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3,400 | Sanders Slams Trump On Campaign Trail: ‘The Essence Of His Campaign Is Bigotry’ | Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders hit the campaign trail for his former opponent in the Democratic primary on Monday, and he didn t mince words when it came to Republican nominee Donald Trump. As we all know, Trump has run one of the ugliest, most bigoted campaigns we ve seen this side of the Civil Rights Era. To that end, Bernie wasn t just there to stump for Hillary, but also to make sure his audience understands just who Donald Trump is, and what he stands for. Bernie began: My opposition to Trump goes beyond the fact that he refuses to recognize the reality of climate change. It goes beyond his willingness to give tax breaks to billionaires and cut programs for working people. My opposition in the strongest way to Trump is that he is making the cornerstone of his campaign, not economics, not healthcare, not the environment the essence of his campaign is bigotry. Bernie didn t stop there, though, and continued the all -out assault on Trump from his platform on the stage in Lebanon, New Hampshire: We re supposed to hate anybody who is different than we are. He went on to remind everyone of Trump s outrageous statements regarding Muslims, women, Mexicans, and other groups. After all, lest we forget, Trump actually kicked his campaign off by calling Mexican immigrants rapists and criminals. After that, he called for, quote, a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States. Of course, we all know that Trump has spent the last year and a half appealing to the most disgusting and dark elements of the underbelly of racist American populism. He has brought overt racism and fringe white supremacy mainstream so much so, in fact, that he has inspired former Ku Klux Klan grand wizard David Duke to run for the U.S. Senate.So, GOP, remember all of these FACTS next time you try to tell minorities that your party isn t bigoted. With Trump as your standard bearer, how the hell can you expect us to believe that?Good on you, Bernie, for calling a spade a spade, and reminding the American people just who and what Donald Trump and his disgusting campaign really is.Featured image via Darren McCollester/Getty Images | 0 |
3,401 | GENERAL BOYKIN On Gender Neutral Bathrooms: “…the first man that walks in my daughter’s bathroom, he ain’t going to have to worry about surgery.” | General Boykin spoke at The Awakening 2016 conference and had this to say about the hot topic of gender neutral bathrooms: | 0 |
3,402 | Good Riddance: James Clapper Resigns as Director of US Intelligence | 21st Century Wire says Like CIA Director John Brennan, a large part of the job of James Clapper, National Intelligence Director, was to lie to the American people and to continually exaggerate certain threats, while trying to conceal real problems most of which are created by US federal agencies. Like the CIA, this post has become a political one, and a government propaganda mouth piece for the deep state and all its domestic clandestine designs.When asked in 2013 by Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR), Does the NSA collect any type of data at all on millions or hundreds of millions of Americans? Clapper s reponse was, No sir. This was a flat out lie, under oath (which seemed to be the norm for all testimonies under 8 years of Obama).Chief among James Clapper s propaganda campaigns directed at the American people was the greatest politically motivated phony talking point to date: that Russia and its president Vladimir Putin were somehow hacking US Elections, while offering no evidence whatsoever to back up this alleged claim by the intelligence community, that irresponsible talking point was spun far out of control and probably set back US-Russian relations years. Clapper claimed that leaked emails posted on WikiLeaks, DCLeaks.com and Guccifer 2.0, were identified as being associated with Russian intelligence even though most of the sober world has come to realize this grand conspiracy theory more than likely originated within the White House and the DNC itself. In a just world, this howler would be a black mark against the credibility of Clapper for the rest of his paid speaking and lucrative conference junket career, but alas, it s not a just world Clapper will continue to cash in regardless. Maybe that was the intention.There are a number of other things that Clapper said, and did, during his tenure, too many to mention here. More from Adam Garrie Adam Garrie The DuranIn a first major resignation since Donald Trump s electoral victory, the US Director of National Intelligence James Clapper quit his post.US Director of National Intelligence James Clapper has just announced his resignation. This was the man who presided over the US government spying on its citizens and those throughout the world. This scandal was one whose existence Clapper denied, in spite of plain and clear evidence to the contrary.Edward Snowed had exposed numerous constitutional violations during Clapper s reign. This man s exit from the Bush-created position of Director of National Intelligence should be welcomed by everyone who opposes the surveillance state.It has been under Clapper that the government has been cut free of any checks and balances on its use of technology to violate the privacy of ordinary individuals, yet individuals of extraordinary conscience who blow the whistle on the illegal covert activities of government are prosecuted, victimized, and threatened with execution. I m referring specifically to Bradley Manning, Julian Assange and Edward Snowden.Clapper said that he is happy to resign. I personally share in this happiness as will many others. The timing of his resignation, which will be effective in 64 days, is a clear indication that he does not see eye to eye with his incoming boss, Donald Trump.If Clapper is replaced by someone guided by conscience rather than someone who uses George Orwell s 1984 as a handbook rather than a warning, it could well pave the way for the pardon of Manning, Assange and Snowden.One can only hope that Donald Trump does the right thing.READ MORE ELECTION NEWS AT: 21st Century Wire 2016 FilesSUPPORT 21WIRE SUBSCRIBE & BECOME A MEMBER @21WIRE.TV | 0 |
3,403 | AWESOME! CONSERVATIVE STREET ARTIST Plasters Posters All Over Hollywood Mocking Oscars | Sabo, an artist who has made a name for himself with real-looking movie posters that skewer liberalism, plastered his latest creations all over Hollywood and Highland, a stone s throw from where celebrities will be walking the red carpet.In the dead of night Thursday and early Friday morning, Sabo plastered his posters all over town, in hard-to-reach places where they look like genuine advertisements. All those assholes make are unwatchable movies from unreadable books, says one large poster containing a giant image of an Oscar statuette. The text was borrowed from Tarantino s True Romance.Sabo also created ads for Redbox and even built some replicas of the movie rental service s iconic kiosks.HERE S SABO S COMMENTARY ON HOLLYWOOD AND THE POSTERS HE JUST PUT UP:I hardly ever go to movies anymore and it there s ever a movie I really want to see I ll just wait for it to show up in ReBox. I ll admit the reasons I do this are a bit petty. It s my own little way to rebel by putting as little money possible into the big liberal Hollywood machine. Out of touch actors who rail against my political beliefs drove me to it.Shia LaBeouf, Bryan Cranston, Cher, Madonna, Ashley Judd, Matt Damon, Ben Affleck I could go on all day, have shot their mouths off long enough calling people like myself every vile name in the book, again and again, and again, and again. I used to really love movies and the occasional tv show but not so much these days. I discount what goes on in them these days more than ever.I m sure many people are wondering if anyone is going to out Meryl Streep her Golden Globe anti-Trump tirade on Sunday night at the Oscars.Recently a Hollywood Reporter pole revealed 6 out of 10 Americans can t even name one Best Picture Nominee.What this tells me is America for the most part is more and more discounting what s coming out of Hollywood. And I m sure many who do eventually watch these movies are waiting for them to show up on RedBox because $1.50 is all they think they are worth.The quote, ALL THOSE ASSHOLES MAKE ARE UNWATCHABLE MOVIES FROM UNREADABLE BOOK. came from the Quentin Tarantino (who I can no longer stand because one morning he woke up on of the most obnoxious celebutards in Hollywood) movie True Romance spoken by the character Clarence Worley played by Christian Slater who was expressing his distain for modern Hollywood blockbusters.What we need is Shia LaBeouf to show up and start chanting the mantra, THEY WILL NOT DIVIDE US to help take down the huge barricade that surrounds the Dolby Theater that divides we lowly plebs from the Hollywood Royalty.Read more: HR | 0 |
3,404 | Mattis says no tolerance for terrorist sanctuaries, will work with India | NEW DELHI (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said on Tuesday there can be no tolerance for terrorist safe havens and pledged to work together with India to end the scourge. Mattis was speaking after talks with Indian leaders aimed at deepening military ties. India has long accused Pakistan of harboring militants on its soil. There can be no tolerance of terrorist safe havens. As global leaders, India and the United States resolve to work together to eradicate this scourge, he said in a statement. He also said Washington welcomed Indian efforts to help stabilize the situation in Afghanistan. | 1 |
3,405 | U.S. government watchdog calls for changes in Afghan training effort | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Even as thousands of additional American troops head to Afghanistan, a U.S. government watchdog is warning that tens of billions of dollars could be wasted unless changes are made in the training of Afghan security forces. Deficiencies in the Afghan forces, including the military and police, are getting renewed attention after U.S. President Donald Trump s administration decided to send more than 3,000 additional troops to the country where the United States has been engaged in its longest war. Washington has spent $70 billion training Afghan forces since 2002, and is still spending more than $4 billion a year, according to a report from the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, or SIGAR, published on Thursday. Despite those sums, Afghan security forces are struggling to prevent advances by Taliban insurgents more than 16 years after the United States invaded Afghanistan to topple the Islamist Taliban government that gave al Qaeda the sanctuary where it plotted the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. According to U.S. estimates, government forces control less than 60 percent of Afghanistan, with almost half the country either contested or under the control of insurgents. The report said U.S. forces focused on carrying out military operations during the initial years after the 2001 invasion, rather than developing the Afghan army and police. When the United States and NATO did look to develop the security forces, they did so with little input from senior Afghan officials, according to the report. At one point, the report said, training for Afghan police officials used Power Point slides from U.S. and NATO operations in the Balkans. The presentations were not only of questionable relevance to the Afghan setting, but also overlooked the high levels of illiteracy among the police, the report said. John Sopko, the head of SIGAR, said that one U.S. officer watched TV shows such as Cops and NCIS to understand what to teach Afghan officials. Sopko said the U.S. government approach to Afghanistan lacked a whole of government approach in which different agencies such as the State Department and Pentagon coordinate efforts. The inability of embassy officials in Kabul to venture far outside their secure compound also affected oversight and coordination, he said. The goal of U.S. policy remains enabling local forces to defeat the Taliban and secure the country so economic development can proceed. Victory would look like people in the Government of Afghanistan (being able to) handle this threat from the terrorists, using their own security forces, with international mentors probably there for many years to come, U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said recently. Michael Kugelman, a South Asia specialist at the Woodrow Wilson Center, a Washington think tank, said that while the Afghan forces had major shortcomings, including their ability to collect intelligence and hold territory, their progress should not be overlooked. It is easy to forget the progress that the security forces have made amid all the doomsday rhetoric, but there have been very real improvements in the Afghan security forces. For instance, the special forces have become jewel of the Afghan security forces, Kugelman said. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said on Wednesday the country s army was not only better trained and profiting from a new generation of soldiers but had gained experience after huge cuts in the U.S.-led international force under former U.S. President Barack Obama forced Afghans to assume a bigger role in the fighting. | 1 |
3,406 | Irish postage stamp homage to Che Guevara stokes criticism | DUBLIN (Reuters) - The unlikely choice of Argentinian communist guerrilla leader Ernesto Che Guevara, hero of the Cuban revolution, as the face of the new 1-euro postage stamp in Ireland is stoking controversy on both sides of the Atlantic. The traditionally Catholic country, which has never had a left-wing government, only established diplomatic relations with Cuba in 1999, 40 years after Guevara helped lead the Cuban revolution with Fidel Castro. However Guevara s father, Ernesto Guevara Lynch, was a civil engineer of Irish descent and the iconic red and black print of the long-haired Che known from t-shirts and posters around the world was produced by an Irish artist, Jim Fitzpatrick. On this basis Ireland s postal service this week issued the new stamp featuring Fitzpatrick s image of Guevara to mark the 50th anniversary of his death. The postal service described Guevara, killed by CIA-backed Bolivian soldiers in Bolivia in 1967, as the quintessential left-wing revolutionary. It said demand for the stamp has rivaled that of its two previously most popular releases, commemorating the sinking of the Titanic and Ireland s 1916 Rising against British rule. But it was quickly reminded that Guevara remains for many symbol of the violent abuses of Cuba s communist government, with one Irish senator describing Guevara as a barbaric interrogator, jailer and executioner of hundreds of supposed class enemies . It is my belief that he is most definitely not a suitable candidate for such an honor, said Neale Richmond, a member of Irish governing party Fine Gael in a letter to Ireland s communications minister. Cuban-American radio host Ninoska Perez Castellon joined the fray urging listeners to write to the postal service to ask for the stamp to be scrapped. Fitzpatrick, whose 1968 print based on a picture taken by Cuban photographer Alberto Korda was adopted by left-wing students on t-shirts and posters, turning it into a global sign of rebellion, said he was not surprised by the response. Irish anti-communists threatened to throw a brick through a local shop window when it displayed the image when he first produced it half a century ago. It s not totally unexpected. It was a revolution and you have two parties of opposites and we had the same after the Civil War in this country, Fitzpatrick told Reuters at his Dublin home, where the front room doubles as a studio with old drawings and sketches scattered about the desk. I thought it was amazing that they (the postal service) wanted to do a stamp of Che and It was a great honor for me, he said. Fitzpatrick, who has designed album covers for Irish rock star Sinead O Connor and the band Thin Lizzy, said in 2011 that he was seeking to obtain the copyright to his image of Che, to prevent crass, commercial use of it. A spokesman for the postal service said neither Fitzpatrick nor the estate of the photographer Korda was being paid for the use of the image on the stamp. | 1 |
3,407 | studie beweist indianer kennen doch schmerz | steht ganz neben sich klonforscher nach erfolgreichem experiment überwältigt die kriminalpolizei brät bitte türen und fenster geschlossen halten auch wenns schwefelt vulkanologe muss zur arbeit hat einen schatten psychisch kranker leidet an verfolgungswahn docht kölner zeigt freundin wo man die kerze anzünden muss versunken keine spur von alter kultur dichtender kröten mal wieder keinen abbekommen domina geht nach fesselspielen allein nach hause rbo kop tsc oga tomsod bbr lou jetzt bestellen der postillonnewstickerkalender nur der postillon newsticker artikel teilen | 0 |
3,408 | Myanmar, Bangladesh ink Rohingya return deal amid concern over army's role | NAYPYITAW (Reuters) - Myanmar and Bangladesh signed an accord on Thursday over terms for the return of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims who have fled to Bangladesh, both governments said, amid concern that Myanmar s powerful army could prove obstructive. Rights groups have accused the military in mostly Buddhist Myanmar of carrying out mass rape and other atrocities during a counter-insurgency operation launched in late August in retaliation for attacks by Rohingya militants in Rakhine State. On Wednesday, the United States said the military operation that drove 620,000 Rohingya to seek sanctuary in neighboring, largely Muslim Bangladesh, amounted to ethnic cleansing , echoing an accusation first leveled by top U.N. officials in the early days of the humanitarian crisis. Myanmar is seeking to ease international pressure by striking an initial agreement on returns, while Dhaka wants to ensure overstretched refugee camps that have mushroomed in the Cox s Bazar region don t become permanent. The return of the refugees should start in two months, the pact says. A joint working group will be set up in three weeks and a specific bilateral arrangement for repatriation will be concluded in a speedy manner, the Bangladesh foreign affairs ministry said in a statement. We are ready to take them back as soon as possible after Bangladesh sends the forms back to us, Myint Kyaing, a permanent secretary at Myanmar s ministry of labor, immigration and population, told Reuters, referring to forms the Rohingya must complete with personal details before repatriation. The signing took place after a meeting between Myanmar s civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi and Bangladesh foreign minister Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali in Naypyitaw. In its statement, Myanmar said the deal was based on the 1992-1993 repatriation pact between the two countries that followed a previous spasm of violence in Myanmar. Although Western countries and the world Muslim body, the Organisation for Islamic Cooperation, portrayed the matter as an international issue, Myanmar said it was resolved via two-way talks based on friendly and good neighborly relations . Issues that emerge between neighboring countries must be resolved amicably through bilateral negotiations, Suu Kyi s office said. On the basis of the 1992-1993 agreement, Myanmar would accept those who could present identity documents issued to the Rohingya by governments in the past, Myint Kyaing said. Acceptable identity documents include the currently distributed national verification cards, the now-withdrawn white cards , and receipts the Rohingya received for the return of white cards , he said. The refugees have to provide names of family members, previous addresses in Myanmar, birthdates and a statement of voluntary return in the forms they fill out, he added. Diplomats have said key deal elements will be the criteria of return and the participation of the United Nations refugee agency, UNHCR. Other important points include safeguards for the Rohingya against further violence, a path to resolving their legal status and whether they would be allowed to return to their own homes and farms. Myint Kyaing declined to elaborate on those points. Speaking at a military event in Dhaka, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said she was calling on Myanmar to start taking back soon their nationals from Bangladesh . However, there was little enthusiasm for the deal among Rohingya refugees in the camps in Bangladesh s Cox s Bazar area near the Myanmar border. We will go back to our country if our demands are met, said one of them, Salimullah, who arrived in Bangladesh 15 days ago. Our demands are that we are given citizenship. They also have to give us back our land, he told Reuters Television. Suu Kyi, whose stature as a Nobel peace prize winner was tarnished by the crisis, has said repatriation of the largely stateless Muslim minority would be based on residency and that it will be safe and voluntary . But her civilian administration, which is less than two years old, has to share power with the military that ruled Myanmar for decades, and the generals have appeared less enthusiastic about the prospect of Rohingya returning. Russia s ambassador to Myanmar criticized the U.S. stance, saying that using the term ethnic cleansing was unhelpful and could aggravate the situation. On a visit to Beijing on Wednesday, Myanmar s commander in chief, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, was told by a senior Chinese general that China wanted stronger ties with Myanmar s military. Humanitarian workers told Reuters they were particularly concerned about a statement by Min Aung Hlaing last week. The situation must be acceptable for both local Rakhine ethnic people and Bengalis, and emphasis must be placed on wish of local Rakhine ethnic people who are real Myanmar citizens, Min Aung Hlaing said. His use of the term Bengali for the Rohingya implies they are from Bangladesh, and Buddhists in Rakhine are largely opposed to their presence. Min Aung Hlaing, over whom Suu Kyi has no control, also said the returnees would be scrutinized and re-accepted under the 1982 Citizenship Law and the 1992 Myanmar-Bangladesh bilateral agreement . The 1982 law, passed during the junta s long rule, ties Myanmar citizenship to membership of recognized ethnic groups, an official list that excludes the Rohingya. Senior U.N. officials based in Myanmar told Reuters they feared that security personnel in key positions may not cooperate over the return of Rohingya. | 1 |
3,409 | G5 Sahel launches military operation in African scrublands | DAKAR (Reuters) - A long-awaited multi-national military force in Africa s Sahel region has begun operations to counter escalating Islamist insurgencies, participants in the joint effort said on Thursday. The G5 Sahel force, backed by France and the United States, launched its campaign on Oct. 28 amid growing unrest in the desert reaches of the Sahel, where jihadists such as al Qaeda and Islamic State-affiliated groups roam undetected, often across long, porous borders. Last month, Islamist militants killed four U.S. soldiers and at least four Nigeriens in an ambush that highlighted the risks of operating in the remote region. G5 Sahel is made up of troops from Mali, Niger, Chad, Burkina Faso and Mauritania that will police the region in collaboration with 4,000 French troops deployed there since intervening in 2013 to beat back an insurgency in northern Mali. The first mission, called HAW BI , comprises several hundred soldiers from Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, whose shared borderlands have been the epicenter of a surge in militant attacks, G5 Sahel said in a statement. The operation...aims to achieve an area of control in this region of three borders to fight against armed groups and trafficking, in order to allow the return of a level of security favorable to the tranquility of the populations, the statement said. The force will eventually swell to 5,000 men from 7 battalions and will also engage in humanitarian and development work, it said. G5 Sahel, whose command base is in Sevare in central Mali, will also coordinate with MINUSMA, Mali s U.N. peacekeeping mission. MINUSMA has faced frequent attacks in the north where Islamists have regained ground since 2013. The new force faces a number of challenges, not least in funding. The United States this week promised up to $60 million in support, but that fell short of hopes by France and others that Washington would back direct funding from the United Nations. | 1 |
3,410 | Sisi cautions Trump against 'complicating' matters in Middle East: Egyptian presidency | CAIRO (Reuters) - Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi told U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday there was no need to complicate matters in the Middle East after Trump phoned him to talk about his decision to move the U.S. Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, a Cairo presidential statement said. It said Sisi cautioned Trump against taking measures that would undermine the chances of peace in the Middle East . The Egyptian president affirmed the Egyptian position on preserving the legal status of Jerusalem within the framework of international references and relevant U.N. resolutions, the statement said. U.S. endorsement of Israel s claim to all of Jerusalem as its capital would break with decades of U.S. policy that the city s status must be decided in negotiations with the Palestinians, who want East Jerusalem as the capital of their future state. The international community does not recognize Israeli sovereignty over the entire city. | 1 |
3,411 | France, Germany concerned about Trump's moves to limit refugees | PARIS (Reuters) - France, Germany and Luxembourg voiced disquiet on Saturday over U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to limit immigration and refugees from some Muslim countries, with Berlin and Paris also reaffirming a firm line on Russian sanctions. Speaking at a joint news conference in Paris with his German counterpart Sigmar Gabriel, French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said many of Trump’s decisions worried the two U.S. allies, including new immigration restrictions. Trump on Friday signed an executive order that will curb immigration and refugees from some Muslim-majority countries and he separately said he wanted the United States to give priority to Syrian Christians fleeing the civil war there. “This can only worry us, but there are many subjects that worry us,” Ayrault said, adding that he would soon invite his future American counterpart Rex Tillerson to Paris to explain Europe’s interests, values and vision of the world. “Welcoming refugees who flee war and oppression is part of our duty,” Ayrault said. Germany has taken in more than one million refugees and migrants, mainly from the Middle East, since 2015. Although traditionally open to asylum seekers, France has taken in far fewer refugees than Germany since the migrant crisis erupted. Some in the French government, mostly ex-premier Manuel Valls, criticizing Berlin’s open-door policy, as has Trump. “The United States is a country where Christian traditions have an important meaning. Loving your neighbor is a major Christian value, and that includes helping people,” said Germany’s Gabriel, who was on his first trip abroad since his nomination as foreign minister. “I think that is what unites us in the West, and I think that is what we want to make clear to the Americans.” Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn said Trump’s order would have negative consequences. “The American president is dividing the Muslim world into good and evil with this,” Asselborn told the Tagesspiegel German newspaper. “The decision is also bad for Europe because it will increase the Muslim world’s mistrust and hatred of the West.” The two countries also reiterated their position on Russian sanctions, saying they could only be lifted if progress was made in the peace process for eastern Ukraine, where a pro-Russian separatist insurgency began in 2014. They joined British Prime Minister Theresa May in cautioning Trump against premature moves on the issue. “Let’s not forget there was a war, that Russia sought to take over parts of Ukraine,” Ayrault said. Trump said on Friday he was only in the early stages of considering whether to lift U.S. sanctions on Russia, but insisted he wanted to follow through on his campaign pledge to pursue better relations with Russia. The French and German ministers also said the United Nations remained the best framework to lead peace talks about Syria in the aftermath of Russian-led efforts in the Kazakh capital Astana that some diplomats say might undermine the UN process. Separately, Germany and France are also continuing to work on creating a joint tactical airlift pool of Lockheed Martin Corp C-130J military transport planes, a spokesman for the German defense ministry said on Saturday. He could not confirm a report in Der Spiegel news magazine that the two countries expected to complete work on the deal and present it to U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis at a meeting of NATO defense ministers in Brussels next month. The magazine said German Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen hoped to present the joint airlift as evidence of Germany’s willingness to contribute more to NATO. Trump has criticized many European countries for not meeting a NATO target of spending 2 percent of gross domestic product on defense. | 1 |
3,412 | WOW! Why George W. Bush Never Left DC Until After Christmas Day | Meanwhile, the Obama s jet off to Hawaii every year well before Christmas. When you read the reason why the Bush s wait in DC until after Christmas day, you ll see why its really all about putting others before yourself Like many Americans, U.S. presidents often take time off around the holidays.However, according to journalist Joseph Curl, who previously covered the White House, former President George W. Bush went on Christmas vacation in a way that stands in direct contrast to President Barack Obama. [H]ere s the thing: In December, we never left Washington, D.C., until the day after Christmas. Never. Mr. Bush and his wife, Laura, would always depart the White House a few days before the holiday and hunker down at Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland, Curl wrote in a 2013 column that was republished Thursday.After a few years, curiosity finally got to the former Washington Times reporter and he asked a low-level administration official why. I still remember what she said, Curl wrote. So all of us can be with our families on Christmas. Who was us ? Hundreds and hundreds of people, that s who. Sure, the reporters who covered the president, but also dozens and dozens on his staff, 100 Secret Service agents, maybe more, and all of those city cops required whenever the president s on the move in D.C., Curl added in his column.However, things seemingly changed when Obama took office. [T]his president would never delay his trip to his island getaway. He s off every year well before Christmas. Hundreds and hundreds head off with him, leaving family behind, Curl wrote. No Christmas at home, he added. Instead, the Hawaiian Village Waikiki Beach Resort. Nice, but not exactly home. Via: The Blaze | 0 |
