White House Counselor to the President Kellyanne Conway appeared on CNN Monday to sarcastically slam the idea the former FBI Director James Comey swung the presidential election, only for the show's chyron to parrot it as a sincere response.
"I saw Jim Comey last night and I said ‘this guy swung an election?' I don't think so," Conway told Chris Cuomo on CNN, shaking her head in disbelief at the notion.
"He struggled to answer basic questions," Conway added, further showing how unimpressed she was with Comey's interview.
CNN's chyron proceeded to falsely claim Conway thought Comey handed the election to Donald Trump with the chyron "KELLYANNE CONWAY: COMEY ‘SWUNG AN ELECTION.'"
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Tuesday, April 17, 2018
Special Prosecutorial Abuse
We’re supposed to be reassured that the FBI agents who raided the offices and home of Donald Trump’s personal lawyer, Michael A. Cohen, were, in Cohen’s words, “courteous” and “respectful.”
The president’s attorney was understandably grateful that the agents didn’t replicate the FBI’s tactics at the home of Paul Manafort, Trump’s onetime campaign manager. Busting in before dawn, guns drawn, with a “no knock” warrant while Manafort and his wife were in bed, the agents frisked Mrs. Manafort while she was still in her nightclothes.
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The president’s attorney was understandably grateful that the agents didn’t replicate the FBI’s tactics at the home of Paul Manafort, Trump’s onetime campaign manager. Busting in before dawn, guns drawn, with a “no knock” warrant while Manafort and his wife were in bed, the agents frisked Mrs. Manafort while she was still in her nightclothes.
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American woman wins Boston Marathon for 1st time in 33 years
BOSTON — Desiree Linden splashed her way through icy rain and a near-gale headwind to a Boston Marathon victory on Monday, the first American woman to win the race since 1985.
The two-time Olympian and 2011 Boston runner-up pulled away at the end of Heartbreak Hill to finish in 2 hours, 39 minutes, 54 seconds. That was more than four minutes better than second-place finisher Sarah Sellers, one of seven Americans in the top 10, but the slowest time for a women’s winner since 1978.
“It’s supposed to be hard,” said Linden, who wiped the spray of rain from her eyes as she made her way down Boylston Street alone. “It’s good to get it done.”
Yuki Kawauchi passed defending champion Geoffrey Kirui in Kenmore Square to win the men’s race in an unofficial 2:15:58 and earn Japan’s first Boston Marathon title since 1987. Kirui slowed and stumbled across the Copley Square finish line 2:25 later, followed by Shadrack Biwott and three other U.S. men.
On the fifth anniversary of the finish line explosions that killed three and wounded hundreds more, Linden and Kawauchi led a field of 30,000 runners through a drenching rain, temperatures in the mid-30s and gusts of up to 32 mph on the 26.2-mile trek from Hopkinton.
“For me, it’s the best conditions possible,” Kawauchi said through an interpreter and with a wide smile.
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The two-time Olympian and 2011 Boston runner-up pulled away at the end of Heartbreak Hill to finish in 2 hours, 39 minutes, 54 seconds. That was more than four minutes better than second-place finisher Sarah Sellers, one of seven Americans in the top 10, but the slowest time for a women’s winner since 1978.
“It’s supposed to be hard,” said Linden, who wiped the spray of rain from her eyes as she made her way down Boylston Street alone. “It’s good to get it done.”
Yuki Kawauchi passed defending champion Geoffrey Kirui in Kenmore Square to win the men’s race in an unofficial 2:15:58 and earn Japan’s first Boston Marathon title since 1987. Kirui slowed and stumbled across the Copley Square finish line 2:25 later, followed by Shadrack Biwott and three other U.S. men.
On the fifth anniversary of the finish line explosions that killed three and wounded hundreds more, Linden and Kawauchi led a field of 30,000 runners through a drenching rain, temperatures in the mid-30s and gusts of up to 32 mph on the 26.2-mile trek from Hopkinton.
“For me, it’s the best conditions possible,” Kawauchi said through an interpreter and with a wide smile.
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Midterm MELTDOWN: Democratic Advantage In 2018 Polls Is 'Shrinking'
Democrats, and, in particular, Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, have been particularly optimistic about their chances at retaking the House of Representatives after the midterm elections this fall. But according to a new poll from ABC/Washington Post, it seems they'd do well to take a more cautious approach.
According to the poll released Monday, "47 percent of registered voters say they prefer the Democratic candidate in their district, while 43 percent favor the Republican." That seems significant (although 4 points is often within the margin of error), until you consider that, in January, the spread between the two parties was 12 points, and the Democrats' lead has slipped 8 points since January.
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According to the poll released Monday, "47 percent of registered voters say they prefer the Democratic candidate in their district, while 43 percent favor the Republican." That seems significant (although 4 points is often within the margin of error), until you consider that, in January, the spread between the two parties was 12 points, and the Democrats' lead has slipped 8 points since January.
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Don’t Wait Too Long to Leave the Party
Liquidity is the ultimate paradox in finance. It’s always there when you don’t need it and never there when you need it most. The reason is crowd behavior, or what mathematicians call hypersynchronicity (a fancy word for everyone doing the same thing at the same time).
When markets are calm, no one wants liquidity because investors are happy to hold stocks, bonds, currencies, commodities and other assets in their portfolios. As a result, there’s plenty of liquidity on offer from bank lenders and very few takers.
The opposite is true.
In a financial crisis, everyone wants his money back at once. Stocks are crashing, bonds are crashing, margin calls are streaming in and everyone is trying to sell everything at once to avoid losses, meet margin calls and preserve wealth.
In those circumstances, there’s not enough liquidity to go around. Banks, and ultimately regulators, decide who lives and who dies (financially speaking) by offering liquidity or cutting it off.
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When markets are calm, no one wants liquidity because investors are happy to hold stocks, bonds, currencies, commodities and other assets in their portfolios. As a result, there’s plenty of liquidity on offer from bank lenders and very few takers.
The opposite is true.
In a financial crisis, everyone wants his money back at once. Stocks are crashing, bonds are crashing, margin calls are streaming in and everyone is trying to sell everything at once to avoid losses, meet margin calls and preserve wealth.
In those circumstances, there’s not enough liquidity to go around. Banks, and ultimately regulators, decide who lives and who dies (financially speaking) by offering liquidity or cutting it off.
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Iowa Joins States Preemptively Moving Against Sanctuary Cities
New state law now bars Iowa cities and counties from being sanctuaries for fugitive illegal immigrants under legislation signed by Gov. Kim Reynolds (R). Municipal leaders who choose to ignore the new law face a cutoff of state funding.
Meanwhile, the list of California communities rebelling against their state’s sanctuary state law could grow longer by at least one before the end of April.
While President Trump has vowed to cut off federal funding for states that go sanctuary, Iowa’s new law — along with similar legislation approved in Alabama, Mississippi, North Carolina, and Texas last year, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures — could hurt rogue cities that decide not to cooperate with ICE.
Ilya Somin, a law professor at George Mason University, told Inside Sources any such law passed by a state legislature could be legal and held up in court, depending on the state’s constitution.
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Meanwhile, the list of California communities rebelling against their state’s sanctuary state law could grow longer by at least one before the end of April.
While President Trump has vowed to cut off federal funding for states that go sanctuary, Iowa’s new law — along with similar legislation approved in Alabama, Mississippi, North Carolina, and Texas last year, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures — could hurt rogue cities that decide not to cooperate with ICE.
Ilya Somin, a law professor at George Mason University, told Inside Sources any such law passed by a state legislature could be legal and held up in court, depending on the state’s constitution.
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This is the real reason many Americans stay poor
In his State of the Union address, President Trump said “there has never been a better time to start living the American Dream.” But the new 2018 Prosperity Now Scorecard and its accompanying report says that isn’t so for low-income Americans.
“The system is, by just about all measures, stacked against those with low incomes and low wealth for the benefit of the wealthiest,” says the report from the nonpartisan but left-leaning Prosperity Now nonprofit, which provides research and recommendations regarding Americans with limited incomes.
