Upwards of 61,000 unaccompanied illegal immigrant children have flooded the U.S. southern border since October, according to the Washington Examiner.
Read the full story61,000 Unaccompanied Illegal Alien Children Have Entered the US Since October
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Commentary: This Lawsuit Over ‘Sex’ and ‘Gender Identity’ Will Have Sweeping Implications
“I felt like I had been punched in the stomach. I was just gasping for air.”
Read the full storyTemporary Immigration Protections for Venezuelans Pass in House
The House passed a bipartisan bill to grant Venezuelans temporary relief from immigration enforcement Thursday.
Read the full storyJustice Ginsburg Shields Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh from Criticism
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg defended President Donald Trump’s two appointees to the Supreme Court and rebuffed progressive proposals to expand the tribunal this week.
Read the full storyCommentary: Trump, Barr Set Sights on Big Tech Over Antitrust Concerns
The Antitrust Division of the Justice Department is setting its sights on big tech firms like Google, Facebook, Twitter and Amazon in announcing a review of potentially anticompetitive activities that could be limiting consumer choices, hurting small businesses and some say even engaging in censorship.
Read the full storyBBC Says We Only Have 18 Months to Save the Planet from Climate Change
Humanity has only 18 months left to take decisive political steps to avert the catastrophic effects of climate change, according to a report Wednesday by the BBC.
Read the full storyThe Tennessee Star Report Takes Calls From Bernadette and Valerie Who Love MyPillow
On Friday’s Tennessee Star Report with Steve Gill and Michael Patrick Leahy – broadcast on Nashville’s Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 am to 8:00 am – with Gill out of studio, Leahy and Jimmy Tidwell discussed MyPillow founder Mike Lindell’s political aspirations in Minnesota.
Read the full storyUS Government to Resume Executions After Nearly Two Decades
The Federal Bureau of Prisons is set to resume capital punishment after a 16-year hiatus, with plans for the coming months to execute five death row inmates convicted of murder, the Justice Department announced on Thursday.
Read the full storyTrump Says Mexico May Put More Troops at Border With US
WASHINGTON – U.S. President Donald Trump, who is trying to stem the flow of mostly Central American migrants seeking to enter the United States from Mexico, said on Wednesday that Mexico may put more troops at the two countries’ border.
Read the full storyThe Tennessee Star Report Talks to Metro Council at Large Candidate, Adam Dread About Public Safety and the Low Early Voting Turnout for the Nashville Mayoral Race
During a discussion Thursday morning on The Tennessee Star Report with Steve Gill and Michael Patrick Leahy – broadcast on Nashville’s Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 am to 8:00 am – Gill and Leahy spoke to Metro Council at large candidate, Adam Dread about low early voter turnout and scooter safety and how it ties into the public’s concerns.
Read the full storyRashida Tlaib: ‘We Didn’t Have ICE Years Ago Before 9/11 … We Were Fine’
Democratic Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib unpacked her anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) stance and said the U.S. was “fine” without ICE pre-9/11 during a podcast released Tuesday.
Read the full storyPolice: Illegal Alien From El Salvador Arrested for Attacking 16-Year-Old Girl
Police arrested an illegal alien for attacking a girl and attempting to sexually assault her in Cedar Falls, Iowa, Tuesday, authorities said.
Read the full storyPuerto Rico Gov. Rossello Announces Resignation
Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo A. Rossello will resign amid uprising and impeachment threats following a leaked group chat, he announced on Facebook Live Wednesday.
Read the full storyTulsi Gabbard Sues Google
2020 Democratic presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard is suing Google over allegations that the tech giant violated her right to free speech.
Read the full storyCommentary: Ilhan Omar Blames America for Illegal Immigration
Radical Somali-American and left-wing Representative Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) argues that U.S. foreign policy is the cause of the global refugee crisis. Without question, excessive aggression from the United States in Latin America and the Middle East has exacerbated the pre-existing pathologies that pervade their political, social, and economic systems.
Read the full storyProject Veritas Sues Ohio’s Election Board to Record Undercover for the 2020 Election
Project Veritas, a conservative non-profit organization that has come to fame by exposing liberal politicians, companies and non-profits, sued the Ohio Elections Commission in order to be able to record politicians undercover for the 2020 election.
Read the full storyUS Treasury Secretary to Hold Trade Talks in China Next Week
U.S. Treasury Steven Mnuchin says he will visit China next week for two days of talks to end the year-long trade war between the world’s two largest economies.
