theblaze--2020-01-30--Iowa determines convicted child molester no longer a threat due to sex change

Officials say now that the offender 's testosterone levels are down , the transgender female no longer has the same @ @ @ @ @

Officials in Iowa have determined a convicted child molester is to be released from incarceration, explaining that the offender's reduction in testosterone levels due to transition from being a man to becoming a transgender female puts the individual at a lower risk of reoffending.
What are the details?
The Storm Lake Times first reported Jan. 15 that the Iowa attorney general's office is no longer seeking the commitment of 23-year-old felon Josie Smith, who was put away after being convicted of molesting a fellow Midwest Christian Services student in 2014 when Smith was a man with the given name Joseph Matthew Smith.
The Times previously reported in November that Smith was "undergoing medical treatment that is needed prior to (Smith) potentially undergoing gender reassignment surgery." Smith now identifies as a woman and goes by the name Josie Smith.
Now, Lynn Hicks, a spokesperson for the AG's office, says, "We don't believe we have evidence sufficient to prove Josie Smith has a significant change of reoffending," explaining that "an offender's hormone levels are an important part of substantiating an offender's likelihood of recidivism."
Hicks also argued that the public should not "overreact" regarding the release, saying, "Josie Smith will be subject to strict sex-offender reporting requirements of those who commit the crimes she did. She'll be subject to supervision for the rest of her life."
The Iowa Sex Offender Registry shows Smith was convicted of second-degree sexual abuse against a female victim in 2012 and lascivious acts with a child against a male victim in 2014. The registry does not give the victim's ages; they are listed as children under the age of 13.
But "a preliminary report prepared by the state's expert, Dr. Jeffrey Davis, says Smith molested as many as 15 victims, ranging from ages 1 to 13, before being sentenced to prison in December 2015," the Times noted. That report found that Smith had a greater than 20 percent change of reoffending within five years of being released.
But now that Smith is a woman, her risk of reoffending is statistically lower, and it is more difficult to make the case that Smith will reoffend under Iowa statute. The Times writes that it is more difficult to prove a sexual offender will strike again "when an offender significantly lowers his testosterone levels, which has a significantly higher impact on sex drive than estrogen."
Anything else?
Smith was transferred to a treatment facility in preparation for release earlier this month. It is unclear whether Smith has already been released.


theblaze--2020-01-30--After meeting with centrist Republican, Mitch McConnell has enough votes to block witnesses in impea

After meeting with centrist Republican, Mitch McConnell has enough votes to block witnesses in impeachment trial

After meeting with centrist Republican , Mitch McConnell has enough votes to block witnesses in impeachment trial This should bring @ @ @ @ @ an end

Republicans believe they now have the votes to block Democrats' demands to bring new witnesses in the impeachment trial against President Donald Trump in the U.S. Senate.
The news came after a meeting between Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and centrist Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska.
Democrats were hoping that moderate centrist Republicans like Murkowski might vote with them to call new witnesses, including John Bolton, the former national security adviser to Trump.
On Wednesday, those hopes appeared to be canceled.
"We're going to get it done by Friday, hopefully," said Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.).
"I think I can say the mood is good," agreed Sen. Mike Braun (R-Ind.). "If I had to guess, no witnesses. We'll be in a place where I think everyone is going to have their mind made up and I believe that we'll be able to move to a verdict, and the witness question will be clear at that point."
Bolton reportedly wrote in an upcoming book that he had concerns about personal favors that the president made to foreign leaders of Turkey and Russia. He also reportedly made claims that Trump withheld military aid to Ukraine for the express purpose of pressuring Ukraine to investigate Joe Biden and his son.
Democrats hoped that Bolton's testimony would bolster their accusations in the two articles of impeachment against the president, especially that of abuse of power.
If Republicans are successful in denying Democrats' motions to bring new witnesses, the impeachment trial of Trump could be ended as soon as Friday.
Here's the latest about the trial:


theblaze--2020-01-31--Rob Schneider excoriates Elizabeth Warren over her proposals aimed at stifling free speech

Comedian and actor Rob Schneider lambasted Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren (Mass.) on Thursday, in response to her new plan aimed at stifling the spread of speech with which she disagrees.
What are the details?
Warren proposed a list of ways she would crack down on the spread of what she deems to be "disinformation" online if she were to become president. The senator — who has famously been caught in a number of mistruths, such as lying about being Native American — even suggests criminal penalties for the dissemination of "false" information to voters.
The Massachusetts Democrat touted her plans on Twitter, leading Schneider to respond, "Thank YOU @ewarren for treating Americans like we are so completely f#cking stupid that we can't think for ourselves. Luckily we have leaders like YOU who can tell us what to believe & how to vote. You are right the stakes are too high to trust people to decide for themselves."
Schneider did not stop with that. A few hours later, the comedian tweeted, "Thank you @ewarren for your censorship & totalitarianism in the guise of democracy! Like YOU, I will ask @google, @Twitter @Facebook & other Tech companies something: IGNORE dictatorial mandates from politicians like YOU who have NO faith in the American people! #FreeSpeech"
Anything else?
Fox News noted that Schneider has spoken out in defense of free speech a number of times in the past. In November, the comedian summed up his views on the topic by tweeting, "Sorry to have to repeat this again: Free Speech is ALL speech. Even the speech that you find repugnant. You are either for ALL of it or...you are for none of it. We don't need people deciding FOR us what to think, see or hear. That's a load of totalitarian crap."


theblaze--2020-01-30--'A God incident': Gun owner 'felt at peace,' didn't shoot after intruder broke into his vehicle. Tur

'A God incident': Gun owner 'felt at peace,' didn't shoot after intruder broke into his vehicle. Turns out it's a former Hollywood actor.

' A God incident ' : Gun owner 'felt at peace , ' did n't shoot after intruder broke into @ @ @ @ @ it 's a former Hollywood actor .
'It was a divine fit .
He needed @ @ @ @ @ help him . '

California homeowner Lou Binninger started his Sunday by meeting a former Hollywood actor — but the encounter at his Marysville home was anything but pleasant.
What are the details?
At about 7 a.m. Binninger spotted a man in his vehicle inside his garage, KTXL-TV reported.
"He just took this hammer and knocked the window out," Binninger told the station, adding that he noticed the man also was talking to himself.
Image source: KXTL-TV video screenshot
"My just split-second decision was, 'Do I take it? Do I do it?' ... Because I got a gun," he added to KTXL. "But I didn't feel threatened. I just didn't. I felt at peace."
Binninger didn't pull the trigger, the station said, but he did call police, who reported that the intruder was still in the vehicle when they arrived — and was quickly taken into custody.
Turns out it was former child actor Shaun Weiss, 40, best known for portraying Greg Goldberg in "The Mighty Ducks" movies, KTXL said.
Image source: KXTL-TV video screenshot
Police added that Weiss also appeared to be under the influence of methamphetamine.
'A God incident'
Binninger told the station the ordeal was "a God incident. It was a divine fit. He needed help, and I can help him."
Image source: KXTL-TV video screenshot
How, you might be asking, can the victim of a break-in help the man charged in the incident?
Well, Binninger just so happens to help drug addicts in the Yuba County Jail, teaching classes and coordinating counseling, KXTL said — and it's the same jail where Weiss was being held.
"There's help. So if he's ready, we can help him," Binninger added to the station.
Anything else?
Police said Weiss was charged with residential burglary and being under the influence of a controlled substance. His bail was set at $52,500.
More from KXTL:
Weiss has had other run-ins with California law enforcement over the past several years. In August of 2018, he was arrested in Oroville on suspicion of being under the influence of drugs.
A year before that, TMZ reports he was arrested in Burbank for possessing a controlled substance. Five days before the Southern California arrest, Weiss had been released from jail after he was suspected of stealing $151 worth of Fry's Electronics merchandise.
As a child, Weiss was also known for his roles in "Heavyweights" and "Pee-Wee's Playhouse."


theblaze--2020-01-30--Customs and Border Patrol announces discovery of longest tunnel ever dug into United States territor

Customs and Border Patrol announces discovery of longest tunnel ever dug into United States territory Mexican soldiers stand for photographer @ @ @ @ @ Diego and Tijuana , Mexico , on Nov. 16 , 2011 .
Photographer : David @ @ @ @

