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1,000 dead ducks join 16,000 dead pigs floating in Chinese rivers.

Busted: Iran's Jarring Photoshopped Missile Test Image. Jar jar binks and missiles.

BREAKING: FEDERAL COURT RULES ON NSA’S WARRANTLESS COLLECTION OF DATA…Another positive step towards restoring our freedoms A federal court has decided that the National Security Agency s (NSA) bulk, warrantless collection of millions of Americans phone records is illegal.The decision from the Second Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday represents the second major court victory for opponents of the NSA, after a lower court decision called the program nearly unconstitutional six months ago.The phone records program exceeds the scope of what Congress has authorized, Judge Gerard Lynch wrote on behalf of the three-judge panel. The court did not examine the constitutionality of the surveillance program.Via: The Hill

Desperate Venezuelans peddle wares door-to-door in Colombia to surviveCUCUTA, Colombia (Reuters) - Thousands of impoverished Venezuelans are crossing the border to Colombia every day to sell cheap basics, from oranges to candles, in a desperate attempt to earn hard currency amid their country s worsening economic collapse. The porous roughly 2,220-kilometer (1,380-mile) frontier for years has been rife with smuggling due to the massive differences in prices on either side due to controls imposed by Venezuela s socialist government. But in the past three months there has been a spike in Venezuelans migrating to the border area and spending their days going door-to-door trying to sell low-cost goods in Colombia. Hundreds of vendors are sleeping in the streets of the Venezuelan border town of San Antonio, while the surge in hawkers on the Colombian side is stoking anger among local shopkeepers. Albert Rodriguez, 22, spends his nights on a plastic sheet in the streets of San Antonio since moving from Venezuela s inland agricultural state of Lara a month ago. He sells coffee in Colombia, but still has not been able to send money home to help his newborn daughter. It s tough because there are so many Venezuelans. I feel like crying because I am so impotent, said Rodriguez, who said he hopes to eventually migrate to central Colombia where he thinks job prospects will be better. The flood of vendors is evidence of how a fourth year of recession - which has fomented malnutrition, disease and violent crime - is tearing Venezuela s social fabric apart. It also highlights that Colombia, already home to the most Venezuelan migrants in South America, remains particularly vulnerable to the crisis. The Colombian government did not respond to a request for comment. Come daybreak, Venezuelan hawkers jostle for hours to get a spot on a bus traveling to the Colombian border. They then cross the teeming frontier on foot, many silently praying that the National Guard will not demand payment to let them through with their goods. Once safely in Cucuta, the vendors disperse on different buses that take them across the Colombian border city. In the low-income hillside neighborhood of La Libertad, around a hundred Venezuelans rang doorbells offering mayonnaise, insecticide, cereal boxes and more. Sales are often brisk. Prices are roughly half those in Colombian stores due to Venezuela s depreciated bolivar currency. Some worried Colombian shopkeepers are demanding the border be closed to protect their businesses. Colombians also at times fret that the influx of Venezuelan vendors could lead to crime. Marlon Carrillo, a 21-year-old Venezuelan who abandoned university studies to start selling fruit in Colombia three months ago, said some locals slammed doors in his face out of fear. It s hard to pay for the sins of others, said Carrillo, who crisscrosses Cucuta for eight hours a day selling the lemons, strawberries, bananas and pineapples he crams into his backpack. I want to progress and study but I have to work. I m not going to let my family die of hunger, said Carrillo, who is supporting his three nephews after his sister died of bone marrow failure.

Kim Dotcom Still Causing Headaches For Spy Agency: Documents show that in Dec 2011 when the spying began, police already had information which stated that Dotcom was a NZ resident 'which rendered the surveillance illegal.'

Pope Warns Of 'Critical Moment' On Climate

BUNDY SON AND RANCHERS POST VIDEOS On Facebook: Speak Out Against “Lies on social media,” Explain Why They’re Fighting Tyrannical Government// <![CDATA[ (function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_GB/sdk.js#xfbml=1&#038;version=v2.3"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);}(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk')); // ]]> We re here because we re tired of the lies in the social media. Our federal government has run amuk. Everybody has guns. Just because you have guns, doesn t mean that you re violent. Oregon rancher asking for our help!Posted by Bundy Ranch on Sunday, 3 January 2016// <![CDATA[ (function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_GB/sdk.js#xfbml=1&#038;version=v2.3"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);}(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk')); // ]]>Come help the ranchers in Oregon gain back their rights!Posted by Bundy Ranch on Monday, 4 January 2016 // <![CDATA[ (function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_GB/sdk.js#xfbml=1&#038;version=v2.3"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);}(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk')); // ]]>Oregon rancher asking for our help!Posted by Bundy Ranch on Sunday, 3 January 2016This rancher traveled from Michigan to show his support for the ranchers. He s calling for a peaceful resolution to this issue:// <![CDATA[ (function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_GB/sdk.js#xfbml=1&#038;version=v2.3"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);}(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk')); // ]]>Calling all to come and help the people of Harney CountyKen Rhoads, (71) calling all to come and help the people of Harney County. Come to the Malheur Wildlife Refuge 30 mile from Burns Oregon. We have a warm place for you to lay your head and food to eat. We need you to make this happen without violence.Posted by Bundy Ranch on Sunday, 3 January 2016

BBC News - Haiti cholera deaths rise sharply

VAN JONES Explains Why Rachel Maddow’s “Don’t Actually Gotcha” Moment Turned Into “A Good Night For Donald Trump” [VIDEO]Is Van Jones on Trump s payroll yet or is he just tired of being on the party of losers? Van Jones appeared on CNN s Anderson Cooper show last night and mocked the ridiculous attempt by rabid leftist MSNBC host Rachel Maddow to embarrass President Trump as part of her jihad on the President.After laughing about all the hype, Jones told the panel: If all we get tonight is that Trump paid $38M to America s government, that s a good night for Trump. I m sorry. I was hoping and praying that it would show not only did he not pay no taxes, he actually charged the government that he actually got something back..@VanJones68: If all we get tonight is that Trump paid $38M to America s government, that s a good night for Trump https://t.co/kvYlq8udPf Anderson Cooper 360 (@AC360) March 15, 2017If you have the stomach for it, we included the full clip of MSNBC s Rachel Maddow s lame attempt at jihad on President Trump:

Japan to Begin Restarting Idled Nuclear Plants: All of Japans 50 operable nuclear reactors were shut down following the 2011 tsunami

Flesh-eating piranhas inflict deep wounds on 60 Christmas Day swimmers.

GOD SQUAD: Jury Finds Polygamous Mormon Towns Guilty of Discriminating Against ‘Non-Believers’Jamie Ross Courthouse News ServicePHOENIX Two towns on the Arizona-Utah border dominated by members of a fundamentalist Mormon sect discriminated against residents who are not members of the church, a jury found Monday afternoon, granting $2.2 million in damages to six residents.The U.S. government sued Colorado City, Ariz., and Hildale, Utah in 2012, accusing the border towns of denying police protection, water and housing to nonmembers of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The church s leader, Warren Jeffs, is imprisoned in Texas for life plus 20 years for the sexual abuse of two young girls he had taken as his spiritual wives. INSULATED: Hilldale s religious enclave has triggered America s curiosity.The jury returned the verdict after nearly seven weeks of testimony, finding that the towns engaged in religious discrimination of nonmembers of the church in violation of the First Amendment s establishment clause. Another aspect of the verdict found that the towns police force the Colorado City Marshal s Office violated the Fourth and 14th Amendments by subjecting nonmembers to unreasonable search and seizures and arrest without probable cause.The jury also found that Colorado City, Hildale and the cities water utility, the Twin City Water Authority, violated the Fair Housing Act. Obviously, we should ve went a different way, but we respect the process, said Blake Hamilton, an attorney for Hildale, after the verdict was announced. The case is far from over, said Colorado City attorney Jeff Matura. [The Justice Department] will have to propose what kind of injunctive relief they want. After deliberating for three days, the jury awarded six residents $2.2 million in damages for discrimination. The amount is not binding.During trial, the towns and the Justice Department entered into a $1.6 million settlement to cover damages suffered by the individuals, and possible civil penalties and fines.Christopher Jessop testified that church security ran his son off the road, and that the Marshal s Office helped cover it up.Nicknamed the God Squad, church security is said to monitor current and former FLDS members and keep an eye out for outside law enforcement.Jessop also testified that the Marshal s Office failed to investigate dozens of incidents of vandalism against his vehicle. The jury awarded him $1 million.Another $1 million will go to John Cook, a man repeatedly denied a water connection on a property to park his trailer. Cook eventually received a water connection but could not afford to move his trailer onto the property since he was forced to move elsewhere Read more at Courthouse NewsREAD MORE RELIGIOUS NEWS AT: 21st Century Wire Religion Files

