Kermit Gosnell

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Life Matters 5-9-13

Today we start with a piece on the subject of adoption. It is the loving option for a child, as opposed to abortion which is not. As you will see this young mother endured horrible things because of her decision to keep her child. Sadly much of it from her own family. But she did what was right, and sometimes that decision has wonderful results later in life. This story demonstrates that life and adoption is the loving choice, and sometimes that comes back around. The piece is long, but a good read. And yes, you’ll probably want to grab some tissues. From Redbook

“A Daughter Lost and Found”

“When Julie Mannix refused to get an abortion, her parents had her locked up in a mental hospital. This is the story of the child she fought to save—and how they made their way back to each other.”

“I am sitting on a dirty orange chair, guarded by a male orderly, waiting to be admitted to a state hospital for the mentally disturbed and criminally insane. I’m a 19-year-old blue-eyed blonde—a debutante from the Main Line of  Philadelphia. I am also three months pregnant.”

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But sadly, these next two are not good news. Further proof that Gosnell is not the exception, but the norm at many clinics. An extensive investigative piece from Florida, via NationalReview with a Content Warning!!! for the subject matter.

“Abortion’s Underside —Kermit Gosnell is not the only seedy backroom abortionist operating in the age of Roe v. Wade.”

“The Gosnell case prompts the question of how common similar practices are. A National Review investigation revealed the troubling history of three Florida abortion clinics, located in Miami, Hialeah, and Miramar, that have had several run-ins with the law. After a 2004 tip proved accurate, two owners and two staff members were successfully prosecuted for unlicensed medical practice; and, although there was no conviction, it appears that Sycloria Williams’s baby was born alive and murdered at the Hialeah clinic in 2006. Furthermore, some of the clinics’ doctors have records best described as routine medical violence against women. Yet despite their fraught past, the three clinics remain fully operational today. And they are a critical but often-neglected part of the picture of abortion in America.”

As I said, it’s pretty in-depth, and long.

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This next one asks a very good question. We know from the Grand Jury testimony in the Gosnell case that some Planned Parenthood affiliates refered customers to Gosnell. Was the President of one of those affiliates, who is now running for Governor, sending referrals to him as well? As a PA. voter, you can bet I’d like to know. From TheWeeklyStandard

“Allyson Schwartz, the Democratic suburban Philadelphia congresswoman running for governor, was the director of the Elizabeth Blackwell Health Center, an affiliate of Planned Parenthood, from 1975 to 1988. Her time there coincided with the formative years of abortionist Kermit Gosnell’s infamous career.”

“With the case getting national attention, and with the congresswoman’s political profile rapidly rising, some in Philadelphia’s pro-life community have begun to wonder about Schwartz’s own relationship with Gosnell’s longtime Philly practice. Did the Blackwell Center refer late-term patients to Gosnell while Schwartz was its director? Both Schwartz’s congressional office and her gubernatorial campaign have so far failed to answer requests for on-the-record answers to these questions.”

“A Planned Parenthood official denies that Blackwell ever referred mothers seeking abortions to take the 10-minute drive across town to Gosnell’s clinic, though she did not explain how she knew this.

“We have never referred to Gosnell,” said the official in an email to THE WEEKLY STANDARD. Could she confirm that going all the way back to 1972, the year Gosnell first opened his clinic? The official did not immediately respond.”

Could our Governor’s race come down to a contest between the man who helped shut Gosnell down, and a woman who possibly referred women to him? Answers are necessary, but I imagine those will be hard to get. After all, even the most extreme abortion supporters don’t want to be tied to this mess.

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Life Matters 5-2-13

Here’s an update on the Gosnell trial. From LifeNews

“The jury in the Kermit Gosnell murder trial deliberated for a second day today and ended the day with no verdict. However, member of the jury actively informed themselves of laws that are applicable to the case and asked for information and assistance from the judge.”

“Under Pennsylvania law, all 12 of the jurors must reach a unanimous verdict on any of the murder counts Gosnell faces for him to be convicted on any of them. Each of the elements of a charged crime must be proven to each juror beyond reasonable doubt for that juror to vote to convict on that count and one reluctant juror could lead to a mistrial on any of the first-degree murder charges.

Since prosecutors are pursuing the death penalty in the case, the jury will only be deciding whether Gosnell is guilty related to the charges. If convicted, a second jury will be impaneled to determine sentencing under the penalty phase of the trial. During this phase, the judge has already instructed jurors to only consider guilt or innocence.

Given the number of charges Gosnell faces, and the fact that Gosnell has a co-defendant the jury is considering for conviction as well, the jury make take a longer period of time to arrive at a verdict on each of the 250-plus charges.”

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According to this report Gosnell has been placed into solitary confinement for his own protection. It seems some prisoners frown on his methods. From LifeNews 

“He is currently in solitary confinement pending the verdict and his expected sentencing. That’s because, according to one local reporter in Philadelphia, fellow prisoners don’t take his crimes of killing babies in infanticides too kindly.”

“Should Gosnell be convicted and face a prison term, he would likely remain in solitary or in a sensitive needs population for the duration of his time in prison term.”

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This next one is heartbreaking. It sounds like this woman regrets her decision to abort, and her selection of Gosnell to do it.

CONTENT WARNING!!!  because some of her child’s remains were among the trophies he kept in his office, and it’s hard to read.  From LifeSiteNews

“When 20-year-old Desiree Hawkins was contacted by a Drug Enforcement agent this year, she was completely unprepared for what she had to tell her: that the abortionist she had visited in 2009 for a traumatic abortion had kept the severed feet of her unborn baby in a jar in his clinic.”

“Hawkins was slated to testify in rebuttal against Gosnell during his recently concluded trial. But because Gosnell never took the stand, Hawkins never had the chance to tell the jury her story. But that doesn’t mean she is remaining silent.

In a video released this week by the creators of the documentary 3801 Lancaster, Desiree and her mother are sharing the details of Desiree’s nightmare experience at Gosnell’s clinic, and their repentance for their part they each played in the death of Desiree’s unborn child.”

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While the FDA may have approved over the counter sales of the morning after pill to girls as young as 15, the American College of Pediatricians continues to oppose the move. From LifeSiteNews

“The American College of Pediatricians continues to oppose the over-the-counter distribution of “emergency contraceptive” medication to children as recently mandated by the court and approved by the FDA.

