thetennesseestar--2020-09-03--The John Fredericks Show: Corey Lewandowski Touts Trump’s Stamina and Momentum

Live from Virginia Wednesday morning on The John Fredericks Show – weekdays on WNTW AM 820/ FM 92.7 – Richmond , WJFN FM 100.5 – Central Virginia , WMPH AM 1010 / FM 100.1 / FM 96.9 ( 7-9 PM ) Hampton Roads , WBRG AM 1050 / FM 105.1 – Lynchburg/Roanoke and Weekdays 6-10 am and 24/7 Stream – host Fredericks welcomed Corey Lewandowski to the show .
During the interview , Lewandowski discussed the recent polling showing Trump moving up with the Black vote .
He also discussed the momentum that the Trump campaign is having and how @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Democrats follow behind .
Fredericks : Joining me now Corey Lewandowski .
Two time New York Times best selling author .
Now he ’ s got a new book coming out .
You want to pre-order that .
I ’ ve ordered two copies and I ’ m excited about it .
Trump : America First .
Trump-Pence 2020 .
Corey , big rally in New Hampshire after the President ’ s speech on Thursday night .
We were all there .
And I heard that the New Hampshire rally had a huge @ @ @ @ @ @ @ me now that you guys are going to win New Hampshire .
Lewandowski : Well John it was an amazing week for the President last week .
And we were in North Carolina on Monday .
You did the role for the state of Virginia .
I did it for New Hampshire .
He formally was nominated by us on Wednesday we were at Fort McHenry with the Vice President where he gave his nominating speech on Thursday at the White House with the President and where he gave his phenomenal speech .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ with him up to New Hampshire where he had a rally north of 8,000 people .
People were excited to see him ready to come back .
Look , even if you have to listen to the CNN polls by every metric and by every indicator we had a phenomenal week last week .
We forced Joe Biden out of his basement this week .
And he put together some rambling sentence about the coronavirus pandemic .
100 years .
Corona .
I had to actually get a translator because I didn ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ But that ’ s the pressure that they are under now to compete with us .
Fredericks : He ’ s got to get out of the basement finally .
I ’ m on their press list .
I was reading this yesterday .
It ’ s ten-thirty and I think Joe Biden went to an elementary school or middle school that wasn ’ t even open .
He went there to talk to the teachers who are doing the Zooms .
The ones that were there .
That was at ten-thirty in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ notice to the media that 11 am there is going to be a lid .
See you tomorrow .
I ’ m thinking you have nine weeks before the campaign .
You are now losing .
You are slipping in every single poll that come out .
You are slipping .
It ’ s Tuesday and the campaign does a 10:30 lid and they are not going to talk to anybody till tomorrow .
What is he doing from 10:30 to the following day when he ’ s got nine weeks remaining ?
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ novel or something ?
Lewandowski : Just remember John that their big announcement last Friday from the Biden campaign was we plan on starting to campaign after Labor Day .
That was the announcement that they made .
( Fredericks chuckles ) Their announcement was , we ’ re going to start campaigning 10 from now .
That is malpractice by every political consultant in the country .
It ’ s malpractice by his campaign team .
If he didn ’ t start campaigning after Labor Day , but because we are driving @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the driver ’ s seat John and driving the message and driving this campaign .
We have something they call the big mo .
We have momentum on our side .
It ’ s not nine weeks from yesterday till election day because of the early balloting in states like North Carolina and others .
That ’ s already happening which tells me they are afraid and they know they are losing .
They are trying to react to what we are doing .
They are trying to follow us and that ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ what losing campaigns do .
They follow .
They don ’ t leave .
We are driving this .
We are winning .
The President was on the road yesterday in Kenosha , Wisconsin .
Friday and Saturday .
He was in Louisiana .
This guy is a machine and he is ready to fight .
He ’ s ready to ask people for their votes .
And he ’ s ready to go out and serve four more years .
Fredericks : Let me ask you something because I agree with you @ @ @ @ @ @ @ where Trump is now driving it and Biden is in his basement .
He ’ s lost control of his mobs and they are not doing what he says .
He ’ s trying to get them to stand down .
They are not going to do it .
They are still burning things down .
All the polls are shifting in Trump ’ s direction .
Even the fake polls are shifting in his direction .
And there were two polls out yesterday .
One by Zogby and one by Emerson .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ percent of the Black vote .
Corey , 2016 he got eight percent .
If Trump gets 16 or 18 percent of the Black vote or 20 percent like where he ’ s approaching , this thing turns into a route .
What is going on with that ?
Lewandowski : John , its very simple .
The African American community just like every other community has seen economic prosperity under the Trump administration .
Whether they had the lowest unemployment rate which they did under the Trump administration ever recorded .
Whether @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has been criminal justice reform .
Not only that John but you have to remember .
Joe Biden called every African American male by name from the Senate floor .
We know that .
Just like when he talked to a Black reporter he called her a name and said you weren ’ t Black enough if you didn ’ t vote for him .
It ’ s unbelievable some of the things this guy has gotten away with over the years .
His own running mate called him basically a racist .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ asked for an apology .
Never received it .
It ’ s amazing John that people are waking up to the fact that Joe Biden had 47 years to help the Black community and has never done a thing for them .
So they are looking at Donald Trump ’ s policies and they are judging him on his record .
Saying you know ?
This guy cares about us and every American so lets vote for him .
I ’ ve always said that if Donald Trump gets 15 percent of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that allows Joe Biden or any Democrat for that matter to win .
It does not exist .
Fredericks : Look , that ’ s where he is headed now .
Zogby had him at 14 percent .
Emerson had him at 19 percent .
We ’ ve seen other surveys where he was 17 or 18 .
I didn ’ t believe them but now I ’ m starting to .
I ’ ve been saying this all week that every Black leader that I ’ ve talked to in the past @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that it ’ s going to be between 15 and 20 percent .
So we ’ ll see what happens .
When even the fake polls start telling you its 12 or 13 percent you know that there is definite movement .
Yesterday Joe Lockhart who was the press secretary I guess for President Clinton .
He ’ s now a CNN contributor for the clown news network suggested that President Trump had a stroke or a series of mini-strokes based on no evidence .
How do you get on TV and say @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t have one and still have a job ?
Explain how this works Corey ?
Lewandowski : John , Joe Lockhart is a total blowhard .
This is the guy if you remember who defended Bill Clinton during the Monica Lewinski scandal .
This is the guy that went on TV and said no no , Bill Clinton is the greatest ever .
Just because he was using a cigar in an appropriate way .
He has no credibility whatsoever .
And of course , this is what he ’ s going to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ him any type of air time to say those things .
The president ’ s own doctor came on and dissuaded this .
But there was no retraction .
This is what happens .
They know , this is what they do John .
The President ’ s single biggest asset is his strength .
He has the stamina of a 20-year-old .
You ask any member of the media that ’ s traveled with him .
You ask any staff member that has ever traveled with him .
They will tell you @ @ @ @ @ @ @ trying to do is he ’ s trying to attack the President ’ s stamina by saying oh , he ’ s not up to this anymore .
He ’ s physically not up to the challenge because he ’ s had a stroke .
It ’ s just ridiculous .
If anybody should be concerned about their physical stamina its sleepy Joe Biden .
You don ’ t get a name like sleepy Joe if you ’ re out working hard every day .
And so that ’ s what they are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ trying to attack this President .
I looked at the Drudge Report saying President Trump was dragging his left foot .
Vice President Pence is told to be on stand by from some New York Times book that is coming out that has no sourcing .
No credibility .
But they give it news because it ’ s after this president .
The truth is I was with the President for four days last week .
He is a machine .
I was with him in New Hampshire .
He went on for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ up in New Hampshire just tearing it up .
Joe Biden has no stamina whatsoever .
And so they want to attack this president and makeup stories .
And Joe Lockhart is a total blowhard .
He worked for the NFL and condoned all the craziness that was going on there before he got fired .
And once you get fired from the NFL I guess you go to CNN .
Listen to the full show here :

