theblaze--2020-12-03--'Wake up! Stand up! This is America!': Restaurant owner interrupts news broadcast, urges resistance

'Wake up! Stand up! This is America!': Restaurant owner interrupts news broadcast, urges resistance to COVID-19 state 'tyranny'

'Wake up !
Stand up !
This is America ! '
: Restaurant owner interrupts news broadcast , urges resistance @ @ @ @ @ I am not going to put up with it .
It 's time to rise @ @ @

Dave Morris saw the news camera and reporter in front of his Michigan restaurant Wednesday and apparently decided he wasn't going to wait to be interviewed.
Instead he walked up and interrupted WWMT-TV's segment on restaurant owners defying a statewide ban on indoor dining — and it turns out Morris has been doing just that.
"My government leaders have abandoned me," Morris — who owns D&R Daily Grind in Portage — told the reporter.
Image source: Twitter video screenshot via @TarvariousWWMT
He added to the station that since opening up his establishment for indoor dining Friday, he's seen a record number of customers — and he wants other business owners to open up, too.
"We've got a government that has taken the stimulus money, they gave it to special campaign donors, they gave it to special interests," Morris told WWMT. "They abandoned me, and they have put me in a position where I have to fight back."
Bar and restaurant owners are saying they're feeling the pain of the dine-in ban after the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services passed an epidemic order, which was set to expire Dec. 9, the station noted.
But Morris has had enough, telling WWMT he's tired of restrictions putting businesses like his in danger of closing.
The Michigan Restaurant and Lodging Associations filed a lawsuit to stop the order banning indoor dining, but a federal judge ruled Wednesday that restaurants can't open safely and successfully, the station said.
But Morris has been defying the order and wants others to do the same, calling state actions a "tyranny."
"I feel everybody needs to stand up," Morris told WWMT, adding that fellow business owners should "Wake up! Stand up! This is America! Be free!"
Image source: Twitter video screenshot via @TarvariousWWMT
He added to the station that he received a cease-and-desist letter from the Kalamazoo County health department, but Morris said business has been booming, so he would be staying open.
"They want me to go down and be quiet and never hear from me again," Morris told WWMT. "I am not going to put up with it. It's time to rise up. Shut it all down or don't shut any of us down. That's the only way to get control of a virus."
Businesses that defy the state's orders face a daily fine of $1,000 — and the station said Morris was was up to $6,000 as of Wednesday.


theblaze--2020-12-03--POLL: When will you stop wearing a mask?

POLL : When will you stop wearing a mask ?
Cast your vote and do n't forget to share !

POLL: When will you stop wearing a mask?
Cast your vote and don't forget to share!


theblaze--2020-12-03--Florida GOP lawyer under investigation for reportedly illegally registering to vote in Georgia and

Florida GOP lawyer under investigation for reportedly illegally registering to vote in Georgia and asking others to join him

Georgia officials are investigating a Republican attorney in Florida after he allegedly attempted to register to vote in Georgia ahead of the Senate runoffs and instructed other voters how to do the same.
According to WSB-TV, attorney Bill Price was caught in a since-deleted Facebook Live video telling Republican Party members in Bay County, Florida, about his plans.
What did he say?
In the Nov. 7 video, which was recorded by an investigative reporter before it was deleted, Price suggested that the current legal challenges to the presidential election would ultimately fail.
"I'd love to tell you that there are legal avenues for success in the courts, but as a realist and as a lawyer myself, I know that that's just not going to happen," he said.
So instead, Price encouraged his audience to focus on securing the Republican majority in the Senate by any means necessary. On Jan. 5, Republican Sen. David Perdue will face off against Democratic challenger Jon Ossoff while fellow Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler will take on Democrat Rev. Raphael Warnock.
"We absolutely have to hold the Senate and we have to start fighting back, and we have to do whatever it takes," he said. "And if that means changing your address for the next two months, so be it. I'm doing that. I'm moving to Georgia and I'm gonna fight and I want you all to fight with me."
Florida attorney Bill Price says he's moving to Georgia to vote www.youtube.com
Price informed the group that he would be temporarily moving to his brother's house in Hiram, Georgia, in order to vote in the upcoming Senate runoff elections and invited them and "2 million" others to join him, repeating his brother's address several times.
"We can truly register at that address?" one woman asked in the video, to which Price replied, "Sure," so long as they demonstrate proof they plan to move to the address, such as having mail sent there.
"If they need a driver's license, I'm going to get a driver's license," he added. "If they need mail, I'm going to have mail there."
"And can it be anywhere in the state of Georgia you can register?" another person asked.
"Yep," Price responded, noting the upcoming election would be a statewide election and that he would be voting for Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue.
Price warned that if others didn't want to join him, that's fine, but they "might as well move to Venezuela now."
"Get used to that lifestyle, cause that's what's coming," he added.
What else?
When WSB-TV investigative reporter Nicole Carr reached out to Price about his comments in the video, he reportedly claimed it was all a joke.
"Thanks for reaching out. I did not change my voter registration and I don't have 2 million roommates," Price responded in an email. "But if my humorous comments bring attention to the massive and widespread voter fraud in Georgia, I would submit to you that it's a good thing."
But according to WSB-TV, the day after he spoke to the group, Price did in fact register to vote using his brother's address and signed an affidavit swearing that he was a Georgia resident and eligible to vote.
The news outlet reportedly confirmed with the state that an investigation into the matter is currently underway and felony charges are on the table.
Fox News reported that moving to Georgia temporarily only to vote is a crime in the state, according to Georgia's office of Secretary of State.
"Registering without the intention of permanent residency is a felony," the office said in a statement to Fox News from spokesman Walter Jones. "Only permanent residents are eligible to vote in Georgia."


theblaze--2020-12-03--'Girl dad' writes viral post on how he protects his daughters by taking them into public women's bat

'Girl dad' writes viral post on how he protects his daughters by taking them into public women's bathrooms

'Girl dad ' writes viral post on how he protects his daughters by taking them into public women 's bathrooms

Muhammed Nitoto of popular Instagram account Chronicles of Daddy has documented why he will always take his young daughters into ladies' bathrooms when faced with the decision to use public women's or men's rooms.
What are the details?
According to "Good Morning America," Nitoto went viral for a recent Instagram post regarding his young daughters' bathroom habits.
Nitoto — who lives in Los Angeles, California, with his wife Hejira Thompson and the couple's young girls, Zendaya and Zuri Lily — said that he's found himself faced with a decision to expose his toddlers to the unsanitary conditions of a men's room, or take them into a more comfortable and accessible women's room when it comes time to use the bathroom.
"I never thought the bathroom would become as big as a [sic] issue as it is," he wrote on Instagram. "Usually we would go to places and they have a FAMILY bathroom which are [sic] for people with children but what I found was most places don't have them and dads are left to decide between taking their daughters to the men's bathroom or the women's."
Nitoto said that when he began taking his daughters into the men's room, he was disgusted.
"Men's bathrooms are DISGUSTING," he wrote. "They smell like pee and nothing is setup [sic] for a woman or a person with a child. The changing table was right next to the urinal which means my child literally would be next to where men pee which [sic] she's being changed."
He said that it took just one time to entirely change his mind on where his girls should go to the bathroom: the ladies' room.
"I try to be as respectful to women as I can while doing so which consists of knocking on the door before entering and announcing myself," he wrote. "Making sure if someone is inside that they know I am a Dad coming in with his daughter and making sure they are comfortable with that. Now once inside our stall I still am aware of the door and whenever I hear it open and someone new is coming in I announce myself again and make sure they know I'm inside with my child so that they aren't surprised."
He added, "Women's bathrooms are so much cleaner and setup prefect [sic] just incase [sic] they have children. The changing station is usually insure [sic] a stall instead of just in the open and it's always clean. As a girl dad I can't help but want to protect my daughter's [sic] from all things that aren't for them and the men's bathroom is 100% one of those things."
In a statement, Nitoto told "Good Morning America" that he aimed to spark a conversation with his now-viral post and show "support to other fathers who have been or will be in the same situation."
"Being a girl dad, I find myself having to navigate things that I don't have a book I can read from to help me with solutions," he added. "It's almost like the parenting story isn't shared in-depth from a father's side. That's why I started my Daddy Chronicles. I wanted to tell the dad's side of stories — some that have been heard from the mom's side and some that haven't even been talked about before."
At the time of this reporting, the Instagram post has received more than 10,100 likes.
You can read Nitoto's full post below:
As a dad being out with daughters I never thought the bathroom would become as big as a issue as it is. Usually we would go places and they have FAMILY bathroom which are meant for people with children but what I found was most places don't have them and Dads are left to decide between taking their daughters to the men's bathroom or the women's. Now when first hit with this choice I did what most men would do which is, I went to the Men's bathroom. Now I've been to a men's bathroom millions of times but walking in with your daughter makes you look at it completely different. Men's bathrooms are DISGUSTING. They smell like pee and nothing is setup for a woman or a person with a child. The changing table was right next to the urinal which means my child literally would be next to where men pee which she's being charged. Not to mention that their are men going in and out while you're in their. After doing that 1 time I decided I'd never take my daughter's to the men's bathroom again. I use the women's bathroom when I'm out with them. They are too young to go on their own so I have to go in with them. I try to be as respectful to women as I can while doing so which consists of knocking on the door before entering and announcing myself. Making sure if someone is inside that they know I am a Dad coming in with his daughter and making sure they are comfortable with that. Now once inside our stall I still am aware of the door and whenever I hear it open and someone new is coming in I announce myself again and make sure they know I'm inside with my child so that they aren't surprised. Women's bathrooms are so much cleaner and setup prefect just incase they have children. The changing station is usually insure a stall instead of just in the open and it's always clean. As a girl dad I can't help but want to protect my daughter's from all things that aren't for them and the men's bathroom is 100% one of those things. Am I the only one? Ladies how does this make you feel?