The potency of these medications demands physician oversight, and equally important their over-the-counter availability circumvents parental involvement and may facilitate adolescent abuse. Health professionals need to encourage good parent-child communication, teach minors the benefits of delaying sexual activity until marriage, and teach them how to avoid situations resulting in coerced sex and premature/promiscuous consensual sex.

Increased access to “emergency contraception” (EC) does not result in lower pregnancy rates among adolescents and young adults, while it is associated with an increased incidence of sexually transmitted infections. Despite self-reports denying it, “ready access” to EC appears to increase adolescent sexual activity. Increased sexual activity is a known risk factor for depression, suicide, poor school performance, more lifetime sexual partners, and an increased divorce rate.”

The full statement from the ACP is here.

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Life Matters 4-25-13

Here’s a few stories you may find of interest.

The first is very encouraging. And once again, it’s adult stem cells which are showing promise. From USNews

“Scientists have discovered an antibody that can turn stem cells from a patient’s bone marrow directly into brain cells, a potential breakthrough in the treatment of neurological diseases and injuries.”

“Richard Lerner, of the Scripps Research Institute in California, says that when a specific antibody is injected into stem cells from bone marrow—which normally turn into white blood cells—the cells can be triggered to turn into brain cells.

“There’s been a lot of research activity where people would like to repair brain and spinal cord injuries,” Lerner says. “With this method, you can go to a person’s own stem cells and turn them into brain cells that can repair nerve injuries.”

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The judge in the Kermit Gosnell case has admitted he made an error, and has re-instated 1 of the dropped murder charges. From LifeNews

“Common pleas court Judge Jeffrey Minehart admitted he “erred” when dropping the murder charge for Baby C, who was killed in an abortion-infanticide when he was a victim of an attempted abortion but was born alive and tossed in a shoe box, with Gosnell staffers confirming they saw him breathing for 20 minutes.

Gosnell faces eight total murder counts — one for killing a woman in a botched abortion and seven for killing babies in abortion-infanticides that involved live-birth abortions and snipping their necks after birth. The judge received heavy criticism yesterday for dropping three of the murder charges.

Gosnell refused to testify, and the defense rested. From LifeNews

“Today, Gosnell’s co-defendant, Eileen O’Neill, an unlicensed doctor who worked at Gosnell’s Women’s Medical Society abortion clinic, decided not to testify for herself in her own defense against the charges she’s incurred.

As a result, the Gosnell defense has concluded without the embattled abortion doctor ever taking the stand and with Gosnell attorney Jack McMahon offering very little in his defense.

McMahon tersely announced, “Defense rests,” as the  jury was seated after lunch.”

Fox News will air a one hour special on the case at 9 p.m. on Sunday, May 5th.

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The NY state GOP has vowed to block any of Gov. Cuomo’s abortion expansion attempts. From LifeSiteNews

““Expansion of late-term abortion is extreme, in my opinion. It’s not progressive, it’s extreme,” Senator Dean Skelos told the Associated Press.

In his State of the State address in January, Cuomo threw his support behind a sweeping abortion expansion bill that would lift restrictions on third-trimester abortions, allowed non-doctors to perform the procedure, and enshrine a fundamental right to “terminate a pregnancy” in New York state law.  The New York Catholic Conference warned that if the bill were to pass, the state’s Catholic hospitals could be forced to shut down.

The governor has since backpedaled.  His staffers now insist he only wants to preserve the status quo on abortion in New York.  But details of Cuomo’s abortion proposal have not been forthcoming, even as the governor has tried to broker a deal.

Given NY’s horrible abortion numbers, anything that tries to increase it is worth fighting against.

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News/Politics 4-24-13

What’s interesting out there today?

Open Thread, as always.

Me…. I’m beating that horse again. From Boston.com

“Russian authorities alerted the FBI not once but “multiple’’ times over their  concerns about Tamerlan Tsarnaev — including a second time nearly a year after he was first interviewed by FBI agents in Boston — raising new questions about whether the FBI should have focused more attention on the suspected Boston Marathon bomber, according to US senators briefed on the probe Tuesday.”

More on the mosque they attended here. From USAToday

“The mosque attended by the two brothers accused in the Boston Marathon bombing has been associated with other terrorist suspects, has invited radical speakers to a sister mosque in Boston and is affiliated with a Muslim group that critics say nurses grievances that can lead to extremism.

Several people who attended the Islamic Society of Boston mosque in Cambridge, Mass., have been investigated for Islamic terrorism, including a conviction of the mosque’s first president, Abdulrahman Alamoudi, in connection with an assassination plot against a Saudi prince.”

Check out the link. This place has a long list of radicals that have spoken there. And many of them have also been investigated for terrorism ties.

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The Ricin letters suspect has been released. From NBCNews

“Charges were dropped Tuesday against the Mississippi man suspected of mailing ricin-laced letters to President Obama and other public officials — as authorities searched the home of another man hoping to find clues in the expanding investigation.

“I respect President Obama and love my country. I would never do anything to pose a threat to him or any other U.S. official,” Paul Kevin Curtis said at a news conference Tuesday.”

More from FoxNews

“The Mississippi man charged with sending ricin-laced letters to President Obama  was released on bond Tuesday, as the FBI searched the Mississippi home of a  possible second suspect amid an apparent probe into whether the first suspect  might have been framed. ”

“Shortly afterward, FBI searched the home of a possible second suspect. The FBI  zeroed in on this individual earlier in the day, a source told Fox News.”

More on another possible Ricin attack, from  WaPo 

“Federal authorities are investigating another potential ricin attack at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling in Southeast Washington, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said Tuesday.”

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Some pretty disturbing details are emerging in the Texas plant explosion. If true, arrests and prosecutions need to happen. From TheNYPost

“The fertilizer plant that exploded and wiped out much of a small Texas town last week once stored 1,350 times the amount of ammonium nitrate that typically triggers federal safety oversight, officials said.

Yet a person familiar with Department of Homeland Security operations said the company that owns the plant, West Fertilizer, failed to tell the agency about the potentially explosive fertilizer it stored last year, as required.”

Much more here from HuffPo/Reuters

“Fertilizer plants and depots must report to the DHS when  they hold 400 lb (180 kg) or more of the substance. Filings this  year with the Texas Department of State Health Services, which  weren’t shared with DHS, show the plant had 270 tons of it on  hand last year.

A U.S. congressman and several safety experts called into  question on Friday whether incomplete disclosure or regulatory  gridlock may have contributed to the disaster.

