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Thursday, February 07, 2019

This zoo will name a cockroach after your ex, then feed it to a meerkat on Valentine's Day

Looking to get yourself a present this Valentine's Day? The El Paso Zoo has you covered. It will name a cockroach after your ex and then feed it to a meerkat live on camera.

You can message the zoo on Facebook with your ex's name, then wait patiently for February 14 to watch the roach get devoured during the "Quit Bugging Me" meerkat event, which will live-stream on Facebook and the zoo's website. The names of those exes will also be displayed around the meerkat exhibit and on social media starting February 11. The zoo calls it "the perfect Valentine's Day gift."

"This is a fun way to get the community involved in our daily enrichment activities," El Paso Zoo event coordinator Sarah Borrego told CBS News. "The meerkats love to get cockroaches as a snack and what better way to celebrate Valentine's Day than by feeding them a cockroach named after your ex!"

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U.S. to Purchase Iron Dome Missile Defense System from Israel

The U.S. Army has purchased the 'Iron Dome' from Israel, the missile defense system that has been protecting Israelis from rockets launched from Gaza for over a decade, Israel’s Defense Ministry announced Wednesday.

“The Iron Dome system will be used for deployed U.S. military forces as a defense system against a wide range of ballistic and airborne threats, and will be tested in the long term as part of a range of possible U.S. military responses to aerial threats,” a statement by the Defense Ministry said.

US Army Col. Patrick Seiber said in a statement that the U.S. Army will also be deployed for Indirect Fire Protection Capability.

“The Iron Dome will be assessed and experimented as a system that is currently available to protect deployed U.S. military service members against a wide variety of indirect fire threats and aerial threats,” Seiber said.

“While Iron Dome has been in operational use by the Israeli Air Force since 2011 and proven effective in combat, it should be noted that the U.S. Army will assess a variety of options for its long-term IFPC solution,” he added.

More here

New Jersey Residents to Be Hit with ‘Rain Tax’

New Jersey residents could soon see their hard-earned dollars go down the drain if Democrat Gov. Phil Murphy decides to sign recently passed legislation from New Jersey’s legislature allowing for a “rain tax.”

The legislation, Senate Bill S-1073, which the New Jersey Assembly and Senate approved, would allow local governments to create water utilities that would give them the power to tax homeowners and business owners with large paved surfaces.

When it rains, the rainwater mixes with pollutants and seeps into municipal sewage systems. The money collected would replace or repair sewage pipes or create “green infrastructure,” such as rain gardens that would collect polluted water.

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Cruz: U.S. Must Ensure ‘Military Force to Destroy’ Iran Nuclear Program

Describing himself as a "non-interventionist hawk," Sen. Ted Cruz (R., Texas) delivered a wide-ranging foreign policy speech on Wednesday in which he advocated in favor of a U.S. policy toward Iran that includes the "military force" necessary to "destroy" the rogue nation's contested nuclear program.

Cruz, in remarks before the American Enterprise Institute, warned against the "rush into the arms of isolationism," and advocated for a foreign policy that closely resembles that specified by President Donald Trump, one that embraces American power but is not reckless in using it.

Touching on the Iranian threat, North Korean nuclear program, and strife across the Middle East, Cruz was clear in his declaration that if Iran ever crosses the nuclear threshold, America must be prepared with a crushing military response.

"If we ever discover the Ayatollah is on the verge of getting nuclear weapons, and I believe his ambitions will continue to be doing just that, we should be prepared to use crushing military force to make sure that doesn't happen," Cruz said.

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Democrat Judiciary Committee Members Silent on Justin Fairfax Accuser

Breitbart News reached out to the ten Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee to ask if they believe Dr. Vanessa Tyson, the woman who has accused Virginia Lt. Col. Justin Fairfax of sexually assaulting her in 2004. None of the lawmakers responded to Breitbart News’s request for comment.

Ranking member Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), who outed Christine Blasey Ford as the woman who accused Justice Brett Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct when the two were in high school and led the charge against his confirmation to the United States Supreme Court, is one of the lawmakers who did not respond.

The other Democrats who did not respond are Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Chris Coons (D-DE), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Cory Booker (D-NJ), and Kamala Harris (D-CA).

A reporter with the Daily Caller tweeted that he asked more than ten Democrats on Capitol Hill about believing the woman accuser, reporting that none would answer his question.

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Meet Kirk Cox, GOP VA House Leader Next in Line for Virginia Governor

Virginia Speaker of the House of Delegates Kirk Cox could become the first Republican governor in nearly a decade if Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, and Attorney General Mark Herring resign amidst their political scandals.

In January 2018, the Virginia House of Delegates unanimously elected Cox to serve as the Speaker of Virginia’s lower chamber. Kirk became the first Speaker in Virginian history from Colonial Heights and the first Speaker from Chesterfield County since the 1800s, as well as the first Speaker who was a public school teacher.

Before serving as Speaker, Cox was the Majority Leader from 2010 to 2018 and served as Majority Whip before then.

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This Is A Great Idea!


Tucker: Dems believed all women accusers in Kavanaugh. Not anymore.

