“We are still doing an investigation.”

 — President Obama, Sept. 25, 2012

 In any kind of confused overseas event, initial reports are often wrong. But the Sept. 11 attack on the U.S. diplomatic post in Benghazi, Libya, in which four Americans were killed, including the ambassador, is a case study of how an administration can carefully keep the focus as long as possible on one storyline — and then turn on a dime when it is no longer tenable.

 For political reasons, it certainly was in the White House’s interests to not portray the attack as a terrorist incident, especially one that took place on the anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks. Instead the administration kept the focus on what was ultimately a red herring — anger in the Arab world over anti-Muslim video posted on You Tube. With key phrases and message discipline, the administration was able to conflate an attack on the U.S. Embassy in Egypt — which apparently was prompted by the video — with the deadly assault in Benghazi.

 Officials were also able to dismiss pointed questions by referring to an ongoing investigation.

 Ultimately, when the head of the National Counterterrorism Center was asked pointblank on Capitol Hill whether it was a an act of terror — and he agreed — the administration talking points began to shift. (Tough news reporting — as well as statements by Libya’s president — also played a role.) Yet President Obama himself resisted using the “t” word, even as late as Tuesday, while keeping the focus on the video in his speech to the U.N. General Assembly.

 On Wednesday, however, White House spokesman Jay Carney acknowledged also that Obama himself believes the attack was terrorism — and so more than two weeks after the attack the Rubicon finally was crossed.

 As a reader service, we have compiled a comprehensive timeline of administration statements, showing the evolution in talking points, with key phrases highlighted in bold. Many readers sent suggestions for this timeline, for which we are deeply grateful.

 We will leave it to readers to reach their own conclusions on whether this is merely the result of the fog of war and diplomacy — or a deliberate effort to steer the storyline away from more politically damaging questions. After all, in a competitive election, two weeks is a lifetime.

 Initially, ‘an attack’ — and focus on a video

 “Yesterday, our U.S. diplomatic post in Benghazi, Libya, was attacked. Heavily armed militants assaulted the compound and set fire to our buildings. American and Libyan security personnel battled the attackers together. Four Americans were killed. They included Sean Smith, a Foreign Service information management officer, and our Ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens. We are still making next of kin notifications for the other two individuals.”

 — Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, State Department Treaty room, Sept. 12

 “The United States condemns in the strongest terms this outrageous and shocking attack. We're working with the government of Libya to secure our diplomats. I've also directed my administration to increase our security at diplomatic posts around the world. And make no mistake, we will work with the Libyan government to bring to justice the killers who attacked our people.

 “Since our founding, the United States has been a nation that respects all faiths. We reject all efforts to denigrate the religious beliefs of others. But there is absolutely no justification to this type of senseless violence. None. The world must stand together to unequivocally reject these brutal acts…No acts of terror will ever shake the resolve of this great nation, alter that character, or eclipse the light of the values that we stand for.”

 — President Obama, Rose Garden statement, Sept. 12

 (Note: we added this statement to the timeline after Josh Gerstein of Politico asserted that the phrasing “acts of terror” showed Obama acknowledged “terrorism” was behind the attack. From our many years of covering diplomacy we would say there is a world of difference, but readers can draw their own conclusions.)

 “Frankly, we are not in a position to speak any further to the perpetrators of this attack. It was clearly a complex attack. We’re going to have to do a full investigation.”

 — Unnamed senior administration official, briefing reporters in a conference call, Sept. 12

 “I think it’s important to note with regards to that protest that there are protests taking place in different countries across the world that are responding to the movie that has circulated on the Internet. As Secretary Clinton said today, the United States government had nothing to do with this movie. We reject its message and its contents. We find it disgusting and reprehensible. America has a history of religious tolerance and respect for religious beliefs that goes back to our nation’s founding. We are stronger because we are the home to people of all religions, including millions of Muslims, and we reject the denigration of religion. We also believe that there is no justification at all for responding to this movie with violence.”

 — White House spokesman Jay Carney, news briefing, Sept. 13

 “This has been a difficult week for the State Department and for our country. We’ve seen the heavy assault on our post in Benghazi that took the lives of those brave men. We’ve seen rage and violence directed at American embassies over n awful Internet video that we had nothing to do with. It is hard for the American people to make sense of that because it is senseless, and it is totally unacceptable.”

 — Clinton, transfer of remains ceremony, Sept. 14

 “I have seen that report, and the story is absolutely wrong. We were not aware of any actionable intelligence indicating that an attack on the U.S. mission in Benghazi was planned or imminent. That report is false.”

 — Carney, news briefing, Sept. 14

 “Based on the best information we have to date ... it began spontaneously in Benghazi as a reaction to what had transpired some hours earlier in Cairo, where, of course, as you know, there was a violent protest outside of our embassy sparked by this hateful video. But soon after that spontaneous protest began outside of our consulate in Benghazi, we believe that it looks like extremist elements, individuals, joined in that effort with heavy weapons of the sort that are, unfortunately, readily now available in Libya post-revolution. And that it spun from there into something much, much more violent.... We do not have information at present that leads us to conclude that this was premeditated or preplanned.”

 — Susan E. Rice, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, on CBS’s “Face the Nation,” Sept. 16

 “We had a substantial security presence with our personnel and the consulate in Benghazi. Tragically, two of the four Americans who were killed were there providing security. That was their function. And indeed, there were many other colleagues who were doing the same with them.”

 — Rice, on ABC’s “This Week,” Sept. 16

 (Note: the U.S. post was not a consulate and its precise role is still a mystery.)

 “The way these perpetrators acted and moved, and their choosing the specific date for this so-called demonstration, this leaves us with no doubt that this was preplanned, predetermined.”

 — Mohamed Yusuf al-Magariaf, president of Libya’s General National Congress, Sept. 16

 QUESTION: “Simply on the basis of what Ambassador Rice has publicly disclosed, does the United States Government regard what happened in Benghazi as an act of terror?”

 SPOKESWOMAN VICTORIA NULAND: “Again, I’m not going to put labels on this until we have a complete investigation, okay?”

 QUESTION: “You don’t — so you don’t regard it as an act of terrorism?”

 NULAND: “I don’t think we know enough. I don’t think we know enough. And we’re going to continue to assess. She gave our preliminary assessment. We’re going to have a full investigation now, and then we’ll be in a better position to put labels on things, okay?”

 — exchange at State Department briefing, Sept. 17

 “Well, you’re conveniently conflating two things, which is the anniversary of 9/11 and the incidents that took place, which are under investigation and the cause and motivation behind them will be decided by that investigation.”

 — Carney, news briefing, Sept. 17

 Suddenly, a shift to a ‘terrorist attack’

 “I would say yes, they were killed in the course of a terrorist attack on our embassy….The best information we have now, the facts that we have now indicate that this was an opportunistic attack on our embassy. The attack began and evolved and escalated over several hours at our embassy — our diplomatic post in Benghazi. It evolved and escalated over several hours.

 “It appears that individuals who were certainly well-armed seized on the opportunity presented as the events unfolded that evening and into the — into the morning hours of September 12th. We do know that a number of militants in the area, as I mentioned, are well-armed and maintain those arms. What we don't have at this point is specific intelligence that there was a significant advanced planning or coordination for this attack.

 “We are focused on who was responsible for this attack. At this point, what I would say is that a number of different elements appear to have been involved in the attack, including individuals connected to militant groups that are prevalent in eastern Libya, particularly in the Benghazi area, as well. We are looking at indications that individuals involved in the attack may have had connections to al-Qaeda or al-Qaeda's affiliates; in particular, al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb.”

 — Mathew Olsen, director of the National Counterterrorism Center, testimony before Congress, Sept. 19, after being asked a direct question.

 CNN reports on Sept. 19 that Ambassador Christopher Stevens had been worried by the security threats in Benghazi. CNN later acknowledged the information came from Steven’s journal.

 “It is, I think, self-evident that what happened in Benghazi was a terrorist attack. Our embassy was attacked violently, and the result was four deaths of American officials. So, again, that's self- evident.

 “He also made clear that at this point, based on the information he has — and he is briefing the Hill on the most up-to-date intelligence — we have no information at this point that suggests that this was a significantly preplanned attack, but this was the result of opportunism, taking advantage of and exploiting what was happening as a result of reaction to the video that was found to be offensive.”

 — Carney, news briefing, Sept. 20

 CBS News reports there never was anti-American protest.

 “Witnesses tell CBS News that there was never an anti-American protest outside of the consulate. Instead they say it came under planned attack. That is in direct contradiction to the administration’s account.”

 — Margaret Brennan CBS News correspondent, CBS News report aired Sept. 20

 But Obama resists saying the ‘t’ word…

 OBAMA: “What we’ve seen over the last week, week and a half, is something that actually we've seen in the past, where there is an offensive video or cartoon directed at the prophet Muhammad. And this is obviously something that then is used as an excuse by some to carry out inexcusable violent acts directed at Westerners or Americans.

 “And my number-one priority is always to keep our diplomats safe and to keep our embassies safe. And so when the initial events happened in Cairo and all across the region, we worked with Secretary Clinton to redouble our security and to send a message to the leaders of these countries, essentially saying, although we had nothing to do with the video, we find it offensive, it's not representative of America's views, how we treat each other with respect when it comes to their religious beliefs, but we will not tolerate violence.”

 QUESTION: “We have reports that the White House said today that the attacks in Libya were a terrorist attack. Do you have information indicating that it was Iran, or al-Qaeda was behind organizing the protests?”

 OBAMA: “Well, we're still doing an investigation, and there are going to be different circumstances in different countries. And so I don’t want to speak to something until we have all the information. What we do know is that the natural protests that arose because of the outrage over the video were used as an excuse by extremists to see if they can also directly harm U.S. interests.”