“It seems this manufacturer was willfully off the grid,”  Rep. Bennie Thompson, (D-MS), ranking member of the House  Committee on Homeland Security, said in a statement. “This  facility was known to have chemicals well above the threshold  amount to be regulated under the Chemical Facility  Anti-Terrorism Standards Act (CFATS), yet we understand that DHS  did not even know the plant existed until it blew up.””

With a Hat Tip to HRW

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Several charges against Kermit Gosnell have been dropped by the judge. From LifeSiteNews

“A federal judge has dropped nine charges – including three murder charges and one count of infanticide – against Philadelphia abortionist Kermit Gosnell, as his trial resumed this morning.

Local media report the judge has determined Gosnell will not face three counts of murder, one count of infanticide, and five counts of abuse of a corpse. The latter charges related to Gosnell’s keeping the severed feet of aborted babies in jars in his clinic.

Gosnell still faces the remaining four charges of first degree murder in the deaths of newborn babies, and an additional charge of third degree murder over the death of one of his abortion clients.”

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“What difference does it make?”

Well now we know why she wasn’t concerned with the truth getting out and was reluctant to answer questions. It was to protect herself and the White House. The House has issued it’s Benghazi report, which blames Hillary Clinton. From TheWashingtonExaminer

“A critical report drafted by five GOP-led House committees has determined that reduced security at the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi in the days leading up to the Sept. 11, 2012, attack was approved by then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

The report also found that White House and high-ranking officials at the State Department changed CIA talking points following the attacks, which killed Ambassador Chris Stevens and three others, in order to shield the State Department from “criticism for inadequate security levels” on the ground in Benghazi.

The 46-page report provides a timeline of events leading up to the attacks in Benghazi and investigation that followed.”

A larger view of the report can be viewed here at Scribd.com

And it also appears that like her husband, she has lied under oath. From TheWashingtonExaminer

“House Republicans released their report on the investigation into the Benghazi terrorist attack, having concluded that then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was not telling the truth when she told Congress that she wasn’t aware that officials at the U.S. mission in Benghazi had requested extra security.

“The specific security requests pertaining to Benghazi, you know were handled by the security professionals in the department,” Clinton told Congress in January. “I didn’t see those requests, they didn’t come to me, I didn’t approve them, I didn’t deny them.”

The House report suggests that Clinton received a request for more security from Gene Cretz, who preceded Christopher Stevens as ambassador to Libya.

Not only did she receive and see the request, her signature was on the response cable which denied the request.

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Democrats have been insisting the last few days that we need to pass the immigration/amnesty bill to protect against terrorism. It would do nothing of the sort. It’s what it really does that they are in a hurry to get done. From Politico

“The immigration proposal pending in Congress would transform the nation’s  political landscape for a generation or more — pumping as many as 11 million new  Hispanic voters into the electorate a decade from now in ways that, if current  trends hold, would produce an electoral bonanza for Democrats and cripple  Republican prospects in many states they now win easily.

Beneath the philosophical debates about amnesty and border security, there  are brass-tacks partisan calculations driving the thinking of lawmakers in both  parties over comprehensive immigration reform, which in its current form offers  a pathway to citizenship — and full voting rights — for a group of undocumented  residents that roughly equals the population of Ohio, the nation’s  seventh-largest state.”

“If these people had been on the voting rolls in 2012 and voted along the same  lines as other Hispanic voters did last fall, President Barack Obama’s  relatively narrow victory last fall would have been considerably wider, a  POLITICO analysis showed.”

THIS is the goal. It always has been.

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Life Matters 4-18-13

The more details that come out in the Gosnell case, the worse it gets. It seems he’s been harming women for a lot longer than was previously known.

From LifeNews with a CONTENT WARNING!!!

“More revelations are coming to light about the gruesome abortion business Kermit Gosnell ran where he killed a woman in an abortion and killed babies in grisly abortion-infanticides and kept their bodies as trophies.

But new information is also coming to light about the abortion practice Gosnell ran for decades — including in the 1970s when he injured several women in a odd experiment on women using a new abortion method. Whether Gosnell obtained the consent of women to engage in this experiment is unknown but multiple women were injured as a result.”

“It was called the Mother’s Day Massacre. A young Philadelphia doctor “offered to perform abortions on 15 poor women who were bused to his clinic from Chicago on Mother’s Day 1972, in their second trimester of pregnancy.” The women didn’t know that the doctor “planned to use an experimental device called a ‘super coil’ developed by a California man named Harvey Karman.””

“Nine of the 15 Chicago women suffered serious complications. One of them needed a hysterectomy. The following year, the Supreme Court decided Roe v. Wade. It would be 37 more years before the Philadelphia doctor who carried out the Mother’s Day Massacre would go out of business. His name is Kermit Gosnell.”

Not surprisingly, Planned Parenthood seems to have been involved as well. And again, CONTENT WARNING!!!

“In 1972, International Planned Parenthood Federation was one of two groups partnering with the country of Bangladesh to bring Dr. Harvey Karman (pictured right) and a small team of “abortion experts,” which included two IPPF doctors, to the newly formed country to commit abortions and train native doctors and paramedics how to commit them.

Abortion was Karman’s “consuming passion,” according to Salon, which acknowledged Karman wasn’t really any sort of doctor whatsoever but had simply “added a Ph.D. to his name, though his degree came from a dubious Swiss diploma mill.”

Karman was, in fact, a convicted felon, having served 2-1/2 years in prison – until pardoned by then Gov. Jerry Brown – for killing a mother in 1955 while attempting to illegally abort her in a hotel room with a nutcracker.”

This is the same “new method” Gosnell used.

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President Obama has finely acknowledged the Gosnell trial. But as expected, it sounds like another “present” vote on the subject by Obama. I guess it’s still above his pay grade.

From Politico

“In the interview, he noted that he was “familiar” with the trial of Gosnell,  which has sparked outrage from some on both sides of the political spectrum, as  many on the right — and some on the left — have charged that the mainstream  media has not sufficiently covered the case, which involves gruesome allegations  including of murder. Obama said he couldn’t comment, however.

“Well, I’m familiar with it. I can’t comment on it because it’s an active trial,” he said.”

Talk about a cop-out. Funny, he wasn’t worried about things like that in the Trayvon Martin case, or the “Beer Summit” fiasco. It’s just cowardly.

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And a college professor at the University of Buffalo has been arrested for profanely ranting at pro-lifers for exposing the truth about abortion.

From FoxNews with a CONTENT WARNING!!! because the “educator” has a foul mouth.

