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Posted by Amy Miller on September 16, 2015 11 Comments
Today, advocacy group #AllowDebate will occupy the steps of the Democratic National Committee headquarters and perpetuate a little Democrat-on-Democrat violence over what many believe are unfair and unreasonable restrictions on the Democratic primary debate schedule. From the Weekly Standard:
"Hundreds of protesters will rally at DNC headquarters on Wednesday afternoon to demand that DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz allow Democratic presidential candidates to debate more than 6 times. There were 26 Democratic primary debates in the 2008 campaign, including 11 before September 14th, 2007," says an email from the organizing group #AllowDebate. Says the group's founder, “DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz is unilaterally defying the will of Democratic voters, Presidential candidates, and the DNC’s own Vice-Chairs. ... Her dictatorial suppression of free and open debate is an attack on the democratic process.”
Wasserman Schultz has repeatedly come under fire from both candidates and activists over this cycle's debate rules. In addition to scheduling just 6 officially-sanctioned debates, the DNC (via DWS) has limited the potential for rogue forums by creating a new rule: if a Democrat chooses to participate in a non-sanctioned debate, they’ll be banned from future sanctioned ones.

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Posted by Mike LaChance on September 16, 2015 11 Comments
Hillary Clinton has a big problem. Although she's still favored to win the Democratic nomination in 2016, her favorability ratings have sunk to levels unseen since 2008. New York Times pollster Nate Cohn reported:
Signs of Hillary Clinton’s Troubles, in Charts Hillary Rodham Clinton was inevitably going to lose some of her aura once she started campaigning. The high favorability ratings she earned as secretary of state simply weren’t sustainable. But over the last two months, the steady and expected erosion of her ratings has surprisingly accelerated. Her ratings are now lower than they were in 2007 or 2008, or at any point in her political career.
Look at this devastating chart:

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 16, 2015 7 Comments
Palestinians are among the largest recipients of international aid, per capita, in the world. Yet all we hear about is U.S. aid to Israel, which is entirely military and most of which comes back to U.S. companies because it is required to be spent on U.S.-made equipment. International aid to Palestinians doesn't come back to the donor countries. That includes an average U.S. annual contribution of $400 million. (pdf.) In fact, it doesn't seem to go anywhere productive. Why don't we hear more about this? Because there is no free press in any of the Palestinian controlled areas, or independent NGOs, like there are in Israel. Whereas Israel is under a microscope by dozens of NGOs and hundreds of reporters, Palestinian authorities -- both the PA and Hamas -- are beyond much Western scrutiny. Canada-based Rebel Media has a great video report, Palestinian Authority has been given enough money to equal 15 Marshall Plans -- with nothing to show for it:
Over the last 20 years, various countries, including Canada, have invested over US$30B in the emerging Palestinian state, with little to show for it. Calev Myers of the Jerusalem Institute of Justice explains why. "The international community made a terrible mistake in 1994," Myers says. "In order to push for two states for two peoples, they recognized Yassir Arafat as the legitimate leader of the Palestinian people and helped him create the Palestinian Authority."

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on September 16, 2015 40 Comments
Naturally, the government has to ruin everything, including Little Free Libraries. You may have seen one of these little bird house turned mini-libraries in your neighborhood. They're a lovely idea. Simple, no fuss, and quite fun. Donate a book, borrow a book. Nothing to sign, no due date, no late fees, just common courtesy. Conor Freidersdorf of The Atlantic explored the ridiculous trend of "shutting down" unregulated community book sharing. In Kansas, residents were told to remove the library at peril of fine:
The Leawood City Council said it had received a couple of complaints about Spencer Collins' Little Free Library. They dubbed it an "illegal detached structure" and told the Collins' they would face a fine if they did not remove the Little Free Library from their yard by June 19.
Evidently, Los Angeles and Shreveport, Louisiana are hotbeds of illicit literary lending activity.

LEGAL INSURRECTION QUICK TAKES

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Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 15, 2015 189 Comments
We are now beginning to see the first signs of an air war against Donald Trump. The Club for Growth just released this ad: Will it work? It did against Newt in 2011-2012. The airwaves in Iowa and Florida were flooded with ads like this one, which is clearly cut from the same cloth as the anti-Trump ad:

