Immigration/Amnesty

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News/Politics 2-10-14

What’s interesting in the news today?

1. Like at the IRS, the Veterans Admin is rewarding poor performance with bonuses.

From TheWashingtonExaminer  “Big bonuses paid to top officials at the Department of Veterans Affairs are justified despite rising numbers of patient deaths and a stubborn backlog of disability claims, Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki said in a letter released Friday.

Shinseki said VA officials continue to investigate the performance of employees in charge of medical facilities where preventable patient deaths occurred, including one who got a $63,000 bonus and another with a perfect performance evaluation.

“There is a direct correlation between organizational performance and performance ratings at VA,” Shinseki said in his letter to Rep. Jeff Miller, R-Fla., chairman of the House Committee on Veterans Affairs. “Results, or lack thereof, for which employees and executives are responsible and accountable, are factors when evaluating performance.”

““I am extremely disappointed with Secretary Shinseki’s attempt to downplay VA’s widespread and systemic lack of accountability,” Miller said. “It’s becoming more apparent by the day that there seems to be just two types of people who think VA is properly holding its leaders accountable: VA executives who have received huge performance bonuses year after year despite failing in their jobs and those who work in VA’s central office.”

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2. What does it cost to buy an ambassadorship? And is money raised the only qualification now? Sure seems like it.

So it’s like the healthcare bill, you have to appoint them to see if they can do the job. Her answer to a follow-up is just as lame.

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3. Anyone who believes the President will negotiate an immigration overhaul in good faith should keep this in mind. Everything he does is for his political benefit, and nothing more.

From TheDailyCaller  “President Barack Obama’s 2012 unilateral legalization of 500,000 young illegal immigrants helped him win the 2012 election — at the cost of splitting 500,000 innocent, law-abiding American families for months on end, according to a New York Times article.

The ruthless political calculation was buried deep in the low-key article, which was published on page 20 of the local “New York edition” of the national newspaper.

Obama directed officials to award work-permits to the illegal immigrants, preventing them from preparing green cards for Americans’ foreign-born spouses and children.”

“The scandal likely will be cited by advocates of immigration reform to show that Obama places his partisan calculations above his duty to implement the law, and above his inauguration oath, which says “I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States.”

He only enforces and implements those he agrees with. On the others, like DOMA and border enforcement, he ignores and neglects his duties.

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News/Politics 1-31-14

What’s interesting in the news today?

1. Holder played dumb on the questions from Congress on executive privilege. He’s pulling the same line with questions about the IRS investigation. You know, the “totally non-partisan, we’ll get to the bottom of this” one being run by an Obama donor.

From CNSNews  “At a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing Wednesday, Attorney General Eric Holder denied knowing that a top Democratic donor is leading the internal investigation into the IRS targeting of conservative groups.”

““I must tell you I find it astonishing that the Department of Justice appointed a major Obama donor to head this investigation, so the first question I want to ask is did you know that the lawyer in charge of this investigation was a major Obama donor?” Cruz asked Holder.”

“General Holder, with all due respect, you did not answer the question I asked, which is did you know that this lawyer was a major Obama donor,” Cruz said. After Holder denied knowing the “political activities” of anyone involved in the investigation, Cruz noted that the DOJ ethics guidelines instruct lawyers who believe their “impartiality might be questioned” must either “disqualify” themselves or “see an ethics officer.”“

Does anyone in the administration ever give a straight answer?

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2. Oh look, another Obama admin foreign policy success story. 🙄

From TheTimesofIsrael  “Iran now has all the technical infrastructure to produce nuclear weapons should it make the political decision to do, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper wrote in a report to a Senate intelligence committee published Wednesday. However, he added, it could not break out to the bomb without being detected.

In the “US Intelligence Worldwide Threat Assessment,” delivered to the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, Clapper reported that Tehran has made significant advances recently in its nuclear program to the point where it could produce and deliver nuclear bombs should it be so inclined. “

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3. Democrats are busy with the important issues that matter to Americans.

Or not. OK, mostly not.

From TheHill  “Three House Democrats have proposed a resolution that criticizes the teaching of creationism and the denial of man-made global warming as anti-science.

The resolution from Reps. Rush Holt (D-N.J.), Jim Himes (D-Conn.) and Mike Honda (D-Calif.), H.Res. 467, proposes the designation of Feb. 12 as “Darwin Day” to recognize Charles Darwin’s contributions to science. The resolution says Darwin’s theory of evolution through natural selection “provides humanity with a logical and intellectually compelling explanation for the diversity of life on Earth.” It also says teachings to the contrary go against established science.

“[T]he teaching of creationism in some public schools compromises the scientific and academic integrity of the United States education systems,” it reads. It adds that the validity of Darwin’s theory of natural selection is “strongly supported by the modern understanding of the science of genetics.”

The resolution also takes a shot at global warming skeptics, by saying the advancement of science “must be protected from those unconcerned with the adverse impacts of global warming and climate change.”

Dissent will not be tolerated.

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4. ICE union officials continue to oppose the administration’s, and now Republican, plans for amnesty, saying it would overload the system. This will make the Cloward/Piven fans very happy. First the borders, then the whole system.

From TheWashingtonTimes  “The officers who would be charged with approving millions of applications from illegal immigrants for legal status warned Congress this week that they can’t handle the workload, and said the change would guarantee criminals and others would be approved to remain in the country.

In a letter to House Republicans, who are planning to announce principles Thursday that would include legal status for the estimated 11 million illegal immigrants already in the U.S., the labor union that represents U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services officers and adjudicators predicted it would be a disaster.

“There is no quality here, only quantity,” said Kenneth Palinkas, president of the National Citizenship and Immigration Services Council. “USCIS is not equipped to handle this workload, and due to political interference in its mission, is not empowered to deny admission to all those who should be denied due to ineligibility. We have become a visa clearinghouse for the world, rather than the first line of defense for a secure immigration system.”

Mr. Palinkas went on to say that any proposal that pushes millions of applications through would “overload the system.””

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5. Ted Cruz is warning the GOP that their Amnesty push will cost them.

From Breitbart  “Cruz questioned how establishment Republicans unilaterally caving to Democrats on everything from the farm bill to the budget to the debt ceiling and more could think amnesty is a good idea at this time.