Underground tunnels traversing international boundaries usually conjures up images of Israel's security threats from Hezbollah infiltrations tunnels on their northern border. However, the latest revelation by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) demonstrates that we are just as threatened by tunnels being dug into our territory by the Mexican drug cartels, even if the "conflict" is more subtle.
Wednesday, CBP announced the discovery of the largest tunnel ever dug into U.S. territory, measuring a total 4,068 feet from the Mexico-California border, with a total length of 4,309 feet. "While subterranean tunnels are not a new occurrence along the California-Mexico border, the sophistication and length of this particular tunnel demonstrates the time-consuming efforts transnational criminal organizations will undertake to facilitate cross-border smuggling," said Cardell T. Morant, acting special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) San Diego.
According to the CBP news release, the tunnel originated in an industrial area of Tijuana. They discovered the suspected exit of the tunnel in a warehouse in Otay Mesa, California, when they found hundreds of sandbags covering up the breach point last August.
The tunnel, which is now being destroyed, is approximately 5 1/2 feet tall and 2 feet wide and was dug roughly 70 feet below the surface. It contained much of the sophistication of the Hezbollah tunnels in Israel – with "an extensive rail/cart system, forced air ventilation, high voltage electrical cables and panels, an elevator at the tunnel entrance, and a complex drainage system."
While CBP made it clear that the cartels constructing tunnels under our border is nothing new, what is concerning is how they've advanced in technology while the efforts to counter them do not seem to have improved. Our government still views the border with a law enforcement lens rather than with a national security mindset to secure a perimeter the way the Israelis do both at their norther and southern borders. It is something that will need a great deal of attention from DHS and potentially the Pentagon, as the expanded border wall forces the cartels to increasingly rely on other methods for smuggling.
"The sophistication of this tunnel once again validates the Mexican cartel's capabilities far exceed U.S. law enforcement's ability to stop them," said Jaeson Jones, a retired Texas Department of Public Safety captain, in an interview with TheBlaze. "The construction of a tunnel that exceeds 70 feet below ground and stretches ¾ of a mile into the United States demonstrates the multifaceted capabilities of the cartels today and the national security threat they pose to our nation."
Jones, who used to manage the daily operations of the Texas Rangers' Border Security Operations Center (BSOC), has been a vocal advocate for the State Department to designate the cartels as terrorists and treat them with more of a national security mindset.
"U.S. law enforcement may attempt to shine a light on the fact that this tunnel was discovered in the first place," lamented Jones. "However, even after almost six months of a federal task force investigation, no one has been arrested and no narcotics have been seized. What did they get for it? A hole in the ground. Once again, this validates the need for national defense capabilities and authorities to protect the nation against the cartel threat. This cartel tunnel only highlights the immediate need to designate the cartels as foreign terrorist organizations and treat our defense against them the way we would Hamas or Hezbollah."
Jones noted that tunnels have been more of a problem in California than Texas because the Texas soil makes it hard for tunnels to be built without collapsing.
The retired border expert, who often appears on the Lou Dobbs show to discuss the cartels, expressed frustration that our government seems to view these tunnels as "just about drugs."
"These people are also engaged in dangerous weapons along with the drugs that foments so much violence on both sides of the border," warned Jones.
"The authorities that are required to deal with this problem are within the national defense apparatus. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) uses tunnel-detection technology across the world. We need all those national defense capabilities at our own border to detect these things earlier."
A recent study has shown that the number of drug-associated deaths in America per year might be 2.2 times the amount of officially drug-coded deaths, topping 140,000 a year. In addition, to the drug deaths, much of the violence in cities like Chicago is fueled by cartel activities or the transnational gangs associated with them, according to DEA's most recent annual threat assessment.
The fact that in just one fiscal year ICE lodged detainers on foreign nationals subject to 2,500 homicide charges or convictions demonstrates the point that so much violence gets back to the border and cartel activity. It might not be a black-zone conflict like it is with Israel and Hezbollah or Hamas, but the gray-zone conflict with the cartels is driving a "substantial portion" of the violence we are seeing in Chicago.
In 2006, a super-majority of Congress passed the Secure Fence Act, which required the secretary of homeland security to "take all actions" necessary within 18 months of passage to "achieve and maintain operational control over the entire international land and maritime borders of the United States." Section 2(b) of the bill defined "operational control" as "the prevention of all unlawful entries into the United States, including entries by terrorists, other unlawful aliens, instruments of terrorism, narcotics, and other contraband."
Where are we today?
"Fourteen years later, with the continued law enforcement mindset being applied to a national security problem, our government will continue failing to achieve the goal of border security," warned Jones.


theblaze--2020-01-30--Mike Bloomberg runs an awkward campaign ad for Big Gay Ice Cream

On Thursday's episode of "Pat Gray Unleashed," Pat and Keith discussed a campaign ad for Democratic presidential candidate Mike Bloomberg that featured an awkward Bloomberg eating a scoop of ice cream. In this clip, Bloomberg takes a scoop of ice cream from a regional ice cream shop called Big Gay Ice Cream.
"Where's my ice cream?" Bloomberg asked. "Ah, thank you. Mmmh. Big Gay Ice Cream is the best."
"It's just bizarre pandering," Pat said. "You're just pandering to gay people, I guess."
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theblaze--2020-01-30--CNN's Chris Cillizza explains how President Trump will win in 2020, refers to new campaign ad as 've

CNN's Chris Cillizza explains how President Trump will win in 2020, refers to new campaign ad as 'very smart strategic approach'

CNN 's Chris Cillizza explains how President Trump will win in 2020 , refers to new campaign ad as 'very @ @ @ @

CNN's Chris Cillizza says that President Donald Trump can clinch a 2020 win in the presidential election — so long as his voters continue to put priority on the American economy.
What are the details?
In a Thursday editorial titled, "Donald Trump's Super Bowl ad shows how he can win again," Cillizza writes, "Here's how President Donald Trump wins again this November: Voters decide they care more about the strength of the economy than they do about, well, anything else, up to and including the deeply unpresidential way in which he has conducted himself in office."
Cillizza concedes that the U.S. economy is booming under the Trump administration, and to highlight his point, he shares the president's newest campaign ad, which is set to air during Sunday's Super Bowl.
He notes that while the ad "overlooks the fact that Trump has abandoned the idea of the presidency as a position of moral leadership," it does hammer home hard truths for some liberals: The president's base seems to be getting stronger and stronger in their resolve to elect their leader.
In the ad, a narrator can be heard saying, "Under President Trump, America is stronger, safer, and more prosperous than ever before."
Cillizza does not dispute this idea anywhere in the CNN article.
The president's latest campaign ad closes with Trump insisting that should he be re-elected in 2020, the "best is yet to come."
"That's it," Cillizza writes. "That's the message. If Trump wins, that 30 seconds is how he does it. He: 1) persuades voters that his unpresidential behavior is chalked up to "change" 2) reminds voters of the economic successes that have happened under his watch 3) convinces voters that changing the US president amid this economic growth is a risk they don't want to take."
Anything else?
He continues by pointing out that while he believes Trump's public appearances often lack decorum or structure, the ad itself is not an unreasonable barometer of how well Trump might do in 2020.
"His TV ad campaign is something else entirely," he writes. "His ad makers can stick to a single message. And if Trump's Super Bowl ad is a precursor of the message they plan to push, that's a very smart strategic approach."


theblaze--2020-01-30--Peter Schweizer: Trump’s request to investigate Biden, Ukraine was legitimate — and we have the evid

Peter Schweizer: Trump’s request to investigate Biden, Ukraine was legitimate — and we have the evidence to prove it

Peter Schweizer : Trump ’ s request to investigate Biden , Ukraine was legitimate — and we have the evidence @ @ @ @ @ have some serious explaining to do

Best-selling author and Government Accountability Institute President, Peter Schweizer, joined Glenn Beck on the radio program Thursday to discuss whether or not U.S. Senators should call additional witnesses to testify or proceed to a final vote in the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump.
In his new book, "Profiles in Corruption: Abuse of Power by America's Progressive Elite," Schweizer profiles several of the 2020 Democratic contenders, including former Vice President Joe Biden.
Asked by Glenn who should be called as a witness for the defense of President Trump, Schweizer was quick to name the former vice president his son, Hunter, and Hunter's business partner, Devin Archer.
"I think if you're interested in corruption, you need to call Hunter Biden. You need to call his business partner, Devin Archer. And I think you need to call Joe Biden," Schweizer said. "Because the nexus of the question here is, was Donald Trump's request of the Ukrainian leader, Zelensky, legitimate? And I think it was. Democrats want to pooh-pooh it. They want to pretend nothing happened. But if the request is real and genuine -- and I think the evidence indicates that it is -- he was actually doing his responsibility, which was looking after billions of dollars in taxpayer money that disappeared. And disappeared by people who were paying the son of the vice president of the United States."
Schweizer told Glenn that he has documented evidence of Joe and Hunter Biden's corruption in Ukraine, including a 400-page J.P. Morgan financial document that raises several questions.
"We have [Hunter Biden's] bank statement here. We have it. We got it from a court trial involving Hunter Biden's business partner, Devin Archer, who was charged with fraud in New York. We had a researcher attend that court case, talk to the prosecutors, and got access to a 400-page J.P. Morgan financial document, which shows Hunter Biden taking large amounts of cash out of this account," said Schweizer.
"Flowing into that account, you not only have $83,333 a month, which works out to a million dollars a year, you also have money from Kazakh oligarchs. You have money from Swiss bank accounts, there's $1.2 million from an anonymous Swiss bank account. Where is that money coming from? Who is paying you [Hunter]? Why are they paying you?" he asked.
"I think if you walk the American people through that, it becomes very, very obvious what's going on," Schweizer added.
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theblaze--2020-01-30--Postal Service worker dumped thousands of pieces of mail in a storage unit, saying he couldn’t ‘make

Postal Service worker dumped thousands of pieces of mail in a storage unit, saying he couldn’t ‘make time’ to deliver them

Postal Service worker dumped thousands of pieces of mail in a storage unit , saying he couldn ’ t ‘ @ @ @ @ @ them Now he faces up to five years in prison