One example: low-income people are ineligible for federal programs such as SNAP (food stamps) and TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) if they amass “even modest savings,” the report noted. Prosperity Now calls policies like this “a roadblock on the path to saving.”
What the 2018 Prosperity Now scorecard found
The 2018 Prosperity Now Scorecard and its report, Whose Bad Choices? How Policy Precludes Prosperity and What We Can Do About It, also make the argument that the U.S. economic system and policies of the Trump administration and Congress are stacked against people of color.
“We’ve heard more rhetoric lately about [low-income] people making ‘bad choices’ or being ‘irresponsible with money’ and that’s been the direction policy has been going,’ said Kasey Wiedrich, director of applied research at Prosperity Now. “We wanted to attack that.” One example of the rhetoric: Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) recently said lower-income Americans “are just spending every darn penny they have whether it’s on booze or women or movies.”
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“The system is, by just about all measures, stacked against those with low incomes and low wealth for the benefit of the wealthiest,” says the report from the nonpartisan but left-leaning Prosperity Now nonprofit, which provides research and recommendations regarding Americans with limited incomes.
One example: low-income people are ineligible for federal programs such as SNAP (food stamps) and TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) if they amass “even modest savings,” the report noted. Prosperity Now calls policies like this “a roadblock on the path to saving.”
What the 2018 Prosperity Now scorecard found
The 2018 Prosperity Now Scorecard and its report, Whose Bad Choices? How Policy Precludes Prosperity and What We Can Do About It, also make the argument that the U.S. economic system and policies of the Trump administration and Congress are stacked against people of color.
“We’ve heard more rhetoric lately about [low-income] people making ‘bad choices’ or being ‘irresponsible with money’ and that’s been the direction policy has been going,’ said Kasey Wiedrich, director of applied research at Prosperity Now. “We wanted to attack that.” One example of the rhetoric: Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) recently said lower-income Americans “are just spending every darn penny they have whether it’s on booze or women or movies.”
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James Comey's interview is a media flop
Former FBI Director James Comey’s highly anticipated weekend TV interview fell flat for key members of the press.
The one-hour interview, which aired Sunday on ABC ahead of the publication of Comey’s book “A Higher Loyalty,” received extensive coverage in the national press for Comey’s sharp rebukes of President Trump, but there were almost no revelations in his answers, and some critics said Comey came across as self-serving.
“I didn’t like that interview,” CNN political analyst David Gregory said Monday morning. “I don’t think Jim Comey came off well at all. I think yet again he is obsessed with his standing, his media standing, his kind of political standing.”
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The one-hour interview, which aired Sunday on ABC ahead of the publication of Comey’s book “A Higher Loyalty,” received extensive coverage in the national press for Comey’s sharp rebukes of President Trump, but there were almost no revelations in his answers, and some critics said Comey came across as self-serving.
“I didn’t like that interview,” CNN political analyst David Gregory said Monday morning. “I don’t think Jim Comey came off well at all. I think yet again he is obsessed with his standing, his media standing, his kind of political standing.”
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Dear Starbucks, You Lost Me at Planned Parenthood
I am a Gold Card member of Starbucks. I love your products and have for many years, specifically the grande mocha with coconut milk, no whip, extra hot. That's my drink. I am two stars away from receiving a free drink on my Gold Card. I worked hard for that. It's not easy to earn your rewards and your coffee ain't cheap. But I almost have a free mocha out of it and I was looking forward to it.
Then I discovered that Starbucks is subsidizing Planned Parenthood, which has recently been caught on video tearing apart the bodies of fully formed human beings and selling off their organs to the highest bidder. So, not only does my tax money go to fund these inhuman butchers, but now my coffee money does, too.Not anymore. I don't usually support advertising boycotts because it hurts businesses that are just trying to market a product, but this time I can't wrap my head around why on earth Starbucks is giving money to Planned Parenthood. Don't you want more customers? Do you realize Planned Parenthood is killing off millions of potential Starbucks customers and selling them off for spare parts?
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Then I discovered that Starbucks is subsidizing Planned Parenthood, which has recently been caught on video tearing apart the bodies of fully formed human beings and selling off their organs to the highest bidder. So, not only does my tax money go to fund these inhuman butchers, but now my coffee money does, too.Not anymore. I don't usually support advertising boycotts because it hurts businesses that are just trying to market a product, but this time I can't wrap my head around why on earth Starbucks is giving money to Planned Parenthood. Don't you want more customers? Do you realize Planned Parenthood is killing off millions of potential Starbucks customers and selling them off for spare parts?
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Are You an Alpha or a Beta Male? Take Our 20-Question Quiz and Find Out
The problem with defining whether you’re an Alpha or a Beta male is that everybody wants to be an Alpha and we’re great at lying to ourselves. Either we fudge the answers or try to make being Alpha unobtainable (Alphas? That’s guys like Chuck Norris, James Mattis or The Rock) so we don’t feel bad about missing the mark. So, let’s make it a little more objective with this quiz. Answer as honestly as you can and this will let you know where you really stand.
1) Are you more of a leader or a follower? Have you taken a group of people somewhere, even if it’s out to dinner? Are there people looking to you when it’s time to make a decision?
A) Leader
B) Follower
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1) Are you more of a leader or a follower? Have you taken a group of people somewhere, even if it’s out to dinner? Are there people looking to you when it’s time to make a decision?
A) Leader
B) Follower
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Is DOJ Obstructing Congress in the Trump Surveillance Case?
Did Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA) really have to threaten to hold FBI Director Christopher Wray and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein in contempt and to start impeachment proceedings? Apparently so.
Nunes chairs the House Intelligence Committee. For almost eight months, Wray and Rosenstein stalled his request for an unredacted copy of the memo that launched the Obama administration’s investigation/surveillance of the Trump campaign. Eight months.
But when Nunes threatened impeachment, he received the memo within 24 hours.
The Committee is investigating whether the Justice Department and the FBI (which is part of the Justice Department) had a credible, legal basis for opening their extraordinary investigation of a presidential candidate’s campaign. And the Justice Department has been trying to slow-walk the Committee’s investigation from the start.
But all the delaying tactics in the world can’t diminish the power of Congress to exercise oversight of a federal agency’s behavior -- or possible misbehavior.
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Nunes chairs the House Intelligence Committee. For almost eight months, Wray and Rosenstein stalled his request for an unredacted copy of the memo that launched the Obama administration’s investigation/surveillance of the Trump campaign. Eight months.
But when Nunes threatened impeachment, he received the memo within 24 hours.
The Committee is investigating whether the Justice Department and the FBI (which is part of the Justice Department) had a credible, legal basis for opening their extraordinary investigation of a presidential candidate’s campaign. And the Justice Department has been trying to slow-walk the Committee’s investigation from the start.
But all the delaying tactics in the world can’t diminish the power of Congress to exercise oversight of a federal agency’s behavior -- or possible misbehavior.
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8 One-Hit Wonders We Want to Forget
You know those songs that get stuck in your head and DO NOT LEAVE? Pretty awful, right? But isn't it particularly painful when the tune playing on loop in your mind is just terrible? And you know the words. All. Of. The. Words. You shake your fist at the sky and mumble under your breath something about pop radio, and before you know it, you're singing it again.
One-hit wonders aren't necessarily bad things. Look at songs like "Tainted Love" by Soft Cell, "Come on Eileen" by Dexys Midnight Runners, and "Spirit in the Sky" by Norman Greenbaum—those are all pretty awesome one-hit wonders. Heck, did you know that even Johann Pachelbel's "Canon in D" (yes, the one every new bride walks down the aisle to) was a one-hit wonder as well?
But how on earth did some other one-hitters even get produced—nevermind become legend. Perhaps some were catchy enough that they just slipped through the cracks. But others are just so god-awful it's amazing that you can still remember every single lyric.
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One-hit wonders aren't necessarily bad things. Look at songs like "Tainted Love" by Soft Cell, "Come on Eileen" by Dexys Midnight Runners, and "Spirit in the Sky" by Norman Greenbaum—those are all pretty awesome one-hit wonders. Heck, did you know that even Johann Pachelbel's "Canon in D" (yes, the one every new bride walks down the aisle to) was a one-hit wonder as well?
