawn heavily from the staff of his friend and fellow Oklahoma Republican, Senator James Inhofe, long known as Congress’s most prominent skeptic of climate science. A former Inhofe chief of staff, Ryan Jackson, will be Mr. Pruitt’s chief of staff. Another former Inhofe staff member, Byron Brown, will serve as Mr. Jackson’s deputy. Andrew Wheeler, a fossil fuel lobbyist and a former Inhofe chief of staff, is a finalist to be Mr. Pruitt’s deputy, although he requires confirmation to the position by the Senate. To friends and critics, Mr. Pruitt seems intent on building an E. P. A. leadership that is fundamentally at odds with the career officials, scientists and employees who carry out the agency’s missions. That might be a recipe for strife and gridlock at the federal agency tasked to keep safe the nation’s clean air and water while safeguarding the planet’s future. “He’s the most different kind of E. P. A. administrator that’s ever been,” said Steve J. Milloy, a member of the E. P. A. transition team who runs the website JunkScience. com, which aims to debunk climate change. “He’s not coming in thinking E. P. A. is the greatest thing since sliced bread. Quite the opposite. ” Gina McCarthy, who headed the E. P. A. under former President Barack Obama, said she too saw Mr. Pruitt as unique. “It’s fine to have differing opinions on how to meet the mission of the agency. Many Republican administrators have had that,” she said. “But here, for the first time, I see someone who has no commitment to the mission of the agency. ” A pair of Trump campaigners from Washington State are also heading into senior positions at the E. P. A. Don Benton, a former Washington state senator who headed President Trump’s state campaign, will be the agency’s senior liaison with the White House. Douglas Ericksen, a current Washington state senator, is being considered as the regional administrator of the E. P. A. ’s Pacific Northwest office. As a state senator, Mr. Ericksen has been active in opposing efforts to pass a climate change law taxing carbon pollution. Last month, he invited Tony Heller, a climate denialist who blogs under the pseudonym Steven Goddard, to address a Washington State Senate committee on the costs of climate change policy. Mr. Heller’s blog says “global warming is the biggest fraud in science history. ” “I think the reason both of these guys are being considered for this stuff is they were the only prominent elected officials in the state of Washington that were early supporters and organizers for Trump,” said Todd Donovan, a political scientist at Western Washington University. “No other state legislators were putting their necks out for Trump. ” Another transition official under consideration by Mr. Pruitt for a permanent position is David Kreutzer, a senior research fellow in energy economics and climate change at the conservative Heritage Foundation who has publicly praised the benefits of increasing carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. That view stands in opposition to the broad scientific consensus that increased carbon dioxide traps heat and contributes to the dangerous warming of the planet. The agency’s policy agenda is snapping into focus: Last week, Mr. Trump signed an executive order directing Mr. Pruitt to begin the legal process of dismantling a major regulation aimed at increasing the federal government’s authority over rivers, streams and wetlands in order to prevent water pollution. Also last week, Mr. Pruitt ordered the agency to walk back a program on collecting data on methane emissions, a potent greenhouse gas, from oil and gas wells. This week, Mr. Trump is expected to sign an executive order directing Mr. Pruitt to begin the legal process of unwinding Mr. Obama’s E. P. A. regulations aimed at curbing pollution from power plants, and Mr. Pruitt is expected to announce plans to begin to weaken an rule mandating higher fuel economy standards. A draft White House budget blueprint proposes to slash the E. P. A. budget by about 24 percent, or $2 billion from its current level of $8. 1 billion, and cut employee numbers by about 20 percent from its current staff of about 15, 000. Agency employees say morale has already been damaged. After working for years to draft climate change regulations under the Obama administration, many of those same career scientists and lawyers will be ordered to go back and undo them. Ms. McCarthy, who oversaw the writing and execution of those major water and climate change regulations, said it would be difficult and to reverse them, especially if Mr. Trump succeeds in greatly downsizing the agency. “If you want to do these executive orders that require a whole rewrite of the rule, you have to get that right, legally,” she said. “It took years to do those rules. To now ask for those things to be undone with less staff and low morale — how are they going to do it?” There is one area in which Mr. Pruitt has vowed to continue the traditional work of the E. P. A.: a longstanding program for sending funds to states to clean up “brownfields” — former industrial sites that have been