U.S. House to vote on non-nuclear Iran sanctions next weekWASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives will vote next week on new sanctions on Iran s ballistic missile program and on Lebanon s Iran-backed Hezbollah militia, senior House Republicans said on Friday, seeking to take a tough line against Iran without immediately moving to undermine the international nuclear deal. It is Congress responsibility to work with the executive branch on a clear-eyed strategy to stop Iran s reckless behavior, Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, the number two House Republican, and Representative Ed Royce, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said in a joint statement emailed to Reuters. Immediate action towards this goal will come from the House next week as we vote on legislation that furthers sanctions on Hezbollah and Iran s missile proliferation, they said. President Donald Trump defied both allies and adversaries on Oct. 13 by refusing to certify that Iran is complying with an international agreement on its nuclear program, and threatened that he might ultimately terminate the accord. That threw the fate of the agreement between Iran, the United States and other world powers into the hands of Congress, by opening a 60-day window in which Congress could reimpose, or snap back, sanctions on Iran s nuclear program that were lifted under the agreement. However, many of Trump s fellow Republicans - who all opposed the deal reached under former Democratic President Barack Obama - have said they see no immediate need to do so. Congressional aides said that, for now, House lawmakers are focusing on clamping down on Iran in other ways such as the missile and Hezbollah sanctions. In the Senate, a separate effort is under way to amend existing U.S. law to set new conditions for the U.S. role in the pact, although critics said such a plan could violate terms of the deal, formally known as the JCPOA. Britain, France and Germany, European U.S. allies who signed the agreement, are particularly concerned about Trump s action and have lobbied Congress to preserve the nuclear pact. Among other things, the ballistic missiles bill would toughen existing sanctions by going after entities with assets outside the United States if they were found to support Iran s ballistic missile program. It has broad bipartisan support in the House, and also is expected to pass the Senate. The Hezbollah bill is directed at the Shi ite militia s allies in Lebanon s government and asks the Trump administration to estimate and distribute assessments of the net worth of Lebanese politicians. The Senate has already unanimously passed a different version of the Hezbollah sanctions bill.

The bill for closing down and cleaning up the worlds ageing nuclear reactors will exceed $100bn over the next 25 years alone, the International Energy Agency has said, warning that governments risk underestimating the cost.

Royal Bank of Scotland announces 3.6bn of losses. RBS is expected to pay 1.3bn in bonuses to its staff.

U.S. infrastructure legislation back on Congress' radarWASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump’s pledge to bring massive investments in U.S. infrastructure projects showed new signs of life on Friday after lying dormant for weeks, as leading Republican lawmakers said proposals from the administration could be in the offing. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican, told reporters he expects to receive “some kind of recommendation on an infrastructure bill, a subject that we frequently handle on a bipartisan basis,” but gave no details or timing. He has previously voiced concern over adding to budget deficits with a new injection of federal funds for road, bridge and other construction projects like the ones President Barack Obama secured from Congress in 2009, especially after a major highway funding law was enacted about a year ago. Some Republicans and Democrats in Congress are increasingly criticizing Trump’s administration for being slow to get behind his legislative initiatives during the first month of his presidency. Trump’s plans to create an infrastructure council led by two New York billionaire friends, developers Richard LeFrak and Steven Roth, have yet to be launched, a spokesman for LeFrak said. During his presidential campaign, Trump said he would push for a $1 trillion infrastructure program to rebuild roads, bridges, airports and other public works projects. He said he wanted action during the first 100 days of his administration, which now seems unlikely. The Republican president has talked about creating a tax credit to encourage private sector investment in many of these projects. But Democrats say that would fail to spur enough rebuilding and put taxpayers on the hook for a tax credit to wealthy developers, who they said would build toll roads that taxpayers would then have to pay to use. Democrats want a more direct federal role in sparking a construction boom. In an interview on Tuesday, Republican Representative Mario Diaz-Balart said he had “no doubt that it (infrastructure investment) is a priority for the administration.” Diaz-Balart chairs a House subcommittee that would control the flow of Washington money that might be needed to fund some of the public works projects. Several lawmakers and aides speculated the initiative could be attached to tax reform legislation that Republicans want to advance this year, but no decisions have been made. Writing an infrastructure bill involves seven or eight committees, there are complicated tax and spending questions at stake, and lawmakers are divided. There are also questions over what would qualify as an infrastructure project, with rural areas, for example, clamoring for more broadband internet service. Senator John Thune, a member of the Republican leadership who chairs the commerce and transportation panel which has a say on any bill, said he had little information on the content or status of legislation. Asked about McConnell’s comments, Thune said, “Maybe he knows more about it since he’s married to the secretary of transportation,” Elaine Chao.

China, South Korea agree to get relations back on trackBEIJING (Reuters) - China and South Korea have agreed to get their relations back onto a normal track at an early date, China s Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday, following high level talks between the two countries. Both countries attach great important to their ties, the ministry said in a statement.

Chaffetz Says Screw Congress, Might Leave Before His Term Is Up (DETAILS)House Oversight Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), doesn t think he wants to be a Congressman anymore. He already dropped jaws when he announced that he would not be running for Congress again, but now he says he might not even finish out his term and may just run for the hills instead.Speaking to KSL News Radio s Doug Wright on Thursday, Chaffetz said he hasn t decided what he is going to do yet, but he might choose not to finish out his term. He made it clear that he still hasn t made up his mind about what he will do and is taking into consideration what the state of Utah would have to do to replace him if he walks away from his seat. I will continue to weigh the options, but I might depart early, Chaffetz told the radio host.On Wednesday, Chaffetz made the announcement that he would not be running for either the House or Senate in 2018. However, at no point has he tried to rule out the possibility of a future run for another office, such as governor of Utah, for example.At this point, his office has not returned requests for comment or released an official statement. Chaffetz is currently serving his fifth term. If he chooses to remain in Congress, he would be able to serve as House Oversight Committee Chairman until 2020 according to the House GOP s present rules, which limit committee chairs to three terms.Chaffetz said he is considering abandoning his career in Congress because he wants to spend more time with his family and is ready to return to the private sector. If he does decide to leave, the race to fill his seat as chairman of the Oversight Committee will commence. So far, no one on the powerful committee has been willing to publicly confirm whether they would be interested in taking his place as chairman.Featured image via Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Centuries of freedoms being broken by security state, says England's top prosecutor

Sex-Abuse Victims to Pope: Stop Begging for Forgiveness and Just Stop the Abuse

Iran's economy slide to the bottom - there has been insignificant growth in real per capita incomes over the past 30 years since the Revolution.

Tunisia: Artists 'targeted for offending morals' "Artists in Tunisia are increasingly finding themselves in the dock for "offending morals" as Islamist influence grows, it seems."