Just on Monday, it was a really different picture in newly volatile Commonwealth of Virginia. At that point, the state's lieutenant governor, Justin Fairfax, fully expected a job promotion, of course, because the governor, Ralph Northam, was found to have a Klan hood on his med school yearbook page.

But that is not how it worked out. Now, Justin Fairfax stands accused of serious wrongdoing. A politics professor from California named Vanessa Tyson says that Fairfax sexually assaulted her in his hotel room at the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston. Her description of that is graphic.

Now, Tyson is an active Democrat. She's got degrees from Princeton and University of Chicago. It is not easy to dismiss her claims out of hand, and yet Fairfax is. He says there was a sexual encounter between the two, but he described it as consensual.

Here is the interesting thing: His Democratic colleagues are standing with him and against her tonight. In other words, in the space of just a few months, the standard for believing sexual assault accusers has changed completely.


So here, in case you have forgotten, is how prominent Democrats responded to the unsubstantiated allegations brought against Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh:


https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/tucker-carlson-dems-believed-all-women-accusers-in-kavanaugh-not-anymore-in-fairfax-scandal

Former Oklahoma teacher admits creating sexually violent images of children using photographs downloaded from Facebook

TULSA, Okla. — A 35-year-old former Oklahoma teacher pleaded guilty on Friday to digitally producing images depicting the sexual abuse of children and distributing almost 500 other graphic image and video files of the sexual abuse of children.

This guilty plea was announced U.S. Attorney Trent Shores, Northern District of Oklahoma. This case was investigated by Tulsa Police Department’s Cyber Crimes Unit and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

At the plea hearing, Jerry Matthew Berry admitted to producing obscene visual representations of the sexual abuse of children and distributing child pornography in 2017 and 2018. Cyber Crimes detectives from Tulsa Police Department and HSI special agents discovered Berry’s illicit activities during a peer-to-peer file-sharing undercover investigation. After executing a search warrant on Berry’s apartment, investigators also discovered hundreds of additional images and videos of child pornography on his phone. Berry, a former private school teacher in Oklahoma City, admitted to distributing child pornography on file-sharing programs. He also admitted to downloading pictures of children from Facebook and digitally altering the photographs to depict himself sexually assaulting and physically harming the children.

“Tulsa Police Department Cyber Crimes detectives and Homeland Security special agents are resilient and committed to the fight to defend our children from online perpetrators. Their dedicated efforts enable the U.S. Attorney’s Office to bring child sex offenders to justice,” said U.S. Attorney Shores. “These days, parents must be ever vigilant because predators like Mr. Berry are lurking about on the internet. The facts of this case are a stark reminder that parents should check their privacy settings on social media and be aware when posting photos of their children.”

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State of the Union 2019 Remarks

Nanny State Hawaii May Increase Smoking Age To 100

The state government in Hawaii wants to increase the smoking age to 100. Although pretty much everyone on Earth knows smoking is damaging to a person’s overall health, the nanny state is taking it upon themselves to ban the use of more substances.

Nothing good can ever come from the government dictating to people what they are allowed to put in their bodies, and that includes smoking. Are we free or not? Do we own ourselves or not? Governments assume they own us as tax cattle and therefore it’s their right to tell us how to live our lives. Unfortunately, too many bow down to the whims of the state while others enforce these nanny state policies.

If this bill succeeds in becoming a law, it would effectively ban the use of cigarettes for a very vast majority of the Hawaiian population. The bill was proposed by Democrat Richard Creagan, an obvious authoritarian. Even if it does become a law, laws hinge only on the population’s willingness to abide by them, so it could be futile much like prohibition was. Not to mention worldwide smoking rates are plummeting to people voluntarily making the decision that it isn’t good for them. According to the BBC, Creagan, who was an emergency room physician before he was elected as state representative in 2014, calls the cigarette “the deadliest artifact in human history” in the bill.

The new bill, HB 1509, demands that the smoking age go up to 30 in 2020, 40 in 2021, 50 in 2022, and 60 in 2023. The last jump will take place in 2024 when people would need to be 100 years old to buy cigarettes.

“We don’t allow people free access to opioids, for instance, or any prescription drugs,” Creagan said in defense of his tyrannical bill.

And even though the government has banned opioids without a prescription, there’s an opioid addiction crisis lowering the life expectancy of Americans. Prepare for a cigarette black market in Hawaii should Creagan get his way.

All nanny state policies including taxation beg the question: who owns you?

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Baseball legend Frank Robinson, MLB's first black manager, dead at 83

WASHINGTON (WJLA) — Baseball legend Frank Robinson has died, according to multiple reports.

The Hall of Famer, who was Major League Baseball's first black manager and the first and only player to win MVP in both the American and National leagues, was 83 years old.

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Four former VA Secretaries: There's an historic and welcome transformation underway at the VA

We served in the post of Secretary of Veterans Affairs for a combined total of 12 years from 2001 to 2017, coinciding with the terrorist attacks on the United States and the war years that followed.

As veterans, we served in Vietnam and in the post-Vietnam era military and understand all too well the problems that have beset the Department of Veterans Affairs in the past and the challenges now facing the VA as it cares for veterans from World War ll and Korea through Vietnam, Kuwait, Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria.

