Posts on Monday, October 28, 2019
A high-ranking Army officer and top White House Ukraine expert is expected to tell House investigators Tuesday that he twice raised objections to his superiors about how President Trump and his administration were interacting with Ukraine out of a "sense of duty."
A draft of Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman's opening statement says he became worried when “outside influencers” were spreading a “false narrative” about Ukraine.
A draft of Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman's opening statement says he became worried when “outside influencers” were spreading a “false narrative” about Ukraine.
President Donald Trump’s presidential campaign launched new merchandise mocking the Democrat “witch hunt” on Monday.The new graphic poster, provided exclusively to Breitbart News ahead of its public release, features a parody of the movie “Hocus Pocus” featuring the Democrats trying to attack President Donald Trump.The graphic comes available in a t-shirt and a poster and is made in the USA, according to the campaign.(Photo) The parody poster features Democrat Reps. Adam Schiff, Nancy Pelosi, Jerry Nadler as the witches and President Donald Trump as the hero.
Democratic presidential hopeful Beto O’Rourke on Monday released a plan to reform a “racist” U.S. criminal justice system that includes a goal of reducing incarceration by at least 25,000 inmates during his first term. Mr. O’Rourke said it’s unacceptable that America locks up “more of our own” than any other country on the planet. “We will not only reform this racist system, but we will work to end mass incarceration by ensuring fewer Americans enter the system in the first place while prioritizing rehabilitation and successful re-entry for those who have been locked out of it—or locked up in it,”
First Lady Melania Trump greeted trick-or-treaters at the White House on Monday in a 1970s-inspired patchwork trench coat that featured all the colors of the autumn season.
Mrs. Trump — with help from her personal couturier Hervé Pierre — chose an off-the-runway Michael Kors leather patchwork trench coat from the American designer’s Fall 2019 Collection inspired by the 1970’s groovy hippie Woodstock days. The coat retails for about $6,000 at MichaelKors.com. To pair with the coat, Melania Trump wore black satin Manolo Blahnik pointed stilettos — her most preferred style of footwear.
Joe Biden was reportedly denied Holy Communion in a catholic church in South Carolina as he 'advocated for abortion.
Father Robert E. Morey, from Saint Anthony Catholic Church in Florence, claimed that he refused the Democratic presidential 20202 hopeful Holy Communion because of his stance on abortion.
Biden, who has been a lifelong Catholic but whose position on abortion is unclear, (Snip) 'Holy Communion signifies we are one with God, each other and the Church. Our actions should reflect that. Any public figure who advocates for abortion places himself or herself outside of Church teaching.' (Tweet) Morey added: 'I will keep Mr. Biden in my prayers.'
For all of Trump’s flaws, real or perceived, the one thing that can always be counted on with him is that he’s going to say what he thinks. He’s unfiltered and that can lead to some awkward moments, but also some gratifying moments because he’s willing to say what other Republicans won’t. He’s willing to fight battles the party formerly refused to fight.
This propensity has led to plenty of spittle flinging rants about decorum, but the lesson shouldn’t go unlearned by the GOP. One of the reasons voters got so frustrated prior to Trump was the constant fake, high-minded tripe that passed for political speech throughout the Obama years.
If you’re a Democrat who supports “Medicare for All,” pick your poison. You can ruin your political career and immolate your party by imposing a ruinous new sales tax, a gargantuan income tax hike or a surtax on corporate income that would wreck thousands of businesses. This is the cost of bold plans. (Snip) Other options include a 32% payroll tax split between employers and workers or a 25% income surtax on everybody. Or, the government could cut 80% of spending on everything but health care, which would include highways, airports and the Pentagon. Or here’s a good one: .
The remains of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi have been disposed of at sea as it is revealed that U.S. forces were able to confirm the ISIS leader's identity using DNA samples taken from his underwear and blood.
Baghdadi blew himself up after being cornered by U.S forces in a dead-end underground tunnel in his Syrian compound on Saturday.
His remains were then buried at sea, the chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, Army General Mike Milley, revealed on Monday. Osama bin Laden's remains were also disposed of at sea when he was killed in Pakistan in 2011.
A federal judge in Kentucky reopened Covington Catholic High School student Nick Sandmann’s $250 million defamation lawsuit against The Washington Post on Monday after having previously dismissed it over the summer.“After reviewing an amended complaint, Judge William Bertelsman ordered Monday that the case could enter the discovery phase and hence a portion of the lawsuit against the newspaper could continue,” the Cincinnati Enquirer reported. The lawsuit is allowed to proceed but has been limited in scope
The dog that accompanied Delta Force soldiers into Syria’s Idlib Province to hunt down Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi this weekend was only “slightly wounded” during the raid and is back on duty, Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley said today.
“We’re not releasing the name of the dog right now. The dog is still in theater,” Milley told reporters at the Pentagon, adding that the dog was “slightly wounded and fully recovering.”
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“We’re protecting the dog’s identity,” Defense Secretary Mark Esper joked.
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The dog has “returned to duty with its handler,” Milley added.
History will judge congressional Democrats harshly for their handling of President Trump's impeachment inquiry due to their lack of public debate and failure to be transparent with the American people, former special prosecutor Ken Starr said on "America's Newsroom" Monday."The text of the Constitution just entrusts [impeachment] to the good judgment, whether it's being exercised or not, to the House of Representatives," Starr said. "But history will, I think, judge this not well. It should judge it not well. [You] didn't have a full debate on the floor of the House -- and that just lends itself to, 'then to let's go to court and have this litigated.'