Myanmar army Facebook posts covering key period of offensive 'hidden'YANGON (Reuters) - Facebook posts from Myanmar s army detailing the opening phase of its crackdown last month on Rohingya Muslim insurgents - an operation now being probed by the United Nations - are no longer visible on its official page, Reuters found. Posts for the period between Aug. 1 and Aug. 29 appear to have been hidden on the Facebook page of the office of the commander-in-chief, Min Aung Hlaing, which has covered the military s actions, including those in western Myanmar, in detailed dispatches. The posts, which can still be found using specific date or keyword searches, included detailed accounts of the operation launched by the army following attacks on security forces on Aug. 25. It is unclear why, or when exactly, the posts disappeared. They were not visible on Sunday, Monday or Tuesday from several locations across Asia. We don t hide anything, it might be some kind of error, said Ministry of Defense spokesman General Aung Ye Win. Zaw Htay, the spokesman for national leader Aung San Suu Kyi, referred questions to Aung Ye Win. A spokesman for the military-run home affairs ministry, Police Colonel Myo Thu Soe, said he had no idea about the issue. A Facebook spokesperson said it was at the discretion of page administrators to hide posts if they wished. Around 480,000 Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh since the military counter-offensive began. The United Nations has described the campaign as ethnic cleansing. Myanmar has rejected that accusation, saying it is waging a legitimate fight against terrorists. A U.N.-mandated fact-finding mission is looking into alleged recent human rights violations by military and security forces and abuses in Myanmar, in particular in Rakhine State . The probe includes the violence that followed the Aug. 25 attacks. It was established after a similar, smaller military operation late last year. The official military Facebook page shows a gap of nearly a month between a post on July 31 and the next one on Aug. 30. Like other news organizations, Reuters had used the detailed, timely postings in much of its early coverage of the August crisis. The August posts can still be seen if searched for with a specific date or a keyword, suggesting they have not been deleted but removed from the page s timeline using Facebook s hide function. Keep in mind that if a post you ve hidden was shared, it may still be visible to the audience it was shared with in other places on Facebook, says Facebook about the function on its website. The feature can be undone by the account holder to restore the posts. The hidden August posts include very detailed accounts of clashes with militants, often accompanied by pictures. The military first posted on the attacks on Aug. 25, attaching a map showing police posts and military base that had been attacked. The timeline updates resume on the military page after Aug. 31, with more than 360 posts in September, mostly about operations in Rakhine. Myawady, a media group which covers the military and publishes daily newspapers, has kept the August issues available online.

Greeces public debt: Can't afford to keep people as healthy as before, but can still afford 10,000 riot police to attack its own people.

NEW APP GIVES WOMEN OPPORTUNITY TO TALK ABOUT ‘GUILT FREE’ ABORTIONS: ‘I’ve had 5 abortions because I love getting pregnant but just not ready for kids.’Wow maybe they could include a place where the mothers could pose with their dead babies a photo gallery of sorts Women all over the world have opened up on the still relatively taboo subject of abortion on secret-sharing app Whisper.Finding relief in the anonymity aspect of the app, individuals took the opportunity to reveal their true unabashed feelings on the termination of their pregnancies.Without censorship, frank confessions varied from lack of remorse, to one woman even admitting that she visited a nightclub the very same day.Whisper is an online community that allows anonymous users to share and comment on each other s secrets, allowing individuals to air their emotions without any fear of retribution. Women of all ages, who admitted to not regretting their decision to have an abortion, were asked to shed a light on their thought processes and emotions.One woman talked about her unshakable stance, citing: Having an abortion was the easiest decision of my life. Another individual revealed her own extensive and unbridled history with terminating pregnancies, stating: I ve had 5 abortions because I love getting pregnant but just not ready for kids. Many of the Whisper users talked about other people s projection of guilt or regret, that they had failed to experience themselves. One confused woman wrote: Sometimes I feel guilty over the fact that I feel no guilt about my abortion. A rather shocking confession came from a woman that continued on with her party lifestyle after the often exhausting procedure: I had an abortion a week ago. I don t feel the slightest bit of guilt, I even went out to a club on the same day. Here are some women who shared their thoughts on abortion:Here s a woman who in 2010 made a Youtube video to share her positive experience about her abortion. She finishes her video by saying: I hope everyone on Youtube has a great and godless day. Another Whisper user talked about how time passing had no effect on the feeling of regret with her decision: 5 years and I ve not once felt regret for my abortion. No regret, no guilt, no second thoughts, nothing. Another added: I ve had two abortions in two years. I keep waiting for the guilt to come, but so far I feel nothing. Others used the opportunity as an emotional outlet to directly speak to people who had judged them.One woman argued: I don t regret my abortion regardless of how much you think I should. Some women even went so far to express the happiness at their decision, with one woman adding: I ve had 5 abortions and I don t feel bad or sad about any of them I was kinda happy. Similarly, another woman compared her own sensations of relief and happiness to other people s darker experience, writing: I actually find it strange how depressed people get after having an abortion. I don t regret mine one bit, let alone feel depressed about it. Via: UK Daily Mail

Clinton Is Trouncing Trump In GOP Districts By Double DigitsAs Donald Trump continues to sink his political party due to his inability to be presidential (or seemingly human), it s been reported that the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has released internal polling from their campaign headquarters which shows one scary thing for Republicans: Hillary Clinton is beating Donald Trump (by double digits) in seven Republican congressional districts across the country.The districts are:Because Trump s unstable, asinine, and outrageous campaign, districts that have gone Republican for 30+ years (and weren t affected by the Obama wave in 2008) may turn blue this November, and it s all thanks to Donald J. Trump.It s still a steep climb for Democrats, who need to take back 30 seats to have a majority in the House and six in the Senate (which way more probable). But Democrats took 30 seats in 2006, so the idea isn t entirely far fetched.But there s only one sure way it will happen: Democrats come out and vote in presidential elections, and should they vote down-ticket, not only could the Senate be taken back, significant gains could be made in the House, allowing a Clinton presidency to have a Congress that works with her to get progressive policies pushed through.Featured image via Joe Readle/Getty Images

Watch The Moment The Daily Show Realized Trump Won; This Was Probably ALL Of Us (VIDEO)Election night on November 8, took everyone by surprise. The polls showed Hillary Clinton up pretty much everywhere she needed to be, yet Donald Trump still somehow squeezed out a victory.We saw the shock first hand, the same shock that likely overtook everyone, live on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah s coverage of the election. They really didn t seem to believe how close the race had become.After Noah asks senior Hillary correspondent Desi Lydic about how the Clinton campaign is holding up on election night, she responded with: We will just have to wait a little longer than expected to find out if America prefers a competent sane woman or a misogynist troll doll. Unfortunately, we all now how that turned out, and even The Daily Show s senior political correspondent Jordan Klepper, who was supposedly at the Trump rally really couldn t believe what was going on, and joked about how everyone there assumed they were going to lose and was ready to blame it on being rigged. Needless to say, the entire night took everyone by surprise except for maybe Donald Trump himself, who always assumes himself a winner, and this time, to the horror of us all, he was right.Watch it all happen here:Featured image via video screen capture

