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September 2015

Posted by Amy Miller on September 10, 2015 11 Comments
Hillary. Bernie. O'Malley? Biden! Right now, the Democratic field feels both random and predictable: we have Hillary Clinton, who should be the anointed one; Bernie Sanders, whose numbers defy reason; and Joe Biden, who everyone laughs at but no one counts out. Martin O'Malley, Jim Webb, and a few others round out the top tier, but don't get near the attention that Clinton or Sanders are able to pull. If Hillary or Bernie get the nod, then, who steps into the VP slot? That person could come from the current field---or he could come from inside agency land, with a little help from his twin brother. Julian Castro and his identical twin brother Joaquin have been the objects of the left's affection since Julian stole the show at the last Democratic Convention, and now they're making their way toward the front lines of the progressives' full court press against the GOP's high-profile presidential bench. In 2014, President Obama appointed former San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro to the post of Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. The appointment was less of a policy move and more of a tucking-away for safekeeping; Julian is being groomed, and many Democratic operatives believe he belongs in the #2 slot on the ticket:

Posted by New Neo on September 10, 2015 25 Comments
It started yesterday, when conservative Republicans in the House expressed strong disagreement with the GOP leadership over whether to proceed with the vote of disapproval on the Iran deal. The conservative wing aimed to force Obama to first live up to the terms of Corker-Menendez and disclose the still-secret side deals with Iran that (which are an enormously important part of the big picture.) They claimed that the clock on the Congressional review period would not start until Obama complied, and thus the disapproval vote should be delayed. The movement had the support of Ted Cruz in the Senate, and many conservatives in the House (Roskam of Illinois; Pompeo of Kansas and the rest of the House Freedom Caucus). The House doesn't have a cloture or filibuster rule, so it is much easier to bring something to a vote there over minority Democratic opposition than it is in the Senate. Later, it was leaked that Boehner had given in to House conservatives on this issue, agreeing to postpone the vote and substituting a series of votes on three other resolutions in the House:

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 09, 2015 19 Comments
Huma Abedin, also known as Mrs. Anthony Weiner, is a close confidant and aide of Hillary Clinton. Really close. Hillary's minder, scheduler, gatekeeper, among other things. And Huma apparently didn't notice that the government paid her more than she was due, resulting in a federal embezzlement investigation. The Washington Post reports, Feds investigated top Hillary Clinton aide for embezzlement:
Federal investigators formally investigated top Hillary Rodham Clinton aide Huma Abedin for the crime of embezzlement after confirming she took a “Babymoon” vacation and maternity time at the State Department without expending her formal leave, resulting in thousands of dollars of pay she wasn’t entitled to receive, The Washington Times has learned. The probe also gathered evidence she filed time sheets charging the government for impermissible overtime and excessive hours after she converted from a full-time federal employee to a State Department contractor....

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 09, 2015 11 Comments
The death of Eric Garner made famous the phrase "I can't breathe." The whole world has heard of Eric Garner. You probably never heard of Shelly Dadon. Or that she was Israeli. Or that her last words were "I can't breathe." Or that she was murdered May 1, 2014, stabbed dozens of times by an Israeli Arab cab driver on her way to a job interview. Because she was Jewish. We featured Shelly several times in June and July 2014, at a time Israel was gripped by the kidnapping and presumed murder of three Israeli teens (Gil-ad Shaar, Eyal Yifrach and Naftali Fraenkel) and the retaliatory murder of Mohammed Abu Khdeir. On July 6, 2014, we wrote about her murder, Arab Violence Against Israel and Jews Continues:
This case of an Israeli teenager, Shelly Dadon, on way to job interview who was stabbed to death has received almost no international media attention:
Only July 7, 2014, we followed up, Israeli reaction to murder of teen a sign of Israel’s moral strength:

Posted by Amy Miller on September 09, 2015 11 Comments
Today I attended the much-anticipated Cruz-Trump Iran deal protest on Capitol Hill. It was a scorcher---97 degrees when I finally surrendered to an air conditioned cab---but the rally boasted an impressive turnout. The crowd, for the most part, was focused on protesting not only the specific Iranian nuclear deal, but the path down which Obama's foreign policy has taken us. 100% of the attendees I talked to see the deal as one more foolish, stupid, naive move by the Obama Administration. For most, opposition was apolitical; I spoke to many people who were grateful for the protest votes of Chuck Schumer and other Democrats, even if those announcements came too little and too late to give the White House pause. These signs were floating around everywhere, and for the most part sum up the mood in the crowd: death to america iran rally sign

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on September 09, 2015 5 Comments
Earlier today, we shared a story unearthed by The American Mirror that exposed USA Today political reporter Madeleine Behr. Though Behr is covering Scott Walker's presidential campaign, she signed a petition to recall the Wisconsin Governor in 2011. "The leftist media!" might be a tired line, but as we discussed this morning, it's no less true today than it was in years past. It's an issue that grows increasingly more concerning with each new Democratic-operative-masquerading-as-objective-reporter byline. Gone are the days when progressive skew was subtle, we are now in a time where though they refuse to admit it outright, legacy media behemoths are intentionally aligning themselves with Democratic party operatives. But they're still fair and objective, of course... NBC recently dropped major coin when it bought stakes in Buzzfeed and Vox Media, and now the network has entered into a partnership with a Democratic political firm. According to the Washington Examiner, NBC's latest alliance is with TargetSmart, a political data firm that also works with the DNC:

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on September 09, 2015 33 Comments
Wednesday afternoon, Senator Cruz joined the Tea Party Patriots rally to Stop the Iran Deal. Cruz's fiery speech outlined the consequences of the passage of the Iran Nuclear Deal. The Obama administration would be, "quite literally the world's biggest financier of Islamic terrorism," said Cruz. His full speech from the rally is here:

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 09, 2015 10 Comments
In early September 1972, Palestinian "Black September" terrorists seized the Israeli Olympic team at the Olympic Village in Munich, West Germany. By the time it was over, 11 Israeli athletes and one German policeman would be dead. Before the deadly conclusion, Black September demanded the release of the notorious German "Red Army Faction" terrorists Andreas Baader and Ulrike Meinhoff as well as 234 prisoners held in Israeli prisons. Included on that list was a name that probably meant little to people outside Israel - Rasmieh Odeh. The name Rasmieh (Rasmea) Odeh meant a lot to Israelis because Rasmea and her co-conspirators were convicted in 1970 of the 1969 bombing of the SuperSol Supermarket in Jerusalem, which killed university students Edward Joffe and Leon Kanner. A second bomb placed in the SuperSol supermarket timed to go off when first responders arrived, was disarmed moments before it was to explode. As I reported when I met the families of Edward and Leon in Israel, the SuperSol bombing was scorched into the memories of Israelis because it was the first major post-1967 attack on Israeli civilians, and the funeral was a national event. Rasmea also was convicted of the attempted bombing of the British Consulate.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on September 09, 2015 29 Comments
Scott Walker is no stranger to political challengers or an adversarial press. But what does it do to Walker's national political aspirations when a homegrown reporter who once signed a petition to recall the Governor, happens to be covering his presidential bid for a nationally circulated paper? Tuesday, Media Trackers reported Gannett reporter Madeleine Behr, political writer for USA Today, signed a petition to recall Walker in 2011. Gannett media company knows Behr signed a recall petition because she disclosed as much during the interview process.
A Gannett reporter who writes for both the Appleton Post-Crescent and USA Today covering local and Wisconsin politics, including Gov. Scott Walker’s presidential bid, signed a petition in 2011 to recall Walker from office. Madeleine Behr is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin Madison, and she wrote for a number of publications before joining Gannett earlier this year.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on September 09, 2015 5 Comments
California is now seeing a significant outbreak of potentially deadly Legionnaire's Disease:
The number of inmates being observed for possible infection with Legionnaires' disease at San Quentin State Prison near San Francisco has jumped from 71 to 85, but the number of confirmed diagnoses held steady at six, authorities said Tuesday. Prison authorities said they have begun restoring some freedom of movement, as well as access to the law library and hot meals to inmates at the California prison who were put on lockdown to avoid infection when the outbreak began last week. The disease, a sometimes deadly form of pneumonia caused by a bacterium found in water systems, is transmitted when people breathe it in via steam, mist and moisture in the air. For that reason, prison officials initially shut down the plumbing in the prison, which houses 3,700 inmates and has 1,800 employees.
While an outbreak of such an illness in a prison wouldn't necessarily be newsworthy, the state now joins Illinois and New York in reporting significant numbers of new cases of this disease. New York City has reported 100 cases in recent months with 12 dead, but Mayor Bill DeBlasio indicates the rate of infection seems to be decreasing.