The Judiciary Committee had been criticized by both parties for conducting an impeachment proceeding that had devolved into theatrics, but House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced Monday she’ll move the inquiry back to the panel some time after the House votes Thursday on a resolution to formalize the proceedings.“This resolution establishes the procedure for hearings that are open to the American people, authorizes the disclosure of deposition transcripts, outlines procedures to transfer evidence to the Judiciary Committee as it considers potential articles of impeachment, and sets forth due process rights for the President and his Counsel,”
Legacy media outlets responded to President Trump’s announcement of the U.S. military’s successful mission against ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi with their trademark hostility and anger. That’s because the inarguably good news threatens corporate media goals for shaping foreign policy, impeaching the president, and defeating Trump in 2020. “Last night was a great night for the United States and for the world. A brutal killer, one who has caused so much hardship and death, has violently been eliminated — he will never again harm another innocent man, woman or child,” Trump told the nation on Sunday. “He died like a dog.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s former Deputy National Security Advisor Charles Kupperman defied a subpoena issued by House Democrats compelling him to testify Monday in the ongoing impeachment probe.
Kupperman’s decision has dismayed House Democrat investigators, who have threatened to hold him in contempt of Congress. In a letter to Kupperman’s lawyer issued Saturday, the House Democrat leaders cautioned that his absence may prompt them to “draw adverse inference” that his testimony would have fueled their impeachment agenda. (Snip)Kupperman was reportedly on the July 25 call between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky that triggered the impeachment probe
Recently released data shows that the annual Federal government budget deficit for the fiscal year (FY) 2019 increased to nearly $1 trillion. President Trump said during his 2016 presidential campaign that he would reduce the annual deficit. First, let’s recognize the cause for the increase in the current deficit. Contrary to what the media reports, the tax cuts enacted in 2018 did not add one penny to the deficit. Total tax revenues were slightly higher in 2018 than in 2017. And tax revenues were higher in fiscal 2019 than in 2018. After the tax cut, revenues did not decline. So the tax cut did not add to the deficit.
Here we are in ghoul season, mere days from Halloween, meaning that the layer between the netherworld and this one is thin. Dark and hellish mysteries abound and confound. Sorry for writing this like a local television ad for a haunted hay ride, but I must also add that the world is teeming with frights and delights. To wit: Tessa Berenson, the White House correspondent for Time magazine, in a pool report, “The wonderful chefs aboard AF1 were full of the Halloween spirit today with the presentation of these stuffed peppers. Trick or treat!”The plate is striking for a couple of reasons.
A federal judge in Kentucky has reopened the $250 million defamation case filed by a Covington Catholic student against the Washington Post after dismissing it in July, allowing the lawsuit to proceed but narrowing its focus.
U.S. District Court Judge William Bertelsman agreed to permit discovery on three of 33 allegedly libelous statements in the Post’s coverage of the Jan. 18 incident pertaining to teenager Nicholas Sandmann. The Post has insisted that its reporting was fair and accurate.
All three flagged statements from the newspaper’s coverage refer to Omaha Nation elder Nathan Phillips being blocked or impeded by Nicholas,
Actress and left-wing activist Jamie Lee Curtis unloaded on President Donald Trump following the death of Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, ripping him for his lack of military service while seemingly showing pity for the suffering that al-Baghdadi reportedly went through.In a televised announcement from the White House on Sunday morning, Trump confirmed that al-Baghdadi had “died like a dog [and a] coward,” adding that the world would now be a “much safer place.”
A heroic dog that was injured during the U.S. military operation that killed Islamic State (ISIS) leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has already returned to duty, the U.S. government said Monday. “The dog is fine and has returned to duty,” an unnamed U.S. official told Reuters White House correspondent Steve Holland. (Tweet) President Donald Trump lauded the canine at Sunday’s press conference in which he offered vivid details of how the elite U.S. Army special operators took down one of the world’s most wanted terrorists.
The House will vote this week to formalize the procedures of its impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump, a step that comes after pressure from Republicans to hold a vote but will also undercut a key White House talking point.
The Thursday vote will be the first time the House goes on the record to vote on the impeachment inquiry, potentially putting Democrats from Republican-leaning districts in a difficult position politically.
Trump plan to deploy military to
protect Syrian oil fields is akin
to piracy, retired general says replies
protect Syrian oil fields is akin
to piracy, retired general says replies
A retired U.S. general has warned that President Donald Trump's foreign policy in Syria is drifting dangerously close to piracy, following confirmation that American soldiers will be deployed to secure valuable oil fields in the east of the country and protect them from the Islamic State group.
Retired General Barry McCaffrey condemned the plans on Sunday, following Trump's suggestion he wants to bring in Exxon Mobil or another U.S. oil company "to go in there and do it properly...and spread out the wealth" from the oil fields.
President Trump deserves credit for mentioning the names of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi's American victims at the Sunday press conference following his death, said CNN host Jake Tapper. Al-Baghdadi, who took over as the head of ISIS after his predecessor, Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, was killed in 2010, detonated a suicide vest as U.S. special forces closed in. Troops were sent to attack a compound in northern Syria where al-Baghdadi was located, according to a U.S. defense official.
The worst kept secret in Washington is that former NSC staffer and CIA employee Eric Ciaramella is Adam Schiff’s secret “whistleblower” in the ongoing Nancy Pelosi impeachment farce. More importantly, Ciaramella has a long history with Obama NSC advisor Susan Rice and former Vice President Joe Biden. Add that to the list of “witnesses” before Schiff ‘s Stassi East German secret police-style lack of intelligence committee. You have a succession of partisan Trump-haters with long pedigrees of either being Democrat operatives. Deep ties to Burisma holdings. Or active participants in the George Soros Open Societies Foundations. Ciaramella was a known Susan Rice protege.
After two years, President Trump's tax cuts are not on track to pay for themselves, the latest Treasury data released Friday suggest.
Total federal government revenues ended up lower in 2019 than was projected before the passage of the GOP tax overhaul in 2017.
Then, in 2017, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office projected that fiscal 2019 revenues, without the tax cuts, would be $3.69 trillion. Instead, revenues with the tax cuts were only $3.46 trillion.