contaminated by pollution. Although Mr. Trump’s budget blueprint would slash funds for that program, Mr. Pruitt pledged to a gathering of mayors in Washington last week that he would fight to save the program. “With the White House and Congress I am communicating a message about brownfields,” he told mayors. “I want to hear from you about successes and communicate them. ” J. Christian Bollwage, the Democratic mayor of Elizabeth, N. J. a city that has been plagued with industrial pollution, said he was heartened to hear the pledge. “I’ve never heard such a vociferous defense of providing brownfields grants,” he said. “He was explicit. He said he was going to take the defense of brownfields to the White House. I was impressed and hopeful. ” But, Mr. Bollwage added, “Coming from New Jersey, climate change is also a big issue. And I’m still worried about an administration that seems to think climate change is a hoax. ” Concern over Mr. Pruitt’s stewardship may not be . There is speculation that the E. P. A. chief already has his eyes on a different office. Mr. Inhofe, 82, will complete his current Senate term in 2020. While he declined to speak of his retirement plans, Mr. Inhofe said of Mr. Pruitt, “I think he’d make a great senator. ” | 0fake |
STUDENT NEWSPAPER At Hillary’s Alma Mater: It’s Okay To Use Violence To Shut Down Free Speech [VIDEO] | Watch well-organized anti-Trump terrorists pull individual Trump supporters into their crowd, while surrounding them in order to keep friends from helping them, while they mercilessly beat and stomp on them in video below. According to the student newspaper at Hillary s alma mater, this is okay to do because these people are perceived to be hateful because they support a different political ideology:https://twitter.com/TEN_GOP/status/853347335463743492American citizens shouldn t have to fear for their lives because they hold an opposing political view to those on the left. In a post-Obama and Hillary America however, this has sadly become a new reality. While cops are being told to stand down as violent protesters are bloodying Trump supporters from Chicago to Berkeley, CA, we now have radical leftist institutions of higher learning like Wellesley College whose students are actually condoning violence against Americans if they dare to take a political view that is in opposition to theirs.Wellesley College made news last month when professors declared speakers with objectionable views are not only offensive to students, but actually diminish their liberty. Now, the student newspaper at the elite private college has taken it a step further justifying violence against anyone who either continue to speak hate speech or refuse to adapt their beliefs to accepted progressive norms, saying then hostility may be warranted. The shocking statement came in an editorial in the student newspaper, The Wellesley News, entitled Free Speech Is Not Violated At Wellesley. Wellesley students are generally correct in their attempts to differentiate what is viable discourse from what is just hate speech, the paper declared. Shutting down rhetoric that undermines the existence and rights of others is not a violation of free speech; it is hate speech. The founding fathers put free speech in the Constitution as a way to protect the disenfranchised and to protect individual citizens from the power of the government. The editorial board at the paper then ascribes a new meaning to the First Amendment. The spirit of free speech is to protect the suppressed, not to protect a free-for-all where anything is acceptable, no matter how hateful and damaging, the demand.The reason hate speech exists is that the United States is a racist country, according to the paper. We have all said problematic claims, the origins of which were ingrained in us by our discriminatory and biased society. Luckily, most of us have been taught by our peers and mentors at Wellesley in a productive way, the paper continues.As for speakers and student who do not conform to what the paper deems acceptable speech, the editorial says violence may be justified. (I)f people are given the resources to learn and either continue to speak hate speech or refuse to adapt their beliefs, then hostility may be warranted, the editorial states.Read more: Daily Caller | 1real |
Moby LITERALLY Laughs At Donald Trump’s Invitation To DJ At His Inauguration | Donald Trump is getting nothing but bad news when it comes to finding performers willing to degrade themselves at his inauguration.Earlier today, internationally renowned vocalist Charlotte Church told Trump that he should not have even bothered asking her to sing at his inauguration because she doesn t perform for tyrants.