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SAD! It Shouldn’t Be News That Trump Got Intelligence Briefings Two Days In A RowNews broke on Thursday that Donald Trump had actually taken his President s Daily Briefing two days in a row. How in the hell did this end up being news? The answer is simple: because the man we have chosen to run this country is too stupid to know just how stupid he is. He s so stupid he thinks he s too smart to get intel briefings.Trump has come under fire for refusing to get his daily intelligence briefings. His defense is that he s a really smart guy and the PDB is like, boring and stuff. So he d just rather not. Besides, that s what Mike Pence is for, right? I don t have to be told you know, I m, like, a smart person. I don t have to be told the same thing in the same words every single day, Trump told Fox News. I don t need to be told the same thing every day, every morning same words. Sir, nothing has changed. Let s go over it again. I don t need that. So now, this is where we find ourselves. When Trump actually does his job for a mere two days, it s news. Two freaking days..@realDonaldTrump received daily intelligence briefing today, his spokesman says, making it the second day in a row he s received PDB. Jeff Zeleny (@jeffzeleny) December 22, 2016Trump receiving president daily briefing today in Florida, for the second day in a row. Ben Siegel (@benyc) December 22, 2016The fact that it is news when the commander-in-chief gets two days of intelligence briefings back to back should terrify every person in this country. It also highlights exactly how Trump has managed to send our foreign relations, particularly with China, into a nosedive before he even gets inaugurated.If he had been interested in his intelligence briefings, maybe he would have known better than to chat up the president of Taiwan. If he had gotten his PDB before going off half-cocked on Twitter to rant about China seizing our drone, he would have known that the crisis had already been resolved.But for now, Trump has had two days of intel briefings in a row and since that is a first for this narcissistic moron, it s news. Sad.Featured image via Drew Angerer/Getty Images

#BlackLivesMatter Terrorists Disrupt Chicago Diners In Lame Attempt To Gain SympathyWe re thinking it s having the opposite effect. Maybe it s time for a food fight The Black Lives Matter terrorist began harassing unsuspecting patrons this morning at Dove s Diner on Wicker Road in Chicago.https://twitter.com/ZachStafford/status/682994134395793410h/t Gateway Pundit

“MEATHEAD” ROB REINER Calls For ‘ALL OUT WAR’ Against Trump…Twitter User Warns “Hollywood Folks” To Be Careful…They Might Just Get A WarWriting on Twitter Sunday, the All in the Family star mentioned a Fox News report about the Trump campaign s alleged collusion with Russia during the 2016 election. When Fox says that DT colluding with the enemy is not a crime, the fight to save Democracy is now an all out war. US-Stay strong. #Treason, he wrote.When Fox says that DT colluding with the enemy is not a crime, the fight to save Democracy is now an all out war. US-Stay strong. #Treason Rob Reiner (@robreiner) June 25, 2017One of our favorite conservatives on Twitter, Nick Short of politicallyshort.com warned Hollywood crybaby Rob Reiner to be careful what he wishes for: There was no collusion, but keep up your propaganda. You hollywood folks need to watch your mouths calling for "war". You might get it. https://t.co/KK8Eqh2Mq8 Nick Short (@PoliticalShort) June 25, 2017Hollywood conservatives hammered Reiner on Twitter over his reckless remarks calling for action against President Trump:Hollywood actress and comedian Rosanne Barr called Rob Reiner s comments, fake news .FAKE NEWS Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) June 26, 2017Hollywood actor Nick Searcy blasts Reiner:https://twitter.com/yesnicksearcy/status/879471613867155460Comedian Mark Dice asks Reiner if he s trying to incite another Democrat terror incident?Is this a dog-whistle to incite another radical liberal terrorist to shoot more people? Mark Dice (@MarkDice) June 27, 2017Hey Meathead here s the real collusion with Russia:Ever hear of #UraniumOne meathead?They are all involved with #Russia Even #Podesta pic.twitter.com/8Xa3bzDu2Y covfefeand (@DJTsavesAmerica) June 26, 2017These responses to Reiner s tweet are just plain hilarious:Due us a Favor! pic.twitter.com/Lei8JiMSMq Joey Brooklyn (@Joe_America1776) June 26, 2017Archie was so correct when he named you meathead Vince (@seriousserb) June 25, 2017

Have You Fallen For The Nude Melania Trump Distraction Photos? (IMAGES)After a really bad week for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, where he was destroyed endlessly by speaker after speaker at the Democratic National Convention, including by the Muslim parents of a fallen soldier, it would seem desperate times called for desperate measures.You may have noticed that the New York Post released photos of Melania Trump where she is posing nude, and even with other girls. Shocking, right? No, not really, considering this was Melania s former career, and her husband has always embraced it to the point of gloating.Here are the covers:Today's cover: Melania Trump like you've never seen her before https://t.co/wkoDGWTF9g pic.twitter.com/V375rBTUEw New York Post (@nypost) July 31, 2016Today's cover: Melania Trump's girl-on-girl photo shoot revealed https://t.co/QUEjkxZnXg pic.twitter.com/38p82c0MiM New York Post (@nypost) August 1, 2016So, the question can be asked, why now? And as to not sound like a complete conspiracy theorist, let s look at all the evidence and connect the dots which doesn t take terribly long.Those dots can probably be reduced even more so, because it doesn t take a genius to figure it all out. So, don t fall for it. It s clear media manipulation at its finest and it s working gloriously. Let s not let it.Focus on the fact that Trump is a racist, misogynistic egomaniac who will attack women, Muslims, Latinos, and now Gold Star families all while never admitting he s wrong. Focus on the fact that he d rather have you looking at his beautiful wife in the nude, and then feign outrage to get you to come back on his side. Focus on the fact that he has absolutely none of the experience necessary to be President of the United States. DO NOT focus on distraction tactics.Featured image via Twitter

The Libertarian Parody of Star Wars21st Century Wire says Worth watching. The Ed Snowden cameo is class. The Star Wars Libertarian Special features Senate filibusters, border patrol stops, eminent domain, a guest appearance by Edward Snowden, and rarely seen footage from Chewbacca s galaxy-trotting documentary series about free-market economics. Watch here: FYI: This parody is not affiliated with the Star Wars Holiday Special (1978), though you should watch it if you haven t already. SEE MORE HOLLYWOOD NEWS AT: 21st Century Wire Hollywood Files

IMAM SLAMS CBS News For Trying To “Make Terrorist White”…”I’m Glad They Didn’t Make His Eyes Blue As Well”Yesterday, the Imam who calls himself the Imam of peace called out NYC s Democrat mayor, Bill DeBlasio, for ignoring the Imam s warnings about Islamic terror in NYC.About #NYC terrorist attack, I personally sent letters to Mayor De Blasio online & in person about terrorist breeding in NYC.He did nothing. Imam Tawhidi (@Imamofpeace) October 31, 2017In 2016, I told Mayor De Blasio that I was in NYC and noticed some hot radical centres. I was willing to point out serious cases. Ignored! Imam Tawhidi (@Imamofpeace) October 31, 2017When critics came after him, Imam Tawhidi announced that he would release his letter to DeBlasio warning him of Islamic extremists in NY.I ll be releasing my 2016 letter to Mayor De Blasio warning him of Islamic extremists in NY upon my landing . His office is a proven FAIL! https://t.co/QQCLN1OiNf Imam Tawhidi (@Imamofpeace) November 1, 2017The popular Imam is not shy about his thoughts on radical Islam.The Islamic world is infested with extremists. Whoever denies this is either unaware of what s going on or simply a benefiting politician. Imam Tawhidi (@Imamofpeace) November 1, 2017He s not shy about calling out the hypocrisy in Islamic politics eitherIslamic politics is amazing. We behead each other with our own knives, stone with our own stones, then our leaders blame the USA. Spot on . Imam Tawhidi (@Imamofpeace) August 11, 2017Today, Imam Tawhidi called out CBS for making the NYC terrorist appear to be white in their New York attack suspect: Who is Sayfullo Habibullaevic Saipov? article.Here s the image CBS used in their story:Here s the Imam s tweet:CBS tried to make terrorist Saipov white, I m glad they didn t make his eyes blue as well. pic.twitter.com/EQH3v57itk Imam Tawhidi (@Imamofpeace) November 1, 2017This isn t the first time that a liberal media outlet has been accused of white-washing an image of a high-profile killer to fit a certain liberal narrative.Conservative Treehouse accused CNN of whitewashing the selfie image of Oregon Umpqua College killer, Christopher Mercer, that he uploaded to his Facebook page. On the right is how CNN presented the same selfie in broadcast stories about him. Why did CNN need to change the complexion (color) of their broadcast?What are your thoughts? Do you believe CBS intentionally white-washed the image of the New York City terrorist? We d like to hear what you have to say. Please tell us what you think in the comment section below.

Senior justice official dismisses Republican charges of bias in Trump probeWASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein on Wednesday dismissed Republican lawmakers’ charges that government attorneys and agents investigating allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 election are biased against President Donald Trump. Republicans have attacked Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who has charged four Trump associates in his investigation, which is also looking into possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Moscow officials. Testifying before the U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee on Wednesday, Rosenstein said he was “not aware” of any impropriety by Mueller’s team. When the committee’s ranking Democrat asked if he had any good cause for firing Mueller, he replied: “No.” Russia denies the conclusions by three U.S. intelligence agencies that Moscow used hacking and disinformation to affect the election, and Trump says there was no collusion. At the hearing, Republicans on the committee increased their criticism of Mueller, highlighting text messages between two Federal Bureau of Investigation employees, including an agent on his investigating team, as evidence of bias against Trump. So far, however, congressional Republicans have stopped short of calling on Trump to fire Mueller. Republicans said they had reviewed more than 300 anti-Trump text messages exchanged last year between FBI lawyer Lisa Page and Peter Strzok, an FBI agent who worked on Mueller’s probe. Members of the committee read aloud the contents of some of the text messages between Strzok and Page. Some texts call Trump an “idiot” and a “loathsome human,” according to copies of a sampling of the texts reviewed by Reuters. In one July 2016 exchange they poked fun at Trump’s campaign during the Republican National Convention. “My god, I’m so embarrassed for them. These are like second-run stars,” Page responded to Strzok. “And wow, Donald Trump is an enormous d*uche.” The texts showed “extreme bias against President Trump, a fact that would be bad enough if it weren’t for the fact that these two individuals were employed as part of the Mueller ‘dream team’ investigating the very person for whom they were showing disdain,” said Bob Goodlatte, the Republican chairman of the Judiciary Committee. In some of the texts seen by Reuters, however, Strzok did not seem excited about Democratic Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, either. Describing himself as a “conservative Democrat,” he in one text openly worried about her getting elected, and at one point complained that certain news media outlets were biased for downplaying her ties to the oil and gas industry. “This is clear and utter bias by the media specifically the NYTIMES, WAPO, and CNN who if you look at all of them have large donors for Clinton,” he wrote. Rosenstein, who appointed Mueller, said the special counsel properly removed Strzok from the probe after the Justice Department inspector general brought the texts to light, and added he was confident Mueller is not letting political bias color the investigation. He also said he thinks Mueller is the “ideal choice” to lead the investigation, and said that just because a person is affiliated with a political party does not mean he or she will be biased. He said he had discussed the issue of bias with Mueller and that Mueller “is running that office appropriately.”

Netherlands to hold referendum on new surveillance law AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - The Netherlands will hold a referendum on legislation giving law enforcement authorities far-reaching surveillance powers, the Dutch Voting Commission said on Wednesday. A range of activists, politicians and media groups want to overturn the tapping law , which was passed by parliament in July and allows agencies to gather data covertly from large groups of people at once. Dutch law obliges the government to hold a non-binding referendum if a petition with at least 300,000 signatures is submitted to the Voting Commission. The agency said it had received more than 384,000 valid signatures and that the referendum would be held on March 21 together with municipal elections. Opponents argue that innocent civilians will be dragged into the sights of intelligence agencies, while the government says the powers are needed to counter national security threats. The referendum law is itself controversial and may be repealed by the newly appointed right-of-centre government under Prime Minister Mark Rutte. After it was passed in 2015, a referendum was used to block the Dutch government from ratifying an economic treaty it and other European Union countries had negotiated with Ukraine. A large no vote on the referendum embarrassed The Hague and forced Rutte to seek minor amendments to the treaty with the other EU states, eventually leading to the Dutch ratifying it. It later emerged that the signatures to hold the Ukraine referendum were gathered via the internet and never vetted.

Factbox: Foreign leaders' criticism, praise of U.S. Republican candidate Trump(Reuters) - Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump’s provocative proposals on immigration, trade and other issues have drawn attention and verbal attacks - as well as some praise - well beyond the United States’ shores. Here is a sampling. Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin have often praised each other. Last December, Putin described the New York businessman as “a very flamboyant man, very talented.” Trump, who lauded Putin in return, also spoke well of him in September, saying at a televised forum with Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton that Putin had been a better leader than Democratic U.S. President Barack Obama. Some of the strongest criticism of Trump from abroad has come from Mexican officials because of his verbal attacks on illegal Mexican immigrants and his promise to build a wall on the southern border and make Mexico pay for it. Following talks in Mexico City between Trump and Enrique Pena Nieto, the Mexican president said the American’s policy stances “could represent a huge threat to Mexico, and I am not prepared to keep my arms crossed and do nothing.” Earlier this year, he likened Trump to dictators Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini. In April, Chinese Finance Minister Lou Jiwei called Trump “an irrational type” because of the candidate’s proposal that tariffs on imported Chinese goods be increased to up to 45 percent. “If he were to do this, that would be in violation of the rules set by the World Trade Organization,” Lou said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal. Then-British Prime Minister David Cameron in May called Trump’s initial proposal for a temporary ban on Muslim’s entering the United States “very dangerous.” In December, Cameron had called Trump, potentially the leader of Britain’s closest ally, “divisive, stupid and wrong” for calling for the ban. Nigel Farage, a politician who played a key role in the successful campaign to get Britain out of the European Union, lent his support to Trump in August, appearing with the candidate at a rally in Jackson, Mississippi. Farage said Trump represented the same type of anti-establishment movement that he had masterminded in his own country. London’s first Muslim mayor, Sadiq Khan, said in May that Trump had an “ignorant view of Islam,” referring to Trump’s initial proposed ban on Muslims. {nL2N18709R] In September, during his first U.S. visit, Khan expressed support for Clinton. French President Francois Hollande said in August that a Trump victory could make politics more conservative around the world and that the New York businessman made people “feel nauseous.” A Trump win could also affect France’s spring 2017 presidential election, said Hollande. Germany’s European affairs minister, Michael Roth, said in August that Trump’s assertion that Chancellor Angela Merkel’s open-door refugee policy had resulted in a huge increase in crime was incorrect. Roth said it was important to correct campaign statements in other countries that were based on “fears, lies and half-truths,” given the importance of the U.S. election for the world. In April, the German foreign minister, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, criticized Trump’s “America First” policy, which the candidate had unveiled in a speech that week. Steinmeier said world security could no longer be ensured unilaterally and that international conflicts could only be solved nowadays if heavyweights like the United States and Russia and others joined forces. The “America First” stance - which included a portrayal by Trump of longtime ally Japan as a free rider on security - also came in for a veiled swipe from Japan’s ambassador to the United States, Kenichiro Sasae, in May. Without mentioning Trump by name, Sasae said he did not want to see an isolationist United States. “I want to see the United States to be strong and come with a strong robust position, not really thinking of the United States only,” he said. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad al Hussein said on Wednesday that the world would be in danger if Trump became president. He cited Trump’s views on vulnerable communities, including minorities, and his talk of authorizing torture in interrogations, banned under international law, as “deeply unsettling and disturbing.”

Delusional Obama On How Divided America Has Become: At least it’s not a Civil War [Video]It turns out we re not as divided as people make us out to be Really?

Senate Democrats seek Trump tax returnsWASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Senate Democrats urged the Senate Finance Committee on Wednesday to review President Donald Trump’s tax returns, as part of a campaign in Congress that has begun to show signs of attracting Republican support. Defying decades of precedent, Trump has refused to release his tax returns while his tax affairs are under federal audit. Democrats and other critics contend that the documents could show whether his global business empire poses any conflicts of interest as the president moves his agenda forward on issues ranging from tax reform to foreign relations. In a letter dated Wednesday, seven Democrats on the Senate Finance Committee urged the panel’s Republican chairman, Orrin Hatch, to request the documents from the U.S. Treasury so that lawmakers can review them in a closed session and determine whether the returns can be released to the public. Democrats in the House of Representatives said they planned to pose a similar request on Thursday to Hatch and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady in a bipartisan letter signed by 140 lawmakers, including House Republicans Mark Sanford of South Carolina and Walter Jones of North Carolina. The Democratic efforts face long odds in the Republican-controlled Congress. Three attempts in the House have met with defeat this year. Hatch and Brady responded to the Senate request in a joint letter saying Democrats were suggesting “an abuse of the tax-writing committees’ statutory authority” that would set “a dangerous precedent”. Democrats say they hope to create a bipartisan juggernaut to require the disclosure of Trump’s and future presidents’ tax returns by pushing forward on multiple fronts. On Monday, the House voted down a Democratic effort seeking the Republican president’s returns, with Sanford and Jones voting “present” rather than opposing the measure. Republican Senator Susan Collins of Maine told an interviewer last month she could be open to a subpoena of Trump’s taxes as part of a Senate Intelligence Committee probe of alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential elections. On Wednesday, Politico quoted Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina as saying he wanted presidential candidates to be required by law to release their tax returns beginning in 2020. “The tax return is the lowest ethical bar that you can have for a presidential nominee or a president,” said Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon, top Senate Finance Democrat who introduced legislation in January requiring nominees and sitting presidents to disclose their returns.

BREAKING: CLINTON FOUNDATION FINDS $26 MILLION MORE IN PREVIOUSLY UNDISCLOSED PAYMENTSThe Clintons found more money $26 million more. They ve been using their positions in government to raise money but haven t been reporting it. Hummm, this just keeps getting worse but will they be held accountable for not reporting this money? That s the big question The Clinton Foundation reported Thursday that it has received as much as $26.4 million in previously undisclosed payments from major corporations, universities, foreign sources and other groups.The disclosure came as the foundation faced questions over whether it fully complied with a 2008 ethics agreement to reveal its donors and whether any of its funding sources present conflicts of interest for Hillary Rodham Clinton as she begins her presidential campaign.The money was paid as fees for speeches by Bill, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton. Foundation officials said the funds were tallied internally as revenue rather than donations, which is why they had not been included in the public listings of its contributors published as part of the 2008 agreement.According to the new information, the Clintons have delivered 97 speeches to benefit the charity since 2002. Colleges and universities sponsored more than two dozen of these speeches, along with U.S. and overseas corporations and at least one foreign government, Thailand.The payments were disclosed late Thursday on the organization s Web site, with speech payments listed in ranges rather than specific amounts. In total, the payments ranged between $12 million and $26.4 million.The paid appearances included speeches by former president Bill Clinton to the Ni ger ian ThisDay newspaper group for at least $500,000 and to the Beijing Huaduo Enterprise Consulting Company Ltd., an investment holding company that specializes in the natural gas market, for at least $250,000. Citibank paid at least $250,000 for a speech by Hillary Rodham Clinton.The disclosures underscore how much the Clintons have leveraged their star power to draw more money not just for their personal enrichment but also for the benefit of their philanthropic work.Read more: wapo

Hypocritical Alabama Governor Gets Booted From His Own Church For Affair With StafferAlabama Governor Robert Bentley claims to be a family values conservative Christian, but because of an affair with a woman who was not his wife he ll have to find a church that supports hypocrisy.The Republican governor has resisted repeated calls for him to resign his office despite a scandalous audio recording of Bentley admitting to having an affair with Rebekah Mason, a staffer who works for him. I love you, Bentley told Mason in the recording. I love to talk to you. Baby, let me tell you what we re going to have to start doing, we re going to have to start locking the door. If we are going to do what we did the other day, we are going to have to start locking the door. To spell it out for anyone who doesn t get it, Bentley told Mason they ll have to lock the door because their relationship became physical, which Bentley denies even though that would be the logical reason why they have to start locking the door. So someone doesn t walk in on them and catch them in the act.Having heard the tape, Bentley s wife filed for divorce, which is not exactly a PR dream come true if you re a lawmaker who touts traditional marriage and Christian morality as reasons to oppose same-sex marriage. I have always believed in the Biblical definition of marriage as being between one man and one woman, Bentley said when the Supreme Court handed down the decision to legalize same-sex marriage across the nation last summer. Apparently he meant between one man and one woman and another secret woman in a locked room. I made a mistake, Bentley said during a press conference on Wednesday. Two years ago I made a mistake. I have apologized many times to my family. I have apologized to the family of Mrs. Mason. I would now like to apologize to the people of Alabama. I ask them to forgive me. I ve been told about the possibility of tapes for two years. While he is still waiting for the people of Alabama to forgive him, Bentley s own church isn t much in the forgiving mood.The First Baptist Church of Tuscaloosa, where Bentley was a deacon, has officially expelled the governor and Mason.Senior Pastor Gil McKee told Christian News Network, while church discipline is a church family matter, both Governor Robert Bentley and Mrs. Rebekah Mason are no longer members of First Baptist Church Tuscaloosa. I continue to pray for each of them. That s right. Bentley s own church can t stomach having him as a member anymore because he not only cheated on his wife while waving Christianity and family values in the faces of his constituents, he is lying about it and refusing to take responsibility by stepping down in disgrace.Seriously, Governor. Resign. That s the only right step you can take that will satisfy the people of Alabama and the God you claim to worship. Featured image via YouTube

WHAT WAS THAT? NANCY PELOSI Calls Trump’s Budget “Stupid”…Bursts Into Giggles…Repeats Words [Video]This isn t the first time Pelosi has lost it in front of the mic:

NATO head says all states must comply with North Korea sanctionsTALLINN (Reuters) - NATO head Jens Stoltenberg said on Thursday all countries must comply with sanctions on North Korea as the international community ratchets up pressure on the reclusive regime following its largest nuclear test to date. Asked if he was worried that Russia was resisting stepping up U.N. Security Council sanctions on North Korea, Stoltenberg told reporters before meeting the European Union s defense ministers: There are already sanctions agreed in the UN and it is extremely important that those sanctions are fully implemented.