“Right now, Republican leadership in both chambers is aggressively urging members to stand down on virtually every front: on the continuing resolution, on the budget, on the farm bill, on the debt ceiling,” Cruz said in a statement provided exclusively to Breitbart News on Thursday.

He continued:

They may or may not be right, but their argument is that we should focus exclusively on Obamacare and on jobs. In that context, why on earth would the House dive into immigration right now? It makes no sense, unless you’re Harry Reid. Republicans are poised for an historic election this fall–a conservative tidal wave much like 2010. The biggest thing we could do to mess that up would be if the House passed an amnesty bill–or any bill perceived as an amnesty bill–that demoralized voters going into November. Rather than responding to the big-money lobbying on K Street, we need to make sure working-class Americans show up by the millions to reject Obamacare and vote out the Democrats. Amnesty will ensure they stay home.“

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6. Democrats have their own problems as well. A toxic president….

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7. It’s bad enough that they’ve given up on the idea of reclaiming the House.

From Politico  “With Democrats’ grasp on the Senate increasingly tenuous — and the House all but beyond reach — some top party donors and strategists are moving to do something in the midterm election as painful as it is coldblooded: Admit the House can’t be won and go all in to save the Senate.

Their calculation is uncomplicated. With only so much money to go around in an election year that is tilting the GOP’s way, Democrats need to concentrate resources on preserving the chamber they have now. Losing the Senate, they know, could doom whatever hopes Barack Obama has of salvaging the final years of his presidency.

The triage idea is taking hold in phone conversations among donors and in strategy sessions between party operatives. Even some of the people who have invested the most to get House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi back into the speaker’s chair are moving in that direction.”

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8. Look for more stories like this one when the employer mandate hits after the elections. This is why the president illegally delayed it. This getting out before the elections would ensure a crushing defeat. Best to keep the reality of ObamaCare hidden for as long as possible.

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News/Politics 12-9-13

What’s interesting in the news today?

1. The Holder DoJ is using financial lawsuit settlements to pay off community organizers. Another end run around the no funding of ACORN law.

From HotAir  “It seems Attorney General Eric Holder has created a multi-million dollar backdoor kickback for activist groups in the $13 billion JP Morgan Chase subprime loan deal recently settled, WND reports.”

“But wait… you can’t just take the penalty money and hand it out to your friends, can you? According to the breakdown from Investors.com, apparently you can.

Just when we thought its post-crisis probe of banks couldn’t get more corrupt, the Obama administration has cut radical Democrat groups in on the record $13 billion JPMorgan Chase subprime loan deal.

On Page 5 of “Annex 2″ of the recently released consent order, you’ll find this little gem: The Justice Department mandates that JPMorgan fork over any unclaimed or unpaid consumer damages to a nonprofit group that finances Acorn clones and other shakedown groups.”

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2. Now who’s cherry-picking data to justify an unpopular war? Can’t blame Bush for this one.

From YahooNews  “Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Seymour Hersh has dropped yet another bombshell allegation: President Obama wasn’t honest with the American people when he blamed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad for a sarin-gas attack in that killed hundreds of civilians.

But in a long story published Sunday for the London Review of Books, Hersh — best known for his exposés on the cover-ups of the My Lai Massacre and of Abu Ghraib – said the administration “cherry-picked intelligence,” citing conversations with intelligence and military officials.”

“A former senior intelligence official told me that the Obama administration had altered the available information – in terms of its timing and sequence – to enable the president and his advisers to make intelligence retrieved days after the attack look as if it had been picked up and analysed in real time, as the attack was happening. The distortion, he said, reminded him of the 1964 Gulf of Tonkin incident, when the Johnson administration reversed the sequence of National Security Agency intercepts to justify one of the early bombings of North Vietnam. The same official said there was immense frustration inside the military and intelligence bureaucracy: ‘The guys are throwing their hands in the air and saying, “How can we help this guy” – Obama – “when he and his cronies in the White House make up the intelligence as they go along?”’

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3. Is the President stacking the DHS Immigration Enforcement Office with pro-amnesty lawyers so they won’t enforce US laws?

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4. A disturbing opinion piece from a Lt. Col. on gun rights in America. The Obama admin is purging leaders who don’t play along, especially Christian ones. This is the type he’d like them replaced with. One who advocates disarming the citizenry and tossing the Supreme Courts opinion on the matter because he disagrees. Dictators love military leaders like him.

From Esquire  “We crossed the line some time ago, it has just taken me a while to get around to the topic. Sadly, that topic is now so brutally evident that I feel shame. Shame that I have not spoken out about before now — shame for my country, shame that we have come to this point. People, it is time to talk about guns.”

“Guns are tools. I use these tools in my job. But like all tools one must be trained and educated in their use. Weapons are there for the “well regulated militia.” Their use, therefore, must be in defense of the nation. Shooting and killing somebody because they were not “upset enough” over the loss of a college football team should not be possible in our great nation. Which is why I am adding the following “Gun Plank” to the Bateman-Pierce platform. Here are some suggestions:”

“2. We will pry your gun from your cold, dead, fingers. That is because I am willing to wait until you die, hopefully of natural causes. Guns, except for the three approved categories, cannot be inherited. When you die your weapons must be turned into the local police department, which will then destroy them. (Weapons of historical significance will be de-milled, but may be preserved.)”

“4. We will submit a new tax on ammunition. In the first two years it will be 400 percent of the current retail cost of that type of ammunition. (Exemptions for the ammo used by the approved weapons.) Thereafter it will increase by 20 percent per year.”

He’d also limit approved weapons to muskets, shotguns, and bolt actions with 5 round max capacity.

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5. Uncle Omar and the “culture of lies.”

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6. What’s that ticking noise?…

From TheNYPost  “The good news, if you want to call it that, is that roughly 1.6 million Americans have enrolled in ObamaCare so far.

The not-so-good news is that 1.46 million of them actually signed up for Medicaid. If that trend continues, it could bankrupt both federal and state governments.

Medicaid is already America’s third-largest government program, trailing only Social Security and Medicare, as a proportion of the federal budget. Almost 8 cents out of every dollar that the federal government spends goes to Medicaid. That’s more than $265 billion per year.

