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22,900 | WATCH: Justin Timberlake Just Made A Joke About Trump That Everyone Needs To Hear | Justin Timberlake gave a speech at the 2016 iHeartRadio Music Awards Sunday night, and he took a few shots and made a couple of jokes about Republican frontrunner Donald Trump. In a speech dedicated to Taylor Swift who won the Best Tour award, Timberlake said that Swift breaks down walls and others build them.In a clear reference to Donald Trump, Timberlake said, Some people are out here to build walls. We ain t naming no names That was a political joke. The crowd then broke into laughter. He then told the largely underage audience, Shut up! You can t even vote. Taylor chooses to knock down walls and invites everyone to be on her #squad, Timberlake continued.One would have to ask the question of why this would even be a story. However, Timberlake clearly realizes that he has a very important and rare platform. He s someone who has the potential to both reach and influence tens of millions of people, many of whom both idolize him and at the same time can vote.His words have the potential to resonate to many out there to go out and vote and make the right choice when voting. That choice is clearly not Donald Trump or Ted Cruz.Watch video here:https://youtu.be/p0CZJO3hzfo Featured image via video screenshot. | 0 |
22,901 | U.S., China fail to agree on trade issues, casting doubt on other issues | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States and China failed on Wednesday to agree on major new steps to reduce the U.S. trade deficit with China, casting doubt over President Donald Trump’s economic and security relations with Beijing. The annual economic dialogue session in Washington ended with canceled news conferences, no joint statement and no new announcements on U.S. market access to China. The two sides had a “frank exchange” but failed to agree on most major bilateral trade and economic issues that were important to the United States, a senior U.S. official said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly. These included U.S. demands for access to China’s financial services markets, reducing excess Chinese steel capacity, reductions in auto tariffs, cutting subsidies for state-owned enterprises, ending Chinese requirements for data localization and lifting ownership caps for foreign firms in China, the official said. “China acknowledged our shared objective to reduce the trade deficit which both sides will work cooperatively to achieve,” U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said in a brief statement, highlighting a rare point of consensus. The Chinese embassy in Washington cast the talks in a positive light, saying in a statement that both sides had acknowledged “significant progress” on the 100-day talks and would to work together to reduce the trade deficit. “The two sides will expand areas of cooperation in services and increase trade in services; expand mutual investment, and create a more open, equitable, transparent and convenient investment environment,” the embassy said. Both sides agreed that one of the solutions to address the trade imbalance is for the United States to expand exports to China, instead of reducing imports from China, said Chinese Vice Finance Minister Zhu Guangyao after the conclusion of the talks. To address the imbalance, China has been urging the United States to remove regulations on export control and increase the exports of high-tech products to China, the official Xinhua news agency cited Zhu as saying. China will push for this in a one-year action plan for economic cooperation which both sides discussed, Zhu said. FAR FROM MAR-A-LAGO The session had been billed as a follow-up to Trump’s first meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping at his Mar-A-Lago, Florida, estate in April when Trump hailed Xi’s cooperation in curbing the threat from North Korea. Trump said that this would lead to better trade terms for China. The two leaders launched a 100-day economic plan that has produced some industry-specific announcements, including the resumption of American beef sales in China and pledged to grant limited U.S. access to some financial services sectors. But there have been no new initiatives since, and Trump has grown increasingly frustrated with China’s lack of pressure on North Korea. His administration has threatened new sanctions on small Chinese banks and other firms doing business with Pyongyang. Ross and Mnuchin said the U.S. position on the China trade relationship would be guided by “the principles of balance, fairness, and reciprocity on matters of trade will continue to guide the American position so we can give American workers and businesses an opportunity to compete on a level playing field.” China’s delegation leader, Vice Premier Wang Yang, left the Treasury building without speaking to reporters. Earlier, he had warned that confrontation between the two countries would be damaging. Investors interpreted the negative signals from the talks and lack of new trade announcements as making it more likely that Trump would forge ahead with broad steel tariffs or quotas based on a national security review, sending steelmakers’ shares soaring. Shares of United States Steel Corp closed up 4.8 percent, while AK Steel rose 3.6 percent and Nucor rose 2.2 percent. Trump, asked by a reporter at the White House after the stock market closed whether he would impose steel tariffs, said: “Could happen.” Potential steel tariffs, which could be announced in the coming weeks, were expected to be a difficult topic in the U.S.-China talks. Ross has blamed massive Chinese excess capacity for a global steel glut that is hurting U.S. producers. Wednesday’s deadlock was unsettling for U.S. business groups that had hoped to put more cracks in Beijing’s market access barriers and obviate more aggressive measures from the White House that could destabilize trade ties. “We are disappointed the Comprehensive Economic Dialogue ended at an apparent impasse. It is important for governments to take tangible steps to address long-standing issues and ensure the commercial relationship remains a source of stability in the overall relationship,” said Jacob Parker, vice president of China operations at the U.S.-China Business Council. Even if the U.S. and Chinese governments fail to agree on more substantive trade terms, corporate chief executive officers from the two countries pledged to deepen their cooperation and joint investment efforts. Led by Blackstone Group CEO Stephen Schwarzman and Alibaba Group CEO Jack Ma, a group of 20 executives said they were committing to increase bilateral trade, including the export of U.S. agricultural goods, liquefied natural gas and consumer products to China. “A stable, growing economic relationship between the United States and China is mutually beneficial to the people of our two countries and for the world,” Ma and Schwarzman said in a statement. | 1 |
22,902 | Kentucky Republican To Rape Victim: Getting DNA From Rapist Worse Intrusion Than Being Raped | Republicans care more about protecting rapists than they do about the women they raped.Kentucky GOP Senator Dan Seum made that clear during a committee hearing for a bill that would require people arrested for committing felonies to provide their DNA to law enforcement.Rape survivor Michelle Kuiper courageously testified as a witness in favor of Senate Bill 150 along with a mother whose daughter had been raped and brutally murdered and a man who spent 18 years in prison after being wrongfully convicted of rape before DNA found the real rapist.But during Kuiper s testimony, Seum became the latest Republican to deliver offensive and insensitive remarks about rape, only this time the remarks were made directly in the face of a rape victim. I understand your pain, Seum claimed before telling Kuiper that her rape is not as important as protecting her rapist from government intrusion. But I can tell you I have eight children and 21 grandkids, that over the years this government through its intrusion has done more damage to me than all those criminals out there ever did, he callously continued.You read that right. A Republican literally told a rape victim that the unwanted intrusion of her body by her rapist is less important than making sure the rapist is shielded from the government.According to the Courier-Journal:Seum did not elaborate on what type of government intrusion he experienced. But at a Judiciary Committee meeting last month, he said that he had been called as a witness several years ago in a child abuse case in family court where the father was accused of spanking his child. He didn t provide any further details.Kuiper, however, was severely shaken by the ordeal. I was shaken and felt sick after his comments, Kuiper said. Basically, he had told us he had suffered worse crimes than us. Democratic state Rep. Sannie Overly blasted Seum for his remarks and called for her colleague to apologize to every woman in Kentucky for brushing off their safety in favor of defending rapists. A rape victim brave enough to step forward and share her personal story of a heinous crime should not get a lecture. He should apologize to these people and all Kentucky women who have experienced this horrific crime. The bill eventually passed 6-4 despite Seum voting against it, but once again, a Republican lawmaker demonstrates that the GOP still doesn t care about women who are raped.Earlier this year, a Republican in Idaho with five daughters of his own made incredibly creepy claims about rape. Now, I m of the understanding that in many cases of rape it does not involve any pregnancy because of the trauma of the incident, GOP state Rep. Nielsen said during a hearing on an abortion bill. That may be true with incest a little bit I read a lot of information. I have read it several times. Being a father of five girls, I ve explored this a lot. And these latest Republican remarks about rape and rape victims are now part of an ever growing list of quotes that Republicans have made over the years demonstrating their callous disregard of women and their ignorance of the female reproductive process. You can read a comprehensive list of such quotes here.Seriously, if there were ever a more important time for women to flock to the voting booth against Republicans, this November would be the time. Featured image via YouTube | 0 |
22,903 | BREAKING: TWO Suspects In Dallas Cop Shootings Are In Custody After Reported High Speed Chase Of Black Mercedes On I-35 In Dallas | Two suspects are in DPD custody following horrific attack on Dallas law enforcement officers during a Black Lives Matter protest in Dallas, TX.Please pray for these officers and for their families.Update: pic.twitter.com/ukWSZJeZo3 Dallas Police Dept (@DallasPD) July 8, 2016#UPDATE Two people in custody after reported police chase on I-35 south of downtown Dallas. (Chopper11) pic.twitter.com/6gNAuWVvFr CBSDFW (@CBSDFW) July 8, 2016We re not sure if this is the black Mercedes Benz mentioned in the DPD report above, but FOX News is reporting on a car that the police have stopped after leaving the Black Lives Matter protest/shooting scene.#Breaking #Dallas police have stopped a car seen leaving the shooting scene. Latest @FOX4 pic.twitter.com/u8OBkCQhja FOX4Terry (@FOX4Terry) July 8, 2016 | 0 |
22,904 | Trump: 'I don't see a deal' with Democrats on keeping government open | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said he will meet on Tuesday with the Democratic leaders of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi, to discuss keeping the government open but cited differences with them. “Meeting with “Chuck and Nancy” today about keeping government open and working. Problem is they want illegal immigrants flooding into our Country unchecked, are weak on Crime and want to substantially RAISE Taxes. I don’t see a deal!” Trump said in a Twitter post. | 1 |
22,905 | Fox News Hacked Phone Records, Emails Of Media Matters Journalists | The drama just never ends for poor Fox News, thanks to the shady shenanigans of Roger Ailes and Rupert Murdoch. It seems they re guilty of far more than rampant sexual harassment of female employees. Ailes loved to find out where other organizations were getting their info on Fox. To that end, he had private investigators get into the phone records of journalists, like those who work at Media Matters For America.Media Matters official mission is to act as a watchdog on U.S. media. However, for a long time, it seemed their whole mission was to expose the dishonesty that spews forth from the lying monster that is Fox News. One such reporter, Joe Strupp, would repeatedly name anonymous Fox sources in his stories, and, well, of course Ailes couldn t have that. He had to know who these sources were (probably to harass, threaten, and then fire them for good measure).Fox News legal minion, according to New York Magazine, hired private investigators to obtain Strupp s phone records in 2010. These weren t just phone records from the office, though. They also got hold of records from his home phone and personal cell phone through what NYMag is terming, legally questionable means. That probably means it was illegal, but Brandi, the legal minion in question, denies that this ever happened. However, one Fox executive told NYMag anyway: This was the culture. Getting phone records doesn t make anybody blink. Even if, and when, it s illegal to do so, apparently.Bradley Beychock, president of Media Matters, spoke to the Daily Beast about these allegations. It appears that Strupp wasn t Fox s only target. According to Beychock: We know there are allegations of email and phone records being obtained, but do not know precisely how. It s part of our internal review now. He also said: We are not sure of how widespread the issue may be in regards to our employees. However, in addition to Joe Strupp there is at least one other current Media Matters colleague who we have reason to believe also had their phone records obtained. In most places, private investigators cannot obtain someone s phone records without their consent, and people rarely give their consent for that. They can also obtain a court order or a subpoena to do it. However, it s not likely Media Matters employees even knew their communications had been hacked and given to Fox.Fox would not have wanted to wait for the courts, because chances were they knew the courts would shoot them down. This smacks of a company that hopes they could do this without getting caught.At this point, Fox News and its parent, 21st Century Fox, are in way too deep. Their, ahem, questionable business practices are fireballing them right into hell. As Crooks and Liars asked at the end of their story, how far are Murdoch & Co. willing to go to clean this all up?Featured image by Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images | 0 |
22,906 | Trump’s Social Media Man Joins Boss’s Insane, Juvenile Attacks On ‘Morning Joe’ Hosts (TWEETS) | By now, the entire world is aware that Donald Trump spent his morning lashing out at Morning Joe hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski in a truly unhinged fashion even by normal Trumpian standards. He let loose in a crazy, misogynistic rant that accused Brzezinski of begging to be invited to his New Year s Eve party, but essentially he said she was too ugly to be there except in much worse terms. Now, it seems that Trump s social media man, Dan Scavino, is joining in the continued debasement of the White House with equally childish tweets. We will screenshot them here, in case he thinks better of these tweets and decides to delete them:Of course, this is all because Joe and Mika have the stones to do their jobs and call this abnormal, alarming presidency out for what it is: Dangerous, unhinged, and terrible for the nation. Of course, with Trump being as thin-skinned as he is, the biggest job of his staff is to make him feel good and to hit back at any and all criticism that might be thrown at the White House, and especially at Trump himself.These people have done irreversible damage to the office of the president, to America s standing in the world, and to the political climate and discourse in America. It will likely take us a generation to get back to where we were if we ever do at all.It s time to really think hard about what four years of this will do to our nation. Hell, the damage he s already done is quite literally immeasurable.Featured image via Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images | 0 |
22,907 | Guess Which Republican Candidate Helped KKK Chapters More Than Double Last Year (VIDEO) | The Ku Klux Klan had quite a year in 2015 the racist hate group made an unprecedented comeback and more than doubled its membership last year all thanks to the bigotry and hateful rhetoric of the conservative party and one Republican presidential candidate in particular.Although GOP front runner Donald Trump denies that he s affiliated with the KKK, there s no denying that the racist club has seen a substantial increase ever since Trump came onto the political scene. This was proven in a recent report by the Southern Poverty Law Center, called The Year in Hate and Extremism. The organization discovered that 2015 saw an apparent comeback of Klan groups a 164 percent increase in KKK membership to be exact, all thanks to Trump.In 2014, membership had only increased by 72 but in 2015 membership had skyrocketed up to 190 despite the fact that two prominent KKK groups had shut down that year. Even with the disappearance of the Fraternal White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan and the Knight Rider Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, there was still a 14 increase increase in active hate groups something the report says was due to worsening income inequality, the rise of left-wing movements like Black Lives Matter, major advances for LGBT people and growing numbers of refugees and undocumented workers that have angered Republicans and white people. The report blames the GOP for the rise in hate groups, and believes Trump is largely responsible. The report says: The bulk of that anger is coming from beleaguered working-class and, to a lesser extent, middle-class white people, especially the less educated the very same groups that most vociferously support Trump. Being that Trump is a racist that supports white supremacists and his supporters are basically just like him, the report said that Trump served as a mainstream channel for some of America s most racist and awful people to air their bigotry without much consequence. Trump has been given almost unrestricted access to Americans, allowing everyone to be exposed to his rhetoric. Such voters are nostalgic for the country they lived in 50 years ago, when non-Hispanic whites made up more than 83 percent of the population. Today, their share has shrunk to 62 percent as demographic change has transformed the United States into a nation where others have a shot at power. Trump, who has become infamous for his anti-Latino and Islamophobic views, was blamed for fueling the radical right, and encouraging more hateful views. And to prove just how much the presidential candidate resonates with KKK members, here s a video of Trump being confronted about an endorsement from KKK Great Wizard David Duke:Featured image is a screenshot | 0 |
22,908 | “DIFFICULT” CHELSEA CLINTON CAUSES HIGH TURNOVER AT CLINTON FOUNDATION | Like mother like daughter? Chelsea is very difficult according to insiders. We know from former Clintonites that Hillary can cuss like a sailor and really hammer people so perhaps this is a case of YOU ARE WHAT YOU KNOW CHELSEA KNOWS BEING DIFFICULT TO WORK WITH Chelsea Clinton is so unpleasant to colleagues, she s causing high turnover at the Bill, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton Foundation, sources say. Several top staffers have left the foundation since Chelsea came onBoard as vice chairman in 2011. A lot of people left because she was there. A lot of people left because she didn t want them there, an insider told me. She is very difficult. Onetime CEO Bruce Lindsey was pushed upstairs to the position of chairman of the board two years ago, so that Chelsea could bring in her McKinsey colleague Eric Braverman. He [Braverman] was her boy, but he tried to hire his own communications professional and actually tried to run the place. He didn t understand that that wasn t what he was supposed to be doing, said my source. He was pushed out. Matt McKenna was Chelsea s spokesman, and then he wasn t. Now he works for Uber. Ginny Ehrlich, the founding CEO of the Clinton Health Matters Initiative, now works for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.Via: NY Post | 0 |
22,909 | Hong Kong leader says Asian financial hub faces 'grave' challenges | HONG KONG (Reuters) - Hong Kong s Chief Executive Carrie Lam warned in her maiden policy speech on Wednesday that the city faced grave challenges and must develop a more diversified economy, unveiling a mix of housing and tax relief policies to raise competitiveness. Hong Kong, one of the world s costliest cities, has battled rising income inequality, the slow implementation of marquee public projects, political tensions with its mainland China and a slide in its competitiveness. In the face of competition from other economies as well as the rise of protectionism in recent years, Hong Kong is facing increasingly grave challenges. We must develop a high value-added and diversified economy, Lam said. Hong Kong has seen its lucrative position as the world s gateway to China eroded as the mainland rapidly builds up its own ports, airlines and financial powerhouses, and opens its markets to foreign investors. Lam said she would bolster support for small and medium enterprises in the Asian financial hub by cutting company profits tax to 8.25 percent from 16.5 percent for the first HK$2 million ($256,000) of earnings. Earnings after that would be taxed at the current 16.5 percent. On Hong Kong s soaring housing prices, Lam said that despite a raft of property cooling measures, the government had no magic wands . Lam pledged to increase land supply where possible and launch a new subsidized starter homes scheme to help families not eligible for cheap-rental public housing. The first phase would provide around 1,000 residential units. Even if our housing policy has broad community support, it takes time to find land for increasing the housing supply, conceded Lam, Hong Kong s first female leader. Hong Kong residents are squeezed into an average living space of just 150 square feet (14 square meters) per person, and apartments are the most expensive in the world, according to a recent UBS report ranking 20 global cities including New York, London, Tokyo and Paris. Even residents with good jobs and wages have struggled to get on the property ladder. Chinese President Xi Jinping also voiced concern over the city s property market when he visited on July 1 for the 20th anniversary of the former British colony s handover to China. Some observers felt Lam s housing initiatives were not bold enough, with local property shares giving up initial gains and closing the day down 1.8 percent. Property shares are down because of the lack of mention of farmland conversion to build first homes. But the chief executive cannot be too specific, so the sell-off doesn t reflect the real picture, said Nicole Wong, a property analyst with CLSA. Lam also said Hong Kong would aim to double expenditure on research and development over the next five years, to 1.5 percent of annual GDP from 0.73 percent, in a bid to bolster its sputtering tech prospects with neighboring Chinese city Shenzhen having galloped ahead in recent years. She said the government needed to be more proactive , and to seize opportunities from China s Belt and Road push to extend trade and transport networks to Europe. She also said the city needed to better integrate with China s Guangdong province as part of a regional economic development blueprint. Income inequality is at its highest level in over four decades in the city of 7.3 million people, stoking discontent that has seen large-scale protests in recent years over calls for more affordable housing as well as democracy. Since taking office on July 1, Lam has sought to heal social divisions amid growing tensions with China, and to forge a softer and more socially engaged leadership style than her predecessor, the staunchly pro-Beijing Leung Chun-ying. Britain returned Hong Kong to China in 1997 under a one country, two systems formula which guarantees wide-ranging autonomy and judicial independence not seen in mainland China. But tensions have heightened in recent years amid concern over Beijing s interference in Hong Kong, sparking large scale pro-democracy protests and some calls for outright independence from China. Lam said Hong Kong has the responsibility to say no to any attempt to threaten our country s (China s) sovereignty, security and development interests, while re-iterating that it was the constitutional responsibility of the government to implement new national security laws, known as Article 23. We need to have a society that is united, harmonious and caring, she said. | 1 |
22,910 | Catalans have no choice but to delay, says former adviser | BELGRADE (Reuters) - Catalonia s president has no choice but to suspend secession since it is unlikely anyone will recognize the Spanish region on the basis of a disputed referendum, a former British diplomat who has advised the Catalans and other secessionist movements said. Carne Ross, who as founder of the diplomatic consultancy Independent Diplomat has worked with Kosovo, South Sudan, Western Sahara and Catalonia on their respective bids for sovereignty, said there would be no solution to the crisis without a legal plebiscite agreed to by Madrid. To get there would require pressure from Spain s European Union partners, Ross told Reuters in a telephone interview. A full declaration of independence would have been very problematic, would have led to obvious confrontation with Madrid and he (Catalan President Carles Puigdemont) was under enormous pressure not to declare independence, including I assume from the countries that Catalonia would look to for recognition, said Ross. At the end of the day, if you re to be independent, you need to be recognized as such. I think they are only likely to get international recognition if there is a legal referendum that Madrid accepts. Puigdemont declared on Tuesday that Catalonia had the mandate for independence but proposed suspending sovereignty to allow for talks with Madrid on an agreed solution. On Wednesday, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy called for clarity as to whether or not Catalonia had declared independence and raised the specter of Madrid suspending the region s autonomy. Catalonia s Oct. 1 referendum was declared illegal by a Spanish high court and mustered only 43 percent turnout as many independence opponents stayed at home. Hundreds of people were injured by baton-wielding police as they intervened to close polling stations. Ross said many Catalans had been radicalized by Madrid s resistance and police behavior. Fuel has been added to the fire, he said. In my view, legitimate independence can only be legitimately declared when it has a clear majority of the population. I don t think it is right to declare independence when you don t have that clear majority. And as things currently stand, Catalonia does not have that clear majority. Ross formerly headed the Middle East section of the British mission to the United Nations but resigned from the civil service in 2004 over the invasion of Iraq. His work with Independent Diplomat was the subject of the documentary Accidental Anarchist that was broadcast in July on the BBC. Ross, who advised the Catalan government between July 2013 and September 2015 and is a committed advocate of self-determination, said it was unrealistic to expect a mediated solution resulting in, for instance, greater autonomy for Catalonia. He cited the examples of Montenegro and Scotland, in which referendums were held on the basis of negotiated terms in 2006 and 2014 respectively. Montenegro narrowly voted to leave a state union with Serbia, while a majority of Scots opted to remain with Britain. I think that the international community should be calling for Madrid to do what Britain did with Scotland, which is to allow a legal referendum to resolve this once and for all. French President Emmanuel Macron has rejected a call by Puigdemont for EU mediation, but Ross said the bloc should state clearly to Madrid that it needs to find a more consensual solution . Asked if the Catalans had erred in holding a referendum that Madrid did not agree to, Ross replied: They had no other option to build up the pressure for that dialogue. | 1 |