theblaze--2020-12-03--Democratic socialist AOC gets destroyed for selling $58 'Tax The Rich' shirts

Democratic socialist AOC gets destroyed for selling $ 58 'Tax The Rich ' shirts AOC has said capitalism is 'irredeemable @ @ @ @ @ a merchandise shop that sells $ 25 Green New Deal onesies

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) is a self-declared democratic socialist who has been a vocal critic of capitalism. In the past, she has instructed her nearly 11 million Twitter followers to "Resist disaster capitalism." Last year, AOC called declared capitalism to be "irredeemable."
Ocasio-Cortez railed against Amazon constructing a second headquarters in New York City, which was estimated to bring "at least 25,000 to 40,000 good paying jobs and nearly $30 billion dollars in new revenue" into the state. according to New York. Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
This week, the democratic socialist fully embraced capitalism by peddling $58 shirts that say, "Tax The Rich" on them. The $58 does not include shipping and handling. AOC's merchandise website indicated that it would cost an additional $9.22 to ship the product to my house, bringing the grand total for the shirt to $67.22. The shop stated that the shirt would ship via the U.S. Postal Service, and "ship in 1-2 weeks + 2 business days in transit."
Pre-orders were being taken this week for the "gender neutral fit" shirts.
It turns out that AOC has an entire merchandise shop, where she sells a hoodie promoting the Green New Deal, made from 20% polyester, for a whopping $65.
If you can't afford the expensive long-sleeved shirts, you can purchase a strangely worded T-shirt that says "AOC + ME" for $27. Instead of paying off your student loan you can spend $27 on a cancel student debt T-shirt. There is even a perplexing "Drink Water & Don't Be Racist" T-shirt for $27.
The AOC shop also hawks other swag, such as $24 posters and $25 onesies promoting the Green New Deal, a $28 "Abolish ICE" hat, a $27 tote bag, and a $27 mug that promote Ocasio-Cortez.
Many people considered the Democratic socialist selling products at premium prices to be "hypocritical," and bashed the Democratic congresswoman for selling such high-priced goods on Twitter.
One person, who seemed to be an AOC supporter and retweeted the congresswoman numerous times in the past, simply wrote, "Wish I could afford this."


theblaze--2020-12-03--Horowitz: Murder rate surging in 2020 as COVID policies keep criminals out of jail

Horowitz : Murder rate surging in 2020 as COVID policies keep criminals out of jail

Aside from the viral epidemic, 2020 will be remembered for a crime epidemic that broke the back of the criminal justice system, which has successfully reduced crime since the mid-1990s. Meanwhile, criminals continue to be kept out of jail and prison in order to keep "social distancing" in prisons, when data show they have a lower fatality rate than the rest of the population. More criminals on the streets, more crime, and less freedom for law abiding citizens. What will 2021 bring us?
On Monday, the National Commission on COVID-19 and Criminal Justice (NCCCJ) released an updated crime data report, which examined weekly changes in major crime offenses across 28 cities from January 2020 through October 2020. The findings were quite alarming.
Overall, homicide rates between June and October 2020 increased by 36% compared to the same period in 2019 in 21 cities, amounting to 610 more lost lives than last year. Aggravated assaults increased by 15% in the summer and 13% in the fall of 2020 over the same period last year; gun assaults increased by 15% and 16%. Residential burglaries, on the other hand, declined significantly because so many people remain at home.
NCCCJ is a program created by the Council of Criminal Justice in July and is co-chaired by former U.S. Attorneys General Alberto Gonzales and Loretta Lynch.
The study observed, "The precipitous rise in homicide and assaults in the late spring of 2020 coincided with the emergence of mass protests after George Floyd was killed by a police officer in Minneapolis, although the connection, if any, between the social unrest and heightened violence remains uncertain."
While the rise of Black Lives Matter and Antifa rioting certainly contributed to the rise in vandalism, arson, and assaults, there have only been a few homicides traced back to the riots. What the study fails to point out is that the increase in homicide is mainly from career criminals who are increasingly not locked up, especially while awaiting trial. The other variable this year, aside from the "protests," is the mass de-incarceration under the guise of protecting prisoners from the spread of COVID.
The NCCCJ study concluded:
Finally, policymakers must take police reform seriously. Protesters have called for increasing accountability for police misconduct and shifting functions such as addressing the day-to-day problems of the homeless and responding to drug overdoses to other agencies and personnel better equipped to handle them.
But what does that have to do with the increase in homicide? So, unless they enact "police reform," the beatings and murder will continue? Most murder is gang-related. Are they really murdering in order to protest "police misconduct"? Sure, there is more murder because police are taking a hands-off approach on the streets, but how does handcuffing police help that?
The reality is that there are more potential murderers on the street, not to be deterred by police in any capacity. According to UCLA's data tracking on COVID-related incarceration releases, over 123,000 criminals have been released from prison and jail this year because of COVID-19, capping several years of gradual release under other jailbreak programs. On top of that, there are countless thousands of new criminals who are not being locked up initially because of the stigma against adding to the prison population at a time like this. Judges are increasingly taking this into account.
Now it turns out that all the deaths that will result from these criminals on the streets were built on a false premise that prisons would be deaths traps, with the virus killing prisoners at a higher rate than the general population.
In the early spring, the ACLU warned that "detention centers would be petri dishes for the spread of COVID-19 — and a death trap for thousands of people in civil detention." But in reality, they indeed were good petri dishes to study what would happen if the virus actually spread to a fully confined population. And it turns out it's not the death trap the ACLU envisioned – not any worse than it is in the general population. Yes, the virus spreads far and wide in confined spaces, but as we've seen from the natural epidemiological case study of prisons, most people are asymptomatic and very few required hospitalization.
Last week, the Wall Street Journal reported that despite the widespread transmission of the virus in prisons, "the case-fatality ratio, or the percentage of coronavirus cases that are fatal, is lower among inmates than the broader population." According to their data, the case-fatality rate among inmates was about 0.7%, one-third that of the general population (2.1%).
Now, obviously, the true fatality rate is likely not that much better in prison, because case fatality rates only measure the deaths against the known cases. In jails and prisons, a much larger percentage of the true infections have been confirmed through mass testing than among the general public. But it still appears, based on overall deaths per 100,000, that the fatality rate among the incarcerated population is at least somewhat lower than the general population.
There are roughly 2.2 million incarcerated individuals in the country, and as of Dec. 1, according to the UCLA tracking project, there were 1,449 COVID deaths among inmates. That is a death rate of 65.9 per 100,000. At 269K COVID deaths in the general population, that would be 81 deaths per capita.
While it is true that prisoners are a younger population, they also have a lot of underlying conditions. Plus, the population is disproportionately black and Hispanic. According to the CDC, the COVID-19 death rate among black and Hispanic people is three times higher than among white people. If the premise of those pushing for corona jailbreak were correct, we'd be seeing a bloodbath in prisons relative to the population. That is simply not playing out.
Thus, the same overstating of the severity of the virus, along with overstating our ability to stop the spread, that has spawned the criminalization of human living has also wrongly enabled the release of thousands of dangerous criminals. We are the criminals, and the criminals are the victims.
After all, the only crime that is considered serious by our governing elites is not wearing a mask. And given that most violent criminals seem to be wearing masks, there is nothing to see here.
Editor's note: An earlier version of this article described the NCCCJ report as spanning January 2017-October 2020. The correct span is January 2020-October 2020. The article has been corrected.


theblaze--2020-12-04--Austin mayor apologizes after sending 'stay home' message from his Mexico vacation: 'I regret that t

Austin mayor apologizes after sending 'stay home' message from his Mexico vacation: 'I regret that travel ... I'm sorry I took that trip'

Austin mayor apologizes after sending 'stay home ' message from his Mexico vacation : ' I regret that travel ... @ @ @ @ @ that trip '

Austin, Texas, Mayor Steve Adler has issued an apology after filming his "stay at home" message while relaxing on a tropical vacation in Mexico.
In early November, Adler shared a tone-deaf video message to his Facebook page, urging citizens of Austin to remain vigilant in the face of coronavirus.
"We need to stay home if you can," he said in now-viral remarks filmed in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. "We need to keep the numbers down. Now is not the time to relax."
What are the details?
During a Wednesday livestream, the Austin mayor — who is now home — issued an apology for encouraging city residents to stay at home during the COVID-19 pandemic.
"The first week of November, my daughter got married here in Austin, and like many other brides, she had to cancel her original plans in order to follow the rules, and instead, she had a small, mostly family, very private wedding," Adler explained. "Afterwards, a small, mostly family group traveled to Mexico. I want you to know that I regret that travel. I wouldn't travel now, I didn't over Thanksgiving, and I won't over Christmas, and no one should. Everyone should be avoiding non-essential travel now because we're in the orange area."
Adler said that while he traveled during a "safer period," it still set an example which could have encouraged people to engage in "riskier behavior" as a result.
"I recognize that my travel set a bad example," he admitted. "I recognize that the fact that I took that trip, and at the same time was continuing to urge people to be cautious, is confusing. I know that others have chosen not to travel under the same circumstances, and I know that in my position, I need to send a clearer message. I'm sorry I took that trip. It was a lapse in judgment, and I want you to know that I apologize."
You can listen to his remarks in the video below, which Adler shared on his Facebook page.


theblaze--2020-12-04--Commentary: Woke theater's latest 'triumph' was nothing but a virtue signaling, squib-kick gimmick

Commentary : Woke theater 's latest 'triumph ' was nothing but a virtue signaling , squib-kick gimmick