@realDonaldTrump Your staff have asked me to sing at your inauguration, a simple Internet search would show I think you re a tyrant. Bye???? Charlotte Church (@charlottechurch) January 10, 2017Church s tweet drew outrage from Trump supporters but she wasn t the only musician to reject Trump.As it turns out, Trump and his team also invited Moby to DJ at the inauguration. And Moby responded by laughing hysterically in Trump s face and told him he d only consider on one condition. And Trump isn t going to like it. Hahahahaha, I was just asked by a booking agent if I would consider djing at one of the inaugural balls for #trump Hahahahaha, wait, Hahahaha, really? I guess I d DJ at an inaugural ball if as payment #trump released his tax returns. I m still laughing, Moby continued. Hahahaha. So #trump what do you think, I DJ for you and you release your tax returns? Here s the full statement via Instagram.Hahahahaha, I was just asked by a booking agent if I would consider djing at one of the inaugural balls for #trump Hahahahaha, wait, Hahahaha, really? I guess I d DJ at an inaugural ball if as payment #trump released his tax returns. Also I would probably play public enemy and stockhausen remixes to entertain the republicans. I m still laughing. Hahahaha. So #trump what do you think, I DJ for you and you release your tax returns?A photo posted by moby X X (@moby) on Jan 9, 2017 at 8:52am PSTDonald Trump refused to release his tax returns throughout the presidential campaign, breaking decades of precedent and setting a dangerous new precedent for future presidential contenders.And it s very clear why Trump refused to release his taxes and continues to do so. When the New York Times obtained a copy of just one year of Trump s tax returns it showed that he wrote off a nearly $1 billion loss that allowed him to avoid paying federal income taxes for nearly 20 years. So not only is Trump a draft-dodger, he s a tax dodger as well.It s also clear that Moby is not a fan of Trump. He was a supporter of Hillary Clinton and has been mocking Trump ever since Election Day, including this gem commenting on Trump s cozy relationship with Vladimir Putin.Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah.A photo posted by moby X X (@moby) on Jan 9, 2017 at 10:39am PSTTrump must be truly desperate if he s seriously asking Moby to perform.Featured image via Instagram | 1real |
Iraqi court rules Kurdish independence vote unconstitutional | BAGHDAD/ERBIL, Iraq (Reuters) - Iraq s Supreme Federal Court ruled on Monday a Sept. 25 Kurdish independence referendum was unconstitutional and the results void, strengthening Baghdad s hand in a stand-off with the Kurdish region watched closely by neighboring Turkey and Iran. The Kurdistan Regional Government did not directly say whether it accepted the effective cancellation of the vote, but its new prime minister called for a third party to oversee talks between Iraq s central government and the Kurds. The KRG also called on the international community including the United Nations, European Union and non-governmental organizations to intervene and help lift what it called restrictive sanctions imposed by Baghdad in retaliation for the referendum. Kurds voted overwhelmingly to break away from Iraq in the referendum, defying the central government in Baghdad and alarming neighboring Turkey and Iran who have their own Kurdish minorities. The Federal Court issued the decision to consider the Kurdish region s referendum unconstitutional and this ruling is final, a court spokesman said. The power of this ruling should now cancel all the results of the referendum. The court is responsible for settling disputes between Iraq s central government and its regions, including Kurdistan. The verdict is not subject to appeal. A statement from Iraq s Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said: We call upon everybody to ... avoid taking any step which violates the constitution and law. The court had ruled on Nov. 6 that no region or province can secede. The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) said last week it would respect that verdict, signaling a new phase in efforts to restart negotiations over the region s future. The Iraqi government responded to the Kurdish independence referendum by seizing the Kurdish-held city of Kirkuk and other territory disputed between the Kurds and the central government. It also banned direct flights to Kurdistan and demanded control over border crossings. Long-serving Kurdish president Masoud Barzani stepped down over the affair and the regional government led by his nephew Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani has tried to negotiate an end to the confrontation. In a news conference following Monday s ruling, Nechirvan Barzani said the court s ruling was reached unilaterally, without input from KRG representatives, and called for a third party to oversee negotiations between Baghdad and the Kurds. The rights of Kurds are enshrined in the (Iraqi) constitution and we seek the implementation of this constitution to resolve our issues with Baghdad, Barzani told reporters, according to Kurdish Rudaw TV. The constitution is one package and must be applied in its entirety, not selectively. However, Barzani did not directly say whether Kurdish officials accepted the effective cancellation of the referendum. The KRG had previously offered only to freeze the results. The KRG later said its chief concern was the lifting of an embargo on international flights to the region, which it said hampered foreign investment as well as humanitarian efforts for the more than 1.5 million internally displaced people currently in the region. We call on the international community to intercede in urging Baghdad authorities to lift the embargo, without condition, on international flights. The restrictive policies adopted by Baghdad against Erbil are in violation of Iraq s obligations and responsibilities under international and humanitarian law, the KRG said in a statement. | 0fake |
