Day: October 27, 2018

Claiming He was ‘Framed,’ Papadopoulos Says He Might Scrap Plea Deal with Mueller

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by Chuck Ross   Former Trump campaign adviser George Papadopoulos said Friday that he is considering withdrawing from a plea agreement he has had for over a year with the special counsel’s office. In an interview with Fox & Friends, the 31-year-old Papadopoulos asserted he was “framed” by Western intelligence agencies, including those within the U.S. government. “I believe there was tremendous misconduct on the government’s behalf regarding my case,” Papadopoulos said in the interview. And given certain information I learned yesterday that I can’t publicly disclose right now, I’m actually even considering withdrawing my agreement I have come to with the government.” Papadopoulos was referring to his testimony Thursday to a joint congressional task force investigating the FBI and Department of Justice’s handling of the Trump-Russia collusion probe. It is unclear what was said in the deposition, but the two Republican lawmakers who attended the session said they came away with the belief that the FBI investigation was built on a faulty premise. “What we’re finding without talking about specifics of what’s going on is that the whole reason that this investigation was opened up was certainly not one built on a solid foundation,” North Carolina Republican Rep. Mark Meadows told…

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Police Civilian Oversight Board Redundant, Expensive, Denies Due Process of Officers: FOP President

Jason M. Reynolds

A civilian oversight board for the Nashville Metro Police Department “sounds like a warm and fuzzy,” but one expert says that is not the case. James Smallwood is president of the Nashville Fraternal Order of Police. “People immediately think, ‘Well, that’s a great idea,’” Smallwood told The Tennessee Star this week. A circuit court judge in September ruled against the Fraternal Order of Police in a lawsuit the group filed trying to throw out a referendum to establish a community board overseeing Metro Police, News Channel 5 said. Once you get into the minutiae, it becomes apparent the Amendment 1 initiative that is on the Nov. 6 ballot will have a “massive cost” of $10 million over five years, Smallwood said. That is more expensive than any comparable civilian oversight board in the nation. That is not a viable option when the city is in dire financial straits. The board also would be redundant, he said. There are at least eight layers of oversight of Metro Police already, including civilian and government agencies. The new board would not give police equal representation – there are no regulations on who can sit on the board, other than they cannot be officers or married…

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Commentary: Parents, Smart Government Requires Teaching Children Civics

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by Brad Johnson   In the fall of 2012, I excitedly began my senior year government class. I was about to sit through a course on our system of government while also watching it play out right before my eyes on its biggest stage during the 2012 election. Much to my chagrin, nobody else seemed even remotely as thrilled. Throughout the next five months, blank stares and snores engulfed the classroom with unmistakable indifference. In those moments, it hit me just how far we had fallen. Recently, I was struck by a similar feeling. I came across yet another condemnation of our system of representative government on Twitter. Waleed Shahid, a former advisor to New York Congressional Candidate and Democratic Socialist heartthrob Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, said the Senate is not democratic enough because less populous states receive the same representation as high-population states. But this is the very point of the Senate. Without equal representation in one house of Congress, large states would be able to run roughshod over smaller states. Yet this fact is continually ignored by civically-illiterate citizens eager to support their points of frustration against Trump’s agenda. And Shahid wasn’t alone in his sentiment about the Electoral College. Hordes of…

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Bredesen 100 Percent Wrong on Illegal Immigrant Army, Blackburn Says

Jason M. Reynolds

Democratic Senate candidate Phil Bredesen on Wednesday dismissed the illegal alien army approaching America’s southern border. When asked about the army Bredesen laughed, saying, “A few thousand very poor people coming to our border is not a threat to our, is not a threat to our security.” Bredesen’s opponent, U.S. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN-07) released a campaign video Friday calling him out. The video is available here. According to Blackburn, Bredesen also: Gave driving certificates to illegal aliens as governor in 2004 and made Tennessee a magnet for illegal aliens. Said the border wall is more “political theater” than practical policy. Doesn’t support President Trump’s travel ban. (The Tennessee Star reported in June that he ducked the issue.) Blackburn’s campaign said, “Phil Bredesen is dangerously wrong on immigration and out of touch with Tennesseans. Marsha Blackburn is 100% supportive of securing our border. As our Senator, she will work with President Trump to build the wall and stop the caravan.” The Washington Examiner confirmed the migrant army is composed of criminals from various nations: The Department of Homeland Security on Thursday defended claims by President Trump and Vice President Mike Pence that violent criminals are a component of the Honduran caravan…

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Latinos for Tennessee Endorses Dr. Mark Green for Congress

