theblaze--2020-02-07--6-year-old with Down syndrome makes finger-gun gesture at school teacher — so the school calls the p

6-year-old with Down syndrome makes finger-gun gesture at school teacher — so the school calls the police

A Pennsylvania school called the police on one of its 6-year-old students after she reportedly pretended to shoot a teacher with her finger, according to KYW-TV.
What are the details?
The child's mother, Maggie Gaines, says that Valley Forge Elementary School "mishandled" the incident in which her daughter — who has Down syndrome — reportedly used her finger to "shoot" her teacher.
The incident took place in November when a 6-year-old girl became frustrated with a teacher. She reportedly made a "gun" out of her pointer finger and thumb, and said, "I shoot you" to the unnamed teacher in question.
"I was fine with everything up until calling the police," Gaines said. "And I said, 'You absolutely do not have to call the police. You know, this is ridiculous.'"
She added, "My daughter got frustrated and pointed her finger at her teacher and said, 'I shoot you.' At that point, they went to the principal's office and it was quickly assessed that she didn't even really know what she was saying."
Gaines added that her daughter had no idea what she'd actually done.
"[School officials] were asking her questions, and she was saying, 'Oh, I shoot mommy,' or 'I shoot my brother.' The principal asked, 'Did you mean to hurt your teacher?' and she said 'No,' and it seemed like she didn't even know what that meant."
Gaines insists that her daughter — whose name is now in an official report on the incident — should not be at the center of controversy since she wasn't even aware of what she was saying and that the school had no reason to call police.
"She really didn't understand what she was saying, and having Down syndrome is one aspect," she reasoned, "but I'm sure all 6-year-olds don't really know what that means. Now, there is a record at the police department that says she made a threat to her teacher."
The incident sparked a disciplinary investigation — which the Tredyffrin-Easttown School District refers to as a "threat assessment." However, after the school's "investigation," it was determined that the girl never put anyone in harm's way.
What else?
Pennsylvania state Sen. Andrew Dinniman (D) also said that the district mishandled the incident.
“As a state senator, an educator, and a parent, I am concerned when I hear that such important decisions appear to be guided blindly by written policy or legal interpretation without those in positions of authority using their judgment, experience, and common sense to weigh in," Dinniman said. "Furthermore, I am alarmed that a school seems to be acting as an extension of the police department in promulgating data and records on children as young as kindergarteners."
In a statement, the district said that it would review its current policies and procedures in order to better serve parents.
"When an individual parent concern related to our school safety practices was brought to the attention of the District two weeks ago, we agreed to review those practices in the School Board Policy Committee meeting tonight," a portion of the statement said. "When developing the current practice, the District worked collaboratively with parents, law enforcement and private safety/mental health agencies and legal consultants to ensure our safety measures reflected considerable input from both our local community and experts in the field of school safety."
According to the Daily Local News, Tredyffrin Police Department Officer Joseph Glatts said that it isn't uncommon to file a report for such an incident.
"Officers are called to take a report regardless of age. It's just for reporting purposes," he said. "Juvenile records are not obtainable to anybody. Nobody can get it."
The school added, "When district staff become aware of a potential student threat, policy and Regulation 5401 are followed. Policy and regulation … specifies that threat assessment teams consult with police."


theblaze--2020-02-07--Federal agent caught smelling 3-year-old girl's underwear in disturbing nanny cam video

He 's getting off with unsupervised probation

A federal agent in Phoenix was caught on a nanny camera pulling a 3-year-old girl's dirty underwear out of a laundry basket and smelling them while touring a home as a potential buyer. As a result of a plea deal, however, he will only have to serve two years of unsupervised probation, and will not have to register as a sex offender, according to KNXV-TV.
Deputy U.S. Marshal David Timothy Moon, who has since been fired as a result of his crime, was initially charged with felony trespassing with a sexual motive. But he struck a plea deal that dropped the charge to misdemeanor trespassing.
The 50-year-old Moon was touring a Phoenix home for sale last May. While the real estate agent was elsewhere, Moon found his way to a girl's bedroom. He looked in the closet briefly before heading to the corner where a laundry basket was.
He dug through the basket for a moment, seemingly searching purposefully for something specific. He picked up a pair of underwear and held them up to his face, appearing to smell them. He left the room, but then he came back few minutes later to repeat the act. But on his way out, he seems to realize he's been caught by a motion-activated nanny camera in the room.
"Godd**nit," he says as he walks out.
And he was indeed caught. His entrances and movement in the room sent a notification to the girl's father, who saw footage Moon's appalling behavior, so the father called police.
Moon's girlfriend told authorities that once he found out police were looking for him, he threw away his computer. She found an email he had sent himself with a video of girls doing gymnastics, as well.
Moon's sentence was determined in part by a lack of criminal history, his service in the military and law enforcement, and the judge's opinion that he expressed sincere remorse for his actions. When his probation is up, he can apply to have the complaint dismissed and the conviction set aside.
Prosecutors were seeking supervised probation and a sex offender designation.
The girl's father, however, believes it's unsafe for Moon to be out amongst the public unsupervised, after the sexually deviant behavior he exhibited.
"What if he comes back?" the dad said. "What if he tries to hurt us or our daughter? What if he loses his job and has nothing else to lose?"


theblaze--2020-02-07--A really good week for President Trump keeps getting better: 225,000 jobs added in January, crushing

A really good week for President Trump keeps getting better: 225,000 jobs added in January, crushing estimates

A really good week for President Trump keeps getting better : 225,000 jobs added in January , crushing estimates

It has been a good week for President Trump.
First, there was the Democratic Party's Iowa caucus debacle — they still don't have an official winner.
Then came Trump's State of the Union speech, which was well received by the public. Even MSNBC's Chris Matthews praised it.
Then, there was Trump's acquittal in the Senate impeachment trial and subsequent "celebration" speech at the White House.
Oh, and amid all of this, the president notched his highest Gallup approval rating.
And while this likely cannot be directly attributed to Trump, it's worth noting that Americans are extremely happy. A recent poll found that a record high 90% of Americans are satisfied or very satisfied with their lives.
It gets better
To top it off, on Friday, news came that the U.S. economy added 225,000 jobs in the month of January, beating economists' estimates by 67,000 jobs.
The new numbers make the average monthly gain over the past three months to be 211,000 jobs.
Additionally, average hourly wages increased by a healthy 3.1%, slightly outpacing December's annual rise of 3%. This is good news for workers, said CNBC, adding that last month's increase marks "18 consecutive months of wage gains above 3%." Wage growth was the missing ingredient to a strong job market that evaded the American economy in the decade following the recession.
According to the Wall Street Journal, "January's robust payroll gain points to a continued healthy labor market in a U.S. economic expansion now in its 11th year."
Digging into the numbers a little closer, it is revealed that industries such construction, health care, transportation, and warehousing added jobs at a strong pace in January, and despite economists' concerns that the retirement of baby boomers would hamper it, the labor-force participation rate has remained steady in recent years. In January, it ticked up to 63.4%.
Good news for Trump, bad news for Democrats
The news comes at a great time for the president, who could use the economic news to bolster his claim for a second term entering an election year.
Democrats, on the other hand, after failing to remove Trump from office in the impeachment trial, will struggle to make a case against the president provided the economy is booming.
Responding to the jobs report, Dylan Scott, writing for the liberal outlet Vox admitted as much, saying, "for Democrats, there should be one big fear heading into the 2020 election: A booming economy could save Donald Trump."
"The adage 'it's the economy, stupid' has condensed the conventional wisdom to four words: Voters (rightly or wrongly) hold the president accountable for America's financial health, and their perceptions of how they and the country are doing economically will be the most important factor when they vote," Scott continued.
But, he argued, citing CNN's Harry Enten, a foil to Trump's economic boon could be his approval rating, which, for incumbent presidents, is "far more telling of fates."
Unfortunately for Scott and the Democrats, as mentioned above, Trump's approval rating has experienced a boost of late and now sits at 49%, the highest of his presidency.
Evidently, the president is feeling confident, too. The closing words from his State of the Union address Tuesday were particularly chipper.
"Our spirit is still young; the sun is still rising; God's grace is still shining; and my fellow Americans, the best is yet to come!"


theblaze--2020-02-07--Federal court hands President Trump another win in emoluments case brought by hundreds of Democrats

Federal court hands President Trump another win in emoluments case brought by hundreds of Democrats 'Their claim is based entirely @ @ @ @ @ power '