Read the full storyCommentary: Republicans, Don’t Screw Up the Mueller Hearing
by Julie Kelly Republicans will have a chance to redeem themselves this week after the farce they helped create: The special counsel investigation into alleged “collusion” between Russia and the Trump campaign to influence the 2016 presidential election. Robert Mueller is scheduled to testify before the House Judiciary Committee and the House Intelligence Committee in a public hearing for a total of five hours on Wednesday—not nearly enough time to plumb the depths of his 448-page report or to grill Mueller about his tactics and partisan team of investigators. Republicans will need to make the most of the limited time they have. So, this seems like an appropriate time to remind Republicans that they are as much to blame as Democrats for foisting this costly, useless and destructive travesty on the American people. With few exceptions, Republicans capitulated to every single Democratic demand and the ongoing media-manufactured hysteria about the urgency required to investigate so-called “election collusion.” “Some of us very early on saw enormous conflicts [with Mueller], even conflicted as being a witness. We knew there was something wrong,” U.S. Representative Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.), one of the few Republicans skeptical of the Mueller probe from the beginning, told…
Read the full storyMedia Requests for EPA Records Soar Under Trump
by Kevin Mooney Major news outlets, seemingly more prone to investigative reporting in the Trump era, are much more aggressive in seeking records from the Environmental Protection Agency than they were in the final years of the Obama administration, The Daily Signal has learned. ABC News, CBS News, the Associated Press, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Politico are among 20 news organizations showing a large increase in Freedom of Information Act requests, according to EPA numbers obtained by The Daily Signal. The 20 media outlets include not only news organizations with liberal perspectives but some, such as CNN, BuzzFeed, Mother Jones, and Huffington Post, that freely mix news coverage and left-leaning opinion. According to the data, the biggest percentage increase in FOIA requests to the EPA by the 20 media outlets occurred between 2016, Barack Obama’s last year as president and 2017, Donald Trump’s first year as president. The organizations made a total of 626 FOIA requests to the EPA in 2017, more than doubling the 249 requests in 2016. Dating to 1967, the federal Freedom of Information Act requires disclosure, upon written request and with exceptions, of previously unreleased information and documents controlled by the…
Read the full storyTrump Administration Looks to Remove Ineligible People from Food Stamp Rolls
by Whitney Tipton The United States Department of Agriculture proposed Monday eliminating a loophole in food stamp eligibility requirements that would cut 3.1 million people from the program and save $2.5 billion. Those who receive temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) will not longer be automatically eligible to get food stamps through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) if the rule is enacted, according to the USDA. “Some states are taking advantage of loopholes that allow people to receive the SNAP benefits who would otherwise not qualify and for which they are not entitled,” said USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue, according to Reuters. The USDA wants to change the current rule in 43 states that make TANF recipients automatically eligible for SNAP benefits. Instead, TANF recipients must apply for SNAP and submit to a review of their assets and income to determine if they are qualified. The proposed rule is expected to result in removing 3.1 million people from the program, according to the USDA. It will also result in a cost savings of $2.5 billion, the agency said. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates the change could save the federal government $8.1 over the next 10 years. Trump tried…
Read the full storyFacebook Plows Record Amount of Cash Into DC Lobbyists as Its Algorithm Changes Crush Media Outlets
by Chris White Facebook spent several million dollars on lobbying efforts over the past few months as the Silicon Valley company’s algorithm changes continue to wallop small media outlets. The big tech company dropped more than $4 million during the second financial quarter, a record for Facebook up to this point, Washington Post writer Tony Romm noted in a tweet Tuesday. Google and Amazon came in second and third place, as they spent $2.9 million and $4 million, respectively. All three companies’ lobbying efforts come as Republican and Democratic lawmakers continue to scrutinize Facebook and Google’s death-grip on the tech industry. House Democrats opened a broad antitrust investigation in June into the tech industry’s power and impact on competition — Facebook in particular is taking heat as lawmakers believe the company is violating people’s privacy rights. President Donald Trump and other Republicans meanwhile argue big tech companies are unfairly censoring conservatives. Facebook, Google and Amazon’s spending carries on a trend. They dumped a combined $48 million into lobbying in 2018, up 13% from 2017, government disclosures from January show. Google was the biggest spender that year, increasing its lobbying contributions 18% to $21.2 million, while Facebook’s spending grew nearly…
Read the full storyRep Rashida Tlaib Calls for $20 an Hour Minimum Wage
by Evie Fordham Democratic Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib called for a federal minimum wage of up to $20 an hour at a “One Fair Wage” event in Detroit on Sunday. “Big fights like this one, $15. When we started it, it should have been $15. Now I think it should be $20 … It should be $20 an hour. $18-20 an hour,” Tlaib said in a video posted by America Rising on Monday. Tlaib and Michigan Democrat Debbie Dingell participated in an event called “Server for an Hour” to support the Raise the Wage Act that passed the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives Thursday. Tlaib brought up the common counter-argument that raising the minimum wage will not actually feel like more money in the wallets of workers. Fighting for our working families sometimes means walking in their shoes. It was only for an hour, but it was hard work. @HouseDemocrats passed #Fightfor15 #OneFairWage & now the Senate needs to. Thank you to @onefairwage for inviting me into your movement. pic.twitter.com/POihHhC7kE — Rashida Tlaib (@RashidaTlaib) July 22, 2019 “They say all this is going to raise the cost. But I can tell you, milk has gone up. Eggs has gone up.…