“A University of Buffalo professor was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct after she launched into a profanity-laced tirade directed towards a group of pro-life students.”

““I can swear in public because that is profane,” she said referring to the display. “That image is swearing to me. That is profane to me.””

“Kristan Hawkins, the president of Students For Life of America, said pro-life students are typically singled out for attacks on campus.

“As we’ve seen again and again, a pro-abortion supporter couldn’t handle the ugly truth of abortion and lashed out,” Hawkins told Fox News. “She had to resort to yelling and using profane language with police officers.”

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And in another show of the intolerance pro-lifers must endure on college campuses, we have this story.

From LifeNews

“Abortion advocates apparently vandalized a pro-life cross display at Slippery Rock University in Pennsylvania.

When pro-life groups set up such memorials to remember the number of babies who have been victimized by abortions, they frequently become targets of vandalism by students who are apparently in favor of abortion but too closed-minded to be tolerant of the pro-life message.

Campus Reform has more information on what happened:

Photos of the incident show dozens of crosses flung about the area with a few turned upside down and a pro-choice banner stuck into the ground around the destroyed display.”

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News/Politics 4-17-13

What’s interesting in the news today?

UPDATE

An arrest has/will/might, or may not be happening now. Confused? Me too.

From WeaselZippers

“BREAKING: ARREST IN BOSTON BOMBING IMMINENT OR ALREADY TAKING PLACE – UPDATE: SUSPECT ARRESTED – UPDATE: NBC SAYS NO ARREST – UPDATE: FOX NEWS CONFIRMS ARREST MADE – UPDATE: AP CONFIRMS – UPDATE: CELL PHONE RECORDS LED TO ARREST…”

The press conference which should hopefully provide some answers has been pushed back to 5:00PM EST

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Police say the Saudi man considered a “person of interest” in the Boston bombing is not a suspect.

From TheCable

“Director of National Intelligence James Clapper briefed members of the Senate Intelligence Committee behind closed doors in a pre-scheduled hearing that was supposed to focus on the budget, but Clapper began with an update of the bombings. Ranking Republican Saxby Chambliss (R-GA) emerged from the briefing and said he was told the 22-year old Saudi student who was injured during the bombings and remains in the care of a local hospital was no longer a focus of investigators.

“He was never categorized as a suspect; he was a person of interest. My understanding is that he totally cooperated and that he is no longer a person of interest,” Chambliss said.

Asked if there were any other persons of interest at this time, Chambliss said, “Not that I know of.””

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And we have more examples of people rising to the occasion, and helping where they could.

From TheTelegraphUK

“Out of the horror of the Boston marathon bombings, there emerged uplifting examples of human kindness as the city’s residents did all they could to help those caught up in the attack.”

“So many of the runners continued to run across the finishing line and onwards to the Massachusetts General Hospital, in a rush to give blood, that they had to be turned away.”

“A retired American Football star, Joe Andruzzi, who won the Superbowl three times with the New England Patriots, carried victims away from the carnage. All three of his brothers were firemen in New York who responded to the September 11 attacks on the Twin Towers.”

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Congress has responded to the Boston bombing. And of course some Dems go with the same old play book. Don’t let a crisis go to waste. And blame the Sequester.

From Politico

“With the Boston Marathon bombings less than 24 hours old, some on Capitol Hill  are beginning to say the attack shows why Congress should’ve stopped automatic  spending cuts from taking hold in March.”

“Hoyer added: “I think there are multiple reasons for ensuring that we invest in  our security both domestic and international security. That we invest in the  education of our children, that we invest in growing jobs in America and don’t  pursue any irrational policy of cutting the highest priorities and the lowest  priorities by essentially the same percentage.””

“Rep. Xavier Becerra of California, the chairman of the House Democratic  Caucus, said that the first responders working Monday aren’t sheltered from cuts.

“We have to send you less money to help your first responders,” Becerra  said.”

Barney Frank, and numerous hacks pretending to be journalists have joined in on this meme as well. But don’t be fooled by the drama. There is plenty of money for needed things like this. However Homeland Security would rather waste it, many times on things that have nothing to do with their mission. Just as a reminder, they waste it on things like this.

Millions squandered at Homeland over the past decade.

DHS Counterterror Centers Produce ‘a Bunch of Crap,’ Senate Finds

Zombie Apocalypse Training

$98,000 for an underwater robot in Columbus, Ohio, where there are no major  rivers and few lakes nearby.

1.6 billion rounds of ammo.

50 million for new uniforms

And 2,700 new armored vehicles for patrolling American cities

They don’t have a revenue problem, they have a wasteful spending problem. They’ve wasted tons of money. But if Dems want to complain about Homeland budget cuts…..

Then I guess this should be pointed out since those in Congress and the press pushing this meme won’t mention it, since it doesn’t fit in the story they wanna tell.

From TheDailyMail

“Obama administration has SLASHED budget for domestic bombing prevention by 45 per cent, says former Homeland Security Assistant Secretary

  • $20 million  budget under Bush became $11 million under Obama
  • Both  administrations neglected domestic bombing prevention, devoting a tiny fraction  of the $1 billion earmarked for IED prevention overseas
  • Obama  issued a lengthy ‘National Policy for Countering Improvised Explosive Devices’  in February but a spokesman won’t say if it failed.”

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More horrible details from the Gosnell case.

So a CONTENT WARNING!!! for this one.

From CNSNews

“Gosnell did these very late-term abortions at his clinic in West  Philadelphia assisted only by his wife, Pearl Gosnell, on the one day  the clinic was closed, Sunday. Other clinic workers were not allowed to  assist in these abortions and it is believed that many of the medical  records of these procedures may have been destroyed, according to the  grand jury report.

The grand jury report was released in January 2011. As it states,  “This report documents multiple murders of viable babies. The evidence  makes a compelling case that many others were also murdered. … It was  Gosnell’s standard business practice to slay viable babies.”

“Gosnell made little effort to hide his illegal abortion practice,” reads the report.   “But there were some, ‘the really big ones,’ that even he was afraid to  perform in front of others. These abortions were scheduled for Sundays, a  day when the clinic was closed and none of the regular employees were  present. Only one person was allowed to assist with these special cases –  Gosnell’s wife.””

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“Why Evangelicals Back Obama on Immigration (and Why They Should Agree on Guns and Climate Change, Too)”

From NationalJournal

“The most important milestone on immigration reform this weekend was not “The Full Marco” – Sen. Marco Rubio’s seven-show Sunday blitz. It was a story in The New York Times documenting a shift by evangelical Christians toward easing immigration laws.