Live from Virginia Wednesday morning on The John Fredericks Show – weekdays on WNTW AM 820/ FM 92.7 – Richmond, WJFN FM 100.5 – Central Virginia, WMPH AM 1010 / FM 100.1 / FM 96.9 (7-9 PM) Hampton Roads, WBRG AM 1050 / FM 105.1 – Lynchburg/Roanoke and Weekdays 6-10 am and 24/7 Stream – host Fredericks welcomed Corey Lewandowski to the show.
During the interview, Lewandowski discussed the recent polling showing Trump moving up with the Black vote. He also discussed the momentum that the Trump campaign is having and how they are now driving the narrative as Democrats follow behind.
Fredericks: Joining me now Corey Lewandowski. Two time New York Times best selling author. Now he’s got a new book coming out. You want to pre-order that. I’ve ordered two copies and I’m excited about it. Trump: America First. Trump-Pence 2020.
Corey, big rally in New Hampshire after the President’s speech on Thursday night. We were all there. And I heard that the New Hampshire rally had a huge turnout. A lot of people telling me now that you guys are going to win New Hampshire.
Lewandowski: Well John it was an amazing week for the President last week. And we were in North Carolina on Monday. You did the role for the state of Virginia. I did it for New Hampshire. He formally was nominated by us on Wednesday we were at Fort McHenry with the Vice President where he gave his nominating speech on Thursday at the White House with the President and where he gave his phenomenal speech.
And then on Friday, I flew with him up to New Hampshire where he had a rally north of 8,000 people. People were excited to see him ready to come back. Look, even if you have to listen to the CNN polls by every metric and by every indicator we had a phenomenal week last week.
We forced Joe Biden out of his basement this week. And he put together some rambling sentence about the coronavirus pandemic. 100 years. Corona. I had to actually get a translator because I didn’t know what he was saying. But that’s the pressure that they are under now to compete with us.
Fredericks: He’s got to get out of the basement finally. I’m on their press list. I was reading this yesterday. It’s ten-thirty and I think Joe Biden went to an elementary school or middle school that wasn’t even open. He went there to talk to the teachers who are doing the Zooms. The ones that were there.
That was at ten-thirty in Wilmington. And they sent out a notice to the media that 11 am there is going to be a lid. See you tomorrow. I’m thinking you have nine weeks before the campaign. You are now losing. You are slipping in every single poll that come out. You are slipping.
It’s Tuesday and the campaign does a 10:30 lid and they are not going to talk to anybody till tomorrow. What is he doing from 10:30 to the following day when he’s got nine weeks remaining? What is he down there reading a novel or something?
Lewandowski: Just remember John that their big announcement last Friday from the Biden campaign was we plan on starting to campaign after Labor Day. That was the announcement that they made. (Fredericks chuckles) Their announcement was, we’re going to start campaigning 10 from now. That is malpractice by every political consultant in the country.
It’s malpractice by his campaign team. If he didn’t start campaigning after Labor Day, but because we are driving this narrative now. We are in the driver’s seat John and driving the message and driving this campaign. We have something they call the big mo. We have momentum on our side.
It’s not nine weeks from yesterday till election day because of the early balloting in states like North Carolina and others. That’s already happening which tells me they are afraid and they know they are losing. They are trying to react to what we are doing. They are trying to follow us and that’s perfectly fine.
That’s what losing campaigns do. They follow. They don’t leave. We are driving this. We are winning. The President was on the road yesterday in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Friday and Saturday. He was in Louisiana. This guy is a machine and he is ready to fight. He’s ready to ask people for their votes. And he’s ready to go out and serve four more years.
Fredericks: Let me ask you something because I agree with you, Corey. The narrative has changed where Trump is now driving it and Biden is in his basement. He’s lost control of his mobs and they are not doing what he says. He’s trying to get them to stand down. They are not going to do it. They are still burning things down.
All the polls are shifting in Trump’s direction. Even the fake polls are shifting in his direction. And there were two polls out yesterday. One by Zogby and one by Emerson. Both with Trump between 14 and 19 percent of the Black vote. Corey, 2016 he got eight percent. If Trump gets 16 or 18 percent of the Black vote or 20 percent like where he’s approaching, this thing turns into a route. What is going on with that?
Lewandowski: John, its very simple. The African American community just like every other community has seen economic prosperity under the Trump administration. Whether they had the lowest unemployment rate which they did under the Trump administration ever recorded. Whether its economic empowerment zones. Whether it has been criminal justice reform. Not only that John but you have to remember.
Joe Biden called every African American male by name from the Senate floor. We know that. Just like when he talked to a Black reporter he called her a name and said you weren’t Black enough if you didn’t vote for him. It’s unbelievable some of the things this guy has gotten away with over the years. His own running mate called him basically a racist.
Asked for an apology. Cory Booker asked for an apology. Never received it. It’s amazing John that people are waking up to the fact that Joe Biden had 47 years to help the Black community and has never done a thing for them. So they are looking at Donald Trump’s policies and they are judging him on his record. Saying you know? This guy cares about us and every American so lets vote for him. I’ve always said that if Donald Trump gets 15 percent of the Black vote there is no mathematical formula that allows Joe Biden or any Democrat for that matter to win. It does not exist.
Fredericks: Look, that’s where he is headed now. Zogby had him at 14 percent. Emerson had him at 19 percent. We’ve seen other surveys where he was 17 or 18. I didn’t believe them but now I’m starting to. I’ve been saying this all week that every Black leader that I’ve talked to in the past week has told me the same thing that it’s going to be between 15 and 20 percent.
So we’ll see what happens. When even the fake polls start telling you its 12 or 13 percent you know that there is definite movement. Yesterday Joe Lockhart who was the press secretary I guess for President Clinton. He’s now a CNN contributor for the clown news network suggested that President Trump had a stroke or a series of mini-strokes based on no evidence. How do you get on TV and say somebody had a stroke that didn’t have one and still have a job? Explain how this works Corey?
Lewandowski: John, Joe Lockhart is a total blowhard. This is the guy if you remember who defended Bill Clinton during the Monica Lewinski scandal. This is the guy that went on TV and said no no, Bill Clinton is the greatest ever. Just because he was using a cigar in an appropriate way. He has no credibility whatsoever. And of course, this is what he’s going to do.
The fact that CNN gives him any type of air time to say those things. The president’s own doctor came on and dissuaded this. But there was no retraction. This is what happens. They know, this is what they do John. The President’s single biggest asset is his strength. He has the stamina of a 20-year-old. You ask any member of the media that’s traveled with him. You ask any staff member that has ever traveled with him.
They will tell you that. So what Joe Lockhart is trying to do is he’s trying to attack the President’s stamina by saying oh, he’s not up to this anymore. He’s physically not up to the challenge because he’s had a stroke. It’s just ridiculous. If anybody should be concerned about their physical stamina its sleepy Joe Biden. You don’t get a name like sleepy Joe if you’re out working hard every day.
And so that’s what they are trying to do John. They are trying to attack this President. I looked at the Drudge Report saying President Trump was dragging his left foot. Vice President Pence is told to be on stand by from some New York Times book that is coming out that has no sourcing. No credibility. But they give it news because it’s after this president. The truth is I was with the President for four days last week. He is a machine. I was with him in New Hampshire.
He went on for probably over an hour and twenty minutes up in New Hampshire just tearing it up. Joe Biden has no stamina whatsoever. And so they want to attack this president and makeup stories. And Joe Lockhart is a total blowhard. He worked for the NFL and condoned all the craziness that was going on there before he got fired. And once you get fired from the NFL I guess you go to CNN.
Fredericks: (Chuckles) My goodness.
Listen to the full show here:


thetennesseestar--2020-09-03--Battleground Michigan: Lawsuits Challenge State’s Coronavirus Restrictions, Ballot Rules

A pair of lawsuits filed against top-ranking state executives in Michigan seek to challenge the recent policies the two Democrats have put in place as part of their efforts to mitigate the coronavirus outbreak there .
The suits , filed by the Thomas More Society on behalf of several Michigan plaintiffs , argue that Michigan Gov .
Gretchen Whitmer and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson have , respectively , suppressed political speech and unlawfully altered the state ’ s absentee voting system , according to a press release from the Thomas More Society .
One of the suits , filed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ several COVID-19 restrictions Whitmer has imposed via executive order on the state , namely limits on both indoor and outdoor gatherings ; specifically , Whitmer has banned indoor gatherings that exceed 10 individuals and outdoor gatherings than exceed 100 .
Those limits apply to any sort of gathering regardless of its purpose , but the nonprofits Election Integrity Fund and One Nation Michigan argue that Whitmer ’ s order functions as an abridgment of their right to free speech and assembly under the U.S. Constitution .
Whitmer ’ s orders “ constitute direct @ @ @ @ @ @ @ right to engage in protected speech and assembly and therefore violate the First Amendment , ” the suit argues , stating that any restrictions on constitutional rights “ must be narrowly tailored to achieve a compelling government interest.
” The suit requests that the governor be enjoined from enforcing the order and that the order itself be voided .
“ The rights of the citizenry to assemble and speak in pursuit of jointly held political goals as enshrined in the First Amendment are essential to our democracy , ” Phill Kline , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s Amistad Project , said in the organization ’ s press release last week .
“ Particularly in a year in which our nation will select a president , safeguarding these rights is of fundamental importance.
” Another lawsuit , also filed on behalf of the Election Integrity Fund , argues that Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson ’ s recent online absentee ballot application violates state law and opens the door for possible widespread election fraud .
Benson ’ s office in June launched an online application portal where Michiganders can apply @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s license and part of their social security number .
State law normally dictates that absentee ballot requests must be accompanied by a voter ’ s signature as an anti-fraud measure .
Benson ’ s new system allows voters to “ borrow ” pre-existing signatures from driver ’ s licenses or state IDs in order to complete the application .
“ The applicant need not upload a signature , provide an electronic signature , or otherwise provide a contemporaneous signature at the time of the application , ” the suit asserts .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ have the limited personal information required by the online system to request an absentee ballot on behalf [ of ] another.
” The suit further points out that “ at least some of ” the borrowed signatures are also the ones used to match the voter ’ s signature on the absentee ballot itself — meaning the state could end up verifying absentee ballots by matching “ merely a reproduction of the same signature ” rather than two unique signatures from the same individual .
The suit asks the state court to declare @ @ @ @ @ @ @ state law and compel her to either shut it down or obtain unique signatures from voters as part of the application process .
Whitmer ’ s office did not respond to queries on Tuesday about the suit .
Tracy Wimmer , a spokeswoman for Benson , said the secretary ’ s office “ [ doesn ’ t ] comment on pending litigation.
” In the Thomas More release , organization President Tom Brejcha argued the state ’ s powers “ must be limited in some fashion , or we have created a form @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s history and practice.
” “ America doesn ’ t have kings and queens , ” he said , “ nor should all government power be vested in the hands of one person to the deteriment of our civil liberties.
” This is not the first legal challenge that Whitmer has faced over her coronavirus restrictions , which have been at times among the strictest in the nation .
A suit brought by the GOP-controlled state senate earlier this year challenged Whitmer ’ s authority to dictate open-ended states of emergency in Michigan @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s favor , and an appeals court last month upheld that ruling , with the case now likely headed to the state Supreme Court .