22,911 | Canada frets over possible huge surge in asylum-seekers: sources | OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canada fears a huge surge in asylum seekers crossing the border from the United States, putting political pressure on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau ahead of a 2019 election, sources familiar with the matter said on Wednesday. The number of migrants illegally entering Canada more than tripled in July and August, hitting nearly 7,000. Haitians, who face looming deportation from the United States when their temporary protected status expires in January 2018, accounted for much of the inflow. Two sources familiar with Canadian government thinking said citizens from El Salvador, Nicaragua and Honduras, who are slated to lose their U.S. protected status in early 2018, may also head north. There is concern we ll see a huge increase, mostly from Central America, said one source. The question is, which group is next, and how are we going to deal with it, and what is the impact on Canadians? added the source, who requested anonymity given the sensitivity of the situation. Most new arrivals are going to the predominantly French-speaking province of Quebec, sparking protests from opposition politicians and anti-immigrant groups. Trudeau s Liberals need to gain support in Quebec to offset expected losses elsewhere ahead of an October 2019 election. Asked whether the Liberals were worried about losing popularity in Quebec, the source said: Absolutely. That s a concern. But if Trudeau clamps down too far, he risks tarnishing a long-cultivated reputation for openness and tolerance. He pointedly tweeted Canada s welcome of refugees after U.S. President Donald Trump unveiled a travel ban in January. The government is in a real quandary over this, said a third source familiar with official thinking. Ottawa has hardened its tone in recent days, warning people not to cross the border since they could well be deported. Trudeau said Canada was enforcing immigration rules. We are an open and welcoming country because citizens have confidence in our immigration and refugee system and we have been able to continue to defend and protect the integrity of that system, he told reporters in Montreal on Wednesday. He also said Ottawa might accelerate the process of issuing work permits for asylum seekers rather than make them wait for refugee claims to be processed, which now takes several months. Leger Marketing pollster Christian Bourque said there were no immediate signs that support in Quebec for Trudeau was weakening. I think that changes if people do not perceive the government is taking a strong stand, he said. A Reuters poll in March found nearly half of Canadians want to deport people who are illegally crossing from the United States. A Haitian-Canadian Liberal legislator is due to visit Miami on Thursday, home to a large expatriate community, in a bid to persuade people to stay put. Officials complain false stories are circulating about how easy it is to be granted permission to stay in Canada. Some of the Haitians are in temporary housing, including Montreal s Olympic Stadium and at least two tent camps near the border. Critics accuse Trudeau of encouraging would-be refugees to come to Canada without thinking through the consequences. | 1 |
22,912 | dr duke and andrew anglin discuss the most important vote and election of our lives | david duke exults this is the day we begin to take america back we are confident but whatever the outcome tonight our people are awakened november at am
david duke exults this is the day we begin to take america back we are confident but whatever the outcome tonight our people are awakened
today dr duke expressed his confidence that he and donald trump were headed to electoral success but that no matter what the outcome the people have been awakened and that we are now in a position to take back our society dr slattery then pointed out the monumental effort made by dr duke and the enormous sacrifices he has made and the real physical risks he has endured in order to give us a voice and offered his heartfelt thanks
they then when on to discuss the possibilities that could emerge from todays vote while hillary has been rattling the sabres for a war with russia the mass awakening that is occurring would hopefully lead those needed in the military to make a war happen to reject orders which could destroy civilization
this is a historic show for a historic day now go out there and vote for trump and duke
our show is aired live at am replayed at et pm eastern and am eastern
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and please spread this message to others | 1 |
22,913 | WATCH: PRESIDENT TRUMP RETRIEVES MARINE’S HAT and Places it Back on His Head After it Blows Off… Oorah! [Video] | Following the G-20 Summit in Hamburg, Germany, President Trump stopped to pick up a Marine s hat that blew off twice on his way to board Marine One at Joint Base Andrews on Saturday.Trump noticed the Marine s dress hat blew off and bent over to pick it up, placing it back on his head while giving him an affectionate pat on the arm.It is refreshing to have a president who shows the utmost respect for our military. In contrast, Obama was caught on video forgetting to salute a Marine while boarding Marine One and infamously ordered a Marine to hold an umbrella over his head during a speech in 2013.See Video (go to 1:32): The Daily Caller | 0 |
22,914 | WATCH: Sean Spicer Loses His Sh*t When Reporters Grill Him About Trump’s Ties To Russia | Donald Trump s White House mouthpiece just gave Melissa McCarthy more material to work with on Saturday Night Live.As we all know, FBI Director James Comey revealed during testimony under oath that Trump is being investigated for colluding with Russia during the 2016 Election and has been under investigation for months. Comey also confirmed that Trump s wiretapping accusation against President Obama is bullshit.These revelations have given the White House Press Corps a lot of questions to ask, and Sean Spicer is not happy about it.In particular, Spicer has had to deal with questions surrounding former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort, who has been attempting to spread pro-Putin propaganda on behalf of Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska for over a decade.Again, Spicer does not like having to answer questions about Trump s ties to Russia. He would like the media to ignore them and become propaganda outlets for Trump instead. But Spicer is not getting his way.During Wednesday s press briefing, Axios reporter Jonathan Swan asked Spicer about Manafort s connection to Russia and wanted to know if Trump knew about it. H was not aware of Paul s client in the last decade, Spicer claimed before getting snippy. What else is coming out? What else don t we know? Where he went to school, who he went to grade school with, who he played with in the sandbox? Of course, Spicer s credibility imploded on his first day on the job so reporters have no reason to believe him when he claims Trump doesn t know something.Anyway, another reporter attempted to ask a follow-up question and that led to yet another testy exchange, which morphed into yet another Spicer temper tantrum.SPICER: I m answering a question, here. REPORTER: I m asking a question. SPICER: No, you re not. The answer to your question is to talk about someone having a client ten years ago that had a consulting company with clients around the world. I don t know what he got paid to do. He was a consultant, he had clients around the world. There was no suggestion he did anything improper but to suggest that the president knew who his clients were from a decade ago is a bit insane. He wasn t a government employee, he did not fill out any paperwork attesting to something. There was nothing he did to suggest at this point that anything was nefarious, he was hired to do a job, he did it plain and simple. Here s the video via YouTube: Sean Spicer is seriously terrible at his job. His credibility is shot all to hell and he constantly shoots himself in the foot by getting into confrontations with reporters because they ask certain questions that Spicer and Trump would rather not have to answer.INstead of attacking the media, Spicer would be better off just answering the questions, because the more defensive he gets, the more it looks like Trump has something to hide. And that means Spicer will have to answer even more questions.Featured image via Mark Wilson/Getty Images | 0 |
22,915 | Trump to lay out what he would do in first 100 days if elected president | (Reuters) - Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump will lay out on Saturday what he would do in the first 100 days of his administration should he win the Nov. 8 election. Trump’s outline - which he will deliver in a speech in the historic town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania - will cover his plans for boosting Americans’ economic and physical security and contrast them with those of Democrat Hillary Clinton, campaign aides told reporters on Friday. Clinton published a book of her own policy ideas earlier this year. Trump is trailing Clinton in most polls - although he has narrowed the gap according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Friday - and has less than three weeks to catch up. Much of the campaign in recent weeks has focused on allegations that he made improper advances to women over decades, something he denies. It is also being dominated by Trump’s accusation that the election is “rigged” and that he may not accept the result. Trump aides said Gettysburg, the site of a major Civil War battle and Republican President Abraham Lincoln’s famous address, was a fitting place for Trump to lay out a positive vision for the future of his party, which has suffered a schism between his supporters and the party’s establishment. Trump has planted some new policy details in recent speeches as he seeks to shift attention away from the recent controversies. In the past week, for example, he laid out ethics rules to shut the “revolving door” between government and lobbying and proposed term limits for members of Congress. Trump’s aides said he would unveil additional new policy details Saturday. They would not elaborate. | 1 |
22,916 | KARMA? DEM REP Knocked off Stage By Falling Sign…After Republicans Had Received Death Threats [Video] | Is this karma? Republicans have been receiving death threats (see below) from Democrats who SUPPORT net neutrality and are furious that it could be repealed: But if you don t support net neutrality, I will find you and your family and I will kill you all. Angry Supporter of Net NeutralitySo this could be a sign Right?A Democratic congressman was knocked off the stage at a rally for net neutrality on Thursday when the sign behind him fell down on him:Rep. Jose Serrano (D., N.Y.) was speaking at a rally in Washington, D.C., on the same day the Federal Communications Commission is expected to repeal net neutrality regulations enacted by the Obama administration.As Serrano spoke in favor of net neutrality, the alarm-clock style sign behind him that said Wake up call fell down and pushed Serrano off the stage. He kept his footing and made a joke about it. Wow. I have never been hit that hard in the South Bronx, he said, going on to speak from the ground. But I ll speak from here, and I m doing that with a pulled muscle in my leg.REPUBLICANS HAD RECEIVED DEATH THREATS OVER NET NEUTRALITY:A New York man was arrested for making a death threat against Rep. John Katko over the net neutrality debate, the latest in a string of threats from advocates of the liberal policy.Federal Communications Commission chairman Ajit Pai has received numerous threats since announcing the agency s intention earlier this year to repeal the Obama era rules that expanded federal regulation over the internet.Katko, a Republican who represents upstate New York and has no role in the FCC agenda, received a threatening voicemail from Patrick Angelo, who vowed to kill Katko s family if he supports repealing net neutrality. Listen Mr. Katko, if you support net neutrality, I will support you, Angelo said, according to a complaint filed in federal court. But if you don t support net neutrality, I will find you and your family and I will kill you all. Do you understand? I will literally find all of you and your progeny and just wipe you from the face of the earth. Angelo was charged with threatening to kill a U.S. congressman and is facing up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. I condemn in the strongest possible terms any attempts to intimidate government officials with violent threats, and in particular, efforts to target their families, said Chairman Pai. I would also like to express my sympathy to Congressman Katko and his family and thank law enforcement officials for taking this matter seriously. GOING AFTER THE CHILDREN OF FCC CHAIRMAN PAI:The net neutrality debate has become increasingly heated, with Chairman Pai reporting this week of threatening signs targeting his family. Protest signs of the repeal policy, which Pai formally released last week, turned up in his neighborhood naming and targeting his young children. Dad murdered democracy, one sign read, and another featured Pai s children s names.YES, THIS IS THE UNHINGED BEHAVIOR FROM THOSE ON THE LEFT WHO WANT TO KEEP NET NEUTRALITY. PRETTY SICK!Read more: WFB | 0 |
22,917 | Watch A GOP Member Of Science Committee Suffer Total Humiliation At Hand Of NASA Scientist | It s no secret that Republicans seem to think that the movie Idiocracy is a documentary. They refuse to believe the scientific consensus that climate change is manmade and a big f*cking deal. Republicans actually think that higher education is bad and well, the rise in flat earthers, can t be a coincidence.Is it any surprise, then, that the Republican-led House Committee on Science, Space and Technology doesn t have a single scientist? That s not even the worst of it. They have as a ranking member Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-California), whose greatest hits include blaming prehistorical climate change on dinosaur farts.During a panel with real scientists, as opposed to those who play scientist in Congress, Rohrabacher even topped the dinosaur theory. In a discussion about Mars, in which a NASA scientist said there might have been life on Mars many, many years ago, Rohrabacher just had to ask: You have indicated that Mars was totally different thousands of years ago. Is it possible that there was a civilization on Mars thousands of years ago? Source: SlateYeah, just a couple of things here. The NASA scientist was talking about microbial life, not anything resembling human life and we re talking billions of years, not thousands of years ago. Then again, it seems that most Christian Republicans think the earth is just 6,000 years old, so it s doubtful Rohrabacher can think in such vast terms.Kenneth Farley, who worked on the 2020 rover and Europa Clipper, and is a professor of geochemistry at the California Institute of Technology, somehow didn t lose his patience with Rohrabacher, and simply said: So, the evidence is that Mars was different billions of years ago not thousands of years ago, Farley said. There is no evidence that I am aware of. Rohrabacher, presumably refusing to take no for an answer, asked, would you rule that out? Harley said, that is extremely unlikely. Here s the video:Featured image via Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images. | 0 |
22,918 | Top House Intelligence Democrat says chairman should step aside from Russia probe | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Representative Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the House of Representatives Intelligence Committee, said on Monday that the committee’s chairman should recuse himself from any further involvement in the panel’s investigation of Russian involvement in the 2016 U.S. election. | 1 |
22,919 | Publisher Announces Books By The Obamas Are Officially On The Way | Penguin Random House announced on Tuesday night that Barack and Michelle Obama have both signed book deals with the publisher. According to the statement, the former president and former first lady will each be authoring a book in the near future.The announcement reads: Penguin Random House is pleased to announce that it will publish forthcoming books by former President of the United States Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama. Oenguin Random House CEO MArkus Dohle announced today that the company has acquired world publication rights for two books, to be written by President and Mrs. Obama respectively. The statement did not disclose an actual dollar amount for these deals, but according to a report in Financial Times, bids on their books had reached more than $60 million. If accurate, this would blow away the price tag attached to the memoirs of other recent presidents. Bill Clinton got $15 million for his book My Life and George W Bush made approximately $10 million from his book Decision Points.The announcement did say that in support of the mission of The Obama Foundation and Penguin Random House s own commitment to social responsibility, the company will donate one million books in the Obama family s name to First Book. The First Book program strives to promote equal access to education by providing new books, learning materials, and other essentials to children in need. In addition, the Obamas also plan to donate a significant portion of their author proceeds to charity. We are absolutely thrilled to continue our publishing partnership with President and Mrs. Obama, Dohle said. With their words and their leadership, they changed the world, and every day, with the books we publish at Penguin Random House, we strive to do the same. Now, we are very much looking forward to working together with President and Mrs. Obama to make each of their books global publishing events of unprecedented scope and significance. This is not the first time the former president has worked with the publisher. CNN points out that Penguin Random House has published Obama s past books, so the new deal continues a two-decade-long relationship. The hefty figures quoted in the bids for their books clearly demonstrate the expectation that these books are going to be huge best sellers. Personally, I have only one question: Where can I place a pre-order?New books by @BarackObama and @MichelleObama have been acquired by @penguinrandom, the publisher says. pic.twitter.com/EkF5cfRaOH Dave Itzkoff (@ditzkoff) February 28, 2017Featured image via Mike Theiler-Pool/Getty Images | 0 |
22,920 | Turkey says Myanmar allows first foreign aid deliveries | ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Myanmar authorities have given approval for the first deliveries of foreign aid in the northwest of the country, Turkey said on Tuesday, after President Tayyip Erdogan spoke to Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi on Tuesday, Erdogan s spokesman said. Spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said 1,000 tonnes of food, clothes and medicine would be delivered to the area by helicopter from Wednesday, where Muslim Rohingya are fleeing violence. | 1 |
22,921 | ‘Fraud’: Major Veterans Group Accuses Trump Of Ripping Off Soldiers | The military veterans group VoteVets is blasting presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump as a fraud, after it was revealed that his claim that he raised $6.5 million for veterans was a lie.A Washington Post report uncovered the truth behind yet another wild Trump statement:One night in January, Donald Trump skipped a GOP debate and instead held his own televised fundraiser for veterans. At the end of the night, Trump proclaimed it a huge success: We just cracked $6 million, right? Six million. Now, Trump s campaign says that number is incorrect.Campaign manager Corey Lewandowski said the fundraiser actually netted about $4.5 million, or 75 percent of the total that Trump announced.Trump used the $6 million figure as a public relations talking point for himself in the days following the fundraiser, while he campaigned for votes in the Republican primary. Yet when asked by the Post to account for all of the money he allegedly collected, Trump refused. Paul Rieckhoff, founder of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, told the Post, That s just shady. Right? No matter how you cut it, that s just shady. Now VoteVets has responded to the Post article, and they are also blasting Trump for the way he used the veteran s issue to boost his own profile, while giving soldiers less than he promised.Responding to the story, Iraq War Veteran and Chairman of VoteVets.org, Jon Soltz said: Donald Trump is a cheap fraud. In a classic fraud move, made himself look good to the public, by lying to the American people, and veterans, about how much he raised for veterans groups, when he hid behind them to get out of the GOP debate. He said he raised $6 million. Now, when investigated by reporters, he finally admits that he overstated the amount by millions, and never raised what he told people he did. In fact, there may still be groups who are waiting for their check. Soltz further notes, We now need to presume that he is lying about how much he claims he has given to veterans over the years, and that s part of the reason he won t release his taxes. VoteVets describes itself as an organization with over 400,000 supporters that uses public issue campaigns and direct outreach to lawmakers to ensure that troops abroad have what they need to complete their missions, and receive the care they deserve when they get home. Featured image via Flickr | 0 |
22,922 | Massachusetts governor proposes bill to stiffen immigration enforcement | BOSTON (Reuters) - Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker proposed a bill on Tuesday to allow police and courts to hold people facing deportation orders in custody for extra time to allow them to be turned over to federal immigration officials. The move by the Republican came a week after the state’s top court ruled that law enforcement does not have the legal authority to comply with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainer requests. The ICE requests ask that people facing civil deportation orders be held in custody for up to 48 hours after the cases that brought them into the court system are determined. Baker said the court’s decision overturned longstanding policy in the state. “For years, many local police departments and the trial court have cooperated with ICE to ensure that they can detain violent and dangerous criminals, convicted of crimes like murder and rape, to keep our communities safe,” Baker said in a statement. “This bill allows the state police to honor specific detainers.” Baker’s proposal would limit compliance to cases where the person ICE officials want detained is suspected of violent crimes such as terrorism, street-gang activity or human trafficking, or has been convicted of a felony not directly related to his or her immigration status. ICE detainer requests apply to immigrants in the country illegally who are arrested or otherwise enter the criminal justice system. Baker’s proposal would require a judge’s approval to hold people facing a detainer request for longer than 12 hours after their cases are resolved. President Donald Trump has made cracking down on illegal immigration a top priority of his administration. The state chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union criticized the move. “Baker’s proposed legislation ... is constitutionally suspect because it attempts to authorize state and local law enforcement to detain people without due process,” the group’s executive director, Carol Rose, said in a statement. The leaders of the Democratic-controlled state legislature in Massachusetts did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Baker’s proposal. | 1 |
22,923 | CNN Host STUNS Sean Spicer With An ONSLAUGHT Of Facts About Obamacare Repeal (VIDEO) | CNN s Jim Acosta has been a thorn in the Trump administration s side ever since Donald Trump insulted him during a press conference and called him and the news network fake news . Needless to say, every time Acosta asks a question, Trump s team gets nervous and this was apparent yesterday when White House Press Secretary found himself cornered by Acosta on the GOP s new healthcare plan at a White House briefing.When Acosta brought up the fact that the Republicans new plan would result in millions of Americans losing their insurance a fact that was confirmed by the Congressional Budget Office Spicer almost blew up trying to defend the GOP s plan. Acosta asked: Would you concede that there will be some coverage losses, perhaps in the millions? There will be millions of people who will not have health insurance because of what you re doing. Spicer tried to argue against Obamacare s individual mandate, stating that many Americans already chose not to purchase Obamacare, instead opting to pay penalties but Acosta wasn t having any of it. Acosta replied: The mandate forces people to buy insurance so you don t have the free rider problem. You have free riders and those folks end up in car accidents and end up at the emergency room. And then health care is much more expensive. Spicer tried to hit back and say that Obamacare forced people to buy plans that they did not like that were mandated by the government, but Acosta continued to lay into him with fact after fact. Acosta was quick to point out that the CBO stated that over 20 million fewer Americans would have coverage by 2020, and argued that government-run health care like Obamacare was not the problem. Acosta said: Medicare is government-run health care. I don t see citizens screaming that they want you to get rid of their Medicare. Acosta and Spicer went back and forth over the GOP s new healthcare plan for several minutes, and it was clear that Spicer was unraveling and about to lose it. You can watch Acosta rail against Spicer below:Featured image via Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images | 0 |
22,924 | Russia's Putin: ready to meet Trump any moment but better after he forms his administration - media | MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin is ready to meet U.S. president-elect Donald Trump any moment but thinks better would be for Trump to form his administration first, Putin was quoted as saying in an interview to Japanese media. | 1 |
22,925 | JUDICIARY MEMBER: Why was FBI’s Case on Clinton Labelled ‘Special’ Status? [Video] | I am immediately calling for an investigation into the special treatment that the FBI gave Hillary Clinton. Rep. Gaetz: "I am immediately calling for an investigation into the special treatment that the FBI gave Hillary Clinton." #IngrahamAngle pic.twitter.com/EHkQfyeWDK Fox News (@FoxNews) November 22, 2017Ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee Goetz is calling for an investigation into why Hillary Clinton s FBI case was labelled special by the FBI s Andrew McCabe:The Hill reports:Shortly before last year s election, FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe wrote an email on his official government account stating that the Hillary Clinton email probe had been given special status, according to documents released Wednesday.McCabe s Oct. 23, 2016, email to press officials in the FBI said the probe was under the control of a small group of high-ranking people at the FBI s headquarters in Washington. As I now know the decision was made to investigate it at HQ with a small team, McCabe wrote in the email. He said he had no input when the Clinton email investigation started in summer 2015, while he was serving as assistant director in charge of the FBI s Washington office. [The Washington office] provided some personnel for the effort but it was referred to as a special and I was not given any details about it, he wrote.FBI officials on Wednesday night refused to answer what McCabe meant by calling the Clinton email probe a special or why it was restricted to a small team at headquarters when it began. We don t have anything to add to the documents that were released, bureau spokeswoman Carol Cratty wrote The Hill.The note was contained in more than 70 pages of emails the FBI released on its public records site known as The Vault.The emails chronicled McCabe s efforts to address a separate controversy involving his wife s 2015 campaign for political office.McCabe s references to a special status for the Clinton probe are likely to be used as ammunition by Republican lawmakers critical of former FBI Director James Comey s handling of the Clinton investigation.Remember that the DOJ s Loretta Lynch also wanted Clinton s case to be called an incident and not an investigation. It looks like all intel agencies were doing all they could to protect Clinton. Was it to save themselves from exposure in the Uranium One case or something else? | 0 |