Ten Lessons We Should Learn From The Flint Water Crisis (VIDEO)On January 16, President Obama declared a federal emergency in the city of Flint, Michigan. The president s declaration was issued even as evidence mounted that officials in the state s government had willfully and knowingly allowed tens of thousands of Flint residents to consume poisoned water for more than a year.As a result of decisions made by Michigan governor Rick Snyder, 200 children under the age of six have been confirmed to have irreversible lead poisoning. As testing continues, another 9,000 children are likely to be diagnosed with elevated levels of lead in their blood.Emails and leaked documents from the Snyder administration show that the governor and his appointed emergency managers were aware of the problem with the city s water for more than a year.As Addicting Info reported here, an in-depth report by the ACLU of Michigan shows that state officials falsified documents and rigged tests, to purposely mislead the EPA regarding the amount of lead in Flint s water.In addition to poisoning thousands of people with lead, Michigan officials, including the governor and his hand-picked emergency managers, not only ignored a massive spike in cases of Legionnaires disease, but blocked attempts by health officials to determine the cause or take appropriate steps to protect public health.Ten people died from exposure to the waterborne Legionella bacteria.In spite of the fact that state officials knew that the water was likely contaminated with this deadly bacteria and poisoned with lead, they repeatedly assured Flint residents that it was safe to drink.While it is tempting to believe that what happened in Flint can t happen to any of us, the reality is that unless we learn from this unprecedented disaster, it not only can happen to us, it likely will.Here are the ten most important things that Americans must learn from the Flint water crisis.Michigan s emergency manager law, passed by the state s republican/Tea Party legislature and signed by Governor Rick Snyder, provides for the establishment of a puppet government across the state. The law gives Governor Snyder the legal authority to remove elected officials (democrats) and replace them with a single, unelected manager. Every emergency manager in the state is hand-picked by the governor.The state s emergency managers are bestowed with unlimited power to make decisions on behalf of the local government. In the meantime, the people elected by the citizens are stripped of power, and their voices are silenced. In Flint, Detroit, Pontiac, Benton Harbor and elsewhere across the state of Michigan, local residents have been shut out of the decision-making process entirely.Make no mistake, the state s emergency manager law not only allowed the citizens of Flint to be poisoned, it allowed Snyder officials to cover up the contaminated water for more than a year.As republican governor Chris Christie advances a Michigan-style emergency manager law in New Jersey, it s vital that residents of Atlantic City understand how this law set the stage for the Flint water crisis.Flint is a horrifying example of what happens when right-wing extremists are allowed to make decisions that impact the lives of thousands of citizens.The decision to use the Flint river as a water source for the city was made by Snyder s appointed emergency manager in Flint, Ed Kurtz. There s also evidence that this decision came down directly from the governor s office.The story of how 100,000 people were poisoned by their own government is best understood in terms of right-wing ideology. The people who were charged with making decisions for Flint can be described as typical right-wing extremists. They are EPA-haters, regulation-opposers and Science deniers.These underlying beliefs allowed them to justify their illegal actions, both to each other and to themselves. To them, rigging tests, falsifying documents and flat-out lying to the environmental protection agency was just a way to get around the evil EPA with all its oppressive, costly and unnecessary regulations. Did they believe that their actions would cause harm to tens of thousands of people? It s possible they did. But it s more likely that their underlying anti-federal government, anti-regulation ideology allowed them to convince themselves that their actions would not really harm anyone. These are people who really believed that evil government regulations only exist to oppress the free market, not protect the public.Those beliefs are exactly why politicians who subscribe to right-wing ideology can never, ever be trusted to make decisions that could potentially impact the lives of hundreds of thousands of people.A long list of people, all appointed by Michigan governor Rick Snyder, played a role in the Flint water crisis. All of them were uneducated, inexperienced and unqualified for the positions they were appointed to. Not a single person who played a role in the switch of the city s water source to the Flint river had any knowledge or experience in this area.Nowhere is that more evident in the fact that emergency manager Ed Kurtz eliminated the use of corrosion control, to save roughly $80.00 a day.That single uneducated decision virtually destroyed the city s infrastructure, and created the lead contamination Flint residents are facing today.To understand the level of ineptitude this plummets to, bear in mind that Flint is the only city in the United States that had no plan for corrosion control whatsoever.Corrosion control for all municipal water supplies is mandatory under the Safe Drinking Water Act.In order to cover-up for the fact that corrosion control was eliminated by Snyder appointed officials, state officials lied to the EPA.As reported by Dr. Marc Edwards of the Flint Water Study program here,On February 27th, 2015, MDEQ s Stephen Busch unequivocally and falsely responded to EPA that: The City of Flint Has an Optimized Corrosion Control Program <and> Conducts quarterly Water Quality Parameter monitoring at 25 sites and has not had any unusual results. This was a flat-out lie.It wasn t until much later that the EPA learned that Michigan officials had been deceiving the agency about the use of corrosion control in Flint.As MLive reported nearly a year later, EPA officials were stunned when they discovered the truth. I was stunned when I found out they did not have corrosion control in place, Miguel A. Del Toral, regulations manager in the EPA s ground water and drinking water branch, said in an interview with The Flint Journal-MLive today, Jan. 21. In my head, I didn t believe that. I thought: That can t be true that s so basic. That s not possible. Unfortunately, it was possible.It was also the direct result of Governor Snyder appointing a list of unqualified, uneducated and inexperienced businessmen to be in charge of the city s water supply.A close examination of Michigan government shows what can happen when a single political party seizes control of all branches of government.The two-party system of government is essential to a healthy democracy. Not only is the system meant to safeguard against the kind of dictatorship being imposed in Michigan, but a second party with at least some amount of political power is necessary to keep government in check.In Michigan, the right wing has virtually succeeded in suppressing any voice that is not its own.Michigan s single party rule has eliminated from government anyone that could reasonably be expected to investigate corruption or hold state officials accountable for their actions.Michigan has a right-wing Attorney General, Secretary of State and Governor, along with a legislature that is entirely controlled by Tea Party and republican representatives. There is virtually no other party with any power in Michigan. Because of that, there is no-one to act as a watchdog for state government and there is no-one to hold state officials accountable.When Attorney General Bill Schuette finally announced an investigation into the Flint water crisis, Michigan residents laughed. No-one was surprised when Scheutte chose a private lawyer, who is not accountable to the public, to conduct the investigation. Nor was anyone surprised when it was revealed that the recently hired investigator is a republican party donor, who helped elect Rick Snyder.As Democracy Web explains it:There are ideological movements that reject the central tenets of multiparty electoral democracy but exploit the system s freedoms and processes to seek power. These include fascism, communism, and some forms of religious fundamentalism and ethnic or racial nationalism. Generally, parties with such ideologies use a utopian vision for the future to justify the imposition of a dictatorship once they reach government. While other parties are sometimes allowed to exist under their rule, real political power is exercised solely by the governing party. In these single-party systems, the ruling party is also a source of patronage, the main vehicle for personal advancement in politics and society, and a mechanism for strictly enforcing conformity to the dominant ideology. Underground parties or movements often organize against such regimes, but these are subject to severe repression.The Flint water crisis could not have happened without this total imbalance of power in the state s government.Michigan citizens apparently voted for Rick Snyder because of his business experience. That was their first mistake.Snyder s experience as a venture capitalist and corporate CEO did not make him more qualified to govern a state. If anything, it made him less qualified.Throughout his career, Snyder has been driven by the corporate doctrine of shareholder profit above all else. The only thing considered unethical in the corporate world is losing money.We got a first-hand glimpse into the corporate decision making process in 1968. That year leaked documents showed that the Ford Motor Company had compared the cost of recalling the company s Pinto to the cost of letting people die when the car s engine exploded. The company s analysis showed that it would be cheaper to let people die than to recall the car. So they did.Corporate ethics revolve around doing whatever you can get away with to protect or increase shareholder profits. This is the world that CEO s like Governor Rick Snyder live in.In relation to Flint, the media narrative has been that the source of Flint s drinking water was switched to the Flint river to save the city money. This narrative is simply not true.A feasibility study ordered by former Michigan State Treasurer Andy Dillon showed that switching the source of Flint s water would cost the city more. That report was thrown out by state officials.Emails released earlier this month, however, verify that it would have saved Flint hundreds of thousands dollars to stay with the Detroit Water and Sewer, even in the best case scenario.After the switch, Flint residents experienced a massive hike in their water rates. The increase in cost left many citizens unable to afford to keep water on in their homes. But those citizens who lost access to Flint s poisoned water may have been the lucky ones.If Snyder considered the citizens of Michigan his shareholders than none of these decisions make sense. He wasn t saving the city money as he repeatedly claimed. He wasn t doing the citizens of Flint any favors, either.But Snyder s decisions were never based on what was best for the city of Flint, nor the residents of that city.There s a whole different set of shareholders whose identities are not yet known.These are the people who Michigan s emergency manager law was set up to benefit.The law is formally known as Public Act 436. Embedded in the text of this law is the provision for state emergency managers to receive unlimited amounts of private cash.Section 141.1549 (f) reads:In addition to the salary provided to an emergency manager in a contract approved by the state treasurer under subdivision (e), this state may receive and distribute private funds to an emergency manager. As used in this subdivision, private funds means any money the state receives for the purpose of allocating additional salary to an emergency manager.Snyder set up a fund for these secret private donors, which he originally called the NERD fund. Cash was transferred through this fund directly into the pockets of Snyder s emergency managers.After a public outcry over the NERD fund, Snyder told the citizens of Michigan that it had been eliminated. That was another lie.Snyder simply changed the name of the slush fund from the NERD fund to the Moving Michigan Forward Fund.The same unnamed donors who have been lining the pockets of Michigan emergency managers for several years, are now footing the bill for Snyder s recently hired PR firms.Watch this video from WXYZ.The FBI and the Department of Justice criminal division are now investigating the Flint water crisis. Let s be clear, without the hope of an independent, outside investigation by federal authorities, Michigan citizens would be left without recourse.Michigan is one of two states in the country which exempts the governor and all state lawmakers from Freedom of Information requests.Any government that goes to these lengths to hide what it is doing from the public is a government that cannot and should not be trusted.Right wing lawmakers have no desire to make government work. They work to make government fail. Nowhere is that clearer than in the state of Michigan, where Snyder s appointed officials repeatedly broke federal laws, with devastating consequences. It s no surprise that republicans are now trying to use the Flint water crisis as proof that government doesn t work. There s nothing more dangerous to a corrupt government than an informed and involved citizenry.Being informed doesn t mean getting your news and information from the same source or sources all of the time, either.Sometimes being informed just means talking to other people, reaching across the aisles and stepping outside of your usual comfort zone.The people of Flint tried for more than a year to get the public s attention. We should ask ourselves why we didn t listen sooner.If we are to make sure that what happened in Flint never happens anywhere again, then we have to decide that we will not let factors like income or race or political affiliation determine whether or not we are willing to listen to our fellow citizens.If we can learn anything from the Flint water crisis, it s how important it is for each and every one of us to use our voting rights now. If we don t, we can (and almost surely will) lose them later.Right-wing politicians like Rick Snyder do not believe in democracy. They do not support your right to vote, nor your right to participate in government.Make no mistake, the only rights the people of Michigan have left are those which are protected by the federal government. At the state level, the right-wing legislature has removed the people s ability to participate in local government. These same lawmakers virtually eliminated the citizen s ability to recall their elected officials. They have also made it impossible for the voters to repeal legislation.This is what the far-right has accomplished in Michigan in just a few short years.Imagine what they will do if they gain complete control of the federal government These are certainly not the only lessons we should learn from the Flint water crisis. But if we all just learn these ten, and we truly take them to heart, our society will be so much better off going into the 2016 election. Image credit from Michigan Municipal League, via Flckr, cc 2.0

