theblaze--2020-11-11--Portland politician who wants to defund police calls 911 on Lyft driver for canceling ride. The driv

Portland politician who wants to defund police calls 911 on Lyft driver for canceling ride. The driver? He had enough of her 'rude and abusive' words.

Portland politician who wants to defund police calls 911 on Lyft driver for canceling ride .
The driver ?
He @ @ @ @ @ and abusive ' words .
'She was not a pleasant person .
... She was @ @ @ @ @ made me uncomfortable . '

The ironies are plentiful.
Portland City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty has been pushing to defund the police at a time when officers have been overwhelmed by left-wing rioters in the Oregon city's streets since the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis in late May.
Specifically, she wants cops pulled from 911 calls that don't involve crimes, the Oregonian reported.
Oh, and she also oversees Portland's emergency dispatch system, the paper said.
Got that so far?
Now get this: Hardesty actually called 911 recently over a Lyft driver who abruptly canceled her ride after he said she was "rude and abusive" toward him, the Oregonian reported.
"She was not a pleasant person," driver Richmond Frost told the paper, adding that he didn't even know who Hardesty was until after the ordeal had concluded. "That has nothing to do with her political position as a Portland council person. I'm out here doing my job. She was very disrespectful to me, made me uncomfortable. I don't feel like I have to sit in a car for anyone to have to argue unrelentingly and be rude and abusive, telling me what I have to do in my own vehicle."
The skinny on the short, strange trip
On Nov. 1, Hardesty ordered a pickup from a casino resort in Washington state — and things went downhill right off the bat when there was a pickup location mixup, the Oregonian said, adding that Frost said Hardesty got angry about it.
Then the driver said as he was headed out of the casino lot, Hardesty demanded he close the windows and that she wouldn't ride with them down, the paper said.
More from the Oregonian:
The car windows on the front driver's side and front passenger's side were cracked open to allow for air circulation as a safeguard due to the coronavirus pandemic, he said. According to Lyft's website, the company's new rules for the road during the pandemic recommend keeping the car windows open.
He rolled the windows up slightly but kept them open a sliver, telling Hardesty that the windows were open for safety purposes since they couldn't be six feet apart in the confined space of his car.
"I did say, 'It's for my safety and your safety.' But that was like pouring gas on her fire," Frost recalled to the paper. "She demanded that I close that window right now. She was kind of ballistic at that point."
When Hardesty wouldn't let up, the driver told the Oregonian he took an early exit off Interstate 5 south.
"So I made a decision, it would be in the best interest for both of us to cancel the ride," Frost noted to the paper, adding that he pulled into a Chevron station.
"It's lit up like a football field. It's safe. It's warm," he told the paper. "She could order another Lyft or Uber, whatever she wants to do, and I can be done, and I can get on with my work."
More from the Oregonian:
But Hardesty's anger boiled over. Frost said she told him: "'Well, no, either you're going to take me back to the casino or you're going to take me to my destination,'" he recalled. Hardesty, he said, told him that she'd already paid for the ride, but Frost said he had canceled the trip and no money had been exchanged.
He said he pulled close to the front door of the gas station's convenience store, but Hardesty wouldn't get out of his four-door black 2019 Hyundai Ioniq.
Frost asked her if he'd have to call police to have her removed and she told him to go ahead, he said.
It gets even better
So the veteran politician, who oversees Portland's emergency dispatch system and believes cops shouldn't be involved in 911 calls, dialed 911 from the back seat of Frost's vehicle, the paper said.
"I've got a Lyft driver that decided he would just drop me off at a filling station," Hardesty told dispatch when asked what her emergency was, according to the Oregonian, which said it obtained dispatch records through a public records request. "Well, I'm not getting out of the car, in the dark, at a filling station, not happening — all because I asked him to put the window up. I'm not leaving."
Was there violence? No. Weapons used? No.
"He says I've got to get out of his car, or he would call the police, so I decided to call for him," Hardesty added to dispatch, according to the paper.
The dispatcher told Hardesty several times the circumstance wasn't a crime but a civil matter, the Oregonian reported, adding that the vehicle was the driver's property.
But the Portland commissioner who wants to defund the police wanted police to respond to her, the paper said.
"I am not going to allow him to leave me at the side of the road," she told dispatch, the Oregonian reported.
While the pair waited for cops to arrive, the paper said Frost also called police to register a complaint — and dispatch recognized his call was related to the call they had just fielded from Hardesty.
Then soon, a police car pulled behind Frost's vehicle just as another Lyft driver arrived, the Oregonian said.
Frost gave cops his story, and then when police approached the rear passenger door, Hardesty exited and got into the other Lyft vehicle, which she ordered for her ride home, the paper said.
"Peace restored and involved parties sent their separate ways," a 10:16 p.m. entry said on the dispatch report, the Oregonian noted.
Hardesty sent a complaint to Lyft, the paper said, which read: "I requested a ride, the driver came to the wrong pick up location. He then blamed me. I asked him to roll the window up on my side and he started to yell, 'I can't because the regulations require each window to be cracked (which isn't true). He then pulls over in the dark on the side of a gas station and told me he was cancelling the ride. I had no interest in being left on the side of the road by an angry driver. He threaten [sic] to call the police. I called the police & another car. Both arrived at the same time. It is totally inappropriate to expect a woman to get out of a vehicle in the dead of night because any angry person demands it. This is a safety issue for your customer. Your driver was in no danger."
A Lyft Safety Team member replied to Hardesty saying, "drivers are free to end a ride for any reason as long as the drop off is in a safe location. Safety is our top priority. We take these matters very seriously. We encourage everyone using Lyft to be respectful of others. This helps maintain a safe and inclusive community," the Oregonian said.
More from the paper:
The Chevron station's convenience store closed at 10 p.m. but the station's night lights remain on because the pumps are available through credit card use 24 hours a day, a clerk said.
Frost, 63, who has lived in the Portland metro area for 51 years, said he got back into his car and drove off after Hardesty got out of the back seat. Once back on I-5 south, he stopped on the shoulder and called a Lyft help line to report the canceled trip.
Only when he was recounting what had occurred and reported the passenger's full name — which he had overheard her give to police — did he recognize that Hardesty was the Portland city commissioner, he said.
"She was just another passenger," Frost said, according to the Oregonian, adding that he's worried that publicity about the incident will adversely affect his life. "I treat everybody the same. I try to be professional."
Anything else?
Hardesty didn't respond to messages from the Oregonian for comment — but she did speak to the Portland Tribune, saying she "proactively" called police because Frost calling police on her "would put me in danger" as a black woman.
"I don't call 911 lightly, but I certainly am not going to do anything that would put my personal safety at risk," she said to the Tribune, according to the New York Post. "It's a lot harder when you are black or brown in America to make that decision."
Hardesty added to the Tribune that it's also dangerous "for a single woman to be traveling anywhere, especially in this very racially tense time. People recognize me everywhere … I just was not going to take that chance," the Post said.


theblaze--2020-11-11--Just in time for Thanksgiving, NY Gov. Cuomo declares gatherings at private homes may not exceed 10

Just in time for Thanksgiving, NY Gov. Cuomo declares gatherings at private homes may not exceed 10 people

Just in time for Thanksgiving , NY Gov .
Cuomo declares gatherings at private homes may not exceed 10 people

The state of New York infamously lost tens of thousands of its citizens to what were determined to be COVID-related deaths last spring. Thousands of those deaths came in nursing homes and longterm-care facilities in the state after New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordered those locations to take in known COVID-19 cases.
Critics of the governor have repeatedly accused him of mishandling the crisis.
Cuomo continues to faces excoriation for the many deaths in nursing homes and elder-care facilities that were a result of his policies.
His decision to shut down the state's economy still stands out for criticism as New York City has still not recovered.
And his treatment of Gotham's Orthodox Jewish Community during the pandemic has been a source of ire for many.
Now, he's adding to his list of greatest hits with his most recent response to the rapid rise in COVID-19 cases across the U.S.
Just in time for the Thanksgiving holiday, the governor announced Wednesday that all indoor gatherings would be limited to 10 people.
These are not just indoor gatherings at facilities open to the public.
According to Gov. Cuomo's tweeted announcement, the state is focused on limiting indoor gatherings at private homes to 10 people, a significant drop from the 50-person limit that has been in place, the Ithaca Voice reported.
"You go to a party with just your friends, only 10 people. You know these people. 'They wouldn't hurt me. They're my friends,'" Cuomo said, according to the Citizen. "I know, but they could be infected."
"New York follows the science," Cuomo tweeted. "We know indoor gatherings and parties are a major source of COVID spread."
"To slow the spread," he continued, "NYS will limit indoor gatherings at private residences to 10 people."
Bars and restaurants that have state liquor licenses will be required to close at 10 p.m. daily. Gyms must also close by 10 p.m.
The new order from the governor is set to go into effect at 10 p.m. Friday.
"We're seeing a national and global Covid surge," Cuomo said on a conference call with reporters, according to the New York Times. "And New York is a ship on the Covid tide.
"These measures are appropriate at this point in time in anticipation of what we see as potential spread," Cuomo told reporters, WCBS-AM said. "If these measures are not sufficient to slow the spread, we will … turn the valve more, and part of that would be reducing the number of people in indoor dining."
"It's tough on bars and restaurants, it's tough on gyms, it's tough on everyone. I would say we are within sight of the finish line, the vaccine has been discovered, it has to be perfected, it has to be operationalized, but we see the finish line," Cuomo added, according to WCBS.
The New York Post said the governor did not indicate how the new order would be enforced, but he did say it would be up to local governments.
"You can make rules, rules are only as good as enforcement, period," Cuomo said. "I need the local governments to enforce."


theblaze--2020-11-11--Liberal activist Andrew Lang's comments raise suspicions that Democrats could exploit Georgia law to