22,926 | Senate confirms Trump's pick Zinke as Interior Secretary | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Senate on Wednesday voted to confirm President Donald Trump’s pick to head the Interior Department, Rep. Ryan Zinke of coal producing Montana, as the White House takes steps to boost fossil fuel output from federal lands. The Senate voted 68 to 31, with several Democrats joining Republicans in support of Zinke, an hunter and angler, who supported energy development as a one-term congressman. | 1 |
22,927 | Senate blocks bill that would override state GMO labeling laws | (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate on Wednesday blocked a bill that would nullify state and local efforts to require food makers to label products made with genetically modified organisms, or GMOs, as the industry races to stop Vermont’s law from taking effect on July 1. The proposed legislation from Republican Senator Pat Roberts of Kansas comes amid growing calls for transparency in the U.S. food supply. Labeling advocates have criticized the bill as toothless because it leaves the decision to disclose GMO ingredients to the companies whose products contain them. Senate Bill 2609 is known as the Biotech Labeling Solutions Act by supporters and the Deny Americans the Right to Know, or DARK, Act by opponents. A procedural vote on Wednesday failed to reach the necessary 60 votes to advance the bill in the Senate, with 49 yes votes and 48 no votes. Roberts vowed to keep fighting as the July 1 deadline looms for Vermont’s labeling requirement to take effect. “I remain at the ready to work on a solution,” Roberts said. The United States is the world’s largest market for foods made with genetically altered ingredients. Many popular processed foods are made with soybeans, corn and other biotech crops whose genetic traits have been manipulated, often to make them resistant to insects and pesticides. Major food, farm and biotech seed companies spent more than $100 million in the United States last year to battle labeling efforts, according to a lobbying disclosure analysis from the Environmental Working Group, which opposes the Senate measure. Opponents to GMO labeling efforts include trade groups such as the Grocery Manufacturers Association, whose members have included PepsiCo Inc and Kellogg Co, and BIO, which counts Monsanto Co, Dow AgroSciences, a unit of Dow Chemical Co, and other companies that sell seeds that produce GMO crops among its members. They say labeling would impose speech restrictions on food sellers, burden consumers with higher costs and create a patchwork of state GMO labeling policies that have “no basis in health, safety or science.” But companies such as Whole Foods Market Inc, Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc and Campbell Soup Co already have begun labeling or abandoning GMOs rather than waiting for government action. | 1 |
22,928 | Malaysia identifies victims of religious school fire, amid outrage over safety | KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Malaysia has identified all 23 people who died in a horrific fire at an Islamic boarding school, an official said on Friday, as calls mounted for tougher regulation after the worst such tragedy in two decades. The fire killed 21 teenage boys and two teachers after it broke out early on Thursday at a tahfiz school, where students learned to memorize the Koran. We hope and pray this will be the last such incident and preventive actions must be in place and be the order of the day, said Noor Hisham Abdullah, Malaysia s director general of health, adding that DNA tests were used to identify the bodies. There have been 31 similar fire incidents in the past, Malaysian officials said, but media put the figure higher. Among 1,034 fires in religious schools during the two years to August 2017, 211 schools burned to the ground, the Star daily said, quoting fire department figures. Family members of Mohamad Haikal Abdullah, a 12-year-old who died in the blaze, were furious over reports that the only door to the school s dormitory had caught fire while metal bars on the windows trapped the boys, leaving them unable to escape. From what we understand, there was only one way out, but they couldn t get through because it was on fire, said his brother, Faizal Abdullah, as he waited outside a hospital morgue for his sibling s remains to be identified. How could they have escaped? How could something like this have happened? We want to know. Fire officials said they found no damage to the electrical wiring of the dormitory, ruling out their earlier suggestion that a short circuit probably caused the blaze. The incident is being investigated as negligence, the fire chief, Wan Mohd Nor Ibrahim, told state news agency Bernama. The school denied a statement by authorities that it had made structural changes without approval from fire officials. Muslim-majority Malaysia offers a secular education system, but growing conservatism has led to a boom in the number of Islamic religious schools, most privately-run and not overseen by education authorities. Some offer a curriculum similar to secular schools, but with a greater emphasis on Islamic knowledge, while others provide more specialized education. Inadequate regulation and training has led to a slew of safety issues at such schools, including reports of fires, abuse, and student deaths, religious leader Mohamad Asri Zainul Abidin said on social media site Facebook. Some owners had set up schools simply as money-making enterprises or to satisfy their own interests, said Mohamad Asri, the mufti of the northern state of Perlis. Some low quality schools, in order to save costs, also take in anyone ready to teach, even when they have nothing to do with the subjects they re teaching, he added. Some religious schools were reluctant to follow government regulations for fear of interference in their administration, said Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi. Former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad, whose tenure lasted 22 years, said no lessons had been learned in nearly three decades, citing a 1989 tragedy that killed 27 girls at a religious school. I m sad that this kind of incident happened again, news portal the Malaysian Insight quoted him as saying after visiting victims families. Safety measures are very important. I hope after this, all schools will review (safety measures). | 1 |
22,929 | “OPEN MINDED” LIBERALS Ban Trump-Supporting Apartment Hunters | In case you missed it Senator Marco Rubio gave a great speech about political tolerance in the Senate that rings true here. How can we solve anything if we can t debate about it? What can we accomplish if half of the nation hates the other half? Open-minded liberals in Washington, D.C., are barring Trump supporters from applying to rent apartments online.Since the presidential election numerous listings have appeared on Craigslist, Reddit, and other sites written by woke vegetarian liberals, who are open to renters of any gender identity, but write-off anyone with opposing political beliefs. Alcohol, pets and meat products are not allowed in the house, said one liberal woman seeking a roommate near Georgetown, quoted in the New York Times. Neither are Trump supporters. Roommates Wanted. Trump Supporters Need Not Apply, the Times reports, arguing that anti-Trump rental policies are legal despite political affiliation being a protected trait under D.C. law.The Times says anti-Trump housing listings are a small act of defiance in an area that heavily favored Hillary Clinton. Only 4 percent of D.C. voters cast their ballots for Donald Trump.Liberals say they are open to any gender identity or non-identity with the exception of identifying as conservative. [T]wo women in their 20s were searching for a roommate to take over a lavender-colored room in their Columbia Heights apartment for $550, the Times reported. The women detailed their love of happy hours, a good Netflix sesh, pho and tacos. We re open to any age/gender identity/non-identity, the liberal women said. So long as you didn t vote for Trump. Another self-described open-minded liberal couple said they could not accept a Trump supporter to fill an open room in their house.Read more: WFB | 0 |
22,930 | KARMA: Wikileaks Turns On Donald Trump After Administration Threatens To Arrest Julian Assange | Karma just kicked Donald Trump s door down.As you ll recall, Donald Trump repeatedly praised Wikileaks for leaking Hillary Clinton s campaign emails. Those leaks helped Trump win the election, but now Trump s love of Wikileaks has come back to bite him on the ass.Trump CIA Director Mike Pompeo and his Attorney General Jeff Sessions have both criticized Wikileaks since Trump took office and both have promised to arrest Wikileaks leader Julian Assange.Pompeo even admitted that Wikileaks is a non-state hostile intelligence service often abetted by state actors like Russia. Indeed, Trump colluded with Russia to win the election.Sessions told reporters this week that he intends to put people like Assange in jail for leaks. We are going to step up our effort and already are stepping up our efforts on all leaks, Sessions said. This is a matter that s gone beyond anything I m aware of. Here s the video via Twitter.U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions on bringing charges against Julian Assange pic.twitter.com/BudIEN2uK0https://t.co/LN04EvJ8FK WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) April 21, 2017And Trump himself recently declared that he supports the Justice Department effort to arrest and charge Assange, telling reporters that s it s okay with me. So Wikileaks decided to hit back by posting video of Trump telling his rally crowd how much he loves Wikileaks.Donald Trump, October 10, 2016: This just came out. WikiLeaks! I love WikiLeaks! pic.twitter.com/KWP7X2aLiN WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) April 21, 2017Oops. Trump apparently forgot that he was in bed with Wikileaks during the election. He loved them for attacking Hillary Clinton for his own benefit. Now Wikileaks is probably regretting helping Trump because their leader is now being targeted by his administration. And Trump has to be concerned about Wikileaks digging up information on him and releasing it to the public.This is what karma looks like. Trump had no problem with Wikileaks when the organization was attacking Hillary. Now we get to see how Trump likes being attacked by them. This ought to be damn entertaining.Featured Image: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images | 0 |
22,931 | Ivanka Trump Tweets About Dead Syrian Children, And Twitter Has The PERFECT Response (TWEETS) | Ivanka Trump s father, the man who calls himself President of the United States, obviously follows world events even if it seems like he follows them so he can exploit them. His children, Ivanka included, tend to either follow him or walk in lockstep with him on virtually everything. While there s absolutely nothing wrong with expressing grief over Syria s president, Bahsar al-Assad s decision to murder innocent people including children, there are times when the irony of such expression is just too much to handle.Ivanka tweeted the following anger and dismay over Assad s gas attack on his own people earlier this week:Heartbroken and outraged by the images coming out of Syria following the atrocious chemical attack yesterday. Ivanka Trump (@IvankaTrump) April 5, 2017One man had the wherewithal to point out the horrific irony in that outrage:Wait until you find out that your Dad signed an executive order banning those same people from entering the United States https://t.co/7JHPCmJ8NF Michael Cohen (@speechboy71) April 6, 2017We d be in a far better position to justify total outrage over this if we d been behaving in a humanitarian manner towards Syria in the first place. We, or rather, Trump, haven t been. At the same time Trump is lamenting children who died at the hands of a brutal dictator, he s prohibiting those same children from coming to the U.S. because of some misguided fear about a Trojan horse of terrorism.Others are less-than impressed with her tweet too, in light of her father s attitude towards refugees. Considering we may have just made more refugees, the hypocrisy stands out in starker relief than ever:@speechboy71 @kimchi1380 She doesn t care. Refugees can t afford to buy her clothes Virginia Bourne (@Southviabirth) April 6, 2017@speechboy71 @rohaniroop @IvankaTrump Ivanka had to say something she didn t want to look complicit. Lauren Krajenta (@Hitandmisses4) April 6, 2017@speechboy71 But she doesn t know what #Complicit means. #SyriaGasAttack @IvankaTrump Suzy Howell (@howellsuzy) April 6, 2017@IvankaTrump Fuck you Sean T. Collins ? (@theseantcollins) April 5, 2017@IvankaTrump Gonna blame Obama too? Alt. Sean Spicer (@AltUSPressSec) April 5, 2017@IvankaTrump You do realize it s YOUR policy that let this happen. This kind of statement is the definition of complicit. #trumprussia #holdthefloor Scott Dworkin (@funder) April 5, 2017@Frankatrinastei @Alisonnj @IvankaTrump Has she held a job that daddy DIDN T give her? Chris Beasley (@logan48227) April 5, 2017@speechboy71 @MalcolmNance @IvankaTrump What the hell do you or ur father care about those poor refugee? U ban refugees fleeing for their lives! Your words are empty! tula holmes (@tulaholmes) April 6, 2017@speechboy71 @JoyAnnReid How many of those women, children, and babies could have been saved if allowed refuge in the US and their allies? Deborah Carmody (@smokerisesOH) April 6, 2017@speechboy71 @JoyAnnReid @IvankaTrump If you didn t fight against Daddy s refugee ban or Jr s poison skittles comment, you are #Complicit friedpearl (@friedpearl) April 6, 2017@speechboy71 @007kzman Oh, no. She s just heartbroken enough as long as they re not here. If they are here, she s less than enthused. Imagine This (@HeyThatsMyPen) April 6, 2017@speechboy71 @IvankaTrump Hey, Ivanka, if you re so concerned, are you going to expedite refugee visas for these poor kids?? Betcha don t. V. Williams (@gecko46) April 6, 2017Unless she openly stands up to her father when he makes things harder for people like Syrian refugees everyone s right. She has a chance to have some real influence for good and she s squandering it this way.Featured image by Win McNamee via Getty Images | 0 |
22,932 | U.S. to expel nearly two-thirds of Cuban embassy staff: U.S. sources | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Trump administration will order nearly two-thirds of Cuba’s diplomatic personnel to leave the United States after months of mysterious “attacks” that have damaged the health of American embassy staff in Havana, according to a congressional source and a person familiar with the plan. The U.S. State Department is expected to announce the expulsion on Tuesday, the sources said on Monday. The decision follows an announcement on Friday that the United States was cutting its diplomatic presence in Cuba by more than half as it warned U.S. citizens not to visit because of unexplained incidents that have caused hearing loss, dizziness and fatigue in U.S. embassy personnel. The latest plan was first reported by the Miami Herald, which cited a source as saying the expulsion of Cuban personnel was in “reciprocity” for the U.S. drawdown from Havana. The steps being taken by President Donald Trump’s administration mark a further blow to his predecessor Barack Obama’s policy of rapprochement between Washington and Havana, former Cold War foes. The State Department declined to comment on an expulsion plan, except to say that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson “continues to evaluate steps that the Department can take to ensure the Cuban government is accountable to its responsibility to protect diplomats.” Several Cuban-American Republican lawmakers, including U.S Senator Marco Rubio and Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, had urged that Cuban diplomats be expelled in retaliation for the Cuban government’s failure to get to the bottom of the attacks. Trump administration officials planned to brief lawmakers on their Cuba policy on Tuesday, another congressional aide said, speaking on condition of anonymity. The State Department announced on Friday that in addition to drawing down staff in Havana to essential personnel, the embassy was halting regular visa operations for Cubans seeking to visit the United States and would offer only emergency services to U.S. citizens. At least 21 U.S. embassy employees in Cuba have been injured and reported symptoms such as hearing loss, dizziness, headache, fatigue, cognitive issues, and difficulty sleeping, the State Department said on Friday. Cuba’s Foreign Ministry Chief for U.S. Affairs Josefina Vidal said last week that the U.S. decision to reduce staff at its Havana embassy was hasty and will affect bilateral relations, Cuba, the United States and Canada have investigated the attacks, but the probe has not yielded any answers about how they were carried out or who was responsible for them. Cuba has denied involvement in the attacks. The State Department has not directly blamed Havana for them but asked two Cuban diplomats to leave Washington in May. The U.S. measures will stop short of breaking off relations or closing the two countries’embassies, which reopened in 2015 following more than five decades of hostility. But the bizarre case has brought simmering U.S.-Cuba tensions since Trump took office to a boil. Trump, who in June vowed to partially roll back the detente with Cuba agreed by his Democratic predecessor Obama, called the Cuban government “corrupt and destabilizing” in his address to the United Nations General Assembly last month. He said he would not lift the U.S. trade embargo on the Caribbean island until it made “fundamental reforms.” Cuba described his comments as “unacceptable and meddling.” | 1 |
22,933 | Trump says options for dealing with North Korea are 'overwhelming' | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday following the latest missile launch by North Korea that he is more confident than ever that our options in addressing this threat are both effective and overwhelming. Speaking to a group that included military personnel at Joint Base Andrews near Washington, Trump said North Korea has once again shown its utter contempt for its neighbors and for the entire world community. | 1 |
22,934 | IMF's Lagarde tells Ukraine president to speed up reforms | KIEV (Reuters) - The head of the International Monetary Fund, Christine Lagarde, said she had a constructive phone call with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko late on Thursday in which she urged him to speed up the fight against corruption. Perceived backsliding on reform commitments, including delays in establishing an independent court to handle corruption cases, has held up billions of dollars in loans under Ukraine s $17.5 billion IMF program. Action by parliament and prosecutors against existing anti-corruption institutions such as the NABU investigative bureau also provoked a wave of criticism this week from reformists in Ukraine and its foreign backers, including the IMF. I had a constructive and open discussion with President Poroshenko on Ukraine s efforts to fight corruption, Lagarde said in a statement. Lagarde said she and Poroshenko discussed the need to safeguard the independence of NABU and similar institutions and that they agreed on the urgency of establishing an anti-corruption court. I assured the President that the IMF stands ready to continue to support Ukraine, along with other international partners, in the fight against corruption and encouraged the authorities to accelerate the implementation of reforms, she said. | 1 |
22,935 | OBAMA TO GRANT WORK PERMITS FOR SPOUSES OF ILLEGAL ALIENS ON MAY 26, While 89% of Long-term Jobless Americans Would ‘Search Harder’ If Benefits Ran Out | 40% of Americans have given up looking for work. Obama logic: Don t cut or reduce benefits for those unwilling to look for work, just give their jobs to illegal aliens makes perfect sense.A Large Percentage Of Americans Have Given Up Looking For WorkA new survey by staffing firm Express Employment Professionals shows that 40% of America s unemployed have given up looking for work.Not only are the long-term jobless being left behind but nearly 50% hold themselves responsible for not finding a job, the firm s The State of the Unemployed survey found.The survey of 1,553 jobless Americans age 18 and older was conducted online by Harris Poll on behalf of Express Employment Professionals between 7 and 29 April 2015. This survey shows that some of the troubling trends we observed last year are continuing. While the economy is indeed getting better for some, for others who have been unemployed long-term, they are increasingly being left behind. Meanwhile, more than 2 out of 5 unemployed Americans have been jobless for more than 2 years. That represents an increase from Y 2014, when 32% said they had been out of work for more than 2 years.48% report not having an interview in the last month; among them, 87% have not had an interview since the beginning of Y 2014 or earlier with 77% not having been on an interview since Y 2013.Among the unemployed, 14% are receiving unemployment benefits.Of those receiving benefits, 89% say they would search harder and wider for work if their benefits ran out before finding a job.Via:American workers who lost their jobs to foreign replacements are suing the federal government over a new rule that will allow more foreign workers into the job market.In a stated effort to encourage guest workers to stick around permanently, the Department of Homeland Security will now grant their spouses work permits in addition to visas. DHS estimates more than 100,000 spouses will be eligible to apply when it begins accepting applications May 26.The complaint, filed by the Immigration Reform Law Institute on behalf of the displaced workers, alleges DHS does not have the authority to make the rule, and that the rule violates federal labor protection law. IRLI is asking the judge to halt implementation of the rule until the case is heard. The larger implication is that Obama is arguing he has the executive authority to allow anyone to work in the United States, John Miano, the attorney for the displaced workers, told The Daily Caller News Foundation. [He] started with the children, then the parents, and now the spouses of H-1B workers. An update to the federal register indicates the Obama administration is also looking at expansions to other visa programs, he said. If the president can let illegal aliens work, he can let anyone work and he s doing it. The workers are former employees of tech giant Southern California Edison, which was recently investigated for firing hundreds of American workers after forcing them to train their foreign replacements. (RELATED: Senators Ask Feds to Investigate Guest Worker Visa Abuse)The biggest challenge will be convincing a judge the workers he represents have legal standing to bring the case, Miano told TheDCNF.He ll argue the rule is relevant to the displaced workers because it will result in more competition in their job market. The government will counter that the workers can t prove the rule will affect their future job prospects.If the judge agrees to hear the case, Miano will then make the case that DHS overstepped the bounds of its authority and that the rule violates labor protection law. The law states that foreign work permits cannot adversely affect American wages, but all we ve seen during this administration is standards of living fall and outsized corporate profits continue to rise, IRLI Executive Director Dale Wilcox said in a statement. Via: The Daily Caller | 0 |
22,936 | U.N. tribunal seeks answers after stunned by courtroom suicide | THE HAGUE (Reuters) - A U.N. tribunal that was stunned by the courtroom suicide of a Bosnian Croat war criminal said on Thursday it was working with Dutch investigators to piece together how he smuggled a fatal dose of poison into the high-security building. Slobodan Praljak, 72, died on Wednesday at a hospital in The Hague within hours of drinking a vial of liquid during the reading of his appeals judgment at the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia. [L8N1NZ2YM] Preliminary testing confirmed that the cause of death was drinking a liquid that can kill, spokesman Vincent Veenman of the public prosecutors office in The Hague said. We cannot yet say what that substance was. Further testing is needed, he said. A 5-member ICTY appeals bench upheld Praljak s conviction on charges of crimes against humanity over persecution, murders and expulsions of Bosnian Muslims from territory captured by nationalist Bosnian Croats and the brutal imprisonment of wartime detainees. It also upheld his 20-year prison sentence. The criminal investigation was immediately launched by Dutch authorities, who sealed off the ICTY courtroom to take evidence after Praljak told the court: I have just taken poison , denounced the verdict and slumped back in his chair. Dutch prosecutors said the inquiry was focused on assisted suicide and violation of the Medicines Act. It will also try to determine how the poison was smuggled into the court. The court on Thursday declined to provide further comment, citing the ongoing independent investigation. Stricter procedures at the U.N. detention unit were adopted following the 2006 death of suspect Slobodan Milosevic, the former Serbian and Yugoslav president. Milosevic, who died of a heart attack before his verdict on genocide and war crimes charges, had banned medication in his cell which may have worsened an existing heart condition. Emotional reactions in Bosnia to Praljak s death highlighted lasting division in the Balkans, where the court had aimed to bring reconciliation, but convicted war criminals are often revered as heroes. About 1,000 nationalist supporters gathered to hold a Mass for Praljak, a former film and theater producer, in the Bosnian town of Mostar, known for the destruction of its iconic Old Bridge. Muslim victims of wartime violence welcomed his 20-year sentence and expressed hope it would deter future crimes. Croatian newspapers on Thursday focused on a lack of security measures at the tribunal and the government s rejection of the court s finding that Croatia, now a member of the European Union, was also responsible for war crimes. A verdict with consequences for Croatia , read a headline in the Novi List daily. The appeals chamber found (former president Franjo) Tudjman and Croatia responsible, it said. A horrific end for The Hague Tribunal , read the front-page headline in the Jutarnji List daily, which like all papers ran a prominent photo of Praljak swallowing poison. The dramatic events unfolded in the last minutes of the court s final ruling before it closes next month after 24 years. [L8N1NL7ZT] Previously, two defendants awaiting their ICTY trial, both Serbs, committed suicide by hanging themselves in their U.N. cells, according to court documents. The ICTY indicted 161 suspects in all from Bosnia, Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro and Kosovo in connection with atrocities in the ethnic wars during the 1990s. Of the 83 convicted, more than 60 were ethnic Serbs. | 1 |