 — President Obama, Univision Town Hall, Sept. 20

 “What happened in Benghazi was a terrorist attack, and we will not rest until we have tracked down and brought to justice the terrorists who murdered four Americans.”

 — Clinton, statement at a meeting with Pakistani Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar, Sept. 21, 2012

 “As we all know, the United States lost a great ambassador and the Libyan people lost a true friend when Chris Stevens and three other Americans were killed in the terrorist assault on our consulate in Benghazi.”

 — Clinton, meeting with Libyan President Magariaf , Sept. 24

 QUESTION: “I heard Hillary Clinton say it was an act of terrorism. Is it? What do you say?”

 OBAMA: “We are still doing an investigation. There is no doubt that the kind of weapons that were used, the ongoing assault, that it wasn’t just a mob action. Now, we don’t have all the information yet so we are still gathering.”

 — Obama, on ABC’s “The View,” Sept. 25

 “That is what we saw play out in the last two weeks, as a crude and disgusting video sparked outrage throughout the Muslim world. Now, I have made it clear that the United States government had nothing to do with this video, and I believe its message must be rejected by all who respect our common humanity.”

 — Obama, speech to the U.N. General Assembly, Sept. 25

 “It was a preplanned act of terrorism directed against American citizens.”

 — Magariaf, on NBC’s “Today” show, Sept. 26

 “For some time, al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb and other groups have launched attacks and kidnappings from northern Mali into neighboring countries. Now, with a larger safe haven and increased freedom to maneuver, terrorists are seeking to extend their reach and their networks in multiple directions. And they are working with other violent extremists to undermine the democratic transitions underway in North Africa, as we tragically saw in Benghazi.”

 — Clinton, at the United Nations, Sept. 26

 QUESTION: “Is there any reason why the President did not — he was asked point-blank in The View interview, is this a terrorist attack, yes or no? Is there any reason why he didn’t say yes?”

 CARNEY: “He answered the question that he was asked, and there's no reason that he chose the words he did beyond trying to provide a full explanation of his views and his assessment that we need to await further information that the investigation will uncover. But it is certainly the case that it is our view as an administration, the President’s view, that it was a terrorist attack.”

 — Carney, news briefing, Sept. 26

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 Read our biggest Pinocchios ||||| U.S. intelligence officials knew within 24 hours of the assault on the U.S. Consulate in Libya that it was a terrorist attack and suspected Al Qaeda-tied elements were involved, sources told Fox News -- though it took the administration a week to acknowledge it.

 The account sharply conflicts with claims on the Sunday after the attack by U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice that the administration believed the strike was a "spontaneous" event triggered by protests in Egypt over an anti-Islam film.

 Intelligence sources said that the Obama administration internally labeled the attack terrorism from the first day in order to unlock and mobilize certain resources to respond, and that officials were looking for one specific suspect. The sources said the intelligence community knew by Sept. 12 that the militant Ansar al-Shariah and Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb were likely behind the strike.

 Further, an official said, "No one ... believed that the mortars, indirect and direct fire, and the RPGs were just the work of a mob -- no one."

 Yet a congressional source told Fox News that CIA Director David Petraeus, during a briefing with members of the House Intelligence Committee three days after the attack, espoused the view that Benghazi was an out-of-control demonstration prompted by the YouTube video. According to the source, this was "shocking" to some members who were present and saw the same intelligence pointing toward a terrorist attack.

 In addition, sources confirm that FBI agents have not yet arrived in Benghazi in the aftermath of the attack. Four Americans, including U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens, were killed in the assault.

 The claims that officials initially classified the attack as terrorism is sure to raise serious questions among lawmakers who from the beginning have challenged the narrative the administration put out in the week following the strike. A few Republican lawmakers have gone so far as to suggest the administration withheld key facts about the assault for political reasons.

 "I think we should have answers right away. ... I think they're reluctant to tell us what this event really was probably because it's an election year. But the American people deserve to know answers about what happened at our embassy in Libya," Sen. Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H., told Fox News.

 One intelligence official clarified to Fox News that there was not a "definitive" lead on who might have been responsible for the Libya attacks in the immediate aftermath, though officials had an idea of the suspects.

 "It's inaccurate to suggest that within the first 24 hours there was a definitive calling card and home address for the perpetrators of the Benghazi attack. Potential suspects and data points emerge early on, but it still takes time to be certain who is responsible," the official said.

 Curiously, Obama referred to "acts of terror" in his first public remarks about the attack. But from there, administration officials went on to blame the anti-Islam film.

 Rice was the most explicit in that explanation, insisting on a slew of Sunday shows that the attack was not pre-planned and was tied to the film.

 Obama still has not publicly and specifically described the Benghazi attack as terrorism.

 But top administration officials have gradually walked back Rice's version of events.

 Secretary of State Hillary Clinton reportedly suggested Wednesday to foreign leaders visiting the United Nations summit in New York that the Al Qaeda affiliate in North Africa was involved.

 "Now with a larger safe haven and increased freedom to maneuver, terrorists are seeking to extend their reach and their networks in multiple directions," Clinton told the group, according to The New York Times. "And they are working with other violent extremists to undermine the democratic transitions under way in North Africa, as we tragically saw in Benghazi."

 She was referring to Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb.

 Clinton earlier this week called the attack terrorism, two weeks after the fact. White House Press Secretary Jay Carney also said that Obama now believes it is terrorism as well.

 Fox News' Bret Baier and Catherine Herridge contributed to this report. ||||| Within 24 hours of the 9-11 anniversary attack on the United States consulate in Benghazi, U.S. intelligence agencies had strong indications al Qaeda–affiliated operatives were behind the attack, and had even pinpointed the location of one of those attackers. Three separate U.S. intelligence officials who spoke to The Daily Beast said the early information was enough to show that the attack was planned and the work of al Qaeda affiliates operating in Eastern Libya.

 Nonetheless, it took until late last week for the White House and the administration to formally acknowledge that the Benghazi assault was a terrorist attack. On Sunday, Obama adviser Robert Gibbs explained the evolving narrative as a function of new information coming in quickly on the attacks. "We learned more information every single day about what happened,” Gibbs said on Fox News. “Nobody wants to get to the bottom of this faster than we do.”

 The intelligence officials who spoke to The Daily Beast did so anonymously because they weren’t authorized to speak to the press. They said U.S. intelligence agencies developed leads on four of the participants of the attacks within 24 hours of the fire fight that took place mainly at an annex near the Benghazi consulate. For one of those individuals, the U.S. agencies were able to find his location after his use of social media. “We had two kinds of intelligence on one guy,” this official said. “We believe we had enough to target him.”

 Another U.S. intelligence official said, “There was very good information on this in the first 24 hours. These guys have a return address. There are camps of people and a wide variety of things we could do.”

 A spokesman for the National Security Council declined to comment for the story. But another U.S. intelligence official said, “I can’t get into specific numbers but soon after the attack we had a pretty good bead on some individuals involved in the attack.”

 It’s unclear whether any of these suspected attackers have been targeted or arrested, and intelligence experts caution that these are still early days in a complex investigation.

 The question of what the White House knew, and when they knew it, will be of keen interest to members of Congress in the election year. Last Thursday, the Obama administration formally briefed House and Senate members on the attack. Those briefings however failed to satisfy many members, particularly Republicans. “That is the most useless, worthless briefing I have attended in a long time,” Sen. Bob Corker, a Tennessee Republican, was quoted as saying.

 The Daily Beast reported last week that the U.S. intelligence community was studying an intercept between a Libyan politician and a member of the so-called February 17 militia, Libyans charged with providing security for the U.S. consulate in Benghazi. More intelligence has come in that shows members of Ansar al-Sharia, an al Qaeda–affiliated group operating in and around Benghazi, were attempting to coerce, threaten, cajole, and bribe members of the militia protecting the consulate.

Summary: – Hillary Clinton appeared to draw a line from al-Qaeda to the attack on the US consulate in Libya yesterday, further complicating the administration's somewhat muddled account of events. Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb and "other violent extremists" are trying to "undermine the democratic transitions under way in North Africa, as we tragically saw in Benghazi," Clinton said during a high-level UN meeting, the New York Times reports. The administration has resisted calling the consulate attack "terrorism," drawing criticism from the right. (The Washington Post has a full timeline of the administration response here.) But sources tell Fox News that US intelligence knew within 24 hours that al-Qaeda affiliates were behind the attack. The Daily Beast had a similar report yesterday, indicating officials could even pinpoint who was responsible and where they were. "There was very good information on this in the first 24 hours," one official said. "These guys have a return address."


FILE - In this Oct. 30, 2015 file photo filmmaker Roman Polanski tells reporters he can “breath with relief” after a Polish judge ruled that the law forbids his extradition to the U.S., where in 1977... (Associated Press)

 FILE - In this Oct. 30, 2015 file photo filmmaker Roman Polanski tells reporters he can “breath with relief” after a Polish judge ruled that the law forbids his extradition to the U.S., where in 1977... (Associated Press)

 WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Poland will not extradite Oscar-winning filmmaker Roman Polanski to the U.S. in an almost 40-year-old case after prosecutors declined to challenge a court ruling against it.

 Prosecutors in Krakow, who had sought the extradition on behalf of the U.S., said Friday they found the court's refusal of extradition to be "right" and said they found no grounds to appeal it.

 Polanski's lawyer, Jan Olszewski, told The Associated Press that Polanski's reaction was of "great relief" and of "satisfaction" that the irregularities in the U.S. procedure have been exposed. Polanski spoke to his lawyer over the phone from Paris, where he lives with his family.

 The decision by the prosecutors closes the case in Poland and means Polanski, 82, is free to reside and work in Poland, where he grew up and studied filmmaking, and where he is preparing to make a new movie. Preparations for the movie were stalled by the extradition request that the U.S. made last year.