A federal court sided with President Donald Trump on Friday in dismissing a lawsuit involving more than 200 Democratic members of Congress who claim that he violated one of the U.S. Constitution's anti-corruption provisions.
A three-judge panel of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously ruled that the 215 congressional Democrats who brought the suit — which deals with the Constitution's foreign emoluments clause — didn't have the legal standing to do so, because, they did not constitute a majority of either House of Congress.
The court ruled that "our conclusion is straightforward because the Members — 29 Senators and 186 Members of the House of Representatives — do not constitute a majority of either body and are, therefore, powerless to approve or deny the President's acceptance of foreign emoluments." The ruling goes on to explain, "The Members were not singled out — their alleged injury is shared by the 320 members of the Congress who did not join the lawsuit — and their claim is based entirely on the loss of political power."
The lawsuit was first brought back in 2017 by a group of Capitol Hill Democrats led by Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.). The plaintiffs argued that — due to his far-reaching business interests — Trump was in violation of the section of the Constitution that prohibits federal officers from taking money or gifts from foreign governments without Congress' consent.
"By virtue of that financial interest, Defendant has accepted, or necessarily will accept, 'Emolument[s]" from 'foreign State[s]' while holding the office of President of the United States," the lawsuit claimed.
For reference, the relevant section of the Constitution says, "No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the United States: And no Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State."
The lawsuit also said that because Trump "is not coming to Congress and identifying the emoluments he wishes to accept, the American people will have no way of knowing whether his actions as President reflect only his beliefs about what is best for the country, or whether they are partly motivated by personal financial considerations."
And while the Democrats in the suit are free to make those kinds of arguments in the political sphere, the ruling explains, the federal court system just isn't the place for them.
"The Members can, and likely will, continue to use their weighty voices to make their case to the American people, their colleagues in the Congress and the President himself, all of whom are free to engage that argument as they see fit," the opinion adds later. "But we will not — indeed we cannot — participate in this debate. The Constitution permits the Judiciary to speak only in the context of an Article III case or controversy and this lawsuit presents neither."
President Trump has faced other similar lawsuits regarding the constitutionality of his business empire, which is currently run by his two adult sons. A three-judge panel of the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in July that Washington, D.C., and Maryland lacked standing in their emoluments clause case regarding the Trump International Hotel in D.C. In September, the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals resurrected a similar case that had previously been thrown out by a lower court.


theblaze--2020-02-07--UPDATED: In response to being criticized for 'body-shaming,' Abercrombie & Fitch introduces new 'inc

UPDATED: In response to being criticized for 'body-shaming,' Abercrombie & Fitch introduces new 'inclusive' and 'body-positive' campaign

UPDATED : In response to being criticized for 'body-shaming , ' Abercrombie & Fitch introduces new 'inclusive ' and 'body-positive @ @

Abercrombie & Fitch's brand-new " Fierce" campaign shows how the popular clothing retailer is responding to calls for more "body positive" advertising campaigns.
Abercrombie & Fitch formerly received heavy backlash for its long history of being perceived as an exclusionary brand that is only for thin, toned, good-looking people.
What are the details?
Abercrombie & Fitch's new campaign, which is for its signature fragrance, features a variety of people including "athletes, activists, performers, and authors," according to Business Insider, including U.S. women's soccer player Megan Rapinoe.
The company chose its faces for the new campaign based on whether they "made their mark on the world by living as their most authentic, brave, and 'Fierce' selves."
According to the retailer, "[C]ast members will share their experiences of body positivity, self-empowerment, determination, LGBTQ+ equality, gender equality, overcoming obstacles, and more, all to inspire customers to explore the unexpected and emotional aspects of inner strength."
The company made the new campaign announcement Thursday.
What abut the models?
Michael Robert McCauley, one of the company's new models, lauded the business for its decision to use "real" people in a lengthy Instagram post.
"I'm Fierce AF!" he wrote. "I'm so excited to partner with @abercrombie for the launch of their Fierce Family of fragrances! When I started modeling a little over a year ago I never would have believed you if you'd said I'd become an Abercrombie and Fitch model! Ok, secretly I would have because i dream big!"
"This partnership represents why I do what I do," he continued. "Brands are finally waking up to what their customers ACTUALLY want and I'm honored to be at the front of this movement working with Abercrombie as we lead the industry for change. People want to see REAL people in the clothes they're buying and I think most people can relate to guys like me. This isn't a fashion statement. Beefy dudes are here to stay! I'm so proud to be a part of this amazing Fierce family and the new ANF. Together we form a special kind of family. So much more to come!!!"
Update 2/7/2020, 4:14 p.m. ET:
Although Abercrombie has, in fact, been criticized in the past for body shaming, a spokesman for the company insists that the new advertising campaign is not related to the criticism.
The spokesperson told TheBlaze, "The Face Your Fierce campaign builds off the success of last year's relaunch — it was not created in response to criticism we received."


theblaze--2020-02-07--Mike Bloomberg campaign accused of plagiarizing policy positions

Democratic presidential candidate Mike Bloomberg 's campaign has plagiarized multiple portions of policy plans on a multiple subjects from a variety of sources , according to a new report .
The Intercept reported Thursday that sections from at least eight of the campaign 's policy plans or related fact sheets were copied `` from media outlets including CNN , Time , and CBS , a research center at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice , the American Medical Association , Everytown for Gun Safety , Building America 's Future Educational Fund , and other organizations . ''
The outlet @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in length from entire paragraphs to sentences and fragments .
The story shows side-by-side comparisons of the campaign literature at issue with its original sources .
`` One of the more egregious examples , '' report author Akela Lacy tweeted , was a couple of whole paragraphs that appear to be taken from a CNN op-ed about tax policy .
When the Intercept reached out to the Bloomberg campaign , the story notes , they took down one of the eight plans and changed others .
In a statement to the outlet , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ blamed the problem on email software limitations .
`` Much of what you flagged were fact sheets that went out via MailChimp , '' the statement reads , `` which does n't support footnote formatting . ''
The campaign added that .
`` We have since added citations and links to these documents . ''
At New York Magazine , Sarah Jones pointed out how the report 's findings are made even worse by the fact that Bloomberg runs a news company .
`` Michael Bloomberg pays the salaries of many journalists , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ CEO of his eponymous media empire company , '' Jones wrote .
`` When he decided to run for president , he hired some of those journalists to work for his campaign .
Tragically , he does not appear to have internalized one of the central precepts of the profession he patronizes : You ca n't steal other people 's work . ''
Bloomberg is n't the first candidate in the 2020 Democratic field to deal with plagiarism accusations .
In June , former Vice President Joe Biden 's campaign changed his climate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of it were borrowed without citation ; this happened over three decades after plagiarized passages of speech torpedoed his presidential bid in 1987 .
A Politico story published around the same time as the more recent Biden news noted that `` the lifting of direct text from academic papers , think tanks or policy institutes — and the cribbing of facts without attribution — is fairly widespread on 2020 campaign websites , '' and pointed to Sens .
Kamala Harris ( D-Calif. ) and Bernie Sanders ( I-Vt. ) among the examples .

Democratic presidential candidate Mike Bloomberg's campaign has plagiarized multiple portions of policy plans on a multiple subjects from a variety of sources, according to a new report.
The Intercept reported Thursday that sections from at least eight of the campaign's policy plans or related fact sheets were copied "from media outlets including CNN, Time, and CBS, a research center at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, the American Medical Association, Everytown for Gun Safety, Building America's Future Educational Fund, and other organizations." The outlet also noted that the plagiarized sections differed in length from entire paragraphs to sentences and fragments.
The story shows side-by-side comparisons of the campaign literature at issue with its original sources. "One of the more egregious examples," report author Akela Lacy tweeted, was a couple of whole paragraphs that appear to be taken from a CNN op-ed about tax policy.
When the Intercept reached out to the Bloomberg campaign, the story notes, they took down one of the eight plans and changed others. In a statement to the outlet, the campaign didn't deny plagiarism but blamed the problem on email software limitations.
"Much of what you flagged were fact sheets that went out via MailChimp," the statement reads, "which doesn't support footnote formatting." The campaign added that. "We have since added citations and links to these documents."
At New York Magazine, Sarah Jones pointed out how the report's findings are made even worse by the fact that Bloomberg runs a news company.
"Michael Bloomberg pays the salaries of many journalists, as the founder, president, and CEO of his eponymous media empire company," Jones wrote. "When he decided to run for president, he hired some of those journalists to work for his campaign. Tragically, he does not appear to have internalized one of the central precepts of the profession he patronizes: You can't steal other people's work."
Bloomberg isn't the first candidate in the 2020 Democratic field to deal with plagiarism accusations. In June, former Vice President Joe Biden's campaign changed his climate change plan after facing claims that portions of it were borrowed without citation; this happened over three decades after plagiarized passages of speech torpedoed his presidential bid in 1987.
A Politico story published around the same time as the more recent Biden news noted that "the lifting of direct text from academic papers, think tanks or policy institutes — and the cribbing of facts without attribution — is fairly widespread on 2020 campaign websites," and pointed to Sens. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) among the examples.


theblaze--2020-02-07--Pete Buttigieg refuses to come out against infanticide — and 'The View' crowd cheers

Pete Buttigieg refuses to come out against infanticide — and 'The View ' crowd cheers