But how on earth did some other one-hitters even get produced—nevermind become legend. Perhaps some were catchy enough that they just slipped through the cracks. But others are just so god-awful it's amazing that you can still remember every single lyric.
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Chamber of Commerce CEO to Congress: Raise Federal Gas Tax, Protect DREAMer Workforce
WASHINGTON – U.S. Chamber of Commerce CEO Tom Donohue called on Congress to raise the federal gas tax as the “simplest and fairest option” to pay for infrastructure legislation.
“We’re proposing a 25 cent increase, which would cost the average American only about $9 per month for roads, bridges and transit. Americans are willing to contribute a little more if it means better, safer roads, a faster commute and more time with their families,” Donohue said at the recent National League of Cities (NLC) conference. “Now, the gas the tax is a start but it’s not a panacea as we get to investing in other critical infrastructure. We’ve got a lot of updates to do to roads, bridges and transit.”
Donohue acknowledged that a large infrastructure package would “break the bank.”
“Of course, it’s going to break the bank but if you get a little creative, if you come up with an innovative financial strategy, if you include a mix of federal, state, local and private funding and a long-term payment structure, you’re in business,” he said.
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“We’re proposing a 25 cent increase, which would cost the average American only about $9 per month for roads, bridges and transit. Americans are willing to contribute a little more if it means better, safer roads, a faster commute and more time with their families,” Donohue said at the recent National League of Cities (NLC) conference. “Now, the gas the tax is a start but it’s not a panacea as we get to investing in other critical infrastructure. We’ve got a lot of updates to do to roads, bridges and transit.”
Donohue acknowledged that a large infrastructure package would “break the bank.”
“Of course, it’s going to break the bank but if you get a little creative, if you come up with an innovative financial strategy, if you include a mix of federal, state, local and private funding and a long-term payment structure, you’re in business,” he said.
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Cyber Hardware Flaws Studied
The most frequent cause of malicious cyber attacks is when computer users click on a link that results in malware being downloaded onto computer networks.
But another emerging hardware-based cyber threat is being studied by the Cyber Command and U.S. intelligence community, according to the nominee to head the command and the National Security Agency.
Army Lt. Gen. Paul Nakasone, Cybercom and NSA director nominee, told the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence in written answers that massive hardware vulnerabilities called Spectre and Meltdown are major worries.
“U.S. Cybercom is engaged with the intelligence community, inter-agency and industry to better understand Spectre and Meltdown vulnerabilities and employ mitigations,” Gen. Nakasone stated.
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But another emerging hardware-based cyber threat is being studied by the Cyber Command and U.S. intelligence community, according to the nominee to head the command and the National Security Agency.
Army Lt. Gen. Paul Nakasone, Cybercom and NSA director nominee, told the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence in written answers that massive hardware vulnerabilities called Spectre and Meltdown are major worries.
“U.S. Cybercom is engaged with the intelligence community, inter-agency and industry to better understand Spectre and Meltdown vulnerabilities and employ mitigations,” Gen. Nakasone stated.
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PAC: Clinton, DNC funneled $84M through state parties to skirt campaign finance laws
The Hillary Clinton Campaign and the Democratic National Committee allegedly used state chapters as strawmen to launder as much as $84 million in an effort to circumvent campaign donation limits, and the Federal Election Commission ignored complaints exposing the practice, a lawsuit filed Monday claims.
The Committee to Defend the President (CDP), a political action committee formally known as Stop Hillary PAC, filed its complaint with the FEC in December 2017 with the claims that the Hillary Victory Fund (HVF) solicited cash from big-name donors, and allegedly sent that money through state chapters and back to the DNC before ending up with the Clinton campaign.
As first reported by Fox News at the time, the CDP alleges in its complaint that about $84 million was funneled illegally from the DNC through state party chapters and back into the war chest of the Clinton campaign. The political action committee claims that even though the FEC acknowledged receipt of the complaint and claimed that an investigation would be conducted, the needle has barely moved.
“The Clinton machine has escaped accountability for its illegal practices for far too long,” Ted Harvey, CDP chairman, said to Fox News. “After months of review, the FEC has refused to address the Clintons’ $84 million money laundering scheme that violated several campaign finance laws.”
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http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2018/04/16/fec-hit-with-lawsuit-over-ignoring-civil-complaint-accusing-clinton-dnc-in-election-scheme.html
The Committee to Defend the President (CDP), a political action committee formally known as Stop Hillary PAC, filed its complaint with the FEC in December 2017 with the claims that the Hillary Victory Fund (HVF) solicited cash from big-name donors, and allegedly sent that money through state chapters and back to the DNC before ending up with the Clinton campaign.
As first reported by Fox News at the time, the CDP alleges in its complaint that about $84 million was funneled illegally from the DNC through state party chapters and back into the war chest of the Clinton campaign. The political action committee claims that even though the FEC acknowledged receipt of the complaint and claimed that an investigation would be conducted, the needle has barely moved.
“The Clinton machine has escaped accountability for its illegal practices for far too long,” Ted Harvey, CDP chairman, said to Fox News. “After months of review, the FEC has refused to address the Clintons’ $84 million money laundering scheme that violated several campaign finance laws.”
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http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2018/04/16/fec-hit-with-lawsuit-over-ignoring-civil-complaint-accusing-clinton-dnc-in-election-scheme.html
‘Bipartisan’ Arizona Teacher Protest is Led by Democratic Operative
The man leading an Arizona teacher protest that labels itself as "bipartisan" has in the past year worked with partisan election groups launched by Democratic operatives after the 2016 election and was hired last year to manage a Democrat's campaign.
Questions were raised last week regarding the background of Noah Karvelis, a teacher who has been the face of the highly visible #RedforEd push for increased teacher salaries, after Arizona governor Doug Ducey (R.) labeled him a political operative and chose to keep him out of talks on education spending.
"What I don't want to do is get into these political operatives' political circus," Ducey said, calling into question the political motives of Karvelis's group, which says it is nonpartisan. He said he would work with "decision makers" and separate out "political activists."
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Questions were raised last week regarding the background of Noah Karvelis, a teacher who has been the face of the highly visible #RedforEd push for increased teacher salaries, after Arizona governor Doug Ducey (R.) labeled him a political operative and chose to keep him out of talks on education spending.
"What I don't want to do is get into these political operatives' political circus," Ducey said, calling into question the political motives of Karvelis's group, which says it is nonpartisan. He said he would work with "decision makers" and separate out "political activists."
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Teachers’ Union President Plots to Shut Puerto Rico Schools
Teachers' union president Randi Weingarten is plotting a teachers' strike to shut down schools in Puerto Rico, according to a conversation overheard Friday in the first-class car of an Acela train heading to New York.
Puerto Rico is in the midst of implementing school-choice reforms, opposed by Weingarten's American Federation of Teachers. Last month Gov. Ricardo Rosselló signed legislation to increase the number of charter schools and voucher programs.
Weingarten said she does not want to use the word "strike," but wants to use the strategy of recent teacher walkouts in Oklahoma and West Virginia as a model to fight against school-choice reforms.
"We never use the word strike," Weingarten was overheard saying on the phone in a first-class car. "We are a human shield for the kids … teachers are doing this in the stead of parents and kids."
Weingarten said the union's goal should be "cloaking this in Oklahoma and West Virginia" and asked the unknown person on the other end of the line, "Does that concept work?" Weingarten also mentioned working with the "lobbyists we have" on the plan.
"We should be careful about the words we use," Weingarten cautioned.
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Puerto Rico is in the midst of implementing school-choice reforms, opposed by Weingarten's American Federation of Teachers. Last month Gov. Ricardo Rosselló signed legislation to increase the number of charter schools and voucher programs.
Weingarten said she does not want to use the word "strike," but wants to use the strategy of recent teacher walkouts in Oklahoma and West Virginia as a model to fight against school-choice reforms.
"We never use the word strike," Weingarten was overheard saying on the phone in a first-class car. "We are a human shield for the kids … teachers are doing this in the stead of parents and kids."