22,937 | Four French schoolchildren killed as train plows into bus | PARIS (Reuters) - Four adolescents were killed when a train smashed into a school bus on a level crossing outside the town of Perpignan in southwestern France on Thursday. Images from the scene showed the bus split in two, with a long line of emergency vehicles on an approach to the crossing. Another 20 people were injured in the crash, 11 of them seriously, according to French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe, who traveled immediately to the scene. Most of the injured were schoolchildren aboard the bus, aged 13-17. Philippe told reporters the authorities were focused on getting accurate information to families, a process made difficult by the question of identification of those who have died and some of the injured. A crisis coordination center has been set up at Millas town hall on Perpignan s western outskirts, about 850 kilometers (530 miles) from Paris. According to local media reports, the bus was transporting pupils from the town s Christian Bourquin college. All my thoughts (are with) the victims and their families, French President Emmanuel Macron said on Twitter. The causes of the crash are unknown, pending a full investigation, officials said. The bus and train drivers both survived and will be interviewed by police. The train was carrying 25 passengers and traveling at 80 kmh, the regulatory speed for the section of track where the collision occurred, a spokeswoman for the national SNCF railway told Reuters. Three train passengers sustained relatively minor injuries, according to the interior ministry. Witnesses had reported that the barriers of the crossing were down at the moment of impact, the SNCF spokeswoman said, adding that all such preliminary information was subject to confirmation by investigators. France has suffered several serious rail accidents in recent decades. One of the deadliest was in 1988, when a commuter train heading into Paris Gare de Lyon crashed into a stationary train, killing 56 people, after its brakes failed. | 1 |
22,938 | HOPE FOR FORGOTTEN AMERICA…Why Trump Is Last Chance For This Steel Town Where 94% Of Jobs Have Gone [VIDEO] | In 2008 Barack Obama promised to shut down the coal industry:Hillary also promised to shut down the coal industry as part of her campaign platform. When politicians like Barack Obama and Hillary put special interests and lobbyists who are using phony climate change to collect billions in federal green subsidies over working Americans, you know these people are no longer public servants but instead, self-servants. Watch:There was a time, not so long ago, when this city on the Ohio River employed up to 15,000 people in the steel mills whose rusting warehouses still line the streets. Now the figure is closer to 800.First, it was costs associated with the repeated regulations imposed by the Environmental Protection Agency. Then, after 1994 and the passing of the North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta) it was cheaper competition from places such as Mexico. In the end, there was no way Weirton could compete, and an industry that has fed and clothed the city for generations essentially died. Her husband introduced Nafta, said a former steel worker, sitting at the the bar of the Columbia Club, located at one was once Gate No 1 of the Weirton Steel Corporation s main factory. He had worked at the plant for 34 years. If anyone in this in this state votes for her, they re crazy. It is communities such as this that Donald Trump has been targeting hard with his pitch about the evils of Nafta and the need to bring jobs well-paid manufacturing jobs in particular back to America. Polls collected by RealClearPolitics suggest he leads Hillary Clinton in West Virginia by between 18 to 27 points.While his policy is not hard on detail, Mr Trump has vowed repeatedly to bring jobs back from places such as Mexico and China.But in places such as Weirton, down to fewer than 20,000 people from a peak of 33,000 it is hard not to feel that while some parts of the country may have seen the benefits of global trade, this hardscrabble community, with its fast-food joints and strip bars, has been passed by.Ed Sutton, a city government worker who said he would be voting for Mr Trump, said that nothing had replaced the steel jobs . They talk about creating all these jobs. But they re just retail jobs that pay minimum wage, or just above, he said.Ms Clinton, meanwhile, said this spring, in a comment she came to quickly regret, she was going to put a lot of coal miners and coal companies out of business . IndependentTrump s appeal is vast and broad for many blue-collar workers and former workers across America. Listen to these former steel workers in PA, living in a Democrat stronghold explain how they never imagined they would be voting for a Republican: | 0 |
22,939 | 5-Year-Old Girl Kills Herself After ‘Responsible Gun Owner’ Dad Leaves Gun On A Table (VIDEO) | Once again, the NRA s favored masturbatory aid is responsible for the death of a child. The terrorist group masquerading as a gun rights organization regularly informs us that keeping a gun in the home is probably the safest thing someone can do for his family next to hiring an army of ninja chimpanzees, but the truth is that both can lead to unintended and disastrous consequences the sort that took the life of 5-year-old Haley Moore on Saturday.Neighbors describe Moore s father, Eric (a retired veteran the NRA would normally use as the poster-ammosexual for gun safety), as being vigilant about keeping his guns out of the hands of his child the sort of thing we can expect the NRA to say about most parents who bravely decide to transform their homes into veritable armories but reality, unfortunately, reared its ugly head when he decided to take a shower at around 9:45 a.m., leaving a loaded .45 handgun on the table.Next door neighbor Joy Ursin told WVUE that she learned what happened when Haley s terrified older siblings informed her: The oldest kid, she told me because they came over to us when all this happened, she s traumatized, my sister, my sister shot herself. Ursin says she comforted the older children as their father called law enforcement after he finished his shower, that is. The gun should ve been locked up but at the same time, you should, I think that from an early age, getting children familiar with them and enough to know it s not a toy is the biggest thing, Labat said telling the news station that it s definitely sad when something like this happens. Unfortunately, this isn t the solution either. Not only does the simple act of keeping a firearm in the home increase the risk of harm coming to yourself or your family members, but Mother Jones noted in 2013 that For every time a gun is used in self-defense in the home, there are 7 assaults or murders, 11 suicide attempts, and 4 accidents involving guns in or around a home. While it is comforting for some to think that a child well-informed about the dangers of guns will not touch them, an ABC experiment in which children were exposed to hidden firearms directly after taking a NRA gun safety class ignored the danger and (for the most part) played with the guns they found anyway.Haley died from her injuries in the hospital, another victim of the NRA s jihad against sanity.It is unclear if Eric will be charged with a crime for causing his daughter s death, but we won t be holding our collective breath.Watch a report on the senseless and completely avoidable death below:FOX 8 WVUE New Orleans News, Weather, Sports, SocialFeatured image via Facebook | 0 |
22,940 | Here’s The Disgusting Letter The FBI Sent To MLK They Don’t Want You To See (UNCENSORED IMAGE) | While Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. s life and legacy are deservedly well-celebrated now, that was not always how he was viewed. Especially by those in authority.King was shaking up business as usual, and many, many people didn t like that. You can t change the world without ruffling a few feathers, and he definitely did that.In fact, here s an uncensored letter from the FBI to Dr. King that was posted by The New York Times from the National Archives.It read: KING,In view of your low grade, abnormal personal behavior I will not dignify your name with either a Mr. or a Reverend or a Dr. And, your last name calls to mind only the type of King such as KingHenry the VIII and his countless acts of adultery and immoral conduct lower than that of a beast. Click the image to read the letter in full:National Archives via NY TimesThey tell him: There is only one thing left for you to do. You know what it is. They are basically telling Dr. King to kill himself, and giving him a deadline or they ll out him, so to speak for all these allegedly evil doings. It s absurd, to be blunt. Absolutely disgusting, to be honest.While the nation praises Dr. King today, we cannot forget how ugly the past truly was, and horribly he was treated. This letter was sent only about 50 years ago. So, we ve come a long way in a short amount of time, but we still have such a long way to go.Featured image via J. Wilds/Keystone/Getty Images | 0 |
22,941 | Lockheed Martin wins $450 million Pentagon contract: statement | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Lockheed Martin Corp has been awarded a $450 million modification to a previous contract linked to the development and delivery of F-35A aircraft to South Korea, the Pentagon said in a statement on Thursday. | 1 |
22,942 | Trump Contradicts Himself In Latest Whiny Tweet, And It’s Pretty Damn Hilarious (TWEET) | In case you haven t noticed, because maybe you ve been living away at sea with no contact to the rest of humanity, Donald Trump likes to tweet a lot, especially about what he loves the most the media.Oh, he ll say he hates the media, but he s been given hundreds and hundreds of free press coverage hours and air time to spew his hatred and lies, you d think, maybe sometimes, that the media was pulling for Trump to win.However, Trump doesn t see it that way. He doesn t like it when people don t say nice things about him at all times. Of course, he can pay people to do that on his campaign team. Thus the revolving door of campaign managers. Yet, when it comes to the press, they re pretty much just going to report the words coming out of his mouth, and he really doesn t like that, because, well, he s an ass, and honest reporting highlights that fact.In yet another whiny tweet, Trump unloads on the media, but this time around his source for the media being unfair to him is, well, the media.He tweeted: It is being reported by virtually everyone, and is a fact, that the media pile on against me is the worst in American political history! It is being reported by virtually everyone, and is a fact, that the media pile on against me is the worst in American political history! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 23, 2016So, let me get this perfectly clear: Trump is whining that the media is piling on against him, and his proof of that is the media.Okay there, buddy. Way to fully contradict yourself. Sad!How in the hell does he think he can be president if he can t handle criticism?If only there were a tiny violin to play him a sad, sad song.Featured Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images; Twitter | 0 |
22,943 | Mexico president replaces finance minister after damaging Trump visit | MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - President Enrique Pena Nieto on Wednesday replaced his close ally and finance minister, Luis Videgaray, after the two were heavily criticized for Republican U.S presidential candidate Donald Trump’s controversial visit to Mexico last week. A somber-looking Pena Nieto told a news conference that Videgaray, who officials said was the architect of Trump’s visit, would make way for former Finance Minister Jose Antonio Meade. Pena Nieto was widely pilloried for hosting Trump at short notice last Wednesday. The New York businessman has repeatedly vowed to build a border wall to keep out illegal immigrants - which he said Mexico would pay for. Trump has further infuriated Mexicans by threatening to carry out mass deportations and rewrite trade treaties crucial to their economy, and by referring to some immigrants from the United States’ southern neighbor as rapists or drug runners With economic growth sluggish, the president’s popularity at record lows and tensions palpable between the finance minister and other Cabinet members, rumors of Videgaray’s impending departure had bubbled under the surface in Mexico for months. “The proverbial last straw was the Trump visit,” said Agustin Barrios Gomez, a politician from the opposition leftist Party of the Democratic Revolution, and a driving force behind a draft bill sent to Congress this week to empower the government to retaliate against Trump if he threatens Mexican interests. “(It) was seen as such a fiasco that he no longer had the credibility necessary to do his immediate job,” he added. Senior diplomats said Videgaray, 48, had been instrumental in arranging the American’s visit, in which the government had hoped to impress upon Trump the need to moderate his tone and reconsider his more divisive campaign proposals. But within hours of leaving Mexico, Trump was telling a cheering crowd of supporters in Arizona that Mexico would pay for the border wall “100 percent,” prompting fresh ridicule of Pena Nieto at home. Instead of teaching Trump a lesson, the visit “legitimized him as a potential head of state,” said Andres Rozental, a former deputy Mexican foreign minister. “It just shows how little thought went into it.” Trump commented on the resignation during a forum with U.S. veterans on NBC television when he was asked if the United States could take a chance with him as commander-in-chief. “Well, I think absolutely,” he said. “I think if you saw what happened in Mexico the other day...I let them know where the United States stands. I mean, we’ve been badly hurt by Mexico...And if you look at what happened, look at the aftermath today where the people that arranged the trip in Mexico have been forced out of government. That’s how well we did.” Videgaray ran Pena Nieto’s election campaign, and was long regarded as the most powerful Cabinet minister, with a huge influence on policy after orchestrating the country’s landmark energy, telecommunications, tax and education reforms. Both men were embroiled in conflict-of-interest scandals in late 2014, after Pena Nieto’s wife and Videgaray were found to have acquired property from a major government contractor. Pena Nieto ordered an inquiry, which cleared both of any wrongdoing. The respected new finance minister, Meade, is a friend of Videgaray and had started in the administration as foreign minister before moving to the social development ministry. Videgaray’s departure from the Cabinet means Interior Minister Miguel Angel Osorio Chong, on whose watch capo Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman escaped from prison before being recaptured, is now the most visible potential presidential candidate in 2018 for the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI. Polls show the main hopefuls for 2018 face a tough battle, with Osorio Chong leading prospective PRI contenders. Meade, who was also once energy minister, is among those hopefuls. He must now steer next year’s budget through Congress, with the draft plan to be announced on Thursday. Senator Ernesto Cordero, a former finance minister from the center-right opposition, said he expected a smooth handover to Meade, whose experience in government he underlined. “He’s been a minister five times, and on those five occasions he’s done a good job,” Cordero said. The economy has consistently fallen short of government growth forecasts during Videgaray’s tenure, and contracted in the second quarter for the first time in three years. The new budget will be under close scrutiny after rating agency Standard & Poor’s last month said it could cut Mexico’s credit rating following a marked increase in debt. Videgaray, who has also been rumored as a potential 2017 gubernatorial candidate for the PRI in the State of Mexico, a populous region next to the capital, will not take another public post, a finance ministry spokeswoman said. | 1 |
22,944 | Tree trimming firm pays biggest fine in U.S. immigration case | (Reuters) - A tree trimming company has been handed the largest penalty imposed in a United States immigration case, totaling $95 million, after pleading guilty to employing illegal immigrants, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. Immigration reform is a major political issue in the U.S., with President Donald Trump saying he will crack down on illegal immigrants and build a wall between the United States and Mexico in order to reduce illegal border crossings. Asplundh Tree Experts, Co., which trims trees and clears brush for power and gas lines across the country, hired employees who provided fake identification documents from 2010 to 2014, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Philadelphia said. The prosecutor said on Thursday that Asplundh’s management were “willfully blind”, while supervisors and general foremen hired illegal immigrants through word of mouth referrals. “This decentralized model tacitly perpetuated fraudulent hiring practices that, in turn, maximized productivity and profit,” it said. The company’s chairman and CEO Scott Asplundh said in a statement that it has taken steps to improve its hiring practices, including reviewing the identification of all employees. “We accept responsibility for the charges as outlined, and we apologize to our customers, associates and all other stakeholders for what has occurred,” he said. | 1 |
22,945 | Surprise, Surprise: Trump Lied About What Happened When He Visited A Black Church In Flint | Donald Trump visited Flint, Michigan on Wednesday. Of course, that city is the place where is a crisis regarding having unusable water due to dangerously high lead levels and pipes that need to be replaced. While there, Trump toured a water plant and visited a Black church, where he pretended to care about the community, which is mostly poor and black, and suffering badly due to the water crisis.This was a bad idea in the first place, as the Mayor of Flint, Michigan, Democrat Karen Weaver, had already told Trump and his campaign that her city s very real issues were not to be used as some kind showboating photo-op. However, as per usual, Trump did what he wanted anyway, and when it didn t go well, he did what he usually does in such instances: LIED.Thursday morning, Trump went on Fox and Friends and criticized the pastor of Bethel United Methodist Church, Faith Green-Timmons. We ve all seen the viral video in which Pastor Green-Timmons shut Trump down when he attempted to use her church as a platform to attack Democratic rival Hillary Clinton, and in response, Trump lashed out at her on Fox News, calling her, quote, a nervous mess. Trump them went on say that the audience wanted him to keep speaking, but luckily there was an NPR reporter in the audience at the time, so those of us who weren t there can get the real story about what went down. From NPR: The audience was saying let him speak, let him speak, Trump told Fox and Friends.That isn t true. In fact, several audience members began to heckle Trump, asking pointed questions about whether he racially discriminated against black tenants as a landlord.And that s when Green-Timmons who Trump said Thursday had planned to ambush him stepped in to defend Trump, saying the Republican nominee was a guest of my church, and you will respect him. Thank you. Thank you, pastor, Trump responded.The pointed questions for Trump continued as Trump wrapped up his remarks, though and that s the moment when the press traveling with Trump was hastily escorted out of the room.Well, there you have it, folks. The people in the traditionally Black church saw right through Trump s attempt to pander and pretend that he actually cares about their well being, when, in fact we all have witnessed Trump s racism on full display throughout this travesty of a campaign. These people weren t having it, though, and they let Trump know exactly what they think of him.If it weren t for this reporting, we d have a very different account of what went down in that church on Wednesday, which is just one more reason not to trust a word that comes out of Donald Trump s mouth.Featured image via video screen capture from Twitter | 0 |
22,946 | Exclusive: Trump says he does not fault son for meeting Russian lawyer | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he did not fault his son Donald Trump Jr. for meeting with a Russian lawyer during the 2016 presidential election campaign and that he was unaware of the meeting until a few days ago. Asked if he knew that his son was meeting with lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya in June last year, the president told Reuters in a White House interview: “No, that I didn’t know until a couple of days ago when I heard about this.” (Transcript highlights: reut.rs/2sRVuHc) Trump Jr. eagerly agreed to meet the woman he was told was a Russian government lawyer who might have damaging information about Democratic rival Hillary Clinton as part of Moscow’s official support for his father’s campaign, according to emails the son released on Tuesday. Seated at his Oval Office desk, Trump said he did not fault his son for holding the meeting, writing it off as a decision made in the heat of an upstart, non-traditional campaign. “I think many people would have held that meeting,” Trump said. “It was a 20-minute meeting, I guess, from what I’m hearing,” Trump said. “Many people, and many political pros, said everybody would do that.” The emails were the most concrete evidence that Trump campaign officials might have been willing to accept Russian help to win the Nov. 8 election, a subject that has cast a cloud over Trump’s presidency and prompted investigations by the U.S. Justice Department and Congress. Donald Trump Jr., in an interview with Fox News on Tuesday, said: “In retrospect, I probably would have done things a little differently.” In the White House interview, the president said he directly asked Russian President Vladimir Putin if he was involved in what U.S. intelligence says was Russian meddling in the presidential campaign and that Putin had insisted he was not. Trump said he spent the first 20 or 25 minutes of his more than two-hour meeting with Putin last Friday in Germany on the election meddling subject. “I said, ‘Did you do it?’ And he said, ‘No, I did not. Absolutely not.’ I then asked him a second time in a totally different way. He said absolutely not,” Trump said. Asked if he believed Putin’s denial, Trump paused. “Look. Something happened and we have to find out what it is, because we can’t allow a thing like that to happen to our election process. So something happened and we have to find out what it is,” he said. About Putin, he added: “Somebody did say if he did do it, you wouldn’t have found out about it. Which is a very interesting point.” While U.S. intelligence agencies and even members of Trump’s Cabinet have said Russia meddled in the election, Trump has wavered on the subject, at times suggesting that other actors might have been involved. Trump equivocated on whether he felt he could trust Putin. He said Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping both look out for their countries’ interests, as he looks out for U.S. interests. “I am not a person who goes around trusting lots of people. But he’s the leader of Russia. It is the second most powerful nuclear power on earth. I am the leader of the United States. I love my country. He loves his country,” Trump said. As in the past, Trump said there was no collusion between his campaign and Russia. “There was zero coordination. It’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard,” he said. The Republican president said Democrats had used the accusations to justify Clinton’s loss in November, saying: “The White House is functioning beautifully despite the hoax made up by the Democrats.” Although he and Putin were able to forge a ceasefire agreement in part of Syria, Trump said their interests collided over other issues. He said his U.S. military buildup and drive to increase U.S. energy production were in direct conflict with Putin, whose nation is dependent on energy exports. Their differences made him wonder whether Putin really had supported him last year, as many news reports have suggested. “It’s really the one question I wish I would have asked Putin: Were you actually supporting me?” | 1 |
22,947 | Kuwait tells Aoun it supports Lebanese sovereignty | BEIRUT (Reuters) - Kuwait s ambassador to Lebanon told President Michel Aoun the Gulf monarchy supports his efforts to overcome the delicate situation and stands by Lebanese sovereignty, Aoun said in a tweet on Tuesday. Lebanon s Saudi-allied Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri declared his resignation on Nov. 4 in a broadcast from Riyadh, throwing Lebanon into political crisis. Saudi Arabia, an ally of Kuwait, has accused Lebanon of declaring war on it because of the influence of Iran-backed Hezbollah, and has advised Saudi citizens to leave Lebanon. | 1 |
22,948 | Nigerian army repels Boko Haram attack on town: spokesman | MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (Reuters) - Nigeria s military has repelled an attempt by suspected Boko Haram militants to seize the northeastern town of Magumeri, a spokesman said on Sunday, a day after the attack. The assault was the latest in a series of attacks in northeast Nigeria, where the conflict with the Islamist insurgency has dragged into a ninth year with little sign of an end. Three soldiers were killed and six others wounded while fighting the militants in Magumeri, which lies 50 km (30 miles) from Borno state capital Maiduguri, which has been the center of the conflict, the military spokesman said. A member of a vigilante group formed to fight Boko Haram put the death toll at six soldiers and three vigilantes, while a resident of Magumeri told Reuters by telephone that at least three civilians were also killed. A suicide bomber killed at least 58 people on Tuesday at a mosque in neighboring Adamawa state, one of the deadliest attacks since President Muhammadu Buhari came to power in 2015 pledging to end the Boko Haram insurgency. | 1 |
22,949 | Fox News Posts INCREDIBLY Misleading Tweet Defending Sessions And People Are Losing Their Minds (TWEETS) | There s no lengths lying conservative media won t go to in order to try and defend their golden boy, Trump, and anyone around him. Take Jeff Sessions, for example. Sessions was just caught lying under oath about contact with Russian officials during the campaign, and conservatives are desperate to figure out how to defend him. Take the following tweet by the origin of fake news, Fox: Democratic lawmakers who met with Russian Ambassador. pic.twitter.com/NEmwYLa790 Fox News (@FoxNews) March 3, 2017That s right conservatives are trying to say that since Democrats have talked to Russians before, there s no wrongdoing here.Except that awkward part where none of the pictured Democrats lied under oath about it.Except that SUPER awkward part where Democrats weren t part of a presidential campaign that benefited from, if not colluded with, Russian hacking and attempts to derail our 2016 electoral process.Users on Twitter are calling Fox News out for this incredibly misleading bullsh*t: @FoxNews Which ones then lied about the meeting under oath? Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) March 3, 2017 @FoxNews how many are in #Trumps cabinet or are asked to lead national security?!?! Mike Wickett (@mikewickett) March 3, 2017 @FoxNews I m confused, which of these people was nominated for a cabinet position and then lied under oath? Buttered Scones (@tedlangley) March 3, 2017 @FoxNews again, must have context. Trumps team met with Russia during height of election hacking. Please do not make these look the same Mike Battuello (@Mikebattuello) March 3, 2017 @FoxNews Again. It s not against the law to meet with foreign ambassadors. It s against the LAW to lie under oath about such meetings. Kathie (@Anastaisastweet) March 3, 2017 @FoxNews ok, but did they lie under oath about it? We need an independent prosecutor to sort this out; party line & divided nation need ans! Josh Marcus (@MoshuaJarcus) March 3, 2017 @FoxNews How many of these were questioned in confirmation hearings and lied? Dipti Khanna (@DKhanna77) March 3, 2017 @FoxNews and precisely which ones lied about it under oath. I ll wait. FD Brian (@FDBrian70) March 3, 2017Conservative media is working hard to create an alternate reality. It s up to all of us not to let them.Featured image via Zach Gibson/Getty Images | 0 |
22,950 | Deloitte cyber attack affected up to 350 clients: Guardian | (Reuters) - A hack at global accounting firm Deloitte [DLTE.UL] disclosed in September compromised a server with emails of some 350 clients, including U.S. government agencies and large corporations, the Guardian reported on Tuesday, citing unnamed sources. Deloitte disputed the story, saying very few clients were affected in a statement emailed to Reuters. We take any attack on our systems very seriously, the statement said. We are confident that we know what information was targeted and what the hacker actually did. | 1 |
