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Posted by Amy Miller on January 20, 2015 11 Comments
A new poll from Pew reveals that the words most often used to describe President Obama are "Incompetent" and "Good Guy." Behold: Barack Obama, undisputed leader of the free world, commander in chief of the most lethal fighting force on the planet...lovable doofus? No wonder our international reputation is circling the drain. More:
However, some new words have emerged in the descriptions of Obama: Among the roughly half of respondents asked the question (N=746), dictator is mentioned by 12, while eight describe Obama as impressive. Neither word had been used in nine prior surveys asking for one-word descriptions of Obama since he became president. And a perennial critique of Obama – socialist – is not as prominent on the list of descriptions as in the past; in the new survey, five respondents describe Obama as a socialist. In April 2009, when Obama was generally described in positive terms (and his job approval was much higher than it is today), socialist stood out among the negatives. Still, many of the descriptions of Obama are the same as those used in the past. Some supporters continue to point to his intelligence (21 mentions; another nine call him smart), while opponents describe him as an idiot or stupid (12). Nearly equal numbers call him honest (12) and a liar (11).
There's even a fun infographic that throws the miserable truth into full relief!

Posted by Amy Miller on January 20, 2015 9 Comments
Yemen is in chaos. For the past two days, Shiite Houthi rebels have laid siege to the presidential palace. Now, reports claim that the rebels have seized the palace; and the status of President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi remains unknown. Although the Houthi rebels are not targeting Americans---at least for the time being---U.S. officials are preparing for the possibility of a "non permissive environment," meaning that the city of Sana'a will have descended into combat-like conditions. Unfortunately for Americans in Yemen, evacuation isn't simply a matter of driving to the airport and hopping a flight. CNN explains:
If an evacuation is ordered, the first option would be to have embassy personnel drive to the commercial airport in Sanaa and fly out, the official said. But in the wake of an embassy car being fired Tuesday, the safety of the roads in the capital is now being constantly evaluated, the official said. If embassy workers did drive to the airport it is likely some sort of air cover would be provided, under the current plan. Other detailed military planning for various options has been finalized, the official said. Those options would be used if a request for military assistance were made. If helicopters and V-22 aircraft from the ships are sent to Sanaa, it would be a complex operation that could last for several days to fully evacuate "several hundred Americans" from the embassy, the official cautioned. "Nobody should think this would be easy."
The Houthi rebels claim that they're working for a more democratic Yemen, but analysts are skeptical of the group's claims, and worry that a successful coup could lead to further radicalization.

Posted by Amy Miller on January 20, 2015 7 Comments
This morning, a lone shooter walked into Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston and shot a doctor before turning the gun on himself. Fox News reports:
"[The shooter] came into the hospital asking for this particular doctor," Boston Police Commissioner William Evans said. "We don't know why. That's something we're looking into." The Boston Globe reported that the hospital was under a Code Black, which means no additional patients were being accepted. The scene was chaotic, according to one witness. The hospital made an announcement about a situation, without going into details, and told visitors to evacuate. The witness told MyFoxBoston that a few minutes later, the hospital urged them to "get out, get out." "We knew it wasn't good," he said. Another witness told The Globe that the hospital made an announcement that there was a life-threatening emergency and individuals should go into a room and lock the doors.
The victim, a prominent surgeon, was shot twice and remains in the hospital in critical condition. Local authorities took to social media to keep the public updated in real time:

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Posted by Amy Miller on January 20, 2015 13 Comments
When President Obama walks into the House chamber tonight to deliver the State of the Union address, most in attendance will already know exactly which policy items he has chosen as his priorities for the next year. According to a report by the Washington Times, Obama has the worst State of the Union record since Gerald Ford was in office, which says a lot not only about how Washington feels about his leadership, but about how the American people feel about his pet policies. So, what's the point of all the pomp and circumstance? Emotionally-triggering buzzwords, of course. Although most of America doesn't stand at attention when the President makes a speech, people in general know what the State of the Union is, either because they watch the event on TV, or because they media bombards them with clips and talking points for a week after it's over. Policy primers don't win hearts and minds, but soaring speeches serve as a wonderful distraction. The people at The Atlantic wanted to find out what types of buzzwords Presidents tend to pick up and recycle. The result? An interactive data visualization tool that you can use to find out how many times each President talked about, say, the Constitution: SOTU constitution chart Or war:

Posted by William A. Jacobson on January 20, 2015 18 Comments
Don't say I didn't warn you about how anti-Israel activists have set on a deliberate course to hijack the Ferguson and #BlackLivesMatters protests to their own anti-Israel agenda: It started in Ferguson, then the Eric Garner protests, and is being pushed by the anti-Israel Students for Justice in Palestine through groups like Dream Defenders, which carries a Tides Foundation logo on it's website.  Dream Defenders was responsible for Marc Lamont Hill's trip to "Palestine" in which he recorded a video supporting "Revolutionary Struggle" against Israel. http://youtu.be/L2yMMdPTQ30 A key player in the effort to turn the #BlackLivesMatter movement into an anti-Israel movement is recently graduated Stanford student and SJP activist Kristian Davis Bailey, who writes not only for the anti-Zionist Mondoweiss website, but also has been promoting the effort in Ebony Magazine.