Liberal activist Andrew Lang's comments raise suspicions that Democrats could exploit Georgia law to win critical runoff elections

Liberal activist Andrew Lang 's comments raise suspicions that Democrats could exploit Georgia law to win critical runoff elections 'Election @ @ @ @ @ attention to what is happening '

As the nation sets its sights on Georgia, where two runoff elections will determine which political party controls the U.S. Senate for the next two years, former Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang announced last week that he is moving to the Peach State to aid Democratic efforts there, WAGA-TV reported.
On Twitter, Yang said that "everyone who campaigned for Joe should get ready to head to Georgia."
By Saturday, Yang confirmed he was moving his family to Georgia.
"Great news #yanggang - Evelyn and I are moving to Georgia to help @ossoff and @ReverendWarnock win! This is our only chance to clear Mitch out of the way and help Joe and Kamala get things done in the next 4 years. More details to come but let's go!!!" Yang announced.
Yang's comments immediately generated questions of whether Democratic voters are looking to exploit Georgia's lenient election laws to give Democrats the edge in both runoff elections.
Specifically, Georgia does not specify a minimum residency requirement for voting, meaning any legal permanent resident of Georgia would be able to participate in the runoff election so long as they register to vote by Dec. 7. Georgia also requires voters to show ID before voting — but state law does not require the identification to be issued by Georgia.
According to the Wall Street Journal, moving to Georgia to participate in the runoff elections is technically legal — but suggested any new residents should stay a while to avoid legal backlash.
Enrijeta Shino, a professor at the University of North Florida, told the Journal that moving to Georgia only to participate in the elections without intentions of staying would constitute fraud.
"People should be very careful about doing that," Shino warned. "These are sensitive issues, and election officials are going to pay attention to what is happening."
More from the Journal:
A spokesman for the Georgia Secretary of State's Office, which oversees voter registrations, declined to comment on how quickly someone could establish legal residency in Georgia, but cited state law that it is a felony to vote in Georgia elections if you are not a legal resident or if you are residing in the state briefly with the intention just to vote and then move away.
As of Wednesday afternoon, Sen. David Purdue (R-Ga.) led his Democratic challenger, Jon Ossoff, by nearly 90,000 votes, or about 1.7 percentage points. Although Purdue won more votes than Ossoff, Georgia law requires a runoff election because neither candidate broke the 50% threshold.
Meanwhile, the other Senate run-off, in which Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R) is the incumbent, was a special election, and more than a dozen candidates ran. No candidate reached the 50% threshold in that race, and the top two finishers — Loeffler and Democrat Raphael Warnock — were sent to the runoff.
Both runoff elections will be held on Jan. 5. Early voting for the runoff will begin Dec. 14.


theblaze--2020-11-11--Truckers organize Veterans Day strike to protest Biden's anti-fracking policies

'We fully intend to exercise our rights , and will not have politicians making crippling decisions , that will negatively @ @ @ @ @ future of our children '

A group of truckers from around the nation called for a strike on Veterans Day in protest of former Vice President Joe Biden's hostility to fracking.
The protest movement, called StopTheTires2020, was organized on Facebook on Nov. 6 and has grown rapidly since then, the Trucker reported. As of Wednesday, the group had more than 54,000 members.
"Our message is simple and hopefully effective. We fully intend to exercise our rights, and will not have politicians making crippling decisions, that will negatively affect our future and the future of our children," StopTheTires2020 organizer Jeremy Rewoldt wrote in a Facebook post. "We will not participate in the leftist, Biden/Harris Green New Deal. We do not support the banning of fracking. The United States of America operates as a capitalistic economy and OIL is the fuel she survives on."
The group called for a national trucker shutdown on Veterans Day, Nov. 11. This first strike is meant to call attention to the protest movement against Biden in anticipation of a second, larger planned strike to occur on Thanksgiving Day.
Both Biden and his running mate, Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), have previously opposed fracking, with Biden going so far as to say it would be "eliminated" if he became president and that "we're going to end fossil fuels." After withstanding heavy criticism for those comments toward the end of the election, Biden reversed his position and pledged that he would not ban fracking if he became president.
Biden has made climate change a top issue in his campaign, pledging to re-enter the United States into the Paris climate agreement on day one of his presidency, should he win the election.
Biden has also proposed a $1.7 trillion plan to invest in clean energy infrastructure over the next decade and in May appointed Democratic socialist Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) to co-chair his campaign's climate task force. Ocasio-Cortez is a vocal advocate for the Green New Deal, a set of progressive legislative priorities that would fundamentally transform the American energy sector, seeking to end the use of fossil fuels entirely.
President Donald Trump, on the contrary, adamantly opposes the Green New Deal and supports fracking.
In his Facebook post, Rewoldt praised Trump for working "diligently for four long years to protect the rights and freedoms of all Americans, and very importantly the blue-collar workers of this country."
"The blue-collar workers are literally the ones that make the wheels turn!" Rewoldt said. "Without truck drivers this country could not survive for long."
On Wednesday morning, Rewoldt was interviewed by Fox News about the protest.
"Today is just about getting the word out for all of us drivers so we can come together for the bigger movement, as we want to call it, on the 26th," Rewoldt said.
If given the opportunity to speak with Biden and Harris, Rewoldt would ask them, "What can you promise myself, every driver, and every blue-collar worker in the United States of America today?"
Rewoldt explained that his movement wants to show America what could happen if a potential Biden administration banned fracking, how such a radical policy could eliminate jobs for truckers and other blue-collar American workers.


theblaze--2020-11-11--Horowitz: The ultimate election fraud? Violating civil liberties

Both Democrat and Republican governors and mayors are suspending civil liberties indefinitely

Our veterans didn't fight for a country where mayors and governors can shout COVID, a noun, and a verb in the form of command and magically make our natural rights disappear.
What's worse than wrongly ascending to office based on fraud? Using that office to fraudulently govern in a way that violates the most basic civil and religious liberties this country was founded upon. Just because you win a state or federal election doesn't mean you have the right to treat the citizens like subjects. You might get to decide issues pertaining to zoning or garbage collection in a way that some of the people don't like, but you can't destroy their liberty and property and rule over their persons in the most literal sense. That's what distinguishes our constitutional republic from a pure democracy. As Thomas Jefferson wrote, "An elective despotism is not the government we fought for."
While everyone is fighting over the election results, both Democrat and Republican governors and mayors are suspending civil liberties indefinitely using already failed methods meant to stop the spread of a respiratory virus. Baltimore's mayor announced the closure of businesses and churches over a 10-person capacity limit plus an outdoor mask mandate even when people are far apart. Numerous cities are declaring curfews (as if the virus is nocturnal). Even in Republican-dominated Utah, the National Guard was dispatched to "contact trace" the public for a virus that has already spread for months and is impossible to trace.
Meanwhile, crime is skyrocketing in many of these cities, yet it's the peaceful citizens who must fear the police if they fail to cover up their humanity, not the criminals. As such, the citizenry must fear both the authoritarian government and the anarchists and criminals at the same time. A mix of North Korea and Afghanistan?
What is so ironic about this form of fascism is that these draconian restrictions have already been in place for months to varying degrees and, by proponents' own admission, have failed to stop the spread. Thus, now, a governor can suspend life, liberty, property, religious services, and the right to breathe free air even outdoors indefinitely without any checks and balances and without having to show evidence that those measures work.
Consider the absurdity of responding to a spread with an outdoor mask mandate. By definition, authorities are admitting that the indoor mandates in place since the spring with over 90% compliance in most states failed to stop the spread. However, it makes no sense, according to anyone's opinion, that outdoor spread would be driving the epidemic more than the indoor spread. Thus, they are tethering an even more severe violation of the Constitution to a previous version of it that clearly didn't work to achieve their stated goals.
Then again, this was never about stopping the virus. This was about tyranny. Just like releasing criminals from jails was never about stopping COVID in jails but about dismantling our criminal justice system. Just like voting by mail was never about protecting people from the virus but about institutionalizing voter fraud.
What has become clear is that regardless of who winds up sitting in the Oval Office on January 20, we will not have a country left if we continue to allow North Korea-style authoritarianism to prevail under the banner of the coronavirus.
Folks, what we are doing is clearly not working. We are suffering usurpations and abuses that are exponentially worse than anything King George did to the colonists, yet there is no rebellion in sight. For that matter, we don't even see a political blowback in the majority of state legislatures where Republicans command a majority.
The left is increasingly ensuring that we have no peaceful means of defending our civil rights, religious liberty, and even bodily integrity under the reign of coronavirus fascism. Consider the following amalgamation of actions taken against us:
All information debating and questioning the legality and prudence behind these measures is censored.
They say we are not even allowed to protest these measures because it will spread the virus, while Black Lives Matter and Biden supporters can host large gatherings with the encouragement of government.
The same federal courts who will grant relief on bogus claims from criminals and illegal aliens within hours of their petitions laugh our bedrock civil liberty claims out of court.
Republicans, with very few exceptions, are just as tyrannical as Democrats, thereby ensuring that we can't even escape to red states for relief from these authoritarian measures.
The police are now being used against us for living our lives rather than against the growing anarchist movement that endangers our public safety.
If we defend ourselves against the mobs that are ignored by the police, we are the ones who will be prosecuted.
Vote in elections to change the status quo? Good luck winning them with mail-in fraud and ballot-harvesting countering a groundswell of lawful individual voting.
The only thing we have left is the ability to speak out, but watching how Australia and other former liberal democracies are now prohibiting any speech criticizing lockdowns, our days are numbered.
Indeed, when you realize what is happening to us, the acts of King George preceding the Revolutionary War don't appear to be too intolerable. And there is a reason for that. Our Founders sought to nip the tyranny in the bud before it became too powerful for them to redress. Patrick Henry, in his famous "give me liberty or give me death" speech, warned, "We are apt to shut our eyes against a painful truth, and listen to the song of that siren till she transforms us into beasts." To those who felt that the tyranny had not gotten bad enough and that it would be too arduous a task to rebel, he posed the following challenge:
They tell us, sir, that we are weak; unable to cope with so formidable an adversary. But when shall we be stronger? Will it be the next week, or the next year? Will it be when we are totally disarmed, and when a British guard shall be stationed in every house? Shall we gather strength by irresolution and inaction? Shall we acquire the means of effectual resistance, by lying supinely on our backs, and hugging the delusive phantom of hope, until our enemies shall have bound us hand and foot? Sir, we are not weak if we make a proper use of those means which the God of nature hath placed in our power.
So, will we wait until they station cameras in our houses to make sure we are wearing masks at home in order to finally push back? Or will we organize new cadres of the Sons of Liberty and expose these tyrants at the local level while refusing to comply with evil, illogical, and unlawful arbitrary edicts? The clock is ticking. As it states in our Declaration of Independence, "All experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed."
While memorializing our troops on Memorial Day 1927, President Calvin Coolidge noted that their sacrifice abroad is only worthwhile if we honor the Constitution at home. "The integrity of the Union rests on the Constitution," said Coolidge in his poignant speech at Arlington National Cemetery. "Unless that great instrument is to be the supreme law of the land, we could have no Union worthy of our consideration."
It's time to make our union a constitutional republic again so that it's worthy of the sacrifice of our veterans. It's time to get educated and activated while we still can … or be enslaved.