22,951 | Brill to step down from U.S. Federal Trade Commission | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - One of the commissioners on the Federal Trade Commission, Julie Brill, will resign and leave the U.S. agency at the end of March, the FTC said in a statement on Tuesday. Brill, a Democrat with expertise in privacy and consumer protection, has been on the commission since 2010. She will step down effective March 31 and will go to the law firm Hogan Lovells, where she will be co-lead of their global privacy and cybersecurity practice. “I’ve loved every minute that I’ve spent doing public service. I’m now looking forward to a new challenge after 26 years,” Brill said in a telephone interview. Brill’s departure leaves the commission, which should have five commissioners, with just three. It is headed by Chairwoman Edith Ramirez, a Democrat. The other members are Terrell McSweeny, also a Democrat, and Maureen Ohlhausen, a Republican. | 1 |
22,952 | Brad Pitt Explains Ridiculous Reason He’s Now An Atheist | It s just too hard Too Many Things Christians Cannot Do! Who needs rules when you can just live in a godless society? Have some fun YOLO!Brad Pitt is an atheist because his father instilled a Christian guilt in him during his upbringing.The actor revealed that he adheres to no religion in an interview with the UK s Telegraph on Saturday. Pitt told the paper that he was raised in a Southern Baptist household in Missouri, with all the Christian guilt about what you can and cannot, should and shouldn t do. The Hollywood mega-star elaborated on the Christian guilt he was raised with in a 2007 interview with Parade. I d go to Christian revivals and be moved by the Holy Spirit, and I d go to rock concerts and feel the same fervor, Pitt told the magazine. Then I d be told, That s the Devil s music! Don t partake in that! I wanted to experience things religion said not to experience. Still, Pitt said he learned the value of hard work from his father, who reportedly ran a trucking company in Missouri. He could be a softie, Pitt told the Telegraph of his father. But one thing my folks always stressed was being capable, doing things for yourself. He was really big on integrity and that informed a lot of what [we] try to do now. Pitt also revealed that he and his wife and By the Sea co-star, Angelina Jolie, originally wanted double the number of children they currently have. Listen, Angie and I were aiming for a dozen, but we crapped out after six, the actor said, adding: Everyone talks about the joy of having kids blah, blah, blah. But I never knew how much I could love something until I looked in the faces of my children. Via: Breitbart News | 0 |
22,953 | John Kasich Will Create A Government Agency To Promote Christianity (VIDEO) | Republican presidential candidate John Kasich is promoting his idea to create a new government agency that would promote Christianity around the world.Kasich touted the idea recently during an interview on NBC News.According to Kasich, the agency s job would be to revive what we used to do when we beamed messages into the former Soviet Union. Kasich went on to say that his new agency would Beam messages around the world about what it means to have a western ethic, to be part of a Judeo-Christian society. Kasich has managed to remain under the radar thus far in the presidential primaries, thanks to his undeserved reputation as a moderate republican. The idea that the Ohio governor is somehow less insane than other GOP candidates competing for the party s nomination is simply absurd.Kasich is clearly just as dangerous and extreme as his republican rivals, maybe more so, given his ability to pass himself off as a middle-of-the-road candidate. In case you have any doubts, listen to Kasich explain his idea for a government-sponsored propaganda agency, which would promote Christianity not only around the world but right here in the United States, as well.Here s video of the interview, via NBC News.Kasich likes to hype himself as a small government republican.Yet during this interview, Kasich made it clear that he is dead-serious about creating an agency that would not just expand government, it would authorize government to become the official, worldwide distributor of Christian propaganda.In order to keep government from ever getting involved in the distribution of religious propaganda, the First Amendment of the United States Constitution strictly forbids government from passing any law establishing, prohibiting or promoting any religion.Kasich s idea for creating a government agency that would distribute Christian propaganda, at the expense of taxpayers, is exactly the kind of thing the First Amendment was designed to keep the government from doing.While on the surface, there may seem to be a difference between one republican candidate and the next, don t believe it.Every one of these right wing nuts is intent on turning the U.S. government into the distribution and enforcement arm of the Christian church.John Kasich is no less extreme than Ted Cruz, a Christian Dominionist who wants to seize every aspect of society, from government to education to the media, in order to further his own religious beliefs.And Kasich and Cruz are no more extreme than Marco Rubio, who declared in a recent campaign ad that our goal is eternity, before going on to quote a bunch of random Bible verses, which he s obviously sure will help get him elected.While all of the 2016 republican candidates may be well-suited to open their own mega-churches or launch a right wing radio program, not a single one of them is fit to become the next president of the United States.Featured image from video screen capture via NBC News | 0 |
22,954 | France releases brother of ex-Burkina president Compaore | PARIS (Reuters) - A court in Paris on Monday released the younger brother of former Burkina Faso President Blaise Compaore pending consideration of a request by the Burkinabe government to have him extradited, his lawyer and a judicial source said. Police detained Francois Compaore at Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris on Sunday on an international arrest warrant related to the 1998 murder of Norbert Zongo, who published Burkina Faso s Independent newspaper. The killing of Zongo, who had been investigating the murder of a driver who worked for Francois Compaore, became a symbol of repression during Blaise Compaore s 27-year rule, which ended in 2014 at the hands of a popular uprising. Francois Compaore is barred from leaving France until a court examines an extradition request by Burkina Faso s government, said a judicial source, speaking on condition of anonymity. Compaore s lawyer Pierre-Olivier Sur said the charges against his client are politically motivated by a Burkinabe government unable to try Blaise Compaore, whom the government of neighboring Ivory Coast refuses to extradite. Blaise Compaore fled to Ivory Coast during the uprising. He faces an international arrest warrant in connection with the 1987 murder of former President Thomas Sankara. Activists are pushing President Roch Marc Christian Kabore to aggressively pursue cases of past human rights abuses. Critics say his government has been too slow to move against former government members, some of whom serve in the current administration. | 1 |
22,955 | Grab The Popcorn, Trump Unloads On Ted Cruz: ‘Nobody Likes Him’ (VIDEO) | Donald Trump continued to unload on rival Ted Cruz as the reality star once again went on the attack on Sunday.Appearing on ABC s This Week, Trump talked about just how unlikeable Cruz is. Nobody likes him, nobody in Congress likes him, nobody likes him anywhere once they get to know him, Trump said in an interview airing on ABC s This Week. Trump also hit Cruz over his secret dark money loan that he secured from Goldman Sachs in order to win his Senate race. Cruz failed to disclose the loan on forms submitted to the Federal Elections Commission. He wants to look like Robin Hood, Trump said. That he s the one protecting the people from the banks, while he s actually borrowing money and personally guaranteeing it and not disclosing it, which is illegal. For months Trump and Cruz refused to directly attack each other, preferring to aim their arrows at other Republicans like Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio. But now as Cruz has started nipping at Trump s heels in Iowa polls, the front runner has begun to give Cruz the business.For his part, Cruz has also fired back. He accused Trump of having New York values a phrase that some have seen as a dog whistle to base Republican voters about New York s more diverse culture with is large population of Jewish people, gays, and minorities.Trump responded by pointing out that New York values are what terrorists targeted on 9/11. To add insult to injury, Trump received praise for those comments from both Hillary Clinton (who was New York s senator at the time) and current New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio.Additionally, Trump has been concern trolling Cruz about his eligibility for the presidency. Citing the fact that Cruz was born in Canada, Trump has been egging on Cruz to defend himself against possible challenges to his candidacy if he s the nominee. Trump has been a long-time promoter of the conspiracy theory that President Obama was not born in the United States.Over the course of the race, Trump has shown a propensity to dig in and go nuclear in his attacks on anyone who directly challenges him, and this latest salvo directed at Cruz seems to signal that the next two weeks ahead of the caucus could be immensely entertaining.Featured image via YouTube | 0 |
22,956 | wikileaks hillary clinton knew saudi qatar were funding isis but still took their money for foundation | st century wire says
yesterday wikileaks editor and founder julian assange confirmed what wire already knew that hillary clinton and the obama white houses claim of the us election process being hacked by the russian government was a desperate work of fiction not content with that fish tale hillary clinton took the narrative to an embarrassing new low if that was even possible with another wilder madeup conspiracy story about the russians
the following statement made by hillary clinton yesterday epitomizes the term jumping the shark its time for trump to answer serious questions about his ties to russia httpstcodosmyvar pictwittercomdryempjx
hillary clinton hillaryclinton october
apparently hillary clintons campaign staff fed her a planted online news story by the clinton campaign which ran on a questionable prodemocratic party online news outlet on monday the slate ran the story by one of its alleged journalists named franklin foer complete with a clickbait bloglike headline was a trump server communicating with russia
whatever legitimacy the slate had before last night just evaporated
john roberts from forbes explains the bottom line is that slate screwed up by publishing this in the first place and by adding more kooky misinformation to an already addled election season as for foer he says on twitter a follow up piece is in the works
roberts rightly points out that the only followup story for this lemon should start with the word retraction
cyber feud assange believes clinton has gone beyond the pale with her russian conspiracy obsession
during his exclusive interview with awardwinning filmmaker john pilger when asked what he thought of hillary clintons shrill antics julian assange said i actually feel quite sorry for hillary clinton as a person because i see someone who is eaten alive by their ambitions tormented literally to the point where they become sick
the saddest thing about this and the other dishonest and destructive actions of the clinton campaign and the democratic party is that no one in the party seems to see anything wrong with this level of deceit and dishonesty like hillary clinton in her sociopathic path to power the party rank and file are acting like a cult coven following their high priestess
still clinton surrogates in the media are trying to equate clinton simultaneously scapegoating and baiting another nuclear superpower with a decadeold misogynist hot mic audio excerpt of donald trump in a tmzstyle tabloid sting that pretty much sums up democratic party strategy for this election season
assange was right clinton the democratic party and their surrogate are eating themselves such are the spoils of power in washington that men and women will do and say anything to have it
read more election news at st century wire files
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22,957 | Turkey says unacceptable to invite Syrian Kurdish YPG to Astana talks: Erdogan spokesman | ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey cannot accept the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia being invited to Syria talks in the Kazakh capital of Astana, a spokesman for President Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday. A senior Kurdish official said on Tuesday Russia had invited the Kurdish-led authorities in northern Syria to a proposed congress of Syria s rival parties in November, as Moscow seeks to launch a new initiative to end the Syrian conflict. Presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said Turkish and Russian officials had discussed the issue and that he had held meetings of his own to solve the problem on the spot. | 1 |
22,958 | MELANIA WINS HUGE SETTLEMENT FROM TABLOID Over Fake And “Embarrassing Claims” | Melania Trump just accepted damages of approximately $3 million from Daily Mail after they published a smut article claiming she prostituted herself during her modeling career. The false and defamatory claims got the left-leaning tabloid in hot water when they couldn t produce evidence.The Daily Mail has been anti-Trump from the beginning. They often publish inflammatory and false articles on Trump, his family and his administration. The problem with this is that this publication is read world-wide. Millions of people are reading this slanted news! Talk about fake news!MELANIA WINS BIGLY!Melania Trump has accepted damages and an apology over allegations about her work as a professional model.The action was against Associated Newspapers, publishers of the Daily Mail.The amount of damages was not disclosed in court, although the total payment of damages and costs is believed to come to about $3 million.An article published in the newspaper and on Mail Online last August included false and defamatory claims about the First Lady which questioned the nature of her work as a professional model, and republished allegations that she provided services beyond simply modelling , the court heard.Her lawyer John Kelly said the story included statements that Mrs Trump denied the allegations and that Paulo Zampolli, who ran the modelling agency, also denied the claims.The article, he said, also said there was no evidence to support the allegations.The article about Mrs Trump was published last August Mr Kelly told Mr Justice Nichol: The article also claimed that Mr and Mrs Trump may have met three years before they actually met, and staged their actual meeting as a ruse . He said the allegations about Mrs Trump were not true and strike at the heart of the claimant s personal integrity and dignity .Catrin Evans QC, for the publishers, told the judge: The defendant acknowledges that these claims about the claimant are untrue, and we retract and withdraw them. The defendant is here today publicly to set the record straight, and to apologize to the claimant for any distress and embarrassment that the articles may have caused her. THE DAILY MAIL APOLOGY: The Mail Online website and the Daily Mail newspaper published an article on 20th August 2016 about Melania Trump which questioned the nature of her work as a professional model, and republished allegations that she provided services beyond simply modelling.The article included statements that Mrs. Trump denied the allegations and Paulo Zampolli, who ran the modelling agency, also denied the allegations, and the article also stated that there was no evidence to support the allegations.The article also claimed that Mr and Mrs Trump may have met three years before they actually met, and staged their actual meeting as a ruse. We accept that these allegations about Mrs Trump are not true and we retract and withdraw them. We apologise to Mrs Trump for any distress that our publication caused her. To settle Mrs Trump s two lawsuits against us, we have agreed to pay her damages and costs.Via: Sky News | 0 |
22,959 | Clinton holds five-point lead as FBI looks at more emails: Reuters/Ipsos poll | NEW YORK (Reuters) - Democrat Hillary Clinton held a five percentage point lead over Republican rival Donald Trump, according to a Reuters/Ipsos opinion poll released on Monday, down only slightly since the FBI said last week it was reviewing new emails in its investigation of the former secretary of state. Some 44 percent of likely voters said they would support Clinton, while 39 percent said they would support Trump, according to the Oct. 26-30 survey. Clinton had held a 6 point advantage over Trump in the five-day tracking poll last Thursday. Other polls have shown Clinton’s lead slipping more sharply. Real Clear Politics, which averages the results of most major polls, shows that Clinton’s lead has declined from 4.6 points on Friday to 2.5 points on Monday. Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey told Congress in a letter made public on Friday that his agency was looking into new emails that may be connected to Clinton, who had been probed by the FBI over her use of a private server and how she handled classified information while America’s top diplomat. The FBI has revealed very little to the public about the new emails under investigation, except that they were uncovered during an unrelated investigation into the estranged husband of a top Clinton aide. In July, Comey concluded that Clinton and her staff were “extremely careless” with their handling of classified information, but that there was not enough evidence to bring criminal charges. On Friday, Comey told Congress, “We don’t know the significance of this newly discovered collection of emails.” In a separate poll that included alternative-party candidates, 43 percent supported Clinton, while 37 percent supported Trump, 6 percent supported Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson and 1 percent supported Jill Stein of the Green Party. The polling determines likely voters according to a number of factors including voting history, registration status and stated intention to vote. It assumes that 60 percent of eligible Americans will vote. The result of the 2016 election will vary greatly depending on how many voters actually cast a ballot. Currently, Clinton leads Trump in both high and low turnout scenarios, according to the latest poll. Her advantage holds at 5 points if 55 percent of eligible voters participate, and it rises to 6 points if 70 percent of Americans cast a ballot. The Reuters/Ipsos poll was conducted online in English in all 50 states. It included 1,264 people who were considered likely voters under the assumption that 60 percent of eligible voters would participate. The poll has a credibility interval, a measure of accuracy, of 3 percentage points. | 1 |
22,960 | Trump praises Chinese efforts on North Korea 'menace,' Pyongyang warns of strike | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump praised Chinese efforts to rein in “the menace of North Korea” on Thursday, after North Korean state media warned the United States of a “super-mighty preemptive strike.” Trump told a news conference “some very unusual moves have been made over the last two or three hours,” and that he was confident Chinese President Xi Jinping would “try very hard” to pressure Beijing’s ally and neighbor North Korea over its nuclear and missile programs. While Trump gave no indication of what the moves might be, U.S. officials told Reuters that the United States was aware of a higher-than-usual level of activity by Chinese bombers, signaling a possible heightened state of readiness. The officials played down concerns and left open a range of possible reasons. * COMMENTARY: The next super weapon could be biological reut.rs/2oVooHc * COMMENTARY: The worrying lessons of the Syria chemical attack reut.rs/2o6r55r Those possibilities included defensive exercises or Chinese concerns over North Korea. None of the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, suggested alarm or signaled that they knew the precise reason for such Chinese activity. U.S. officials have been saying for weeks that North Korea could soon stage another nuclear bomb test, something both the United States and China have both warned against. Trump has taken a hard line with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, who has proceeded with nuclear and missile programs in defiance of U.N. Security Council sanctions. The United States and South Korea are technically still at war with North Korea because their 1950-53 conflict ended in a truce, not a peace treaty. Tensions have risen sharply in recent months after North Korea conducted two nuclear weapons tests last year and carried out a steady stream of ballistic missile tests. Trump, who took office in January, has vowed to prevent North Korea from being able to hit the United States with a nuclear missile. Trump has focused his efforts on North Korea on trying to persuade China to put more pressure on its ally and could view any unusual Chinese military movements as supportive of this. He told a news conference with the visiting prime minister of Italy on Thursday that the United States was “in very good shape” on North Korea and that China’s Xi, whom he met this month for a summit in Florida, was working hard to help. “We don’t know whether or not they’re able to do that, but I have absolute confidence that he will be trying very very hard.” Trump repeated a past comment that he had told Xi in Florida that China would make much better deal on trade with the United States “if you get rid of this menace or do something about this menace of North Korea.” ‘SUPER-MIGHTY PREEMPTIVE STRIKE’ The Rodong Sinmun, the official newspaper of North Korea’s ruling Workers’ Party, struck an aggressive tone earlier on Thursday. “In the case of our super-mighty preemptive strike being launched, it will completely and immediately wipe out not only U.S. imperialists’ invasion forces in South Korea and its surrounding areas but the U.S. mainland and reduce them to ashes,” it said. Reclusive North Korea regularly threatens to destroy Japan, South Korea and the United States and has shown no let-up in its belligerence after a failed missile test on Sunday, which followed a huge display of missiles at a parade in Pyongyang. South Korean news agency Yonhap quoted an unnamed South Korean government source as saying that the U.S. Air Force had dispatched a nuclear sniffer aircraft on Thursday to the east of the Korean Peninsula in anticipation of a possible nuclear test. The U.S. Defense Department does not comment on deployments of the WC-135 Constant Phoenix aircraft used to collect samples from the atmosphere to detect and analyze nuclear explosions. The U.N. Security Council on Thursday condemned North Korea’s latest failed missile test and demanded it not conduct any more nuclear tests. South Korea’s acting president, Hwang Kyo-ahn, at a meeting with top officials on Thursday, repeatedly called for the military and security ministries to maintain vigilance. The South Korean defense ministry said U.S. and South Korean air forces were conducting an annual training exercise, codenamed Max Thunder, until April 28. North Korea routinely labels such exercises preparations for invasion. “We are conducting a practical and more intensive exercise than ever,” South Korean pilot Colonel Lee Bum-chul told reporters. “Through this exercise, I am sure we can deter war and remove our enemy’s intention to provoke us.” William Perry, who served as U.S. defense secretary from 1994 to 1997 and negotiated with North Korea, said he did not believe Pyongyang was planning a surprise attack, despite the fiery rhetoric. But he warned: “They are doing a lot of bluster and a lot of threats, and they might misplay that hand and blunder into a war.” GRAPHIC: Carl Vinson strike group - tmsnrt.rs/2p1yGTQ GRAPHIC: North Korea's nuclear program - tmsnrt.rs/2lE5yjF | 1 |
22,961 | Illinois governor's office warns of crippling pension payment hike | CHICAGO (Reuters) - Potential action this week by Illinois’ biggest public pension fund could put a big dent in the state’s already fragile finances, Governor Bruce Rauner’s administration warned. A Monday memo from a top Rauner aide said the Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS) board could decide at its meeting this week to lower the assumed investment return rate, a move that would automatically boost Illinois’ annual pension payment. “If the (TRS) board were to approve a lower assumed rate of return taxpayers will be automatically and immediately on the hook for potentially hundreds of millions of dollars in higher taxes or reduced services,” Michael Mahoney, Rauner’s senior advisor for revenue and pensions, wrote to the governor’s chief of staff, Richard Goldberg. When TRS lowered the investment return rate to 7.5 percent from 8 percent in 2014 the state’s pension payment increased by more than $200 million, according to the memo. Illinois’ fiscal 2017 pension payment to its five retirement systems was estimated at $7.9 billion, up from $7.617 billion in fiscal 2016 and $6.9 billion in fiscal 2015, according to a March report by a bipartisan legislative commission. The country’s fifth-largest state’s unfunded pension liability stood at $111 billion at the end of fiscal 2015, with TRS accounting for more than 55 percent of that gap. The funded ratio was a weak 41.9 percent. An impasse between the Republican governor and Democrats who control the legislature left Illinois as the only state without a complete 2016 budget. A six-month fiscal 2017 spending plan was passed in June. Mahoney cautioned that “unforeseen and unknown automatic cost increases would have a devastating impact” on Illinois’ ability to fund social services and education. One of Rauner’s top Republican legislative allies, Senate Minority Leader Christine Radogno, urged the TRS board to delay a vote Friday to give the public time to weigh in on its possible actions. “This issue is important enough at the very least to put the TRS board on notice we don’t want them taking any action that could cost taxpayers $200 to $300 million without appropriate scrutiny,” she said. TRS spokesman Dave Urbanek said the pension system was not aware of Mahoney’s memo until Tuesday and that Rauner’s office had requested “information about the scenarios under consideration.” He added TRS did not offer “potential scenarios” either to the governor’s office or legislative leaders and noted the TRS board has not yet discussed the matter. | 1 |
22,962 | Vietnam says violations found at central bank in war on graft | HANOI (Reuters) - Vietnam has found faults with the central State Bank of Vietnam, including poor supervision of credit organizations and inefficiency in preventing corruption, the government said on Saturday. The announcement, which was published on the government s website, came amid an intensifying crackdown on corruption that has pushed many state executives and government officials into the spotlight. The Government Inspectorate found the bank slow and not complying with regulations when publicizing its properties and revenues, the report said, without elaborating. Government officials have to reveal their incomes and properties to the public. Inspectors also pointed out violations by SBV s banking supervision agency, a department in charge of overseeing and examining credit organizations, from 2010 to 2015. Credit organizations had several faults but during inspection, the supervising department did not promptly detect them to deal with and prevent them, the government said. The inspectorate has called for the state bank governor to investigate groups and individuals behind the violations. Vietnam s crackdown on corruption and mismanagement, with a focus on inefficient state-owned companies, earlier led to the rare dismissal of a member of the politburo and the sacking of a vice-minister. Four more officials from a scandal hit state-oil firm are being prosecuted over links to investment losses in a local bank. | 1 |