President Obama Officially Endorses Hillary Clinton For President (VIDEO)After staying neutral for more than a year, President Barack Obama has formally endorsed presumptive Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton for President of the United States via a video announcement from the White House.Saying, I don t think there s ever been someone more qualified to hold this office, President Obama s much sought after endorsement comes after a personal meeting with Senator Bernie Sanders, who has vowed to fight on into the D.C. primary next Tuesday.In the video released by the President, Obama congratulated Hillary Clinton on making history, and praised her as the next president, saying: I want to congratulate Hillary Clinton on making history as the presumptive Democratic nominee for President of the United States. Look, I know how hard this job can be. That s why I know Hillary will be so good at it she s got the courage, the compassion, and the heart to get the job done. And I say that as someone who had to debate her more tan 20 times. The President went on to thank the Democratic nominee for serving her country as Secretary of State, praising her judgment, toughness and commitment to American values: So I want those of you who have been with me from the beginning of this incredible journey to be the first to know that I m with her. I am fired up and I cannot wait to get out there and campaign for Hillary. Wrapping up, President Obama thanked the millions of voters who came out in the primaries, and promised Democratic unity. But Obama specifically thanked Senator Bernie Sanders, who he says ran an incredible campaign, for bringing out thousands perhaps even millions -of new, young voters and energizing the party. He also thanked the Senator for bringing the issue of income inequality and big money to the forefront of the debate, something he thinks will be good for November.Thanking these two patriots, President Obama is calling on Democrats to get out and vote for a brighter future.With poll numbers high, and his promise to take on Trump head on, could Clinton ask for a better campaign surrogate than President Obama?Watch President Obama s endorsement here:Featured image via video screen capture

GOP Announced Their Obamacare Replacement – Bernie Sanders Just DESTROYED It In Under 2 Minutes (VIDEO)Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders has been a nightmare for the GOP ever since he announced his presidential campaign. With his amazing ability to connect with progressives and activists in America, Sanders has been a massive thorn in the Republican Party s side as he routinely dismantles every crooked policy they try to enact.The Republican Party s latest disastrous move is their Obamacare replacement plan, which has attracted criticism from the second it was announced. It only makes sense that Sanders would weigh in on such a repulsive move, and it only took him 82 seconds to dismantle what House Speaker Paul Ryan wants to use to replace Obamacare.On CBS s Face The Nation, Sanders gave a damning response to a question about whether or not the GOP s replacement would get 51 votes in the Senate. He said: I hope not. It is an absolute disaster. It is a disgrace, and by the way, this really has nothing to do with healthcare. What this has everything to do with is a massive shift of wealth from working people and middle-income people to the richest people in this country. It is a 275 billion dollar tax break for the top two percent. Millionaires will get about $50,000 a year in tax breaks, while at the same time 5-10 million people are going to lose their health insurance, premiums are going to soar. The AARP says that if you are 64 years of age and you re making about 25,000 a year, you re going pay up to $7,000 more for you re health insurance. They re going to defund Planned Parenthood. Deny over 2 million the right to choose they healthcare that they need. They re going to decimate Medicaid, which is why the American Medical Association, the AMA, and the American Hospital Association oppose it, in addition to the AARP. This is a disgrace, and by the way, they are so cowardly that they want to go forward before the CBO gives an estimate of what it will cost, and how many people will lose their insurance. You can watch Sanders explain it all below:Sanders couldn t be more correct. The GOP s replacement is a massive failure and will not only strip millions of Americans of life-saving health care, but it will make Americans pay more for less.The Republicans are trying to promote their own interests with this bill, and it s absolutely pathetic. The ones who will truly benefit from such a horrible piece of legislation are the wealthy and insurance companies. Hopefully, people will listen to Sanders and fight this bill.Featured image is a screenshot

Cameroon orders Anglophone region total lockdown for three daysYAOUNDE (Reuters) - Cameroon authorities on Friday banned all gatherings of more than four people, ordered bus stations, eateries and shops to shut and forbade movement between divisions of its English-speaking region for three days to prevent planned protests. Anglophone Cameroonians plan to demonstrate on Oct. 1st, the day of their independence from Britain, over what they say is ill treatment and neglect by the predominantly Francophone government of President Paul Biya. The protests have become a lightening rod for opposition to Biya s 35-year rule. The last time there were big protests in the western region, the government responded by unplugging the internet, shooting dead six protesters and arrested hundreds of others, some of whom were charged with crimes that carry the death penalty. Public gatherings and assembly of more than four persons shall be strictly forbidden. All off licenses, snack bars and night clubs shall not operate. Motor parks shall remain closed, said the order signed by Adolphe Lele Lafrique, governor of the northwest region. Any persons who attempt to violate this order shall be prosecuted, it added. The draconian measures are likely to provoke further anger driving a movement that is fast morphing from a bid for equal rights into a full-fledged struggle for independence. Cameroon s divide has its roots in the end of World War One, when the League of Nations divided the former German colony of Kamerun between the allied French and British victors. Thousands of Anglophone demonstrators took to the streets last Friday, some of them hoisting separatist flags. The government ordered its border with Nigeria closed this weekend. The Anglophone regions have strong ties to eastern Nigeria and authorities may fear that allowing the border to remain open during protests offers the demonstrators a rear base and makes it harder to maintain order.

Brazil resumes murder trial in Samarco mining disasterRIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - A court in Brazil decided on Monday to resume criminal proceedings, including consideration of murder charges, related to the 2015 Samarco mine disaster, throwing out a challenge from two defendants claiming that evidence was illegally collected. Vale SA and BHP Billiton Ltd, joint owners of the Samarco iron mine, are part of a group that includes 22 people and two other companies that stand accused of crimes related to a tailing dam that burst. The burst unleashed a torrent of toxic mud that killed 19 people. The court in the state of Minas Gerais suspended proceedings in July to consider claims from two Samarco executives who alleged that phone data, instant messages and emails were illegally collected outside of the period legally authorized. The judge ruled certain material based on transcripts of corporate emails and chats to be invalid but that it did not impact the validity of telephone surveillance and other evidence, federal prosecutors said in a statement.

FBI to recommend no charges in Clinton email probe, director saysWASHINGTON (Reuters) - The FBI will recommend to the Justice Department that no charges be filed over Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server while secretary of state, agency Director James Comey said on Tuesday, lifting a cloud of uncertainty looming over her White House campaign. The agency found evidence of “extremely careless” handling of emails by Clinton, and that at least 110 emails contained classified information at the time they were sent, said Comey, announcing the result of a yearlong investigation. But the FBI concluded that “no reasonable prosecutor” would bring charges against Clinton, he said. “Although the Department of Justice makes final decisions on matters like this, we are expressing to Justice our view that no charges are appropriate in this case,” Comey told reporters in Washington. His recommendation will likely stand. The country’s top prosecutor, U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch, said on Friday she will accept the recommendations of career prosecutors and the FBI director on whether to charge Clinton for mishandling emails. The FBI probe has dogged the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee’s campaign for the past year and has contributed to her low poll ratings on honesty and trustworthiness. Republicans pointed to the controversy as evidence that Clinton considered herself above the law. Donald Trump, Clinton’s Republican rival for the Nov. 8 election, has hammered her on the issue, saying the investigation should disqualify Clinton from being president. On Tuesday, he said the FBI decision was unfair. “The system is rigged,” he said on Twitter. “As usual, bad judgment.” The FBI has been investigating whether Clinton broke the law as result of a personal email server kept in her Chappaqua, New York, home while she was secretary of state from 2009 to 2013. One of the questions is whether she mishandled classified information on the server. Clinton has repeatedly said she never sent or received classified information on her private server. She had a voluntary 3-1/2-hour interview with the Federal Bureau of Investigation on Saturday in Washington. Comey said, however, there was “evidence of potential violations of the statutes regarding the handling of classified information.” But he said the FBI did not find that Clinton or her colleagues intended to violate the law, and there was no “intentional misconduct” by her lawyers who sorted her emails. He said her staff should have known the server was in an improper place for her emails. Comey also said there was no evidence that anyone had hacked Clinton’s communications, although it was possible. Republican lawmakers have called for an independent investigation, saying they do not trust the Justice Department to handle the inquiry with impartiality. Republican criticism increased after Clinton’s husband, former President Bill Clinton, met privately with Lynch last week. Lynch later said she regretted the meeting and the two did not discuss the investigation.

Snowflake Trump Demands An Apology From The Media And The Internet Laughs At HimDonald Trump went on a whining rant about the media on Tuesday morning and got totally humiliated.As he usually does, Trump woke up and immediately took to Twitter to attack Democrats, the courts, and the media.He accused Democrats of being obstructionists and once again declared that the Affordable Care Act is in a death spiral, a spiral he himself caused by attacking the law through executive orders.Trump also bitched about the 9th Circuit Court blocking his Muslim ban.But he saved most of his vitriol for the media.The Fake News Media has never been so wrong or so dirty. Purposely incorrect stories and phony sources to meet their agenda of hate. Sad! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 13, 2017Fake News is at an all time high. Where is their apology to me for all of the incorrect stories??? Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 13, 2017< /script></p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"> <p lang="en" dir="ltr">Heading to the Great State of Wisconsin to talk about JOBS, JOBS, JOBS! Big progress being made as the Real News is reporting.</p> <p>&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/874619861019840512">June 13, 2017</a></p> </blockquote> <p>Yep, Trump literally demanded an apology from the media for doing their jobs, which drew a belly laugh from Twitter users, who proceeded to mock Trump for being a snowflake.Like the time where they said Ms Universe had a sex tape and everyone should watch it even though it didn t exist? Evan Dashevsky (@haldash) June 13, 2017Or the time the Fake News said your birth certificate was a fraud they STILL haven t apologized to you for that one! What gives? Evan Dashevsky (@haldash) June 13, 2017Also, remember when the Fake News said your dad assassinated JFK. Still waiting for them to apologize on that one. Evan Dashevsky (@haldash) June 13, 2017Where is your apology for trying to ban muslims, taking billions away from healthcare, destroying the environment, and betraying the USA? Jules Suzdaltsev (@jules_su) June 13, 2017Translation: Why won t the media worship me properly? kim (@kim) June 13, 2017Where is your apology to the voters for claiming you won the popular vote? Morten verbye (@morten) June 13, 2017Where is your apology to Muslims in New Jersey for claiming they celebrated on 9 11? Morten verbye (@morten) June 13, 2017Where is your apology to John McCain for saying he is not a war hero? Morten verbye (@morten) June 13, 2017We ve officially stepped through the looking glass Man who has never apologized for anything in his life is Whining about wanting apology. Dana Smith (@Brady5thOrBust) June 13, 2017#Trump claimed Obama was born in Kenya and he complains about fake news. Jeffrey Guterman (@JeffreyGuterman) June 13, 2017And that Obama put a tapp on his lines at trump tower. Angela Jackson (@butterbeangabs) June 13, 2017Don t forget Microwave Spying! Jamie (@xochewie) June 13, 2017And the proof of 3-5 million illegal votes! Dana Smith (@Brady5thOrBust) June 13, 2017And the largest Inauguration crowd since Obama D backl (@DanBackl) June 13, 2017It sounds like Donald Trump is the one who better start apologizing. He can do it all at once by resigning and turning himself in to federal authorities.Featured Image: Mario Tama/Getty Images

Some Conservatives Hate Trump So Much They Are Praising President Obama’s DNC Convention SpeechThe same conservatives who have attacked President Obama over the last eight years really liked his speech on Wednesday night.When President Obama spoke in support of Hillary Clinton during the DNC Convention, he extended an olive branch to conservatives who are dissatisfied with Donald Trump as the Republican nominee. Look, we Democrats have always had plenty of differences with the Republican Party, and there s nothing wrong with that, Obama said before reaching out to those who are #NeverTrump. It s precisely this contest of ideas that pushes our country forward. But what we heard in Cleveland last week wasn t particularly Republican and it sure wasn t conservative. What we heard was a deeply pessimistic vision of a country where we turn against each other, and turn away from the rest of the world. There were no serious solutions to pressing problems just the fanning of resentment, and blame, and anger, and hate. President Obama then stressed unity along with the themes of patriotism and our Founding Fathers. And he even mentioned Ronald Reagan. And that is not the America I know. The America I know is full of courage, and optimism, and ingenuity. The America I know is decent and generous I see Americans of every party, every background, every faith who believe that we are stronger together black, white, Latino, Asian, Native American; young, old; gay, straight; men, women, folks with disabilities, all pledging allegiance, under the same proud flag, to this big, bold country that we love. Ronald Reagan called America a shining city on a hill. Donald Trump calls it a divided crime scene that only he can fix.The reason he ll lose it is because he s selling the American people short. We re not a fragile people. We re not a frightful people. Our power doesn t come from some self-declared savior promising that he alone can restore order as long as we do things his way. We don t look to be ruled. Our power comes from those immortal declarations first put to paper right here in Philadelphia all those years ago: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that We the People, can form a more perfect union. And because many Republicans are starting to wake up and realize what their own party has become, they praised President Obama s speech.National Review columnist Rich Lowery was stunned because he seems to think patriotism and the founding documents are trademarked Republican beliefs.American exceptionalism and greatness, shining city on hill, founding documents, etc they re trying to take all our stuff Rich Lowry (@RichLowry) July 28, 2016Erick Erickson of Redstate couldn t believe how much he enjoyed it. I disagree with the President on so much policy and his agenda, but appreciate the hope and optimism in this speech. Erick Erickson (@EWErickson) July 28, 2016The GOP offered a vision of doom, despair, and division. Tonight the President I think divides us offered optimism. I hate this year. Erick Erickson (@EWErickson) July 28, 2016Republican strategist Rory Cooper thought the speech was great and slammed his own party for making it easy for Obama by nominating Trump. Great speech. And we made it easy for him. Rory Cooper (@rorycooper) July 28, 2016This conservative was shocked to hear President Obama defend conservatives from Trump.Still stunned. Feel like I m in the twilight zone. Obama just defended America & conservative values from attacks by the Republican nominee. (((AG))) (@AG_Conservative) July 28, 2016Jeb Bush campaign staffer Tim Miller said that Republicans just lost an entire generation of voters. Will a Trump apologist explain to me why an 18 yo watching the conventions would want to be a Republican? We re giving away a generation Tim Miller (@Timodc) July 28, 2016Former Reagan speechwriter John Podhoretz appreciated the nod to his former boss.Take about five paragraphs out of that Obama speech and it could have been a Reagan speech. Trust me. I know. John Podhoretz (@jpodhoretz) July 28, 2016While they praised President Obama s speech, they all still hate him and the progressive policies he supports. Of course, these Republicans conveniently ignore that many of the policies President Obama has pursued throughout his two terms were ideas that their party once supported, especially Obamacare. But the consensus is clear. Donald Trump preaches hate and division while President Obama delivered the speech Republicans only wish their nominee would have done. Thank God the President had the grace on that stage last night to point out that Donald Trump is neither a Republican nor a conservative, Erick Erickson wrote on Thursday. I am glad that even the President is not willing to tar and feather my party with Trump, despite my party s willingness to commit political suicide. Featured Image: Pete Sousa

Mylan's EpiPen discounts are 'insufficient': Clinton spokesmanWASHINGTON (Reuters) - Mylan NV’s move on Thursday to expand discount programs for its EpiPen allergy treatment was welcome but not sufficient, a spokesman for U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton said in a statement. “Discounts for selected customers without lowering the overall price of EpiPens are insufficient, because the excessive price will likely be passed on through higher insurance premiums,” Clinton campaign spokesman Tyrone Gayle said. “Since there is no apparent justification for the price increase, Mylan should immediately lower the overall price of EpiPens.”

U.S., Canada put pipeline fight in the past with state dinnerWASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House is eager to turn the page on the years-long fight over a crude oil pipeline with Canada and celebrate its close economic and security ties with its northern neighbor, U.S. National Security Adviser Susan Rice said on Wednesday. Trade between the United States and Canada and joint efforts to curb climate change will loom large on the agenda for the meeting between President Barack Obama and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in Washington on Thursday. It will be followed by a star-studded state dinner meant to recognize the importance of the bilateral relationship, the first state dinner to honor Canada in 19 years. Trudeau’s Liberals came to power in November by ousting right-wing Conservative leader Stephen Harper, whose ties with Washington deteriorated as he hectored Obama over the Keystone XL pipeline. President Barack Obama blocked the project last year, a victory for environmentalists who had campaigned against the pipeline. The spat is in the past, Rice said. “In any bilateral relationship, there are going to be issues of difference and occasional friction,” she told Reuters in an interview. “The complexity and the breadth and the depth of the U.S-Canada relationship is such that no single issue can overshadow the totality of the relationship,” she said. Obama and Trudeau will discuss the next steps for the “Beyond the Border” initiative, a plan to speed travel and trade, Rice said. “With the longest peaceful border and $2 billion a day in trade in both directions, we have an enormous shared stake in a border that is open for business and open for travel - and safe,” Rice said. Trudeau campaigned to strengthen ties with the United States, but also promised he would pull out six fighter jets from the U.S.-led coalition against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. Rice said the White House is satisfied with steps that Trudeau took to beef up training, surveillance and other support to the coalition. “Taken as a whole, we view the Canadian stepped-up contribution to the counter-ISIL campaign as being very, very valuable and welcome,” Rice said, using an acronym for Islamic State. The White House has also watched closely as Trudeau welcomed 25,000 Syrian refugees to Canada in four months. “We’ve seen thus far that Canada is taking very seriously its responsibility to its own citizens and to our common security to be vigilant as it welcomes these new refugees,” Rice said.

Donald Trump’s Despicable Response To The Brussels Bombings Proves Him Unfit For President (VIDEO/TWEETS)A terror attack on the EU capital of Brussels in Belgium on Tuesday morning has left nearly 30 people dead, and many more injured. As the world comes together to mourn the loss, Donald Trump issued a response that makes his unfitness for the Presidency abundantly clear.As the BBC reports:Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel told a press conference scores of people had been killed or injured in the attacks at the airport and Maelbeek metro station.The Belgian government has not confirmed casualty numbers. Brussels transport officials said 15 died at Maelbeek and media have reported up to 13 dead at the airport terminal.As Republican frontrunner and a potential President-in-waiting, Donald Trump would have been expected to send his thoughts to those who lost their lives, and all those grieving the sudden and tragic loss. Instead, he took the moment to double down on his racist war against all Muslims.Do you all remember how beautiful and safe a place Brussels was. Not anymore, it is from a different world! U.S. must be vigilant and smart! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 22, 2016Trump went on to call in to Fox News to bash the besieged Belgian city too. I ve been talking about this for a long time. Brussels was a beautiful place, Trump said to Fox s Steve Doocy, Ainsley Earhardt, and Brian Kilmeade. Zero crime, and now it s a disaster city. It s a total disaster and we have to be very careful as to who we allow into this country. This is the kind of scapegoating that will no doubt fuel a rash series of hate crimes against Muslim Europeans and Muslim Americans, or anyone who appears to be a Muslim i.e. mixed race people, Sikhs, Hindus and other non-whites.Trump s biggest cheerleader, conservative columnist Ann Coulter, also failed to show the basic courtesy of expressing her respects to the dead, or their loved ones.Dozens of ppl being carted out on stretchers from Brussels airport & on CNN they're talking @ how Belgium hasn't made Muslims feel "welcome" Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) March 22, 2016Trump s closest competitor, Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, did exactly the same.We will name our enemy radical Islamic terrorism. And we will defeat it. https://t.co/Z7YTgUg3AA Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) March 22, 2016To put these comments in perspective, we should compare them to those of other world leaders and commentators.Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau issued a strong condemnation of the attacks, together with moral and practical support to the victims.I strongly condemn today's deplorable terrorist attacks in Brussels. My thoughts are with the victims as we stand with Belgium & the EU. Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) March 22, 2016#Belgium: Explosions at Brussels Airport and Maelbeek metro station. Follow instructions of Belgian @CrisiscenterBE pic.twitter.com/7j4rqxCPZp Embassy of Canada (@CanEmbBeLux) March 22, 2016The Prime Minister of Australia was also quick to come forward with a statesman-like response to the tragedy.Deeply concerned by the attacks in Brussels. Australians' thoughts, prayers & solidarity are with the people of Belgium. Malcolm Turnbull (@TurnbullMalcolm) March 22, 2016The Chief of Staff of German leader Angela Merkel also issued a stirring message on the attacks in English.All solidarity now with EU, Belgium, #Brussels! Terrorists will never win: Our European values much stronger than hate, violence, terror! Peter Altmaier (@peteraltmaier) March 22, 2016All leaders are calling for a calm and effective response to the immediate threat, solidarity in confronting the threat of terrorism in the longer term, and genuine compassion for those who have lost their lives or loved ones. The appalling behavior of the American right in the midst of this grief is a great embarrassment. If Mr. Trump cannot elevate himself to the level of statesman at a moment of crisis like this, he truly has no place near, let alone in, the White House. Featured image via Flickr/screengrab

FBI schedules 11 a.m. news conference on Florida nightclub shootingWASHINGTON (Reuters) - The FBI planned a 11:00 a.m. news conference Monday near the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, to provide updates on the investigation into last week’s shooting, the bureau said. Before the news conference, authorities planned to release transcripts of communications between police and gunman Omar Mateen during last Sunday’s the three-hour siege at the club, the FBI said in a statement. During that time, the gunman paused to call emergency 911 dispatchers and post internet messages professing support for Islamist militant groups, authorities have said.

Trump Goes Mental On Threats To North Korea, This Is His Most Dangerous One Yet (VIDEO)Donald Trump has now taken his threats to North Korea off Twitter and is making them to the public. Quite frankly, the situation is getting more terrifying as the days go on.After tweeting this morning that U.S. military solutions were locked and loaded, Trump made some very disturbing comments when speaking to reporters this afternoon at his New Jersey golf course, where he is enjoying a 17-day vacation.When a reporter asked Trump about his ominous tweet, Trump stated that he meant exactly what he said and that his words are very, very easy to understand. Trump also said that the Trump administration would be very, very successful in acting swiftly on North Korea, right before directly attacking North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Trump said: And if he utters one threat in the form of an overt threat, which, by the way, he has been uttering for years, and his family has been uttering for years, or if he does anything with respect to Guam or any place else that s an American territory or an American ally, he will truly regret it, and he will regret it fast. This all began when Trump threatened North Korea with fire and fury on Tuesday, and now we re here. Trump is leading America down a dangerous road, and he barely understands the consequences that will follow. He carelessly speaks through his insecurities and fragile ego and shows no concern for how irresponsible his comments actually are. Trump is more concerned with looking like a tough leader (and like a dictator) than he is with improving the country and keeping peaceful working relations with the rest of the world. If this is the kind of disaster we are looking at just a few months into Trump s presidency, the world will be in shambles if he lasts four years.You can watch this disturbing Trump footage below:Featured image via Drew Angerer /Getty Images

WATCH: Louisiana Governor Tells Republicans To Stop Whining About President ObamaOnce again, Republicans are throwing a hissy fit because President Obama did not cut his vacation short to go immediately to Louisiana, but Governor John Bel Edwards put them in their place.As Louisiana deals with historic flooding that has broken records while killing 13 people and destroying tens of thousands of home, Republicans have been complaining about President Obama not dropping everything to visit the state.But during an appearance on The Rachel Maddow Show on Thursday night, Governor Bel Edwards set the record straight.As it turns out, Bel Edwards thinks President Obama s presence would be a distraction that would force the state to shift people and resources to prepare for the visit instead of remaining where they belong.First responders and emergency personnel are still involved in the rescue and recovery phase of the disaster, so pulling them away from that effort would be unwise. Therefore, Bel Edwards appreciates that President Obama did not jump on the first plane to Baton Rouge. The president is welcome anytime he wants to come, Bel Edwards said. I do want you to know, and your viewers to know, that within hours of me making a request for a federal declaration I got it from the president. He called me. I want you to know that I ve been speaking to Valerie Jarrett just about every day. He dispatched the FEMA administrator to meet with me for an entire day. Today I had the Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson. We ve also had the four-star general who runs all of the guard for the country here today. Bel Edwards said he would prefer if President Obama waited a week or two before coming to tour the flood damage and gave an example of what has to done to prepare for such a visit by pointing out how the state prepared for Vice-President Joe Biden s visit when he attended a memorial service three weeks ago for slain police officers. It is a major ordeal, they free up the interstate for him. We have to take hundreds of local first responders, police officers, sheriffs, deputies and state troopers to provide security for that type of visit. I would just as soon have those people engaged in the response rather than trying to secure the president. So I d ask him to wait, if he would, another couple weeks. Bel Edwards also noted that FEMA has been embedded in Baton Rouge since last Thursday, so President Obama and the federal government were well prepared to respond to the flooding unlike President Bush was for Hurricane Katrina, which killed 1,836 people.Rachel Maddow also pointed out that the state would have had emergency funding for this disaster had former Governor Bobby Jindal and Republican lawmakers not crippled state revenue by giving massive tax cuts to the wealthy.Here s the video via MSNBC:In short, President Obama has not ignored Louisiana s struggle. He has done everything short of visiting the state. And if he did visit, it would only do more harm then good.Donald Trump, on the other hand, visited the state and he couldn t even be bothered to cut a check to help those in need. The only help he provided was to assist in unloading play-doh from a truck instead of food or water or any other useful supply that people actually need.Meanwhile, President Obama has given Louisiana all the assistance they could possibly ask for in order to help people affected by the flooding. That s what real leadership is all about. Republicans would be well-advised to follow his example.Featured Image: Screenshot

Democrats ask White House about Trump son-in-law's potential conflictsWASHINGTON (Reuters) - Three Democratic lawmakers questioned the White House on Wednesday over its handling of U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law’s potential conflicts of interest now that he is serving as an official adviser. Jared Kushner, a real estate developer who advised Trump during the presidential campaign, was cleared by the U.S. Department of Justice in January to serve as a White House senior adviser. Kushner, who is married to Trump’s eldest daughter, Ivanka, has been given a wide range of domestic and foreign policy responsibilities, including working on a Middle East peace deal. In a letter to Deputy White House Counsel Stefan Passantino, Democratic Senators Elizabeth Warren and Tom Carper expressed concern over media reports that Kushner is maintaining some business interests, and asked how the White House plans to comply with laws that prohibit federal officials from profiting by government work. “Neither the White House nor Mr. Kushner’s attorneys, however, has confirmed which financial assets Mr. Kushner still controls,” making oversight “impossible,” they wrote with U.S. Representative Elijah Cummings, the senior Democrat on the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform in the House of Representatives. They also said the White House, unlike previous administrations, is not posting ethics-pledge waivers on its websites, adding that the public should know the issues from which Kushner must recuse himself. The White House had no immediate comment on the letter. A lawyer for Kushner, Jamie Gorelick, said in a statement: “Mr. Kushner is fully complying with the ethics rules, removing himself from active participation in his prior businesses, divesting of substantial assets and recusing himself where appropriate in light of interests that he is not divesting.” Before Trump took office on Jan. 20, Gorelick said her client would leave his family’s company, divest substantial assets and recuse himself from matters that could affect his financial interests, Bloomberg reported. Public interest journalism site ProPublica, citing documents submitted to the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, reported in February that Kushner had divested some assets but was keeping other holdings linked to privately held Kushner Companies. In authorizing Kushner’s appointment, the Justice Department ruled that Trump, as president, has special hiring authority that exempts White House positions from laws barring the president from naming a relative to lead a federal agency. The Democratic lawmakers called on the White House for details on what holdings Kushner maintains, a list of issues he will recuse himself from, and copies of any ethics waivers. They also raised questions about holdings belonging to his wife, who established a clothing and jewelry line, and whether that would lead Kushner to recuse himself from any issues. Trump himself has said he would maintain ownership of his global business empire but would hand off control to his two oldest sons while president.