A Postal Service worker in Virginia hid thousands of pieces of mail in a rented storage locker after he fell behind on his deliveries and wasn't able to catch up.
The postal worker, Jason Delacruz, told authorities that he felt "stressed out" and "pressured" to deliver the mail but that he couldn't "make time" to complete his route, WTKR-TV reported.
Delacruz said that he originally intended to deliver the stashed mail, but got overwhelmed by the job and was never able to do so.
Now, he faces up to five years in prison after pleading guilty to the charge of felony delay of mail by a postal worker last November.
The investigation into Delacruz began in May after U.S. Post Office workers received a complaint that a postal worker was unloading mail into a public storage unit in Virginia Beach.
When agents with the U.S. Postal Service's Office of the Inspector General confronted him, Delacruz admitted he had been hiding mail since late 2018 and that he began renting the $49-per-month unit in February for the sole purpose of storing mail he could not deliver.
According to WTKR-TV, when authorities searched the unit, they found thousands of pieces of mail, including "97 pieces of first-class mail that included mail from the Department of Motor Vehicles, insurance companies, the IRS, bank statements and other tax return documents."
Most of the other items were advertisements and second-class mail, such as magazine subscriptions, though authorities did find one undelivered package among the stash.
Delacruz had been hired by the U.S. Postal Service as a city carrier assistant in June 2018, but according to CNN, he resigned in 2019 after working 14 months.
He is scheduled for sentencing on Feb. 12.


theblaze--2020-01-30--World Health Organization declares coronavirus outbreak a global emergency; US sees first person-to-

World Health Organization declares coronavirus outbreak a global emergency; US sees first person-to-person transfer

'Immediate risk to the American public is low , ' a U.S. official says

The World Health Organization declared the recent outbreak of the Wuhan coronavirus a global health emergency on Thursday — the same day that American officials confirmed the first person-to-person transfer of the disease in the United States.
"Over the past few weeks we have witnessed the emergence of a previously unknown pathogen which has escalated into an unprecedented outbreak and has been met by an unprecedented response," WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said during a news conference Thursday at the WHO headquarters in Geneva.
In his remarks, Tedros said that were now 7,834 confirmed cases of the virus — 7,736 of which are in China — and that the disease's death toll currently stands at 170, all of which have been in China. Chinese state media, however placed the number of infected higher on Thursday, saying there were 8,123 cases in the country.
After describing China's efforts to contain the disease, he added, "We must act together now to limit further spread."
Tedros said that the WHO was declaring the outbreak a "Public Health Emergency of International Concern," which the organization defines as "an extraordinary event which is determined to constitute a public health risk to other States through the international spread of disease and to potentially require a coordinated international response."
"The main reason for this declaration is not because of what is happening in China, but because of what is happening in other countries," Tedros explained. "Our greatest concern is the potential for the virus to spread to other countries with weaker health systems and which are ill-prepared to deal with it."
More important than the declaration itself, Tedros said, are the various recommendations about confronting the outbreak that go along with it. These include combating the spread of misinformation, accelerating the development of vaccines, and sharing information about how to combat the virus among others. In summarizing the recommendations, Tedros also stated that there was "no reason for measures that unnecessarily interfere with international travel and trade."
The news came on the same day that the U.S. confirmed its first case of person-to-person transmission of the virus.
In a phone conference with reporters on Thursday, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Illinois Department of Public Health explained that the spouse of a Chicago-area woman who had gotten sick with the virus after traveling to Wuhan, China — the epicenter of the viral outbreak — had also tested positive for the disease as well. Both patients are hospitalized in stable condition, the officials added.
However, that news is not necessarily cause for alarm, the CDC's chief said.
"Given what we've seen in China and other countries with the novel coronavirus, CDC experts have expected some person-to-person spread in the US," CDC Director Robert R. Redfield said in a statement. "We understand that this may be concerning, but based on what we know now, we still believe the immediate risk to the American public is low."


theblaze--2020-01-30--Kobe Bryant and wife Vanessa had an agreement: Never fly on a helicopter together

Kobe Bryant and wife Vanessa had an agreement : Never fly on a helicopter together

Kobe Bryant and his wife, Vanessa, reportedly had an agreement that they would never fly in a helicopter at the same time, a revelation that comes days after Kobe and his daughter, Gianna, were killed in a helicopter accident.
The information comes from an anonymous source close to the Bryant family, and was reported by People. The source did not, however, detail the specific reasons for the arrangement.
In hindsight, it seems possible that the purpose was to ensure that, if tragedy struck, at least one parent would remain to raise the children. That parent is now Vanessa, who still has three daughters to watch over after the loss of her husband and child.
Kobe Bryant regularly used his helicopter to travel across the Los Angeles area, after realizing that he could not adequately balance family obligations and career demands while spending so much time stuck in LA traffic.
"I was sitting in traffic and I wound up missing like a school play," Bryant explained in 2018. "I had to figure out a way where I could still train and focus on the craft but still not compromise family time. So that's when I looked into helicopters, to be able to get down and back in 15 minutes and that's when it started."
Bryant retired from the NBA after the 2016 NBA season as one of the greatest players of all time. He won five NBA championships, was named NBA MVP one time, NBA Finals MVP two times, and made the All-Star team 18 times.
In retirement, he coached Gianna's youth basketball team. Gianna was showing flashes of greatness and an uncanny resemblance to her father, even at the young age of 13. The two, along with teammates and other parents, were flying to a game when their helicopter crashed.
Vanessa Bryant issued a public statement Wednesday.


theblaze--2020-01-30--Hillary Clinton's Secret Service detail kept process server from delivering Tulsi Gabbard lawsuit: l

Hillary Clinton's Secret Service detail kept process server from delivering Tulsi Gabbard lawsuit: lawyer

Hawaii Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard is suing Hillary Clinton for defamation after Clinton suggested Gabbard was a Russian asset , but Clinton is refusing to be served with the lawsuit , according to Gabbard 's lawyer .
The attorney , Brian Dunne , told the New York Post that multiple attempts to deliver the $ 50 million lawsuit have been rebuffed either by Secret Service agents or Clinton 's legal representatives .
`` I find it rather unbelievable that Hillary Clinton is so intimidated by Tulsi Gabbard that she wo n't accept service of process , '' Dunne said .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ . ''
According to Dunne , the process server tried to deliver the lawsuit at Clinton 's house on Tuesday , but was prevented from doing so by the Secret Service .
The server was then told to deliver the lawsuit to Clinton 's lawyer , David Kendall — but Kendall allegedly claimed he could not accept the lawsuit on Clinton 's behalf , Dunne told the Post .
In October , Clinton called Gabbard a `` favorite of the Russians '' who was being groomed to run a disruptive third-party campaign .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ her spokesman , Nick Merrill , said `` if the nesting doll fits ... '' when asked if Clinton was referring to the Hawaii Democrat .
Gabbard responded at the time by calling Clinton the `` personification of rot that has sickened the Democratic Party '' and challenged her to join the Democratic primary .
`` Clinton has not gotten over her loss in that ( 2016 ) election and still dwells on what happened , '' the lawsuit alleges .
`` Clinton blames many persons for her loss .
One of them @ @ @ @ @ @ @ whom Clinton blames for being late to endorse her during the 2016 campaign .
But Clinton reserves a special hatred and animosity for Tulsi—who never endorsed Clinton , did not campaign for her , and to top it off , gave the nomination speech for Senator Sanders at the 2016 Democratic National Convention . ''

Hawaii Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard is suing Hillary Clinton for defamation after Clinton suggested Gabbard was a Russian asset, but Clinton is refusing to be served with the lawsuit, according to Gabbard's lawyer.
The attorney, Brian Dunne, told the New York Post that multiple attempts to deliver the $50 million lawsuit have been rebuffed either by Secret Service agents or Clinton's legal representatives.
"I find it rather unbelievable that Hillary Clinton is so intimidated by Tulsi Gabbard that she won't accept service of process," Dunne said. "But I guess here we are."
According to Dunne, the process server tried to deliver the lawsuit at Clinton's house on Tuesday, but was prevented from doing so by the Secret Service.
The server was then told to deliver the lawsuit to Clinton's lawyer, David Kendall — but Kendall allegedly claimed he could not accept the lawsuit on Clinton's behalf, Dunne told the Post.
In October, Clinton called Gabbard a "favorite of the Russians" who was being groomed to run a disruptive third-party campaign. Although she didn't name Gabbard, her spokesman, Nick Merrill, said "if the nesting doll fits..." when asked if Clinton was referring to the Hawaii Democrat.
Gabbard responded at the time by calling Clinton the "personification of rot that has sickened the Democratic Party" and challenged her to join the Democratic primary.
Gabbard's lawsuit takes some personal jabs at Clinton.
"Clinton has not gotten over her loss in that (2016) election and still dwells on what happened," the lawsuit alleges. "Clinton blames many persons for her loss. One of them is Senator [Bernie] Sanders, whom Clinton blames for being late to endorse her during the 2016 campaign. But Clinton reserves a special hatred and animosity for Tulsi—who never endorsed Clinton, did not campaign for her, and to top it off, gave the nomination speech for Senator Sanders at the 2016 Democratic National Convention."