The VA today is experiencing rapid changes in health care and the demographic convergence of three generations of warriors with varying health and benefits concerns and different attitudes about a VA that is tailoring its health care delivery to best meet the needs of the populations it serves now and in the future.

The cornerstone of the VA’s ongoing modernization is a continued commitment to improving internal clinical services for veterans through better leadership and management practices and delivering top quality access to health care at all levels of its hospitals and clinics across this nation.

The VA excels in large part because of an army of dedicated civil servants and close relationships with academic institutions and research entities that work collaboratively with the VA to bring excellent care to veterans. And when the VA has not been able to deliver acceptable care or in cases where veterans live too far from VA services, Congress has generously funded and expanded the VA’s Community Care Program so veterans can see private doctors closer to home.

https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/four-former-va-secretaries-theres-an-historic-and-welcome-transformation-underway-at-the-va

Farm Belt Bankruptcies Are Soaring Across the Midwest

The amount of debt at midwest farms is soaring and farmers are declaring bankruptcy because of trade uneasiness and low prices.

The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday that Chapter 12 bankruptcy protection filings are on the rise — increasing to levels that have not been seen in at least 10 years.

Contributing factors include low commodity prices and the ongoing trade dispute with China that has resulted in each country placing tariffs on each other's goods.

2020 ... How Trump Can Win by NOT RUNNING

Watch: Kamala Harris Shakes Head After Trump Calls for Stopping Drug Cartels, Human Trafficking

Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) shook her head after President Donald Trump called for putting illegal drug cartels and human traffickers out of business at his State of the Union Address on Tuesday night.

President Trump had specifically called for the United States to commit to ending illegal immigration, as well as put coyotes, drug cartels, and human smugglers “out of business.” While others responded by standing and giving applause, Sen. Kamala Harris pursed her lips and shook her head in response to the president’s call to action.

Watch Below:

Fireside Chat Ep. 67 - How The Left Justifies Bad Behavior

Sounds About Right


DUI arrest involving a motor vehicle accident

Type of Incident: DUI motor vehicle collision
Date and Time: 8:59 PM
Location: Brown Road north of Zion Road, Salisbury, MD 21801
Case Number: 19-MSP-005380

Vehicle(s): 2008 Ford SUV

Driver/passengers(s)/pedestrian: Elijah Calvin Lewis, 31 year old male from Delmar, MD

Accused: Elijah Calvin Lewis, 31 year old male from Delmar, MD

Charges: Driving under the influence of alcohol, negligent driving and driver consuming alcoholic beverage in passenger area of vehicle

Disposition: Released to family member from the barrack

On 2/6/19 at 8:59 PM, Troopers from the Salisbury Barrack responded to a single vehicle collision at Brown Rd north of Zion Rd, Wicomico County. A Black Ford Truck, MD Reg. 5CG0532 was observed in the ditch on the north bound side of Brown Rd. The operator of vehicle 1, identified as Elijah Lewis was seated in the driver's seat. When the trooper made contact with Lewis a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage was detected from the passenger area of the vehicle as well as from Lewis' person. As Lewis exited the vehicle, the trooper observed a Bud Light beer bottle in the driver's door pocket and observed that it had spilled onto the driver's floor board.

Upon exiting the vehicle, the operator was asked to complete field sobriety tests. Lewis performed poorly on those tests and was placed under arrest for driving under the influence. Lewis was issued citations for DUI, negligent driving and consuming alcoholic beverage in passenger area of vehicle. He was released to a family member from the barrack.

Police seize almost 7,000 pounds of cannabis from a truck. But the company that bought it says it's all legal

(CNN)Idaho State Police says it seized 6,701 pounds of illicit marijuana from a truck passing through the state last month. The Colorado company that bought the plants in Oregon says it's legal hemp. But the truck driver caught in the middle is now facing felony marijuana trafficking charges.

Rolling into the East Boise Point of Entry weigh station on January 24, Denis Palamarchuck's tractor-trailer was stopped by an Idaho state trooper to conduct a routine inspection. The truck's bill of lading listed the goods being hauled as hemp.

"However, the trooper's training and experience made him suspicious that the cargo was in fact marijuana, not industrial hemp," the Idaho State Police wrote in a news release.
The officer opened up one of the 31 shipping bags in the rig and, using a Narcotic Identification Kit, tested a sample that came back positive for THC, the mind-altering chemical in marijuana. A drug-sniffing canine also "demonstrated a positive alert on the cargo," state police said.


Palamarchuck was immediately arrested and charged with felony trafficking of marijuana.


Court records indicate Palamarchuck spent four days in jail after the arrest. Jim Ball, Palamarchuck's attorney, told CNN his client was released after posting a $100,000 bond.