SECRET SERVICE PROTECTS OBAMA’S DAUGHTERS While These Illegal Alien Pedophiles Threaten Our Children | The children were nestled all snug in their beds when OOPS! an illegal alien pedophile slipped through their window. These worst of the worst criminals are crossing our borders every day as our US Border Agents are given the stand down order by a man so hell-bent on a one-party system that he will risk the safety and security of our children and grandchildren. Barack Obama s kids will never have to worry about safety, because We The Taxpayer will ensure that for the rest of their lives, they will be protected from the massive number of unchecked pedophiles and violent sexual offenders flowing across our open borders. This is an outrage! Yet the political pundits on the Left seem to be baffled by Donald Trump s popularity with the American voter Go figure McAllen, Texas Illegal aliens with previous convictions for sexual crimes continue to be a regular sight for U.S. Border Patrol agents working in this border region.On Wednesday, the Rio Grande Valley Sector (RGV) of the U.S. Border Patrol confirmed to Breitbart Texas that they had arrested five criminal aliens with a history of sexual offenses including a Guatemalan man who is considered a sexually violent predator. On Sunday, agents caught a group of seven illegal aliens near the river and when they took them to the station for processing learned that one of them identified as Walter Leonel Vasquez Zacarias was a violent sexual predator, court records obtained by Breitbart Texas revealed.Court records revealed that Vasquez Zacarias had been convicted of aggravated sexual battery victim under 13 years of age in March 20, 2009. For that offense, Vasquez was initially arrested on June 16, 2008 in Augusta County, Virginia and after his conviction was sentenced to 10 years in prison, but for unknown reasons, eight years from his sentence were suspended and he was deported in March 30, 2010 through Houston.Vasquez continues to be listed in various search engines as a violent sexual predator.In recent days, agents arrested four other criminal aliens with a sexually based criminal history, information provided to Breitbart Texas by Border Patrol revealed. One of the aliens was from Guatemala and he had a previous conviction for aggravated sexual battery of a victim under the age of 13. Another of the aliens was also from Guatemala and he had a conviction for aggravated criminal sexual abuse. Two other aliens from Mexico had convictions for indecent liberties with a child and the other for sexual assault. Border Patrol agents remain vigilant in their efforts to protect this nation from all threats including predators and convicted criminals attempting to illegally enter the country, said Chief Patrol Agent Manuel Padilla Jr. in a prepared statement. Thanks to the hard work of Border Patrol agents, these dangerous criminals were unable to make it into our communities. Via: Breitbart News | 1real |
Game Over: These Guys Are No Longer Big Sports Fans - The New York Times | You would be to find someone more devoted to the Cleveland Browns than Jeff Stemler. He exulted over the wins. After losses, he was so angry that he couldn’t speak. The team was part of his identity. It started in his childhood, when the quarterback Brian Sipe led the Browns to improbable victories. As an adult, Mr. Stemler became a holder. He cried when the team moved to Baltimore in 1995, and he found love again when the National Football League awarded Cleveland with a new Browns franchise in 1998. But somehow, after hundreds of Sundays at the stadium or in the television glow, it all came to an end. It wasn’t because the Browns were bad, necessarily. It was something else. Something deeper. Mr. Stemler, a landscape supplies salesman in Columbus, Ohio, pinpoints the moment to a Sunday in October 2014, when the Browns thumped the Pittsburgh Steelers, . As giddy fans spoke of a new era in Cleveland, Mr. Stemler felt nothing. “Is this really what makes me happy?” he asked himself. “Everyone is going nuts, and I’m just kind of sitting there,” Mr. Stemler added. “I remember this guy looking at me and asking: ‘What’s wrong? Why aren’t you excited? ’” The strange feeling did not go away. “I think I have gotten to a point in my life where I need to let things go that don’t bring me enjoyment,” he said. “I think as you get older, you realize you don’t hang on to things that don’t bring you joy. If it’s not making me happy, then why do it? Don’t just do it because you feel like you should be doing it. That’s what I was doing — I was