theblaze--2020-01-30--Ryan: Bernie at the Embassy Fortress

Ryan: Bernie at the Embassy Fortress

The riverfront Hilton was under construction .
It looked like a fortress behind all the mesh and ticker tape .
Well that Saturday night , this fortress belonged to Bernie Sanders .
He had half of the Embassy Ballroom , as part of his Town Hall with NARAL Pro-Choice America , whose logo and theme are purple so almost everything in the room was purple .
Exceptions were media , who you could tell by their exhaustion and their over abundance of equipment .
Bernie himself , dressed in a blue suit .
And the anti-Bernie onlookers leaning against the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ after a workout .
2020 was Bernie 's second go-around , and presumably his last attempt at the presidential office .
In 2016 , he got the shaft .
Especially here in Iowa .
Basically , he was publicly sacrificed then asked to smile for the cameras as his head rolled around the stage like a soccer ball .
So now he 's jittery , alert .
And , yes , salty .
, he must be thinking .
Surrounded by all those gut-devouring Democrats , he 's the Independent .
Or , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ derisively , `` The Socialist . ''
Ha ha , joke 's on them , just came from L.A .
Specifically , from the set of the Joe Rogan Experience , a podcast that began as one man 's hobby and has since evolved into a media revolution .
Ha ha , currently coming for you .
Sanders uses that term often , `` corporate media . ''
He says it with disgust .
And he would be correct .
The success of Rogan 's podcast signifies a growing restlessness in America .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ a small band of loud jackasses whose tantrums have become a kind of social guillotine , and a media who profit off the discord despite — and this is the worst part — many times not believing much of what the incendiary drivel that they write .
Then along comes Rogan , naturally curious and rather direct .
It speaks to the magic of America , Joe Rogan , stand-up comedian and former wacko on `` News Radio , '' a commentator for Ultimate Fighting Championship and former host of `` Fear Factor @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about tormenting people for money , a job that often saw Rogan goad contestants into eating roaches or jumping from tremendous heights , only to badger them the moment they were about to follow through .
So who could 've guessed that Rogan would become the unstoppable gatekeeper of new media , one of the most powerful figures of an entire generation , with tens of millions of people listening to every episode — far more than the audience of any mainstream show ?
Who would have guessed that Joe Rogan would be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that his interview with Sen. Bernie Sanders would make for one of the best episodes in Rogan 's massive catalogue ?
You should know that there was corruption at the last Iowa Caucus .
You can see that indignation in Sanders at times .
Why would n't you ?
The man was robbed of a chance in 2016 .
So but now Bernie is back , with a newfound snarl .
, the Hilton is on locust street .
As in , all the other candidates better prepare for a retribution on par @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and frogs and blood .
Figuratively speaking , of course .
They are boxes and he is a circle .
Smooth , pliable , impossible to ambush .
They are lines and he is a squiggly .
They hassle with lip service .
Bernie ?
Lip service ?
You have got to be kidding me !
He talks like this !
All the time !
AND EVEN LIKE THIS !
WHEN HE REALLY HAS SOMETHING TO SAY !
OKAY , YOU ARE GOOD KIDS , HAVE A BERNIE STICKER !
Just listen to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he would have left it so unpolished had he cared about playing the traditional game ?
He has many enemies .
But he is also kind .
He spends his campaign money on practical items .
You wo n't see an elaborate lighting system at a Bernie speech .
Not by his doing .
Instead , you 'll see an audience of hungry and wayward but compassionate people .
Sure , there are also the snoots .
The amorphous herd of oft-outraged , over-educated , many-color-hair-dyed young folks with their own elaborate ideas @ @ @ @ @ @ @ given social tradition .
In their natural setting , the snoots are harmless .
They 've got volume .
And they know how to bully a conversation to a graceless close .
But , for the sake of our country , they occupy a space once controlled by the last group of sanctimonious bullies , who came from the opposite side of the political spectrum .
Sometimes the only way to stop a forest fire is by lighting a controlled fire around the edges and waiting until the outrage subsides .
Then it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Every one of Bernie 's Iowa appearances had a completely different crowd .
This was his fourth event of the day .
Or was it the fifth ?
If you add in the selfies every appearance is practically double .
People want proof that they stood next to Bernie Sanders .
Understandable .
He has that suction energy .
In part because he seems to be constantly distracted .
Not enough time for niceties and good posture .
More important to thresh the common-sense ideas from the misconceptions and the doubt .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ a radical .
Me ?
A radical ?
Or at least that 's how Sanders appears to see it .
He is something like the penniless untouchable who cleans out the septic gutters .
And when he emerges , he is immaculate and saved a puppy or something .
He disdains the labels that have been thrust on him .
All of the candidates do .
Yet , the lesser known candidates would do anything for widespread misconceptions .
At least then people would know who they are .
So maybe Bernie is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , who everyone likes in some way .
You do n't look at him and say , `` Guided by evil . ''
If you disagree with his ideas , you say , `` Now how the hell did he arrive at that conclusion ? ''
Or at the very least you 're entertained .
Because he 's got an endless supply of certainty and a face ruddy with urgent disdain .
Like him or not , he believes what he 's saying .
And he seems perennially capable of veering off-course .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ over the edge of the track decades ago and has been pluming through fields and gravel roads ever since like Mario Kart through the suburbs .
He 's like a grandpa with ADD .
The kind of guy who could just as easily have a basement full of chemistry equipment or an attic of dust-covered bongs , leftover from the rollicking meet-ups so full of mysticism and chance .
Unapologetic revelry .
An air of the half-crazed , like a character right out of Kerouac 's `` Big Sur . ''
And it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ like this , but nobody cared .
Then the times changed and the outliers in a generation of outliers needed to hear these ideas , the ideas that Bernie has always lived with on display .
For many Americans , his spirit is understandable but his arguments are nonsense .
Put Sanders in a room with steel workers from the Midwest or wheat farmers from Kansas and , if everyone is wearing earplugs , they 'll all get along .
And even when Sanders talks about democratic socialism , he tends to eschew @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the vocal left in the professoriate .
Who do you think should be the Democrat nominee for president in 2020 ?
Can I get a show of hands ?
Computers , you say ?
Ballots ?
Haha , no .
No ballots necessary .
You raise your hands , I 'll count .
A lot of you , you say ?
Yes , yes there are .
But do n't worry , I have counted many times in my life .
Besides , I 'll keep reminding myself that whoever we choose , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ then maybe the president .
So let 's see those Iowa friendly paws .
What 's that , your hands are frozen together ?
Yeah , it 's pretty cold in here , after all it is Iowa in the winter , full of blizzards of the most terrifying caliber , so it 's a good thing we held this event in isolated locations that people have to travel to .
This is essentially how Iowa 's caucuses work .
The Hilton Embassy Suites was around the corner from the Iowa Events Center @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Presidential Gun Sense Forum .
Slightly farther was El Malecón .
In the audience , 125 people or so .
Every seat was occupied .
People leaned against the back partition wall .
Under strange chandeliers .
Sanders was nailing the part of his speech about `` I proposed a livable wage and somehow I 'M the radical ? ''
A man in the back wearing a firefighter T-shirt said , `` That 's really wrong . ''
He grumbled .
The man was pissed .
He pivoted .
There were a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the same as he did , but not as openly .
Then the man groaned loudly and , with a sarcastic laugh , said , `` That 's really embarrassing . ''
Eventually , he stormed out of the room .
Was he a guest at the hotel , curious to see Sanders in person despite disagreeing with his ideas ?
Or had he come here to see Sanders ?
The two situations are very different .
Because this was an open ballroom that just about anyone could get into .
You could @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a lavish forest of chairs and a waterfall and indoor plants that might have been real .
Kids rushed into the glass-walled elevator and looked out at the world fading below them as they rose and rose .
People at the hotel bar waved for their next drink between glances at one of the many TVs .
Did they realize Bernie Sanders was giving a speech around the corner ?
Did they care ?
Any time Sanders said `` Workforce '' he waved his forefinger with each syllable .
Then , somehow Sanders @ @ @ @ @ @ @ into his `` Radical '' complaint .
`` I wanted to give every American health care and people said , that 's radical .
... that 's radical .
... that 's radical . ''
His point was , how about his foresight ?
Then he said , `` You do n't see the outrage on TV about that one . ''
Again , he rebuked the media .
He told the audience , `` Do n't just listen to what 's on television every day . ''
They were no friends of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ must have thought .
Without much ceremony , his speech was over , and , like a grandfather who only recently got a smartphone and does n't understand young folks ' obsession with badly angled photos , he announced , `` Now come on up and we can do the selfies . ''
With absolutely seriousness , `` We 've got our selfie specialist right over here . ''
People in Bernie T-shirts trickled out the entrance .
Some of them had gotten selfies with the man .
That was pretty cool .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , we spoke to two women in purple Bernie shirts .
They had been onstage behind Bernie , patiently holding their Bernie yard signs the entire time , in their purple `` Reproductive Freedom Voter '' T-shirts and their calm admiration .
Like Bernie , the 2016 election had left a bad taste in their mouth .
They bemoaned the caucuses , last time around .
Hillary Clinton won Iowa with 49.84 % to Sanders ' 49.59 % , the closest margin in the history of the Iowa caucus .
The victory gave @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more than Sanders .
`` We got shafted , '' one of them says , tired of searching for a euphemism .
Shady , to say the least .
Like a bake sale run by the Mafia .
At least a dozen ties were awarded by a coin toss .
Not even an actual coin .
A phone app that simulated a flip .
Reports emerged that , at several locations , Clinton supporters had coerced undecided caucusgoers and convinced supporters of floundering third candidate Martin O'Malley to choose Clinton over Sanders .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ saw it with their own eyes .
That , in Des Moines , the Clinton officials misdirected and even denied Bernie supporters in order to secure a win for Hillary .
For the Bernie supporters who were able to attend the caucus , their food and beverage and waiting area conditions were dramatically worse than those afforded to Clinton .
Both women half-smile with exasperation that retains hope .
They shrug when they tell us that , of course , the media did n't report on the malfeasance .
It was something I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , because the whole situation was rife with corruption .
And the media , as always , helped clean up the crime scene .
`` Stolen , '' one of them said .
`` We 'd be living in a completely different country right now if Bernie had n't been cheated , '' said the other woman .
Neither woman said whether they voted for Trump or Clinton .
Presumably the latter .
But they did mention that Clinton 's dicey tactics provoked apathy among Bernie supporters .
Many skipped the final election @ @ @ @ @ @ @ casting a vote for the libertarian candidate .
`` Or , you know . ''
Again , Trump was everywhere .
How did he have so much power over his critics and enemies ?
He found a way to live in their heads , to disrupt their daily lives .
Of course , only they have control of whether or not another person has that kind of power .
And a politician , a man they would never meet and certainly never know .
Yet , still , he turned his critics into @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on , could not have a conversation without derailing into foaming-at-the-mouth invective .
Neither woman had that steam , that crosswise look that never straightened out .
But Sanders had a smarter , deeper , more viperous form of it .
The word `` crusade '' comes to mind .
Des Moines was the largest city in Iowa and here it was , Saturday night , and the streets were empty and the buildings were mostly dim .
Maybe people were at the Fair .
Nü-metal veterans Slipknot would be taking the stage @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shrieking and middle finger .
Every hotel , motel , and AirBnb for 80 miles was booked .
My dad and I wound up in Arthur , Iowa , a charming town with 206 residents , two hours northwest of Des Moines .
So we slumped onto the hood of the car for a moment , collecting the fragments of thought we had left .
That day alone we 'd seen 10 different events , 6 different candidates .
`` I 'm glad that Iowa gets the first pick in the election , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sure how the caucus system worked , or what a caucus is to begin with .
`` It 's good that they have a voice . ''
One of us started to flesh out the idea , but both of us shrugged .
`` Beautiful sky , '' said my dad , then scrambled down a stairway to get a few photos .
A two-tone sky .
Pink-orange and blue .
Something about the way those colors blended , so undecided .
I stared west , because that 's where we would be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ meant to find triumph .
Then up early the next morning to attend a church service featuring Sen. Kamala Harris ( D-Calif. ) .
If only the entire country could have hunched onto the hood of my car beside me , gawking out at soft blue like an ocean over the miniature city .
So I decided that those were the moments I would write about in this series .
Scenes of meditation .
Something we could all use , and something that most legacy media outright avoided , favoring snarky op-eds masquerading @ @ @ @ @ @ @ plashed gently , with a sway , everything about life felt navigable , lost to the vicissitudes of terrain and quiet water .
Across the Des Moines River , downtown Des Moines looked peaceful .
All lit up like a cathedral on Christmas .
I smiled and stared at a red neon sign with an umbrella and the word `` Travelers . ''
New installments come Mondays and Thursdays .
Check out my Twitter .
Email me at kryan @ blazemedia.com