The kickoff is one of the most violent plays in football, so much so that some of the sport's modern day wise men believe it should be removed from the game altogether because of the number of injuries it induces in the most Gladiator-like of men.
Speed, strength, courage, willpower, and chaos are all maxed out on the table. It is an all-in, high-stakes pursuit demanding every bit of oneself just in order to survive, let alone thrive.
That's football for ya. And it's one of the main reasons we love it. Masculine meritocracy unfiltered. Go big or go home.
The squib kick, on the other hand, is the opposite of that. In fact, it really isn't football at all. It's one of the rare moments in the game where the rules are kind of suspended and a truce of sorts is called. Almost nothing is risked. There is nearly zero chance of either team really gaining anything resembling glory.
The violence inherent to the real thing is forfeited for a very temporary safety. We all get what is going on in terms of strategy, but it is a cheat against the purity of the sport, and we know it.
Which brings us to Sarah Fuller, the Vanderbilt women's soccer player who last weekend made fake history by suiting up for the university's football team when COVID kept the team's usual kickers from answering the call of duty.
Never mind the fact that she apparently went full Greta Thunberg and tried to give the team a pep talk at halftime on their way to a 41-0 drubbing — even though she never saw a second of play by that point. Never mind the fact Vanderbilt's coach was fired after the game for adding insult to his winless record via a desperate act of woke theatrics.
Focus on the absurdity that Fuller was named Southeastern Conference special teams "'player of the week" for stepping on the field just one time, to begin the second half of play, and purposefully doing the least football thing possible.
She squibbed it.
In other words, at no point was she at any risk of any actual football breaking out while she was on the field. No need to tackle. No chance of being decleated on a block. But, of course, all of this nonsense was sung to the headline of “Perfectly executed kick sailed 30 yards."
It's such an obvious lie to spin an obvious gimmick: Sarah Fuller didn't really play football and absolutely zero barriers were broken for women because of her. Which is why you will never see other headlines like “Woman plays nose tackle with gusto" or “Woman runs suicidal slant route across the middle" or “Woman suffers concussion after being sacked five times."
All of this, every last bit of it, is a squib. A time-out from actual football used to virtue signal at the price of utter detachment from reality. But does anyone honestly feel their daughters' lives are now somehow filled with greater possibility and renewed optimism because of any of this? Does anyone feel women planted their flag in ground that they have actual potential and plans to conquer for their own?
Fuller may very well be an adequate to excellent placekicker, and get a chance in a future game to prove it to us by launching the ball through the uprights for points on the scoreboard. Should that occur, that will be something to commemorate with our daughters like the two I'm blessed to have and adore. But this silly squib kick gimmick is not that day. It's a farce, which is why you're called sexist by Leftists who loathe the masculine meritocracy of football for saying so.
Oh, by the way, what's a woman?


theblaze--2020-12-04--DNI Ratcliffe says US intelligence proves China is the greatest threat to freedom around the globe s

DNI Ratcliffe says US intelligence proves China is the greatest threat to freedom around the globe since WWII 'This generation @ @ @ @ @ response to China 's effort '

Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe warned Americans that China is running a "massive influence campaign" to bend U.S. lawmakers to the will of the communist government, and called it the country's top national threat.
Ratcliffe made the accusations in a startling op-ed in the Washington Post published Thursday.
"If I could communicate one thing to the American people from this unique vantage point, it is that the People's Republic of China poses the greatest threat to America today, and the greatest threat to democracy and freedom world-wide since World War II," wrote Ratcliffe.
He explained that evidence gathered by the U.S. intelligence community indicated that the goal of China's government is to dominate the globe "economically, militarily and technologically."
Ratcliffe said that the country uses the camouflage of its prominent companies to rob intellectual property from American companies, replicate their innovations, and then replace them in the global marketplace.
He gave an example of how a Chinese-owned company in the U.S. could use its influence to subtly manipulate politicians to do the will of the communist government back home.
Consider this scenario: A Chinese-owned manufacturing facility in the U.S. employs several thousand Americans. One day, the plant's union leader is approached by a representative of the Chinese firm. The businessman explains that the local congresswoman is taking a hard-line position on legislation that runs counter to Beijing's interests—even though it has nothing to do with the industry the company is involved in—and says the union leader must urge her to shift positions or the plant and all its jobs will soon be gone.
The union leader contacts his congresswoman and indicates that his members won't support her re-election without a change in position. He tells himself he's protecting his members, but in that moment he's doing China's bidding, and the congresswoman is being influenced by China, whether she realizes it or not.
Ratcliffe also said that China had been crossing ethical boundaries by experimenting with human subjects in order to develop soldiers with enhanced abilities.
He concluded by warning that America needed to be prepared for the challenges from China.
"Americans have always risen to the moment, from defeating the scourge of fascism to bringing down the Iron Curtain. This generation will be judged by its response to China's effort to reshape the world in its own image and replace America as the dominant superpower," wrote Ratcliffe.
"The intelligence is clear," he concluded. "Our response must be as well."
Here's more about Ratcliffe's warning:


theblaze--2020-12-04--Volunteer's arm 'nearly' torn off by tiger at sanctuary owned by 'Tiger King' subject Carole Baskin

Volunteer 's arm 'nearly ' torn off by tiger at sanctuary owned by 'Tiger King ' subject Carole Baskin The @ @ @ @ @ day the House presented a bill pushed by the animal activist

A volunteer for "Tiger King" subject Carole Baskin's Big Cat Rescue had her arm "nearly" torn off by a tiger at the sanctuary on Thursday, according to the organization.
The attack occurred the same day the House of Representatives took up a bill pushed by Baskin, designed to "restrict direct contact between the public and big cats."
What are the details?
In a Facebook post, Big Cat Rescue announced that Candy Couser, who has volunteered at the sanctuary for five years, was attacked by a tiger named Kimba who "grabbed her arm and nearly tore it off at the shoulder." The organization explained that the incident was an accident but noted that Couser broke protocols and expressed her desire that Kimba not "come to any harm for this mistake."
The sanctuary later posted an update on Couser's condition on their website, stating that the volunteer was headed into surgery and that her arm was broken in three places but that she was able to move her fingers despite a badly damaged shoulder. They also noted that the CDC could require Kimba to be put down, but "that's unlikely given the fact that he's vaccinated and Candy does not want him to be killed for doing what comes naturally."
Big Cat Rescue wrote in its initial message:
This happened on the day our federal bill to ban cub handling and private possession comes to the House floor for a vote. The fact that, despite our intense safety protocols and excellent record of safety, an injury like this can occur just confirms the inherent danger in dealing with these animals and why we need the Big Cat Public Safety Act to eliminate having them untracked in backyards around the country and ending up in sanctuaries where wonderful people like Candy Couser have committed themselves to providing care for those discarded by the pay to play industry.
House Democrats have taken heat from Republicans in recent days for taking up the Big Cat Public Safety Act, dubbing it the "Tiger King" bill and chastising House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) for prioritizing the measure while party leaders have failed to reach an agreement on further COVID-19 relief, which Pelosi and the White House have been negotiating for months.
The legislation, H.R. 1380, "revises restrictions on the possession and exhibition of big cats, including to restrict direct contact between the public and big cats," according to its brief summary.
What's the background?
Netflix released "Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness" in March amid initial coronavirus shutdowns, and the docuseries topped the charts. Its main subject, Joe Exotic, whose given name is Joseph Maldonado-Passage, is currently serving time in federal prison after being convicted of hiring a hit on Baskin over her seeking to shut down his big cat attraction for breeding cubs and allowing in the public.
The show's attention prompted the sheriff of Hillsborough County, Florida, to ask for new leads in the case of Baskin's missing second husband, Don Lewis. Baskin vehemently denies having anything to do with Lewis' disappearance.


theblaze--2020-12-05--Foul play suspected in deaths of decorated master sergeant, veteran at Fort Bragg

Foul play suspected in deaths of decorated master sergeant , veteran at Fort Bragg The bodies of the two men @ @ @ @ @ area

Foul play is suspected in the deaths of a master sergeant and an Army veteran whose bodies were discovered Wednesday in a training area at Fort Bragg in North Carolina.
What are the details?
The deceased were identified as Master Sgt. William J. Lavigne II, 37, and veteran Timothy Dumas, 44.
No weapon was found at the scene, but CBS News reported that according to an Army official, "shell casings were found on the ground, leading investigators to suspect that it was a double homicide resulting from a drug deal gone wrong."
The official explained that both men had been under investigation for using and selling drugs.
The Washington Post reported that "their remains were found together in a remote part of the training area, with one body in a car, according to [an Army] official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the circumstances are under investigation."
Lavigne was a decorated soldier. WNCN-TV reported that he graduated from the Special Forces Qualification Course in 2007 and served several deployments in Afghanistan and Iraq. He was a recipient of two Bronze Stars and a Meritorious Service Medal.
In a statement, Lavigne's commander, Lt. Col. Justin Duvall, said, "The loss of a Soldier is always tragic. Master Sgt. Lavigne dedicated himself to the Army for 19 years and deployed multiple times in the defense of our Nation. Our condolences go out to his family during this difficult time."
Less information has been released on Dumas, but he also had special forces experience, an official told The Post.
2 bodies found on Fort Bragg identified www.youtube.com
Anything else?
Newsweek reported that deaths of Lavigne and Dumas marked the fourth and fifth to occur on or near Fort Bragg this year.


theblaze--2020-12-05--Kellyanne Conway says Trump has the right to sue over the election, but ‘it looks like Joe Biden and

Kellyanne Conway says Trump has the right to sue over the election, but ‘it looks like Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will prevail’

Kellyanne Conway says Trump has the right to sue over the election , but ‘ it looks like Joe Biden @ @ @ @ @ ’ '' You always need a peaceful transfer of democracy ''