3,413 | HILLARY ALINSKY IS NEXT: How POPULIST Movement Is Catching Fire Worldwide…GLOBALIST Movement Is On The Run [VIDEO] | It s always the will of the people ultimately that wins out Trump The vote to Brexit a hard-fought campaign by nationalist populists in the United Kingdom puts the world elite on their heels, as a similar but bigger and stronger such movement is brewing right here in the United States.Donald J. Trump, the presumptive 2016 GOP presidential nominee, has run a campaign so far and since winning the nomination focused squarely on the exact same issues that the Leave campaigners ran on in the United Kingdom. Uncontrolled migration, out-of-whack trade deals, national sovereignty, popular control of government, and rejection of world elites are what propelled Leave campaigners to a stunning victory in the United Kingdom. Those same issues are what has propelled Trump to a similarly shocking victory over 16 other Republican presidential candidates in the primaries, where he as Breitbart News has documented received millions more votes than anyone else who has ever won the GOP nomination has.They also set the stage for the 2016 general election. Trump has not shown a sign of backing down at all, on any of this, and in his speech earlier in the week laying out the case against Hillary Rodham Clinton the presumptive 2016 Democratic presidential nominee, his opponent in November he set the stage for this battle.Here s Trump on the UK Brexit: Everywhere I look, I see the possibilities of what our country could be. But we can t solve any of these problems by relying on the politicians who created them, Trump said in his Tuesday address. We will never be able to fix a rigged system by counting on the same people who rigged it in the first place. The insiders wrote the rules of the game to keep themselves in power and in the money. Throughout the speech, Trump excoriated Clinton for her ties to the world s international elite citing Peter Schweizer s Clinton Cash to detail how she and her husband, former U.S. President Bill Clinton, used the State Department to enrich their family at America s expense. She gets rich making you poor, Trump said of Hillary Clinton, talking directly to the voters.The matching themes of Trump s campaign, and the successful Brexit campaign in the United Kingdom, are in large part why Trump s well-timed trip to Scotland purportedly for opening a golf course with his children, but seemingly because of the Leave success makes him the captain of an international populist rejection of the world s elite.Trump seized the mantle of the movement on Friday morning in Scotland, embracing the populism that has propelled him this far and sustained him even as the most sinister and brutal of attacks come his way from inside his own party and from the other side. This is an amazing honor, Trump said on Friday, almost taking credit for Brexit. After noting Brexit won, and by a bigger margin than pundits, analysts, and prognosticators could have ever predicted, Trump noted that the will of the public is all powerful. It s always the will of the people ultimately that wins out, Trump said. Via: Breitbart NewsTrump was on the RIGHT side yet again. He supported the Brexit from the get-go: | 0 |
3,414 | Trump’s ‘Spiritual Advisor’ Is Just Another Con Artist And She Stole Her Con From Harry Potter | It seems that every time we turn around, there s a new layer to the con that is Donald Trump. While we re in the thick of the presidential election, Trump is being accused of conning people with his Trump University. He s conning people with email fundraising scams. He s even conning people with his fake knowledge of the Constitution and his fake Christianity.If you re still not sure about that last one (after all, he is the favorite for Evangelicals), it s been uncovered that his spiritual advisor is herself a con artist who scams people out of $1,144 each in a Harry Potter inspired scam.Trump credits Pastor Paula White with his conversion to Christianity. The two have a lot in common. White is an attractive blonde (likely just his type) and at 50, she, like Trump, has been married three times. She s known Trump for a long time and has claimed that his conversion came long before Trump began his run for office. I can absolutely tell you that Mr. Trump has a relationship with God. He is a Christian, he accepts Jesus as his Lord and savior, White said in a rare interview with POLITICO, reflecting on a relationship with the New York tycoon that has now spanned more than 14 years.She won t elaborate, though, on the exact moment Trump decided to accept Jesus as his Lord and savior. One thing that might attract him to her brand of Christianity is her belief that God wants people to be wealthy. She happily flaunts her wealth, even if much of it is ill gotten. She s in trouble with the IRS, she has business troubles and she s common tabloid fodder.White, an author and TV personality who at one time had millions in the bank, has had financial challenges of her own. In the early 2000s, the ministry s spending habits drew scrutiny first from the IRS, and then from Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), who launched a congressional probe. The probe was eventually dropped (her ministry didn t fully respond to congressional inquiries, according to reports at the time). The Tampa-based church that she and her ex-husband founded and led which began to fall apart after their 2007 divorce declared bankruptcy in 2014, though by then she was leading another church, in Orlando.One specific scam, though, came straight from the Harry Potter novels. For the low, low price of $1,144, White will sell her rubes a resurrection seed, much like Harry Potter s resurrection stone. The resurrection seed promises to resurrect the dead. The $1,144 figure came from John 11:44, which says, I believe for resurrection life. Preaching the story of Lazarus who Jesus resurrected from the dead in John 11:38-44, White promised believers in a video appeal that if they would sow the seed and have faith, she believed deliverance would come. I don t know what is dead. I don t know what the enemy sent a death to. I don t know what decision that caused death to come upon whatever the situation you re facing, but I do know that God has sent me to you to bring resurrection life. To tell you that I believe that as we put our faith together before Easter Sunday on March 27, there s gonna be resurrection life in your life, said White. The grave clothes are coming off, she continued. Whatever residue of death. Whatever residue is holding you back, it is coming off. Source: Christian PostSo, in other words, Paula White is just as much of a con artist as Donald Trump himself is. Birds of a feather.Featured image via Pastor Paula White s website and John Sommers II at Getty Images. | 0 |
3,415 | Early 2018 is crunch time for banks' Brexit decisions: UK official | LONDON (Reuters) - Many international banks and financial services firms based in Britain will decide in the first quarter of next year whether to move operations away from Britain ahead of Brexit, a senior official at Britain s finance ministry said on Wednesday. Katharine Braddick, the ministry s director general for financial services, said banks using Britain to serve clients in the European Union were showing the most urgency in considering relocation plans. Those plans, if you like, harden, become more firm, at the point at which they start to alter contractual paperwork. For most of the firms that we talk to that will fall at some point in the first quarter of next year, Braddick told lawmakers. | 1 |
3,416 | Former Trump adviser Papadopoulos pleads guilty to lying to FBI | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An obscure Trump campaign adviser pleaded guilty to lying to FBI agents about contacts with people who claimed to have ties to top Russian officials, in the first criminal charges alleging links between the campaign and Moscow, said court documents released on Monday. George Papadopoulos, who joined the Trump presidential campaign in March 2016, lied in January about communicating with those individuals to arrange a meeting between then-Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, Special Counsel Robert Mueller said in the documents. The documents said an unidentified campaign official advised Papadopoulos around May 2016 that Trump himself “is not doing these trips” but that “it should be someone low-level in the campaign so as not to send any signal.” While not mentioned in the documents, top Trump campaign advisers, including Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr.; his son-in-law, Jared Kushner; and Campaign Manager Paul Manafort met at Trump Tower in New York in June 2016 with Russians claiming to have derogatory information on Democratic rival Hillary Clinton. It was not known whether that meeting resulted from Papadopoulos’ efforts. The special counsel said Papadopoulos - a Chicago-based international energy lawyer - lied to Federal Bureau of Investigation agents about when he learned from an unnamed foreign professor that Russia claimed to have “dirt” in the form of “thousands of emails” on Clinton. Prosecutors said Papadopoulos told agents he had been in contact with the professor before he joined Trump’s campaign. In fact, they said, Papadopoulos met with the professor after joining the campaign. White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders on Monday played down Papadopoulos’ campaign role, saying it was “extremely limited” and that he was a volunteer. “He asked to do things (and) he was basically pushed back or not responded to in any way,” she told a news briefing. “Any actions that he took would have been on his own.” Papadopoulos’ lawyers said in a statement it was “in the best interest of our client .... that we refrain from commenting on George’s case.” The documents were released just after indictments charging Manafort and business associate Rick Gates with multiple offenses, including money laundering, conspiracy against the United States and failing to register as foreign agents. None of the charges against Manafort and Gates, however, directly relate to Mueller’s investigation into possible collusion between the Trump campaign and what U.S. intelligence agencies concluded was a Russian bid to boost Trump’s candidacy. The prosecutors said Papadopoulos had been emailing with a “Campaign Supervisor,” “Senior Policy Adviser” and a “High-Ranking Campaign Official.” An official familiar with congressional investigations into alleged contacts between the campaign and Russia said the Senate Intelligence Committee already had copies of an extensive file of Trump campaign emails that included emails between Papadopoulos and the campaign. One email shows Manafort had been discussing Papadopoulos’ efforts to arrange a Trump visit to Russia with at least one other campaign official. Papadopoulos pleaded guilty on Oct. 5, according to a court statement by Mueller’s office. As part of a plea deal, Papadopoulos agreed to plead guilty to making a “materially false, fictitious and fraudulent statement” to FBI agents. “Through his false statements and omissions, defendant Papadopoulos impeded the FBI’s ongoing investigation into the existence of any links or coordination between individuals associated with the Campaign and the Russian government’s efforts to interfere with the 2016 presidential election,” a court document said. The FBI arrested Papadopoulos on July 27 after he arrived at Dulles International Airport near Washington. In an Oct. 5 letter to the Chicago man’s lawyer, Mueller and his team noted that Papadopoulos faced up to six months in jail and a fine of up to $9,500. But they agreed “to bring to the court’s attention at sentencing the defendant’s efforts to cooperate with the government” on condition that he continued providing information on to prosecutors, the document said. Court documents said Papadopoulos lied to the FBI shortly after Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration, when the law enforcement agency had an open investigation into the alleged Russian government efforts to interfere in the 2016 campaign. In addition to lying about the timing of his contacts with the professor, prosecutors said Papadopoulos mischaracterized his contacts with that individual as “inconsequential.” “In truth and in fact, however, defendant Papadopoulos understood the professor to have substantial connections to high-level Russian government officials and that the professor spoke with some of those officials in Moscow” before telling Papadopoulos about the “dirt” on Clinton, said the prosecutors. The prosecutors said Papadopoulos also lied to the FBI in saying that a meeting the professor arranged for him in London with an unidentified Russian woman with ties to senior Russian officials occurred before the Chicago man joined the campaign. The meeting took place on or about March 24, 2016, and the Russian woman was introduced to Papadopoulos as a relative of Putin, although it turned out that she was not related to the Russian leader, according to the documents. Papadopoulos then worked with the professor and the Russian woman to set up the Putin meeting, and kept other Trump foreign policy advisers appraised of his contacts, they said. In one email, the documents said, the Russian woman told Papadopoulos that “The Russian Federation would love to welcome him (Trump) once his candidature would be officially announced.” The prosecutors said that on or about March 31 Papadopoulos attended a “national security meeting” in Washington with then-candidate Trump and other campaign foreign policy advisers. When he introduced himself to the group, the prosecutors said, “he stated, in sum and substance, that he had connections that could help arrange a meeting between then candidate Trump and President Putin.” In mid-April, the professor introduced Papadopoulos via an email to an individual in Moscow who the documents dubbed the Russian MFA Connection - MFA being the initials for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The pair had multiple conversations over the proceeding weeks about setting the “groundwork” for a Trump-Putin meeting. | 1 |
3,417 | U.S. urges Iraq's Kurdistan to call off independence referendum | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House said on Friday the plan for an independence referendum in Iraq s autonomous Kurdistan region this month distracts from efforts to defeat Islamic State and urged Kurdish leaders to call off the vote. We therefore call on the Kurdistan Regional Government to call off the referendum and enter into serious and sustained dialogue with Baghdad, which the United States has repeatedly indicated it is prepared to facilitate, the White House said in a statement. | 1 |
3,418 | MSNBC ANCHOR Makes Sexist Comment That Men Can’t “Stand Up” to Trump [Video] | Liberal hack Mika Brzezinski made a ridiculous claim today that there are no real men in the White House who can stand up to President Donald Trump. Yes, this is the same woman who said it s the media s job to tell people what to think.Scarborough began by playing a clip from Fox News Sunday in which one of President Donald Trump s new lawyers, Jay Sekulow, said that Trump is not under investigation by Special Counsel Robert Mueller.Scarborough had the nerve to mock Trump lawyer Jay Sekulow s by waving a stack of papers and shouting loudly.Joe Scarborough started it off by saying, I have all of this evidence right here, and it is right here that I ve got all of this evidence. I m holding this paper. That means what I am saying is official and I got it from a certified letter. Brzezinski then emasculated men in the White House: Think about it. There are no men in the White House. Literally, no real men. I ve said it before. Nobody can get him to stop tweeting. Maybe bring in a woman. Maybe just one who can get this guy to stop tweeting and shooting himself in the foot. | 0 |
3,419 | Zimbabwe's Mugabe says may make cabinet changes next week | HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe s President Robert Mugabe said on Saturday he may make changes to his cabinet next week, at a time of rising tensions within his ruling party over who will eventually takeover from him. Mugabe told a meeting of the ruling ZANU-PF youth wing in Harare that it was time to review the performance of his cabinet ministers. The last cabinet reshuffle was in September 2015 when Mugabe was removing allies of his former deputy Joice Mujuru, whom he fired in December 2014 over accusations that she was plotting to topple him. She denied the allegations. Next week there might be some changes in government. Should we remain with the same team or we make changes or even discard some. So that exercise I will be doing it and early next week you will get the results, Mugabe told a meeting of his ZANU-PF youth wing. Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa, a frontrunner to take over from Mugabe, said on Thursday he had been poisoned in August when he fell ill and was airlifted to South Africa, which earned him a public rebuke from First Lady Grace Mugabe. ZANU-PF is divided into two camps, one supporting Mnangagwa to succeed Mugabe and another rallying behind Grace. Mugabe also castigated his senior party officials for fighting in public, saying this would weaken ZANU-PF and embolden the opposition ahead of elections next year. And the public insults, its a shame. A shame even to our legend because our party was not built on that basis. A party which has learnt that if we are divided then we become the food of vultures outside, Mugabe said. | 1 |
3,420 | FIRE THIS WOMAN! RANTING NYU PROFESSOR GOES APESH*T On Cops At Protest: “F*ck You NYPD!” [Video] | Please RT until we identify this disgusting NYU Professor slandering Police as Nazi Sympathizers #BlueLivesMatter pic.twitter.com/2WgrNJu6mD Democrats for Trump (@YoungDems4Trump) February 3, 2017 | 0 |
3,421 | France stops large shipment of radioactive Belarus mushrooms | PARIS (Reuters) - France has stopped a large shipment of Belarus mushrooms contaminated with low-level radioactivity probably from Chernobyl and not linked to a radioactive cloud that appeared in southern Russia last month, officials said on Thursday. Earlier, the head of French nuclear regulator ASN Pierre-Franck Chevet told the French senate that traces of cesium had been found on imported mushrooms from Russia and did not mention Belarus. A spokesman for French nuclear safety institute IRSN said that a few days ago customs officials found that a 3.5 tonne shipment of Belarus mushrooms coming through Frankfurt, Germany was contaminated with cesium 137, a radioactive nuclide that is a waste product of nuclear reactors. While the contaminated mushrooms did not represent a health threat to consumers, the shipment will be destroyed in a specialized incinerator in coming days, the IRSN said. There is no link with the ruthenium 106 pollution, the official said. Earlier this month the IRSN said that a cloud containing radioactive ruthenium 106 originating from southern Russia had blown over large parts of Europe in October but added that there was no danger to people. Russia later confirmed it had measured ruthenium pollution at nearly 1,000 times normal levels in the Ural mountains, but did not acknowledge any accident. As the mushrooms came from Belarus, it is very likely the contamination originated in Chernobyl, the official said. ASN did not reply to a number of Reuters calls later on Thursday. Chernobyl, Ukraine is just south of the Belarus border and was the site of a major nuclear disaster in 1986. Cesium 137, which has a 30-year half-life, is still widely found in the areas around Chernobyl. The official said it was highly unusual for such a large shipment of mushrooms to be stopped and that none of the produce had made it onto French retail markets. Mushrooms, more than any other vegetable, concentrate radioactivity because their thread-like root systems spread over a large area for several meters on the surface around the plant. The IRSN said eating tens of kilos of the Belarus mushrooms would expose a consumer to a radioactivity level similar to natural ambient radioactivity during a whole year. He added there had been no risk for the customs officials, even if they had touched the mushrooms with their bare hands. Earlier, the head of the French nuclear regulator ASN told the French senate that traces of cesium had been found on imported mushrooms and said there was no connection with the ruthenium pollution. French consumer protection agency DGCCRF said in a statement that the Belarus mushrooms had cesium 137 levels above legal limits but contained no ruthenium 106. The agency said that following the discovery of the ruthenium, it had started testing samples of food products imported from the regions affected by the radioactive cloud. So far, it has not found food items with ruthenium 106 levels above legal thresholds. | 1 |
3,422 | Sanders supporters' courtship of Clinton superdelegates may be backfiring | (Reuters) - Backers of Democratic presidential contender Bernie Sanders have launched a campaign to win over some of his rival Hillary Clinton’s most prized supporters - the superdelegates that can make the difference in a tight race for the party’s nomination. But some emails, phone messages, and petitions sent by the Sanders boosters have backfired, upsetting superdelegates with their aggressive tone and leading many to dig in their heels for Clinton, according to interviews conducted by Reuters. The drive to flip Clinton’s super delegates has not been sanctioned by Sanders’ campaign, his spokesman Michael Briggs said. “Bernie’s campaign is focused on reaching out to all voters and earning delegates at primaries and caucuses,” he said in a statement, stressing that the Sanders campaign was not coordinating with supporters to contact superdelegates. However, the unofficial push could complicate the U.S. Senator from Vermont’s efforts to woo the critical bloc in the coming months. The effort has at times taken an angry tone, some of the messages reviewed by Reuters showed, reflecting the anti-establishment tinge of the 2016 presidential race where many voters are unhappy with Washington insiders. Some 85 percent of the 4,763 delegate votes to the Democratic National Convention that will decide who will face a Republican rival in the November election are determined by the results of states’ nominating contests. But the remaining 15 percent are held by superdelegates, who get to vote however they like - meaning they could hold the key to a tight contest. Superdelegates are made up of party leaders and elected Senators, members of Congress, and governors. The Democratic party adopted the system in the early 1980s as a way of giving party leaders more control over the nominating process, though they have yet to play a decisive role in a nomination. “The idea there is that you’ve got people who have a long view ... who have, arguably, the best interests of the party at heart,” said Terri Fine, a professor of political science at the University of Central Florida. At least one superdelegate who has backed Sanders, however, finds the system that can overturn the will of regular voters flawed. “I’m a superdelegate to fight to end superdelegates,” said Larry Cohen, a former president of the Communications Workers of America union who volunteers full-time for the Sanders campaign. Among super delegates that have tipped their hand so far, Clinton holds 453 to 20 for Sanders, according to the New York Times delegate tracker. Among regular delegates, won through nominating contests, Clinton leads by 91 to 65 after the South Carolina primary. (Graphic: tmsnrt.rs/1QHZCSj ) The Republican party does reserve slots for members of its national leadership, but they do not have such influence as Democratic superdelegates. Interviews with 10 of the 505 super delegates supporting Clinton Reuters has reached show that nine of them have been approached by people purporting to back Sanders, and nearly all were displeased by the tone of the outreach. Isabel Framer of Ohio, a superdelegate for Clinton, for example, got a voice mail last week urging her to vote for Sanders “in accordance with the will of the people.” On the voice mail, heard by Reuters, the anonymous male caller says: “I think it’s crap that you get to vote whichever way you want... I’ll be watching your vote.” “I’m not easily frightened,” Framer told Reuters. “I’m not going to change a vote over threats.” Akilah Ensley, a North Carolina superdelegate, said she started hearing more often from Sanders supporters after her name appeared on a Wikipedia list noting her support for Clinton. “Some of them were nice, and some were rather abrasive,” she said, adding “attacking my decisions is probably not the best way” to change her mind. Luis Heredia, an Arizona superdelegate for Clinton, said he has received over 30 phone calls, emails and instant messages from Sanders supporters. “The majority of them are more angry, and the tone is more demanding,” Heredia said. Lacy Johnson, an Indiana superdelegate backing Clinton, meanwhile, said he had received a mix of messages, including one that he said threatened: “we will make you pay.” Andres Ramirez, a political consultant in Las Vegas, Nevada, and a superdelegate supporting Clinton, said in the past campaigns would typically try to soft-sell their candidates rather than use pressure tactics. “The way this has gone down, in my experience, has never happened before,” said. While it is unclear who is directing some of the calls and emails to Clinton’s superdelegates, Seattle resident Justin Renquist has pushed for some of the outreach, although he stressed that such contacts needed to be civil. Renquist calls himself part of the “Superdelegate Task Force Army” that rallies Sanders supporters to reach superdelegates via Facebook, Twitter and other means. “There are 3,000 in my group who have been slamming these guys as politely and nicely as we can...basically saying, look this system is undemocratic,” Renquist said. On Friday, the group issued a statement saying it did not support, condone or engage in any communication with superdelegages that was “vulgar, threatening, harassing or intimidating.” Other Sanders fans, meanwhile, have gathered more than 300,000 signatures under at least two petitions on MoveOn.org, asking superdelegates to vote in line with the results of the primaries and caucuses. A third petition, on the Democracy for America site, also asks superdelegates to follow state nominating contests. It was started by Robert Reich, who was a secretary of labor under Bill Clinton and who has endorsed Sanders. The Sanders campaign plans its own effort to win over superdelegates, possibly in April. “That’s when we’ll make a much stronger approach to superdelegates,” said Tad Devine, a senior adviser to the Sanders campaign. Clinton’s campaign, meanwhile, started officially courting superdelegates months ago. “We are proud to have the support of these Democratic party leaders, who have been in the trenches,” said Jesse Ferguson, a spokesman for the Clinton campaign. (Editing by Richard Valdmanis and Tomasz Janowski) This article was funded in part by SAP. It was independently created by the Reuters editorial staff. SAP had no editorial involvement in its creation or production. | 1 |
3,423 | France's Macron tells Iran, Israel leaders of need to preserve Lebanon's stability | PARIS (Reuters) - French President Emmanuel Macron told the leaders of Iran and Israel in separate telephone calls that it was vital to keep Lebanon disassociated from regional crisis and urged all countries in the region to work collectively to reduce tensions. Macron s office also said in a statement that he had told Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that France was attached to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, but that regional subjects and ballistic missile programmers should be discussed separately. | 1 |
3,424 | ART CONTEST WINNER Disqualified for Being a Trump Supporter…What Happened to the “Tolerant” and “Accepting” Left? | So now if you enter a contest, you need to worry about your political affiliation if you re a Republican? The left continues to show that they are the most intolerant of anyone who s across the aisle from them. It s getting uglier and uglier out there. What happened to the accepting leftists who claim they re ok with all people? WE HAVE A SUGGESTION: Please message Gypsy on Twitter or Instagram It might also be a good idea to contact Kat Von D Beauty. Light Up Social Media!The Wichita Eagle reported that Gypsy Freeman was declared the winner of a national art contest sponsored by Kat Von D Beauty and was set to receive a prize package worth about $2,100. That is, until an Instagram user found a post on her page supporting Donald Trump. Once that was made known to the company, Freeman reportedly received a message from Kat Von D s Instagram account informing her that she was disqualified.PLEASE SEND A MESSAGE OF ENCOURAGEMENT TO GYPSY FREEMAN VIA TWITTERAccording to the Eagle:When Freeman was announced as the winner, curious Instagrammers went to her page and found a pro-Trump post from Election Day last year.That evening, she received a direct message from Kat Von D s personal Instagram account, telling her the celebrity had drawn a personal line in the sand between myself and anyone who supports that man, according to screenshots of the conversation. My launch party [and my brand] celebrates many things that Trump is against, the celebrity went on to say, according to the screenshots. And I just need you to know that I personally have a hard time with inviting anyone who would support such an anti-feminist, anti-homosexual/LGBT, anti-immigrant, and anti-climate change fascist such as Trump. According to the screenshots, Freeman replied: I won t be upset with you if you can t have us there for these reasons, and I wish you the best. We would love to be there, of course, but I sincerely do understand if you decide to replace us with someone who supports the candidate you support. This woman is so talented! It should be about the work and not about politics. This is a shame but Gypsy will get much more publicity from this than she would have otherwise. Her website is amazing! The winning image is below: | 0 |