The riverfront Hilton was under construction.
It looked like a fortress behind all the mesh and ticker tape. Well that Saturday night, this fortress belonged to Bernie Sanders. He had half of the Embassy Ballroom, as part of his Town Hall with NARAL Pro-Choice America, whose logo and theme are purple so almost everything in the room was purple.
Exceptions were media, who you could tell by their exhaustion and their over abundance of equipment. Bernie himself, dressed in a blue suit. And the anti-Bernie onlookers leaning against the back wall, muscles throbbing like just after a workout.
Photo by Sean Ryan
2020 was Bernie's second go-around, and presumably his last attempt at the presidential office. In 2016, he got the shaft. Especially here in Iowa. Basically, he was publicly sacrificed then asked to smile for the cameras as his head rolled around the stage like a soccer ball.
So now he's jittery, alert. And, yes, salty.
Ha ha, he must be thinking. Surrounded by all those gut-devouring Democrats, he's the Independent. Or, as his fellow candidates say, often derisively, "The Socialist."
Ha ha, joke's on them, just came from L.A. Specifically, from the set of the Joe Rogan Experience, a podcast that began as one man's hobby and has since evolved into a media revolution.
Ha ha, how's it feel now, corporate media?
Ha ha, currently coming for you.
Sanders uses that term often, "corporate media." He says it with disgust.
And he would be correct. The success of Rogan's podcast signifies a growing restlessness in America. Most Americans are tired. Annoyed by a small band of loud jackasses whose tantrums have become a kind of social guillotine, and a media who profit off the discord despite — and this is the worst part — many times not believing much of what the incendiary drivel that they write. Then along comes Rogan, naturally curious and rather direct.
Photo by Sean Ryan
It speaks to the magic of America, Joe Rogan, stand-up comedian and former wacko on "News Radio," a commentator for Ultimate Fighting Championship and former host of "Fear Factor," which was essentially a show about tormenting people for money, a job that often saw Rogan goad contestants into eating roaches or jumping from tremendous heights, only to badger them the moment they were about to follow through.
So who could've guessed that Rogan would become the unstoppable gatekeeper of new media, one of the most powerful figures of an entire generation, with tens of millions of people listening to every episode — far more than the audience of any mainstream show?
Who would have guessed that Joe Rogan would be the Socrates of our time? And that his interview with Sen. Bernie Sanders would make for one of the best episodes in Rogan's massive catalogue?
*
You should know that there was corruption at the last Iowa Caucus.
You can see that indignation in Sanders at times. Why wouldn't you? The man was robbed of a chance in 2016.
So but now Bernie is back, with a newfound snarl.
Ha ha, the Hilton is on locust street. As in, all the other candidates better prepare for a retribution on par with the plagues of Egypt, locusts and frogs and blood. Figuratively speaking, of course.
Ha ha, joke's on them.
They are boxes and he is a circle. Smooth, pliable, impossible to ambush. They are lines and he is a squiggly. They hassle with lip service. Bernie? Lip service? You have got to be kidding me! He talks like this! All the time! AND EVEN LIKE THIS! WHEN HE REALLY HAS SOMETHING TO SAY! OKAY, YOU ARE GOOD KIDS, HAVE A BERNIE STICKER!
Just listen to that accent of his. You think he would have left it so unpolished had he cared about playing the traditional game?
He has many enemies.
But he is also kind. He spends his campaign money on practical items. You won't see an elaborate lighting system at a Bernie speech. Not by his doing.
Photo by Sean Ryan
Instead, you'll see an audience of hungry and wayward but compassionate people. Sure, there are also the snoots. The amorphous herd of oft-outraged, over-educated, many-color-hair-dyed young folks with their own elaborate ideas about the risks and possibilities of any given social tradition.
In their natural setting, the snoots are harmless. They've got volume. And they know how to bully a conversation to a graceless close. But, for the sake of our country, they occupy a space once controlled by the last group of sanctimonious bullies, who came from the opposite side of the political spectrum.
Sometimes the only way to stop a forest fire is by lighting a controlled fire around the edges and waiting until the outrage subsides. Then it's off to the next burning forest.
*
Every one of Bernie's Iowa appearances had a completely different crowd.
This was his fourth event of the day. Or was it the fifth? If you add in the selfies every appearance is practically double. People want proof that they stood next to Bernie Sanders.
Photo by Sean Ryan
Understandable. He has that suction energy. In part because he seems to be constantly distracted. Not enough time for niceties and good posture. More important to thresh the common-sense ideas from the misconceptions and the doubt.
Ha ha, and they call me a radical. Me? A radical?
Or at least that's how Sanders appears to see it.
Ha ha, black sheep? Ha! If only!
He is something like the penniless untouchable who cleans out the septic gutters. And when he emerges, he is immaculate and saved a puppy or something.
Photo by Sean Ryan
He disdains the labels that have been thrust on him. All of the candidates do. Yet, the lesser known candidates would do anything for widespread misconceptions. At least then people would know who they are.
So maybe Bernie is the charismatic, quirky unwavering, radical, who everyone likes in some way. You don't look at him and say, "Guided by evil." If you disagree with his ideas, you say, "Now how the hell did he arrive at that conclusion?" Or at the very least you're entertained.
Because he's got an endless supply of certainty and a face ruddy with urgent disdain.
Like him or not, he believes what he's saying. And he seems perennially capable of veering off-course. Partly because he ramped his metaphorical go-kart over the edge of the track decades ago and has been pluming through fields and gravel roads ever since like Mario Kart through the suburbs.
Photo by Sean Ryan
He's like a grandpa with ADD. The kind of guy who could just as easily have a basement full of chemistry equipment or an attic of dust-covered bongs, leftover from the rollicking meet-ups so full of mysticism and chance. Unapologetic revelry. An air of the half-crazed, like a character right out of Kerouac's "Big Sur."
And it's clear that he's always been like this, but nobody cared. Then the times changed and the outliers in a generation of outliers needed to hear these ideas, the ideas that Bernie has always lived with on display.
For many Americans, his spirit is understandable but his arguments are nonsense. Put Sanders in a room with steel workers from the Midwest or wheat farmers from Kansas and, if everyone is wearing earplugs, they'll all get along. And even when Sanders talks about democratic socialism, he tends to eschew the insufferably convoluted language you find among the vocal left in the professoriate.
*
Who do you think should be the Democrat nominee for president in 2020? Can I get a show of hands? Computers, you say? Ballots? Haha, no. No ballots necessary. You raise your hands, I'll count. A lot of you, you say? Yes, yes there are. But don't worry, I have counted many times in my life.
Besides, I'll keep reminding myself that whoever we choose, they'll probably become the candidate, then maybe the president. So let's see those Iowa friendly paws. What's that, your hands are frozen together? Yeah, it's pretty cold in here, after all it is Iowa in the winter, full of blizzards of the most terrifying caliber, so it's a good thing we held this event in isolated locations that people have to travel to.
This is essentially how Iowa's caucuses work.
*
The Hilton Embassy Suites was around the corner from the Iowa Events Center, where Bernie had spoken earlier for the Presidential Gun Sense Forum. Slightly farther was El Malecón.
In the audience, 125 people or so. Every seat was occupied. People leaned against the back partition wall. Under strange chandeliers.
Sanders was nailing the part of his speech about "I proposed a livable wage and somehow I'M the radical?"
Photo by Sean Ryan
A man in the back wearing a firefighter T-shirt said, "That's really wrong." He grumbled. The man was pissed. He pivoted. There were a few others in the room who felt the same as he did, but not as openly.
Then the man groaned loudly and, with a sarcastic laugh, said, "That's really embarrassing."
Eventually, he stormed out of the room. Was he a guest at the hotel, curious to see Sanders in person despite disagreeing with his ideas? Or had he come here to see Sanders? The two situations are very different. Because this was an open ballroom that just about anyone could get into. You could stroll freely.
In the lobby, a lavish forest of chairs and a waterfall and indoor plants that might have been real. Kids rushed into the glass-walled elevator and looked out at the world fading below them as they rose and rose. People at the hotel bar waved for their next drink between glances at one of the many TVs. Did they realize Bernie Sanders was giving a speech around the corner? Did they care? Any time Sanders said "Workforce" he waved his forefinger with each syllable.
Then, somehow Sanders angled the speech, deftly, back into his "Radical" complaint.
"I wanted to give every American health care and people said, that's radical. ... that's radical. ... that's radical."
His point was, how about his foresight?
Then he said, "You don't see the outrage on TV about that one." Again, he rebuked the media. He told the audience, "Don't just listen to what's on television every day." They were no friends of Bernie's.
Ha ha, he must have thought.
*
Without much ceremony, his speech was over, and, like a grandfather who only recently got a smartphone and doesn't understand young folks' obsession with badly angled photos, he announced, "Now come on up and we can do the selfies."
With absolutely seriousness, "We've got our selfie specialist right over here."
Photo by Sean Ryan
People in Bernie T-shirts trickled out the entrance. Some of them had gotten selfies with the man. That was pretty cool.
As we strolled back to our car, we spoke to two women in purple Bernie shirts. They had been onstage behind Bernie, patiently holding their Bernie yard signs the entire time, in their purple "Reproductive Freedom Voter" T-shirts and their calm admiration.
Photo by Sean Ryan
Like Bernie, the 2016 election had left a bad taste in their mouth. They bemoaned the caucuses, last time around. Hillary Clinton won Iowa with 49.84% to Sanders' 49.59%, the closest margin in the history of the Iowa caucus. The victory gave Clinton 23 national convention delegates, two more than Sanders.
"We got shafted," one of them says, tired of searching for a euphemism.
Shady, to say the least. Like a bake sale run by the Mafia. At least a dozen ties were awarded by a coin toss. Not even an actual coin. A phone app that simulated a flip.
Photo by Sean Ryan
Reports emerged that, at several locations, Clinton supporters had coerced undecided caucusgoers and convinced supporters of floundering third candidate Martin O'Malley to choose Clinton over Sanders.
The two women told us that they saw it with their own eyes. That, in Des Moines, the Clinton officials misdirected and even denied Bernie supporters in order to secure a win for Hillary. For the Bernie supporters who were able to attend the caucus, their food and beverage and waiting area conditions were dramatically worse than those afforded to Clinton.
Both women half-smile with exasperation that retains hope. They shrug when they tell us that, of course, the media didn't report on the malfeasance. It was something I needed to look into, they said, because the whole situation was rife with corruption. And the media, as always, helped clean up the crime scene.
"Stolen," one of them said.
"We'd be living in a completely different country right now if Bernie hadn't been cheated," said the other woman.
"Stolen."
Neither woman said whether they voted for Trump or Clinton. Presumably the latter. But they did mention that Clinton's dicey tactics provoked apathy among Bernie supporters. Many skipped the final election altogether. Others quietly protested Clinton by casting a vote for the libertarian candidate. "Or, you know."
Again, Trump was everywhere. How did he have so much power over his critics and enemies? He found a way to live in their heads, to disrupt their daily lives. Of course, only they have control of whether or not another person has that kind of power. And a politician, a man they would never meet and certainly never know.
Yet, still, he turned his critics into raving ex's who could never move on, could not have a conversation without derailing into foaming-at-the-mouth invective.
Neither woman had that steam, that crosswise look that never straightened out.
Photo by Sean Ryan
But Sanders had a smarter, deeper, more viperous form of it. The word "crusade" comes to mind.
Des Moines was the largest city in Iowa and here it was, Saturday night, and the streets were empty and the buildings were mostly dim. Maybe people were at the Fair. Nü-metal veterans Slipknot would be taking the stage in an hour or so, all shrieking and middle finger.
Every hotel, motel, and AirBnb for 80 miles was booked. My dad and I wound up in Arthur, Iowa, a charming town with 206 residents, two hours northwest of Des Moines. So we slumped onto the hood of the car for a moment, collecting the fragments of thought we had left. That day alone we'd seen 10 different events, 6 different candidates.
"I'm glad that Iowa gets the first pick in the election," I said, still not really sure how the caucus system worked, or what a caucus is to begin with. "It's good that they have a voice."
One of us started to flesh out the idea, but both of us shrugged.
"Beautiful sky," said my dad, then scrambled down a stairway to get a few photos.
Photo by Sean Ryan
A two-tone sky. Pink-orange and blue. Something about the way those colors blended, so undecided. I stared west, because that's where we would be going. That's where you were meant to find triumph. Then up early the next morning to attend a church service featuring Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.).
If only the entire country could have hunched onto the hood of my car beside me, gawking out at soft blue like an ocean over the miniature city.
So I decided that those were the moments I would write about in this series. Scenes of meditation. Something we could all use, and something that most legacy media outright avoided, favoring snarky op-eds masquerading as news.
The way the air plashed gently, with a sway, everything about life felt navigable, lost to the vicissitudes of terrain and quiet water. Across the Des Moines River, downtown Des Moines looked peaceful. All lit up like a cathedral on Christmas. I smiled and stared at a red neon sign with an umbrella and the word "Travelers."
New installments come Mondays and Thursdays. Check out my Twitter. Email me at kryan@blazemedia.com