Chicago Tribune endorses Rubio in 2016 Republican presidential raceWASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Chicago Tribune endorsed Senator Marco Rubio in the 2016 Republican presidential race on Wednesday, a week before Illinois’ winner-take-all presidential primary. The newspaper of the state’s leading city credited Rubio’s embrace of spending limits, a line-item veto and a balanced budget amendment. “Crucially, his foreign affairs expertise vastly exceeds that of his rivals,” it said. (Reporting by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Mohammad Zargham) 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.

NBC NEWS CHIEF Makes Ugly Confession About Debut Of New Show With Unpopular $17 Million Host Megyn KellyNBC News chairman Andy Lack confessed to nervousness about Megyn Kelly s upcoming network morning show, saying the risk is unnerving and a little scary. Lack s confession about Kelly s upcoming debut is not exactly a vote of confidence for their $17 million golden girl Kelly, the former Fox News host, is debuting her daily 9 a.m. ET show Megyn Kelly Today on Sept. 25. Her summertime Sunday Night With Megyn Kelly newsmagazine program served as a test launch of sorts, but it disappointed, both critically and in the ratings.Lack signed Kelly away from Fox with an offer reportedly worth more than $17 million a year. Her show will follow Savannah Guthrie and Matt Lauer on NBC s treasured Today show, which wins its time slot in the vaunted 25-to-54 demographic. WFB

The Qatar Bubble - By Blake Hounshell | Foreign Policy

North Korea fires shells at South Korean military along western border

WELL, DUH! Transgender Wins International Women’s Weightlifting TitleJust last month a transgender high school wrestler won wrestling the girls:BRITISH COLUMNIST KATIE HOPKINS Has BRUTAL Reaction To Trans H.S. Student Beating Girls In Wrestling Matches [VIDEO]NEW ZEALAND TRANSGENDER WINS WEIGHTLIFTING TITLE:Kiwi weightlifter Laurel Hubbard has dominated her first major competition, taking out the Australian International in Melbourne on a night she made history as the first transgender athlete to represent New Zealand.Hubbard, 39, won the women s over 90kg division at the Melbourne event, setting four unofficial national records in the process. Hubbard lifted a combined total of 268kg 19kg better than silver medallist Iuniarra Sipaia of Samoa.Australia s Kaitlyn Fassina claimed the bronze medal with 223kg.Read more: NZ Herald

Amnesty: Iraq holds up to 30,000 detainees without trial

Queen of England enacts state oversight of media

All schools in Nigeria have been ordered to remain shut until 13 October as part of measures to prevent the spread of the deadly Ebola virus. The new academic year was due to start on Monday.

[VIDEO] HECKLERS TAUNT HILLARY AT CAMPAIGN STOP: “Who wiped the blood off your hands Hillary?”Hillary got a bit of a surprise while leaving a campaign stop in St. Louis this week.https://youtu.be/NLGeCC4rR1M Who wiped the blood off your hands Hillary? Was it the same people who wiped your servers? How many cell phones do you have today Hillary? At the end of the video, a woman can be heard screaming over and over again: Benghazi, Benghazi, Justice for Benghazi you left four of our men to die four Americans dead, thanks to Hillary never forget

It isn't a big deal until you make it a big deal

Ground Zero Mosque Was NOT Defeated: Three Story Islamic Museum And Muslim Prayer Space Will Take Its Place [Video]Will the new 3-story Islamic Museum include pictures of Americans jumping out of their flame engulfed offices in the Twin Towers to their death? Will it include pictures of the thousands of Americans who lost their lives on 9-11 for the crime of living in a Western culture that is far from the stone age mentality of the hateful Muslims who killed them?Perhaps the 3-story Islamic museum that will be built on the hallowed ground of the Twin Towers in NYC will include photos from home, like pictures of a young woman being stoned to death for the crime of being raped. How about some pictures of women who graduated from school in Afghanistan? Oops! We almost forgot, most Muslim girls are forbidden from attending school in Afghanistan. How about a special section designated for the tolerant treatment of gays? They could feature photos of all the tall buildings where Muslim men have been thrown off after being accused of being gay. How about a disfigurement and mutilation section of the museum with explanations of why Muslim men throw acid in the faces of Muslim women or why they cut the clitoris out of young women.There could be a blasphemy section of the museum, displaying pictures of entire Christian villages that have been burnt to the ground over accusations that Allah was slandered. And for good measure, this Muslim museum on Ground Zero should have a special section dedicated to the thousands of brave men and women in the US Military who have lost their lives overseas in the fight against terrorism by Muslims.But we don t need to remind anyone why that fight began do we? Like a hard slap across the face, this 3-story Islamic museum and prayer space will stand on the very ground where a group of cowards, inspired by Islam, crashed into the Twin Towers, murdering thousands of innocent men and women. Or then again maybe we do Creeping Sharia According to Bloomberg, while the original plans for a mega mosque at Ground Zero have been squashed (by capitalism), a mini-mosque and Islamic museum are still planned.It s been four years since Manhattan developer Sharif El-Gamal shelved plans for a 15-story Islamic cultural center, near Ground Zero, that drew international debate. He s looking to attract a different kind of attention for his current project on the site. El-Gamal s Soho Properties has proposed a 667-foot (203-meter) condominium tower at lower Manhattan s 45 Park Place.Adjacent to the tower, Soho Properties will build a public plaza connected to a three-story Islamic museum and prayer space to be designed by architect Jean Nouvel, El-Gamal said.That would be a Muslim prayer space, aka a mosque.He estimates that by the time the condo tower opens, the offices at the World Trade Center buildings will be filled with tenants, and retailers such as Saks Fifth Avenue will have opened lower Manhattan locations. The center of gravity is shifting toward downtown, and we are literally in the heart of this new downtown, El-Gamal said. Once all the scaffolding is down, and once all the office space is leased, this will be the most significant residential neighborhood in New York City. Watch this great video about plans to build a mega-mosque on Ground Zero:El Gamal states, indirectly, that the Islamic museum and mosque will be at the heart of the new downtown after Islam destroyed the old downtown.It s unclear why developers and others continue to do business with El Gamal considering his legal and financial troubles.