theblaze--2020-11-11--Principal blasted for calling Trump supporters 'a**wipes' with 'small d**ks.' His apology apparently

Principal blasted for calling Trump supporters 'a**wipes' with 'small d**ks.' His apology apparently falls short as well.

Principal blasted for calling Trump supporters ' a**wipes ' with 'small d**ks . '
His apology apparently falls short as @ @ @ @ @ to include profanity , and for that I am truly sorry and hope that the @ @ @ @ @ apology '

For some reason a principal of a public middle school in Maine decided it was a fine idea to post profane insults on Facebook against supporters of President Donald Trump the night before the election.
What were the insults?
Bill Gifford, principal of Oceanside Middle School in Thomaston, reportedly wrote that Trump "is not my president and is possibly the worst president ever," ripped Trump's "trolls," and called them "asswipes." He also reportedly wrote that Trump supporters have "big trucks" and "small d**ks."
It apparently wasn't the first time Gifford took on Trump supporters, as he also reportedly posted over the summer that "Trumpmonkeys" are "ignorant f***ers" who are part of "goon squads" and added that now "the gloves are off and you are either with me or with him and his fascist army."
What happened next?
Gifford's posts were widely circulated among the Regional School Unit 13 community and alarmed parents who said the principal set a bad example for students, the Bangor Daily News reported.
In fact, the paper said Gifford was the second Maine school official last week who came under fire for making disparaging remarks about Trump and his supporters on social media. Believe it or not, the school board chair of Regional School Unit 71 resigned last Wednesday after making profane posts about Trump supporters on Facebook on election night, the Daily News said.
I'm sorry (kinda)
Gifford apologized to RSU 13 parents on Wednesday, saying that "my mistake was to include profanity, and for that I am truly sorry and hope that the community can accept this heartfelt apology," the paper reported.
He added that "it is a great privilege to hold a leadership position and help guide our youth to realize their full potential. With this great privilege, I realize that I have the responsibility to ensure that I demonstrate effective ways to communicate, even when I disagree, in a way that ensures a productive and respectful dialogue," the Daily News noted.
But the paper said Gifford's apology didn't quite measure up for some parents.
"I believe that thinking we can hold the principal to a lower standard than the students are held to is inexcusable," parent Steve Spearin told the Daily News. "If a student had said those things in that manner, an apology of 'I'm sorry you heard me say it' — no matter how nicely worded — would not be acceptable."
Spearin added to the paper that by disparaging Trump and his supporters, Gifford effectively targeted district students and families who might support Trump.
"I am gravely concerned that the views Mr. Gifford expressed are reflective of the way he interacts with his students," Spearin also told the Daily News. "I am also worried that my children may face negative repercussions if they express anything contrary to those views."
Now what?
It appeared Gifford deleted his Facebook page as of Thursday, but the paper said it got a look at screenshots of his controversial posts.
Regional School Unit 13 Superintendent John McDonald would not comment on the matter Thursday, the Daily News said. The Village Soup reported that Gifford did not respond to its emailed request for comment.
More from the paper:
RSU 13 does have a social media policy in place for employees, however it largely focuses on school officials using social media for school-related proposes. When it comes to personal use of social media, the policy states that "employees are expected to exhibit professional decorum on social media and shall not engage in conduct which distracts from or disrupts the educational process of students or the operations of the schools."
Oceanside Middle School serves students from six Knox County towns, the Daily News said, adding Trump received around 38 percent of the votes from Knox County as opposed to former Vice President Joe Biden's 58 percent.


theblaze--2020-11-11--Report: Florida governor pushes bill that would allow armed citizens to use deadly force against loo

Report: Florida governor pushes bill that would allow armed citizens to use deadly force against looters, rioters

Report : Florida governor pushes bill that would allow armed citizens to use deadly force against looters , rioters

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) is pushing "anti-mob" legislation that would reportedly allow citizens to confront looters with firepower.
The bill, which comes after months of civil unrest in the wake of George Floyd's death, would broaden Florida's Stand Your Ground law by expanding the "forcible felonies" list to justify the use of deadly force against individuals engaged in criminal activity resulting in "interruption or impairment" to a business, according to the Miami Herald.
That legislation would also justify deadly force used against individuals engaged in looting businesses within 500 feet of a "violent or disorderly assembly."
Currently, Florida state law declares:
A person is justified in using or threatening to use deadly force if he or she reasonably believes that using or threatening to use such force is necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm to himself or herself or another or to prevent the imminent commission of a forcible felony. A person who uses or threatens to use deadly force in accordance with this subsection does not have a duty to retreat and has the right to stand his or her ground if the person using or threatening to use the deadly force is not engaged in a criminal activity and is in a place where he or she has a right to be.
"Forcible felonies" in Florida include: murder, manslaughter, sexual battery, robbery, kidnapping, assault, battery, aggravated stalking, carjacking, among others, and "any other felony which involves the use or threat of physical force or violence against any individual."
Also, the bill DeSantis is promoting would give immunity to motorists who "unintentionally killed or injured protesters who block traffic," the Herald reported.
The bill would also withhold state funding from local governments if they make "disproportionate funding reductions" to police budgets.
What was the reaction?
Although the legislation has not yet been filed with the Florida Legislature, legal experts are concerned the bill would encourage vigilantism and result in unnecessary deaths over mere property crimes.
"It allows for vigilantes to justify their actions," Denise Georges, a former Miami-Dade County prosecutor, told the Herald.
She added, "It also allows for death to be the punishment for a property crime — and that is cruel and unusual punishment. We cannot live in a lawless society where taking a life is done so casually and recklessly."
Former Miami-Dade prosecutor Aubrey Webb agreed that the proposed bill "dangerously gives armed private citizens power to kill as they subjectively determine what constitutes 'criminal mischief' that interferes with a business."
"The Boston Tea Party members would have been lawfully shot under Florida's law by the British East India Tea Company," Webb told the Herald.


theblaze--2020-11-11--Philadelphia scraps plans to reopen schools this month. City's 120,000 students will stay home indef

Philadelphia scraps plans to reopen schools this month. City's 120,000 students will stay home indefinitely.

Philadelphia scraps plans to reopen schools this month .
City 's 120,000 students will stay home indefinitely .

Philadelphia's public schools had planned to reopen to some grades at the end of November, but now the city is scrapping that plan and keeping its schools shuttered indefinitely, leaving 120,000 students stuck with virtual instruction.
What's that now?
School Superintendent William Hite Jr. announced Tuesday that he made the decision to continue virtual education "to help safeguard the health and well-being of our staff, students, and school communities" as COVID-19 cases continue to rise in the city and across the U.S., the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.
The city's teachers' union praised Hite's announcement as a "big victory," the paper said. The Philadelphia Federation of Teachers had opposed returning to schools during the current spike in cases.
The city initially planned to bring back pre-K through second-grade students for in-person instruction starting Nov. 30. The teachers for those grades were scheduled to return to their classrooms Monday.
Hite claimed he wanted students to return to school as soon as possible, but now the 32,000 students who would have been eligible to return to school at the end of the month don't know when they'll eventually get back into the classroom.
And with this announcement, the 120,000 students in the city's public schools will have to stay home indefinitely, the Inquirer said, noting that the school district "hopes" it will be able to return to in-person instruction someday.
The superintendent said he knew the decision was "disappointing for many families and many students" and lamented that the lack of school time had a disproportionate impact on kids in poverty who do not live in conditions where learning can happen.
According to the paper, the district has "no timetable" for when students will be able to return to school — if ever.
Philadelphia's health commissioner, Thomas Fraley, said be backed Hite's call, saying, "There's no question we are in a dangerous period."
PFT President Jerry Jordan celebrated the decision, saying in a statement, "The decision to remain fully virtual for the foreseeable future will save lives. The science of COVID-19, paired with the massive ventilation and other facilities issues throughout the District, makes it clear: Returning to school buildings, in any capacity, is unsafe right now," the Inquirer reported.


theblaze--2020-11-11--POLL: Will you take the Pfizer Covid vaccine?

POLL : Will you take the Pfizer Covid vaccine ?
Cast your vote and do n't forget to share !