While appearing on ABC's "The View" Thursday, Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg dodged and sidestepped several pointed questions about his views on abortion, even refusing to come out against infanticide.
Co-host Meghan McCain challenged the former South Bend, Indiana, mayor repeatedly, citing a radio interview from last September in which Buttigieg justified his support for late-term abortion, saying, "there's a lot of parts of the Bible that talk about how life begins with breath, so even that is something we can interpret differently."
McCain pressed Buttigieg on his views, which she said, seemed to perhaps even justify infanticide, referring to the controversy over Virginia Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam's recent remarks about killing babies born alive.
"I think the interpretation from pro-life people, like me, was that you meant a baby actually being born ... I just wanted you to clarify because I found that statement to be pretty radical," McCain said.
In his response, Buttigieg refused to clarify his stance, instead saying he's "just pointing to the fact that different people will interpret their own moral lights" but that no one should be subject to another's interpretations.
Unsatisfied, McCain again attempted to get the candidate to clarify his position, saying, "I think people, even Democrats — and there are a lot of pro-life Democrats in the country — want to know exactly where your line is."
Buttigieg once again evaded the question, reverting to a vague and canned pro-choice talking point: that "it shouldn't be up to the government official to draw the line. It should be up the woman who is confronted with that choice."
At this point, the crowd erupted into applause (for the first time).
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McCain waited for the applause to die down, then spoke in no uncertain terms to the candidate.
"So if a woman wanted to invoke infanticide after a baby is born, you'd be comfortable with that?" she asked bluntly.
In response, Buttigieg deflected answering the question yet again.
"Does anybody seriously think that's what these cases are about?" he demurred.
He then described all late-term abortion situations as ones that, by definition, indicate the woman was expecting to carry the pregnancy to term until encountering "devastating news," such as health complications. He said he wouldn't know what to tell a woman to do morally in this situation.
"I just know that I trust that her decision isn't going to be any better, medically or morally ... because the government is telling her to do it a certain way," he added.
The crowd then erupted into applause for the second time.
It is still unclear whether the former mayor supports infanticide or not, but it is safe to say that his silence speaks volumes. He was given multiple opportunities during the interview to speak out against infanticide and other late-term abortion procedures, but chose not to.
National Review noted Buttigieg's claim that late-term abortions only ever come about as a result of devastating health complications with the child is false, and, in fact, elective late-term abortions are quite common. Even so, pro-lifers would argue that killing an unborn child in or out of the womb is not a solution to the problem of a baby having health issues.
Though "The View" audience appreciated Buttigieg's responses, McCain was not impressed.
"This is going to hurt you in the middle of the country with the Republicans you're trying to win over," she said. "That answer is just as radical as I thought it was, sorry."


theblaze--2020-02-07--Trump plans retaliation against White House officials who testified during impeachment hearings

Trump plans retaliation against White House officials who testified during impeachment hearings There may be some ... reassignments

Now that President Donald Trump has been acquitted of the impeachment charges leveled against him by House Democrats, he has turned his attention toward ways to punish White House officials who testified against him, according to the Washington Post.
One of the first to face consequences for his role in the impeachment process may be National Security Council aide Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, who was among the first officials to testify publicly before the House Intelligence Committee in November.
Vindman, who likely understood the consequences of his testimony, has reportedly already planned to step down from the NSC by the end of this month. However, President Trump may desire to send a message by removing Vindman more quickly. The Post reports:
[Vindman] will be informed in the coming days, likely on Friday, by administration officials that he is being reassigned to a position at the Defense Department, taking a key figure from the investigation out of the White House, according to two people familiar with the move who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss personnel decisions.
Vindman had already informed senior officials at the NSC that he intended to take an early exit from his assignment and leave his post by the end of the month, according to people familiar with his decision, but Trump is eager to make a symbol of the Army officer soon after the Senate acquitted him of the impeachment charges approved by House Democrats.
Vindman was on the July 25 phone call between President Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky that was flagged by an anonymous whistleblower in a complaint that sparked the impeachment inquiry. In his testimony, Vindman raised concerns about the appropriateness of the call's content, and the accuracy of the transcript released to the public.
While the president was able to discourage or prevent testimony by senior officials such as chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, former national security adviser John Bolton, and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, numerous lower-ranking White House or State Department officials contributed to House Democrats' impeachment case against Trump.
As a result, President Trump is considering more terminations or reassignments in an attempt to remove opposition and shrink the overall size of his national security staff.


theblaze--2020-02-07--Identity of murdered MS-13 witness wasn't revealed to gang members accused of brutally attacking him

Identity of murdered MS-13 witness wasn't revealed to gang members accused of brutally attacking him in 2018, their lawyers say

Identity of murdered MS-13 witness was n't revealed to gang members accused of brutally attacking him in 2018 , their @ @ @ @ @ between the death of Wilmer Maldonado Rodriguez and criminal justice reform '

In the wake of the uproar that the identity of a man set to testify against MS-13 gang members was revealed to their attorneys before he was found murdered Sunday, a follow-up report from the New York Times indicates that defense attorneys said they never gave the man's name to their clients.
What's the background?
Wilmer Maldonado Rodriguez tried to protect two boys being threatened by members of the notoriously murderous MS-13 gang on Long Island in October 2018, officials noted in an earlier Times report.
In response to him standing up for the kids, the gang members repeatedly stabbed Rodriguez and hit him in the head with a bat, the paper said. Nine members of the MS-13 gang were arrested in connection with the attack, WNBC-TV reported.
Nevertheless, Rodriguez agreed to testify against the gang members charged with assault and witness intimidation as a result of the attack, officials told the Times.
Nassau Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder told the station prosecutors protected Rodriguez's identity for more than a year. But in early January they had to reveal his name to the gang members' attorneys because the state's new bail reform law — urged into existence by "progressive lawmakers," the Times said — requires it.
After Rodriguez's name was released, Ryder said a "pattern of intimidation" began against him, the Times added.
Rodriguez, 36, was found beaten to death Sunday outside a home in New Cassel, New York, the paper said.
"This courageous man was prepared to testify against his alleged assailants at an upcoming trial but he was brutally beaten to death before he could," Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas said, according to WNBC, which added that no arrests have been made in connection with the killing.
Some maintained the death of Rodriguez — who was described as homeless — could have been avoided if not for the new law, the station added.
"The system failed," Ryder said, according to WNBC. "This man's dead because we didn't do enough."
He added to the station that Rodriguez's information "which should have been protected was turned over too early."
Later, Ryder appeared to hedge his remarks, saying there was "no direct link between the death of Wilmer Maldonado Rodriguez and criminal justice reform," the Times said.
New information
The Times' follow-up report noted that Rodriguez's identity remained under protective seal and that both defense lawyers of the MS-13 gang members said they never revealed his name to their clients.
Justin Feinman, one of the defense attorneys, told the paper the defendants and Rodriguez appeared to know each other in 2018, the year the brutal attack took place.
“Forget about 2020, in 2018 it seems that the victims had some familiarity with the alleged attackers, and vice versa," Feinman told the Times.
More from the paper:
As the case's trial date — Jan. 6, 2020 — inched closer, prosecutors began discussing how to transfer their discovery material to defense lawyers.
On Dec. 10, 2019, Judge Helene F. Gugerty ordered prosectors to begin producing their investigative material to the defense teams, who were forbidden to disclose any of the information, including Mr. Rodriguez's name, to their clients before Jan. 6.
When the parties arrived in court on Jan. 6, 2020, Nassau County prosecutors said they were not prepared for trial, and requested that the date be moved. All of the defense lawyers confirmed that they had not yet shared any discovery information with their clients, and that they would uphold the court's order until the trial date.
A county prosecutor agreed to allow defense lawyers to share certain discovery information with their clients, but specifically asked that any witness names, like Mr. Rodriguez's, not be shared. Both defense attorneys agreed to those terms.
Defending new state laws
Others noted to the Times in its earlier story on the matter that pinning Rodriguez's murder on new state laws isn't fair.
"This has absolutely nothing to do with the new criminal justice reforms," Mike Murphy — a spokesman for the State Senate's Democratic majority, which lobbied for the bail and discovery changes — told the paper.
Lisa Schreibersdorf, executive director of Brooklyn Defender Services, added to the Times that law enforcement officials who link Rodriguez's murder to the new rules are off base.
"There is absolutely no way this is related to the discovery laws," she told the paper, adding that she had spoken to some of the lawyers in the case.