Posted by Amy Miller on January 20, 2015 4 Comments
On January 21, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Roberta Jacobson will be the first diplomat since the Carter administration to set foot on Cuban soil with the goal of restoring diplomatic relations that haven't existed since the height of the Cold War. From Bloomberg:
Jacobson’s arrival will kickstart negotiations that could eventually expand to include everything from demands for compensation by Cuban-American exiles and U.S. companies to improved human rights. While the U.S. and Cuba have met for years to discuss lower-level issues such as counter-narcotics and migration, her visit is the first to test Obama and Castro’s pledges to bolster relations. The U.S. will review Cuba’s designation as a state sponsor of terror and make a decision within six months of the Dec. 17 announcement that relations would be normalized, an administration official said in advance of the trip, speaking on the condition of not being identified because of diplomatic protocol. The State Department will review evidence and intelligence to determine if Cuba is sponsoring terrorism, though the determination won’t impede normalization, regardless of the outcome, the official said.
Although formal ties were severed in 1961, the U.S. maintained its old embassy as a way of maintaining communications with the Castro regime. President Obama has plans to reopen the embassy, but will have to secure funding from Congress to do so. Cuba's status as a state sponsor of terrorism tops the list of concerns for American lawmakers who oppose the normalization plan. State Department officials have said that determinations regarding Cuba's terror listing "will have no impact" on the administration's efforts to reestablish diplomatic relations, and that the two issues "are proceeding on separate tracks."

Posted by Mike LaChance on January 20, 2015 29 Comments
Last night on Special Report with Bret Baier, Bret asked Charles Krauthammer for his thoughts on Obama's proposal to raise the capital gains tax. Krauthammer pointed out that like all things Obama says and does, this is about left wing political ideology. Via National Review:
Krauthammer’s Take: Obama ‘Wants to Punish the Rich Regardless of Effect on Economy’ The president’s proposal to raise the capital gains tax has nothing to do with America’s economic vitality, and everything to do with ideology, says Charles Krauthammer. “Obama was asked about whether raising the capital gains tax is something he would support even — this was a famous question asked by Charlie Gibson in the run-up to the 2008 campaign — even if it lowered revenues, which it does, which is of course totally illogical; you raise taxes to bring in revenue. Obama’s answer, a famous answer, was, yes, in the name of ‘fairness.’”​ “This is a man who wants to punish the rich regardless of its effect on the economy,” said Krauthammer.
Watch the exchange: Obama seems set on denying the reality of the new Republican-controlled Senate.

Posted by David Gerstman on January 19, 2015 23 Comments
Alberto Nisman, the Argentinian prosecutor who investigated the 1994 bombing of the AMIA Jewish center in Buenos Aires and documented Iran's extensive terror ties in the western hemisphere, was found dead at his home Sunday night of a bullet wound to the head. Nisman was slated to testify today on his latest explosive accusations that the current government of Argentina, specifically President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, purposely covered up Iran's involvement in the bombing in order to preserve a grain-for-oil deal with the Islamic Republic. The New York Times reports:
The body of the prosecutor, Alberto Nisman, 51, who had been heavily protected by police sentries because of threats, was discovered Sunday night. He had been scheduled to testify on Monday at a congressional inquiry about his accusations. The security minister, Sergio Berni, said evidence at the scene, including a .22-caliber pistol and spent cartridge found near Mr. Nisman’s body, indicated suicide. An autopsy announced later said he had died of a bullet wound to the head. But the news immediately provoked shock and outrage from the political opposition and leaders of Argentina’s Jewish population, Latin America’s largest, who demanded a transparent inquiry into his death. The timing appeared to put a skulduggerous international shadow over his accusations.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on January 19, 2015 31 Comments
American Sniper opened this weekend, raking in $90.2 million and earning the attention of moviegoers and pundits on both sides of the aisle. Clint Eastwood masterminded the Oscar nominated film that chronicles the life of Iraq War veteran, Chris Kyle, and earned himself the best opening weekend of his career. Bradley Cooper who stars as Kyle, began working on the project in 2012. In an interview with the Navy Times, Cooper explained:
"There hasn't been a character study of a soldier that's gone through this war that I've seen on film," he said. "I liked that idea, and I thought framing it as a Western would be very interesting."
Cooper worked with the men who trained Kyle on sniper weapons. He told The Navy Times:
"The one thing that I could control is, I wanted it to look like this guy that you're watching is very familiar and dexterous with his weapons, and I felt successful with that."
Cooper's portrayal of Kyle was so successful that Kyle's widow told the Military Times she felt as though she was watching her late husband on the silver screen, not Cooper.