Posted by Mike LaChance on September 09, 2015 6 Comments
New Jersey governor and 2016 Republican presidential candidate Chris Christie appeared on the FOX and Friends program yesterday and stated plainly that Obama deserves some blame for recent violence against police. Nick Gass reported at Politico:
Christie blames Obama for attacks on cops Recent violence against law enforcement is President Barack Obama's problem, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said Tuesday, blasting the president for failing to lead and uphold the rule of law. "This is the president's problem, because he has not allowed law and order to be the rule of the day in the United States. Lawlessness has been the rule of the day," Christie said in an interview on "Fox and Friends" after the hosts recounted recent killings of police officers in Illinois and Texas, and another shooting in Nevada over the weekend. "And now the president says little or nothing about these police officers that are being hunted."
You can watch the video below.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 08, 2015 67 Comments
The evidence that police committed a crime in the handling of Freddie Gray is far from beyond a resonable doubt. In fact, as Andrew Branca has analyzed here many times, based on publicly available information there seems to be serious doubt that police did anything wrong, much less anything criminal. So what explains the Baltimore Mayor's decision to pay $6.4 million to Freddie Gray's family? The Baltimore Sun reports:
Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake's decision to pay Freddie Gray's family a $6.4 million civil settlement drew praise and criticism Tuesday, with some Baltimore leaders saying the move will help heal the city and others calling it premature. Former Mayor Kurt L. Schmoke said the settlement — expected to be approved Wednesday by the city's spending panel — was a "very positive development for the city." "The mayor and her staff are trying to do all they can to heal the wounds in the community, and this is a step in the right direction," said Schmoke, president of the University of Baltimore. "This settlement will give some people in the community at least some sense of justice."
Superficially, peace through money seems to be the goal, because the dollar amount is hard to explain relative to other settlements, as the Baltimore Sun further explains:

Posted by Mirabelle Ward on September 08, 2015 28 Comments
Two recent news analysis pieces highlight President Obama's lawlessness in the case of his proposed nuclear deal with Iran. Recall that about one week after the administration’s announcement that it had reached an agreement with Iran, Congressman Mike Pompeo revealed that the IAEA had told him and Senator Tom Cotton that:
Two side deals made between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the IAEA as part of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) will remain secret and will not be shared with other nations, with Congress, or with the public. One agreement covers the inspection of the Parchin military complex, and the second details how the IAEA and Iran will resolve outstanding issues on possible military dimensions of Iran’s nuclear program.
A draft that was said to the same as the final text of one of these side deals was leaked to, and published by, the Associated Press. The second of the two still remains secret. Asking Congress to approve an agreement, the complete terms of which it has not even seen, is of course absurd on its face. Even more absurd is that a sufficient number of Senators to sustain a Presidential veto of Congressional disapproval have agreed to do so.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on September 08, 2015 6 Comments
On "Fox and Friends" Monday morning, Fiorina spoke about numerous issues including Hillary Clinton, defunding Planned Parenthood, the refugee crisis, and her birthday. Fiorina also suggested Donald Trump, "throw a little more heat at Hillary." "Going after Donald Trump hasn't really gone well for other candidates who a lot of people aren't really talking about that much about anymore. Is that a smart line of attack to go after The Donald?" asked a Fox News host.

Posted by Amy Miller on September 08, 2015 42 Comments
For what is being called the first time ever, those closest to Speaker of the House John Boehner are expressing serious concerns about Boehner's future in the chamber's top spot. John Boehner has been challenged before; back in January, Texas firebrand Louie Gohmert put his name in the hat for the top spot; two dozen members of the caucus turned their backs on Boehner, but as has happened before, the opposition wasn't nearly widespread enough to oust him from power. Then, at the end of July, North Carolina Mark Meadows filed a "motion to vacate the chair" in what he said was an effort to get Republicans talking about the sharp divide between leadership and a small group of conservatives. Right-leaning advocacy organizations again took up the charge, encouraging followers to contact their representatives to demand change. And now, we have this---a Politico exclusive featuring both on- and off-the-record comments expressing doubts about Boehner's ability to lead the caucus. Via Politico:
“That’s a personal decision he has to make. I don’t know why he would want to, personally,” said Rep. Lynn Westmoreland (R-Ga.), when asked whether Boehner would run again. "But I do think that he feels, in his heart of hearts, he feels like he’s doing what’s best for this country — regardless of what the political consequences are. That says something about somebody."

Posted by Jay Caruso on September 08, 2015 27 Comments
The 2016 Presidential candidates from both parties are giving only sporadic attention to the refugee crisis currently gripping most of Europe. Hillary Clinton has been relatively quiet, aside from comments stipulating a need for the "entire world" to play a part. Democrat hopeful Martin O'Malley has been a bit more vocal, asking for the United States to take in 65,000 refugees:
"I support the call from humanitarian and refugee organizations for the United States to accept at least 65,000 Syrian refugees next year," he said in a statement Friday. "If Germany -- a country with one-fourth our population -- can accept 800,000 refugees this year, certainly we -- the nation of immigrants and refugees -- can do more."
On the Republican side, Carly Fiorina has been out front on the issue. She was asked about the subject on Face The Nation and didn't hold back: https://youtu.be/ee6wE04-gtU?t=3m45s
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