Weingarten said the union's goal should be "cloaking this in Oklahoma and West Virginia" and asked the unknown person on the other end of the line, "Does that concept work?" Weingarten also mentioned working with the "lobbyists we have" on the plan.
"We should be careful about the words we use," Weingarten cautioned.
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Turns Out The New York Times Clinton Email 'Botched Story' Actually Wasn't
In July 2015 the New York Times published the scoop of a lifetime when top Department of Justice sources told reporters that inspectors general at two separate agencies had asked the DOJ to open an investigation into Hillary Clinton's email use after discovering the then-secretary of state had sent emails containing classified information.
But within the next 48 hours, the Times made two major corrections. First it changed the story to indicate that the referral was for an investigation into Hillary Clinton's private email and not necessarily Clinton herself. Then its Department of Justice sources suddenly reversed themselvesand said that the referral was not "criminal" in nature, but a "security review."
These were always distinctions in want of a difference. The Department of Justice is charged with investigating and punishing criminals. You only refer matters to them when there is evidence of possible lawbreaking, and you usually don't need to tell them that. Likewise, the DOJ does not investigate servers and it does not investigate emails. It investigates human beings.
But the Clinton campaign, which requested the corrections in the first place, seized on those small inconsistencies and attempted to use them to discredit the entire story. The campaign wrote a nearly 2,000-word public letter to the Times demanding an explanation for the "egregious" story and attacking the paper's "apparent abandonment of standard journalistic practices."
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But within the next 48 hours, the Times made two major corrections. First it changed the story to indicate that the referral was for an investigation into Hillary Clinton's private email and not necessarily Clinton herself. Then its Department of Justice sources suddenly reversed themselvesand said that the referral was not "criminal" in nature, but a "security review."
These were always distinctions in want of a difference. The Department of Justice is charged with investigating and punishing criminals. You only refer matters to them when there is evidence of possible lawbreaking, and you usually don't need to tell them that. Likewise, the DOJ does not investigate servers and it does not investigate emails. It investigates human beings.
But the Clinton campaign, which requested the corrections in the first place, seized on those small inconsistencies and attempted to use them to discredit the entire story. The campaign wrote a nearly 2,000-word public letter to the Times demanding an explanation for the "egregious" story and attacking the paper's "apparent abandonment of standard journalistic practices."
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Andrew McCabe disputes James Comey’s memory, not his credibility
Former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe lost his job for lying about authorizing disclosures to the press, including allegedly misleading former FBI Director James Comey. But although McCabe strenuously denies Comey's version of events, he says he doesn't doubt his credibility.
McCabe “does not hold a negative view of Mr. Comey's credibility,” his spokeswoman Melissa Schwartz told the Washington Examiner. Schwartz said she has firsthand knowledge of McCabe’s opinion of Comey and is not assuming his views.
“There is no claim that Director Comey defamed Mr. McCabe,” Schwartz said. “People's recollections can honestly differ.”
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McCabe “does not hold a negative view of Mr. Comey's credibility,” his spokeswoman Melissa Schwartz told the Washington Examiner. Schwartz said she has firsthand knowledge of McCabe’s opinion of Comey and is not assuming his views.
“There is no claim that Director Comey defamed Mr. McCabe,” Schwartz said. “People's recollections can honestly differ.”
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Ingraham's Viewership Increases 20 Percent Since David Hogg's Boycott
Fox News host Laura Ingraham's viewership has gone up by 20 percent since gun control activist David Hogg initiated a boycott of her advertisers late last month.
Hogg went after "Ingraham Angle" advertisers on March 29, and that week Ingraham's ratings had averaged about 2.23 million, but last week she returned from vacation and her ratings climbed to around 2.7 million, NewsBusters reported. Hogg, a 17-year-old student who survived February's mass shooting in Parkland, Fla., targeted Ingraham's advertisers last month after she tweeted an article about him being turned down from four different campuses in the University of California school system.
The boycott, which was pushed by Media Matters for America among other liberal-leaning groups, led to at 27 companies dropping their ads from her show, as of Friday.
While Ingraham apologized on Twitter a day after the initial tweet, Hogg did not accept the apology and instead continued to call on his Twitter followers to help put pressure on Ingraham's advertisers. He shared the Media Matters article with a list of all her advertisers.
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Hogg went after "Ingraham Angle" advertisers on March 29, and that week Ingraham's ratings had averaged about 2.23 million, but last week she returned from vacation and her ratings climbed to around 2.7 million, NewsBusters reported. Hogg, a 17-year-old student who survived February's mass shooting in Parkland, Fla., targeted Ingraham's advertisers last month after she tweeted an article about him being turned down from four different campuses in the University of California school system.
The boycott, which was pushed by Media Matters for America among other liberal-leaning groups, led to at 27 companies dropping their ads from her show, as of Friday.
While Ingraham apologized on Twitter a day after the initial tweet, Hogg did not accept the apology and instead continued to call on his Twitter followers to help put pressure on Ingraham's advertisers. He shared the Media Matters article with a list of all her advertisers.
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Calif. Gov. Brown Wants to Ensure 'Every Californian Is Counted' for 2020 Census
California Gov. Jerry Brown (D.) is voicing opposition to the Trump administration's decision to include a citizenship status question on the 2020 federal census, and he is not taking any chances the census might result in his state losing billions in federal funding or decrease its congressional representation.
Brown signed an executive order Friday creating a 25 member commission to guide outreach efforts in preparation for the 2020 census, according to The Los Angeles Times. The governor's announcement comes as the Trump administration plans to move forward with its plan to include a citizenship status question on the federal census questionnaire.
The commission will outline engagement and outreach strategies, including multi-language advertising campaigns, to ensure as many Californians as possible, regardless of citizenship, participate in the decennial count. Brown's commission includes experts from the fields of media relations, civic engagement, LGBTQ advocacy, and business, amongst others.
"It is vitally important for California to do everything it can to ensure that every Californian is counted in the upcoming census," Brown said.
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Brown signed an executive order Friday creating a 25 member commission to guide outreach efforts in preparation for the 2020 census, according to The Los Angeles Times. The governor's announcement comes as the Trump administration plans to move forward with its plan to include a citizenship status question on the federal census questionnaire.
The commission will outline engagement and outreach strategies, including multi-language advertising campaigns, to ensure as many Californians as possible, regardless of citizenship, participate in the decennial count. Brown's commission includes experts from the fields of media relations, civic engagement, LGBTQ advocacy, and business, amongst others.
"It is vitally important for California to do everything it can to ensure that every Californian is counted in the upcoming census," Brown said.
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Hannity downplays relationship with Michael Cohen: 'It had to do with real estate,' 'it was minimal'
Fox News host Sean Hannity, one of President Trump's most vocal supporters, dismissed Monday's revelation that he was named as a client of Michael Cohen, Trump's longtime personal lawyer.
Hannity began his show Monday with a "special shout-out" to "all you liberals" and the news media, who he said were "absolutely apoplectic and hyperventilating" over the news. He also said that the "rampant speculation" over the revelation "couldn't be more wrong."
He told famed lawyer Alan Dershowitz that his relationship with Cohen was "minimal" and "such a minor relationship."
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Hannity began his show Monday with a "special shout-out" to "all you liberals" and the news media, who he said were "absolutely apoplectic and hyperventilating" over the news. He also said that the "rampant speculation" over the revelation "couldn't be more wrong."
He told famed lawyer Alan Dershowitz that his relationship with Cohen was "minimal" and "such a minor relationship."
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Oklahoma Looks To Expand Stand Your Ground Laws To Places of Worship
If there’s one thing no man or woman should ever have to worry about, it’s fear that the need to defend oneself will inhibit their actions at a critical moment. Stand Your Ground laws were written to help mitigate that concern. It’s a legal requirement that doesn’t give you permission to shoot first and ask questions later but instead removes any duty to try to get away from an attacker before acting in self-defense.
The laws have been somewhat controversial in some parts of the country, but they’re an essential piece of legislation in a world where some people view self-defense as some kind of moral wrong.
In the state of Oklahoma, they’ve taken this reality as well as the horrors of Sutherland Springs, and come to a conclusion.