Posted by Amy Miller on January 19, 2015 14 Comments
The wake of the attacks on French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo have drawn all of Europe into the debate over how to best collaborate to prevent similar terror attacks in what is becoming a more culturally divided Europe. Responses by the various countries to the terror threat have ranged from rolling back anti-free speech laws, to cracking down on free speech, to tracking and eliminating terror threats. In France, prosecutors have been ordered to prosecute "hate speech"; meanwhile, the UK Parliament finds itself in a gridlock over whether or not to pass new, restrictive "anti-terror" legislation. Belgium has already tracked down one terror cell, and is on the ready should another rear its head. If this leaves you thinking, "something's gotta give," then you're of the same mind as some European Union officials who are pushing for a new alliance with Muslim countries. They believe that if the two regions cooperate and share information, they'll be able to prevent terrorist attacks before the occur. Via the AP:
EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said Monday that "we need an alliance. We need to strengthen our way of cooperating together." Mogherini later met with Arab League Secretary General Nabil Elaraby. She also attended a meeting of the EU foreign ministers who are preparing for a summit of EU leaders in February focused on terrorism. Some ministers emphasized the importance of working with Muslim countries, rather than blaming them for the problem. "They will continue to be in the front line, and we have to work closely with them to protect both those countries and the European Union countries," British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said. Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reynders said the police raids launched in his country last week to break up a suspected network of foreign fighters demonstrate that information-sharing is the key to success. "We have to exchange information in Europe and outside Europe to really follow what is going on and to prevent any acts that could be launched on our territory," he said.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on January 19, 2015 31 Comments
First and foremost, Happy Martin Luther King, Jr. Day! In 1983, President Reagan signed Martin Luther King, Jr. day into law. Even so, it wasn't until 2000 that all states observed the day as intended. 2000. That's... incredible. So called 'controversial figures' are always difficult to discuss. Regardless of what I write, someone, many even, will inevitably comment about King's shortcomings, his failures, maybe even his alleged infidelities. Yet none of those things detract from what Dr. King accomplished on the civil rights front nor the legacy of hope he left behind. God how I wish he were here today. I've often wondered if we would've been spared the pestilence of the Sharpton's and Jackson's of this world had Dr. King survived. So abundant are King's words of wisdom; the truths he left with us, that it's always hard to pick one. So this Martin Luther, King, Jr. Day, I pick love.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on January 19, 2015 9 Comments
Yesterday we reported how an Israeli helicopter strike just over the Syrian Golan border killed several senior Hezbollah terrorist leaders, including Jihad Mughniyeh, the son of legendary and assassiated Hezbollah terror coordinatior Imad Mughniyeh. The elder Mughniyeh was responsible, among other things, for the Marine barracks bombing in Beirut that killed hundreds of Americans. A total of six senior Hezbollah military leaders were killed: https://twitter.com/One4Zion/status/556998160284139520/photo/1 A Hezbollah leader even more important than Jihad Mughniyeh also was killed in the attack:
Jihad does not appear to have been a key Hezbollah figure in the attack, however. One of the more central Hezbollah figures killed is Mohammad Ahmad Issa, who Raja News identified as an intelligence official, though other news agencies reported he was a top commander for Iraq and Syria.
In Beirut, Hezbollah is mourning its dead.

Posted by Amy Miller on January 19, 2015 2 Comments
At least 20 hostages of the 80 hostages taken after this weekend's raid by Boko Haram on villages in Cameroon have been set free. Officials don't yet know how it is that those 20 people managed to escape their captors. The raid was typical of Boko Haram in every way---except that they crossed the border from Nigeria into Cameroon to carry it out. Via Reuters:
"According to our initial information, around 30 adults, most of them herders, and 50 young girls and boys aged between 10 and 15 years were abducted," a senior army officer deployed to northern Cameroon told Reuters. He said the early-morning attack had targeted the village of Mabass and other villages along the porous border. Soldiers intervened and exchanged fire with the raiders for around two hours, he added. Government spokesman Issa Tchiroma confirmed the attack, in which he said three people had been killed, as well as the kidnappings. He was not able to say with certainty how many people had been taken in the raid. “There was a Boko Haram attack on several localities in the Far North region. The assailants burnt down about 80 homes and kidnapped several inhabitants including women and very young children,” he said.
Boko Haram is increasing the scope of its operations, which comes as a major concern for security forces tasked with dealing with the group. Late last year, we covered the evolution of the group from regional threat to cross-border terror organization; things have only gotten worse for the people of Nigeria and the surrounding areas.
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