3,425 | Bangladesh wants 'safe zones' to ease Rohingya crisis, but seen unlikely | DHAKA (Reuters) - Bangladesh has proposed creating safe zones run by aid groups for Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar s Rakhine state to stop hundreds of thousands of refugees crossing into its territory following a military crackdown. The plan, the latest in a string of ideas floated by Dhaka, is unlikely to get much traction in Myanmar, where many consider the Rohingya community of 1.1 million as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh. That will leave Bangladesh, one of the poorest nations in the world, with little choice but to open new camps for refugees. Dhaka sent the proposal to the Myanmar government through the International Committee of the Red Cross to secure three areas in Rakhine, home to the Rohingya community, suggesting that people displaced by the violence be relocated there under the supervision of an international organization, such as the United Nations. The logic of the creation of such zones is that no Rohingya can come inside Bangladesh, said Shahidul Haque, Bangladesh s foreign secretary, the top civil servant in the foreign ministry. The Red Cross confirmed that it had passed on the request to Myanmar but said that it was a political decision for the two countries to make. A Myanmar government spokesman did not respond to a request for comment. Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh, a mostly Muslim nation of 160 million, from Buddhist-majority Myanmar in recent years. The decades-old conflict in Rakhine flared most recently on Aug. 25, when Rohingya insurgents attacked several police posts and an army base. Since then, an estimated 270,000 Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh, according to the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, joining more than 400,000 others already living there in cramped makeshift camps since the early 1990s. There are widespread fears that tens of thousands more could try to cross if the violence doesn t abate. Recent pictures from the border between the two countries show hundreds of Rohingya men, women and children trying to cross over into Bangladesh on foot and by boat. The humanitarian crisis next door has left Bangladesh scrambling to deal with people that it does not welcome either. In recent days, Bangladesh officials have said they plan to go ahead with a controversial plan to develop an isolated, flood-prone island in the Bay of Bengal to temporarily house tens of thousands of refugees, drawing fresh criticism from the international community. It bowed to pressure on Thursday, with government officials saying that Dhaka would now make another 1,500 acres (607 hectares) of land available for camps to house refugees near Cox s Bazar, where many refugees already live as it is near the border with Myanmar. They will be given temporary shelter, said Kazi Abdur Rahman, additional deputy commissioner of Cox s Bazar. But Rahman added that the refugees would be fingerprinted and confined to the camp so that they did not mix with the local community. These measures, however, do not offer a long-term solution to the crisis, and Dhaka says it is getting little support from its neighbor, which has been accused of trying to engineer ethnic cleansing within its borders. Bangladesh officials said they had proposed joint patrolling along the border but did not receive a response from Myanmar. Earlier this week, Bangladesh lodged a protest after it said Myanmar had laid landmines near the border between the two countries. Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi, a Nobel Laureate, has come under pressure to halt violence against Rohingya. She has said that her government was doing its best to protect everyone in Rakhine but did not refer specifically to the Rohingya exodus. The solution lies in Myanmar. The UN hopes that Myanmar can address the root causes of the problem, said Shinji Kubo, head of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Bangladesh. Kubo said the Bangladesh government was doing its best by accepting the refugees instead of sending them back. Bangladesh officials are turning to the international community for help, claiming support from countries such as Turkey, which has promised aid. On Friday, a Malaysian coast guard official said the country will not turn away Rohingya Muslims and is willing to provide them temporary shelter. But any such voyage would be hazardous for the next few months, because of the annual monsoon. The world community must come forward to help them, not by putting pressure on Bangladesh but by putting pressure on Myanmar not to resort to these atrocities and violence, said H.T. Imam, a senior aide to Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. The only solution is to force Myanmar to take back their citizens through international pressure. And we are working with our partners on that, Imam said. Besides the creation of internationally-controlled safe zones in Rakhine state, Bangladesh has also mooted creating a buffer zone along the border, where the international community could set up camps and provide for the refugees, the officials said. Further details of the plan could not be learned. We will give aid agencies access. But we are not interested to give them shelter here. We are already overburdened, said Mostafa Kamal Uddin, Bangladesh s home secretary. | 1 |
3,426 | Italy national election likely set for March 4: parliamentary source | ROME (Reuters) - Italy s parliament will be dissolved between Christmas and the New Year with national elections likely set for March 4, a parliamentary source in contact with the president s office said on Wednesday. The source said the vote could also be held on March 11, with a final decision due to be taken shortly. A national election must be held by May, but most political parties are keen to hold elections as soon as possible. While the centre-right is seen winning most seats at the forthcoming ballot, opinion polls suggest it will not win an absolute majority, making a hung parliament the most likely outcome. | 1 |
3,427 | London mayor says Britain should not host President Trump on state visit | LONDON (Reuters) - London Mayor Sadiq Khan said on Sunday that it would be wrong for Britain to host U.S. President Donald Trump on a state visit, describing some of the U.S. leader s views on Islam as ignorant . Khan and Trump have a history. During the U.S. presidential election campaign, Khan was among many people who spoke out against Trump s proposed ban on Muslims entering the United States, an idea he said would play into the hands of extremists. Trump has criticized Khan, accusing the mayor of making a pathetic excuse over his statement urging Londoners not to be alarmed by the presence of additional police on the streets in response to an attack in June. At the annual conference of his opposition Labour Party, Khan told an audience with GuardianLive that he thought having a state visit, which Prime Minister Theresa May has said is still planned, was wrong . I sometimes think people are ignorant, he said, adding that it was his job to educate them. | 1 |
3,428 | U.S. Homeland Secretary Kelly warns Guatemalans to stay home | GUATEMALA CITY (Reuters) - U.S. Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly on Wednesday told Guatemalans not to waste their money trying to get to the United States illegally, detailing how his department was cracking down on undocumented immigrants and would speed up deportations. Speaking after he greeted a plane full of Guatemalans deported back from the United States, Kelly said U.S. authorities were not carrying out mass deportations of immigrants and would follow the law. But he stressed that deportees would be returned their home countries more quickly than in the past. “If you’re a Guatemalan who is considering paying a great deal of money to a coyote (smuggler) to bring you to the United States, you’ll be wasting your money,” Kelly said at a Guatemalan Air Force base where 347 deportees earlier arrived on a flight. “You will be returned very quickly,” he said. Kelly left Guatemala shortly after speaking to reporters, headed for Mexico where he and U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson were expected to explain new U.S. immigration measures to their counterparts. U.S. immigration courts have a large backlog of cases, meaning it can take years to deport some undocumented immigrants. In recent years, tens of thousands of Central American children and families have moved to the United States, many seeking asylum from ruthless street gangs. Kelly made his comments a day after his department said it planned to deport non-Mexican irregular immigrants to Mexico, regardless of their nationality. The plan angered Mexican officials, with their lead negotiator and Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray saying there was no way Mexico would accept it. | 1 |
3,429 | White House weighing whether greenhouse gas deal needs Senate approval | LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The Obama administration is evaluating whether an international agreement reached earlier this month to cut back on greenhouse gases used in refrigerators and air conditioners will need approval by the U.S. Senate, the White House said on Tuesday. Nearly 200 countries, including the United States and China, signed on to a deal in Kigali, Rwanda that would reduce the use of factory-made hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) gases. White House spokesman Josh Earnest said it is unclear whether the accord, which is an amendment to the 1987 Montreal Protocol, would need to be ratified by the U.S. Senate. The 1987 Montreal Protocol succeeded in phasing out the use of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), widely used at that time in refrigeration and aerosols. “There has been an ongoing analysis of the agreement to determine precisely what role Congress may have to play in ensuring that the United States can keep the commitments that were made in the context of that agreement,” Earnest told reporters traveling with President Barack Obama at a fundraiser in Los Angeles. Obama believes the agreement would serve the national interest of the United States by helping to curb the impact of climate change and by bolstering U.S. companies that develop alternatives to HFCs, Earnest said. He noted that any vote on the agreement would likely take place after Obama leaves office in January. “There will be a very strong case to make to the Senate about why they should approve this agreement, if in fact their approval is necessary,” he said. | 1 |
3,430 | HOLLYWOOD RACE WAR HEATS UP: Full Metal Jacket Actor SHUTS DOWN Race-Baiting Hotel Rwanda Star | Nice job Adam Baldwin. We commend you for standing up to the highly successful, black multi-millionaires Jada Pinkett-Smith, her husband Will Smith and Director Spike Lee who, much like Al Sharpton never lets the opportunity to start a good race war go to waste Ever since the Motion Picture Academy announced the nominees for the 2016 Oscars, there have been some heated discussions on social media regarding the diversity or lack thereof displayed by the Academy s choices.Nowhere has this been more apparent than Twitter, where #OscarsSoWhite has become an ongoing trend. It recently led to a dustup between Full Metal Jacket alum Adam Baldwin and Ironman actor Don Cheadle. Via: IJRHere is the first joke dig at the Academy Award show by Cheadle:@chrisrock Yo, Chris. Come check me out at #TheOscars this year. They got me parking cars on G level. Don Cheadle (@DonCheadle) January 17, 2016Baldwin responded:https://twitter.com/AdamBaldwin/status/688841370853740544Then Cheadle responded to Baldwin:@AdamBaldwin @chrisrock Nope. Don Cheadle (@DonCheadle) January 18, 2016Then Baldwin asks Cheadle a legitimate question:https://twitter.com/AdamBaldwin/status/688898296006352896To which Cheadle responds with an incoherent answer:@AdamBaldwin @chrisrock Only the legitimacy of the phrase and complete and obvious truth of it. Don Cheadle (@DonCheadle) January 18, 2016But when Baldwin challenged the one-time Oscar nominee https://twitter.com/AdamBaldwin/status/688916800579354624Cheadle then decided to twist the conversation around@AdamBaldwin @chrisrock The PHRASE OscarSoWhite, dumb dumb. Not the show. You're a lazy reader. Don Cheadle (@DonCheadle) January 20, 2016At which time Baldwin slays Cheadle with FACTS:https://twitter.com/AdamBaldwin/status/689889591940100099And in typical liberal fashion, Academy Award winner Don Cheadle ran away with his tail between his legs. Like a garlic to a vampire, the Left is always ready to defend victimhood until the facts come out and then they head for the hills. | 0 |
3,431 | #WarOnChristmas: Starbucks Attempts To Capitalize On Christmas By Erasing Any Sign Of Christmas From “Red Cup” | War on Christmas update: Some very clever people are asking you to join their campaign to remind Starbucks and their customers that Christmas is more than a red holiday!Social media has seized on the year-on-year stripping of Christmas-themed symbols from Starbucks famous Red Cups , with angry users tweeting #MerryChristmasStarbucks following a Breitbart London report on the company s War on Christmas .When the coffee chain launched their 2015 seasonal cup design there was a marked difference from prior years, with no actual decoration being offered on the 2015 cups. The #RedCups press release described the cups as a more open way to usher in the holiday. Breitbart London editor-in-chief Raheem Kassam broke the story last week, with CNN, the Huffington Post, the Telegraph, TIME magazine and others all following Breitbart s lead on the story of Christmas being eroded from the annually marketed Starbucks Christmas cups or Red Cups. Members of the British Parliament, as well as Christian charities spoke out against the move, with Sir David Amess MP telling Breitbart London: This is utter madness. Who was the idiot who thought this up? He should be sacked! Prior years have brandished illustrations from Christmas ornaments over evergreen tree branches to merry carolers and reindeer. Other years have been less obviously Christmas, but this year s offering bears zero illustrative reference to the Christmas season.Several stories have followed pondering the cultural war on Christmas and whether this year s Starbucks seasonal cups are indicative of a greater cultural cleansing of Christmas in the West.Some coffee shops haven t forgotten to remember Christmas is the reason we celebrate this season:#MerryChristmasStarbucks (from @DunkinDonuts this morning) pic.twitter.com/4I7IsDM5TQ Michael Graham (@IAMMGraham) November 9, 2015Social media commenters indicated their disappointment with the naked design. In one video, customer Joshua Feuerstein suggested that customers give their name as Merry Christmas to add a measure of Christmas back in to their coffee drinking experience.Can I get a name for your cup? Sure. "Merry Christmas" #MerryChristmasStarbucks pic.twitter.com/lFgFASnBsi Jay Carr (@Jay_Carr) November 6, 2015As the Red Cups story developed, #MerryChristmasStarbucks began trending on social media. Both those attempting to re-infuse Christmas into the season and those who refuse the idea of a cultural war on Christmas to those that just think the new design is simply boring have utilised the hashtag.Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz is no stranger to controversy and political correctness. One example is the company engaging in efforts to legalize homosexual marriage. In the wake of a boycott from a pro-traditional marriage group Schultz lashed back. At a shareholder s meeting in March 2013, Schultz proclaimed that a shareholder concerned with effects of the political endeavors on earnings could sell their shares. Via: Breitbart News | 0 |
3,432 | Trump Supporter Unleashes EXPLOSIVE Racism On Hispanic Family At JCPenney (VIDEO) | Now that Trump is officially going to be the next President of the United States, his supporters are unapologetically displaying his hateful, divisive rhetoric in their everyday actions. On Tuesday, a woman in Louisville, Kentucky showed everyone how to perfectly follow Trump s racist example when she unleashed a racist tirade on a pair of Hispanic women in JCPenney.Video footage of this incident was filmed by Renee Buckner, who witnessed the event and was completely disgusted. She wrote: This Hispanic lady was purchasing items and the transaction was almost complete, then her friend brings up some shirts to be added to her purchase instead of getting in line. And this lady went off!!! In the video, a senior woman had mistakenly though that one of the Hispanic women had cut her in line, and she couldn t control her white privilege and racism. Pointing to the end of the line, the older white woman said: It starts back there. And it don t bother me if I say it and I don t care if everybody hears me. I think everybody here probably feels the same damn way I do. The Hispanic woman hadn t cut her at all she was merely adding to the other woman s purchase but the Trump supporter was already on a roll. She said: Just go back wherever the f*ck you came from. Turning to the cashier, the woman said: Hey! Tell em to go back where they belong. You know, they come here to live and they act like they re everybody else. Get in the back of the line like everybody else does. Then she directed her hatred right back to the Hispanic women as they tried to remain calm and ignore the blatant bigotry being directed at them. The older woman continued to hurl abusive language at them: You re a nobody. Just because you come from another country, it don t make you nobody! Nobody, as far as I m concerned. You re probably on welfare, the taxpayers probably paid for all that stuff. Speak English, this is America! If you don t know it, learn it. What this woman did is disgusting and humiliating to anyone who was once proud to call themselves an American before Trump began unraveling the country. You can watch this Trump supporter spread hate below:Featured image is a screenshot | 0 |
3,433 | Puerto Rico power grid faces generational threat in Hurricane Maria | (Reuters) - Hurricane Maria was on course Tuesday to slam Puerto Rico with a direct hit that could devastate the island s underfunded power grid, still recovering from Hurricane Irma two weeks ago. The Category 5 storm, the top end of the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale, could strain the resources of the island s power provider, Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA). The utility filed for bankruptcy in July, after years of underinvestment that yielded a system it called degraded and unsafe. Maria is expected to strike the island on Wednesday with winds of up to 160 miles per hour (257 km per hour), the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) said. Irma grazed Puerto Rico, knocking out power to more than 1 million of PREPA s 1.5 million customers, according to the U.S. Energy Department. All but about 60,000 have had power restored, and the island s power plants were not severely damaged. Maria, however, could be the first major hurricane - defined as Category 3 or higher - to make landfall since Georges in 1998, said Todd Crawford, chief meteorologist at The Weather Company, an IBM company. It could be the first Category 5 since San Felipe II in 1928, which killed more than 300 people on the island. No generation has seen a hurricane like this since San Felipe II in 1928. This is an unprecedented atmospheric system, said Puerto Rico Governor Ricardo Rossell , in a statement on Tuesday. The island could be faced with outages for weeks, straining the resources of a utility whose power plants have a median age of 44 years, compared with an industry average of 18 years, and more frequent power outages. PREPA said in a draft fiscal plan released in April that years of underinvestment have led to severe degradation of infrastructure. Even if we had an energy system in prime condition, which we all know we don t have, it still would be very difficult, said Nydia Suarez, who works at CNE Group, a think tank, and lives on the island. She plans to stay with her son in Guaynabo, which is farther inland than her home in San Juan. The utility had to declare bankruptcy in July due to a $9 billion hole deepened by a lengthy recession on the island, inconsistent management and ineffective collections. The island s power prices are already higher than any U.S. state other than Hawaii, according to the U.S. Energy Department. They have been reluctant to raise rates to generate additional revenues to increase capital expenditures on the island ... because the population is a bit depressed, said Rick Donner, vice president and senior credit officer at credit rating agency Moody s Investors Service in New York. PREPA will use the same plan it used for Irma, Executive Director Ricardo Ramos said in a news release, by first energizing hospitals, water plants and some industries. The utility said it has refilled all fuel tanks while workers collect debris and trim trees damaged by Irma near transmission lines. The Department of Energy said it was working with the American Public Power Authority (APPA), PREPA and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to get mutual aid workers to Puerto Rico and elsewhere. I was 12 days without electricity after Georges. We think about that and with a power system that is worse than it was then more fragile we re expecting more time without power, CNE Group s Suarez said. | 1 |
3,434 | Hawaii renews bid to narrow Trump travel ban | (Reuters) - The state of Hawaii renewed its bid to narrow President Donald Trump’s temporary travel ban, following court rulings which said the state had taken the wrong procedural approach in attempts to challenge the administration’s policy earlier this week. In a court filing late on Friday, Hawaii’s attorney general asked a Honolulu judge to issue an injunction allowing grandparents and other family members to travel to the United States. The U.S. Supreme Court last month let the ban on travel from six Muslim-majority countries go forward with a limited scope, saying it could not apply to anyone with a credible “bona fide relationship” with a U.S. person or entity. The Trump administration then decided that spouses, parents, children, fiancés and siblings would be exempt from the ban, while grandparents and other family members traveling from Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen would be barred. Trump said the measure was necessary to prevent attacks. However, opponents including states and refugee advocacy groups sued to stop it, disputing its security rationale and saying it discriminated against Muslims. Earlier this week Hawaii had asked a Honolulu judge for a court order clarifying the Supreme Court’s ruling to allow grandparents into the United States. The judge, along with the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, ruled that the lower courts did not have the power to simply clarify the Supreme Court’s opinion. However, the 9th Circuit on Friday said the courts could issue an injunction against Trump’s policy in the future, if the government misapplied the Supreme Court’s ruling to a particular person or entity harmed by the travel ban. Hours after that ruling, Hawaii made such an injunction request in a Honolulu federal court. Hawaii said the state itself, along with resettlement agencies, are harmed by Trump’s guidelines because they are prevented from helping refugees move there. A Justice Department spokeswoman could not immediately be reached for comment. The roll-out of the narrowed version of the ban was more subdued last week than in January when Trump first signed a more expansive version of the order. That sparked protests and chaos at airports around the country and the world. | 1 |
3,435 | Senate's McConnell: Draft healthcare bill expected Thursday | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Senate Republicans will release the text of a draft healthcare bill on Thursday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said on Tuesday. “We’re going to lay out a discussion draft Thursday morning,” McConnell told reporters, adding that the Senate bill will take a different approach to healthcare than the legislation that passed the House of Representatives last month. McConnell said he hoped for an assessment of the costs and impact of the proposal from the Congressional Budget Office in the coming days. | 1 |
3,436 | North Korea says launched Hwasong-12 rocket to counter South Korea-U.S. drills: KCNA | SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un guided a launch of its Hwasong-12 intermediate-range ballistic missile on Tuesday in a drill to counter the joint military exercises by South Korean and U.S. militaries, the North s official KCNA news agency said on Wednesday. The current ballistic rocket launching drill like a real war is the first step of the military operation of the KPA in the Pacific and a meaningful prelude to containing Guam, KCNA quoted Kim as saying. KPA stands for the Korean People s Army, the North s military. North Korea threatened to fire four Hwasong-12 missiles into the sea near the U.S. Pacific territory of Guam earlier this month after U.S. President Donald Trump said the North would face fire and fury if it threatened the United States. | 1 |
3,437 | The Mindboggling Sexist And Racist Reasons Clint Eastwood Is Supporting Trump | Clint Eastwood will long be remembered for his influence in Hollywood, but his legacy will always be tainted by his 2012 speech at the Republican National Convention, when he spent the more than 10 minutes talking to a chair. Now, Trump wants political correctness and Hillary Clinton s voice to get off his lawn.The 86-year-old Eastwood didn t actually say the n-word during this interview with Esquire Magazine, but gosh darn, he s sure offended over the idea that rich old white guys no longer get to decide what s offensive and what s not.Eastwood has his own not-so-loving nickname for Millennials. He calls them the pussy generation, you know, because of that pesky insistence that everyone be treated with respect. He s doesn t agree with Trump on everything, but as for all those racist comments coming from Trump, well, Americans should just fucking get over it. I haven t endorsed anybody. I haven t talked to Trump. I haven t talked to anybody. You know, he s a racist now because he s talked about this judge. And yeah, it s a dumb thing to say. I mean, to predicate your opinion on the fact that the guy was born to Mexican parents or something. He s said a lot of dumb things. So have all of them. Both sides. But everybody the press and everybody s going, Oh, well, that s racist, and they re making a big hoodoo out of it. Just fucking get over it. It s a sad time in history. Eastwood isn t 100 percent sure who he ll vote for, but damn those Millennials again, wanting an education: I d say get to work and start being more understanding of everybody instead of calling everybody names, start being more understanding. But get in there and get it done. Kick ass and take names. And this may be my dad talking, but don t spend what you don t have. That s why we re in the position we are in right now. That s why people are saying, Why should I work? I ll get something for nothing, maybe. And going around and talking about going to college for free. I didn t go to college for free. I mean, it was cheap, because I went to L. A. City College it wasn t like going to a major university. But it was okay. And then, you know, I didn t finish, because I decided to become an actor, ruin my whole life. [Everyone laughs.] As for Hillary Clinton, it s unlikely the Republican will vote for her. He s afraid she ll follow in Obama s footsteps, but there s also another, far more sexist reason: her voice. When asked what he thinks of Clinton, he said, I mean, it s a tough voice to listen to for four years. It could be a tough one. If she s just gonna follow what we ve been doing, then I wouldn t be for her. That s a tough one, isn t it? I d have to go for Trump you know, cause she s declared that she s gonna follow in Obama s footsteps. There s been just too much funny business on both sides of the aisle. She s made a lot of dough out of being a politician. I gave up dough to be a politician. I m sure that Ronald Reagan gave up dough to be a politician. I guess it s okay to make money from evading taxes, shady business deals and using bankruptcy as a way to pass debt on to taxpayers. Yes, that s much more trustworthy. Go Trump.Featured image via Kevin Winters at Getty Images. | 0 |