Julia Preston reported:

“The shift among evangelical Christians could have a powerful effect on the fight in Washington, as Republican lawmakers, including many who have opposed any amnesty for illegal immigrants, look to see how much they can support measures to bring those immigrants into the legal system without alienating conservative voters.”

“Evangelical leaders, seeing the opportunity to expand their influence on a social issue beyond abortion and same-sex marriage, have broadly united this year behind a path to citizenship for immigrants in the country illegally. They are conducting an ambitious push to sway Congress, including ad campaigns on Christian radio stations in five states, meetings with lawmakers, and a challenge to churchgoers to pray every day for 40 days using Bible passages that speak of welcoming the stranger.” ”

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And remember, vote fraud is a myth.

From Cincinnati.com

“Marguerite Kloos walked into court Tuesday as a nun who devoted her life to her religion. When she walked out, she was a convicted felon who escaped a prison term.

Kloos, 54, of Delhi Township, pleaded guilty to illegal voting, admitting to filling out and filing an absentee ballot for Sister Rose Marie Hewitt, Kloos’ friend who died before last November’s election.”

“Hers was one of three cases Hamilton County decided – so far – to prosecute from last fall’s elections.”

Nothin’ to see here folks. Move along.

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News/Politics 4-15-13

What’s interesting in the news today?

We’ll start with some good news this morning.

First, President Obama on Thursday recognized the Rev. Emil Kapaun with the Medal of Honor. It’s quite a story.

From the NYPost

“America traditionally bestows the Medal of Honor on those who display uncommon valor on the battlefield. But sometimes heroism doesn’t use a weapon.”

“Kapaun’s is a story of self-sacrifice so noble that surviving vets still speak of him with awe — and the Vatican is considering making him a saint.

At the moment of capture, as one soldier lay helpless with a broken ankle at the point of a gun, Father Kapaun pushed the rifle aside and lifted the wounded American up, carrying him 80 miles through what became known as the Tiger Death March.”

“In captivity, he gave away his own rations and stole grain to feed others, picked lice off men too weak to do so themselves, traded his watch for a blanket — which he cut up to make socks for those whose feet were freezing — and defied his Communist captors by saying Mass on Easter. Even before capture, he’d been awarded a Bronze Star for running through enemy fire to drag wounded soldiers to safety. He succumbed to the effects of starvation and neglect in 1951 at age 35.”

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I can’t help but think the media fears giving the Gosnell case the coverage it deserves. They know what it will do to public opinion on the matter. That’s important given the number of states advancing abortion restrictions. But it’s getting harder to ignore thankfully.

And it’s nice to see a “mainstream” show finally get it, but it’s on Twitter, not on the Nightline show.

From HotAir

“Gosnell might be the worst serial killer in history, says … “Nightline” anchor”

“Before you ask, searching ABCNews.com’s archives reveals multiple pieces on the Gosnell trial over the past month — all from the Associated Press wire. There’s no original content from ABC News itself unless I missed something. There is original content that mentions Gosnell dated from late January. It’s a story about … threats to late-term abortionists and how they’re not all monsters like that terrible man in Pennsylvania. So yes, they’ll mention him, as long as they can somehow spin what he did in service to The Cause. Of course.

And yes, they know about the case. And they’ll acknowledge it in lower-profile formats:”

Like Twitter.

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Some of the Newtown parents have lobbyists, complete with handlers? Now who do you suppose set all this up?

From Politico

“When a lobbyist for families of Newtown shooting victims called the office of  Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) to set up a meeting, the first response was a  standard D.C. offer. They could get a meeting with her staff, and Collins would  stop by, they were told.

The families’ answer: not good enough. According to their lobbyists, the  families have a rule against staff-only meetings: They won’t do them. They  insist on sitting down with the senators themselves. The families wound up  getting more than 15 minutes with Collins.

That rule is just one of the ways that the Newtown families, political novices  just a few months ago, are proving to be savvy, effective advocates as they  promote the gun legislation that has finally begun to move through the Senate.  The families are well-educated, and many are well-off. They have been polished  and sharp on TV. They’re mostly non-political, but quite accomplished in their  own fields. With access to money and media, they’re using persistence,  visibility — and, most all, their unique moral authority — to help prod Senate  action. They also have their own lobbyists — several of them, in fact.”

Grassroots activism from the parents, or orchestrated and scripted astroturf from the White House?

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Business interests are not happy about the details leaked about the Immigration/Amnesty Bill. Funny, they didn’t seem concerned about reforms, or supporting them, while contributing to the problem by employing people at sub-standard wages and encouraging illegal immigration. They’ve discovered this will cost them money.

From Politico

“The business community has long supported the idea of immigration reform — particularly the high-tech sector and the construction industry, which badly  need the workers.

What they don’t support are some of the specifics leaking out on a new  immigration reform proposal expected Tuesday from the Gang of Eight.

Now, companies and trade groups — that have been pressuring the key Senate  negotiators — are preparing to unleash their lobbying forces broadly on Capitol  Hill in hopes of securing changes to the package.

And that could spell trouble for the bill since any significant change to even a  single element could scuttle the delicately reached bargain, leaving final  passage of a comprehensive immigration reform bill in serious jeopardy.”

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How 1960s Radicals Ended Up Teaching Your Kids.

From TheDailyBeast

“Last week, Rutgers University fired its mercurial basketball coach after he was videotaped “shoving, grabbing and throwing balls at players in practice and using gay slurs,” according to ESPN. Under pressure from school administrators, Rutgers’ athletic director, who had previously defended the coach’s behavior, resigned. It was an appropriate response: violent oafs should be fired from their university jobs for violent, oafish behavior.

On the same day ESPN broadcast the Rutgers tape, The New York Post reported that Kathy Boudin, a professor at Columbia University, was named the 2013 Sheinberg Scholar-in-Residence at NYU Law School. In 1984, Boudin, a member of the Weather Underground, a violent, oafish association of upper-class “revolutionaries,” pled guilty to second-degree murder in association with the infamous 1981 Brinks armored car robbery in Nyack, New York. Babbling in the language of anti-racism and anti-imperialism, Boudin assisted in ending the life of three people, including Waverly Brown, the first black police officer on the Nyack police force, and left nine children fatherless. She was sentenced to 20 years to life in prison. In 2003, Boudin was released; by 2008 she had landed a coveted teaching position at an Ivy League university.