Amnesty says China detains 30 relatives of exiled Uighur leaderBEIJING (Reuters) - Authorities in China s far western region of Xinjiang have in recent months detained up to 30 relatives of an exiled ethnic Uighur leader, Rebiya Kadeer, rights group Amnesty International said on Tuesday. It was not possible to independently verify the report. Xinjiang, where hundreds have died in recent years in violence between majority Han Chinese and ethnic Uighurs who call Xinjiang home, is under tight security and independent reporting there is difficult. Uighurs are a mostly Muslim people who speak a Turkic language. A Xinjiang government news department official declined to comment, saying she was unaware of the report. China s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Kadeer is a former political prisoner in China accused of leaking state secrets in 1999. She was later allowed to leave on medical grounds and lives in the United States. She is president of the World Uyghur Congress. Amnesty said that among those detained were Kadeer s sisters, brothers, sons, grandchildren and extended relatives. Some of her relatives have been detained or jailed previously in Xinjiang. The rights group said in an emailed statement that it was unclear when they were taken away, and that they were presumed to be held at a so-called education center and risked torture. These facilities are known to arbitrarily detain Uighurs and other Muslim minorities for 6-12 months or more, it said. Forced to study Chinese laws and policies, many of those detained are targeted because they may have been found praying, owning religious books, have traveled abroad, or have family members living abroad, it said. The Chinese government routinely denies accusations of rights abuses in Xinjiang, though it has admitted a problem with torture of detainees and has pledged to stop mistreatment of prisoners. Xinjiang, on the borders of Central Asia, Afghanistan and Pakistan, is one of China s most sensitive domestic issues and where China says it faces its own war on radical Islam and militancy. Rights groups and Uighur exiles say the unrest is more a product of Uighur frustration at Chinese controls on their culture and religion. China denies any repression.

Exclusive: Iraq holding 1,400 foreign wives, children of suspected Islamic State fightersSOUTH OF MOSUL, Iraq (Reuters) - Iraqi authorities are holding 1,400 foreign wives and children of suspected Islamic State fighters after government forces expelled the jihadist group from one of its last remaining strongholds in Iraq, security and aid officials said. Most came from Turkey. Many others were from former Soviet states, such as Tajikistan, Azerbaijan and Russia, Iraqi army and intelligence officers said. Other Asians and a very few French and Germans were also among them. The wives and children are being held at an Iraqi camp south of Mosul. Most had arrived since Aug. 30, when Iraqi troops drove Islamic State out of Mosul. One intelligence officer said that they were still in verifying their nationalities with their home countries, since many of the women no longer had their original documents. It is the largest group of foreigners linked to Islamic State to be held by Iraqi forces since they began driving the militants from Mosul and other areas in northern Iraq last year, an aid official said. Thousands of foreigners have been fighting for Islamic State, or Daesh, in Iraq and Syria. We are holding the Daesh families under tight security measures and waiting for government orders on how to deal with them, said Army Colonel Ahmed al-Taie from Mosul s Nineveh operation command. We treat them well. They are families of tough criminals who killed innocents in cold blood, but when we interrogated them we discovered that almost all of them were mislead by a vicious Daesh propaganda, he said. Reuters reporters saw hundreds of the women and children sitting on mattresses crawling with bugs in tents without air-conditioning in what aid workers called a militarized site . Turkish, French and Russian were among the languages spoken. I want to go back (to France) but don t know how, said a French-speaking veiled woman of Chechen origin who said she had lived in Paris before. She said she did not know what had happened to her husband, who had brought her to Iraq when he joined Islamic State. A security officer said the women and children had mostly surrendered to the Kurdish peshmerga near the northern city of Tal Afar, along with their husbands. The Kurds handed the women and children over to Iraqi forces but kept the men - all presumed to be fighters - in their custody. Many of the families had fled to Tal Afar after Iraqi troops pushed Islamic State out of Mosul. Iraqi forces retook Tal Afar, a city of predominantly ethnic Turkmen that produced some of Islamic State s senior commanders, last month. Most of its pre-war population of 200,000 have fled. An interior ministry official said Iraq wanted to negotiate with embassies the return of the women and children. We can t keep this number in our custody for a long time, he said. Officials had counted so far at least 13 nationalities, said Army Lieutenant Colonel Salah Kareem. Aid workers and the authorities are worried about tensions between Iraqis, who lost their homes and are also living in the camp, and the new arrivals. Many Iraqis want revenge for the harsh treatment they received under the extremists interpretation of Sunni Islam, which they imposed in Mosul and the other areas they seized in 2014. The families are being kept to one side (of the camp) for their own safety, an Iraqi military intelligence officer said. The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), which is supporting the 541 women and their children, said Iraq must swiftly move to clarify its future plans for these individuals . Like all those fleeing conflict, it is imperative that these individuals are able to access protection, assistance, and information, NRC said in a statement. They are in de-facto detention. Western officials are worried about radicalized fighters and their relatives coming home after the collapse of Islamic State s caliphate . French officials have indicated a preference for citizens found to be affiliated with IS to be prosecuted in Iraq. The general philosophy is that adults should go on trial in Iraq, a French diplomatic source told Reuters last month, of those found to have been fighters. We think children would benefit from judicial and social services in France. The women in the camp were cooking noodles or lying on mattresses with their babies in the hot tents. Many were still wearing the black abayas and face veils, which were mandatory in areas the militants controlled. My mother doesn t even know where I am, said a 27-year-old French woman of Algerian descent. She said she had been tricked by her husband into coming with him through Turkey into Syria and then Iraq when he joined Islamic State last year. I had just given birth to this little girl three months before, she said holding the infant and asking not to be named. He said let s go for a week s holiday in Turkey. He had already bought the plane tickets and the hotel. After four months in Mosul, she ran away from her husband to Tal Afar in February. She was hoping to make it back to France but he found her and would not let her leave. She tearfully recounted how her five-year-old son was killed in June by a rocket while playing in the streets. I don t understand why he did this to us, she said of her husband, who she said was killed fighting in Mosul. Dead or alive - I couldn t care less about him. She and a few other families had walked for days to surrender at a Kurdish peshmerga checkpoint beyond al-Ayadiyah, a town near Tal Afar where the militants made their last stand. We were getting bombed, shelled and shot at, she said. Kurdish officials said dozens of fighters surrendered after the fall of Tal Afar but gave no details. One Tal Afar resident said he had seen between 70 and 80 fighters fleeing the town in the final days of the battle.

TRUMP DOES FALLON’S TONIGHT SHOW: Talks about Hillary, Debates, Border…Great interview!

“NEVER-TRUMPER” and Weekly Standard Editor Sends Vile Tweet Mocking VP Pence…Suggests Pence Has Replaced God With President TrumpThe former Fox News contributor and editor of the Weekly Standard, Bill Kristol, took to Twitter to appease his newfound liberal friends with a disgusting tweet, mocking devout Christian and genuine conservative, Vice President Mike Pence. Ever since President Trump won the election, Kristol and his never-Trump friends have become unhinged with hate for the President and for anyone he surrounds himself with. Yesterday, Vice President Mike Pence made a surprise visit to the troops in war-torn Afghanistan to roll out President Trump s new fight to win policy.Pence addressed the troops at a Bagram Airfield hangar, telling them that before he made his trip, he asked president Trump what message he wanted to be delivered to the troops. Here is Pence s touching message to the troops from President Trump:Pence told the troops, Before I left the White House yesterday, I asked Trump if he had a message for our troops here in Afghanistan. And he looked at me and said, Tell them I love them. And he did.WATCH:Before I left the @WhiteHouse yesterday, I asked @POTUS Trump if he had a message for our troops here in Afghanistan. And he looked at me and said, Tell them I love them. pic.twitter.com/PO4F7Z5vOx Vice President Mike Pence (@VP) December 21, 2017 Never-Trumper and former frequent FOX News guest Bill Kristol mocked Vice President Mike Pence over his speech to our troops. Kristol wrote:And I, a mere humble and unworthy VP, gazed back into the kindly and understanding eyes of the great and glorious POTUS, and said, Thank you O POTUS! And thank you for letting us say once again, Merry Christmas! And I, a mere humble and unworthy VP, gazed back into the kindly and understanding eyes of the great and glorious POTUS, and said, Thank you O POTUS! And thank you for letting us say once again, Merry Christmas! https://t.co/RAQwmQk2Sq Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) December 22, 2017Little sad man, Bill Kristol, who was once respected by conservative Americans, has been reduced to retweeting glowing articles about himself published by liberal rag publications like The Slate to discuss where Republicans went awry, whether Palin abetted Trump s rise, and the costs of rationalization. NEW @IHaveToAskPod: @BillKristol talks about where Republicans went awry, whether Palin abetted Trump's rise, and the costs of rationalization. https://t.co/rEwacCUfZx Isaac Chotiner (@IChotiner) December 21, 2017

Trudeau sees no flood of Americans to Canada if Trump winsWASHINGTON (Reuters) - Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday joked that he is not expecting an influx of unhappy Americans across the border if firebrand Republican Donald Trump becomes president. As Trump’s popularity builds in the race for the Republican presidential nomination, Internet search providers have noted a spike in queries from Americans about moving to Canada. Trudeau told students on the third day of an official visit to the United States, however, that the idea of emigration by voters who feared ending up on the losing side was common during U.S. election campaigns. “If over the past decades that had been the case, we’d have more people in Canada than in the United States ... It becomes an easy thing to cry out,” he said during a discussion at Washington’s American University. Canada’s population is just over a tenth the size of that of the United States. Trudeau said Canadians and Americans continually crossed the border to live in the other country. “That’s just the nature of our friendship and relationship and to link it too much to politics is humorous ... There will always be flows back and forth and one must never fret or be disappointed with that,” he said. Migration data from after Republican George W. Bush’s 2000 election and 2004 re-election - other times when some liberal Americans pledged to move to Canada in protest – suggests few followed up on their promise. Trudeau, whose Liberals took power in Canada last November, had previously largely avoided questions about the consequences of a Trump victory, saying he will work with whomever wins. Earlier this week he said he would neither fight Trump nor support him but understood his appeal for people fed up with politics. Trudeau made his comments a day after talks at the White House that set the seal on better ties with the United States. Trudeau and President Barack Obama agreed joint steps to combat climate change and make it easier for people and goods to flow back and forth across their countries’ long border. Trump has in the past mused about tearing up the North American Free Trade Agreement, which could cripple the Canadian economy. Keeping good relations with the United States is critical for Canada, which sends 75 percent of its exports to its southern neighbor.

78 Year Study BLOWS AWAY Republican Lies About Raising WagesIt s been about seven years since minimum wage employees have gotten a raise, at least on the national level. Few workers would settle for that, but for some reason, giving minimum wage employees a boost would crash the economy or at least that s what billionaire CEOs tell us. A new study, though, proves that raising the minimum wage doesn t hurt the economy at all.When conservatives talk about the minimum wage, it s always about burger flippers and about somehow, they aren t entitled to a living wage. They also like to compare minimum wage employees to the military, who also deserves a raise, but has many of their living expenses taken care of.The whole minimum wage thing is ridiculous, you shouldn t get paid $15 an hour to flip a burger. That doesn t take much skill. Evan (@Evvaaannnn) May 5, 2016 @Allen33Devin @hannahc3rvantes if they raise minimum wage the next thing you know a burger at the same place will be like 8 bucks lol?? Joshua Jenkins (@j_j3rkins07) May 4, 2016Burger prices going up in Seattle-people will lose jobs. Supreme Court rejects challenge to Seattle minimum wage law https://t.co/b272KINMos Sue C. (@Schairvo) May 3, 2016 Drones & insect like robots are gonna replace minimum wage jobs. Putting a burger together isn t complicated Andy Cutright (@andycutright) May 1, 2016people want minimum wage to go up but these dropouts at burger king can t even understand the words ketchup only CR | FaZepod (@SpacepodPrime) May 1, 2016 Trying to get breakfast at a McDonald s AND Burger King this morning reminded me why the idea of a $15 minimum wage is an absolute joke. Dennis Beaudo (@Bodowned) April 30, 2016Minimum wage is minimum wage. A burger flipper that burns burgers should not make more than an EMT that saves lives in the back of a truck. Johnny Iceman (@TEbron35) April 26, 2016Republican politicians are slightly kinder in tone, but not much: Oftentimes when you have the federal government or others step in and start to raise minimum wage, what happens is you take away or reduce some people s opportunity to grab the bottom rung of the economic ladder to get the opportunities and the skills that you need to move up that economic ladder. Kevin Madden on CNN s State of the Union When you raise the price of employment, guess what happens? You get less of it. Why do we want to make it harder for small employers to hire people? John Boehner I think it is inflationary. I think it actually is counterproductive in many ways. You end up costing jobs from people who are at the bottom rung of the economic ladder. Paul Ryan We re telling small-business owners that not only are we going to raise their costs by a buck and a quarter, but we re also going to raise it with these cost-of-living adjustments. Here s what s going to happen: They re going to have to lay people off. Gov. Chris ChristieIt s easy to be smug and dismissive about the people who serve our fast food. Fast food isn t about people, or really even food. It s about jamming the most calories into our mouths in the shortest period of time.While food service accounts for a large portion of minimum wage workers, there are many other industries that also pay minimum wage and only about a quarter of the people making minimum wage are teenagers. Many are single white women, often single mothers. With the exception of some of the teens, every single minimum wage worker is struggling to pay their bills and Republicans reading this (and unfortunately, some Democrats) are still shrugging their shoulders. After all, the poor aren t really people, are they? Besides, cheap burgers and made in China Walmart clothes are far more important.Well, the National Employment Law Project just proved, through 78 years of research, that increasing the minimum wage does not increase prices. In fact, during that 78 year period, whenever the minimum wage was increased, employment increased 68 percent of the time.In those industries most affected by the minimum wage, employment increases were even more common: 73% of the time in the retail sector, 82% in low-wage leisure and hospitality. These basic economic indicators show no correlation between federal minimum-wage increases and lower employment levels, the authors write.In fact, if anything, the data suggest that increases in the federal minimum appeared to encourage job growth and hiring.Perhaps even more striking, of the only eight times that total or industry-specific employment declined after a minimum-wage increase, the US economy was already in recession (five times), technically just emerging from recession (twice), or about to head into recession (once).Source: Business InsiderWe would have about 11 million more jobs today if Congress had allowed a minimum wage increase when President Obama began asking for one.Featured image via Kena Betancur at Getty Images.

Venezuela's Maduro offers to help Trump fight drugsCARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, whose top political allies have been accused by Washington of dealing in illegal narcotics, on Friday offered to help U.S. President Donald Trump in fighting the drug trade. Top Venezuelan officials including Vice President Tareck El Aissami and Interior Minister Nestor Reverol have been blacklisted by the U.S. Treasury on allegations they have helped move drugs from neighboring Colombia into North America. Maduro calls those charges a smear campaign, and insists that the United States must do more to reduce drug consumption. President Trump, if you really want to fight drug trafficking that has destroyed U.S. youth and filled the country with drugs from Colombia, you have an ally in me, Maduro said in a televised broadcast. Come find out about our experience, we can join forces. He did not provide further details. Maduro has repeatedly excoriated Trump for sanctions against Venezuela, which range from restrictions on U.S. banks buying newly issued debt to barring American citizens from having any dealings with specific individuals in his government. The Trump administration slammed Maduro s decision to create an all-powerful legislature called the Constituent Assembly in August. The opposition and the international community decried that move as the consolidation of a dictatorship. Maduro, who is himself under U.S. sanction, has in the past requested meetings with Trump. The White House responded to one such entreaty this year by saying it will meet with Venezuela s president when the country returns to democracy.

Suspected Boko Haram members kill 18 people in northeast NigeriaMAIDUGURI, Nigeria (Reuters) - Suspected Boko Haram militants killed 18 people in northeast Nigeria on Friday, according to local witnesses and officials, the latest in an escalating number of lethal attacks in the region. The knife-wielding attackers, moving under cover of night, targeted people in the town of Banki, 80 miles (130 km) southeast of the city of Maiduguri in Borno state, the epicenter of the eight-year conflict with Boko Haram, said a community leader and a local member of a vigilante group. The attack on the town, which sits on the border with Cameroon, is the latest in a string of deadly Boko Haram raids and bombings that have undermined the Nigerian military s statements that the insurgency is all but defeated. The frequency of attacks in northeastern Nigeria has increased in the last few months, killing at least 172 people since June 1 before Friday s attack, according to a Reuters tally. The attack on Banki left 18 dead, according to Modu Perobe, a member of the Civilian Joint Task Force, a regional vigilante group. Abor Ali, a local ruler, confirmed the death toll. Boko Haram s eight-year insurgency has left at least 20,000 dead and sparked one of the largest humanitarian crises in the world, with tens of thousands already in famine-like conditions, according to the United Nations. Some 8.5 million people in the worst affected parts of northeast Nigeria are now in need of some form of humanitarian assistance, with 5.2 million people lacking secure access to food, the U.N. has said.

FORMER ATTORNEY GENERAL: Why Obama is Guilty of REAL Hillary Obstruction [Video]Former AG Mukasey went there during two morning show appearances today. He told Bill Hemmer he sees no crime in the Russia probe then told Maria Bartiromo of FOX Business (video below) that Obama may be guilty of obstruction in the investigation into Hillary s email: President Obama s statement that he thought she shouldn t be charged because she didn t intend to violate the law is the real Clinton obstruction because that is a statement by him that this is the way I want that investigation to come out A take on the matter, for what it s worth. Mukasey: I don t see evidence of any crime in Russia probe https://t.co/b4KNztDyLk Mister Eerie (@Psychogrotesque) June 13, 2017 Mukasey: He was introducing an element that was not in the statute to know you re violating the law and he was saying that, that was the way he wanted the investigation to end. Obviously the Justice Department picked up on that. In his testimony last week, former FBI Director James Comey said Obama Attorney General Loretta Lynch asked him to call the Hillary Clinton probe a matter, not an investigation, but Mukasey said that s not breaking the law. That s, I think, not obstruction because she s simply playing the same card the Clinton campaign is playing, Mukasey said.On Tuesday, President Trump said on Twitter that Lynch committed a crime and gave Hillary Clinton a free pass and protection. A.G. Lynch made law enforcement decisions for political purposes gave Hillary Clinton a free pass and protection. Totally illegal! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 13, 2017Meanwhile Democratic lawmaker Diane Feinstein said she wanted to open an investigation into Loretta Lynch s statement, but Mukasey said calling it a matter is just the tip of the iceberg. Then you re talking about how come the Justice Department didn t use the Grand Jury. How come they interviewed her at the end and two days later Jim Comey came out with a statement, Mukasey said, noting that the Lynch interview was not recorded. This was an un-serious investigation. FORMER AG MUKASEY DIGS INTO COMEY: DEVIOUS Former AG Michael Mukasey considers #Comey s calculated move regarding his memo extraordinarily devious ! #DrainTheDeepState @POTUS #1A pic.twitter.com/ploVQsdFzf eternal vigilance (@uspatrol) June 11, 2017WOW! To call the FBI Director devious is huge!Read more: FOX News

PRESIDENT TRUMP Just Responded Directly to #KathyGriffin on ‘Beheaded Trump’ PhotoPresident Trump just let comic Kathy Griffin know that she should be ashamed of herself for the photo holding a head resembling Trump s. He added that the photo had upset Barron, his 11-year old son. Can you imagine?Griffin posed with a beheaded Trump in a classless attempt to be edgy. TMZ published a preview of the photo shoot with a video of Griffin holding the beheaded Trump . Social media immediately exploded with negative comments from both sides of the aisle.Griffin apologized for the photo but did not apologize to President Trump. Here s her lame attempt at an apology:I am sorry. I went too far. I was wrong. pic.twitter.com/LBKvqf9xFB Kathy Griffin (@kathygriffin) May 30, 2017Griffin apologized but NOT to President Trump and his family: I m a comic. I cross the line. I move the line, then I cross it. I went way too far. The image is too disturbing. I understand how it offends people. It wasn t funny. I get it. I ask your forgiveness. In case you haven t seen the photo: Yes, it s disgusting and horrifying! Lame!

