Salisbury News

Friday, October 05, 2018

Sarah Sanders questions motivation of New York Times writer for ‘ridiculous story’ on Kavanaugh

White House press secretary Sarah Sanders questioned the motivation of Emily Bazelon, a staff writer at New York Times Magazine, for writing a “ridiculous story” Monday that detailed how Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh was questioned by police after a bar fight in the 1980s.

The piece, written by Bazelon and Ben Protess, reported how Kavanaugh was blamed for throwing ice on another man “for an unknown reason.” When questioned by police later, Kavanaugh did not want “to say if he threw the ice or not.”

Sanders seized on the report by retweeting a July tweet from Bazelon that was critical of Kavanaugh's nomination.

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"It's Just Not Right": Flake Blasts Trump's "Appalling" Mockery Of Kavanaugh Accuser

After referring to Dr. Christine Blasey Ford's testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee last week, President Trump has apparently changed his mind (perhaps because he senses that Democrats will continue to do everything in their power to delay a confirmation vote on Judge Brett Kavanaugh for as long as possible). And at a rally in Mississippi Tuesday night, Trump pointed out several inconsistencies in Ford's story about what transpired that summer night in 1982 in his characteristically animated fashion...

But despite the fact that his remarks were relatively measured (by Trump standards), the media swiftly condemned the president for his comments, claiming that he "mercilessly mocked" a survivor of sexual assault. Adding his voice to the chorus of outrage, Arizona Senator Jeff Flake chimed in during an interview with "Today" Wednesday morning, decrying the president's "appalling" remarks" and insisting that "it's just not right" and that "there is no time and place" for comments like that.

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Thomas Gallatin: NYT Launches Anti-Trump Hit Piece Over His Taxes

This is yet another obvious political ploy designed to pressure Trump into releasing his tax returns.

On Tuesday, The New York Times published an article accusing President Donald Trump of having “engaged in suspect tax schemes as he reaped riches from his father.” The obviously anti-Trump hit piece claimed that Trump and his siblings used “dubious” tax methods and even “outright fraud” to greatly increase the money they received from their parents’ real-estate empire. But this is a prime example of fake news.

A lawyer for Trump, Charles J. Harder, blasted the Times, saying, “[The] allegations of fraud and tax evasion are 100 percent false, and highly defamatory. There was no fraud or tax evasion by anyone. The facts upon which The Times bases its false allegations are extremely inaccurate.” He further explained, “President Trump had virtually no involvement whatsoever with these matters. The affairs were handled by other Trump family members who were not experts themselves and therefore relied entirely upon the aforementioned licensed professionals to ensure full compliance with the law.” In fact, the Times tacitly acknowledges that the Internal Revenue Service was fully aware of the Trumps’ actions and evidently had no objections at the time — because the Trump family accountantsfollowed the law.

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Report: Blasey Ford Best Friend Also Career FBI Agent

Association with former FBI agent raises questions about letter sent to Dianne Feinstein

In a letter released from Christine Blasey Ford’s ex-boyfriend, it was alleged that Ford helped life-long friend Monica L. McLean pass a polygraph test.

But who exactly is Monica McLean?

In addition to being Ford’s best friend, McLean was also a 24-year employee of the Department of Justice and FBI from 1992 to 2016, according to her LinkedIn profile.

The ex-boyfriend described Ford’s relationship with McLean in a letter obtained by Fox News, detailing how she helped McLean pass a polygraph for an FBI position.

“During some of the time we were dating, Dr. Ford lived with Monica McLean, who I understood to be her life-long best friend. During that time, it was my understanding that McLean was preparing was interviewing for jobs with the FBI and the US Attorney’s Office,” he wrote.

“I witnessed Dr Ford help McLean prepare for a potential polygraph exam. Dr. Ford explained in detail what to expect, how polygraphs worked and helped McLean become familiar and less nervous about the exam. Dr. Ford was able to help because of her background in psychology.”

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How China Used a Tiny Chip to Infiltrate U.S. Companies

In 2015, Amazon.com Inc. began quietly evaluating a startup called Elemental Technologies, a potential acquisition to help with a major expansion of its streaming video service, known today as Amazon Prime Video. Based in Portland, Ore., Elemental made software for compressing massive video files and formatting them for different devices. Its technology had helped stream the Olympic Games online, communicate with the International Space Station, and funnel drone footage to the Central Intelligence Agency. Elemental’s national security contracts weren’t the main reason for the proposed acquisition, but they fit nicely with Amazon’s government businesses, such as the highly secure cloud that Amazon Web Services (AWS) was building for the CIA.