Indeed, Boudin’s Columbia University biography doesn’t mention her violent past, describing her simply as “an educator and counselor with experience in program development since 1964, working within communities with limited resources to solve social problems.” Neither does an official NYU press release announcing her new gig, instead explaining that Boudin “has been dedicated to community involvement in social change since the 1960’s.” Well, that’s one way of putting it. (Boudin didn’t respond to an interview request.)

Kick a student on the basketball court and you’ll lose your university job. Spend two decades in prison on radical chic murder rap and you’ll get one.”

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And last, some questionable tactics in Nevada being used on the mentally ill.

From TheSacramentoBee

“Since July 2008, Rawson-Neal Psychiatric Hospital in Las Vegas has transported more than 1,500 patients to other cities via Greyhound bus, sending at least one person to every state in the continental United States, according to a Bee review of bus receipts kept by Nevada’s mental health division.”

“Nevada’s approach to dispatching mentally ill patients has come under scrutiny since one of its clients turned up suicidal and confused at a Sacramento homeless services complex. James Flavy Coy Brown, who is 48 and suffers from a variety of mood disorders including schizophrenia, was discharged in February from Rawson-Neal to a Greyhound bus for Sacramento, a place he had never visited and where he knew no one.

The hospital sent him on the 15-hour bus ride without making arrangements for his treatment or housing in California; he arrived in Sacramento out of medication and without identification or access to his Social Security payments. He wound up in the UC Davis Medical Center’s emergency room, where he lingered for three days until social workers were able to find him temporary housing.

Nevada mental health officials have acknowledged making mistakes in Brown’s case, but have made no apologies for their policy of busing patients out of state. Las Vegas is an international destination and patients who become ill while in the city have a right to return home if they desire, the state’s health officer, Dr. Tracey Green, told Nevada lawmakers during a hearing last month.”

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News/Politics 4-13-13

What’s interesting in the news today?

The media continues to sandbag the Gosnell story. Here’s a rather pathetic attempt to explain why.

From Patheos

“Then I decided, since tmatt has me reading the Washington Post every day, to look at how the paper’s health policy reporter was covering Gosnell. I have critiqued many of her stories on the Susan G. Komen Foundation (she wrote quite a bit about that) and the Sandra Fluke controversy (she wrote quite a bit about that) and the Todd Akin controversy (you know where this is going). In fact, a site search for that reporter — who is named Sarah Kliff — and stories Akin and Fluke and Komen — yields more than 80 hits. Guess how many stories she’s done on this abortionist’s mass murder trial.

Did you guess zero? You’d be right. So I asked her about it. Here’s her response:

Hi Molly – I cover policy for the Washington Post, not local crime, hence why I wrote about all the policy issues you mention.”

“But gosh darn it, can you think of any policy implications to this, uh, “local crime” story? And that’s all it is. Just like a bunch of other local stories the Washington Post also refuses to cover — local crimes such as the killing of Trayvon Martin and the killing of Matthew Shepard and the killing of students at an elementary school in Connecticut. Did the Washington Post even think of covering those local crime stories? No! Oh wait, they did? Like, all the time? Hmm. That’s weird. But did they cover them in terms of policy implications? Asking politicians for their views and such? Oh they did that, too? Hmm. So weird. Oh, and Sarah Kliff herself wrote one of those stories? Well, gosh, I’m so confused.”

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Meanwhile MSNBC continues to ignore the story as well. But they did take the time to investigate if the GOP is too pro-life.

From Mediaite

“As examples of self-parody go, you can’t do much better than this. As the story of Philadelphia “house of horrors” abortion doctor Kermit Gosnell explodes on the internet and makes its way gradually onto the radars of the nation’s newsroom editors, questions have arisen about why this sensational story never received the wall-to-wall treatment it appears to merit. From conservatives and liberals alike, the universal horror that the Gosnell story has inspired is palpable. But some have suggested that the story is politically inconvenient for absolutist pro-choice activists. It simply does not fit the narrative, some say, which the media has come accustomed to reporting. A rather textbook example of this narrative stewarding came today via MSNBC. The network has not yet reported on Gosnell’s infanticide factory, but they took some time out of their busy programming day today to ask a panel of political professionals if the Republican Party’s base voters are simply too culturally conservative – and too pro-life – for the party’s leadership and the general electorate.”

“UPDATE: Lest you think that this was simply an oversight by Todd’s program, MSNBC’s straight news anchor Thomas Roberts and panel guests dug into a new NBC poll which shows that more people feel that restrictions on abortion rights are appropriate. One would think that the Gosnell case would dovetail well with this segment. One would think…”

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But as was noted in the story above, it is getting out. Not at NBC, CBS, CNN, ABC, WaPo, NYTimes, LATimes, Politico and others, but from less biased sources. And even on the floor of the House.

From TheWashingtonTimes

“Reflecting mounting frustration over the lack of press coverage of inner-city Philadelphia abortion doctor Kermit Gosnell’s murder trial, a group of pro-life House members took to the floor to denounce what they call a “national media cover-up” of the sensational case.

“Again, I ask my colleagues and I ask the news media, ‘Why the blackout?’” said Rep. Christopher H. Smith, New Jersey Republican. “Will America ever be told of the brutality of abortion?”

The congressional outcry is the latest effort to draw attention to the gruesome courtroom drama unfolding in Philadelphia, where Dr.  Gosnell stands accused of committing eight murders  including seven live  babies born after botched abortions  at the Women’s  Medical Society.

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And I must say, Rep. Smith pulled no punches. See for yourself.

“If Dr. Gosnell had walked into a nursery and shot seven infants with an AR-15, it would be national news and the subject of presidential hand-wringing.”

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Meanwhile the President continues to exploit the Newtown tragedy, and use the families as props to push his agenda. Here’s the latest display.

From Reuters

“President Barack Obama has asked a mother whose 6-year-old son was killed in the Newtown, Connecticut massacre to deliver his weekly radio address, an unusual move expected to turn up the pressure on Congress to pass tougher gun control laws.”

And just like the victims of Hurricane Sandy, they’ll be cast aside and ignored once the photo ops are over and they’re no longer useful.

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They’re just going completely over the top with this nonsense. Now you have law enforcement and an Obama supporting prosecutor targeting soldiers outside Ft. Hood.