Kellyanne Conway said that although President Donald Trump had the right to exhaust every legal option he has, it appeared that former Vice President Joe Biden had won the election.
Conway made the comments in an interview with 19th News on Friday.
"If you look at the vote totals in the Electoral College tally, it looks like Joe Biden and [Sen.] Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) will prevail," Conway said. "I assume the electors will certify that and it will be official. We, as a nation, will move forward, because we always do."
Conway made history when she became the first female campaign manager to run a winning presidential election in 2016. She had voraciously defended the president as a member of his administration but later left her position to look after her family.
"You always need a peaceful transfer of democracy, no matter whose administration goes into whose administration. There's no question," she added.
She noted that Trump did not stand in the way of the GSA beginning the official transition process from his administration to Biden's administration.
"The president wants to exhaust all of his legal avenues, as he has made clear many times. His team is doing that, I see in the paper they're doing that, they're going to different states and trying to do that, and of course, that is his right," she said.
The president is pursuing several legal avenues in order to prove his contention that the election was stolen from him through fraud. On Friday, the speaker of the House in Arizona, who is a Republican, rebuffed demands that the legislature call a special session in order to award the state's electoral votes to Trump.
Conway also said she would work with the future administration if they needed her help.
"If there's anything I can ever do to help," she added, "they can count on me."
Here's the video of Conway's comments:


theblaze--2020-12-05--President Trump orders Pentagon to move majority of US troops out of Somalia

President Trump orders Pentagon to move majority of US troops out of Somalia The Department of Defense noted counterterrorism operations @ @ @ @ @ region

President Donald Trump has ordered a majority of the U.S. military members serving in Somalia to be relocated out of the country, the Pentagon announced Friday.
According to The New York Times, there are roughly 700 American troops currently in Somalia, and the movements are set to occur by Jan. 15.
What are the details?
The Department of Defense explained in a statement that the order does not constitute "a change in U.S. policy," noting that while "some forces may be reassigned outside of East Africa," those personnel who remain in the region "will be repositioned from Somalia into neighboring countries in order to allow cross-border operations by both U.S. and partner forces to maintain pressure against violent extremist organizations operating" in the country.
The most notorious terrorist group operating out of Somalia is the Al-Qaida-linked organization Al-Shabaab.
As TheBlaze previously reported:
Al-Shabaab is a radical Islamist group that seeks to overthrow the existing government in Somalia and establish one that rules by the dictates of Sharia law. It has also conducted strikes outside of Somali borders, including terror attacks in Kenya and Uganda. The U.S. is allied with the Somali government and has been trying to help it defeat this threat.
ABC News reported Friday that "for weeks there has been speculation that the U.S. military troop presence there might be reduced significantly or fully withdrawn," and "that would have been in line with President Donald Trump's recent decisions to downsize the number of troops in Iraq and Afghanistan."
Earlier this month, acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller announced that U.S. forces stationed in Afghanistan would "be cut by roughly half in Afghanistan to 2,500, and by 500 troops in Iraq to 2,500" by the same Jan. 15, 2021, deadline.
Anything else?
President Trump's decision to move troops out of Somalia was met with mixed reviews from U.S. senators.
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky), who has endorsed Trump's vows to end America's longstanding foreign military operations, tweeted in reaction to the news, "Thank you @realDonaldTrump for bringing troops home from Africa!"
Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) tweeted, "This is another big mistake by the Trump Admin. Somalia is entering a fractious election season & Al Shabaab remains a potent force in the country. Hastily withdrawing U.S. troops without a political strategy will have serious consequences for the region."


theblaze--2020-12-05--Arizona GOP leaders demand audit of Dominion machines, but House speaker rejects calls to decertify

Arizona GOP leaders demand audit of Dominion machines, but House speaker rejects calls to decertify results in separate statement

Arizona GOP leaders demand audit of Dominion machines , but House speaker rejects calls to decertify results in separate statement @ @ @ @ @ statement calling for an audit

Republican leaders in the Arizona Legislature released statements at cross purposes in the ongoing fight over the certified results of the presidential election in the pivotal swing state.
Former Vice President Joe Biden won the state's 11 electoral states in the results that were certified by the state on Monday, but President Donald Trump and his allies have challenged the validity of the official count.
A joint press release from Arizona Senate President Karen Fann and Speaker of the House Rusty Bowers on Friday called for an independent audit of the ballot counting machines in Maricopa County.
"A significant number of voters believe that fraud occurred and with the number of irregularities it is easy to understand why," read the statement from House Majority Leader Warren Petersen. "Especially concerning are the allegations made surrounding the vendor Dominion. It is imperative that the County immediately do a forensic audit on the Dominion software and equipment to make sure the results were accurate."
Trump praised both Fann and Bowers over the statement, and said that he would win the state after the audit.
"Thank you to Senate President Karen Fann and House Speaker Russell Bowers – and all, for what you are doing in Arizona. A fast check of signatures will easily give us the state. Votes against have been reduced to a very small number!" the president tweeted.
But in another statement released Friday, Bowers made it clear that he would not support any decertification of the election results, and said that he was being asked to disobey his oath of office.
"Even if such evidence existed, the Arizona Legislature simply couldn't do what is being asked. Under our state's Constitution, the Legislature can act only when it is in session, and the Legislature could call itself into a special session only with the support of a bipartisan supermajority of its members," Bowers wrote in the statement.
He went on to explain that because of laws passed after the 2016 election, the legislature did not have the power to appoint different electors. They could change the law but could not do so for an election already passed.
"I voted for President Trump and worked hard to reelect him. But I cannot and will not entertain a suggestion that we violate current law to reverse the results of an election," he added.
Bowers ended his statement with a quote from Ronald Reagan.
"Forty years ago next month, President Ronald Reagan reminded us that while the 'orderly transfer of authority' is a 'commonplace occurrence' for Americans, '[i]n the eyes of many in the world, this every-4-year ceremony we accept as normal is nothing less than a miracle.' Now Americans are reminded once again never to take for granted what President Reagan correctly described as 'the continuity which is the bulwark of our Republic,'" he concluded.
Here's more about the battle over the results in Arizona:


theblaze--2020-12-05--'Economic warfare' expert Kevin Freeman on what's to come in 2021

'Economic warfare ' expert Kevin Freeman on what 's to come in 2021

Kevin Freeman, BlazeTV host of the "Economic War Room," joined Glenn Beck on the radio program this week to discuss what's going on at The Fed. Former Federal Reserve chairwoman (and possibly our future Treasury Secretary) Janet Yellen said recently that the Treasury Department under Joe Biden should focus on "racial equity" — something Freeman said he believes is how Democrats plan to gain even more power. Freeman also talked about how the dollar could face a 30% decline soon. What does that mean for your life? Watch this clip to find out, plus Freeman's thoughts on the election results.
Want more from Glenn Beck?
To enjoy more of Glenn's masterful storytelling, thought-provoking analysis and uncanny ability to make sense of the chaos, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution and live the American dream.
Subscribe to BlazeTV today with our BEST DEAL EVER for $30 off with promo code GLENN.


theblaze--2020-12-05--Young campaign aide to Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler dies in accident

Young campaign aide to Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler dies in accident The staffer , UGA student Harrison Deal , was @ @ @ @ @ Gov .
Brian Kemp

A young campaign aide to Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R) was killed in a car accident on Friday. The staffer, Harrison Deal, was a student at the University of Georgia, and had been set to graduate in the class of 2022.
Deal was a close friend to the family of Gov. Brian Kemp (R). Both Kemp and Loeffler canceled their plans to attend a campaign rally in Savannah Friday evening following the news.
What are the details?
"It is with an extremely heavy heart that we mourn the loss of Harrison Deal," Loeffler said in a statement. "My heart aches for his family, and Jeff and I will continue to surround them in love and prayer in the days ahead. Harrison was a beloved member of our campaign team.
"More importantly, Harrison was a smart, bright, loving, loyal and outstanding young man," she continued. "Harrison embodied the very best of this campaign — and the very best of our state. We will forever cherish and honor Harrison's memory, and I ask every Georgian to join us in praying for his family during this difficult time."
Earlier in the day, Gov. Kemp's office cited a "family emergency" when it sent out a notice that he would no longer be able to greet Vice President Mike Pence at the rally in support of Loeffler and fellow GOP Sen. David Perdue, who both face runoff races next month.
The Washington Times reported that at the rally, "Mr. Pence acknowledged Mr. Deal at the start of his remarks in Savannah, disclosing the staffer had died in an auto accident and that's why Ms. Loeffler was not present."
The Kemp family issued a statement mourning Deal's death, calling the young man the "Kemp son and brother we never had."
"Today, we lost a member of our 'Kemp Strong' family and words cannot express how much Harrison Deal's life, love, and support meant to us," it read. "He was a person of deep faith, unmatched integrity, and incredible kindness. Harrison was the Kemp son and brother we never had."
It continued, "Our prayers are with the Deal Family — and countless others — as they mourn the tragic loss of Harrison. He brought people together and made everyone feel important and special."
Anything else?
Atlanta Journal-Constitution reporter Greg Bluestein noted that "the feeling was obviously mutual," pointing to a social media post Deal had written that showed him and Gov. Kemp in tuxedos.
In a message defending Kemp, who has faced recent criticism from fellow Republicans over Georgia's handling of election recounts in the state, Deal wrote:
"I will never be ashamed of this man. To have known him personally for the past two years, I can assure you the information currently being spread about him is completely false. He is the furthest thing from a corrupt man. He will always stand up for what's right and what's in the best interest for the people of Georgia. Mr. Brian is first off a dad and a husband to one of my favorite families. I will always be willing to fight for each one of them."


theblaze--2020-12-04--Judge orders Trump admin to fully restore DACA amnesty program and accept new applications