 The director pleaded guilty in 1977 to one count of unlawful sexual intercourse with a 13-year-old girl during a photo shoot in Los Angeles. In a deal with the judge, he served more than a month in prison, but then fled the U.S. fearing the judge would have him imprisoned for much longer. The U.S. has been seeking to bring Polanski back and put him before a court.

 A judge in Krakow ruled last month that Polanski's extradition is inadmissible, arguing that the U.S. trial was not fair and that Polanski would not face a fair trial there.

 The Krakow prosecutors said in a statement they agreed with the court's reasoning.

 Among the irregularities, the court and the prosecutors named violation of Polanski's right to defense, "unethical" discussions between the judge and only one side of the case, informal instructions to the judges, intentional destruction of some of the documents in the case and loss of some others and excessive sensitivity of the judges to criticism in the media.

 ___

 This story has been corrected to show that Polanski pleaded guilty to unlawful sexual intercourse, not statutory rape. ||||| Oscar-winning director Roman Polanski looks on as he attends a news conference in Krakow, Poland, October 30, 2015. REUTERS/Mateusz Skwarczek/Agencja Gazeta

 KRAKOW, Poland (Reuters) - A Polish court’s decision to deny the extradition of film-maker Roman Polanski to the United States over a 1977 child sex conviction became legally binding on Friday after an appellate prosecutor’s office said it found no justification to appeal it.

 The case of the Oscar-winning director, now 82, who holds Polish and French citizenship, has been an international cause celebre nearly four decades after the crime, with some demanding harsh punishment and others urging the case be let go.

 “Speaking for Polanski, I can say that we feel a great relief that this case has ended,” Jan Olszewski, one of Polanski’s lawyers said. “And this means that it will be possible for Polanski to start making a planned film in Poland.”

 The appellate prosecutor’s office in the city of Krakow said in a statement on Friday that its analysis of the evidence collected in the case showed the earlier court decision on denying extradition had been correct.

 This means Poland’s decision not to extradite Polanski has become legally binding and cannot be appealed again.

 The United States had requested Polanski’s extradition from Poland after he made a high-profile appearance in Warsaw in 2014. The filmmaker lives in Paris but he also has an apartment in Krakow, southern Poland.

 Polanski pleaded guilty in 1977 to having sex with a 13-year-old girl during a photo shoot in Los Angeles.

 The film director served 42 days in jail after a plea bargain. He fled the United States the following year to Britain and then to France, believing the judge hearing his case could overrule the deal and put him in jail for years.

 Samantha Geimer, the victim in the case, has long made clear she believes Polanski’s long exile has been punishment enough.

Summary: – Polish prosecutors have closed the Roman Polanski case, meaning the filmmaker can live and work in the country where he grew up and have no fear of extradition to the US. Prosecutors said Friday that an October verdict rejecting extradition for a 1977 statutory rape case was "right" and there is no reason to appeal, the AP reports. "I can say that we feel a great relief that this case has ended," one of Polanski's lawyers tells Reuters. "And this means that it will be possible for Polanski to start making a planned film in Poland." Polanski, 82, spends most of his time in France, which doesn't allows its citizens to be extradited. (Polanski's victim, who says his long exile from the US is punishment enough, has released a book with a cover photo by Polanski.)


Tweet with a location

 You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more ||||| Tweet with a location

 You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more ||||| Tweet with a location

 You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more ||||| Republican presidential candidate former Florida governor Jeb Bush launched his "Jeb Can Fix It" tour on Nov. 2 in Tampa, Fla. The launch coincides with the release of an e-book that reveals a more personal side to the 2016 candidate. (Reuters)

 If you’ve ever wondered what Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush would look like in denim overalls, workman boots and a hard hat, look no further. As of Monday, the Internet has got you covered.

 The former Florida governor was in Tampa at the start of this week to launch an attempt at breathing life back into his campaign. As The Washington Post’s Sean Sullivan reported, “Speaking in a bayside garden club under a banner declaring ‘Jeb Can Fix It,’ Bush delivered an optimistic speech meant to emphasize the leadership credentials he burnished as governor of Florida.”

 On the tails of a lifeless debate performance, the “Jeb Can Fix It” tour aims to reinvigorate the image of a candidate who has become a symbol of insider, establishment politics in an election cycle that’s favoring outsiders in the GOP primary field. In late October, the onetime front-runner instituted pay cuts, slashed his budget and reduced the size of his staff.

 “After seven years of incompetence, corruption and gridlock in Washington, we need a president who can fix it,” Bush told the crowd in Florida. “I can fix it.”

 To his credit, the new slogan has really taken off online — just presumably not in the way he had hoped.

 [Down in the polls, Jeb Bush launches a comeback attempt]

 The hashtag #JebCanFixIt was trending on Twitter and Facebook on Monday, with social media users putting their creative juices to use in spoofing a catchphrase that many by now have concluded was ill-advised, at least where Internet traction is concerned. Bush and his earnest new slogan have inspired droll comparisons to car repairmen, plumbers and even marriage counselors.

 The most popular meme appears to be a play on the slogan’s echoes of the theme song for “Bob the Builder,” a popular British children’s animated series starring the titular jovial, round-faced building contractor. The show’s signature refrain involves Bob asking, “Can we fix it?” to which the other characters chime, “Yes we can!” (And no, the line doesn’t quite resonate in the same way that it did when it was uttered by a different presidential candidate in 2008.)

 Netizens really ran with this one.

 Jeb! The Builder™! Can he fix it? Jeb! The Builder™! Yes, he can!! pic.twitter.com/5iLunmzCdl — mike mulloy (@fakemikemulloy) November 2, 2015

 It's 3:00am in 2027. A pipe bursts in an ad on TV. The homeowner is distraught. A plumber van shows up. The graphic reads: Jeb can fix it. — Gideon Resnick (@GideonResnick) November 2, 2015

 Here are some elaborate Photoshop efforts from a Donald Trump supporter, followed by a jab from Trump himself:

 Jeb's new slogan – "Jeb can fix it". I never thought of Jeb as a crook! Stupid message, the word "fix" is not a good one to use in politics! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 1, 2015

 Some of the jokes strayed into more serious territory, like this reference to Florida’s role in determining the 2000 presidential election results.

 Jeb Can Fix It actually refers to the 2000 election in Florida. — John Fugelsang (@JohnFugelsang) November 2, 2015

 All of this is reminiscent of the responses to Bush’s campaign logo, which was similarly lampooned. Many commenters mocked the candidate for his use of a bright red exclamation mark, while others couldn’t help but point out that it reminded them of the rock band “Panic! at the Disco.”

 Of course, Bush isn’t the only 2016 presidential candidate whose attempts at messaging and outreach have been derailed by the social media masses.

 In August, some were taken aback when Democratic presidential hopeful and former secretary of state Hillary Clinton tweeted, “How does your student loan debt make you feel? Tell us in 3 emojis or less.” This sparked a slew of spoofs, including “How does finally handing over your server to federal investigators make you feel? Tell us in 3 emojis or less,” and “How does losing to Bernie Sanders in the polls feel? Feel free to use as many emojis as it takes.”

 Clinton survived that particular snafu, but with many already believing that his campaign is floundering, Bush may need all the tools he has to fix this one.

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 Activision to buy maker of ‘Candy Crush’ for $5.9 billion ||||| In an effort to jumpstart what many view as a failing campaign, Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush is launching a new tour in his home state of Florida. Today, he’ll hit three Florida cities (Orlando, Tampa and Jacksonville) before heading to South Carolina tomorrow and New Hampshire on Wednesday.

 It’s only the morning of day one of the new “Jeb Can Fix It” campaign, and already, it’s looking unlikely that it will help Mr. Bush gain support. In a only a few hours, the campaign has become a viral Internet joke.

 The hashtag #JebCanFixIt began trending this morning, but the tweets aren’t expressing support. They’re mostly memes, jokes about Mr. Bush as a plumber and mechanic as well as links to the Bob the Builder theme song. There’s quite a bit about election rigging as well.

 Here are just a few of the many, many “Jeb Can Fix It” jokes:

 It's 3:00am in 2027. A pipe bursts in an ad on TV. The homeowner is distraught. A plumber van shows up. The graphic reads: Jeb can fix it. — Gideon Resnick (@GideonResnick) November 2, 2015

 Jeb Can Fix It actually refers to the 2000 election in Florida. — John Fugelsang (@JohnFugelsang) November 2, 2015

 "Jeb Can Fix It" ~ uh huh…this picture comes to mind: pic.twitter.com/nbViixJQBC — John Gort (@JohnGort) October 29, 2015

 "Jeb can fix it" is a statement you would hear from Jim-Bob, just before he tells you it's $1200 to fix your transmission? — Brenden Dilley (@Hublife) November 2, 2015

 "Jeb Can Fix It" sounds like a home improvement show starring a mentally challenged carpenter from rural Alabama. — Comedian Sean Kent (@seankent) November 2, 2015

 BREAKING from the first "Jeb Can Fix It" campaign event pic.twitter.com/r2m6J090W4 — Oliver Willis (@owillis) November 2, 2015

 Everyone is excited that "Jeb Can Fix It" – but what do you think he can actually fix? — Jeff Dwoskin (@bigmacher) November 2, 2015

 “Jeb can fix it!” Where have I heard that before? Oh yes … https://t.co/WWs3nBr7mD — David Frum (@davidfrum) November 1, 2015

 Jeb Can Fix It by firing the person who convinced him that Jeb Can Fix It was a good idea for a campaign slogan. — Mark Campbell (@MrWordsWorth) November 2, 2015

 If you can see Jeb's new slogan "Jeb Can Fix It!" and not think of this Disney character, you are not me. pic.twitter.com/7Hh4rsrg9w — Will McAvoy (@WillMcAvoyACN) November 2, 2015