3,438 | U.S. pressed Saudis to ease Yemen blockade: sources | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson asked Saudi Arabia to ease its blockade of Yemen, two sources said, just days before the Saudi-led military coalition announced on Wednesday it would let aid flow through the Yemeni port of Hodeidah and allow U.N. flights to the capital. It was not clear if pressure from Washington was the direct cause of the Saudi change of heart but the request from Tillerson to Saudi Arabia s crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, was one of several U.S. attempts this month to have Riyadh soften its hawkish foreign policy. Tillerson asked for a loosening of the blockade on Yemen during a roughly 45-minute phone call at the beginning of this week, according to a source familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity. R.C. Hammond, a top adviser to Tillerson, confirmed the exchange with Prince Mohammed. The secretary of state has brought the request to (the) Saudis attention several times over the past months, he added. The Trump administration, according to U.S. officials and a European diplomat, also pressed the Saudis to allow Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri to return to Beirut after he flew to Riyadh on Nov.4 and abruptly announced his resignation. The efforts to take the edge off Saudi Arabia s foreign policy reflect growing U.S. concern about Riyadh s direction despite high-profile attempts by President Donald Trump to improve relations with the longtime U.S. ally. Publicly, Trump, his top aides and senior Saudi officials have hailed what they say is a major improvement in U.S.-Saudi ties compared with relations under former President Barack Obama, who upset the Saudis by sealing a nuclear deal with their arch-foe Iran. Privately, however, U.S. diplomats and intelligence analysts express growing dismay over Riyadh s foreign policy, especially toward Yemen and Lebanon, as Saudi Arabia aims to contain Iranian influence. It is my understanding that the administration is frustrated. There has been of course varying degrees of frustration from different members of the administration, U.S. Senator Todd Young said of the situation in Yemen. Young, a Republican member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, spoke before the Saudi-led military coalition s decision was announced on Wednesday. The coalition, which is fighting Houthi rebels, said it would allow humanitarian aid access through Hodeidah and U. N. flights to the capital Sanaa, more than two weeks after blockading the country to stop the flow of arms from Iran. Yemen, in civil war and under bombardment by a Saudi-led coalition, faces a deep humanitarian crisis and aid workers warn of famine if the blockade were not lifted. A senior Saudi official told Reuters that even before Tillerson and Prince Mohammed spoke recently, senior White House officials had communicated to the Saudi ambassador in Washington the importance of taking those two steps. They stressed the importance of addressing the humanitarian situation in Yemen and we said that we understood and that the closures were temporary while we work on a comprehensive aid and access plan, the official said. An administration official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed that White House and National Security Council officials worked on easing the blockade with senior Saudi officials, including Prince Mohammed and his younger brother Khalid, the Saudi ambassador to the United States. Much of the U.S.-Saudi relationship, multiple U.S. officials say, is conducted in a tight circle and led by Trump s son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner, who has established a direct channel with Prince Mohammed. Kushner did not oppose the pressure on the Saudis and United Arab Emirates to ease humanitarian suffering in Yemen, said one U.S. official. But the official added: In no way does this change the position that Jared and the Crown Prince evidently share that the main objective is reversing Iranian influence in Yemen and elsewhere. On Lebanon, the U.S. message to Saudi Arabia about Hariri was conveyed in statements by Tillerson and in private conversations between U.S. and Saudi officials. Those officials included the Saudi state minister for Gulf affairs, Thamer al-Sabhan, who was in Washington recently, a senior administration official said. We ve encouraged...the Saudis that it will be good for Lebanon s political stability for Hariri to return back to Beirut as soon as is practical, the official said last week. Hariri has since returned to Lebanon and shelved his decision to resign as prime minister, easing a crisis that had deepened tensions in the Middle East. Top Lebanese officials have said Saudi Arabia forced Hariri to quit and held him in the kingdom. Riyadh and Hariri deny this. | 1 |
3,439 | Another One Bites The Dust: GOP Candidate Hangs Up Presidential Run (VIDEO) | Another Republican has dropped out of the race. This time, it s Kentucky Senator Rand Paul. In a released statement, Paul said: It s been an incredible honor to run a principled campaign for the White House. Today, I will end where I began, ready and willing to fight for the cause of Liberty. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08M7ASDe7F8]The self -described libertarian-ish Paul touted himself as an alternative to establishment Republicans, marketing himself as a grassroots guy.However, Paul finished 5th place in the Iowa caucuses and and although he was one of the first to announce his candidacy, his campaign never gained any traction. Since the beginning of his candidacy, polls consistently showed Paul in the back of the pack. Paul always failed to break away from Ben Carson, Donald Trump, Marco Rubio, and even the lowly Jeb Bush.Paul struggled to raise money from both large and small donors, resulting in a cash strapped campaign that was never able to spend and then replenish through donors, whether big or small. His ideas of a non-interventionist and non-violent approach in U.S. foreign policy apparently didn t sit well with Republicans. Ted Cruz, the guy who plans on killing lots of folks, especially in the Middle East, is the current front runner for the Republican nomination.Featured Image Via Wikimedia Commons | 0 |
3,440 | Putin, as part of test, oversees launch of four nuclear-capable missiles: Ifax | MOSCOW (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin has personally overseen the launch of four nuclear-capable ballistic missiles as part of a training exercise for Russia s strategic nuclear forces, the Kremlin said on Friday, the Interfax news agency reported. The test launches, conducted on Thursday, involved land, air, and submarine-based ballistic missiles, Russia s defense ministry said in a separate statement. The ministry said a Topol intercontinental ballistic missile had been test fired from the Plesetsk cosmodrome in northern Russia, hitting a target at the Kura military testing range on the Kamchatka Peninsula thousands of kilometers (miles) away. | 1 |
3,441 | you are being programmed to hate | podcast play in new window download embed
broc west joins us once again for our ongoing look at news from across the asiapacific this time we cover how countries across the asiapacific are inching out from under the american umbrella how the japanese and the russians may or may not be on the verge of formally concluding a wwii peace treaty and australia and indonesias potential joint exercises in the south china sea
click here for show notes and mp audio of this podcast | 0 |
3,442 | Rubio seeks re-election to Senate, says Trump 'worrisome' | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Former Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio will seek re-election to his U.S. Senate seat, he announced on Wednesday, reversing a pledge not to run and saying the prospect of a Donald Trump presidency worries him. The first-term Florida senator said the Senate can be frustrating, but that it is also a place where policy advances can be made and one that can counteract the power of the White House. “But as we begin the next chapter in the history of our nation, there’s another role for the Senate that could end up being its most important in the years to come: The Constitutional power to act as a check and balance on the excesses of a president,” Rubio said in a statement. The 45-year-old lawmaker, a proven fund-raiser who is well known nationally, had been under intense pressure to run, especially given the cost of contesting an important election swing-state where campaign advertising is expensive. Republicans are more likely to retain his seat if he is a candidate in the Nov. 8 general election, as they face a tough fight to preserve their majority in the Senate. He could also rally Republican voters to head to the polls in a state that is critical in the presidential race. President Barack Obama, a Democrat, took Florida by just a one percentage-point margin in 2012 over Republican Mitt Romney. This year, Republicans must defend 24 of the 54 seats they now hold in the 100-member Senate, compared with just 10 the Democrats have to fight to retain. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said it would be a “terrific outcome” if Rubio decided to run. Rubio had harsh words for Hillary Clinton, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, predicting her election would mean four more years of what he termed Obama’s “failed” policies. But he said the prospect of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump winning the White House was also “worrisome,” citing Trump’s statements about women and minorities and noting that many of the likely Republican nominee’s positions on important issues are unknown. “If he is elected, we will need Senators willing to encourage him in the right direction, and if necessary, stand up to him,” Rubio’s statement said. Still, he pledged to vote for Trump, a real estate mogul and political neophyte who has shaken the Republican establishment. “It’s not the choice I wanted ... and it’s not the choice a lot of people are comfortable with, but it’s the choice we have,” he told CNN in an interview. His announcement did not mention the massacre last week at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, but he had said in recent days he was reconsidering his decision not to run because of his concern about serious events in the country, including the mass shooting. The decision reversed a campaign pledge Rubio made a year ago to retire from the Senate if his presidential bid failed. He ended his bid for the nomination in March after losing the primary in his home state to Trump following a harsh war of words. The Cook Political Report said Rubio’s announcement “breathed new life” into Republican chances of holding onto the seat but still rated the race as a toss-up, citing his poor Senate attendance record and the senator’s remarks during his presidential campaign that he was “frustrated” with the upper chamber. Republican U.S. Representative David Jolly, who had been seeking the Senate seat, opened the door for Rubio to run when he stepped aside last week. After Wednesday’s announcement, Florida Lieutenant Governor Carlos Lopez Cantera, a friend of Rubio, and Republican U.S. Representative Ron DeSantis also scrapped plans to seek the seat. Other Republicans, however, have not announced plans to quit ahead of Florida’s Aug. 30 primary. U.S. Representative Patrick Murphy, a leading Democratic challenger, accused Rubio of first abandoning his constituents, and now “treating them like a consolation prize.” | 1 |
3,443 | WHO says attack on Syria vaccine store leaves children at risk | LONDON (Reuters) - The World Health Organization said on Friday it had received reports of an attack on medical facilities in eastern Syria that had destroyed a store containing more than 130,000 vaccine doses against measles and polio. If confirmed, the WHO said, the attack would put thousands of children at risk of these serious infectious, viral diseases. Both can spread rapidly in areas of conflict. We unequivocally condemn these actions. Vaccines are not a legitimate target of war, the WHO s representative in Syria, Elizabeth Hoff, said in a statement issued late on Friday. The WHO said the reports it received were of an attack on a vaccine cold room at health facilities in al-Mayadin, near Deir al-Zor in eastern Syria. The WHO did not say whether the reports it received gave any detail on who carried out the reported attack. The store had held 100,000 doses of measles vaccine, 35,000 doses of polio vaccine, plus syringes and other equipment. Until a new cold room is built and the required cold chain equipment - including solar fridges, cold boxes and vaccine carriers - are delivered, this will delay ... routine immunization for vulnerable children in the area, Hoff said. Polio - a viral disease that can cripple its victims - and measles - which can cause diarrhea, blindness and can kill - tend to break out in war zones because low vaccine coverage leaves gaps in population immunity, exposing children to infection. The WHO previously tackled a polio outbreak in the same area of Syria in 2013-2014. The UN health agency said that in its last polio vaccination campaign in Deir al-Zor it reached more than 252,000 babies and children. | 1 |
3,444 | Why Mike Bloomberg Running For President Will Bring Us President Trump | While having a third independent option for president is surely a democratic thing to do, the implications surrounding someone like former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg jumping into the race are huge.What would Bloomberg running as an independent on the ticket mean? Well, it would pull votes from a major party candidate, and in this election, that candidate will be the Democratic one. Because while Bloomberg could appeal to wealthy conservatives, he s staunchly pro-heavy gun regulations, which will turn the remainder of the Republican base off in a heart beat. So, any votes he pulls will be from moderate to right-leaning Democrats, as well as independents who may be leaning towards the Democratic candidate. This is especially true if Bernie Sanders is the nominee and people are apprehensive about a Democratic Socialist in the White House. However, it d be true of Hillary Clinton as well.So with the center votes missing from the Democratic candidate, and surely not enough votes for Bloomberg taken from either side, this leaves the Republicans with a clear path to victory, and with Donald Trump trouncing his opposition in the polls, we re looking at a Trump presidency.Now, unless Bloomberg has some secret, backdoor deal with Trump that no one is keenly aware of, the former mayor of New York City needs to put his dreams of the Oval Office on the shelf, and likely keep them there for good. The last thing this nation needs is a President Trump. A person, who as president, would alienate not only all the minorities in his own country, but would alienate the United States from the rest of the world. We d be an embarrassment. Even more so than when George W. Bush was president.So, please, Bloomberg, if you happen to read this, take all that was just said to heart and think about what you really, truly want for the nation. If you want President Trump, then by all means, run. However, if not, please don t. Not just for you and the nation, but for the entire world.Featured image: Flickr/Flickr | 0 |
3,445 | U.S. patent review board becomes conservative target | NEW YORK(Reuters) - In August, a dozen inventors gathered around a fire pit outside the headquarters of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in Alexandria, Virginia, and set alight patents they said had been rendered worthless by an overreaching federal government. “It’s time for us to make patents great again,” Michael Caputo, an advisor to Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, told those gathered. US Inventor, the group behind the protest Caputo now represents as a spokesman, is calling for the abolition of the U.S. Patent Trial and Appeal Board, an administrative tribunal run by the patent office that reviews the validity of patents. The rallying cry marks an about-face for some conservatives, who broadly supported the board’s creation in 2011 as a way to rein in trial lawyers and “patent trolls,” who hold patents for the sole purpose of suing big companies for licensing fees. “Things have really flipped when it comes to the conservative perspective on patents,” said Charles Duan, a lawyer with left-leaning consumer group Public Knowledge. Much of the credit goes to activists who have convinced many conservatives that the real problem is not out-of-control litigation but how the tribunal designed to speed up resolving patent disputes favors big business over smaller rivals. The change of positions has been aided by deepening right-wing distrust of tech giants, such as Apple Inc and Alphabet Inc's Google, which have benefited the most from PTAB while embracing liberal causes like immigration or gay and transgender rights. (Graphic: tmsnrt.rs/2A1LfXV) The U.S. Supreme Court is due to rule sometime next year on whether the tribunal is an unconstitutional intrusion of the executive branch onto matters reserved for the courts and influential conservative groups are already weighing in. The Heritage Foundation, the Cato Institute, Federalist Society, and the American Conservative Union have published articles or submitted briefs arguing that PTAB should be abolished. Most legal experts expect it to survive, though, noting the Supreme Court has largely accepted the powers of executive-branch courts in other areas, such as public employee benefits. The mounting criticism of PTAB could still convince the court’s conservative justices to vote for abolition, said Q. Todd Dickinson, a lawyer with the firm Polsinelli and a former director of the patent office. The advocacy effort by conservative groups could also convince the Trump administration to curb the patent board’s power, Dickinson said. AN ANTI-TROLL WEAPON More than 70 percent of the Republicans in Congress backed the legislation that created PTAB. At the time, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce said the law would “help reduce unnecessary litigation against American businesses.” In February the same business lobbying group criticized PTAB for creating “cost and uncertainty for patent owners.” U.S. Representative Thomas Massie, a Kentucky Republican who holds patents relating to computer interfaces, was not in Congress at the time the board was created, but said conservatives’ initial intent to curb excessive litigation has gradually given way to fears that PTAB is helping the wrong businesses. The board’s creation was pushed by big tech companies, banks and retailers, who complained they were being inundated with “troll” lawsuits. Successfully defending a patent case in federal court often takes years and costs millions of dollars, escalating pressure to settle. PTAB offered a cheaper and faster alternative. The average cost of litigating a PTAB petition to a final decision is about $250,000, according to patent risk management company RPX Corp. There are no juries and limited live witness testimony in PTAB proceedings, and its administrative judges apply a lower standard of proof than would be required in federal court. About 80 percent of the patents that PTAB makes final decisions on are either partially or fully invalidated, according to a report issued in October by the patent office. But the agency also said 56 percent of patents challenged at PTAB are upheld, in part because the court frequently declines requests to review patents. A spokesman for the patent office declined to comment. Inventors say PTAB has made it much harder to get patents licensed by big technology, which now routinely respond to patent infringement claims by initiating PTAB proceedings. “Patents owners who don’t have the wherewithal to withstand serial challenges to the validity of their patents just can’t license them,” said David Pridham, chief executive of Dominion Harbor, a firm that owns and attempts to license former Eastman Kodak Co patents. Paul Morinville, a cowboy hat-wearing entrepreneur from Indiana and the founder of US Inventor, said it has become harder for him to get funding for his business based on software patents he holds. Morinville has been speaking to Republican lawmakers and their staffers for the past four years and many conservatives credit his group with raising alarm about the patent tribunal. “They are as close to your iconic garage inventor as you can get, so their stories really resonate,” said James Edwards, a conservative lobbyist focused on patent law. While conservative groups have been most vocal, the debate transcends party lines. Some Republicans, such as Representative Darrell Issa of California, keep supporting the PTAB, while some Democrats have joined Republicans in calls to curb its powers. Many trial lawyers whose case loads have fallen also oppose it. But many liberals have embraced PTAB as a means of eliminating brand-name pharmaceutical patents that keep drug prices high. Generic drug makers and large tech companies are also among the board’s supporters, arguing it has actually increased competition by weeding out low-quality patents. The conservative backlash in part reflects how the right views tech giants like Apple and Google, which thanks to the tribunal have prevailed in hundreds of disputes with patent owners seeking hefty compensation. “Google, Amazon, and Apple and other big tech companies - you look at their power and it is really astounding. And they are generally left-leaning companies,” said Matthew Dowd, a conservative patent lawyer in Washington D.C. who has represented US Inventor. “Those dynamics are definitely playing into the increasing willingness of conservatives to speak up about patents.” | 1 |
3,446 | Target Becomes America’s First Retailer To Allow Transgender People To Use The Bathroom Of Their Choice | Screw Walmart (which is America s largest gun retailer), Target is busting down social barriers and spreading tolerance and acceptance nationwide!Target Corp. is now America s first retailer to allow transgender people to use the bathroom of their choice, a stark rebuttal of the discriminatory and hateful laws that were pushed in North Carolina and Mississippi. Not only will the choice apply to their customers, but to employees as well.On their website, the retailer posted a statement titled Continuing to Stand for Inclusivity, and stood firm with the LGBT community, writing:Inclusivity is a core belief at Target. It s something we celebrate. We stand for equality and equity, and strive to make our guests and team members feel accepted, respected and welcomed in our stores and workplaces every day.We believe that everyone every team member, every guest, and every community deserves to be protected from discrimination, and treated equally. Consistent with this belief, Target supports the federal Equality Act, which provides protections to LGBT individuals, and opposes action that enables discrimination.More specifically, Target states that it will welcome transgender team members and guests to use the restroom or fitting room facility that corresponds with their gender identity, and will not cow tow to the impact to our business, thus putting people over profit.Look at that, a corporation that actually respects the dignities of every customer and every employee. While Republicans continue to be beholden to corporate entities, maybe they could learn a thing or two about what s good for business and discrimination is never good for business.Target s statement closes with a final reassurance for all those who shop or seek employment:Everyone deserves to feel like they belong. And you ll always be accepted, respected and welcomed at Target.While the comment section of the post received mostly negative backlash from people vowing to never shop there again, Target has not wavered in their support for LGBT rights. Again, Republicans could learn something, but chances are they will continue to put profit over people, or their own necks before doing what s right.So until then, let s continue to shop at Target and show our support! Featured image via Target website | 0 |
3,447 | Germany's Syrian refugees celebrate Merkel win but fear rise of far-right | BERLIN (Reuters) - Syrian refugees rejoiced on Sunday at the news that Angela Merkel had secured a fourth term as German chancellor, but said they were alarmed by the rise of the far-right AfD party, which they feared could push her to tighten asylum rules. We prayed that Merkel would win, said Fatima al-Haidar, a mother of two from Damascus. Allah answered our prayers. To us she represents wisdom and humanity. While Merkel s conservative bloc won most seats in parliament, the result was its worst since 1949 as voters turned en masse to smaller parties. The conservatives bled support to the anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany (AfD), which entered parliament for the first time as the third-biggest party, cashing in on anger at Merkel s decision to welcome more than 1.3 million refugees. Merkel put her career on the line to help us, said Haidar s 55-year-old husband Ayman. We want to learn German and contribute to the success of this country through work, simply to prove that she was right and her opponents were wrong. Fatima and Ayman found out the election results from their 14-year-old son Zayd, who tuned in to the public broadcaster ZDF on his mobile phone to break the news to his parents and their friends as exit polls came in. When Zayd told us Merkel had won we did a zalghouta, said Roula Mohammad, referring to a tongue trill that Arab women perform during weddings. We need a wise woman like her in Syria to end the war. The Syrian refugees were having dinner at Al Dimashqi, a popular Arab restaurant on Sonnenallee, a long boulevard in Berlin s poor neighborhood of Neukoelln that refugees call Arab Street for its abundance of Arabic shop signs. The AfD s campaign appealed unashamedly to voters who feel that the influx of mainly Muslim migrants will undermine German culture, asserting that Islamic customs have no place in Germany. Merkel s conservatives and their Social Democrat coalition partners in the outgoing government quietly introduced stricter asylum rules last year after losing support to the AfD in regional elections. Refugees fear that the AfD s stunning showing of more than 13 percent of the vote on Sunday could spell even tougher immigration rules under the next Merkel-led government. She is less popular because of us, said Nabil Zainaldin, 32, from Aleppo. We totally understand that Germans are worried. All we can do to reassure them is to be law-abiding citizens. But we are also worried: what will the asylum policy of the new government be? | 1 |
3,448 | Kansas, ACLU reach temporary agreement on voter ID | (Reuters) - The Kansas Secretary of State and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) have reached a temporary agreement over the state’s voter registration laws, keeping Kansas’ chief elections officer from a contempt of court hearing, according to court documents filed on Thursday. The deal between Secretary of State Kris Kobach and the ACLU comes six weeks before the U.S. presidential election. The two sides have been at odds over a Kansas law requiring people to prove American citizenship if they want to register to vote while applying for a driver’s license. Critics say this requirement disenfranchises voters, especially minorities. The deal will allow people who registered at motor vehicle offices or with a federal form without providing citizenship documents to vote in the Nov. 8 election with a standard ballot, rather than be forced to use a provisional one, the ACLU and Kobach said in a status report filed on Thursday. Kobach will also clarify his office’s website to help voters find information more easily, according to the report filed to U.S. District Judge Julie Robinson. Robinson had ordered Kobach, a Republican, to explain by Thursday why he should not be held in contempt for failing to obey a federal order issued in May. That order required him to register people who applied to vote at motor vehicle offices or with a federal form without proof of citizenship. Robinson canceled the contempt hearing scheduled for Friday, according to her own court filing, citing the ACLU and Kobach’s agreement. “Our case is ongoing, but this interim agreement is a critical victory for Kansans who want to vote in the November election. It is a shame that voters had to fight so hard to get Kris Kobach to do his job,” ACLU attorney Orion Danjuma said in a statement. Kobach said he was pleased an agreement had been reached, but criticized the ACLU. “The ACLU’s argument was weak at best. However, at this point the preparations for the November 8, 2016, general election must proceed with rules established to ensure the efficient administration of the election,” he said in a statement. Kansas’ law, among the strictest voter identification statutes in the country, is defended by Republicans who say the rules are meant to prevent voter fraud. On Tuesday, a Kansas state judge issued a separate ruling extending voting rights through the Nov. 8 election of about 17,500 people who registered to vote at motor vehicle offices. | 1 |
3,449 | Giuliani To Black Fathers: ‘Real Danger’ To Your Sons Is ‘Other Black Kids’ Not Cops (VIDEO) | Former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani told black fathers who are worried about the safety of their sons that the real danger isn t police officers. Oh no, of course not. The real danger is other black kids. During an appearance on CBS s Face The Nation, Giuliani said that black fathers need to teach their sons to respect law enforcement and recognize that the real danger comes from within the inherently violent black community.If I were a black father, and I was concerned with the safety of my child, really concerned about it and not in a politically activist sense, I would say, Be very respectful of the police. Most of them are good. Some can be very bad. And just be very careful.I d also say, be very careful of those kids in the neighborhood and don t get involved with them because, son, there s a 99 percent chance they re going to kill you, not the police. And we ve got to hear that from the black community. And what we ve got to hear from the black community is how and what they are doing among themselves about the crime problem in the black community.Giulini has a long history of pushing the myth of black on black crime. He doubled down on his argument this Sunday, completely ignoring the fact that when these other black kids that he speaks of commit a murder, they go to jail. However, when a cop is the one that pulls the trigger all they get is a paid vacation, even when there are witnesses and video evidence.If you want to deal with this on the black side, you ve got to teach your children to be respectful to the police, and you ve got to teach your children that the real danger to them is not the police, the real danger to them 99 out of 100 times are other black kids who are going to kill them. That s the way they re going to die.Watch Giuliani s interview here:[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8cUAb3df0M]Featured image via video screen capture | 0 |