Report: Facebook’s Zuckerberg Gave FBI’s Mueller Info for Russia InvestigationThe information below is almost like a satire piece from The Onion. It s so funny that anyone could claim that ads are believed to have swayed the election.How about the fact that Clinton was a horrible candidate? How about the fact that the American people are 100% FED Up! with phony career politicians. The report from Facebook was turned over to special counsel Robert Mueller. What a joke! THIS PROVES ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!A WHOPPING $100,000 ON ADS:Facebook has turned over all information about ads likely purchased by Russian operatives to special counsel Robert Mueller, according to a report.A source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Wednesday that the social media giant had sent the former FBI director data including copies of the ads and the identity of the buyers. That report followed news that an internal Facebook investigation found it is agents of the Kremlin may have spent $100,000 on ads with divisive messages between June 2015 and May 2017.A Facebook blog post published on Wednesday said the operation involved 3,000 separate ads over a two-year period and was likely to have been run out of Russia. In addition, Facebook found 470 affiliated fake accounts and pages.PRESIDENT TRUMP IS CORRECT IT S A WITCH HUNT :Mueller is investigating Russian efforts to influence the 2016 election and whether the Trump campaign colluded with the Kremlin. The investigation has dogged and frustrated President Donald Trump, who has called it a witch hunt and a hoax. According to Facebook, about $50,000 of the funds about 2,200 ads were potentially related to affecting U.S. politics. The majority of the ads did not reference the presidential election, voting or a specific candidate. However, the ads focused on divisive social and political messages about hot-button topics including LGBT rights, race, immigration and gun rights. Facebook has shared its findings with U.S. authorities.WHAAAAT? EVIDENCE OF WHAT EXACTLY?Facebook said in April that it found evidence some groups used its platform to sway the outcome of the election.It did not specify targets or who was behind the attack, but said its own findings did not contradict a U.S. Director of National Intelligence report in January about Russian efforts to influence the election.Via: CNBC

McConnell Just ADMITTED The NRA Must Approve Next Supreme Court Justice (VIDEO)We could already make the assumption that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) was making decisions off what the lobbyists in his back pocket are telling him to do, but now it has been confirmed, and in the worst way imaginable.McConnell is literally holding up the confirmation of Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court because the NRA doesn t want him. He s keeping one of three branches of government from functioning as it should, because he wants to please the gun lobby over working for the American people.McConnell told Fox News: I can t imagine that a Republican majority in the United States Senate would want to confirm in a lame duck session a nominee opposed by the National Rifle Association, the National Federation of Independent Business that represents small businesses that have never taken a position on a Supreme Court appointment before. They re opposed to this guy. I can t imagine that a Republican majority Senate, even if it were soon to be minority, would want to confirm a judge that would move the court dramatically to the left. That s not gonna happen. This is just absolutely unacceptable, and hopefully McConnell is right. Hopefully the Republicans in the Senate will soon be the minority, and we can actually get Congress working for the people again, and not just for the lobbyists with the most money.Watch McConnell bow to the NRA here.Not @TheOnion Mitch McConnell told Fox News that the NRA must approve of the next Supreme Court justice. pic.twitter.com/3sl397RXZR Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) July 6, 2016Featured image via video screen capture

18 REPUBLICAN SENATORS (Traitors) JOINED EVERY DEMOCRAT To Pass A One O’ Clock AM Vote Giving Obama A Blank CheckTake action! CALL these 18 RINO s and ask them why they voted at 1 A.M. on Friday morning to give Obama a no-limit credit card. Let them know you ll be working to replace them in the next election! This past Friday at one o clock in the morning, 18 Senate Republicans joined all of the Democrats in voting to bust the budget caps and to completely suspend the national debt limit until March of 2017.These Republicans, led by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), surrendered to President Obama and gave him an unlimited credit card for the remaining 15 months of his term.REPUBLICAN SENATORS: Lamar Alexander (R-TN) Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) John Barrasso (R-WY) Shelley Moore-Capito (R-WV) Thad Cochran (R-MS) Susan Collins (R-ME) John Cornyn (R-TX) Lindsey Graham (R-SC) Orrin Hatch (R-UT) Mark Kirk (R-IL) John McCain (R-AZ) Mitch McConnell (R-KY) Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) Pat Roberts (R-KS) Mike Rounds (R-SD) John Thune (R-SD) Thom Tillis (R-NC) Roger Wicker (R-MS)+ Every Democrat SenatorThis debt vote is significant because it is the 20th time in the past 10 months that the new Republican majority allowed a bill to pass that was supported by a majority of Democrats and opposed by a majority of Republicans.If you didn t know otherwise, you would think the Democrats still controlled the Senate. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) was right when he said McConnell is the most effective Democratic leader in modern times. It s no surprise that a new Gallup poll found that more Republican voters now view McConnell unfavorably (35%) than view him favorably (30%). Republicans are beginning to see that he doesn t share their values.Senator McConnell has broken so many promises and betrayed the party s core principles so often that more Democrats now approve of the Republican-controlled Congress (13%) than Republicans (9%).All of this is causing many Senate Republicans to question McConnell s leadership. Rather than looking out for their political interests, he continues to pressure them to support unpopular liberal legislation.TAKE ACTIONIf you have not cast your vote of no confidence against Senator McConnell, please click here to add your name.Also, please call the 18 Republicans who voted with all of the Democrats to give President Obama an unlimited credit card for the next 15 months.Click here for a list of their phone numbers.Tell them that you re disappointed in their vote and will be working to replace them with a true conservative.It s very important that these senators see strong opposition to their debt limit vote so they will be less inclined to betray us next time. They also need to better understand the political liability McConnell is for them.Thank you for standing strong for freedom.Ken Cuccinelli II President Senate Conservatives ActionVia: Senate Conservatives Action

EP #7: Patrick Henningsen LIVE with guest Shawn Helton – ‘Top Conspiracies of 2016’ Join Patrick every Wednesday at Independent Talk 1100 KFNX and Alternate Current Radio for the very best in news, views and analysis on all top stories domestically and abroad THIS WEEK: Episode 7 Top Conspiracies of 2016 Another year and another slew of incredible stories globally. The Orlando Nightclub Mass Shooting, the Dallas Cop Shooting, the Turkish Coup, the White Helmets, the Podesta Emails and the fake news crisis, and so many more. Which ones will be remembered as the biggest conspiracies of 2016?All this and more, as host Patrick Henningsen in joined by special guest Shawn Helton, investigative journalist and Associate Editor at 21stCenturyWire.com. Listen END 1158 Download Link Download this podcast END 1364 Download Link This program broadcasts LIVE every Wednesday night from 8pm to 9pm MST, right after the Savage Nation, on Independent Talk 1100 KFNX over the terrestrial AM band across the greater Phoenix and central Arizona region, and live over global satellite and online via www.1100kfnx.com.LISTEN TO MORE INTERVIEWS AT PATRICK HENNINGSEN LIVE SHOW ARCHIVESREAD MORE CONSPIRACY NEWS AT: 21st Century Wire Conspiracy FilesSUPPORT 21WIRE SUBSCRIBE & BECOME A MEMBER @ 21WIRE.TV

Trump’s Approval Rating Makes SHOCKING Change With His Own Supporters (IMAGE)Donald Trump likes to whine about any poll that doesn t show him in a favorable light, calling the data biased or dishonest but here s one poll that he cannot ignore.A new Politico/Morning Consult poll covering numbers as recent as March 24-25 shows that Trump s approval ratings are plummeting even among his own supporters. Trump has been shown to be failing in more balance polls, which is no surprise but to see his support dwindling so quickly among Republicans is quite shocking. According to the data, Trump s ratings are now as follows: Overall, 38 percent of voters strongly disapprove of Trump, compared to only 23 percent who strongly approve. To make matters even worse for Trump, this national tracking poll had a tendency to lean pro-Trump, which made the findings far higher than a more balanced poll like Gallup s most recent data, which shows Trump s approval rating at a pathetic 38%.It appears as though Trump s disastrous failure with the American Health Care Act (Trumpcare) had an extremely negative impact on his approval rating, which fell 6% points among his own supporters. The Politico/Morning Consult poll reported: The decline in Trump s approval rating was sharper among Republicans and independents than among Democrats. In the latest survey, 81 percent of Republicans and 39 percent of independents approve of the job Trump is doing. A week prior, 85 percent of GOP voters and 44 percent approved. And among those who self-identified as Trump voters last year, the president s approval rating shrunk from 90 percent last week to 84 percent this week. However, it s not just Trump s health care debacle that is impacting his numbers so much his Russia scandal is also working against him: Twenty-nine percent of voters call Russia an enemy of the U.S., and 30 percent say it is an unfriendly nation. Only 7 percent call Russia an ally, and another 22 percent say it s friendly but not an ally. Five weeks ago, voters were divided evenly on whether Russia was friendly toward the United States. Trump was an extremely unpopular president to begin with, and he has failed to redeem or prove himself to the American people. In fact, he hasn t even tried and his supporters are catching on. They ve practically disappeared and seem ashamed to defend him after his corruption, humiliating behavior, and broken campaign promises have come to light. With numbers this pathetic, Trump and his policies don t stand a chance.Featured image via Gage Skidmore / Flickr

MAJOR Republican Celebrity Turns On Trump; Fans SHOCKED (TWEETS)It s not tough to imagine that NASCAR races have their share of Donald Trump s Make America Great Again caps. Your stereotypical NASCAR is a, as we re told by Fox News and those on the right, real American with real American values, which means no tolerance for those people from other places. A funny thing happens, though, even in NASCAR circles, nearly every American is a product of immigration so some surprising people are taking Trump s Muslim ban very seriously. NASCAR star Dale Earnhardt Jr. is one of them.Earnhardt has been at the top of his sport for years when it comes to fans. For the last 14 years, he has won most popular driver, every single year. Donald Trump is also a big favorite with the NASCAR crowd and the drivers were mostly happy with Trump s electoral victory. Still, while Earnhardt is hardly a Democratic Socialist (he is a Republican), his politics do skew a little to the left of Trump (of course, these days, Mussolini s politics skew a little to the left of Trump).In 2006, Earnhardt was the only NASCAR driver to answer a question about his support of the Confederate flag. He didn t support it. He called it racist. I guess with popularity comes the courage to drive a different direction and over the weekend, he criticized the Trump administration s Muslim ban on Twitter.Unlike Trump, Earnhardt seems to have a grasp on how our country was built on the backs of immigrants:@GelarBudidarma my fam immigrated from Germany in 1700s escaping religious persecution. America is created by immigrants. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr) January 29, 2017Reactions were mixed, but a lot more nuanced than if the message had come from someone who s considered a libtard. Some are turning their backs on Earnhardt:@DaleJr @GelarBudidarma Immigration is not what the focus is here Dale. You and I know this, this is about unvetted illegals. RIP Sr 2ndrun.tv (@2ndruntv) January 29, 2017@DaleJr @GelarBudidarma that is the stupidest thing I ve ever heard. Lol. Did they crash planes into buildings in the 1700s. Dummy. scottbu70 (@scottbu70) January 30, 2017Even more are thankful:@DaleJr Thank you Mr. Earnhardt. We need more prominent Southern voices to speak out. David V. Iannelli (@DVIannelli) January 29, 2017@DaleJr @GelarBudidarma Thank you, sir. You re a model for those who worry taking a stand might cost them something. Spencer Critchley (@scritchley) January 29, 2017@DaleJr Good on you for standing on the right side of history ? C.Mon (@ClaireeMonroe) January 29, 2017@DaleJr Thank you Mr. Earnhardt. We need more prominent Southern voices to speak out. David V. Iannelli (@DVIannelli) January 29, 2017But not without backlash:@DVIannelli @DaleJr Yeah David more people like YOU need to leave our country to make room for the jihadis. Or are U a hypocrite? Norman South (@NotesfromNorm) January 30, 2017Perhaps people like Earnhardt are the people we need to help get our country back from the fascist dictator that s currently occupying the White House. Conservatives aren t going to listen to anyone from Hollywood, but they clearly do listen to heroes in their own world. Let s hope others will join Earnhardt soon.Featured image via Jason Hanna/Getty Images.

Putin Claims To Have Transcript Of White House Meeting, Available Only At Trump’s RequestSpeaking at a press conference with visiting Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni in Sochi, Russia, Vladimir Putin has claimed that he has a transcript of Donald Trump s meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Furthermore, Putin said he would be willing to provide a copy to the U.S. Congress. The only catch is that the request would have to come from Trump himself.The Trump administration came under fire for holding a meeting with Lavrov and Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak in the Oval Office last week, a meeting that Russian media were able to attend, yet from which U.S. media were banned. The situation came to a head when it became clear that Trump had disclosed confidential details pertaining to ISIS during the session. Initially, the White House denied the scandal, only to later claim that it was wholly appropriate for the president to discuss such information with the Russians. At no time were intelligence sources or methods discussed and the President did not disclose any military operations that weren t already publicly known, Trump s national security adviser H.R. McMaster said at a press conference on Monday. The premise of that article is false that in any way the President had a conversation that was inappropriate or that resulted in any kind of lapse in national security. The Kremlin still denies that Trump shared any U.S. intelligence during the meeting, with Russian President Vladimir Putin downplaying reports as political Schizophrenia, however, Trump s comments still have not been made public. Now it seems Putin is willing to go a step further to help out. If the administration of the United States deems this possible, we will be ready to provide a transcript of the Lavrov-Trump meeting to the U.S. Senate and Congress, Putin told reporters during the press conference in Sochi, adding it will happen if the U.S. administration wishes so. Not everyone sees Putin s offer as particularly beneficial to Trump, who the FBI has now confirmed is under investigation over links to the Russians, especially U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee. Probably the last person the person [Trump] needs to vouch for him right now is Vladimir Putin, Schiff told CBS s This Morning. Sure, send it [the transcript] our way. But its credibility would be less than zero. Featured image via Lintao Zhang/Pool/Getty Images

Trump administration imposing new email security protocols for agenciesWASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Trump administration on Monday will order federal agencies to adopt common email security standards in an effort to better protect against hackers, a senior Department of Homeland Security official said. DHS Assistant Secretary for Cybersecurity Jeanette Manfra, speaking at an event in New York, said the agency would issue a binding directive to require implementation of two cyber security measures, known as DMARC and STARTTLS, intended to guard against email spoofing and phishing attacks. The new requirements are “discrete steps that have scalable, broad impact” that will improve federal government cyber security, Manfra said. DMARC, or domain-based message authentication, reporting and conformance, is a decade-old popular technical standard that helps detect and block email impersonation, such as when a hacker might try to pose as a government official or agency. STARTTLS is a form of encryption technology that protects email traveling between servers, making it more difficult for a third-party to intercept. Civilian agencies will have 90 days to implement the new security measures, Manfra said. Many agencies already use DMARC and STARTTLS but recent reviews have found the protocols are not used universally across government. Foreign governments and other hackers have pilfered millions of personal records and other sensitive data from the U.S. government in recent years. The Trump administration has made upgrading government agencies’ much-maligned network security a top cyber priority. Democratic Senator Ron Wyden, who earlier this year pushed federal agencies to adopt the security standards more widely, said in a statement the moves were “two cheap, effective ways to secure email from being intercepted or impersonated by bad guys.” He said he hoped the decision would compel private sector companies to upgrade their own email security quickly. An August report from the Global Cyber Alliance, an international non-profit, found that federal government adoption of DMARC had been rising in recent months but that less than 10 percent of domains had the protocol fully implemented. Usage of DMARC is much higher on the consumer level with 85 percent of inboxes, including those hosted by Alphabet’s Google (GOOGL.O) or Microsoft (MSFT.O), supporting the standard, according to the Global Cyber Alliance.

Lebanon's Hariri rescinds resignation, drawing line under crisisBEIRUT (Reuters) - Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri rescinded his resignation on Tuesday, drawing a line under a month-long crisis triggered when he announced from Riyadh that he was stepping down and remained outside Lebanon for weeks. His coalition government, which includes the Iran-backed Hezbollah group, reaffirmed a state policy of staying out of conflicts in Arab states. Hariri s Saudi allies accuse Hezbollah of waging war across the Middle East as agents of Iran. Hariri s shock resignation had thrust Lebanon to the forefront of the regional quarrel between Saudi Arabia and Iran, which has been played out on battlefields in Syria, Iraq and Yemen. Lebanese officials said Saudi Arabia had coerced Hariri, a long-time Saudi ally, into resigning and put him under effective house arrest until an intervention by France led to his return to Lebanon. Saudi Arabia and Hariri have denied this. President Michel Aoun, a Hezbollah ally, refused to accept his resignation while he remained abroad. Saudi concern over the influence wielded by Shi ite Muslim Iran and Hezbollah in other Arab states had been widely seen as the root cause of the crisis, which raised fears for Lebanon s economic and political stability. The Lebanese policy of dissociation was declared in 2012 to keep the deeply divided state out of regional conflicts such as the civil war in neighbouring Syria. Despite the policy, Hezbollah is heavily involved there, sending thousands of fighters to help President Bashar al-Assad. In its first meeting since Hariri s resignation, the cabinet on Tuesday reaffirmed its commitment to the policy. All (the government s) political components decide to dissociate themselves from all conflicts, disputes, wars or the internal affairs of brother Arab countries, in order to preserve Lebanon s economic and political relations, Hariri said. Lebanon, where Sunni Muslim, Shi ite, Christian and Druze groups fought a civil war from 1975-1990, has a governing system designed to share power among sectarian groups. Hariri, a wealthy Sunni businessman with long ties to the kingdom, had denounced Iran during his resignation speech and said he was outside Lebanon because he feared for his family s safety. His father, an ex-prime minister, was assassinated in 2005. In a speech during the cabinet session, Hariri warned that the tensions in the region could easily drag Lebanon down a dangerous route, and the issues which had led to the crisis could not be ignored. Developments in the region suggest a new wave of conflict ... Perhaps the conflict is nearing the end, and Lebanon cannot be plunged into chaos on the finish line. If we are rejecting interference by any state in Lebanese affairs, it cannot be that we accept that any Lebanese side interferes in the affairs of Arab states, Hariri said, an apparent reference to Hezbollah. We have to address this issue, and take a decision announcing our disassociation, in words and deeds, he said. Hariri s resignation was accompanied by a sharp escalation in Saudi statements targeting the Lebanese state, with Riyadh at one point accusing the Beirut government of declaring war against it. Western governments, including the United States, stressed their support for Hariri and Lebanon. Hariri will be in Paris on Friday for a meeting of the International Lebanon Support Group, a body that includes the five members of the U.N. Security Council - Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States. The meeting, to be opened by French President Emmanuel Macron, aims in part to put pressure on Saudi Arabia and Iran to desist from interference in Lebanon, diplomats said. (This version of the story re-inserts the word not in paragraph 13)

Betsy DeVos TOTALLY HUMILIATED During Keynote Speech At Historically Black UniversityU.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos tried to give a speech at the graduation ceremony of a historically black university, and things did not go well for her.When DeVos began to speak at Bethune-Cookman University in Daytona Beach, Florida, the students loudly booed her and turned their backs. I am honored to become a Wildcat, DeVos started out, waving her honorary doctorate in the air proudly. And then the boos started and they did not stop. If this behavior continues your degrees will be mailed to you, insisted Edison Jackson, the school s president. Choose which way you want to go. Unfortunately for DeVos, that didn t shut them up. Jackson was also booed when he tried mentioned White House communications official Omarosa Manigault. You don t know her, nor do you know her story, Jackson whined, which only prompted the crowd to boo more.The decision to have DeVos give the keynote address at the graduation ceremony has been a source of contention since the announcement was made. On Tuesday, protesters presented the school with petitions and called on leaders to cancel her speech. The petition had garnered 50,000 signatures. According to their complaints, not only has DeVos failed to support student loan borrowers, but she is also fundamentally ignorant about HBCUs.She proved this last part herself in February when she said that HBCUs were real pioneers when it comes to school choice. They saw that the system wasn t working, that there was an absence of opportunity, so they took it upon themselves to provide the solution, she said in a statement after meeting with school leaders.As a result of these obviously problematic remarks, DeVos has been accused whitewashing the history of these historically black institutions. In an attempt to save face, she later said that these schools arose out of necessity, in the face of racism. But that doesn t seem to have been enough to appease the students who just booed her.Jasmine Johnson, one of the graduating students who was not even a little impressed with DeVos presence, explained why she was so upset. For someone to come and speak at my commencement that cannot relate to me or know what I have been through is kind of like a slap in the face, she said.According to the petition against DeVos visit, asking her to speak at the commencement ceremony was an insult to the school s legacy. In addition, the NAACP Florida State Conference is calling for Jackson s resignation.You can watch DeVos get humiliated here:Featured image via video screen capture

U.S. envoy Haley's blunt diplomacy targets South Sudan, CongoJUBA, South Sudan/KITCHANGA, Democratic Republic of Congo (Reuters) - In a mountainous camp for displaced Congolese, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley wrapped her arm around an inconsolable woman who recounted being raped twice. It only makes me more passionate, it makes me more determined, Haley told a small group of reporters traveling with her during her first trip to Africa. I ll carry the voices of the women that I met and things that they said. Dispatched by President Donald Trump to Ethiopia, South Sudan and Democratic Republic of Congo, Haley s trip was one of the first tangible signs of interest in Africa by the nine-month old administration. Her challenge: how to show the United States is actively engaged in Africa, where humanitarian and political crises are often overshadowed by more urgent conflicts elsewhere and at the same time honor Trump s avowed America First policy which puts U.S. economic and national interests ahead of international commitments. As Africa struggles to win Trump s interest, U.S. policy is more likely to be increasingly focused on countering militant threats. Washington also has a financial interest at stake as it tries to cut U.N. peacekeeping costs, for which it pays more than a quarter. Trump has made a point of saying he would not impose U.S. values on others, raising concerns among activists that human rights issues could take a backseat. Nowhere is that more in focus than in Niger where a deadly ambush killed four U.S. troops who were there to assist local Nigerian forces fighting a local Islamic State affiliate this month. At the same time, Washington has mostly turned a blind eye to the increasingly authoritarian moves of Niger s former opposition leader, now president Mahamadou Issoufou, as it tries to stop the militant threat from expanding. Haley, a former governor of the U.S. state of South Carolina, was the most senior member of Trump s administration to travel to the three sub-Saharan states in a trip that showed how she balances her political skills with her nascent foreign policy and diplomacy experience. She was moved to tears after visiting displaced Congolese in Kitchanga in the conflict-ravaged east of the country. In Ethiopia s Gambella region, she kicked off her shoes and sat down on the floor to play with South Sudanese toddlers. Those kids will be 18 one day, Haley told a small group of reporters during her trip. They will be an uneducated adult with no social skills that will have resented the fact that they were put in that situation and that s dangerous for the United States and that s dangerous for the world. With U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson shying away from the spotlight, Haley has carved out a high-profile role for herself. Amid speculation about Tillerson s future Haley said that if she was offered the job: I would say no. Known for taking a blunt approach that has raised eyebrows among diplomats at the United Nations, Haley took her direct style to lengthy one-on-one conversations with the South Sudanese and Congolese leaders. I think bluntness is important, but I also expected it back and I got candid conversations back from them, she said. That was very much appreciated because we didn t want to have to sit there and deal with the political talk, we wanted to get to the realities of the situation. It s not clear yet if South Sudanese and Congolese leaders will heed her message. In Kinshasa she spoke privately with President Joseph Kabila for 90 minutes. She had said Kinshasa must hold a long-delayed election to replace Kabila by the end of next year or the vote will lose international support. But the Congolese opposition was critical of her statement there because it conceded there would be no election this year, in violation of a deal Kabila s camp signed with the opposition last December, without extracting any concessions in return. Calling for Kabila to stay in power beyond Dec. 31, 2017 is the equivalent, pure and simple, of making oneself complicit with the evil genius! opposition leader Olivier Kamitatu wrote on Twitter above a photo of Haley from her visit. In Juba, Haley met with President Salva Kiir for 45 minutes, showing him photos of refugees from her visit to Gambella. South Sudan spiraled into a civil war in 2013, just two years after gaining independence from Sudan, sparked by a feud between Kiir, an ethnic Dinka, and his former deputy Riek Machar, a Nuer. The U.S. invested heavily in the process that led to South Sudan s independence. The Trump administration has been far less engaged, let alone influential, in trying to end the war that erupted. Haley plans to meet with Trump, Vice President Mike Pence and National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster this week to discuss her trip. I ll give options and then if asked I ll give the recommendation, Haley said. (Trump) very much wants to know how everybody else feels, he very much takes all that into consideration and then he makes his decision.

Trump Suggests Banning Moderators At Debates: Matt Lauer ‘Was Tough On Me’Matt Lauer s performance as moderator of the IAVA Commander-in-Chief Forum was roundly slammed, but according to Donald Trump, the morning show host was not easy on him. So, Donald has come up with a way for the debates to treat him fairly. The GOP thin-skinned presidential nominee thinks there should be no moderators.Donald pulled the system is being gamed card. As far as the debates are concerned, the system is being gamed because everybody said that I won the debate, you know, the so-called forum that your group put on, Trump said. But they all said I won and that Matt Lauer was easy on me. Well he wasn t. He was I thought he was very professional, I have to be honest. I think he s been treated very unfairly, but they all said that I won, and what they re doing is they re gaming the system so that when I go into the debate, I m gonna get be treated very, very unfairly by the moderators. Donald added that Lauer, wasn t nice to me. He was tough on me. He gave me tough [questions]. I answered them better than she did. That must have been a different debate than the one we all watched. #LaueringTheBar quickly trended on Twitter. Lauer interrupted Hillary repeatedly while letting Donald speak without calling out the Republican candidate s lies. Meanwhile, Edward Murrow is spinning in his grave. The fact is, that they re gaming the system, and I think, maybe, we should have no moderator, Donald said. Let Hillary and I sit there and just debate because I think the system is being rigged so it s gonna be a very unfair debate, and I can see it happening right now because everyone s saying that he was soft on Trump, he continued. Well now the new person s gonna try to be really hard on Trump just to show, you know, the establishment what he can do. So I think it s very unfair what they re doing. So I think we should have a debate with no moderators just Hillary and I sitting there talking. On Monday, Trump-backing CNN contributor Jeffrey Lord echoed Donald s thoughts on banning moderators for the debates. Has anyone seen Lord and Trump in the same room together? They might be the same person. They sure sound exactly alike.If Donald is afraid of a moderator, then he wouldn t fare well in talks with a world leader.Featured image via Mark Wallheiser/Getty

German war reparations 'matter of honor' for PolandKRAKOW, Poland (Reuters) - Demanding reparations from Germany for its actions in Poland during World War Two is a matter of honor for Warsaw, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the leader of Polish ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party, said on Saturday. The issue of reparations, revived by Poland s eurosceptic PiS after decades of improving relations with Germany, could escalate tensions between the two European Union members. In September Polish parliamentary legal experts ruled that Warsaw has the right to demand reparations from Germany, although Poland s foreign minister indicated that no immediate claim would be made. The French were paid, Jews were paid, many other nations were paid for the losses they suffered during World War Two. Poles were not, Kaczynski said. It is not only about material funds. It is about our status, our honor ... And this is not theater. This is our demand, a totally serious demand, added Kaczynski, Poland s de facto leader. The PiS government, deeply distrustful of Germany, has raised calls for wartime compensation in recent months but Foreign Minister Witold Waszczykowski has said further analysis was needed before any claims were lodged. Six million Poles, including three million Polish Jews, were killed during the war, and the capital Warsaw was razed to the ground in 1944 after a failed uprising in which 200,000 civilians died.

U.S. Debt DECREASED By $68 BILLION In First Month Of Trump Presidency…Guess Who DOUBLED U.S. Debt During 8 Years In Office?Compare the US Debt burden under former President Obama that was increased by more than $320 billion after his inauguration through March 8th 2009. Here s the chart for comparison:Via: Gateway Pundit

Infamous Climate Denier Falls Apart After Bill Nye Makes Him A $20,000 Bet He Knows He’ll Lose (VIDEO)Bill Nye was this close to participating in a debate on climate change with Sarah Palin, only to find out that he wasn t invited to the panel But in a recently aired teaser for an interview with Marc Morano, the organizer of the climate denial panel, it s obvious to see why the group was terrified to let Nye on the stage with an intellectual lightweight like Sarah Palin Nye mopped the floor with Morano s tired arguments and didn t even break a sweat.In a two-and-a-half minute clip of a lengthier interview, Nye gets Morano, a man whom Media Matters named the Climate Change Misinformer of the Year in 2012, to admit that the world is warming. Then he asks the outspoken denier to put his money where his mouth and winds up demonstrating just how little confidence Morano has in his own radical position.Nye: Would you take the bet? 2016 will be among the hottest of the last 10 years and that [between] 2010 and 2020 will be the hottest decade on record?Morano: No. I would agree with both of those, but I would say it s a meaningless stat because it s tenths of a degree.Nye points out that even tenths of a degree each year means major changes in climate over the next few decades. Morano, who comes from the school of Let future generations worry about it is again stumped when Nye flips the narrative by focusing on his children and the future he is building for them. Bear in mind, your reputation in the mainstream is a guy who will do almost anything to win. Your children go to school, they have access to the internet, they see your history, what you ve said about people. Your publishing of emails. You ve even encouraged harassment. I agreed to do this interview because I think it will expose your point of view as very much in the minority, and very much not in our national interest and not in the world s interest. And as I say again, I m very concerned about your kids. Morano is known as the guy who most vehemently pushed the bogus story that climate scientists were faking data to promote the climate change agenda. He operates almost exclusively outside of reality. Last year he threw an epic temper tantrum on Fox News after learning that Google planned to tweak their search algorithm to account for factual validity because he assumed (correctly, let s be fair) that his work would be pushed to the very bottom.The full-time propagandist recently produced and hosted a new documentary called Climate Hustle which he and friend Sarah Palin have billed the right-wing s response to Al Gore s Oscar-winning An Inconvenient Truth. Morano said the film delivers a powerful presentation of dissenting science, best of all, in a humorous way. Adding: This film may change the way you think about global warming.' According to an exclusive by Variety, Palin will be participating in an event that features a screening of the film and then a panel discussion afterwards. It will be hosted by Republican Rep. Lamar Smith of Texas (another denier) and Palin who once described oil, gas, and minerals as those things that God has dumped on this part of the earth [Alaska] for mankind s use instead of us relying on unfriendly foreign nations. They re not exactly playing with a full deck.Nye has a reputation for tearing ignorant opponents to shreds during debates. He recently put on a master class during a much-publicized debate with creationist theme park owner Ken Ham, in which he not only emerged the victor, but probably even changed a few minds in a crowd of deeply religious Ham fans.Nye already seems pretty confident that despite not being invited to appear in person, his interview with Morano says it all. On Twitter, he trolled Morano after the teaser for the contentious interview between the two aired showing that Morano would not accept Nye s bet of $20,000.Climate denier (extreme doubter) won't take the bets 'cause he knows what's up re: global temperatures. https://t.co/OJfUoDPOMB Bill Nye (@BillNye) April 11, 2016It was originally reported that Nye would be in attendance at the event to square off against Palin, this unfortunately isn t true. Instead, audiences will get to listen to Palin ramble on about polar bears and drill, baby, drill with nobody there to call her on her misinformation. It is, without a doubt, a major missed opportunity.Featured image via Getty

Trump Supporter Preparing For ‘WAR’ If Hillary WinsDonald Trump set off a lot of alarm bells with his claim in the last presidential debate that he would not graciously concede the election lost unless he had been convinced that the contest was not rigged, whatever that means.Commentary from across the political spectrum pointed out that Trump s rhetoric had more in comparison with a dictatorial strongman holding on to power than the democratically elected president of the United States.And now Trump s most diehard supporters are entertaining thoughts of violence if their chosen leader fails to win the race.Jim Moseley is buying extra ammunition and stocking up on canned goods.He is a Donald Trump supporter in South Carolina, and he is preparing for war. The civil war he thinks will start if Hillary Clinton is elected president. Once the trucks stop rolling, the grocery shelves will go empty and gasoline rationing will go into effect, Moseley, who calls himself a Christian soldier, wrote in a Facebook message early this week. Liberals will have targets on their backs, as their behaviors are pretty much evident race wars will begin as well, as your skin color will be your uniform! This is bigger than just Donald Trump, as he is just the latest manifestation of the paranoid style on the right, a mindset that has pushed conspiratorial and bizarre ideas for over 50 years. It is the same mindset behind Fox News and its creation by former Nixon aide Roger Ailes, as well as right-wing talk radio and its leading hosts like Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh.At a certain point, if you keep telling your most devoted audience that someone is out to get them and they need guns and more to protect themselves and their families, they re going to believe it.Trump s decision to violate the norms of American elections are another sign that he cares more about his ego than the safety of Americans.Featured image via Flickr

VETERAN’S FAMILY ASKS TRUMP FOR HELP After He Asked VA For Help For With PTSD…VA Put Him On 6 Month Wait List…Vet Committed Suicide On 9-11-16 The demons could wait no longer. Lynne Patton is the Vice President of The Eric Trump Foundation & Senior Assistant to Eric Trump, Ivanka Trump & Donald Trump Jr. She was thrust onto the political scene after making a beautiful video denouncing Trump s critics who dared to call him a racist or bigot . She didn t ask Donald J. Trump or any of the Trump family members for their blessing she just made the video. The video went viral shortly after it was posted and has been viewed almost 4 million times. (We included the video at the bottom of the page.) Lynne has been a force in the Trump campaign ever since. She spoke at the RNC convention and has been spotted with several of the Trump children at various events across the country supporting her boss, Donald J. Trump. Lynne posted a touching and extremely important story on her Instagram account that so moved us, we decided to share it with our followers. There are not enough people speaking up about the horrendous health care our veterans have been subjected to for decades. Trump has made no secret that he is determined to fix the broken VA health care system run by incompetent, and in many cases, negligent employees of a disgusting, inept, government-run program. Lynn Patton addresses Trump s commitment to our nation and to our veterans, who deserve so much more than what we are giving back to them in this beautiful letter that she posted, after being contacted by friends who had just lost their son, a veteran who was suffering from PTSD to suicide:Sometimes people ask me if I ever regret coming forward speaking out making that video back in May. My answer is always the same: No, of course not. Or I relay to them the fact that I couldn t stay silent about the false narrative of bigotry any longer. Or quite simply, I tell people that all did was genuinely tell the truth about this great family as I know it to be. I never expected that the letter I wrote would be anything more than a personal Facebook post with a few friendly comments. Maybe even a few negative ones too. But then a very talented friend insisted on turning that letter into a video & here we are.Everything I ve ever said, posted, written, tweeted, spoken & believed about this family is 100% true. I never expected that simply being honest would result in being asked to speak in front of 24 million people at the Republican National Convention. I never expected that simply being honest would lead to tens of thousands of Twitter followers (good & bad). I never expected that simply being honest would result in being part of a movement. But I would be lying if I didn t admit that it s been a tough few months. Tough physically. Tough mentally. Tough emotionally. It s been a lot of traveling. It s been a lot of laughs. It s been a lot of tears. I ve lost a few friends (who clearly weren t true friends) and, unbeknownst to most, even some of my own family members have ceased communication. I barely see my own boyfriend anymore. A person with whom I have lived for the past 11 years. We are two ships literally passing in the night. Oftentimes, too tired & exhausted to even converse. But yesterday, I received a devastating reminder of why we do what we do. A reminder of why I don t regret speaking out coming forward sharing a very private part of my life on a very public stage.Yesterday, I received a devastating reminder of why I m honored to know & love this family. A reminder of why I walk through the doors of Trump Tower with a smile on my face each & every day. A reminder of why it s an honor to crisscross this country alongside this great man & his family in the pursuit of the greatest office in the world. In pursuit of the betterment of this country. In pursuit of a safer, stronger, more respected & prosperous America. Yesterday, I received a message that my friend s little brother had committed suicide. He was 32 years old.Normally, I would not be sharing something so personal in such an impersonal forum, but I do so at the behest & blessing of his family. Even so, it took me nearly 24 hours to find the strength to write these words. I have no idea how my friend & her incredibly brave family are even functioning, yet alone finding the strength to email me during a time of such unfathomable grief. But then they explained to me that they had no choice. They explained to me that their collective grief, frustration, fury, anger, confusion, sadness and utter betrayal compelled them to contact me. ME. On the same day they were faced with the painful task of burying their son, their brother, their uncle, cousin they reached out to me. You see, my friend s little brother was a veteran. Air Force. Handsome. Brave. Loved. My friend s little brother was a veteran who had been battling the overwhelming demons of depression & post traumatic stress disorder for several years. Alone. Without professional help. And when he finally did find the courage to seek professional help, the VA told him there was a six month waiting list. Six. Month. Waiting. List. But unfortunately, the demons could wait no longer. Instead, my friend s little brother chose to take his own life on September 11, 2016. So you see, I have no choice but to post about his death today. I have no choice but to make this tragedy political. Because it is. Plain & simple. But more importantly, I have no choice but to make his death political because his devastated family has specifically asked me to do so.In his honor. So that no other veteran is turned away during their time of need. They told me that this country now needs Trump to lead us more than ever. That this country now needs a leader who will bring respect, honor & well-deserved attention back to our military, so that these brave soldiers don t feel dejected & alone ridiculed & angry depressed & confused. That said, it is now MY honor to work for a man who will personally ensure that the VA s antiquated, lackadaisical, reckless, reprehensible and irresponsible system of care is overhauled & relaunched becomes one of his very first acts of office.There are people who have been in Washington DC for over 30 years & done absolutely nothing to fix this disgraceful system. NOTHING. Nothing at all to change this unacceptable process. One of them is running for President of the United States. So yes, yesterday, I was reminded why the choice for my boss to leave his company leave an extremely successful & comfortable existence was easy for him.Yesterday, I was reminded why the shockingly vile, hateful & abusive comments I receive on social media mean nothing to me.Yesterday, I was reminded that this election is much bigger than I am than us than you than him. That it s much more important than we could ever fathom to this country, to our veterans, to the unemployed, to the crime victims of illegal immigrants, to our police officers, to our active duty military & to the heartbroken families of the same.This election is, quite simply, a matter of life & death. And today, I, for one, am now personally determined to ensure that my friend s little brother and his 22 military peers who take their lives each & every day did not die in vain.Lynne Patton,?? #DeplorableAndProudHere is Lynne Patton s video:

DEMOCRATS AGAINST TRUMP’S WALL For Lawbreakers…But NOT Against Wall To Keep Bernie Sanders’ Fans OutDemocrats brought illegal after illegal alien on stage today during their communist convention. (We re still wondering how ICE allowed so many illegal aliens to appear on a national stage, embarrassing their entire organization). The Democrats spent no time using these lawbreaker to mock Republicans and the rule of law. They use every opportunity they can to mock Donald J. Trump and the sane Americans who believe it is vital to our national security to build a wall on our southern border.Meanwhile, the DNC has built a massive 4 mile wall around their convention. There have been no known threats of violence from tea party members or Republican operatives, so who are they trying to keep out? Well it appears they re trying to keep out the Bernie Sanders supporters from these telling photos.The party of inclusion seems to have lost its way hmmm maybe they re not quite as inclusive as they d like us to believe Police briefly detained more than 50 people after they tried to storm the barricades outside the Democratic National Convention on Monday in a show of anger over Bernie Sanders treatment by party leaders, even as he urged his supporters to fall in line behind Hillary Clinton.Several hundred Sanders supporters and other demonstrators converged in the sweltering heat on Broad Street and made their way 4 miles to the convention site as the gathering was being gaveled to order, chanting Nominate Sanders or lose in November! and Hey, hey, ho, ho, the DNC has got to go! They carried signs reading, Never Hillary, Just Go to Jail Hillary and You Lost Me at Hillary. Undocumented delegates #Berned #DNCPHL #DNCConvention #NeverHillary pic.twitter.com/m82YX35ebW Lori Hendry (@Lrihendry) July 25, 2016As tensions mounted outside the Wells Fargo Center, police moved metal fences into place and closed the nearest subway station to arriving trains. Fifty-five people were issued citations for disorderly conduct when protesters tried to climb over police barricades at the edge of the security zone surrounding the convention, police said. -Newscenter1

Russian-American lobbyist met with Trump Jr., Russian lawyer: NBC News(Reuters) - A lobbyist who was once a Soviet counter-intelligence officer participated last year in a meeting with senior aides to U.S. President Donald Trump, including his eldest son, and a Russian lawyer, NBC News reported on Friday, adding to allegations of possible connections between Moscow and the November election. NBC News, which did not identify the Russian-American lobbyist, said some U.S. officials suspected him of still having ties to Russian intelligence, something he denied to the network. The Associated Press said the lobbyist, whom it identified as Rinat Akhmetshin, confirmed that he had attended the June 2016 meeting in New York’s Trump Tower. A source familiar with the participants of the meeting confirmed to Reuters that Akhmetshin was in the room. The meeting appears to be the most tangible evidence of a connection between Trump’s election campaign and Russia, a subject that has prompted investigations by congressional committees and a federal special counsel. Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and former campaign adviser Paul Manafort were also at the meeting, which the president’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., agreed to attend because he believed he could get damaging information about Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. Trump Jr. did not mention Akhmetshin’s presence when he released a series of emails about the meeting earlier this week. Representative Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the House of Representatives Intelligence Committee, said the report about Akhmetshin “if accurate, adds another deeply disturbing fact about this secret meeting.” Akhmetshin was not available for comment on Friday. There was no answer at the door of his house in Washington. The White House had no immediate comment about the NBC News report of a Russian-American lobbyist at the meeting. Kushner’s spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and Manafort’s spokesman Jason Maloni said Manafort had no comment on the meeting. A former Trump campaign adviser, Michael Caputo, told reporters after he testified to the House Intelligence Committee in closed session on Friday that he had no contact with Russians and never heard of anyone in the campaign “talking with Russians.”   Accusations by U.S. intelligence agencies that Moscow meddled in the election and colluded with the Trump campaign have dominated the Republican president’s first months in office. Russia denies the allegations, and Trump says there was no collusion. The agencies said earlier this year that Russia sought to help Trump win the election by hacking private emails from Democratic Party officials and disseminating false information online. To help the White House deal with Russia-related investigations, Trump is hiring veteran Washington lawyer Ty Cobb, a source familiar with the matter said on Friday. Cobb’s role is separate from Trump’s outside legal team, led by New York lawyer Marc Kasowitz. Akhmetshin has been accused in federal and state courts in the United States of engaging in hacking conspiracies, although the allegations were later withdrawn, according to court records. In 2015, lawyers for the Russian mining company International Mineral Resources claimed in the U.S. District Court of the District of Columbia that Akhmetshin helped organize the hack, theft and dissemination of private documents. That case was dropped. The same company filed a lawsuit against Akhmetshin in the New York Supreme Court but withdrew it last year. U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley described Akhmetshin in a letter to the Justice Department in March as “a former member of the Russian military intelligence services (GRU)” who was working to overturn the 2012 “Magnitsky Act” of Congress, which blacklists Russians for human rights abuses. The Kremlin has often complained about the act. Congressional records show that Akhmetshin lobbied Congress last year for the Human Rights Accountability Global Initiative Foundation, a Washington-based advocacy group that says it is working to lift laws that prevent U.S. residents from adopting Russian children. Those laws were put in place by Moscow in response to the Magnitsky Act. Trump told Reuters on Wednesday that he did not know about his son’s meeting last year until recently. But in a conversation with reporters later that day, Trump said: “In fact, maybe (the meeting) was mentioned at some point,” adding that he was not told it was about Clinton. Trump Jr.’s lawyer, Alan Futerfas, said he had talked with a person who came to the meeting between Russian lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya and Trump aides. “He told me specifically he was not working for the Russian government, and in fact laughed when I asked him that question,” Futerfas told NBC News. It was not immediately clear if the person he referred to was Akhmetshin. The lawyer said Trump Jr. knew nothing about the man’s background at the time of the meeting. The Russian lawyer in the meeting, Veselnitskaya, has said she was not working for Russian authorities, but she told The Wall Street Journal in an interview on Friday that she was meeting with Russian authorities regularly. She said she shared information about a U.S.-born fund manager who lobbied for passage of the Magnitsky Act with the Russian prosecutor general’s office, including with Prosecutor General Yuri Chaika, a top official appointed by the Kremlin, the Journal said.

Soldier’s Widow Finally Speaks: ‘It Made Me Cry Even More’ — Trump Calls Her A Liar IMMEDIATELYMonday morning, things got much worse for Donald Trump and his version of what happened during the phone call he made to Myeshia Johnson, the pregnant widow of Sgt. La David Johnson, who was killed in the Nigerian ambush orchestrated by ISIS.Appearing on ABC s Good Morning America, the grieving widow confirmed the account of the Florida Representative, Frederica Wilson, who was accompanying her on her way to meet her husband s remains when Trump s call came in. Not only did she repeat exactly what Wilson had recalled, but she said it made her very upset and hurt, and made her cry even worse on what must have been the worst day of her young life.She said that she has nothing to say to President Trump.Johnson was sucked into a bitter, public dispute over the call when Wilson recounted what Trump had said as she listened on speakerphone. The timeline of events just spirals from there, with Trump, his spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders, and his Chief of Staff retired 4-Star General John F. Kelly all taking swipes at Representative Wilson in lieu of overtly calling Myeshia Johnson herself a liar.All of that changed Monday morning.After Mrs. Johnson s appearance on GMA, Trump went back to Twitter one more time. It is now impossible to view what he s saying as anything other than calling her a liar directly.I had a very respectful conversation with the widow of Sgt. La David Johnson, and spoke his name from beginning, without hesitation! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 23, 2017The spoke his name part of the tweet refers to something very specific that Johnson said in the GMA interview that the President could not remember Sgt. Johnson s name:"[Pres. Trump] couldn't remember my husband's name. That's what hurt me the most." Myeshia Johnson, widow of Sgt. La David Johnson pic.twitter.com/px5io2RbJB Good Morning America (@GMA) October 23, 2017It seems bizarre at this point that Donald Trump would continue to defend himself over his statements, but it s important to remember that the details of this terrorist ambush are still very, very unclear. If the whole affair turns out to be something akin to Benghazi the attack that killed four Americans in 2012 then public perception will play a big role in who the American public blames for every aspect what happened, including how he handled the deaths.Trump seems pretty eager to shift that blame off himself and onto literally anyone else.Even the widow of a dead soldier.Watch Myeshia Johnson s interview here:Featured image via Joe Raedle/Getty Images

France, Germany, Italy, Spain seek tax on digital giants' revenuesPARIS (Reuters) - France, Germany, Italy and Spain want digital multinationals like Amazon and Google to be taxed in Europe based on their revenues, rather than only profits as now, their finance ministers said in a joint letter. France is leading a push to clamp down on the taxation of such companies, but has found support from other countries also frustrated at the low tax they receive under current international rules. Currently such companies are often taxed on profits booked by subsidiaries in low-tax countries like Ireland even though the revenue originated from other EU countries. We should no longer accept that these companies do business in Europe while paying minimal amounts of tax to our treasuries, the four ministers wrote in a letter seen by Reuters. The letter, signed by French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire, Wolfgang Schaeuble of Germany, Pier-Carlo Padoan of Italy and Luis de Guindos, was addressed to the EU s Estonian presidency with the bloc s executive Commission in copy. They urged the Commission to come up with a solution creating an equalization tax on turnover that would bring taxation to the level of corporate tax in the country where the revenue was earned. The amounts raised would aim to reflect some of what these companies should be paying in terms of corporate tax, the ministers said in the letter, first reported on by the Financial Times. Le Maire, Schaeuble, Padoan and de Guindos of Spain said they wanted to present the issue to other EU counterparts at a Sept. 15-16 meeting in Tallinn. The EU s current Estonian presidency has scheduled a discussion at the meeting about the concept of permanent establishment , with the aim of making it possible to tax firms where they create value, not only where they have their tax residence. France has stepped up pressure for EU tax rules after facing legal setbacks trying to obtain payments for taxes on activities in the country. A French court ruled in July French court ruled that Google, now part of Alphabet Inc, was not liable to pay 1.1 billion euros ($1.3 billion) in back taxes because it had no permanent establishment in France and ran its operations there from Ireland.