Killing another person can have legal consequences even when the shooter says it was self-defense.
The state Legislature is moving to guard Oklahomans in places of worship from prosecution if they use deadly force to defend themselves during religious services.
The Senate on Thursday followed the House in passing House Bill 2632, which extends protections provided under the state’s Stand Your Ground law to places of worship.
The bill was inspired by recent shootings in U.S. churches.
Senators voted 42-1 to pass HB 2632. Randy Bass, D-Lawton, was the lone “no” vote in the Senate.
Individual religious organizations will be allowed to restrict guns on their premises, which is fine. The government really has no business telling churches what they have to allow on their own property.
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The laws have been somewhat controversial in some parts of the country, but they’re an essential piece of legislation in a world where some people view self-defense as some kind of moral wrong.
In the state of Oklahoma, they’ve taken this reality as well as the horrors of Sutherland Springs, and come to a conclusion.
Killing another person can have legal consequences even when the shooter says it was self-defense.
The state Legislature is moving to guard Oklahomans in places of worship from prosecution if they use deadly force to defend themselves during religious services.
The Senate on Thursday followed the House in passing House Bill 2632, which extends protections provided under the state’s Stand Your Ground law to places of worship.
The bill was inspired by recent shootings in U.S. churches.
Senators voted 42-1 to pass HB 2632. Randy Bass, D-Lawton, was the lone “no” vote in the Senate.
Individual religious organizations will be allowed to restrict guns on their premises, which is fine. The government really has no business telling churches what they have to allow on their own property.
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Donated organs should go to US residents before illegal immigrants, says new GOP bill
Rep. Bill Posey, R-Fla., has introduced legislation that would give legal U.S. residents preferred status over illegal immigrants when it comes to receiving donated organs.
Posey's bill, which was filed on Friday, would amend the Public Health Service Act to "give preference to individuals who are lawfully present in the United States over individuals who are unlawfully present in the United States."
An aide to Posey said that means illegal residents could still apply to receive donated organs, but "will not receive organs until all legal residents have been satisfied."
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Posey's bill, which was filed on Friday, would amend the Public Health Service Act to "give preference to individuals who are lawfully present in the United States over individuals who are unlawfully present in the United States."
An aide to Posey said that means illegal residents could still apply to receive donated organs, but "will not receive organs until all legal residents have been satisfied."
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Trump says 'disgruntled' Comey and McCabe 'committed many crimes'
Donald Trump tore into James Comey again this morning, this time over the fired FBI director's acknowledgement that he took Hillary Clinton's status as frontrunner in the presidential election into account when he told lawmakers about the reopening of her email investigation.
Trump said that Comey and his deputy Andrew McCabe, also fired from the FBI, had 'committed many crimes' during their tenures at the law enforcement agency. Both came to a bitter end in the Trump administration.
'Comey drafted the Crooked Hillary exoneration long before he talked to her (lied in Congress to Senator G), then based his decisions on her poll numbers. Disgruntled, he, McCabe, and the others, committed many crimes!' the president tweeted.
The president's tweet offered a glimpse into his mindset the morning after Comey's first stop on a publicity tour for his tell-all book 'A Higher Loyalty.' Comey said in the interview that Trump was 'morally unfit' to sit in the Oval Office.
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Trump said that Comey and his deputy Andrew McCabe, also fired from the FBI, had 'committed many crimes' during their tenures at the law enforcement agency. Both came to a bitter end in the Trump administration.
'Comey drafted the Crooked Hillary exoneration long before he talked to her (lied in Congress to Senator G), then based his decisions on her poll numbers. Disgruntled, he, McCabe, and the others, committed many crimes!' the president tweeted.
The president's tweet offered a glimpse into his mindset the morning after Comey's first stop on a publicity tour for his tell-all book 'A Higher Loyalty.' Comey said in the interview that Trump was 'morally unfit' to sit in the Oval Office.
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Facebook Faces Group Suit Claiming It Stole Biometric Data
Facebook Inc. users in Illinois whose faces were scanned without their knowledge can sue the social-media company for damages that could amount to billions of dollars.
A federal judge in San Francisco ruled Monday that Facebook must face potentially millions of users from the state who claim the company has gathered and stored their biometric data without their agreement.
U.S. District Judge James Donato’s decision to let the lawsuit proceed as a class action is a significant step for users seeking to put Facebook on the hook for fines of $1,000 to $5,000 for each time a person’s image is used without permission under a unique Illinois law. The ruling could also help advance restrictions on Facebook’s use of biometrics in the U.S., similar to those in Europe and Canada.
Facebook is reviewing the ruling, according to a company spokesperson. “We continue to believe the case has no merit and will defend ourselves vigorously,” the person said in an emailed statement.
The company “seems to believe” that the lawsuit should be pursued by individuals, not as a group, because “damages could amount to billions of dollars,” Donato wrote in the ruling.
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A federal judge in San Francisco ruled Monday that Facebook must face potentially millions of users from the state who claim the company has gathered and stored their biometric data without their agreement.
U.S. District Judge James Donato’s decision to let the lawsuit proceed as a class action is a significant step for users seeking to put Facebook on the hook for fines of $1,000 to $5,000 for each time a person’s image is used without permission under a unique Illinois law. The ruling could also help advance restrictions on Facebook’s use of biometrics in the U.S., similar to those in Europe and Canada.
Facebook is reviewing the ruling, according to a company spokesperson. “We continue to believe the case has no merit and will defend ourselves vigorously,” the person said in an emailed statement.
The company “seems to believe” that the lawsuit should be pursued by individuals, not as a group, because “damages could amount to billions of dollars,” Donato wrote in the ruling.
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Comey: 'It Sucked' to Be Me in Final Days of 2016 Campaign
Former FBI Director James Comey said "it sucked" to be him the final 10 days of the 2016 presidential campaign and he felt "everybody hated" him after his late October letter to Congress about the reopening of the Hillary Clinton email investigation.
"What did it feel like to be James Comey in the last 10 days of that campaign after you sent the letter?" ABC host George Stephanopoulos asked in an interview airing Sunday night.
"It sucked," Comey said. "I walked around vaguely sick to my stomach, feeling beaten down, felt like I was totally alone, that everybody hated me, and that there wasn't a way out, because it really was the right thing to do."
Comey's Oct. 28, 2016, letter to Congress announcing newly discovered emails related to Clinton's private email server is still viewed by Clinton and her allies as one of the key reasons for her loss. Clinton has even remarked that if the election had been held Oct. 27, she would have been the 45th president.
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"What did it feel like to be James Comey in the last 10 days of that campaign after you sent the letter?" ABC host George Stephanopoulos asked in an interview airing Sunday night.
"It sucked," Comey said. "I walked around vaguely sick to my stomach, feeling beaten down, felt like I was totally alone, that everybody hated me, and that there wasn't a way out, because it really was the right thing to do."
Comey's Oct. 28, 2016, letter to Congress announcing newly discovered emails related to Clinton's private email server is still viewed by Clinton and her allies as one of the key reasons for her loss. Clinton has even remarked that if the election had been held Oct. 27, she would have been the 45th president.
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DHS Says Cities Hid 142 Suspected Gang Members From Deportation
City and country governments ignored federal “detainer” requests and released 142 suspected members of MS-13 and other criminal gangs in the eight months up to June 2017, says a report from the Department of Homeland Security to the Senate’s judiciary committee.
The gang release data is the agency’s most up-to-date, according to the agency, which delivered the answers in response to routine oversight questions by committee members.
The data does not cover any releases after June 19, 2017, when city governments escalated their opposition to the legal deportation of illegal migrants in their cities and counties. Currently, the Department of Justice is pressuring cities to cooperate with deportation efforts and is trying to cut federal police grants to cities who release criminals back into Americans’ neighborhoods.
The answers do not describe the crimes committed by gang members that caused their arrests.
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The gang release data is the agency’s most up-to-date, according to the agency, which delivered the answers in response to routine oversight questions by committee members.
The data does not cover any releases after June 19, 2017, when city governments escalated their opposition to the legal deportation of illegal migrants in their cities and counties. Currently, the Department of Justice is pressuring cities to cooperate with deportation efforts and is trying to cut federal police grants to cities who release criminals back into Americans’ neighborhoods.