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MSP Salisbury Barrack DUI Arrests for 1/30/2019 to 2/06/2019

The following subjects were arrested for DUI / DWI offenses 1/30/2019 and 2/06/2019:

Tyrone Joseph McKiney 34 years of age Salisbury, Maryland

Omar E. Salgado Sanchez 18 years of age Delaware

April Renee Joseph 38 years of age Salisbury, Maryland

Fulton Knight Singleton Jr. 72 years of age Salisbury, Maryland

Whoops


BREAKING: Fourth Democrat Gets Caught Up In Virginia Scandals, Knew About Sex Assault Allegations For A Year, Report Says

The series of scandals that have brought Virginia Democrats to their knees over the last week worsened after a new bombshell report was released on Wednesday night that alleges a Democratic lawmaker knew about the sexual assault allegations against Democrat Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax for over a year.

ABC News reports that Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA) was made aware of the allegations directly from Fairfax's accuser, Dr. Vanessa Tyson, "who on Wednesday released a statement detailing the alleged 2004 assault, which took place at the Democratic National Convention in Boston."

"Allegations of sexual assault need to be taken seriously," Scott said in a statement to ABC News. "I have known Professor Tyson for approximately a decade and she is a friend. She deserves the opportunity to have her story heard."

Aides to Scott told ABC News that Tyson told Scott on October 20, 2017 that she was "not a fan" of Fairfax, who at the time was a candidate for Virginia Lieutenant Governor.

The following month, Tyson continued to disclose her dislike for Fairfax to Scott and told Scott that she wanted to "talk about it" with him.

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Press Release - Feb. 6, 2019


keen, Thomas
Incident: CDS Possession
Date of Incident: 5 February 2019
Location: W Isabella St and Delaware Ave, Salisbury
Suspect: Thomas Francis Keen, 63 of Salisbury
Narrative: On 02-05-19 at 0219 am, a Deputy conducted a traffic stop on a speeding vehicle on Isabella St and Delaware Ave, Salisbury. While speaking with the driver, Thomas Keen, the Deputy saw CDS paraphernalia inside of the vehicle. A search of the vehicle revealed a small amount of crack cocaine and additional paraphernalia. The Deputy also learned that the vehicle was not registered and Mr. Keen did not have a valid license to drive.
Charges: Possession of CDS; Crack Cocaine, 2 counts of Possession of drug paraphernalia, and numerous traffic citations.

U.S.A.


Donald Trump's SOTU: Shooting white-breasted ducks on a pond

Let me preface the following praise by saying I have a tough time listening to our president. His style of speech and mannerisms tend to drive me up the wall in spite of the fact I am in near total agreement with his political agenda and actions as president.

All I can say is that I am ever so glad that I did. To my absolute amazement, Donald J. Trump gave one helluva State of the Union speech, punching my conservative buttons while putting the Democrats in checkmate by cleverly appropriating every one of their major issues as his own. It was amazing to watch those Democrats initially sitting on their impolite rear ends, refusing to applaud even major positive accomplishments for their constituencies, like historically low black and Hispanic unemployment. By the time his speech was completed, Trump had large numbers of those same Democrats standing and applauding – even when he pronounced firmly that this nation will never become a socialist country, earning standing applause from even Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer, much to the chagrin of Bernie Sanders and Occasional Cortex.

Look, I understand that Trump was reading a speech written by a professional White House speech-writing team, and to give them credit, they handed the man a zeroed weapon. Donald Trump took that finely tuned instrument of political warfare and proceeded to shoot down all those white-breasted Democrat ducks with volley after volley that left the blasted birds in a state of shocked confusion, looking around at each other for guidance, trying to determine how to respond.

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Governor Larry Hogan Announces Legislation to Expand State Benefits for Firefighters

Includes Additional Cancer Coverage and Fully Exempts All Retirement Income

ANNAPOLIS, MD -
Governor Larry Hogan today announced the introduction of two pieces of legislation directed toward honoring the service and sacrifice of Maryland first responders and professional firefighters in the 2019 legislative session. The governor made the announcement at Eastport Fire Station 36 in Annapolis, Md. Governor Hogan was joined by Professional Firefighters of Maryland President Mike Rund, Annapolis City Firefighters Local 1926 President John Wardell, IAFF District Vice President Andy Pantelis, IAFF Montgomery County President Jeff Buddle, Senior Advisor Keiffer Mitchell, and Homeland Security Director Walter “Pete” Landon, more than 50 Maryland firefighters, as well as numerous local leaders and community members.

“I have been moved countless times by the selflessness of our firefighters and first responders,” said Governor Hogan. “You deserve and have earned our respect and our gratitude, and making sure you get that respect isn’t a political issue – it’s just common sense.”

The Hogan administration is aware of the dangerous situations first responders encounter on a daily basis that can lead to serious health concerns, including certain types of cancers. The governor is introducing Workers’ Compensation - Medical Presumptions legislation to add kidney or renal cell cancer and urinary cancer to the types of cancers considered occupational diseases for firefighters under Maryland’s workers’ compensation laws.

The governor’s Hometown Heroes Act of 2019 will exempt retired law enforcement, fire, rescue, correctional officer, or emergency response personnel from state tax on all retirement income specific to their service as a first responder and public safety worker. Working with the first responder community in 2017, the Hogan administration was successful in passing the hometown heroes benefit so that first responders can exempt the first $15,000 of their retirement income from state taxes. This year, new legislation will fully exempt all retirement income of firefighters, emergency services personnel, police officers, and correctional officers. The legislation also proposes to lower the age of eligibility to 50.