Trump Campaign Manager Was In Debt To Shady Russian Interests, Obviously CompromisedRecently, there have been an avalanche of revelations regarding just how close Donald Trump s 2016 presidential campaign was to Russia. In the past couple of weeks, that story has centered on Donald Trump, Jr. and his meeting with a bunch of Russians in Trump Tower in an effort to get dirt on Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton. Now, however, we turn our attentions more closely to another person who was in that meeting: Former Trump Campaign Manager Paul Manafort.According to the New York Times, Manafort could have been compromised by the Russians due to an amazing amount of money he owed them to the tune of $17 million. This information comes via financial documents from Cyprus, a place for rich people to hide lots of money to avoid paying American taxes. According to those records which have been verified Manafort came by this debt when he was working for pro-Putin entities in Ukraine. He was apparently using shell companies to conduct business over there. Said companies owe Russian oligarchs a bunch of money, and they also owed said money during the time when Manafort was running Trump s campaign. The New York Times explains:The records, which include details for numerous loans, were certified as accurate by an accounting firm as of December 2015, several months before Mr. Manafort joined the Trump campaign, and were filed with Cyprus government authorities in 2016. The notion of indebtedness on the part of Mr. Manafort also aligns with assertions made in a court complaint filed in Virginia in 2015 by the Russian oligarch, Oleg V. Deripaska, who claimed Mr. Manafort and his partners owed him $19 million related to a failed investment in a Ukrainian cable television business.In other words, Paul Manafort is in deep sh*t with a some really dangerous Russians, and he was in that same kind of trouble while he was running an American presidential campaign. This revelation is just another in a long and complex line of Trump associates who somehow have ties to very dangerous Russians some of which reach all the way up to the Kremlin and even Vladimir Putin himself.Make no mistake, folks we have Russian agents in the White House. The Russians helped hand Donald Trump the presidency so that they could compromise him and those around him. It s dangerous for the nation and for the world, and we must make sure to elect a Congress in 2018 that will be a check on this corrupt administration full of Russian stooges.Featured image via Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

‘Harry Potter’ Star Compares Donald Trump To Voldemort And It’s PERFECT (VIDEO)Donald Trump has frequently been compared to authoritarian leaders, but this recent comparison by Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe is just the thing we need to hear after Trump s horrendous performance on Monday night s presidential debate.Radcliffe happens to know a lot about evil leaders, having become an expert on them in Harry Potter. Especially after spending a lot of time with the film s own Lord Voldemort, the villain who is hellbent on putting non-magical humans in servitude forever. Hmm that sounds an awful lot like a horrible time period in American history that Donald Trump would like to return this country to In an interview with the U.K. s Sky News, Radcliffe actually compared Trump to Voldemort, stating that the Republican nominee has a lot in common with the Dark Lord however, there are also big differences. And as a matter of fact, that s actually a BAD thing for Trump. It turns out, Radcliffe thinks that Trump is worse than Voldemort. The actor said: I sort of think Donald Trump might not be as ideologically pure as Voldemort. My thing on Trump is that he feels like more of an opportunist, like I don t know how much of this stuff he s saying he actually really, really believes. Radcliffe also called out Trump s racism, stating that Trump is an opportunist that uses his divisive rhetoric to gain power. You can watch the interview below:Daniel Radcliffe has revealed why Donald Trump and Voldemort aren t so similar to @SkyCinema s Craig Dillon https://t.co/xiUe9BPc40 Sky News (@SkyNews) September 27, 2016Hilariously, this isn t the first time that Trump has been compared to a fictional villain. It turns out that Trump is almost a dead ringer for Immortan Joe from Mad Max: Fury Road! I mean, these two could really be the same guy:TwitterFeatured image via Joe Raedle and Harry Potter

Exclusive: Kenyan Supreme Court judges denied extra security after shooting - sourceNAIROBI (Reuters) - Kenya s government denied a request by Supreme Court judges for extra security after one of their bodyguards was shot, preventing them from holding a hearing that could have delayed last week s presidential election, a senior judicial source said on Tuesday. The court has been center stage since it annulled an Aug. 8 vote won by President Uhuru Kenyatta, citing procedural irregularities and ordering a repeat vote within 60 days. The decision was the first of its kind in Africa, where governments often hold sway over judges. It angered some of Kenyatta s supporters, who said the judges had thwarted the will of the people. Kenyatta won 98 percent of the vote in the Oct. 26 re-run after opposition leader Raila Odinga boycotted it on the grounds it would not be fair because the election board had failed to implement reforms he sought after the court decision. The Supreme Court had been due to meet on Oct. 25 to deliberate on an eleventh-hour request to delay the re-run. But the day before, the bodyguard of its deputy chief justice was shot as he bought pot plants beside a highway. Only Chief Justice David Maraga turned up for the Oct. 25 hearing. Without a minimum quorum of five judges, Maraga said the court could not make a ruling on the petition, paving the way for the election re-run to go ahead. Asked about the request by the judges, Interior ministry spokesman Mwenda Njoka said security for all judges was enhanced in the wake of the shooting. If anybody is telling you to the contrary, they are not telling the truth, he told Reuters. The government said the bodyguard s shooting was a robbery rather than an attempt to intimidate the judges, whom Kenyatta had branded as crooks after they voided the August election. Treating the shooting as a regular crime angered the judges, who demanded they get extra security, the judicial source said. In Kenya, ordinary criminals don t attack government vehicles driven by armed government agents who know how to shoot, the source said. The justices demanded that their security should be publicly guaranteed given the tensions over the election or else they would refuse to attend hearings, the source said. At least 55 people have died in political violence since the August vote. The European Union monitoring mission raised the issue of intimidation after the Supreme Court hearing failed to go ahead on Oct. 25, saying it was vital that judges be allowed to work in freedom and safety . The lack of a quorum is highly unusual for a Supreme Court hearing and has raised serious questions among Kenyan stakeholders, including about possible political interference, it said in a statement that day.

Kerry hails Mongolia as 'oasis of democracy' in tough neighborhoodULAANBAATAR (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry hailed Mongolia as an “oasis of democracy” sitting in a tough location between Russia and China as he made a rare visit by a cabinet-level U.S. official on Sunday. Arriving from Paris, Kerry made the visit to Mongolia en route to Beijing to attend the eighth Strategic and Economic Dialogue, the high-level talks held between the United States and China each year. The Obama administration has sought to cultivate Mongolia as a partner, given its location between two increasingly assertive U.S. rivals – China and Russia, countries Mongolia relies on heavily for trade and energy imports. U.S. officials regularly tout Mongolia, a country of three million people, as an inspirational story of democratic transition since winning independence from the Soviet Union a quarter-century ago. “You really set a great example,” Kerry told Mongolian and American embassy staff at the U.S. ambassador’s residence. “You’ve got China on one side of you, and Russia on the other side of you, and there are always a lot of pressures, and here you are in this oasis of democracy fighting for your own identity.” But Mongolia’s democratic and human rights records have come under scrutiny. The 2015 State Department report on human rights in Mongolia noted “vague laws and a lack of transparency in legislative, executive, and judicial processes” that “undermined government efficiency and public confidence and invited corruption.” Parliamentary elections are to be held this month, and democracy advocates have criticized a rule change by parliament last month that is expected to disadvantage smaller parties. The lack of transparency in business regulations has hampered foreign investment, officials say, badly needed in an economy where growth has all but halted, far from a peak of 17.5 percent in 2011. Falling prices for its chief exports, coal and copper, and weak demand from China, by far Mongolia’s biggest trading partner, are behind the slowdown. Kerry said it was important the Mongolian government implement a transparency agreement with the United States, which would provide greater business confidence to foreign investors. The Mongolian and U.S. governments signed the agreement in 2013 after years of negotiations but its final implementation has been mired in red tape. The agreement would commit Mongolia to publish in English an explanation for proposed regulations, and allow for public comments on those regulations, among other measures. “The implementation of this agreement is really key, a very important step to be able to attract foreign direct investment,” Kerry said.

LOL! ONE WORD THAT DESCRIBES HILLARY Perfectly Appears Behind Her At Rally…She’s Not Going To Like It!Most sane Americans are gonna love it!h/t Weasel Zippers

GOP Rep. Makes IMPOSSIBLY Asinine Demand Of FBI, Proving How Desperate GOP Is To Nab HillaryAfter eleventy billion investigations into Hillary Clinton, her handling of Benghazi, and the whole brouhaha over her emails, the GOP is getting desperate. The FBI has been giving emails to the House Oversight Committee, and one Republican congressman is very unhappy about the way they re doing it.He wants to know just one simple thing why do the FBI s document releases coincide with federal holidays?Yes, that s an actual, official question that Rep. Michael Turner (R-OH) asked FBI director James Comey about how they re releasing information: Please explain how the FBI s procedures for processing documents and information to the public coincide with these Federal holidays, and how those procedures could be improved to ensure greater public awareness, and reduce the appearance of political motivations. The FBI told the House that it would release information and documents as they became available, no matter the day of the week. They had to know that could include weekends and holidays. Some information was released over the Independence Day weekend (but not Independence Day itself), and more was released over the Labor Day weekend (but not Labor Day itself). Coincidence, yes, but intentional? Turner needs a lot more than that to accuse the FBI of playing politics.There are no words for how laughably nonsensical this is.Really, Turner s attempt to make this look like a political ploy on the part of the FBI is, in fact, a political ploy on his part, carried out on behalf of the Republicans who are terrified of Hillary.When the FBI decided not to press charges against Hillary for mishandling classified info, the House decided to open a new investigation into whether she lied under oath. Anything to prove that she s a criminal in presidential clothing. They also pushed to re-open the investigation into her private server recently, and there s a huge push to investigate whether there were improper dealings between the Clinton Foundation and the Department of State.If they have a legitimate case, they should pursue it in a legitimate manner. Posing this kind of a question to the FBI just shows that they re more scared of Hillary than they re trying to let on.Featured image by Alex Wong/Getty Images

Major Newspaper Breaks 100 Year Tradition With 2016 EndorsementThe Cincinnati Enquirer has endorsed Republicans for president for nearly a century but Donald Trump forced the paper to break the streak..Despite having reservations about Hillary Clinton, the longtime newspaper could not justify supporting the Republican nominee this time around. Trump, despite all of his bluster about wanting to make America great again, has exploited and expanded our internal divisions, the Enquirer noted.The Enquirer has supported Republicans for president for almost a century a tradition this editorial board doesn t take lightly. But this is not a traditional race, and these are not traditional times. Our country needs calm, thoughtful leadership to deal with the challenges we face at home and abroad. We need a leader who will bring out the best in all Americans, not the worst.That s why there is only one choice when we elect a president in November: Hillary Clinton.The Enquirer pointed out that Clinton has worked on both sides of the aisle to craft bipartisan legislation and has the experience necessary to be a good president in both domestic and foreign affairs. Furthermore, the Enquirer appreciates that her campaign is inclusive, noting that she has fought for LGBT rights and supports income equality for women.Trump, however, only represents national ruin and embarrassment.Trump is a clear and present danger to our country. He has no history of governance that should engender any confidence from voters. Trump has no foreign policy experience, and the fact that he doesn t recognize it instead insisting that, I know more about ISIS than the generals do is even more troubling. His wild threats to blow Iranian ships out of the water if they make rude gestures at U.S. ships is just the type of reckless, cowboy diplomacy Americans should fear from a Trump presidency. Clinton has been criticized as being hawkish but has shown a measured approach to the world s problems. Do we really want someone in charge of our military and nuclear codes who has an impulse control problem? The fact that so many top military and national security officials are not supporting Trump speaks volumes.The Enquirer also noted that Trump is aligned with white supremacists and has filed bankruptcy multiple times, which defeats the notion that he is a successful businessman.In the end, there is only one real choice for president in 2016, and the Enquirer bucked a 100 year tradition and picked Hillary Clinton.In these uncertain times, America needs a brave leader, not bravado. Real solutions, not paper-thin promises. A clear eye toward the future, not a cynical appeal to the good old days.Hillary Clinton has her faults, certainly, but she has spent a lifetime working to improve the lives of Americans both inside and outside of Washington. It s time to elect the first female U.S. president not because she s a woman, but because she s hands-down the most qualified choice.This endorsement is particularly important because Ohio is a swing state that will likely be a close call this November. A newspaper endorsement like this one could help many voters make up their minds and could even change enough minds to make a difference. The fact that this newspaper endorsed a Democratic nominee for the first time in about a century is, in the words of Joe Biden, a big f*cking deal. Featured image via Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

FDA fees for product review would more than double under Trump budgetNEW YORK (Reuters) - The cost to healthcare companies for U.S. regulatory review of their products, including drugs and medical devices, would more than double under the Trump administration’s proposed 2018 budget. For 2018, the Trump administration has budgeted over $2 billion in fees to be collected by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration from industry, twice as much as in 2017, according to budget documents released on Thursday. Citing a constrained budget environment, the proposed budget said industries that benefit from the FDA’s approval “can and should pay for their share.” In return, the budget said it also offered measures that would help speed up the approval process for new drugs and other products. The FDA has been criticized by lawmakers for not being quick enough at approving drugs, and President Donald Trump told Congress earlier this year that he aimed to speed up the approval of drugs. The FDA has been charging companies to review their products since 1992. Most of the user fees collected are for prescription drugs - around $866 million estimated in 2017 - and generic drugs - around $324 million, according to the FDA website. The FDA’s 2017 budget was $5.1 billion, the website said. The budget does not say if the fee increases would be evenly spread or directed in a particular area. The budget did not provide specifics on what measures to speed up approvals might include.

The World To Trump: F*ck Off, You Did Not ‘Inherit A Mess’ From Obama (VIDEO)With the White House plagued with scandals, Donald Trump has repeatedly blamed the dishonest media for not giving him proper credit after he inherited a mess from former President Barack Obama.We have some bad news for Mr. Trump. The world strongly disagrees with him. Trump has been in office for only 168 days and yet he has already had a major impact on how the world sees the United States.MSNBC s Chris Matthews highlighted a new Pew Research Center poll which shows that Trump and many of his key policies are broadly unpopular around the globe, and ratings for the U.S. have declined steeply in many nations.Trump is wildly unpopular worldwide while Obama s popularity soars above the former reality show star s ratings. 37 nations were included in the poll, showing that a median of just 22% has confidence in Trump to do the right thing when it comes to international affairs. In contrast to the final years of Barack Obama s presidency, a median of 64% expressed confidence in Trump s predecessor to direct America s role in the world.Watch: This highlights why Trump has exhibited so much jealousy toward his popular predecessor. Trump will never be respected like Obama was and is. Trump s jealously toward Obama was displayed long before he took the oath of office. Obama would never bash the U.S. media and intelligence agencies while on foreign soil. In fact, he never did that in the U.S., but Trump does and did. Obama retaliated against Russia s meddling in our 2016 presidential election by ordering 35 Russian diplomats to leave the country. Obama imposed sanctions against the foreign hostile government, while Trump s administration would like to lift them.The former reality show star is fake news and that can be seen daily in his Twitter timeline but he is good at projection.By the way, Trump is not expected to confront Russian leader Vladimir Putin today at the G20 summit meeting about his country s interference in our presidential election.Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images.

French union rank and file urge their bosses to put pressure on MacronPARIS (Reuters) - Rank and file members of France s biggest union, the CFDT, urged their leaders on Tuesday to take a tougher stand against President Emmanuel Macron s reform agenda. At a convention bringing some 10,000 CFDT members together in Paris, executives came under fire for snubbing protest calls from the Communist-rooted CGT against a labor law overhaul last month, the first major reform of Macron s five-year term. Your words are too soft ... we really need a much harder position, CFDT union official Pascale Meunier from telecoms group Orange told members of the union s executive committee during a debate. The revolt is a new sign that some grassroot union members are worried Macron s government is running roughshod over unions. On Friday, delegates from the Force Ouvriere (FO) union voted in favor of pushing for a harder line. The CGT, which fell behind the CFDT earlier this year as France s biggest union, was the only major union to hold protests against the labor reform though some FO and CFDT union members joined the demonstrations. The absence of FO, France s third-biggest union, disappointed many of its members as it had marched with CGT in 2016 against a labor reform by the previous government. Norbert Raffolt, a CFDT official with the union s metal-working branch, accused the union s leadership of turning a deaf ear to calls for a tougher line. Today you can hear it in the room. The rank and file is saying we ve got to move it, we ve to give a different answer , Raffolt said. CFDT head Laurent Berger responded by saying street protests risked being seen as old-fashioned by the broader public and he urged members to push back against the implementation of the reform at their workplaces. I understand and even sometimes share the legitimate desire of some of you to put shoes on and express your frustration, Berger said a speech closing the convention. But let s not give the government arguments to cast us into the annals of history, he added. Even if unions step up pressure on Macron s government, at this point there is little that they can do against the labor reform as he signed the decrees underpinning it last month. However, a tougher tone from the unions could make life difficult for the government as it seeks to launch talks on revamping unemployment insurance and professional training in the coming months, followed by the retirement system next year. Union leaders are due to meet individually with Macron starting Oct. 12 about the upcoming reforms.

Trump Declares That He Unanimously ‘WON’ The Third Debate And The Internet LAUGHS At HimGrab your popcorn and sit down because Trump just posted a tweet that proves how delusional he really is.It s been two days since the third presidential debate, and Donald Trump s campaign continues to roll downhill in flames like a rickety gasoline-soaked wagon on fire.But Donald Trump, in yet another lie to his supporters, actually claimed on Twitter that he won the debate by a unanimous decision. The results are in on the final debate and it is almost unanimous, I WON! Trump wrote. Thank you, these are very exciting times. The results are in on the final debate and it is almost unanimous, I WON! Thank you, these are very exciting times. Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 21, 2016Apparently, Donald Trump is confused about what winning actually looks like.Because not only did most reaction polls indicate that Hillary Clinton won the debate, the scientific polls indicate she won as well.A CBS News poll found that 49 percent of debate watchers surveyed said Clinton won, which is 10 points higher than the 39 percent who say Trump won.Similarly, Clinton was declared the winner 46 percent to 37 percent of those surveyed by an NBC News/SurveyMonkey poll.Also, the CNN/ORC poll found that Clinton won the debate as well, with 52 percent saying Hillary won versus only 39 percent who said Trump won.And that s not all. Hillary also beat the hell out of Trump in a POLITICO/Morning Consult poll by 17 points, 43 percent to 26 percent.In other words, Trump LOST the debate on Wednesday night in Las Vegas just as he lost the first two.Twitter users certainly think Trump s declaration of victory is a joke. Because they mocked him mercilessly after he posted it.@realDonaldTrump HAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHHAH(deep breath)HAHAHAHHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHHAHHASo sad. But so funny. JordanHeath-Rawlings (@TheGameSheet) October 21, 2016.@realDonaldTrump So wait, is every poll saying you won or is the media biased? PICK A LANE PUSSY GRABBER! Ethan Lawrence (@EthanDLawrence) October 21, 2016I want some of whatever you re smoking. In the real world, the exact opposite is true.@realDonaldTrump https://t.co/k1Gucas64r Charles Johnson (@Green_Footballs) October 21, 2016.@realDonaldTrump You know this kind of tweet increases the credibility of fraud charges against you for Trump University, right? Lawrence O Donnell (@Lawrence) October 21, 2016@realDonaldTrump You did horrible in the final debate m a r y (@_MaryAli) October 21, 2016@_MaryAli @realDonaldTrump He did horrible in all three debates. Jeannie See (@JeannieSee) October 21, 2016.@realDonaldTrump Delete your account. Ryan Sager (@ryansager) October 21, 2016@realDonaldTrump u need to find a dictionary to check the meaning of unanimous Xain Gardezi (@XainGardezi) October 21, 2016@realDonaldTrump Did you actually *watch* the debate? Stefan Hechl (@StefanHechl) October 21, 2016@realDonaldTrump https://t.co/XAIbT9wVqO you sure about that!? Graham Love (@GLove39) October 21, 2016@realDonaldTrump OMG LOL Craig Scott (@TorbayToday) October 21, 2016@realDonaldTrump / HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! alonso arias (@lonchoarias) October 21, 2016@realDonaldTrump Yes, you did win. Second place. Congratulations! Be sure to collect your participation trophy, demented old man! Vaughan (@rvaughanw) October 21, 2016Can you imagine if Donald Trump declares himself the winner on Election Day after the popular and electoral vote reveal that Hillary won? Because while it s funny to watch Trump call himself the winner of a debate, it won t be very funny if he does the same thing on November 8th even though all of the results clearly show that he is wrong.Featured Image: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

China probes former vice-chief of securities regulator for graftSHANGHAI (Reuters) - A former vice-chairman of China s securities regulator, Yao Gang, is being investigated for taking bribes, the official China Daily said, citing the prosecutors office. Yao was one of the most senior figures arrested in a crackdown on suspected stock manipulation in late 2015, after the mid-year collapse of the Chinese stock market following a long bull run. Yao was subject to coercive measures, which can range from summons and surveillance to detention and arrest, among other actions, the Supreme People s Procuratorate said, without specifying which he faced, the newspaper said on Thursday. In July, China s graft watchdog said Yao would be prosecuted for offences that included taking bribes and destroying the order of capital markets . Yao, 55, was the general manager of Guotai Junan Securities in 1999 before taking a position with the China Securities Regulatory Commission in 2002, the paper said. At the CSRC, he was known as the King of IPOs , overseeing initial public offerings on the Chinese mainland for 13 years, it added.

Factbox: Women who have alleged inappropriate conduct by Trump(Reuters) - Several women have accused U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump of sexual advances and groping. Among his accusers are a Miss Utah beauty pageant winner, a businesswoman, a reporter and a receptionist. He has denied the accusations. In a 2005 video that emerged on Oct. 7, Trump boasted about grabbing women by the genitals and kissing them without their consent. In a U.S. presidential debate on Oct. 9, he said he was embarrassed by what he called locker-room talk but had not engaged in the conduct he described in the video. Trump has called “absolutely false” allegations by several women of groping and other misconduct, reported by The New York Times and other media. He has called the women “sick,” and at Wednesday night’s final presidential debate, he alleged that the women were either controlled by Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton’s campaign or seeking “their 10 minutes of fame.” Following are some of the allegations against Trump: Jill Harth Houraney, a former Trump beauty pageant business associate, filed a $125 million lawsuit in 1997 against Trump alleging that on Jan. 24, 1993, at Trump’s Florida estate, Mar-a-Lago, Trump “forcibly removed plaintiff to a bedroom, whereupon defendant subjected plaintiff to defendant’s unwanted sexual advances.” A Trump representative was quoted on Oct. 7 in The New York Times as saying, “Mr. Trump denies each and every statement made by Ms. Harth.” The lawsuit was dropped in May 1997. Temple Taggart McDowell, a former Miss Utah, was quoted by The New York Times in a report published on May 15 as saying that Trump “kissed me directly on the lips” when the two were introduced in 1997, when she was 21. Taggart told the Times, “I thought, ‘Oh my God, gross.’” The Times story said Trump disputed the report and added that Trump said “he is reluctant to kiss strangers on the lips.” Jessica Leeds, 74, recounted in an video interview posted on The New York Times website on Oct. 12 that Trump grabbed her breasts and tried to put his hand up her skirt on a flight to New York in or around 1980 when she was a 38-year-old traveling businesswoman. In a tweet and in a later speech on Oct. 13, Trump called the Times story a total fabrication. Rachel Crooks, formerly a receptionist at a real estate firm, told The New York Times in a report published on Oct. 12 that Trump “kissed me directly on the mouth” in 2005 at Trump Tower in Manhattan when she was 22. In a tweet and in a later speech on Oct. 13, Trump called the Times story a total fabrication. Natasha Stoynoff, a reporter, wrote a first-person account that described Trump kissing her without her consent in December 2005 at Trump’s Florida home, Mar-a-Lago, while she was working on an article about him and his third wife, Melania, for People magazine. In the account published by People on Oct. 12, Stoynoff said “he was pushing me against the wall and forcing his tongue down my throat.” In a tweet and in a later speech on Oct. 13, Trump said the episode described did not happen. Mindy McGillivray was cited in an article published in The Palm Beach Post on Oct. 12 that while she was a 23-year-old photographer’s assistant at a Jan. 24, 2003, event at Mar-a-Lago, Trump had grabbed her buttocks. The Palm Beach Post cited a Trump spokesperson as saying, “This allegation lacks any merit or veracity.” Summer Zervos, who was a contestant on Trump’s reality TV show “The Apprentice” in 2006, said at a news conference on Oct. 14 in Las Vegas that Trump tried to get her to lie down on a bed with him when she met him in 2007 to discuss a possible job. Zervos said she complied with a request to sit next to Trump, and, “He then grabbed my shoulder and began kissing me very aggressively and placed his hand on my breast.” Trump at a rally in North Carolina this month denounced the allegations made by a series of women, calling them fabrications. Kristin Anderson, in a video posted on the website of The Washington Post on Oct. 14, said Trump put his hand up her skirt in a crowded New York nightclub in the early 1990s in an unwanted advance, when she had never even met him. “He did touch my vagina through my underwear, absolutely,” Anderson said in the video interview. Trump’s campaign did not respond to requests for comments on the allegations at the time they were made public. Yoga instructor Karena Virginia, at a news conference in New York City on Thursday, said Trump approached her outside the U.S. Open tennis tournament in 1998. They had never met, and she was 27 years old, she said. She alleged that Trump commented on her legs and then touched her breast before she was able to get into a car and be driven away. Trump campaign spokeswoman Jessica Ditto said the accusation was a publicity-seeking attack coordinated with Clinton, and added: “Voters are tired of these circus-like antics and reject these fictional stories.”