 One may think it’s a stretch to say this could end Mr. Bush’s run, but these aren’t positive memes akin to Drake’s viral “Hotline Bling” success. They’re memes indicating that the message he’s running on is not being taken seriously and that his candidacy is a joke. After a lackluster performance in the latest GOP debate and consistently pulling in low poll numbers, it’s generally agreed upon that he’s hanging on by a thread, and struggling even to do that. Salon called the campaign a “Hail Mary,” and if the quick influx of jokes and memes is an indicator of anything, it’s that the defense is blitzing and Mr. Bush might be sacked before he gets to execute the pass. And even if he gets it off, it’s basically already been intercepted. ||||| Tweet with a location

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Summary: – Jeb Bush's new slogan has really taken off, but not in the way he might've hoped. Despite recent cuts to his campaign budget and staff, Bush appeared at a Florida event on Monday promising to set the country on the right track. "After seven years of incompetence, corruption, and gridlock in Washington, we need a president who can fix it. I can fix it," Bush said, standing in front of a banner reading, "Jeb can fix it." The event was meant to turn a new leaf for Bush, who's fallen to fifth in the GOP pack after poor debate performances. But rather than casting Bush in a presidential light, social media users are comparing him to car repairmen, marriage counselors, and even Bob the Builder under the hashtag #JebCanFixIt, per the Washington Post. One Twitter user jokes that if Bush quits the GOP race, he'll get his own HGTV show called Jeb Can Fix It, while another suggests his slogan refers to Florida's role in deciding the 2000 presidential election results. Donald Trump also threw some shade: "I never thought of Jeb as a crook! Stupid message, the word 'fix' is not a good one to use in politics!" he tweeted. Gawker points out Bush's slogan is ill-advised for another, more obscure reason: It's similar to Jim'll Fix It—the once-popular British children's show hosted by Jimmy Savile, who was later accused of sexually abusing more than 450 people, including children. The Observer goes as far as to say the slogan "could end Mr. Bush's run" since the online digs show his message "is not being taken seriously and that his candidacy is a joke."


Clutch, gas, buzz, shift, clutch, gas, buzz, shift.

 More on Motortrend.com: 2016 Ford Mustang GT First Test Review

 Repeat as necessary.

 This week, Ford let me test the first-ever haptic shifter knob on a Shelby GT500 . The elegantly simple device vibrates every time the car’s engine hits 3000 rpm, reminding the driver it's time to change gears.

 Really, it’s a more modern dash-mounted shift light some cars have to tell a driver they are holding a gear too long. The vibration is clearly noticeable, even on the GT500 , and feels about the equivalent of being blown up on Call of Duty.

 But this particular device also uses an LED screen on the top of the shift knob to tell you what gear the car has engaged.

 Made from printed plastic, an LED screen, and the vibrating motor stolen from an Xbox 360 controller, the high-tech shifter handle was created by Zach Nelson, a Ford mechanical engineer who has been working on the company’s new Open XC program. Made from printed plastic, an LED screen, and the vibrating motor stolen from an Xbox 360 controller, the high-tech shifter handle was created by Zach Nelson, a Ford mechanical engineer who has been working on the company’s new Open XC program.

 Open XC allows developers to connect to Ford cars and trucks through the car’s diagnostic port and read real-time data about the car via a Bluetooth connection.

 Once the device, slightly larger than a pack of cigarettes, is connected to the port, Nelson could read dozens of data points on a Bluetooth-enabled touch pad.

 “I only needed three data points for this device, the car’s engine speed, vehicle speed and what gear it is in,” he said.

 But lots more information is available. If Nelson wanted to, he could make the shifter knob change colors to match the LCD interior lighting, which on the Mustang can be one of five colors. The shifter knob can also be set to provide guidance on how to drive more efficiently or how to extract maximum performance.

 I, however, could not tell which mode we were in during my short drive, since I was simply trying to get the revs high enough to make the device buzz again. It worked flawlessly.

 “This could be used to help drivers keep their eyes on the road and might even help teach some people to drive a stick,” Nelson said. “This could be used to help drivers keep their eyes on the road and might even help teach some people to drive a stick,” Nelson said.

 Indeed. But more importantly, the shifter knob demonstrates how agile the new program Ford created is and how the open-source philosophy creates a new kind of collaboration for an automaker.

 Whereas in the past a device like this may have cost millions and taken years to build, Nelson began developing this shifter handle in earnest three months ago.

 “There is really this great group engagement,” Nelson said, “where you can see what people are doing and work together.”

 Ford has not said whether the vibrating shifter knob will ever go into production but the plans to make them will be available on OpenXC's site.

 “Based on the nature of open source tools, our goal is to provide innovation such as the haptic shift knob to the open source community,” said Craig Daitch, a Ford spokesman.

 Open-source programs are nothing new to the rest of the world. Computer programmers and software developers have a long tradition of sharing information and creating platforms where crowdsourcing and testing make a program better.

 Automakers, however, have traditionally held all of this information very close to their vests, relying on either in-house talent or contractors to create new technology. Now, nearly anyone can contribute.

 What Ford has done is give developers easy access to a lot of the information cars create so they can find interesting things to do with the info. It’s worth noting the device does not control the vehicle, but rather allows access to that information. It’s the difference between knowing the gas pedal is pushed 19 percent down and being able to push the gas pedal down 19 percent.

 Thousands of developers have already joined the OpenXC program, which began in September 2011, Daitch said. Other current projects include a backup camera that uses a simple web cam; a night-vision camera that taps into the car’s infrared collision cameras; a Bluetooth head-up display; and a retro gauge that can display vehicle data drivers normally can’t see.

 Nelson said other automakers could use the system created by Ford to apply to their vehicles as well.

 “Just change the code so it can read that carmaker’s data,” Nelson said, “and let more people see what they can come up with.” ||||| Manual transmissions are better. Period. End of story. Yes, yes, we know. Sequential and dual-clutch transmissions change gears faster than any mortal possibly can, which is why even Porsche — Porsche — requires paddles instead of a proper lever in its flagship model. But unless your name is Sebastian Vettel or Sebastian Loeb, driving isn’t about putting down the fastest time. It’s about having the most fun. And on that score, flicking a lever always beats squeezing a paddle.

 Of course, properly shifting a car is a skill, one increasingly being lost as automatics and — gasp! — CVTs become the norm. Which is why we’re stoked to hear an engineer at Ford has made it easier than ever for n00bs to learn how to properly row their own gears.

 Zach Nelson, a junior engineer at Ford, ripped the haptic feedback motor out of an Xbox 360 controller and put it inside a custom shifter he printed on a MakerBot Thing-O-Matic. He installed an Arduino controller and connected an Android tablet with a mini-USB port and a Bluetooth receiver, then tapped the Mustang’s on-board diagnostic system using Ford’s open source OpenXC software platform.

 That gave Nelson reams of real-time data to play with, including engine speed (RPM, for you non-car guys) and accelerator position. Using that information, the shift knob can be programmed to vibrate as the engine approaches redline (good for performance runs) or its most efficient shift point (for better fuel economy). It can even be programmed to tell an absolute beginner when to shift, in case the howl of a 5.0 approaching 7,000 RPM isn’t a big enough clue.

 “The vibrating knob can be installed onto the stock shift lever, and I’ve tested it on several vehicles including Mustang and Focus ST,” Nelson said. “I decided to have a little fun with it and installed an LED display on top that shows the gear position.”

 Ford’s release of OpenXC is one of the first in the industry and could be a boon for aftermarket companies to develop new, innovative apps that tap into the vehicle’s system for information, while not allowing modifications to the core software, keeping things safe and secure.

 And if you want to build it yourself, all you need is some cash, some code, and a trip to Staples. ||||| The phrase "car modification" bring to mind

 images of grease-stained burly persons clad in oil-spotted coveralls, toiling away at the aluminum and steel heart of some piece of American muscle. Those who coax more out of a vehicle are seen as artisans. Their canvas is an engine block. Their studio, a garage.Zac Nelson doesn't quite fit that stereotype. He may be the son of an ironworker who grew up in a home full of engines in various states of assembly, but now, as a research engineer at Ford, Nelson works in a pristine fluorescent-white office, wears neatly-pressed slacks and shirts, and manipulates lines of code instead of valve timing. While Nelson spent his early years at MIT fabricating and welding the chassis for a Forumla SAE car, his senior project focused on softwaredesigning algorithms and microcontrollers for an adjustable headrest."I'm pretty familiar with the metallurgy and mechanics of materials, but the electrical side of engineering is a new frontier for me," says Nelson, who graduated from MIT this past September.In this respect, Nelson is part of a new class of automotive mechanics that seek to improve the automobile with data sets and text editors instead of wrenches and milling machines. "Look around any high school. For every person who modifies an engine there are about five to ten people who are doing complex coding on a laptop," says K. Venkatesh Prasad, group and senior technical leader of vehicle design and infotronics within Ford's Research and Innovation department.In his first major project for Ford, Nelson zeroed in on the shift knob. "Historically speaking, [the shift knob] has just been a piece of plastic," he tells PopMech. "Maybe there's some metal weights in it for feel and performance, but other than that there's no electronicsit's not really considered a smart device."Using a 3D printer, two vibration motors scavenged from an Xbox 360 control, and the Ford-developed OpenXC platformsoftware that can translate signals generated by a car's controller area network (CAN) into usable programming code, much like an API for autosNelson created a shift knob that vibrates at the ideal moment to change gears. And unlike the aftermarket shift lights commonly found in racing cockpits, Nelson's "haptic shift knob" isn't tied to a static RPM. Connected to the shifter is tablet running an Android app that constantly compares engine speed and accelerator position to the car's torque curve. Hit the gas hard and the knob will wait until later in the RPM range to signal a gear change. Go easy and it'll find a shift point that's more economical. In a way, while Nelson's is tinkering with the car, he's also altering driver behavior.Released to the public at the Consumer Electronics Show this past January, OpenXC is Ford's way of luring Silicon Valley into the automotive sphere. "There's a lot of people who can write apps," says Prasad, who left a research position at the Menlo Park, Calif.-based RICOH Innovations for Ford in 1996. "What OpenXC does is open up cars to people who want to do pure software work."Fittingly, Prasad has Silicon Valley-sized ambitions for the software platform. One example he gives: an app that aggregates wiper blade usage pulled from OpenXC to provide accurate localized weather reports that even the National Weather Service cannot rival. "The fact that you have a wiper blade that's turned on is really valuable information, especially if you can aggregate a four or five of those data points a mile or so up the road," he says.The catch is getting those four or five data points. While a user can download the OpenXC software and tinker with the API for free, harnessing the power of your car's data (and in Prasad's example, the data of other cars) requires a $110 vehicle interface (VI), a piece of hardware that reads CAN signals and translates them into values you can plug into a program. Even more restrictive is the VI's firmware, which is only compatible with Ford's CAN (CANbus signals differ from manufacturer to manufacturer).According to Prasad, other manufacturers haven't joined forces with Ford on OpenXC, despite it's open-source nature. He cooly encourages them to. "Everyone is welcome, and it only gets stronger when other manufacturers get involved," he says. "I can't speak on their behalf, but it's up to them. They're more than welcome to take a look."Nelson's haptic shifter is a good example of what can be accomplished by exploiting vehicle data, but the only projects currently listed on the OpenXC website are from Ford employees or interns. It remains to be seen what will arise organically from OpenXC. "The future is the future," Prasad says. "So who knows."