theblaze--2020-02-07--Ryan: The game of politics

Ryan: The game of politics

Bullfight at the State of the Union Address

Bullfighting is a gruesome art. A hateful, stomach-churning game.
In Spain, bullfighters are called "toreros," and they lead a cuadrilla, or entourage, of assistants and other fighters. Picadors are the men on horses with lances jabbing at the bull strategically, forcing it to keep its head lowered. Banderilleros pace around on foot, and jab decorative barbs into the bull's neck, disabling the muscles so that the bull's head droops and it can't use its horns.
The torero is the star, decked in his garrish traje de luces, an elaborate weave of silk and sequins and pendants of gold and silver.
Toreros are superstitious. They choose their flamboyant outfits' colors with pristine caution. They believe that different colors provoke different reactions from the bulls.
Of course, bulls are colorblind. They do not see red and get pissy. What incites their rage is the torero's sudden, inflammatory movement. Because, let's be real, bullfighting is just the masculine version of flamenco. And this is a parable for politics, as performed by President Donald Trump and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi at this week's State of the Union Address.
*
A bullfight has three stages.
One: eruption.
Two: disaster.
Three: humiliation, confusion, death, betrayal and/or victory.
*
When bull trots out, he is full of rage and confusion and fear. The torero reads the bull. Taunts it with his capote, the red cape.
This stage of the fight is a dance, as the torero boasts his acuity as a dancer.
Distracted by the cape and the undulating torero, the bull is vulnerable to the surgical jabs and lances from the picadors and the banderilleros.
These cowardly bastards are savage.
For me, it's always been excruciating to watch.
But, at this point, the bull is spirited and fiery, so the cuts have little effect.
*
In the second stage, the torero prances to safety, to a dugout, and the banderilleros sweep in. They face the bull head-on, then lunge a small lance into its back.
The bull shrieks and moans and rattles its eyes with helpless confusion.
At the start of a bullfight, the bull's gaze is aimed downward, but, as the bullfight progresses, the bull's vision sharpens so that, by the end, they're locking eyes with the torero, straining to keep their head lifted. Then, finally, it's nothing but clotted dirt.
*
So. Who's the bull? Depends on your view of the situation and your particular biases. Maybe it's Trump, maybe it's Pelosi. But also maybe we're the bull. That would be awful, wouldn't it?
Just remember that the toreros wear a montera, the sulky astrakhan fur hat with the velvet lining. The bulbous nubs on each side represent bull horns.
Because, although toreros fight the bull, they do so as a symbolic equal. A man so wild and dangerous that he can defeat a monster. A torero is just a bull in some wacky costume.
Or. You can see the mastery and performance of it all. That Trump and Pelosi are engaged in a mesmerizing dance. Above all, a game.
I have exactly one tatoo: "To do a dangerous / thing with style / is what I call art." From the poem "Style" by Charles Bukowski,
Style is the answer to everything.
A fresh way to approach a dull or dangerous thing
To do a dull thing with style is preferable to doing a dangerous thing without it
To do a dangerous thing with style is what I call art
Bullfighting can be an art
Boxing can be an art
Loving can be an art.
Opening a can of sardines can be an art
*
Also known as the "tercio del momento supremo," the final stage of the fight. When the torero lures the bull closer with each ballerina tilt and side hop.
By now, the bull is panting, coughing gasps, lungs contaminated with fluid, muscles severed, head impossibly heavy.
It moans occasionally, the lonesome bellow of an animal caught in unimaginable betrayal. All alone, facing hate and danger.
From the stands, you can hear its full-bodied exhalations, see the silver piercing quiver in its nasal septum.
The torrero becomes the matador only if he kills the bull.
Matador means "killer," from "matar" to kill and the suffix "-dor," which signifies membership to an occupation.
*
As his final maneuver, the torero takes his greatest risk. He must plunge a sabre into the bull's back, between its shoulders, dealing the fatal wound.
The toreros often fail to kill the bull on the first try. Only managing to deeply wound the animal.
The toreros repeat this dangerous maneuver until they shove the sword in deep enough that it pierces the bull's heart or severes its spinal cord.
As the bull writhes, the torero slits its throat slit, a spray of dark red into the well-lighted dirt.
Then it subsides. Surrenders. Its life vanishes, mostly.
Men on silly horses tie a rope around the bull's hooves and drag it out of the bullring, blood spurting into the chalky dirt.
It no longer matters whether you were even chanting for that bull, as the politician.
Because the bull seems so childlike and limp as men drag it through the dust and the occasional mud. Especially at the end.
If the matador did well, the crowd whistles, they wiggle white handkerchiefs into the air, and the matador is awarded one of the bull's ears. Or both if he performed flawlessly.
But, occasionally, the bull wins.
It may always die, but sometimes it makes sure not to die alone.
I've seen a few bullfights, in Madrid, and on one occasion the bull nearly won. It gored the torero's calf.
The audience gasped, recoiling, then leaned forward.
And the torrero — who was billed as the finest of the night —limped into a wooden crawlspace. He was young, lanky, all jaw and Roman nose like a jagged anchor. And, all decked in blinding pink, he became ladylike and uncertain.
He tiptoed around when he should have kept gliding. He trained his black eyes on floodlights pouring into the ring.
After a ten-minute pause, he returned with a bandage around his pink-and-gold socks, less mobile but still devilish enough to coax the bull into losing.
*
It's no secret that I dislike politics, and that I strive, in my writing, to transcend ideology and tap into the deeper meaning of life, the human enormities we all face, in the hope that I can find an answer.
Despite the fact that I work at a conservative news site, I'm neither conservative nor liberal, not left or right or center, not anything. I'm a journalist. I believe in the old way: Find the truth, tell it clearly and honestly, then let the people decide. Leave the activism out of it, all of which I will cover in an upcoming installment titled "The Fourth Estate."
The night of the disastrous Iowa caucuses, at a fashionably indifferent dive bar in Des Moines, I had a few beers with bleary-eyed caucusers.
"I hate politics," I blurted out at one point, with a mouthful of popcorn.
A guy my age who'd caucused for Bernie asked, "If you don't like politics, why do you write for a political news site?"
It's a question I get asked a lot, something I've spent a lot of time pondering. And next month, I'll run an installment called "Outcast of the media world," which describes my weird journey from fiction writer to English teacher in Spain to academic to music journalist to reporter at a conservative news network with credentials for the White House.
But in the moment, I had no decent answer, thanks to a long day and a row of empty Pabst Blue Ribbon cans. But the question stuck with me, so here's my answer.
"I write about politics for many reasons," I would like to have said. "Most of all, I want to make people's lives better, or even just a tad brighter, and I've been told by many people over the years that my stories and my words are how I'll accomplish this."
I write about politics because I want to know the world better. And being at political events is so illuminating and electric and surreal. So alive.
I write about politics because I believe that each of our lives matters, and I've worked hard to get here and now I have a platform and, in the words of French philosopher Albert Camus, "Those of us who can speak have a responsibility to say something for those of us who can't."
I write about politics because political writing has gotten so boring and it's time for a fresh voice.
I write about politics because, sometimes, politics is an art, and art is what will save us.
New stories come out every Monday and Thursday. In the next two installations, I'll describe my view of the chaotic night of the Iowa caucuses. Check my Twitter for live updates. Send all notes, tips, corrections, etc. to kryan@blazemedia.com As always, thank you for reading.


theblaze--2020-02-07--Despite Starbucks’ pro-trans efforts, transgender employees are complaining about how they’ve been t

Despite Starbucks’ pro-trans efforts, transgender employees are complaining about how they’ve been treated

Despite Starbucks ’ pro-trans efforts , transgender employees are complaining about how they ’ ve been treated 'It was a @ @ @ @

Starbucks coffee has tried present the image of a corporation that supports transgender ideology through its policies and its public relations efforts, but some employees say that those espoused values haven't always played out for them in the workplace.
A report published Thursday at Buzzfeed News details some of the problems that the company's transgender employees have run into while on the job, which include being outed by supervisors and having trouble getting their employee health insurance to cover "gender affirming" medical procedures.
The allegations leveled against the coffee company stand in contrast to the pro-trans image that it has attempted to craft over the years. The company announced that it would add sex change surgeries to its list of covered health benefits in 2013 and expanded what would be covered under that policy in 2018.
Tucker Jace Webb, described being greeted by a "dead name" — i.e., the name a transgender person used to go by — on the company's software for new hires and was told there was nothing to be done without a legal name change. Webb also told the outlet about how the company's health insurance wouldn't cover a transgender surgery and about being outed by a supervisor without consent.
A former employee who started working at Starbucks in 2018 also described being denied three times while trying to get a "top surgery" covered by company insurance.
"It was a really frustrating time and I started to not enjoy going to work as much," the former employee told the outlet. "It is a very new policy they'd just come out with in the past year or two, so I don't think they realized the high demand of their employees."
Yet another employee, Elaine Cao, recalled difficulties with getting reimbursed by company insurance for a transgender procedure that was paid for up-front, as being intentionally "misgendered" by a supervisor who the employees said later quit without disciplinary action being taken.
Cao says that while people in the company's headquarters may sincerely believe that they're helping their transgender workers, "they aren't doing enough to make sure that that is the case."
In a statement to Buzzfeed, a Starbucks spokesperson didn't comment on the individual claims made in the story, but is reaching out to people who have made complaints. The spokesperson also told the outlet that "intentional misgendering is not acceptable conduct at Starbucks."
Earlier this week, Starbucks UK made headlines with a video advertisement of a young transgender person being called by their preferred name at one of the company's locations. That ad coincided with the announcement that the company would partner with a charity organization that helps children access hormone treatment, among other things.


theblaze--2020-02-07--Video appears to show basketball players' brutal attack on their own coach. Now the players could be

Video appears to show basketball players' brutal attack on their own coach. Now the players could be facing criminal charges.