The answers do not describe the crimes committed by gang members that caused their arrests.
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Soros Dumps $450K Into Florida-based PAC
George Soros, the Hungarian-born financier and billionaire political activist, pumped $450,000 into the Florida-based PAC United for Progress, according to campaign finance records with the Florida secretary of state's office.
The donation represents the only political funding Soros undertook in the Sunshine state in the first quarter of 2018.
"United for Progress's primary goal remains to build community-based political power and influence in the growing Puerto Rican and Latino constituencies in Florida," Chairman Juan Marcos Vilar told the Washington Free Beacon by email. "United for Progress's local leadership has not made decisions about endorsement or opposition to any specific candidates in 2018."
Soros established United for Progress late September 2016, contributing $430,000 to the PAC in October of that year. The "Statement of Organization" documents only say that the purpose of the PAC is "Political, intending to pay for communications related to several candidate (sic)."
Politico reported that the group was "aimed at mobilizing central Florida's Puerto Rican voters..
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The donation represents the only political funding Soros undertook in the Sunshine state in the first quarter of 2018.
"United for Progress's primary goal remains to build community-based political power and influence in the growing Puerto Rican and Latino constituencies in Florida," Chairman Juan Marcos Vilar told the Washington Free Beacon by email. "United for Progress's local leadership has not made decisions about endorsement or opposition to any specific candidates in 2018."
Soros established United for Progress late September 2016, contributing $430,000 to the PAC in October of that year. The "Statement of Organization" documents only say that the purpose of the PAC is "Political, intending to pay for communications related to several candidate (sic)."
Politico reported that the group was "aimed at mobilizing central Florida's Puerto Rican voters..
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Pro-Gun Dating Site Launches Operation - Bearing Arms
Once upon a time, if you used an internet dating site to meet someone, you didn’t need to worry too much about politics. It typically wasn’t considered a deal breaker, after all, and, if it was, then you didn’t go out with that person again. You just moved on.
However, times change. Today, in addition to waxing nostalgically about the “good old days” of internet dating, we also have to consider political positions on things like guns and gun rights while trying to find a potential mate.
Which is where a new website comes into play.
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However, times change. Today, in addition to waxing nostalgically about the “good old days” of internet dating, we also have to consider political positions on things like guns and gun rights while trying to find a potential mate.
Which is where a new website comes into play.
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Schultz: MSNBC Fired Me for Supporting Bernie, ‘They Were in the Tank for Hillary Clinton’
Ex-MSNBC host Ed Schultz in a recent interview ripped his former network as "in the tank for Hillary Clinton" and suggested he was fired in 2015 because of his support for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.).
Schultz, who now anchors a show on RT, told National Review‘s Jamie Weinstein in an an interview posted Friday that MSNBC chief Phil Griffin was a "watchdog," and he said he was often given direction on what stories to cover.
Sanders gave his official campaign launch speech in Burlington, Vermont on May 26, 2015, and Schultz said he was the only cable news host planning to air it live. He had also taped an interview with Sanders at the lawmaker's home ahead of the speech.
However, he said Griffin called him five minutes before air time at 5 p.m. EST, and he said, "You're not covering this."
"It got rather contentious," Schultz said..
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Schultz, who now anchors a show on RT, told National Review‘s Jamie Weinstein in an an interview posted Friday that MSNBC chief Phil Griffin was a "watchdog," and he said he was often given direction on what stories to cover.
Sanders gave his official campaign launch speech in Burlington, Vermont on May 26, 2015, and Schultz said he was the only cable news host planning to air it live. He had also taped an interview with Sanders at the lawmaker's home ahead of the speech.
However, he said Griffin called him five minutes before air time at 5 p.m. EST, and he said, "You're not covering this."
"It got rather contentious," Schultz said..
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So we’re just going to ignore that an ex-Clinton staffer interviewed Comey on the Clinton email scandal?
Why does ABC News entrust its coverage of Hillary Clinton stories to one of the former first family’s longtime capos?
George Stephanopoulos, who served for years as an adviser to former President Bill Clinton, can sit across from former FBI director James Comey and say things like, “Your critics say this is a clear, clear, clear double standard. You revealed information about Hillary Clinton. You concealed information about Donald Trump. That elected Donald Trump,” and “you've decided to say publicly there is a criminal investigation — of Hillary Clinton, which many considered a break with precedent” and the press considers this scene to be perfectly normal.
Stephanopoulos, whom Clinton aides credited for using their work after the newsman had a particularly combative interview with Clinton Cash author Peter Schweizer, can ask Comey, “do you think that the FBI would be in better shape today … if you had simply put out that one line statement, ‘We decline to prosecute’?” and “Can you assure people today — can you assure them that the Obama Justice Department was not protecting Hillary Clinton?” and this is ordinary.
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George Stephanopoulos, who served for years as an adviser to former President Bill Clinton, can sit across from former FBI director James Comey and say things like, “Your critics say this is a clear, clear, clear double standard. You revealed information about Hillary Clinton. You concealed information about Donald Trump. That elected Donald Trump,” and “you've decided to say publicly there is a criminal investigation — of Hillary Clinton, which many considered a break with precedent” and the press considers this scene to be perfectly normal.
Stephanopoulos, whom Clinton aides credited for using their work after the newsman had a particularly combative interview with Clinton Cash author Peter Schweizer, can ask Comey, “do you think that the FBI would be in better shape today … if you had simply put out that one line statement, ‘We decline to prosecute’?” and “Can you assure people today — can you assure them that the Obama Justice Department was not protecting Hillary Clinton?” and this is ordinary.
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Conservative Parents Are Taking Action Against the Sexualization of Their Kids
Teachers in a dozen elementary schools across Seattle have been trying out new curricula around the topics of gender diversity, expression, and identity since earlier this year — issues that are outrageously inappropriate for the classroom — especially for young children. These are topics that parents, not public schools, should be addressing with their precious young ones when they — the parents — determine the time is right.
Yet despite its reputation for socially progressive politics, the Emerald City is not alone in its aim to push a sexually permissive and promiscuous agenda in taxpayer-funded public schools. This is now happening nationwide — which is why conservative parents are pushing back.
They are fed up...
Yet despite its reputation for socially progressive politics, the Emerald City is not alone in its aim to push a sexually permissive and promiscuous agenda in taxpayer-funded public schools. This is now happening nationwide — which is why conservative parents are pushing back.
They are fed up...
How Barack Obama’s DACA Encouraged Identity Theft by Illegal Aliens
As the dilemma of what to do about the illegal alien participants in former President Barack Obama’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program has dominated the immigration debate for more than a year, a new investigation has revealed the lengths to which the previous chief executive facilitated the program.
They did so by, among other things, ignoring widespread identity theft by illegal aliens and keeping Americans in the dark about being cut off from their Social Security benefits. The findings show how DACA is not the act of benevolence that is portrayed in the media, and has actually caused great harm to American citizens. It simply has to end.
Diving deep into the beginnings of DACA, Jan Ting, a law professor at Temple and former assistant commissioner of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, details how the Obama Homeland Security Department (DHS) kept the use of stolen Social Security numbers from being counted against would-be DACA applicants.
As he shows, the promise to forgive the crime, one that is pervasive among illegal aliens, was consciously designed to incentivize DACA-eligible “dreamers” — for the never-passed Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act — to come out of the shadows and apply for the program.
More here
They did so by, among other things, ignoring widespread identity theft by illegal aliens and keeping Americans in the dark about being cut off from their Social Security benefits. The findings show how DACA is not the act of benevolence that is portrayed in the media, and has actually caused great harm to American citizens. It simply has to end.
Diving deep into the beginnings of DACA, Jan Ting, a law professor at Temple and former assistant commissioner of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, details how the Obama Homeland Security Department (DHS) kept the use of stolen Social Security numbers from being counted against would-be DACA applicants.
As he shows, the promise to forgive the crime, one that is pervasive among illegal aliens, was consciously designed to incentivize DACA-eligible “dreamers” — for the never-passed Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act — to come out of the shadows and apply for the program.