Summary: – A young engineer at Ford is on a mission to demystify the manual transmission—and his tools include a 3D printer, a tablet computer, and an Xbox 360 controller. Zach Nelson printed out a shift knob and popped the Xbox's vibrating mechanism inside. Using Ford's open-source software and a tablet, he was able to gather information on a Mustang's engine speed, accelerator position, and more, Wired reports. That made it possible to program the shifter to vibrate at helpful moments—identifying, for instance, the moment when shifting will ensure top fuel efficiency. So what do the experts think of all this? At MotorTrend, Scott Burgess calls the design "elegantly simple," and he applauds Ford's open-source software, called OpenXC. "The open-source philosophy creates a new kind of collaboration for an automaker," he writes. Nelson was able to make the gadget in about three months, and the design will be available online. Indeed, as Popular Mechanics puts it, "code monkeys—not grease monkeys—are the future of car modification." Click for one carjacker who could have really used Nelson's invention.


An undated graphic shows the tunnel that may lead to a royal tombs discovered underneath the Quetzalcoatl temple in the ancient city of Teotihuacan in this October 29, 2014 National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) handout picture.

 Stone figurines are seen in a tunnel that may lead to a royal tombs discovered at the ancient city of Teotihuacan, in this May 22, 2014 National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) handout picture made available to Reuters October 29, 2014.

 Stone figurines are seen in a tunnel that may lead to a royal tombs discovered at the ancient city of Teotihuacan, in this November 19, 2013 National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) handout picture made available to Reuters October 29, 2014.

 MEXICO CITY A sacred tunnel discovered in the ancient Mexican city of Teotihuacan is filled with thousands of ritual objects and may lead to royal tombs, the lead Mexican archaeologist on the project said on Wednesday.

 The entrance to the 1,800-year-old tunnel was first discovered in 2003, and its contents came to light thanks to excavations by remote-control robots and then human researchers, archeologist Sergio Gomez told reporters.

 The site is located about 30 miles (50 km) northeast of Mexico City. The ruins have long been shrouded in mystery because its inhabitants did not leave behind written records.

 The artifacts found inside the tunnel, located below the Temple of the Plumed Serpent, include finely carved stone sculptures, jewelry and shells.

 An estimated 50,000 objects, 4,000 made of wood as well as scores of obsidian blades and arrow heads, provide clues into how the city's priests and rulers conceived the underworld.

 "Due to the magnitude of the offerings that we've found, it can't be in any other place," said Gomez, who works for Mexico's national anthropology and history institute, referring to the possibility of finding royal tombs.

 "We've been able to confirm all of the hypotheses we've made from the beginning," he added, saying ongoing excavations could yield more major discoveries next year.

 One of Mexico's most-visited ancient sites, Teotihuacan is home to massive pyramids, temples and elite residences including many adorned with colorful murals.

 The city reached its peak between 100 B.C. and 650 B.C. with a population as large as 200,000, growing rich from a wide-ranging trade in obsidian that in pre-Colombian times was used to make knives and other weapons.

 The city had long been abandoned by the time the Aztecs came to power in the Valley of Mexico in the 14th century, yet it continued to play an important role as a destination for religious pilgrimages.

 In Nahuatl, the Aztec language still spoken in many parts of Mexico, Teotihuacan means "abode of the gods."

 (Writing by David Alire Garcia; Editing by Simon Gardner and Cynthia Osterman) ||||| Some 50,000 relics have been discovered in Mexico in the ancient city of Teotihuacan, Mexican archaeologists say.

 The city, located about 50 km (30 miles) northeast of Mexico City, dominated central Mexico in pre-Columbian times.

 Image copyright AFP

 The relics found include jewellery, seeds, animal bones and pottery like these human figurines.

 Image copyright AFP

 The objects were found inside a sacred tunnel that was sealed about 1,800 years ago.

 Image copyright Reuters

 The entrance of the tunnel was discovered in 2003 and its contents came to light after the archaeologists worked meticulously for nine years.

 Image copyright AFP

 The researchers dug out mountains of dirt and rocks, using remote-control robots, and found zoomorphic vessels like this.

 Image copyright AFP

 The artefacts, like these sea shells, were unearthed from about 18 metres (60 feet) below the Temple of the Plumed Serpent, the third largest pyramid at Teotihuacan.

 Image copyright AP

 At the end of the tunnel, the archaeologists also discovered offerings just before three chambers, suggesting that the remains of city's ruling elite could be buried there.

 Image copyright EPA

 Such a discovery could help shine light on the leadership structure of Teotihuacan, including whether rule was hereditary.

 The ancient city is the largest pre-Columbian archaeological site in the Americas, but its ruins have long been shrouded in mystery because its inhabitants did not leave behind written records. ||||| MEXICO CITY (AP) — A yearslong exploration of a tunnel sealed almost 2,000 years ago at the ancient city of Teotihuacan yielded thousands of relics and the discovery of three chambers that could hold more important finds, Mexican archaeologists said Wednesday.

 This May 22, 2014 photo released by Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) shows sculptures unearthed at the Teotihuacan archeological site in Mexico. Mexican archaeologists have... (Associated Press)

 This May 22, 2014 photo released by Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH), shows sculptures and shells unearthed by investigators at the Teotihuacan archeological site in Mexico.... (Associated Press)

 This Nov. 19, 2013 photo released by Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH), shows sculptures unearthed by investigators at the Teotihuacan archeological site in Mexico. Mexican... (Associated Press)

 This Aug. 6, 2014 photo released by Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) shows a sculpture unearthed at the Teotihuacan archeological site in Mexico. Mexican archaeologists... (Associated Press)

 This Oct. 2, 2014 photo released by Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) shows shells unearthed by investigators at the Teotihuacan archeological site in Mexico. Mexican archaeologists... (Associated Press)

 Project leader Sergio Gomez said researchers recently reached the end of the 340-foot (103-meter) tunnel after meticulously working their way down its length, collecting relics from seeds to pottery to animal bones.

 A large offering found near the entrance to the chambers, some 59 feet (18 meters) below the Temple of the Plumed Serpent, suggests they could be the tombs of the city's elite.

 "Because this is one of the most sacred places in all Teotihuacan, we believe that it could have been used for the rulers to ... acquire divine endowment allowing them to rule on the surface," Gomez said.

 Unlike at other pre-Columbian ruins in Mexico, archaeologists have never found any remains believed to belong to Teotihuacan's rulers. Such a discovery could help shine light on the leadership structure of the city, including whether rule was hereditary.

 "We have not lost hope of finding that, and if they are there, they must be from someone very, very important," Gomez said.

 So far Gomez's team has excavated only about 2 feet (60 centimeters) into the chambers. A full exploration will take at least another year.

 Initial studies by the National Institute of Anthropology and History show the tunnel functioned until around A.D. 250, when it was closed off.

 Teotihuacan long dominated central Mexico and had its apex between 100 B.C. and A.D. 750. It is believed to have been home to more than 100,000 people, but was abandoned before the rise of the Aztecs in the 14th century.

 Today it is an important archaeological site on the outskirts of Mexico City and a major tourist draw known for its broad avenues and massive pyramids.

Summary: – After almost a decade of painstaking work, researchers have unearthed an amazing 50,000 relics from a tunnel in the ancient city of Teotihuacan—and they believe the biggest prizes still await. The tunnel below the site around 30 miles away from Mexico City was discovered in 2003 after having been sealed for around 1,800 years, and remote-controlled robots explored it before human archaeologists got to work, reports Reuters. Among the artifacts uncovered: obsidian blades, seeds, shells, carved stone, and jewelry. A large offering found below the "Temple of the Plumed Serpent" has led researchers to believe that three chambers, which have yet to be excavated and sit just beyond the items, could be the tombs of the city's mysterious rulers. "Because this is one of the most sacred places in all Teotihuacan, we believe that it could have been used for the rulers to ... acquire divine endowment allowing them to rule on the surface," the project leader tells the AP. No written records of the inhabitants of the once-dominant city—whose name means "abode of the gods " in the Aztec language—exist, and no remains of its rulers have ever been found, leaving its leadership structure unknown. Remains could indicate, for example, if rule was hereditary, notes the BBC. To date, the team has excavated about 2 feet into the chambers; getting all the way through is expected to take a minimum of a year. (Earlier in the excavation, archaeologists found hundreds of strange metal orbs.)