Video appears to show basketball players ' brutal attack on their own coach .
Now the players could be facing @ @ @

A group of junior varsity basketball players from New Jersey could face criminal charges after they reportedly assaulted their coach.
What are the details?
Video of the incident was shared on social media Tuesday night, and appears to show at least four members of the Malcolm X. Shabazz High School in Newark brutally attacking an adult who was later identified to be their coach.
The video shows a group of teens attacking another person, pummeling him with their fists, knocking him down, and kicking him while he was on the ground. School officials immediately suspended the teens following news of the alleged attack. The coach reportedly declined medical treatment following the apparent assault.
On Thursday, authorities revealed that they are investigating the incident and said that the students could face criminal charges of aggravated assault.
WABC-TV also released the disturbing video to their social media followers Thursday, captioning it, "Disturbing video out of Newark, NJ where a high school basketball coach was attacked by his own players. Police are working to identify the suspects. (Sharing recut video due to offensive language.) "
(Content warning: Some users may find the below video difficult to watch):
Newark Public Safety Director Anthony F. Ambrose told NJ Advance Media that a call came in Tuesday night after the team's away game in Livingston, New Jersey, notifying them that an attack had taken place. Authorities viewed the video while on the scene.
“Our detectives are investigating this incident to identify and to appropriately charge those individuals involved," Ambrose said. “Because high school students are typically juveniles, the names of the suspects will not be released."
Anything else?
Newark Mayor Ras Baraka issued a statement on the disturbing matter revealing that the students' alleged actions "will not be tolerated."
“We support the superintendent and principal and will do what we can to make the rest of the year successful," Baraka said. “The actions of these students will not be tolerated. It does not represent the majority of the school. The school and team have great kids. Many of them go on to college and on to do great things."


theblaze--2020-02-07--Trump acquitted at last. Now, on to important stuff.

Trump acquitted at last .
Now , on to important stuff .

In Thursday's episode of "White House Brief," Jon Miller explained how the entire impeachment saga was a waste of everyone's time, and the Democrats (and Mitt Romney … or is that repetitive?) should be absolutely ashamed of themselves for foisting it on all of us. Now, until the Democrats come up with their next scheme, President Donald Trump can move on to the things that actually matter to the American people. Also, Jon Miller discussed David Hogg's latest bout of idiocy and how Joe Biden was never going to be the front-runner.
Watch the video below for more details.
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theblaze--2020-02-09--Video: Joe Biden calls a young woman voter a 'lying dog-faced pony soldier' in New Hampshire

'Something is n't quite right with this man '

At a campaign event in Hampton, New Hampshire, on Sunday, former Vice President Joe Biden was asked by a young woman why he performed so poorly in the Iowa caucus. His answer surprised many political observers.
"So you're arguably the candidate with the greatest advantage in this race. You were vice president. You weren't burdened down by the impeachment trial," she said. "So how do you explain the performance in Iowa, and why should voters believe that you can win the national election?"
'You're a lying dog-faced pony soldier'
Biden then takes the microphone from her and begins his answer by noting, "It's a good question."
"Number one, Iowa is a Democratic caucus," he said.
"You ever been to a caucus?" he asked the young woman, who appears to nod her head and say yes.
"No, you haven't. You're a lying, dog-faced pony soldier," Biden then quipped while the crowd began to laugh. "You said you were. Now you've got to be honest. Now I'm going to be honest with you."
"It was a little bit confusing in Iowa," he continued as some in the audience chuckled. "But let's assume everything was exactly right in Iowa, the idea that you come in with half the delegates that the leaders come in with in Iowa does not necessarily say how you're going to win Pennsylvania, how you're going to win Michigan ..."
He was joking, but it's still a bad look
The former vice president was joking when he called the young university student "dog-faced," but the exchange will continue to raise questions about his gaffe-prone campaign.
National Review's Alexandra DeSanctis noted on Twitter: "I'd like to humbly suggest that something isn't quite right with this man."
Other political commentators pointed to Biden's tense exchange with a voter in December where he called an older man "fat," which he later denied doing intentionally, and a "damn liar."
"You want to check my shape, man, let's do push-ups together here, man. Let's run," Biden said at the time as he challenged the man on his physical fitness. "Let's do whatever you want to do. Let's take an IQ test. OK?"


theblaze--2020-02-09--MSNBC pundit reveals the exact reason why Democratic pandering won't win the black vote in 2020

MSNBC pundit reveals the exact reason why Democratic pandering wo n't win the black vote in 2020 'You 're talking @ @ @ @ @

MSNBC anchor Joshua Johnson made it clear Sunday that pandering from Democratic presidential candidates will not win them votes from the black community.
Appearing on NBC's "Meet the Press,"Johnson said that Democrats are more talk than walk, highlighting the fact that all remaining viable Democratic candidates are white.
Johnson's point? Democrats can't earn trust from the black community if they don't also have a black candidate on the debate stage.
"I was interested this week that so much was said about black voters and the plight of black people in the debate on Friday, which kind of historically to have this stage of mostly white candidates talking very strongly and rhapsodically about the need to support the black community, historically, is something," Johnson said.
"At the same time, I can hear black voters saying, 'If we're so important, why aren't we there?' You're talking about us without us. Cory Booker is gone, Kamala Harris is gone, Julian Castro is gone. You've got one Asian guy on the stage and six well-meaning white people telling us what you're going to do for us when we weren't on the stage anymore," he explained.
www.youtube.com
Meanwhile, on CBS' "Face the Nation" Sunday, CBS News analyst Jamal Simmons pointed out Sunday that Trump has numerous accomplishments within the black community — evidence to show that he is actually working to better their communities — while Democrats do not have a strategy to "deal with that."


theblaze--2020-02-09--Bombshell: Sanders once said he didn't mind being called 'a communist,' was investigated by FBI

Bombshell : Sanders once said he did n't mind being called ' a communist , ' was investigated by FBI @ @ @ @ @ but his record is clear

While some in the media are already vigorously working to defend Sen. Bernie Sanders from accusations of left-wing radicalism, they may find no greater obstacle than the Democratic presidential candidate's own words.
According to a report by the Washington Examiner, as a gubernatorial candidate for the socialist Liberty Union party in 1972, Sanders, then 31 years old, did not push back against accusations that he was an extremist.
"I don't mind people coming up and calling me a communist," Sanders said during a question-and-answer session. "At least, they're still alive."
Trump: 'I think he's a communist'
The revelation comes as President Donald Trump called Sanders "a communist" in a Super Bowl Sunday interview with Fox News' Sean Hannity.
"I think he's a communist," Trump said. "Look, I think of communism when I think of Bernie. You could say socialist, but didn't he get married in Moscow? That's wonderful. Moscow's wonderful."
The president was referring to Sanders and his wife's honeymoon in the former Soviet Union.
A lifetime spent supporting Marxist causes prompted an FBI investigation
While Sanders now says he rejects the "communist" label, the Democratic front-runner spent much of his life supporting Marxist dictators and Soviet causes.
As TheBlaze reported yesterday, during the Reagan era, Sanders campaigned for self-described Trotskyites, a Marxist sect that openly calls for violent revolutions. As the Examiner reported:
In 1980, Sanders "proudly endorsed and supported" Andrew Pulley, the party's presidential candidate, who once said that American soldiers should "take up their guns and shoot their officers." Sanders was one of three electors for Pulley on the Vermont ballot, stating in a press release: "I fully support the SWP's continued defense of the Cuban revolution."
Sanders' involvement with the Socialist Workers Party raised so many suspicions that he was even investigated by the FBI, presumably as a possible communist spy.
"I would agree with the judge," Sanders is reported to have said at the time while referring to a civil case arising from FBI investigation, "who is quite correct in pointing out that when FBI agents come into a secretary of state's office attempting to 'investigate' the political background of a mayor of the largest city in the state, there's no question but that this opens up the potential for exploitation by the media and could be a source of embarrassment."


theblaze--2020-02-09--Ricky Gervais unloads on Hollywood liberals ahead of Academy Awards, highlights their hypocrisy

Ricky Gervais unloads on Hollywood liberals ahead of Academy Awards , highlights their hypocrisy ' I ca n't wait to @ @ @ @ @ about equality '

Just weeks after slamming Hollywood liberals at the Golden Globes, Ricky Gervais unloaded on tinseltown again on Sunday.
Responding to a fan who asked Gervais what his best joke would be if he were hosting Sunday's Academy Awards, Gervais said he would highlight the hypocrisy embedded in calls from Hollywood celebrities for equality.
"'I can't wait to hear all your inspirational speeches about equality, and it's great that the 3 hours you're here tonight is the only time your badly paid migrant house staff will get some time off to sleep this week,'" Gervais responded.
Gervais added in a separate tweet, "'It's great to see such diversity in the room tonight. Rich sex pests of all shapes and sizes.'"
During his Golden Globes's monologue, Gervais chided Hollywood for their overt hypocrisy and double standards, and denounced their efforts to use award stages to make political statements.
"You say you're woke but the companies you work for...Apple, Amazon, Disney...if ISIS started a streaming service you'd call your agent, wouldn't you. If you do win an award tonight, don't use it as a platform to make a political speech," Gervais said.
For the second year in a row, the Oscar's will go on without a proper host, following controversy with Kevin Hart, who was slated to host last year's event, but was pressured by social media outrage to step down.


theblaze--2020-02-09--Constitutional law expert flips the script on Democrats, explains their impeachment sins

Constitutional law expert flips the script on Democrats , explains their impeachment sins