More here
D.J. Sneak Attack Debuts This Friday Night At OC Billiards @ Trader Lee's
His massive variety of music will please all audiences. So come in and enjoy some great music, pool tables, electronic darts and no cover charge.
In fact, in comments, let's hear what your favorite kind of music you enjoy. This should get interesting. See you Friday night.
Public’s Help Sought In 2017 Wicomico Co. Murder Investigation
(SALISBURY, MD) – Maryland State Police homicide investigators are seeking the public’s assistance with information about a vehicle seen fleeing the scene of a Wicomico County homicide in the summer of 2017.
The investigation involves the August 14, 2017 murder of Arthur W. Smith Jr., 31, who was also known as “AW.” State Police homicide investigators believe that sometime between 9:30 pm and 10:00 pm that night, Smith left his residence to walk his dog in the 800-block of Gettysburg Avenue, in Salisbury. When police responded to a 911 call for a shooting, they found Smith lying in the front yard of a residence suffering from a gunshot wound. He died while being transported to the hospital.
The investigation into this murder has developed information about a vehicle homicide investigators are hoping to obtain more details about. The vehicle is described as a small, black, four-door vehicle. The vehicle was seen fleeing the area of the 800-block of Gettysburg Avenue shortly after the murder.
Anyone who may have information about this vehicle, or about the person or persons responsible for the murder of Arthur Smith Jr., is urged to contact Crime Solvers of the Lower Eastern Shore immediately at 410-548-1776. Crime Solvers is offering up to a $2,500 reward for information leading to an arrest.
The investigation involves the August 14, 2017 murder of Arthur W. Smith Jr., 31, who was also known as “AW.” State Police homicide investigators believe that sometime between 9:30 pm and 10:00 pm that night, Smith left his residence to walk his dog in the 800-block of Gettysburg Avenue, in Salisbury. When police responded to a 911 call for a shooting, they found Smith lying in the front yard of a residence suffering from a gunshot wound. He died while being transported to the hospital.
The investigation into this murder has developed information about a vehicle homicide investigators are hoping to obtain more details about. The vehicle is described as a small, black, four-door vehicle. The vehicle was seen fleeing the area of the 800-block of Gettysburg Avenue shortly after the murder.
Anyone who may have information about this vehicle, or about the person or persons responsible for the murder of Arthur Smith Jr., is urged to contact Crime Solvers of the Lower Eastern Shore immediately at 410-548-1776. Crime Solvers is offering up to a $2,500 reward for information leading to an arrest.
DOJ Tried To End Clinton Investigation
The Department of Justice Inspector General report on the “lack of candor” by FBI deputy Director Andrew McCabe also documents for the first time the Obama administration’s effort to shut down the bureau’s investigation of the Clinton Foundation, according to a review of the report by The Daily Caller News Foundation Investigative Group.
The inspector general (IG) confirmed in its long-awaited report released Friday that in 2016 the FBI had ongoing field investigations of the Clinton Foundation in New York, Los Angeles, Little Rock, Arkansas and Washington, D.C. The multi-city investigation was launched when agents found “suspicious activity” between a foreign donor and Clinton Foundation activity in the Los Angeles area, as TheDCNF reported in August 2016.
The report, authored by Inspector General Michael E. Horowitz, an Obama appointee, chronicles the Justice Department’s effort to to shut down the FBI’s investigation on Aug. 12, 2016. The pressure allegedly came in the form of a phone call to McCabe from a Justice Department principal associate deputy attorney general (PADAG) who pressed McCabe on the continuing investigation. The IG did not identify which PADAG made the call.
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The inspector general (IG) confirmed in its long-awaited report released Friday that in 2016 the FBI had ongoing field investigations of the Clinton Foundation in New York, Los Angeles, Little Rock, Arkansas and Washington, D.C. The multi-city investigation was launched when agents found “suspicious activity” between a foreign donor and Clinton Foundation activity in the Los Angeles area, as TheDCNF reported in August 2016.
The report, authored by Inspector General Michael E. Horowitz, an Obama appointee, chronicles the Justice Department’s effort to to shut down the FBI’s investigation on Aug. 12, 2016. The pressure allegedly came in the form of a phone call to McCabe from a Justice Department principal associate deputy attorney general (PADAG) who pressed McCabe on the continuing investigation. The IG did not identify which PADAG made the call.
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Opioid epidemic quiets GOP calls for food stamps drug testing
Republican leaders say they will reject a drug testing requirement when they consider food stamp legislation this week, a dramatic change in position that's mostly a response to the nation's opioid epidemic.
House Agriculture Committee Chairman Mike Conaway said he’ll vote against any drug testing amendment to the Agriculture and Nutrition Act, otherwise known as the Farm Bill, which is set for committee markup Wednesday.
“Given the heightened awareness today of the opioid crisis in this country as well as other drug addictions, punishing people at this point in time when we are working to get them off these programs may be counterproductive,” Conaway said.
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House Agriculture Committee Chairman Mike Conaway said he’ll vote against any drug testing amendment to the Agriculture and Nutrition Act, otherwise known as the Farm Bill, which is set for committee markup Wednesday.
“Given the heightened awareness today of the opioid crisis in this country as well as other drug addictions, punishing people at this point in time when we are working to get them off these programs may be counterproductive,” Conaway said.
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James Comey proves he only cares about himself
My apologies to J. Edgar Hoover. Trying to illustrate the arrogance and treachery of James Comey, I dubbed him J. Edgar Comey and accused him of learning the art of dirty tricks from the FBI’s legendary director.
I was wrong. Hoover, for all his huge flaws, took most of the dirt he collected to the grave. Comey is emptying his closet just to make a buck.
Even worse, we now know that Comey led an FBI that was corrupted to the core by politics and self-dealing.
Comey’s memoir is a going-out-of- business sale where all the remaining merchandise is tawdry. Most striking is that he offers no proof for his cascade of claims against both President Trump and former Attorney General Loretta Lynch.
Instead, he relies on subjective assertions and opinions rather than facts or evidence. His feelings about the base motives of other people, contrasted with his own high-mindedness, are the driving force of his book, as detailed by reviews and news reports.
As The New York Times puts it, “A Higher Loyalty” features “near-cinematic accounts of what Comey was thinking” during meetings with the president.
Chris Wallace of Fox News says he is surprised at how “bitchy” the book is.
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I was wrong. Hoover, for all his huge flaws, took most of the dirt he collected to the grave. Comey is emptying his closet just to make a buck.
Even worse, we now know that Comey led an FBI that was corrupted to the core by politics and self-dealing.
Comey’s memoir is a going-out-of- business sale where all the remaining merchandise is tawdry. Most striking is that he offers no proof for his cascade of claims against both President Trump and former Attorney General Loretta Lynch.
Instead, he relies on subjective assertions and opinions rather than facts or evidence. His feelings about the base motives of other people, contrasted with his own high-mindedness, are the driving force of his book, as detailed by reviews and news reports.
As The New York Times puts it, “A Higher Loyalty” features “near-cinematic accounts of what Comey was thinking” during meetings with the president.
Chris Wallace of Fox News says he is surprised at how “bitchy” the book is.
More
James Comey's Interview in 100 Seconds
The Washington Free Beacon condenses former FBI Director James Comey's mammoth interviewwith ABC's George Stephanopoulos into 100 seconds of digestible, aw-shucks goodness.
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Magazine editors turn blind eye to Melania
Magazines are showing no love for Melania Trump.
The internet was in a tizzy last week when actor James Woods pointed out via Twitter that the first lady hasn’t been a muse for the magazine industry since her husband, President Trump, took office.
Woods tweeted: “If the Trumps were Democrats, Melania would be on every cover of every chic women’s magazine in the world every month.”
The tweet, which was accompanied by an old photo of the first lady sitting in a gilded chair in a pale blue strapless dress, struck a chord, garnering 62,000 likes, 20,000 retweets and 4,900 comments.
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The internet was in a tizzy last week when actor James Woods pointed out via Twitter that the first lady hasn’t been a muse for the magazine industry since her husband, President Trump, took office.