Judge orders Trump admin to fully restore DACA amnesty program and accept new applications The Trump administration has been trying @ @ @ @ @ 2017

The Trump administration was ordered by a federal judge on Friday to fully restore the controversial DACA amnesty program and accept new applications.
President Donald Trump had made it one of his campaign promises in 2016 to shut down the Obama-era program that gave deportation deferral to illegal aliens who had been brought into the country as children. The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program is also known as the "Dream Act" by its supporters.
The ruling from Judge Nicholas Garaufis of the U.S. District Court in Brooklyn means that illegal immigrants could apply for DACA deportation protection for the first time since 2017.
In July, the Supreme Court ordered that the president could not simply end the program, but the administration responded by saying that they would slowly wind down the program instead. Chief Justice John Roberts joined the liberal wing of the court to cast the deciding vote against the administration.
Among one of the policy changes was to grant DACA recipients work permits for only one year instead of two. Garaufis said that the Trump administration could not change the policy and ordered them to grant full 2-year work permits.
Karen Tumlin, an attorney representing amnesty recipients and prospective applicants, praised the ruling.
"Today's ruling opens the door for more than one million immigrant youth who have been unfairly denied their chance to apply for DACA and secure their future in this country," said Tumlin to CBS News.
"Our brave plaintiffs have said from the beginning of this lawsuit that their home is here, and the court rightly recognized that today," she added.
Former Vice President Joe Biden has said that his immigration plan includes reinstating the DACA program, and also seeking amnesty for up to 11 million illegal immigrants who are in the United States.
Here's more about the legal fight over DACA:


theblaze--2020-12-04--House passes legislation to federally decriminalize marijuana in historic vote

Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz explains why he is one of the co-sponsors of the bill

Neither chamber of Congress has ever voted on marijuana decriminalization, but that changed on Friday when the House of Representatives voted to pass legislation that would decriminalize marijuana use at the federal level.
In the historic vote, the House voted to pass the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act. The final vote on the cannabis bill was 228-164, mostly down party lines. There were five Republicans who voted in favor of the measure, including Reps. Brian Mast (Fla.), Matt Gaetz (Fla.), Denver Riggleman (Va.), Don Young (Alaska), and Tom McClintock (Calif.).
Six Democrats voted against their party to oppose the bill, including Reps. Cheri Bustos (Ill.) Dan Lipinski (Ill.) Henry Cuellar (Texas), Conor Lamb (Pa.), Chris Pappas (N.H.), and Collin Peterson (Minn.).
While the bill passed in the House, it is not expected to pass the GOP-controlled Senate.
The proposed legislation would remove marijuana from the federal list of controlled substances, thus decriminalizing it on a federal level. The legislation would also mandate a reassessment of prior marijuana convictions and expunge some marijuana convictions for nonviolent criminals.
The legislation creates a federal tax on marijuana sales that would begin at 5%. The bill would still allow states to establish their own rules and regulations regarding sales and access to medical marijuana.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.), who introduced the bill, said on Friday before the vote, "The MORE Act is a common-sense bill that will make a tangible, real difference in the lives of millions of Americans. I'm proud of this bill centered around ideals of racial, economic, and moral justice and I look forward to the House passing it today."
Oregon Democratic Rep. Earl Blumenauer, one of the bill's original sponsors, said during Friday's House floor debate, "We're not rushing to legalize marijuana. The American people have already done that. We're here because Congress has failed to deal with a disastrous war on drugs and do its part for the over 15 million marijuana users in every one of your districts."
Gaetz, the only Republican co-sponsor of the bill, said he was voting for the bill "because the federal government has lied to the people of this country about marijuana for a generation."
"My Republican colleagues today will make a number of arguments against this bill, but those arguments are overwhelmingly losing with the American people," Gaetz said. "I'm going to vote for the MORE Act. It won't pass the Senate. It won't become law. We should come back in the 117th Congress and we should truly do more for our people."
Republican lawmakers lampooned Democrats this week for putting up a vote on the legalization of marijuana before securing COVID-19 pandemic relief for Americans. Republicans were also frustrated that Congress made it a priority to review a bill that will attempt to ban breeding and private ownership of big cats, as seen in the Netflix docuseries "Tiger King," before a coronavirus package.
"This week, your House Democrat majority is tackling the tough issues by holding a vote on legalizing pot and banning tiger ownership," House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy tweeted on Monday. "Nothing for small businesses. Nothing for re-opening schools. Nothing on battling the pandemic. Just cannabis and cats."
House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) proclaimed, "Let me get this straight: Nancy Pelosi is blocking a bill to deliver unused Paycheck Protection Program funds to workers and small businesses. But she managed to find time for a vote on pot legislation this week."
"Things @SpeakerPelosi brought members back to vote on: Legalizing marijuana Tiger King legislation," Rep. Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.) said. "Things we aren't voting on: More PPP funding COVID-19 relief Military funding Funding for the entire federal government It's clear where Democrats' priorities lie."
Recreational cannabis is legal for adults in 15 states and Washington, D.C., while there are 36 states that have legalized medical marijuana.


theblaze--2020-12-04--Georgia election officials refute claims made about viral video with 'suitcases' of ballots

Georgia election officials refute claims made about viral video with 'suitcases ' of ballots Officials say everything in the video @ @ @ @ @

The Georgia secretary of state's office on Friday reportedly said they've investigated claims of voter fraud made in a viral video shared by the Trump campaign and others, and found that the claims were not true.
According to Fox News, senior officials in Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger's office have investigated and debunked claims that Fulton County election officials illegally counted ballots without poll watcher supervision.
The Trump campaign and various political commentators and media figures on Thursday claimed that video footage taken by security cameras showed "suitcases filled with ballots" being counted at State Farm Arena in Atlanta on Nov. 3 after election supervisors were told to leave the room. The video was first presented as part of testimony from the Trump campaign at an election integrity hearing held by state lawmakers. Those that testified were not asked to swear under oath.
The narrator of the video is Jackie Pick, an attorney who said she was not acting as a lawyer for the Trump campaign but rather presented testimony as a volunteer. She claimed that the video showed "four people" staying behind to count "suitcases" of ballots after "Republican observers and the press" were told to leave. Trump's legal team asserts that something fraudulent or nefarious may have occurred while these ballots were allegedly counted without supervision and at the very least complains that what occurred in the video was against protocols established by Georgia state election law.
An official from Raffensperger's office told Fox News an investigation showed these claims were unfounded. According to the official, Fulton County election officials had a designated observer watching the votes being counted the entire time. Additionally, the official said there was nothing suspicious about the "suitcases" of ballots that were pulled out from beneath a table and that those cases on video are the cases ballots were supposed to be kept in.
TheBlaze has contacted the Georgia secretary of state's office requesting comment on Fox News' reporting.
Other Georgia officials have stated on the record that the claims made about the video were false.
Gabriel Sterling, a Republican in charge of implementing Georgia's voting system, told Lead Stories that nothing in the video appeared "bizarre or odd" and that what is seen looks like normal election procedure. He disputed allegations that Republican poll watchers were told vote counting had ended and they were to go home.
He explained that the election workers who went home are known as "cutters," because their job was to open absentee ballot envelopes and verify ballots for eventual scanning and counting. He said they were dismissed sometime after 10 p.m. on Nov. 3, as shown in the video, because their work for the evening had been finished. The four workers who remained behind were responsible for scanning the ballots.
"If you look at the video tape, the work you see is the work you would expect, which is you take the sealed suitcase looking things in, you place the ballots on the scanner in manageable batches and you scan them," Sterling told Lead Stories.
The chief investigator for the Georgia secretary of state, Frances Watson, also spoke to Lead Stories and he said that the "suitcases" seen in the video were standard containers.
"There wasn't a bin that had ballots in it under that table," Watson explained. "It was an empty bin and the ballots from it were actually out on the table when the media were still there, and then it was placed back into the box when the media were still there and placed next to the table."
Watson said that there was never an announcement made to the media or to partisan election observers about the counting being done for the night or telling them to go home.
TheBlaze has previously reported that Fulton County officials explicitly denied that anyone from the Trump campaign was ever told vote counting was finished for the night. Multiple requests made to the Trump campaign for response were unanswered.
Additionally, Lead Stories obtained comments from the state election board monitor who was present for the vote counting on Nov. 3. He explained that at no point was the ballot counting unobserved by elections officials, as Pick and others have claimed:
A state election board monitor, who asked for his name not to be used due to safety concerns, told Lead Stories on the phone on December 3, 2020, that he was present at the vote counting location beginning at 11:52 p.m., after leaving briefly at earlier in the evening. He then stayed until about 12:45 a.m., when the work that night was completed.
The deputy chief investigator for the secretary of state's office was present beginning at 12:15 a.m. November 4, he said.
Georgia officials are responding to other "concerning" allegations made during Thursday's testimony.
Republican Gov. Brian Kemp on Thursday called on the secretary of state to conduct a signature audit of absentee ballots to verify the election results.
However, a signature audit presents difficulties because when absentee votes are first counted on Election Day, they are separated from the signed envelopes they came in, WXIA-TV explained. To preserve the secrecy of ballots, ballots are not signed by voters, just the envelopes they are delivered in. So there is no way to retroactively match votes that have already been counted with the signatures of the voters who sent those ballots.
The Georgia secretary of state's office has not yet responded to the governor's request.


theblaze--2020-12-04--Two gun-toting Detroit homeowners open fire on intruders in separate incidents. One of the suspects

Two gun-toting Detroit homeowners open fire on intruders in separate incidents. One of the suspects is armed — and ends up dead.