The Washington Post says al-Baghdadi was just an “austere religious scholar,” but if you don’t buy that line the New York Times has another hot take: the successful raid on Baghdadi’s hideout occurred despite, not because of, President Trump: (tweet) These are no doubt the same “military, intelligence and counterterrorism officials” who have been behind 5,000 or so previous anti-Trump stories in the Times. As William Jacobson points out, there is nothing to the Times story. Intelligence sources located Baghdadi, the military asked for permission to go after him, Trump granted permission, and the raid was carried out successfully. The Times has nothing.
House Democrats are proceeding this week with a resolution that would put the House on record for the ongoing impeachment probe being conducted by several House committees. (Snip) This resolution establishes the procedure for hearings that are open to the American people, authorizes the disclosure of deposition transcripts, outlines procedures to transfer evidence to the Judiciary Committee as it considers potential articles of impeachment,
A Washington Post obituary referring to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi as an 'austere religious scholar' after the ISIS mastermind was killed in a US military strike has sparked a deluge of death tribute parodies on Twitter.
The newspaper came under fire on Sunday after it changed the headline on al-Baghdadi's obituary two times - first calling him 'terrorist-in-chief', followed by 'austere religious leader at the helm of ISIS' and finally 'extremist leader'.
Twitter users seized on the second iteration, accusing The Post of painting al-Baghdadi in an inappropriately positive light given the brutality he championed while leading the terrorist organization.
House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff threatened to hold a former national security official in contempt of Congress for failing to testify in closed-door impeachment proceedings.
Former deputy national security adviser Charles Kupperman, who was deputy to former national security adviser John Bolton, filed a lawsuit to get a federal judge to rule on whether he must testify.
He was scheduled to appear Monday morning before three House committees in a secure hearing room in the Capitol.
Former national security adviser Susan Rice believes President Trump should have notified his predecessor about the U.S. raid that ended in the death of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
Rice appeared on CBS's Face The Nation Sunday following Trump's press conference, during which he announced Baghdadi's death. During the presser, Trump confirmed that the now-former head of ISIS was killed after detonating a suicide vest while he was surrounded by three of his children in a cave.
Rice began by praising the military action, calling it "a major milestone" and adding that "it's one that we should be welcoming quite plainly."
Al-Baghdadi is dead and the press are not feeling much better. A scan of the headlines will tell you everything you need to know about the media. Journalists woke up Sunday morning to a pending major Trump announcement planned for 9:00am. Hopes were high as they began praying for a sudden Trump resignation, or perhaps a recording of Trump singing “You Are My Sunshine” to Putin. Or maybe the discovery of a Trump diary written when he was 13. Unfortunately for our single-minded media elites, the announcement was about the raid and subsequent death of al-Baghdadi. Adam Schiff was inconsolable from within his impeachment bunker.
Keeping congressional leakers like Adam Schiff and his imaginary friend, ‘The Whistleblower’ out of the loop on ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi’s imminent take down was one of the smartest things President Donald Trump ever did. The danger of some motor-mouth Congressional ‘leader’ leaking details of the coming raid was real—far more real than a still not identified whistleblower misrepresenting Trump’s telephone conversation with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky. The Impeachment-obsessed Democrats pay no attention to the age old maxim that “Loose lips sink ships”, mostly because
'You have no evidence': ABC host challenges
Adam Schiff on calling Durham investigation
'tainted' replies
Adam Schiff on calling Durham investigation
'tainted' replies
A journalist admonished House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff for having no evidence to support his claim that the Justice Department's criminal inquiry into the origins of the Trump-Russia investigation has been "tainted" by President Trump's political agenda.
Last week, it was revealed that U.S. Attorney John Durham's administrative review, examining the behavior of U.S. law enforcement and intelligence officials during the 2016 election, had transitioned from an administrative review to a criminal investigation.
"This is tainted because of the motivation, which is a political one, to serve the president’s political interests," Schiff said in an interview Sunday.
A man found himself in handcuffs while trying to fly home to Missouri after allegedly setting 13 forest fires in California.
Freddie Graham, 68, was apprehended before boarding a plane in San Jose and charged with starting forest fires in the Milpitas foothills. Graham had flown to California on Sept. 19 and spent two days in the state before attempting to fly back to Kansas City.
The fires in question burned 128 acres. Graham was charged with 15 counts of committing arson, two of which were heightened charges because the fires were started during a declared emergency.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom was forced to declare a statewide emergency on Sunday after approximately 200,000
Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders told a black student during a forum at South Carolina’s Benedict College to “respect” police “so that you don’t get shot in the back of the head.” The Vermont senator’s comments were in response to the male student, who asked: “If I was your son, what advice would you give me the next time I would be pulled over by a police officer,” according to online video.(Snip) “I would respect what they are doing so that you don’t get shot in the back of the head, but I would also be very mindful of the fact
U.S. led special operations forces and military working dogs rained justice down on Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, founder and leader of ISIS. The Whitehouse announced Sunday the death of the world’s most wanted man. Al-Baghdadi, a former university professor, took the reins of ISIS in 2014. This wily tactician hid in the shadows, while he and his followers forced religious confessions from his victims through murder and vile torture. Using video to proudly display their evil atrocities to spark global outrage and local fear. President Trump’s top national security priority was crossing al-Baghdadi off the wanted terrorist list.