Egypt's Sisi urges Palestinians to unite, co-exist with IsraelisUNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi urged Palestinians to overcome their differences and be ready to co-exist with each other and with Israelis in safety and security. I tell the Palestinian people it s extremely important ... to overcome the differences and not to lose opportunities and to be ready to accept co-existence with the other, with Israelis in safety and security, Sisi told the annual U.N. General Assembly gathering of world leaders in New York. Following Egyptian-mediated reconciliation talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas Western-backed Fatah faction, Islamist Hamas said on Sunday it would dissolve its administrative committee to enable Abbas administration to retake control in the Gaza Strip. Hamas urged Abbas on Tuesday to respond by ending his sanctions on the impoverished enclave. Addressing the Israelis, Sisi said: We have an excellent experience in Egypt in peace with you for longer than 40 years. We can repeat this experience and this excellent step once again - the peace and security of the Israeli citizens together with the peace and security of the Palestinian citizens, Sisi told the 193-member General Assembly to a round of applause. Israel and Egypt signed a 1979 treaty that began with overtures toward peace in 1977. Qatar s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani also appealed on Tuesday, during his speech to the General Assembly, for the Palestinians to complete national reconciliation and unify positions and words in confronting the dangers and challenges facing the Palestinian cause and the future of the Palestinian people.

CNN’s Don Lemon: Is He an Alcoholic or Just a Drunk?Day in and day out, CNN works hard to try and convince American audiences that it s a legitimate news outlet, and it hopes that the public will take seriously the troubled news network s various on-screen actors and quasi-journalists. On New Year s Eve, one of CNN s highly paid anchors, Don Lemon could be seen on national TV in New Orleans with co-presenter Brooke Baldwin, as Lemon proceeded to pound shots of tequila live on air, slurring his speech and shouting, while simultaneously getting his ear pierced during the program. Lemon then went on to sink into a melancholy diatribe about not being in a relationship (Lemon is gay) and personal struggles with his own narcissism.The episode prompted many critics to question his psychological state, and also to ask whether or not Lemon might have a serious drinking or substance problem.Things got so bad that network producers had to pull the audio feed while drunk Lemon began shouting 2016 was awful. On the New York City feed, onlookers from CNN were obscure female American comedian, Kathy Griffin, joined by news presenter and actor Anderson Cooper, both of whom were enjoying the spectacle not at all concerned with the potential damage to Lemon s reputation as a result of his alcoholic episode on air.Griffin could be seen shouting, Nipples! Nipples! Nipples! as Lemon began to unbutton his dress shirt.Watch Don Lemon drunk on air during CNN s New Years broadcast:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LNWx-ZfrKOU .

Trump HUMILIATED At The Beach This Weekend With HILARIOUS Flying BannerThere s some funny business happening this weekend at the Jersey Shore, and it s not the usual shenanigans you have in mind. A Democratic group is flying a HUGE banner today over the very busy beaches of the Jersey Shore with a hilarious anti-Trump message.The banner that reads TRUMP IS ON VACATION WITH YOUR $$ is being flown by the outspoken Bridge Project. They are flying it from Beach Haven all the way up north to Sea Bright.The group cleverly chose this location and weekend because the President is spending a leisurely weekend golfing at his NJ beach resort. Flying this banner is the perfect way to highlight the fact that Trump is spending every weekend golfing at the beach rather than doing his job and to embarrass him about it, bigly.The irony of Trump spending all his weekends golfing is that he used to slam President Obama on Twitter for playing golf while in the office. Now, even Trump s fellow Republicans are recognizing that he is majorly out-golfing Obama. Senator Joni Ernst from Iowa said in an April town hall speech that Trump needs to spend way less time at Mar-a-Lago in Florida if he wants to be an effective president. I do wish he would spend more time in Washington, D.C. That s what we have the White House for. By April Trump had spent as much time traveling during his presidency than Obama did during the entire two terms in the White House. Besides not being in D.C. doing his job, just one of Trump s weekend getaways cost taxpayers $3.6 million.Maybe this banner will help Trump to see the error of his ways? OK, probably not, but at least it will embarrass the shit out of him.Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images

Forces loyal to Libya's late leader Muammar Gaddafi have launched a series of attacks across several cities, killing seven fighters who helped topple the former regime, officials and residents say.

Britain, Ireland at odds on border as Brexit deadline nearsDUBLIN/LONDON (Reuters) - Ireland and Britain remained at odds on Monday on how to progress talks on the Irish border with a week to go before London could face failure in persuading European Union leaders to open trade talks at a December Brexit summit. The EU handed Prime Minister Theresa May a 10-day absolute deadline on Friday to improve her divorce terms and meet three key conditions, including on the border between EU-member Ireland and Britain s province of Northern Ireland. Before it can sign off on the first phase of talks, the Irish government wants Britain to spell out in writing how it intends to make good on its commitment that the 500-km (300-mile) border will remain as seamless post-Brexit as it is today. Dublin and EU officials say the best way to avoid a hard border is to keep regulations the same north and south and that this needs to be agreed in phase one, but a spokesman for May reiterated on Monday that a solution can only be concluded in the second phase of talks. We remain firmly committed to avoiding any physical infrastructure but the secretary of state (Brexit minister David Davis) was also clear that we will only be able to conclude them finally in the context of the future relationship, he told reporters. May s spokesman repeated that the whole of the United Kingdom will leave the EU s single market and customs union but Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said it seemed impossible to Dublin that some form of hard border could be avoided if there are diverging regulatory regimes north and south. It s simply not credible to say on the one hand that we are going to have a frictionless border and at the same time that all of Britain, including Northern Ireland, is going to leave the customs union, the single market without giving any reassurance on the avoidance of regulatory divergence, he told national broadcaster RTE. With the possibility of Ireland vetoing progress on the talks dominating some newspaper front pages in Britain, Coveney added that Dublin would not need to use its veto if it remained dissatisfied since it has the backing of all other EU states. We don t need to use a veto because we have complete solidarity on this issue. It is clear to us that if there is not progress on the Irish border, we will not be moving onto phase two in December and that was reinforced to me as late as last Friday by very senior EU leaders, he said.