To help with due diligence, AWS, which was overseeing the prospective acquisition, hired a third-party company to scrutinize Elemental’s security, according to one person familiar with the process. The first pass uncovered troubling issues, prompting AWS to take a closer look at Elemental’s main product: the expensive servers that customers installed in their networks to handle the video compression. These servers were assembled for Elemental by Super Micro Computer Inc., a San Jose-based company (commonly known as Supermicro) that’s also one of the world’s biggest suppliers of server motherboards, the fiberglass-mounted clusters of chips and capacitors that act as the neurons of data centers large and small. In late spring of 2015, Elemental’s staff boxed up several servers and sent them to Ontario, Canada, for the third-party security company to test, the person says.

Nested on the servers’ motherboards, the testers found a tiny microchip, not much bigger than a grain of rice, that wasn’t part of the boards’ original design...

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Rand Paul’s Wife: “Our Family Has Experienced Violence At A Horrifying Level”

“I now keep a loaded gun by my bed”

Senator Rand Paul’s wife has spoken out in regards to the growing trend of harassment and actual physical violence against Republicans and conservatives, revealing that her family has experienced ‘horrific’ threats in recent months.

Kelley Paul penned an open letter to Democratic Senator Cory Booker, who previously encouraged activists to “get up in the face of some congresspeople”.

Mrs Paul’s letter comes after her husband was ‘doxxed’ and accosted by a leftist mob this week at an airport.

“Earlier this week, Rand was besieged in the airport by activists “getting up in his face,” as you, Senator Booker, encouraged them to do a few months ago.” Mrs Paul writes.

“Preventing someone from moving forward, thrusting your middle finger in their face, screaming vitriol — is this the way to express concern or enact change? Or does it only incite unstable people to violence, making them feel that assaulting a person is somehow politically justifiable?” she continues.

Mrs Paul called for Booker to retract his comments, and wrote that they are “all part of a broader effort to intimidate and threaten Republican members of Congress and their families.”

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Minneapolis police won't look into claim against Keith Ellison

The DFL Party’s attempt to find a law enforcement agency willing to investigate a domestic abuse claim against U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison was mired in uncertainty Wednesday, after the Minneapolis Police Department said it would seek to refer the case to another jurisdiction.

Earlier Wednesday, the DFL asked Minneapolis police to investigate after both a city attorney and a county prosecutor declined to review a report the party commissioned that did not substantiate the allegation.

Ellison’s former girlfriend, Karen Monahan, alleges that the Democratic candidate for attorney general tried to drag her off a bed during a fight in August 2016. He denies it.

“Due to a conflict of interest, or the appearance of a conflict of interest, the Minneapolis Police Department will not be handling the matter involving Congressman Keith Ellison,” read a police statement. It said the department is in communication with other law enforcement agencies to which it may refer the case. Ellison’s son, Jeremiah Ellison, is a member of the Minneapolis City Council.

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Sen. Flake, I Was Assaulted by a Stranger. Here's Why I Want Kavanaugh Confirmed.

This letter was sent Oct. 2 to Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz.

Dear Senator,

The issues of rape and sexual assault are not abstract concepts for me. In 1996 while pregnant with my first child, I was assaulted by a stranger on my morning run near my home in Northern Virginia. His intent was to rape me, but thanks to a good Samaritan who heard my screams and came quickly to assist me, I was spared the pain so many other women have endured.

Sexual exploitation is also one of Concerned Women for America Legislative Action Committee’s (CWALAC) seven core issues, and many of our supporters have shared their personal and emotional stories of sexual assault with me.

I recently shared their concerns as I testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee in support of the Debbie Smith Act reauthorization, advocating for improvements that can help us bring even more effective help to victims of abuse. I dedicated an entire chapter of my book “Feisty and Feminine” to the topic, and I have written countless op-eds advocating for victims.

I share all this to strongly suggest a deep divide exists between many members of the #MeToo movement and those who wish to politicize and weaponize it for their own purposes. I fear that the circus around Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation under the veil of helping victims of sexual abuse is demeaning to victims and will have lasting, damaging impact on the seriousness of our cause going forward.

Make no mistake; we must stand squarely on the side of victims of sexual assault and hear their pain, but we must also embrace the principle of a presumption of innocence for every man and woman.

As much as we would like to believe women, we learned the hard way from the Duke lacrosse case, Rolling Stone’s UVA, and others the reason justice must remain blind to all immutable characteristics, including gender. The idea of supporting women and blind justice are completely compatible, and if we fail to recognize either, we will hurt our efforts to combat sexual exploitation.