3,450 | ACTING FBI DIRECTOR With Ties To Hillary Campaign Under Federal Investigation [VIDEO] | Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe is being investigated by the Office of U.S. Counsel violating the Hatch Act according to a new report by Circa News.The Hatch Act prohibits FBI agents from campaigning in partisan races. Photos of McCabe campaigning for his wife raised questions about McCabe s compliance with the law.Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe is being investigated by the Office of U.S. Special Counsel for violating The Hatch Act that prohibits FBI agents from campaigning in partisan races.The Office of U.S. Special Counsel, the government s main whistleblower agency, is investigating whether FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe s activities supporting his wife Jill s Democratic campaign for Virginia state senate in 2015 violated the Hatch Act s prohibition against FBI agents campaigning in partisan races. I am voting for Jill because she is the best wife ever, McCabe put on a sign that he photographed himself holding. The photo was posted on her social media page a few days before the election, in response to Dr. Jill McCabe s plea to help me win by posting photos expressing reasons why voters should vote for her, according to the complaint.Other social media photos in the complaint showed McCabe s minor daughter campaigning with her mother, wearing an FBI shirt, and McCabe voting with his wife at a polling station.Here is another social media photo of our acting #FBI director, #AndrewMcCabe breaking the rules by campaigning on social media. #Corrupt pic.twitter.com/hBCH29yErY Senator Dick Black (@SenRichardBlack) May 9, 2017The Hatch Act prohibits FBI employees from engaging in political activity in concert with a political party, a candidate for partisan political office, or a partisan political group. It defines prohibited political activity as any activity directed at the success or failure of a partisan group or candidate in a partisan election. An ethics expert told Circa the photos raised legitimate questions about McCabe s compliance with the law.Meanwhile, Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe s office released to Circa under the Freedom of Information Act documents showing McCabe attended a meeting with his wife and the governor on a Saturday in March 2015 specifically to discuss having Jill McCabe run for state Senate in Virginia as a Democrat. This is a candidate recruitment meeting. McCabe is seriously considering running against State Senator Dick Black. You have been asked to close the deal, the briefing memo for McAuliffe read.Watch Sean Hannity discuss McCabe s involvement in his wife s campaign as well as his ties to Hillary s campaign:Included in the governor s briefing package was a copy of McCabe s FBI biography. The biography made clear that Andrew McCabe was a senior executive who at the time oversaw the FBI s Washington field office that among many tasks supervised investigations in northern Virginia.At the time of the meeting, published reports indicate agents in the Washington field office were involved in both a probe of McAuliffe and of the governor s close friend, Hillary Clinton s and her private email account.h/t Gateway Pundit | 0 |
3,451 | Factbox: Contenders for key jobs in Trump's administration | (Reuters) - Below are people mentioned as contenders for senior roles as U.S. President-elect Donald Trump works to form his administration before taking office on Jan. 20, according to Reuters sources and media reports. Trump has already tapped a number of people for other top jobs in his administration. For a list of posts already filled, see. * 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 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 for 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 the military’s 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 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, Republican former 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 * 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, Republican former U.S. representative from Michigan * Rudy Giuliani, former New York mayor * Debra Wong Yang, former U.S. attorney for California’s Central District, appointed by former President George W. Bush * Ralph Ferrara, a securities attorney at Proskauer * Paul Atkins, Republican former SEC commissioner Paul Atkins who is heading Trump’s transition team for independent financial regulatory agencies, including the SEC * Daniel Gallagher, Republican former SEC commissioner * John Allison, a former CEO of regional bank BB&T and former CEO of the Cato Institute * Paul Atkins, former SEC commissioner * Thomas Hoenig, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp vice chairman * Dan DiMicco, former CEO of steel producer Nucor Corp * Robert Lighthizer, a Washington trade attorney and former deputy U.S. trade representative during the Republican Reagan administration * 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 * Gary Cohn, Goldman Sachs Group Inc president * Mick Mulvaney, Republican U.S. representative from South Carolina * David Malpass, former chief economist with investment bank Bear Stearns and a senior Trump adviser who also served in the Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush presidential administrations * 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. | 1 |
3,452 | In Mexico visit, Trump's defense chief talks trust, respect | MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Distancing himself from political tensions over issues like the border wall, U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said he aimed to build trust and show respect for Mexico during a trip there on Friday that sought to buttress still resilient military ties between the two countries. U.S.-Mexican relations have been badly damaged by Trump’s threats to curtail trade with Latin America’s No. 2 economy as well as his demand that Mexico pay for a border wall to keep out immigrants and drug traffickers. Mexicans’ positive image of the United States has fallen to its lowest level since at least 2002, with about two-thirds of people viewing the country unfavorably, according to a poll released on Thursday by the U.S.-based Pew Research Center. But Mattis portrayed U.S.-Mexican military ties as strong, saying both countries shared common concerns about issues that include drug trafficking in Mexico but also drug consumption in the United States that fuels the illicit industry. Asked how he would navigate the political tensions, Mattis said: “We have shared security concerns. There’s partnerships, military-to-military exchanges, that are based on trust and respect.” “I’m going down to build the trust and show the respect on their Independence Day,” Mattis said. He stayed above the political fray when asked about the most contentious issues between the two countries. Questioned about his role in the border wall issue, Mattis said there was no U.S. military role in enforcing the borders. The New York Times quoted Trump’s chief of staff, John Kelly, suggesting Mexico was on the verge of collapse and comparing it to Venezuela under former President Huge Chavez. Asked whether he thought Mexico was on the verge of collapse, Mattis said flatly: “No.” “Every nation has its challenges it deals with. And Mexico is keenly aware of these and I’m there to support them in dealing with them,” Mattis said. Mattis also said he would also “absolutely” express condolences for Mexican victims of a recent earthquake that struck the country, killing 96 people. Mexico is also hosting Admiral John Richardson, Chief of Naval Operations, the Navy’s highest uniformed officer, and General Lori Robinson, the head of U.S. Northern Command, for its Independence Day activities. Mattis is the first U.S. defense secretary to attend the events. Although Mexico’s official Independence Day is on Sept. 16, most celebrations take place on Sept. 15. The event commemorates the launch of Mexico’s war of independence from Spain in 1810. The fact that such senior U.S. military officials would be visiting for such an important national event is itself notable. Mexicans have a long memory of the Mexican-American War of 1846-1848, which led to Mexico’s loss of almost half its territory to the United States. The war has made U.S.-Mexican military cooperation a somewhat sensitive subject in Mexico. In an apparent nod to Mexican sensitivities, Mattis called the ties between the two militaries “very strong, quiet.” There are signs of improving U.S.-Mexican cooperation in cracking down on the heroin trade. Reuters reported in April that Mexico’s army was allowing the United States and the United Nations to observe opium poppy eradication. The Mexican army took U.S. military officials on helicopter tours of half a dozen sites in Sinaloa and Chihuahua, two of the three states that along with Durango make up the Golden Triangle where most Mexican opium is produced, one of the sources said at the time. | 1 |
3,453 | OH CANADA! Why Are You Celebrating World Hijab Day? | World Hijab Day is coming up and the capital of Canada plans on celebrating it. It s no secret that the newly elected liberal leader of Canada is having a love affair with Islam. There s even talk that he s converted to Islam. A recent Youtube video shows him praying at a mosque: Canada is a great example of you get what you vote for . Liberal PM Justin Trudeau has embraced flooding Canada with as many Muslim refugees as possible. More, more, more If this continues, Canada will soon be like Europe. Note that housing and funding is really difficult for some of these refugees. Economies cannot and should not have to fund these refugees: Hundreds of government-sponsored refugees have struggled to find housing and remain in hotels in Toronto, where the housing market is tight and expensive. CANADA HAS TAKEN IN NEARLY 25,000 SYRIAN REFUGEES SINCE NOVEMBER:Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was elected in October on a promise to accept more Syrian refugees more quickly than the previous Conservative government had allowed, but the original deadline for accepting 25,000 by the end of 2015 proved too ambitious and the timeline was extended by two months.During his election campaign, Trudeau said a Liberal government would work with private sponsors to accept even more than the immediate goal of 25,000, and Immigration Minister John McCallum said in December the government could double the intake to 50,000 by the end of 2016.WORLD HIJAB DAY:This Thursday, February 25, 2016, the city of Ottawa will be holding a public event celebrating the hijab, Islam s physical repression of women.The City for All Women Initiative (CAWI) organization, backed by the City Council of Ottawa, is hosting the Ottawa Hijab Solidarity Day celebration, also called Walking with Our Muslims Sisters, at City Hall. According to CAWI, the main purpose of this event is to encourage non-Muslim women to wear a hijab to understand life as a Muslim woman.The outrage is that such an event will be taking place under the auspices of the City of Ottawa, the capital of Canada. Under Islamic Shari a law, the hijab is an expression of the suppression of women and is used as a tool to persecute women by their male counterparts.HERE S THE INFORMATION: Ottawa Hijab Solidarity Day (Councillor s Lounge, City Hall) You are here: Home Ottawa Hijab Solidarity Day (Councillor s Lounge, City Hall) Location: Councillor s Lounge (2nd Floor) City Hall Date: Thursday, 25 February, 2016 16:00 to 18:00 Event Details: A reception where people are welcome to stop by anytime, between 4:00 6:00pm to learn from Muslim women about their experience of wearing a hijab and where women from other backgrounds can experience wearing one.Join us in celebrating Muslim women through CAWI s social media campaign. Show messages of support with #hijabsolidarityOr hold a hijab solidarity day event in your workplace or community organization. See here some guidelines for doing so. Join with us in promoting awareness and understanding.Via: BCF | 0 |
3,454 | UNHCR on 'full alert' as 11,000 Rohingya flee in a day | GENEVA (Reuters) - Bangladesh border guards reported more than 11,000 Rohingya refugees crossing into their country from Myanmar on Monday, in a sudden surge, the United Nations refugee agency said. More than half a million Rohingya have fled Myanmar since Aug. 25 after insurgent attacks on security forces triggered a violent government crackdown, but the rate had slowed to about 2,000 refugees per day last week, aid agencies say. We re back in a situation of full alert as far as influxes are concerned. It is a big increase to see 11,000, Adrian Edwards, spokesman for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), told a news briefing in Geneva on Tuesday. We have had big numbers coming across by the day over the six weeks of this emergency. So we are back up to approaching some of those peak arrivals. Clearly we have to be prepared for more arrivals, he said. Many of the refugees are reported to come from the Buthidaung area in Myanmar s northern Rakhine state, which is 20-25 kilometers east of Maungdaw. Some said they had fled torching and killings back home; one boy was seen with a big gash across his neck, Edwards said. We don t know at the moment what is driving this, he added. Some of these people have fled their homes several days ago and in some cases two weeks ago, so they moved toward the border before coming across. There are also indications of more recent problems. As you may have seen from media reports which I can t verify, but there are reports about fires being seen close to the border (and) other problems there, Edwards said. Meanwhile, a massive cholera immunization campaign began on Tuesday near Cox s Bazar, Bangladesh, aimed at protecting newly-arrived Rohingya and host communities from the disease which can be deadly, the World Health Organization (WHO) said. Some 900,000 oral vaccine doses will be distributed, including 650,000 in an initial 10-day campaign to be followed by a second round from Oct. 31 targeting 250,000 children between one and five years old, the agency said. There is a clear and present risk of the spread of cholera among the population. Luckily, we don t have any confirmed cases of cholera so far, WHO spokesman Christian Lindmeier said. | 1 |
3,455 | Donald Trump Just Got A BIG ‘F*** You’ From Goldman Sachs (TWEETS) | Goldman Sachs Group Inc. has just sent the Trump campaign a message that is going to make them furious, especially coming from one of the largest investment banks in the country.Recently, the bank banned all of its top officials from donating to Trump s campaign which is kind of hilarious considering how much Trump s campaign is struggling. In a memo right now, the bank instructed its highest ranking employees: Effective Thursday, September 1, all partners across the firm are considered restricted persons as defined by the firm s Policy on Personal Political Activities in the US. As outlined below, restricted persons are prohibited from engaging in political activities and/or making campaign contributions to candidates running for state and local offices, as well as sitting state and local officials running for federal office.The policy change is meant to prevent inadvertently violating pay-to-play rules, particularly the look-back provision, when partners transition into roles covered by these rules. The penalties for failing to comply with these rules can be severe and include fines and a ban on the firm from doing business with government clients in a particular jurisdiction for a period of at least two years.The policy change is also meant to minimize potential reputational damage caused by any false perception that the firm is attempting to circumvent pay-to-play rules, particularly given partners seniority and visibility. All failures to pre-clear political activities as outlined below are taken seriously and violations may result in disciplinary action. Damn! And to make this even more brilliant, Goldman Sachs SPECIFICALLY called out the Trump campaign when they described the types of donations that are banned: any federal candidate who is a sitting state or local official (e.g., governor running for president or vice president, such as the Trump/Pence ticket, or mayor running for Congress), including their Political Action Committees (PACs). TwitterTwitterThe interesting thing here is that both Trump and Clinton s running mates hold a position in a political office yet only Trump s VP pick, Indiana governor Mike Pence, is mentioned. To make matters even worse, these rules don t restrict donations to Clinton s campaign because Kaine is a U.S. Senator for Virginia and not considered a local official according to Goldman Sachs rules (although the memo does say employees cannot donate to the Virginia Democratic party).Although Goldman Sachs CEO hasn t officially said who he is voting for, it s public knowledge that he s a long-time Clinton fan, and had donated to her campaign when she ran against Obama in 2008.You can read the full memo here, as obtained by Fortune.Featured image via Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images | 0 |
3,456 | Leftist leader backs Guillier in Chile's run-off presidential election | SANTIAGO (Reuters) - The leader of an influential leftist bloc in Chile endorsed center-left presidential hopeful Alejandro Guillier on Monday over conservative Sebastian Pinera in next week s run-off election. Beatriz Sanchez, the flagbearer for the hard-left Frente Amplio coalition, said Pinera s suggestion that ballots had been tampered with in the first-round election had changed her mind about staying quiet on whom she would vote for in the run-off. That crosses the line and that s why today I ve decided...to vote against Sebastian Pinera, Sanchez told journalists. My vote will be for Alejandro Guillier. Winning over Sanchez voters has been seen as essential for a Guillier triumph over Pinera in the second-round vote. As Frente Amplio s presidential candidate, Sanchez secured twice as many votes as expected by opinion polls and came two points short of moving onto the run-off election with Pinera. But it was unclear if Sanchez somewhat reluctant endorsement of Guillier would be enough to get her supporters excited about heading to polls Dec. 17. Last week, Frente Amplio refrained from endorsing Guillier and demanded he clarify his proposals. Pinera, a former president who governed Chile between 2010 and 2014, had been expected to easily win this year s election before his disappointing performance in the Nov. 19 first-round vote. On Monday, Pinera said on a local radio program that some voters had reported that ballots were pre-marked in favor of his rivals in the first-round election and that he would have more supporters supervising voting stations in the run-off vote. Chile s electoral authority said it had received no complaints of irregularities and Pinera s remarks were widely criticized. Let s be responsible and not discredit our democratic institutions, outgoing center-left President Michelle Bachelet said on Twitter. Pinera said in an impromptu news conference later on Monday that he did not mean to cast doubt over election results but reiterated that he believed ballots had been tampered with. | 1 |
3,457 | Brazil's top court suspends controversial slavery decree | BRASILIA (Reuters) - Brazil s Supreme Court has suspended a decree issued by President Michel Temer s government changing the definition of slavery that was widely condemned as a reversal in the fight against forced labor. In her decision taken on Monday and made public on Tuesday, Justice Rosa Weber said the decree s reduction of the scope of what is considered slave labor violated the constitution. Weber also argued that the measure could hurt Brazil s trade relations since other countries could complain that slave labor was a form of unfair competition. Faced with an outpouring of criticism, the government said on Friday that it would pull the decree and issue a new one. In Brazil, forced labor has been defined as a form of modern-day slavery. This includes debt bondage, degrading work conditions, and long work hours that pose a risk to a worker s health or life, and violate their dignity. Human rights campaigners said the decree issued by the labor ministry on Monday changed the way slavery was defined, limiting it to a victim s freedom of movement but disregarding other abuses. The decree, supported by Brazil s powerful farm lobby, would derail enforcement efforts that have freed 50,000 workers from slavery-like conditions since 1995, federal prosecutors and labor inspectors said. Temer opponents said he bowed to pressure from the farm lobby to modify the decree at a time when he is relying on the group s votes in Congress on Wednesday to block corruption charges against him. In exchange for support to escape a criminal trial, Temer promised the farm lobby goods he cannot deliver, said lawmaker Alessandro Molon of the leftist Sustainability Network, the party that asked the court to stop the decree. Molon called the slave labor decree one the most abject bargains in the country s history. | 1 |
3,458 | California or bust? Clinton hopes to strike gold in pivotal vote | WASHINGTON/LONG BEACH, California (Reuters) - If Hillary Clinton ends up losing California to Bernie Sanders, it will be because of voters like Nallely Perez. Perez personifies what a Clinton supporter was supposed to look like: a 24-year-old Latina who grew up idolizing the former first lady as a groundbreaking woman in politics. But when she votes in California’s Democratic presidential nominating contest on Tuesday, Perez will be supporting Sanders. “Everything that I would stand for, he has said it,” said Perez, a student at California State University, Long Beach, who said she likes Sanders’ promises of tuition-free college and universal healthcare. “We found our voice in him.” California is the final big contest in the long, bitter fight for the Democratic nomination. Opinion polls show the Democratic race there tightening in recent weeks. Where Clinton, a former secretary of state, once held a big lead over Sanders, a U.S. senator from Vermont, the two now are nearly tied. A University of Southern California/Los Angeles Times poll released on Friday showed Sanders with a one-percentage-point lead over Clinton in the state, 44 to 43 percent, a swing from March when Clinton held a nine-point edge. On the Republican side, Donald Trump has earned the nomination for the Nov. 8 election, and Clinton is close to capturing the number of delegates she needs to head the Democratic ticket. Her campaign expects that a win in New Jersey earlier on Tuesday will secure the nomination. But a loss in a populous Democratic stronghold like California could lend credence to Trump’s claim that she is a weakened candidate. “Clinton would like to go to the nominating convention with the wind at her back and tamp down the perception that she doesn’t excite Democrats,” said Rodell Mollineau, a Democratic strategist in Washington. A Sanders victory will not clear the way to his nomination unless it triggers a defection by scores of superdelegates - party office-holders and officials - from Clinton’s camp, an unlikely outcome. Sanders has vowed to use California as a springboard to the party convention in Philadelphia in July. A win, especially a big one, would validate the self-described democratic socialist’s decision to stay in the race to the end and give him leverage to influence Clinton’s policies and cabinet picks. “The game he is playing is to be able to draw as many concessions as he can out of the party and the Clinton campaign,” Mollineau said. The area around Long Beach, part of the 47th congressional district in California, has emerged as a key battleground. Sanders campaigned there a week ago; Clinton was in the area on Friday and may return again before Tuesday’s vote. The district’s congressman, Representative Alan Lowenthal, remains one of the few uncommitted Democratic members of the House of Representatives to either Clinton or Sanders. His district once leaned Republican, but is becoming increasingly liberal thanks to an influx of Latino and Asian-American voters who comprise the majority of residents. The large minority population might be expected to translate into an advantage for Clinton, who has consistently shown strength with such groups. But a Reuters reporter who toured the area observed an abundance of Sanders supporters. In the Belmont Shore neighborhood of Long Beach, Sanders volunteers Gordon Winiemko and Jon Fellman manned a table on the sidewalk outside a coffeehouse. They had a long discussion with Shawn Coleman, a 24-year-old film student, who told them he preferred Sanders to Clinton because “I think I’m a little bit more for what Bernie has in mind for the future, I think he’s right, and Hillary doesn’t really seem on it.” Lia Roldan, a 42-year-old set decorator in the film industry who lives in Long Beach, said she was voting for Sanders because “he has a lot of experience in standing up for causes that benefit the working class.” Roldan said she would reluctantly support Clinton in a contest against Trump. “I’ll vote for her only because I don’t want a Republican to win, but I don’t really feel in my heart that I would vote for her otherwise,” she said. Stopping Trump was on the minds of those who said they would vote for Clinton on Tuesday. “I love Bernie,” said Sami Reed, 42, the CEO of a corporate wellness business, interviewed in a thrift shop, “but I’ll probably vote for Hillary just because I don’t want Trump to win.” A second-term congressman, Lowenthal told Reuters he has come under a “tremendous amount of grief and pressure from Sanders people” to support him, but he would not say for whom he would vote. At California events, Clinton has been careful to focus her criticism on Trump, not Sanders, while talking up her national security experience. She will almost certainly need the support of passionate Sanders’ backers to defeat the outspoken Trump in November. | 1 |
3,459 | MUSLIM GROUP Makes Demand That Every Confederate Statue Be Banned and Removed | THE MUSLIM ACTIVIST GROUP CAIR is REALLY stepping over the line with their latest effort to change America. They ve made a template (see below)for how we can ditch our history I kid you not! All we can say is H*LL NO! They ve steamrolled over so many local governments that this shouldn t surprise anyone. CAIR is linked to terrorists and is doing their best to infiltrate all that is America to change it. Removing Confederate statues is just CAIR trying to score political points with the left. How dare they demand anything of us This terrorist group should be named and shamed.The Daily Caller reported:Nihad Awad, CAIR s national executive director, urged state and local governments to erase every symbol and every vestige of Confederate history immediately. A fitting response to the deadly terror attack on anti-racist protesters in Charlottesville would be for officials in states and cities nationwide to immediately announce that every street, every school, every flag, and every public memorial honoring those who took up arms in defense of white supremacy and slavery will be removed or have its name changed to instead honor those who fought for civil rights, Awad said in a statement to The Daily Caller. Removal of these memorials would be a small step forward in turning the page on the darkest period in our nation s history, Awad also said.THE CAIR TEMPLATE FOR ERASING OUR HISTORY AS AMERICANS:Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) Resolution Template Requesting the Removal of All Confederate Memorials, Flags, Street Names, and Symbols from Public Spaces and Property August XX, 2017Requesting the Removal of All Confederate Memorials, Flags, Street Names, and Symbols from Public Spaces and Property Whereas the preservation of these memorials validates the subjugation experienced by African-Americans due to their size, prominent placement and public display; Whereas the investments and arrangement made to recognize Confederate figures communicates core beliefs that promote the endurance of white supremacy and racism; Whereas every Confederate memorial, flag, street name, and symbol proclaims the injustices and suffering experienced by African-Americans as insignificant and dismissible; Whereas every Confederate memorial, flag, street name, and symbol commemorates and honors those who fought to enslave African-Americans; Whereas every Confederate memorial, flag, street name, and symbol diminishes the numerous contributions and services African-Americans made, and continue to make, to the United States; Whereas every Confederate memorial, flag, street name, and symbol celebrates individuals who campaigned against giving African-Americans their rights and liberty; Whereas every public symbol that references the Confederacy in the United States glorifies individuals who sought to divide the nation and preserve white supremacy; Whereas the removal of all memorials, flags, street names, and symbols of Confederacy from public spaces and property reaffirms to the public, especially African-Americans and other minority groups, that we do not endorse the ideals these objects represent; Whereas the removal of all public references to the Confederacy would respect the entitlement of African-Americans and others to equal protection of their civil and human rights;YADA, YADA, YADA | 0 |
3,460 | TWO “HIGH THREAT” EXPLOSIVE Experts Moved From GITMO To African Country With Over 90% Muslim Population [VIDEO] | If someone would have told me in 2008 that we would be releasing Muslim explosive experts from GITMO to a country where over 90% of its citizens were Muslim, I m quite sure I would have thought they were out of their minds. Fast forward to 2016 and the idea that this is really happening is barely registering as a blip on the radar of most Americans. Have Obama s radical policies, that have largely gone unchecked, and his open disregard for our national security caused Americans to ignore the treason his is committing against our nation? Two of Al Qaeda s former explosives experts were just transferred out of Guantanamo Bay and sent to Senegal, the Defense Department confirmed Monday, marking the latest detainees to be shipped out of the prison camp despite the risk they could return to the battlefield.The two Libyan former detainees were separately listed as threats to U.S. interests in Department of Defense documents obtained by Wikileaks and The New York Times.Salem Abdu Salam Ghereby is believed to have fought coalition forces at Usama bin Laden s Tora Bora complex in Afghanistan and was associated with senior members of Al Qaeda. Omar Khalif Mohammed Abu Baker Major Umar was assessed to be likely to immediately seek out prior associates and reengage in hostilities and extremist support activities upon his release, according to a 2008 government document.The news comes as senators prepare to introduce legislation to permanently block transfers of Guantanamo detainees to terror hot spots and state sponsors of terrorism including Yemen, Libya, Somalia, Syria, Iran and Sudan. Sen. Mark Kirk, R-Ill., was expected to introduce a bill as early as Monday, Fox News has learned.The transfer of Ghereby and Umar reduces the Guantanamo detainee population to 89, according to the Department of Defense. They are part of the Obama administration s long-running and controversial effort to reduce the prison population and ultimately close the camp.By law, the Pentagon must notify Congress 30 days in advance of any detainee transfer. The first notification for the individuals now identified as Ghereby and Umar was in early March. Others are expected in the next few weeks. We are taking all possible steps to reduce the detainee population at Guantanamo and to close the detention facility in a responsible manner that protects our national security, Secretary of State John Kerry said in a statement on Monday.Via: FOX News | 0 |
3,461 | Kremlin: Russia did not use Facebook adverts to sway U.S. election | MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia did not place adverts on Facebook Inc to try to influence the 2016 U.S. Presidential election, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Friday. U.S. lawmakers have urged the Federal Election Commission to require transparency for social media advertising after Russian entities purchased political adverts during and after the 2016 election. “We do not know ... how to place an advert on Facebook. We have never done this, and the Russian side has never been involved in it,” Peskov told a conference call with reporters. | 1 |
3,462 | FORMER CIA AGENT SAYS OBAMA WORKING WITH MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD: “to remove American power and influence, including military forces, from Islamic lands.” | Former CIA Agent, Clare Lopez has been ringing the alarm bells about the Islamic influence by members of Obama administration for quite some time now. [See video below.]Clare Lopez is a former CIA officer, and she is risking her professional career to call out President Barack Obama in the biggest way possible.Lopez is well respected in the intelligence community and worked in the Reagan White House. After two decades in the field with the CIA, and as an instructor for special forces and intelligence students, Lopez is now with the Center for Security Policy managing the counter-jihad and Shariah programs.Now, she is claiming Obama is why America has completely switched sides during the war on terrorism. America is now supporting the enemy, especially through the Muslim Brotherhood.Lopez has been unwilling to speak in public, but has confined with a few members of the House of Representatives her serious concerns about Obama s motivations about foreign policy decisions.Lopez noted that the war on terrorism has always been about stopping the spread of Shariah Islamic law, until Obama started to make major changes which clearly supported the Muslim Brotherhood s jihadist interests.She said the global war on terror had been an effort to stay free of Shariah, or repressive Islamic law, until the Obama administration began siding with such jihadist groups as the Muslim Brotherhood and its affiliates.The transition was easy for Obama, who already hates American values and principles as an ideologically radical Why the switch?Lopez explained, when the so-called Arab Spring appeared in late 2010, It was time to bring down the secular Muslim rulers who did not enforce Islamic law. And America helped. And why would Obama want to do that?As she told WND earlier this month, Lopez believed the Muslim Brotherhood has thoroughly infiltrated the Obama administration and other branches of the federal government.She also came to the conclusion Obama had essentially the same goals in the Mideast as the late Osama bin Laden: to remove American power and influence, including military forces, from Islamic lands. The former CIA operative said, as Israel fought enemies on all sides to remain free, secure and Jewish, America began to move away from Israel and toward its Muslim enemies. And, as Iran moved inexorably toward a deliverable nuclear weapons capability, America helped. In addition, Lopez claims that the only reason Obama approved of the killing of Osama bin Laden is he simply couldn t ignore the chance without looking suspicious. The opportunity presented himself, and he couldn t delay it any longer. Via: Top Right NewsHere Is Clare Lopez in 2009 talking about the White House being infiltrated by Islamic Supporters: h/t Freedom Daily | 0 |
3,463 | [VIDEO] “UNBIASED” OREGON RANCHER AND WIFE, SHOCKED By Armed Checkpoints, Snipers: “You just don’t expect it in our lives…We’re Americans….I feel like I’m in Africa” | I ve never had anybody point a gun at me before. A man came on the loudspeaker and told us to stop, and to get out and have our photo-ID. And they approached us with guns. You just don t expect it in our lives We re Americans. I mean I feel like I in Africa or something. I mean, I ve been in Africa at checkpoints before and it s scary. You never know if you re getting through. We re in Western United States, we re good people, we re easy to get along with. We don t create trouble. This is alarming. This isn t the attention we want. We re stewards. We re good people. We posted a video released by the FBI showing the shooting death of LaVoy Finicum, father of 11, who traveled to Oregon from Arizona to join the ranchers protest of the unfair treatment by the Federal Government s BLM agency. Finicum was reportedly shot several times by federal agents during a traffic stop on Highway 395 in Harney County.His daughter, Challis Finch had this to say about her father: He s a great man, and just because he s dead doesn t mean his fight will not go on. He s now a martyr. | 0 |
3,464 | Texas Republican Rejects Canadian Offer Of Real Help For Hurricane Victims, Asks For Prayers Instead | This is why religion should stay out of government.The people of Houston, Texas are drowning as flooding continues in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey.Death and destruction are everywhere, and people are desperate for any help that can be provided. People need food, shelter, clothing, and medical supplies.At this point, the people of Houston don t really care where the aid comes from as long as it comes.But Texas Republican Secretary of State rejected an offer from Canada this week that would have provided blankets, beds, and physical manpower to the region affected by the storm.Quebec s Minister of International Relations Christine St-Pierre contacted Rolando Pablos to offer aid and condolences. It was a conversation about how devastating the situation is and we want to express our support to the people of Texas, St-Pierre said.Had Pablos accepted Canada s help, many people in Texas could have had blankets, pillows, and perhaps even something more crucial. The manpower Canada offered would have come in the form of professional electricians who would have helped restore much needed power to residents and buildings such as hospitals and shelters. Our crews are well-equipped and they have good knowledge of the grid so they can help to restore and rebuild the distribution lines, Hydro-Qu bec spokesperson Louis-Olivier Batty told CBC. Indeed, 250 Hydro-Quebec electricians did great work restoring power in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005.Canada offered real help to storm victims. But Republicans slapped away their hand of friendship. Instead of accepting the generous offer of supplies and volunteers, Texas Republicans rejected the offer and asked for prayers from the people of Quebec. That s right. Texas Republicans think prayers can help them more than actual supplies and manpower.What the people of Texas need right now are not prayers. They need blankets, beds, and electrical power, all of which are in short supply because God sent a f*cking hurricane to slam the Texas coast.The people of Texas should be outraged that their elected officials are not accepting help from Canada. This offer could mean the difference between life and death for many people. Prayer is not going to help. It s a nice thought, but it won t do any good. People can t get warm by wrapping themselves in prayer. Electrical lines won t magically fix themselves because of prayer.This is why Republicans are totally unfit to lead. They offer prayers instead of real solutions. And that is going to cause more deaths and suffering in Texas.Featured Image: Screenshot | 0 |
3,465 | CHECK OUT THE NAME! FOOD STAMP FRAUD OF OVER $5.7 MILLION From ONE Store! | WATERBURY A federal agent, with help from an informant, went undercover for nearly two years to document food stamp fraud occurring at an inner-city market whose employees were busted in recent weeks.Though W.B. Trade Fair Supermarket, a small corner market on Willow Street, had dusty cans and only one regularly used register, federal authorities estimated they have redeemed almost $5.7 million in food stamps since 2011.But those benefits weren t used to provide nutritional food to city residents, rather they were swapped for cash, glass smoking pipes and even power tools, federal authorities allege.A recently unsealed federal search warrant for the store shows an undercover agent with the Office of the Inspector General suspected the store of trafficking, or exchanging large amounts of benefits for cash.Tallat Mahmood, 63, Raul Carlos Monarca, 40, and Tahir Shahzad, 32, of Harrison, N.Y. were charged with federal food stamp fraud and illegally trafficking in food stamp benefits.The food stamp program is aimed at giving low-income residents the ability to purchase nutritious foods using a type of debit card called an EBT. But people enrolled in the program are barred from buying booze, cigarettes, paper goods and soap, among other items. The market is well stocked with everything from rice and sugar, to doorknobs and scented candles.But authorities say the trio allowed customers to illegally swap their federal food stamps, known as Supplemental Nutrition and Assistance Program or SNAP benefits, for cigarettes, bongs, hookahs and glass smoking pipes, which are in display cases at the front of the store.When the EBT card is run through a special terminal, the total amount of items is inputted by the store, which is then deducted from the person s SNAP account. When that occurs, that inputted amount is then transferred to the store s bank account.Federal authorities allege the men exploited those transfers, giving customers a meager portion of their SNAP benefits in cash, while the rest went into the store s bank account. Store employees are supposed to ensure the items being purchased are eligible for the benefits when they run the person s EBT card.THE STORE OPENED IN early 2011 and by March of that year the owners applied to accept SNAP benefits, federal authorities allege. The store redeemed $6,532 in SNAP benefits in April 2011, but by March of this year, that one-month tally had grown to more than $179,000, according to federal documents.The agent, along with an informant, visited the store 19 times starting in 2014 and paid about $7,381 in SNAP benefits in exchange for about $2,905 in cash and a number of eligible and ineligible items such as soda, chips, glass pipes, bongs, hookahs, and hardware. For instance, in April, the agent was given $200 cash, two glass smoking pipes, an electric circular saw and cigarettes in exchange for $583 in SNAP benefits.Only weeks later, a federal SNAP employee visited the store under the guise of inspecting it to talk about SNAP rules and regulations.Shahzad indicated he knew that exchanging cash for SNAP benefits was prohibited, while Mahmood stated the benefits were to buy food, that s it and no lottery. Only weeks later during another visit by the undercover agent, an employee at the store gave him $200 cash for $540 in benefits.THOUGH AUTHORITIES SUSPECT the store redeemed more than $5 million in federal benefits, the store employees were charged with fraud based on a roughly 18-month span starting in 2014 where the store took in $3.2 million in benefits. This practice results in illegal profits to traffickers, misuse of government funds intended to provide food for needy families, and the creation of a market for stolen or fraudulently obtained SNAP benefits, the agent wrote of alleged traffickers, according to a federal search warrant for the store.The store now only accepts cash for payment, according to a sign on its door.Mahmood and Shahzad are free after they posted bond, but they were ordered to surrender their passports. Monarca has not been released from jail. If convicted, they face a maximum of five years in prison.The principal member of the store is listed as Aijaz Ahmed, according to state business records, but he has not been charged with any crime.Via: REP-AM | 0 |
3,466 | Rhetoric aside, Latin America leaders say Trump listened on Venezuela | NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump attacked Venezuela s authoritarian government from the podium at the United Nations this week but Latin American leaders say that behind the scenes he listened to them on how best to resolve the delicate regional crisis. Latin American leaders who dined with Trump on Monday on the fringes of the U.N. General Assembly said they told him that a military invasion, a threat he casually made last month, would be unacceptable in a region long-sensitive to heavy-handed intervention by Washington. They pressed on him the need for a peaceful transition to democracy in Venezuela and argued against economic sanctions that would deepen its humanitarian crisis, which has already sent tens of thousands fleeing to neighboring countries. Trump went to the trouble of asking us how best to solve the Venezuelan situation, Argentine Foreign Minister Jorge Faurie, who attended the dinner, told Reuters. That the United States would consult Latin American counties on what to do is in itself a major step forward. At the United Nations General Assembly this week, Trump attacked the Socialist government of President Nicolas Maduro for destroying a once-wealthy oil-producing nation. He threatened to increase sanctions if Maduro did not move toward restoring democratic rule. But Trump steered clear of repeating the threat of military action he made on Aug. 11 which alarmed Latin Americans. For many, it conjured memories of the 1989 U.S. invasion of Panama that overthrew dictator Manuel Noriega, who died in May after years in prison in the United States and his own country. At least 125 people were killed in Venezuela during four months of protests this year against Maduro, who has resisted calls to bring forward a presidential election and instead set up a legislative superbody to overrule the opposition-led Congress. While no decisions were taken, the talks between Trump and the presidents of Brazil, Colombia and Panama, and the vice president of Argentina put pressure on Maduro to engage in real negotiations with his opponents instead of using talks to gain time, Latin American leaders said. Brazilian President Michel Temer told reporters after the dinner those present had agreed to ramp up pressure on Venezuela without direct intervention. President Juan Carlos Varela of Panama said the dinner with Trump strengthened an initiative by a dozen Latin American countries and Canada to back a new round of negotiations between Maduro and his opponents. There will be more pressure to convince Maduro to accept free and democratic elections in 2018, Varela told Reuters. We think Maduro is getting the message that change must come. Purchases of crude and refined products from Venezuela represented 7 percent of total U.S. oil imports in the first half of the year, giving Washington some leverage to push for political change in the South American nation. Yet an oil embargo - which would deprive the Maduro government of its main source of income - was not discussed at the dinner with Trump, several attendees said. Much of Venezuelan oil is heavy in sulfur and used for heating oil and asphalt, but is also refined into gasoline, mainly by U.S. Gulf refiners. Gulf state senators have urged Trump not to ban imports, which would hurt refineries and push up gasoline prices. Colombian foreign minister Mar a Angela Holguin said an oil boycott would only extend the suffering of the Venezuelan people, who are facing shortages of food and medicine. We have to think of the Venezuelans who would suffer even more if the economic crisis deepens, she said. Formal negotiations with the opposition are due to begin in the Dominican capital of Santo Domingo on Sept. 27 and involve observers from Mexico, Chile, Nicaragua and Bolivia. Argentina s Faurie said the Maduro government would have to agree to several conditions for talks to be taken seriously, including a calendar for elections monitored by international observers and the release of political prisoners. Eric Farnsworth, vice president of the Americas Society, a business forum dedicated to fostering ties between the United States and Latin America, said the talks between Trump and regional leaders sent a clear message to Maduro. The most important thing that came out of the dinner was the photograph showing the president and the vice president of the United States sitting down with regional leaders to talk about Venezuela, Farnsworth said. | 1 |
3,467 | Ready to fight again: The homeless Rohingya still backing Myanmar insurgency | COX S BAZAR, Bangladesh (Reuters) - For 28-year-old Rohingya Muslim shopkeeper Mohammed Rashid, the evening phone call from organizers of the fledgling insurgent movement came as a surprise. Be ready, was the message. A few hours later, after meeting in the darkness in an open field, he was one of 150 men who attacked a Myanmar Border Guard Police post armed with swords, homemade explosives and a few handguns. At the end of a short battle, half a dozen men he had grown up with in his village were dead. We had no training, no weapons, said Rashid, from the Buthidaung area of Myanmar s Rakhine state, who had joined the group just two months earlier. Accounts from some of those, like Rashid, who took part in attacks by the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) on dozens of police posts early on Aug. 25 paint a picture of a rag-tag band of hopeless, angry villagers, who were promised AK-47 rifles but ended up fighting with sticks and knives. Hundreds joined as recently as June, according to the accounts, and membership meant little more than a knife and messages from leaders on the popular mobile messaging app Whatsapp. Reuters interviewed half a dozen fighters and members of the group now sheltering in Bangladesh, as well as dozens of others among the more than half a million Rohingya refugees who have fled across the border to escape a Myanmar army counteroffensive that the United Nations has branded ethnic cleansing. ARSA, which emerged in 2016, says in press releases and video messages from its leader, Ata Ullah, that it is fighting for the rights of the Rohingya, a stateless Muslim minority that has long complained of persecution in mainly Buddhist Myanmar. Myanmar says ARSA is a ruthless Islamist extremist movement that wants to create an Islamic republic in northern Rakhine. Despite the massive suffering inflicted on their communities in the weeks since the August attacks, most of the fighters now stuck in dirt-poor camps said they were determined to continue their fight and some refugees voiced support for the insurgency. Other refugees Reuters spoke to criticized the insurgents for bringing more misery upon them. Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi s spokesman, Zaw Htay, said ARSA had killed many Muslims who had cooperated with the authorities and so people have felt threatened and terrorized into supporting it. He added that Myanmar s intelligence showed that religious scholars were prominent in recruiting followers. ARSA denies killing civilians, and did not respond to a request for comment this week. Analysts say the violence could galvanize ARSA members and supporters huddled in the refugee camps and among those Rohingya still in Myanmar, as people feel they have even less to lose. A militancy like this finds fertile ground because of the desperation of the community, said Richard Horsey, a Yangon-based analyst and former U.N. official. They are willing to take suicidal steps because they don t see any other choice. Transnational Islamist groups could also try to exploit the desperation in the camps to radicalize people, Horsey added. Al Qaeda last month called for support for the Rohingya. Reuters could not independently verify the individual insurgents stories, but there were broad similarities in all of their accounts. One fighter, 35-year-old Kamal Hussain from a village in Rathedaung in Myanmar s Rakhine state, said he joined ARSA when a religious teacher stood in his village square in June, during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, and implored a crowd of hundreds to fight. He said we have no choice but to attack Myanmar because our brothers and sisters are being killed day by day. I think everyone joined that day, Hussain said, as he sat under a tarpaulin in a Bangladesh refugee camp. We should attack again and again. I would go back to fight if I had the chance. Unlike longer-serving fighters, most new joiners had little or no training or contact with the group s leaders, who communicated using Whatsapp and delivered rudimentary homemade explosives ahead of the assaults. A third fighter, his account supported by comments from two elders from his village interviewed separately, said he and about 60 men from Myin Hlut signed up three months ago. The 26-year-old, who asked not to be named because he feared arrest by Bangladeshi authorities, said he was among 200 men who attacked another police checkpost in the early hours of Aug. 25. We had only knives and sticks, no guns, he said. They promised us AK-47s but we got nothing. The explosives didn t work. We had two of them for the whole group, but when we threw them nothing happened. About 40 fighters were killed, he said, but added that he would do it again if called on. I still support ARSA, he said. If my leaders call me to go again and fight, I will go back. According to two village-level commanders, there were Whatsapp groups restricted to leaders and others to members. Bigger groups, administered from overseas, were used to build broader community support for ARSA and the Rohingya cause. On his phone, Shoket Ullah, an uncle of the 26-year-old fighter, scrolled through messages posted in the Whatsapp group ARSA.G1 , administered through a Saudi phone number, where ARSA press releases, videos of alleged Myanmar military violence and messages of support for Rohingyas were shared. Another Whatsapp group on Ullah s phone, Rohingya Desh Arakan , is administered by someone using a number from Malaysia. Tens of thousands of Rohingya live in both Saudi Arabia and Malaysia. Rohingya anger at Myanmar has long existed, but this is the first serious armed resistance in decades. In the crowded Bangladeshi camps, several refugees voice support for ARSA. I am disappointed and regret what happened but this was pre-planned by the Myanmar government, said Shafi Rahman, a 45-year-old Burmese teacher whose village was burned to the ground the day after the attacks. If ARSA didn t attack, they would have done this to us anyway. Several refugees said some people had begun to sell cattle, vegetables and rice to raise funds for ARSA. Not everyone was supportive, however. When Kamal Hussain, the fighter, argued that ARSA needed to keep fighting, his neighbors in the camp shouted him down. We have lost everything. Violence is not the answer, shouted one elderly man, as muddy water spilled into the tent he now calls home. It is not obvious how fighters would regroup and rebuild after so many have fled across the border or disappeared. Three of the fighters who spoke to Reuters said they had been surprised by the ferocity of the Myanmar military s response, and within weeks commanders had told their men to put down their weapons and abandon their villages. Several said Whatsapp groups where regional and field commanders from ARSA, which before a rebranding this year called itself al-Yakin, or Faith Movement , would post updates had gone quiet. People who blame this on al-Yakin need to realize my people had to flee in 1978 and in the 1990s when there was no ARSA, said one of the two village-level commanders, who grew up in Bangladesh after his family fled an earlier outbreak of violence, but returned to Myanmar in the 1990s. We should continue to attack. Even women can join. | 1 |
3,468 | What we know about U.S. probes of Russian meddling in 2016 election | (Reuters) - President Donald Trump’s firing of FBI Director James Comey on May 9 renewed attention to allegations by U.S. intelligence agencies that Russia interfered in the 2016 election campaign to benefit Trump. The following describes what is publicly known and not known about U.S. investigations into meddling and possible collusion between Russia and members of the Trump campaign: How did the investigations begin? Former President Barack Obama ordered U.S. intelligence agencies to assess whether Russia tried to intervene in the election after a cyber attack on the Democratic National Committee in July 2016 and the publication of thousands of hacked personal emails from Hillary Clinton’s campaign manager in the month before the Nov. 8 election. Obama told intelligence officials to deliver a report on possible foreign interference before he left the White House in January 2017. What did the intelligence agencies find? The Central Intelligence Agency, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the National Security Agency concluded in a report declassified in January that Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a campaign not just to undermine confidence in the U.S. electoral system but to affect the outcome. The agencies said Putin and the Russian government had a “clear preference” for Trump to win the White House. Putin’s associates hacked information, paid social media “trolls” and backed efforts by Russian government agencies and state-funded media to sway public opinion, the agencies said. The report stopped short of assessing whether Russia succeeded in swaying the election result. Putin and other Russian officials have repeatedly denied interfering in the U.S. election. What has Trump said about Russia’s role in the election? Trump has not taken a clear public position. “I will tell you this, Russia: if you’re listening, I hope you’re able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing,” Trump said at a July 2016 news conference, in reference to an FBI probe into Clinton’s use of a private email system when she was secretary of state and emails that had possibly been deleted. Trump subsequently dismissed reports, including from U.S. intelligence officials, that Russia had attempted to intervene in the election on his behalf. The first time Trump said he accepted the findings of the intelligence agencies was at a Jan. 11 news conference ahead of his inauguration. “As far as hacking, I think it was Russia,” Trump said, although he added: “It could have been others also.” Earlier this month, Trump said China may have hacked the emails of Democratic officials to meddle with the election, offering no evidence and countering the view of intelligence officials. How many U.S. probes are there into Russia’s election meddling? The Justice Department announced on May 17 that it has appointed Robert Mueller, a former FBI director, as special counsel to lead an independent Russia probe. Mueller would, if the evidence merits, work in tandem with the FBI, which is investigating, to handle any related criminal prosecutions. Committees in the House of Representatives and the Senate are also investigating and those probes will continue. Comey has been invited to testify about the agency’s Russia investigation and his dismissal. Has there been any fallout for Trump associates over contacts with Russia before, during or after the election campaign? Michael Flynn, Trump’s national security adviser, was fired in February. The White House said he had misled Vice President Mike Pence about the contacts he had with Russia’s ambassador to the United States, Sergei Kislyak, before Trump took office. On May 9, federal prosecutors issued grand jury subpoenas seeking business records from people who worked with Flynn when he was a private citizen. On May 10, the Senate Intelligence Committee issued the first subpoena in its Russia investigation, demanding documents from Flynn after he declined to voluntarily comply with an earlier request. Attorney General Jeff Sessions had to recuse himself from involvement in Russia-related probes at the Justice Department because he had not told Congress of his own contacts with Kislyak in 2016. Rod Rosenstein, the deputy U.S. attorney general, is handling matters related to Russia; he appointed Mueller as special counsel. Will the FBI probe continue after Comey’s dismissal? Comey told the House Intelligence Committee on March 20 that the FBI was investigating Moscow’s role in the election, including possible collusion with Trump’s campaign. It was the first time he publicly acknowledged the agency was investigating the matter. Comey’s departure does not necessarily mean the FBI’s Russia investigation will be disrupted or ended as the career FBI officials Comey put in charge of it will likely continue working on the matter even as the search for a new director begins. FBI acting Director Andrew McCabe, who will lead the agency until a new director is named, promised the Senate Intelligence Committee that Comey’s firing will not affect the investigation and that he will notify the committee of any attempt to delay or derail it. Why was Comey fired? Attorney General Sessions sent Trump a May 9 letter attaching a memo from Rosenstein, the deputy attorney general, on “Restoring Confidence in the FBI” that recommended Comey’s dismissal. Rosenstein’s memo said Comey erred in July 2016 by announcing the FBI had been examining Clinton’s use of a private email server and that the case should be closed without prosecution. Rosenstein’s view was that Comey’s decision to make a public statement on the matter broke with longstanding FBI precedent and should have been handled by the then-U.S. attorney general, Loretta Lynch. Trump called Comey a “showboat” and “grandstander” in an interview with NBC News on May 11, saying that he would have fired Comey regardless of Rosenstein’s recommendation. Did Comey’s firing have anything to do with the Russia probe? The White House says Comey was dismissed because of his handling of the Clinton email investigation. The New York Times was the first to report, on May 16, that a memo Comey wrote after a February meeting with Trump stated that the president had asked him to end the FBI’s investigation of Flynn. Trump aides have told Reuters that top Justice Department officials wanted a heads-up from Comey about what he would say during a May 3 congressional hearing about the FBI’s investigation of Clinton’s private email system. The hearing was just days after Clinton said at a New York event that announcements by Comey in the week before the November election that he had re-opened, and then re-closed, the email probe had swung the election for Trump. Comey told the congressional panel the idea that he may have affected the election result made him “mildly nauseous.” Is Trump being investigated by the FBI? In the short letter Trump sent to Comey dismissing him from the FBI, he thanked Comey for informing him on three separate occasions that he was not under investigation. Comey has never stated publicly whether or not the FBI was investigating Trump and it would be unorthodox for him to say such a thing to the president. The White House has offered no proof to back Trump’s claim. News of Comey’s memo, along with a Washington Post report on May 15 that Trump had revealed classified info during a May 10 meeting at the White House with Russian officials, intensified calls from Democrats and some Republicans for an independent probe of Trump’s ties to Russia. Trump has made clear on multiple occasions he believes the Russia investigations have run their course and should be closed. “The Russia-Trump collusion story is a total hoax, when will this taxpayer funded charade end?” he wrote on Twitter on May 8. | 1 |
3,469 | ISIS Is On The March, Belgium Is Burning, While Obama Hangs With New Commie Bestie In Cuba…Dirty Dances In Argentina [VIDEO] | Party on Barry Expect to see more of this behavior from our first class marxist ass, as he goes around the world on our dime campaigning for UN Secretary General.In Brussels police are still desperately hunting a dangerous terrorist after he fled a triple-suicide bombing in the city that left 34 dead, as officials hunt for news on U.S. citizens who went missing during the attack and medics tend to nine more Americans lying in hospital wounded.Meanwhile in Buenos Aires President Barack Obama is dancing the night away with wife Michelle at a glitzy state dinner alongside Argentine President Mauricio Macri and his first lady Juliana Awada as part of a two-day state visit. Despite increasing criticism from the likes of Donald Trump and Ted Cruz for the President to return home in the wake of the Brussels attack, Obama showed his determination to carry on regardless Wednesday night. Via: Daily Mail | 0 |
3,470 | Poland will not change its stance on EU's posted workers directive: PM | WARSAW (Reuters) - Poland will not change its stance on the European Union s posted workers directive, Prime Minister Beata Szydlo said on Thursday. We are not going to change our stance, Szydlo told reporters. We will defend our position to the very end, because it is a position that is in the interests of Polish workers. | 1 |
3,471 | Thailand rehearses lavish $90 million funeral for late king | BANGKOK (Reuters) - Drums and a band played as officials in black tops and ancient costumes rehearsed on Saturday for the funeral procession of Thailand s late King Bhumibol Adulyadej, whose cremation next week is expected to be attended by a quarter of a million mourners. Some held a mock-up of a golden urn that had held the remains of dead kings in the past. In the present, the king s body is placed in a coffin but the urn is still used to represent the monarch s remains. The procession rehearsal, which was expected to take up to five hours, passed crowds of black-clad mourners in Bangkok s historic quarter. Some were visibly moved by the proceedings. Others held gold-framed portraits of the late king. The military government has set 3 billion baht ($90 million) aside for the lavish funeral. Preparations took almost a year to complete, with thousands of artisans working to create an elaborate structure of gold-tipped Thai pavilions in a square in front of the glittering Grand Palace. King Bhumibol, who died on Oct. 13 last year at the age of 87, ruled Thailand for seven decades and is credited by some as having revived the prestige of the monarchy. A revival in the monarchy s popularity was helped by a formidable public relations machine - the evening news in Thailand includes a daily segment dedicated to the royals and the late king was often featured in his younger days crisscrossing the country to meet the poor and disenfranchised. That public relations drive helped to enshrine the king s status as a demi-god among some of his 68 million subjects. The five-day funeral will be attended by dozens of heads of state including King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck of Bhutan and Japan s Prince Akishino and Princess Kiko, among others. The post-funeral period could be one of uncertainty for many Thais, say analysts, who point to the king s role over the years as a moral compass and arbiter during decades of political upheaval. His only son King Maha Vajiralongkorn formally ascended the throne last year but his coronation will not take place until after his father s funeral. The king s cremation will take place on Oct. 26. The day has been a declared a national holiday and many businesses have announced they will shut all day or close at midday. More than 10,000 7-Eleven convenience stores across the country, a staple for many Thais, will be shut on the day. | 1 |
3,472 | RADICAL “TOLERANT” FEMALE Antifa, Black Bloc, Leader Follows Muslim Boyfriend To Turkey… Surprised When She Was Beaten, Raped | DC Antifa Leader Moved to Turkey with Man She Met, Surprised When Beaten and Abused https://t.co/MsBtGGxwem pic.twitter.com/XjC3UbmvRn Jack Posobiec (@JackPosobiec) May 2, 2017McCauley claims this is not the person who she traveled to Turkey to be with in her response to Prosibiec:How nice of you to link to my blog, Jack. I wrote about this publicly. Nice "investigative" skills. You got a photo of the wrong guy though. https://t.co/shOj6FfEyl Lacy MacAuley (@lacymacauley) May 2, 2017So all day, #fascists were a lot of bluff and bluster. Brought guns they never shot. Just chanted, gave #Nazi salutes, taunted. #Pikeville pic.twitter.com/FlVAOkudlW Lacy MacAuley (@lacymacauley) April 29, 2017How nice of you to link to my blog, Jack. I wrote about this publicly. Nice "investigative" skills. You got a photo of the wrong guy though. https://t.co/shOj6FfEyl Lacy MacAuley (@lacymacauley) May 2, 2017Lacy Mccauley can be seen acting as the tolerant host at this organized LGBTQ dance party in front of Vice President Mike Pence s home. At about the 1:40 mark, Lacy interviews Natalie, one of the peaceful protesters who warns Mike Pence, Bro .at me bro! She continues, We re gonna fight you and dance the more you come at us. So bring it! We re ready. We re gonna keep resisting in love dancing because it looks like you don t have any. So it looks like you need to be taught. Lacy then goes on to interview more hateful gay protesters preaching love and tolerance . So many angry, hateful people protesting against hate The hypocrisy of a liberal exposed. Note: the original post (seen in screen shot below) claims the protest was organized by the Islamic Center. We re pretty sure that LGBTQ members dancing in the streets is not a sanctioned Islamic event LOL! | 0 |
3,473 | BREAKING: Michael Flynn CRACKS – Will Testify To Mueller Against Trump Himself | Michael Flynn, Trump s embattled former national security adviser, has reportedly caved in and will testify to Robert Mueller and his team about Trump s collusion with Russia. According to an ABC News special report, Flynn has pleaded guilty to charges that include making false statements to the FBI. Most importantly, he admitted in his plea that officials on Trump s transition team directed his contacts with Russian officials.Furthermore, according to CNN s David Wright on Twitter, there s more to it than that. He s reporting that Brian Ross, who reported for ABC News, said that Flynn also says he s prepared to testify that Trump himself ordered him, directed him, to make contact with the Russians, which contradicts all that Donald Trump has said at this point. .@BrianRoss reports Michael Flynn is prepared to testify that President Trump as a candidate Donald Trump ordered him, directed him, to make contacts with the Russians, which contradicts all that Donald Trump has said at this point. David Wright (@DavidWright_CNN) December 1, 2017.@BrianRoss: As well, we re told that Flynn made the decision to cooperate only in the last 24 hours. That he is distraught about this decision, but feels he is doing the right thing for his country David Wright (@DavidWright_CNN) December 1, 2017.@BrianRoss: and that he is facing huge legal bills of more than a million dollars, and he said that finally he had to go and do this for that reason. He expects to put his house on the market. He is facing serious financial problems. David Wright (@DavidWright_CNN) December 1, 2017For his part, Flynn issued a statement saying the following: Actions I acknowledged in court today are wrong, and through my faith in God, I am working to set things right. My guilty plea and agreement to cooperate with the Special Counsel s Office reflect a decision I made in the best interests of my family and of our country. I accept full responsibility for my actions. The White House has said that this is merely more of what got Flynn fired in the first place, and that this will have zero effect on Trump. Har de har har don t make us laugh too hard. It hurts. Merry Christmas to Donald Trump and his entire treasonous family and administration! We hope you like orange jumpsuits!Featured image via Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images | 0 |
3,474 | The firing line: Ouster of FBI's Comey tests new Justice appointee | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The newly appointed second-in-command at the U.S. Justice Department faced a weighty task just two weeks after taking office - writing the rationale for firing FBI Director James Comey. Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein argued the case for Comey’s sacking in a three-page memo to Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Tuesday. President Donald Trump acted swiftly to dismiss the director later that day. Rosenstein cited Comey’s controversial public statements about the bureau’s investigation into Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server while she was secretary of state. “It is a textbook example of what federal prosecutors and agents are taught not to do,” Rosenstein wrote of Comey’s public comments. Spokespeople for the Department of Justice and the FBI did not return calls seeking comment late Tuesday. Comey’s firing will likely be seen as further evidence of Washington’s hyper-partisan upheaval. Rosenstein has drawn fire from Democrats who allege political motives in the White House decision to dismiss Comey - and particularly, its timing. “Why did it happen today?” asked Senate Democratic Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, of New York. “We know the FBI has been looking into whether the Trump campaign colluded with the Russians ... Were those investigations getting too close to home for the President?” The rationale for canning Comey, however, came from a 26-year Justice Department veteran who is widely viewed by his peers and many lawmakers as uncommonly nonpartisan. Named as Maryland’s top prosecutor by President George W. Bush, Rosenstein stayed in office through the Obama administration. Rosenstein was the longest-serving U.S. attorney when he was nominated by Trump last January. When he was confirmed by the Senate, he enjoyed overwhelming bipartisan support - a 94-to-6 vote - despite the deeply divided culture of today’s Washington. Bonnie Greenberg, a federal prosecutor in Maryland told Reuters in March that Rosenstein was admired as a rare career prosecutor who could insulate himself from political pressure. “He only does something if he thinks it’s right,” said Greenberg, who worked with Rosenstein for 11 years. Many in the Justice Department saw Rosenstein’s appointment as a counter-balance to the extreme partisanship surrounding accusations of Russian interference in last year’s election. And he was immediately swept into that fray. Before Rosenstein was confirmed for the position by the U.S. Senate, some Democratic lawmakers asked him to pledge he would appoint a special independent prosecutor to investigate allegations of collusion between the Trump campaign and Russian officials. He was easily confirmed despite rebuffing those demands. Some Republicans have been angered by Comey’s public statements about the FBI investigation into possible ties between the Trump campaign and Russia. But Rosenstein’s criticism of Comey focused on actions seen to have damaged Democratic candidate Clinton. Rosenstein focused in particular on Comey’s news conference last July, when the director announced his conclusion that Clinton should not be prosecuted - while at the same time publicly bashing her use of a private email server for sensitive U.S. government business. That day, Rosenstein wrote, Comey usurped the authority of the U.S. Attorney General - who has authority over whether prosecutions should proceed, based on the quality of FBI investigations. Comey also violated longstanding practice by “gratuitously” releasing damaging information about Clinton - even as he acknowledged the evidence against her was insufficient to warrant continued investigation, Rosenstein wrote. “We do not hold press conferences to release derogatory information about the subject of a declined criminal investigation,” Rosenstein wrote, adding that Comey “laid out his version of the facts for the news media as if it were a closing argument, but without a trial.” U.S. Senator Mark Warner of Virginia, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, said the timing of Comey’s firing was suspect - coming so long after the election of Trump and Comey’s alleged mishandling of the case. He directly criticized Rosenstein. “I am very disappointed with this deputy attorney general, who I was told had a good reputation,” he said. “But signing this letter saying that he recommends firing Comey because of Comey’s actions with Hillary Clinton nine months ago, or 10 months ago? That doesn’t pass any smell test.” Rosenstein, in his letter, cited broad, bipartisan agreement on Comey’s errors in judgment. Last summer, Comey defended his decision to speak publicly about the Clinton investigation, saying “the American people deserve those details in a case of intense public interest.” Last week, before a Senate committee, Comey defended his decision in October - two weeks before the presidential election - to publicly announce the bureau had discovered new emails that might be related to the closed investigation into Clinton. “To not speak about it would require an act of concealment in my view,” Comey said. Rosenstein wrote that he was perplexed at Comey’s continued defenses of his handling of the probe. “I do not understand his refusal to accept the nearly universal judgment that he was mistaken,” Rosenstein wrote. “It is one of the few issues that unites people of diverse perspectives.” | 1 |
3,475 | LIBERAL HACK ALEC BALDWIN Performed Rank Trump-Bashing Skit Last Night…Baldwin Is No Saint! | Open Borders/ImmigrationTrade/OverregulationForeign PolicyNow that s what we need to discuss but will America get over the reality TV sort of political season we re having? Here s what I m hoping I m hoping Americans finally realize we have way too much to lose in this election than to be swayed by something someone said 10 years ago: This election cycle, Republicans finally realized that we need to stop playing the civility game and put someone in the ring who can fight back. We finally recognized the futility of complaining to the referee about unfairness. Unfortunately, it took us almost a decade to realize that the MSM have stacked the deck. We re not after another gentleman politician; we needed a card shark, a gunslinger, and a hustler. And that s what we got with Trump. Yes, we realize that that type of person brings a lot of baggage, but we re desperate to win. There is too much to lose Read more: American Thinker | 0 |
3,476 | Clinton sets sights on Trump, general election after huge win in South Carolina | COLUMBIA, S.C. (Reuters) - Riding high after a landslide victory in Saturday’s South Carolina primary, Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton has set sights on a possible face-off in the Nov. 8 presidential election with Donald Trump, the favorite for the Republican nomination. “Despite what you hear, we don’t need to make America great again. America has never stopped being great,” she told supporters in her victory speech in South Carolina, declining to mention Trump by name, but taking a jab at his campaign slogan, “Make America Great Again.” Clinton said she was not taking anything for granted after crushing Democratic rival Bernie Sanders on Saturday by 48 percentage points, likely setting herself up for a good “Super Tuesday” night on March 1, a key date in the nomination battle. But if Clinton and Trump win big on Tuesday as opinion polls suggest, the chance of a general election matchup between them increases, adding another twist to a presidential campaign that has defied convention as U.S. voters vent frustration over economic uncertainty, illegal immigration and national security threats. Some Clinton backers, emboldened by the heightened chance of a Trump nomination, have reaffirmed their support for the former secretary of state, saying that it is she, not Sanders, who is best equipped to take down Trump in a head-to-head showdown in November. Rosilyne Scott, 58, of Texas, cast her vote early for Clinton ahead of Texas’s upcoming Tuesday nominating contest, calling the prospect of a Trump presidency “frightening.” “I just think she has more support, and she’s been doing it a lot longer,” she said. “If you get someone like Donald Trump in, I don’t know. ... I think he’s a joke, a bigot, a racist.” Amid Clinton’s renewed momentum against Sanders, a U.S. senator from Vermont, donors have also found resolve. One Clinton fundraiser in California said her recent victories in Nevada and South Carolina have prompted more people to donate to her campaign and to attend Clinton events. He said he had raised $10,000 for the Clinton campaign in the past week alone. A Trump-Clinton election would embody the outsider-versus-establishment battle in American politics. Trump has never been elected to public office, while the former first lady has been a player in Washington for decades. South Carolina was Clinton’s third victory in the first four Democratic contests, raising more questions about whether Sanders, a democratic socialist, will be able to expand his support beyond his base of predominantly white liberals. Exit polls showed Clinton winning big in the state with almost every constituency. She won nine of every 10 black voters, as well as women, men, urban, suburban, rural, very liberal and conservative voters. Sanders was ahead among voters between ages 18 and 29, and among white men. When asked which candidate they thought “can win in November,” an overwhelming 79 percent said Clinton, with only 21 percent putting their faith in Sanders to defeat the eventual Republican nominee. Sanders, who has energized the party’s liberal wing and successfully courted many of the party’s youth, on Sunday acknowledged he had been “decimated” by Clinton in South Carolina. He set his sights on March 1, where a win in a key state is crucial to keeping his hopes alive. “I think we’re going to do well on Super Tuesday, we’re going to do well in many states after that and we look forward to those state-by-state struggles,” he said in an interview on NBC News’s “Meet the Press.” But Sanders needs to have his breakout moment sooner rather than later, warned longtime Democratic activist Phil Noble, who said that Sanders’ momentum in South Carolina “fell off the table” after Clinton’s solid victory in Nevada on Feb. 20. “He’s got to pull off a surprise against Clinton soon or he won’t have time to recover,” he said. (Additional reporting by: Alana Wise in Washington, Luciana Lopez in New York, Emily Stephenson in Texas; Editing by Alistair Bell, Mary Milliken and Jonathan Oatis) This article was funded in part by SAP. It was independently created by the Reuters editorial staff. SAP had no editorial involvement in its creation or production. | 1 |
3,477 | Peru's Kuczynski dares Congress to dismiss entire Cabinet | LIMA (Reuters) - The government of Peru s President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski told opposition lawmakers on Wednesday that they would have to dismiss the entire Cabinet - and move closer to facing removal themselves - if they try to oust a second education minister. Kuczynski accused the opposition-ruled Congress of trying to sabotage his education reforms as the right-wing Popular Force party prepared a motion to censure Education Minister Marilu Martens over her handling of a teachers strike that dragged on for two months. The president said ousting Martens would be completely unfair. It would be the second education minister censured and purely over political preferences, Kuczynski said. By turning the censure vote on Martens into a vote of confidence on his whole Cabinet, Kuczynski hopes to check Popular Force s ability to threaten his ministers. The president can dissolve Congress if it dismisses the Cabinet twice. Congress has already forced Kuczynski s former education and finance ministers to resign, while his ex-transportation minister quit to avoid a censure vote. Popular Force lawmakers said they would study the request for a vote of confidence on the Cabinet and noted they had not yet formally presented the censure motion for Martens - a sign they might back off. They re putting the governability of the country at risk over one minister? said Luz Salgado, an influential lawmaker with Popular Force, which controls Congress. It s completely irresponsible. The gamble could force Kuczynski, a former Wall Street banker, to appoint 19 new ministers as he tries to revive the economy and his slipping popularity in opinion polls. However, it might also give him a freer hand to govern during the remaining four years of his term. A prime minister has not challenged Congress to renew its confidence in a cabinet in decades, said political analyst Fernando Tuesta, underscoring how rapidly relations between the executive branch and Congress have deteriorated in Kuczynski s year-old government. Kuczynski took office last year after narrowly beating long-time favorite Keiko Fujimori, the eldest daughter of jailed former leader Alberto Fujimori. Kuczynski s party won less than 15 percent of congressional seats while Fujimori s party, Popular Force, won an absolute majority. | 1 |
3,478 | texas official sees record breaking turnout and its all for trump | foxnewscom october
with less than two weeks to go the race for the white house has narrowed as hillary clinton now has a threepoint advantage over donald trump
thats within the margin of error of the national fox news poll of likely voters
clinton is ahead of trump by percent another oneinten back a thirdparty candidate and four percent are undecided last week she was up by six points percent and before that by seven percent
the poll released wednesday finds clinton leads percent in the headtohead matchup that point advantage is at the edge of the error margin she was up a week ago percent this article was posted thursday october at am share this article | 0 |
3,479 | why hillary clintons campaign is collapsing true news | source infowars
vote fraud expert bev harris exposes electronic voting machines
october
watch elections expert bev harris discuss the smoking gun behind voting fraud live infowarscomshow
smoking gun in massive election fraud discovered by investigators
black box voting founded in performs nonpartisan investigative reporting on elections in an attempt to stop vote rigging
you may be wondering what the term black box means a black box system is nontransparent its functions are hidden from the public elections of course should not be black box systems
here is a link to a free copy of the book black box voting here
author bev harris became known for groundbreaking work on electronic voting machines which can remove transparency of the vote count
please go to infowars to read the entire article and view the video clips | 0 |
3,480 | Seth Meyers: GOP ‘Sh*t All Over’ President Obama’s Successful Iran Prisoner Swap (VIDEO) | President Obama has been working for months to bring home four American prisoners held in Iran. It finally paid off with a deal that saw Iran and the United States exchange prisoners. The president showed that diplomacy instead of war is the right course of action to take.However, that wasn t good for the Republicans who started complaining as soon a the president announced the deal. It s typical of Republicans to play the partisan card even when what happens is good for the country. On Late Night with Seth Meyers, Meyers said: Of course, a good day for Obama only lasts seven minutes before Republicans shit all over it. Which they did, because Republicans were outraged Obama traded seven Iranian prisoners to get the Americans back. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=utJKElxYHPY]Donald Trump was apparently upset that the US gave up seven prisoners while Iran gave up just four. Yet, clips show that Trump called it a bad deal yet also took credit for it. Meyers summed it up well. Imitating Trump s accent, Meyers said: It s a terrible deal we should be ashamed of and not to brag, it was my idea and you should thank me for it. Trump also denied that he ever said the prisoners would never be released even though the video shows that he did. Another contradiction from America s favorite contra-dickhead, Meyers said.It s typical fashion for Republicans to go after the president even when the results are good for the country. | 0 |
3,481 | Pope heads for Bangladesh after diplomatic balancing act in Myanmar | YANGON (Reuters) - Pope Francis flew to Bangladesh on Thursday after a visit to Myanmar where he made no direct reference to the plight of Muslim Rohingya people to avoid a diplomatic incident with a Buddhist-majority country some have accused of ethnic cleansing. There will be no such balancing act for the pope in Bangladesh s capital, Dhaka, where he is expected to meet a group of Rohingya refugees from among the roughly 625,000 who have fled neighboring Myanmar since the end of August. The Vatican on Wednesday defended the pope s decision not to use the word Rohingya in public during his four-day Myanmar trip, saying his moral authority was unblemished and that his mere presence drew attention to the refugee crisis. But a Vatican news conference in Yangon to wrap up the visit only served to highlight the diplomatic minefield that the issue had presented for Francis. Spokesman Greg Burke said the pope s decision not to refer to the Rohingya did not take away from anything he has said in the past - he had mentioned them and their suffering before his Myanmar visit - but added that Vatican diplomacy was not infallible and others were entitled to their views. Muddying the waters for the Vatican delegation, a Myanmar regional bishop cast doubt at the same news conference about allegations of ethnic cleansing, suggesting other communities might be responsible for stoking them. When we speak of the truth, we should go to an authoritative source or a reliable source to get the news ... Those who criticize should go to the scene to study the reality and history, Bishop John Hsane Hgyi said. The Global New Light of Myanmar, a state-run daily, seized on the bishop s comments, putting a banner headline on its front page that read Reports of ethnic cleansing in Rakhine is not reliable: Myanmar church . The exodus of Rohingya people from Rakhine state to the southern tip of Bangladesh was sparked by a military crackdown in response to Rohingya militant attacks on an army base and police posts on Aug. 25. Scores of Rohingya villages were burnt to the ground, and refugees arriving in Bangladesh told of killings and rapes. The United Nations has accused Myanmar of ethnic cleansing and last week Washington said the military s campaign included horrendous atrocities aimed at ethnic cleansing . Myanmar s military has denied accusations of murder, rape and forced displacement. The government blames the crisis on the Rohingya militants, whom it has condemned as terrorists. Many people in Myanmar regard the largely stateless Rohingya as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh, they are excluded from the 135 national races recognized by law, and even using the name is considered inflammatory. Although Francis studiously avoided the term, following the advice of local Church officials who feared it could turn Myanmar s military and government against minority Christians, his calls for justice, human rights and respect were widely seen as applicable to the Rohingya. Francis held talks during his trip with Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi, a Nobel peace laureate and longtime champion of democracy who in 2016 formed Myanmar s first civilian government in half a century. Suu Kyi has faced a barrage of criticism from Western nations in recent weeks for expressing doubts about reports of abuses against Rohingya and for failing to condemn the military. China has backed what Myanmar officials call a legitimate counter-insurgency operation in Rakhine, and stepped in to prevent a resolution on the crisis at the U.N. Security Council, support observers believe will draw Suu Kyi closer to Beijing. Myanmar s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Suu Kyi left on Thursday morning for China to join a forum of world leaders hosted by the Communist Party of China. Suu Kyi s defenders say she is hamstrung by a constitution written by the military that left the army in control of security and much of the apparatus of the state. The military s power was clear on Monday when Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, demanded to meet Pope Francis before Sun Kyi, upending a schedule that had her meeting the pontiff first. I m sure the pope would have preferred meeting the general after he had done the official visits, spokesman Burke said. | 1 |