Indeed, already Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid account for 48% of federal spending. Within the next few years, those three programs will eat up more than half of federal expenditures.”

And who’s on the hook for it?…. Yep, taxpayers. 🙄

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7. Ruh-roh.

From TheLATimes  “Raising concerns about consumer privacy, California’s health exchange has given insurance agents the names and contact information for tens of thousands of people who went online to check out coverage but didn’t ask to be contacted.

The Covered California exchange said it started handing out this consumer information this week as part of a pilot program to help people enroll ahead of a Dec. 23 deadline to have health insurance in place by Jan. 1.

State officials said they are only trying to help potential customers find insurance and sign up in time. But some insurance brokers and consumers who were contacted said they were astonished by the state’s move.

“I’m shocked and dumbfounded,” said Sam Smith, an Encino insurance broker and president of the California Assn. of Health Underwriters, an industry group.”

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8. A little poetic justice.

From Politico  “Capitol Hill staffers are hitting multiple obstacles in trying to enroll in the Obamacare exchange just days before the federal government’s deadline for getting coverage.

They and lawmakers have until Monday to sign up on DC Health Link, the District’s insurance exchange, if they want to maintain the government’s generous employer contribution to their health insurance.”

“But as crunch time approaches, Democratic and Republican staffers are getting error messages, denials, notices that they’re enrolled in multiple plans and incomplete confirmation — as well as a website that went down briefly Thursday.”

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News/Politics 11-30-13

What’s interesting in the news today?

Open Thread, so feel free to share. 🙂

Here’s a few to start off with.

1. Does prayer help boost emotional stability and self-control?

From TheDailyMail  “Does prayer help us resist temptation? Talking to God boosts self-control and emotional stability, claims study

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2. Of course he did. 🙄

From CNN  “President Obama paid a visit Friday to a group of activists who have been fasting for weeks in the hopes of pressuring Congress to pass new immigration laws.

The President and his wife, First Lady Michelle Obama, visited the group on the National Mall to lend support for the cause. The “Fast for Families” protesters have given up all sustenance except water during their protest, which they hope will force lawmakers to take up immigration reform measures pending on Capitol Hill.”

“The President has pushed for an overhaul to the nation’s immigration system, most recently during a speech in San Francisco on Monday. He praised the fasting protesters during those remarks, saying the group was “sacrificing themselves in an effort to get Congress to act.”

“I want them to know we hear you.  We’re with you. The whole country hears you,” Obama said during his remarks in California.”

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3. Faith-based negotiations.

From TheWeeklyStandard  “Here is perhaps the biggest contradiction of the nuclear talks: The Obama administration wants to believe that the supreme leader just might forsake his historic mission—the quest for nuclear weapons begun under Khomeini and carried forth at great cost by Khamenei and every single Iranian president—because the United States, “the epicenter of evil,” has rallied the West against the Islamic Republic. The reasons administration officials give for why this extraordinary tergiversation will take place vary, but most spin around the idea that the supreme leader and his Revolutionary Guards—who oversee the nuclear program, terrorist operations, and domestic riot-control—really aren’t sufficiently committed to developing a nuclear weapon that the forces of moderation can’t seduce them from this dangerous course. The alleged forces of moderation are, in order of importance, newly elected president Hassan Rouhani, foreign minister Mohammad Zarif, and the Iranian people, at least those who voted for Rouhani. “

“Those who make these arguments, inside the U.S. government and out, rarely cite any primary material. Yet there is much to ponder in the lengthy speeches of Khamenei and senior guard commanders who scorch America and the West with nearly every breath; in the nuclear memoirs of Rouhani, which reveals a proud revolutionary determined to keep and advance the nuclear program despite European pressure (and, a decade ago, a widespread fear of George W. Bush); and in the recently published memoirs of Zarif, which limn a deeply conservative man wedded to the Islamic Revolution. In an odd twist on Iran’s controlled democracy, administration officials can tell you that since Rouhani received a mandate for change, and since he has promised to get rid of the hated sanctions, then ipso facto he must be prepared to do the thing necessary to achieve that end: Rouhani, they conclude, intends to roll back Iran’s nuclear aspirations. “

“Rouhani, they believe, must be more or less a moderate—a talented, politically savvy insider, not an egghead reformer like the former president Mohammad Khatami, whom Khamenei and his minions sliced and diced. He is, after all, not Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the uncouth, pietistic populist. He has a Ph.D. from a Scottish university (think Duns Scotus, David Hume, Adam Smith, Robert Burns, and Gordon Brown). 

This is such a nonsensical take on Iran’s deeply religious and ruthless power politics, and Rouhani’s personal voyage through the Islamic Revolution, that it’s hard to know where to start deconstructing the fiction and illogic. Suffice it to say that Khamenei has spent considerable energy the last four years destroying the threat of democracy inside his country. He has so elevated the Revolutionary Guards that their power rivals his own. He has given no indication that he now quakes before the very people he’s squashed. Neither, by the way, does Rouhani, who raised not a finger in protest when Khamenei gutted the pro-democracy Green Movement in 2009 and playfully eviscerated Ali Akbar Hashemi-Rafsanjani, the former clerical powerhouse, the true father of the regime’s nuclear-weapons program, and Rouhani’s primary mentor. “

I have no faith in either party.

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News/Politics 10-21-13

What’s interesting in the news today?

The Obama admin continues to refuse to enforce the laws they dislike.

From WeaselZippers  “Chris Crane, president of the ICE Council, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents’ union, said that the President has effectively told ICE agents that they can no longer enforce the law, even as that applies to illegal aliens who have committed other crimes. He noted that while there has been investigation of the scandals of the IRS and Benghazi, “there has been no investigation into the President’s lawless activities with regard to immigration enforcement”.

“You can be in the country illegally, you can have an extensive criminal history, you can have multiple criminal convictions for serious offenses, and there is nothing that we can do to touch you,” Crane said. He pointed out that the numbers from the administration seeming to indicate “record deportations” were in fact falsely inflated. The numbers included mostly illegal aliens caught at the border, into the numbers of those deported from the interior, thereby juicing the numbers. Nothing the President says matches what he has been done, says Crane.

The ICE union has repeatedly asked for a meeting at the White House. But despite meeting with all manner of other groups on the issue, including illegal alien groups, the President has still refused to meet with the ICE union.