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on September 15, 2015 6 Comments
Lost but not totally forgotten in the EmailGate debacle is the Clinton family's questionable relationships with foreign powers. In particular, foreign powers whose interests are detrimental to the national security of the United States. Via investigation into the Clinton Foundation, some of these unsavory alliances have been unearthed for public viewing. A sampling: There was the time a Colombian oil company magically received a trade agreement Mrs. Clinton opposed while running for president in 2008. The trade agreement was reached immediately following a generous donation to the Clinton Foundation. Of course this happened while Mrs. Clinton was Secretary of State. Also happening while Mrs. Clinton was "Secretary Clinton" -- that whole incestuous, Russian uranium deal:
The NYT’s latest exposé into the sordid world of the Clinton family suggests a direct connection between the Clinton Foundation, Russian donations (that were not publicly disclosed), and the Russian acquisition of Uranium One. The events transpired while Mrs. Clinton was serving as Secretary of State.
Oh yes, and how can we forget the weapons deal with the Saudis:

Posted by Amy Miller on September 15, 2015 9 Comments
Officials in Hungary are fielding criticism after authorities declared a state of crisis all along the country's southern border with Serbia. The border is now sealed, which means that migrants caught crossing into Hungary are doing so illegally; so far officials have detained 60 people, with more arrests expected. The state of emergency also expands police power and paves the way for troop deployment should the situation spiral out of control. Hungary has set up a "transit zone" alone the border for the purposes of screening migrants attempting to enter the country; only those who have applied for asylum will be allowed to enter. More from the New York Times:
As of Tuesday afternoon, Hungary said 48 migrants in the transit zone had applied for asylum, with 13 rejected and the rest under review — a tiny fraction of the number of migrants at the border. Hungarian officials said they were preparing to erect a fence along the country’s eastern border with Romania that would be similar to the one on the Serbian border.

Posted by Andrew Branca on September 15, 2015 42 Comments
Florida State Representative Dennis Braxley, often referred to as the father of the state's Stand-Your-Ground law, filed a bill HB 169 that would profoundly alter the effects of Florida's self-defense immunity law, reports the Orlando Sentinel. (The bill is embedded at the bottom of this post.) As this is only proposed legislation at this point I would normally let it go given my workload, but I'm already seeing so much misinformation about this bill being spread thick over the internet that I feel obliged to set a reality stake in place.

First, "Stand-Your-Ground" ≠ Self-Defense Immunity

Before we even begin, please note that "Stand-Your-Ground" and self-defense immunity are two entirely different legal concepts, and conflating the two merely demonstrates an ignorance of the law.  "Stand-Your-Ground" has to do with whether a defender has a legal duty to retreat before using force in self-defense, period. Self-defense immunity has to do with whether a defendant can qualify as immune from prosecution, regardless of whether retreat is an issue in the case. Two. Different. Legal. Concepts. That out of the way, let's proceed.

Posted by Amy Miller on September 15, 2015 26 Comments
Real talk: the media does a terrible job of reporting on gun violence. America has seen a lot of tragedy this year, and each time that tragedy involved the use of a gun, the mainstream media took the opportunity to lay the blame not on the hand that pulled the trigger, but on the gun that contained the bullet. We don't trust guns as a matter of principle, and we certainly don't trust those who are experienced with firearms to make the decision to use them for protection. This needs to stop. The NRA may have found an "in" with one of the most vocal and important demographics: women. Their new ad, featuring firebrand pundit and mother Dana Loesch is simple, slick, and offers a simple message: women (and moms) who demand the right to defend themselves "are everything that makes America strong." Click 'play':

Posted by Vijeta Uniyal on September 15, 2015 11 Comments
Recently, refusing to take any Syrian refugees, Fahad Alshalami, a senior official of Kuwait explained to the media that “it is not right for us [Kuwait and other Gulf States] to accept a people that are different from us. We don’t want people that suffer from internal stress and trauma in our country.” Alshalami glossed over the fact that 800,000 migrant Indian workers living in his country too might be suffering from the same “internal stress and trauma.” About 40 percent of Kuwait’s 4 million population comprises of Asian workers. In total about 7 million Indians work in the 6 oil-rich nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and Bahrain). They are often at the mercy of their employers and work under dangerous conditions. According to an investigative report published by IndiaSpend, at an average an Indian living in Saudi Arabia, Qatar or Kuwait is “at ten times the risk of death, compared to an Indian living in the US”:
On an average, there are 53.6 deaths per 100,000 [expat Indians] annually. However, this number conceals a sharp discrepancy. The average for the six GCC nations is 69.2 deaths, while the figure for rest of the world is 26.5 deaths, almost 60% lower. Saudi Arabia, UAE, Oman and Kuwait report between 65 and 78 deaths per 100,000 Indian workers.
Indian government that heavily benefits from remittances, worth billions of dollar from Gulf States annually, is reluctant to raise concerns about the safety and wellbeing of its citizens.