Israel's attorney general approves Netanyahu's plan to relocate 5 homes on Palestinian land to former military base in West Bank where 300 unites will be built. Netanayahu also to head settlement approval committee and establishes Palestinian court grievance process

Mother and Daughter severely ill after their E Coli was contaminated with British food

China conducts 'island encirclement' patrols near TaiwanBEIJING (Reuters) - China s air force has conducted more island encirclement patrols near Taiwan, its military said on Tuesday, after a senior Chinese diplomat threatened that China would invade the self-ruled island if any U.S. warships made port visits there. China considers Taiwan to be a wayward province and has never renounced the use of force to bring it under its control. Numerous Chinese fighter jets, bombers and surveillance aircraft conducted routine and planned distant sea patrols on Monday to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity, Air Force spokesman Shen Jinke said on the military branch s microblog. H-6K bombers, Su-30 and J-11 fighter jets, and surveillance, alert and refueling aircraft flew over the Miyako Strait in Japan s south and the Bashi Channel between Taiwan and the Philippines to test real combat capabilities , Shen said. Taiwan Defence Minister Feng Shih-kuan said in a statement they had dispatched aircraft and ships to monitor the activity of the Chinese military and that the drills were not unusual and people should not be alarmed. China has conducted numerous similar patrols near Taiwan this year, saying such practices have been normalized as it presses ahead with a military modernization program that includes building aircraft carriers and stealth fighters to give it the ability to project power far from its shores. Beijing regularly calls Taiwan the most sensitive and important issue between it and the United States. Taiwan is well armed, mostly with U.S. weaponry, but has been pressing Washington to sell it more high-tech equipment to better deter China. In September, the U.S. Congress passed the National Defense Authorization Act for the 2018 fiscal year, which authorizes mutual visits by navy vessels between Taiwan and the United States. That prompted a senior U.S.-based Chinese diplomat to say last week that China would invade Taiwan the instant any U.S. navy vessel visited Taiwan. China suspects Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen, who leads the independence-leaning Democratic Progressive Party, wants to declare the island s formal independence. Tsai says she wants to maintain peace with China but will defend Taiwan s security.

MITCH MCCONNELL: The Senate Will Not Take Up Nomination of Merrick GarlandMitch McConnell just made a statement on the Senate floor that the Senate will follow the Biden rule and wait until a new administration comes in to consider a Supreme Court nominee. McConnell made the case that the Senate has the right to do this and that it s not against Judge Garland. Garland is a liberal judge but not as left leaning as some who were considered for the nomination on the Supreme Court. In fact, Orin Hatch of Utah was quoted as saying Garland would be a good choice. Obama must have called his bluff on this one. The Senate s not biting and will stick to its guns or risk even more criticism from Republicans.CSPAN VIDEO: MCCONNELL STATEMENT

Honduran Supreme Court Denies Zelayas Return, Keeping Political Crisis Alive

NOT KIDDING: Why Government Is Forcing Manhattan Landlord To Give $3200 A Month Apartment To Immigrant Free For LifeThanks to our government, the land of opportunity has taken on a whole new meaning An immigrant cabby scored the deal of a lifetime a Chelsea pad for free until he dies thanks to an obscure provision in the city s rent-stabilization law.TLC-licensed driver Oltimdje Ouattara hit the apartment jackpot after he began renting a room for $48 a night at an illegal hostel called the Chelsea Highline Hotel at 184 11th Ave. in August.Ouattara learned that since the building was registered with the city for single-room occupancy, he just had to submit a written request to become a permanent tenant there and his rent would be locked in for life.It s the same legal loophole that had been used by five other hacks in the building before him. As The Post has exclusively reported, the other cabbies landed deals requiring them to pay around $300 a month for apartments that can go for up to $3,200.But Ouattara was able to net an even sweeter deal allowing him to pay absolutely nothing because the official listed rate on his illegal room was $0. And a judge said that s what the rent for his assigned room, No. 201, would stay.Ouattara has been sharing a one-room apartment in The Bronx with five other people since the hostel manager locked him out.Manhattan Housing Court Justice Sabrina Kraus appeared to be furious at the Chelsea landlord. She said the landlord should have been well aware of [his] obligations because he had lost a nearly identical case brought by Ouattara s neighbor, Hamidou Guira, weeks earlier.Ouattara managed to slip his lease request in just before building owner Chelsea Skybox LLC closed down the hostel, ensuring others can t follow suit.Lawyers for Chelsea Skybox LLC, which is controlled by Israeli developer John Leitersdorf and his partner, John Jacobsen, did not return messages seeking comment.But they have filed a lawsuit against Ouattara, the city and the state, claiming the housing laws are unconstitutional and tantamount to taking property without due process. Via: NYP

Hizbullah outs 10 CIA spies on Lebanese television

Constituent harassed by Telegraph readers after sending email to Tory PPC

Leonard Cohen plays a concert in Israel; comes under fire for breaking a boycott over Israel's latest invasion of Gaza. In response, Cohen offers to play the West Bank and donate the proceeds to Israeli-Palestinian peace organizations.

French commandos free Dutch hostage in Mali, held for 3.5 years

BRAVE FBI AGENTS Come Forward On Clinton Email Scandal: “Comey thought this was going to go away”FBI agents say the bureau is alarmed over Director James Comey s decision to not suggest that the Justice Department prosecute Hillary Clinton over her mishandling of classified information.According to an interview transcript given to The Daily Caller, provided by an intermediary who spoke to two federal agents with the bureau last Friday, agents are frustrated by Comey s leadership. This is a textbook case where a grand jury should have been convened, but was not. That is appalling, an FBI special agent who has worked public corruption and criminal cases said of the decision. We talk about it in the office and don t know how Comey can keep going. The agent was also surprised that the bureau did not bother to search Clinton s house during the investigation. We didn t search their house. We always search the house. The search should not just have been for private electronics, which contained classified material, but even for printouts of such material, he said. There should have been a complete search of their residence, the agent pointed out. That the FBI did not seize devices is unbelievable. The FBI even seizes devices that have been set on fire. Another special agent for the bureau who worked counter-terrorism and criminal cases said he is offended by Comey s saying: we and I ve been an investigator. After graduating from law school, Comey became a law clerk to a U.S. District Judge in Manhattan and later became an associate in a law firm in the city. After becoming a U.S. Attorney in the Southern District of New York, Comey s career moved through the U.S. Attorney s Office until he became Deputy Attorney General during the George W. Bush administration.After Bush left office, Comey entered the private sector and became general counsel and Senior Vice President for Lockheed Martin, among other private sector posts. President Barack Obama appointed him to FBI director in 2013 replacing out going-director Robert Mueller. Comey was never an investigator or special agent. The special agents are trained investigators and they are insulted that Comey included them in collective we statements in his testimony to imply that the SAs agreed that there was nothing there to prosecute, the second agent said. All the trained investigators agree that there is a lot to prosecuted but he stood in the way. He added, The idea that [the Clinton/e-mail case] didn t go to a grand jury is ridiculous. According to Washington D.C. attorney Joe DiGenova, more FBI agents will be talking about the problems at bureau and specifically the handling of the Clinton case by Comey when Congress comes back into session and decides to force them to testify by subpoena.DiGenova told WMAL radio s Drive at Five last week, People are starting to talk. They re calling their former friends outside the bureau asking for help. We were asked today to provide legal representation to people inside the bureau and agreed to do so and to former agents who want to come forward and talk. Comey thought this was going to go away. Read more: Daily Caller

Factbox: Trump U.S. Supreme Court pick could affect pending cases(Reuters) - President Donald Trump’s nominee to the U.S. Supreme Court, due to be named on Tuesday, could have an immediate impact on cases already pending before the justices. The nine-seat court has been operating with only eight justices since the death of conservative Antonin Scalia on Feb. 13, 2016, with four liberals and four conservatives. The court has ended up with 4-4 split decisions in several cases. The new justice could cast the deciding vote in some cases being considered by the justices in their term that ends in June. Here is a look at some cases in which the new justice could be pivotal. Gloucester County School Board v. G.G. A major transgender rights dispute over whether a public school district in Virginia can prevent a female-born transgender student who identifies as male from using the boys’ bathroom. Trinity Lutheran Church v. Pauley A religious rights case from Missouri in which a church contends the state violated the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment guarantee of religious freedom by denying it funds for a playground project due to a state ban on aid to religious organizations. Epic Systems Corp v. Lewis A significant case for business and labor on whether companies can head off costly class action lawsuits by forcing employees to give up their right to pursue work-related legal claims in court as a group. Microsoft Corp v. Baker A class action case on Microsoft Corp’s bid to fend off claims by Xbox 360 owners who contend that the videogame console has a design defect that causes game discs to be gouged.