‘We are completely ignored,” Crane said, ‘The President will not respond to us…He gave some speeches where he called ICE agents “terrorists”. He said we went into neighborhoods and terrorized children, babies, nursing mothers, purposely tore apart families. So this President, I think, brings with him a real dislike, at the very least, for ICE agents and officers, and the mission we perform. I think there’s a real misunderstanding about what we do, and for that reason he has absolutely refused to let us be a part of any conversation.”

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The UN says the President is probably violating international law with his drone program. That’s impossible, don’t they know he’s a Peace Prize winner. 🙄

From TheGuardian  “Drone strikes by US may violate international law, says UN

Report says CIA attacks led to civilian deaths and casualties and says US protocols are ‘hurdle to transparency'”

“A United Nations investigation has so far identified 33 drone strikes around the world that have resulted in civilian casualties and may have violated international humanitarian law.”

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The Catholic church has filed a new lawsuit against the Obama admin.

From CNSNews  ” The Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., is arguing in a new lawsuit that the Obama administration is engaged in a “conscious political strategy to marginalize and delegitimize” Catholic “religious views on contraception by holding them up for ridicule on the national stage.”

At issue in the lawsuit is whether the administration can force the archdiocese to secure a third-party administrator for its self-insurance plan who will provide sterilizations, contraceptives and abortion-inducing drugs at no cost to church employees at some of the archdiocese’s separately incorporated subunits.”

“Lawyers representing the archdiocese filed a memorandum with U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson on Sept. 24, pointing to actions and statements made by Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to demonstrate that the administration is deliberately targeting the Catholic Church for its religious views.”

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Young folks who supported the President’s re-election are gonna get rewarded for their loyalty. Just like the unions were.

From TheWashingtonExaminer  “Young people in 45 states will see their health insurance premiums increase under Obamacare because the law relies on the money they pay into the system to offset the cost of caring for older enrollees, according to a new study.

Virginia leads the pack, as individuals aged 27 and under will see their health insurance premiums jump by 252.5 percent — $416.55 — according to the Heritage Foundation’s Center for Data Analysis.

Virginians under the age of 50 will see their premiums jump by an even greater percentage, rising from $228 to $991.03.”

You’ve earned it kids! 🙄

Now remember this next election.

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And last one from me today. Sen. Ted Cruz has been hammered in the press for standing on principle and actually doing what the voters that elected him wanted. The press and Dems despise the man, but his constituents have quite a different opinion.

From YahooNews  “Republican U.S. Senator Ted Cruz, a favorite of the conservative Tea Party movement, returned home to a rousing welcome in Texas on Saturday after his attempt to derail Obamacare with a shutdown of the federal government led to sharp criticism of his tactics as reckless and futile.

“After two months in Washington, it’s great to be back in America,” Cruz joked in speaking to a crowd of about 750 people in a packed downtown San Antonio hotel ballroom.

Cruz was greeted with an eight-minute standing ovation in an appearance organized by the Texas Federation of Republican Women. People in attendance, many of them wearing red to show their support for keeping Texas a conservative-leaning state, lined up to greet him.”

Harry Reid and John McCain were hardest hit by the news. 🙂

LOVE IT!

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News/Politics 9-12-13

What’s interesting in the news today?

Open Thread, here’s a few from me.

The State Dept continues to ignore the Benghazi and 9-11 anniversaries.

From TheWeeklyStandard  “At 8:46 a.m. on September 11, 2001, American Airlines Flight 11 was crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City by terrorists.  Eleven years later on September 11, 2012, events unfolded in Benghazi, Libya, that would ultimately leave a U.S. diplomatic facility gutted and four Americans dead.  As of 8:46 AM today, the U.S. State Department had not acknowledged either anniversary.

Up until yesterday, as noted by THE WEEKLY STANDARD, neither the White House or the State Department had mentioned the upcoming anniversary of the Benghazi attack.  Then Tuesday night around 8 p.m., the White House issued a statement by the press secretary noting a preparedness meeting the president held on Tuesday in anticipation of the 12th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.  The notice referenced the Benghazi attack as well:”

“The silence from the State Department, however, continues.  There is nothing on Wednesday’s public schedule of the State Department regarding any observance, memorial, or remembrance of either 9/11 or Benghazi.  There are no mentions of 9/11, Benghazi, or Ambassador Christopher Stevens any time recently on the State Department website, the Facebook page, or the Twitter account.”

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This one is interesting. But I have no idea on the credibility of what these former hostages say. The part about overhearing an English language Skype conversation doesn’t sound right. Why would Syrian rebels be communicating in English? Anyway, it wouldn’t surprise me either way.

From TheBlaze  “Belgian teacher Pierre Piccinin and Italian journalist Domenico Quiric both say they were able to eavesdrop on an English-language Skype session between their abductors in which they allegedly revealed that it was the Syrian rebels who perpetrated the attack so that the West would intervene.”

“In this conversation, they said that the gas attack on two neighborhoods of Damascus was launched by the rebels as a provocation to lead the West to intervene militarily,” Quirico told the Italian daily newspaper La Stampa. “We were unaware of everything that was going on during our detention in Syria, and therefore also with the gas attack in Damascus.”

“Quirico, a journalist, correctly acknowledged that there is no proof that the conversation he overheard was based on irrefutable facts. He was sure to point out that he “cannot say for sure that it is true because I have no means of confirming the truth of what was said.” However, he also revealed that one of the three people he overheard in the alleged conversation identified himself as a Free Syrian Army general, according to the La Stampa report.

Italy’s Quotidiano Nazionale reports Quirico as saying: “I am extremely surprised that the United States could think about intervening, knowing very well how the Syrian revolution has become international jihadism – in other words Al-Qaeda.”

Surprised? You’re not the only one. It makes no sense.

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We discussed this lady and her influence with Kerry, the Obama admin, and McCain a few days ago. Looks like they’ve been taking advice from a fraud.

From BuzzFeed  “A young researcher whose opinions on Syria were cited by both Senator McCain and Secretary of State John Kerry in congressional testimony last week has been fired from the Institute for the Study of War for allegedly faking her academic credentials.