From TheDailyCaller

“The conflict between law enforcement and armed military personnel in the community around Fort Hood, one of America’s largest military bases, has recently and repeatedly involved the issue of gun control — and the tension has been exacerbated in part by an Obama-supporting prosecutor described as a “bandleader” of anti-gun efforts in the heavily conservative community.”

The conflict reached a fever pitch last month, when Texas police arrested an  active-duty Army sergeant for “rudely displaying” a hunting rifle. The sergeant,  C.J. Grisham, established an online legal defense fund after he was, in  his words, “illegally arrested and disarmed” for carrying the firearm.”

“Video of the incident obtained by The Daily Caller shows officers defending their behavior to Grisham while restraining him.

“In this day and age, [people] are alarmed when they see someone with what you have,” one of the officers tells Grisham in the video. “They don’t care what the law is.””

But you as a police officer should.

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While the police are busy harassing law-abiding citizens/soldiers, the illegals continue to break actual laws. But these actual laws aren’t enforced like the non-existent law above.

From WOAIRadio

“Officials say the number of people entering  the U.S. illegally is way up and, tragically, the number of undocumented  immigrants who have been found dead in the unforgiving Texas Brush Country is  way up, and is on path this year to beat last year’s record for the number of  people found dead in the ranch country.

Linda Vickers, who owns a ranch in  Brooks County, which is Ground Zero for the immigration debate, pins the blame  directly on talk of ‘amnesty’ and a ‘path to citizenship’ for people who entered  the U.S. illegally.”

“”The Border Patrol agent was loading one man up, and he told the officer in Spanish, ‘Obama’s gonna let me go’.” Border Patrol agents report that immigrants are crossing the border, and in some  cases surrendering while asking, “Where do I go for my amnesty?””

“She says the current increase in illegal  immigrant entries began last summer, at almost exactly the same time as President Obama unilaterally announced plans to no longer deport young people  who came to the U.S. as children with their illegal immigrant parents.”

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Life Matters 4-11-13

The Arkansas Senate has voted to defund Planned Parenthood in that state. Other abortion providers face the same restrictions.

From TheChristianPost

“Members of the Arkansas Senate voted Tuesday to defund Planned  Parenthood and other abortion providers that receive federal and state grants to  fund sex education programs.

Senate Bill 818 was introduced by Rep. Gary  Stubblefield (R-Branch), who aims to end the subsidization of Planned Parenthood  and other abortion providers that receive federal and state tax dollars to fund  their sex education programs, because it violates the state’s constitution.

Amendment 68 of the Arkansas constitution states that: “No public funds will  be used to pay for any abortion, except to save the mother’s life.””

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That’s probably a wise choice considering the allegations of fraud coming out about Planned Parenthood and other groups.

From LifeNews

“Alliance Defending Freedom made public its latest report to Congress Wednesday identifying waste, abuse, and potential fraud by Planned Parenthood, state family planning programs, and other organizations. The report updates the original Alliance Defending Freedom report submitted in October 2011 and urges Congress to continue its investigation into the misuse of taxpayer dollars.”

“The report details the 12 known audits or other reviews of Planned Parenthood affiliates’ financial data and practices as well as 45 audits of state family planning programs and one audit of a family planning organization. The audits found a total of more than $108 million in waste, abuse, and potential fraud.

The report also identifies 12 types of potential fraud being committed by Planned Parenthood affiliates nationwide. The potential fraud includes billing and being reimbursed by Title XIX agencies for medications and/or services provided in connection with an abortion, which is illegal under federal law.”

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A Planned Parenthood in Delaware is being accused operating with unsafe and unsanitary conditions.

From ABCPhiladelphia

“A series of emergency calls made from the Planned Parenthood of Delaware this year are raising concerns about what’s happening behind the closed doors.

Two former nurses who both quit are speaking exclusively with Action News about what they saw inside.”

“Another former employee, Joyce Vasikonis told Action News, “They were using instruments on patients that were not sterile.”

The former nurses claim that a rush to get patients in and out left operating tables soiled and unclean.”

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I told you last week about the Planned Parenthood lobbyist who defended infanticide. It turns out she has other clients who might, or should, see a conflict with employing this woman’s company. It seems she hides her Planned Parenthood lobbying work on her website. It’s not difficult to see why. Turns out she also served on the  board of Catholic Charities of NW Florida until January, and her partner worked for Jeb Bush. Talk about playing both sides against the middle.

From LifeSiteNews

“Alisa LaPolt Snow, the Planned Parenthood lobbyist, has an unusual client roster for someone who has publicly defended infanticide. Many of her clients are health care providers who care for suffering infants with lingering illnesses.

According to National Institute on Money in State Politics, her firm, Snow Strategies, has represented a host of clients who try to save babies’ lives.”

“The website records that LaPolt Snow’s services have been retained by the Alliance for Pediatric Therapies, Brightstart Pediatrics, Pediatria: Health Care for Kids, Caring Hearts, and Cradling Hands PPEC Care, among others.”

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The Kermit Gosnell murder trial continues. The details are really bad.  I cannot stress this enough, if you are easily upset by things like this then skip the link please.

CONTENT WARNING!!!!

And of course the media blackout of the trial continues as well, despite complaints from conservative leaders. 

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by

News/Politics 4-10-13

What’s interesting in the news today?

First, the self-imposed media blackout of the Kermit Gosnell trial continues. From TheWashingtonTimes

“The trial details are nothing short of sensational: A doctor accused of  killing seven newborns and a young woman at a filthy Philadelphia clinic strewn  with body parts and described as a “slaughterhouse.”

It’s big news in Philadelphia, but nationally, not so much. The lack of  coverage is a problem for a growing chorus of conservative and media critics,  who allege that the scant national media attention can be attributed not to the  courtroom drama but the politics of abortion.”

“MRC also reports that there has been no network coverage on ABC, CBS, NBC, MSNBC, NPR or PBS, and just one brief mention on CNN.”

“Forbes columnist Mike Ozanian said that the  controversy surrounding Rutgers  University basketball coach Mike Rice, who  was shown on video abusing players and using vulgar language during practice,  had received far more national attention than the Gosnell  trial.”

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Next, a question. Educating or indoctrinating? From FoxNewsRadio

“Boibeaux’s son is an eighth grader at Northeast Middle School. On Monday his social studies teacher gave students a worksheet titled, ‘The Second Amendment Today.’

“The courts have consistently determined that the Second Amendment does not ensure each individual the right to bear arms,” the worksheet states. “The courts have never found a law regulating the private ownership of weapons unconstitutional.