by Daniel Payne
A pair of lawsuits filed against top-ranking state executives in Michigan seek to challenge the recent policies the two Democrats have put in place as part of their efforts to mitigate the coronavirus outbreak there.
The suits, filed by the Thomas More Society on behalf of several Michigan plaintiffs, argue that Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson have, respectively, suppressed political speech and unlawfully altered the state’s absentee voting system, according to a press release from the Thomas More Society.
One of the suits, filed in federal court, seeks to challenge several COVID-19 restrictions Whitmer has imposed via executive order on the state, namely limits on both indoor and outdoor gatherings; specifically, Whitmer has banned indoor gatherings that exceed 10 individuals and outdoor gatherings than exceed 100.
Those limits apply to any sort of gathering regardless of its purpose, but the nonprofits Election Integrity Fund and One Nation Michigan argue that Whitmer’s order functions as an abridgment of their right to free speech and assembly under the U.S. Constitution.
Whitmer’s orders “constitute direct restrictions on [the groups’] right to engage in protected speech and assembly and therefore violate the First Amendment,” the suit argues, stating that any restrictions on constitutional rights “must be narrowly tailored to achieve a compelling government interest.”
The suit requests that the governor be enjoined from enforcing the order and that the order itself be voided.
“The rights of the citizenry to assemble and speak in pursuit of jointly held political goals as enshrined in the First Amendment are essential to our democracy,” Phill Kline, the director of the Thomas More Society’s Amistad Project, said in the organization’s press release last week. “Particularly in a year in which our nation will select a president, safeguarding these rights is of fundamental importance.”
Second lawsuit challenges relaxation of absentee-vote signature rules
Another lawsuit, also filed on behalf of the Election Integrity Fund, argues that Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson’s recent online absentee ballot application violates state law and opens the door for possible widespread election fraud.
Benson’s office in June launched an online application portal where Michiganders can apply for a mail-in ballot using their driver’s license and part of their social security number.
State law normally dictates that absentee ballot requests must be accompanied by a voter’s signature as an anti-fraud measure. Benson’s new system allows voters to “borrow” pre-existing signatures from driver’s licenses or state IDs in order to complete the application.
“The applicant need not upload a signature, provide an electronic signature, or otherwise provide a contemporaneous signature at the time of the application,” the suit asserts. Rather, “a person need only have the limited personal information required by the online system to request an absentee ballot on behalf [of] another.”
The suit further points out that “at least some of” the borrowed signatures are also the ones used to match the voter’s signature on the absentee ballot itself — meaning the state could end up verifying absentee ballots by matching “merely a reproduction of the same signature” rather than two unique signatures from the same individual.
The suit asks the state court to declare Benson’s online system void under state law and compel her to either shut it down or obtain unique signatures from voters as part of the application process.
Whitmer’s office did not respond to queries on Tuesday about the suit. Tracy Wimmer, a spokeswoman for Benson, said the secretary’s office “[doesn’t] comment on pending litigation.”
In the Thomas More release, organization President Tom Brejcha argued the state’s powers “must be limited in some fashion, or we have created a form of government foreign to this nation’s history and practice.”
“America doesn’t have kings and queens,” he said, “nor should all government power be vested in the hands of one person to the deteriment of our civil liberties.”
This is not the first legal challenge that Whitmer has faced over her coronavirus restrictions, which have been at times among the strictest in the nation. A suit brought by the GOP-controlled state senate earlier this year challenged Whitmer’s authority to dictate open-ended states of emergency in Michigan; a lower court ruled in Whitmer’s favor, and an appeals court last month upheld that ruling, with the case now likely headed to the state Supreme Court.


thetennesseestar--2020-09-03--DOJ and DHS Confirm Active Federal Probe into Criminal Activity and Funding Related to Violent Riots

The Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security confirmed this week that the DOJ is investigating the organizers and funders behind the violent riots that have engulfed the country since May .
“ We are investigating coordinated , criminal activity—not First Amendment activity—and violence related to riots , destruction of federal property and violence against law enforcement officers , ” said DOJ spokesperson Kerri Kupec on Tuesday .
Department of Homeland Security ( DHS ) Secretary Chad Wolf told Fox News ’ Tucker Carlson Monday night that he has “ personally ” spoken with Attorney General William Barr about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has been “ targeting and investigating the head of these organizations , [ and ] the individuals that are paying for these individuals to move across the country.
” The DHS chief noted that 300 rioters have been arrested on federal charges , 100 of whom were from Portland .
“ What we know , Tucker , is that we have seen groups and individuals move from Portland to other parts of the country , ” Wolf explained , adding that “ almost 100 ” of the arrested rioters in Kenosha were from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t say when the probe started , but his comments come days after Sen. Rand Paul ( R-Ky. ) called on the Justice Department to investigate the funding behind the organized riots .
Paul , his wife and many other RNC attendees were mobbed and harassed by antifa agitators on the final night of the convention .
“ I think we ’ re going to find out that these people are hired and from out of town specifically in our case .
I believe there are people who are going to be involved @ @ @ @ @ @ @ actually paid to come here , are not from Washington D.C. , and are sort of paid to be anarchists , ” Paul said on Friday .
Wolf also revealed that the Department of Homeland Security is assisting the Justice Department in their probe of the “ criminal rioting.
” “ We are making sure that the investigations that we are involved in , we are getting that information over to the FBI , to those criminal investigators that are doing their job ” he said .
“ We have seen groups and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the country.
” “ We have seen similar tactics being used from Portland and other cities across the country as well , ” he said .
During an interview with Fox News ’ Laura Ingraham , Monday night , President Trump let slip some intelligence he ’ d heard about a plane full of black clad “ thugs ” heading to Washington D.C. from “ a certain city.
” “ We had somebody get on a plane from a certain city this weekend , and in the plane it was almost completely @ @ @ @ @ @ @ black uniforms—with gear and this and that , ” Trump said .
When asked by Ingraham where this happened , the president declined to say , telling her “ it ’ s under investigation right now.
” He went on to divulge that the individual was on the plane “ from a certain city ” headed to the RNC , last week .
“ There were about seven people on the plane like this person , ” Trump explained .
“ And a lot of people on the plane to do big damage.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ that he wished the investigation was being done in “ a little quicker fashion , ” but stressed that the president is committed to holding individuals accountable .
He said the investigation should serve as a warning “ that if you want to riot , you want to loot , you want to do some of these other criminal acts that we see around the country , there are going to be consequences for that.
” Former federal prosecutor Jim Trusty said back in June that a DOJ investigation into antifa ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bombshell ” indictments .

by Debra Heine
The Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security confirmed this week that the DOJ is investigating the organizers and funders behind the violent riots that have engulfed the country since May.
“We are investigating coordinated, criminal activity—not First Amendment activity—and violence related to riots, destruction of federal property and violence against law enforcement officers,” said DOJ spokesperson Kerri Kupec on Tuesday.
#Protests2020 From DOJ spokesperson Kerri Kupec, “We are investigating coordinated, criminal activity – not First Amendment activity – and violence related to riots, destruction of federal property and violence against law enforcement officers” @CBSNews @ClareHymes22 — Catherine Herridge (@CBS_Herridge) September 1, 2020
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Chad Wolf told Fox News’ Tucker Carlson Monday night that he has “personally” spoken with Attorney General William Barr about the probe.
Wolf said the DOJ has been “targeting and investigating the head of these organizations, [and] the individuals that are paying for these individuals to move across the country.”
The DHS chief noted that 300 rioters have been arrested on federal charges, 100 of whom were from Portland.
“What we know, Tucker, is that we have seen groups and individuals move from Portland to other parts of the country,” Wolf explained, adding that “almost 100” of the arrested rioters in Kenosha were from out of state.
Also from DOJ: The latest #s on federal arrests + charges related to rioting and civil unrest —- Total – National:
⏹300 arrested
⏹302 charged Portland:
⏹100 arrested
⏹76 charged — Catherine Herridge (@CBS_Herridge) September 1, 2020
Wolf didn’t say when the probe started, but his comments come days after Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) called on the Justice Department to investigate the funding behind the organized riots. Paul, his wife and many other RNC attendees were mobbed and harassed by antifa agitators on the final night of the convention.
“I think we’re going to find out that these people are hired and from out of town specifically in our case. I believe there are people who are going to be involved in the attack on us who were actually paid to come here, are not from Washington D.C., and are sort of paid to be anarchists,” Paul said on Friday.
Wolf also revealed that the Department of Homeland Security is assisting the Justice Department in their probe of the “criminal rioting.”
“We are making sure that the investigations that we are involved in, we are getting that information over to the FBI, to those criminal investigators that are doing their job” he said. “We have seen groups and individuals move from Portland to other parts of the country.”
Wolf added that the violent agitators “are organized.”
“We have seen similar tactics being used from Portland and other cities across the country as well,” he said.
During an interview with Fox News’ Laura Ingraham, Monday night, President Trump let slip some intelligence he’d heard about a plane full of black clad “thugs” heading to Washington D.C. from “a certain city.”
“We had somebody get on a plane from a certain city this weekend, and in the plane it was almost completely loaded with thugs wearing these dark uniforms—these black uniforms—with gear and this and that,” Trump said.
When asked by Ingraham where this happened, the president declined to say, telling her “it’s under investigation right now.” He went on to divulge that the individual was on the plane “from a certain city” headed to the RNC, last week.
“There were about seven people on the plane like this person,” Trump explained. “And a lot of people on the plane to do big damage.”
The DHS Sec. told Carlson that he wished the investigation was being done in “a little quicker fashion,” but stressed that the president is committed to holding individuals accountable.
He said the investigation should serve as a warning “that if you want to riot, you want to loot, you want to do some of these other criminal acts that we see around the country, there are going to be consequences for that.”
Former federal prosecutor Jim Trusty said back in June that a DOJ investigation into antifa’s financing would eventually result in some “bombshell” indictments.
Former federal prosecutor Jim Trusty explains why Dems are so anxious to demonize Barr. 1. Durham investigation indictments coming. 2. Antifa financing indictments are coming too. pic.twitter.com/AyEIcVgxih — Debra Heine (@NiceDeb) June 23, 2020
– – –
Debra Heine reports for American Greatness.
Photo “George Floyd Riots Washington, D.C.” by Brett Weinstein. CC BY-SA 2.0.


thetennesseestar--2020-09-03--Virginia Congressman Ben Cline on Nancy Pelosi’s Hypocrisy and Elements of the Proposed New Stimulus

Virginia Congressman Ben Cline on Nancy Pelosi’s Hypocrisy and Elements of the Proposed New Stimulus Package