The institute issued a statement on its website concerning the researcher, Elizabeth O’Bagy:

The Institute for the Study of War has learned and confirmed that, contrary to her representations, Ms. Elizabeth O’Bagy does not in fact have a Ph.D. degree from Georgetown University. ISW has accordingly terminated Ms. O’Bagy’s employment, effective immediately.

O’Bagy and her op-ed drew scrutiny last week when the Wall Street Journal failed to disclose O’Bagy’s ties to an advocacy group backing the Syrian opposition and lobbying the U.S. government to intervene in Syria. The Journal was forced to post a clarification that “in addition to her role at the Institute for the Study of War, Ms. O’Bagy is affiliated with the Syrian Emergency Task Force, a nonprofit operating as a 501(c)(3) pending IRS approval that subcontracts with the U.S. and British governments to provide aid to the Syrian opposition.”

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Maybe listening to Syrian rebel advocates like her are why they’re under the mistaken impression that the rebels are mostly moderate. But they’re not.

From NBCNews  “Syrian opposition activists tell NBC News that Bashar Assad is getting away with having used chemical weapons to massacre hundreds of civilians, and that giving the regime a pass will only benefit al-Qaeda extremists.

“If there is no action, everyone will be desperate. We are already desperate. We are dying. Many will join al-Qaeda. Even the educated will join them, because no one else is helping,” a Syrian rebel said.

There is a battle underway within the Syrian revolt — a war within the war — between the generally moderate, US-backed Free Syrian Army and Islamic extremist groups.  

The Free Syrian Army put its faith in Washington, which promised action, but so far hasn’t delivered. The moderates say they have lost hope and face. Islamists, on the other hand, always doubted Washington would act, and instead of attending meetings, they are putting bullets in their guns; and they are sending men.”

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The dueling rallies in Washington happened yesterday. One side clearly had more supporters. 🙂

From TheWashingtonTimes  “Thousands of bikers from around the country roared into the D.C. area on  Wednesday in a show of support for Sept. 11 victims and in solidarity against a  controversial Muslim rally on the Mall.

The 2 Million Bikers to DC ride might have fallen short of 2 million strong,  but the numbers were impressive. A line of shining chrome and steel bikes  stretched about a third of a mile from the starting point at the Harley  Davidson of Washington store just  outside the District in Prince George’s County.”

A couple dozen attended the Million Muslim March.

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Two Colorado officials have been recalled for their role in the states new, more restrictive, gun laws.

From WeaselZippers  “AWESOME: Colorado Voters Recall Dem State Senator Who Led Gun Control Push – Update: Second Democrat Loses Recall Election For Backing Anti-Gun Legislation…

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PPP, or Public Policy Polling has always been a left leaning group. Now they’re being accused of not releasing poll data that didn’t jive with their liberal assumptions about the Colorado recall elections. It showed Democrats losing, and that couldn’t be right. 🙄

From TheWashingtonExaminer  “A spokesman for Public Policy Polling admitted Wednesday to withholding a poll showing Colorado voters were going to recall State Sen. Angela Giron by a 12-point margin.

The reason, according to PPP pollster Tom Jensen, was that “in a district that Barack Obama won by almost 20 points, I figured there was no way that could be right and made a rare decision not to release the poll.”

When the votes were counted in race, the poll turned out to be on target, as Giron lost by 12 points. “We should have had more faith in our numbers,” Jensen said.”

Why? No one else does. 😯

sheldon

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Next up, I say good, serves you right for being a horse’s posterior. But at the same time I’m troubled by the possible violating of his right to free expression, offensive as that expression is.

From TheLATimes  “Florida officials have arrested radical anti-Islam preacher Terry Jones as he was on his way to a Sept. 11 event where he planned to burn 2,998 Korans, according to local news reports Wednesday.

Jones is best known for stoking Muslim anger by publicly desecrating the religion’s holy book, sometimes with international consequences.

This time law enforcement officials intervened before Jones could carry out his plans for a ceremonial Sept. 11 burning.”

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And lastly, this little gem. It’s stuff like this that gives capitalists a bad name.

From TheWashingtonExaminer  “On Tuesday, the chief human resources officers of more than 100 large corporations sent a letter to House Speaker John Boehner and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi urging quick passage of a comprehensive immigration reform bill.

The officials represent companies with a vast array of business interests: General Electric, The Walt Disney Company, Marriott International, Hilton Worldwide, Hyatt Hotels Corporation, McDonald’s Corporation, The Wendy’s Company, Coca-Cola, The Cheesecake Factory, Johnson & Johnson, Verizon Communications, Hewlett-Packard, General Mills, and many more. All want to see increases in immigration levels for low-skill as well as high-skill workers, in addition to a path to citizenship for the millions of immigrants currently in the U.S. illegally.”

“Of course, the U.S. unemployment rate is at 7.3 percent, with millions of American workers at all skill levels out of work, and millions more so discouraged that they have left the work force altogether. In addition, at the same time the corporate officers seek higher numbers of immigrants, both low-skill and high-skill, many of their companies are laying off thousands of workers.

For example, Hewlett-Packard, whose Executive Vice President for Human Resources Tracy Keogh signed the letter, laid off 29,000 employees in 2012. In August of this year, Cisco Systems, whose Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer Kathleen Weslock signed the letter, announced plans to lay off 4,000 — in addition to 8,000 cut in the last two years. United Technologies, whose Senior Vice President of Human Resources and Organization Elizabeth B. Amato signed the letter, announced layoffs of 3,000 this year. American Express, whose Chief Human Resources Officer L. Kevin Cox signed the letter, cut 5,400 jobs this year. Procter & Gamble, whose Chief Human Resources Officer Mark F. Biegger signed the letter, announced plans to cut 5,700 jobs in 2012.”

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OK, yeah, that was more than a few. 🙂

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News/Politics 9-11-13

What’s interesting in the news today?

Open Thread, as always.

First up, the Syria debacle. The President made his pitch to the country last night. I doubt many will be swayed by his speech. The official storyline changes daily. A little consistency might help his cause.

From WeaselZippers  “Yesterday: Obama Says Assad Not A “Credible” Threat To America – Today: Assad Is A Threat To Our National Security…“

“Assad has capability “relative to children,” the president told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer, but “he doesn’t have a credible means to threaten the United States.”