Support for robust foreign trade policy is very popular among all Americans, with positive feelings now at a 25-year high according to Gallup research. It found that the good feelings “jumped” after President Trump took office. “‘America first’ makes sense to Americans on trade,” said a new Gallup analysis of polls conducted in the past two years, and compared to historic data dating from 1997.(Snip) “Americans’ broad view of trade is the most positive it has been in more than a quarter-century. “As of February 2019, nearly three in four U.S. adults (74%) believe trade represents an opportunity for economic
Speaker Nancy Pelosi has directed committees investigating President Trump to “proceed under that umbrella of impeachment inquiry,” but the House has never authorized such an inquiry. Democrats have been seeking to impeach Mr. Trump since the party took control of the House, though it isn’t clear for what offense. Lawmakers and commentators have suggested various possibilities, but none amount to an impeachable offense. The effort is akin to a constitutionally proscribed bill of attainder—a legislative effort to punish a disfavored person. The Senate should treat it accordingly. The impeachment power is quasi-judicial and differs fundamentally from Congress’s legislative authority. The Constitution assigns “the sole power of impeachment” to the House—
Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James tweeted early Monday morning that he and his family had to evacuate their home because of the wildfires that are blazing throughout California. Early Monday, a brush fire broke out along the west side of Interstate 405 in Los Angeles, north of Sunset Boulevard and near the Getty Center. As of 7:45 a.m. PT, the fire, which begin at 1:30 a.m. PT, was moving westward and had grown to more than 500 acres, with approximately 10,000 homes and commercial buildings under mandatory evacuation orders. Said Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti: "Get out
Earn money, save money, invest money -- wham.Former Vice President Joe Biden says he would tax investors by raising the capital gains tax, now 15 percent or 20 percent on the sale of most assets, to 40 percent. The money raised would go to programs for the middle class."I don't oppose a wealth tax," Biden told CBS's "60 Minutes" in an interview that aired Sunday night. (Democrat Sen. Elizabeth Warren has proposed a 2 percent tax on people with a net worth of $50 million to $1 billion and a 3 percent annual tax on households with a net worth over $1 billion.)
Beirut - Syrian Kurdish forces killed the right-hand man and spokesman for the Islamic State group in a joint operation with U.S. troops in northern Syria, just hours after U.S. special forces killed the extremist group’s leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, a Kurdish commander said Monday. Mazloum Abdi, the commander of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, said his group’s intelligence cooperated with the U.S. military to target on Sunday al-Baghdadi’s aide, Abu Hassan al-Muhajir, in a village near Jarablus, a town in northwestern Syria. It was part of ongoing operations to hunt down IS leaders, Abdi said.
Former House Speaker Paul D. Ryan on Monday announced the formation of a new nonprofit organization focused on the issues of growing economic opportunity, combating poverty and promoting “evidence-based” policy solutions.The Wisconsin Republican will be president of the 501(c)(3) group that will be housed in Mr. Ryan’s hometown of Janesville, Wisconsin.“The American idea means the condition of your birth does not determine the outcome of your life, and I am excited this Foundation will educate individuals about solutions and efforts that give more people the opportunity to realize
The tactics some Republicans are using to defend President Donald Trump against being impeached (or indicted) by the House and convicted (or removed from office) by the Senate include confusing the public about what these terms mean. One thrust is to suggest that for a president to be impeached, he must have committed a crime.
President Trump on Monday defended his decision not to give Democratic congressional leaders advance notice of the raid that resulted in the death of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, saying once again that he was concerned the details would leak out. (Snip) "The only thing is they were talking about why didn't I give the information to Adam Schiff and his committee, and the answer is because I think Adam Schiff is the biggest leaker in Washington," Trump said. "You know that, I know that, we all know that. I've watched Adam Schiff leak. He's a corrupt politician. He's a leaker like nobody has ever seen before."
During the Second Step Presidential Justice Forum at Benedict College, a historically black college, on Saturday, Joe Biden was asked by an African American woman in the audience, “If I were your daughter, what advice would you give me the next time I am stopped by the police?”
“If you were my daughter, you’d be a Caucasian girl and you wouldn’t be pulled over,” he said.
Biden failed to realize how insulting and racist his comment was because he even tweeted a video of the exchange: [tweet]
Does Joe Biden really think that cops don't pull over white girls? Really?
Instead of accusing law enforcement officers of institutional racism,
Baghdad - In their long hunt for Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, Iraqi intelligence teams secured a break in February 2018 after one of the Islamic State leader’s top aides gave them information on how he escaped capture for so many years, said two Iraqi security officials. Baghdadi would sometimes hold strategy talks with his commanders in moving minibuses packed with vegetables in order to avoid detection, Ismael al-Ethawi told officials after he was arrested by Turkish authorities and handed to the Iraqis. “Ethawi gave valuable information which helped the Iraqi multi-security agencies team complete the missing pieces of the puzzle of Baghdadi’s movements and places he used to hide,”
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot is dealing with a 12-day-old teachers strike that features a contest between the most radical union in the U.S. and one of the nation's most radical mayors.
It's not going to end well for her.
When the strike began she told the teachers "there is no more money." All that did was whet the appetite for battle by the teachers who are now almost certainly going to get almost all of what they want.
Lightfoot is being hit over the head by reality.
Chicago Sun-Times:
“We spent the last 14 hours bargaining today, and we are not close to where we need to be on the big issues,”
MUSCATINE, Iowa — Look no further than Pearl City Station, a plain brick building set along the banks of the Mississippi River, to understand the growing sense of uncertainty seeping into the Democratic Party's 2020 primary contest. Inside, 200 Iowa Democrats recently sized up Joe Biden, the former vice president and one of their party's leading presidential candidates. He engenders respect and admiration but generates little excitement. One elderly man sitting in the back of the room fell asleep as the former vice president shared his vision for America's future in unusually hushed tones for nearly 45 minutes without taking questions.
Once upon a time in America, college was where young people went to gain knowledge, be exposed to new ideas, and learn a critical thinking skill or two. The latest outrage at Harvard University shows that the university experience wants none of that now.