Constitutional law expert Randy Barnett flipped the script on Democrats in a recent interview with Mark Levin on Fox News' "Life, Liberty & Levin," explaining the House clearly "misbehaved" in pursuing President Donald Trump's impeachment.
According to Barnett, House Democrats are guilty of a charge they impeached the president for: abuse of power.
"The legislature can abuse power. That is one of the reasons we have judicial review — to ensure that the legislature has not exceeded its proper powers — as it did, for example, when it passed the Affordable Care Act pursuant to its Commerce Clause power," Barnett explained.
In fact, Barnett said the Senate's vote to acquit Trump was essentially a power check on House Democrats, who he said had "clearly misbehaved" and "abused their impeachment power."
Democrats abused their power by ramming through their allegations of wrongdoing against the president, while attempting to block Trump's defense efforts — then characterizing Trump's defense measures as further abuses of power.
"If [Democrats] were so confident in the merit of their case, they should not have been afraid of due process," Barnett said. "The fact that they ran from the adversary system in the House indicates that they felt they would only survive, they would only get the finish line ... by denying the White House, denying the president of the United States his opportunity to [defend himself]."


theblaze--2020-02-09--Giuliani reveals he has the 'smoking gun' in the Hunter Biden case with witnesses ready to 'name nam

Giuliani reveals he has the 'smoking gun' in the Hunter Biden case with witnesses ready to 'name names'

Giuliani reveals he has the 'smoking gun ' in the Hunter Biden case with witnesses ready to 'name names' Trump @ @ @ @ @ ' Guiliani says

Rudy Giuliani declared on Saturday night that he has three witnesses who are ready to "name names" in an investigation into Hunter Biden and his dealings with Ukraine.
Giuliani told Fox News host Jesse Watters that the revelations will result in President Donald Trump being "totally vindicated" following the partisan-led impeachment proceedings in Congress which resulted in the president being acquitted by the Senate.
"I want to prove what happened," the former New York City mayor and federal prosecutor said, "because I believe if we prove what happened, he will be totally vindicated."
According to Fox, Watters pressed Giuliani on whether he had documentation of the younger Biden's business relationships in Ukraine while noting that Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) will be probing the matter.
"Lindsey, get started," Giuliani said, while adding he possessed "what I used to call when I was U.S. attorney, the smoking gun."
Watters described Giuliani's "smoking gun" as "an international wire to avoid detection disguised as a loan."
Giuliani said his revelations will also show that former Vice President Joe Biden should have been investigated after bragging back in 2016 that he got Ukrainian prosecutor Viktor Shokin fired as he was looking into the business practices of Burisma, the energy company where Hunter Biden sat on the board.
"Look, the government has been so lax in investigating, it's pathetic," Giuliani said. "I mean, when I was a U.S. attorney, the day Joe Biden made that boastful announcement, the investigation would have begun the next day for bribery."


theblaze--2020-02-09--Police arrest man for allegedly attacking Trump volunteers with van, political motive being investig

Police arrest man for allegedly attacking Trump volunteers with van, political motive being investigated

Police arrest man for allegedly attacking Trump volunteers with van , political motive being investigated 'Anybody who interrupts a political @ @ @ @ @ to be taken very seriously '

Police in Florida have arrested the man they believe is responsible for running over a tent belonging to Republicans who were registering people to vote.
The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office said that 27-year-old Gregory William Loel Timm has been arrested and charged with two counts of aggravated assault on a person 65 years of age or older, one count of criminal mischief, and driving with a suspended license, WTLV-TV reported.
Timm is accused of driving through a tent at a local Walmart where volunteers with President Donald Trump's re-election campaign and the Duval County Republican Party were registering people to vote.
The JSO said detectives were called to the scene to investigate whether the attack was politically motivated.
"We're obviously going to follow that up and we take that very seriously," JSO Lieutenant Larry Gayle said. "Anybody who interrupts a political process in this country needs to be taken very seriously."
Fortunately, no one was injured in the incident.


theblaze--2020-02-09--Surveillance video shows ice cream shop owner with gun fighting back against would-be robber

A Texas ice cream shop owner and her husband fought back as a man attempted to rob their ice cream shop , ABC 13 reports .
The attempted robbery happened at La Michoacana Auténtica in northwest Harris County on Feb. 1 .
A surveillance video shows shop co-owner Jorge Padilla working when a man wearing a dark jacket and beanie begins speaking with him .
When Padilla opens the cash register , the suspect reaches over the counter and attempts to steal their money .
As this is happening , Jorge Padilla 's wife , Nadia , witnessed the attempted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shows her standing up from her seat in a booth at the end of the store , ensuring her children were safe , and retrieving her gun .
Nadia then fires a shot , which misses the robber but scares him away as he is chased by Mr. Padilla .
`` My husband could be dead right now .
I wanted to start crying and I got nervous and I was gon na have a breakdown , '' she told the ABC affiliate .
`` I hope he learned his lesson , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ thinks twice about it next time , '' Nadia added .
Investigators with the Harris County Sheriff 's Office told ABC 13 that they suspect the same man is responsible for multiple robberies in the area .
Local authorities are asking anyone with information regarding these robberies to contact the Harris County Sheriff 's Office Violent Crimes Unit at 713-274-9100 .

A Texas ice cream shop owner and her husband fought back as a man attempted to rob their ice cream shop, ABC 13 reports.
The attempted robbery happened at La Michoacana Auténtica in northwest Harris County on Feb. 1.
A surveillance video shows shop co-owner Jorge Padilla working when a man wearing a dark jacket and beanie begins speaking with him. When Padilla opens the cash register, the suspect reaches over the counter and attempts to steal their money.
As this is happening, Jorge Padilla's wife, Nadia, witnessed the attempted robbery. The shop's surveillance video shows her standing up from her seat in a booth at the end of the store, ensuring her children were safe, and retrieving her gun.
Nadia then fires a shot, which misses the robber but scares him away as he is chased by Mr. Padilla.
"My husband could be dead right now. I wanted to start crying and I got nervous and I was gonna have a breakdown," she told the ABC affiliate.
"I hope he learned his lesson, and I hope everybody who can see that thinks twice about it next time," Nadia added.
Investigators with the Harris County Sheriff's Office told ABC 13 that they suspect the same man is responsible for multiple robberies in the area.
Local authorities are asking anyone with information regarding these robberies to contact the Harris County Sheriff's Office Violent Crimes Unit at 713-274-9100.


theblaze--2020-02-09--Bill O'Reilly: Buttigieg comes out on top in Iowa caucuses, but where does he stand on the issues?

Bill O'Reilly : Buttigieg comes out on top in Iowa caucuses , but where does he stand on the issues @

Bill O'Reilly joined Glenn Beck on the radio program Friday to give his take on how the Democratic presidential race will pan out following the calamitous Iowa caucus, which didn't give Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) the big lead he likely expected.
Sanders and former mayor of South Bend, Pete Buttigieg, are neck and neck for the lead with 26 percent in the state delegate equivalents. But the mainstream media has never been friendly toward Sen. Sanders, and because Biden's campaign seems to have stalled, O'Reilly predicted that the press will soon be switching allegiance to the fresh-faced candidate from Indiana.
But where does Buttigieg stand on the issues? O'Reilly wanted to know.
"Buttigieg is an interesting character because you don't know what he stands for. You don't know because he's never sat for a serious interview with anybody and the debates are jokes ... so, I don't know what Pete Buttigieg's vision for the country is," he said.
"For example, open borders," O'Reilly continued. "Does Pete Buttigieg support open borders? Would he deport people? Is he a single-payer health care guy? What's his health care vision? What would he do with taxes? Would he raise corporate taxes and personal taxes? Nobody knows. Pete Buttigieg -- and I've said this before, and I really think this is the best analogy -- he looks like a cast member of 'Happy Days'."
Watch the video below to catch more of the conversation:
youtu.be
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theblaze--2020-02-09--Video: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez quotes fake economist 'Milton Keynes' who doesn't exist

'The future of the Democratic Party '

Hailed once as "the future" of the Democratic Party by DNC Chairman Tom Perez, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) took to Instagram on Saturday to analyze the state of the country's economy.
The Boston University graduate, said she was recently reading how, in 1930, "famed economist Milton Keynespredicted that by 2030, GDP and technology would have advanced so much, that it would allow everyday people to work as little as FIFTEEN HOURS a week and provide for their families."
There's only one problem with this: Milton Keynes does not and has never existed.
As the Washington Examiner's John Gage notes, the freshman representative likely confused the famous libertarian economist Milton Friedman with John Maynard Keynes whose ideas are most often associated with liberals and progressives.
Ocasio-Cortez later clarified that she had mistaken Friedman with Keynes.
"UGGGH TYPO. It's John Maynard Keynes. Mixed his name with Milton Friedman — a (very) different economist," she wrote in a subsequent Instagram story.
Except it wasn't just a typo. Ocasio-Cortez also said "Milton Keynes."
One could laugh off her misstatement as a moment of temporary confusion, but for someone who boasts of having studied economics, wants control over major industries, and Sen.Bernie Sanders says would play an important role in his administration, the gaffe is yet another reminder that the 30-year-old socialist representing New York's 14th district has no idea what she's talking about on virtually any topic.
But we all have to take her seriously because she knows things...or something.


theblaze--2020-02-09--Police say a man intentionally tried to run over Trump volunteers at a GOP voter registration site

Police say a man intentionally tried to run over Trump volunteers at a GOP voter registration site It 's being @ @ @ @ @