“The question now is what the United States of America and the international community is prepared to do about it, because what happened to those people — to those children — is not only a violation of international law, it’s also a danger to our security. Let me explain why.”

“Our ideals and principles, as well as our national security, are at stake in Syria, along with our leadership of a world where we seek to ensure that the worst weapons will never be used.”

Zip asks the appropriate question “Which is it?”

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The spin machine is working overtime.

From BuzzFeed  “The Obama administration’s explanation of how a Russian proposal to get rid of Syrian chemical weapons came to be has morphed rapidly in the past 24 hours from being portrayed as an unexpected slip-up to — in its new incarnation — a plan that U.S. officials were involved in as early as last week.

“I had some conversations about this with my counterpart from Russia last week,” Secretary of State John Kerry said during a House Armed Services Committee hearing on Tuesday, referring to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. “President Putin raised the issue with President Obama at St. Petersburg. President Obama directed us to try to continue to talk and see if it is possible. So it is not something that — you know, suddenly emerged, though it did publicly. But it cannot be allowed to be a delay.”

Later, under questioning by Rep. Hank Johnson, Kerry said he had not made a mistake when he suggested the proposal in a press conference in London on Monday.”

“The administration has quickly changed its line on an idea that it scrambled to play down yesterday in the White House and State Department briefings even as the Russians immediately followed up by making the proposal to the Syrians, who “welcomed” it.”

Again, which is it?

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Rebels are demanding strikes.

From YahooNews  “The chaos in Syria will only get worse and destabilize the entire region if the global community fails to act, key figures of the war-torn country’s opposition said Tuesday.

Only Washington can deter Bashar al-Assad’s use of chemical weapons and so the US Congress should give the White House the go-ahead to target the strongman, they added.

Ahmad al-Jarba, president of the National Coalition of Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces, and Salim Idriss, chief of the rebel Free Syrian Army, wrote an opinion piece in the Washington Post.”

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In other news……..

The cover-up continues.

From WeaselZippers  “Report: Kerry Refuses To Allow Congress To Question Benghazi Survivors, Republicans Threaten To Issue Subpoenas…“

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This has to sting the “Smart Diplomacy” crowd’s egos.

From Reason.com  “Poll: 64 Percent of Americans Say President Obama’s Handling of Foreign Policy Is Worse or the Same as President George W. Bush’s

74 percent of Americans say strikes on Syria would be “unwise” and half of Americans believe the D.C.  establishment wants war more than the public

As the country debates launching airstrikes on Syria, President Barack Obama’s standing on foreign policy has taken such a hit that the latest Reason-Rupe poll finds 64 percent of Americans, including 68 percent of independents and 41 percent of Democrats, believe President Obama’s handling of foreign policy is worse than, or the same as, former President George W. Bush’s handling of foreign policy.”

Ouch.

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Looks like an October House vote on the Immigration/Amnesty bill.

From MSNBC  “Republican Congressman Bob Goodlatte, chair of the House Judiciary Committee overseeing immigration, said he expected Congress to pursue reform legislation despite a tight schedule featuring debates over Syria, health care, and the debt limit.

Those and other issues “should not deter us from getting to [immigration] as soon as possible,” Goodlatte said in an appearance on WAMU’s Kojo Nnamdi Show on Tuesday.

Goodlatte said he expected votes soon, perhaps in October, on a series of smaller House bills on border security, internal enforcement,  guest workers, and high-tech visas.”

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Unions that supported ObamaCare are asking for a “fix” for them, which would cost taxpayers 187 billion over a decade. Funny how all the supporters of this bad law want to be excluded from its effects. Congress, govt workers, and now Unions.

From TheWashingtonExaminer  “Big Labor officials are negotiating with Obama administration officials on a “fix” to spare multi-employer pension plans, which are provided by many unions to their members, from the higher costs they would face under the president’s health care law.

A forthcoming report estimates the cost to taxpayers for that fix at $187 billion over 10 years.

Multi-employer plans — also known as “Taft-Hartley” plans — are ineligible for federal subsidies under Obamacare. This has many unions worried, since it will raise the cost of the plans, pushing employers to either limit coverage or pull out altogether. Some are already moving in that direction.”

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Some union members are finally figuring out that national union leadership is not working in their best interest. They’re more interested in helping Democrats push progressive causes. Including some that work against union members. ObamaCare is a perfect example. Immigration/Amnesty is another.

From TheWashingtonTimes  “The AFL-CIO needs to stick with representing workers and stop trying  to take on social  causes for the far left, said the union head for the  International  Association of Fire Fighters.

Harold Schaitberger, who presides  over the IAFF,  said there is “great  value” in aligning with political groups — but only as a  secondary  mission, he told The Hill. And the AFL-CIO’s  recent push to bring in environmental groups and  progressive-minded organizations to the union cause is leading the IAFF to express  concerns about politics becoming the priority, over the  representation  of members.

“To say that we are going to grow this labor movement by some kind of  formal  partnership, membership, status,  place in this federation, I am  against. This is the American  Federation of Labor. We are supposed to be  representing workers and  workers’ interests,” Mr. Schaitberger said in  The Hill. “We are not going to be the American  Federation of  Progressive and Liberal Organizations.”

He’s not alone in that view. Union members from the construction  sector have been especially vocal against bringing environmental  groups  into the AFL-CIO family, viewing them as the enemy in the Keystone XL  pipeline fight.”

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Meanwhile ObamaCare continues to be a job and hours killer.

From TheWeeklyStandard  “A Grand Rapids, Michigan report on a company that had to lay off over 1,000 people due to the Obamacare medical device tax:

“There are also new taxes affecting West Michigan industry, in particular, that took effect this year,” says a local reporter. “There’s a new 2.3 percent excise tax on medical device manufacturers. According to some reports, Kalamazoo based Stryker has laid off more than a thousand people because of it–and owes the federal government upwards of $100 million dollars this year alone. Late last week a Stryker spokesperson told me that Obamacare will cost the company fully 20 percent of its total research and development investments.”

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And it appears that the first reports on the altercation between George Zimmerman, his estranged wife, and his father-in-law may have been seriously exaggerated. Police are calling into question many of his estranged wife’s statements.