Libya: Captured Mercenaries (video)

North America Is Region Least Likely To Suffer From Terror Attack, Researchers Say

Trump says DACA recipients should not worry about statusWASHINGTON (Reuters) - Youths who were brought to the United States illegally and gained protection under the Obama administration should not worry about their immigration status during the next six months before the program ends, U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday. “For all of those (DACA) that are concerned about your status during the 6 month period, you have nothing to worry about - No action!” Trump said in a post on Twitter, referring to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.

Exclusive: Atlantic City emergency fiscal management costs top $2.6 million(Reuters) - New Jersey taxpayers will owe $2.62 million for roughly a year’s worth of work by a team of professionals called in to help turn around the distressed gambling hub Atlantic City, according to invoices obtained and compiled by Reuters. It is not clear what taxpayers have to show for it. Despite the work by a state-appointed emergency manager and the law and accounting firms he hired, so little progress has been made in reversing the seaside resort’s fortunes that lawmakers are now considering a full takeover of city operations. Reuters reported in September that the amount was $2.15 million, but invoice reports since then for additional work by restructuring lawyers at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom have pushed the total up by 20 percent. Reuters obtained the documents through a public records request. Governor Chris Christie appointed Kevin Lavin as emergency manager on Jan. 22, 2015. Since then, Lavin’s team has produced one report, in March. The Press of Atlantic City this month obtained a non-public draft of a follow-up report. A spokesman for Lavin told Reuters last week that a report is expected “within the coming weeks.” Four of the city’s eight casinos closed in 2014, pummeled by competition from neighboring states. That contributed to a 70 percent reduction in the city’s property tax base, to a projected $6 billion this year from $20.5 billion in 2010. Lavin and his team - including Skadden, Ernst & Young LLP [ERNY.UL], and mediator Donald Steckroth - were to review and propose solutions to the city’s immediate fiscal crisis, suggest possible longer-term fixes and negotiate with labor unions. Separately, the state had already appointed a monitor and had to approve the city’s budget and hiring. But lawmakers are seeking an even firmer grasp. On Tuesday, they introduced legislation that would strip Atlantic City’s elected officials of most of their control, except for the ability to file for municipal bankruptcy. “You can’t justify a $262 million budget for 40,000 people. It’s obscene,” Senate President Steve Sweeney, a co-sponsor of the bill, said earlier this week. “(The mayor and city council) need to make the tough decisions now.” Mayor Don Guardian and city council members denounced the takeover proposal. Guardian said on Wednesday the city trimmed $14 million from its 2015 budget and expects to cut $16 million more this year.

Scalia death a blow to Obamacare contraception challengersWASHINGTON (Reuters) - Christian groups asking the U.S. Supreme Court to exempt them from the requirement to provide insurance covering contraception under President Barack Obama’s healthcare law face an uphill battle following Justice Antonin Scalia’s death last month. The remaining eight justices will consider seven related cases on whether nonprofit groups that oppose the requirement on religious grounds can object under a U.S. law called the Religious Freedom Restoration Act to a compromise version of the requirement offered by the Obama administration. Among those mounting objections are the Little Sisters of the Poor, an order of Roman Catholic nuns that runs care homes for the elderly. The court, divided 4-4 between liberal and conservative justices without the conservative Scalia, is set to hear the case on Wednesday. Scalia was considered a reliable vote for the religious groups. In 2014, he was in the majority when the court ruled 5-4 that family-owned companies run on religious principles, including craft retailer Hobby Lobby Stores Inc, could object to the provision for religious reasons. If the four conservatives who sided with Scalia in that case remain unified, the best result the challengers could get would be a 4-4 split. That would leave in place lower-court rulings that favored the Obama administration. “Unless the court’s four justices in the dissent in Hobby Lobby dramatically change their minds, the likely worst outcome for the government would be a 4-4 split,” said Gregory Lipper, a lawyer with Americans United for Separation of Church and State, which filed a brief backing the Obama administration. Lawyers for the challengers forecast that they can win, citing among other things the fact that women can obtain alternative coverage via Obamacare’s online marketplace. “The idea that the government doesn’t have some other way to do this is really a pretty silly argument,” said Mark Rienzi, a lawyer with the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, which represents the Little Sisters. The Christian groups object to a compromise first offered by the federal government in 2013. It allows groups opposed to providing insurance covering contraception on religious grounds to comply with the law without actually paying for the coverage required by the 2010 Affordable Care Act, widely known as Obamacare. Groups can certify they are opting out by signing a form, which they submit to the government. The government then asks insurers to pick up the tab. The groups contend the accommodation infringes on their religious rights because it forces them to authorize the coverage for their employees, even if they are not paying for it. A ruling is due by the end of June.

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Trump aides, lawmakers hold talks to revive healthcare billWASHINGTON (Reuters) - Top White House officials met moderate and conservative Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives on Monday in an effort to revive a plan to repeal and replace Obamacare. Key members of the administration, including Vice President Mike Pence, invited a group of moderate Republicans known as the “Tuesday Group” to the White House. Pence then went to Capitol Hill to meet the Freedom Caucus, a group of House conservatives who last month derailed a healthcare bill backed by President Donald Trump. The White House would like to see a revised bill come up for a vote as early as week’s end, before the House breaks for a spring recess, and the text of the new proposal could be ready some time on Tuesday, lawmakers said. “It was clear the president would be very happy come Friday to have this passed,” said U.S. Representative Chris Collins, a member of the Tuesday Group and a Trump ally. “This could move fairly quickly,” he said. Just 10 days ago, House Speaker Paul Ryan was forced to cancel a vote on a bill to replace the 2010 Affordable Care Act, popularly known as Obamacare, when it was clear he could not deliver the votes needed for it to pass. The defeat was a big political setback for Trump and fellow Republicans in Congress who were elected on pledges to repeal and replace former Democratic President Barack Obama’s signature healthcare law. Freedom Caucus members said the Republican bill was too similar to Obamacare, while moderate Republicans balked at some of the changes conservatives sought. Trump attacked Freedom Caucus members on Twitter late last week for their opposition to the bill and threatened to work to defeat them in the 2018 congressional elections. At the weekend, he struck a more conciliatory tone, tweeting early on Sunday: “Talks on Repealing and Replacing Obamacare are, and have been, going on, and will continue until such time as a deal is hopefully struck.” After golfing with the president on Sunday, Republican Senator Rand Paul, a sharp critic of the Republicans’ previous healthcare bill, also expressed renewed hope the healthcare bill could be revised in a way that picked up support from the conservative and moderate factions of the Republican Party. Paul told reporters he was “very optimistic that we are getting closer and closer to an agreement repealing Obamacare.” Pence and White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus laid out the administration’s revised healthcare plan during a 40-minute meeting with Freedom Caucus members, said Congressman Mark Meadows, the leader of the conservative group. Meadows said he was “intrigued” by the new plan, which would allow states to opt out of some of Obamacare’s mandates, possibly by obtaining waivers. “We’re encouraged ... but would certainly need a whole lot more information before we can take any action either in support or in opposition,” Meadows told reporters. He expected to see a detailed draft of the proposal within 24 hours, he said. In the earlier meeting with the moderate Tuesday Group, White House officials said the new plan would preserve Obamacare’s essential health benefits clause, or services and care that insurers must cover, but states could apply for a waiver if they could show it would improve coverage and reduce costs, according to Collins. Trump aides also discussed directing funds from the $115 billion stability fund for states into high-risk pools for people with pre-existing health conditions to better ensure insurance premiums come down in cost, Collins said. “It’s an acknowledgement that they were chasing votes with the Freedom Caucus and the Far Right and then ended up losing votes with those of us who are typically the most reliable votes,” Collins said of the proposal provisions discussed at the meeting.