Jason M. Reynolds

Latinos for Tennessee PAC announced its endorsement of State Sen. Dr. Mark Green (R-TN-22) for Congress. Founded to advance faith, family, freedom and fiscal responsibility in the Latino community, the group has many members and supporters throughout the Seventh District. U.S. Representative Republican Marsha Blackburn currently holds the Seventh Congressional District seat Green wants. She is running for the U.S. Senate against Democrat Phil Bredesen. Democrat Justin Kanew is running against Green for the Seventh District seat. In announcing their endorsement, Latinos for Tennessee PAC Executive Director Raul Lopez said, “Senator Green is a selfless patriot who loves our country and has put on the uniform to fight for our precious freedoms. As a veteran himself, Senator Green understands the unique challenges our military and our veterans are facing. Our veterans and their families have had a true champion fighting for them to ensure that they receive the benefits they deserve.” Speaking about the endorsement, Green said, “Having worked closely with Latinos for Tennessee as a state senator, I’m honored to receive their endorsement. I look forward to continuing the fight alongside Latinos for Tennessee for faith, family, freedom, and fiscal responsibility.” Green’s campaign continues to pick up support in…

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US Missile Defense System Intercepts Medium-Range Missile in Test

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The U.S. military said it successfully tested a key missile defense system on Friday, in a milestone that experts say shows a growing U.S. capability to knock down an incoming, medium-range missile from countries like North Korea and Iran. The Aegis system used in the latest test was fitted with a Standard Missile 3 Block IIA (SM-3 IIA) interceptor being developed in a joint venture between Raytheon Co and Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. It was the second successful intercept in a row for the SM-3 IIA and will give the U.S. Missile Defense Agency more confidence that it has resolved design flaws that previously caused intercept failures, U.S. officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity. The officials said the successful test moved the system closer to production. MDA Director Lieutenant General Sam Greaves described the test as “a superb accomplishment and key milestone.” Riki Ellison, chairman of the Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance, a non-profit organization that seeks to promote testing and development of missile defense systems, said the test would also keep plans on track to eventually deploy the system in Poland. The Poland site is part of a planned U.S. missile defense network aimed at deterring an attack…

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Commentary: The Eternal Return of a Malevolent Charade

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by Roger Kimball   The eternal return – Friedrich Nietzsche thought the idea was horrifying. Life as an endless merry-go-round in which the same things keep recurring, forever. That prospect, Nietzsche thought, was the hardest, weightiest, most depressing idea mankind could ever confront. It was part of Nietzsche’s blustering nihilism that he should first conjure the most unpleasant idea he could think of and then announce that true heroism lay in embracing it. The rest of us may be less enthusiastic about the prospect of ceaseless repetition. After all, we’ve all had a foretaste of what it entails in the remarkable career of socialism. Like the fabled hydra, socialism is an evil that suffers decapitation after decapitation only to spring back to life, its blood—or, rather, the blood of its victims—somehow sprouting ever new heads of credulousness. The Soviet Union was “really existing communism,” under whose aegis millions were impoverished, tortured, and murdered (but, according to the New York Times, the sex was great). Western intellectuals, gullible creatures that they are, adulated that steaming tyranny. Eventually morons like Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher, and Pope John Paul II brought to an end that horrible “experiment in living.” Chairman Mao probably has the…

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Trump’s Use of Pardon Power Aims at Rectifying Injustice

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by John-Michael Seibler   Since taking office, President Donald Trump has granted pardons and sentence commutations for a number of individuals who he thinks received an unjust federal prison sentence or were unjustly prosecuted and convicted of a federal crime. In some cases—particularly in granting the early-20th century black boxing champion Jack Johnson a posthumous pardon, and taking meetings on criminal justice issues—Trump is drawing flak, when he should be getting kudos for working to address instances of manifest injustice. On Oct. 9, Trump reiterated his commitment to using the presidential pardon power, saying that he was actively looking at more federal inmates in similar situations. Speaking from the Oval Office, Trump said that there are “a lot of people … that will unfortunately be locked up for many, many years, and there’s no reason for it.” Trump’s comments came before a widely publicized meeting on Oct. 11 with rapper Kanye West and pro football Hall of Fame running back Jim Brown, during which the three discussed, among other things, prison reform and presidential pardons. Yet, one commentator called the meeting a “minstrel show,” and others used it as an opportunity to mock both West and Trump. In doing so, Trump’s…

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Americans for Limited Government Asks: ‘Is Sexual Violence in Minnesota Okay When It’s a Democrat?’

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by Natalia Castro   Minnesota Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith are running to maintain their seats this November. While both are leading in the polls, their race has not been without controversy. In Americans for Limited Government’s latest issue advocacy ad, they highlight the hypocrisy surrounding Klobuchar and Smith’s alignment with controversial political figures Al Franken and Keith Ellison. By refusing to call out violence against women in their own party, even within their own state, Klobuchar and Smith have proved they are more invested in party politics than doing what is right. Klobuchar became a national name during the nomination process for now-Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. Kavanaugh was subject to unsubstantiated sexual misconduct claims that dragged out his nomination process for weeks. Klobuchar became one of his fiercest critics and an adversary during the hearing process. Smith also called upon constituents to “rise up” and “use their voice” against Kavanaugh on the steps of the Supreme Court. Smith and Klobuchar advocated against Kavanaugh, despite an FBI investigation which was unable to verify his alleged victim’s story and bodies of evidence supporting Kavanaugh’s denial of events. Meanwhile, in these Senators’ own state of Minnesota, two high profile political…

