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October 2015

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on October 05, 2015 11 Comments
Obama's goal of reversing the ban on transgender troops serving openly in the military seems likely to manifest itself next year.  Reports suggest that the transgender ban is slated to end in May, 2016.  In keeping with the Obama policy and perhaps angling himself to run to the left of Hillary and to the right of Sanders, Joe Biden announced Saturday that he backs transgender troops openly serving. The New York Times reports:
Vice President Joe Biden is throwing his unequivocal support behind letting transgender people serve openly in the military, as the Obama administration considers whether and when to lift the longstanding ban. Biden's declaration at the Human Rights Campaign's annual dinner Saturday goes further than anything the Obama administration has said before, evoking memories of when Biden outpaced President Barack Obama in endorsing gay marriage. . . . . Biden is considering running for president. He says transgender rights are "the civil rights issue of our time."
During the same dinner, Biden applauded gay rights activists for "changing the course of America." The Hill reports:

Posted by William A. Jacobson on October 04, 2015 7 Comments
The misnamed "Jewish Voice for Peace" (JVP) has launched a national campaign along with other anti-Israel groups to claim that "pro-Palestinian" speech is stifled around the country. In fact, The accusation of speech stifling is a passive-aggressive move to preclude legitimate criticism. As we demonstrated, what JVP and other such groups really want is Freedom from Criticism. Two events in Ithaca and Rochester, New York, are being used by JVP to claim a "wave of censorship and bullying is sweeping upstate New York." As we demonstrate below, JVP has seriously misstated what happened, and those events show the contrary to what JVP is claiming.

JVP's Anti-Israel Event to Third Graders in Ithaca

One of, it not the first, actions JVP took in furtherance of the "stifling" campaign is unfolding in upstate New York. In ‘Jewish Voice for Peace’ defends anti-Israel Third Grade event, we explained that the local Ithaca JVP branch, run by anti-Zionist (and now Code Pink) activist Ariel Gold, is defending bringing the highly controversial Bassem Tamimi to a third grade class as part of a one-sided presentation demonizing Israel.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on October 04, 2015 16 Comments
A.F. Branco's cartoons have been on fire. Branco's Hamas-Kerry-Netanyahu cartoon went global during the summer of 2014, and even was mentioned by Ted Cruz during the CNN Republican presidential debate last month. The recent "It's a Clock" cartoon has received enormous sharing. So it was good to hear his views in this interview by Hank Giesecke of Patriot Network TV. Spoiler: He makes the rest of us sound like RINOs. Branco has a book coming out soon, as he mentions at the end of the interview.

Posted by Amy Miller on October 04, 2015 80 Comments
Back in early September, CARLY for America circulated buzz on an upcoming documentary about dark horse presidential candidate Carly Fiorina. They knew that, in spite of a favorable image with the oft-polled American public, more people needed to hear the story of the only female Republican presidential candidate. They released a trailer, and it made a splash in the conservative media. Before September's CNN debate, Carly Fiorina was an enigma; we'd seen her before, but we'd never seen her perform the way she did in the Fox News "undercard" debate. In the wake of her breakout performance in the CNN debate, even conservatives who felt loyalty for another candidate had to admit that Carly was earning the attention given to her by the national media. Her "secretary to CEO" story was resonating---and that presented an opening for critics to hack away at it. A recent WaPo "fact check" on the "secretary to CEO" narrative appeared so slanted to readers it earned backlash warranting an explainer/walk-back from the columnist as well as the Post's editors. The article hurt (as all major outlet articles can do) but it also teed up a perfect opportunity for Fiorina's backers to release the full-length documentary on the candidate's life. Today, the full "Citizen Carly" documentary was released---and it's great:

Posted by Mike LaChance on October 04, 2015 57 Comments
After the shooting in Oregon this weekend, an angry Obama took to the airwaves and insisted that he would openly politicize gun control. The president cited Australia, a country with extremely strict gun control as a model. Would you believe bad guys can get guns even there? FOX News reports:
At least 2 dead in shooting outside police building in Australia, reports say At least two people are dead after a shooting outside a police headquarters in Australia on Friday, according to published reports. The Daily Telegraph Australia reports a lone gunman shot and killed a police IT expert outside New South Wales state Police headquarters in the Parramatta section of western Sydney The gunman was subsequently shot and killed by police, according to the newspaper. Police confirmed that a major operation was taking place between Hassall Street and Charles Street near the police headquarters. They advised the public to avoid the area. Sky News Australia helicopter footage spotted bodies covered in sheets near the police building.

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on October 04, 2015 16 Comments
Jason Chaffetz, Chairman of the House Oversight Committee and current target of a Secret Service smear campaign, has announced that he will be challenging Kevin McCarthy for the House Speakership. The Blaze reports:
GOP Rep. Jason Chaffetz of Utah says he’s running for House speaker in a longshot challenge to Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California. Chaffetz — chairman of the high-profile House Oversight and Government Reform Committee — says voters and the public want Republicans to fight. He says the current House leaders don’t deserve an automatic promotion. Chaffetz’s candidacy underscores turmoil in the House GOP little more than a week after Speaker John Boehner’s surprise resignation. Chaffetz says McCarthy lacks the support to become speaker following a gaffe in which McCarthy suggested the purpose of the House’s Benghazi committee is to drive down Hillary Rodham Clinton’s poll numbers.

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on October 04, 2015 22 Comments
As the Hillary campaign tries to rally in the face of favorability numbers that must be causing more than a few sleepless nights at Camp Hillary and new financial boosts to Bernie Sanders' campaign, the news for Democrats is not all discouraging.  Apparently, there is a way that whomever the Democratic nominee, a Democrat can win the White House . . . with the help of illegal immigrants and a "glitch" in the Electoral College system. Paul Goldman and Mark Rozell, writing at Politico, have put forth an interesting premise:  "noncitizens decrease Republican chances of winning the White House next year."  In their article, entitled "Illegal Immigrants Could Elect Hillary," Goldman and Rozell explain:
The right to vote is intended to be a singular privilege of citizenship. But the 1787 Constitutional Convention rejected allowing the people to directly elect their President. The delegates chose instead our Electoral College system, under which 538 electoral votes distributed amongst the states determine the presidential victor. The Electoral College awards one elector for each U.S. Senator, thus 100 of the total, and D.C. gets three electors pursuant to the 23rd Amendment. Those electoral numbers are unaffected by the size of the noncitizen population. The same cannot be said for the remaining 435, more than 80 percent of the total, which represent the members elected to the House.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on October 04, 2015 71 Comments
A poll released by Investor's Business Daily Friday shows Dr. Ben Carson sailing past Donald Trump. While Trump's numbers are steadily declining, he remains one of three contenders pulling in doubly digits in IBD's poll, the third being Senator Rubio. WEBprez100515_345.gif.cms IBD writes:
The nationwide survey found that 24% of Republicans back Carson, compared with 17% who say they support Trump. Marco Rubio came in third with 11% and Carly Fiorina fourth at 9%. Jeb Bush, once considered a prohibitive favorite, ranked fifth with just 8% support, which was a point lower than those who say they are still undecided. The IBD/TIPP Poll has a proven track record for accuracy, based on its performance in the past three presidential elections. In a comparison of the final results of various pollsters for the 2004 and 2008 elections, IBD/TIPP was the most accurate. And the New York Times concluded that IBD/TIPP was the most accurate among 23 polls over the three weeks leading up to the 2012 election.

Posted by Mike LaChance on October 04, 2015 28 Comments
First we had the IRS targeting American citizens, now we have the Secret Service targeting a sitting member of congress. What's next? Republican congressman Jason Chaffetz of Utah was basically singled out for a smear campaign. Noah Rothman reports at Commentary:
Another Targeting Scandal “This is scary. 1984 scary,” National Journal columnist Ron Fournier remarked on Thursday. “We’ve got an agency called ‘Secret Service’ targeting political enemies. Think about that.” Indeed. This week, the fraternity house that is United States Secret Service graduated from ribald antics and hijinks to the outright political intimidation of those who would dare spoil the good time. The specific target of the Secret Service’s botched decapitation strike was House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz. According to the Department of Homeland Security inspector general, the USSS assistant director tried to get some embarrassing information about the congressman into the public sphere in the effort to coerce Chaffetz to back off his investigation of the agency responsible for the personal safety of America’s most prominent political figures.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on October 03, 2015 6 Comments
The First and Second Intifadas were bloody, with thousands killed. The Second Intifada was particularly gruesome, with Palestinian suicide bombers blowing up restaurants, buses and just about every other civilian target they could reach. Israel reacted by constructing the security barrier and launching Operation Defensive Shield. In the past couple of weeks in particular, there has been a surge in Palestinian violence with stabbings, firebombing and rock throwing. The uptick has been fed by deliberate incitement by Mahmoud Abbas and the Palestinian authority: Some Arab Israeli members of the Knesset also are involved in fanning the flames, like this Knesset member screaming at Jews to leave the Temple Mount:

Posted by Doron Goldberg on October 03, 2015 6 Comments
Dear Roger Waters, Often in the past you have written detailed letters to colleagues in the music business, encouraging them not to perform in Israel because it supposedly is an apartheid state. Having read your latest letter to Bon Jovi, I won’t waste my time drawing the differences with Apartheid South Africa and the moral stand that so many artists took then, and the immoral stand some artists are taking now in the face of decades of Israeli attempts to protect themselves. I know you cannot be convinced. http://www.salon.com/2015/10/02/roger_waters_to_jon_bon_jovi_you_stand_shoulder_to_shoulder_with_the_settler_who_burned_the_baby/ Attempts to protect again and again against the Arab violence while successfully maintaining the only democracy in the Middle east. A democracy which ensures freedom of speech, women rights, gay friendly society, and minorities equality - an island of sanity in an ocean of madness, violence and hate for all of these things. So the die is cast, you are determined to proceed with your attempts to isolate Israel by blaming artists for any and every act of violence. You are making your stand, so with whom do you stand shoulder to shoulder?