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Brett Kavanaugh Can Thank Obama For the Sexual Assault Witch Hunt. Obama Also Changed American Culture on Transgender Issues and ‘The Handmaid’s Tale'

Last week, Americans watched heartbreaking testimony about sexual assault allegations against Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh. Democrats seem to be operating on the basis of "guilty until proven innocent," believing the accuser without any corroborating evidence. This kind of sexual assault witch hunt actually began under former president Barack Obama — as did some of the other key social issues America is wrestling with today.

While the Left's advocacy on social issues and identity politics long predated Obama, the former president's policies supercharged many of the issues dividing America in 2018. His administration helped launch the current liberal cultural wave that wreaks havoc on American politics — and extends far beyond politics.

Here are five key ways Obama's policies impacted American culture, beginning with #MeToo, sexual assault, and Brett Kavanaugh.

1. The sexual assault maelstrom.

It all started in 2011, when the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) under Obama's Department of Education (DOE) issued a "Dear Colleague" letter reinterpreting Title IX of the 1972 Higher Education Act. The OCR letter encouraged colleges and universities to set up what Harvard Law professors Jacob Gerson and Jeannie Suk called a "sex bureaucracy."

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Sen. David Perdue: Republicans Need to ‘Grow Up’ and Confront ‘Paid Activists’

Sen. David Perdue (D-GA) said on Wednesday that Republicans should not put up with the harassment and intimidation of left-wing protesters who have descended on Capitol Hill to protest President Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, after Christine Blasey Ford accused him of sexually assaulting her decades ago at a high school party.

“These are not genuine people who are concerned about Dr. Ford or anything else. These are paid activists,” Perdue said on The Laura Ingraham Show. “This is a George Soros conspiracy, and it’s time we wake up, expose them, stand up, and fight for our country because that’s what’s at stake here.”

“It’s time for Republicans to stop being the minority party, grow up and stop playing defense,” Perdue said. “This is the time right now.”

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Federal Judge Restores Non-Violent Offender’s Gun Rights Following Landmark Case

Judge says non-violent DUIs not enough to meet standard for lifelong gun ban

A federal judge restored the rights of a Pennsylvania man on Friday after determining that his misdemeanor driving under the influence convictions were not serious enough to justify a lifelong restriction on his Second Amendment rights.

Chief Judge Christopher Conner of the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania ruled that Raymond Holloway’s second misdemeanor DUI conviction in 2005 was not a serious enough crime to result in a lifetime abridgment of one of his constitutional rights. Connor applied the standard set in the landmark case Binderup v. the U.S. Attorney General where the Third Circuit Court of Appeals found those convicted of certain nonviolent offenses can’t be barred from owning firearms for the rest of their lives. He said the government had failed to show that Holloway’s misdemeanor DUI convictions meant he should be disarmed for life.

“Defendants’ evidence fails to account for key characteristics of Holloway and similarly situated persons. They have presented no evidence indicating that individuals like Holloway—after over a decade of virtuous, noncriminal behavior—’remain [so] potentially irresponsible’ that they should be prohibited from owning a firearm,” Conner wrote in his ruling. “The government has not demonstrated a substantial fit between Holloway’s continued disarmament and the important government interest of preventing armed mayhem.”

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Breaking News: Senator Susan Collins, a Republican, said she'd vote to confirm Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, all but assuring he'll be approved.

Ms. Collins’ announcement, in a lengthy speech on the Senate floor that dwelled more on Judge Kavanaugh’s judicial record than on the sexual misconduct charges that have consumed his nomination, came after a dramatic 51-49 procedural vote to limit debate on the nomination — the next-to-last step in the tumultuous Supreme Court confirmation process.

A final confirmation vote for Judge Kavanaugh could come as early as Saturday.

Jason Van Dyke became the first Chicago police officer convicted of murder for an on-duty shooting in nearly 50 years.

Jurors also convicted Officer Van Dyke on 16 counts of aggravated battery with a firearm.

Mr. Manchin’s announcement came immediately after Senator Susan Collins of Maine said that she would support Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court in a lengthy speech.

The final vote could come Saturday.

Navy vet arrested in ricin probe after suspicious mailings to Trump, Pentagon

SALT LAKE CITY — A U.S. Navy veteran in Utah was arrested Wednesday in connection with suspicious envelopes that were sent to President Donald Trump and top military chiefs.

William Clyde Allen III, 39, was taken into custody in in the small northern Utah city of Logan, said Melodie Rydalch, a spokeswoman for the state's U.S. attorney's office.

The arrest comes after authorities confirmed an investigation into two envelopes once thought to contain ricin and later found to be castor seeds, the substance from which the poison is derived. They can cause injury if swallowed.

The FBI said there were potentially hazardous chemicals involved with their operation in Utah on Wednesday, but declined to give additional details. No attorney was immediately listed for Allen.