Two gun-toting Detroit homeowners open fire on intruders in separate incidents .
One of the suspects is armed — and @ @ @ @

Once again we have another example of criminals not getting the picture that everyday folks in growing numbers are armed and ready for them.
And this time the tale concerns a pair of Detroit homeowners with concealed pistol licenses who successfully used their guns to protect themselves after intruders invaded their residences.
What are the details?
The first incident happened around 7 p.m Monday when police said a suspect armed with a long gun entered a home on Fenton, just west of Telegraph between McNichols and 7 Mile, WJBK-TV reported.
The suspect then confronted the homeowner, pointing his gun at him, police told the station.
But the homeowner was able to arm himself, too, and shot the 22-year-old intruder several times with a handgun, WJBK said, adding that the suspect died at the scene.
Officers recovered both guns, the station said, adding that the CPL-holding homeowner was detained for questioning.
The circumstances are still being investigated, WJBK reported.
The second incident took place Wednesday night at a home in the 16600 block of Fairmount Drive when police said the 39-year-old homeowner heard a strange noise above her, WDIV-TV reported.
When she went to investigate the noise, police told the station she discovered a 19-year-old male in her attic — and officials believe the suspect was hiding there as part of an attempt to burglarize the home.
After a brief standoff, the intruder reportedly made a sudden move -- and that's when the CPL-holding homeowner fired a shot at the suspect, WDIV reported.
Police arrived at the scene, and the suspect was taken to a hospital, the station said. He was in stable condition, WDIV reported — but police said once he's well enough he'll be taken into custody.
The homeowner is cooperating with police and their investigation, the station noted.


theblaze--2020-12-04--North Korea publicly executes citizen who violated COVID-19 quarantine edicts: Report

North Korean soldiers stand next to a boat along the Yalu river near Sinuiju , opposite the Chinese border city @ @ @ @ @ credit should read JOHANNES EISELE/AFP via Getty Images )

The government of North Korea wants its subjects to understand that it is super serious about stopping the spread of COVID-19 and that the dictatorship's rules are in place to keep everybody safe.
Pyongyang is so intent on making clear the seriousness of COVID-19 lockdowns that it held a public execution of a citizen who violated the nation's quarantine orders, Radio Free Asia reported Friday.
Who was executed?
The Hermit Kingdom has repeatedly claimed to be coronavirus-free, RFA noted, but it is still instituting strict measures upon its people to prevent the spread of the virus.
Kim Jong Un's regime has employed lockdowns of entire cities and counties, canceled cultural events, and stopped travel between provinces, the outlet said. The nation declared in April that its "emergency quarantine posture" would go through at least the end of 2020.
But Korean smugglers who transport Chinese goods into the locked-down nation after the Sino-Korean border was completely closed in January over pandemic concerns have continued to frustrate the Norks. So the Kim government "ratcheted up" its COVID edicts with "ultra-high-level emergency" measures, a source told RFA.
"Since the end of November, the Central Committee [of the Korean Workers' Party] have ratcheted up the existing emergency quarantine measures to 'ultra-high-level emergency quarantine measures,'" the source, who is a resident of North Pyongan province on the border with China in the country's northwest, reportedly told RFA Tuesday.
In order to make sure people understood the government meant business, the source told RFA that a citizen smuggler in his 50s was executed via firing squad on Nov. 28 for violating the lockdown and attempting to "smuggle with Chinese business partners."
"They held a public execution by firing squad to threaten residents here in the border area, because there's been a lot of contact with people on the other side of the border, including a lot of smuggling," the source said.
The source added that the "public execution happened because the victim was charged with violating quarantine right before the ultra-high-level emergency measures took effect around November 20th."
According to the source, the government moved the execution in order to avoid international outcry.
"They were supposed to shoot the guy in Sinuiju," the source said, "but they decided to do it in Ryongchon county, because he's from that area. If they did it in Sinuiju, news would quickly spread across the border to China."
Rumors are also spreading that, as part of its "reign of terror," the government executed a currency exchange broker in the capital city who broke quarantine rules, RFA said.
Crackdown intimidation working
The Kim regime is so worried about the virus spreading that they've told soldiers monitoring the border to shoot anyone who comes within half a mile of the border, no matter their reason for being there.
And then they deployed landmines along the border area to "increase deterrence," RFA said.
RFA's North Pyongan source said that at the end of November, the government's Central Committee instructed agencies and state-owned businesses to crack down on anyone violating lockdown rules by surveilling the public using police, factories, and "neighborhood watch units."
A North Pyongan official reportedly told RFA this week that North Korea's citizens are "more afraid than ever due to the ever-increasing measures to control their movement."
"While guarding the border seamlessly from the ground, in the air, and at sea, authorities ordered soldiers to shoot anyone approaching the border unconditionally, regardless of who the person is or their reason for being in the area. It is an absolute threat to the border area residents," the official said.
This is typical behavior from Pyongyang, the official told RFA: "Whenever the people complain because their livelihoods are affected, the authorities always try to shut them up by threatening them with public executions or by sending them to political prison camps."


theblaze--2020-12-04--Sheriffs say they won't enforce far-left California Gov. Gavin Newsom's new lockdown order

Sheriffs say they wo n't enforce far-left California Gov .
Gavin Newsom 's new lockdown order One sheriff said businesses @ @ @ @ @ their entire operation to conform to these current health orders , and then they have @ @ @ @ @ under them — that 's a disservice '

With a new lockdown order looming in California over a reported spike in COVID-19 cases and hospital beds filling up, the state's far-left Gov. Gavin Newsom won't be getting much help enforcing his new restrictions from Southern California sheriffs.
What are the details?
Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva told KTTV-TV he won't be enforcing Newsom's order on businesses, many of which will be forced to close when ICU bed capacity hits a certain threshold. The governor's new order officially goes into effect at 1 p.m. Saturday, the station said.
Villanueva added to the station that business enforcement is the health department's job.
"I want to stay away from businesses that are trying to comply the best they can," he said.
"They bent over backwards to modify their entire operation to conform to these current health orders, and then they have the rug yanked out from under them — that's a disservice," he also told KTTV. "I don't want to make their lives any more miserable."
Villanueva also told the station there was no coordination regarding the new order — and he actually learned about it from Newsom's news conference.
"Anything that has to do with enforcement, you've got to make sure you're working in partnership with all the people carrying out the enforcement," Villanueva said.
But Newsom also is threatening to pull pandemic relief funds from counties refusing to comply with his new orders, the station added.
"If you're unwilling to enforce the rules, if you're unwilling to adopt the protocols to support the mitigation and the reduction and spread of this disease, we're happy to redirect those dollars to counties that feel differently," Newsom noted, according to KTTV. "That's exactly what we've done."
What did other sheriffs have to say?
Ventura County Sheriff Bill Ayum issued a statement to the station regarding Newsom's order: "Our approach to enforcement of the continuously evolving health orders has not changed from the onset of the pandemic. Our approach is one of educating the public of the health orders and encouraging compliance with them. Enforcement has always been an option for our staff to use with considerable discretion. However, our primary goal is to seek voluntary compliance whenever possible."
The San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department offered a statement to KTTV saying its deputies won't respond to calls regarding Newsom's new order: "As has been the case since we were initially faced with the difficulties of living and working through this pandemic together, our goal is to educate and gain voluntary compliance regarding Public Health orders. We will continue to partner with our communities and deliver the law enforcement services they deserve while keeping health and safety of our staff and those we serve as a top priority."
The station said sheriffs from Orange and Riverside counties pointed to their previous statements about refusing to enforce the governor's curfew order.


theblaze--2020-12-04--Social media calls to cancel 'Black Panther' actress after she questions vaccines

Social media calls to cancel 'Black Panther ' actress after she questions vaccines

Much of social media came out in full force against "Black Panther" actress Letitia Wright after she appeared to question the efficacy of vaccines on Thursday.
What are the details?
Wright, 27, shared — and later appeared to have deleted — what many people perceived to be an anti-vaccination video to Twitter on Thursday.
As a result, many social media users said that Marvel should recast Wright's character in the upcoming "Black Panther" sequel, "Black Panther 2."
The actress portrayed Shuri in the blockbuster film, sister of King T'Challa, portrayed by the late actor Chadwick Boseman.
According to Newsweek, the video, content from Invazion Media Network's "On The Table," "questioned the value of vaccinations" and Wright "accompanied the tweet with the hands in prayer emoji which is typically used to denote praise."
At one point during the video, the presenter, Tomi Arayomi, can be heard saying, "I don't understand vaccines medically, but I've always been a little bit of a skeptic of them."
Arayomi went on to insist that he isn't sure a vaccine for COVID-19 will be effective, and said that those who do get the vaccine should "hope to God it doesn't make extra limbs grow."
According to Variety, Wright's tweet was deleted, and YouTube removed the video for "violating YouTube's terms of service."
Following the initial outcry, Wright defended herself and wrote, "[I]f you don't conform to popular opinions. but ask questions and think for yourself....you get cancelled."
What was the response?
The outlet pointed out one user who suggested that a recast might be "necessary."
"You know, maybe recasting for Black Panther is necessary, I'm thinking Kiki Layne, Lovie Simone, whataboutyall?"
Another user wrote, "[T]his isn't the [S]huri we deserve."
"Letitia gone keep tweeting and we gone see Amandla Stenberg as Shuri in Black Panther 2," another user added.
Newsweek reported that Wright even "liked" a tweet calling for her to be recast in the hit franchise, which read, "Yeah y'all can go ahead and recast her @Marvel."
Author Roxane Gay — who penned spin-off comic book "Black Panther: World of Wakanda" — added, "Thinking for yourself doesn't mean you're right. And you aren't cancelled. But damn. Promoting anti-vaccine propaganda and shrouding it in intellectual curiosity is asinine. And dangerous."
What else?
Wright herself responded to the controversy after the incident went viral.
Variety reported that Wright responded, "[M]y intention was not to hurt anyone, my ONLY intention of posting the video was it raised my concerns with what the vaccine contains and what we are putting in our bodies. Nothing else."