22,963 | South Korean army says it conducted successful helicopter missile drill | SEOUL (Reuters) - The South Korean army said on Wednesday it conducted a successful air-to-air missile firing drill from Apache helicopters which was designed to respond to any provocation from the enemy . It was the first time the South Korean army test-fired Stinger missiles from Apache attack helicopters, which were introduced to the army in May last year, the South s army forces said in a statement. The statement did not mention whether the drill was conducted specifically to address North Korean provocations. | 1 |
22,964 | GRANNY CLINTON GOES WAY LEFT: Fear Mongering On The Cause Of Hurricane Hermine | Who wrote this garble for granny Clinton? She s off her rocker! Yes, climate changes | 0 |
22,965 | Venezuela opposition won't attend scheduled talks with government | CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela s opposition said on Tuesday it will not join scheduled talks with President Nicolas Maduro s government, undercutting a dialogue effort that has been viewed with suspicion by many adversaries of the ruling Socialist Party. The government has eagerly promoted the talks amid global criticism that Maduro is turning the country into a dictatorship, while the opposition has always insisted the talks should not distract from the country s economic crisis. The two sides held separate exploratory conversations with the president of the Dominican Republic earlier this month. But the opposition said the government has not made enough progress on issues such as human rights to warrant full bilateral talks. Negotiation is not to go and waste time, to look at someone s face, but rather so that Venezuelans can have immediate solutions, opposition leader Henrique Capriles told reporters. We cannot have a repeat of last year s failure, he said, referring to Vatican-brokered talks in 2016 that fell apart after the opposition said the government was simply using them as a stalling tactic. The Information Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The opposition wants a date for the next presidential election, due by the end of 2018, with guarantees it will be free and fair. It is also calling for freedom for hundreds of jailed activists, a foreign humanitarian aid corridor and respect for the opposition-led congress. With Spain pushing for the European Union to adopt restrictive measures against members of the Venezuelan government, Maduro may be hoping to dodge further sanctions. The United States has issued several rounds of sanctions against Venezuela, primarily in response to the creation of an all-powerful super body called the Constituent Assembly that was elected in a July vote the opposition labeled fraudulent. Many countries have refused to recognize the assembly, which Maduro insists has brought peace to the country of 30 million. He says opposition leaders are coup-plotters seeking to sabotage socialism in oil-rich Venezuela under the guise of peaceful protests. Amid a fourth straight year of recession, millions of Venezuelans are suffering food shortages and rampant inflation, which the government blames on an economic war led by the opposition and fueled by recent sanctions. | 1 |
22,966 | Michelle Obama And Her Daughters Are Visiting Africa – And Racists Are Having A Field Day (SCREENSHOTS) | Go back to Africa is a phrase one would expect to hear someone tell an African-American at a Trump rally, but it s also something one can expect to hear pretty much anytime the Obama family is referenced. On Sunday, USA Today reported that the First Lady and her daughters are on their way to Liberia and Morocco as part of the Let Girls Learn initiative, a program the President and Michelle started last year to educate the more than 62 million girls worldwide who don t attend school.While there, Michelle Obama plans to meet with President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia, the first female elected head of state on the continent of Africa, as well as speak to local teenage girls. This is very important, as nearly two-thirds of Liberia s school-aged children do not attend class. In Morocco, 85% of girls are enrolled in primary schools but that number drops as low as 14% by high school.This is, of course, a very important problem and an admirable initiative so, naturally, conservatives have a problem with it. The comment section of USA Today quickly flooded with racist remarks, with conservatives demanding that the Obamas stay there with many gleefully declaring that they are going home and demanding that they take other black people with them. And, of course, the not-racists seized upon the opportunity to call them monkeys: It s not just USA Today; Everywhere we have looked at this story, the comment section is the same. Take news station WKYC, for example: It s almost like the Obama family can t do anything without being subjected to racist hatred. When Malia Obama graduated high school, conservatives everywhere congratulated her by calling her a n*gger and other unsavory terms. When she got into Harvard, the racist hatred was so horrific that Fox News was forced to close down the comment section. When Sasha Obama turned 15, she was subjected to a barrage of bigotry. They even periodically dredge up old sources of their outrage to relive their opportunity to bash the Obama children.It s important to remember that each and every one of these racist dickbags will be voting in November. Make sure you re there and voting BLUE to counter that.Featured image via Getty Images (Pool)/screengrab | 0 |
22,967 | U.S. Senate confirms Trump's pick for top Supreme Court lawyer | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Republican-controlled U.S. Senate on Tuesday confirmed President Donald Trump’s nominee to serve as his administration’s top advocate before the U.S. Supreme Court, overcoming united Democratic opposition. Noel Francisco, a Washington lawyer with strong conservative credentials who previously worked in Republican former President George W. Bush’s administration, was confirmed by the Senate as U.S. solicitor general on a vote of 50-47. All the Senate’s Democrats voted against him except for New Jersey’s Robert Menendez, who is currently on trial facing corruption charges in Newark. Francisco takes up his new position as the Supreme Court prepares to begin its new term on Oct. 2. The court has several potential blockbuster cases on its docket, including the challenge to Trump’s travel ban on people from six predominantly Muslim countries entering the United States. That case will be argued before the justices on Oct. 10. Francisco, who previously worked at the Jones Day law firm, will now be overseeing the Justice Department’s defense of the ban and other major policy initiatives that are challenged in court. He has argued three cases at the Supreme Court. Most recently, he represented Republican former Virginia Governor Robert McDonnell in a successful attempt to throw out corruption convictions. The justices ruled in favor of McDonnell last year in an 8-0 ruling that could make it tougher to prosecute politicians for corruption. Francisco served as a White House lawyer from 2001 to 2003 and spent another two years in the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel from 2003 to 2005. He previously worked as a clerk for the late Supreme Court conservative Justice Antonin Scalia. | 1 |
22,968 | Factbox: Contenders, picks for key jobs in Trump's administration | (Reuters) - U.S. President-elect Donald Trump said on Monday he would nominate retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, a presidential rival-turned-supporter to serve as Department of Housing and Urban Development secretary. Below are people mentioned as contenders for senior roles as Trump works to form his administration before taking office on Jan. 20, according to Reuters sources and media reports. See the end of list for posts already filled. * Mitt Romney, 2012 Republican presidential nominee and former Massachusetts governor * Rudy Giuliani, Republican former mayor of New York City * Bob Corker, Republican U.S. senator from Tennessee and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee * David Petraeus, retired general and former CIA director who pleaded guilty to mishandling classified information that he shared with his biographer, with whom he was having an affair * Jon Huntsman, former Republican Utah governor and ambassador to China under President Barack Obama, ran for 2012 Republican presidential nomination in 2012 * James Stavridis, retired Navy Admiral * John Bolton, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations under President George W. Bush, foreign policy adviser to 2012 Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney * Rex Tillerson, president and chief executive officer of Exxon Mobil * Joe Manchin, Democratic U.S. Senator of West Virginia * Dana Rohrabacher, Republican U.S. Representative of California and senior member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs * Michael McCaul, Republican U.S. representative from Texas and chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee * David Clarke, Milwaukee County sheriff and vocal Trump supporter * Retired Marine Corps General John Kelly, former leader of Southern Command * Joe Arpaio, who lost his bid for re-election as Maricopa County, Arizona sheriff, and has campaigned for Trump * Kris Kobach, Kansas secretary of state * Frances Townsend, who was homeland security and counterterrorism adviser to Republican President George W. Bush * Jeff Holmstead, energy lawyer, former EPA official during George W. Bush administration * Robert Grady, venture capitalist, partner in private equity firm Gryphon Investors * Leslie Rutledge, Republican Arkansas attorney general * Carol Comer, commissioner of the Indiana Department of Environmental Management * Scott Pruitt, Republican Oklahoma attorney general * Kevin Cramer, Republican U.S. representative from North Dakota * Robert Grady, venture capitalist, partner in private equity firm Gryphon Investors * Heidi Heitkamp, Democratic U.S. senator from North Dakota * Joe Manchin, Democratic U.S. senator from West Virginia * Gary Cohn, president of Goldman Sachs Group Inc * Larry Nichols, co-founder of Devon Energy Corp * James Connaughton, CEO of Nautilus Data Technologies and a former environmental adviser to President George W. Bush * Rick Perry, former Republican Texas governor * Forrest Lucas, founder of oil products company Lucas Oil * Heidi Heitkamp, Democratic U.S. senator from North Dakota * Robert Grady, venture capitalist, partner in Gryphon * Cathy McMorris Rodgers, U.S. representative from Washington state and House Republican Conference chair * Sarah Palin, former Alaska governor and 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee * Jan Brewer, former Republican Arizona governor * Mary Fallin, Republican Oklahoma governor * Ray Washburne, CEO of investment company Charter Holdings * U.S. Navy Admiral Mike Rogers, director of the National Security Agency * Ronald Burgess, retired U.S. Army lieutenant general and former Defense Intelligence Agency chief * Robert Cardillo, director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency * Pete Hoekstra, former Republican U.S. representative from Michigan * Rudy Giuliani, former NYC mayor * Dan DiMicco, former CEO of steel producer Nucor Corp * Andrew Puzder, CEO of CKE Restaurants * Lou Barletta, Republican U.S. representative from Pennsylvania * Victoria Lipnic, U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission member and former Labor Department official during the George W. Bush administration * Dr. Ben Carson, former 2016 Republican presidential candidate and retired neurosurgeon * Gary Cohn, Goldman president * Mick Mulvaney, Republican U.S. representative from South Carolina * Scott Brown, former Republican U.S. senator from Massachusetts * Sarah Palin, former Alaska governor * Jeff Miller, former Republican U.S. representative from Florida who was chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee The Trump transition team confirmed the president-elect would choose from a list of 21 names he drew up during his campaign, including Republican U.S. Senator Mike Lee of Utah and William Pryor, a federal judge with the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. * Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus * Steve Bannon, former head of the conservative website Breitbart News * Jeff Sessions, Republican U.S. senator from Alabama and senior member of the Senate Judiciary Committee (subject to Senate confirmation) * Republican U.S. Representative Mike Pompeo from Kansas (subject to Senate confirmation) * Michael Flynn, retired Army lieutenant general and former director of the Defense Intelligence Agency * Nikki Haley, Republican South Carolina governor (subject to Senate confirmation) * Betsy DeVos, Republican donor and former chair of the Michigan Republican Party (subject to Senate confirmation) * Tom Price, Republican U.S. representative from Georgia, orthopedic surgeon (subject to Senate confirmation) * Elaine Chao, former labor secretary and deputy transportation secretary under Republican Presidents George W. Bush and George H.W. Bush, respectively (subject to Senate confirmation). Chao is married to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell * Steven Mnuchin, former Goldman executive and Trump’s campaign finance chairman (subject to Senate confirmation) * Wilbur Ross, billionaire investor, chairman of Invesco Ltd subsidiary WL Ross & Co (subject to Senate confirmation) * James Mattis, retired Marine Corps general (subject to Senate confirmation) * Ben Carson, retired neurosurgeon and former Republican presidential candidate | 1 |
22,969 | George Takei Just F*cking HUMILIATED Trump Over His Russian ‘Golden Showers’ Adventure (TWEETS) | In case you have not heard, an addendum to the intelligence report on Russian hacking that was delivered to both President Barack Obama and President-elect Trump has just about something for anyone including a rather hilarious bit involving The Donald, Barack Obama s bed, and pee. Initial reports surrounding the two-page addendum indicated that a former British spy had obtained a slew of information on Trump including compromising personal and financial information obtained by the Russians during Trump s visits to Moscow, but it was not until Buzzfeed got ahold of the former spy s report that things got interesting.Trump had stayed at a Ritz-Carlton in Moscow, where he was allegedly filmed hiring a number of prostitutes to come to his hotel room and urinate on the bed in front of him..@Buzzfeed published a dossier claiming Trump hired prostitutes to perform a #GoldenShowers show" and now Twitter is a stream of pee jokes: pic.twitter.com/WdHpZ4HzvV Fusion (@Fusion) January 11, 2017According to CNN, who did not report the full details initially because the report has not been fully verified by intelligence agencies as of yet, the information comes from someone who is known by United States intelligence and considered to be credible. Naturally, legendary actor and constant thorn in Trump s side George Takei couldn t resist the opportunity to have some fun with this:Trump gives a new meaning to "Alfa" male. #PutinTheFinishingTouches George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) January 11, 2017You know, Trump never could pass up a golden opportunity. George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) January 11, 2017Waiting for Trump to whine about yellow journalism. Please oh please oh please George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) January 11, 2017Tinkle, tinkle, little czar. Putin put you where you are. George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) January 11, 2017Sorta gives a whole new meaning to "Wikileaks." George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) January 11, 2017Watching Obama's final address, and realizing how very, very far we are about to descend. Farewell, O Captain my Captain! Heavens save us. George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) January 11, 2017I wonder if Trump's press conference tomorrow will have a live stream. George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) January 11, 2017In all seriousness, if Trump has been compromised by Russia, whatever dirt they have, we need a full and independent investigation. Now. George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) January 11, 2017The report sent Trump into a frenzy, with The Donald tweeting an all-caps, panicky denial in which he once again calls information he doesn t like fake news and a total political witch hunt :FAKE NEWS A TOTAL POLITICAL WITCH HUNT! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 11, 2017While it is important to note that the information is still in the early stages of vetting, Trump has been recorded willingly and multiple times admitting that he finds his daughter sexually attractive, so paying some nice Russian ladies to urinate on furniture isn t exactly outside the realm of possibility. While there is nothing wrong with whatever two consenting adults choose to do behind closed doors as long as no one gets hurt, it was well-known at the time that Russian intelligence was monitoring that hotel, so it probably wasn t the best time and place for a piss-party even if Trump did manage to lock down a bed his arch-nemesis Barack Obama had once slept in for the festivities.The summary handed to Barack Obama warns that Trump has been compromised and if this is the information coming out of it in the early stages, what is to come is likely downright horrifying.Featured image via Getty Images(Kris Connor)/screengrab | 0 |
22,970 | SOCIALIST BERNIE SANDERS Praises Castro [Video] | A video from 1985 was shown last night during the Dem debate that has people bussing this morning. Yes we all know Sanders is a socialist but it s interesting to hear him speak about Cuba and Castro .Hey, youth of America who think Sanders is the best thing since sliced bread, do you REALLY want this guy? | 0 |
22,971 | WATCH: Fox News Host Dana Perino Is DONE Defending Republicans | Fox News host Dana Perino is finally so sick and tired of Republicans supporting Donald Trump despite all of the sexual assault allegations that she will no longer defend them.During Friday s edition of The Five, host and former George W. Bush press secretary Dana Perino slammed Donald Trump for talking about all of his accusers and insulting them instead of focusing on attacking Hillary Clinton.Perino is also furious that Republicans are still defending Trump s predatory behavior. The Republicans that are defending this are really irritating me, she said. I ve been like Mount Vesuvius all day. Perino then specifically named Ben Carson and Jeff Sessions as just two of the many Republicans who remain on board the Trump train despite the Republican nominee s comments about groping women and the various allegations made against him by multiple women and the many past statements he has made that are now coming back to haunt him.And after Juan Williams joked that someone is going to call for cutting her mic, Perino took a serious tone, looked straight into the camera and while slicing the air with her hand told Republicans that she is done defending them. Yeah, because women should be seen and not heard, apparently. After 20 years of defending these guys, done. Here s the video via YouTube.Perino is not the only Republican woman who has stopped defending Republicans due to their refusal to unendorse Trump.Wisconsin GOP activist Marybeth Glenn quit the party entirely in a series of posts on Twitter blasting Republicans for being cowards and legitimizing charges that conservatives are sexists after she defended them for years. He (Trump) treats women like dogs, and you go against everything I and other female conservatives said you were & back down like cowards, she wrote. I m sooo done. If you can t stand up for women & unendorse this piece of human garbage, you deserve every charge of sexism thrown at you. Now Perino just became the first Republican woman on Fox News to say she is done defending the GOP.In their refusal to withdraw their support from Trump, the Republican Party is destroying themselves by offending women across the country and now it is costing them allies in states and in the media. This is something that may take generations for the party to recover from. Of course, that s assuming they actually learn anything from the mess they made this year.Featured image via screenshot | 0 |
22,972 | Trump unshackled: President defends Charlottesville response at raucous rally | PHOENIX (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump revved up supporters on Tuesday with a defense of his response to a white supremacist-organized rally in Virginia and a promise to shut down the U.S. government if necessary to build a wall along the border with Mexico. Under fire for saying “both sides” were to blame for the violence between white supremacists and left-wing counter protesters in Virginia on Aug. 12, Trump accused television networks of ignoring his calls for unity in the aftermath. “I didn’t say I love you because you’re black, or I love you because you’re white,” Trump said. “I love all the people of our country.” Police used pepper spray to disperse crowds after protesters threw rocks and bottles outside the convention center where Trump spoke, police said. Trump, who often uses news organizations as a foil, repeatedly singled out the media for criticism of how it covered the violence in the Virginia college town of Charlottesville and the resulting political fallout. “These are truly dishonest people. They’re bad people. I really think they don’t like our country,” Trump said. “The only people giving a platform to these hate groups is the media.” Adopting a glib tone, Trump said many reporters ignored his condemnation of white supremacists, including the Ku Klux Klan. “I hit ‘em with neo-Nazi, I hit ‘em with everything ... KKK? We have KKK. I got ‘em all,” he said. James Clapper, a former director of U.S. national intelligence, expressed concern at Trump’s performance, calling it “downright scary and disturbing.” “I question his fitness to be in office,” Clapper told CNN. Funding for the border wall has flagged in the U.S. Congress as many lawmakers question whether Trump’s main promise during the 2016 presidential election campaign is really necessary. But with a budget battle looming, Trump said he would be willing to risk a politically damaging government shutdown in order to secure funding for the wall. He visited the border region in Yuma, Arizona, earlier on Tuesday. “If we have to close down our government, we’re building that wall,” Trump said. “We’re going to have our wall. The American people voted for immigration control. We’re going to get that wall.” With thousands of supporters cheering him on, Trump also weighed in on another racially charged issue, hinting he would pardon former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio. Arpaio, 85, who battled illegal immigration in the Phoenix area, was found guilty last month of criminal contempt for violating the terms of a 2011 court order in a racial profiling case. Trump covered the gamut of issues, from NAFTA trade talks to the U.S. showdown with North Korea, during a raucous, rambling and defiant political speech lasting an hour and 15 minutes. He said he might terminate the NAFTA treaty with Mexico and Canada to jumpstart negotiations, and said the standoff with North Korea over its weapons programs might have taken a positive turn. However, it was unclear whether the speech would help lay the foundation for a comeback from the deep political crisis Trump finds himself in after only seven months in office and an approval rating below 40 percent. He expressed frustration that the Republican-controlled Congress was unable to approve healthcare legislation that failed to pass the Senate by one vote last month. One of the votes against the legislation was cast by Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona, who was recently diagnosed with brain cancer. Without mentioning their names, Trump criticized both McCain and his fellow Arizona Republican, Senator Jeff Flake. Neither McCain nor Flake attended the event. Trump complained repeatedly about the “one vote” that stopped the Senate from repealing and replacing Obamacare, the signature domestic policy of his predecessor, Barack Obama. “One vote away. I will not mention any names - very presidential. And nobody wants me to mention your other senator, who’s weak on border, weak on crime. Nobody knows who the hell he is! See, I haven’t mentioned any names, so now everybody’s happy,” he said. The White House had said earlier when asked about Arpaio that “there will be no discussion of that today.” That did not stop Trump from raising the subject. “Do the people in this room like Sheriff Joe?” Trump asked, sparking loud applause and a chant of “Pardon Joe!” “Was Sheriff Joe convicted for doing his job?” Trump asked, before predicting that Arpaio would be just fine. “I won’t do it tonight because I don’t want to cause any controversy. But Sheriff Joe can feel good,” he said. Trump drew broad criticism for blaming both white nationalists and counter-protesters for the deadly violence at the Charlottesville rally, which was organized by neo-Nazis and white supremacists. One woman was killed. He mocked left-wing protesters in his speech. Protesters outside Tuesday’s rally yelled: “Shame, shame, shame” and “No Trump, No KKK, No fascist USA” as the Trump supporters began filing into the Phoenix Convention Center. Supporters, who lined up for hours in the Arizona heat ahead of the event, chanted: “Build the wall.” Many wore red hats with Trump’s campaign slogan, “Make America Great Again.” Trump has held a series of 2020 re-election campaign stops despite only having taken office in January. Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton, a Democrat, had asked him to postpone Tuesday’s event while the nation healed from outrage and division after the deadly rally in Charlottesville. A heavy police presence was deployed around the Phoenix venue for Trump’s first trip as president to Arizona, which he won in the 2016 election. | 1 |
22,973 | Lebanese patriarch makes historic Saudi visit amid Hariri crisis | RIYADH (Reuters) - Lebanon s Christian Maronite Patriarch began a historic visit to Saudi Arabia on Monday under heightened scrutiny amid political tensions that have thrust his country back to the forefront of the conflict between the Sunni kingdom and Shi ite rival Iran. Patriarch Beshara al-Rai heads the Maronite church, which has a presence in Lebanon, Syria and Cyprus and follows an Eastern rite of the Roman Catholic church. Maronites number about 900,000 in Lebanon, around a quarter of the population. An official visit to Saudi Arabia by such a senior non-Muslim cleric is a rare act of religious openness for the kingdom, which hosts the holiest sites in Islam and bans the practice of other religions but says it wants to open up more to the world. It is also the first trip to Riyadh by a senior Lebanese official since the start of a crisis sparked by Saad al-Hariri s resignation as Lebanese prime minister on Nov. 4 from the Saudi capital. Top Lebanese government officials and senior sources close to Hariri say Saudi Arabia coerced him into resigning and has put him under effective house arrest since he flew there more than a week ago. During his visit, Rai plans to meet Hariri as well as King Salman and his son and heir-apparent, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, both of whom he praised in an address to Lebanese living in Riyadh. Certainly his resignation surprised the Lebanese and saddened them and created a type of deadlock, he later told reporters between selfies with followers. We hope that with this visit we can speak about this topic. TOLERANCE AND CO-EXISTENCE But Rai said his visit, which was planned before the latest crisis, was not political but aimed at boosting religious tolerance and co-existence in a region torn by sectarian conflict. Hariri said in a television interview on Sunday that he was a free man and would return to Lebanon within days to affirm that he had resigned. He said Lebanon was at risk of Gulf Arab sanctions because of the Shi ite group Hezbollah s regional meddling. Asked when he expected Hariri to return to Lebanon, Rai said: I wish tonight ... we hope as soon as possible. Hariri s resignation and its aftermath have destabilized his country, where Sunni, Shi ite, Christian and Druze factions fought a civil war from 1975-1990, often backed by rival powers around the region. The only other visit to Saudi Arabia by a Christian patriarch took place in 1975, according to the Saudi information ministry. Rai thanked King Salman for the invitation and said he had never dreamed of visiting the kingdom, which bans all non-Muslim houses of prayer, forcing Christians there to risk arrest by praying in private homes. | 1 |