POLL: Will you take the Pfizer Covid vaccine?
Cast your vote and don't forget to share!


theblaze--2020-11-11--Ilhan Omar's campaign funneled nearly $3 million to husband's firm for 2019-2020 election cycle: Rep

Ilhan Omar's campaign funneled nearly $3 million to husband's firm for 2019-2020 election cycle: Report

Ilhan Omar 's campaign funneled nearly $ 3 million to husband 's firm for 2019-2020 election cycle : Report Nice @ @ @ @ @ it

Minnesota Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar's campaign has sent more than $2.7 million to her husband's political consulting firm for the 2019-2020 election cycle, according to a Fox News report based on Federal Election Commission data.
What's going on?
Omar's relationship with husband Tim Mynett has raised eyebrows for more than a year.
In the summer 2019, reports surfaced that Omar was having an affair with Mynett, a political consultant who was working for her campaign. Both Omar and Mynett were married to other people at the time. After divorcing their spouses, the two tied the knot in March.
Omar's relationship with Mynett sparked an August 2019 FEC complaint alleging she used campaign funds to pay for her affair.
As reporters dug into Omar's FEC filings, they found that her campaign had spent hundreds of thousands of dollars with Mynett's firm, E. Street Group, LLC, during the alleged time of the affair.
During the 2018 election cycle, when Omar won her first race for Congress, Mynett's firm received about $63,000 from her campaign.
Since then, Team Omar has funneled more than $2.7 million to the candidate's spouse for the 2019-2020 election cycle, Fox News reported. Omar won re-election last week.
According to Fox, 70% of Omar's third-quarter payments went to her husband's firm. More from Fox News:
Federal Election Commission data shows that Omar's campaign sent $1.6 million to E Street Group LLC, which is owned by her husband Tim Mynett, from the start of 2019 through Jul. 22, 2020. After that, she reported an additional $1.1 million in the third quarter and $27,000 in the following weeks. That $1.1 million constituted nearly 70% of the $1.6 million that Omar's campaign spent that quarter.
Peter Flaherty, chairman of the National Legal and Policy Center, which filed the August 2019 FEC complaint, said Omar's marriage to Mynett shows how important an FEC investigation is. He told the Washington Post, "You have a member of Congress paying a close friend and now-husband the bulk of her campaign spending. It still raises the question of whether it is to facilitate a personal relationship or whether Tim Mynett is the best possible vendor for all these possible activities."
Omar's campaign attorney, David Mitrani, told the Post there was nothing wrong with paying the congresswoman's husband's company.
"There is simply nothing unusual about the services that E Street Group provides to Ilhan for Congress — and nothing inappropriate with a vendor being reimbursed for travel for bona fide services — even if that vendor is run by a candidate's spouse," he said.
Fox News reported that the campaign's payments to Omar's husband are possible because though the law prohibits members of Congress from hiring family members for government jobs, it does not prevent family members from working for congressional campaigns.
Fox News reported that neither Omar's office, her campaign, nor E Street responded to requests for comment.


theblaze--2020-11-11--Professor actually says 'legal vote' is just as 'racist' as 'welfare queen,' 'super predator,' and —

Professor actually says 'legal vote' is just as 'racist' as 'welfare queen,' 'super predator,' and — 'personal responsibility'

Professor actually says 'legal vote ' is just as 'racist ' as 'welfare queen , ' 'super predator , ' @ @ @ @ @ we running out of things we 're allowed to say ?

You might recall the exploits of Ibram Kendi, who made a few headlines in September by suggesting that now-Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett adopted two Haitian children to shield herself from accusations of racism.
Well, Kendi has stayed busy since then.
What's the latest?
Earlier this month it was reported that he spoke as part of a Stanford University webinar and stated "most organizations and institutions are racist."
And then Kendi — author of "How to Be an Antiracist" and founder of Boston University's Center for Antiracist Research — weighed in over the weekend amid voter fraud accusations from President Donald Trump's campaign.
Specifically he declared on Twitter that the term "legal vote" also is racist:
"The term 'legal vote' is as fictionally fraught and functionally racist as the terms 'illegal alien' and 'race neutral' and 'welfare queen' and 'handouts' and 'super predator' and 'crackbaby' and 'personal responsibility' and 'post racial,'" he tweeted.
He added:
"The misinformation of widespread voter fraud — or 'illegal voting' — in Detroit, Philadelphia, Atlanta, and Phoenix where Black and Brown voters predominate is baked into the term 'legal vote,'" he added. "No matter what GOP propaganda says, there's nothing wrong with those voters and votes."
How did observers react?
As you might imagine, Kendi received some pushback over his allegation that the term "legal vote" is racist:
"There is nothing racist about the term 'legal vote,'" one commenter wrote. "I applaud your continued grift, but that's all it is."
"Huh? Votes do have to meet certain requirements to be legal, and votes that fail to meet them — whoever cast them — fail to be legal," another user wrote. "What am I missing?"
"Just say it, sir. You can do it. Three little worlds: 'RULES ARE RACIST.' We know that's what you've been wanting to say forever. You can be yourself here — it's a safe space. Show us your hateful soul," another commenter quipped.
And Josh Barnett — an Arizona Republican who lost his bid for a seat in the U.S. House Representatives last week — told Kendi, "No. It means legal. It has nothing to do with the race or any other ridiculous correlation your [sic] trying to make."
Anything else?
Here's Kendi speaking in a YouTube video posted last month titled, "The Heartbeat of Being an Antiracist Is the Ability to Confess":
Ibram X. Kendi: "The Heartbeat Of Being An Antiracist Is The Ability To Confess" youtu.be
(H/T: The College Fix)


theblaze--2020-11-11--Georgia secretary of state announces statewide hand recount of presidential election

An audit , recount , and recanvass all in one

The state of Georgia will begin a full hand recount of the presidential election results, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger announced Wednesday.
Speaking at a news conference, Raffensperger said the recount will be completed by Nov. 20 and will be an audit, recount, and recanvass all in one, WSB-TV reported.
"With the margin being so close, it will require a full, by-hand recount in each county," Raffensperger said Wednesday morning. "This will help build confidence. It will be an audit, a recount and a recanvass all at once. It will be a heavy lift but we will work with the counties to get this done in time for our state certification."
Former Vice President Joe Biden leads President Donald Trump in Georgia by 14,111 votes. The presidential race has not yet been certified as prominent Republicans have blasted the state secretary of state for "failures" in the election process.
"There have been too many failures in Georgia elections this year and the most recent election has shined a national light on the problems," Georgia Sens. Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue said in a joint statement. "The Secretary of State has failed to deliver honest and transparent elections. He has failed the people of Georgia, and he should step down immediately."
Controversies abound in several counties in Georgia where election chicanery is alleged. State officials are adamant that reports of widespread voter fraud are either misinformation or misunderstandings.
"A few items that happened over the weekend that for lack of a better word are different terminologies — 'fake news,' disinformation, misinformation, misunderstandings — and all those things that are feeding into the situation we see not just in Georgia, but across the country," Georgia's voting system implementation manager Gabriel Sterling told WAGA-TV. "The facts are the facts, regardless of outcomes."
In Spalding County, a viral video on social media claimed to show absentee ballots found discarded in a dumpster. Sterling said the video was false.
"There were no ballots there. We sent investigators down. What they found was empty security envelopes. So, there was nothing there that affected the outcome of the election," he explained.
Ballot counting delays in Gwinnett County were the result of a software malfunction that forced several thousand mail-in absentee ballots to be re-adjudicated before the results could be tabulated, county officials told TheBlaze. The adjudication process requires one Republican, one Democrat, and a nonpartisan elections officials to review each handwritten ballot that's unable to be scanned by the voting machine because of an error with how it was filed out, leaving no room for either party to illegally change ballots.
In Fulton County, county officials denied allegations that Trump campaign election observers were told on election night that ballot counting at State Farm Arena would end at 10:30 p.m., only to continue "counting ballots in secret until 1:00 a.m." A spokesperson for the county said "no one from the staff spoke to anyone observing the process to inform them that things were done for the night." Additionally, an election observer from the secretary of state's office was present while the votes were processed.
Secretary of State Raffensperger pledged to provide fair and accurate election results while thoroughly investigating any claims of voting irregularities.
"My office will continue to investigate each and every incidence of illegal voting. Double voting, felon voting, people voting out of state — if you report it we will investigate it. Every legal vote will count," Raffensperger said.
"We haven't found any widespread fraud. We will investigate every single case that voters bring to us," he added.


theblaze--2020-11-11--Horowitz: Even California voters reject radical leftist ideas