These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved.Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors.The goal is to fix all broken links on the web . Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites. ||||| Clooney Joins Forces with Civil Rights Group: "No Two Sides to Bigotry and Hate"

 The actor's eponymous Foundation for Justice is partnering with the nonprofit as he and his wife have given the organization a $1 million grant.

 The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) is partnering with the Clooney Foundation for Justice to combat hate in the wake of the deadly violence at a white nationalist gathering in Charlottesville, Virginia.

 "Amal and I wanted to add our voice (and financial assistance) to the ongoing fight for equality," George Clooney said. "There are no two sides to bigotry and hate.”

 George and Amal Clooney on Tuesday gave the SPLC a $1 million grant from the Clooney Foundation for Justice.

 One person was killed and many others injured while protesting a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville on Aug. 12. Shortly thereafter, President Trump said there were many sides to what happened at the event and that there were good people on both sides. His comments were almost universally condemned.

 The Clooney Foundation for Justice, co-founded by George and Amal, was established in 2016 to advance justice in communities around the world.

 "We are proud to support the Southern Poverty Law Center in its efforts to prevent violent extremism in the United States," the husband and wife said in a statement. "What happened in Charlottesville, and what is happening in communities across our country, demands our collective engagement to stand up to hate."

 The SPLC nonprofit organization monitors the activities of domestic hate groups and other extremists.

 “Like George and Amal Clooney, we were shocked by the size, ugliness, and ferocity of the white supremacist gathering in Charlottesville,” said SPLC President Richard Cohen in a statement. “It was a reflection of just how much Trump’s incendiary campaign and presidency have energized the radical right. We are deeply grateful to the Clooney Foundation for standing with us at this critical moment in our country’s fight against hate.”

Summary: – George and Amal Clooney's Clooney Foundation for Justice has given a $1 million grant to the Southern Poverty Law Center to combat hate groups in the US, the Los Angeles Times reports. "What happened in Charlottesville, and what is happening in communities across our country, demands our collective engagement to stand up to hate," the Clooneys said in a statement. The couple also included a subtle dig at President Trump. "There are no two sides to bigotry and hate," the Hollywood Reporter quotes George Clooney as saying. The SPLC is a nonprofit that tracks domestic hate groups and extremists.


A number of seriously ill patients remain in the seized hospital in Simferopol, reports say

 Armed men - said to be Russian troops and local militias - have seized a military hospital in Crimea, as Moscow tightens its grip on Ukraine's region.

 The attackers marched into the hospital in the regional capital Simferopol, threatening staff and some 30 patients.

 Pro-Russian troops are also blockading Ukrainian troops across Crimea.

 The latest moves come ahead of Sunday's secession referendum in the autonomous region. Kiev and the Western nations describe the vote as illegal.

 In other developments on Monday:

 Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says Moscow will send its "counter-proposals" to Washington to try to resolve the Ukraine crisis; the US earlier proposed to set up a contact group, renew direct Kiev-Moscow talks and also urged Russia to pull its troops in Crimea back to their bases

 In a phone call, US President Barack Obama and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping urge Russia to respect Ukraine's territorial integrity

 Russia's former tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who spent a decade behind bars, tells students in Kiev that Russia has severely violated international law by deploying troops in Crimea

 'New directors'

 Up to 30 men in military uniforms - some with truncheons - broke into the hospital, where Ukrainian soldiers and veterans were being treated. Some of the patients are reported to be seriously ill.

 Armed men continue to blockade Ukrainian troops at their bases in Crimea

 Crimea's pro-Russian authorities are urging local residents to "stop fascism" from Ukraine in the referendum - a claim firmly denied by Kiev

 The hospital director said he was forced onto a bus and kept there for half-an-hour.

 The attackers also herded staff into a reception to apparently meet "the new directors", Ukraine's Interfax-Ukraina news agency reports.

 Separately, pro-Russian troops tried to capture a military transport base in Bahkchysarai, a town between Simferopol and Sevastopol.

 The gunmen fired warning shots into the air, but Ukrainian soldiers repelled the attack. The negotiations are reportedly still continuing.

 Crisis timeline 21 November 2013: President Viktor Yanukovych abandons deal on closer ties with EU in favour of closer co-operation with Russia

 President Viktor Yanukovych abandons deal on closer ties with EU in favour of closer co-operation with Russia December 2013: Pro-EU protesters occupy Kiev city hall and Independence Square

 Pro-EU protesters occupy Kiev city hall and Independence Square 20 February 2014: At least 88 people killed in 48 hours of bloodshed in Kiev

 At least 88 people killed in 48 hours of bloodshed in Kiev 21 February: President Yanukovych signs compromise deal with opposition leaders

 President Yanukovych signs compromise deal with opposition leaders 22 February: President Yanukovych flees Kiev. Parliament votes to remove him and sets elections for 25 May

 President Yanukovych flees Kiev. Parliament votes to remove him and sets elections for 25 May 27-28 February: Pro-Russian gunmen seize key buildings in Crimean capital Simferopol

 Pro-Russian gunmen seize key buildings in Crimean capital Simferopol 1 March: Russian parliament approves President Vladimir Putin's request to use Russian forces in Ukraine

 Russian parliament approves President Vladimir Putin's request to use Russian forces in Ukraine 6 March: Crimea's parliament asks to join Russia and sets referendum for 16 March Law and order breakdown in Crimea Is Russian intervention legal?

 Step-by-step, and meeting very little resistance, the pro-Russian troops are dismantling Ukraine's ability to resist in Crimea, reports the BBC's Christian Fraser, who is in the region.

 Moscow has officially denied that its troops are taking part in the blockades, describing armed men with no insignia as Crimea's "self-defence" forces.

 The government in Kiev - as well as the US and EU - accuse Russia of invading Ukraine, in violation of international law.

 'Shameful silence'

 Earlier on Monday, the Russian foreign ministry condemned "lawlessness" in eastern Ukraine, blaming far-right militants for "conniving" with the Kiev authorities.

 In a statement, the ministry said the "well-equipped" gunmen opened fire on "peaceful protesters" in the eastern city of Kharkiv on 8 March.

 The city has recently witnessed mass rival rallies, some of which were violent.

 However, local Kharkiv police say they are treating the alleged shooting as a minor incident, according to Reuters.

 The Russian statement also said the seven Russian journalists had been detained by police in Dnipropetrovsk, also in the east, who accused them of being interested only in "separate provocative stories".

 "The Ukrainian authorities, in violation of all existing bilateral treaties, are not letting Russian citizens into the territory of Ukraine," the statement added.

 And it also voiced Moscow's surprise over "the shameful silence of our Western partners, human rights groups and foreign media".

 Ukraine has in the past firmly denied similar Russian allegations, instead accusing Moscow of distorting facts to justify its continuing military presence in Crimea.

 Kiev points out that monitors of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe have recently been prevented by pro-Russian militia groups from entering Crimea and a number of journalists have been beaten up by militias in the autonomous region.

 Russian President Vladimir Putin insisted he has the right to protect Russian interests and the rights of ethnic Russians there.

 On Sunday, he also defended the moves by Crimea's authorities to stage the referendum on 16 March. Mr Putin said "the steps taken by Crimea's legitimate authorities are based on international law".

 However, German Chancellor Angela Merkel told him in a phone call that she considered the vote illegal.

 Both EU leaders and the US have warned Moscow they would slap even tougher sanctions if Russian troops remained in Crimea.

 Unrest in Ukraine erupted in November after former President Viktor Yanukovych's last-minute rejection of a landmark EU deal in favour of a bailout from Russia.

 Mr Yanukovych was ousted last month, and a new government has been voted in by the Ukrainian parliament. ||||| SEVASTOPOL/KIEV (Reuters) - A pro-Russian force opened fire in seizing a Ukrainian military base in Crimea on Monday and NATO announced reconnaissance flights along its eastern frontiers as confrontation around the Black Sea peninsula showed no sign of easing.

 Ukrainian activists trying to cross into Crimea to show solidarity with opponents of last week’s Russian military takeover there said they were halted by men in uniforms of the now outlawed riot police. One of these fired at close range, hitting a man in the chest, apparently with rubber bullets.

 With diplomacy at a standstill, Russia said the United States had spurned an invitation to hold new talks on resolving the crisis, the worst East-West standoff since the Cold War - though Washington later said a meeting of foreign ministers was possible this week, if Moscow shows it is ready to “engage”.

 The U.S.-led NATO defence alliance said AWACS early warning aircraft, once designed to counter feared Soviet nuclear missile strikes, will start reconnaissance flights on Tuesday over Poland and Romania to monitor the situation in Ukraine, flying from bases in Germany and Britain.

 British Prime Minister David Cameron told Germany’s Bild newspaper, however, that Western powers were not considering military action and wanted a diplomatic solution. European Union governments are considering sanctions against Russia.

 Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk, who said he would address the U.N. Security Council on Thursday, blamed the crisis on Russia and accused Moscow of undermining the global security system by taking control of Crimea.

 Ukraine’s new justice authorities issued warrants for the arrest of Crimea’s pro-Russia leaders on Monday, six days before a referendum they have called to join the region to Russia.

 Russian forces have in little more than a week taken over military installations across Crimea, home to the Russian Black Sea Fleet and Russian territory until Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev gave it to Ukraine in 1954.

 Pro-Russian separatists have taken control of the regional parliament, declared Crimea part of the Russian Federation and announced the referendum for Sunday to confirm this.

 President Vladimir Putin says Moscow is acting to protect the rights of ethnic Russians, who make up a majority of Crimea’s population, after Ukraine’s president Viktor Yanukovich was ousted last month in what Russia calls a coup.