The Hogan administration has introduced House Bill 231 to increase the amount a volunteer firefighter can exempt from their state taxes to $10,000. The current maximum exemption is $7,000.

Governor Hogan has been a champion of first responders the last four years and intends to continue his strong record of support for Maryland law enforcement, fire and rescue, emergency services personnel, and correctional officers across the state.

Nolte: The Media’s 9 Worst ‘Fact Checks’ of Trump’s State of the Union

The establishment media fact checkers had it pretty tough Tuesday night.

To begin with, they went into the State of the Union knowing they no longer have any credibility with the public, and they came out of it forced to lie or pound out a series of tedious nit-picks. Or, in the case of the far-left Washington Post’s Glenn Kessler, had to pretend the sexual assault of migrant women isn’t as bad as Trump made it sound.

Here are the nine worst media fact checks of President Trump’s State of the Union speech:

New York Times Caught Fake Newsing:

The New York Times labels as “false” Trump’s statement about illegal border crossings being an “urgent national crisis.”

But it’s only after a paragraph of pedantic blah, blah, blah that the far-left Times finally admits a “record number of families have tried to cross the border in recent months, overwhelming officials at the border and creating a new kind of humanitarian crisis.”

In other words, Trump told the truth but the Times is counting on you not making it through all the blah, blah, blah to find that out.

Fact Check: President Trump's State of the Union address: https://t.co/HAKTVMZfQu pic.twitter.com/U8MYNFE7ta

— The New York Times (@nytimes) February 6, 2019

New York Times Caught Fake Newsing Again

A Viewer Writes: Another City of Salisbury blunder

I was speaking with a contractor working on the glorious downtown project this week so the source is reliable. Seems the city has installed tens, if not HUNDREDS of thousands of dollars in broadband fiber optic infrastructure as part of the project. What most TAXPAYERS aren’t aware of is they then SOLD the fiber optic cable to Maryland Broadband for ONE WHOLE DOLLAR and 12 strands of the 96 fiber cable!!! Of course, Maryland Broadband will now lease the remaining 84 strands for a constant income stream of decades to come!!! Another GREAT move by Day and the Minions. I guess the city will make it all back with the Folked Festival!!!

Should Cops Use Family Tree Forensics? Maryland Isn’t So Sure

Police departments around the country are getting increasingly comfortable using DNA from non-criminal databases in the pursuit of criminal cases. On Tuesday, investigators in North and South Carolina announced that a public genealogy website had helped them identify two bodies found decades ago on opposite sides of the state line as a mother and son; the boy’s father, who is currently serving time on an unrelated charge, has reportedly confessed to the crime. It was just the latest in a string of nearly two dozen cold cases cracked open by the technique—called genetic genealogy—in the past nine months.

This powerful new method for tracking potential suspects through forests of family trees has been made possible, in part, by the booming popularity of consumer DNA tests. The two largest testing providers, Ancestry and 23andMe, have policies in place to prevent law enforcement agencies from directly accessing the genetic data of their millions of customers. Yet both companies make it possible for customers to download a digital copy of their DNA and upload the file to public databases where it becomes available to police. Searches conducted on these open genetic troves aren’t currently regulated by any laws.

But that might not be true for much longer, at least in Maryland.

HEARING ALERT: Maryland Stadium Authority - Ocean City Convention Facility - Renovation

Important Legislation Spurs Economic Activity For Ocean City
“This facility has long been an important economic driver for Ocean City, bringing in thousands of visitors for conferences and events like MACo and allowing local businesses to stay open and continue to hire year-round.” - Governor Larry Hogan, August 16, 2018
Maryland Stadium Authority - Ocean City Convention Facility - Renovation

Governor Hogan’s Proposed Legislation Gives The Maryland Stadium Authority The Needed Capacity To Finance The Addition And Renovation Of The Roland E. Powell Ocean City Convention Center. “Unless authorized by the General Assembly, the Board of Public Works may not approve an issuance by the Authority of bonds, whether taxable or tax exempt, that constitute tax supported debt or nontax supported debt if, after issuance, there would be outstanding and unpaid more than the following face amounts of the bonds for the purpose of financing acquisitions, construction, renovation, and related expenses for construction management, professional fees, and contingencies in connection with:... the Ocean City Convention facility - [$17,340,000] $24,500,000… Except as allowed by § 10-639 of this subtitle, to finance site acquisition, construction, and renovation of any segment of an Ocean City Convention facility, the Authority shall comply with this section.” (“Senate Bill 177,” Maryland General Assembly, 1/21/19)   