From ABC/ActionNews  “Lake Mary Police are now questioning the validity of several statements Shellie  Zimmerman made when she told 911 dispatchers her estranged husband, George  Zimmerman, threatened her and her father at gunpoint Monday afternoon.

“We did not find a gun, did not locate a weapon,” said Zach Hudson, public  information officer with the Lake Mary Police Department.  “Nobody ever saw  a gun. A gun is not part of this story.”

“”He continually has his hand on his gun and he keeps saying, ‘Step  closer.’  He is just threatening all of us,”  Shellie can be heard  telling dispatchers.”

“Hudson told ABC Action News Shellie provided a written statement Monday night  saying she never saw a gun and only assumed her estranged husband was carrying a  weapon because he touched his stomach.”

As I’m sure you’re all aware, this isn’t the first time she’s been accused of being untruthful with authorities. In fact she was already convicted for it. What a mess.

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by

News/Politics 8-26-13

What’s interesting in the news today?

Things are escalating in Syria.

From TheTelegraph  “Britain is planning to join forces with America and launch military action against Syria within days in response to the gas attack believed to have been carried out by President Bashar al-Assad’s forces against his own people.”

“Royal Navy vessels are being readied to take part in a possible series of cruise missile strikes, alongside the United States, as military commanders finalise a list of potential targets.

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The IRS is at it again.

From TheDailyCaller  “The Internal Revenue Service is targeting the veterans’ organization the  American Legion, and a U.S. senator believes that Lois Lerner — a key figure in  the IRS scandal – is to blame.

“The IRS now requires American Legion posts to maintain dates of service and  character of service records for all members… The penalty for not having the  required proof of eligibility is, apparently, $1,000 per day,” the American  Legion stated.”

“The American Legion has recently learned of the so-called IRS ‘audit manual’  and is concerned that portions of it attempt to amend statutes passed by  Congress and approved by the president,” American Legion legal counsel  Philip Onderdonk, Jr. told The Daily Caller.

“Resolutions recommending action by the Legion’s legislative division on two  of the most egregious sections of the IRS document are being presented for a  vote by members at The American Legion’s annual national convention in Houston  [this] week. If the resolutions are adopted, the Legion will be empowered as a  body to urge correction of the veterans service organization-related portion(s)  of the IRS manual and suggest congressional review of the entire 38 section IRS  document,” Onderdonk said.”

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Remember Obama’s promises about keeping lobbyists out of his admin? Yeah, I guess like most of his promises, it has an expiration date.

From TheHill  “ObamaCare has become big business for an elite network of Washington lobbyists  and consultants who helped shape the law from the inside.
 
More than  30 former administration officials, lawmakers and congressional staffers who  worked on the healthcare law have set up shop on K Street since 2010.”

“Major lobbying firms such as Fierce, Isakowitz & Blalock, The Glover Park  Group, Alston & Bird, BGR Group and Akin Gump can all boast an ObamaCare  insider on their lobbying roster — putting them in a prime position to land  coveted clients.”

So he won’t let lobbyists in, but he keeps cranking them out? I guess he didn’t mean his ObamaCare lobbyists.

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Maybe he needs to send some lobbyists out to the state and local levels on behalf of ObamaCare. They don’t seem to be getting the message.

From HotAir  “It’s been quite a week for ObamaCare, and we’re not even to the end of it yet.  First we find out that the White House missed half of the statutory deadlines in the bill and still has almost half of them left unaccomplished.  Next, UPS canceled spousal coverage because of the ACA, which will save it $60 million in costs, and CNBC described how employees might start petitioning their bosses to drop health insurance in order to score taxpayer-funded subsidies.  The AFL-CIO in Nevada finally discovered what a bad deal they’re getting, and Gallup confirmed that the more people know about ObamaCare, the less they like it.

Today, we find out that it’s not just the private sector that’s looking to recover ObamaCare costs at the expense of workers:

Many cash-strapped cities and counties facing the prospect of shelling out hundreds of thousands of dollars in new health-care costs under the Affordable Care Act are opting instead to reduce the number of hours their part-time employees work.

The decisions to cut employee hours come 16 months before employers — including state and local governments — will be required to offer health care coverage to employees who work at least 30 hours a week. Some local officials said the cuts are happening now either because of labor contracts that must be negotiated in advance, or because the local governments worry that employees who work at least 30 hours in the months leading up to the January 2015 implementation date would need to be included in their health-care plans.”

And here’s even more that apparently need some of that sweet, sweet lobbying.

From FoxNews  “Delta Air Lines has issued an urgent warning about the impact of ObamaCare,  claiming the law’s implementation will contribute to a roughly $100 million  increase in health care costs next year alone. 

A representative with Delta confirmed the authenticity of the letter to  FoxNews.com. 

“Like many large companies, Delta faces significantly increased healthcare  costs in 2014 and beyond,” the company said in a statement on Friday. “Delta  will absorb the vast majority of those increased costs so that we can continue  providing a high value, high quality health plan. Consistent with our culture,  Delta will always keep the best interests of our people in mind in connection  with the healthcare and other benefits we provide.””

Looks like airfare will be rising, thanks to ObamaCare.

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INS agents are now being told not to arrest or deport illegal immigrants with children.

From TheWashingtonTimes  “The Obama administration issued a new   policy Friday  that says immigration agents should try not to arrest and  deport  illegal immigrant parents of minor children. The move  adds to the  categories  of people the administration is trying not  to  deport.

In a nine-page memo, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said agents  should use “prosecutorial discretion” to try   to avoid detaining parents and,  if parents are detained, agents should   make sure they have the ability to  visit with their children or   participate in family court proceedings.

The  move won praise from immigrant-rights groups who said it’s a  step   toward a less harsh detention policy. But a top Republican blasted  the  memo as  another effort by the Obama administration to circumvent  the  law.

“President  Obama has once again abused his authority and  unilaterally  refused to  enforce our current immigration laws by  directing U.S. Immigration  and  Customs Enforcement agents to stop  removing broad categories of unlawful  immigrants,” said House Judiciary   Committee Chairman Robert W.   Goodlatte, Virginia Republican.”

And no one will do a thing about it.

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by

News/Politics 8-17-13

What’s interesting in the news today?

Open thread, you decide.