The Harvard Crimson:
More than 650 people have signed onto an online petition condemning The Harvard Crimson’s coverage of a protest demanding the abolition of United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
The petition — started by student-led immigration advocacy group Act on a Dream earlier this month — criticizes The Crimson for requesting comment from an ICE spokesperson for its Sept. 13 article,
All poll workers in California will be trained on how to properly interact with and assist transgender and gender-nonconforming voters when they cast ballots. California Secretary of State Alex Padilla (D) announced the new initiative last week, saying his office is partnering with the Equality California Institute ahead of next year’s presidential primary. The training will provide county registrars with materials detailing best practices for assisting voters whose “gender identity, expression, or pronouns don’t match their name on the voter rolls,” according to a news release from Padilla’s office. Clear signage such as brochures and posters regarding voters’ rights will
ISIS already has a new leader — a feared former officer for Saddam Hussein known as “the Destroyer,” according to reports.
Abdullah Qardash was reportedly already running day-to-day operations and kill campaigns for the terror group and formally took over its leadership after Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi’s death on Saturday.
“Baghdadi was a figurehead. He was not involved in operations or day-to-day,” a regional intelligence official told Newsweek in confirming the successor. “All Baghdadi did was say yes or no — no planning.” (Snip) Even before his death, Baghdadi was handing more power to Qardash, known as a brutal policymaker
Fire off 405 Freeway threatens
thousands of homes; structures
burn, widespread evacuations ordered replies
thousands of homes; structures
burn, widespread evacuations ordered replies
A growing brush fire was threatening thousands of homes in Brentwood and other Westside hillside communities, burning several structures and prompting widespread evacuations early Monday.
The Getty fire broke out shortly before 2 a.m. along the 405 Freeway near the Getty Center and spread to the south and west, rapidly burning 400 acres and sending people fleeing from their homes in the dark. About 3,300 homes were under mandatory evacuation orders.
The mandatory evacuation zone was described by fire officials as a box: Mulholland Drive on the north side, the 405 on the east, Sunset Boulevard on the south and Temescal Canyon Road on the west.
Nancy Pelosi appears to have been deeply unhappy she and other Democratic House members weren't informed in advance of the action to eliminate Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi Saturday night.
However, on a "need to know basis" Nancy had no need to know whatsoever, nor did Chuck Schumer or the meretricious House Intelligence chair Adam Schiff. Indeed, given the way these people and their colleagues leak and have leaked, in and out of the media, Trump would have been not only insane but guilty of gross negligence to have warned these hyper-partisans of an action in which many of our nation's finest could easily have been blown to smithereens.
AFTER DONALD TRUMP was elected forty-fifth president of the United States, the operation designed to undermine his campaign transformed. It became an instrument to bring down the commander in chief. The coup started almost immediately after the polls closed.
Hillary Clinton’s communications team decided within twenty-four hours of her concession speech to message that the election was illegitimate, that Russia had interfered to help Trump.
Obama was working against Trump until the hour he left office. His national security advisor, Susan Rice, commemorated it with an email to herself on January 20, moments before Trump’s inauguration. She wrote to memorialize a meeting in the White House two weeks before.
President Donald Trump's low-profile appearance Sunday night at Game 5 of the World Series came at a high-profile moment of his presidency - yet he still drew loud boos and chants of 'lock him up'.
Wearing a dark suit and a tie, Trump arrived at Nationals Park just before the first pitch of the Houston Astros-Washington Nationals match-up.
Hours earlier, he had announced that U.S. forces had hit the hiding place of Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, who was killed in the raid in northeast Syria.
A military success against a most-wanted enemy of the U.S. and its allies could have provided the president a rare moment of bipartisan comity,
Heath Care Doom on the Horizon
replies
The relationship between Americans and their health care delivery is about to make a dramatic change for the worse. Consumers of health care are poised to vote for a federally managed system. Why would they go down this predictably awful rabbit hole? They'll do it because they are overwhelmed and frightened in the current system. They'll do it because this may be the only option that a typical voter understands. They'll do it because our elected leaders do not have the courage to enact changes that could make things work and don't want to give up power.
Last week, the New York Times surveyed an “anxious Democratic Establishment” and found people casting about for new presidential candidates, and some prospective candidates giving a late entry into the race at least of modicum of thought.
Former Secretaries of State Hillary Clinton and John Kerry, former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, former Attorney General Eric Holder, former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick and Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio have all apparently been approached by insiders or have otherwise considered jumping in.
These musings may not be, and probably are not, very serious. But if anyone on the sidelines is truly planning a last-minute attempt to shake up the primary,
I’m beginning to think that hidden somewhere in the White House or Trump Tower there’s a magic wand that the president wields which turns his detractors— old Obama hands, make-believe conservative politicians and commentators, Democrats, and the media, into laughingstocks. If so, this weekend he waved it over the Washington Post. (snip) You’d think Baghdadi’s obituary would acknowledge what a monster he was. The header the Washington Post chose for this was originally
“Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, Islamic State’s ‘terrorist-in-chief,’ dies at 48.”
It was changed to:
“Abu-Bakr al-Baghdadi, austere religious scholar at helm of Islamic State dies at 48.”
Why they changed it, I can’t say
The nervousness among Democratic establishment figures about the quality of the 2020 primary field has prompted mockery from liberal activists who say that the wealthy are worried about losing their power.
There have been a slew of reports that Democrats like Hillary Clinton, John Kerry, and Michael Bloomberg are thinking of jumping into the race at the last minute because they believe the current crop of top candidates — Elizabeth Warren, Joe Biden, and Bernie Sanders — won't be able to defeat President Trump.
My Mom had a very difficult life, due in part to choices she made and in part to factors outside of her control. She grew up with a verbally abusive, alcoholic father. She married a physically abusive, alcoholic husband who she divorced when I was born. My birth father never gave my Mom, my older brother, or me a dime. I never met him.