Trump narrows high court search, to name conservative next weekWASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump, poised to restore the conservative majority on the Supreme Court, met with key senators on Tuesday and promised to unveil his nominee next week, with three U.S. appeals court judges among those under close consideration. Trump met at the White House with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Democratic leader Chuck Schumer and the top Republican and Democrat on the Judiciary Committee to discuss filling the court’s lingering vacancy caused by the death of conservative Justice Antonin Scalia more than 11 months ago. The lifetime appointment as a Supreme Court justice requires Senate confirmation. Leonard Leo, a conservative lawyer advising Trump, said the president “has definitely narrowed his focus” and is “looking very seriously” at a short list of candidates. Among the frontrunners are three conservative jurists: Neil Gorsuch, a judge on the Denver-based 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals; Thomas Hardiman, who serves on the Philadelphia-based 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals; and William Pryor, a judge on the Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. “Judges Gorsuch and Hardiman and Pryor have received a lot of attention from the president. He knows who they are. He is familiar with their records. He’s clearly impressed with their backgrounds,” Leo said. All three were appointed to the bench by Republican former President George W. Bush. “I’ll be making my decision this week. We’ll be announcing next week. We have outstanding candidates, and we will pick a truly great Supreme Court justice,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. The leading candidates all have strong conservative credentials. Gorsuch joined a ruling in 2013 saying that owners of private companies can object on religious grounds to a provision of the Obamacare health insurance law requiring employers to provide insurance covering birth control for women. Hardiman wrote an opinion in 2013 embracing a broad interpretation of the U.S. Constitution’s right to bear arms. Pryor has been an outspoken critic of the court’s 1973 landmark ruling that legalized abortion. Leo said all three are “very much in the mold of Justice Scalia,” who was among the most conservative members of the court. After the meeting with Trump, Schumer said he reiterated that the president “should pick a mainstream nominee who could earn bipartisan support” and that Democrats would fight any nominee they deem outside the mainstream. “I anticipate what we’re going to get from the president is a highly qualified, well-credentialed conservative jurist,” McConnell told reporters. Trump can name Scalia’s replacement because the Republican-led U.S. Senate, in an action with little precedent in U.S. history, last year refused to consider Democratic President Barack Obama’s nominee, appeals court judge Merrick Garland. Obama, who handed over power to Trump last Friday, nominated Garland on March 16, but Republican senators led by McConnell denied Garland the customary confirmation hearings and vote. Since Scalia’s death, the court has been deadlocked ideologically with four conservative justices and four liberals. A conservative replacement for Scalia would reinstate the court’s narrow conservative majority in place for decades. Trump’s fellow Republicans have a 52-48 majority in the Senate. Democrats, irate over Garland’s rebuff, potentially could try to block the nomination using procedural hurdles.

Hot Mic Catches Someone Saying What We All Were Thinking During This GOP Presser (VIDEO)On Tuesday, a hot mic at a House Republican presser caught someone saying exactly what we were all thinking.After House Speaker Paul Ryan told press that he was kept in the dark about Donald Trump s Muslim ban, someone was heard complaining that the press conference was a waste of my f*cking time. Initially, it was rumored that Ryan who had just told press that he and other Republicans were kept in the dark about Trump s Muslim ban until it was being implemented had uttered the words. While he would have had every reason, Mediaite quickly quelled the rumor before it spread (a nice contrast to what we see happen in conservative media):Watching the video, Ryan was well away from the microphones when the comment was tossed out. In all likelihood, this was either a reporter or a tech who was a little too close (and loud) to the network s mic.The accusation was initially made by House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi s Deputy Chief of Staff Drew Hammill. Because he is adult, he apologized for the error and everyone went on with their day..@BrendanBuck tells me that was not his boss. Will take his word for it and I apologized. Drew Hammill (@Drew_Hammill) January 31, 2017@Drew_Hammill thank you. appreciate it. he s not really an f-bomb guy. Brendan Buck (@BrendanBuck) January 31, 2017But Ryan might as well have said it was a waste of his time, because it was. Today, we received confirmation that Donald Trump is completely shutting even his political allies out of the decision-making process. We were briefed on the contents of it as it was being rolled out, Ryan said. Clearly, none of us want to see people with green cards get implicated in this. And that s not the goal here. What the president has asked us to focus on, something that we ve ran on, is we ve got to secure our border, he continued. We have a border security problem, that s what the physical barrier on the border is all about and we have security concerns given this age of terrorism, given the fact that we have drugs coming across our border, we have an opioid problem. There are lots of reasons why our focus is first and foremost is on border security, Ryan said.In other words, they ve been told to sit in the corner while daddy does the important stuff.This press conference was a waste of time. The Republican Party (and Congress as a whole) has been largely shut out of any major decisions in this country if Trump even remotely has the power to just do it himself and unfortunately, he intends to use the full power of the presidency to do the same thing to America that he does to his businesses.Whomever was caught complaining was 100 percent right. There was no need for anyone to be there or for Republicans to pretend that they are even remotely important anymore in Trump s America. Thank you, anonymous hero, for pointing out exactly what is wrong with our country at the moment.Featured image via screengrab

Hannity Throws A Complete Hissy Fit After Conservative Columnist Calls Him Unworthy Of Media AwardAfter all of the conspiracy theories and lies Sean Hannity has peddled over the years, he definitely does NOT deserve an award.But the right-wing Media Research Center is rewarding Donald Trump s top propagandist with a William F. Buckley Jr. Award for Media Excellence anyway, and a New York Times columnist is having none of it.Bret Stephens is a conservative columnist for the Times, and he thoroughly ripped Hannity in a recent column pointing out exactly why he is unworthy of the award. If we have reached the point where rank-and-file conservatives see nothing amiss with giving Hannity an award named for Buckley, then surely there s a Milton Friedman Prize awaiting Steve Bannon for his insights on free trade, Stephens wrote. And maybe Sean Spicer can receive the Vaclav Havel International Prize for Creative Dissent for his role in exposing fake news. The floor s the limit. Or, in Hannity s case, the crawl space beneath it. Stephens went on to point out that Buckley once expressed his disgust about Donald Trump, calling him a demagogue and a narcissist. He warned Americans to not fall into Trump s trap. But conservatives fell for it hook, line, and sinker. Hannity fell even harder for it, going so far as to lob softball questions at him and then defend him on a daily basis. Hannity even committed hypocrisy by defending Trump for doing all of the things he complained about President Obama doing. When Hannity peddles conspiracy theories about Seth Rich, the young Democratic National Committee staffer murdered in Washington last year, that s an echo of John Birch, Stephens continued. And so we reach the Idiot stage of the conservative cycle, in which a Buckley Award for Sean Hannity suggests nothing ironic, much less Orwellian, to those bestowing it, applauding it, or even shrugging it off. The award itself is trivial, but it s a fresh reminder of who now holds the commanding heights of conservative life, and what it is that they think. Well, that set Hannity off on a Twitter rage in which he whined and bragged about himself just like Trump does.For the first time in my life I partly agree with @BretStephensNYT I do not deserve the WFB award. I also never deserved the 2 Marconis .. Sean Hannity (@seanhannity) July 7, 2017Nor do I deserve the Radio Hall of Fame, Free speech awards from Talkers or the R&R tall host of the year awards I have won. Nor do I care Sean Hannity (@seanhannity) July 7, 2017To my audience that has given me the honor of 30 years on radio 22 years on Fox, I thank you. You mattter, Faith, family Country matter Sean Hannity (@seanhannity) July 7, 2017As long as you honor me with these opportunities I will continue to fight hard for the things I truly believe in. Not what WFB, Media, NYT s Sean Hannity (@seanhannity) July 7, 2017Believes in. I m not Buckley, Rush, Mark, or anybody else. I m myself. I will fight for limited Govt, lower taxes, less regulation, Sean Hannity (@seanhannity) July 7, 2017Energy independence, school choice, balanced budgets, secure borders, defeating Isis and radical Islam. And will battle a corrupt media. Sean Hannity (@seanhannity) July 7, 2017I will also fight for the forgotten men and woman in America left behind, in poverty, on food stamps, and out of work. That matters to me. Sean Hannity (@seanhannity) July 7, 2017So @BretStephensNYT I ll say to you and the @nytimes (Fake News) I do not care what u think. God bless America. Sean Hannity (@seanhannity) July 7, 2017Can ANYONE think of just ONE memorable thing @BretStephensNYT has written? WFB was on my show numerous times, would WFB trust the @nytimes ? https://t.co/r0NnuDidUZ Sean Hannity (@seanhannity) July 7, 2017Except that Sean Hannity is the face of corrupt media. He spends so much time kissing Trump s ass that he might as well give him a blow job while he is down on his knees.22 years on Fox News is 22 years too many. He should never have been hired and he certainly should be fired now, especially after pushing the Seth Rich conspiracy theory in defense of Trump for as long as he did.William F. Buckley was an intellectual conservative. He was a graduate of Yale and he served this country as a United States Army officer. Hannity, on the other hand, is the complete opposite. There is nothing intellectual about Hannity. He s a college dropout who pretends to be a tough guy. He has made his money duping conservatives into believing his propaganda bullshit, which he peddles while offering little or zero evidence of his claims.Not only should Hannity by booted off the air, he should not receive a media award. A fake media award would be more appropriate.Featured Image: Rob Kim/Getty Images

(Video) Judge Jeanine: You Can’t Trust Hillary So Why Even Think About Voting for the Woman?Once again, a great opening statement from Judge Jeanine nails it!

Storms to challenge Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands' credit quality: Moody's(Reuters) - Moody s Investors Service said on Tuesday that Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands will face new challenges to credit quality and finances after the U.S. territories were battered by hurricanes Irma and Maria. Both territories will be heavily reliant on relief from the U.S. federal government, as they were hit by storms at a time when they were already suffering financial distress, Moody s said. Puerto Rico is undergoing a debt restructuring under federal oversight and the U.S. Virgin Islands has extremely weak liquidity. Moody s Analytics preliminary estimate of Maria s total cost to Puerto Rico, including lost output, is $45 billion to $95 billion, representing about 65-135 percent of the territory s gross national product.

John Boehner Launches Blistering Attack On ‘Miserable Son of a B*tch’ Ted CruzFormer Republican speaker John Boehner has launched a blistering attack on GOP presidential hopeful Ted Cruz, in which he describes the Texas senator as satan incarnate, and a miserable son of a b*tch. Boehner was asked about his views on Cruz and other presidential candidates during an event held at Stanford University this week. The Stanford Daily reported that Boehner replied: I have Democrat friends and Republican friends. I get along with almost everyone, but I have never worked with a more miserable son of a b*tch in my life. Adding that he considers Cruz to be: Lucifer in the flesh. This was in sharp contrast to his views on the other candidates. Boehner revealed that he is on friendly terms with frontrunner Donald Trump, stating that the two are actually texting buddies. One can only imagine the contents of those texts.And how does Boehner feel about outside challenger and fellow Ohioan John Kasich? Not much apparently. [Kasich] requires more effort on my behalf than all my other friends but he s still my friend, and I love him. Boehner went on to state that in the event of a run off between Ted Cruz and Donald Trump, he would throw his vote and support behind a Trump candidacy. Of course, the frontrunner may well be forced to consider that with a friend like Boehner, he may require no enemies. The former speaker is, like Trump, a fairly divisive figure in the Republican Party and wider conservative movement.Of course, as Addicting Info s Matthew Desmond pointed out earlier today, this is all becoming a moot point. Like it or not, the campaigns of Ted Cruz and John Kasich are essentially over. Donald Trump is the de facto Republican candidate for President.The GOP clown car has delivered perhaps the most repugnant presidential candidate since Barry Goldwater. The party will have to live with that, but America still has the chance to repeat the landslide of 1964 against Trump in 2016 and remind the world that the U.S. is committed to progress, not hate.Featured image via Flickr Creative Commons/Flickr Creative Commons

Spicer resigning at White House, Scaramucci to be communications chief: Trump statementWASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump said in a statement on Friday that White House press secretary Sean Spicer was resigning as of August and that businessman Anthony Scaramucci, a long-time supporter, would become White House communications director. “I’m grateful for Sean’s work on behalf of my administration and the American people. I wish him continued success as he moves on to pursue new opportunities. Just look at his great television ratings,” Trump said in a statement read by White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders. Scaramucci told a news briefing that Sanders would become Trump’s new press secretary.

MUSLIMS CRITICIZE New State Law That Permanently BANS Sharia LawMaybe it s time for Muslim citizens and immigrants to start assimilating. What a concept Texas has just made a move that is sure to have many people cheering, and a select few angry. As the march to Sharia Law presses on, it appears Texas is fighting back.Over the past few years, Texas has been quick to take a stand against President Obama and implement the laws necessary to protect its citizens. Now, the Texas legislature has just passed a law designed to permanent bar Muslims from instituting Sharia Law in the Lone Star State.While State Sen. Donna Campbell doesn t specific measure Islamic law in the bill, her measure guarantees that no laws from foreign courts will be admissible by Texas civil court judges. It s just to provide some belt and suspenders to make sure that, with judicial discretion, we don t trump Texas law, American law, with a foreign law regarding family law, Campbell told reporters.Muslim groups have already criticized the bill, calling it a solution looking for a problem. They also argue that the bill will only perpetuate Islamophobia. What do you think? Do you support the measure? Via: Three Percenter Nation

Russia's Putin starts meeting with Tillerson in KremlinMOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin has started a meeting in the Kremlin with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, a spokeswoman for the U.S. embassy in Moscow said on Wednesday, citing Kremlin officials. The Kremlin had previously declined to confirm that such a meeting would take place during Tillerson’s visit, reflecting tensions over a U.S. missile strike on Syria, a staunch Russian ally, last week.

STEVE BANNON JUST MADE A BIG ANNOUNCEMENT About What He’ll Be Doing After Leaving The White House…And It’s Very Bad News For The Left  Former White House Chief Strategist Stephen K. Bannon left the White House today and has already returned as Executive Chairman of Breitbart News, where he will continue to go to war for President Trump.Unfortunately for the Left, Steve Bannon will continue to go to war for Trump against his opponents, he just won t be conducting the war from the White House anymore. There are very few conservatives in America who really know how to beat the left at their own game. Conservatives need someone like Steve Bannon more than ever right now. Fortunately for us, he doesn t plan to walk away from the fight. Josh Caplan reports that Bannon will continue his fight for Trump from the outside after his exit from the White House today.FULL STATEMENT: Bannon says he s going to war for Trump after White House exit pic.twitter.com/e61m6bb74O Josh Caplan (@joshdcaplan) August 18, 2017 If there s any confusion out there, let me clear it up: I m leaving the White House and going to war for Trump against his opponents on Capitol Hill, in the media, and in corporate America, Bannon told Bloomberg News Friday in his first public comments after his departure was announced.Bannon led the evening editorial meeting at Breitbart, where he resumed his role as executive chairman, the website said in a statement. A person who was on the call said Bannon called on the group to hunker down and work like never before to advance conservative causes. Bloomberg The populist-nationalist movement got a lot stronger today, said Breitbart News Editor-in-Chief Alex Marlow. Breitbart gained an executive chairman with his finger on the pulse of the Trump agenda. Breitbart News CEO and President Larry Solov agreed. Breitbart s pace of global expansion will only accelerate with Steve back, said Solov. The sky s the limit. Bannon joined the Trump campaign on August 17, 2016 nearly one year ago to the day of his return to Breitbart. He submitted his intention to leave the White House on August 7 of this year. White House Chief of Staff John Kelly and Steve Bannon have mutually agreed today would be Steve s last day, said White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders Friday afternoon. We are grateful for his service and wish him the best. Breitbart

REPORT: Fox News Might Be Under Investigation By Federal AuthoritiesIf federal authorities discover what they are reportedly looking for, the Republican propaganda network could be in deep sh*t.Last year, Roger Ailes was ousted as Fox News boss because Gretchen Carlson and other female anchors filed sexual harassment lawsuits.According to Carlson s lawsuit, Ailes punished her after she refused to have sex with him. He constantly ogled her and told her to wear short skirts to emphasize her legs. He also allowed misogyny to run rampant. Carlson even named current Fox & Friends host Steve Doocy in the lawsuit.First, Ailes demoted Carlson by removing her from Fox & Friends. And then he fired her after she continued to refuse to sleep with him to further her career.The case against Ailes was so damning that even Megyn Kelly defended Carlson.Eventually, Ailes settled the lawsuit and Fox News paid Carlson $20 million. Ailes was then fired by the company and given a $40 million severance package.And that money is the source of a possible investigation that federal authorities are considering or already moving forward with.Andrea Tantaros lawyer Judd Burstein, who is representing her in her sexual harassment lawsuit against Fox News and Roger Ailes, recently received a subpoena from federal prosecutors. And he told the Hollywood Reporter what it means. Once I saw it, I knew what was happening, Burstein said. They were investigating whether Fox News violated securities laws by not reporting settlements to the Securities and Exchange Commission. In other words, Fox News may have settled the lawsuit against Ailes without informing the shareholders of the decision to pay Carlson $20 million while also agreeing to pay Ailes $40 million. Their haste to quickly sweep the lawsuit out of national headlines would be a violation of rules set up by the Securities and Exchange Commission.In a statement following the report, Fox News claimed the corporation has not received a subpoena, but did say they have been in contact with U.S. Attorneys. The court granted FOX News motion to send Andrea Tantaros case to arbitration, where it always belonged, and rejected her counsel Judd Burstein s histrionics. Apparently one of Mr. Burstein s other clients has received a subpoena. Neither FOX News nor 21CF has received a subpoena, but we have been in communication with the U.S. Attorney s office for months. We have and will continue to cooperate on all inquiries with any interested authorities. If Fox News gets busted for not informing their shareholders they could end up paying a hefty fine to settle with the SEC. That just takes more money out of Rupert Murdoch s pockets and could make it more difficult for the company to make huge offers to Fox hosts and anchors to stick around when it s time to renew contracts. It would be a major financial setback for the conservative propaganda machine.Hopefully, federal authorities are able to launch or continue their investigation without interference from Donald Trump.Featured image via Dangerous Minds

Xi wants China to spruce up toilets to boost tourism, quality of lifeBEIJING (Reuters) - China must keep up efforts to revolutionize its toilets until the task is completed, state media quoted Chinese President Xi Jinping as saying on Monday, amid efforts to boost the domestic tourist industry and improve the quality of life. Xi launched the toilet revolution in 2015 as part of a drive to improve standards of domestic tourism in China, which he said suffers from deep-seated problems of a lack of civility. The toilet issue is no small thing, it s an important aspect of building civilized cities and countryside, Xi said, according to the official Xinhua news agency. As an emerging industry, Chinese tourism needs an upgrade in both hardware and software to continue strong growth, Xinhua reported Xi as saying. China s National Tourism Administration recently announced plans to build and upgrade 64,000 toilets between 2018 and 2020. But the toilet revolution is about more than just giving sightseers a better holiday experience; it is also about creating a more civilized society, Xinhua added. Since coming to power in 2012, Xi has often visited homes in the countryside and makes checks to see if the locals use pit toilets, besides stressing that village modernization requires sanitary toilets, Xinhua said. In a course-setting speech to a meeting of the ruling Communist Party in October, Xi redefined the principal contradiction facing Chinese society for the first time since 1981, saying the current need was not just for more growth, but more equal growth to satisfy people s desire for a nice life . China s tourism industry has upgraded 68,000 toilets over the last three years, completing about 19 percent of the task, Xinhua said, in what it called universally welcomed renovations.

KELLYANNE CONWAY Slaps Down Rabid CNN Host Chris Cuomo: “Aren’t you the least bit embarrassed that you now talk about Russia more than you talk about America?” [VIDEO]Chris Cuomo of fake news network CNN interviewed Kellyanne Conway on Sunday. You would have thought by now, these hacks at CNN would have figured out they are no match for the brilliant Kellyanne Conway. At the opening of his interview with Conway, Cuomo attempted to convince the few viewers who still watch CNN that President Trump was very squishy on his meeting with Vladimir Putin. Kellyanne Conway snapped back in her usual calm but witty way, Chris, let s back up. So you re saying you used the word squishy which, itself, is unusual to describe the president s state of mind. So somehow that makes people on CNN insist that the president is never going to raise this with Putin? Why are they still in there? Cuomo responded, It s not about CNN. It s about what the president said, Kellyanne. Kellyanne immediately landed a right hook to fake news host Chris Cuomo when she asked him, Aren t you the least bit reluctant, if not embarrassed that you now talk about Russia more than you talk about America? Cuomo went on to discuss the nothing-burger story about a meeting Donald Trump Jr. had with a Russian lawyer prior to the election. The lawyer allegedly claimed he had information about individuals connected to Russian that were funding the DNC and Hillary. It turns out she was a human rights lawyer who wanted to talk about adoption. But CNN, who suffers from Trump-Russia collusion obsession, is clinging to this story like a squirrel protects its only nut in the dead of winter. Again, Conway delivered another knock out blow saying, you keep on saying opposition research the way you guys constantly vomit words like collusion and Russian interference and affecting the election, all of which you have no evidence. We cannot convert wishful thinking into hard evidence. Watch:

HOW MEMPHIS TEEN DEFIED OBAMA’S “Black Victim” Narrative…Used Positive Attitude And Strong Work Ethic, Not Violence or Freebies To Make A Better Life [VIDEO]After 8 brutal years of race-baiting, endless stories of victimhood, organizing with Black Lives Matter activists terrorists in our White House, and the worst racial-division we have seen in our nation in decades, this young man s inspirational story is truly a breath of fresh air Barack and Michelle Obama have worked very hard for the past 8 years to make every black American believe the unjust system in America is out to get them. They d like minorities in America to accept they ve been born into a system that won t allow them to get ahead in life, and without the Democrat Party they don t stand a chance. You never hear the Obama s tell minorities they have the ability to be anything they want, or that with hard work and commitment to making a better life for themselves, anything is possible. That s because the Democrat Party has always believed that unless they can keep the citizens down and dependent on the government, there will no longer be a need for their party. It s a survival thing, and the Black community is paying a heavy price for the Democrat Party s desire for power. Here s an inspirational story about one smart kid who was blessed to have a mother who didn t buy into Obama s victim mentality:A teenage boy in Tennessee used hard work, planning and dedication to earn enough money to pay for college before he even starts. I just stay away from the negativity and try to always be positive, Kevuntez King told WHBQ.King said he grew up in a single-parent home with his mother, whose influence paved his way to success. She just taught me how to be independent like she had it, (and) she just wanted me to go get it myself, he said.From age 12 to 17, King sold newspapers with one goal: earn enough to pay for his entire college education. And he did just that. When it came down to school, my mom didn t have to come out of pocket to do anything or I didn t have to take out any loans to go to school, he told WHBQ.He earned $200 every Sunday for five years straight and was just accepted into Tennessee State University.King has this piece of advice to share: Make sure you surround yourself with people that s trying to go up in life and not trying to bring you down. Just stay positive and always believe in yourself and push for it. Q13Fox

Republican foreign policy veterans rebuke Trump worldviewWASHINGTON (Reuters) - More than 90 Republican foreign policy veterans have pledged to oppose Donald Trump, saying his proposals would undermine U.S. security, in the latest sign of fissures between the Republican presidential front-runner and the party establishment. “Mr. Trump’s own statements lead us to conclude that as president, he would use the authority of his office to act in ways that make America less safe, and which would diminish our standing in the world,” the signatories wrote in a open letter on Wednesday. “Furthermore, his expansive view of how presidential power should be wielded against his detractors poses a distinct threat to civil liberty in the United States,” said the letter, which was posted on a blog called War on the Rocks. The signatories include Robert Zoellick, a former World Bank president and deputy secretary of state; former U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff; and Dov Zakheim, a top Pentagon official under President George W. Bush. They represent both centrist Republican foreign policy circles and neoconservatives who favor a robust U.S. international role and wielded clout during Bush’s 2001-2009 presidency. Billionaire businessman Trump won the largest number of states in this week’s Super Tuesday nominating contests, intensifying moves by the party’s establishment wing to derail his path to the nomination. On Thursday, Trump in an interview with ABC News flatly rejected the criticism in the letter and blasted the nation’s military leaders as ineffective. Bryan McGrath, a retired U.S. Navy officer and adviser to Republican Mitt Romney’s unsuccessful 2012 presidential campaign who helped organize the letter, said at least two people declined to sign because of concerns it would fuel Trump’s campaign theme of being an anti-Washington candidate opposed by the establishment. “This is really drawing a bright moral line and saying that if we’re going to keep our souls, we can’t cross it,” said Eliot Cohen, who served as counselor to former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and helped spearhead the letter. Rice was asked to sign but chose not to, in keeping with her general practice of not signing on to such group letters, a spokeswoman for the Stanford University professor said. The list of signatures, which numbered 60 when the letter was released on Wednesday night, had grown to 94 by Thursday afternoon. The signatories did not include other several high-profile former officials such as Bush national security adviser Stephen Hadley or former Secretary of State Colin Powell. It was unknown if they were invited to sign. The letter rejects numerous Trump foreign policy statements, including his “hateful, anti-Muslim rhetoric,” his demand that Mexico fund a wall to control illegal immigration across the U.S. border, and his insistence that Japan pay much more for U.S. security assistance. “As committed and loyal Republicans, we are unable to support a Party ticket with Mr. Trump at its head,” the signatories said. “We commit ourselves to working energetically to prevent the election of someone so utterly unfitted to the office.” The War on the Rocks blog calls itself a platform for former diplomats, military and intelligence officers and scholars to comment “through a realist lens” on global affairs. Trump has alarmed some mainstream Republicans with vows to shred international trade deals. Many fear a Trump presidency would severely strain ties with allies and are concerned about his stated willingness to work more closely with authoritarian Russian President Vladimir Putin. Trump also has criticized the Republican Party for its backing of Bush’s 2003 Iraq invasion and has said he supports the practice of waterboarding and other similar interrogation techniques. Max Boot, a foreign policy adviser to Romney’s 2012 campaign and supporter of the Iraq invasion, was among the letter’s signers and said he “would sooner work for (North Korean dictator) Kim Jong Un than for Donald Trump. I think Donald Trump is objectively more dangerous than Kim Jong Un and not as stable.” Kurt Volker, a permanent representative to NATO under Bush, said he did not sign the letter because of concerns that any letter from “national security intelligentsia” could backfire. “He would actually use it as a bragging right,” said Volker, adding he had no intention of working for Trump but wanted to be free to offer advice to any future president, and that such a letter could prompt Trump to hold a grudge. Several others who declined to sign and asked not to be identified, said they feared it could help Democrat Hillary Clinton win the presidency. Trump told MSNBC on Thursday that he would name his foreign policy and national security advisers “in a week or two. ... But ultimately it’s my thought more than anybody else’s.” Those Trump has spoken with on foreign policy include a retired U.S. general and intelligence official, Michael Flynn, who favors closer ties with Russia. Flynn has declined to comment on whether he is advising Trump. Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who won popularity for his response to the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, has said he has been having regular talks with Trump but not in a formal role. (Additional reporting by Phil Stewart, Arshad Mohammed and Susan Heavey; Editing by David Rohde, Stuart Grudgings, Bill Trott and Peter Cooney) This article was funded in part by SAP. It was independently created by the Reuters editorial staff. SAP had no editorial involvement in its creation or production.