Woods tweeted: “If the Trumps were Democrats, Melania would be on every cover of every chic women’s magazine in the world every month.”
The tweet, which was accompanied by an old photo of the first lady sitting in a gilded chair in a pale blue strapless dress, struck a chord, garnering 62,000 likes, 20,000 retweets and 4,900 comments.
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Found Cat
Texas teens arrested after they sent girl's sex tape to her parents
Three teenage girls have been charged after they circulated their friend's sex tape on social media and sent it to her parents.
Alyssa Nicole Ollervides, 17; Daniela Vasquez, 18; and Abdalys Medellin, 19; were arrested in Laredo, Texas, on Wednesday, for sharing the explicit video of their 16-year-old friend without her consent, reported the Laredo Morning Times.
They all face charges of unlawful disclosure or promotion of intimate material. Ollervides has also been charged with sale, distribution or display of harmful material to a minor.
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Alyssa Nicole Ollervides, 17; Daniela Vasquez, 18; and Abdalys Medellin, 19; were arrested in Laredo, Texas, on Wednesday, for sharing the explicit video of their 16-year-old friend without her consent, reported the Laredo Morning Times.
They all face charges of unlawful disclosure or promotion of intimate material. Ollervides has also been charged with sale, distribution or display of harmful material to a minor.
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Arizona residents will soon need 'travel ID' to board planes
Put it on the packing list.
The Arizona Department of Transportation has announced that state residents will require a new form of identification to pass through Transportation Security Administration screeners in the near future.
As of Oct. 1, 2020, Grand Canyon state residents traveling out of Phoenix Sky Harbor International, Phoenix Mesa-Gateway, Flagstaff, Tucson International and Yuma International airports will need to carry "Voluntary Travel IDs” or be grounded, AZ Family is reporting.
The new ID will also be requisite to access restricted federal buildings and military bases, as standard credentials will no longer suffice.
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The Arizona Department of Transportation has announced that state residents will require a new form of identification to pass through Transportation Security Administration screeners in the near future.
As of Oct. 1, 2020, Grand Canyon state residents traveling out of Phoenix Sky Harbor International, Phoenix Mesa-Gateway, Flagstaff, Tucson International and Yuma International airports will need to carry "Voluntary Travel IDs” or be grounded, AZ Family is reporting.
The new ID will also be requisite to access restricted federal buildings and military bases, as standard credentials will no longer suffice.
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http://www.foxnews.com/travel/2018/04/13/arizona-residents-will-soon-need-travel-id-to-board-planes.html
No Question, These Dogs Can Bark
'The Hillbilly Thomists' live in concert
Objection 1. It seems that a handful of Dominican friars (two handfuls on the album) should not be a bestselling bluegrass band. Bluegrass is Protestant stuff, soulful songs for whitewashed independent Baptist churches and big homey kitchens and not Latin nerds in white habits in Northeast D.C.
Objection 2. Further, bluegrass is as Americana as anything, and until John F. Kennedy bedded the White House and Bill Buckley built the conservative coalition, Catholics were not exactly accepted or accepting of the American thing. Americanism is a heresy after all.
Objection 3. Further, as Fr. Thomas Joseph White admitted in opening their concert near the White House this past week, bluegrass is as often about murder and unrequited love as it is about God. That a bunch of religious should sell thousands of copies of such music may strike as odd, considering their vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience.
On the contrary, inspiring these good Catholic boys, Flannery O'Connor said of herself, "Everybody who has read Wise Blood thinks I’m a hillbilly nihilist, whereas . . . I'm a hillbilly Thomist," and band-member Br. Justin Bolger said in his original song "I'm a Dog"—after the traditional domini canis "hound of the Lord" pun on Dominican—"I’m a dog with a torch in my mouth for my Lord / Making noise while I got time."
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Objection 1. It seems that a handful of Dominican friars (two handfuls on the album) should not be a bestselling bluegrass band. Bluegrass is Protestant stuff, soulful songs for whitewashed independent Baptist churches and big homey kitchens and not Latin nerds in white habits in Northeast D.C.
Objection 2. Further, bluegrass is as Americana as anything, and until John F. Kennedy bedded the White House and Bill Buckley built the conservative coalition, Catholics were not exactly accepted or accepting of the American thing. Americanism is a heresy after all.
Objection 3. Further, as Fr. Thomas Joseph White admitted in opening their concert near the White House this past week, bluegrass is as often about murder and unrequited love as it is about God. That a bunch of religious should sell thousands of copies of such music may strike as odd, considering their vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience.
On the contrary, inspiring these good Catholic boys, Flannery O'Connor said of herself, "Everybody who has read Wise Blood thinks I’m a hillbilly nihilist, whereas . . . I'm a hillbilly Thomist," and band-member Br. Justin Bolger said in his original song "I'm a Dog"—after the traditional domini canis "hound of the Lord" pun on Dominican—"I’m a dog with a torch in my mouth for my Lord / Making noise while I got time."
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A Mediterranean diet may boost the health of the liver
A Mediterranean diet is not just good for the heart - it may also boost the health of the liver, a study suggests.
Adopting the diet, loaded with fruit and veg, whole grains, olive oil and fish, lowers the risk of hospitalisation in patients with cirrhosis.
The deadly condition, scarring of the liver caused by long-term damage, kills one million people across the world each year, figures show.
There is currently no cure and treatment revolves around slowing its progression, before it leads to the need for a liver transplant or even kills.
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Adopting the diet, loaded with fruit and veg, whole grains, olive oil and fish, lowers the risk of hospitalisation in patients with cirrhosis.
The deadly condition, scarring of the liver caused by long-term damage, kills one million people across the world each year, figures show.
There is currently no cure and treatment revolves around slowing its progression, before it leads to the need for a liver transplant or even kills.
More
Overheard on Acela: Teachers' Union President Plots Teacher Strike in Puerto Rico From First Class Car
'We never use the word strike … we should be careful about the words we use'
Teachers' union president Randi Weingarten is plotting a teachers' strike to shut down schools in Puerto Rico, according to a conversation overheard Friday in the first-class car of an Acela train heading to New York.
Puerto Rico is in the midst of implementing school-choice reforms, opposed by Weingarten's American Federation of Teachers. Last month Gov. Ricardo Rosselló signed legislation to increase the number of charter schools and voucher programs.
Weingarten said she does not want to use the word "strike," but wants to use the strategy of recent teacher walkouts in Oklahoma and West Virginia as a model to fight against school-choice reforms.
"We never use the word strike," Weingarten was overheard saying on the phone in a first-class car. "We are a human shield for the kids … teachers are doing this in the stead of parents and kids."
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Teachers' union president Randi Weingarten is plotting a teachers' strike to shut down schools in Puerto Rico, according to a conversation overheard Friday in the first-class car of an Acela train heading to New York.
Puerto Rico is in the midst of implementing school-choice reforms, opposed by Weingarten's American Federation of Teachers. Last month Gov. Ricardo Rosselló signed legislation to increase the number of charter schools and voucher programs.
Weingarten said she does not want to use the word "strike," but wants to use the strategy of recent teacher walkouts in Oklahoma and West Virginia as a model to fight against school-choice reforms.
"We never use the word strike," Weingarten was overheard saying on the phone in a first-class car. "We are a human shield for the kids … teachers are doing this in the stead of parents and kids."
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The Best 4/20 Events in Major Cannabis Markets
2018’s been a big year in the cannabis space—January 1st marked California’s enormous jump into adult-use legalization and a surge in cannabis reformation is spreading across the United States. With a boost in cannabis acceptance as the years go by, 4/20 events are getting bigger and better than ever. From massive concerts to THC-infused yoga, major legal markets are leaving no stone unturned when it comes to celebrating our favorite medicinal plant.
So hop over to our dispensary finder, pick out a few favorite strains, and make your way to the closest 4/20 event to join in on the celebration. Luckily, 4/20 lands on a Friday, so events are happening all weekend long.
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So hop over to our dispensary finder, pick out a few favorite strains, and make your way to the closest 4/20 event to join in on the celebration. Luckily, 4/20 lands on a Friday, so events are happening all weekend long.
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