My Mom eventually remarried the man who became my adopted father: a bus driver who did all four combat jumps with the 82nd Airborne in World War II. He adopted my older brother and me but, with only a sixth-grade education
Though no U.S. forces were killed in the Saturday evening raid that led to the death of an ISIS leader, one military working dog suffered severe injuries in the line of duty.
The dog, whose name and breed remain unknown, chased Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi into a tunnel and cornered him. With no place to go, the terrorist leader blew himself up along with three of his children, who he was using as human shields. The dog’s injuries highlighted the importance of military working dogs in special operations. Often, they will enter the danger zone with a camera on their backs before the humans do so.
Four-Star Twit Tweets Twaddle
replies
It seems that the former Clinton Administration cabinet member, Barry McCaffrey, who had a so-so record as drug czar, is annoyed with the actions of President Trump.
In a much-discussed 39-word tweet, McCaffrey, a retired and highly decorated U.S. Army general, has managed to confabulate the president’s cancellation of government subscriptions of hard-copy editions of the New York Times and the Washington Post with the totality of the actions of Italian fascist dictator Benito Mussolini.
How McCaffrey—not previously noted for his publication of finely tuned and deeply researched geopolitical theses—can somehow equate the two is hyperbolic and, frankly, preposterous.
Our Bankrupt Nomenklatura
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Donald Trump is now in the midst of another coup frenzy that has the Left accusing him of being crazy. But he already took the Montreal Cognitive Assessment Test. It was a simple cognitive exam and he aced it, as would most people. The Left, remember, had called in a Yale psychiatrist to testify that Trump was demented, during the lulls between the first impeachment, the serial “Russian collusion” hoaxes, the emoluments clause psychodrama and Robert Mueller’s “walls-are-closing-in,” “turning-point,” and “bombshell” investigation.
Perhaps the wrong public figures took the test.
Did you watch the president’s press conference yesterday? I was more excited to watch the media-Democrat pageant of hysteria that I predicted would follow upon the news of our military slaughtering ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. Most notable among reactions, was the Washington Post headline that described the rapist and murderer as an “austere religious scholar.”
Initially, the Post had lead with a headline that described al-Baghdadi as the “Islamic State’s terrorist-in-chief” but perhaps that was too harsh?
Other predictable reactions that I found enjoyable was the talking point that Trump was too provocative in his description of Baghdadi’s death. If we say mean things, it will
How Michael Flynn Was Set-Up
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General Michael Flynn was indicted based on a conversation he had with the Russian ambassador on December 29, 2016, seven weeks after the presidential election.
That was the day lame-duck President Obama expelled 35 Russian diplomats—including gardeners and chauffeurs—for election interference.
After the measures were announced, members of the Obama Administration listened in on Flynn’s conversation with the ambassador via wiretap.
They expected Flynn to say: “President-elect Trump believes this Russian collusion thing is a fantasy and these sanctions will be lifted on his first day in office.”
There is nothing wrong with the incoming national security advisor telling an ambassador that the new administration will
When the establishment boot comes stomping, it’s clear that party affiliation matters less to the swamp than loyalty to its dictates. Representative Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii) is a doctrinaire liberal in nearly every respect but one. Yet what unites her and Trump is significant enough to make both targets of a machine bent on destroying them.
Last week, Gabbard became the center of an intra-party dispute after Hillary Clinton, the exiled queen of neoliberals, accused her of being a “Russian asset.” It was not the first time Gabbard was so libeled, but the attack, coming from Clinton, exposed a rift between the dominant international Left of apparatchiks
Though not yet manifest, the unexpected, astounding killing of ISIS “commander of the faithful” Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi over the weekend by Delta Force, with Rangers and other Army support, supersedes the 2011 takeout of al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden in its long-term magnitude.
In essence, ISIS is a sensationalist, media-savvy metastasis of Bin Laden’s al-Qaida, which conducted the 2001 attacks, but ISIS’ anti-American terrorism is of a different brand. Brookings Institution Mideast analyst Daniel Byman testified to Congress that “the primary target of the Islamic State has [unlike al-Qaida] not been the United States, but rather ‘apostate’ regimes in the Arab world”
Democratic presidential frontrunner Joe Biden is taking pandering to new heights, all in pursuit of black votes.
Instead of just slapping on a black accent like a set of false teeth, the way Hillary Clinton did last week for a significantly black audience, Biden decided to claim he actually went to a historically black college, which he didn't.
Here's the video, retweeted with suitable scorn by Don Trump, Jr.
Minor problem... Joe Biden didn’t go there! #QuidProJoe can’t even remember where he went to college. Enough is enough with this charade of a campaign. pic.twitter.com/F2MHsN2WTf
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) October 26, 2019
Here's his real academic record, courtesy of Wikipedia:
On Tuesday, the White House announced that it is terminating its subscriptions to the New York Times and the Washington Post. Why not? The Times and the Post are disreputable partisan rags. They have no stature, no standing, and there is no reason why taxpayers should have to support their partisan journalism.
Trump’s action provoked the usual hyperventilation from his critics. This tweet by retired liberal General Barry McCaffrey, via The Hill, is a classic:
The Dearborn Public Schools website states it matter-of-factly: "Dearborn Public Schools ensures all meats served in our schools are certified Halal." Now one courageous mother is fighting back, challenging Dearborn public school officials to explain why they have done this and to provide options for students who object to halal food.
The mother wrote to Dearborn schools superintendent Glenn Maleyko, noting, "Schools have never changed lunches to fit any other religious needs. If one needed a special diet due to religion or health, they did what all other students do, bring a lunch from home."
Just in time for Halloween, one of the most famous undead people in the world, the Islamic State (ISIS) caliph Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has been reported dead yet again, and this time it actually appears to be true. President Trump announced the news in an address on Sunday morning, and predictably, the Left is now furious. Any enemy of Trump is a friend of theirs, and suddenly Leftists are deeply concerned about Trump’s affronts to the dignity of the fallen leader.