3,482 | NBA Politely Tells North Carolina To F*ck Right Off Over The ‘Fix’ For Their Bathroom Law | North Carolina is in a world of trouble. Their bathroom law, which tells transgender people that they must use the bathroom of the gender on their birth certificate, has led to businesses fleeing or avoiding the state so they don t sully their own brands. That includes the NBA and the 2017 All-Star Game, which forced the state s legislature to come up with a fix so they could keep the All-Star game.The All-Star Game was supposed to be in Charlotte next year. Charlotte wants to be friendly, compassionate and inclusive, and they re upset with the state legislature overriding the law they put in place that allowed transgender people to use the bathroom that went with their gender identity without making them feel like they have to produce documentation just to take a piss. The NBA feels the same way, and issued the following statement on the matter:.@NBA and the Charlotte Hornets come out swinging against #HB2, saying they re not pleased with the amended version: pic.twitter.com/OHNwAJbhCg Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) June 30, 2016 We have been engaged in dialogue with numerous groups at the city and state levels, but we do not endorse the version of the bill that we understand is currently before the legislature. We remain committed to our guiding principles of inclusion, mutual respect and equal protections for all. We continue to believe that constructive engagement with all sides is the right path forward. There has been no new decision made regarding the 2017 NBA All-Star Game. Well, isn t that a nice way of saying, You re still a bunch of bigots, now kindly go fuck yourselves. The fix is actually no fix at all, and it does reveal North Carolina s GOP as the stodgy bigots they are. It actually makes things worse. Transgender people have to obtain a certificate of sex reassignment in order to use the bathroom that corresponds with their gender identity. Imagine all the hoops they ll have to jump through just to get that certificate. Then there are all the transgender people who haven t yet had, or aren t able to (for whatever reason) have reassignment surgery. This fix doesn t include them at all.The GOP thinks they re playing both sides though anything to be able to continue policing people s genitals and dictating where they can pee while ignoring real problems and avoiding real work.The problem is that these hidebound Neanderthals in Republican legislatures want to eat their cake and have it, too. They re either discriminating or they re not there s no two ways about it. North Carolina wants to appease the LGBT community and all their allies while still being able to push them down. Give it up, N.C.Featured image by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images | 0 |
3,483 | Watch These Fox Hosts Get REALLY Mad They Can’t Force Themselves On Women (VIDEO) | It looks as though there are still men who think forcing themselves on women should be perfectly acceptable. There are clearly also still men who feel the need to defend men who force themselves on other women, and speak out against programs that require consent.Yes, folks. This is the United States of America in the year 2016.On Thursday, Fox News Business host Stuart Varney had fellow Fox flunky Andrew Napolitano on to discuss the yes means yes movement and Harvard s secret society of all-male clubs who stated that women can t be involved because men can keep it in their pants. I m sorry, because the men may be falsely accused of sexual assault. And because men may go after women, it s best to just continue the tradition of keeping women as second-rate and exclude them from the clubs.And of course, Varney completely agreed with Harvard: They are faced with the possibility of admitting women or are forced to admit women then they are therefore increasing the likelihood of a lawsuit. Because if a man in this day in age holds the hand of a woman on a date without first asking permission, that is an assault. In come the lawyers. Yeah, making light of rape is always a wise thing to do. For f*cks sake.Varney apparently thinks, the real story here now is, the law is now controlling intimate relationships between men and women. Lawyers [and] the law should not be in the middle of an intimate dating relationship between the sexes. Yes, women, stay quiet and let men have their way with you. Stupid lawyers and their wanting to uphold the law, keeping women safe and holding abusers accountable.Varney then goes on to complain about how no means no has turned into yes means yes because clearly getting consent in the affirmative is an overwhelming concept for him.Then Napolitano agrees with him, saying that the whole thing is insane, and thinks that not every un-consented to touching is any of the business of the government. Adding: I can t imagine that the failure to say yes is a criminal assault. Actually, Andrew that s exactly what it is.The fact that these men are sitting here and defending unconsented touch is not only deplorable, but horrific. If they want to be able to force themselves on women, they should at least be forced out of a job. What say you, Fox News?Featured image via video screen capture/ HT: Raw Story | 0 |
3,484 | Ousted Catalan leaders to appear in Belgian court on November 17 | BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Ousted Catalan President Carles Puigdemont and four associates will appear before a Belgian court on Nov. 17 to discuss the European arrest warrant Spain has issued against them, prosecutors said on Monday. The Brussels prosecutor s office hereby confirms that the hearing at the council chamber will take place on Nov. 17 at 1400 (1300 GMT), Brussels prosecutors said in a statement. The hearing is one stage of the European extradition procedure that could take several weeks to complete. | 1 |
3,485 | comment on respected journalist bill moyers is first highprofile american to flee us after trumps election by sue penn suepennontwitte | adobochron leave a comment
cupertino california the adobo chronicles san jose bureau technology giant apple is known for its innovation and for constantly reinventing itself and its products this strategy has spelled the companys tremendous success across the globe
occasionally apple immerses itself in politics and the current political atmosphere following the election of donald trump as the th us president is one of those times
by now the term altright alternative right has become a familiar phrase especially on social media
the alternative right commonly known as the altright is a set of farright ideologies groups and individuals whose core belief is that white identity is under attack by multicultural forces using political correctness and social justice to undermine white people and their civilization characterized by heavy use of social media and online memes altrighters eschew establishment conservatism skew young and embrace white ethnonationalism as a fundamental value
in keeping up with this new political atmosphere apple has just announced that it will be replacing all keyboards on its desktops laptops iphones and ipads with a new design that adds the altright key the key will be located in the lowermost right corner of the keyboard how appropriate
apple ceo tim cook said that the addition of this allimportant key will enable those who subscribe to the alternative right ideologies and idiosyncrasies to identify themselves when sending emails texts or posting on social media hitting the altright key will automatically add the hashtag alternativeright to whatever a person is typing on the keyboard
welcome to the nd century rate this | 0 |
3,486 | BREAKING: #UnfitHillary Told FBI She Couldn’t Remember Answers To Questions Because Of CONCUSSION…Used 13 Mobile Devices…Hillary’s Lawyers Couldn’t Locate Any Of Them | Dirty, lying, rotten to core Hillary is either lying about not remembering or lying about having fully recovered from the blood clot on her brain. Which one is it Hillary?What a great role model for young girls and women everywhere Clinton was interviewed by the FBI on July 2 but the meeting wasn t tape recorded or conducted under oath The only surviving account of the grilling was released Friday by the FBI She also said she couldn t recall receiving any emails that she thought didn t belong on an unclassified system Said she was concussed in 2012 when she was receiving guidance so couldn t rememberHillary Clinton told the FBI she could not recall answers to some of their questions about her secret server scandal because she had been concussed in 2012.The extraordinary disclosure was made as the FBI published details of its agents interview with the former secretary of state which was conducted days before the agency s director ruled out any charges against her.Agents noted that Clinton could not recall being trained to handle classified materials as secretary of state, and had no memory of anyone raising concerns about the sensitive information she received at her private address.The Democratic presidential nominee also did not recall receiving any emails she thought should not be on an unclassified system, the FBI s report declared.She did not recall all of the briefings she received on handling sensitive information as she made the transition from her post as secretary of state, due to a concussion she suffered in 2012. Clinton said she received no instructions or direction regarding the preservation or production of records from (the) State (Department) during the transition out of her role as Secretary of State in 2013, the FBI files say. However, in December of 2012, Clinton suffered a concussion and then around the New Year had a blood clot (in her head).And the FBI files also showed how she passed the buck to her former State Department underlings, saying she relied on their judgment when deciding what was and wasn t appropriate to send through her homebrew private email server while she was America s top diplomat. She relied on State [Department] officials to use their judgment when emailing her and could not recall anyone raising concerns with her regarding the sensitivity of the information she received at her email address, the FBI s account reads.Clinton told investigators she was unfamiliar even with basic markings of confidential materials, such as the (C) markings that denote confidential material portions of emails.Clinton stated she did not know what the (C) meant at the beginnings of the paragraphs and speculated it was referencing paragraphs marked in alphabetical order, according to the documents.The FBI documents state that on February 9, 2016, the Justice Department asked Clinton s lawyers at Williams & Connelly to turn over the 13 mobile devices she used over the time period. The lawyers couldn t locate any of them, and the FBI was unable to acquire or forensically examine any of these 13 mobile devices. Via: Daily Mail | 0 |
3,487 | (Video) CNN Anchor Mocks ‘pitiful’ Hillary Campaign Watch Party | You know you re really in the tank when the CNN anchors are mocking you! A total of 6 people attended a Hillary Watch Party for here second announcement aka campaign reset today. | 0 |
3,488 | China says has made best effort on North Korea ahead of Trump visit | BEIJING (Reuters) - A senior Chinese diplomat said on Friday China has made its best efforts to resolve issues on the Korean peninsula, ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump’s state visit to Beijing next week when he is expected to press China to do more on North Korea. Vice Foreign Minister Zheng Zeguang said the North Korean nuclear issue would be an important topic up for discussion at the meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Trump. China firmly opposes conflict on the Korean peninsula and believes using force is not the correct way to resolve the issue, Zheng told reporters at a briefing in Beijing. China and the United States have a shared interest in peace and stability on the Korean peninsula, Zheng said. | 1 |
3,489 | THE FUTURE Of The Democratic Party In One Picture | Confusing different policies and different ideologies defines the modern Democratic Party Whether it s on domestic or foreign policy, you can count on the Democrats to confuse the heck out of the American people Andrew McCarthy says it best in his National Review column, Democrats Know the Election Was Legitimate but Persist in a Dangerous Fraud. Andy reminds us of the Democrats 180 on accepting the results of the election. Horrifying! inveighed an indignant Hillary Clinton at the last presidential debate, less than three weeks before Election Day. What so horrified her? Donald Trump s refusal to pledge that he would accept the legitimacy of the election.Trump speculated that the electoral process could be rigged. Until he saw how it played out, the Republican nominee said, he could not concede that the result would be on the up-and-up. *** A flabbergasted Clinton responded that she was shocked horrified! to hear Trump talking down our democracy. This was a top theme in her campaign s closing days: The election was absolutely legitimate; Trump was traitorously condemnable for refusing to say so.Of course, Clinton and the Democrats who parroted her would prefer that you forget that now.Ever since election day, the Democrats have tried to undermine the Trump administration by questioning the legitimacy of his victory. But until now, I don t recall any of them actually denying that Trump won the election. That is the position taken last night by the newly-installed Chairman of the Democratic National Committee, Tom Perez.Speaking to a Democratic rally in Newark, Perez said, among other things: Republicans don t give a shit about people and Donald Trump, you didn t win the election. According to Perez, the wrong candidate was inaugurated on January 20.And the knock on Perez when he ran for DNC Chairman was that he wasn t crazy enough! In today s Democratic Party, insanity isn t optional. It is mandatory.Via: Powerline | 0 |
3,490 | Senate gun control vote on Monday, says a leading Republican | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate will most likely vote on four gun control measures on Monday, the No. 2 Republican in the Senate said, after the weekend shooting massacre at a gay nightclub in Florida. Two of the proposals are sponsored by Democrats and two by Republicans, Senator John Cornyn of Texas said on Thursday. “I think it’s pretty definite,” he said of the Monday time frame. | 1 |
3,491 | BREAKING: “Al Jazeera America” Shuts Down | Some good news for today! Al Jazeera is dead, gone, kaput Remember Al Jazeera bought Al Gore s Current TV:Al Gore said Al-Jazeera shared Current TV s mission to give voice to those who are not typically heard; to speak truth to power; to provide independent and diverse points of view; and to tell the stories that no one else is telling. AMERICANS AREN T BUYING IT Al Jazeera America s brass decided suddenly Wednesday to shut down the network, concluding that the three-year-old cable-news channel simply did not have a sustainable business model.According to Politico, employees were told of the decision at a meeting in its Manhattan offices on Wednesday afternoon. Broadcasting will cease April 30.The American arm of the Qatar-based news network had been having a hard time attracting an audience, While the operations were independent, most Americans were first exposed to the name al Jazeera during the Iraq war, when the Arabic branch published stories that seemed sympathetic to Islamist insurgents. A series of sex-discrimination suits and, most recently, a widely criticized report on doping in pro sports, also damaged the company.The Intercept has this to say about Al Jazeera:AJAM has been losing staggering sums of money from the start. That has become increasingly untenable as the network s owner and funder, the government of Qatar, is now economically struggling due to low oil prices.Was Al Jazeera America s downfall due to it trying to be inoffensive and too American?Via: WT | 0 |
3,492 | Turkish PM, U.S. vice president discuss improving ties: sources | ANKARA (Reuters) - U.S. Vice President Mike Pence told Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim that Washington was keen for a new start in relations between the two countries, sources in Yildirim’s office said, after ties soured during the Obama administration. Pence and Yildirim met on the sidelines of a security conference in Munich, Germany, and discussed improving ties, boosting cooperation in the fight against terrorism and the need to work together to find a permanent solution in Syria. Yildirim told Pence that moves by the United States to meet Turkey’s demands over Fethullah Gulen, a U.S.-based cleric blamed by Ankara for masterminding and orchestrating a failed coup last July, would pave the way for a fresh start in relations. Ties between the United States and Turkey - which has the second largest army in the NATO alliance and is key to the U.S.-led fight against Islamic State in Syria and Iraq - have deteriorated sharply since the failed military coup. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and the government want Gulen, who has lived in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania since 1999, extradited. Gulen denies involvement in the coup attempt. Ankara has also been angered by U.S. support for a Kurdish militia group fighting Islamic State in Syria. Turkey sees the group as an extension of the outlawed PKK, which has waged a three-decade insurgency for Kurdish autonomy in southeastern Turkey and has been behind a spate of recent bombings. Erdogan believes ties will improve under U.S. President Donald Trump. A phone call between the two earlier this month was very positive, sources in Erdogan’s office have said. | 1 |
3,493 | Russia's Putin signs 'foreign agents' media law | MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin signed into law on Saturday new measures allowing authorities to list foreign media outlets as foreign agents in response to what Moscow says is unacceptable U.S. pressure on Russian media. The new law has been rushed through both Russian houses of parliament in the last two weeks. It will now allow Moscow to force foreign media to brand news they provide to Russians as the work of foreign agents and to disclose their funding sources. A copy of the law was published on the Russian government s online legislation database on Saturday, saying it entered into force from the day of its publication. Russia s move against U.S. media is part of the fallout from allegations that Russia interfered in last year s U.S. presidential election in favor of Donald Trump. U.S. intelligence officials have accused the Kremlin of using Russian media organizations it finances to influence U.S. voters, and Washington has since required Russian state broadcaster RT to register a U.S.-based affiliate company as a foreign agent . The Kremlin has repeatedly denied meddling in the election and said the restrictions on Russian broadcasters in the United States are an attack on free speech. The Russian Justice Ministry last week published a list of nine U.S.-backed news outlets that it said could be affected by the changes. It said it had written to the U.S. government-sponsored Voice of America (VOA) and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), along with seven separate Russian or local-language news outlets run by RFE/RL. | 1 |
3,494 | U.S. makes $500 million grant to climate change fund: State Department | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States has made a $500 million grant to the Green Climate Fund, meant to help developing nations combat climate change, the State Department said on Tuesday. The move, coming days before U.S. President Barack Obama hands over power to Donald Trump, was “long-planned,” State Department spokesman John Kirby said in a news briefing. | 1 |
3,495 | Russia says Trump stance on Iran deal 'extremely troubling': RIA | MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said on Friday it was extremely troubling that U.S. President Donald Trump was raising questions that had been settled when an international deal on Iran s nuclear program was signed, RIA news agency reported. Ryabkov was quoted as saying that Russia sees its main task now as preventing the Iran nuclear deal from collapsing. He called on all sides to stay committed to the deal, the news agency reported. | 1 |
3,496 | BREAKING: HILLARY CAMPAIGN Planned Fake “GRASSROOTS” Millennial Movement To Steal Bernie Followers | Wikileaks released another email showing how phony Hillary s campaign has been from the start. Americans should never believe the polls. Hillary has NEVER given Americans a reason to want to get behind her. Its why she and her camp, with the help of the media are constantly manufacturing what appears to be (but really is not) support for her candidacy. The most HILL-larious part of this whole story is that Hillary s camp planned to use the young Tallahassee Mayor, Andrew Gillum to launch Hillary s fake grassroots group after he gave a speech at the DNC about how trust in government can be restored! Here is the attachment to an email addressed to Hillary s campaign manager, John Podesta:CONCEPT PAPEROBJECTIVE:Mobilize young voter participation for the 2016 election in support of Hillary ClintonSTRATEGY: Use young elected officials and entertainers to build a grassroots movement of under 40 voters as a vehicle to migrate support for Bernie into activism for Hillary.OPERATIONAL GOALS: Identify young elected officials (YEOs)across the country to become the face of a new organization that is focused on a progressive future. These young elected officials would promote both the organization, the ideas embraced by it and the need for civic engagement with an immediate focus on involvement in the 2016 election. They would be seen as the faces of a new progressivist movement that combines noble goals with political realities resulting in real progress.The organization would be built around a group of ideas or concepts as opposed to parties or individuals. The ideas should always reinforce the message that the under 40 generation needs to engage politically to shape their own future. Building the New Economy, Creating an Empowerment Society, Transitioning to a Sustainable World, Tearing Down Barriers are all phrases which might be included in the messaging. Support for the Hillary would be included in the messaging but initially as tangential to it, i.e. if you support these things then there really isn t another choice but her . Over time the messaging would transition more into the actionable item of involvement in the campaign and support for its efforts.The organization should be built around a Ready for Hillary type model: grassroots driven, limited engagement of the principal, both an organizational and small dollar fundraising component, centered on-line and in venues frequented by under 40 s college campuses, with a big emphasis on community colleges, nightclubs, athletic events, etc.The group should be branded separately from the campaign so people who engage with it feel like they created and own it as opposed to feeling swallowed by an organization that defeated them. A distinct name, artwork, website, spokespeople etc would be desired.TACTICS:The program should be launched initially in one state and then expand out. It should be seen as growing and spreading. We want people calling and asking if they can set one up in their state as opposed to forcing the model on them.The YEO s in that state would announce the formation of their group stating theirs goal to help elect a progressive President and engage young people with a goal of making sure their voices are heard and they are ready to participate. It should feel almost like we got together and decided to do this on our own . Depending on the organizational model, they could say they all support Hillary and are doing it to help but there are bigger and longer term objectives here, etc. Ideally you could say something like the campaign is providing limited resources but has agreed any funds you raise will be directed into youth outreach.They would then do a series of event which would be a college campus town hall during the day and a club type event that night. The town hall with students would be informal with talking with students about goals, dreams, political reality, how government can make things happen, how sometimes it doesn t, etc. It would end in a pitch for them to become engaged politically to build a progressive future. Later in the evening, these YEO s would attend and speak briefly at a campaign event in a bar/club featuring a local DJ or entertainer and has a nominal contribution as part of attendence. The campus event will be used to build buzz for the second event as well as the campaign itself. As momentum grows for the organization, bigger names would be brought in for the town hall events as well as bigger artists for the club events, furthering the momentum. Eventually, HRC/WJC/CVC as well as VP and Spouse would be integrated into these events but it should be seen as them coming to the movement as opposed to them trying to take it over.RECOMMENDATIONS:This program be launched by Mayor Andre Gillum in Florida. Goal would be early AprilTarget is to have 10 people at launchDo events in Miami, Palm Beach, Gainesville, Jacksonville, Tampa and Orlando in April.Convene a group of National YEO s in May/June to discuss their involvement.Have organization functioning in 5 battlegound states by June 1 Florida, Colorado, Virginia, North Carolina? | 0 |
3,497 | Funeral of slain Malta blogger hears warning to her killers | VALLETTA (Reuters) - Thousands of mourners at a funeral on Friday for slain Maltese anti-corruption blogger Daphne Caruana Galizia heard a plea for the protection of journalistic freedoms and a warning to her unknown killers that they face the justice of God. The island s president, prime minister and opposition leader, all targeted in Caruana Galizia s writing, stayed away from the private ceremony, but European Parliament President Antonio Tajani attended as a guest of the family. The island observed a day of mourning and flags flew at half mast in Brussels during the funeral at Malta s biggest church, near the capital Valletta and two miles from the site where the 53-year-old was killed by a car bomb as she left her home on Oct. 16. Archbishop Charles Scicluna, who led the funeral mass, addressed the unknown killers, saying, However hard you try to evade the justice of men, you will never escape from the justice of God. Repent before it is too late. He then told journalists not to be afraid. I encourage you never to grow weary in your mission to be the eyes, the ears, and the mouth of the people ... We need people in your profession who are unshackled, who are free, intelligent, inquisitive, honest, serene, safe and protected. Reflecting concern in neighboring countries about possible failings in democracy and the rule of law in Malta, the European Union vowed earlier on Friday to make sure its smallest state found the barbarous killers. Tajani was also due to visit the offices of a newspaper for which she worked as a contributor, and Caruana Galizia s family was invited to a sitting in parliament to commemorate her. The island s government is offering a one million-euro ($1.16 million) reward for information about the culprits and has asked the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to help. But the Caruana Galizia family refused to endorse the reward, called for the resignation of the prime minister, the police commissioner and the attorney general, and insisted there could be no justice without institutional change. Their calls have been echoed by opposition leader Adrian Delia, who said the police commissioner and attorney general s failure to act when Caruana Galizia revealed corruption created the circumstances leading to the assassination. Mourners applauded, made V for victory signs and sung the national anthem as the coffin was carried to a hearse. Some chanted Justice . Caruana Galizia s husband and three adult sons stood solemnly, occasionally hugged by mourners. Malta s chief justice and former prime ministers Lawrence Gonzi and Eddie Fenech Adami also attended. A household name in Malta, Caruana Galizia was well-known for stirring up passions and dividing opinion. Her murder shocked the tiny country and was condemned by all political parties, but controversy continued on the day of her burial. Maltese news websites reported several critical Facebook posts including one referring to a demonstration outside police headquarters planned by a group of NGOs which is demanding the commissioner s resignation. You d have to wonder why you never get a truck mowing people down here in Malta. Who knows? Maybe that will happen at Sunday s protest. I d love to see them crushed in the middle of the road, one read. ($1 = 0.8607 euros) | 1 |
3,498 | Racist Florida Woman Tells Black People ‘You Should Have Stayed In Africa’ In INSANE Rant (VIDEO) | A racist white woman in Florida is surely furious after her African-American neighbors posted a video of her dissolving into a hate-filled mess outside her home on a residential street in Tallahassee, Florida. The video was apparently recorded in March, but the teens who captured the magical moment in which this classy, white, pink bikini-clad lady unleashed a stream of verbal diarrhea all over the sidewalk, posted the footage online recently.The woman, who is apparently drunk, begins by making fun of the African-American females bodies. When a male in the back says black don t crack, baby, things went from zero to racist instantly. Black don t crack? the likely Trump voter responds. Black IS crack. Crack IS black! But she wasn t done there. The unidentified Cracker-American told the black b*tches (her cute nickname for them): You all should have stayed in Africa. And you can go back there, it s free. You know you can go back to Africa, if you want to. And you can take your Washington and Jefferson last names. One of the teens decided to remind her she is being recorded don t say nothing else but our intoxicated white friend was in full-Trump mode. We re gonna take over these neighborhoods, she says, continuing her slack-jawed diatribe. Martin Luther King was a sl*t! He was a sl*t who was f*cking white people. Martin Luther was f*cking white people the day he died. Ultimately, the lady s hate-filled frenzy became so irritating for her daughter, who was forced to stand in the background and attempt to ignore her mother s idiocy, had to step in. The daughter screamed Mom, will you stop as she grabbed her hand and tried to pull her back. It s ridiculous that your own child has to tell you to stop, one of the teens said, and it truly is.Featured image via screen capture | 0 |
3,499 | the empire files abby martin exposes john podesta | by kurt nimmo blacklisted news if elected this week hillary clinton will turn up the heat on brinkmanship with russia democrats insist russia is behind | 0 |
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