The state is not nearly as liberal as people think

Nancy Pelosi suggested on Friday that, based on her assumption that Joe Biden won the presidency, he will have "a bigger mandate than John F. Kennedy." Let's put aside the Freudian slip comparing this to the infamous 1960 election — the high turnout for dead voters and all — where is there evidence that anyone supports socialism and anarchy? Well, if you can't find it in California, then there is nowhere else, outside perhaps a couple of deep blue cities.
As always, Democrats won every statewide election in California last Tuesday with landslide margins. Republicans have long ceded the state and have failed to even contest their ideas with legitimate candidates. However, when it comes to voting on actual issues, the people had quite a different view. Here are some liberal ballot initiatives that were defeated on election night and one conservative initiative that passed in the Golden State:
Proposition 15 : If passed, it would have raised $8 billion by taxing commercial and industrial properties at a higher market value that they are currently taxed. Though this initiative was pitched as taxing the wealthy to fund schools, it was defeated 48%-52%.
: If passed, it would have raised $8 billion by taxing commercial and industrial properties at a higher market value that they are currently taxed. Though this initiative was pitched as taxing the wealthy to fund schools, it was defeated 48%-52%. Proposition 16: This initiative would have amended the state constitution to allow affirmative action in public education, employment, and public contracting. This key piece of cultural Marxism was defeated 43%-57% even in California, though proponents outspent opponents 19-1. Given this result, Republicans are foolish for not pushing back against racial preferences even harder across the nation.
This initiative would have amended the state constitution to allow affirmative action in public education, employment, and public contracting. This key piece of cultural Marxism was defeated 43%-57% even in California, though proponents outspent opponents 19-1. Given this result, Republicans are foolish for not pushing back against racial preferences even harder across the nation. Proposition 21: This would have allowed local jurisdictions to implement rent control mandates on landlords. It was defeated by a 20-point margin.
This would have allowed local jurisdictions to implement rent control mandates on landlords. It was defeated by a 20-point margin. Proposition 22: This initiative allows rideshare companies to pay their workers as independent contractors, a proposition opposed by the entire Democrat Party and labor movement, including Senator Kamala Harris. It passed by a 17-point margin.
This initiative allows rideshare companies to pay their workers as independent contractors, a proposition opposed by the entire Democrat Party and labor movement, including Senator Kamala Harris. It passed by a 17-point margin. Proposition 25: This was a key priority of the jailbreak movement. It would have abolished cash bail for criminals awaiting trial and replaced it with a so-called risk assessment system. It was defeated 44%-56%, despite having the support of the governor and over $11 million in campaign expenditures.
This all occurred during a year when Democrats won the presidential race in the state by a margin of 2-1. What it demonstrates is that the state is not nearly as liberal as people think; it's just that Republicans have completely abandoned the state, allowing the Democrats to win it by de facto acclamation.
The lesson from here is that once party labels are stripped away, so long as voters are presented with a clear and accurate description of two sides of an issue, they will almost always reject the far-left position. For example, in deep blue Illinois, voters were presented with a choice to scrap the existing flat income tax and replace it with a progressive graduated system. They voted against it.
The text of the question on the ballot was crystal clear and very vividly presented voters with a choice in one of the foundational disagreements between the competing ideologies. Voters who went to the polls were specifically asked to support the following: "The proposed amendment grants the State authority to impose higher income tax rates on higher income levels, which is how the federal government and a majority of other states do it." The text also made clear that adoption of this initiative would not directly raise taxes; it would just repeal the constitutional amendment barring the use of a graduated income tax. It was defeated by a 10-point margin, even as Democrats easily carried the state.
The lesson for conservatives is clear: If they only rid themselves of the dead-weight baggage from the Republican brand, they'd be able to compete in many parts of the country that were previously thought to be out of reach.


theblaze--2020-11-11--Democrat competing in Georgia runoff worked at church that hosted Fidel Castro, bashed police

Democrat competing in Georgia runoff worked at church that hosted Fidel Castro , bashed police 'We should n't be surprised @ @ @ @ @ act like bullies on the street '

Just one week removed from Election Day, the country has turned its eyes to Georgia where control over the U.S. Senate hinges on two important runoffs, both of which will take place on Jan. 5.
Republicans currently hold Senate seats following the results of the 2020 election and must win at least one of the two Georgia seats — which are currently held by Republican incumbent Sens. David Purdue and Kelly Loeffler — to avoid relinquishing control of the Senate. If Republicans lose both, then the Senate would be split 50-50, essentially giving Democrats control of the Senate because media-declared Vice President-elect Kamala Harris would serve as a tie-breaking vote.
Now, we are getting a better picture of Democrat Raphael Warnock, who is running against Loeffler.
What about Warnock?
Warnock is generating criticism because of past comments and past associations.
According to Fox News, Warnock worked at Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem when it hosted Cuban dictator Fidel Castro in 1995. Castro gave a speech at the church during which he bashed America. Church attendants reportedly praised Castro, chanting, "Fidel! Fidel! Fidel!"
Loeffler's campaign said the Castro visit represented yet another example of Warnock's "radical, far-left, socialist position."
However, it's not clear if Warnock, who served as the church's youth pastor at the time, was in attendance during Castro's speech. Warnock's campaign declined to say definitively.
Warnock campaign spokesman Terrence Clark said, "Twenty-five years ago, Reverend Warnock was a youth pastor and was not involved in any decisions at that time."
What else?
Warnock is also being criticized for anti-police comments and for praising the controversial Rev. Jeremiah Wright.
As Fox News reported, in 2015, Warnock likened police to thugs and "bullies" and claimed police endanger children.
"So, in Ferguson, police power, showing up in a kind of gangsta and thug mentality. You now, you can wear all kinds of colors and be a thug. You can sometimes wear the colors of the state and behave like a thug," he said.
"We shouldn't be surprised when we see police officers act like bullies on the street," Warnock also said.
"It's children's day, and we've got to lift up our children because our children are in trouble. And they're often those who are sworn to protect cause more trouble," he said.
Tucker Carlson Slams Raphael Warnock for Disparaging, Anti-Police Comments www.youtube.com
Meanwhile, former Fox News host Greta Van Susteren interviewed Warnock in 2008 during which she asked him if he embraced Jeremiah Wright, who infamously said one time, "God damn America."
"Do you embrace that? Is that something you would do, sir, in your church?" Van Susteren asked, the Daily Wire reported.
Warnock responded by affirming Wright.
"We celebrate Rev. Wright in the same way that we celebrate the truth-telling tradition of the black church, which, when preachers tell the truth, very often it makes people uncomfortable. And I think the country has been done a disservice by this constant playing over and over again the same soundbites outside of context," he said.


theblaze--2020-11-11--Texas Lt. Gov. Patrick offers up to $1 million reward for evidence of voter fraud

Texas Lt. Gov .
Patrick offers up to $ 1 million reward for evidence of voter fraud 'President Trump 's @ @ @ @ @ not only essential to determine the outcome of this election , it is essential to @ @ @ @ @ faith in future elections '

Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said Tuesday he is offering up to a $1 million reward to anyone who provides information leading to an arrest and conviction for voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election.
The purpose of the offer is to "incentivize, encourage, and reward" people who come forward with reports of voter fraud. Anyone who provides evidence that leads to a conviction will receive at least $25,000, paid for by Patrick's campaign fund, the Texas Tribune reported.
"I support President Trump's efforts to identify voter fraud in the presidential election and his commitment to making sure that every legal vote is counted and every illegal vote is disqualified," Patrick said in a news release statement. "President Trump's pursuit of voter fraud is not only essential to determine the outcome of this election, it is essential to maintain our democracy and restore faith in future elections."
President Donald Trump has refused to concede the 2020 presidential election to former vice president Joe Biden as Trump's campaign has filed several legal challenges to the results of the election in various states.
While several Republicans have supported the president's efforts to challenge the election, Patrick is the first and so far the only Republican to offer a monetary reward for evidence of voter fraud. In his statement, he accused Democrats of "creating suspicion" regarding the legitimacy of the election.
"The Democrats have no one to blame but themselves for creating suspicion of final vote totals," Patrick said. "Not allowing Republican poll watchers to observe the vote count in multiple states, in some cases blocking their view with poster board, last minute changes in election laws in battleground states, ignoring the deadline to vote and accepting ballots for days after the election, ignoring postmarks and signature checks, not verifying that mail-in ballots were being sent to people who were alive or living in the state and voting machines that have been a concern for over a decade all raise serious questions.
"This lack of transparency has led many to believe that the final count is not accurate in states where the winner was determined be a very small percentage of the vote," he continued.
Patrick's statement cited three examples of recent arrests for elections crimes, including a social worker in Mexia, Texas, who allegedly registered 67 residents of a nursing home to vote without their consent. Elections officials in dozens of states nationwide say there is no widespread evidence of voter fraud on the scale that could change the results of the election.
The lieutenant governor also criticized other states for delays in counting mail-in ballots, saying "the delays in counting mail-in ballots in other states raises more questions about voter fraud and potential mistakes."
"When all legal votes are tallied and all illegal votes are discarded, then America can have a greater level of confidence in the election process," Patrick said. "President Trump is absolutely right to pursue every allegation of voter fraud and irregularities, just as Al Gore did in 2000. Every candidate for public office has this right. My goal is to ensure that, regardless of the outcome, every American has faith in our electoral process and our democracy."


theblaze--2020-11-11--Ted Cruz breaks down potential outcomes of Trump's many pending legal battles

Ted Cruz breaks down potential outcomes of Trump 's many pending legal battles

Steven Crowder covers breaking news on election updates, and then turns to examine Joe Biden's newly appointed coronavirus adviser. Later, Steven talks with Texas Sen. Ted Cruz about the election, Trump's pathways going forward, and how the many legal battles could be resolved.
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theblaze--2020-11-11--WATCH: Whoopi LASHES OUT at Trump supporters: 'Suck it up like we did'

WATCH : Whoopi LASHES OUT at Trump supporters : 'Suck it up like we did '

"The View" co-host Whoopi Goldberg said after the election that Trump supporters just need to "suck it up" like the Left did when Donald Trump was elected in 2016.
Whoopi insisted that Hillary Clinton didn't question or complain about the results of the 2016 and went on to shame Trump supporters who question the legitimacy of the election.
"How dare you question it?" she asked.
BlazeTV's Sara Gonzales, host of "News and Why it Matters," is sick and tired of the leftists who "want to rewrite history" with their unrelenting gaslighting tactics.
Watch the video below to see Sara's little history lesson for Whoopi and the rest of the brood on "The View":
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theblaze--2020-11-11--Joe Biden's COVID adviser wants to give other countries COVID vaccine before making it available to

Joe Biden's COVID adviser wants to give other countries COVID vaccine before making it available to every American

Joe Biden 's COVID adviser wants to give other countries COVID vaccine before making it available to every American The @ @ @ @ @ Obamacare