Trump said of al-Baghdadi that the United States had “brought the world’s number one terrorist leader to justice.” Al-Baghdadi, according to Trump
Announcing the death of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi during a Special Forces raid in northwestern Syria, President Trump used deliberately denigrating language to describe a man who claimed to have been on a divine mission to usher in Allah’s kingdom on earth.
In his statement at the White House, Trump portrayed Baghdadi as a coward to the end, a man who killed three young children as he took his own life by detonating a suicide vest as the U.S. forces bore down on him.
President Donald Trump announced the killing of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi Sunday morning in an address to the nation after a Saturday night raid in northwest Syria.
“He died like a dog, he died like a coward,” Trump said.
Baghdadi’s death marks the execution of the world’s most dangerous terrorist since Osama Bin Laden’s killing in 2011. Baghdadi, the founder of the Islamic State, otherwise known as “ISIS” or “ISIL,” oversaw the extrajudicial killings of James Foley, Steven Sotloff, Peter Kassig and Muadh al-Kasasbeh capturing international attention in addition to the slaughtering of hundreds more.
Mainstream Media Meltdown:
Journos Freak Out over Breitbart’s
Inclusion in Facebook News Tab replies
Journos Freak Out over Breitbart’s
Inclusion in Facebook News Tab replies
Mainstream journos are freaking out at Mark Zuckerberg following news that Facebook might make them compete on a slightly more equal playing field with Breitbart News.
The mass mainstream media meltdown was sparked by reports that Facebook will include Breitbart News in its new “Facebook News,” feature, which delivers news stories to Facebook users from a handpicked selection of 200 trusted news sources.
The full list of the 200 publishers has yet to be released, but early reports indicate that left-leaning and mainstream sources far outnumber right-leaning ones. Nevertheless, journos are still mad at the inclusion of Breitbart News.
Dick Morris on Hillary Clinton:
‘She Feels That God
Put Her on the Earth’ to
Run for President replies
‘She Feels That God
Put Her on the Earth’ to
Run for President replies
Sunday during “The Cats Roundtable” on New York AM 970 radio, political commentator and former Bill Clinton adviser Dick Morris discussed the upcoming 2020 presidential election.
Morris wondered aloud if “the ghost of Hillary Clinton” will jump into the race, saying she “feels entitled” to run and “feels that God put her on the Earth” to run.
“I think at the moment, the issue is will the ghost of Hillary Clinton come out and get into the election? My feeling is she wants to. She feels entitled to do it. She feels compelled to do it. She feels that God put her on the Earth to do it
Fear strikes deep into the woke
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An interesting portrayal of the leftist mentality, particularly as regards matters involving President Trump, can be found on the left-wing site Medium.
It’s not often we get a clear picture of how leftists actually think. The message is so simplified, dumbed down, and controlled, largely for the benefit of the lowest-common-denominator left, along with camouflaging the actual agenda, that what we usually get is no more than a cartoon. (snip) for once, we’re getting the true gem of what a leftist thinks.
And what is that, precisely? Well, fear, paranoia, dread, and a slowly mounting hysteria.
Sunday on MSNBC’s “Kasie DC,” House Homeland Security Committee chairman Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS) voiced his displeasure with House members of the GOP successfully storming and shutting down a House Intelligence Committee hearing last week by entering the room where committee members were questioning the Defense Department’s Laura Cooper as part of the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump.
Thompson said the men were acting like they were at a “frat party” by ordering chicken wings and pizza and making a mess.
“These renegade members of Congress just decided to they’re going to ignore the rules,
The parents of a young woman who was repeatedly abused and terrorized by Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi said they are grateful after President Donald Trump confirmed the terrorist’s death.Al-Baghdadi reportedly raped and tortured Arizona aid worker Kayla Mueller, who was taken hostage in 2013. Kayla Mueller’s family said they were thankful for the Trump administration’s swift action, but that they still want to know what happened to their daughter, who reportedly died in 2015.“We were deeply touched by what he said. We were grateful that they didn’t mess around and went right in,” Marsha Mueller told CNN.
Adam Schiff is learning more about the high price of his impeachment posturing every day, it seems.Schiff was one of a number of congressmen who were not notified of the impending raid against ISIS that resulted in the death of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.This despite the fact that Schiff, as chair of the House Intelligence Committee, would be automatically in the loop regarding any such effort.President Trump announced that Schiff, among others, had been left out during questions following his Sunday speech announcing he successful mission.
He made no bones as to the reason why:“We were going to notify them last night but we decided
Can you count, suckers? I say, the future is ours...if you can count. Because if you can count, you can see where this entire impeachment kangaroo court is hopping to. You can see how this will all end. You can see that we are going to mop the floor with these petty fascist cretins.
Can you dig it?
Actually, I didn’t come up with the counting line – Walter Hill put those words in the mouth of gang overlord Cyrus in the amazing film The Warriors. It’s a movie that resonates today for a number of reasons, especially how it depicts a bunch of New York tough guys being framed
Joe Biden made the absurd claim in a Sunday “60 Minutes’ interview that he told Barack Obama not to endorse him in the 2020 Democratic presidential primary because he wanted to “earn” the nomination on his own.
It is, of course, impossible to believe that Biden wouldn’t want the official endorsement of a former president who is tremendously popular among Democrats. But Biden’s claim is made even more ridiculous by the fact that he has been constantly deploying his relationship with Obama as a shield whenever he comes under fire from opponents.
When Norah O’Donnell asked Biden why Obama hadn’t endorsed him, he responded, “because I have to own--
Abu al-Baghdadi in Hell
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President Trump’s announcement that our special forces have chased to doom the founder of the Islamic State, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, is a reminder that few things so become a commander-in-chief as success in battle. It is a laurel that has obtained for our greatest presidents. It was nice to see Mr. Trump in a moment of success. It’s a much-needed reminder that things are going on in Mr. Trump’s presidency other than impeachment.