Read the full storyUS Senate Confirms Mark Esper as Secretary of Defense
by Reuters WASHINGTON – The U.S. Senate on Tuesday confirmed Army Secretary Mark Esper to be secretary of defense, ending the longest period by far that the Pentagon has been without a permanent top official. As voting continued, the Senate overwhelmingly backed Esper, a former lobbyist for weapons maker Raytheon Co., to be President Donald Trump’s second confirmed leader of the Pentagon. Esper, 55, received strong bipartisan support despite some sharp questioning during his confirmation hearing by Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren about his ties to Raytheon and his refusal to extend an ethics commitment he signed in 2017 to avoid decisions involving the company. Warren, a 2020 presidential hopeful, was the only member of the Senate Armed Services Committee to voice opposition to Esper’s confirmation during the hearing. Raytheon is the third-largest U.S. defense contractor. There has been no confirmed defense secretary since Jim Mattis resigned in December over policy differences with Trump. Many members of Congress from both parties have urged the Republican president to act urgently to fill the powerful position. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell called on members to support Esper as he opened the Senate on Tuesday morning. “The nominee is beyond qualified. His record…
Read the full storyOne America News Network’s Neil McCabe Joins the Tennessee Star Report to Discuss Robert Mueller’s Testimony
On Tuesday’s Tennessee Star Report with Steve Gill and Michael Patrick Leahy – broadcast on Nashville’s Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 am to 8:00 am – Gill and Leahy talked to One America News Networks Neil McCabe about Mueller’s upcoming testimony and how the Democrats hope that he will say things that were not in the report in effort to open up impeachment hearings. The team noted that if Mueller does answer questions from Democrats that this would leave the window open for Republicans to hold him in contempt. Towards the end of the segment, the team discussed the possibility that the Mueller team had been leaking to Democrats during the entire investigation. Gill: A lot of stuff going on and to help us sort out some of it, Neil McCabe from One America News Network. Neil, good to have you back with us. McCabe: Hey, good morning. How’s it going? Gill: It tires me out just going down the list of all the stuff that’s going to happen. Leahy: Yeah. Neil, so you interviewed reporter John Solomon the other day. What did he have to tell you about James Comey and Robert Mueller? McCabe: What’s interesting is everyone talks about the Mueller…
Read the full storyCommentary: Bernie Sanders Oppressor of the Working Class
by CHQ Staff Presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders has pledged to American workers that he would institute a $15-per-hour minimum wage if he wins the White House in 2020. But, reports Dom Calicchio of Fox News, unionized workers on Sanders’ own campaign say they wish he would start now — by paying a higher wage to them. In a letter to Sanders campaign manager Faiz Shakir, Mr. Calicchio reports the campaign staffers claim they “cannot be expected to build the largest grassroots organizing program in American history while making poverty wages.” “Given our campaign’s commitment to fighting for a living wage of at least $15.00 an hour,” the letter continued, “we believe it is only fair that the campaign would carry through this commitment to its own field team.” The field organizers claim that their long hours working on behalf of Sanders drop their actual pay to about $13 per hour. “Many field staffers are barely managing to survive financially,” the union letter says, “which is severely impacting our team’s productivity and morale. Some field organizers have already left the campaign as a result.” Sanders’ campaign manager Shakir seemed to paint a different picture Mr. Calicchio reported, “We know…
Read the full storyTrump Says He’s Considering Options After Guatemala Halts ‘Safe Third Country’ Designation
by Reuters WASHINGTON – U.S. President Donald Trump said he is now considering a “ban,” tariffs and remittance fees after Guatemala decided to not move forward with a safe third country agreement that would have required the Central American country to take in more asylum seekers. “Guatemala … has decided to break the deal they had with us on signing a necessary Safe Third Agreement. We were ready to go,” Trump tweeted. “Now we are looking at the ‘BAN,’ Tariffs, Remittance Fees, or all of the above. Guatemala has not been good,” Trump wrote. Guatemala, which has been forming Caravans and sending large numbers of people, some with criminal records, to the United States, has decided to break the deal they had with us on signing a necessary Safe Third Agreement. We were ready to go. Now we are looking at the “BAN,”…. — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2019 ….Tariffs, Remittance Fees, or all of the above. Guatemala has not been good. Big U.S. taxpayer dollars going to them was cut off by me 9 months ago. — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2019 It was not immediately clear what policies he was referring to. The…
Read the full storyTrump Calls Tlaib a ‘Lunatic’ After Watching 2016 Video Showing Her Being Removed from His Rally
President Donald Trump criticized Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI-13) Tuesday during a speech where he called her a “lunatic” after watching a video of her being thrown out of a 2016 Trump rally. The video showed Tlaib being removed by security guards at Detroit’s Cobo Center. While leaving, she yelled “you guys are crazy” at Trump supporters. In response, a person called her an “animal” and told her “to get a job.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EI6Nmhz2PSY&feature=youtu.be “There is no way she stands for the values of the people of Michigan. But I watched her this morning. She’s vicious. She’s like a crazed lunatic,” Trump said at the Turning Point USA’s Teen Student Action Summit. “She starts screaming, and this is not a sane person, folks, when you look at that. And this is what we’re up against,” he added. Donald Trump took jabs at Freshmen Democrats Rashida Tlaib, AOC and Ilhan Omar when speaking to young conservatives at the Turning Point USA Teen Action Summit. Earlier today, he predicted Omar’s remarks would give him the edge to win Minnesota in 2020 https://t.co/XlmbeYUwbD pic.twitter.com/H0QMFQphdj — POLITICO (@politico) July 23, 2019 At the 2016 Trump rally, Tlaib and at least 14 other protesters were…
Read the full storyThe Tennessee Star Report Talks to ‘Point of View’s’ Chris Berg About the Tangled Web of Ilhan Omar’s Background
During a specific interview discussion Monday morning on The Tennessee Star Report with Steve Gill and Michael Patrick Leahy – broadcast on Nashville’s Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 am to 8:00 am – Leahy talked to good friend and host of Fargo, North Dakota’s Point of View about Ilhan Omar’s alleged illegal immigration into the United States and her questionable political affiliations associated with her background. Towards the end of the segment, the three men dissected whether or not there was enough speculation to pursue a DOJ or US Attorney General investigation into Omar’s past. They also noted that this issue could potentially be investigated at the federal level. Leahy: Our good friend Chris Berg who is the host of Point of View at the top television affiliate in Fargo, North Dakota caught that clip and sent it to us. And Chris, welcome to the Tennessee Star Report. Our story on that has over six thousand Facebook shares. Berg: (Chuckles) Thanks for having me Mike. Great to have you and happy Monday. Leahy: So tell us about Ilhan Omar. Ilhan was from Somalia. Came to the United States when she was twelve. Lived in Virginia for a couple of years.…
Read the full storyReport: US May Set Refugee Cap at Zero for Coming Year
by Victoria Macchi The Trump administration is considering more dramatic cuts to the U.S. refugee program, with one official suggesting the White House not allow any refugees into the country in the coming fiscal year. In a Politico report released Thursday, government officials from several federal agencies attended a meeting last week and discussed several options that included a ceiling of 10,000 — well below the current refugee ceiling of 30,000, which is already an all-time low for the program. The U.S. resettled 23,190 refugees since the beginning of fiscal 2019 last October. With 2½ months remaining until the count resets, the U.S. is on track to fall short of this year’s cap, according to U.S. State Department data. Since the so-called “refugee ceiling” is an upper limit, and not a quota, the government is not required to meet the annual admissions number. Multiple figures Scott Arbeiter, president of World Relief, one of the primary refugee resettlement nongovernmental organizations in the U.S., said he has heard multiple figures proposed for the coming fiscal year, all well below the program’s historical annual threshold of around 60,000 to 70,000. In President Barack Obama’s last year two years in office, his administration made…
Read the full storyCommentary: One of the Left’s Goals Is to Abolish Citizenship
by Matthew Goose Few issues so clearly separate those who care about America from those who do not like immigration. In recent days, Democrats have advised illegal immigrants to defy the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Service, suggested decriminalizing illegal entry, and even embraced free healthcare for illegal immigrants. Democrats applauded the Trump Administration’s decision to abandon the citizenship question on the 2020 census—calling it vindication for “democracy” —but denounced the ICE raids on illegal aliens with deportation orders. While claiming fealty to the United States, the Democrats have all but proudly declared they are for open borders and against the rights and interests of American citizens. They have reached a consensus that American citizenship is a meaningless abstraction and an unearned privilege that effectively must be abolished—if not by law, then by ignoring the existence and unique rights of American citizens qua citizens. Peel back the sentimental platitudes (does anyone really think families shouldn’t stay together?) and the Democrats’ take on immigration reveals a profound betrayal. They are more concerned with the welfare of illegal immigrants than with that of the citizens of the country they were elected to serve. By seeking to abolish American citizenship, Democrats are withdrawing…
Read the full storyUK Knife Crime Hits Record High, Despite London Mayor’s ‘Knife Control’
by Jake Dima The U.K., most notably London, has experienced a sharp increase in knife-related crime, despite “knife control” efforts to curb the violence, newly released figures detail. Knife crime in both England and Wales is up 8% from April 2018 to May 2019. U.K. police reports from 43 departments recorded 47,136 incidents involving sharp objects, an Office of National Statistics crime report says. London Mayor Sadiq Khan implemented blade bans in London in April 2018, but they don’t appear to be working as intended. Blades found on one’s person have increased 21% since 2018, the report details. No excuses: there is never a reason to carry a knife. Anyone who does will be caught, and they will feel the full force of the law. https://t.co/XILUvIFLOW — Mayor of London (@MayorofLondon) April 8, 2018 The 8% rise is calculated to equate to an increase of over 3,300 knife-related incidents compared with this time last year. It’s supposed that even more stabbings or cuttings occurred and went unrecorded, as the U.K.’s Greater Manchester Police was excluded from the data for undercounting, according to the report. The number of knife-related incidents has been on the rise for years, increasing by more…
Read the full storyThe Supreme Court Might Overturn One of Justice Stevens’s Landmark Decisions
by Kevin Daley Late Justice John Paul Stevens left a far-reaching legal legacy in his 34 years on the Supreme Court, writing landmark decisions on presidential powers, property rights and the death penalty. Yet the endurance of his legacy might be an open question. The Supreme Court signaled weeks before Stevens died Tuesday it might overturn one of his most significant opinions, a 1984 decision called Chevron v. National Resources Defense Council. The Chevron case initially seemed like an arcane agency issue of little consequence. In the sweep of time, however, it became one of the most important precedents governing the power of federal agencies. Chevron provides that the courts should defer to an agency’s interpretation of an ambiguous law it administers, provided that interpretation is reasonable. For example, under Chevron, the courts should defer to the Environmental Protection Agency’s reading of an unclear provision in the Clear Air Act. Supporters of Chevron say it ensures complex regulatory questions will be resolved by subject matter experts, instead of layman judges who are ill-equipped to parse complicated areas like pharmaceutical certification. They frame the approach as one of judicial humility and a recognition of the modest role courts should play…
Read the full storyCommentary: Maine and Nevada Show Why the Electoral College Helps Small States, Not Red States
by Hans Von Spakovsky Last month, both Maine and Nevada did what was in the best interests of their states: They rejected bills that would have enrolled their states in the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, an unwise effort to override the Electoral College. In Maine, it was killed by legislators in the state House after it passed Maine’s Senate. In Nevada, Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak vetoed the bill that had been passed by members of his own party in the Legislature. The National Popular Vote compact, which is an agreement between states, requires a participating state to award all of its electoral votes to the presidential candidate who receives the most votes across the nation, not to the candidate who actually won the vote in that state. In other words, states are agreeing to ignore what the majority of voters in their state decides when it comes to who they believe should be president. This interstate compact has been sold to state governments as a means to abolish what supporters wrongly claim is the “outmoded, undemocratic Electoral College.” What is “undemocratic” is an agreement that means that even if every single voter in a state voted against a presidential…
Read the full storyNo 2020 Democrats Will Attend Muslim Caucus Conference
by Sarah Price None of the 2020 Democratic presidential candidates have agreed to attend the first Muslim-American national gathering on July 23rd and 24th, according to the Huffington Post. Both the Muslim Conference and the Huffington Post reached out to every 2020 Democratic presidential hopeful in regard to the event. Most either did not respond or noted a scheduling conflict. Former Vice President Joe Biden and New York Mayor Bill de Blasio ignored the invitation. Mayor Pete Buttigieg and former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro declined. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker and Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar said they would send pre-recorded videos. However, Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren confirmed that she would participate via live stream, according to the Huffington Post. None of them will be there in person. The Conference of the Muslim Collective for Equitable Democracy, hosted by the Muslim Caucus, will take place in Washington, D.C. The organization’s website describes its mission as being “On a bold path to cultivate and lift up our grassroots, multi-state affiliate base of changemakers organizing to advance racial and religious equity.” Many of the event’s organizers are frustrated with the lack of interest and participation…
Read the full storyCarson Says Trump ‘Not a Racist’
by Joshua Nelson While many Democrats are accusing President Donald Trump of “racism” because of a controversial tweet, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson is countering the narrative by touting the president’s policies. “I have an advantage of knowing the president very well, and he’s not a racist, “ Carson said in a Wednesday interview on Fox News’ “America’s Newsroom.” “His comments are not racist, but he loves the country very much,” Carson added. “He has a feeling that those who represent the country should love it as well.” The comments Carson referred to were tweets from the president directed at a group of minority freshman Democratic lawmakers known as “the squad” who have been outspoken in their criticisms of the president and America. In his string of tweets, Trump said the group, made up of Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Ilhan Omar or Minnesota, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, and Ayanna Pressley of Illinois, should “go back and help fix the totally broken and crime-infested places from which they came.” All the women are American citizens. Following Trump’s remarks, House Resolution 489 was introduced in the House Judiciary Committee, a measure that “condemns” the president as “racist”…
Read the full storyBrooklyn Man Charged After Joining ISIS, Training Other Members
by Audrey Conklin The U.S. Department of Justice on Friday charged a Brooklyn man who joined ISIS with providing and attempting to provide material support to a designated terrorist organization. Ruslan Maratovich Asainov, a naturalized American citizen born in Kazakhstan, was recently transferred into FBI custody after being detained in Syria by the Syrian Democratic Forces, according to a Friday statement from the Justice Department. “The defendant … turned his back on the country that took him in and joined ISIS, serving its violent ends in Syria and attempting to recruit others to its cause,” U.S. Attorney Donoghue said in a statement, according to the DOJ. 1) “The defendant, a naturalized U.S. citizen residing in Brooklyn, turned his back on the country that took him in and joined ISIS, serving its violent ends in Syria and attempting to recruit others to its cause,” stated United States Attorney Donoghue… — US Attorney EDNY (@EDNYnews) July 19, 2019 “Our counterterrorism prosecutors and law enforcement partners will continue working relentlessly to hold accountable those like the defendant who have supported ISIS’s violent agenda,” he continued. Donoghue also said the FBI hopes “countries around the world, including our European allies and partners, will…
Read the full storyCommentary: Support for $15 Minimum Wage Plummets When Americans Are Told Its Economic Impact
by Jon Miltimore Minimum wage laws, I’ve noted, are popular with the public. This no doubt explains why House Democrats passed a bill Thursday that would raise the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour. Yet the minimum wage’s apparent popularity might be political pyrite (fool’s gold). A newly published Business Insider survey found that support for the minimum wage wilts when Americans—both Republicans and Democrats—are told of its full economic impact. Of the 1,100 poll respondents, 63 percent supported raising the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour. Just 22 percent opposed the policy. However, when told of the Congressional Budget Office’s recent finding that raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour would cost an estimated 1.3 million jobs, respondents soured on the policy. After being told that “a proposed policy” to raise the minimum wage could lead to 1.3 million job losses, people were considerably less enthusiastic. Thirty-seven percent of respondents would support a policy with those implications, considerably down from the 63% who backed a $15 minimum wage. The CBO, which projected that job losses could be as high as 3.7 million, explained in their report who would be most affected by the minimum wage…
Read the full storyCommentary: Fifty Years Ago, the Eagle Landed
by Lee Edwards Let us pause to celebrate the 50th-anniversary today of a mission once thought impossible: the landing of a man on the moon. Let us proclaim, without embarrassment, that America, and only America, had the requisite leadership, scientific community, and resources to make it possible for Apollo astronaut Neil Armstrong to take that giant leap for mankind. Let us freely admit we needed a kick to get started. That happened when the Soviet Union put the first satellite known as Sputnik in orbit and pushed ahead of the United States in the space race. The Cold War was red hot, and everything was measured on how it affected that global conflict. As one commentator wrote, “the United States could not afford [a] slight to its technical expertise and economic strength.” In a dramatic address in May 1961, President John F. Kennedy tasked NASA with the goal of “landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the Earth,” and to do so before the end of the decade. The following year, Kennedy raised the stakes of the Apollo program by calling space “a new frontier” and declaring: “We choose to go to the moon, not…
Read the full storyTrump Is Nominating Justice Scalia’s Son for Labor Secretary
by Kevin Daley President Donald Trump will nominate the late Justice Antonin Scalia’s son Eugene Scalia as labor secretary. The New York Times was first to report that Trump is considering Scalia for the position. The pair reportedly met at the White House on Thursday afternoon. The president confirmed the news in a late Thursday tweet. “I am pleased to announce that it is my intention to nominate Gene Scalia as the new Secretary of Labor,” Trump said. “Gene has led a life of great success in the legal and labor field and is highly respected not only as a lawyer, but as a lawyer with great experience working with labor and everyone else. He will be a great member of an administration that has done more in the first two and a half years than perhaps any administration in history!” Eugene Scalia is a partner in the Washington offices of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. A 1990 graduate of the University of Chicago Law School, Scalia’s practice touches labor, employment, regulatory, and appellate issues. He is connected to the Federalist Society, the conservative lawyers group. His confirmation would be Scalia’s second stint at the Department of Labor. He served…
Read the full storyMovies to Watch This Weekend
The Lion King: The long-awaited “live-action” re-imagining of The Lion King is here. Simba (JD McCrary) and King Mufasa (James Earl Jones) are returning to the big screen after a 25-year hiatus. In this Disney version of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Simba questions what his royal destiny will be on the wide-open plains of Africa. Mufasa’s brother, Scar (Chiwetel Ejiofor) has his own plan to take the throne. Eventually, Simba and Scar battle it out, and Simba is exiled after the Battle of Scar. He must figure out how to grow up and get back what is rightfully his. Unlike it’s animated predecessor, 2019’s The Lion King has not been received well at the box office by movie critics. Rotten Tomatoes scored it a 55 percent. However, fans scored it a 90 percent. Into the Ashes: An ex-con name Nick (Luke Grimes) is adjusting to life in rural Alabama with his new wife and job. However, Nick was not able to escape his past violent life for long. His past crew has not forgotten about the money he stole, so they take his wife. Nick must decide if he wants to go the lawful route or the outlaw route. Critics have given…
Read the full storyCommentary: To End Border Crisis, Trump Administration Restricts Central American Asylum Claims
by Robert Romano Under current immigration and asylum regulations, it was impossible to enforce the law on the southern border. The hundreds of thousands of Central Americans flooding the border the past several months gamed the system, betting that a compassionate America would let them in. Afterward, the families were released into the U.S. pending hearings, but those that showed up did so only to the extent they might be granted asylum, and upon rejection were never heard from again. It’s mandatory catch-and-release. Because of the way the regulations were written. As a result, the number of family units showing up on the border has been skyrocketing. In all of FY 2018, 161,113 family units were apprehended, and 58,660 unaccompanied children. Now family units are up to 427,881 in FY 2019, an increase of 165 percent and unaccompanied children is up 14 percent to 67,116, with three more months remaining in the fiscal year. Now, to get a handle on the problem and to deter future migrant waves, the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Justice are using their powers under the law to provide for additional restrictions and have issued a new rule telling asylum seekers…
Read the full storyUS Shot Down Iranian Drone, Trump Says
President Donald Trump said a U.S. warship shot down an Iranian drone Thursday that was threatening the ship and its crew in the Strait of Hormuz. Trump told reporters at a White House event that the drone came within 900 meters of the USS Boxer and ignored “multiple calls to stand down.” “The drone was immediately destroyed,” he said. “This is the latest of many provocative and hostile actions by Iran against vessels operating in international waters. The United States reserves the right to defend our personnel, our facilities and interests.” Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said in New York that he had “no information on losing a drone today.” All of the country’s drones returned to base, Iran’s top military spokesman said, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported. “All drones belonging to Iran in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz … returned safely to their bases after their mission of identification and control, and there is no report of any operational response by USS Boxer,” Abolfazl Shekarchi, a senior armed forces spokesman, was quoted as saying by Tasnim. “We have not lost any drone in the Strait of Hormuz nor anywhere else,” tweeted Deputy Foreign…
Read the full storyMichigan Beauty Pageant Winner Stripped of Title Over Past ‘Insensitive’ Tweets
A model who supports President Donald Trump had her beauty queen crown removed after “inappropriate” past social media posts were discovered. Kathy Zhu, a Chinese immigrant, believes her Miss Michigan World America title was stripped because of her conservative beliefs. The former beauty pageant winner has a large social media following with almost 90,000 followers on Twitter (76,100) and Instagram (13,300) combined. Miss World America (MWA) sent an email to Zhu on Thursday explaining that her past social media posts violated its rules and conditions of “being a good character and whose background is not likely to bring into disrepute Miss World America or any person associated with the organization.” Zhu posted the email and her reaction to it on Twitter. “Miss World America’s State/National/Chief Director accused me of being racist, Islamaphobic, and insensitive. They stripped me of my Miss Michigan title due to my refusal to try on a hijab in 2018, my tweet about black on black gun violence, and ‘insensitive’ statistical tweets,” she said. https://twitter.com/PoliticalKathy/status/1152044590645616640 The former pageant winner had two 2018 social media posts come under question. In 2018, when she was a Central Florida University freshman, Zhu approached the Muslim Student Association booth celebrating…
Read the full storyKyrsten Sinema, Eight Other Senators Sign Letter to Speed Up Removal of Certain Migrants
by Shelby Talcott Sen. Kyrsten Sinema is aiming to implement a program at the U.S.-Mexico border that would speed up the removal of migrants without valid asylum claims. The Arizona Democrat joined eight other senators in signing a letter Wednesday to acting Homeland Security Secretary Kevin McAleenan, The Arizona Republic reported. The letter detailed how the pilot program, which is called “Operation Safe Return,” would allow for some migrants to be deported within 15 days, according to the letter. “This pilot program would apply to families who aren’t claiming ‘credible fear,’ which of course is the first threshold in seeking asylum,” Sinema told The Arizona Republic. “If someone says, ‘I left my country because I can’t make a living,’ [or] ‘It’s hard to take care of my family’ — that’s what we call an economic migrant.” Border Patrol would be given one to three days for “detailed, fair and accurate interviews” with migrant families. If the families are fearful of returning to their home countries, they would be deported, the newspaper reported. If a family is fearful, the next step would be for asylum officers to conduct a credible-fear interview. The officers would have nine days after the family…
Read the full storyICE Is Considering Opening a Detention Center in Maryland
by Matt M. Miller U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is considering opening a detention facility capable of containing hundreds of illegal migrants in Maryland. ICE posted an advertisement on a federal contracts forum in April that it was surveying potential locations for the facility near Baltimore, the Baltimore Sun reported. The facility reportedly would have the capacity to hold 600-800 detainees, according to the Baltimore Sun. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is looking for more detention facility space within 50-miles of its Baltimore field office.https://t.co/xsxxrVO88g — The Baltimore Sun (@baltimoresun) July 18, 2019 The new facility would become the fourth detention facility in the state of Maryland, including centers in Frederick, Howard and Worcester counties. ICE is “continually reviewing its detention requirements and exploring acquisition options that will afford ICE the operational flexibility needed to house the full range of detainees in the agency’s custody,” ICE spokeswoman Justine Whelan said in a statement. The agency will consider the response to the detention facility advertisement to gage whether it would like to move forward with the project, Whelan explained. ICE officials posted the advertisement a few months after the end of a contract with Anne Arundel County to detain…
Read the full storyCommentary: President Trump’s Tweets Were in Response to U.S. Reps’ Past Racist and Anti-American Statements
by Robert Romano “Go wherever they want them, or they can stay. But they should love our country. They shouldn’t hate our country. You look at what they’ve said. I have clips right here. The vilest, most horrible statements about our country, about Israel, about others. It’s up to them to do what they want. They can leave, they can stay. But they should love our country, and they should work for the good of our country.” That was President Donald Trump’s response on July 16 to the flap over his tweets blasting U.S. Representatives Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.). Trump had tweeted on July 12, “So interesting to see ‘Progressive’ Democrat Congresswomen, who originally came from countries whose governments are a complete and total catastrophe, the worst, most corrupt and inept anywhere in the world (if they even have a functioning government at all), now loudly… and viciously telling the people of the United States, the greatest and most powerful Nation on earth, how our government is to be run. Why don’t they go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came. Then…
Read the full storyHere’s Why Protesters Are Demanding Puerto Rico Gov. Rico Rosselló Resign
by Chris White Thousands of protesters in Puerto Rico are demanding Gov. Ricardo Rosselló resign over corruption charges and what many believe are misogynistic private messages he shared with officials. Protesters hurled bricks, glass and fireworks, at police Wednesday evening in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico. Police fired tear gas in response as they attempt to clear the streets. Authorities also shot rubber bullets into the crowd, which included celebrities such as Ricky Martin and award-winning actor Benicio Del Toro. People have lit up the streets for five consecutive days, urging Rosselló to resign in the wake of corruption charges and the leaking of a private correspondence between him and close associates. The messages reportedly include misogynistic and homophobic comments, as well as cynical comments about deaths following Hurricane Maria. Martin and the other celebrities asked participants to protest peacefully. “Puerto Rico, say present without fear. Let’s march in peace and remain firm and assertive,” he told NBC reporters Wednesday. “When Puerto Rico unites, we accomplish wonderful things and we can change the course of history.” Del Toro made similar comments. “I’m here in support of the people of Puerto Rico,” he said during the rally. Others flocked to…
Read the full storyCommentary: Stiffening the Backbone of the Right
by Matthew J. Peterson Many people seem surprised that CNN gave a platform to white-supremacist Richard Spencer this week. They angrily decry the outrageous hypocrisy of the Left putting Spencer on the national airwave when it routinely de-platforms those on the Right for far less than giving voice to self-avowed neo-Nazis. But why? Don’t you know the rules? You know—the rules the Left is used to making, and the rules the “kept Right” is used to keeping. Did you actually think any of what is going on in Big Tech is really about stopping radical hate and violence? If that were true, all the folks from Antifa praising their terrorist lunatic who tried to shoot up a government facility this week would be de-platformed. Don’t hold your breath. The Left demands that every elected Republican official publicly apologize for a some nutjob murderer in New Zealand, but do you think that means Leftists have to apologize for Antifa’s “principled” domestic terrorism against journalists and government buildings here at home? Pfft. What are you, a racist? Spencer was deemed useful to pronounce Trump’s tweets racist. He quickly went on to complain that Trump has done nothing for white nationalists, contradicting…
Read the full storyUS House Passes $15 an Hour Minimum Wage
House lawmakers voted Wednesday to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour. In a vote that mostly followed party lines, House members passed the Raise The Wage Act, the first minimum wage increase since 2009. The measure has not yet come up in the Senate. The bill would more than double the national minimum wage over the next 6 years, a marked increase from the current $7.25 federal minimum wage. The bill would also raise the minimum wage for tipped employees to the same level from the current $2.13 an hour. In the 231-to-199 vote, three Republican representatives joined the majority and voted for the bill, while six Democrats voted against it. “This is about workers, it’s about their economic and financial security and today is a bright day because it affects so many people in our country,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told reporters at a news conference. Skepticism While the vote was nearly unanimous by Democrats, some members were skeptical. Democrats Tom O’Halleran of Arizona and Stephanie Murphy of Florida introduced an amendment that would mandate the Government Accountability Office to track the bill’s effects and report to the House before the entire wage increase is…
Read the full storyFinancier Jeffrey Epstein to Remain Jailed until Sex Trafficking Trial
by Reuters NEW YORK – American financier Jeffrey Epstein will remain behind bars while he awaits trial on charges of sex trafficking dozens of underage girls, a U.S. judge ruled on Thursday. U.S. District Judge Richard Berman announced his decision at a hearing in federal court in Manhattan, rejecting Epstein’s request to stay under house arrest in his New York mansion valued at $77 million. Epstein has pleaded not guilty. The money manager’s social circle over the years has included Donald Trump before he became U.S. president, former President Bill Clinton and Britain’s Prince Andrew. Epstein is accused of arranging for girls under the age of 18 to perform nude “massages” and other sex acts, and of paying some girls to recruit others, from at least 2002 to 2005. Prosecutors have said that a search of Epstein’s Upper East Side home, which has been valued at about $77 million, turned up hundreds or thousands of pictures of nude women, some of them minors, along with cash, diamonds and valuable art. Epstein is being held at the Metropolitan Correctional Center, a fortress-like jail that has been criticized by inmates and lawyers for harsh conditions. Prosecutors had urged Berman to keep…
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