 BASE TAKEOVER

 On Monday, a Ukrainian defence official said a Russian-led military force of about a dozen men fired in the air as they took control of a Ukrainian naval base near the town of Bakhchisaray, though no one was hurt.

 The force was accompanied by the base’s Ukrainian commander. He persuaded a number of his men to join the Russian forces while allowing others who refused to leave, the Ukrainian official, Vladislav Seleznyov wrote on Facebook. The Russian force later drove off with nine Ukrainian vehicles.

 Yarik Alexandrov, one of the Ukrainian naval personnel who refused to pledge allegiance to Moscow, told Reuters near the base that he and his comrades at first refused to surrender: “Then they started shooting round our feet and we surrendered,” he said. “What could we do? We had no weapons.”

 Similar small confrontations have taken place at other Ukrainian bases around Crimea, though shooting has been rare and there has so far been no bloodshed. Russia denies its troops are involved - a stance ridiculed in Kiev and the West.

 In a sign of the peninsula’s growing isolation from the Ukrainian mainland, armed men prevented a convoy of cars from a Ukrainian activist group crossing into Crimea.

 The group was part of the Maidan movement behind the protests which forced Yanukovich to flee to Russia. Ukrainian television showed men in the uniform of the Berkut riot police, banned by the new authorities for its role in shooting dozens of demonstrators in Kiev last month, blocking the road south.

 One was shown firing twice, hitting a man in the chest. His injuries appeared minor, suggesting the use of rubber bullets.

 In other armed action, Russian forces took over a military hospital and a missile unit. Reuters correspondents also saw a big Russian convoy on the move just outside the port city of Sevastopol near a Ukrainian air defence base.

 It comprised more than 100 vehicles, including around 20 armoured personnel carriers, plus mobile artillery.

 CHANCE OF TALKS SPURNED

 Putin says Russia is not controlling events in Crimea but denials of Russian involvement are rejected by the United States as the two former Cold War enemies wage a geopolitical battle over the future of Crimea and Ukraine.

 Soldiers, believed to be Russian, ride on military armoured personnel carriers on a road near the Crimean port city of Sevastopol March 10, 2014. REUTERS/Baz Ratner

 Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told Putin that Russia’s position on Ukraine remained at odds with the West, but U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry had declined an invitation to visit Russia on Monday for further talks.

 “It is all being formulated as if there was a conflict between Russia and Ukraine ... and our partners suggested using the situation created by a coup as a starting point,” Lavrov told Putin during talks in the Black Sea resort of Sochi.

 He did not say why Kerry had postponed the talks.

 The State Department said Kerry told Lavrov on Saturday that Washington wanted Moscow to cease its drive to annex Crimea and end “provocative steps”. In a statement, it added: “Kerry made clear to Foreign Minister Lavrov that he would welcome further discussions focused on how to de-escalate the crisis in Ukraine if and when we see concrete evidence that Russia is prepared to engage on these proposals.”

 In Kiev, Yatseniuk said he would address the United Nations Security Council during a debate on Ukraine. He is also due to hold talks with the U.S. government which will show Washington’s support of the new Ukrainian leadership.

 “Russia’s policy is aimed at undermining the basis of the global security system and revising the outcome of World War Two,” Interfax quoted Yatseniuk as telling reporters.

 Western powers have rallied behind Ukraine’s new leaders and on Monday the World Bank said it planned to provide up to $3 billion this year to see Kiev through an economic crisis.

 Ukraine’s crisis was triggered in November by Yanukovich’s refusal, under Russian pressure, to sign deals on closer political and trade ties with the European Union.

 Although three months of protests against Yanukovich were mostly peaceful, at least 80 demonstrators were killed in clashes after police used force against them, some by sniper fire.

 Yanukovich fled Ukraine before a peace deal with the opposition was implemented, and a new national unity government was installed. He is wanted for mass murder in Ukraine and is being sheltered by Russia.

 WEST DOES NOT RECOGNISE REFERENDUM

 Western countries have denounced the Russian intervention in Crimea and say the borders of Ukraine, a country of 46 million, should remain unchanged. They have said they will not accept the outcome of Sunday’s vote.

 Slideshow (15 Images)

 “The United States is not prepared to recognise any result of the so-called referendum taking place in six days’ time,” U.S. ambassador Geoffrey Pyatt said in Kiev. “We are committed to Crimea’s status as part of Ukraine. The crisis needs to be solved diplomatically, not militarily.”

 In the latest military movements, in Sevastopol, where Russia has its Black Sea Fleet base, Russian forces disarmed servicemen at a Ukrainian army missile base, Seleznyov said.

 He told Fifth Channel television that about 200 soldiers aboard 14 trucks moved on the building at about 1.30 a.m and threatened to storm it if the Ukrainian soldiers failed to give up their weapons.

 In the eastern city of Luhansk, Ukraine’s security services said they were investigating the takeover on Sunday of the main administrative building. The region’s top official was held captive in a room where he was made to write a letter saying he had resigned but later said he was still performing his duties. ||||| Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Mark Lowen went to meet one family fleeing the lawlessness of Crimea

 Nato is to deploy reconnaissance planes in Poland and Romania to monitor the Ukrainian crisis.

 It gave the go-ahead for the flights on Monday, a Nato spokesman said.

 "All Awacs [Airborne Warning and Control System] reconnaissance flights will take place solely over alliance territory," the official said.

 It comes as Russia cements its control of Ukraine's Crimea ahead of Sunday's referendum to join Russia. Ukraine and the West say this is illegal.

 Analysis The Awacs have some capacity to monitor vehicles on the ground but their chief mission will be reassurance. The flights will be mounted from bases in Germany and the United Kingdom. An Alliance spokesman described the decision as "an appropriate and responsible action in line with Nato's decision to intensify our ongoing assessment of the implications of this crisis for Alliance security". The US has already sought to reassure its allies in Europe by adding six additional F-15 aircraft to the Nato air policing mission over the Baltic Republics and it is also despatching 12 F-16 fighters for a training exercise in Poland.

 In the latest move on Monday, armed men - said to be Russian troops and local militias - seized a military hospital in Crimea.

 The attackers marched into the hospital in the regional capital Simferopol, threatening staff and some 30 patients.

 Pro-Russian troops are also blockading Ukrainian troops across Crimea, which is an autonomous region.

 Moscow has officially denied that its troops are taking part in the blockades, describing the armed men with no insignia as Crimea's "self-defence" forces.

 The government in Kiev - as well as the US and EU - accuse Russia of invading Ukraine, in violation of international law.

 'Enhance awareness'

 Nato said the surveillance flights would "enhance the alliance's situational awareness".

 Fact box: Awacs Image copyright MOD Airborne warning and control systems, or Awacs, are one of Nato's most sophisticated command and control aircraft

 Plane is a modified Boeing 707/320B airliner

 Contains a radar system that can detect, identify and track enemy aircraft, and direct fighters to meet them, from the ground up into the stratosphere

 Flight crew of four plus mission crew of 13-19

 Also used by the US, Britain and France Flying with the E-3D AWACS crew Fact file: E-3 Sentry AWACS

 Last week, the organisation said it was reviewing all co-operation with Russia and stepping up its engagement with the government in Kiev.

 Nato's announcement on Monday came hours after men in military uniforms broke into the Simferopol hospital, where Ukrainian soldiers and veterans were being treated. Some of the patients were reported to be seriously ill.

 The hospital director said he was forced onto a bus and kept there for half-an-hour.

 The attackers also herded staff into a reception to apparently meet "the new directors", Ukraine's Interfax-Ukraina news agency reports.

 Separately, pro-Russian troops tried to capture a military transport base in Bahkchysarai, a town between Simferopol and the city of Sevastopol.

 The gunmen fired warning shots into the air, but Ukrainian soldiers repelled the attack.

 Step-by-step, and meeting very little resistance, the pro-Russian troops are dismantling Ukraine's ability to resist in Crimea, says the BBC's Christian Fraser, who is in the region.

 Cossacks in Russia Image copyright Getty Images Trace their origin from the steppes areas in the modern-day Ukraine and Russia

 Describe themselves as "free men" and famous for rebellious spirit

 Have formed "military communities" for centuries

 Russian Cossacks took part in many tsarist military campaigns

 Gradually settled in border buffer zones as Russian empire expanded

 Many fought against Bolsheviks after 1917 revolution and fell out of favour in Soviet era

 Since fall of USSR, have taken active part in post-Soviet conflicts, including Crimea crisis

 Seen as defenders of conservative traditions

 Famous for whips and colourful clothing

 On Sunday, tens of thousands of people in Ukraine held rival pro-unity and pro-Russian rallies.

 Moscow supporters beat up their opponents in Sevastopol. Some of the attackers were Russian Cossacks with whips.

 Pro-Russian activists also seized regional offices in the eastern city of Luhansk, forcing the governor to resign.

 Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier defended Crimea's decision to stage a referendum on 16 March. Mr Putin said "the steps taken by Crimea's legitimate authorities are based on international law".

 However, German Chancellor Angela Merkel told him in a phone call that she considered the vote illegal.

 Both EU leaders and the US have warned Moscow they would slap even tougher sanctions if Russian troops remained in Crimea.

 Unrest in Ukraine erupted in November after former President Viktor Yanukovych's last-minute rejection of a landmark EU deal in favour of a bailout from Russia.

 Mr Yanukovych was ousted last month, and a new government has been voted in by the Ukrainian parliament which Russia says was a "coup".