The President was, by our lights, generous in his praise for all those who participated in the operation — particularly our GIs, of course, and their chain of command. Mr. Trump also singled out
Former director of National Intelligence and current CNN contributor James "I Lied To Congress and Got Away with It" Clapper stammered through his interview with CNN's Anderson Cooper on Friday, admitting that he may be a target of U.S. atty. John Durham's investigation, now officially turned into a criminal probe by Atty. Gen. William Barr. As BizPacReview notes:
Obama's former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper seemed to struggle with his poker face as he reacted to news of a DOJ criminal inquiry.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Sunday demanded a briefing on the U.S. military strike that killed Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, a raid in which President Trump said Congress leaders were intentionally left out of the loop.
“The House must be briefed on this raid, which the Russians but not top Congressional Leadership were notified of in advance, and on the Administration’s overall strategy in the region,” she said in a statement. “Our military and allies deserve strong, smart and strategic leadership from Washington.”
In announcing the major takedown in the fight against the Islamic State or ISIS, Mr. Trump singled out Mrs. Pelosi when saying congressional leaders
Will Hillary Run Again?
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The Ghost of Hillary Past is threatening to become the Ghost of Hillary Present for Democrats. Could the woman who lost to Donald Trump in 2016 run a third time for the presidency?
A few weeks ago, everyone was convinced that Hillary Clinton was content to snipe at President Trump from the sidelines (he is all too eager to return the fire). But then Hillary appeared on PBS in early October to remark that maybe there should be a “rematch” between her and Trump. “Obviously, I can beat him again,” she said.
Clinton’s throwaway line started a conversation among the many Democrats who are less than impressed with the current presidential field.
You Can’t Mock the Post Enough
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As Scott noted a little while ago, the Washington Post has made a fool of itself with its obituary for al-Baghdadi. The Post’s headline for its obituary–its second attempt, apparently–was “Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, austere religious scholar at helm of Islamic State, dies at 48.” That prompted mockery across the internet:
Adolf Hitler, Austrian vegan activist and landscape painter, dies at 56https://t.co/szPOVa5Sae
— David Burge (@iowahawkblog) October 27, 2019
“John Wayne Gacy, children’s party clown, dead at age 52” https://t.co/W64p94Zixa
— Allahpundit (@allahpundit) October 27, 2019
Clapper’s Nuremberg Defense
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Last week, Attorney General William Barr’s investigation into the illegal FBI–CIA spy operation against President Trump’s 2016 campaign was formally shifted to a criminal investigation. The means the investigative team, under the direction of John Durham, U.S. Attorney for Connecticut, can subpoena witnesses, convene grand juries, and obtain indictments.
One of the principal perpetrators, former FBI director James Comey, insists he’s not worried at all. He and his co-conspirators have undoubtedly talked often and coordinated their stories. All voice communications, emails, text messages, and other communications have been erased or otherwise destroyed to the extent they can be.
CULEBRA, PUERTO RICO — In March, the roughly 1,700 inhabitants of Culebra, a tiny island-municipality 17 miles off the main Puerto Rican island, finally had their power restored — nearly two years after Hurricanes Irma and Maria ravaged the region. Consider it yet another example of how little Puerto Rico’s leaders care about its citizens.
Culebra’s residents were the last to be reconnected to Puerto Rico’s main power system, the island’s sole source of electricity. During the two years it took to restore its connection, Culebra had been operating off of two large generators supplied by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
A spate of large-scale street protests around the world, from Chile and Hong Kong to Lebanon and Barcelona, is fuelling a search for common denominators and collective causes. Are we entering a new age of global revolution? Or is it foolish to try to link anger in India over the price of onions to pro-democracy demonstrations in Russia?
Each country’s protests differ in detail. But recent upheavals do appear to share one key factor: youth. In most cases, younger people are at the forefront of calls for change. The uprising that unexpectedly swept away Sudan’s ancien regime this year was essentially generational in nature.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Sunday declared a statewide emergency after multiple wildfires throughout the state prompted the evacuation of nearly 200,000 people from their homes.
Newsom said in a statement that officials were deploying "every resource available" to respond to the wildfires, including a large blaze in Northern California powered by 75-mph wind gusts.
In the Bay Area, two grass fires shut down a stretch of Interstate 80, including a bridge between the cities of Crockett and Vallejo.
General Motor's four-year deal will now be used as a template in bargaining with crosstown rival Ford Motor, the union's choice for the next round of bargaining, followed by Fiat Chrysler.
“We can confirm the UAW today notified Ford it plans to negotiate with us next,” Ford said in a statement. “As America’s No. 1 producer of vehicles and largest employer of UAW-represented autoworkers, we look forward to reaching a fair agreement that helps Ford enhance its competitiveness and preserve and protect good-paying manufacturing jobs.”
The United States military conducted a special operations raid targeting one of its most high-value targets, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of the Islamic State militant group (ISIS), Newsweek reported late Saturday night.
Army Delta Force and Army Rangers led the way and closed in on Baghdadi’s lair in an overnight firefight and the ISIS leader died “crying, whimpering and screaming.”
President Trump made a statement and took questions on Sunday morning.
President Trump: Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is dead… He died after running into a dead end tunnel whimpering and crying all the way… He had dragged three of his young children with him. They faced certain death.
Environmentalists intent on finding new ways to reduce so-called greenhouse gas emissions to curb climate change have proposed a novel method: feed cows seaweed to diminish methane in flatulence, belches, and manure.
Ermias Kebreab, an zoology professor at the University of California–Davis, led a team in producing a bovine meal regimen containing varying levels of Asparagopsis armata, a strain of red seaweed, and fed it to 12 dairy cows over a two-month period. In a mix containing just 1 percent seaweed, the cows’ methane emissions went down by a stunning 60 percent.