  • Convention Center Expansion Could Employ Nearly 700 Additional Individuals, $67 Million In Additional Economic Activity. “The extra space could lead to about 22 additional events a year, up from about 82 annually, according to a 2017 study for the Maryland Stadium Authority. The study also estimated that the expansion would create between 470 and 670 new jobs and generate as much as $67 million in new economic activity.” (Natalie Sherman, “Maryland Gov. Hogan Pledges $2o Million In State Funds For Ocean City Convention Center Renovation,” The Baltimore Sun, 8/16/18)
Governor Hogan’s Proposal Receives Strong Bipartisan Support
Ocean City Mayor Rick Meehan: “The expansion of the Convention Center is important to Ocean City and the State of Maryland. Not only does the Convention Center generate revenue locally but has a positive economic impact on the State.” (Press Release, “Governor Larry Hogan Announces Funding For Final Expansion Of Ocean City Convention Center,” Office Of The Governor, 8/16/18)
Senator Mary Beth Carozza: “I am excited for the expected economic impact and increase of jobs this expansion will bring… This will not only attract new clients to the convention center, but allow our current ones to expand.” (“Hogan Announces $20 Million Investment In Convention Center Expansion,” Mary Beth Carozza, 8/16/18)
Former Senator Jim Mathias: “I’m very happy to have the governor as an ally on the project that I’ve worked on in public service for 20 years.” (Greg Ellison, “Center Expansion Awaits Legislature,” Ocean City Today, 8/23/18)

Slate Mocks Nancy Pelosi for Using Fake Bible Quotes

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) recently addressed the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities conference in Washington, DC, and a reporter from Slate decided toinvestigate her repeatedly referencing Biblical scripture that does not exist.

“I can’t find it in the Bible but I quote it all the time, and I keep reading and reading the Bible,” Pelosi said. “I know it is there someplace.”

“It’s supposed to be in Isaiah,” Pelosi said. “I heard a bishop say to minister to the needs of God’s creation is an act of worship,” Pelosi said. “To ignore those needs is to dishonor the God who made us.”

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Socialist Democrat Mob Clutches At Presidency

The Democrats are becoming more radical by the minute

Kamala Harris, Pete Buttigieg, Julian Castro, Cory Booker, Elizabeth Warren and Kirsten Gillibrand.

These are the Socialist Democrat names in the Democratic field of presidential hopefuls and they are all under the impression that they are what’s right for America after their party rode a wave of fake news, bullying the American people, and backing policies of big government handouts.

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NYC Worried About Duck ‘Cruelty’ As State Loosens Late-Term Abortion Restrictions

Carlina Rivera, a New York City councilwoman who signed a resolution urging the State of New York to pass the controversial Reproductive Health Act that loosened late-term abortion restrictions, is also sponsoring a bill that would ban restaurants and vendors from selling foie gras in New York City — because of animal cruelty.

Should the Manhattan councilwoman succeed in passing her bill, the sale of the controversial French delicacy — made by enlarging the livers of geese and ducks by using feeding tubes to force-feed them before harvest — would be punishable by a year in jail and a fine of up to $1,000 per offense.not part of the diet of everyday New Yorkers,” Rivera told the New York Post. “Less than 1 percent of all New York City restaurants serve it. This is truly a luxury item.”

Rivera called her bill “common sense” and the process behind making the fattened liver an “egregious” one that’s been “tolerated” for “far too long,” the Post reported.

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Inside the Republican cabal plotting Trump takedown in 2020

Renegade Republicans determined to eject President Trump from the White House in 2020 share a commitment to the cause but are split on strategy and realistic about their long-shot prospects.

Former John McCain aides, members of Evan McMullin's independent 2016 presidential campaign, disgruntled neocons, and establishment GOPers — the only thing they agree on is a loathing of Trump.

No primary challenger has yet come forward. John Kasich, former Ohio governor, has said he couldn't beat Trump. Jeff Flake, who stepped down as a senator for Arizona when it became clear he would be beaten by pro-Trump forces in his primary, has taken himself out of the running.

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Nolte: Day After Airing $5.2M Ad, We Learn WaPo Buried Assault Claim Against Dem

During Sunday’s Super Bowl the far-left Washington Post spent $5.2 million to run a self-aggrandizing ad about the importance of capital “J” Journalism.

Big movie star Tom Hanks closes the ad with this: “There’s someone to gather the facts, to bring you the story — no matter the cost because knowing empowers us. Knowing helps us decide. Knowing keeps us free.”

Knowing, y’all.

Knowing.

You see, that’s why journalism is so gosh-darned important — it’s journalists letting the rest of us know about stuff we need to know about.

It’s the knowing that helps us decide and the knowing that keeps us free, and without journalism and journalists letting us know we wouldn’t know how to decide or know how to be free, so thank the Good Lord for the journalists who let us in on the know, ya’ know?

But less than 24 hours after this pompous ad aired, we learned that the ad was missing a key piece of information about the stuff journalism and its journalists don’t want us to know, and of course I am speaking about that which is harmful to a Democrat.

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Russian Lobbyist Linked to Hillary Clinton at Infamous Trump Tower Meeting -- Received Half-a-Million Dollars in Suspicious Payments Before and After Meeting!

California US Representative Devin Nunes shared on FOX News that Hillary Clinton’s campaign team, working with Glenn Simpson and Fusion GPS, likely set up the entire Trump Tower meeting with Donald Trump Jr. and Jared Kushner as a way of entrapping the Trump campaign.

The whole thing was a setup!

On FOX News, Nunes, who sat through hours of testimonies related to the Trump – Russia farce, said the following –

… but something also probably important to note about the so called Trump Tower meeting. This is the meeting that actually Fusion GPS met with the people before and after that meeting.