22,974 | Trumpkins Seriously Think Their Hero Will Return From Mexico With A Check For His Wall (TWEETS) | This is so horribly amazing that it defies description. Conservatives who have a bone up their asses about a southern border that s not nearly as porous as they insist actually believe that Donald Trump will come back from Mexico with a check for his border wall. Or, at least, a solid agreement for payment.They re on Twitter saying it. Even former members of Congress are saying it. Joe Walsh, who s a nitwit as it is, said that it would be game, set and match if Trump was able to accomplish that:You know, if @realDonaldTrump comes back from Mexico tomorrow with a big check from Mexico to pay for the wall that s game, set, match. Joe Walsh (@WalshFreedom) August 31, 2016Okay, so it s common knowledge that Walsh is delusional. But so are others, apparently: Even Mexico s President knows #Trump will be our President; hence the invite! Thinking #1 will be cost of the Wall! https://t.co/e80TzXqr8M NaniofTwo (@naniof_two) August 31, 2016Trump meeting with the president of Mexico tomorrow. I sense a wall is getting paid for pic.twitter.com/T54dxz58mn Liberty New England (@LibertyNEblog) August 31, 2016 If Trump comes back from Mexico with a cheque for the Wall, then this election is OVER! #TrumpWins FitAussieForTrump (@SmurfBoobs) August 31, 2016That s a checkmate on #progressives if #Trump gets any reconciliation w Mexico s President. Any agrmnt to build or fund the wall it s over! Mudbone (@MGMiles76) August 31, 2016 @realDonaldTrump when your in #Mexico tomorrow don t forget to pick up the check for the wall. #MAGA #BuildTheWall Trump Fan Minnesota (@Buildthewallcha) August 31, 2016While #SickHillary pops pills & slumbers, I ll bet #Trump returns from Mexico with a down payment on that wall <grin> NightStar (@NightStar44) August 31, 2016 Tomorrow Trump is going to demonstrate statesmanship by bringing a price quote for the wall directly to the rapists! https://t.co/Dpk5SekYwg Hunter Bradley (@trainwreckgawkr) August 31, 2016 Mr Trump is headed over to Mexico ?? tomorrow to go pick up the check for the WALL! LoL! #MAGA #AmericaFirst #buildthewall #TrumpTrain ? ? Jerry for TRUMP (@123jerryv123) August 31, 2016 @HillaryClinton All Mexicans? Really? hum? The President of Mexico is meeting with Trump tomorrow to work out a deal on the WALL! #MAGA Trent R. (@trex554) August 31, 2016That s an astonishing level of gullibility right there, but Trump is a demagogue and his loyal followers eat up every single one of his words. Even some conservative websites are peddling a lie that Mexico already agreed to pay for the wall: Because what s not written in this story is the Mexican political leadership arguing about the viability of the Southern Security Wall being built. They have conceded the most important aspect.The argument has moved beyond will the wall be built, and now is focusing on who is going to pay for it. The media will skip noticing that little nuance. The answer is that, if a President Trump even manages to get authorization for the wall, we will end up paying for it. Oh, sure, he ll claim that Mexico s paying for it with heavy tariffs and by ending NAFTA, and possibly other ways too, but the truth is that we will pay for it, since most of what he s saying about trade isn t likely to happen without him disbanding Congress.This would be hilarious if it wasn t so sad.Featured image by Spencer Platt/Getty Images | 0 |
22,975 | Turkey issues warning over travel to U.S. after Trump protests | ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey warned its citizens about travel to the United States on Saturday in response to what the foreign ministry called increasingly violent protests against President-elect Donald Trump. “Within the context of risks caused by the incidents and of social tension, our citizens who live in the U.S., or who are considering traveling there, should be cautious,” the ministry said in a statement. Demonstrators planned to gather again on Saturday in U.S. cities nationwide to protest against Trump, whose election they say poses a threat to their civil and human rights, a day after a protester was shot in Portland, Oregon. Last month, the U.S. State Department updated its travel warning on Turkey, ordering family members of consulate employees in Istanbul to leave the country, citing threats against U.S. citizens. There has been growing tension between the two NATO allies after repeated calls from Turkey to extradite U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, who Ankara blames for a failed coup in July. Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said on Wednesday he hoped for an improvement in bilateral ties after Trump’s victory, and again called for Gulen’s extradition. | 1 |
22,976 | Senate voting Tuesday on whether to open healthcare debate: McConnell | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate will vote Tuesday on whether to open debate on a healthcare bill, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said on the Senate floor. The only way the Senate can actually consider ways to overhaul healthcare law is by opening a debate in the chamber said McConnell, a Republican. “That means voting to begin the open amendment process. That means voting to kick off a robust debate ... It means voting to proceed, and that will occur tomorrow.” | 1 |
22,977 | Russian nuclear bombers fly near North Korea in rare show of force | MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian nuclear-capable strategic bombers have flown a rare mission around the Korean peninsula at the same time as the United States and South Korea conduct joint military exercises that have infuriated Pyongyang. Russia, which has said it is strongly against any unilateral U.S. military action on the peninsula, said Tupolev-95MS bombers, code named Bears by NATO, had flown over the Pacific Ocean, the Sea of Japan, the Yellow Sea and the East China Sea, prompting Japan and Seoul to scramble jets to escort them. The flight, which also included planes with advanced intelligence gathering capabilities, was over international waters and was announced by the Russian Defence Ministry on the same day as Moscow complained about the U.S.-South Korean war games. The U.S. and South Korea holding yet more large-scale military and naval exercises does not help reduce tensions on the Korean peninsula, Maria Zakharova, a spokeswoman for the foreign ministry, told a news briefing in Moscow. We urge all sides to exercise maximum caution. Given the arms build-up in the region, any rash move or even an unintended incident could spark a military conflict. In Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying did not comment specifically on the Russian mission when asked, reiterating China hoped all sides could quickly return to talks and appropriately and peacefully resolve the situation. The United States and South Korea began the long-planned joint military exercises on Monday, heightening tensions with Pyongyang which called the drills a reckless step towards nuclear conflict. Some military experts regard the hulking Russian turboprop bombers which made the flight near the Korean peninsula as a relic of the Cold War. But Russia has upgraded the aircraft since the Soviet fall and, since 2007, has used the planes to back its diplomacy with shows of force and to probe other countries airspaces. Moscow said the bombers had been accompanied by Sukhoi-35S fighter jets and A-50 early warning and control aircraft. The A-50s, the Russian equivalent of the Boeing E-3 Sentry AWACS aircraft, are designed to track aerial and ground targets at a long range, among other capabilities. Moscow did not say how many aircraft had taken part or when the mission had taken place. Our long-range aviation pilots, according to an established plan, regularly carry out flights over neutral waters over the Atlantic, the Arctic, the Black Sea and the Pacific Ocean from their bases and from tactical airfields, the defense ministry said in the same statement. It said the TU-95MS bombers were refueled in mid-air during the mission, and that during parts of the route they had been escorted by South Korean and Japanese military jets. Russia, which shares a border with North Korea, has repeatedly voiced concerns about rising tensions on the Korean peninsula caused by Pyongyang s nuclear missile program, and has also complained about possible plans by Japan to deploy a U.S. anti-missile system on its soil. Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Zakharova said on Thursday that if Tokyo did go ahead and opt to deploy such a system it would be disproportional to the North Korean missile threat and could upset wider strategic stability in the region. Japan has at least twice before this year been forced to scramble its jets to intercept Russian aircraft. The daily Izvestia newspaper reported in October last year that Russia was close to finishing setting up a new division of heavy bombers to patrol the Japan-Guam-Hawaiian Islands triangle . | 1 |
22,978 | WOW! LOOSE CANNON HILLARY Leaked Major Nuclear Secret To World During Final Debate [VIDEO] | Is it not enough that Hillary has compromised our national security with her unsecured email server that contained top classified security emails? In her rush to prove how much more she knows that Donald J. Trump when it comes to national security, Hillary just committed treason when she revealed damning information that could compromise the safety and security of our nation Is this treasonous, loose cannon the person Democrats want representing our nation simply because it s her turn or because she has the proper genitalia? She s been accused during sworn testimony of disrespecting security agents and putting them in danger.She abaonded her friend Ambassador Chris Stevens and left him to the Islamists who slaughtered him in Benghazi.Tonight during the final presidential debate Hillary Clinton leaked more national security secrets.Hillary said it took four minutes between the nuclear order and nukes flying. GPCareless Hillary told the WORLD the US 'Nuclear Response' Time!! REALLY??#ChrisWallace #debatenight @seanhannity @realDonaldTrump #Trump pic.twitter.com/grOKowwVQI John T. Miller (@cyvault) October 20, 2016https://twitter.com/WDFx2EU7/status/788945122176081920 | 0 |
22,979 | WATCH: Creepy Young Ted Cruz Says He Wants To ‘Be In A Teen T*t Film, Rule Everything’ | 2016 Ted Cruz is a moralizing, holier than thou insufferable prick on a mission from Jesus to save America from liberals and Muslims and brown people. 1988 Ted Cruz, on the other hand, was an insufferable prick that wanted to be rich and powerful, rule the world and .be in a teen tit flick:Via Politico:The new clip was posted on YouTube under the name Young Ted Cruz. The operator of the account told POLITICO the video had been provided by a high school classmate of Cruz s who wished to remain anonymous. The video comes less than 10 days before the Iowa caucuses, where polls show Cruz at or near the lead.You might be saying that it s unfair to slam Cruz for being 18, but let s be honest here, if a video surfaced of an 18 year old Hillary Clinton doing anything even slightly embarrassing, we would never hear the end of it.For most people, this would just be an isolated incident from their past. Not so much for Ted Cruz. His college roommate, his classmates and pretty much everyone that s ever spent more than a few minutes with him have said pretty much the same thing: Ted Cruz is a smug, arrogant and thoroughly awful person with a reputation of creepy behavior around women. His time in Congress has been marked with an obsession with accumulating power at the expense of everyone around him.In this context, Cruz s aspirations as a teen seem less like a joke and more like an honest assessment, including his desire to be in a teen tit film. I have to agree with his father s attitude; when asked if Ted would one day rule the world, he simply says, I hope not! So say we all.Featured image via screencap. | 0 |
22,980 | HOLY F*CK: Trump Had to Be Forced To Say He Hasn’t Sexually Assaulted Women (VIDEO) | At the second presidential debate, Donald Trump had a chance to address the controversy surrounding his claim that he greets seemingly every woman he meets by grabbing them by the pussy. To Trump, this was locker room talk, though I can t say I have ever been in a locker room in which anyone has bragged about sexually assaulting women. To the rest of us, it was a horrific reminder that the 2016 GOP nominee is exactly the sort of person to make creepy sexual remarks about his own daughter a man who has been sued for grabbing someone by the pussy (the woman was branded a liar), who is being sued for the sexual assault of a 13-year-old girl, and who admitted he was attracted to 12-year-old Paris Hilton.Asked if The Donald had actually sexually assaulted women, he repeated that it was locker room talk (whatever that means), but was reticent to admit that he doesn t walk about grabbing women by the pussy largely because, one can safely assume, he can not honestly say that he has not sexually assaulted a woman. Sniffles deflected to ISIS for a while before explaining that it s just one of those things. Asked if he has ever kissed or groped a woman without her consent, Trump replied that he has great respect for women and that nobody has more respect for women than he does. For the record, you re saying you never did that, Anderson Cooper said, fishing for clarification. I ve said things, you hear these things I ve said, and I was embarrassed by it but I have tremendous respect for women and they have respect for me, Trump said, once again evading the question. Have you ever done those things? Cooper pressed, finally earning an offhanded no I have not from Trump before he went on to call Bill Clinton a rapist.Watch it below: | 0 |
22,981 | blaming russia for everything wrong in the us is getting dangerous | by dan dicks tim hortons doesnt want you to see the truth press for truth has been banned from tim hortons in this video dan | 0 |
22,982 | Trump on Hurricane Irma: 'This is some big monster' | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump called Hurricane Irma “some big monster” as it battered the Florida coast, saying he wanted to go to the state very soon and praising emergency officials for their efforts to protect people. “The bad news is that this is some big monster,” Trump told reporters at the White House, saying damage from the storm would be very costly. “Right now, we are worried about lives, not cost,” Trump said after returning from Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland where he monitored the storm and met with his Cabinet. The path of the storm, tracking the west coast of Florida, meant it might be less destructive than it would otherwise have been, Trump said, noting the next five or six hours would be critical. “I hope there aren’t too many people in the path,” he said. “You don’t want to be in that path.” The U.S. House of Representatives canceled votes scheduled for Monday because of the hurricane. Trump said the U.S. Coast Guard had been heroic and that the Federal Emergency Management Agency was doing a good job to help coordinate the response with states. He added, however: “I think the hard part is now beginning.” Trump has offered the full resources of the federal government to Florida and the affected states, Vice President Mike Pence told reporters during a visit to FEMA’s Washington headquarters on Sunday. “Wherever Hurricane Irma goes, we’ll be there first,” Pence said. “We’ll be there with resources and support, both to save lives and to help to recover and rebuild these states and these communities.” On Sunday, Trump also issued a disaster declaration for the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico, and expanded federal funds available to the U.S. Virgin Islands in the aftermath of Irma, the White House said. Trump owns a resort in Palm Beach, Florida, where he has often traveled during his presidency, as well as three golf courses in the state. He told reporters he hoped to travel to the state soon. “We’re going to Florida very soon,” Trump said. | 1 |
22,983 | BREAKING: San Francisco Sheriff That Released Kate Steinle Murderer Loses In A Landslide | The people have spoken and it s clear that Americans are 100% FED Up! with the sanctuary city policy and illegal immigration. Embattled San Francisco Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi convincingly lost his bid for re-election Tuesday after spending months in the national spotlight as the face of his city s controversial sanctuary city policy on illegal immigration. The murder of Kate Steinle brought to the forefront the sanctuary city policy in San Francisco. The refusal to acknowledge the illegality of this policy and the treatment of the Steinle family couldn t be more shameful. Our hope is that this landslide sends a message to those who have been ignoring the rule of law. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Steinle Family who ve suffered so much.Mirkarimi, 54, was defeated by Vicki Hennessy, a former sheriff s official who had the endorsement of San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee and the sheriff deputies association. With 42 percent of precincts reporting, Henessy had received 63 percent of the vote to 31 percent for Mirkarimi.Mirkarimi and his office received heavy criticism after Mexican illegal immigrant Francisco Sanchez allegedly shot and killed 32-year-old Kate Steinle on San Francisco s waterfront July 1. Sanchez had been released from Mirkarimi s jail in March even though federal immigration officials had requested that he be detained for possible deportation.San Francisco declared itself a sanctuary city in 1989, passing an ordinance that bans city officials from enforcing immigration laws or asking about immigration status unless required by law or court order. A follow-up ordinance in 2013 allows detention only under a court order targeting violent felons. Last month, San Francisco s board of supervisors unanimously approved a resolution to maintain the city s sanctuary status.San Francisco and other cities and counties have routinely ignored requests from Immigration and Customs Enforcement officals to keep people in custody. The jurisdictions say they can t hold arrestees beyond their scheduled release dates without probable cause.Hennessy has previously said the sheriff s order barring the San Francisco jail from cooperating with immigration officials is misguided. There are cases, she said, when federal immigration officials should be notified that the jail is about to release an inmate who is in the country illegally.Read more: FOX News | 0 |
22,984 | U.S. says allies oppose bill allowing 9/11 lawsuits against Saudi Arabia | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. State Department officials told members of Congress on Tuesday that legislation that would allow families of Sept. 11 victims to sue Saudi Arabia is opposed by important U.S. allies and posed a national security risk. But many members of a House of Representatives Judiciary Committee subcommittee expressed strong support at a hearing for the “Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act,” or JASTA, which the Senate passed in May by unanimous voice vote despite President Barack Obama’s veto threat. The Saudis, who deny responsibility for the 2001 attacks, strongly oppose the legislation. Other governments have also raised objections. The Dutch parliament warned that JASTA would represent a breach of Dutch sovereignty. A member of the British parliament wrote a column opposing it. Anne Patterson, the State Department’s assistant secretary for Near Eastern affairs, and Brian Egan, its legal counsel, testified that the measure could lead to lawsuits against the United States and discourage security cooperation such as intelligence sharing between governments. “We cannot win the fight against ISIL without full international cooperation,” Patterson said, using an acronym for the Islamic State militant group. But the bill’s supporters say it would provide justice to those who lost loved ones in the attacks 15 years ago. They argue that if Saudi Arabia was not responsible for the attacks, it would win any lawsuits. Representative Jerrold Nadler, a Democrat who represents New York City, said worry about retaliation should not keep the measure from becoming law. “That is no reason to deny justice to the victims of 9/11 and their families,” he said. If it became law, JASTA would remove sovereign immunity preventing lawsuits against governments for countries found to be involved in terrorist attacks on U.S. soil. It would allow survivors of the attacks, and relatives of those killed in the attacks, to seek damages from other countries. In this case, it would allow lawsuits to proceed in federal court in New York as lawyers try to prove that the Saudis were involved in the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon. There was no immediate word on when the House might vote on JASTA. The House was due to adjourn later on Thursday for its summer recess and will not return to Washington until September. | 1 |
22,985 | U.S. lawmakers seek 'well-rounded biofuels policies' | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A bipartisan group in the U.S. House of Representatives has called on the Environmental Protection Agency to recognize “the significant pitfalls and costs” of renewable fuel standards in its future rulemaking and enact “well-rounded” biofuel policies. “We look forward to working with you to put forth well-rounded biofuels policies that reflect market realities and benefit American families and businesses,” the 64 lawmakers wrote to EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt on Wednesday in a letter Reuters reviewed on Thursday. An EPA spokesman said in an email that the agency would respond to the group “through the proper channels.” Wednesday’s letter, whose list of signatories was led by Virginia Republican Bob Goodlatte and Vermont Democrat Peter Welch, said the standard had not accomplished any goals it was purportedly designed to meet, like protecting the environment and revitalizing rural America. “By diverting more than 35 percent of the annual corn harvest to fuel additive, the RFS has raised the cost of livestock production, increased food price volatility and insecurity, decreased fuel efficiency, damaged small-engine equipment, hurt the environment and chipped away at household budgets,” the letter said. Earlier this year, the EPA proposed reexamining several aspects of the standard for renewable fuels, including whether refiners should be responsible for blending them and whether ethanol exports could be included in a marketplace for renewable fuel credits. But the agency announced on Oct. 19 that it would abandon those efforts after protests from Midwestern lawmakers. “President Trump pledged to support biofuels during his campaign,” said Republican U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa in a statement emailed to Reuters on Thursday. “A strong RFS is consistent with that pledge, and President Trump should be applauded for keeping his word to the country.” Renewable Fuels Association spokeswoman Rachel Gantz said Goodlatte was “spreading the same lies” about the standard. “The RFS is helping bring about consumer choice by breaking Big Oil’s monopoly at the pump,” she said. | 1 |
22,986 | Montana congressman-elect sentenced to community work for assaulting reporter | BOZEMAN, Mont. (Reuters) - A Montana Republican congressman-elect pleaded guilty on Monday to assaulting a reporter and was ordered to perform community service and receive anger management training. Greg Gianforte, a wealthy former technology executive who campaigned on his support for President Donald Trump, attacked a reporter on May 24, the day before he won a special election to fill Montana’s lone seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. Gallatin County Judge Rick West sentenced Gianforte to 40 hours of community service and 20 hours of anger management classes. The judge in Bozeman, Montana, also handed down a six-month deferred jail sentence, allowing Gianforte to avoid time behind bars if he complies with the court’s orders. Ben Jacobs, a political correspondent for Britain’s Guardian newspaper, said Gianforte “body-slammed” him, breaking his eyeglasses, when the reporter posed a question about healthcare during a campaign event in Bozeman. The altercation has been portrayed as a sign of the toxicity that has infused American politics. Critics of Trump say his strident criticism of the media has encouraged violence against journalists, while some of the president’s supporters say reporters in general are unfair in their coverage. “This was not a proud moment, but I’m ready to move on and we have a lot of work to do in Washington,” Gianforte, who is expected to be sworn in later this month, said outside court. Last week Gianforte apologized to Jacobs in a letter, and he sent a $50,000 check to the Committee to Protect Journalists. In return, Jacobs pledged not to sue him. “I am confident that he will be a strong advocate for a free press and the First Amendment,” Jacobs said in court on Monday. “And I even hope to be able to finally interview him once he has arrived on Capitol Hill.” Gianforte apologized to Jacobs again in court and said he looked forward to meeting with him later. The judge left open the possibility that Gianforte, after completing his sentence, could have the misdemeanor assault charge formally dismissed, Gallatin County Prosecutor Marty Lambert said by phone. Gianforte initially sought to plead no contest, instead of guilty, but the prosecutor said he insisted on a guilty plea. “This is the type of case where a defendant just needs to admit to the court what he did, to plead guilty, and he did that,” Lambert said. Gianforte on May 25 defeated Democrat Rob Quist to fill the House seat vacated when Trump appointed Ryan Zinke as interior secretary. | 1 |
22,987 | Trump says will announce decision on Paris climate deal soon | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump told reporters on Wednesday that he will announce his decision “very soon” on whether he will withdraw the United States from the Paris climate deal. Responding to shouted questions from reporters in the Oval Office, Trump said he had been hearing from people on both sides of the issue, but he declined to indicate whether he had made up his mind. “I’m hearing from a lot of people, both ways. Both ways,” Trump said. | 1 |