Dr. Zeke Emanuel, whom former Vice President Joe Biden announced would be a member of his coronavirus advisory board, wants to distribute the COVID-19 vaccine worldwide before making it available to every single American.
Emanuel worked in the Obama administration and was a chief architect of the Affordable Care Act. He later advised the Trump administration on how to best change Obamacare to drive down health care costs.
What did Emanuel say?
Emanuel, a medical ethicist and oncologist, co-authored an article in September arguing that officials should follow the "Fair Priority Model" with vaccine distribution as opposed to "vaccine nationalism."
Dr. Zeke Emanuel. (Nancy Stone/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
The model advocates that whichever country produces an effective vaccine — which appears will be the United States — they should retain only the amount of vaccine required for their population to achieve so-called "herd immunity." Then, before the vaccine has been made available to every citizen, the model says the vaccine should be released for international use, not hoarded.
The "Fair Priority Model" addresses what Emanuel and other scientists call "distributive justice."
The article explains that associative ties — defined as "common governmental, civic, and other institutions, and a sense of shared identity" — "only justify a government's giving some priority to its own citizens, not absolute priority."
In an interview with the Scientific American, Emmanuel explained:
We expect national partiality, and there's even some good moral reasons for some national partiality. But from an ethical standpoint, there's not a good reason for absolute partiality, where a country covers every one of its citizens before giving any vaccine internationally. There's a good ethical reason not to have absolute vaccine nationalism.
What about other plans?
The World Health Organization has proposed distributing the vaccine with respect to population proportion.
However, Emanuel said the plan is problematic because it does not address severity of need.
"The problem that is immediately obvious is that different areas of the world are suffering at different rates. Typically, when you're giving international assistance, you give it to the people who are suffering most," he told the Scientific American.
What is the Trump administration's plan?
Health Secretary Alex Azar said in August that any COVID-19 vaccine developed in the U.S. would be distributed internationally only after American needs are met, falling in line with President Donald Trump's "America First" commitment.
"Our first priority of course is to develop and produce enough quantity of safe and effective FDA-approved vaccines and therapeutics for use in the United States," he said, Reuters reported. "But we anticipate having capacity that, once those needs are satisfied, those products would be available in the world community according to fair and equitable distributions that we would consult in the international community on."
When is a vaccine coming?
Dr. Anthony Fauci said Tuesday that a vaccine may be made available to the most high-risk Americans as early as next month, with widespread distribution coming as early as next April.


theblaze--2020-11-11--Knife-wielding man threatens 'prayer group for President Trump,' throws eggs at victims, police say.

Knife-wielding man threatens 'prayer group for President Trump,' throws eggs at victims, police say. Two women scream at group, too.

Knife-wielding man threatens 'prayer group for President Trump , ' throws eggs at victims , police say .
Two women @ @ @ @ @ .
Others say group was praying for America , not specifically for Trump

Police in Harlingen, Texas — a city near the southernmost tip of the state and just a few miles from the Mexican border — said they received a call about a person with a knife Saturday afternoon.
What happened?
When officers arrived at the scene, witnesses said "a prayer group for President [Donald] Trump" was meeting on a grass lot when a man later identified as John Rivas, 20, began throwing eggs at the group. Police said when the group asked Rivas to stop, he pulled out a knife.
Rivas left the area before officers arrived, but police added that they quickly located and arrested him for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. During his arrest, police said Rivas began resisting by stiffening his body and refusing to place his hands behind his back. Cops added that after a brief struggle, Rivas was taken into custody without injury. Police said they also charged Rivas with resisting arrest and disruption of meeting — and that they recovered a brown serrated kitchen knife believed to have been used by Rivas.
Police also said two women,19-year-old Marilyn Lopez and 18-year-old Miliannie X. Ortiz-Ruiz, who were with Rivas during the incident, were arrested for disruption of meeting. Cops added that Lopez and Ortiz-Ruiz were screaming insults at the crowd during their investigation.
Police said Rivas was slapped with a $30,000 bond for his aggravated assault with a deadly weapon charge — a second-degree felony — as well as a $2,500 bond for resisting arrest and a $500 bond for disruption of a meeting, both misdemeanors. An official with the Cameron County Detention Center told TheBlaze on Wednesday that there was no record of Rivas being booked into the facility, and police added to TheBlaze that Rivas likely bonded out.
As for Lopez and Ortiz-Ruiz, police said they were given $500 bonds for disruption of a meeting and were released on their own recognizance.
Folks react
On the police department's Facebook post about the arrests, several commenters took issue with police characterizing the prayer gathering as focused on Trump.
"I don't know where your department got the idea that this was a Trump group," one person noted. "There were people from several churches there worshipping and praying for our great country. Period."
Another commenter said "I'm glad you guys arrested them; we have to show people like this that we don't deal with that down here in the valley. But they weren't gathering for Trump ....so before you label this about Trump (which the media will use to make people hate on them and feel sorry for the kids) just remember that the people at the gathering AND Trump supporters support law-enforcement 100%. By the way, we all do support Trump but still it has nothing to do with that ...just saying lol."
This story has been updated.


theblaze--2020-11-12--Left-wing Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot ridiculed for video celebrating return of 'science' in antici

Left-wing Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot ridiculed for video celebrating return of 'science' in anticipation of Biden presidency

Left-wing Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot ridiculed for video celebrating return of 'science ' in anticipation of Biden presidency 'Now that @ @ @ @ @ we stop pretending that men can get pregnant ? '

Left-wing Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot is getting her share of ridicule for a Twitter video she posted Thursday.
The clip was clearly an attempt at humor — but it was a dud for a number of watchers turned off by the not-so-subtle dig at President Donald Trump as votes from last week's election favor former Vice President Joe Biden for the presidency.
What are the details?
The video starts with Lightfoot asleep on a couch, apparently having a bad dream. As the screen changes from black and white to color, Lightfoot suddenly awakens and figures out what's what:
Image source: Twitter video screenshot via @chicagosmayor
Pressing her hand to her forehead as a copy of "Stephen Hawking's Universe" sits face-down on her chest, the mayor expresses relief: "Thank God! Science is back, baby!"
She then lovingly pats a globe next to her: "And the earth is round — not flat."
Image source: Twitter video screenshot via @chicagosmayor
The scene then switches to a doctor or scientist working at her computer and doing her best Kamala Harris impersonation, condescendingly offering free advice: "Washing your hands does work, social distancing does matter, and wearing a face covering does help protect all of us. I do love science!"
Image source: Twitter video screenshot via @chicagosmayor
Here ya go, if you dare:
"The new administration's COVID-19 task force ushers in a new day for science and evidence-based policy-making," the accompanying text reads, presumably referring to Biden's plans. "As a city, we look forward to working together to ensure the health of all Chicagoans."
How did folks react?
Well, Lightfoot does have her fans — not a surprise considering Chicago's left-leaning politics. But others had nothing but raspberries for the Democrat.
Matt Walsh, for instance, had a good one for Lightfoot: "Now that science is back, can we stop pretending that men can get pregnant?"
And the hits just kept on coming:
"What in the....." one user reacted.
"I'm sorry but you just don't have what it takes for SNL," another commenter said. "Best of luck in your future endeavors."
"Seriously one of the stupidest things I've seen!" another user noted.
"Are you freaking kidding me," another commenter exclaimed.
"This is embarrassing," another user said.
"Hey @chicagosmayor," one observer called out, "you wanna quit doing stupid s**t like this and actually clean up your city?? There's a reason they call Chicago Chi-raq... You are despicable."
More lack of humor
Speaking of science-based coronavirus policies, Lightfoot is only too happy to ignore them when it suits her. Like when she shut down nonessential businesses such as hair salons back in the spring — and then promptly got a haircut.
Her reason? "I'm the public face of this city. I'm on national media, and I'm out in the public eye," Lightfoot said, according to the Chicago Tribune. "I'm a person who, I take my personal hygiene very seriously. As I said, I felt like I needed to have a haircut. I'm not able to do that myself, so I got a haircut. You want to talk more about that?"
And, of course, rather than disallowing protests in the wake of George Floyd's death — given they are large public gatherings that can quickly spread the coronavirus — Lightfoot simply urged protesters to wear face coverings, maintain social distancing, and self-isolate for 14 days. Right.
It's also worth pointing out that Lightfoot's "Science is back, baby!" video isn't the first instance of the mayor communicating like an elementary school teacher to kindergartners. In early October, she dressed up as "Rona Destroyer" at a press conference to roll out Chicago's COVID-19 restrictions for Halloween. And the mayor also appointed a "Census Cowboy" earlier this year to boost census participation, and in September, he staged a protest in which he rode a horse on a Chicago highway until the bleeding animal collapsed.