going up every Sunday for the Browns, and I was dreading it. ” Most fans develop a bond with a team as children. For reasons that may go unquestioned, they stick with it, no matter the emotional toll. In the view of the New Yorker writer and editor Roger Angell, our connection to sports is ultimately tied to caring: “deeply and passionately, really caring — which is a capacity or an emotion that has almost gone out of our lives,” he wrote in 1975. But then there are those fans who begin to question why they care so much. Once doubt takes hold, they wonder why they spend so much time and emotion on mere games. Before they know it, they are on a path that takes them away from the majority culture for whom sports adulation is the norm. Julio Guerrero, 33, was an impressionable boy when the quarterback Brett Favre came on the scene for the Green Bay Packers in 1992. As Favre gave new life to the Packers, Mr. Guerrero, who lives in Milwaukee and manages a call center, became devoted to the team and joined the Sunday ritual that defines football fandom. “You don’t miss a game unless you have like a really special family function, like a wedding or a funeral,” he said. “That is part of your Sunday. It’s part of the culture. It’s what you do. You go to work five days a week and you make sure you watch the Packers. ” Mr. Guerrero embraced Favre’s style of play. Here was an unruly kid from Mississippi who won over Green Bay fans with his gunslinger style and led the team to a Super Bowl victory. It seemed as if the fun would go on forever. But when Favre left the Packers in 2008, Mr. Guerrero sensed his devotion starting to wane. Somehow he couldn’t relate to Favre’s successor, Aaron Rodgers, and he realized his fandom had reached an end when he wasn’t thrilled by the Packers’ Super Bowl victory in 2011. He no longer spends his Sundays in front of the TV. He has become the guy at work who can’t talk about the game on Monday morning. He has built a new life for himself that doesn’t include football. “I think the new set of friends I have are more into music and movies and arts, which is more of what I am into these days,” Mr. Guerrero said. “I don’t really feel that connected anymore to people who go to the bar and watch the football game every Sunday. ” Even before he attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Robert McNees lived for its basketball team, the Tar Heels. Now an associate professor of physics at Loyola University Chicago, he can still see a freshman named Michael Jordan hitting the game winner against Georgetown in the 1982 N. C. A. A. tournament championship game. Dr. McNees’s affection for the team lasted well after he graduated. But as he grew older, he began to realize that much of his emotional attachment was bound to his fond memories of his college days. His moment of reckoning came in 2012. After holding a lead with two and a half minutes to go against Duke, North Carolina ended up losing at the buzzer. Dr. McNees was inconsolable. Then he started to question himself. “I was bummed out after that,” he said. “Then I was bummed out about the fact that I was so bummed out about it. Why? These are two groups of to playing a game. It should not have that much of an impact on a grown man. ” Dr. McNees, 43, decided to take a step back. He has not sworn off the Tar Heels altogether, but he no longer watches every game. And when he does, he is careful not to allow the outcome to ruin his day. Finding that kind of middle ground is not an option for most fans, including Rob Jordan, a lawyer in Manhattan. As a child, he had posters of the baseball stars Ken Griffey Jr. and Mike Piazza on the walls of his bedroom. As Mike Schmidt cried while announcing his retirement at a 1989 news conference, Mr. Jordan wept right along with him. His fandom deepened with the rise of fantasy sports. He became well versed in even the most obscure baseball, basketball and football players, and he said he won thousands of dollars as a result of his expertise. About the time he turned 30, he decided that fantasy sports was no longer the best use of his time. And it wasn’t a big step from cutting out fantasy to leaving behind sports fandom altogether. Recently, Mr. Jordan gave up cable TV, meaning he no longer has access to ESPN. He didn’t bother to watch an inning of the 2016 World Series — not even Game 7, which was viewed by 40 million — although it was broadcast on network television. “I think there was a point where I consciously looked around and said, ‘Hey, I can keep admiring and celebrating the accomplishments of somebody else for a minimal amount of entertainment value, or I can better allocate that time toward my own dreams and projects,’” Mr. Jordan said. “Clearly, I came out on the side of the latter. ” “It got to a point where even seeing a grown man in his wearing a jersey with some other name on the back struck me as immature and odd,” he added. “You say, ‘Come on man, grow up. ’” | 0fake |
TIME TRAVELER NANCY PELOSI Says She Just Can’t Work With…President Bush??? [Video] | 1real |
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