Posted by Amy Miller on September 15, 2015 9 Comments
The Center for Medical Progress has released its 10th Planned Parenthood sting video featuring prescient conversations between Planned Parenthood executives about the PR dangers of the organization's fetal body part harvesting scheme. This video is similar to the more recent offerings from CMP's investigations in that it is light in shocking footage of the actual procurement of fetal tissue, but heavy on content that exposes the corruption between Planned Parenthood and its affiliates. It features conversations between CMP's actor, a fetal tissue buyer, and Dr. Carolyn Westhoff, Senior Medical Advisor for PPFA; Dr. Vanessa Cullins, Vice President for External Medical Affairs for PPFA; and Deborah VanDerhei, National Director for the Consortium of Abortion Providers (CAPS) at PPFA. In the video, the buyer presses the issue of "donations for remuneration," which CMP describes as "[carrying] the connotation of financial reward or benefit without regard for actual expenses." The officials the buyer speaks to admit several times that "the headlines would be a disaster" if the abortion industry gets caught selling baby body parts for profit before developing a PR strategy to protect the exchanges. Watch:

Posted by Amy Miller on September 15, 2015 11 Comments
If you're running for president, sooner or later you're going to have to get used to the idea of the ambush interview---especially if you're spending any time at all in either chamber of Congress. At this point in the cycle, many candidates are jockeying for media attention wherever and whenever they can get it, even if it means dipping a toe into unfriendly waters. A hostile interview can be intimidating, but the payoff is worth the pain if you keep it together and "win the debate." Fox News pundit Bill O'Reilly is known for interviews that get a little hairy---which may be why Dem presidential candidate and US Senator Bernie Sanders has been avoiding invitations to come on the O'Reilly Factor like the plague. Bill finally got tired of being ignored, and sent ambush journalist Jesse Watters to track down the Senator for a pickup interview. It didn't go so well. Give it a watch:

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on September 15, 2015 2 Comments
Even in the big, bad world of politics football gets some love. Or at least it does from Senator Rubio. The good Senator from Florida took some time away from the political inquisition to toss around a football and answer America's most pressing questions. Super Bowl pick? And what about his Super Bowl pick percentage? What made him more nervous, his first presidential debate or first college football game? What Senator would make the best NFL player? Far from an armchair quarter back, Rubio played on a football scholarship to Tarkio College. He also routinely flew back to Florida to coach his son's youth team.

Posted by Mike LaChance on September 15, 2015 22 Comments
David Brock, the founder of the far left Media Matters for America, has taken on the unenviable role of Hillary Clinton defender in this election cycle. Yesterday, he appeared on MSNBC's Morning Joe program and proved that he's in deep denial over Hillary Clinton's scandals and the way they're being perceived by the American people. David Rutz of the Washington Free Beacon:
Brock Gets Hammered by Morning Joe Trying to Spin Clinton’s Email Conduct Media Matters founder and Hillary Clinton flack David Brock struggled to defend the conduct of his boss under aggressive questioning from MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough Monday. Brock, the former self-described “right-wing hitman” who underwent a massive political transformation in the late 1990s and became one of the Clintons’ most rabid defenders, appeared on Morning Joe to promote his new book blasting the New York Times and other “perceived enemies” he insists are out to destroy the Clintons. The hot topic, of course, was Clinton’s private email server, another “phony scandal” as Brock put it, that has sunk Clinton’s numbers on honesty and trustworthiness. “Are all the scandals involving the Clintons, quote, ‘fake scandals’”? Scarborough asked.

Posted by Jason Boisvert on September 14, 2015 20 Comments
[WAJ Note: Given the vigorous reader discussion about Ad Blockers, I asked Jason Boisvert, who has contacted me via Twitter in the past about auto-play issues, if we could repost his original blog post, and he agreed.] ------------------ Many websites today have autoplay video/audio ads, even when they aren't supposed too. This postat the webcomic Erfworld lays out the basics as to why. In short, advertising networks are paid for ads from producers and host them on their networks. The networks appear on many sites, and those sites receive a portion of the revenue from the networks. It turns out that the best-paying networks "accidentally" let a larger portion of "malicious" (that is, with unauthorized function) ads through. These ads play audio when the websites running them have demanded no-autoplay, crash websites with long scripts, lock the page so the ad is on-screen, making it impossible to scroll and even redirect mobile devices to the purchase page of whatever they are advertising. Somehow, the networks that pay less don't have the problem of "malicious" ads "sneaking through" and "accidentally" breaking webpages or blasting noise and music. At the moment, these ad companies are protected. The obnoxiousness of the ads is often related to the uselessness of the product, so annoying or even destructive ads enhance revenue - the terrible reputation of the company is not a factor for someone selling a cell-phone game no one has heard of. Most people won't quit a website for playing an audio ad sometimes, so the ads still get plenty of viewers.
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