theblaze--2020-11-12--Horowitz: 9 laws Republicans must pass to stop voter fraud

It 's 2020 .
We should n't have dysfunctional elections anywhere

How is it that in the year 2020, our elections look more dysfunctional than other modern countries' and more chaotic than our elections were during the time of our grandparents? The answer is that Democrats have institutionalized fraud by subverting the entire concept of Election Day and basic verification standards. If this election is not a wake-up call for Republicans to clean up election fraud, at least in the states they control, they deserve to be victims of these "glitches" and will likely never win a national election again.
Here are nine commonsense ideas that anyone who wants a fair election would have no problem implementing:
1. Issue a voter photo ID to all registered voters : I need an ID card to own a gun in my home state. There is no reason we should not have a voting ID card issued by the state and subject to renewal every 6-8 years.
2. Prohibit mail-in ballots for federal elections : There is a reason why the majority of European Union countries ban mail-in ballots for those not living abroad. They are prone to all sorts of fraud, which dates back to our 1864 election. This is why we should ban all mail-in ballots except for those serving in the military.
3. Absentee balloting should be limited to individuals who cannot vote in person : These ballots would require a witness signature and a copy of the voter's photo ID accompanying the ballot.
4. All ballot-harvesting should be banned : Any individuals eligible for an absentee ballot must submit their own ballots. Nursing homes and other similar institutions would be exempted from the prohibition on third-party submissions, but would be subjected to strict rules and monitoring for the submission process.
5. Guard all drop-off boxes with 24/7 security : There's no reason we should be experiencing these mystery dumps from drop-off boxes. States must ensure there is a secure chain of custody of all ballot collection venues at all times.
6. No more early voting : Election Day means Election Day. It should be declared a national holiday to facilitate voting. More funding should be directed toward expanding the number of polling stations and hiring more poll workers to deal with the growing population. But then we should all vote like we used to for so many years – on Election Day itself.
7. Explicitly authorize states to require proof of citizenship to vote : Photo ID requirements would vet fraudulent voters, but not non-citizens. Alien voters are not as high in numbers as citizen fraud, but they still can make a difference in the increasingly close elections. This is why states must be empowered to require proof of citizenship to register to vote, especially given the fact that non-citizens obtain driver's licenses, which are used as a seamless pipeline for voter registration. Alternatively, we can require that states and localities use the federal SAVE (Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements) database or E-Verify to check for non-citizens voting
8. Tighten up section 8 of the motor voter law , which requiresstates to "make a reasonable effort to remove the names of ineligible voters from the official lists of eligible voters," by creating a clear process of cleaning up the voter rolls of deceased and out-of-state voters. Scores of counties still have more registered voters than the total population in the jurisdiction. This is a recipe for disaster, and any opposition to cleaning these rolls can only be motivated by an agenda to promote voter fraud.
9. Require body cameras on vote counters and processers : If this standard is good enough for the police, it's good enough for those who secure the lynchpin of a representative republic.
Putting this election aside, nobody can deny that our election system is broken and has been getting progressively worse. It's time to move our election system into the 21st century. When it comes to securing the franchise, we should not trust; we must verify. An election without verification disenfranchises every legal voter. Why would leftists oppose any of these verification standards that are required for many less consequential private and public functions than voting? Why do they fear honest elections?
The best time to start with some of these reforms is now. There are two extremely important Senate races that will occur in Georgia on January 5. There is a Republican governor, and his party controls the House 103-75 and the Senate 35-21. Why on earth would they not move on some of the reforms tomorrow and ensure that there is no rampant mail-in fraud?
The bottom line is that if Georgia Republicans fail to lead by example, they deserve to lose. As the saying goes, "Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me."


theblaze--2020-11-12--Fox News takes a beating in post-election ratings

Cable network news behemoth Fox News took a rare beating in prime-time ratings in the week after election night , according to the latest Nielsen ratings .
Fox News garnered 5.736 million viewers for its prime-time coverage between election day and Sunday , according to ratings released by Nielsen , while CNN came slightly above Fox News with 5.941 million average viewers .
Both fell short of NBC , who averaged 6.33 million viewers partly because of the Sunday Night Football game between the New Orleans Saints and Tampa Bay Buccaneers .
Election night saw Fox News crushing the competition @ @ @ @ @ @ @ time .
CNN saw 9.47 million viewers , with MSNBC coming in at third place with 7.661 million viewers .
Fox News has had to weather numerous incidents that have caused many of their previous fans to seek alternative news outlets , including the YouTube channel of BlazeTV host Steven Crowder .
Fox News was excoriated by allies and supporters of the president after they called the state of Arizona early on election day before any other news outlets .
When pressured by online outrage to change their call , Chris Wallace said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not waiver in its decision to call the state .
Biden currently holds a lead of just over 11,000 votes in the state .
On Monday , an off-air video of a Fox News host condescendingly dismissing comments about the election call from a guest surfaced on social media and fueled more outrage .
President Donald Trump has also criticized Fox News many times over his term , often when they do n't give him what he perceives to be the best coverage .
In May , the president outright complained that Fox @ @ @ @ @ @ @ help him and other Republicans get re-elected .
Prior to election night , Fox News had been crushing records with their ratings , prompting TheWrap to credit the network with delivering `` the highest primetime averages in cable news history . ''
Here 's the latest about the election :

Cable network news behemoth Fox News took a rare beating in prime-time ratings in the week after election night, according to the latest Nielsen ratings.
Fox News garnered 5.736 million viewers for its prime-time coverage between Election Day and Sunday, according to ratings released by Nielsen, while CNN came slightly above Fox News with 5.941 million average viewers.
Both fell short of NBC, who averaged 6.33 million viewers partly because of the "Sunday Night Football" game between the New Orleans Saints and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Election night saw Fox News crushing the competition with 14.158 million average viewers in prime time. CNN saw 9.47 million viewers, with MSNBC coming in at third place with 7.661 million viewers.
Fox News has had to weather numerous incidents that have caused many of their previous fans to seek alternative news outlets, including the YouTube channel of BlazeTV host Steven Crowder.
Fox News was excoriated by allies and supporters of the president after they called the state of Arizona early on Election Day before any other news outlets. When pressured by online outrage to change their call, Chris Wallace said that the Fox News decision desk would not waiver in its decision to call the state. Biden currently holds a lead of just over 11,000 votes in the state.
On Monday, an off-air video of a Fox News host condescendingly dismissing comments about the election call from a guest surfaced on social media and fueled more outrage.
President Donald Trump has also criticized Fox News many times over his term, often when they don't give him what he perceives to be the best coverage.
In May, the president outright complained that Fox News was "doing nothing" to help him and other Republicans get re-elected.
Prior to election night, Fox News had been crushing records with their ratings, prompting The Wrap to credit the network with delivering "the highest primetime averages in cable news history."
Here's the latest about the election:


theblaze--2020-11-12--Eventbrite, Facebook, and Mailchimp accused of suppressing 'March for Trump' DC rally

Eventbrite , Facebook , and Mailchimp accused of suppressing 'March for Trump ' DC rally 'BigTech is trying to shut @ @ @ @

Organizers of a march planned in support of President Donald Trump's legal efforts to contest the projected results of his challenge from Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden say Facebook, Mailchimp, and Eventbrite have all tried to "cancel" their movement.
What are the details?
Women for Trump co-founder Amy Kremer tweeted Tuesday that "The #MarchForTrump IS NOT CANCELED," saying, "@Eventbrite just shut down our event & emailed everyone that it was canceled THE MARCH IS NOT CANCELED First it was @Facebook Next it was @Mailchimp Now #Eventbrite#BigTech is trying shut down our march But we won't let them."
Kremer attached an email apparently sent from Eventbrite that explained:
"We encourage our organizers to express their views and gather for a chosen purpose as long as it's done in a way that doesn't violate our Terms of Service. We do not permit events, content, or creators that share or promote potentially harmful misinformation. In this instance, we have determined that your event violates our Community Guidelines and is therefore not permitted on the Eventbrite platform. As a result, your event listing has been removed and any paid orders have been refunded."
The notice further warned, "While you may continue to use Eventbrite for other events, please not that repeated or severe violations of our Guidelines may results in your account being terminated."
Neither Eventbrite, Facebook, or Mailchimp immediately responded to Fox Business' request for comment on the tweet.
Yet, the outlet did note that while "this weekend's event may be blocked, a separate event for March 21 from an anonymous organizer titled 'March on Washington for Trump' remains listed on the site. Additionally, a search of Facebook event listings shows several events listed on Saturday with titles including the phrase 'March for Trump.' None of them appear to be hosted by Kremer or her group."
The March for Trump is slated for Nov. 14 at noon in Washington, D.C. The invitation at stopthesteal.us reads:
Democrats are scheming to disenfranchise and nullify Republican votes.
It's up to us to stop it.
We will NOT back down!
This Saturday, thousands of patriots will be meeting at Freedom Plaza at noon and marching to the Supreme Court to show our support for the integrity of every American's vote and our support for President Trump exhausting every legal recourse available to ensure that EVERY LEGAL VOTE counts and that NO LEGAL VOTE is diluted.
At Freedom Plaza, we will hear from grassroots supporters of Trump and conservative leaders who are invested in ensuring that the integrity and faith in our system of government doesn't falter. This concept isn't a formality. It is foundational to who we are as a free people. And then we will march in a show of support for the President and his continued fight.
So come join us and let your voice be heard as we stand up for the disenfranchised and the voiceless.
What's the background?
Trump supporters are conducting rallies to get behind the president as his campaign fights lawsuits in several battleground states alleging voting irregularities and voter fraud after mainstream media roundly called the Nov. 3 election for Biden.
Meanwhile, Trump has refused to concede the election, while Biden is actively moving toward a transition to power.


theblaze--2020-11-11--Liberal activist Andrew Yang's comments raise suspicions that Democrats could exploit Georgia law to

Liberal activist Andrew Yang's comments raise suspicions that Democrats could exploit Georgia law to win critical runoff elections

Liberal activist Andrew Yang 's comments raise suspicions that Democrats could exploit Georgia law to win critical runoff elections 'Election @ @ @ @ @ attention to what is happening '