theblaze--2020-01-30--Radical leftists plan to 'f*** s**t up' Friday at NYC's train terminals. Oh, and 'f*** the police,'

Radical leftists plan to 'f*** s**t up' Friday at NYC's train terminals. Oh, and 'f*** the police,' they declare.

Radical leftists plan to ' f*** s**t up ' Friday at NYC 's train terminals .
Oh , and ' @ @ @ @ @ they declare .
'The streets are ours .
The trains our ours .
The walls @ @ @ @ @ is ours . '

A radical leftist organization known as Decolonize This Place indicates it's planning a large-scale "action" Friday in New York City in order to "f*** s**t up" at the city's train terminals. They call it "F*** the Police 3," and it's a protest against fares and police presence on the transit system.
The group posted a video on Twitter announcing the planned uprising. The text preceding the clip reads, "The streets are ours. The trains our ours. The walls are ours. This moment is ours. How will you and your crew build and f*** s**t up for #FTP3 on #J31 (THIS FRIDAY)? Issa mothaf***in' movement."
Here's the clip posted by a different — and less potty-mouthed — Twitter user. (Content warning: But the group's video contains more than a few F-bombs):
What is the group planning on doing?
The video shows a trio of masked, hooded individuals, and the voice of the speaker in the middle is muffled presumably to hide his identity. The speaker asks listeners to "think of the ways that you can move in affinity" with other protesters "and f*** s**t up on J31 all day long."
He also indicates that Decolonize This Place will announce "meet-up locations" on social media — not that such a plan will attract the attention of police who can show up there, too, and exchange pleasantries.
According to the group's rather colorful " FTP Operations Manual," Friday's activities include "mass turnstile hops all day," "campus walkouts," and a "bike block." It appears the activities will take place in Brooklyn.
It appears by "bike block" the group is referring to an action involving a mass of bike riders who literally take over the streets and impede the flow of traffic. In the below video, bike blockers are seen intimidating drivers — and appearing to mock police, who can do little against such a large number of riders:
youtu.be
Anything else?
To be fair, Decolonize This Place appears to support nonviolence, as it instructs participants to not bring weapons of any kind to events and to not get into confrontations with police.
The New York City Police Department on Thursday told TheBlaze it's "aware of the demonstration and will have an adequate police presence in place."
Here's a look at what Decolonize This Place put together in Harlem in November. (Content warning: Language):


theblaze--2020-01-30--Elizabeth Warren says young transgender person must personally OK her pick for education secretary

Elizabeth Warren says young transgender person must personally OK her pick for education secretary If she becomes president , that @

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) said recently that she will not move forward in naming an education secretary should she win the 2020 election unless a young transgender person signs off on the candidate.
What are the details?
During a Sunday town hall event in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Warren said she would begin by encouraging a trans youngster to sit down and have a face-to-face discussion with anyone Warren might consider for the post of education secretary.
The remarks, according to The Daily Caller, were prompted by a voter who said that children should be learning more about LGBTQ history and inclusivity.
“I have two qualifications that I have talked about over and over for my secretary of education," Warren said in the Daily Caller story. “The first, it has to be someone who has taught in a public school."
Warren added that she would have a young trans person interview the education secretary candidate on her "behalf."
“Part two? Because it came from a young trans person who asked about 'welcoming community,' and I said, 'It starts with a secretary of education who has a lot to do with where we spend our money, with what gets advanced in our public schools, with what the standards are,'" she continued. "And I said, I'm gonna have a secretary of education that this young trans person interviews on my behalf."
The Democratic presidential candidate explained that she will only go forward in accepting the candidate for education secretary if the transgender child believes the secretarial candidate is equipped do a good job — in this case, "committed to creating a welcoming environment" — in his or her role for the U.S. government.
“[O]nly if this person believes that our secretary ... of education nominee is someone who is committed to creating a welcoming environment, a safe environment, and a full educational curriculum for everyone, will that person actually be advanced to be secretary of education," she added.
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(H/T: The Daily Caller)


theblaze--2020-01-30--Tennessee lawmaker introduces bill to officially classify CNN, the Washington Post as 'fake news'

Tennessee lawmaker introduces bill to officially classify CNN , the Washington Post as 'fake news' They should be 'condemned '

A Republican state representative filed a bill in the Tennessee General Assembly Wednesday that would formally classify CNN and the Washington Post as "fake news" following the two news outlets' sympathetic coverage of a book suggesting Trump supporters belong to a cult.
The bill's sponsor, Rep. Micah Van Huss, argued the two news outlets should be condemned for denigrating American citizens and be recognized as "part of the media wing of the Democratic Party."
"On October 3, 2019, an editor for The Washington Post wrote that President Donald J. Trump has cast a spell on the Republican Party and suggested that Trumpism is cultlike; and ... on November 24, 2019, a CNN host suggested that Trump supporters belong to a cult and that our president is using mind control," the bill's text reads.
Van Huss was referring to a review conducted by an editor at the Washington Post about the book, "The Cult of Trump," written by self-proclaimed cult expert Steven Hassan, as well as an interview CNN conducted with Hassan about the book.
In the book, Hassan claims that Trump is a cult leader who uses mind control on his followers.
The Post editor, in his review, considers if there is "something almost involuntary about the spell Trump has cast on the Republican Party? Is there something downright cultlike about Trumpism?"
A month later, in November, CNN host Brian Stelter brought Hassan onto his program where the two discussed the validity of the book's claims.
In the bill, Van Huss criticizes the two news outlets for suggesting President Trump's supporters demonstrate cult-like behavior and argues such suggestions "substitute a value judgment in place of a sorely needed argumentative analysis of how voters generate their own political views."
"This cult diagnosis isn't a reasoned argument, or even an objective description," he adds.
"The mainstream media is in a panic because President Trump has opened the eyes of many average Americans who are tired of politics as usual," he suggests as an alternative to the book's suggestions of mind control. "They are tired of being politicians' political pawns, and they are tired of every other country's needs being put before their own."


theblaze--2020-01-30--Nancy Pelosi says President Trump can't be legitimately acquitted if Senate doesn't call impeachment

Nancy Pelosi says President Trump can't be legitimately acquitted if Senate doesn't call impeachment witnesses

Nancy Pelosi says President Trump ca n't be legitimately acquitted if Senate does n't call impeachment witnesses 'You can not @ @ @ @ @ n't have a trial '

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Thursday that President Donald Trump "will not be acquitted" by the Senate in his impeachment trial unless the chamber goes along with Democrats' demands to call more witnesses.
During her weekly press briefing in the U.S. Capitol, Pelosi made the case that, even if the Senate does vote to acquit President Trump of the charges leveled by the House, it won't be a real acquittal unless the Senate does what Democrats have asked for and call for more witness testimony in the trial.
Asked whether she thought Trump would be "chastened" by Congress' impeachment efforts or "emboldened because the Senate will have acquitted him," the speaker quickly responded that Trump "will not be acquitted."
The rationale of this prediction wasn't based on the potential final vote count, but on the perceived legitimacy of the trial if no more witnesses are called.
"You cannot be acquitted if you don't have a trial," Pelosi explained. "And you don't have a trial if you don't have witnesses and documentation."
Pelosi's statement comes against a backdrop of questions about whether Republican senators might break ranks to join their Democratic colleagues' calls to call witnesses and/or subpoena evidence.
Meanwhile, Republicans have grown optimistic that they have the votes to end the trial this week without having to call more witnesses following a meeting between Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and moderate Republican Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) Wednesday.
The question of more witnesses — particularly former national security adviser John Bolton — has been the subject of intense discussion on Capitol Hill this week following reports of allegations about the president's withholding of Ukraine military aid contained in the manuscript of Bolton's forthcoming book, as well as a Wednesday statement by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Rep. Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.) about a phone call the two had in September.
If Bolton does end up being called as a witness, Republicans have warned about the possibility calling former Vice President Joe Biden, Hunter Biden, and others to testify about the Ukrainian corruption concerns underlying the impeachment efforts in return.
"If people want witnesses, we're going to get a lot of witnesses," Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) warned Tuesday in reference to the possibility of a witness trade-off between Democrats and Republicans. "I'll make a prediction: There will be 51 Republican votes to call Hunter Biden, Joe Biden, the whistleblower and the DNC staffer [Alexandra Chalupa] at a very minimum."


theblaze--2020-01-30--March for Life 2020: It’s a revolution, baby

Pro-life women declare they 're taking back the ' f-word ; ' young people proclaim they are the pro-life generation @