22,988 | Tears and joy on Britain’s St. Helena as 'world's most useless airport' finally opens | JAMESTOWN, St. Helena (Reuters) - One of humanity s most isolated outposts joined the 21st century on Saturday when the British island of St. Helena, home to the world s most useless airport , welcomed its first commercial flight. As the inaugural plane from Johannesburg touched down on the forbidding volcanic outcrop in the middle of the south Atlantic, the travel and history buffs on board clapped and cheered. I ve never felt so emotional in all my life, said Libby Weir-Breen, a British travel operator who has been bringing tourists to the island, 1,200 miles (1,900 km) west of the African nation of Angola, for the last 12 years. She had flown in specially from Scotland to be on the plane, and dabbed away tears as it touched down on the spectacular cliff-side runway. I never thought I d see this day, she said. The 4,500 people living on St. Helena, a British colony since 1658 - most famous as the windswept outpost where French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte breathed his last - might also be forgiven for thinking the day would never come. There has been talk of building an airport on St. Helena since the 1930s. The best site one of the few flat spaces on the notoriously craggy island was ruled out because of a nearby breeding ground for the wirebird, an endangered species of plover. An airport at the new site, on top of a valley filled in with 8 million cubic meters of rock, suffered numerous setbacks and delays as costs ballooned to 285 million pounds, to the horror of the British government. The runway and terminal were completed in 2016 but the official opening was pushed back another year after test flights were buffeted by wicked cross-winds, making it unsafe for large aircraft to use. With Britain mired in financial austerity, the London media were quick to condemn it as a white elephant, or the world s most useless airport , with a price tag of more than 60,000 pounds for every Saint, as the island s residents are known. Before the opening of the airport, which will receive weekly flights to and from the South African commercial capital, the only way to St. Helena was a five-night voyage from Cape Town aboard the RMS St. Helena, a British postal ship. With the risk of wind-shear limiting the size of planes and numbers of passengers Saturday s flight had room for 100 but only 68 on board due to weight restrictions the hoped-for tourist boom is unlikely to materialize. Hotel capacity has jumped in the last few years from just a few dozen rooms to more than 100, but, with a maximum of 3,500 visitors a year, the island is unlikely to be weaned off the 53 million pounds it receives in aid every year from London. Besides Napoleon s old house, Longwood, and a cemetery holding some of the 6,000 Afrikaner prisoners sent there by the British during the Anglo-Boer wars in South Africa, St. Helena offers scuba diving and walking in pristine natural wildernesses. Governor Lisa Phillips dismissed the critics and said that even before it accepted its first commercial flight, the airport had proved its worth in the last 18 months by enabling several life-saving emergency medical evacuations, including a newborn child. I ve seen the headlines about the world s most useless airport, but for St. Helenans this has already been the most useful airport, she told reporters after greeting them on the tarmac. It s priceless. | 1 |
22,989 | UNITED AIRLINES KICKS TODDLER Out Of $969 Seat For Standby Passenger [VIDEO] | United Airlines should probably consider an extensive training program for their employees who are making such bad decisions, before the airline loses every last customer United Airlines requires children over the age of 2 to have their own tickets and occupy their own seats, but that didn t stop the airline from allowing a 27-month-old child from sitting in his mother s lap after they accidentally oversold his spot.Shirley Yamauchi says she and her son Taizo had boarded their flight from Houston to Boston on June 29 the final leg of an 18-hour flight from Hawaii when a standy passenger approached and claimed Taizo was in his seat. I told him that I bought both of these tickets and he tells me that he got the ticket on standby. Then he proceeds to sit in the center, Yamauchi told Hawaii News Now.Yamuachi says she tried to inform a flight attendant about Taizo s seat, but the woman claimed she couldn t do anything about it, seeing as the flight was full.Not wanting to cause a scene or worse, instigate an incident like the one that befell the elderly United passenger who refused to give up his seat on in April Yamuachi sat Taizo on her lap and kept her mouth shut until she reached Boston. I started remembering all those incidents with United on the news. The violence. Teeth getting knocked out. I m Asian. I m scared and I felt uncomfortable. I didn t want those things to happen to me, she told Hawaii News Now.Watch:Upon reaching Boston, Yamauchi was told to call a United hotline to explain the situation. But when she finally got through and asked for a refund, she was told that United would need to cancel her return trip to Hawaii in order to do so, reports KITV. Fox News | 0 |
22,990 | Former Army Ranger is Only Steelers Player Who Shows for National Anthem [Video] | Former Army Ranger Alejandro Villanueva was the only Pittsburgh Steelers player to appear on the field and stand for the national anthem today. Think about it one player out of all of the players showed respect for what our flag stands for. They just don t get it Boycott the NFL!Alejandro Villanueva was the only Steeler to come out for the National Anthem, standing in the tunnel. pic.twitter.com/L4EtxRQSvA CBS Sports (@CBSSports) September 24, 2017Alejandro Villanueva, a West Point graduate and former Army Ranger who served three tours in Afghanistan, stood at the tunnel with his hand over his heart to salute the flag and honor the brave men and women who have served America. This is not a political stance but a love of Country stance. These players need to understand the difference and honor those who have fought and died for America.A Facebook fan has the best take on this yet: THEN TAKE A KNEE Take a little trip to Valley Forge in January. Hold a musket ball in your fingers and imagine it piercing your flesh and breaking a bone or two. There won t be a doctor or trainer to assist you until after the battle, so just wait your turn. Take your cleats and socks off to get a real experience. Then take a knee.Then, take one at the beach in Normandy where man after American man stormed the beach, even as the one in front of him was shot to pieces the very sea stained with American blood. The only blockers most had were the dead bodies in front of them, riddled with bullets from enemy fire.Take a knee in the sweat soaked jungles of Vietnam. From Khe San to Saigon Anywhere will do. Americans died in all those jungles. There was no playbook that told them what was next, but they knew what flag they represented. When they came home, they were protested as well..and spit on for reasons only cowards know.Take another knee in the blood drenched sands of Fallujah in 110 degree heat..Wear your Kevlar helmet and battle dress..Your number won t be printed on it unless your number is up! You ll need to stay hydrated but there won t be anyone to squirt Gatorade into your mouth. You re on your own. There are a lot of places to take a knee Americans have given their lives all over the world. When you use the banner under which they fought as a source for your displeasure, you dishonor the memories of those who bled for the very freedoms you have. That s what the red stripes mean. It represents the blood of those who spilled a sea of it defending your liberty.While you re on your knee, pray for those that came before you, not on a manicured lawn striped and printed with numbers to announce every inch of ground taken but on nameless hills and bloodied beaches and sweltering forests and bitter cold mountains..every inch marked by an American life lost serving that flag you protest. No cheerleaders, no announcers, no coaches, no fans just American men and women delivering the real fight against those who chose to harm us blazing a path so you would have the right to take a knee. You haven t inkling what it took to get you where you are but your protest is duly noted. Not only is it disgraceful to a nation of real heroes, it serves the purpose of pointing to your ingratitude for those who chose to defend you under that banner that will still wave long after your jersey is retired If you really feel the need to take a knee, come with me to church on Sunday and we ll both kneel before Almighty God. We ll thank him for preserving this country for as long as He has. We ll beg forgiveness for our ingratitude for all He has provided us. We ll appeal to Him for understanding and wisdom. We ll pray for liberty and justice for all because He is the one who provides those things. But there will be no protest. There will only be gratitude for His provision and a plea for His continued grace and mercy on the land of the free and the home of the brave. It goes like this GOD BLESS AMERICA! No Steelers were on the sideline during the anthem.LT Alejandro Villanueva, a veteran who served in the Army, stood near the tunnel. pic.twitter.com/JOviLUAtiF Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) September 24, 2017 | 0 |
22,991 | As Catalan vote looms, jailed leader offers olive branch to Spain | MADRID/BARCELONA (Reuters) - The jailed leader of Catalonia s main pro-independence party has backed away from demands for unilateral secession from Spain, days before a regional election that polls suggest will produce a hung parliament. The independence drive has tipped Spain into its worst political crisis since the return of democracy in the 1970s, dividing opinion in the region, denting an economic rebound and prompting a business exodus to other parts of the country. In reply to written questions from Reuters passed to him in prison where he is being held on allegations of rebellion and sedition, Oriol Junqueras struck a conciliatory tone. He wrote that he would continue to pursue independence if he became Catalonia s next president, but also build bridges and shake hands with representatives of the Spanish state. I can assure you that we are democrats before we are separatists and that the aim (of gaining independence) does not always justify the means, he said in comments that appeared to drop his party s earlier demand for unilateral secession. Junqueras Esquerra Republicana (Republican Left) party is tipped to become the largest separatist force in parliament in Thursday s ballot, but surveys suggest neither the pro-independence nor the pro-unity camp will win a majority. He was deputy leader of the Catalan government that was sacked in October after the regional assembly unilaterally declared independence following a referendum that central authorities had deemed illegal. Madrid also dissolved the assembly and called fresh elections. The Spanish justice system s actions against the region s leaders has since then hamstrung the pro-independence camp and further muddied the electoral waters before Thursday s vote. Catalonia s ex-president Carles Puigdemont is campaigning from self-imposed exile in Brussels and Junqueras doing so from jail along with several other politicians. It is unclear if many of those likely to be elected will be able to attend parliament. At separatist rallies across the capital Barcelona in recent days, many supporters appeared to recognize that forcing independence without Spain s consent was no longer an option. Instead, many favored pressuring Madrid into talks and gaining European Union approval for a negotiated split. We can t continue unilaterally. We might lose more than we would gain, said Carles Ortega, a 58-year-old consultant, at a rally at a sports center in Barcelona s outskirts that Puigdemont addressed via videolink. Final polls for the election expected to attract a record turnout showed Esquerra running neck-and-neck with pro-unity party Ciudadanos (Citizens), with both far short of the 68 seats needed to hold a majority. Esquerra previously formed a coalition government with Puigdemont s own center-right party, which leads the Junts per Catalunya platform (Together for Catalonia) which is seen coming third in the vote. The key for unionist and separatist factions will be winning over the regional offshoot of anti-austerity party Podemos, which supports unity but wants a referendum. Its leader favors a left-wing alliance across parties that both back and reject independence. There is a rising risk that pro-independence parties fall a bit short and need to include Podemos and we get a softer push for independence within the institutions, Peter Ceretti, an analyst at the Economist Intelligence Unit, said. The movement would rumble on, he said, and press Madrid on long-held demands for it to return more of Catalonia s tax revenue and recognize the region as a nation, rather than a nationality, in the Spanish constitution. Many Catalans worry about how the independence drive has obscured all other social issues and could harm the wealthy region s position as Spain s primary driver of economic growth and a magnet for foreign investment. Junqueras said if he was elected regional president he would pay heed to voters who opposed independence. I would tell them everybody has to be respected and that differences always have to be resolved in a democratic way, he said. | 1 |
22,992 | Iran tells France's Macron not to 'blindly follow' Trump | LONDON (Reuters) - Iran on Sunday criticized French President Emmanuel Macron over his tough stance toward Tehran and said Paris would soon lose its international credibility if it blindly follows U.S. President Donald Trump. Tensions between Iran and France have risen in recent months after Macron said Tehran should be less aggressive in the Middle East, citing in particular its involvement in Syria s civil war. Macron, unlike Trump, has reaffirmed his country s commitment to the deal Iran signed in 2015 with world powers under which it curbed its disputed nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of most international sanctions. However, he has been critical of Iran s ballistic missile tests and wants to raise the possibility of new sanctions over the program, which Tehran calls solely defensive in nature. To sustain its international credibility, France should not blindly follow the Americans ... The French president is now acting as Trump s lapdog, Ali Akbar Velayati, the top adviser to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was quoted as saying by the semi-official Fars news agency. Velayati also criticized U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, who last week presented pieces of what she said were parts of an Iranian missile supplied to the Tehran-aligned Houthi militia in Yemen. She described the objects as conclusive evidence that Tehran was violating U.N. resolutions. This claim shows she lacks basic scientific knowledge and decency. She is like her boss (Trump) as he also says baseless, ridiculous things. Iran has not supplied Yemen with any missile, Velayati said. Tasnim news agency quoted the spokesman for Iran s elite Revolutionary Guards, Ramezan Sharif, as saying on Sunday that they show a cylinder and say Iran s fingerprints are all over it, while everyone knows that Yemen acquired some missile capabilities from the Soviet Union and North Korea in the past . France took a cautious stance on Haley s report. The United Nations secretariat has not, at this stage, drawn any conclusions. France continues to examine the information at its disposal, Foreign Ministry deputy spokesman Alexandre Giorgini said on Friday. Saudi Arabia, who has long accused Iran of smuggling missiles to the Houthis and has intervened against them in Yemen s war to try to restore its internationally recognized government, welcomed Haley s report. Iran has one of the Middle East s biggest missile programs and some of its precision-guided missiles have the range to strike its arch-regional enemy Israel. Israel has also called for world powers to take punitive steps against Iran over its missile ambitions. An Israeli cabinet minister said last month that Israel has had covert contacts with Saudi Arabia amid common concerns over Iran. Velayati said on Sunday that reported meetings between Saudi and Israeli officials were no threat to Iran as both countries were weak and insignificant. Last month, the Revolutionary Guards warned Europe that if it threatens Tehran, the Guards will increase the range of missiles to above 2,000 kilometers (1,240 miles). | 1 |
22,993 | Protesters injured in Honduras clashes as electoral crisis rumbles on | TEGUCIGALPA (Reuters) - Over two dozen people were injured in clashes on Friday between Honduran security forces and protesters demanding a vote recount for last month s contentious and still unresolved presidential election, according to the Red Cross. Supporters of the center-left Opposition Alliance Against the Dictatorship, led by TV star Salvador Nasralla, set fire to tires across the country, blocking major thoroughfares in the capital, Tegucigalpa, and the second city of San Pedro Sula. Police and soldiers responded with tear gas to rock-throwing protesters who set fire to a vehicle for carrying soldiers in Tegucigalpa. Near San Pedro Sula, protesters blocked a road leading to the key Puerto Cortes port, before being moved on by security forces. The Honduran branch of the International Committee of the Red Cross said that 27 people had been injured in the clashes. At least five of those injured in the northern city of Villanueva, near San Pedro Sula, had been shot, it said. Honduras has been roiled by political instability in the wake of the Nov. 26 vote, which remains unresolved. Nasralla trails conservative President Juan Orlando Hernandez by 1.6 percentage points according to the official count, which has been questioned by the two main opposition parties and a wide swathe of the diplomatic corps. Honduras electoral tribunal said on Sunday that a partial recount of votes showed broadly the same result as previously, maintaining Hernandez s lead. It has until Dec. 26 to declare a winner. Last week, Honduras two main opposition parties presented formal requests to annul the results of the election. | 1 |
22,994 | Even Trey Gowdy Thinks Trump’s Wiretap Conspiracy Is Crazy | Donald Trump is playing a dangerous game by falsely accusing his predecessor of wiretapping his phone lines before the election. Most people realize when Trump seems unhinged in his Twitter timeline, it s usually to distract the public from what is really going on, such as his scandalous ties to Russia and his new travel ban which remarkably resembles his old travel ban. Republicans and Democrats are both left scratching their heads over Trump s accusations.Republican Rep. Trey Gowdy (S.C.), who spent two years investigating Hillary Clinton over the attacks in Benghazi, said Monday he s seen no evidence to support Trump s claim that former President Obama wiretapped his office during the presidential campaign. I don t think the FBI is the Obama team, and I don t think the men and women who are career prosecutors at [the Department of Justice] belong to any team other than a blindfolded woman holding a pair of scales, Gowdy told Politico. We have the tools to keep us safe and it s prudent for those tools to be used lawfully and appropriately, Gowdy continued. If they re not used lawfully and appropriately, there s a paper trail and we ll be able to find it out. Gowdy continued to say that it was hard to cross-examine tweets and any information regarding a FISA warrant used against Trump would be available to the Trump administration.By the way, if a FISA warrant was issued, that would have to be allowed by a judge. Meaning, in that instance, there would be some sort of evidence against Trump, so much so as to wiretap his phones or at least any calls to and or from Russia. The Obama team is no longer in charge, Gowdy added. So any information the current Department of Justice has that suggests the previous Department of Justice acted inappropriately, they are welcome to release it. But there is no evidence to release. A sitting president cannot issue a wiretap. That s not how presidenting works, k? There is a process to go through first.Even Jason Chaffetz said today that there is no evidence to back up Trump s claim. Still yet, Chaffetz is willing to investigate Trump s claim while refusing to launch a probe into the alleged president s ties to Russia.Featured image via Alex Wong/Getty Images | 0 |
22,995 | LOU DOBBS: SEAN SPICER On Trump Firing Comey [Video] | White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer appeared on Lou Dobbs tonight to give the first set of explanatory points around the President s decision to fire FBI Director James Comey: | 0 |
22,996 | Zimbabwe's Mugabe flies to Singapore, first trip since ouster | HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe s former president Robert Mugabe has left the country for medical checks in Singapore, his first foreign travel since the army forced him from office last month, a state security official said on Tuesday. The 93-year-old, who ruled the southern African nation for 37 years, resigned after the army and his ruling ZANU-PF party turned against him when it became clear that his 52-year-old wife, Grace, was being groomed as his successor. Until recently the world s oldest head of state, Mugabe had a reputation for extensive and expensive international travel, including regular medical trips to Singapore - a source of public anger among his impoverished citizens. He left Harare with Grace and aides on Monday evening, the official said. He is expected to make a stop-over in Malaysia, where his daughter, Bona, is expecting a second child. He has gone for a routine medical trip to Singapore, said the official, who has organized Mugabe s security protection but who is not authorized to speak to the media. He was due for a check-up but events of the last few weeks made it impossible for him to travel. The trip means Mugabe will not be in Zimbabwe when ZANU-PF endorses President Emmerson Mnangagwa as its leader and presidential candidate for next year s elections during a one-day special congress on Friday. The security official would not say how Mugabe was traveling although the privately owned NewsDay newspaper said he was on a state-owned Air Zimbabwe plane. Mugabe was granted immunity from prosecution and assured of his safety under his resignation deal, a source of frustration to many Zimbabweans who accused him of looting state coffers and destroying the economy during his time in power. Another government official told Reuters last month Mugabe had been due to travel to Singapore on Nov. 16 but was unable to leave because the military had confined him to his private home the previous day. George Charamba, a senior information ministry official, declined to comment. Under Zimbabwe s Presidential Pension and Retirement Benefits Act, a former head of state is entitled to perks including limited foreign travel and medical insurance. These are very standard features of a retired president, another government official said, trying to head off any controversy. You are making a storm out of nothing. | 1 |
22,997 | WATCH: ANTI-GUN RAPPER, Obama-Fanboy Snoop Dogg Uses Gun To Assassinate President Trump In New VIDEO | Watch:Here is Snoop Dogg s latest music video glorifying the assassination of President Trump. If Snoop Dogg is correct and the youth listens to their message, are they listening to this message? | 0 |
22,998 | Black U.S. lawmakers group endorses Clinton White House bid | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton was endorsed by the Congressional Black Caucus on Thursday, a much-needed boost to her campaign as it competes for the important black voting bloc in South Carolina’s primary this month. Clinton and her husband, former President Bill Clinton, have built strong ties to the African-American community over the past decades. Several lawmakers cited Clinton’s long history of not only working on issues important to black Americans, but on getting Democrats elected and advancing the party’s agenda. “Mrs Clinton has demonstrated her leadership skills. She has labored in various capacities all of her adult life and now she is ready to serve our country by occupying the highest office in our country,” said U.S. Representative G.K. Butterfield. The group’s backing will be important as Clinton seeks to recover from Tuesday’s stinging loss to U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders in the New Hampshire primary. Black voters make up a large bloc in the Democratic primary in South Carolina and will be increasingly significant to the Democrats as the presidential contest moves from Iowa and New Hampshire to more demographically diverse states. The Congressional Black Caucus Political Action Committee planned to send a dozen members to South Carolina to campaign for Clinton over the weekend in advance of the state’s Feb. 27 Democratic primary. Sanders, fresh off his victory in New Hampshire, had breakfast on Wednesday with one of America’s most prominent civil rights activists, Rev. Al Sharpton, recognizing the need to broaden his base to mount a long-term challenge to Clinton. U.S. Representative James Clyburn, an influential African American from South Carolina, declined to make a personal endorsement before the caucus announcement in Washington. Appearing on CNN Thursday morning, Clyburn praised Sanders’ voting record and had no criticism of the U.S. senator from Vermont. But his comments suggested he was leaning toward Clinton, whom he credited with significant contributions to issues important to black Americans, particularly universal access to health care and children’s issues. Butterfield was more pointed in alluding to Sanders, who promises universal health care and free college tuition. “We need a president who doesn’t simply campaign and just promise wonderful things but things that are politically impossible to achieve,” he said at the caucus announcement. (Reporting by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Bernadette Baum and Alistair Bell) SAP is the sponsor of this content. It was independently created by Reuters’ editorial staff and funded in part by SAP, which otherwise has no role in this coverage. | 1 |
22,999 | Treasury chief says reviewing Iran's aircraft licenses | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Treasury is reviewing licenses for Boeing Co and Airbus to sell aircraft to Iran, department head Steven Mnuchin said on Wednesday, telling lawmakers he would increase sanctions pressure on Iran, Syria and North Korea. “We will use everything within our power to put additional sanctions on Iran, Syria and North Korea to protect American lives,” Mnuchin said in testimony to the House Ways and Means Committee. “I can assure you that’s a big focus of mine and I discuss it with the president.” Mnuchin did not elaborate on the review of the licenses, which were issued under a 2015 agreement between Tehran and world powers to lift sanctions in return for curbs on Iran’s nuclear activities. His statements followed President Donald Trump’s Middle East trip, in which he called on Iran to stop funding “terrorists and militias.” The review suggests that Trump’s support for Boeing’s defense and jetliner businesses could have political limits. Iran has accused Washington of supporting terrorism by backing rebels in Syria and says halting the airplane deals would breach the 2015 nuclear agreement. Mnuchin told the Ways and Means hearing that sanctions “really work” and were responsible for bringing Iran to the negotiating table ahead of the nuclear deal. For Boeing, losing the IranAir deal could affect 777 production, since 15 of the widebody jetliners are included in the first approved batch of Boeing aircraft due for delivery to IranAir by 2020. Deliveries start in May next year. Boeing said in December it would cut 777 output by 40 percent this year under plans that include IranAir’s still-tenative order. IranAir has agreed to buy 200 U.S. and European passenger aircraft worth up to $37 billion at list prices, though such deals typically include big discounts. They include 80 jets from Boeing, 100 from Airbus and 20 turboprops from Franco-Italian ATR. All the aircraft need U.S. licenses because of their reliance on U.S. parts. “Boeing continues to follow the lead of the U.S. government with regards to working with Iran’s airlines, and any and all contracts with Iran’s airlines are contingent upon U.S. government approval,” a spokeswoman said by email. An Airbus spokesman had no immediate comment. In its first business with the Islamic Republic since U.S. President Donald Trump took office vowing a tougher stance on Iran in January, Boeing last month announced a tentative deal to sell 30 jets to Iran Aseman Airlines, its third-largest carrier. Boeing said it would apply for licenses for the deal. People involved in the deals say the Treasury has so far issued licenses for the main contracts between Western suppliers and IranAir, but that many need to be renewed beyond 2020. IranAir does not need further approvals to take delivery of the first 70 or so aircraft, they say, though legal experts have said the U.S. Treasury can withdraw licenses at any time. About a third of the Airbus jets, or some 37, also are due to arrive by 2020, including three already delivered. IranAir last week took delivery of four ATR turboprops and plans to take the remaining 16 next year. Even with licenses in place, bankers say talks between Iran and Western banks to fund deliveries of the aircraft have been disrupted by concerns that sanctions could be reintroduced or that banks could be penalized for dealing with Iran. | 1 |
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