Fusion GPS, once again, was a Clinton Campaign paid for operations outfit. They were clearly involved in the set up of the Trump Tower meeting. So if they want to bring Cohen in and talk to him, that’s great, we’ll participate. But the truth, if you really want to get to the truth behind the Trump Tower meeting, Fusion GPS and the Clinton campaign are all over it, and probably behind it.

The group that organized the meeting with Trump advisers and the Russian lawyers was the same Democratic group Fusion GPS that was behind the discredited Trump dossier.

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Dems Push National Popular Vote in Newly Controlled ‘Trifecta’ States

Democrats are reigniting a decade-long push for a constitutionally dubious workaround to the Electoral College, with the most ambitious efforts coming in two western states in which the left gained the political "trifecta" of owning the governor's seat and both chambers of the state legislature after the 2018 elections.

The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, or NPV, creates an agreement by all states that have entered into it, whereby their Electoral College votes are cast for the candidate who wins the most individual votes nationwide, not who wins the most in that state. Central to the compact is the legal trigger that it would not take effect until the number of Electoral College votes of all the states entered in surpasses 270, the key number required to win the presidency.

With 11 states and the District of Columbia agreeing to participate, the NPV Electoral College vote tally stands at 172.

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New clue? Justin Fairfax praises reporter who asks if Richmond mayor linked to sexual assault allegation

Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax praised a reporter who asked Monday if he thought the mayor of Richmond, a potential 2021 rival for governor, might be tied to the sexual assault allegation he faces.

Talking to reporters on the steps of the rotunda of the Virginia state Capitol, Fairfax walked back his earlier suggestion that he believed Gov. Ralph Northam, who is facing his own scandalinvolving a racist photo in his medical school yearbook, might be behind the emergence of a woman who claims Fairfax sexually assaulted her at the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston.

"I have no indication of that," he replied. Northam's team has also strongly denied any connection.

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Democrats now have to govern and it's not a pretty sight

The first month of 2019 has been a clarifying time for the country.

Through the first two years of the Trump presidency, Democrats hid in their minority, offered no real proposals, voted “no” on everything, raised money and waited. Now, like the dog that caught the car, they have a measure of responsibility for the federal government but no idea what to do.

Let us review just this past month.

Democrats are proposing a “Medicare for All” system that would end the private insurance industry (which has tens of millions of happy consumers) and that would cost at least $3 trillion per year (the current federal budget is $4 trillion). When presidential hopeful Sen. Kamala D. Harris of California was asked about it, she waved off the concerns of anyone who enjoys their employer-based health insurance. The resulting controversy engulfed her campaign until she walked it back. Support for “Medicare for All” will be a litmus test in the Democratic presidential primary.

Democrats, including Twitter personality and freshman Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York and presidential aspirant Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts are proposing massive tax increases on wealthy people, with one proposal reaching 70 percent for fortunes over $10 million. These liberals appear to be unaware of the concept of tax avoidance, which is rampant in high-tax locales and means their plans would not come anywhere near covering their massive spending increases.

Former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams, who gave the Democratic response to the State of the Union, was recently asked whether she believes immigrants living in the U.S. illegally should be able to vote. She said yes. Rarely do Democrats publicly admit that they support voter fraud.

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Colorado jogger kills a mountain lion with his BARE HANDS in self-defense after it attacked him

A Colorado jogger fought off a mountain lion in the foothills of Horsetooth Mountain on Monday, suffering severe bites before he killed the wild animal in self-defense, authorities said.

The man, who was not identified, was jogging on a trail on the West Ridge of the Horsetooth Mountain Open Space, a mountain park about 66 miles northwest of Denver.

The mountain lion attacked him from behind, biting and clawing the man's face, back, legs and arms, the Colorado Parks and Wildlife and the Larimer County Department of Natural Resources said in a joint release, late on Monday.

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Chicago Police Superintendent: 'Empire' Star Jussie Smollett 'WILL Be Held Accountable' If He Made A False Crime Report

Chicago police superintendent Eddie Johnson reportedly told local media Tuesday that the Chicago Police Department will pursue a case against "Empire" actor Jussie Smollett if it turns out Smollett filed a false police report alleging a late night attack.

Smollett was allegedly attacked while walking home from a Subway sandwich shop in downtown Chicago. Smollett says that two men approached him, targeted him with both racial and homophobic slurs, tossed a rope around his neck, and then poured an unspecified liquid on him, which may have been bleach. Smollett reported being injured in the attack, and later told law enforcement officials that the two attackers yelled "Welcome to MAGA country!" during the incident.

A subsequent investigation by Chicago police revealed that, indeed, Smollett did walk several blocks to and from a Subway sandwich shop that evening, but that Smollett was on camera for all but about 60 seconds of his trip, during which Smollett reports the attack took place.

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Northam was accused of racism when he excluded Fairfax from his fliers in 2017 election

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam — currently embroiled in a scandal after a racist photo from his medical school yearbook page was unearthed — was accused of racism two years ago.