Hundreds of thousands of pro-life demonstrators from around the world gathered in Washington, D.C., last Friday to take part in the March for Life, the largest pro-life demonstration in the nation.
The march's legacy began with the 1973 landmark Supreme Court Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion nationwide, and it takes place on or around the Roe anniversary every year in Washington, D.C.
And it isn't confined by borders. In a tweet published by the March for Life, one marcher said he had come from as far away as Holland to stand for life and characterized abortion as a "global issue." March for Life culminates in Prague, Paris, and Warsaw every year, but you'd never know it because of what little coverage it receives in the media.
Students chant and march to the Supreme Court at the 2020 March for Life. Photo by Samantha Sullivan
Busloads of students were chaperoned into the city by teachers, youth pastors, and parents to march for what they believe is the gravest human rights injustice in our lifetime: abortion. In fact, I shared a plane ride from Dallas to Washington with a group of Catholic high school students surely on their way to the march.
To be frank, I felt like a "boomer" at all the events I covered Thursday and Friday. Everyone was so young. I was officially one of the "old" people in the room. Nevertheless, I tried to blend in to absorb as much of the expo as I could while pretending I wasn't completely baffled by how young this movement is.
The March for Life 2020 formally kicked off with a youth expo Thursday morning at the Renaissance Hotel in D.C.
A panel of quick-witted, hysterically funny women spoke to a room brimming with teens. Their goal was to equip them with the information they need to challenge modern feminist dogmas about abortion by invoking first-wave feminist arguments against it.
Guest panelist, pro-life author, and former Cosmo writer Dr. Sue Ellen Browder called on pro-life women to take back the 'f-word': feminism. Everyone in the room loved that.
Christina Francis, board-certified Ob/Gyn and pro-life speaker addressed the March for Life Youth Expo at the Renaissance Hotel in Washington, D.C. Photo by Samantha Sullivan
March for Life's theme this year was "pro-life is pro-woman," and pro-life women are intent on reclaiming the narrative modern feminism hijacked.
First-wave feminism taught us that "the crime of abortion" was bad for men and women but there's no Ying to this Yang like modern feminists would have you believe. Early feminists rejected abortion outright in newspaper editorials where they debated infanticide's prevalence and prostitution.
March for Life President Jeanne Mancini gave opening remarks to a room packed with teenagers before passing the podium on to the expo's keynote speaker and pro-life legal scholar, Erika Bachiochi. Bachiochi opened the discussion by questioning the authenticity of reproductive justice in an impassioned speech to an attentive young audience.
From left to right: Katie Yoder, Dr. Sue Ellen Browder, Christina Francis, Marcy McClusky, Brandi Swindell Photo by Samantha Sullivan
This year marks the centennial anniversary of the 19th Amendment, which granted women the right to vote in 1920 fortifying the gist of this year's theme.
Bachiochi cited several early feminist scholars throughout her speech who rejected the idea of abortion, including Victoria Woodhull, a leader of the women's suffrage movement, and the first female to ever run for president.
Before delivering her closing remarks, Bachiochi encouraged young people to think carefully about how to respond personally and culturally to abortion.
Then a panel, led by Katie Yoder of National Review, took on the topic of abortion's impact in the culture war. Michelle Williams, who justified her abortion for success at the 77th Annual Golden Globes Awards, served as just one of the examples.
One of the bubbly panelists, Brandi Swindell of Stanton Healthcare, a life-affirming clinic dedicated to unexpected pregnancy care, proudly donned a purple pro-life sash as a symbolic gesture to reclaiming feminism.
Swindell dubbed it "the purple sash revolution."
Brandi Swindell of Stanton Healthcare Photo by Samantha Sullivan
After the panel was an expo with dozens of pro-life organizations from around the country who offered resources to women seeking abortions or have had them.
One thing Planned Parenthood and the pro-abortion lobby fail to mention is that there are options available to women seeking abortions as well as after care for those who have had them. The business of abortion has become a predatory practice driven by misinformation. It also preys on the most vulnerable: women and children. But there is a faithful momentum within the pro-life movement that strives to reach women who fall prey to the abortion lobby's death grip.
Swindell of Stanton Healthcare, which opened in 2006, said she strategically places life-affirming clinics near Planned Parenthoods throughout the country, and her efforts have paid off. She told me she has saved more than 1,000 babies who would have otherwise been aborted.
What the media don't tell women is that there's an overwhelming sense of hope within the movement that doesn't seek to harm but uplift. If you ever have the chance to attend this march, you'll realize that out of the gate. Every message was a message of compassion for women who've been convinced by Planned Parenthood, Hollywood, and our culture that abortion is their only alternative.
At the expo, teens were reminded about the importance of relating and respecting those whose views on abortion differ from their own. That's what makes this movement so different. There's a lack of vulgarity, anger, and disorder.
On Friday, when I arrived to the march, it wasn't what I was expecting. Despite the grave issue that is at stake, pro-lifers embody the unwavering sense of hope that abortion will end in their lifetime.
A spokesperson for the March for Life told me the march usually attracts 100,000 attendees per year but estimated that number would be larger this year with President Trump in attendance.
Pro-lifers gather to witness President Trump's address to the March for Life. Photo by Samantha Sullivan
The first group I interviewed at the march was a group of teenage boys from Detroit Catholic Central High School in Michigan.
"Why do you march?" I asked.
"I love this experience. It's one of the greatest weekends of the year, and I'm just happy to be here," a student told me.
Another student said he disagreed with abortion because "you basically take away a soul, a soul that was a gift from God."
The most poignant answers — which I believe differentiates the pro-life movement from any other movement — was their response to the advice they'd give a woman considering an abortion.
"I would tell her that I love her and I respect her. But I encourage her to go deeper, to look into her heart and to realize that it's way more than just a choice. It is life," one pro-lifer told me. Much of the answers echoed the same sentiment.
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And although the march attracts an estimated 100,000 attendees per year, it receives little coverage from major news outlets.
According to the Media Research Center, the major networksdedicated a total of 28 seconds to the historic march. "ABC World News Tonight" gave the march 15 seconds, and "CBS This Morning: Saturday" gave it 13 seconds. NBC ignored it altogether.
While major news networks were blatant about downplaying the momentum of the march and the significance of the first-ever presidential address at the March for Life, CBS News online was unquestionably intentional when they aired an interview with Planned Parenthood CEO Alexis McGill Johnson instead of President Trump's speech.
In a similar manner, NBC's "Today" featured an interview with "SNL" star Aidy Bryant who was given airtime to tout an episode that featured an abortion in the second season of her Hulu show, "Shrill."
"CBS Evening News" aired an interview with a woman who had lost her frozen embryos in a nasty divorce battle while ignoring hundreds of thousands of people who marched peacefully — and prayed and sang and danced — all the way to the Supreme Court to champion the right to life.
Contrast the media's treatment of the March for Life to the Women's March and you'll notice a glaring disparity.
In its inaugural march in 2017, ABC, CBS, and NBC dedicated 127 times more airtime to the Women's March than they dedicated to the March for Life.
The combined total among the three major networks for that year was one hour, 15 minutes, and 18 seconds for the Women's March. The March for Life that year got 35 seconds — 22 of which were dedicated to a group who attended the march and found themselves caught in a blizzard on their way home.
In 2018, President Trump addressed the March for Life via satellite, yet ABC, CBS, and NBC dedicated 25 minutes and 24 seconds to the Women's March and a mere 3 minutes and 46 seconds to the March for Life.
If you noticed the lack of "pink p***y" hats in your newsfeeds this year it's because the Women's March in Washington, D.C., went nearly unnoticed due to a drastic drop in attendance. The first march was one of the largest in the nation's history, coming in at 500,000 to 1 million attendees. This year's march didn't even hit the figure they expected when they applied for a permit of 25,000 — because half were no-shows.
If attendance at the March for Life dwindled, it'd be a story worthy of a push notification in the New York Times or the Washington Post.
However, the story of the March for Life couldn't be more different than that of the Women's March — or any march for that matter.
The pro-life movement is thriving while the Women's March is dying.
If the abortion lobby can't mobilize a youth movement the way the pro-life movement has, what future does grassroots abortion really have?


theblaze--2020-01-30--Men charged with having $7 million worth of fentanyl released without bail under New York's new crim

Men charged with having $7 million worth of fentanyl released without bail under New York's new criminal justice law

Men charged with having $ 7 million worth of fentanyl released without bail under New York 's new criminal justice @ @ @ @ @ safety

A judge allowed six men charged with possession of millions of dollars worth of fentanyl to be released without bail, a result of New York's new criminal justice law, according to the New York Post.
Livo Valdez, Jaslin Baldera, Frederick Baldera, Frandi Ledema, Diego Tejada, and Parfraimy Antonio were arrested Monday in an alleged heroin and fentanyl packaging mill, in which police found hundreds of thousands of envelopes of fentanyl powder — valued at $7 million.
Authorities believe the massive amount of drugs was being packaged for distribution onto the streets of New York and the New England region.
The judge at Manhattan Criminal Court released the men after their arraignment Wednesday, citing the fact that they don't have previous criminal records and that their families showed up for the court proceedings. Assistant District Attorney Michael Di Paolo argued that "none of them are eligible for bail."
The men were ordered to surrender their passports due to ties to the Dominican Republic, and their family members celebrated as they were released.
The suspects are due back in court on Feb. 27. They face charges of criminal possession of a controlled substance and criminally using drug paraphernalia.
Under New York's controversial new bail law, criminal courts are no longer allowed to set cash bail for most misdemeanors and nonviolent felonies.
The law quickly came under fire from critics after Tiffany Harris, a woman who repeatedly attacked orthodox Jewish women, was arrested three times in one week for such assaults.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) has acknowledged some problems and admitted there are some "consequences we have to adjust for."
New York Police Commissioner Dermot Shea said there is a clear connection between the law and increased crime.
"In the first three weeks of this year, we're seeing significant spikes in crime. So either we forgot how to police New York City, or there's a correlation," Shea said, according to the Washington Examiner.


theblaze--2020-01-30--Iranian factory hand prints US, Israeli flags to burn at protests. Worker says flag burning is 'the

Iranian factory hand prints US, Israeli flags to burn at protests. Worker says flag burning is 'the least that can be done' against 'cowardly' US.

Iranian factory hand prints US , Israeli flags to burn at protests .
Worker says flag burning is 'the least @ @ @ @ @ against 'cowardly ' US .
The factory prints 2,000 U.S. and Israeli flags to burn @ @

Business is heating up at an Iranian factory that makes U.S., Israeli, and British flags by the thousands every month for protesters to burn in the streets, Reuters reported.
The factory in Khomein, southwest of Tehran, is the largest flag factory in the country, the outlet said, adding that young men and women print the flags by hand before hanging them to dry — to the tune of 2,000 U.S. and Israeli flags per month during the busiest times.
Image source: YouTube screenshot
Of course, the spike in tensions between the U.S. and Iran of late — punctuated by President Donald Trump ordering the killing of Iranian general and terror mastermind Qassem Soleimani — naturally ups the demand for the Stars and Stripes to set alight.
Image source: YouTube screenshot
What did flag factory officials have to say?
Ghasem Ghanjani, who owns the Diba Parcham flag factory, told Reuters:
We have no problem with the American and British people. We have [a] problem with their governors. We have [a] problem with their presidents, with the wrong policy they have. The people of America and Israel know that we have no problem with them. If people burn the flags of these countries at different rallies, it is only to show their protest.
Image source: YouTube screenshot
The factory's quality control manager — who went only by Rezaei — added to the outlet that “compared to the cowardly actions of the United States, such as General Soleimani's assassination, [burning an American flag] is a minimal thing against them. This is the least that can be done."
Mixed messages?
But Reuters noted that many Iranians hit the streets last November to protest against the country's highest figures and chanted “our enemy is not the U.S., our enemy is here."
And earlier this month, protesters took to the streets of Tehran — calling for the resignation of Ayatollah Khamenei after Iran admitted to mistakenly shooting down a passenger plane — and actually refused to trample on large U.S. and Israeli flags.