Summary: – As many as 30 armed men said to be Russian soldiers today seized control of a military hospital in Crimea, threatening staff and 30 patients in the regional capital of Simferopol. The men broke into the hospital, which treats soldiers and veterans, some of whom are said to be seriously ill, and brought the staff into a room to meet "the new directors." The hospital director says he was forced onto a bus and held there for 30 minutes, the BBC reports. Meanwhile, about 10 unidentified armed men fired into the air as they attempted to take control of a Ukrainian naval post in Crimea, Reuters reports. The BBC says these were also pro-Russian troops, but that Ukrainian soldiers drove them back. Pro-Russia troops have blockaded Ukrainian troops and taken over military installations elsewhere in Crimea. Crimea votes Sunday whether to secede from Ukraine and join Russia, in a referendum Kiev and Western nations say is illegal. NATO agreed today to deploy jets to monitor the Ukrainian borders.


So when my kids Gabe & Alayna started memorizing some verses from James last fall I wanted to make it easier for them. Wha lah the book of James all in memes, ...verse by verse...

 Today's Verse Rehearse Verse Dates are out of Joshua 1:8 & 1:9... A tribute to Joshua Davidson, (pictured on cover) who memorized the entire book of James. Get the full-color paperback edition with 100 bible verse memes here - https://www.amazon.com/dp/1976846366

 Get the ebook free at https://www.patreon.com/posts/verse-memes-of-6-15886131

 Like products like this? I'm asking you to be a Surge Up Patreon supporter at SurgeUp.com ||||| Nothing fires up a crowd like cloture.

 Rick Santorum, the man who has improbably become a contender in Tuesday’s Iowa caucuses, was making his closing argument to a sea of TV cameras here on Monday when he swerved into a thicket of Senate trivia.

 “I’m not disagreeing with the 17th Amendment,” the former senator from Pennsylvania proclaimed to journalists (and a few locals) at a coffee shop here. But, he went on, that obscure 1913 provision that established the direct election of senators had the side effect of creating “something called cloture.”

 All was quiet in the coffee shop. At the senator’s side, a child played with his Game Boy.

 It’s not clear why Santorum thought his final pitch to Iowa voters should include a mention of century-old legislative procedure. More clear from the Polk City appearance — and a subsequent one up the road in Perry, Iowa — is that he won’t last long as a top-tier presidential candidate if he doesn’t improve his game.

 The “Santorum surge” in recent days has little to do with the candidate himself and everything to do with the fact that he is the last man standing after voters discarded all the rest. There’s little time left to scrutinize Santorum before the Iowa vote — and in his case, that’s an exceedingly lucky thing. Given more time in the spotlight, he would reveal himself as a hard-edged Dan Quayle.

 In Perry, Santorum gave his opinion that President Obama was more of a divisive figure than Richard Nixon, keeper of the enemies list: “I suspect President Nixon, although I don’t know, would talk and work with people and wouldn’t go out and demonize them as this president has done.” Santorum doesn’t know it, but that doesn’t stop him from asserting it.

 At the same stop, he played loose with the facts when contrasting Ronald Reagan’s vacation schedule with Obama’s.

 “I don’t know if it’s true, but somebody told me this,” he began, “that Ronald Reagan never left the White House at Christmas, and the reason was he wanted all the staff to be able to spend that time at home.”

 A check of the record would have revealed to Santorum that in 1988, Reagan was in Los Angeles during Christmas, and that he spent the week after nearly every Christmas (and more than a year of his presidency) in Santa Barbara, Calif.

 I’ve covered Santorum on and off since his first run for Congress, in 1990, when I was a rookie reporter in Pittsburgh. Months ago, I predicted there would be such a Santorum surge in Iowa. But if and when he receives serious scrutiny, the surge will surely subside.

 On Monday, for example, he claimed that he is the only candidate who “has proof that, with a conservative record, they were able to attract independents and Democrats.” And that is why Pennsylvania voters unceremoniously tossed him from office in 2006 by a nearly 18-point margin? A n Iowan reminded him of this.

 “Great question,” the candidate replied, blaming his GOP congressional colleagues and President George W. Bush’s unpopularity.

 Talking about Obama’s health-care legislation, he pledged that “I simply won’t enforce the law.” But discussing immigration policy minutes later, he said that “we need to enforce the law.”

 If the surge sustains him past Iowa, he will have difficulty explaining such things as his pledge to make abortion restrictions his first order of business (never mind that nonsense about jobs) or the treason accusation he hurled at Obama on Monday: In foreign conflicts, he said, “he’s sided with our enemies on almost every single one.”

 Scrutiny would also expose Santorum’s attachment to Washington process. His closing argument to Iowa voters moved from his cloture talk to mention of the Senate Appropriations Committee, earmarks, the House Judiciary Committee, the Syrian Accountability Act and a long discourse on Honduras. He grew particularly impassioned when telling his uncomprehending listeners that “we can take the 9th Circuit and divide it into two circuits.”

 Santorum is clearly enjoying his surge, boasting that, while other campaigns had an “airplane, bus, cars, etcetera,” he simply had “Chuck’s truck” — a Dodge pickup. Now there is a shiny campaign bus with his name on it.

 At Santorum’s first stop, in Polk City, the coffee shop’s maximum occupancy was listed as 49, but at least 200 filled the room and 100 more spilled into the street. In the media throng were journalists from Japan, Russia, France, Britain, Italy and Australia. “They weren’t here last week,” a pleased Santorum told the crowd.

 Enjoy it, Senator. They won’t be here for long. ||||| Add a location to your Tweets

 When you tweet with a location, Twitter stores that location. You can switch location on/off before each Tweet and always have the option to delete your location history. Learn more ||||| From Left: Jim Wilson/The New York Times; Josh Haner/The New York Times; Jim Wilson/The New York Times; Jim Wilson/The New York Times

 It’s just that in Iowa, he happens to like a smart, sleeveless V-neck number.

 Crewnecks, with their neck-hugging collars, aren’t suitable for stuffy rooms crammed with voters who have little respect for personal space. Cardigans? Not his thing.

 Mr. Santorum prefers the sweater vest, that sensible, traditional choice of grandfathers and college football coaches. He owns them in navy blue, gray and tan, which he sported here on Monday for a voter meet-and-greet. Sensing they were seeing a political fashion statement in the making, members of his staff recently ordered vests embroidered with the Santorum campaign logo.

 The vests have inspired their own Twitter feed — @FearRicksVest — and a Web site, FearRicksVest.com, which redirects to a pro-Santorum Facebook page. There is also a music video, “Sleeves Slow Me Down,” on YouTube. The clip is loaded with catchy slogans like “Rick is getting ready to inVEST in you.”

 Mr. Santorum’s rivals are biased toward sleeves. Mitt Romney likes his crisply pressed oxford shirts, often under a blazer. Ron Paul is partial to suits, albeit ill-fitting ones. And Michele Bachmann, who has said her fashion icons are Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and Audrey Hepburn, is almost always carefully turned out, so much so that she once prohibited photographers from taking her picture when she was wearing cargo pants.

 In an interview here on Monday, Mr. Santorum insisted that he was not anti-sleeve. He harbors no bigotry toward extra fabric, whether it’s cotton, cashmere or wool.

 He said the vests started gaining notice after a forum in Des Moines a few weeks ago with Mike Huckabee. Most of the other candidates were in suits. Mr. Santorum chose a sweater vest and unwittingly made a fashion statement.

 After that, he said, “It sort of took on a life of its own. So I started wearing more and more. My staff bought me a bunch more.”

 He buys most of them from JoS. A. Bank. But he’s been known to splurge on a vest at Brooks Brothers.

 On Twitter, the sweater has adopted its own persona and first-person voice, as in “Fear me ... and ... hear me! I’m ready to relocate to the White House,” and “@RickSantorum at 16% among Iowa R’s! Take off that sweater vest, Rick, it’s gettin hot in herre!”

 He even fielded questions about the vests from Laura Ingraham, the conservative radio talk show host. “Maybe it’s a trend?” she asked.

 He started to explain, saying, “One of the things I get all the time ...”

 Ms. Ingraham interrupted. “Geek?” she joked. ||||| (Photo Credit: AP)

 We thought Rick Santorum’s sweater vests were just a regular old-fashion statement. Turns out, they’re so much more. Santorum explained to Laura Ingraham on Monday that he likes to wear the sleeveless numbers because they make him look “a little older.”

 Said Ingraham, “When I think of sweaters I think of Jimmy Carter, I think of Lamar Alexander, so all I’m saying Rick, with how you and I are so aligned on social issues and world view, but I’ve got to take issue with you on the sweater vest.”

 “Is it geek chic? What is it?” Ingraham pressed.

 The 2012 candidate explained that saying yes to the vests has a lot to do with looking more like an elder statesman. Santorum, 53, pointed out that a man in Iowa guessed he was 32.

 “You’ve never been in the sun. … It’s awful how lucky you are,” said Ingraham and Santorum explained, “I’m thinking the sweater vest makes me look a little older and that might be a good thing.”

 Read more about: Rick Santorum

Summary: – As Rick Santorum surges in the Iowa polls, his collection of sweater vests is also winning popularity. Santorum has taken to wearing the sleeveless V-necks while campaigning in Iowa; the sartorial choice apparently first garnered attention at a Des Moines forum a few weeks ago during which most other candidates wore suits. "It sort of took on a life of its own" after that, he explains. "So I started wearing more and more. My staff bought me a bunch more." They even, the New York Times notes, had vests embroidered with his campaign logo. The vests have a Twitter feed, Facebook page, and music video (watch at left). Why does he wear them? In order to look older, he told Laura Ingraham yesterday, according to Politico. Pointing out that he, at age 53, was mistaken for 32 while in Iowa, Santorum said, "I’m thinking the sweater vest makes me look a little older and that might be a good thing." But it's not all light news for Santorum today: Dana Milbank wrote a particularly scathing piece on the candidate for the Washington Post, pointing out a number of Santorum's errors and inconsistencies. Predicts Milbank, "He won’t last long as a top-tier presidential candidate if he doesn’t improve his game." Click to read Milbank's piece.