theblaze--2020-12-04--Nancy Pelosi openly admits she's happy to do a COVID relief deal now that Joe Biden is president

Nancy Pelosi openly admits she 's happy to do a COVID relief deal now that Joe Biden is president

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (Calif.), who has held out for a larger coronavirus stimulus package for months as Americans have suffered under coronavirus lockdowns, announced Friday that she's happy to pass a smaller deal now that Democratic nominee Joe Biden appears to have won the presidency.
"Pure politics," Townhall reporter Guy Benson tweeted as the reason Pelosi had come down from her $2.2 trillion spending demand to just $900 billion in the new deal. But he didn't have to deduce that all on his own because Pelosi openly admitted as much during a news conference Friday.
When asked by a reporter what changed between August — when the Problem Solvers Caucus proposed a much larger package — and now, Pelosi snapped, "Perhaps you missed what I said earlier: Joe Biden pledged to crush the virus ... and a vaccine, an answer to our prayers."
"A new president and a vaccine," she reiterated, leaving no mystery as to what motivated her change of heart.
"With a Democratic president committed to a scientific solution for [the virus], with the idea that we will have a vaccine, it's a complete game-changer from then," she added.
CRUSH THE VIRUS: Nancy Pelosi Says A Deal Will Get Done Now Because Biden Will Be President www.youtube.com
The new deal is for "shorter period of time," Pelosi continued, "but that's OK now because we have a new president."
When another reporter pressed her again about her motives for dealing now instead of then, Pelosi grew visibly angry.
"Don't characterize what we did before as a mistake," she shot back. "That was not a mistake, it was a decision, and it has taken us to a place where we can do the right thing without other, shall we say, considerations in the legislation."
Writing about the news, Hot Air's Ed Morrissey characterized Pelosi's political maneuvering as "disgusting," adding "Republicans should remind voters of this every day between now and the midterms, and it should be running as an ad in Georgia before the weekend is up. Shameful."
According to a recent YouGov survey conducted in October, most Americans blamed the House speaker for the failure to pass an additional relief package. Her latest posturing is likely to only further damage her reputation on the matter.
That same month, Pelosi and the Democrats rejected a $1.8 trillion deal sent to them from the White House. As if they weren't obvious then, Pelosi's motives for rejecting it have become crystal clear since.
Pelosi was re-elected to U.S. House in California's 12th Congressional District on Nov. 3.


theblaze--2020-12-04--Ben Sasse: DOJ must open investigation into child abuse and rape featured on Pornhub

Ben Sasse : DOJ must open investigation into child abuse and rape featured on Pornhub A new report highlights how @ @ @ @ @ exploitation .

Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) on Friday called for the Department of Justice to launch an investigation into the pornographic video website Pornhub after a disturbing investigation by a New York Times columnist revealed the website is "infested with rape videos," some of them include children.
New York Times prize-winning columnist Nicholas Kristof reported that Pornhub, which attracts 3.5 billion visitors a month and is the 10th-most-visited website in the world, profits off videos that depict child rape, revenge porn, voyeuristic videos of nonconsenting women showering, and more explicit and potentially illegal pornographic content.
"Its site is infested with rape videos," Kristof writes. "It monetizes child rapes, revenge pornography, spy cam videos of women showering, racist and misogynist content, and footage of women being asphyxiated in plastic bags. A search for "girls under18" (no space) or "14yo" leads in each case to more than 100,000 videos. Most aren't of children being assaulted, but too many are."
In the course of his reporting, Kristof interviewed several women whose lives were destroyed after degrading videos depicting their rapes were published on Pornhub. Some of them have attempted suicide from the shame and humiliation.
Pornhub and its parent company, MindGeek – based legally in Luxembourg but with offices in Montreal, London, Nicosia and Los Angeles – have come under fire from anti-sexual exploitation activists who accuse the companies of profiting off human trafficking and sexual exploitation. The Traffickinghub campaign, founded by Laila Mickelwait of Exodus Cry, an anti-trafficking group, last March launched a petition calling attention to rape and abusive videos hosted by Pornhub and demanding that the website be shut down and the company's executives be held accountable.
The movement against Pornhub has attracted the attention of some U.S. lawmakers, including Sasse, who say it is past time for the federal government to act.
"The Department of Justice needs to open an investigation into the scumbags who run Mindgeek," Sen. Sasse told the Daily Caller News Foundation Friday. "Sexual exploitation and human trafficking are abhorrent, period. A decent society should be working to end this.
"It is completely unacceptable that Pornhub and its parent company Mindgeek make money from rape, sexual abuse, and the exploitation of minors," Sasse added. "They need to be investigated, and the DOJ needs more urgency about building cases against creeps."
Sasse was joined by Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) who praised Kristof's reporting and promised to introduce legislation to enable victims of trafficking or sexual exploitation to sue websites like Pornhub.
Pornhub has denied accusations that it allows videos of child rape on its website, calling the accusations "irresponsible and flagrantly untrue."
"Pornhub is unequivocally committed to combating child sexual abuse material, and has instituted a comprehensive, industry-leading trust and safety policy to identify and eradicate illegal material from our community," Pornhub said in a statement to Kristof.
Kristof's article tells horrific stories of child abuse and exploitation hosted on Pornhub's website. One woman, whose 15-year-old daughter went missing in Florida, reported finding her in 58 pornographic videos featured on the website. In another case of abuse, a 14-year-old girl's sexual assaults were posted on Pornhub and were not reported to authorities until a classmate saw the videos and took action.
Another woman interviewed by Kristof said, "Pornhub became my trafficker," after her adoptive family forced her to appear in pornographic videos beginning when she was just 9 years old. She says videos of her abuse were hosted on Pornhub and regularly reappear there. She worries that one day she may have children who will find those videos.
"Pornhub is like YouTube in that it allows members of the public to post their own videos. A great majority of the 6.8 million new videos posted on the site each year probably involve consenting adults, but many depict child abuse and nonconsensual violence," Kristof writes. "Because it's impossible to be sure whether a youth in a video is 14 or 18, neither Pornhub nor anyone else has a clear idea of how much content is illegal."
For now, Kristof notes, Pornhub has "escaped responsibility for sharing the videos and profiting from them." Sasse and other lawmakers seek to change that.


theblaze--2020-12-04--'Daily Show' host Trevor Noah sounds off on Democratic leaders like Gov. ‘hair gel’ Gavin Newsom ove

'Daily Show' host Trevor Noah sounds off on Democratic leaders like Gov. ‘hair gel’ Gavin Newsom over COVID hypocrisy

'Daily Show ' host Trevor Noah sounds off on Democratic leaders like Gov .
‘ hair gel ’ Gavin Newsom @ @ @ @ @ given up their lives and then you 've got these politicians who are just hypocrites @ @ @

"Daily Show" host Trevor Noah, usually a friend to progressives, blasted "hypocrite" Democratic leaders Thursday for not "practicing what they preach" as it pertains to abiding by coronavirus restrictions.
A slew of Democratic officials from the Golden State and Texas have been caught redhanded of late urging constituents to stay home and avoid large gatherings while flaunting such restrictions themselves.
Among the recent offenders are Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who was caught dining maskless with a group of 12 at The French Laundry in Napa last month; Democratic San Francisco Mayor London Breed, who ironically was also caught dining maskless with a large group at the same fancy restaurant; Democratic San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo, who told constituents to "cancel" Thanksgiving gatherings precisely one day before he attended one; and of course, Democratic Austin, Texas, Mayor Steve Adler, who urged constituents to "stay inside" in a video he recorded while vacationing in Mexico with his family and others.
"Oh man, come on! What is it with these Democrats?" Noah exclaimed.
The comedian went on to mimic Adler's video message: "This is your mayor here, telling you to stay home, and stay safe. Do the right thing ... All my boys in the pool know what I'm talking about! Say what's up, everybody!"
Fmr. Presidents to Get Vaxxed on Live TV & Dems Break COVID Rules | The Daily Social Distancing Show youtu.be
"I'm sorry, man. Everyone has given up their lives and then you've got these politicians who are just hypocrites out here," he continued.
"What, you guys think, corona respects your office too much to come after you? Because don't forget: It got the president of the United States, it's not going to be star-struck by Governor 'hair gel,'" he joked, in reference to Newsom.
Noah even went so far to say he's more disappointed with these Democrats than he is with some Republicans in regard to mask-wearing and social distancing.
"In a way, these Democrats are even worse than the anti-maskers, because of their hypocrisy," he said. "At least when those dudes break the rules they're open about it."