Law enforcement officials in Jacksonville, Florida, said on Saturday that a man intentionally rammed his van into a tent of pro-Trump volunteers who were registering voters.
According to police, nobody was injured during the incident, which occurred at approximately 3:45 p.m. at a Walmart shopping center.
Several photos published by the Duval County GOP showed the tent and voter registration sight destroyed in the aftermath of the van. One of the photographs also seems to show the back of the van that was used in the attack.
It's being investigated as 'aggravated assault'
The Florida Times-Union reports:
Several Duval County GOP volunteers were working at the registration tent when a white man in his early 20s driving an older — possibly 1980s — brown van pulled up toward the tent.
He then drove through the tent, endangering the lives of the workers and damaging the tent and tables, Gayle said.
The driver then stopped, got out of the van and took a video of the scene before he "flipped off" the victims and fled, Gayle said.
Local police say they are taking the matter is being taken "very seriously."
"We are investigating this as an aggravated assault," Lt. Larry Gayle of the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office told reporters at the scene. "Several people were in the area and could have been seriously hurt."
The volunteers were very "shaken up," Gayle added.
"We don't know what the suspect's motivation was, but we are just starting the investigation," he stated.
Trump responds
As the DailyWire's Ryan Saavedra noted, late Saturday afternoon, President Donald Trump responded to the news of the attack.
"Law Enforcement has been notified. Be careful tough guys who you play with!" the president said.
Republican Party Chair Ronna McDaniel said the attack will only serve to embolden the president's supporters come November.
"These unprovoked, senseless attacks on @realDonaldTrump's supporters need to end," she wrote on Twitter.
"I want to echo the @DuvalGOP in saying: We will not be silenced by cowards, and these disgusting acts will only make us work harder to win November," she said


theblaze--2020-02-09--New poll: 62% of Democrats prefer human extinction by meteorite than for Trump to win re-election

New poll : 62 % of Democrats prefer human extinction by meteorite than for Trump to win re-election

The Democrats' impeachment efforts and even the 2020 election itself may all be unnecessary.
A new poll conducted by the University of Massachusetts shows that 62 percent of Democrats in New Hampshire would prefer for planet Earth to be struck by a meteorite that ends the human race than for President Donald Trump to be re-elected in November.
As The Hill reported, the "Sweet Meteor of Death" Twitter account, which is said to fantasize about the end of the world via a meteor strike, praised the poll on Friday.
Although the poll's sample is of only 400 voters, the results show the degree to which some on the political left have been radicalized in recent years, a phenomenon commonly known as "Trump Derangement Syndrome."
'We're losing our damn minds!'
As TheBlaze's Carlos Garcia reported Friday, even veteran political strategist James Carville has expressed concerns with the mental state of many in the Democratic Party.
"I don't know. We just had an election in 2018. We did great. We talked about everything we needed to talk about, and we won. And now it's like we're losing our damn minds," he said.
'It's not how you become a majoritarian party'
The former advisor to Bill Clinton added that Democrats have to "step up their game" and moderate their views or else they will lose in 2020.
"We have candidates on the debate stage talking about open borders and decriminalizing illegal immigration. They're talking about doing away with nuclear energy and fracking. You've got Bernie Sanders talking about letting criminals and terrorists vote from jail cells," he noted.
"It doesn't matter what you think about any of that, or if there are good arguments," Carviille argued, "talking about that is not how you win a national election. It's not how you become a majoritarian party."


theblaze--2020-02-08--Tucker Carlson exposes the 'most radical' immigration bill that is designed to 'create a whole new c

Tucker Carlson exposes the 'most radical' immigration bill that is designed to 'create a whole new country'

Tucker Carlson exposes the 'most radical ' immigration bill that is designed to 'create a whole new country' 'It makes @ @ @ @ @ like the status quo '

Fox News host Tucker Carlson is sounding the alarm bells over new immigration legislation that he described on Friday as the "single most extreme and disruptive piece of legislation ever to gain widespread support in the Congress in the history of this country."
The legislation — dubbed the "New Way Forward Act" — would, according to Carlson, "allow people who have committed serious felonies in other countries to move to the United States legally" and "make it nearly impossible for Federal immigration officials to detain immigrants, no matter how potentially dangerous they are."
"Perhaps most infuriatingly, and remarkably, it will require taxpayers to transport deported criminals back into the United States," Carlson explained. "In other words, you break our laws, you hurt our people, we will send you a plane ticket. We will pay for you to come back."
The legislation is sponsored by the Democratic Party's most progressive lawmakers, including Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (N.Y.), Ilhan Omar (Minn.), Rashida Tlaib (Mich.), and Ayanna Pressley (Mass.).
In total, the bill currently has 44 Democratic co-sponsors. Rep. Jesus Garcia (D-Ill.) is the main sponsor.
"The New Way Forward act is the most radical single piece of legislation we've seen proposed in this country. It makes the Green New Deal look like the status quo," Carlson said Thursday, when reporting on the bill.
"Like the Constitution, this legislation is designed to create a whole new country. The bill would entirely remake our immigration system, with the explicit purpose of ensuring that criminals are able to move here, and settle here permanently, with impunity," he explained.


theblaze--2020-02-08--'Numerous' American casualties after US troops come under 'direct fire' in Afghanistan, reports say

'Numerous ' American casualties after US troops come under 'direct fire ' in Afghanistan , reports say

American troops conducting an operation in Afghanistan's eastern Nangarhar province were "engaged by direct firing" — and numerous reports indicate the United States suffered multiple casualties.
The Military Times reported that "numerous" U.S. personnel were killed in the attack. The Associated Press also reported that numerous Americans were killed and injured.
Military spokesman Col. Sonny Leggett confirmed American troops were "engaged by direct firing," but did not provide additional details.
"We are assessing the situation," he said.
More from the New York Times:
Details of the incident, in Nangarhar Province where American Special Forces were helping Afghan commandos and the Afghan Army clear an area threatened by the Taliban, were scarce. It was not clear whether the firefight was the work of Taliban infiltrators, a major concern in the past, or the result of an argument between allied forces that turned deadly.
Two Afghan officials said five or six American soldiers and six Afghan soldiers were killed. A United States military official said there were at least six American casualties and confirmed that they included fatalities but did not say how many.
Indeed, Mohammad Ajmal Omar, a member of Nangahar's provincial council, told the Washington Post the attack was possibly a "green on blue" insider attack.
Both the Taliban and the Islamic State have a foothold in Afghanistan. ISIS, in particular, controls a significant portion of the Nangarhar Province.


theblaze--2020-02-08--First negative ad in Dem primary brutally destroys Pete Buttigieg's mayoral 'accomplishments'

'We 're electing a president .
What you 've done matters '

With just three days of campaigning before the New Hampshire primary, Joe Biden's campaign released the first negative ad of the campaign season targeting former South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg.
The ad, titled, "Pete's record," contrasts the accomplishments of Biden as vice president and Buttigieg as South Bend's mayor. The point of the ad, of course, is that Buttigieg is woefully unprepared to be president.
The ad says:
"Barack Obama called Joe Biden "The best vice president America's ever had." But Pete Buttigieg doesn't think much of the vice president's record. Let's compare: When President Obama called on him, Joe Biden helped lead the passage of the Affordable Care Act — which gave health care to 20 million people. And when park-goers called on Pete Buttigieg, he installed decorative lights under bridges, giving citizens of South Bend colorfully illuminated rivers.
Both Vice President Biden and former Mayor Buttigieg have taken on tough fights. Under threat of a nuclear Iran, Joe Biden helped to negotiate the Iran nuclear deal. And under threat of disappearing pets, Buttigieg negotiated lighter licensing regulations on pet chip scanners.
Both Vice President Biden and former Mayor Pete have helped shape our economy. Joe Biden helped save the auto industry, which revitalized the economy of the Midwest. ... Pete Buttigieg revitalized the sidewalks of downtown South Bend by laying down decorative brick.
The ad goes on to note Biden's efforts to increase gun control and curb violence against women, contrasting it with Buttigieg's decision to fire South Bend's black police chief and fire chief.
"We're electing a president. What you've done matters," the ad concludes.
In response, Chris Meagher, Buttigieg's national press secretary, said the ad speaks volumes about Biden's vulnerability in the race.
"At this moment, the American people are crying out for something completely different from this classic Washington style of politics. While Washington politics trivializes what goes on in communities like South Bend, South Bend residents who now have better jobs, rising income, and new life in their city don't think their lives are a Washington politician's punchline," Meagher said. "The Vice President's decision to run this ad speaks more to where he currently stands in this race than it does about Pete's perspective as a mayor and veteran."
The ad was released the same day that a new CNN poll showed Biden trailing both Buttigieg (by 10 points) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (by 17 points) in New Hampshire ahead of next week's primary.


theblaze--2020-02-08--Trump is right and the media are wrong; Bernie Sanders is a communist

Trump is right and the media are wrong ; Bernie Sanders is a communist He even supported Trotskyites , for @ @ @ @