The worksheet, published by Instructional Fair, goes on to say that the Second Amendment is not incorporated against the states.

“This means that the rights of this amendment are not extended to the individual citizens of the states,” the worksheet reads. “So a person has no right to complain about a Second Amendment violation by state laws.”

According to the document, the Second Amendment “only provides the right of a state to keep an armed National Guard.”

Wow. Lies and misinformation sold as education.

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And we have another as well. This one’s not just for indoctrinating, it’s also got personal benefit for the “educator”. From CampusReform

“A professor at a public university in Texas is under investigation from school administrators for allegedly forcing students in her graphic design class to create anti-gun posters for a personal anti-gun campaign she had launched.

Midwestern State University Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Betty Stewart confirmed to Campus Reform Friday the school has launched an investigation into professor Jennifer Yucus’ conduct after a student filed an official complaint on Thursday.

According to the complaint, obtained by Campus Reform, the professor compelled students in her graphic design class to create artwork opposing firearms on campus and opposing pro-gun legislation currently pending before the Texas state legislature.

The professor then used the artwork students created online to publicize an anti-gun petition entitled “MSU is anti-Concealed Carry on Campus” and on a now deleted Facebook page opposing firearms, says the complaint.

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Meanwhile, 15,000 people whose opinion should matter in the gun debate have responded to the proposed gun legislation. From DirectorBlue

“A March 2013 survey of 15,000 police officers covering proposed gun control legislation and attitudes about concealed carry laws had some surprising results:

The survey, which was conducted in early March 2013, received 15,000 responses from law enforcement professionals. It found that the overall attitude of law enforcement is strongly anti-gun legislation and pro-gun rights, with the belief that an armed citizenry is effective in stopping crime. Response percentages varied only slightly when analyzed by rank and department size. Among the results:

• 86 percent feel the currently proposed legislation would have no effect or a negative effect on improving officer safety

• Similarly, 92 percent feel that banning semi-automatic firearms, or “assault weapons,” would have no effect or a negative effect on reducing violent crime.

And 91% support concealed carry among non-felons. Now you know why Obama only uses the police for props, and doesn’t ask them to speak at his anti-gun events.

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The First Lady, who has no clue on such matters, takes her husband’s gun control show to the murder capital of the US. Yes, Chicago, the town her husband helped make what it is today with his failed democrat policies. From TheWashingtonTimes

“First Lady Michelle Obama will take the White House’s legislative  push for  gun control to her  hometown of Chicago Wednesday where she  will address a  luncheon on youth violence.

Mrs. Obama’s remarks will focus on urging Chicago business leaders to  invest  in opportunities for youth across Chicago’s neighborhoods.”

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Our govt continues it’s not so thrifty, actually mostly wasteful spending.

From HotAir

“Those $85 billion in sequester cuts over which the Obama administration has been trying their darndest to whip everyone into a national freakout, insisting that employees will need to be furloughed, air traffic control towers are going to be shut down, and the White House can’t afford historical tours? Practically peanuts compared to the amount of money the federal government drops on redundant and wasteful spending according to the third annual installment of a Government Accountability Office report, says Sen. Tom Coburn:

These are among the findings in a new Government Accountability Office report that found 162 areas where services are duplicated or money is being wasted in the federal government. The annual cost of duplicative or wasteful programs is estimated at roughly $250 billion, according to fiscal hawk Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla. …

“That’s 250 billion dollars a year, that’s three times what the sequester was,” Coburn said. “Just in waste, in duplication, in stupidity, and lack of efficiency and effectiveness by the federal government. (It) makes you want to pull your hair out.” …

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Since we’re on the subject of how taxpayer money is spent/wasted……..

Sequester? Sure. The Blue Angels are the next symbolic victim. From USAToday

“The Navy announced Tuesday that it was canceling the remaining Blue Angels 2013 performances, citing “budget realities.”

Blue Angels canceled. But don’t worry, the pretty people still get their 10th party on your dime. And it least us commoners get to watch this one. From WhiteHouseDossier

“Tonight’s special White House “celebration” of Memphis soul music marks the tenth time President and Mrs. Obama have been treated to an exclusive East Room “command performance” of American music featuring major stars, past and present.

While the performances are televised and celebrate the nation’s culture, some may wonder whether during an era of soaring deficits it is wise to stage what are also in effect private parties for the first couple.

And with this evening’s event, the performances are officially part of the “sequester-free zone” at the White House. As is well known, the daily White House tours did not make the cut.”

Like I keep saying, priorities.

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This one will make you go Hmmmm…… From TheWeeklyStandard

“The top Republican in the Senate, Mitch McConnell, is asking the feds to investigate whether a closed campaign meeting was illegally wiretapped by his political opponents. The issue arises after the liberal outlet Mother Jones published “A recording of a private meeting between the Senate GOP leader and campaign aides.”

In a statement to the press, McConnell’s campaign manager, Jesse Benton, says the feds are getting involved. “Senator McConnell’s campaign is working with the FBI and has notified the local U.S. Attorney in Louisville, per FBI request, about these recordings,” says Benton. “Obviously a recording device of some kind was placed in Senator McConnell’s campaign office without consent. By whom and how that was accomplished will presumably be the subject of a criminal investigation.”

The federal wiretapping law thought to have been violated reads, “It shall not be unlawful under this chapter for a person acting under color of law to intercept a wire, oral, or electronic communication, where such person is a party to the communication or one of the parties to the communication has given prior consent to such interception.”

And surreptitious recording also violates Kentucky law, where this meeting took place:” 

More from Politico

““Senator McConnell’s campaign is working with the FBI and has notified the local  U.S. Attorney in Louisville, per FBI request, about these recordings,” McConnell  campaign manager Jesse Benton said in a statement. “Obviously a recording device  of some kind was placed in Senator McConnell’s campaign office without consent.  By whom and how that was accomplished presumably will be the subject of a  criminal investigation.””

“On Tuesday morning, Mother Jones, a liberal magazine, published an audio recording of McConnell staffers discussing  opposition research they could use against actress Ashley Judd, who was  considering running against veteran senator in the 2014 Senate race. Judd  announced last week that she would not make the race.”

“Someone on the tape is heard saying:

“She’s clearly, this sounds extreme, but she is emotionally unbalanced. I  mean it’s been documented. Jesse can go in chapter and verse from her  autobiography about, you know, she’s suffered some suicidal tendencies. She was  hospitalized for 42 days when she had a mental breakdown in the ’90s.””

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