theblaze--2020-12-04--Rep. Maxine Waters’ campaign paid her daughter $240K

Nice work if you can get it

The daughter of Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) enjoyed another very prosperous election cycle. Karen Waters was paid approximately $240,000 by her mother's campaign, according to federal election records.
The newest Federal Election Commission filings show that Karen Waters received five payments from the Citizens for Waters campaign between October and November that totaled $28,150.
There are another 26 disbursements from Maxine Waters' campaign to her daughter between March 2019 and September 2019 that total $212,600.
The descriptions of the payments include "slate mailer management fees," "office expenses," "reimbursement for canvassing," and "GOTV," which may refer to "Get Out the Vote" services.
Karen Waters has been raking in the money from her mother's political office for years. A report from the Washington Free Beacon found that the daughter had been compensated more than $200,000 from the Citizens for Waters campaign committee during the 2018 election cycle.
"Gavin Newsom, who was elected governor of California, gave the Waters campaign $27,000 from his own campaign to appear on the slate mailer while Sen. Dianne Feinstein's campaign added $27,000 in slate mailer payments," according to the report, adding that Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) paid $63,000 to appear on the mailers twice.
Karen Waters has reportedly been receiving payments from her mother's campaign since 2006. Karen, along with her firm Progressive Connections, has received over $600,000 from the campaign as of the end of the 2016 election year. A 2019 Fox News report stated that Karen Waters had received nearly $1 million from her mother's campaign.
A 2004 report from the Los Angeles Times claimed that Maxine Waters' family members pocketed more than $1 million over eight years "by doing business with companies, candidates and causes that the influential congresswoman has helped."
"Daughter Karen Waters has charged candidates for spots on her mother's 'slate mailer,' a sample ballot that many voters in South Los Angeles use to guide their choices," the report claimed.
Maxine Waters dismissed the accusations by saying, "They do their business, and I do mine."
"We don't have to answer your questions," Rep. Waters told the Los Angeles Times. "We are not bad people."
Recent FEC filings state that the Citizens for Waters campaign paid $480,380 in disbursements this election cycle and had $324,637 on hand.
Maxine Waters, who chairs the House Financial Services Committee, has been representing California's 43rd Congressional District since 1991. In the November election, the 82-year-old congresswoman coasted to another easy victory, capturing over 71% of the vote against her Republican challenger Joe Collins.


theblaze--2020-12-04--Longtime adviser to Calif. Gov. Gavin Newsom accused of trying to suffocate 4-year-old with pillow,

Longtime adviser to Calif. Gov. Gavin Newsom accused of trying to suffocate 4-year-old with pillow, shoving woman into glass doors

Longtime adviser to Calif. Gov .
Gavin Newsom accused of trying to suffocate 4-year-old with pillow , shoving woman into @ @ @ @ @ was arrested and jailed on two felony charges ; he said he would be 'exonerated @

A longtime adviser and friend to Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom was arrested and jailed after he was accused of trying to suffocate a 4-year-old with a pillow and shoving a woman into glass doors, Politico reported.
What are the details?
Nathan Ballard, 51 — a prominent California Democratic strategist — was booked Oct. 18 on two felony charges of domestic violence and willful cruelty to a child with possible injury and death, the outlet said, citing Napa County Sheriff's Office documents.
Napa County authorities filed the charges Thursday, KGO-TV reported.
Ballard served as Newsom's spokesperson when he was San Francisco's mayor, Politico said, adding that Ballard also was a spokesperson for the Democratic National Committee, the California Democratic Party, the Getty family, the Golden State Warriors, the Super Bowl, and for the presidential campaigns of former Sen. John Kerry and Gen. Wesley Clark. Ballard also is a former San Francisco deputy city attorney, KGO said.
And until Oct. 19 — the day after the alleged incident — Ballard sat on the board of The Representation Project, a nonprofit founded by Newsom's wife, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, to advance women's rights, Politico said.
"I've spent my career in crisis communications fighting on behalf the wrongfully accused, and now for the first time I really know what it feels like to be in their shoes," Ballard told the outlet in a text message. "I will be exonerated. I love my children more than anything on earth, and we will be reunited."
More from Politico:
Sources say the events occurred at the swanky Carneros Resort and Spa where, according to victim statements, Ballard reportedly "had consumed a large amount of alcohol and some marijuana.''
The adult victim told authorities that Ballard "charged her and pushed her with both hands into the glass doors,'' causing her to fall and hit the back of her head on the door. Ballard also stumbled and fell onto the ground, bleeding, according to documents on file with the Napa County Sheriff's Department.
Then Ballard "attempted to suffocate the child victim with the pillow,'' the adult victim told the police. "Ballard grabbed the pillow from the bed, placed it onto the child victim and laid on top of the pillow, placing his weight on the child victim who was under the pillow,'' according to the report.
The adult victim said "she was able to remove the child victim from the room,'' and locked herself and another child in a separate room away from Ballard.
She reported the alleged attack to police the next morning, and when officers arrived, Ballard had gone, according to the report. The Napa County Sheriff's Office issued a warrant for Ballard's arrest and, on Oct. 20, he was arrested and transported to the county jail, authorities said.
Ballard paid his set bail of $75,000 and was released later on Oct. 20, KGO reported, citing sheriff's department documents.
Nathan Ballard Image source: Napa County Sheriff's Office
What did Ballard's lawyer say?
Anthony Brass, Ballard's lawyer, said in a statement to the station that he's "confident" that his client "will be fully acquitted of these charges after the District Attorney's Office has a chance to review the facts and learn all sides of the story. Nate is a well-respected professional and a member of the bar with a spotless ethical record. He has no criminal history."
Brass told KGO that "after nearly eight years of continuous sobriety, Nate resumed drinking in April, after his father died. He is now clean and sober again, and he is currently in a residential recovery program to deal with his drinking problem in a responsible, comprehensive manner. He is a good father, he has his children's best interests at heart, and he wants to resolve this matter privately, quickly, and fairly for their sake."
Politico reported that Brass on Thursday said Ballard's former wife "would testify under oath that he has never been violent toward her, their minor son, nor their minor daughter" — but the outlet added that hours later Brass said he had to retract that statement.
Newsom's spokespeople have not responded to questions about Ballard's arrest, the outlet reported.
Politico also said Ballard — a father of four young children — was profiled in a November 2019 story in Better magazine as one of "the Bay Area's most successful dads" and that he called his home in Kentfield "a special place for my wife Mara and me."


theblaze--2020-12-04--Leaked audio reportedly shows Hillsong Church founder accusing disgraced ex-pastor of serial infidel

Leaked audio reportedly shows Hillsong Church founder accusing disgraced ex-pastor of serial infidelity

Disgraced former pastor Carl Lentz — who was fired from Hillsong Church in November after reportedly engaging in immoral behaviors — is reportedly a serial cheater as well as a lying manipulator and abuser .
Following the firing , Lentz admitted that he 'd cheated on his wife and asked for forgiveness and understanding as the story unfolded .
What are the details ?
According to a Friday report in the Daily Mail , Lentz was reportedly guilty of having more than just one extramarital affair .
The outlet cited audio purporting to feature Hillsong Church founder Brian Houston who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ also guilty of exhibiting `` general narcissistic behavior , manipulating , and mistreating people . ''
According to the audio , Lentz was also `` constantly lying . ''
On the audio , Houston says that Lentz was found out after staff discovered `` compromising '' messages on the ex-pastor 's computer .
`` It was more than one affair , '' Houston says .
`` They were significant .
And at least some bad moral behavior had gone back historically . ''
`` I can honestly say before God the first time @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was when [ Hillsong East Coast Chief Operating Officer Tolu Badders ] contacted me , '' Houston said .
`` 'Tolu had a conversation with one of the staff members , and that staff member had found a very compromising chain of text messages on Carl 's laptop or computer .
And so that person went straight to Tolu .
And Tolu , to her credit , the first thing she did was call me . ''
In the audio , Houston also says that Lentz was also a `` difficult man to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , because it was always defensive .
It would always be put back on the other person , as though they 're the ones with the problem . ''
Lentz 's alleged behaviors were reportedly fairly well known .
`` Other [ anonymous ] Hillsong members , '' the Daily Mail reports , said that `` Lentz used women he met backstage at church for affairs . ''
Other members reported that Lentz had been sleeping with other women `` for at least seven years . ''
The outlet also reported that the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ parachute '' despite his alleged behaviors .
`` 'We 're working on a severance package which we 're negotiating with them on , '' George Aghajanian , general manager and a director of Hillsong Church Australia said in the meeting , '' the outlet reported .
`` 'We are trying to care for them as far as they are letting us care for them .
And certainly our heart is to look after the children , to look after [ Lentz 's wife ] Laura , and even Carl who needs a lot @ @ @ @ @

Disgraced former pastor Carl Lentz — who was fired from Hillsong Church in November after reportedly engaging in immoral behaviors — is reportedly a serial cheater as well as a lying manipulator and abuser.
Following the firing, Lentz admitted that he'd cheated on his wife and asked for forgiveness and understanding as the story unfolded.
What are the details?
According to a Friday report in the Daily Mail, Lentz was reportedly guilty of having more than just one extramarital affair.
The outlet cited audio purporting to feature Hillsong Church founder Brian Houston who can be heard saying that Lentz was also guilty of exhibiting "general narcissistic behavior, manipulating, and mistreating people."
According to the audio, Lentz was also "constantly lying."
On the audio, Houston says that Lentz was found out after staff discovered "compromising" messages on the ex-pastor's computer.
"It was more than one affair," Houston says. "They were significant. And at least some bad moral behavior had gone back historically."
"I can honestly say before God the first time I heard any moral complaint against Carl was when [Hillsong East Coast Chief Operating Officer Tolu Badders] contacted me," Houston said. "'Tolu had a conversation with one of the staff members, and that staff member had found a very compromising chain of text messages on Carl's laptop or computer. And so that person went straight to Tolu. And Tolu, to her credit, the first thing she did was call me."
In the audio, Houston also says that Lentz was also a "difficult man to have any kind of direct conversation with, because it was always defensive. It would always be put back on the other person, as though they're the ones with the problem."
Lentz's alleged behaviors were reportedly fairly well known.
"Other [anonymous] Hillsong members," the Daily Mail reports, said that "Lentz used women he met backstage at church for affairs." Other members reported that Lentz had been sleeping with other women "for at least seven years."
What else?
The outlet also reported that the church may give Lentz a "golden parachute" despite his alleged behaviors.
"'We're working on a severance package which we're negotiating with them on," George Aghajanian, general manager and a director of Hillsong Church Australia said in the meeting," the outlet reported. "'We are trying to care for them as far as they are letting us care for them. And certainly our heart is to look after the children, to look after [Lentz's wife] Laura, and even Carl who needs a lot of help.'"