The envelopes addressed to Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and the Navy's top officer, Adm. John Richardson, were isolated at a mail screening facility and sent to the FBI. No one was injured, and neither envelope entered the Pentagon. Mattis is traveling in Europe this week.

An envelope also was sent to the president Monday with unknown contents. The Secret Service says it didn't reach the White House.

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Dershowitz: If Evidence Shows Kavanaugh Accuser Swetnick Committed Perjury – She Belongs in Prison (VIDEO)

Noted author and attorney Alan Dershowitz joined Tucker Carlson tonight to discuss the evolving charges against Brett Kavanaugh by accuser Julie Swetnick.

Creepy porn lawyer Michael Avenatti’s client Julie Swetnick spoke with NBC News on Monday about the claims she brought forth against Brett Kavanaugh.
Julie Swetnick spoke to NBC’s Kate Snow and curiously, her story against Judge Brett Kavanaugh has evolved over the past several days. Ms. Swetnick, in a sworn statement says she was a victim of one of these “gang” or “train” rapes where Brett Kavanaugh and Mark Judge were present. BUt her story keeps changing and she has no witnesses.

On Wednesday night Alan Deshowitz told Tucker that Swetnick should be tried and jailed if she committed perjury.

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Maryland's Elijah Cummings could become chief Trump investigator if Democrats win the House

The congressman who could become President Donald Trump’s recurring political nightmare has photos on his office walls of himself with anti-apartheid icon Nelson Mandela, pathbreaking boxer Muhammad Ali and civil rights activist Coretta Scott King.

Each were fighters of a sort, and Rep. Elijah Cummings says he is, too. The Baltimore Democrat’s battles usually involve pushing back as best he can on Trump administration policies and practices.

He might possess a booming voice, but Cummings — the top Democrat on the Republican-controlled House Oversight and Government Reform Committee — lacks the ability to compel documents or witnesses, meaning his 64 subpoena requests remained tucked away for now like dormant volcanoes waiting to erupt.

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Berlin MSP DUI Press Release September 2018

I Covered Crime in Maryland in the ’80s. I Never Heard of Teen Gang-Rape Parties.

“Oh, I think everyone in the county remembers these parties,” Julie Swetnick says with a smile during her nationally televised interview.

Um, not me, Julie.

I had my first job as a reporter in Montgomery County, Maryland, at the time Swetnick claims Brett Kavanaugh and other teenage boys routinely were drugging and gang-raping girls at a series of house parties in the county, which adjoins Washington, D.C.

In fact, I worked for the Gaithersburg Gazette, in a newsroom about a mile south of Gaithersburg High School, where Swetnick graduated in 1980. (I was a 1973 graduate of Magruder High, a rival of Gaithersburg High.)

I got a full-time job as a reporter at the widely distributed Gazette after graduating from George Washington University in 1979 and doing an internship there the previous summer. I covered Gaithersburg and Rockville city governments, including the city councils and agencies such as the police departments. (Rockville is the Montgomery County seat.)

I never heard word one about teen parties where girls routinely were sexually assaulted, much less where gang rapes were on the agenda, as Swetnick claims of gatherings attended by Kavanaugh, now President Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee.

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They forgot to add.......Conservatives need NOT apply

We've got a job for you! The City of Salisbury is looking for an Administrative Assistant!

Salary: $30,251 - $32,745 Full Range of Benefits 35 hours per week

Essential Duties: Mayor’s Office administrative support staff must be able to: Act as the primary receiver of guests and visitors to Mayor’s Office; Receive public inquiries and concerns from citizens, while providing a stellar dedication to customer service; Must perform receptionist duties with efficiency and accuracy (i.e.: answering phones, directing messages to proper contact, recording accurate messages); Draft appropriate correspondence as directed; Provide high level assistance with the Executive communications rhythm; to include social media posting, media event coordination and execution; Manage Public Information Inquiries and business card ordering; Act as Mayor’s Office representative as directed for committees, meetings, etc; Maintain descriptive, accurate notes and meeting minutes; Prepare reports for distribution and public consumption as requested; Act as scheduler and calendar maintenance point person for multiple staff members within the Mayor’s Office; Participate in a variety of special project work as assigned; Perform other typical administrative office duties. Some projects may require additional/nontraditional hours to accomplish goals.

Requirements: AA Degree in Office Technology/Administration preferred, with at least two years’ experience in a fast-paced, high-intensity office; or equivalent training, education, and experience.

Knowledge of Microsoft Office Suite, with proven advanced Excel experience. Candidate must be highly organized, professional, centered in customer service and be able to prioritize and multitask with attention to detail.

Closing Date: Open until filled.

Attention