Trump cancels California event to stay in New YorkWASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump has canceled a planned news conference in California on Friday to keep campaigning in New York, his campaign said on Thursday. “Mr. Trump has rescheduled his California trip and will be campaigning in New York. He looks forward to returning to California in the weeks ahead,” said Trump spokeswoman Hope Hicks. Trump had planned a news conference on Friday at Trump National Golf Club Los Angeles in Rancho Palos Verdes. The New York billionaire lost the Wisconsin Republican primary on Tuesday to U.S. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas and needs to rebound in New York’s primary on April 19.

JUDGE NAPOLITANO: James Comey’s Pre-Testimony Reveals Trump Did Nothing Illegal [Video]Judge Napolitano just took the fun out of the Democrat s party tomorrow They have nothing! It s what we ve known but it s great to hear from Napolitano who is a fair guy. It doesn t appear as though these conversations that the president had with Director Comey could constitute the level of constitutional obstruction of justice necessary to commence any further proceedings like impeachment like Democrats want to do. Judge NapoltanoEARLIER TODAY INTEL DIRECTORS SPOKE UP ON THE FACT THAT TRUMP DID NOTHING: The Senate Intel Committee is holding an open hearing on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act today and the intel directors are saying there is nothing to the claim that Trump asked anyone to shut down an investigation: NSA Director Adm. Mike Rogers says he s never been directed to do anything he deems illegal, immoral or inappropriate. NSA Director Adm. Mike Rogers say he s never been directed to do anything he deems illegal, immoral or inappropriate. pic.twitter.com/hIuLdo2G6M Fox News (@FoxNews) June 7, 2017He dropped the line that should shut down the Trump witch hunt for good but you know it won t. The press is already spinning this one. Senator Marco Rubio even doubled down and asked a similar question (Video below)Rubio: Has anyone asked you to issue a statement you knew to be false?NSA Dir.: I standby my statement. Natl Intel Dir.: I do likewise.Rubio: Has anyone asked you to issue a statement you knew to be false? NSA Dir.: I standby my statement. Natl Intel Dir.: I do likewise. pic.twitter.com/6qb133nyhu Fox News (@FoxNews) June 7, 2017 We have never, not once, found an intentional violation of this program. Natl Intel Director Coats about compliance track record We have never, not once, found an intentional violation of this program. Natl Intel Director Coats about compliance track record pic.twitter.com/sT68H1yqHA Fox News (@FoxNews) June 7, 2017It s not like Mike Rogers is untrustworthy. The guy has an incredible resume on Wiki:Michael S. Rogers (born October 31, 1959) is a United States Navy admiral who serves as Director of the National Security Agency (NSA), Commander of the U.S. Cyber Command (USCYBERCOM) and Chief of the Central Security Service (CSS) since April 3, 2014. Prior to that, Rogers served as the Commander of the Tenth Fleet and Commander of the U.S. Fleet Cyber Command.Rogers is a native of Chicago, Illinois. He graduated from New Trier High School in 1977. He is a graduate of Auburn University (1981) and the Naval War College.Rogers received his commission through the Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps (NROTC) program and has served in the United States Navy since graduating from Auburn University in 1981. He started his career as a Surface Warfare Officer working in naval gunfire support operations off Grenada, Beirut, and maritime surveillance operations off El Salvador. In 1986, he was selected for transfer from Unrestricted Line Officer to Restricted Line Officer and re-designation as a cryptology officer.During the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq, Rogers joined the military s Joint Staff, which works for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, where he specialized in computer network attacks. From 2007 onward he served as director of intelligence for the military s Pacific Command. In 2009, he became director of intelligence for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and was subsequently named commander of U.S. Fleet Cyber Command and commander of the U.S. 10th Fleet, with responsibility for all of the Navy s cyberwarfare efforts. As such, Rogers was the first restricted line officer to serve as a numbered fleet commander and the first Information Warfare Community (IWC) officer to achieve the rank of vice admiral.In January 2014, the Obama Administration announced Rogers nomination as director of the National Security Agency and the commander of the US offensive cyberoperations unit in the Department of Defense. Rogers succeeded General Keith B. Alexander, who served as the NSA director for nine years, and became the first IWC officer to achieve the rank of admiral. Although the NSA directorship does not require Senate approval, Rogers had to be confirmed by the Senate to head United States Cyber Command,[11] for which the Senate unanimously confirmed him.In his first public remarks as NSA director, Rogers stated that he believed that NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden was probably not working for a foreign intelligence agency, despite frequent speculation and assertion by the NSA s allies to the contrary. Rogers added: He clearly believes in what he s doing. I question that; I don t agree with it. I fundamentally disagree with what he did. I believe it was wrong; I believe it was illegal. The Washington Post reported on 19 November 2016 that Defense Secretary Ashton B. Carter and Director of National Intelligence (DNI) James R. Clapper Jr. had recommended to President Obama that Rogers be terminated as director of the National Security Agency. Carter reportedly recommended he be terminated due to poor performance, whereas Clapper considered it wise that the position be held by a civilian. Both Clapper and Carter had put Rogers on notice for poor performance in internal security and for a poor leadership style. His termination was reportedly delayed due to stalled changes to the bureaucratic structure of the intelligence community. Later, Rogers reportedly met with then President-elect Donald Trump without notifying his supervisors in what is an unprecedented action for a military officer. Trump was reportedly considering replacing Clapper with Rogers as DNI, however that position went to former Senator Dan Coats, with Rogers remaining NSA director.

Obama says he does not think FBI's Comey is trying to influence electionWASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama said on Friday that he does not believe FBI Director James Comey was trying to influence the presidential election when he decided the agency would examine newly discovered emails in its probe of Hillary Clinton’s private server. “Now I’ve said before and I’ll say again, Jim Comey is a good man,” Obama said in an interview on MSNBC. “And I do not believe that he is in any way trying to influence the election one way or another. I think he is a serious public servant who wants to do the right thing,” Obama said.

Man Shoots His Ex-Girlfriend In The Face, But It’s All Good Because This Is FloridaA North Miami resident shot his unarmed ex-girlfriend after following her into the ladies room at a Denny s in 2013, and he s now facing his hearing. He s been charged with attempted murder, but he and his lawyers are invoking Florida s insanely loose stand your ground law as a defense for him. That law has been used to justify all manner of shootings in that state.Brooke Tuchinsky, the victim, survived with a broken jaw. Sean Barnes, the shooter, claims he saw her open her purse and pull out something shiny. Fearing for his life, he pulled his gun and fired. However, Tuchinsky was found unarmed, and her purse was closed. She wouldn t have been able to put the object back in her purse and close it after getting shot in the face. Barnes told a bald-faced lie right there.Barnes lawyers are maintaining that he never intended to use the gun for anything other than self-defense, and that Tuchinsky was allegedly stalking him. That s all he really needs for a defense. Florida s dangerous law has made vigilante justice, and shooting people out of anger, entirely too easy since people no longer need to prove they tried to get out of a situation before using lethal force.While Tuchinsky does have a history of causing problems for ex-boyfriends, she also said that Barnes threatened her: I bought a new gun and would love to use it on you and make it look like an accident or self-defense. In a sane state, that would be pretty damning, even if every word Barnes spoke about Tuchinsky s actions was true. But not in Florida. Never Florida. In fact, Miami judges have cleared several people from wrongdoing under stand your ground, and the Florida Supreme Court decided that anybody invoking stand your ground, had a right to a hearing before a judge, who would decide whether their claim was valid. If it is, then the case would be dismissed and the defendant wouldn t be held responsible for legal fees or court costs.It s a little difficult to claim stand your ground when you lied about the person you were facing being armed. And with that law, Barnes doesn t have to have tried to leave the Denny s after the two got into an argument requiring employees to separate them. The fact remains that, instead of leaving, he followed her, likely with intent to shoot her, and then shot her. Then he lied about what took place. That s horrible, regardless of how horrible his situation was.Featured image via screen capture

South African court ruling delivers setback to Zuma, alliesCAPE TOWN (Reuters) - South Africa s President Jacob Zuma suffered a setback on Tuesday when a court ruled that the election of a faction loyal to him in his home province two years ago was invalid. The High Court ruling highlights growing rifts within Zuma s ruling African National Congress (ANC) and could hamper his efforts to ensure his ex-wife Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma replaces him as party leader and eventually as president. KwaZulu Natal province, situated on the east coast of South Africa, is the ancestral home of the scandal-prone president and will also command most votes at the ANC s national conference in December, when Zuma will step down as party chief. Zuma loyalists took control of the province in November 2015 at a party conference after ousting former premier Senzo Mchunu, but he filed a court case against his removal, citing procedural irregularities - an appeal upheld by Tuesday s ruling. The eighth KwaZulu Natal provincial elective conference (in November 2015) ... and decisions taken at that conference are declared unlawful and void, Judge Jerome Mnguni ruled. An ANC provincial official told eNCA television channel the KwaZulu Natal ANC leadership would not leave their posts and would probably appeal against the ruling. The party s national spokesman, Zizi Kodwa, said the ANC would study the judgment before taking any further steps. The ruling could further erode Zuma s support base. Zuma, 75, survived a no-confidence vote in South Africa s parliament last month but only after some 30 ANC lawmakers broke ranks and voted with the opposition. Whoever wins the December contest will lead the ANC, which has ruled South Africa since the end of apartheid, into national elections in 2019, when Zuma s tenure as South Africa s president expires. Tuesday s ruling could hit support for Dlamini-Zuma, a former health and foreign affairs minister, and allow her likely rival, Vice-President Cyril Ramaphosa, a trade unionist-turned-business tycoon, to make gains in the province, analysts said. Despite court ruling Dlamini-Zuma still likely to be favored in KwaZulu-Natal... but the ruling does allow his (Ramaphosa s) campaign to make more inroads in the province, said Darais Jonker, Eurasia Group s director for Africa, in a note. Neither Dlamini-Zuma, 67, nor Ramaphosa, 64, have yet stated an intention to enter the race to succeed Zuma in December. Analysts say Zuma s priority is to ensure his chosen candidate succeeds him as party leader so he can complete his presidential term and avoid scrutiny over corruption charges his opponents would like reinstated. The ANC s flag bearer at the national elections usually becomes the country s president, given the ANC s dominance. Daniel Silke, a political analyst, said the judgment could increase factionalism in KwaZulu Natal. There is now the potential for confusion and disarray within the ANC in the province which could lead to a weakening of Mrs Zuma s position going forward, Silke said.

Brady Campaign's ad draws ire of U.S. anti-gun violence activistsBOSTON (Reuters) - The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence said on Friday it has sharply cut back an online ad that had used the names and faces of mass shooters and urged the news media not to identify them after the group drew criticism from other gun control activists. The group, named for former White House spokesman James Brady, who was wounded in 1981 when a gunman tried to assassinate then-President Ronald Reagan, rolled out the “Zero Minutes of Fame” campaign earlier this week. Its goal, the group said, was to promote research showing that mass shooters, such as those who carried out the 2012 attacks in Newtown, Connecticut and Aurora, Colorado, had studied past gun attacks before carrying out their own. The prominent use of the names and images of Adam Lanza, who shot dead 20 children and six educators at a Newtown elementary school, and James Holmes, who fatally shot 12 people at an Aurora movie theater, in the two-minute online spot angered fellow anti-gun-violence campaigners. The Brady Campaign's ad prompted a petition (chn.ge/1SCfovp) on activist website Change.org calling for the ad to be taken down. Some 93 people had signed that petition as of midday Friday. “It was very hurtful to many gun violence victims and survivors,” said Anita Busch, a Los Angeles-based entertainment journalist whose cousin was slain in the Aurora massacre and who said she posted the petition. “For the Brady Campaign to not get it is just shocking, honestly.” The ad marked the launch of a piece of software for Google’s (GOOGL.O) Chrome web browser that promised to remove the names and images of serial killers from news accounts and Google web searches, replacing them with “(name withheld out of respect for the victims).” The Brady Campaign, one of the most prominent U.S. gun control organizations, said on Friday it had cut back the ad’s contents after the complaints. A 14-second version of the ad viewed on Friday featured no names or images of mass shooters. “Our video was meant to educate the broader American public about what we can do to prevent gun violence, not to upset those hardest hit by it,” Dan Gross, the group’s president, said in an e-mailed statement. “We take this matter seriously and hope the steps we have taken to fix this are satisfactory to our victim advocates.” James Brady survived the 1981 attack and went on to become a prominent gun control activist. He died in 2014.

Pennsylvania governor to let state budget become law(Reuters) - Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf said on Monday he would allow an unbalanced budget of just under $32 billion to become law at midnight after state lawmakers failed to agree on a plan to close a $2 billion deficit. Wolf had 10 days from June 30th to either sign or veto the legislation. He chose to let it become law automatically at midnight without his signature. The legislature approved the spending part of the budget June 30th, beating a July 1 deadline by just hours. However, Republicans, who dominate both houses of the legislature, were unable to agree on a way to close the budget gap. “In the coming days, it is my hope that the General Assembly will come together to pass a responsible solution to balance our books,” Wolf, a Democrat said in a statement. “There are many options available to balance the budget in the long-term.” The fiscal 2018 budget is about $450 million larger than last year. The budget shortfall is due in large part to revenue collections this fiscal year which were $1.6 billion below expectations. In order to close the gap, the state is considering borrowing $1 billion, to be repaid with money U.S. states still receive every year from their 1998 legal settlement with tobacco companies for health expenses. Republicans have also discussed a wide expansion in casino gambling, and discussed but rejected placing as many as 40,000 video gambling devices around the state. Democrats want a severance tax on oil and gas production that would feed the general fund. That idea has failed to pass in previous years. “Every year our Commonwealth borrows money and uses accounting gimmicks to meet our obligations, digging us deeper and deeper into a hole,” said Democratic Senator Daylin Leach. “We need new sustainable revenue just to keep the lights on and avoid yet another credit downgrade,” he said. On July 6, S&P Global put Pennsylvania’s AA-minus credit rating on watch for potential downgrade due to budget concerns.

5 KEY THINGS To Know About Obama’s Supreme Court Nominee…One Is A BIG Deal Breaker!The Senate had better stick to their guns on this! They say they will not bring up Merrick Garland for a vote as a Supreme Court Nominee but will wait for the new administration. McConnell is done if he goes back on his word. He spoke on the Senate floor today to say that the Senate will not take up this vote. SIX REPUBLICAN SENATORS HAVE ALREADY SAID THEY LL MEET WITH GARLAND:Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.), Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.), Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) and Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio)One of the five things below is a BIG deal breaker Judge Garland is anti-Second Amendment 1. Garland is considered anti-Second Amendment. As the National Review noted last week: Back in 2007, Judge Garland voted to undo a D.C. Circuit court decision striking down one of the most restrictive gun laws in the nation and voted to uphold an illegal Clinton-era regulation that created an improvised gun registration requirement. Obama will use his pick to pursue a gun control agenda.2. Garland has favored environmental regulations. As SCOTUSblog noted in 2010: On environmental law, Judge Garland has in a number of cases favored contested EPA regulations and actions when challenged by industry, and in other cases he has accepted challenges brought by environmental groups. That could be very important, with Obama s Clean Power Plan in the balance.3. Garland s positions on abortion and social issues are murky. Some liberals are worried that Garland may not be unambiguously pro-choice. Richard Wolf of USA Today writes: During 19 years at the D.C. Circuit, Garland has managed to keep a low profile. The court s largely administrative docket has left him without known positions on issues such as abortion or the death penalty. 4. Garland would maintain the Court s demographic profile. He is the second Chicagoan Obama has nominated. He is no wise Latina, and is the first man Obama has chosen. But Garland, like Scalia, is a graduate of Harvard Law, keeping the number of Crimson justices at five. If confirmed, he would also be the fourth Jew on the Court, preserving the odd exclusion of evangelical Protestants.5. Republicans have supported Garland in the past. Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) in particular has been outspoken in his support for Garland as the best Republicans could expect from the Clinton administration. More recently, he suggested he would welcome Garland s nomination but predicted that Obama would make a more ideological pick. That makes Garland harder for the GOP to oppose.Via: Breitbart

White House says Trump, Merkel 'get along very well'WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump views Germany as an important U.S. ally and gets along very well with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the White House said on Tuesday. Speaking at a news briefing after Trump intensified a dispute with Germany by calling Berlin’s trade and spending policies “very bad,” White House spokesman Sean Spicer said: “They get along very well. He has a lot of respect for her. ... And he views not just Germany but the rest of Europe as an important American ally.”

Papa John’s Founder Retires, Figures Out Racism Is Bad For BusinessA centerpiece of Donald Trump s campaign, and now his presidency, has been his white supremacist ways. That is why so many of the public feuds he gets into involve people of color. One of his favorite targets, is, of course, the players in the National Football League who dare to exercise their First Amendment rights by kneeling during the national anthem in protest of racist police brutality. Well, there is one person who has figured out that racism is bad for business, even if it did get the orange overlord elected: The founder of the pizza chain Papa John s.This is a man who has never been on the right side of history on any number of issues, and plus his pizza sucks. But, when he decided to complain about the players protesting, his sales really dropped. Turns out racism doesn t pay, and we all know that corporations are all about the bottom line. Therefore, Papa John Schnatter will no longer be CEO of the hack pizza chain.BREAKING: Papa John's founder John Schnatter to step down as CEO; announcement comes weeks after he criticized NFL over protests. AP Business News (@APBusiness) December 21, 2017The thing is, while people are certainly allowed to have political opinions, they have to realize that those opinions can often come with dire consequences especially if one is in the business of trying to garner sales and support from any and all people, which one would presume is the goal of all CEO s. No one knows whether or not the pressure from his shareholders, the public outcry or boycotts, or even the NFL itself had anything to do with his stepping down. As of right now, all we know is that he will be gone, and perhaps the future CEO will run a company that is inclusive of the diverse fabric that we call America. After all, the guiding symbol of this nation will always be the Statue of Liberty, and bigots like Trump and Schnatter are the past. The rest of us are the future. We just have to survive the present to get there.Featured image via Rob Kim/Getty Images

Pence denies eyeing presidential bid amid distance with Trump over RussiaWASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Vice President Mike Pence on Sunday denied that he is preparing for a presidential election run in 2020, saying the suggestion is “disgraceful and offensive.” Pence was responding to a New York Times report that some Republicans were moving to form a “shadow campaign” as though President Donald Trump were not involved. It said multiple advisers to Pence “have already intimated to party donors that he would plan to run if Mr. Trump did not.” The report said Pence had not only kept a full political calendar but also had created his own independent power base, including a political fund-raising group called the “Great America Committee.” But Pence called the article “fake news” and said his entire team was focused on advancing Trump’s agenda and seeing him re-elected in 2020. “The allegations in this article are categorically false and represent just the latest attempt by the media to divide this Administration,” Pence said in a statement. The Times stood by its coverage. “We are confident in the accuracy of our reporting and will let the story speak for itself,” New York Times spokeswoman Danielle Rhoades Ha said in an email. Pence has good relations with conservative political groups and some of the Republican Party’s big donors, including billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch. He is also a Trump loyalist, and there is typically little distinction between his public statements and the policies of the president. But as investigations deepen into Russia’s alleged interference in the 2016 U.S. election and possible ties to members of Trump’s campaign, Pence has put some distance between himself and the president on the best way to approach Moscow. On a trip to Eastern Europe last week, Pence condemned Russia’s presence in the former Soviet republic of Georgia, with which Moscow fought a brief war in 2008. He also said ties with Russia would not improve until Moscow changed its stance on Ukraine and withdrew support for countries like Iran, Syria and North Korea. The U.S. Congress recently passed a bill imposing new sanctions on Russia with overwhelming bipartisan support, but Trump signed it into law last week with reluctance. “Our relationship with Russia is at an all-time & very dangerous low,” Trump wrote on Twitter after signing the bill. “You can thank Congress.” Trump has described probes into his campaign’s ties to Russia, including those under way in Congress and a Justice Department investigation headed by Special Counsel Robert Mueller, as a “witch hunt.” The president has also sent mixed messages on whether he agrees with U.S. intelligence agencies’ conclusions that Russia tried to intervene in the 2016 election to boost his chances of beating Democratic rival Hillary Clinton. White House senior counselor Kellyanne Conway on Sunday also dismissed the idea that Pence was looking at running for president in 2020. “It is absolutely true that the vice president is getting ready for 2020 - for re-election as vice president,” Conway told ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday. “Vice President Pence is a very loyal, very dutiful, but also incredibly effective vice president, and active vice president,” said Conway, adding that she had worked for Pence for a decade as his pollster and senior adviser.

The Trump presidency on March 9 at 9:49 p.m. EST/March 10 0149 GMT(Reuters) - Highlights of the day for U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration on Thursday: The Trump-backed Republican plan to overhaul the U.S. healthcare system clears its first hurdle but chances for passage in Congress look uncertain amid opposition by Democrats, conservatives and industry groups. Trump has launched a charm offensive of the type not seen before in his brief and chaotic tenure, forcefully rallying behind legislation to repeal the Obamacare healthcare law while trying to placate the bill’s opponents. EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt says he is not convinced carbon dioxide from human activity is the main driver of climate change and wants Congress to weigh in on whether it is a harmful pollutant that should be regulated. Trump’s plan to boost military spending comes amid mounting evidence that potential enemies have new weapons that are able to destroy much of the United States’ expensive fleet of aircraft carriers. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will host a 68-nation meeting in Washington this month to discuss the next moves by the coalition fighting Islamic State militants, a Trump administration official says. Several states say they will move forward with legal challenges to a revised executive order signed by Trump that temporarily bars the admission of refugees and some travelers from a group of Muslim-majority countries. The Department of Justice is deploying 50 judges to immigration detention facilities across the United States, according to two sources and a letter seen by Reuters and sent to judges. Trump meets with community bankers and promises them he will to strip away some Dodd-Frank financial regulations and ensure they can continue giving small businesses access to capital. Reports that Jon Huntsman will be the next U.S. ambassador to Russia stir anxiety in Moscow, with one politician calling him a hawk and pro-Kremlin media recalling what they said was his worrying history of hostile rhetoric. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee approves Trump’s nominee as ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, an outspoken bankruptcy lawyer aligned with the Israeli right. CNN reports that the U.S. Senate intelligence committee wants Michael Flynn, forced out as Trump’s national security adviser, and other former Trump aides to testify in its investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. EX-SPY A former U.S. spy, newly pardoned by Italy in connection with the CIA kidnap of a terrorism suspect in Milan, credits the Trump administration with saving her from an Italian jail.