As the nation sets its sights on Georgia, where two runoff elections will determine which political party controls the U.S. Senate for the next two years, former Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang announced last week that he is moving to the Peach State to aid Democratic efforts there, WAGA-TV reported.
On Twitter, Yang said that "everyone who campaigned for Joe should get ready to head to Georgia."
By Saturday, Yang confirmed he was moving his family to Georgia.
"Great news #yanggang - Evelyn and I are moving to Georgia to help @ossoff and @ReverendWarnock win! This is our only chance to clear Mitch out of the way and help Joe and Kamala get things done in the next 4 years. More details to come but let's go!!!" Yang announced.
Yang's comments immediately generated questions of whether Democratic voters are looking to exploit Georgia's lenient election laws to give Democrats the edge in both runoff elections.
Specifically, Georgia does not specify a minimum residency requirement for voting, meaning any legal permanent resident of Georgia would be able to participate in the runoff election so long as they register to vote by Dec. 7. Georgia also requires voters to show ID before voting — but state law does not require the identification to be issued by Georgia.
According to the Wall Street Journal, moving to Georgia to participate in the runoff elections is technically legal — but suggested any new residents should stay a while to avoid legal backlash.
Enrijeta Shino, a professor at the University of North Florida, told the Journal that moving to Georgia only to participate in the elections without intentions of staying would constitute fraud.
"People should be very careful about doing that," Shino warned. "These are sensitive issues, and election officials are going to pay attention to what is happening."
More from the Journal:
A spokesman for the Georgia Secretary of State's Office, which oversees voter registrations, declined to comment on how quickly someone could establish legal residency in Georgia, but cited state law that it is a felony to vote in Georgia elections if you are not a legal resident or if you are residing in the state briefly with the intention just to vote and then move away.
As of Wednesday afternoon, Sen. David Purdue (R-Ga.) led his Democratic challenger, Jon Ossoff, by nearly 90,000 votes, or about 1.7 percentage points. Although Purdue won more votes than Ossoff, Georgia law requires a runoff election because neither candidate broke the 50% threshold.
Meanwhile, the other Senate run-off, in which Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R) is the incumbent, was a special election, and more than a dozen candidates ran. No candidate reached the 50% threshold in that race, and the top two finishers — Loeffler and Democrat Raphael Warnock — were sent to the runoff.
Both runoff elections will be held on Jan. 5. Early voting for the runoff will begin Dec. 14.


theblaze--2020-11-13--New York Democrat called Republicans 'jokes,' promised to win by an 'incredible margin,' and then lo

New York Democrat called Republicans 'jokes,' promised to win by an 'incredible margin,' and then lost his seat

New York Democrat called Republicans 'jokes , ' promised to win by an 'incredible margin , ' and then lost @ @ @ @ @ tough now are you ? ''

The National Republican Congressional Committee got the last laugh at a mouthy New York Democrat who mocked his opponent and promised to win by an "incredible margin."
Rep. Max Rose (D-N.Y.) called his opponent a "joke," called the NRCC a "joke," and promised to win by an "incredible margin" in a video from October 2019.
"So first of all, I am not concerned at all by the NRCC or anyone that wants to try and challenge me, because they already tried once and we kicked their ass! OK?" Rose said at the time.
"And guess what, that's exactly what is going to happen again!" he added. "They have been absolute jokes, they will continue to be jokes, and I look forward to beating them by an incrediblemargin."
Rose was talking about Republican challenger Nicole Malliotakis, a New York state assemblywoman. Malliotakis made opposition to socialism and the law and order platform part of her campaign against the first-term congressman.
On Thursday, Rose conceded the race.
"Representing #NY11 has been the honor of my life," he said in a statement on Twitter. "I love Staten Island and Brooklyn. This is our home. No matter the challenges we face, I will be fighting with you."
Rose joins the surprising number of House Democrats who lost their seats to Republicans and thereby strengthened their opponents despite polling that made many believe Democrats would win greater control over the House. As of Thursday, Rose made 10 House seats that were flipped from Democrat to Republican control.
The NRCC posted the video of Rose's brash comments from 2019 and added its retort.
"Not so tough now, are you?" the NRCC tweeted.


theblaze--2020-11-13--Federal election officials say 2020 election 'the most secure in American history'

Federal election officials say 2020 election 'the most secure in American history' They say 'there is no evidence that any @ @ @ @ @ votes , changed votes , or was in any way compromised '

Officials at the Department of Homeland Security's Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency sent out a press release Thursday declaring that the 2020 general election was "the most secure in American history."
The notice comes as President Donald Trump continues to contest mainstream media's calling Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden the victor in the race, with the Trump campaign alleging voter irregularities and voter fraud in numerous ongoing post-election lawsuits.
What are the details?
Members of the CISA's Elections Infrastructure Government Coordinating Council Executive Committee and its Election Infrastructure Sector Coordinating Council issued a joint statement saying, "The November 3rd election was the most secure in American history. Right now, across the country, election officials are reviewing and double checking the entire election process prior to finalizing the result."
"When states have close elections, many will recount ballots," the officials continued. "All of the states with close results in the 2020 presidential race have paper records of each vote, allowing the ability to go back and count each ballot if necessary. This is an added benefit for security and resilience. This process allows for the identification and correction of any mistakes or errors."
The officials insisted — emphasized with bold letters — that "there is no evidence that any voting system deleted or lost votes, changed votes, or was in any way compromised."
"While we know there are many unfounded claims and opportunities for misinformation about the process of our elections, we can assure you we have the utmost confidence in the security and integrity of our elections, and you should too," they added, closing by saying, "When you have questions, turn to elections officials as trusted voices as they administer elections."
President Trump warned leading up to the election that expanded mail-in voting amid the coronavirus pandemic would open the opportunity for widespread voter fraud that would give Democrats an advantage. Since the election has passed, he has asserted several times that the election was rigged.
Earlier in the day on Thursday, the president tweeted about a report claiming that a program from Dominion Voting Systems—used in 28 states—deleted "2.7 million Trump votes nationwide."
The Trump campaign has also released 234 affidavits regarding alleged voting irregularities in Michigan. TheBlaze managing editor Leon Wolf reviewed them this week and provided a breakdown of the accusations here.
Meanwhile, pro-Trump groups have planned a #StopTheSteal rally in Washington, D.C., slated for Saturday, in support of the president as he fights back against the projected election results.


theblaze--2020-11-13--Emmanuel Macron says Biden presidency is chance to 'make our planet great again'

Emmanuel Macron says Biden presidency is chance to 'make our planet great again' Biden has vowed to rejoin the Paris @ @

French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday expressed his excitement over Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden's promise to re-enter the U.S. into the Paris climate accord, describing the prospect as an opportunity to "make our planet great again."
What are the details?
Despite President Donald Trump contesting the election results following mainstream media's widespread declaration that Biden has won the White House, Macron joined world leaders this week in congratulating the Democrat on his win.
Reuters reported that Macron specifically hailed Biden's vow to re-enter the Paris climate accord, noting that the Democrat "has pledged to rejoin the pact and to invest $2 trillion to wean the country off planet-warming fossil fuels."
"It is proof that we had to stand firm against all headwinds," Macron said. "'Make our planet great again' is a possibility, not just in words but also in deed."
The U.S. officially withdrew from the multinational climate initiative on Nov. 4, the day after Election Day and three years from when Trump vowed to withdraw from the agreement that he saw as a bad deal for America.
As TheBlaze previously reported:
President Trump has been a staunch critic of the United States' participation in the international agreement, which commenced under the Obama administration, arguing it "hamstrings the United States while empowering some of the world's top-polluting countries."
Following America's departure from the accord, Biden said he would rejoin it on his first day in office, tweeting, "Today, the Trump Administration officially left the Paris Climate Agreement. And in exactly 77 days, a Biden Administration will rejoin it."
Macron and Trump's differences on climate policy have been a sticking point in their relationship for years, leading Macron to create his play on the U.S. president's rallying cry to "Make America Great Again."
Politico reported in 2017:
When Trump announced in June that he would yank the U.S. out of the Paris climate agreement, Macron spied an opportunity: Within hours, his office took a poke at Trump, unveiling a social media campaign around the tongue-in-cheek slogan "Make Our Planet Great Again," complete with a website where U.S. climate researchers could apply for residency and work in France.
Behind the viral tweet, retweeted 235,896 times, Macron's political message was clear: France would lead the world on climate change research and technology, leaving the United States to choke on coal fumes.


theblaze--2020-11-13--Ocasio-Cortez lashes out at Democrat Joe Manchin for rebuking 'crazy socialist agenda' with snarky

Ocasio-Cortez lashes out at Democrat Joe Manchin for rebuking 'crazy socialist agenda' with snarky photo of her glaring at him

Ocasio-Cortez lashes out at Democrat Joe Manchin for rebuking 'crazy socialist agenda ' with snarky photo of her glaring at @

Democratic socialist Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York continued to fuel the infighting between Democrats over their failures in the 2020 election after a moderate Democrat senator rejected claims that the party has a "crazy socialist agenda."
The feud between progressive far-left Democrats and more centrist establishment Democrats erupted again when Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia denied the extremism attributed to the party by the GOP.
"Defund the police? Defund, my butt," tweeted Manchin.
"I'm a proud West Virginia Democrat," he added. "We are the party of working men and women. We want to protect Americans' jobs & healthcare. We do not have some crazy socialist agenda, and we do not believe in defunding the police."
Ocasio-Cortez offered her criticism in the form of a snarky image in a tweet.
Manchin said that he would not support any Democratic effort to pack the Supreme Court with liberal justices or end the legislative filibuster, two tactics that many on the left were advocating to punch Republicans.
"I really think that when you break the filibuster, you break the Senate, and I'm not going to be part of breaking the Senate, I can tell you that," said Manchin. "The Senate is a pretty special place because the Founding Fathers intended it to be that way. But they also intended us to work in a bipartisan way and to where the minority always had input. You break the rules of the filibuster, the minority has nothing. There's no purpose whatsoever. You're no different than a glorified House."
He also took issue with the "Defund the Police" police that was popularized by the Black Lives Matter movement.
"Defund, my butt!" he reportedly exclaimed.
"What we should be doing is funding more money to the police, educating, and protecting them better. Here's where they take a team education, so they know where the social changes are happening in the neighborhoods. That's what we should be doing with police," he explained.
Ocasio-Cortez appeared to be defensive of "crazy socialist policies" that Manchin rejected.
Here's more about Manchin defying Democrats: