theblaze--2020-02-12--New Hampshire resident tells MSNBC that its anti-Bernie Sanders coverage made her 'angry,' inspired

New Hampshire resident tells MSNBC that its anti-Bernie Sanders coverage made her 'angry,' inspired her to vote for him in primary

New Hampshire resident tells MSNBC that its anti-Bernie Sanders coverage made her 'angry , ' inspired her to vote for @ @ @ @ @ I went for Bernie is because of MSNBC '

A New Hampshire voter told an MSNBC reporter Tuesday that the cable network's anti-Bernie Sanders coverage got her "angry" and inspired her to cast a primary ballot for him.
Sanders — a 78-year-old U.S. senator from Vermont and Democratic socialist — narrowly beat former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg in the New Hampshire primary while U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar from Minnesota took third.
What else did the voter have to say?
"The reason I went for Bernie is because of MSNBC," the woman told a reporter from the cable network.
Noticing the dark humor in her candid declaration, the reporter deadpanned "go on" while looking at the camera amid others' laughter.
"I think it is completely cynical to say that he's lost 50 percent of his vote from the last time when there were two candidates," she continued. "Now there are multiple, wonderful candidates who would be great presidents and people ... I think we can ... get behind, but the 'stop Bernie' cynicism that I heard from a number of people — I watch MSNBC constantly — so I heard that from a number of commentators, and so ... it made me angry enough, and I said, 'OK, Bernie's got my vote.'"
What has been said on MSNBC about Sanders?
MSNBC's Chris Matthews has been critical of Sanders, recently noting that the candidate's socialist ideals aren't practical: "I've seen what socialism's like, and I don't like it, OK? It's not only not free, it doesn't frickin' work."
Matthews also said in a separate segment that Sanders "is not going to be president of the United States, OK? I look back at the '72 race, I was a young volunteer for the DNC ... I've got to tell you, it feels a lot like it. A lot of giddiness, a lot of excitement, thrill about this guy." Republican incumbent Richard Nixon won the 1972 election in a landslide over George McGovern.


theblaze--2020-02-12--Catholic priest who denied communion to pro-choice lawmakers says 'pedophilia doesn't kill' — aborti

Catholic priest who denied communion to pro-choice lawmakers says 'pedophilia doesn't kill' — abortion does

Catholic priest who denied communion to pro-choice lawmakers says 'pedophilia does n't kill ' — abortion does

Rhode Island's Rev. Richard Bucci says that "pedophila doesn't kill anyone," but abortion does.
What are the details?
Earlier this month, Bucci, 72, banned at least 44 state lawmakers from receiving communion because they voted to support pro-choice state legislation.
Speaking in defense of the action, Bucci said, "We are not talking about any other moral issue, where some may make it a comparison between pedophilia and abortion. Pedophilia doesn't kill anyone and [abortion] does."
In a widely distributed flyer, Bucci announced that the lawmakers would not be able to partake in Holy Communion and will also be barred from acting as witnesses to marriage and more.
"In accord with the teaching of the Catholic Church for 2000 years, the following members of the legislature may NOT receive Holy Communion, as are all the officers of the state of Rhode Island, as well as Rhode Island's members of Congress," a portion of Bucci's flyer read. "In addition, they will not be allowed to act as witnesses to marriage, godparents, or lectors at weddings, funerals or any other church function."
Bucci, who hails from Sacred Heart Church in West Warwick, Rhode Island, also told WJAR-TV that "there are more children who have been killed by abortion than have been abused."
He also defended his stance on refusing communion to pro-choice lawmakers.
"Now, I don't know what else I have to say about it, this is the teaching of the church," he added. "The Canon Law of the church, the Second Vatican Council, and the First Catechism of the church. I don't know what more evidence I should have to present."
Earlier this month Bishop Thomas Tobin of Providence acknowledged Bucci's flyers through his spokesperson, and voiced his support of the priest's action.
"For every sacrament, the Church provides detailed norms for preparation and reception. It is the pastor's duty to apply them within his parish, in accord with Church law," Tobin's spokesperson said in a statement at the time. "This includes the proper reception of Holy Communion as outlined by the Code of Canon Law. Because the Church entrusts to each pastor the duty of teaching, sanctifying, and governing his parish, the daily pastoral and administrative decisions are made at the local parish level."


theblaze--2020-02-12--Ryan: Who will save our shopping malls now?

Ryan : Who will save our shopping malls now ?
Andrew Yang may have dropped out of the presidential race @ @ @ @ @ policies are still worth considering

A woman in a black-and-white sweater vacuumed Gardner-Collier jewelry store. No customers. No reason to vacuum.
Penn Central Mall in Oskaloosa, Iowa, a town of roughly 11,000 people. The building looks like hell, attached to a Hy-Vee and a Goodwill.
The same cheesy song blared out of a boombox around the corner as a color-guard team practiced, huddling into one corner of the giant carpeted promenade Photo by Kevin Ryan
But on Feb. 3, 2020, the mall showed hints of activity in anticipation of Democratic presidential nominee Andrew Yang. Three or four dozen people, all wearing Yang 2020 apparel. Including the cheeky "MATH" hat.
"Is he here?" they kept asking.
Yang had spent the past few weeks with Dave Chappelle, performed a few shows, and made calls, including this gem.
And now, with the caucuses in a day, it was time to let Iowans decide.
Walk through the tinted doors into the south entrance of Penn Central Mall, and to your right, for an uncomfortably long distance, a wall of trinkets and knick-knacks and replica souvenirs. Useless trophies. All the other hallways throb with wallpaper that clearly hadn't been updated since 1980, so the whole place resembled the hotel from Stanley Kubrick's "The Shining."
Penn Central Mall in Oskaloosa, Iowa Photo by Kevin Ryan
Besides the Yang supporters, there were only a dozen other people, and they seemed to walk in circles, saying nothing. No kiosks. No food court. Not even a Wetzel's Pretzels.
Then, turn left, past the Merle Norman Cosmetics with an old green sign. Toward an arcade — now abandoned, chain-locked, doors tinted. You can still see banks of pinball machines and air hockey tables and videogame cabinets like at the old-school pizzerias. Across from the shuttered nail salon with no window was Andrew Yang's 2020 Presidential Oskaloosa headquarters. He intentionally chose abandoned malls like Penn Central Mall for his campaign sites.
Yang supporters wait eagerly for Andrew Yang's arrival. Photo by Kevin Ryan
Because he believes in the cultural and commercial revitalization of these American institutions. His idea is an extension of his human-centered capitalism: "Humans are more important than money. The unit of a Human Capitalism economy is each person, not each dollar. Markets exist to serve our common goals and values."
With the American Mall Act, Yang would "redirect tax incentives away from big-box retailers and toward more sustainable employers — or even non-commercial uses.
Is anything more American than a shopping mall?
Unfulfilled
In the 22nd season of South Park, the town gets an Amazon fulfillment center, which quickly becomes a monopoly, and it destroys local business, employing everyone so that their wages become a kind of company scrip they use exclusively for Amazon purchases, a reference to Amazon's " gamification" system.
The villain, Jeff Bezos, resembles Star Trek's Talosians, the ghastly, bulb-headed aliens, who plan to capture the USS Enterprise and enslave its crew for the purposes of breeding. Bezos monitors the townspeople through their Amazon Echo devices.
Penn Central Mall in Oskaloosa, Iowa Photo by Kevin Ryan
In "Unfulfilled" the ninth episode, the factory workers go on strike, and Bezos cuts off their accounts. Unexpected heroes emerge from a derelict mall, former employees who've been trapped there so long they turned green and mangled and rotten, hideous creatures based on the Morlocks, an underground-dwelling from H.G. Wells's novel "The Time Machine."
The mutant mall workers become scabs at the fulfillment center. And, after a bizarre revolution that involves Santa Clause and a cannabis farm and a talking piece of feces, the entire town shows up to City Hall to tell Bezos that they're taking their town back.
Dead Malls
There's something post-apocalyptic about dead malls. A once extravagant giant, eroding. Former cathedrals of consumption slumping into vacancy and disrepair.
So naturally the disintegration of a once-vital cultural institution has both alarmed and intrigued us. You know how there's a subreddit for everything? Dead Malls is a running catalogue of all things Dead Mall, and with 78,000 subscribers.
Photo by Kevin Ryan
The dead mall phenomenon began in the early 1990s, as the vacancy rate started to rise and the consumer traffic began to dwindle. Department store giants like Macy's and JcPenney bring traffic, serve as anchor tenants that draw people to the mall, making them vital for the success of the smaller businesses that rely on passersby.
Enclosed shopping malls, once an emblem of post-War America, began losing customers to big-box stores like Walmart, Ikea, Target, Bed Bath & Beyond.
2007 marked a tipping point, the first time in 50 years that no new enclosed shopping malls were built in America. Not one. It was five years before another was built, City Creek Mall Center in Salt Lake City. In 2010 came the retail apocalypse, when brick-and-mortar retail stores began closing at a steepening clip.
Photo by Kevin Ryan
Department store giants began to feel the hit. And when they hurt, every part of the shopping mall ecosystem suffers.
Then — Bezos.
E-commerce accounted for 12 percent of retail sales in the country, up from 3.6 percent in 2008.
The first thing everyone I talked to about this story said, "Malls are dead because of Amazon." Yes. But research indicates that the issue is far more complicated, with numerous variables involved. Real estate research group Costar pointed to the cost of upkeep, shifting demographics and out-of-date tenants.
Photo by Kevin Ryan
Our expectations for a shopping experience have evolved. More often, open-air markets and outlet malls give us what we once found in the massive concrete compounds of enclosed shopping malls.
There are a few oddities. Ulta Beauty, the cosmetics chain, is booming in malls. Dave & Busters, with its flexible real estate model, has done incredibly well, with 10 percent growth a year, a third of their locations are inside malls.
The commentary about shopping malls is often either bleak — malls are dying and will soon be obsolete — or optimistic — malls are just evolving to fit the needs of our digital world.
In reality, it's a blend of both.
The way we shop has changed with Amazon. Because we're also changing the way we spend money. And we're never going to go back. But that doesn't mean we have to get rid of malls. And not all malls are in trouble.
And we can always rest our hope on Gen Z.
Shopping Mall Ecosystem
The success or failure of a mall usually depends on the area it's located. Malls in wealthier communities continue to thrive. They've undergone a revitalization. Malls in middle-class and lower income areas, however, are suffering.
Abandoned malls also happen to be bad for neighborhoods, with less traffic and industry, the crime rates increase. When a mall sinks, it brings the surrounding neighborhoods down with it.
Malls are ranked on a three-tiered system. Class A, Class B, Class C, with A being the most successful and C the least. These are determined by sales per square foot, the average revenue divided by the selling area in square feet. At the very top of the foodchain, you've got Ala Moana Center in Honolulu, Hawaii, which stands as the most valuable mall in America, boasting $1,450 sales per square foot, with a $5.74 billion total asset value.
Photo by Kevin Ryan
So pick a city. Take my hometown, Tulsa, Oklahoma, for instance.
Class A malls are the thriving malls Simon Property Group, General Growth Properties, Macerich and Westfield, with $500 or more in sales per square foot. Like Woodland Hills Mall, near Broken Arrow. It boasts Tulsa's only Apple Store, of the 272 nationwide. Owned by Simon Property Group, it has two bus routes, 580 seats in its food court. There's even a Texas De Brazil Brazilian steakhouse. Located in a thriving area, with big-box stores and restaurants. It's the mall you go to when you want to see the fancy Santa.
The drop-off from Class A is fairly sharp. Class B malls aren't doing well at all, with $300 to $500 in sales per square foot. Promenade Mall has fiddled with repossession — did you know that shopping malls can be repossessed? — but the traffic is still decent because it's more centrally located. In April of this year, the JCPenney will be closing, Dillard's will be the only anchor store. And while vacancies are noticeable, there are tenants to replace them, however unconventional. Like how the former Mervyn's has been converted into a Sky Fitness & Wellbeing, a Tulsa-based gym chain.
Photo by Kevin Ryan
Class C malls are in bad shape, sometimes worse than bad. Less than $300 in sales per square foot, with high vacancies, usually in lower income areas, on the brink of bankruptcy or abandonment. And "greyfields" are malls where the annual sales-per-square-foot drops below $150.
Eastland Mall, in East Tulsa, the most inaccessible of the three, in a less developed area. A gradual slide from the 1990s. Closures in the early 2000s. Unable to find brand-name tenants, the owners leased to dance studios, martial arts schools, even a country music bar and a wedding chapel. By 2006, it had become a dead mall, and the Simon Property Group put it up for sale. It's at this point of a mall's life when things can get pretty ugly. But Eastland serves as proof that even a gutted mall can be brought to life.
A North-Carolina developer bought it for $2.8 million, rebranded it as Eastgate Metroplex, renovated it, and now it's used as office space, with call centers for Coca Cola, Enterprise Rent-A-Car, and Capital One. A University of Phoenix campus, a food-handler permit training center, a family health clinic, and a DMV, with the mall's entire lower level as its waiting area.
Recycling
A 17-minute drive from Washington, D.C., at the Landmark Mall in Alexandria, Virgina, Macy's, a homeless shelter, with 60 beds and toilets uprooted from an abandoned Lord & Taylor.
Google offices at Mayfield Mall in Mountain View, California.
A hockey rink at Hickory Hollow Mall in Antioch, Tennessee.
Photo by Kevin Ryan
Following a tornado in 2011 that killed 161 people in Joplin and ravaged the high school, students relocated to Northpark Mall for several years. A few blocks from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio, the Galleria at Erieview, known for its glass exterior, once served as a massive urban greenhouse farm called Gardens Under Glass, which has since closed, but the mall has since been remodeled as a YMCA.
Last November, the Mall of America, the biggest mall in the nation, opened a walk-in medical clinic, with a pharmacy, a radiology room, and laboratories.
Fitting, then, that the oldest shopping mall in our country, the Arcade Providence, in downtown Providence, Rhode Island, repurposed its upper two floors into 48 micro-apartments — between 225 and 775 square feet. On the first floor, various boutiques, as well as a bar, a coffee shop, a pizzeria, a bookstore, and a spa.
House of the Lord
The earliest Christians met in their homes or synagogues, not churches. It wasn't until 230 years after the death of Jesus Christ that the first church, the Europos church, was built as a place of worship.
The Bible doesn't include guidelines for where, specifically, Christians have to worship. Joel Osteen holds services in the 16,800-seat arena that many Houstonians still call The Summit, home to the Houston Rockets for 28 years.
Lexington Mall in Lexington, Kentucky, built on the former grounds of Eilerslie estate, constructed by Abraham Lincoln's father-in-law. It began to decline in the early 1990s, and in 2005, the lost the only remaining retailer, Dillard's. Southland Christian Church — an evangelical megachurch founded in 1956 — has several satellite campuses around northeast Kentucky. It bought Lexington Mall in 2010 for $8 million, and rebuilt it into official campus of the church. They use the Dillard's for nurseries and classrooms.
Photo by Kevin Ryan
Then there's Church in the Mall. Coffee and hot chocolate, open mic nights, blood drives, concerts, game nights, in Heath, Ohio Indian Mound Mall, a C Class mall, a ghost town, with $242 sales per square foot, and no restaurants except a Wetzel's and those are the sloths of the restaurant kingdom — like, not terrible, but would you rather see a sloth or a killer whale?
For a while there, every Sunday and Wednesday, you could find worshippers at the Euclid Square shopping mall in Euclid, Ohio. In the old Lane Bryant, was New Praise Ministries. Across from it, in a former One Price Clothing outlet, was World of Faith Christian Center. In total, there were 22 other churches inside the mall. It closed in 2016, because of leaks, demolished two years later. In its place, an Amazon fulfillment center.
Yang Arrives
In Oscaloosa, Yang's supporters all huddled into the crowded shopface of the room, scoping around to catch a glimpse of Yang out the back door. They'd bottle-necked into the room and they appeared to be stuck, clogged.
Yang's bus chugged down the side street behind the mall.
Photo by Kevin Ryan
His wife had traveled along with him. Pictures of the two of them leaving a canvass lunch in Davenport had sprouted up on Twitter.
His red-and-beige scarf, his boxy shoes.
Yang gave the entire speech through a karaoke speaker with a distorted microphone.
He looked tired, indifferent. Maybe, in that moment, he was sick of campaigning.
When he finished, Mark Morrison's "Return of the Mack" started playing through the karaoke speaker. After that, Drake. Fittingly, "Started from the Bottom." Because Yang started from the bottom now he's here.
People asking for selfies or blurting out phrases. To my immediate left, an older man missing some crucial teeth kept shouting, "Andrew! Andrew! Andrew!"
Photo by Kevin Ryan
When Yang turned in the man's direction, the man thrust a wiry baseball hat and a Sharpie toward Yang. A dozen people formed a wall between Yang and the man. But this guy was adamant. Yang stared back, as if perplexed. Nodded, smiled.
Then the man turned his wiry cap around to reveal a giant iron-on patch of a marijuana leaf. "Sign my hat, Andrew!"
Before Yang could fully react, one of his campaign staff ushered him out of the room, apologizing to the YangGang with a sense of imperative.
Then he was off again. Outside briefly before shuffling back onto the Yang tour bus. From there, he returned to Des Moines, to wait for the results of the caucuses. Then on to New Hampshire, where his 2020 campaign to become president will come to an end.
Still, it's worth remembering Yang's campaign slogans: "Not Left, Not Right, Forward".
New stories come out every Monday and Thursday. Check out my Twitter. Send all notes, tips, corrections to kryan@blazemedia.com


theblaze--2020-02-13--'Dumbest damn thing I have ever heard!' — Trey Gowdy eviscerates Liz Warren

Gowdy says Barr 's suggestion in the Roger Stone case will be decided by the judge

Former Republican Rep. Trey Gowdy weighed in on the suggestion from presidential candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) that Attorney General William Barr should resign over recent actions by the Department of Justice.
"The prosecutors wanted nine years, uh, Bill Barr thinks that two or three years is more proportional, and the only difference between the two is whether or not you count this eighth-level enhancement for for actively threatening a witness," Gowdy explained.
"If you didn't have that enhancement, then everyone would agree that Bill Barr's view of the guidelines is accurate. So the judge is gonna decide whether or not that enhancement is appropriate, supported by the facts. Martha, this was a trial, she presided over the trial, she listened to the witnesses. She's uniquely well positioned to decide whether or not that enhancement should be in play," he continued.
"But the notion, I mean, prosecutors don't sentence people, presidents don't sentence people, Fox News commentators don't sentence people; judges do, and we give them life tenure so that they can make these calls," Gowdy said.
"But the notion that Bill Barr should resign," he exclaimed emphatically, "is about the dumbest damn thing I have ever heard!"
Gowdy was referring to a disagreement between Bill Barr and prosecutors who withdrew from the case in protest when the DOJ chimed in and said Stone should face a far lesser punishment. Warren said Barr should resign or face a possible impeachment.
"Congress must act immediately to rein in our lawless Attorney General. Barr should resign or face impeachment. And Congress should use spending power to defund the AG's authority to interfere with anything that affects Trump, his friends, or his elections." she tweeted on Wednesday.
Gowdy vehemently disagreed with her opinion.
"If a United States senator really believes that the head of the Department of Justice cannot weigh in on what a proportional sentence is, I mean, there are child pornographers who don't get nine years, Martha, there are people who rob banks who don't get nine years!" Gowdy continued.
"So let the judge decide. I think two or three years is about right," he concluded.
Here's the video of Gowdy's comments:


theblaze--2020-02-13--Rep. Ayanna Pressley says women are 'still shackled' because 'the American Constitution is sexist by

Rep. Ayanna Pressley says women are 'still shackled' because 'the American Constitution is sexist by its very design'

Rep. Ayanna Pressley says women are 'still shackled ' because 'the American Constitution is sexist by its very design' The @ @ @ @ @ statement from the House floor

Far-left Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) claimed from the floor of the House of Representatives on Wednesday that women in the U.S. are "still shackled" because the "American Constitution is sexist by its very design."
What are the details?
"The year is now 2020, and here we women are still in so many ways not fully free, still shackled," Pressley said in a speech arguing for removing the deadline for ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment.
Pressley went on to cite a number of statistics regarding women's wages broken down by race, before claiming, "In addition to pay discrimination, we face pregnancy discrimination, discrimination in the criminal legal system, sexual and domestic violence, and inadequate health care access."
The Democrat from Massachusetts concluded, "This isn't an accident. The American Constitution is sexist by its very design. This country's laws have historically treated us like second-class citizens, depriving us of the right to vote, enter most jobs, and to own property."
Anything else?
The Daily Wire reported that Pressley "promot[ed] the myth of the gender pay gap" when she claimed, "In the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, women are paid 83 cents for every dollar paid to a man, but nationally, women are paid only 80 cents for every dollar a man is paid. Even worse, the modern-day wage gap disproportionately impacts women of color, with black women earning 61 cents, Native women earning 58 cents, LatinX women earning only 53 cents, and [Asian American and Pacific Islander] women making a little as 50 cents per dollar paid to a white man."
The outlet pointed to a TIME magazine article written by American Enterprise Institute scholar Christina Hoff Sommers in 2016, where Sommers wrote:
No matter how many times this wage gap claim is decisively refuted by economists, it always comes back. The bottom line: the 23-cent gender pay gap is simply the difference between the average earnings of all men and women working full-time. It does not account for differences in occupations, positions, education, job tenure or hours worked per week. When such relevant factors are considered, the wage gap narrows to the point of vanishing.
TheBlaze's Samantha Sullivan contributed to this story.


theblaze--2020-02-13--Democrats worry Nevada caucuses could be just as disastrous as Iowa — or even worse

Democrats worry Nevada caucuses could be just as disastrous as Iowa — or even worse '' I 've been hyperventilating @ @ @ @ @ . ''

Democrats in Nevada worry that their caucuses could mirror the disastrous and embarrassing debacle in Iowa, and one indicator points to even greater complications.
An Associated Press report documents concerns from some Democratic party members and volunteers citing similar organizational and technical obstacles.
Among the biggest challenges in Iowa was a failing smartphone application that had not been sufficiently tested before it broke down on the pivotal night when all eyes were on the Hawkeye state.
While the Nevada Democratic Party quickly dropped its plans to use the same application for caucus reporting, the replacement isn't doing much better.
Officials said they would be using a "Caucus Tool" to report results and that they would be shipping iPads for the tool on the day of the election.
Volunteers said they have not received any training on how to use the "tool," and officials could not explain to the Associated Press why it is different from the failed application in Iowa.
The report quoted University of Iowa computer scientist Doug Jones, an expert on voting technology, on his concerns about their use of the iPad application.
"This sounds just dangerous, like people are still improvising and making up the rules as they go," said Jones. "How do they expect to get training done for all the people doing these caucuses?"
The Nevada caucuses also have one complicating factor that could make them worse than Iowa: Voters will be allowed to vote early, and it is unclear how these votes will be tabulated in the complicated counting process.
"They've been saying basically, 'Don't worry. Trust us,'" said Seth Morrison, a caucus site leader in Las Vegas. "I've been hyperventilating for the last five days."
Here's more about the Nevada caucus:


theblaze--2020-02-13--'Bloomberg is trying to buy this election!': Protestor storms stage, takes over podium at Mike Bloom

'Bloomberg is trying to buy this election!': Protestor storms stage, takes over podium at Mike Bloomberg rally

'Bloomberg is trying to buy this election ! '
: Protestor storms stage , takes over podium at Mike Bloomberg @ @ @ @ @ events in Tennessee were interrupted by protestors on Wednesday

A protestor made quite a stir during a rally for Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg in Chattanooga, Tennessee, on Wednesday, when she began shouting that the candidate is "trying to buy" the election before storming the stage and taking over the lectern to continue making her case against the New York billionaire.
What are the details?
The woman, who has not been identified, ran to the front of the audience prior to Bloomberg taking the stage and shouted, "Bloomberg is trying to buy this election! That is not Democracy!" With that, the person speaking at the podium turned and left the stage, giving the protestor the opportunity to continue her message at the microphone.
"That is plutocracy!" she added, before a handful of individuals ran onto the stage to usher her out while the crowed booed her.
The Daily Caller noted that Bloomberg was late to enter the Democratic primary for president and "has been able to become relevant in the race thanks to the hundreds of million dollars he has spent on advertisements" despite his name not being on the ballot in the early primary states of Iowa and New Hampshire.
Bloomberg, the former mayor of New York City, is worth an estimated $60 billion.
Anything else?
The second event Bloomberg held in Tennessee on Wednesday was also interrupted by a different protestor over a different issue.
During a rally in Nashville, a man in the crowd yelled, "Mike lied about terrorizing inner city youth! How he increased stop and frisk!" WTVT-TV reported. That protestor was also booed by the crowd as he was led out, and Bloomberg reacted by saying, "Just wanted to thank him for making me feel like I was at home."
Earlier this week, Bloomberg sparked outrage over leaked comments from 2015 where the former mayor can be heard giving a racist defense of New York City's "stop and frisk" program targeting racial minorities.


theblaze--2020-02-13--VIDEO: Uber passengers livestream 'nightmare' ride when driver chases car after rear-end collision

`` I have never been that scared in my life .
It was a nightmare . ''

Two Uber passengers broadcast a "nightmare ride" when their driver took off to chase after another car that had hit him and tried to escape.
John Murray and Tameka Swann said they were on their way to a night on the town in Richmond, Virginia, when the harrowing incident occurred.
They said another car ran into the Uber vehicle right after they pulled away from the curb.
"Our Uber attempted to pull over so that they exchange information, but the car didn't stop behind us. They went around us and sped off and that's when our Uber sped off behind him," Swann said.
Murray decided to livestream the chase when the driver refused to pull over and let them out.
The video shows the alarming view from the backseat as the vehicle raced through the streets of Richmond.
At one point the driver dialed 911 on his cellphone and handed it to Swann.
"The driver won't let us out. He's trying to catch the guy because he hit us," Swann can be heard telling the dispatcher.
Eventually, the driver got into another accident and stopped to let the couple out. They said they suffered some bruising.
Uber said in a statement that it is investigating the incident and that the driver's access to the application was removed while the investigation continues.
"That was the scariest moment of my life," Swann said. "I have never been that scared in my life. It was a nightmare."
Here's the video from the nightmare ride:


theblaze--2020-02-13--Iowa Democratic Party chairman announces resignation as caucus disaster drags on

Troy Price will not be overseeing the recounts and recanvasses

Iowa Democratic Party Chairman Troy Price issued his letter of resignation Wednesday, announcing that he will step aside as soon as his replacement is elected so that the party can move forward amid recounts in the ongoing caucus debacle.
What are the details?
"The fact is that Democrats deserve better than what happened on caucus night," Price wrote in a letter to the Iowa Democratic Party's State Central Committee. "As chair of this party, I am deeply sorry for what happened and bear the responsibility for any failures on behalf of the Iowa Democratic Party.
"While it is my desire to stay in this role and see this process through to completion, I do believe it is time for the Iowa Democratic Party to begin looking forward, and my presence in my current role makes that more difficult," he continued. "Therefore, I will resign as chair of the Iowa Democratic Party effective upon the election of my replacement."
According to the Des Moines Register, "Price said he would call for an emergency meeting of the state central committee at 1 p.m. on Saturday to elect an interim chair."
Price added, "Whomever is elected will oversee the completion of the recanvass and recount process and begin the process of healing our party."
There are still no final results from last week's disastrous Iowa caucuses, after confusion over the process, the failure of a new app for submitting results, and tallying inaccuracies left media outlets unable to definitively declare a winner. Preliminary numbers show that either former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg or Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) won, but the race is too close to call and questions over accuracy remain.
Anything else?
Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez has refused to take any responsibility for the fiasco, saying last week that the Iowa Democratic Party was to blame. Perez emerged to call for a total recanvass of the vote in Iowa after days of chaos amid demands that Perez resign himself.
Former Iowa state senator and Democratic gubernatorial nominee Jack Hatch criticized the DNC chairman for his treatment of Price and the state party over the ordeal, telling Politico of Perez, "He got pushed by the national criticism and threw Iowa under the bus. The other state parties' chairs and the other states are in the same position: Can they trust the national chairman?"


theblaze--2020-02-13--Chicago transit deletes Black History Month tweet about Abraham Lincoln after social media outrage

They said their tweet `` went in a direction that was not at all intended . ''

The official social media account for the Chicago Transit Authority was forced to apologize for a tweet attempting to celebrate Black History Month after being hit with public outrage.
"Apologies, unfortunately our last retweet went in a direction that was not at all intended. Nonetheless, we WILL continue to honor the African Americans who have played a large role in CTA history," the CTA tweeted after deleting their prior message.
The account had retweeted a post from a transit passenger who posted photos of an actor portraying Abraham Lincoln at one of the stations.
"Unquantifiable benefits of #publictransport — meeting #AbrahamLincoln last night on the @cta red line," said Chantal Forster.
The CTA retweeted the post with the message, "In honor of Black History Month, Abraham Lincoln was seen making a guest appearance on the CTA."
That tweet was quickly deleted after many expressed outrage over the celebration of a white man on a holiday meant to celebrate black history.
"How are you honoring a white man on black history month?" asked one social media user.
"Yeah clearly someone lost their damn mind posting that tweet as a true dedication to Black History Month," responded another after the apology.
Others noted that the tweet came on the birthday of the Civil War era president who is best known for issuing the Emancipation Proclamation that freed the slaves in confederate-controlled parts of the country.
[H/T: The Chicago Tribune.]


theblaze--2020-02-13--Attorney General William Barr slated to testify before House Judiciary Committee

The news comes as Democrats express fury over the DOJ stepping in on Roger Stone sentencing

Attorney General William Barr has agreed to testify before the House Judiciary Committee next month, according to the panel's Democratic members, as Democrats in both chambers of Congress demand answers after the Department of Justice stepped in calling for a lower recommended sentence for President Donald Trump's friend Roger Stone.
What are the details?
Judiciary Committee Democrats led by Chairman Jerry Nadler (N.Y.) wrote a letter to Barr on Wednesday that began, "We are writing to confirm your agreement to testify before the House Judiciary Committee on March 31, 2020."
The Democrats wrote, "Since President Trump took office, we have repeatedly warned you and your predecessors that the misuse of our criminal justice system for political purposes is both dangerous to our democracy and unacceptable to the House Judiciary Committee."
The letter goes on to explain that the committee wants to question the attorney general over:
"The ongoing developments following the removal of U.S. Attorney Jessie Liu, who oversaw the prosecutions of President Trump's deputy campaign chairman Rick Gates, President Trump's former national security advisor Michael Flynn, and President Trump's longtime political adviser Roger Stone.
The creation of a new 'process' by which President Trump's personal attorney Rudy Giuliani can feed the Department of Justice information, through you, about the President's political rivals.
The decision to overrule your career prosecutors and significantly reduce the recommended sentence for Roger Stone, who has been convicted for lying under oath, at the apparent request of the President—a decision that led to all four prosecutors handling the case to withdraw from the proceedings in protest."
As of this writing, Attorney General Barr has not issued a public statement confirming that he has agreed to testify before the Democrat-led panel.
The House Judiciary Democrats sent their letter the day after the four prosecutors handling the Roger Stone case withdrew after the Department of Justice stepped in, saying their recommended seven- to nine-year sentence for Stone was too harsh. President Trump told reporters he did not instruct the DOJ to intervene in the case, but said the original proposed sentence — along with the prosecution of Stone — was "ridiculous."
Anything else?
Democrats in the GOP-led Senate also called Wednesday for an investigation in the upper chamber into the DOJ recommending an amended sentence for Stone, with some even calling for Attorney General Barr to resign over the matter.
NBC News reported that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said on the Senate floor, "Something egregious like this demands that the inspector general investigate and demands that the chairman of the Judiciary Committee hold a hearing now," adding, "I therefore request that you immediately investigate this matter to determine how and why the Stone sentencing recommendations were countermanded, which Justice Department officials made this decision, and which White House officials were involved."
Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) said Wednesday, "Attorney General William Barr should be ashamed and embarrassed and resign as a result of this action directly interfering in the independent prosecution of Roger Stone, simply the latest examples of political interference by the president to alter the independent decisions of the Department of Justice."


theblaze--2020-02-13--New Hampshire man arrested for assaulting 15-year-old Trump supporter at primary polling tent

Police say a 34-year-old man was arrested for allegedly assaulting a 15-year-old who was wearing a Trump campaign hat at a polling tent at his high school in New Hampshire.
Patrick Bradley was charged with simple assault and disorderly conduct by Windham Police.
The teen was wearing a "Make America Great Again" hat at the time of the assault, according to Fox News.
He was reportedly volunteering at a polling location for the New Hampshire primary at his high school, when Bradley slapped him. Two volunteers attempted to intervene, but Bradley reportedly assaulted them as well.
Police say he's also accused of knocking over signage and attempting to knock over the tent.
The teen's mother, Cathy Campbell, says he's traumatized because of the altercation.
"My son stayed home from school on Tuesday for a doctor's appointment and we drove by the high school to go vote. When we got there, we saw Donald Trump Jr. and Kimberly Guilfoyle, and my son was over the moon," she said. "My son is the most patriotic kid you'd ever meet in your life."
The campaign confirmed to Fox News that Trump Jr. and Guilfoyle were at the event.
"I was apprehensive about him wearing the MAGA hat, because we know it can provoke and we know people don't like Trump," Campbell explained. "But he wore the hat because he's a proud 15-year-old and he doesn't know what people are going to be like."
Campbell told Fox News the jaw of another man, who intervened, was broken in the assault.
Bradley is being held on $5,000 bail.


theblaze--2020-02-13--Make Bernie Based Again: Bernie Sanders didn't always support open borders

Make Bernie Based Again !
When it comes to immigration policy , Bernie Sanders may not attain the level of @ @ @ @ @ his followers .
In fact , during a VOX interview back in 2015 , Bernie @ @ @ @ @ why open borders are synonymous with rejecting a nation-state making our country poorer as a @ @ @ @ @ for $ 10 off one year of BlazeTV .
Want more from Steven Crowder ?
@ @ @ @ @ 's uncensored late-night comedy that 's actually funny , subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest @ @ @ @ @ love America , defend the Constitution and live the American dream .

Make Bernie Based Again! When it comes to immigration policy, Bernie Sanders may not attain the level of "woke" desired by his followers. In fact, during a VOX interview back in 2015, Bernie showed a clear understanding of why open borders are synonymous with rejecting a nation-state, making our country poorer as a result.
Here's Crowder to explain.
youtu.be
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theblaze--2020-02-13--AG William Barr publicly admonishes President Trump, says tweets are making his job 'impossible'

AG William Barr publicly admonishes President Trump , says tweets are making his job 'impossible' The interview reportedly came as @ @ @ @ @ House

Attorney General William Barr criticized President Donald Trump in an interview on Thursday, saying the president's tweets about the Department of Justice "make it impossible for me to do my job."
What are the details?
"I think it's time to stop the tweeting about Department of Justice criminal cases," Barr told ABC News in an exclusive interview, adding that such messages "make it impossible to do my job."
Barr has faced ridicule and even calls from Democrats to step down in recent days, after the DOJ intervened on Tuesday to recommend a reduced sentence for President Trump's friend Roger Stone.
Just before 1:00 a.m. on the day the DOJ stepped in, the president tweeted that the initial recommendation of seven to nine years of incarceration for Stone "is a horrible and very unfair situation," adding, "cannot allow this miscarriage of justice!"
Critics pounced on the timing of the tweet and suggested the president instructed Barr to intervene in Stone's sentencing. The president denied reaching out to the DOJ regarding Stone.
During the interview with ABC, Barr also denied that the president had any involvement in the decision to recommend a lesser sentence for Stone. In fact, Barr said he himself gave the instructions to staff Monday night before the president tweeted about the situation, putting Barr in a difficult spot the next day.
"Do you go forward with what you think is the right decision or do you pull back because of the tweet?" Barr said in the interview. "And that just sort of illustrates how disruptive these tweets can be."
Barr added, "I'm not going to be bullied or influenced by anybody ... whether it's Congress, a newspaper editorial board, or the president. I'm gonna do what I think is right. And you know ... I cannot do my job here at the department with a constant background commentary that undercuts me."
According to ABC News, the White House did not offer an immediate comment on the Barr interview, but reported that "senior level White House sources insisted to ABC News that the president and top aides were unaware of Barr's intentions in the interview and were informed of the content only just before it aired."
Anything else?
Attorney General Barr has also agreed to testify before the Democrat-led House Judiciary Committee on March 31, to answer questions about the Stone case and a litany of other issues raised by the panel.


theblaze--2020-02-13--Glenn Beck: Pete Buttigieg is NO moderate — here's where he stands on the issues

Glenn Beck : Pete Buttigieg is NO moderate — here 's where he stands on the issues 'He is not @ @ @ @ @ way '

Former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg has surged in the polls in the past month.
With former Vice President Joe Biden dropping below far-left presidential candidates such as the unapologetically socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vt.), and the almost equally extremist Sen. Elizabeth Warren (Mass.), Democratic voters seeking a more moderate alternative are setting their sights on Mayor Pete.
But are Buttigieg's policies actually moderate? Not even close, Glenn Beck said Thursday on the radio program.
"[Pete Buttigieg] wants people to see him as a moderate. The mayor of a Midwest city in a red state ... and he's going for the middle, even though he is not a moderate candidate in any way," said Glenn.
Here are just a few examples of where Buttigieg stands on the issues:
Supports late-term, partial-birth abortion
Eliminate the Electoral College
Buyback program for assault weapons
Raise the federal minimum wage to $15/hour
Expand Medicare
Decriminalize illegal immigration
Pay for infrastructure through changing taxes on corporations, the wealthy
Study reparations
Legalize marijuana
Increase existing taxes on upper-income Americans
Cancel some student debt
Don't use tariffs to pressure countries
Watch the video clip below for more information:
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theblaze--2020-02-13--Professor: 'Paw Patrol' cartoon indoctrinates kids to buy into pro-capitalist, anti-state propaganda

Professor: 'Paw Patrol' cartoon indoctrinates kids to buy into pro-capitalist, anti-state propaganda. Yes, really.

Professor : 'Paw Patrol ' cartoon indoctrinates kids to buy into pro-capitalist , anti-state propaganda .
Yes , really .
@ @ @ @ @ to critique the capitalist system that causes environmental harm in the first place and reproduces @ @

It seems Liam Kennedy — a King's University College professor — has a bone to pick with the creators of the children's cartoon "Paw Patrol."
If you're not hip deep in the plot, the wildly popular and lucrative animated show is about a group of crusading dogs, led by 10-year-old boy Ryder, who save folks from harm.
But Kennedy doesn't see it that way. In fact, he's gone so far as to conduct research on the program, which has been published in the journal Crime Media Culture. Its title? "'Whenever there's trouble. Just yelp for help': Crime, Conservation and Corporatization in Paw Patrol."
What's the beef, you ask?
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation had a sit-down with Kennedy recently to let him share his concerns about the show.
"I'll start with the depiction of the state," he told the network. "Mayor Humdinger and Mayor Goodway — kind of the representatives of the state or the government — are portrayed negatively."
So far, no issues on this end.
"Mayor Humdinger is portrayed as unethical or corrupt," he added. "Mayor Goodway as hysterical, bumbling, incompetent."
Still waiting on what the problem is
OK, OK — the CBC broke it down a bit more for us:
Plus, Kennedy takes issue with Paw Patrol as a kind of stand-in for a government-funded police force. "I would argue that the Paw Patrol, as a private corporation, is used to help provide basic social services in the Adventure Bay community. That's problematic in that the Paw Patrol creators are sending this message that we can't depend on the state to provide these services."
Not to mention, Ryder should be in school, Kennedy added.
Kennedy said it's possible these kinds of messages affect the children who watch the program.
"I just think that as time goes on, children might be less likely to critique the capitalist system that causes environmental harm in the first place and reproduces inequality," he added to the network.
Sigh.
In fact, the CBC said Kennedy even has a problem with the show's "no job is too big, no pup is too small" message. Apparently it's too rugged and too non-collective for his taste.
"To me that's an individualist message," Kennedy told the network. "'Pull up your boot straps, you can do it if you just try hard enough.' That kind of message ignores structural barriers in our society and not everyone can do it."
Hmm. Where did we hear this before? Oh, yeah.
Photographer: Adam Glanzman/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Anyway, Kennedy told the CBC that he takes his conclusions so seriously that he won't let his son watch the show.
"He has now internalized my feelings about the series and knows that we don't in fact watch 'Paw Patrol' in our house," he told the network.
Here's a clip of those furry capitalists up to no good once again:


theblaze--2020-02-13--Bloomberg story laments that climate change is hampering Kim Jong Un's plans for ski resorts

Bloomberg story laments that climate change is hampering Kim Jong Un 's plans for ski resorts

Apparently, global warming and the coronavirus are making North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un's propaganda and economic efforts difficult for him.
According to a story published Thursday at Bloomberg Green, the dictator's efforts to boost the country's international profile via ski resorts in the country are supposedly being threatened by rising global temperatures. Should the world feel bad for the communist strongman?
Here's a selection from the piece:
The North Korean leader, who once went to school in Switzerland, has made tourism a centerpiece of his economic vision since taking power almost a decade ago, building ski resorts to attract winter-sports enthusiasts and hard currency.
But with the coronavirus spreading in China, Kim has shut the border to his neighbor, cutting off the largest group of tourists to North Korea. Worse still, like other snow centers from the French Alps to Japan, North Korea is falling victim to changing Arctic weather patterns that are warming winters and reducing the levels of snow on lower slopes.
North Korea, a mountainous country roughly at the same latitude as Colorado, reported this month that higher-than-usual temperatures are causing "abnormal climatic phenomena." South Korea's weather office says average temperatures in its northern neighbor will probably rise 15% by 2040 from 1981-2010 levels.
The story goes on to describe how the dictator built his first ski resort in Masikryong in 2013, recently cut the ribbon on another in December, and is his hoping to rebuild another one by the end of the year. The one completed late last year even has hot springs and a horse racetrack to boot.
"Kim's enthusiasm for luxury resorts isn't just about propaganda," the authors write. "The growing number of tourists from around the world seeking new adventures, and the rapid increase in international travelers from neighboring China present a valuable potential source of foreign reserves."
The story goes on to describe the experiences of two skiers who have traveled to the Hermit Kingdom to hit the slopes. One 39-year-old skier named Christian told the outlet that his trip last year was almost canceled because of a "really bad snow season" there and said he was "lucky" that the place was open when he arrived.
A German skier named Ralph said that Masikryong was right up there with some of his other favorite destinations around the world and that the threat of global warming posed to it was "on the same level as lower-lying small European ski resorts."
"Hopefully for Korea it will get more relaxed and more people will be able to enjoy it," Ralph told the outlet via outlet. "I would truly love to go back there."
The story was also promoted via Twitter video on Bloomberg Asia's account, complete with a picture of Kim riding a white horse through snow-covered pine trees.
"Kim Jong Un dreamed of turning North Korea into a skiing paradise," the tweet said. "Now those plans are melting away due to climate change."
The coverage here offers such a rosy depiction of Kim's ski tourism efforts and the resorts themselves that one can almost forget that it's a story about an oppressive communist regime if they're not careful. But we are, in fact, talking about a very oppressive regime here.
"Surveillance is pervasive, arbitrary arrests and detention are common, and punishments for political offenses are severe" in North Korea, according to Freedom House. "While some social and economic changes have been observed in recent years, including a growth in small-scale private business activity, human rights violations are still widespread, grave, and systematic."
Human Rights Watch similarly describes the country as "one of the world's most repressive states."
Then there are, of course, the disturbing reports forced abortions, the "horrific conditions" that political prisoners are subjected to, and Kim's proclivity for brutal executions of regime officials.
Given all of that information, is anyone really supposed to be remotely concerned about the fate of Kim's luxury ski resorts? A fate that may or may not come to fruition over the next two decades if the reported projections are to be believed?
The only real victims in this situation are the countless North Koreans who have suffered under Kim's iron rule while their dictator tries his hand at creating winter vacation destinations meant to bring in foreign money and — as the story puts it — "ski his way out of international sanctions."


theblaze--2020-02-13--Pentagon transfers $3.8 billion to fund border wall. Congress rages.

The Pentagon sent a notice to Congress Thursday afternoon announcing plans to repurpose $ 3.8 billion in order to fund the construction of a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border wall .
What are the details ?
The Department of Defense money was originally intended to pay for `` new aircraft , naval ships , and equipment for the National Guard , '' the Wall Street Journal reported .
In its report on the news , The Hill noted that the money is being repurposed as part of the Pentagon 's counter-drug fund .
According to The Hill , the notice @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the `` support of higher priority items '' and is `` required to provide support for counter-drug activities . ''
`` DHS has identified areas along the southern border of the United States that are being used by individuals , groups , and transnational criminal organizations as drug smuggling corridors , and determined that the construction of additional physical barriers and roads in the vicinity of the United States border is necessary in order to impede and deny drug smuggling activities , '' the notice says .
Last year , President Donald Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a national emergency .
The declaration freed Trump to transfer military funds to pay for the border wall after Congress rejected appropriating the funding he requested .
Opponents of the declaration in Congress have repeatedly attempted to undo it but have thus far failed to block the president 's vetoes .
Some in Congress are raging In response to the news , several congressional members on Capitol Hill are decrying the move as unconstitutional and dangerous .
`` President Trump is once again disrespecting the separation of powers and endangering our security by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wasteful border wall , '' House Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Nita Lowey ( D-N.Y. ) said in a joint statement with Defense Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Pete Visclosky ( D-Ind. )
.
`` The President has stolen from the men and women of our military , their families , and the American taxpayers all to pay for a failed campaign promise and endanger our national security , '' Sen. Patrick Leahy ( D-Vt. ) , the Senate Appropriations Committee vice chairman , said .
On the Republican side , the ranking member on the House @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( R-Texas ) , also expressed concern over the move and called on Congress to `` take action . ''
According to The Hill , Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Richard Shelby ( R-Ala. ) also expressed regret over the move , despite his support for border wall construction .
`` I like the wall , I support the president , I wish they 'd find the money somewhere else , '' Shelby said .
`` I wish we could fund it through the regular process . ''

The Pentagon sent a notice to Congress Thursday afternoon announcing plans to repurpose $3.8 billion in order to fund the construction of a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border wall.
What are the details?
The Department of Defense money was originally intended to pay for "new aircraft, naval ships, and equipment for the National Guard," the Wall Street Journal reported.
In its report on the news, The Hill noted that the money is being repurposed as part of the Pentagon's counter-drug fund. According to The Hill, the notice says that the money is going toward the "support of higher priority items" and is "required to provide support for counter-drug activities."
"DHS has identified areas along the southern border of the United States that are being used by individuals, groups, and transnational criminal organizations as drug smuggling corridors, and determined that the construction of additional physical barriers and roads in the vicinity of the United States border is necessary in order to impede and deny drug smuggling activities," the notice says.
Last year, President Donald Trump declared the crisis at the southern border a national emergency. The declaration freed Trump to transfer military funds to pay for the border wall after Congress rejected appropriating the funding he requested.
Opponents of the declaration in Congress have repeatedly attempted to undo it but have thus far failed to block the president's vetoes.
Some in Congress are raging
In response to the news, several congressional members on Capitol Hill are decrying the move as unconstitutional and dangerous.
"President Trump is once again disrespecting the separation of powers and endangering our security by raiding military resources to pay for his wasteful border wall," House Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.) said in a joint statement with Defense Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Pete Visclosky (D-Ind.).
"The President has stolen from the men and women of our military, their families, and the American taxpayers all to pay for a failed campaign promise and endanger our national security," Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), the Senate Appropriations Committee vice chairman, said.
On the Republican side, the ranking member on the House Armed Services Committee, Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-Texas), also expressed concern over the move and called on Congress to "take action."
According to The Hill, Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) also expressed regret over the move, despite his support for border wall construction.
"I like the wall, I support the president, I wish they'd find the money somewhere else," Shelby said. "I wish we could fund it through the regular process."


theblaze--2020-02-13--Snoop Dogg issues apology to Gayle King after blasting her over Kobe Bryant interview

Snoop Dogg issues apology to Gayle King after blasting her over Kobe Bryant interview 'Two wrongs do n't make no @ @

Rapper Snoop Dogg has apologized to "CBS This Morning" co-host Gayle King for her remarks about the late Kobe Bryant during a recent interview with former WNBA star Lisa Leslie.
What's a brief history?
During a discussion with Leslie, King brought up Bryant's 2003 sexual assault case. Snoop Dogg was just one voice in many who vocally disapproved of King's questioning.
Bryant, his daughter, and several Bryant family friends were killed in a January helicopter crash.
During an impassioned Instagram video, the 48-year-old rapper said, "Gayle King, out of pocket for that s***. Why y'all attacking us? We yo' people. You ain't coming after f***ing Harvey Weinstein asking them dumb-ass questions. I get sick of y'all. I wanna call you one. Is it OK if I call her one? Funky dog-haired b***h! How dare you try to torch my motherf***ing homeboy's reputation. Punk motherf***er! Respect the family and back off, b***h, before we come get you."
Despite blowback, Snoop Dogg insisted that he did not threaten King.
For her part, King insisted that CBS promoted the interview with a clip that was taken "out of context."
What's he saying now?
The rapper made amends in a Wednesday Instagram video.
He said:
Two wrongs don't make no right. When you're wrong, you gotta fix it. So with that being said: Gayle King, I publicly tore you down by coming at you in a derogatory manner based off of emotions ... me being angry at questions that you asked. [I] overreacted. I should have handled it way different than that. I was raised way better than that. So I would like to apologize to you publicly for the language that I used and calling you out of your name and just being disrespectful.


theblaze--2020-02-13--Triggered leftists caught on video physically attacking College Republicans, destroying display — a

Triggered leftists caught on video physically attacking College Republicans, destroying display — and apparently getting away with it

Triggered leftists caught on video physically attacking College Republicans , destroying display — and apparently getting away with it Again @ @ @ @ @ Trump will be re-elected

Once again, triggered leftists have physically attacked conservatives on a college campus — and why? Once again, because they dared to set up a display and exercised their First Amendment rights.
Video caught an ultra woke duo at the University of California, Santa Cruz, walking up to a table set up by College Republicans and destroying it last Friday.
Image source: YouTube screenshot
What are the details?
They yelled several times that the "Trump 2020" banner was a "flag of white supremacy." They ripped up and ripped down their signs. They spit on and tried to take away their Betsy Ross flag.
Image source: YouTube screenshot
And one of them even knocked down a male defending the group's property.
Image source: YouTube screenshot
Worse still, they were seen walking away — apparently without consequences.
Image source: YouTube screenshot
Here's the clip:
youtu.be
What else?
Dylan Temple, president of the UC Santa Cruz College Republicans, told The College Fix he was doxxed on social media with a false accusation that he attacked individuals at the campus LGBTQ center, which he said was done in retaliation for following the aggressors until police arrived.
"They really brutalized our stand," Temple told the outlet, adding one of the banners they destroyed cost $60 to print. "And after everything was said and done … I told them they were going to get expelled, they decided to leave. At that point I just started following them with my phone."
More from the outlet:
Temple said the reason he followed them is because when his President Trump cut-out was vandalized last semester during another tabling event — and he got pictures of the perpetrators — campus police told him the photos were not enough evidence. This time, Temple said, he wanted to make sure he did not lose sight of the vandals so they could be held accountable.
To that end, Temple said he did enter the Cantú Queer Center in following the two, which is what ended up prompting him to be doxxed with the false claim that he "violently attacked" people at the center.
"The main thing is this is just pure defamation, I didn't attack anyone at the Cantú Queer Center," he told The Fix. "… They painted me as a right wing terrorist."
The Cantú center director and campus police did not respond to a request from The College Fix on Wednesday seeking comment.
Oh, and a lil' twist for ya
Would you believe the incident involved Hayden Williams, a conservative campus activist who was infamously punched in the face last year at UC Berkeley by — you guessed it — someone triggered by his signage declaring "Make America Great Again," the iconic slogan of President Donald Trump's 2016 campaign?
youtu.be
Well, believe it.
This time Williams was on the UCSC campus to speak to the College Republicans and was helping them at the table, The Fix reported. Video shows him refusing to let one of the triggered leftists take a “Trump 2020" flag — which ended with him shoved into a bed of large rocks, the outlet noted.
Image source: YouTube screenshot
Talk about a run of bad luck.
As for Temple — who told The Fix the doxxing tweet called for him to be beaten up — he said the attack was nothing new.
"We have had our table flipped before, we have had water thrown at our table, but this is the only time besides them destroying the Trump cut-out that there's been really monetary damage," he noted to the outlet. "It's intimidation."
What did UCSC have to say?
A UC Santa Cruz spokesman on Wednesday didn't identify the aggressors in a statement to The Fix.
“Campus officials are aware of an incident that occurred between students on the afternoon of Feb. 7, as members of the UC Santa Cruz College Republicans were tabling near the entrance to Quarry Plaza. UC Santa Cruz police are investigating, and hope to have the investigation completed soon," campus spokesman Scott Hernandez-Jason said via email.
Nothing but a pair of harmless, lovable fuzzballs Image source: YouTube screenshot
"UC Santa Cruz is committed to ensuring that all members of our campus community are able to exercise their constitutionally protected rights of free expression, speech, and assembly, and that they are able to do so in a safe environment. Free speech is uniquely important to a university, as it allows for the open exchange of ideas integral to our fundamental missions," his statement added.


theblaze--2020-02-13--DEBATE: Jon Miller and Andrew Wilkow debate the merits of saving lives through the stop-and-frisk pr

DEBATE: Jon Miller and Andrew Wilkow debate the merits of saving lives through the stop-and-frisk program

DEBATE : Jon Miller and Andrew Wilkow debate the merits of saving lives through the stop-and-frisk program

On Wednesday's episode of "White House Brief," Jon Miller discussed how the voting results in New Hampshire likely surprised "experts," and how for those with an ounce of political intuition, the results were completely expected.
Miller went on to explain how he had been saying for months that Joe Biden had no shot and to watch out for former Mayor Pete Buttigieg.
Also, leaked audio of presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg reveals how he ACTUALLY feels about the stop-and-frisk program despite his recent reversal.
Later, Miller debated Andrew Wilkow, host of BlazeTV's "Wilkow," on the merits of saving lives through stop-and-frisk.
And David Brooks of The Atlantic explained that the nuclear family was a mistake. We think publishing such an asinine article was a mistake.
Watch the video below for more details.
youtu.be
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theblaze--2020-02-13--Bloomberg's comments highlight the inherent racism and questionable constitutionality of stop-and-fr

Bloomberg's comments highlight the inherent racism and questionable constitutionality of stop-and-frisk

Bloomberg 's comments highlight the inherent racism and questionable constitutionality of stop-and-frisk Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg presided @ @ @ @ @ `` stop and frisk '' by NYPD .
( Brett Carlsen/Getty Images )

When former New York City mayor and current Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg's racist comments about the stop-and-frisk policing method leaked this week, defenders of the policy quickly attempted to separate the racism from the method itself.
In a 2015 speech that he attempted to suppress from the public, Bloomberg said 95% of murderers are male minorities between the ages of 16 and 25, so police resources should focus on targeting people who fit that profile.
He brushed off the fact that a disproportionate number of those arrested for marijuana were minorities, calling it an "unintended consequence" of putting all the police in minority neighborhoods "where all the crime is."
In order to get guns out of these young minorities' hands, you have to "throw them up against the wall and frisk them" to discourage them from carrying.
Constitutionality and scope
One of the first arguments typically made in favor of stop-and-frisk is that it's constitutional. This claim is based on the 1968 U.S. Supreme Court case Terry v. Ohio, which established that police officers can stop-and-frisk someone without probable cause, if that officer holds a "reasonable suspicion that the person has committed, is committing, or is about to commit a crime and has a reasonable belief that the person may be armed and presently dangerous."
It must be noted, however, that this ruling very specifically applied to searches for weapons performed on people reasonably thought to be a threat to the officer or others. It does not apply to possession of drugs — but Bloomberg readily conceded in the aforementioned speech that drug arrests are often the result of stop-and-frisk encounters.
Terry v. Ohio established that the frisk "must therefore be confined in scope to an intrusion reasonably designed to discover guns, knives, clubs, or other hidden instruments for the assault of the police officer."
A 1993 case, Minnesota v. Dickerson, expanded the scope of a stop-and-frisk to allow for the seizure of contraband, including drugs, detected by an officer in the course of a legal frisk. So, if an officer who is frisking someone for weapons under "reasonable suspicion" happens to feel a bag of marijuana, a warrantless seizure is justified.
In his concurrence with the Court's opinion in that case, the late Justice Antonin Scalia expressed concerns about the potential that allowing the admissibility of drugs from stop-and-frisks could encourage more frisks for drugs. This expands stop-and-frisk beyond the intent of Terry v. Ohio, which, again, was focused on frisks for weapons for the sake of the safety of the officer or others.
More importantly, Scalia directly questioned whether the concept of stop-and-frisk violated what the Founding Fathers intended when they drafted the Bill of Rights.
"I frankly doubt, moreover, whether the fiercely proud men who adopted our Fourth Amendment would have allowed themselves to be subjected, on mere suspicion of being armed and dangerous, to such indignity," Scalia wrote of stop-and-frisk.
Indeed, if Bloomberg's comments are any indication, Scalia was correct in his concern. And the statistics clearly show who the primary victims of this expansion are.
Racial targeting
The New York Civil Liberties Union tracked stop-and-frisk demographic data from 2003 through the first half of 2019. The numbers revealed two overwhelming facts: A large majority of those stopped and frisked were either black or Hispanic, and even larger majority of those stopped were completely innocent.
In 2003, 160,851 people were stopped and frisked. Of those, 54% were black, 31% were Hispanic, and 87% percent of them were innocent.
Those percentages held pretty steady over the years, even as the number of stops increased dramatically until 2011, when NYPD officers under Bloomberg's watch stopped 685,724 people — 53% of whom were black, 33% Hispanic, and 88% innocent.
This problem didn't just plague New York City. In Philadelphia, data from January through June 2018 showed that despite criticism and lawsuits, blacks and Hispanics accounted for more than 80% of stops and 87% of frisks despite only constituting 56% of the city population. Only about 1% of frisks led to the recovery of a weapon.
Low success rate, high cost
Stop-and-frisk results in large numbers of innocent people being harassed by police. Stop-and-frisk leads to disproportionate numbers of minorities being harassed by police. Bloomberg wasn't making some wild, inconceivable comment that doesn't represent the truth of stop-and-frisk. He was describing the undeniably racist assumption at the heart of stop-and-frisk: Minorities are violent criminals, so the more we target minorities, the more violent crime we will prevent. If we have to frisk or arrest thousands of innocent or nonviolent people in the process, so be it.
One might still defend stop-and-frisk, or even Bloomberg's comments, by saying "Well, the crime rate did go down." But at what cost? It's disturbing how little regard someone must have for the rights and dignity of minorities, and all citizens, to feel that thousands upon thousands of unnecessary police stops represent effective policing, and are worth the result. And there is evidence that a significant decrease in stop-and-frisk encounters in New York City did not result in increased crime after all.
Another line of argument asserts that if you're innocent, you shouldn't mind if you're stopped and frisked by an officer every once in a while. It'll be over pretty quickly, and it's for the greater good of public safety, one might say. But the right to not be physically accosted in the street by police just because you look to an officer like you might be up to something should not be so easily discarded. People who are doing nothing wrong should not be subject to the disruption of having to prove their innocence to a suspicious cop.
Rights are important, even if the preservation of those rights makes it more difficult to achieve a goal. It's an argument conservatives make often against gun control advocates who would disregard the Second Amendment in order to, in their view, reduce the number of mass shootings.
Some people might feel safer knowing that police have broad authority to stop people based on the dangerously subjective standard of "reasonable suspicion." But statistics point to literally millions of examples in which innocent people felt much less safe because police officers treated them like criminals rather than people to be protected — often due, at least in part, to the color of their skin. If that's not racism, I don't know what is.


theblaze--2020-02-13--Sen. Joe Manchin weighs endorsing Trump's re-election — one week after voting to impeach him

Sen. Joe Manchin weighs endorsing Trump 's re-election — one week after voting to impeach him

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), who joined his fellow Democratic colleagues in voting to oust President Donald Trump from office last week, is reportedly still open to supporting the president's re-election bid.
"I don't rule anything out. I really don't rule anything out," Manchin said in a recent interview with Politico. "I'm always going to be for what's best for my country. Everybody can change. Maybe the president will change, you know? Maybe that uniter will come out, versus the divider."
During the interview, Manchin recalled how in 2018 Trump attempted to use his bully pulpit to scuttle Manchin's re-election bid in West Virginia, a move that ultimately failed. Manchin said he forgave Trump a week later. Now, he's optimistic the president will return the favor.
"It's not different when he wanted to have lunch the week after I was elected. And he said: 'I knew we couldn't beat you.' And I said: 'It wasn't for lack of trying.' Boom, it's over, let it go. I did. I'm asking him to do the same thing I did," Manchin told Politico. "He tried to remove me."
It may take longer than a week for the president to come around, however. In the days following the impeachment vote, Trump has been lashing out at Manchin, calling him a "puppet" senator and "Joe Munchkin."
Manchin had remained undecided on impeachment until the very last minute before Trump's ultimate acquittal in the Senate last week. Many thought that Manchin, being a moderate from a deep-red state, would opt to acquit the president to save face with voters. He had even floated censure as a way to handle the matter in a bipartisan way in the lead-up to the vote.
But when it came time to vote, Manchin determined in no uncertain terms that Trump was, in fact, guilty of abusing his power and obstructing Congress and thus deserved to be ousted from office.
Now, Manchin is singing a much different tune, telling Politico he thinks Trump can still be a "tremendous president."


theblaze--2020-02-13--AOC is going be a guest judge on a reality TV drag show competition

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) has already been the subject of a Netflix documentary, but now she'll be making her jump to reality television.
On Thursday, VH1 announced the guest hosts for its upcoming season of "RuPaul's Drag Race" — a long-running drag competition show — listing the freshman House Democrat among other big names like actress and "The View" moderator Whoopi Goldberg and hip-hop musician Nicki Minaj.
In a promotional tweet for the upcoming season, Ocasio-Cortez says, "Join the ru-volution. I'm Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and I pledge allegiance to the drag."
The congresswoman herself tweeted that being part of the show "was absolutely, 100% a peak experience" and that she was "SO excited for the new season."
Ocasio-Cortez is no stranger to the drag scene. She has made headlines for attending dragshows while in office and, after one, previously said that it would be here "dream" to appear as a guest on the reality competition program.
The democratic congresswoman wouldn't be the only high-profile Democratic House member to appear on the show. Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) appeared on an episode of the program in 2018. At the time, Pelosi said that politicians could learn "authenticity" from drag queens.
"Taking pride in who you are. Knowing your power — that's what I talk about on my brief segment on the show," Pelosi told the Hollywood Reporter. "This idea of people believing in themselves, being themselves, taking pride in themselves, is not just a lesson for politicians but for everyone in the country. And that's why I was so excited and couldn't resist being on the show."
In the network's trailer for the upcoming season, which starts Feb. 28, Ocasio-Cortez can be seen telling one contestant, "I'm so thankful that you're part of our country" and telling another, "I think you're fabulous."


theblaze--2020-02-13--Crooks put gun to back of man's head — in broad daylight while he's washing his car in driveway — an

Crooks put gun to back of man's head — in broad daylight while he's washing his car in driveway — and get away with valuables worth $10K

Crooks put gun to back of man 's head — in broad daylight while he 's washing his car in @ @ @ @ @ with valuables worth $ 10K 'We are so scared here right now '

A home security camera captured the moment a pair of crooks snuck up on a man washing his car in his driveway, putting a gun to the back of his head, forcing him to lay on the ground, emptying his pockets, and eventually making off with about $10,000 in valuables, KPIX-TV reported.
Image source: KPIX-TV video screenshot
What's more, Monday's incident in Oakland, California, took place amid broad daylight — 1:30 p.m., the station said.
Image source: KPIX-TV video screenshot
"We are so scared here right now," Freddy Rojas — who's nephew was the victim — told KPIX. "That's why we put in cameras. We talked to my other neighbors, and they want to put in cameras, too."
Rojas — who lives in the same building as his nephew — told the station the crooks ordered his nephew to keep quiet "or they were going to shoot him."
He added to KPIX that while his nephew wasn't harmed, the crooks did take his wallet, cellphone, keys, and some jewelry — together worth about $10,000.
What did others have to say?
"I walk my dog here all the time, and I never see anything like that, it's kind of scary," Mary Ann — who didn't want to give her full name — told the station.
Andy Norton runs the neighborhood watch group for his block in the Dimond neighborhood where the robbery took place, KGO-TV reported, adding that his surveillance camera caught what could be the culprits' white sedan moments before it stopped down the street prior to the incident.
"Now I think we're going to deploy a much larger network of cameras here so that should a neighborhood have a problem we've got more footage," Norton told KGO. "This is the worst thing that's happened probably in 10 years."


theblaze--2020-02-13--New poll shows Sanders with large national lead as Democrats panic: 'It's going to be the end of day

New poll shows Sanders with large national lead as Democrats panic: 'It's going to be the end of days'

New poll shows Sanders with large national lead as Democrats panic : 'It 's going to be the end of @ @ @ @ @ to death , I really am '

A newly released Morning Consult poll taken entirely after the New Hampshire primary seems to confirm the worst fears among some Democratic Party leaders: Sen. Bernie Sanders is now the clear front-runner for their party's nomination.
With 29 percent of the poll's respondents indicating they would vote for the Vermont democratic socialist, Sanders tops the field of candidates. He has an ample lead over former Vice President Joe Biden and former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg, who stand at 19 and 18 percent, respectively, with Democratic voters.
Former South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg comes in at fourth place with 11 percent, while Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, once considered the favorite to win the nomination, is in fifth place with 10 percent. Meanwhile, Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, who had a surprisingly strong finish in the New Hampshire primary, is the favorite among 5 percent of Democrats nationwide.
For the survey, Morning Consult interviewed 2,639 registered voters nationwide who indicated they may vote in the Democratic primary or caucuses in their state.
'Poor reading for Biden'
According to pollster Eli Yokley, the poll is bad news for Biden, who political commentators like Ben Shapiro have said is "clogging" the "moderate lane" in the Democratic primary.
"The results are poor reading for Biden, who continues a dramatic drop that erases the national lead he held for over a year until his fourth-place showing in the Feb. 3 Iowa caucuses," Yokley wrote in a memo accompanying the poll results.
In his analysis, Yokley notes that the race was tighter before the New Hampshire primary, when Sanders' lead over Biden was within the margin of error, 25 to 22 percent.
"The decline in Biden's support comes amid faltering voter confidence over his perceived general-election strength, even as he banks his candidacy for the Democratic nod on the more diverse electorates driving nominating contests in Nevada and South Carolina ahead of Super Tuesday."
The researcher also said that Biden's standing with black voters is deteriorating as he enters the crucial South Carolina primary.
"Among black voters — one of Biden's strongest blocs of support — confidence in his chances of beating Trump fell 10 points, to 21 percent. Roughly a third of black voters (32 percent) said Sanders is Democrats' best chance to beat Trump, up 9 points from last week, and 21 percent said Bloomberg, up 7 points."
'I'm scared to death ...'
Sanders' 10-point lead comes as Democratic leaders are openly fretting about the impact of his campaign on down-ballot Democrats in key states across the country and whether an open socialist can win the presidency.
"If he's at the top of the ticket in 2020, it's going to be a bad year for Democrats in Florida," said Florida state Rep. Javier Fernandez to the Miami Herald. Fernandez is running for a swing Senate seat in South Florida.
This sentiment was echoed by veteran Democratic strategist James Carville, who said he's "scared to death" of Democrats' chances to win back the White House. Carville even compared Sanders to the UK's Jeremy Corbyn, the left-wing leader of the Labour Party, which was decimated during December elections.
"If we go the way of the British Labour Party, if we nominate Jeremy Corbyn, it's going to be the end of days. ... So I am scared to death, I really am," said the former adviser to President Bill Clinton regarding Sanders' candidacy, according to Fox News.
Meanwhile, according to a Gallup poll released earlier in the week, a majority of Americans say they would never vote for a socialist for president. Fifty-three percent said they would vote against a socialist candidate, while only 45 percent of respondents in the study indicated they would back one.


theblaze--2020-02-13--Former law clerk describes 'profane atmosphere' of sexual harassment by deceased prominent liberal j

Former law clerk describes 'profane atmosphere' of sexual harassment by deceased prominent liberal judge

Former law clerk describes 'profane atmosphere ' of sexual harassment by deceased prominent liberal judge 'Mainly , he suggested that @ @ @ @ @

A deceased federal judge known as one of the foremost liberal appellate judges in the country was accused of repeated sexual misconduct by one of his former clerks at a House Judiciary Committee hearing on Thursday morning.
In her testimony at the hearing, which dealt with preventing federal judiciary workers from sexual harassment, former law clerk Olivia Warren said that now-deceased 9th Circuit Judge Stephen Reinhardt often subjected her to verbal abuse and sexual harassment.
In her prepared testimony, Warren said that former clerks prepared her to deal with a challenging experience, including one who said to be ready to deal with "your grandfather's sexism." However, "none of this fully prepared me for the profane atmosphere I entered when I began my clerkship," she explained to the subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet.
"Judge Reinhardt routinely and frequently made disparaging statements about my physical appearance, my views about feminism and women's rights, and my relationship with my husband, including our sexual relationship," Warren's testimony reads.
"Mainly, he suggested that I was horrifically unattractive," Warren said in her remarks to the subcommittee. "He questioned whether my husband could possibly be real, given how unlikely it seemed to him that any man could ever be attracted to me. He speculated that if my husband in fact existed, he was doubtless a 'wimp' or gay."
Warren went on to say that "on more than one occasion, the judge suggested with words and gestures that my husband likely did not have a penis, but that if he did, he certainly would not be able to sustain an erection while looking at me, making it clear that he did not believe my marriage had been consummated."
"Judge Reinhardt made these comments to me when we were alone, and also in front of other members of chambers at times," the testimony reads. During the hearing, Warren said that the comments about her appearance "occurred at least weekly through the first few months of my clerkship."
At one point, the judge even brought printed-off pictures of two applicants who were scheduled to come in for job interviews, according to Warren's testimony: "Judge Reinhardt instructed me to look at the photos and asked me to assess which candidate was more attractive and which candidate had nicer or longer legs."
In her testimony, Warren noted that her clerkship with the judge ended when he died of a heart attack in March 2018.
"It is too painful to fully describe my emotions that day," Warren recalled. "I have never cried as hard as I did at the judge's memorial service; the juxtaposition of my anger and my sadness and my shame was impossible to bear."
After the judge's passing, an obituary at the L.A. Times noted that Reinhardt — a Jimmy Carter appointee — was dubbed the "liberal lion" of the federal judiciary. A Politico Magazine story about him from the following December notes the multiple high-profile opinions he wrote that were eventually reversed by the Supreme Court, which included "decisions upholding the right to die, striking down the requirement that students recite the Pledge of Allegiance, declaring unconstitutional a law prohibiting late-term abortions." He was also wrote the majority opinion striking down California's 2012 Proposition 8 against same-sex marriage.


theblaze--2020-02-13--Popular black radio host wants to know: Why are black Democrats supporting the most racist candidate

Popular black radio host wants to know: Why are black Democrats supporting the most racist candidates in South Carolina?

Popular black radio host wants to know : Why are black Democrats supporting the most racist candidates in South Carolina @

Charlamagne Tha God is a host of "The Breakfast Club," a nationally syndicated radio show with a large black audience that broadcasts out of New York City. But he was born in the small town of Moncks Corner, South Carolina, and he has a question for Democratic voters in his home state: Why are you supporting the candidates with the most racist policies?
Charlamagne, during a segment on CNN's "Erin Burnett OutFront," was referring to former Vice President Joe Biden and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, both of whom have some problematic racial policies and comments in their past.
"Old black people in South Carolina do love Joe Biden, but I would have to ask black voters the question — why do the old white men who have the most racist legislation toward black people, why are they the top two front-runners when it comes to black support? Joe Biden and Bloomberg."
A recent Quinnipiac poll has Biden leading with black voters in South Carolina at 27 percent, followed by Bloomberg at 22 percent.
Charlamagne said he believes Biden's success has been due to the "Barack Obama effect," which is somewhat wearing off now that black voters are looking more closely at Biden's record.
Bloomberg secured an endorsement from Steve Benjamin, the mayor of Columbia, South Carolina, and the first black person to hold that office — even though Bloomberg is completely skipping the South Carolina primary in order to invest in Super Tuesday states.
"Mike Bloomberg, he's a doer, he's not a talker," Benjamin told the Washington Post. "He puts his money where his mouth is, and he's shown a willingness to take on some of the most challenging issues of our time. He's not [un]willing to take the tough fight, so, that's why I'm in. That's why I'm in."
Biden has tried to apologize for his role in writing a now-controversial 1994 crime bill that established harsh sentencing guidelines and disproportionately impacted minority communities. He's also spoken a bit too kindly about segregationist lawmakers he has worked with in the past.
Bloomberg is well known for his execution of stop-and-frisk policing, which reached its peak in New York City under his watch. Stop-and-frisk is widely criticized for being used to target minorities and for reinforcing stereotypes about black and brown people as criminals — something Bloomberg has explicitly endorsed.
That doesn't mean these two politicians can't recover from those past beliefs or policies, but they do need to work to make them right, Charlamagne believes.
"The best apology for Biden or Bloomberg is, to me, a black agenda," Charlamagne said. "The same way that they sat around and they systemically created things to oppress and marginalize black people, they should sit around with some black folks and create a black agenda that will help uplift those same communities they once hurt."


theblaze--2020-02-13--Bombshell report: Key juror in the Roger Stone trial was a left-wing activist with strong anti-Trump

Bombshell report: Key juror in the Roger Stone trial was a left-wing activist with strong anti-Trump bias

Bombshell report : Key juror in the Roger Stone trial was a left-wing activist with strong anti-Trump bias Another juror @ @ @ @ @ views '

A bombshell report published by Fox News on Wednesday revealed that Tomeka Hart, a former Memphis City Schools Board member who served as the lead juror in the trial of former Trump confidant Roger Stone, has a long history of Democratic Party activism and "anti-Trump, left-wing social media posts."
According to the network, Hart has even gone as far as posting about Stone's case before voting to convict him on obstruction of justice charges. Fox's Gregg Re noted Hart "retweeted an argument mocking those who considered Stone's dramatic arrest in a predawn raid by a federal tactical team to be excessive force."
Additionally, Hart had argued on social media that the president and his supporters are "racist" and even spoke favorably about the investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller, which resulted in Stone's indictment.
Request to strike the juror was denied
Fox also reported that the justice who presided over Stone's trial, U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson, previously denied a request by the Republican operative's defense team to strike a juror who was said to be an "Obama-era press official with admitted anti-Trump views." The juror's husband also worked at the same Justice Department division that handled the criminal probe that led to Stone's arrest.
Meanwhile, according to federal election data, another juror in the Stone trial, Seth Collins, had previously donated to former Democratic presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke and other left-wing causes.
Trump: Stone's sentence is 'ridiculous
As TheBlaze reported Wednesday, the revelations regarding the political biases of several Stone jurors emerged as President Trump blasted his recommended sentence of up to nine years in prison as "ridiculous" and an "insult to our country."
"This is a horrible and very unfair situation," Trump tweeted Tuesday. "The real crimes were on the other side, as nothing happens to them. Cannot allow this miscarriage of justice!"
The Department of Justice amended the sentencing recommendation earlier in the week, arguing the previous seven-to-nine-years guideline "could be considered excessive and unwarranted." This prompted the four prosecutors involved with the sentencing negotiations to step down from the case.
Stone was found guilty in November on five counts of lying to Congress, one count of obstructing a congressional investigation, and one count of witness tampering. He is expected to be sentenced next week.


theblaze--2020-02-13--Alec Baldwin goes on unhinged anti-GOP, anti-Trump rant comparing the president to Hitler and the GO

Alec Baldwin goes on unhinged anti-GOP, anti-Trump rant comparing the president to Hitler and the GOP to Nazis

Alec Baldwin goes on unhinged anti-GOP , anti-Trump rant comparing the president to Hitler and the GOP to Nazis

Leftist actor Alec Baldwin blasted the GOP and President Donald Trump, comparing the party to Nazis and the president to Adolf Hitler.
What are the details?
In a fiery Twitter rant, Baldwin — who regularly portrays a parody of Trump on NBC's "Saturday Night Live" — warned people that Republicans are rallying around Trump in the same way Nazi supporters rallied around Hitler.
In response to the news that the Department of Justice wants to reduce Roger Stone's sentence, Baldwin, 61, wrote, "It's official. The United States government is as lawless as the malignant dictatorships we've hated in our foreign policy since WWII."
In November, a court found former campaign associate Roger Stone guilty on five counts of lying to Congress, one count of obstructing a congressional investigation, and one count of witness tampering. All charges stemmed from special counsel Robert Mueller's collusion investigation, which was later discovered to be unfounded.
In a later tweet, Baldwin ranted, "Remember that fascistic thinking takes hold when a standard of living is threatened consistently. People think that things are changing, and downward for most Americans. And that this will become the new normal. They are wholly directed by $."
The actor later on made an even more overt comparison to the Nazi party.
"You wonder how Hitler took control of a once great country," he wrote. "For those of you too young to recall the War or its aftermath, simply watch how this GOP-controlled Senate behaves. Their sniveling fealty and lack of courage. And you begin to get it."


theblaze--2020-02-13--Report: US led the world in reducing CO2 emissions last year

Report : US led the world in reducing CO2 emissions last year Who needs the Paris climate agreement ?

In what is sure to be a surprise to those who vilify the United States as a major climate polluter, the U.S. led the entire world in reducing carbon dioxide emissions last year, according to a recent international report.
What are the details?
"The United States saw the largest decline in energy-related CO 2 emissions in 2019 on a country basis – a fall of 140 [million tons], or 2.9%, to 4.8 [gigatons]," the International Energy Agency reported Tuesday. "U.S. emissions are now down almost 1 Gt from their peak in the year 2000, the largest absolute decline by any country over that period."
The report credited "a 15% reduction in the use of coal for power generation" as a key factor in the decline of overall emissions in the country, noting that coal-fired power plants faced strong competition from natural gas-fired generation in 2019.
The news seems to rebuff condemnation from climate activists and the political left following the Trump administration's decision last year to formally withdraw the U.S. from the Paris climate agreement.
Proponents of the Paris agreement view the deal as the only hope for reducing global emissions, but the IEA's report seems to paint a different picture. We are now at a juncture where the only country opposed to the deal is, in fact, leading the way on reducing emissions, while the rest of the world lags behind.
The IEA report went on to note that in developing nations emissions increased, with "almost 80% of the increase coming from Asia," and that China and India were two of the main contributors to emissions growth.
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) responded to the news on Twitter, touting America's achievements while lamenting the fact that most media outlets would refuse to cover the story.
Lower emissions and economic growth?
When announcing the president's decision to withdraw from the Paris deal, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo highlighted the economic burden that the deal unfairly placed on the U.S. economy.
"President Trump made the decision to withdraw from the Paris Agreement because of the unfair economic burden imposed on American workers, businesses, and taxpayers by U.S. pledges made under the Agreement," Pompeo said. "The United States has reduced all types of emissions, even as we grow our economy and ensure our citizens' access to affordable energy."
Pompeo articulated that the U.S. would move forward with efforts to curb emissions while also growing the economy, a promise that the administration appears to have kept in 2019, with the economy growing 2.3% over the year.
(H/T: The Daily Wire)