Live from Virginia Tuesday morning on The John Fredericks Show – weekdays on WNTW AM 820/ FM 92.7 – Richmond , WJFN FM 100.5 – Central Virginia , WMPH AM 1010 / FM 100.1 / FM 96.9 ( 7-9 PM ) Hampton Roads , WBRG AM 1050 / FM 105.1 – Lynchburg/Roanoke and Weekdays 6-10 am and 24/7 Stream – host Fredericks welcomed ( R ) Ben Cline from Virginia ’ s US Congress sixth district to the program .
During the show , Cline weighed in on Nancy Pelosi ’ s recent trip to a California hair salon not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ all she ’ s trying to accomplish .
Further on he highlighted several items that may be included in the new stimulus package currently in negotiation .
Fredericks : Joining us now , it ’ s been a while is Congressman from the sixth district of Virginia Republican Ben Cline .
Congressman Cline , great to have you .
Cline : John always great to be with you .
How ’ s everything going today ?
Fredericks : Never better .
So Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin told you guys yesterday that he ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ ve got to get my hair done without a mask on , Nancy Pelosi .
First of all , before we get to politics .
I mean c ’ mon Congressman .
You saw the video of Nancy Pelosi lurking into the hairstylist place .
No mask .
It ’ s closed to the public but she goes in .
What is up with that ?
Cline : When you compare it with the sanctimony of her mask mandate admonitions it just reveals the hypocrisy on masks .
Masks for thee but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ thee but not for me .
I get to go to the salon .
So , that one is going to sting awhile for her because it just undercuts everything she ’ s trying to do .
This big-government steam she ’ s got going on .
It just really does undercut all those efforts .
The mockery is the best attitude for that kind of approach on her end .
Fredericks : Well Ben she ’ s such a phony .
She ’ s going on TV telling everybody you ’ ve @ @ @ @ @ @ @ And all this and that and in her own home area they are shutting down the salons .
Do you know who put the video out ?
But the video and it was the owner of the salon that was pissed off .
And had the video from the security camera .
It was the owner that said I can ’ t believe she can come in and get her hair done .
How she got in there I haven ’ t gotten to the bottom of that if you are the owner @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I can ’ t open up my business to make a living .
Cline : Well she rents out the salon and the person was renting out that space got a call from Pelosi ’ s people saying she ’ s coming in to have her hair done .
And this woman gave her special treatment .
You know , they had just allowed outdoor the day before .
So the day before she couldn ’ t even come on the property .
But that day she was supposed to be outside and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Nancy .
And that ’ s just a shame that she doesn ’ t think enough of her constituents to want to try and make changes for them and instead allows Gavin Newsom to destroy businesses and destroy lives in California .
Fredericks : The hypocrisy of it all is stunning .
No question about it .
OK. Let ’ s get to another coronavirus package .
Now they are starting negotiations .
You guys were involved in this .
What exactly are they negotiating ?
What do you want ?
Where are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : The President really took the legs out from under Speaker Pelosi .
She had been sitting back saying I ’ m not going to negotiate .
Take up my three trillion dollar boondoggle gargantuan bill with the bailouts of New York and California and all the other non-coronavirus stuff that was in that bill .
And we ’ re going to negotiate from that .
Well , when the President took action he took the legs out from under her and he said you don ’ t have any position to negotiate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ do it for you and get done what the people need right now which is emergency assistance right now from the coronavirus .
So the President got it done .
That kind of put us at a stalemate where there was no negotiation for awhile .
But now she ’ s coming back to the table .
The Senate is always willing to negotiate .
The White House has always been willing to negotiate .
So I ’ m glad to see that there is some discussion because we need liability reform for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ institutions where litigious happy lawyers and every lawyer can be a litigious happy we know that .
They are ready to sue or take up the case of anybody who caught coronavirus in one of these establishments .
We ’ ve got to protect these small businesses which are fragile as it is from the frivolous lawsuits .
So we need liability reform .
Fredericks : Congressman Cline the White House saying they would support now a one-point three trillion package .
That ’ s up from one point one trillion .
And @ @ @ @ @ @ @ point two trillion to two-point one .
They are still a trillion dollars apart .
In the administration ’ s package that I assume is backed by your caucus and McCarthy .
What is in that ?
Cline : There is more in terms of some unemployment relief although not as much as the $ 600 .
which was a disincentive to work for a while at least down our way where the cost of living is not so high .
That level of unemployment bonus was just too high for a lot @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to unemployment .
Whereas the CARES Act itself and the PPP program was designed to prevent people from leaving a small business or being let go during the worst of the pandemic and declaring unemployment .
So you ’ ve got some more business assistance similar to the PPP .
You ’ ve got more unemployment assistance .
Possibly another emergency assistance payment .
But you know that the pandemic is progressing and decreasing .
And the death rates are hopefully decreasing across the country .
Not everywhere .
Our numbers out in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
We had a spike in Northern Virginia .
Then they had the spike in Tidewater with the start of summer .
Now we are seeing hotspots in places with universities .
But we have to re-evaluate what kinds of assistance are necessary in light of the development of the coronavirus .
Is this unemployment payment still necessary when unemployment is now down near or below 10 percent ?
These are questions that need to be answered before we go and vote for another trillion dollars in debt borrowed from China .
Fredericks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ CDC numbers from a couple of days ago .
Congressman , this kind of sneaks out .
CDC says we ’ ve reviewed everything and actually there ’ s been 9,200 people that have died in America .
9,200 from only COVID-19 .
All the other 177,000 deaths , everybody had underlying circumstances .
They had high blood pressure .
They were suffering from other morbid diseases .
But there ’ s only 9,200 that actually died that was it from COVID .
60,000 people died last year from the flu .
9,200 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ number that hasn ’ t been picked up by the lazy fake news media because it doesn ’ t fit their narrative .
Has that got anybody ’ s attention ?
Why did we do all this for that ?
Cline : It is a stunning number and every person who has died whether you have no co-morbidities or as the CDC says at least two co-morbidities which are underlying situations like respiratory disease or something else .
It ’ s tragic .
And we need to remember every single person who has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have under 10,000 people have died from just the coronavirus alone , that is a stunning figure .
And I think the government needs to evaluate how we move forward in light of that number .
We want to tackle this virus and we are working hard toward a vaccine with in-person trials underway .
Hopefully , we ’ ll see a vaccine soon .
We also have to get this economy going .
We have to get this country started and get kids back in school learning .
Universities operating safely .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ that .
JMU just announced yesterday that they are going virtual now .
Sending kids back home after only two weeks of classes which is very disappointing .
So , we ’ ve got to reevaluate in light of these new numbers .
Listen to the full show here :

Live from Virginia Tuesday morning on The John Fredericks Show – weekdays on WNTW AM 820/ FM 92.7 – Richmond, WJFN FM 100.5 – Central Virginia, WMPH AM 1010 / FM 100.1 / FM 96.9 (7-9 PM) Hampton Roads, WBRG AM 1050 / FM 105.1 – Lynchburg/Roanoke and Weekdays 6-10 am and 24/7 Stream – host Fredericks welcomed (R) Ben Cline from Virginia’s US Congress sixth district to the program.
During the show, Cline weighed in on Nancy Pelosi’s recent trip to a California hair salon not wearing a mask which he states undercuts all she’s trying to accomplish. Further on he highlighted several items that may be included in the new stimulus package currently in negotiation.
Fredericks: Joining us now, it’s been a while is Congressman from the sixth district of Virginia Republican Ben Cline. Congressman Cline, great to have you.
Cline: John always great to be with you. How’s everything going today?
Fredericks: Never better. So Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin told you guys yesterday that he’s ready to restart negotiations with I’ve got to get my hair done without a mask on, Nancy Pelosi. First of all, before we get to politics. I mean c’mon Congressman. You saw the video of Nancy Pelosi lurking into the hairstylist place. No mask. It’s closed to the public but she goes in. What is up with that?
Cline: When you compare it with the sanctimony of her mask mandate admonitions it just reveals the hypocrisy on masks. Masks for thee but not for me. Home haircuts for thee but not for me. I get to go to the salon. So, that one is going to sting awhile for her because it just undercuts everything she’s trying to do. This big-government steam she’s got going on. It just really does undercut all those efforts. The mockery is the best attitude for that kind of approach on her end.
Fredericks: Well Ben she’s such a phony. She’s going on TV telling everybody you’ve got to put a mask on. And all this and that and in her own home area they are shutting down the salons. Do you know who put the video out? But the video and it was the owner of the salon that was pissed off.
And had the video from the security camera. It was the owner that said I can’t believe she can come in and get her hair done. How she got in there I haven’t gotten to the bottom of that if you are the owner. But she can come in and I can’t open up my business to make a living.
Cline: Well she rents out the salon and the person was renting out that space got a call from Pelosi’s people saying she’s coming in to have her hair done. And this woman gave her special treatment. You know, they had just allowed outdoor the day before. So the day before she couldn’t even come on the property.
But that day she was supposed to be outside and nobody could come inside except for Queen Nancy. And that’s just a shame that she doesn’t think enough of her constituents to want to try and make changes for them and instead allows Gavin Newsom to destroy businesses and destroy lives in California.
Fredericks: The hypocrisy of it all is stunning. No question about it. OK. Let’s get to another coronavirus package. Now they are starting negotiations. You guys were involved in this. What exactly are they negotiating? What do you want? Where are we in this Ben Cline?
Cline: The President really took the legs out from under Speaker Pelosi. She had been sitting back saying I’m not going to negotiate. Take up my three trillion dollar boondoggle gargantuan bill with the bailouts of New York and California and all the other non-coronavirus stuff that was in that bill. And we’re going to negotiate from that.
Well, when the President took action he took the legs out from under her and he said you don’t have any position to negotiate from and I’m going to do it for you and get done what the people need right now which is emergency assistance right now from the coronavirus. So the President got it done. That kind of put us at a stalemate where there was no negotiation for awhile.
But now she’s coming back to the table. The Senate is always willing to negotiate. The White House has always been willing to negotiate. So I’m glad to see that there is some discussion because we need liability reform for these small businesses and for these educational institutions where litigious happy lawyers and every lawyer can be a litigious happy we know that. They are ready to sue or take up the case of anybody who caught coronavirus in one of these establishments. We’ve got to protect these small businesses which are fragile as it is from the frivolous lawsuits. So we need liability reform.
Fredericks: Congressman Cline the White House saying they would support now a one-point three trillion package. That’s up from one point one trillion. And Pelosi coming down from I guess two point two trillion to two-point one. They are still a trillion dollars apart. In the administration’s package that I assume is backed by your caucus and McCarthy. What is in that?
Cline: There is more in terms of some unemployment relief although not as much as the $600. which was a disincentive to work for a while at least down our way where the cost of living is not so high. That level of unemployment bonus was just too high for a lot of small businesses that lost their employees to unemployment.
Whereas the CARES Act itself and the PPP program was designed to prevent people from leaving a small business or being let go during the worst of the pandemic and declaring unemployment.
So you’ve got some more business assistance similar to the PPP. You’ve got more unemployment assistance. Possibly another emergency assistance payment. But you know that the pandemic is progressing and decreasing. And the death rates are hopefully decreasing across the country. Not everywhere.
Our numbers out in the Western part of Virginia are stable. We had a spike in Northern Virginia. Then they had the spike in Tidewater with the start of summer. Now we are seeing hotspots in places with universities. But we have to re-evaluate what kinds of assistance are necessary in light of the development of the coronavirus.
Is this unemployment payment still necessary when unemployment is now down near or below 10 percent? These are questions that need to be answered before we go and vote for another trillion dollars in debt borrowed from China.
Fredericks: Let’s get to the CDC numbers from a couple of days ago. Congressman, this kind of sneaks out. CDC says we’ve reviewed everything and actually there’s been 9,200 people that have died in America. 9,200 from only COVID-19. All the other 177,000 deaths, everybody had underlying circumstances.
They had high blood pressure. They were suffering from other morbid diseases. But there’s only 9,200 that actually died that was it from COVID. 60,000 people died last year from the flu. 9,200 died from COVID-19 only. Does that number that hasn’t been picked up by the lazy fake news media because it doesn’t fit their narrative. Has that got anybody’s attention? Why did we do all this for that?
Cline: It is a stunning number and every person who has died whether you have no co-morbidities or as the CDC says at least two co-morbidities which are underlying situations like respiratory disease or something else. It’s tragic. And we need to remember every single person who has died.
But for those people that have under 10,000 people have died from just the coronavirus alone, that is a stunning figure. And I think the government needs to evaluate how we move forward in light of that number. We want to tackle this virus and we are working hard toward a vaccine with in-person trials underway. Hopefully, we’ll see a vaccine soon. We also have to get this economy going.
We have to get this country started and get kids back in school learning. Universities operating safely. And we are having some trouble with that. JMU just announced yesterday that they are going virtual now. Sending kids back home after only two weeks of classes which is very disappointing. So, we’ve got to reevaluate in light of these new numbers.
Listen to the full show here:


thetennesseestar--2020-09-03--Biden to Visit Kenosha on Thursday After Blasting Trump for Visiting Riot-Torn City

After the Biden campaign criticized President Trump ’ s trip to Kenosha Wisconsin as “ self-centered ” and unproductive , former Vice President Joe Biden and his wife , Jill Biden , have announced that they will visit the riot-torn city on Thursday .
“ Vice President Biden will hold a community meeting in Kenosha to bring together Americans to heal and address the challenges we face , ” his campaign said in a press release .
“ After , Vice President Biden and Dr. Biden will make a local stop.
” This announcement comes just one day after Symone @ @ @ @ @ @ @ indicated that Biden had no immediate plans to visit Kenosha because he wanted to avoid creating “ tussle.
” Sanders told CNN that Trump would only “ fan the flames and pour gasoline ” on the situation .
“ We have heard the president over the last couple of days , throughout the Republican National Convention , talk about violence , ” Sanders said .
“ His tweets have stoked and incited this violence .
So he ’ s not going to be a calming voice in Kenosha , Wis. , today .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ but fan the flames and pour gasoline on what is already a very tense situation.
” Biden for President Deputy Campaign Manager and Communications Director Kate Bedingfield said in a statement : “ What we saw from Donald Trump today in Wisconsin is no different from what we ’ ve seen from him all along : self-centered divisiveness accompanied by zero solutions.
” Bedingfield added : “ Trump failed once again to meet the moment , refusing to utter the words that Wisconsinites and Americans across the country needed to hear today from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of all kinds , no matter who commits it.
” The president , however , has repeatedly condemned violence in all its forms and has offered Democrat-run cities federal help to deal with their violent riots .
Once Wis. Gov .
Tony Evers accepted Trump ’ s offer for help , the National Guard was quickly able to restore order in Kenosha .
The president on Tuesday toured property devastated by the violence , and promised to help the businesses rebuild with $ 4 million in federal funds .
He also announced $ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — including $ 1 million to Kenosha law enforcement “ so you have extra money to go out and do what you have to do.
” “ We ’ re going to get it fixed up , we ’ re going to help people rebuild their businesses in Kenosha…we ’ re getting it straightened out , ” Trump told reporters as he begun his trip .
The president strongly condemned the “ anti-American ” riots that caused the massive destruction during a roundtable meeting with law enforcement and business owners .
“ Kenosha @ @ @ @ @ @ @ riots , ” he said .
“ These are not acts of peaceful protests , but domestic terror , ” he added .
The Biden Campaign on Tuesday accused Trump of stoking the violence and botching his response to the COVID pandemic .
“ Kenosha is in pain , not only from the tragedy of senseless violence , but from the immense and avoidable suffering wrought by the Trump administration ’ s failed and reckless management of the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic devastation that has followed , ” Bedingfield said .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about a plan to finally control this crisis , which has taken the lives and livelihoods of millions of people across the country and throughout the state of Wisconsin.
” In reality , President Trump quickly banned travel from China and Europe—steps that saved lives—but were opposed by Biden .
The president also formed a coronavirus task force on January 29 , 2020 that held regular briefings on the administration ’ s plan to control the virus .
“ While disappointing to every American , this sad display comes as no surprise .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ they see violence as a winning electoral strategy , nevermind the cost to everyday Americans .
Trump can not bring himself to condemn violence that he himself is stoking , ” Biden ’ s communications director said after the president had repeatedly condemned the violence .
“ This is not leadership .
As we stand at this critical juncture for our country , Joe Biden is offering a path out of the darkness of Trump ’ s destructive and divisive presidency .
Joe Biden knows that this fight for the soul of our @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unity and light , and we must come together to reject the chaos Trump has inflamed , ” Bedingfield concluded .
Anna Kelly , spokeswoman for Trump ’ s campaign in Wisconsin , said Biden “ is trying to use a hurting community as a political prop for his failing campaign.
” “ While true leaders like President Trump are working with state and local officials to help Kenosha heal , candidate Joe Biden is more interested in fomenting dissent and division , ” Kelly said .
Indeed , Democrats and their allies @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for years been shamelessly inciting their base to violence .
Biden ’ s stop in Wisconsin Thursday will be the first visit to the state by a Democratic presidential nominee since 2012 , according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel .

by Debra Heine
After the Biden campaign criticized President Trump’s trip to Kenosha Wisconsin as “self-centered” and unproductive, former Vice President Joe Biden and his wife, Jill Biden, have announced that they will visit the riot-torn city on Thursday.
“Vice President Biden will hold a community meeting in Kenosha to bring together Americans to heal and address the challenges we face,” his campaign said in a press release. “After, Vice President Biden and Dr. Biden will make a local stop.”
This announcement comes just one day after Symone Sanders, a top Biden adviser, indicated that Biden had no immediate plans to visit Kenosha because he wanted to avoid creating “tussle.”
Sanders told CNN that Trump would only “fan the flames and pour gasoline” on the situation.
“We have heard the president over the last couple of days, throughout the Republican National Convention, talk about violence,” Sanders said. “His tweets have stoked and incited this violence. So he’s not going to be a calming voice in Kenosha, Wis., today. He’s going to do nothing but fan the flames and pour gasoline on what is already a very tense situation.”
Biden for President Deputy Campaign Manager and Communications Director Kate Bedingfield said in a statement: “What we saw from Donald Trump today in Wisconsin is no different from what we’ve seen from him all along: self-centered divisiveness accompanied by zero solutions.”
Bedingfield added: “Trump failed once again to meet the moment, refusing to utter the words that Wisconsinites and Americans across the country needed to hear today from the president: a condemnation of violence of all kinds, no matter who commits it.”
The president, however, has repeatedly condemned violence in all its forms and has offered Democrat-run cities federal help to deal with their violent riots. Once Wis. Gov. Tony Evers accepted Trump’s offer for help, the National Guard was quickly able to restore order in Kenosha.
Joe Biden is not on the side of Law Enforcement, and that was spectacularly evident on my very successful trip yesterday to Kenosha. We solved the problem quickly, and it was very much appreciated by the people of Wisconsin. Joe Biden wouldn’t know where to begin – a bad record! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 2, 2020
The president on Tuesday toured property devastated by the violence, and promised to help the businesses rebuild with $4 million in federal funds.
Thank you @POTUS @realDonaldTrump for visiting Kenosha to thank law enforcement and the @USNationalGuard and for supporting employers who’s businesses were burned down or boarded up because of the riots. pic.twitter.com/rf9JWu4tLQ — Scott Walker (@ScottWalker) September 1, 2020
He also announced $42 million to support public safety statewide — including $1 million to Kenosha law enforcement “so you have extra money to go out and do what you have to do.”
“We’re going to get it fixed up, we’re going to help people rebuild their businesses in Kenosha…we’re getting it straightened out,” Trump told reporters as he begun his trip.
President @realdonaldtrump
will always care for the forgotten Men and Women of Wisconsin! #Fixit pic.twitter.com/WlM3Tr7ZEm — Andrew Pollack (@AndrewPollackFL) September 1, 2020
The president strongly condemned the “anti-American” riots that caused the massive destruction during a roundtable meeting with law enforcement and business owners.
“Kenosha has been ravaged by anti-police and anti-American riots,” he said. “These are not acts of peaceful protests, but domestic terror,” he added.
The Biden Campaign on Tuesday accused Trump of stoking the violence and botching his response to the COVID pandemic.
“Kenosha is in pain, not only from the tragedy of senseless violence, but from the immense and avoidable suffering wrought by the Trump administration’s failed and reckless management of the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic devastation that has followed,” Bedingfield said. “We didn’t hear a word about a plan to finally control this crisis, which has taken the lives and livelihoods of millions of people across the country and throughout the state of Wisconsin.”
In reality, President Trump quickly banned travel from China and Europe—steps that saved lives—but were opposed by Biden. The president also formed a coronavirus task force on January 29, 2020 that held regular briefings on the administration’s plan to control the virus.
“While disappointing to every American, this sad display comes as no surprise. The Trump administration has outright confessed that they see violence as a winning electoral strategy, nevermind the cost to everyday Americans. Trump cannot bring himself to condemn violence that he himself is stoking,” Biden’s communications director said after the president had repeatedly condemned the violence.
“This is not leadership. As we stand at this critical juncture for our country, Joe Biden is offering a path out of the darkness of Trump’s destructive and divisive presidency. Joe Biden knows that this fight for the soul of our nation must break for the side of unity and light, and we must come together to reject the chaos Trump has inflamed,” Bedingfield concluded.
Anna Kelly, spokeswoman for Trump’s campaign in Wisconsin, said Biden “is trying to use a hurting community as a political prop for his failing campaign.”
“While true leaders like President Trump are working with state and local officials to help Kenosha heal, candidate Joe Biden is more interested in fomenting dissent and division,” Kelly said.
Indeed, Democrats and their allies in the media and entertainment industry have for years been shamelessly inciting their base to violence.
The most important video of 2020
pic.twitter.com/3nMNlxl5Q8 — ELIJAH RIOT (@ElijahSchaffer) August 31, 2020
Biden’s stop in Wisconsin Thursday will be the first visit to the state by a Democratic presidential nominee since 2012, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
– – –
Debra Heine reports for American Greatness.
Photo “Joe Biden” by Gage Skidmore. CC BY-SA 2.0.


thetennesseestar--2020-09-03--Tennessee GOP Votes to Affirm Eddie Mannis as House District 18 Primary Winner Potentially in Violat

Tennessee GOP Votes to Affirm Eddie Mannis as House District 18 Primary Winner Potentially in Violation of State Law

The Tennessee Republican Party State Executive Committee ( SEC ) in a meeting held via conference call Wednesday evening voted to affirm the August 6 results of the House District 18 primary that was won by Eddie Mannis , potentially in violation of state law .
The vote was 43 to 18 by the SEC , which functions as the State Primary Board ( SPB ) in a primary contest .
The contest was brought on by Mannis ’ challenger in the Republican primary , Gina Oster , because of evidence that there was crossover voting by Democrats in numbers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ victory , The Tennessee Star reported .
While the SEC had a meeting on Saturday , the issue wasn ’ t taken up at that time due to timing requirements after a contest is declared as laid out in state law .
Oster attended Saturday ’ s SEC meeting , and some of the documents that each candidate submitted to Chairman Scott Golden were provided in hard copy form to the SEC members for their review prior to the conference call .
Oster , however , had submitted a cover document along with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and none of those were included with the information provided to the SEC members Saturday .
During the conference call meeting Wednesday , set specifically to address the contest , each of the candidates was allotted five minutes to make their case to the SPB .
Oster spoke for herself first , then Mannis made his case followed by his attorney from the high-powered law firm Baker Donelson .
Immediately after Chairman Scott Golden declared that the meeting was moving to the discussion phase , SEC member Matthew Coleman made a motion @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the coordinator of elections to comply with T.C.A .
2-5-204 , removing Mannis as the Republican nominee from Tennessee House District 18 and naming Oster as the Republican nominee as required by the Rules and Regulations of the Tennessee Republican Party and T.C.A .
2-17-104 .
Coleman went on to explain that the SEC made a mistake when they voted back in March disqualifying Mannis from the ballot by not transmitting it to the coordinator of elections in accordance with T.C.A .
2-5-204 .
Under that section , the SEC has the exclusive @ @ @ @ @ @ @ TRP bylaws allowing the chairman to make the determination of a candidate ’ s Republican bona fides , are in conflict with the law .
Despite a recent history of Democrat voting and political contributions , Golden overrode the SEC vote and determined that Mannis was a bona fide Republican based on vouching from Congressman Tim Burchett , Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs and state Senator Richard Briggs .
Under Article IX , Section 5 of the TRP bylaws , Coleman went on , anytime there is a conflict with state statute , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the statute .
Therefore , Mannis had already been disqualified by virtue of the SEC vote in March , but they needed to remove him as the nominee or he would go forward as a disqualified candidate .
“ Honestly , if we allow him to continue forward , we will risk him being challenged after the general election .
I ’ m willing to gamble , but I ’ m not willing to lose a seat based on a procedural error , ” Coleman concluded .
Discussion amongst the SEC members went @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
While additional evidence and reasons to support the motion were cited , opponents primarily made the case that the will and voice of the people of House District 18 should not be overturned .
Due to the technical challenges with taking a roll call vote on a phone call , it took more than 20 minutes to get to the 43 to 18 ruling of Oster ’ s contest being denied .
To make it official , a final motion to nominate Mannis as the candidate for House District 18 passed by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to face Democrat Virginia Crouch in the November 3 general election .
Laura Baigert is a senior reporter at The Tennessee Star .
Photo “ Eddie Mannis ” by Eddie Mannis .
Background Photo “ Tennessee Capitol ” by Kayfishup .
CC BY-SA 3.0 .

The Tennessee Republican Party State Executive Committee (SEC) in a meeting held via conference call Wednesday evening voted to affirm the August 6 results of the House District 18 primary that was won by Eddie Mannis, potentially in violation of state law.
The vote was 43 to 18 by the SEC, which functions as the State Primary Board (SPB) in a primary contest.
The contest was brought on by Mannis’ challenger in the Republican primary, Gina Oster, because of evidence that there was crossover voting by Democrats in numbers that exceeded Mannis’ 99-vote margin of victory, The Tennessee Star reported.
While the SEC had a meeting on Saturday, the issue wasn’t taken up at that time due to timing requirements after a contest is declared as laid out in state law.
Oster attended Saturday’s SEC meeting, and some of the documents that each candidate submitted to Chairman Scott Golden were provided in hard copy form to the SEC members for their review prior to the conference call.
Oster, however, had submitted a cover document along with 10 exhibits referenced in her cover document, and none of those were included with the information provided to the SEC members Saturday.
During the conference call meeting Wednesday, set specifically to address the contest, each of the candidates was allotted five minutes to make their case to the SPB.
Oster spoke for herself first, then Mannis made his case followed by his attorney from the high-powered law firm Baker Donelson.
Immediately after Chairman Scott Golden declared that the meeting was moving to the discussion phase, SEC member Matthew Coleman made a motion to transmit the disqualification of Mannis to the coordinator of elections to comply with T.C.A. 2-5-204, removing Mannis as the Republican nominee from Tennessee House District 18 and naming Oster as the Republican nominee as required by the Rules and Regulations of the Tennessee Republican Party and T.C.A. 2-17-104.
Coleman went on to explain that the SEC made a mistake when they voted back in March disqualifying Mannis from the ballot by not transmitting it to the coordinator of elections in accordance with T.C.A. 2-5-204.
Under that section, the SEC has the exclusive right to determine disqualifications, but the TRP bylaws allowing the chairman to make the determination of a candidate’s Republican bona fides, are in conflict with the law.
Despite a recent history of Democrat voting and political contributions, Golden overrode the SEC vote and determined that Mannis was a bona fide Republican based on vouching from Congressman Tim Burchett, Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs and state Senator Richard Briggs.
Under Article IX, Section 5 of the TRP bylaws, Coleman went on, anytime there is a conflict with state statute, the bylaws are automatically amended to mirror the statute.
Therefore, Mannis had already been disqualified by virtue of the SEC vote in March, but they needed to remove him as the nominee or he would go forward as a disqualified candidate.
“Honestly, if we allow him to continue forward, we will risk him being challenged after the general election. I’m willing to gamble, but I’m not willing to lose a seat based on a procedural error,” Coleman concluded.
Discussion amongst the SEC members went on for a little over a half-hour.
While additional evidence and reasons to support the motion were cited, opponents primarily made the case that the will and voice of the people of House District 18 should not be overturned.
Due to the technical challenges with taking a roll call vote on a phone call, it took more than 20 minutes to get to the 43 to 18 ruling of Oster’s contest being denied.
To make it official, a final motion to nominate Mannis as the candidate for House District 18 passed by voice vote.
Mannis will go on to face Democrat Virginia Crouch in the November 3 general election.
– – –
Laura Baigert is a senior reporter at The Tennessee Star.
Photo “Eddie Mannis” by Eddie Mannis. Background Photo “Tennessee Capitol” by Kayfishup. CC BY-SA 3.0.


thetennesseestar--2020-09-03--Commentary: When Joe Does Iraq

Commentary: When Joe Does Iraq

Fourteen years ago today marks the low point of the Iraq War .
Mounting U.S. casualties and raging sectarian violence in an undeclared civil war was the order of the day .
That changed late in the afternoon when Sheik Sattar Bezia abu Risha handed me a hand written three page document that would become the charter of the Anbar Awakening .
The very thought of Iraqi tribal leaders siding with American forces , especially in Ramadi — the most dangerous city in the world , and the site of the first al Qaeda Caliphate — was unprecedented alliance .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ page headline and the consensus intelligence assessment , and any mention of progress was deemed unbelievable .
We had found an ally that was willing to fight the terrorist of Al Qaeda in Iraq ( AQI ) with us .
Sadly , most of those freedom fighters are dead today because of the poor policy decisions and neglect of the Obama-Biden White House .
Our newfound Awakening allies began achieving results immediately , bringing in thousands of police recruits and giving Iraqis an alternative to AQI .
Within months , President George W. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ General David Petraeus command began charting a new path for Iraq building on the success we achieved in Ramadi .
In September 2007 , the city government of Ramadi was holding 5K races along streets we feared sending tanks months prior .
President Bush flew to Iraq to meet with Sattar and thank him for his efforts .
While far from peace , the tide was turning .
By mid-month , General Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker were appearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee , chaired by then-Senator Joe Biden ( D-Del.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ change ” in 1998 , invading Iraq in 2003 , and even offering his own plan to divide the country Iraq into three ethnic enclaves in his widely rejected Unity Through Autonomy in Iraq Op-ed in 2006 , 2007 Biden was firmly against the war — for now .
Petraeus and Crocker delivered a somber but cautiously optimistic assessment in a carnival-like atmosphere , against a shameful “ General Betray-Us ” backdrop .
A chorus of presidential hopefuls including Barack Obama , John McCain , Hillary Clinton , John Kerry and Biden himself @ @ @ @ @ @ @ while being interrupted by shrieking Code Pink “ activists.
” Days later , Sheik Sattar was murdered by an AQI terrorist .
Sattar ’ s brother , Sheik Ahmed Bezia abu Risha , was elected to lead the Awakening Council and bravely announced “ Although they killed Sattar , there are a million Sattars in Anbar.
” By December 2008 , U.S. causalities had dropped significantly , the Iraqi Security Forces were finding their footing , and Shias and Sunnis were working together to piece Iraq back together , despite simmering tensions .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ President Bush signed a long-term security agreement with Iraq , calling for the withdrawal of American troops from the cities by June 2009 , and combat units out by 31 December 2011 , to be replaced by a robust and agreed-upon advisory effort .
While causing confusion at the time of what exactly that meant , the expectation of both the Iraqis and the U.S. military was that the Obama administration would negotiate a Status of Forces Agreement ( SOFA ) in the coming months .
As the New Yorker reported , during @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Obama turned to now-Vice President Biden and said , “ Joe , you do Iraq.
” This allowed the President to turn his attention to the “ Good War ” and its abortive “ Surge ” in Afghanistan .
Vice President Biden , back again supporting the Iraq War , and rejecting his own partition idea , took on the task with vigor .
He made seven trips to Iraq and 64 phone calls to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki , attempting to forge the SOFA agreement before the December 2011 deadline .
Although @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Biden was strangely silent in January 2010 , when Iranian stooge Maliki disqualified five-hundred candidates from the upcoming national elections , including the presumptive next prime minister , Sheik Ahmad , the widely-supported leader of the Iraq Awakening Council , on spurious charges of being Ba ’ athists .
Despite Maliki ’ s Dawa Party losing to a Sunni and Shia coalition party led by secular Shite Ayad Allawi — an Iraq judge allowed Maliki the opportunity to form a government , violating accepted parliamentary practices and the nascent Iraqi rule of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Iraqi political upheaval , Biden was uncharacteristically silent during this period as well , although he ham-handedly called Allawi telling him that he couldn ’ t form a government .
Iraqis security forces were leading attacks against the last of the terrorist organizations plaguing the country .
On April 18 , 2010 Abu Ayyub al-Masri was killed , an event Biden called a “ potentially devastating blow ” to al-Qaida in Iraq .
Unbeknownst to him , the leadership of AQI passed to Abu Bakr al Baghdadi , who reshaped it in his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Biden continued working with Maliki towards the expected SOFA agreement , saying as late as October 2010 that “ I ’ ll bet you my vice presidency [ that ] Maliki will extend the SOFA.
” In December 2010 , Maliki finally formed a government by including parties affiliated with the Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr , an Iranian puppet and leader of the Madhi Army .
Once firmly in power , he purged rivals and the country moved further under Iranian control .
By March 2011 , the Arab Spring was in full @ @ @ @ @ @ @ remnants of AQI fighting in Syria against the last Ba ’ athist government of Bashar al Assad in order to re-establish the caliphate .
Biden ’ s SOFA agreement talks completely broke down on 21 Oct 2011 , much to the surprise of the Iraqis and the American military alike .
Although Maliki offered to sign an executive order giving American troops legal protections , the Obama-Biden White House demanded the Iraqi Parliament ratify the agreement , a demand that both the Iraqis and Americans knew was unattainable .
On 12 December , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ American forces leaving Iraq , and the end of what could have been .
No sooner than Maliki ’ s plane hit the tarmac in Baghdad , a purge of Sunnis from the government and military began , starting with Sunni Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi , who allegedly was responsible for numerous terrorist attacks .
Although Hashimi fled to Qatar before being arrested , he was eventually convicted in absentia and sentenced to death .
Over the course of the next three years , Iraq disintegrated into sectarian violence , mainly perpetrated by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ population , and the rise of al Baghdadi ’ s newly rebranded Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant ( ISIS ) .
Derided as “ the JV Team ” by President Obama , the fanatical ISIS jihadists pummeled the Iraqi military , now stripped of competent commanders by Maliki and devoid of U.S. advisors or support .
Average Sunnis were forced to choose between an oppressive government and the devil they knew ( ISIS/AQI ) and began siding with ISIS .
By the summer of 2014 , ISIS had overrun Mosul and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ driving to the outskirts of Baghdad .
In Mosul ’ s grand mosque , Al Baghdadi declared himself Calif. International jihadists flocked by the tens of thousands to the new Mesopotamian caliphate .
One Sunni group was still fighting ISIS — our allies in The Awakening Council — still headed by the abandoned Sheik Ahmed .
ISIS held a particular hatred for the Awakening fighters , seeing them as apostates for siding with the Coalition in 2006 .
In January 2015 , Sheik Ahmed led a delegation of Sunni leaders to Washington , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to continue fighting ISIS .
Although the Iraqi government was publicly pledging support for the Sunnis , privately Maliki was funneling arms and ammunition to Iranian-controlled Shia death squads — now masquerading as Popular Mobilization Forces .
According to the readout on the meeting , Vice President Biden met with the delegation briefly , and “ he expressed support for the Iraqi government ’ s efforts to enlist fighters from all of Iraq ’ s communities to help reconstitute Iraq ’ s security forces .
The Vice President encouraged the delegates to continue @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ) Prime Minister Abadi and the Iraqi government on these important efforts to forge a durable security for Iraq.
” What the Awakening Council members heard was the U.S. was not jeopardizing ongoing nuclear talks with Iran by supporting our allies who changed the course of the war in 2006-2007 .
Politico reported that one Anbar leader summed it up by saying : “ The truth is that our Ministry of Defense is owned lock , stock , and barrel by Tehran — and Joe Biden knows it .
So he smiled , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sent us on our way.
” As proof , Sheik Ahmed produced a widely circulated picture of Iranian Quds Force commander and wanted terrorist Qassem Soleimani hugging Iraqi Badr Organization leader Hadi al-Amiri .
( Soleimani , responsible for the death and maiming of over a thousand American troops , was killed by a drone strike on 3 January 2020 at the Baghdad airport .
Al-Amiri , oddly enough , was a White House guest 2011 and was the mastermind of the 2019 New Year ’ s Eve attack on the U.S. Embassy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ meeting , the ISIS onslaught proved too much for the Awakening Council forces and the inept Iraqi security forces , and Ramadi fell .
The tribal militiamen who fought alongside us in 2006 , and were indispensable in defeating AQI were slaughtered .
What I never understood during this period was the reluctance to embrace our allies in the Awakening .
My only guess is that victory , or even a stable Iraq .
was never the desired outcome .
It was all about keeping the Iranians happy .
What came next is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ swathes of Iraq and Syria while gleefully committing genocide against the Yazidis around Sinjar and televising atrocities that made even Al Qaeda disavow them .
Facing international outrage and regional destabilization , the Obama-Biden administration reluctantly responded with humanitarian aid , and then a series of air strikes .
Eventually , Operation Inherent Resolve was established and elements of the 1st Infantry Division we ordered back to Iraq — and later Syria — to fight alongside the remnants of the Iraqi Army and dominant Shia militias .
That is what you get when @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Deane ( US Army , Retired ) commanded Task Force Conqueror in the Battle of Ramadi and was instrumental in fostering the start of the Anbar Awakening .
He spent his last two years in the Army as the senior trainer for Counterinsurgency .
He is the author of Ramadi Declassified : A Roadmap to Peace in the Most Dangerous City in Iraq .