Posted by Amy Miller on October 03, 2015 8 Comments
A new Pew poll dropped on Friday and told us what we already know about this election cycle: American voters are ready for something different. We could have told you that months ago, citing the popularity of candidates like Donald Trump, Ben Carson, and Carly Fiorina as a prime example of been-there-done-that fatigue. The latest polling data (1,502 adults were surveyed, including 1,136 registered voters) serves to validate those candidates' rising stars More from Pew:
Since March, the share of all registered voters who say it is more important for a presidential candidate to have “new ideas and a different approach” has surged – with virtually all of the increase coming among Republican and Republican-leaning voters. Today, by more than two-to-one (65% to 29%), Republican and Republican-leaning registered voters say it is more important that a candidate have new ideas than “experience and a proven record.” Just five months ago, GOP voters valued experience and a proven record over new ideas, 57% to 36%.

Posted by Mike LaChance on October 03, 2015 19 Comments
President Obama has a habit of trying to make himself look like the smartest guy in the room when things aren't going his way and the disaster unfolding in Syria is no exception. Speaking to the press Friday, Obama claimed that Putin is operating in Syria out of weakness and that this is all some sort of ruse on Russia's behalf. Jenna Lifhits of the Washington Free Beacon:
Obama: Putin Sent Military Into Syria ‘Out of Weakness’ Obama echoed the White House narrative that Russia was forced to enter Syria because the Assad regime, a long-time Kremlin client state, is in danger of collapse. “Mr. Putin had to go into Syria not out of strength but out of weakness because his client Mr. Assad was crumbling and it was insufficient for him simply to send them arms and money. Now he’s got to put in his own planes and his own pilots,” Obama said.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on October 03, 2015 2 Comments
Hurricane Joaquin may have claimed the lives of 28 Americans without ever having hit land.
The US Coast Guard says it has resumed its search for a cargo ship with 33 crew that vanished in Bahamian waters during Hurricane Joaquin. The 224-metre (735ft) El Faro, with 28 Americans and five Poles on board, was last heard from on Thursday and was reported to be taking on water. The ship - which was travelling from Florida to Puerto Rico - was also believed to be listing at 15 degrees. Joaquin brought heavy rains to the Bahamas, damaging a number of houses. There have been no reports of casualties so far. The now-weaker Category Four storm - with sustained winds of up to 210km/h (130mph) - is moving away from the island nation in the Atlantic.

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on October 03, 2015 29 Comments
Upon learning that the Oregon shooter had asked his victims to state their religion before killing Christians on the spot, Dr. Ben Carson posted his own response to Facebook on Friday:  Yes, #IamAChristian. Within hours, the post had generated "70,000 shares and more than half a million likes"—as of this writing, those numbers are 130,000 shares and nearly a million likes (930k). The Daily Mail is reporting that thousands of people are declaring their Christianity on Facebook, Instagram, and on Twitter.  They write:

Thousands have now begun to share the same hashtag with photos on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

'Today, many of your questions were in regards to the sorrowful event that took so many precious lives in Oregon yesterday. We don’t have all the details yet, but as time passes more are coming out,' wrote Carson on Facebook.

'Millions of people are posting pictures of themselves declaring they are Christians in support of the victims and their families. I did so on Facebook this afternoon. If you have a moment, please consider doing it as well.'

Dr. Carson urged his Facebook followers to change their profile image "to honor the victims and their families":

Posted by Mike LaChance on October 03, 2015 21 Comments
Despite the high hopes of the GOP establishment, Jeb Bush has never inspired much excitement among Republican primary voters. Now that we've had two debates and the candidates are coming into clearer focus, Jeb's poll numbers are starting to reflect what many on the right already knew. Daniel Halper of The Weekly Standard:
Poll: Jeb Falls to 4% The latest Pew poll shows that Jeb Bush has fallen to 4 percent in the Republican field. Donald Trump leads the field with 25 percent; Ben Carson is at 16 percent. Carly Fiorina and Marco Rubio are tied for third at 8 percent of the Republican field. "At this stage of the 2016 presidential campaign, key issues divide both Republican and Democratic voters, and early candidate preferences reflect some of these cleavages," writes Pew.

Posted by Mike LaChance on October 03, 2015 2 Comments
Someone seems to have a problem with conservative students exercising their free speech. I don't think they heard him. The problem isn't limited to flyers. Higher education seems to have a free speech problem. Some schools seem to get it.
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