In 2017, his gubernatorial campaign created a flier that erased the Democratic lieutenant governor candidate Justin Fairfax, who is black and had appeared in other versions of the flier.

Now, allies of Fairfax claim Northam advisers have helped circulate allegations of sexual assault against Fairfax, who will become governor if Northam steps down.

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Alleged NYC subway shooter, a suspected MS-13 member, was in US illegally, ICE says

The suspected MS-13 gang member accused of fatally shooting a member of a rival gang in broad daylight on a New York City subway platform is a Salvadoran national who is in the U.S. illegally, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency told Fox News on Tuesday.

Ramiro Gutierrez, 26, is set to face charges of second-degree murder, gang assault and criminal possession of a weapon in connection with the Sunday afternoon killing of 20-year-old Abel Mosso, who authorities said was a member of the rival 18th Street Gang. ICE said it had lodged an immigration detainer so that they could be contacted prior to his release.

The midday attack – which happened in front of terrified and screaming commuters – occurred in an area of New York City’s Queens borough where the two gangs have been battling for influence. One subway passenger’s graphic video of the incident has been widely circulating on social media.

Gutierrez was taken into custody Monday and charged early Tuesday morning. Authorities have since revealed that the suspect was free on $2,500 bail following a prior arrest late last year.

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https://www.foxnews.com/us/alleged-nyc-subway-shooter-suspected-ms-13-member-was-in-us-illegally-ice-says

Illinois Democrats' Astounding Reversal On Pensions

Are they wrong now or were they wrong then? Today, they say the opposite of what they told the public and the courts five years ago...

Governor J.B. Pritzker has made his position clear on pensions: No benefit reductions. No reforms. Not necessary. Just pay them.Nobody in his Democratic party has voiced any dissent and they hold super-majorities in both the House and the Senate.

But consider what the state argued in court and the General Assembly said in legislative findings five years ago to defend SB-1, a pension reform bill: Benefit reductions, not tax increases, were essential. That was in 2014 when Democrats also held the governorship and supermajorities in the legislature.

Democratic Attorney General Lisa Madigan, daughter of the House speaker, made the case. The pension problem and the fiscal crisis it caused were so severe that the rarely used “police power” doctrine justified cutting pensions, as SB-1 would have done, overriding the state’s constitutional pension protection clause. Her court pleadings were based on extensive analyses completed by three economists she offered as expert witnesses.

Her case was based on the same points that financial realists and pension critics had been saying all along – that increasing taxes or cutting services instead of cutting some benefits would worsen the flight of employers from the state and devastate the poor. Our article on her arguments from that time is linked here. Today, that article reads as if Madigan was prescient.

She and her economists got specific:

Raising taxes instead of making the pension cuts under SB-1 wasn’t a workable alternative, they told the courts. Doing so would reduce economic activity in Illinois by 1.1% and cost the state 64,000 jobs, “economically disadvantaging Illinois and worsening its competitive position.”

If the state tried to pay for pensions through spending cuts instead of higher taxes, cuts would hurt those most economically disadvantaged, they argued, hitting education, healthcare and social programs.

Respecting the flight of employers from Illinois, they said it was not the big corporate headquarters with well paid executives that were most subject to flight. Instead, manufacturers and transportation companies providing living wage jobs were most at risk.

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Non-fatal Overdoses Leads to Arrest of Salisbury Man

OCEAN CITY, MD – In January 2019, detectives with the Ocean City Police Department’s Narcotics & Vice Unit began an investigation into a suspected drug dealer after two non-fatal heroin overdoses occurred on January 14.

Through investigation, detectives were able to identify the dealer as Steavon T. Williams Sr., 43, of Salisbury, MD. Detectives authored and executed a search and seizure for William’s person on January 19. During the search, detectives located large amounts of crack cocaine and a substance that appeared to be heroin. Upon further investigation, detectives determined that the substance was powdered sugar.

Detectives have charged Williams with possession of a controlled dangerous substance (CDS) with intent to distribute, possession with intent to distribute a non-controlled substance represented to be a CDS, and two counts of possession of CDS. Williams was seen by a Maryland District Court Commissioner and transferred to the Worcester County Jail on $5,000 bond. He has since been released from custody after posting bond on January 21.

US Military Holds Unexpected War Drill In Downtown Los Angeles

No, this is not Beirut, Damascus, or Kabul - it's Downtown Los Angeles.

As The LA Times reports, a series of loud booms that rocked downtown LA on Monday night startled some people, but LAPD said there was no need to be concerned, as the noises were part of a U.S. Army training exercise involving aircraft and weapon simulations in urban settings

The training is set to run through Saturday in Los Angeles and Long Beach.

“Residents may hear sounds associated with the training, including aircraft and weapon simulations” the LAPD said in a news release.

“Each location selected enables special operations teams and flight crews to maintain maximum readiness and proficiency, validate equipment and exercise standard safety procedures.

The training is essential to ensure service members are fully trained and prepared to defend our nation overseas.”

The army also noted that:

"The local terrain and training facilities in Los Angeles provide the Army with unique locations and simulates urban environments the service members may encounter when deployed overseas.

"There is no replacement for realistic training."

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