by Anthony E. Deane
Fourteen years ago today marks the low point of the Iraq War. Mounting U.S. casualties and raging sectarian violence in an undeclared civil war was the order of the day. That changed late in the afternoon when Sheik Sattar Bezia abu Risha handed me a hand written three page document that would become the charter of the Anbar Awakening. The very thought of Iraqi tribal leaders siding with American forces, especially in Ramadi — the most dangerous city in the world, and the site of the first al Qaeda Caliphate — was unprecedented alliance. Anbar Was Lost was both the front page headline and the consensus intelligence assessment, and any mention of progress was deemed unbelievable. We had found an ally that was willing to fight the terrorist of Al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) with us. Sadly, most of those freedom fighters are dead today because of the poor policy decisions and neglect of the Obama-Biden White House.
Our newfound Awakening allies began achieving results immediately, bringing in thousands of police recruits and giving Iraqis an alternative to AQI. Within months, President George W. Bush’s “Surge” under General David Petraeus command began charting a new path for Iraq building on the success we achieved in Ramadi. In September 2007, the city government of Ramadi was holding 5K races along streets we feared sending tanks months prior. President Bush flew to Iraq to meet with Sattar and thank him for his efforts. While far from peace, the tide was turning.
By mid-month, General Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker were appearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, chaired by then-Senator Joe Biden (D-Del.). Despite voting for “regime change” in 1998, invading Iraq in 2003, and even offering his own plan to divide the country Iraq into three ethnic enclaves in his widely rejected Unity Through Autonomy in Iraq Op-ed in 2006, 2007 Biden was firmly against the war — for now. Petraeus and Crocker delivered a somber but cautiously optimistic assessment in a carnival-like atmosphere, against a shameful “General Betray-Us” backdrop. A chorus of presidential hopefuls including Barack Obama, John McCain, Hillary Clinton, John Kerry and Biden himself attempted to score political points, all while being interrupted by shrieking Code Pink “activists.” Days later, Sheik Sattar was murdered by an AQI terrorist. Sattar’s brother, Sheik Ahmed Bezia abu Risha, was elected to lead the Awakening Council and bravely announced “Although they killed Sattar, there are a million Sattars in Anbar.”
By December 2008, U.S. causalities had dropped significantly, the Iraqi Security Forces were finding their footing, and Shias and Sunnis were working together to piece Iraq back together, despite simmering tensions. With the United Nations mandate expiring, President Bush signed a long-term security agreement with Iraq, calling for the withdrawal of American troops from the cities by June 2009, and combat units out by 31 December 2011, to be replaced by a robust and agreed-upon advisory effort. While causing confusion at the time of what exactly that meant, the expectation of both the Iraqis and the U.S. military was that the Obama administration would negotiate a Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) in the coming months.
As the New Yorker reported, during a 2009 national security meeting, President Obama turned to now-Vice President Biden and said, “Joe, you do Iraq.” This allowed the President to turn his attention to the “Good War” and its abortive “Surge” in Afghanistan. Vice President Biden, back again supporting the Iraq War, and rejecting his own partition idea, took on the task with vigor. He made seven trips to Iraq and 64 phone calls to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, attempting to forge the SOFA agreement before the December 2011 deadline. Although a vocal front man for the administration, Biden was strangely silent in January 2010, when Iranian stooge Maliki disqualified five-hundred candidates from the upcoming national elections, including the presumptive next prime minister, Sheik Ahmad, the widely-supported leader of the Iraq Awakening Council, on spurious charges of being Ba’athists. Despite Maliki’s Dawa Party losing to a Sunni and Shia coalition party led by secular Shite Ayad Allawi — an Iraq judge allowed Maliki the opportunity to form a government, violating accepted parliamentary practices and the nascent Iraqi rule of law.
In the ensuing months of Iraqi political upheaval, Biden was uncharacteristically silent during this period as well, although he ham-handedly called Allawi telling him that he couldn’t form a government. Iraqis security forces were leading attacks against the last of the terrorist organizations plaguing the country. On April 18, 2010 Abu Ayyub al-Masri was killed, an event Biden called a “potentially devastating blow” to al-Qaida in Iraq. Unbeknownst to him, the leadership of AQI passed to Abu Bakr al Baghdadi, who reshaped it in his “austere religious scholar” image. Biden continued working with Maliki towards the expected SOFA agreement, saying as late as October 2010 that “I’ll bet you my vice presidency [that] Maliki will extend the SOFA.”
In December 2010, Maliki finally formed a government by including parties affiliated with the Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, an Iranian puppet and leader of the Madhi Army. Once firmly in power, he purged rivals and the country moved further under Iranian control. By March 2011, the Arab Spring was in full force and al Baghdadi was leading the remnants of AQI fighting in Syria against the last Ba’athist government of Bashar al Assad in order to re-establish the caliphate.
Biden’s SOFA agreement talks completely broke down on 21 Oct 2011, much to the surprise of the Iraqis and the American military alike. Although Maliki offered to sign an executive order giving American troops legal protections, the Obama-Biden White House demanded the Iraqi Parliament ratify the agreement, a demand that both the Iraqis and Americans knew was unattainable. On 12 December, a ceremony in Washington celebrated the last American forces leaving Iraq, and the end of what could have been. No sooner than Maliki’s plane hit the tarmac in Baghdad, a purge of Sunnis from the government and military began, starting with Sunni Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi, who allegedly was responsible for numerous terrorist attacks. Although Hashimi fled to Qatar before being arrested, he was eventually convicted in absentia and sentenced to death.
Over the course of the next three years, Iraq disintegrated into sectarian violence, mainly perpetrated by the Iraqi government against the minority Sunni population, and the rise of al Baghdadi’s newly rebranded Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS). Derided as “the JV Team” by President Obama, the fanatical ISIS jihadists pummeled the Iraqi military, now stripped of competent commanders by Maliki and devoid of U.S. advisors or support. Average Sunnis were forced to choose between an oppressive government and the devil they knew (ISIS/AQI) and began siding with ISIS. By the summer of 2014, ISIS had overrun Mosul and most of Anbar Province, and was driving to the outskirts of Baghdad. In Mosul’s grand mosque, Al Baghdadi declared himself Calif. International jihadists flocked by the tens of thousands to the new Mesopotamian caliphate.
One Sunni group was still fighting ISIS — our allies in The Awakening Council — still headed by the abandoned Sheik Ahmed. ISIS held a particular hatred for the Awakening fighters, seeing them as apostates for siding with the Coalition in 2006. In January 2015, Sheik Ahmed led a delegation of Sunni leaders to Washington, pleading for direct support from the U.S. to continue fighting ISIS. Although the Iraqi government was publicly pledging support for the Sunnis, privately Maliki was funneling arms and ammunition to Iranian-controlled Shia death squads — now masquerading as Popular Mobilization Forces. According to the readout on the meeting, Vice President Biden met with the delegation briefly, and “he expressed support for the Iraqi government’s efforts to enlist fighters from all of Iraq’s communities to help reconstitute Iraq’s security forces. The Vice President encouraged the delegates to continue to work constructively with (newly installed) Prime Minister Abadi and the Iraqi government on these important efforts to forge a durable security for Iraq.”
What the Awakening Council members heard was the U.S. was not jeopardizing ongoing nuclear talks with Iran by supporting our allies who changed the course of the war in 2006-2007. Politico reported that one Anbar leader summed it up by saying: “The truth is that our Ministry of Defense is owned lock, stock, and barrel by Tehran — and Joe Biden knows it. So he smiled, patted us on the back, and sent us on our way.” As proof, Sheik Ahmed produced a widely circulated picture of Iranian Quds Force commander and wanted terrorist Qassem Soleimani hugging Iraqi Badr Organization leader Hadi al-Amiri. (Soleimani, responsible for the death and maiming of over a thousand American troops, was killed by a drone strike on 3 January 2020 at the Baghdad airport. Al-Amiri, oddly enough, was a White House guest 2011 and was the mastermind of the 2019 New Year’s Eve attack on the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad.)
Shortly after the meeting, the ISIS onslaught proved too much for the Awakening Council forces and the inept Iraqi security forces, and Ramadi fell. The tribal militiamen who fought alongside us in 2006, and were indispensable in defeating AQI were slaughtered. What I never understood during this period was the reluctance to embrace our allies in the Awakening. My only guess is that victory, or even a stable Iraq. was never the desired outcome. It was all about keeping the Iranians happy.
What came next is well-documented. The ISIS conquered and terrorized swathes of Iraq and Syria while gleefully committing genocide against the Yazidis around Sinjar and televising atrocities that made even Al Qaeda disavow them. Facing international outrage and regional destabilization, the Obama-Biden administration reluctantly responded with humanitarian aid, and then a series of air strikes. Eventually, Operation Inherent Resolve was established and elements of the 1st Infantry Division we ordered back to Iraq — and later Syria — to fight alongside the remnants of the Iraqi Army and dominant Shia militias.
That is what you get when Joe does Iraq.
– – –
Colonel Anthony E. Deane (US Army, Retired) commanded Task Force Conqueror in the Battle of Ramadi and was instrumental in fostering the start of the Anbar Awakening. He spent his last two years in the Army as the senior trainer for Counterinsurgency. He is the author of Ramadi Declassified: A Roadmap to Peace in the Most Dangerous City in Iraq.


thetennesseestar--2020-09-03--State Orders Public Colleges and Universities to Create COVID-19 Quarantine Shelters

Ohio will now mandate public colleges and universities to create non-congregate sheltering space for quarantining coronavirus patients .
Ohio Department of Health ( ODH ) Interim Director Lance Himes issued the order Sunday “ to prevent the spread of COVID-19 , ” alongside Governor Mike DeWine and Lieutenant Governor Jon Husted .
According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency ( FEMA ) relative to COVID-19 , non-congregate shelters are “ locations where each individual or household has living space that offers some level of privacy , such as hotels , motels , or dormitories.
” FEMA entered into an agreement @ @ @ @ @ @ @ allows people to apply for the non-congregate sheltering .
Under Himes ’ order , public colleges and universities must negotiate a mutual aid agreement with their local health board , or the county or state Emergency Management Agencies ( EMA ) .
The order assures higher education that it will be immune from civil liability .
The ODH calls these makeshift mandatory shelters “ temporary private medical facilities.
” Higher education may not be the only place these shelters will appear .
The state ’ s EMA now has the power to enter @ @ @ @ @ @ @ other public and private facilities .
It ’ s entirely possible under the order ’ s language that certain non-congregate buildings , such as hotels and apartments , may be contracted or mandated for shelter use as well .
The order limits those who qualify for these shelters .
Such persons are “ those unable to safely self-quarantine in their place of residence , ” and those diagnosed with or showing symptoms .
And , those who don ’ t require hospitalization but are “ asymptomatic high-risk individuals needing social distancing as a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Husted relayed no information about artificial intelligence involvement in drafting this order , specific safety determinants and proceedings for these facilities , why they thought this order was necessary as cases continue to drop , or the conflict between Center for Disease Control ( CDC ) guidelines and this order ’ s necessity of quarantining asymptomatic individuals .
No response came by press time on these related issues .
Private colleges and universities may opt to participate in the order as well .
The order will take effect immediately , expiring 90 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s direction .
Corinne Murdock is a reporter at The Ohio Star and the Star News Network .
Follow her on Twitter , or email tips to [ email protected ] .
Photo “ Lance Himes ” by Lance Himes .

Ohio will now mandate public colleges and universities to create non-congregate sheltering space for quarantining coronavirus patients.
Ohio Department of Health (ODH) Interim Director Lance Himes issued the order Sunday “to prevent the spread of COVID-19,” alongside Governor Mike DeWine and Lieutenant Governor Jon Husted.
According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) relative to COVID-19, non-congregate shelters are “locations where each individual or household has living space that offers some level of privacy, such as hotels, motels, or dormitories.” FEMA entered into an agreement with the state, which in part allows people to apply for the non-congregate sheltering.
Under Himes’ order, public colleges and universities must negotiate a mutual aid agreement with their local health board, or the county or state Emergency Management Agencies (EMA). The order assures higher education that it will be immune from civil liability.
The ODH calls these makeshift mandatory shelters “temporary private medical facilities.” Higher education may not be the only place these shelters will appear. The state’s EMA now has the power to enter into contracts or mutual aid agreements with other public and private facilities.
It’s entirely possible under the order’s language that certain non-congregate buildings, such as hotels and apartments, may be contracted or mandated for shelter use as well.
The order limits those who qualify for these shelters. Such persons are “those unable to safely self-quarantine in their place of residence,” and those diagnosed with or showing symptoms. And, those who don’t require hospitalization but are “asymptomatic high-risk individuals needing social distancing as a precautionary measure.”
Homes, DeWine, and Husted relayed no information about artificial intelligence involvement in drafting this order, specific safety determinants and proceedings for these facilities, why they thought this order was necessary as cases continue to drop, or the conflict between Center for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines and this order’s necessity of quarantining asymptomatic individuals. No response came by press time on these related issues.
Private colleges and universities may opt to participate in the order as well. The order will take effect immediately, expiring 90 days from onset or under Himes’s direction.
– – –
Corinne Murdock is a reporter at The Ohio Star and the Star News Network. Follow her on Twitter, or email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Lance Himes” by Lance Himes.