Here’s a few from me to start things off.

First up, Egypt.

From FoxNews  “The Egyptian defense minister has ordered the repair and reconstruction of  all churches that suffered damage in the country’s violent demonstrations since  the Egyptian military removed President Mohamed Morsi from power last month.

Defense minister Col. Gen. Abdel Fattah El-Sisi intends to fix the damage to  Coptic churches at Rabaa Adaweya and Nahda squares, according to a report by the  Mid-East Christian News.

Dozens of churches were attacked and burned in riots after thousands of  demonstrators took to the streets of Cairo and other Egyptian cities to demand  the end of what they call military rule, following the removal of Morsi on July  3. Many of Morsi’s supporters have voiced criticism at Egypt’s Christian  minority for largely supporting the military’s decision to oust him from  office.

“The Egyptian defense minister ordered the engineering department of the  armed forces to swiftly repair all the affected churches, in recognition of the  historical and national role played by our Coptic brothers,” read a statement  that aired on Egyptian television.”

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Next up, It’s Alive! and yes, that means they’re violating the federal ban.

From JudicialWatch  “A spinoff of the scandal-ridden community organizer group ACORN received more than $200,000 in federal housing grants despite a ban on money going to ACORN affiliates, watchdog organization Judicial Watch announced Thursday.

ACORN, which officially folded in 2009 after a string of scandals, rebranded into more than 100 spinoff groups, including Affordable Housing Centers of America — also now defunct — and Mission of Peace, an affordable housing nonprofit.

In February, the Department of Housing and Urban Development transferred $201,222.07 from AHCOA to Mission of Peace “specifically to pay for the activities of former AHCOA affiliates,” according to a memo obtained by Judicial Watch through a Freedom of Information Act request.”

“Because of the ban, the award to Mission of Peace appears to be a violation of federal law, according to Judicial Watch. MOP is one of numerous ACORN affiliates operating under new names, Judicial Watch spokeswoman Jill Farrell told the Washington Examiner.”

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And then another story of the Obama admin disobeying and disregarding federal law.

From NationalJournal  “About 400,000 “Dreamers” have been allowed to stay in the United States in the year since the Obama administration began accepting applications for young illegal immigrants to defer deportation proceedings and receive work permits, according to data compiled by the Brookings Institution and released on the anniversary of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.

The numbers show that out of more than a half-million applicants for deferred action, more than three-quarters were accepted and just 1 percent denied. The applications were concentrated in states that already have large immigrant communities, such as California, Texas, New York, Illinois, and Florida. On the East Coast, the applications were from a more diverse set of countries while in the West, Midwest, and South the vast majority of applicants were from Mexico.”

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by

News/Politics 8-10-13

What’s interesting in the news today?

It appears House Republicans are prepared to put forth an ObamaCare alternative. Repeal and replace.

From TheHill  “The conservative Republican Study Committee (RSC) is preparing to unveil  legislation that would replace ObamaCare with a new set of healthcare reforms. 

A spokesman for RSC Chairman Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) confirmed Friday  that members of the group will introduce their measure after the August recess.”

“Chairman Scalise and the RSC Health Care Working Group are drafting legislation  to repeal ObamaCare and replace it with a conservative alternative that fixes  the problems in our healthcare system without the harmful taxes and mandates in  the President’s law,” Stephen Bell said in a statement to The Hill. “The  timetable for rollout is slated for this fall.””

This seems to be the idea the general public has too. They continue to come in strongly against. This poll has 57% calling it a joke. Ouch.

From FoxNews  “Majorities of Americans think the new health care law is going to increase  their medical costs and their taxes — and add to the federal deficit as  well. Those are some of the reasons why voters say — by a two-to-one  margin — that Congress should keep working on the law.

A Fox News national poll released Thursday also asks voters about how they  think Obamacare is being carried out: 31 percent say “it’s going fine,” yet a  57-percent majority feels “it’s a joke.”

Republicans are more than three times as likely to say it’s a joke (87  percent vs. 25 percent). Still, a quarter of Democrats agree.

Nine times as many Democrats as Republicans say implementation of Obamacare is going fine (63 percent vs. 7 percent).”

It’s fine, everything’s fine. 🙄 Sure.

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But it appears they may be about to cave and vote for amnesty, if this is accurate.

Also from TheHill  “Forty to 50 House Republicans will support immigration reform, Rep. Luis  Gutiérrez (D-Ill.) predicted Thursday.

Gutiérrez said many of the Republicans supportive of immigration reform don’t  want to be identified, but he insisted they would support comprehensive  immigration reform.

“If they ask me today, go find those 40 to 50 Republicans, I’ll tell them I  found them. I know where they’re at,” Gutiérrez said in an interview with Ed O’Keefe at The Washington Post.”

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Good. Let’s get to it.

From FoxNews  “The non-partisan Government Accountability Office confirmed Thursday it is  launching an investigation into how the country’s largest abortion provider  spent millions of taxpayer dollars.

Planned Parenthood received more than a half billion dollars in federal  funding last year. The GAO’s investigation is in response to a request made by  more than 50 members of Congress in February who asked for a detailed report on  how money is being used by Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers  across the country.”

“The GAO’s investigation comes on the heels of a settlement involving a Texas  affiliate of the organization, which paid $4.3 million in July to settle  allegations of fraud in billing to a health program for the poor. The settlement  was $3 million more than what had been announced earlier by the Texas Attorney  General.”

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Next up, privacy is dead. Not only is the govt peeping on your cell, internet, and phone, but now a court has said perverts can even look in your window and photo you and your kids inside your home. And you can’t do anything about it. Wow.

From TheNYPost  “A Manhattan judge ruled this week that artistic freedom trumps the rights of parents who don’t want their kids secretly photographed through the windows of their homes.

Judge Eileen Rakower tossed a lawsuit brought by two parents against a Tribeca artist who snapped pictures of their children through their apartment windows as part of a controversial exhibition this year.

“But controversy erupted after Svenson’s models learned that they were being photographed without their knowledge — and that the images were being exhibited and sold for up to $10,000 each.”

“But Rakower ruled Monday that Svenson’s artistic freedom superseded their privacy concerns, and dismissed the case outright.”

Art trumps your privacy. Nice.

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