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Nashville Man Says HOA Won’t Let Him Put His Bill Lee Sign in His Yard

Chris Butler

NASHVILLE — At least one resident of Nashville’s Abbeywood Village neighborhood in Burton Hills is unhappy because he says he can’t post his Bill Lee for Governor sign in his front yard. That man, Daniel Allen, told The Tennessee Star his homeowners’ association forbids it. This, despite a state law that, going by Allen’s interpretation, supersedes his HOA policies. Members of the Tennessee General Assembly enacted that law, the Tennessee Freedom of Speech Act, last year. Allen, a Republican, said he neither lobbied for the law nor did he help write it. He just wants freedom of speech — for him and even his neighbor, a Democrat who is rooting for Phil Bredesen for the U.S. Senate. “I am not going to vote for Phil Bredesen. He’s not my guy,” Allen said. “But I believe my neighbor has a right to have that (Bredesen) sign out there, and I and no one else in this complex have a right to tell him he can’t.” The Star on Friday repeatedly tried to contact all four members of the Abbeywood Village HOA, as well as President Grant Carpenter, Managing Agent Teddy Christenberry, and Outside Counsel Gerald C. Wigger. No one other than two…

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Todd Starnes Reports: NYC Art Installation Depicts Trump Supporters as Trash

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by Todd Starnes   A New York City art installation depicts President Trump’s supporters as white trash who cling to Bibles, eat at Chick-fil-A and wear “Make America Great Again” ball caps. “Keep NYC Trash Free” is the brain child of artist Winston Tseng. His previous works of art include a homophobic poster depicting Sean Hannity and President Trump. In his newest installation, Tseng portrays one Trump supporter as an overweight white man wearing a “Make America Great Again” ball cap while drinking from a Chick-fil-A cup. The man also sports a Confederate flag tattoo on his arm. The other image features a woman clinging to a Bible while wearing a “Make America Great Again” ball cap. [ Are you voting? Here are few apps for smart voters ] Tseng defended the stereotypical images of white Trump supporters in an interview with Brooklyn Street Art. “I wouldn’t say its meant to represent all caucasians but certainly they are meant to portray a certain demographic,” he said. “In this case a segment of white people that I personally believe the posters accurately reflect. The statistics are there that a lot of Trump supporters who wear the MAGA hats come from red states, from…

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As President Trump’s Successes with Trade Grow, Globalist Republicans’ Grip on ‘Free Trade’ Orthodoxy Slips

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by Michael Noyes   Eight hours before the first polls closed on November 8, 2016, the late Charles Krauthammer appeared on Fox News and made a prediction. Should Trump win, he said, it would “irreversibly” change the Republican Party. “Particularly the most obvious issues will be immigration and trade,” Krauthammer explained. Nearly two years into the Trump presidency, a look at debates from key Senate races may offer a hint at the party’s future on trade. The old guard is sticking with its free-trade roots. “I am for freedom, free people and free markets, and I am not a fan of tariffs and never have been,” Tennessee Republican Marsha Blackburn said in her debate with Democrat Phil Bredesen. “But China has had a trade war on us for decades, and if we’re in a trade war, for goodness sakes let’s make sure we win this. Now, I hope that we get these tariffs over and done with because they are not good for Tennessee.” Moments later Blackburn was asked to name one Trump policy she disagreed with. “One is the tariffs . . . ” On this the two candidates agreed. “The tariffs we have right now are hurting Tennessee…

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Lindsey Graham to Campaign for Marsha Blackburn Sunday in Nashville

Jason M. Reynolds

U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) will campaign in Nashville Sunday for U.S. Representative Marsha Blackburn (R-TN-07) in her Senate bid. Graham will appear at CabaRay Showroom from 2:30-4 p.m., according to Facebook and Twitter posts. Doors open at 2. A different venue had initially been announced. https://twitter.com/TNGOP/status/1055142005943222272 “If you live in Tennessee — or have friends and family living there — please encourage them to support for Marsha Blackburn for U.S. Senate. I will be attending a Rally in Nashville on Sunday for Marsha and our Tennessee Republican team,” he said on Facebook. CabaRay is a venue that is owned by legendary comedic entertainer Ray Stevens. The stop is part of Graham’s 2018  midterm campaign tour.The Republican National Committee has said Graham is also stopping in Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, Nevada, Ohio and South Carolina. Graham isn’t up for re-election until 2020. Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said earlier this month, “President Trump has enlisted Senator Graham, a key ally in confirming Justice Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, to go on the road for Republican candidates. Voters are fired up about the disgraceful confirmation process and the Democrats’ disturbing mob attacks. Senator Graham will…

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