If the polls are right and history is any indication, chances are that Bernie Sanders will be the Democratic Party's nominee for president in 2020. This means that, from now until Election Day, the DNC and the media (but I repeat myself) will work overtime to normalize Sanders' radicalism.
In fact, the effort to whitewash his views is already underway.
In a Newsweek article published this week titled "Bernie Sanders is a Democratic Socialist, Not a Communist, Here's the Difference," writer Jason Lemon goes to great lengths to defend the septuagenarian senator from President Trump who called him "a communist" in a recent interview. Sanders' views, according to a professor interviewed by Newsweek, would be "closer to those in Sweden than in Venezuela or anywhere in the communist world" and easily understood by "anyone in Europe."
Let me say this as clearly as possible: President Trump is 100% right. The notion that Bernie Sanders is a gentle, Nordic-style social democrat is a lie. The man is a communist. Period. Full stop. End of story.
The differences between Sanders' supposed "democratic socialism" and communism exist only in political philosophy textbooks. Anyone with even a cursory understanding of European politics and Bernie Sanders' record understands that his ideological sympathies lie with central planners in Caracas and not center-Left parties in Copenhagen.
Nordic social democracy is not the same as "democratic socialism." Bernie Sanders claims that he only wants the United States to be more like Scandinavia, but he calls himself a democratic socialist rather than a social democrat, which is the label preferred by the Nordics. To some, this might seem like a mere linguistic distinction, but there are significant differences between the two. The Nordic Model, or social democracy, calls for a large welfare state, but it embraces capitalism to pay for it and mostly rejects government control of the economy. The opposite is true with Sanders and democratic socialism. The Vermont senator and groups who back him, like the Democratic Socialists of America, openly support an end to capitalism, the elimination of private property, and the government controlling vast swaths of the economy. This is very different than the Nordic Model, which according to the Heritage Foundation, has produced some of the freest economies in the world in places like Denmark, Sweden, and Finland. Yes, under democratic socialism and the Nordic Model citizens pay high taxes to fund social programs, but the Nordics are not forced to give up ownership of their property to the government or co-ops. And unlike what Sanders is proposing, Denmark does not even have a minimum wage and its immigration laws are very strict.
Sanders supported Castro and other communist dictators while European social democrats turned their backs on them. One of the most striking aspects of Sanders' career is his ideological consistency. People's political views often evolve over time, but Sanders' have remained the same. He said that he was so "excited" about Cuba's communist revolution when he was in his late teens and early 20s that watching JFK get tough on Fidel Castro made him want to "puke." Surely, Castro had sympathizers among the American and European Left in the early 1960s, but by the 1980s, most social democrats had abandoned him and were strongly anti-communist. This was not the case with Sanders. In fact, in 1985, he was openly praising Castro, even after it was well-known that the Cuban dictator wanted to launch nuclear weapons against the United States and hundreds of thousands of Cubans had fled the island.
Sanders even campaigned for Trotskyites. The most glaring examples of Sanders' radicalism come in the form of his political activism and differences between him and actual democratic socialists during the Cold War. As the Washington Examiner has reported, during the Reagan era, Sanders was campaigning for self-described Trotskyites, a Marxist sect that openly calls for violent revolutions. To paraphrase Amy Klobuchar: Who does that? Sanders, apparently, who at the time was in his 40s, not some misguided kid at Berkeley. Furthermore, he did so while democratic socialist parties throughout the West opposed Trotskyism. To make matters worse, the Trotskyite group that Sanders aligned himself with was supportive of the Iranian regime's taking of American hostages.
Photo: Washington Examiner
None of these are Republican accusations. They are Sanders' own words and actions, which have been well-documented over decades.
To help contextualize the media's double-standard: Imagine, for a second, if a Republican candidate for president had spent his entire adult life aligning himself with Klansmen and praising the likes of former Gov. George Wallace of Alabama. Such a person would be pushed out of polite society, and rightfully so. Moreover, no one would hesitate labeling such a person a white supremacist—especially if they have never apologized for their past views or bothered to explain how they've changed.
Yet the media routinely offer Sanders a platform and clutch their pearls when he is called a communist, or even a socialist if it's not preceded by "democratic." They would have us believe that after years of defending Castro, hanging a hammer-and-sickle flag in his mayoral office, honeymooning in the Soviet Union (not Norway), and refusing to meet with Soviet dissidents, he is merely a misunderstood European social democrat whose views would be mainstream here if it weren't for our pesky political biases.
This is utter nonsense that insults our intelligence.
Sanders' record speaks for itself regardless of the media's efforts to gaslight the American people into believing otherwise. He is a communist—and it has to be said clearly, firmly, and unequivocally from now until November.


theblaze--2020-02-08--Joe Biden takes aim at cancer-stricken Rush Limbaugh during Dem debate — and the crowd erupts

Joe Biden singled out cancer-stricken Rush Limbaugh during Friday's Democratic presidential debate, resulting in a boisterous applause from the audience.
While reacting to news that President Donald Trump had removed Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, a key impeachment witness, from the National Security Council, Biden took a shot at Limbaugh to slam the president.
"By the way, Col. Vindman got thrown out of the White House today — walked out. I think ... [Trump] should be pinning a medal on Vindman and not on Rush Limbaugh," Biden said.
"I think we should all stand and give Col. Vindman a show of how much we supported him. Stand up and clap for Vindman. Get up there!" he added. "That's who we are! We are not what Trump is!"
The crowd erupted in response to Biden's comment about Limbaugh, before they joined him in a standing ovation for Vindman.
Unsurprisingly, some Democrats have complained that President Donald Trump awarded Limbaugh the Presidential Medial of Freedom during his State of the Union address last Tuesday.
One such Democrat was Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), who, afterward, called Limbaugh a "virulent racist." She said it was "truly nauseating" to see the president honor Limbaugh with the prestigious award.
Limbaugh revealed on his radio show Friday that, despite having stage 4 lung cancer, there is "good news," and his team of doctors have signaled a positive prognosis.


theblaze--2020-02-08--Video: No top Dem raised their hand when asked if they're concerned about a socialist presidential n

Video: No top Dem raised their hand when asked if they're concerned about a socialist presidential nominee

Video : No top Dem raised their hand when asked if they 're concerned about a socialist presidential nominee

Democrats may have cut an ad for President Donald Trump's re-election campaign on Friday night.
In the last debate before the New Hampshire primary, George Stephanopoulos asked the Democratic slate of presidential candidates if they are concerned about the possibility of having Sen. Bernie Sanders, an unabashed "democratic socialist,” as the party's nominee heading into a tough general election fight against Trump.
"Is anyone else on this stage concerned about having a democratic socialist at the top of the Democratic ticket?" he asked
None of the leading candidates raised their hands—not even so-called "moderates" like Joe Biden and Pete Buttigieg.
Klobuchar raised her hand
The only presidential hopeful to raise their hand and express concern with Sanders as the party's nominee was Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.).
"Bernie and I work together all the time, but we are not going to be able to out-divide the divider-in-chief," she said.
It was not exactly a rebuke of the Vermont socialist's political extremism, but she was still more vocal than any of the other candidates in her opposition to Sanders.
Socialism is deeply unpopular among Americans
The leading Democrats' refusal to repudiate socialism comes as a recent poll shows the Marxist ideology is unpopular among American voters.
An NBC News/Wall Street Journal survey released Sunday shows a majority of registered voters (53 percent) have a negative view of socialism, while just 19 percent view it positively. Conversely, the poll found the opposite result for the free enterprise system. Fifty-two percent of voters said they have a positive view of capitalism, while just 18 percent said they view it negatively.
The findings of the NBC News study are consistent with an October 2019 poll by Gallup that found a large majority of Americans reacting negatively to the term "socialism" and strong majorities viewing capitalism and the free enterprise system favorably.
According to Gallup, "39% of Americans said they have a positive opinion of socialism, while 57% view it negatively." Meanwhile, the researchers noted that "Americans' ratings of capitalism have not changed," and like the NBC News / WSJ study, "are about the inverse of socialism's ratings, with roughly six in 10 viewing capitalism positively." The pollster also noted that the most term for America's economic system is "free enterprise," which 87 percent of the survey's respondents rating it positively.
'Socialism doesn't frickin' work!'
While leading Democrats do not seem alarmed by the possibility of having Sanders as their nominee, as TheBlaze's Carlos Garcia noted on Friday, the Vermont senator's brand of "democratic socialism" is worrisome to MSNBC's Chris Matthews.
"The issue of this campaign, it is that word socialism," Matthews remarked.
"Some people like it. Younger people like it. Those of us like me, who grew up in the Cold War and saw some aspects of it if you're visiting places like Vietnam like I have, and seen countries like Cuba, being there," he noted.
"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 exclaimed.


theblaze--2020-02-08--Rush Limbaugh shares some 'good news' related to his cancer diagnosis and treatment

Rush Limbaugh shares some 'good news ' related to his cancer diagnosis and treatment The talk radio legend said he @ @ @ @ @ State of the Union invitation

Millions of Americans were shocked when conservative icon Rush Limbaugh announced on Monday that he's battling an advanced form of lung cancer.
"So, I have to tell you something today that I wish I didn't have to tell you. It's a struggle for me because I had to inform my staff earlier today," Limbaugh said. "I can't help but feel that I'm letting everybody down. The upshot is that I have been diagnosed with advanced lung cancer."
After being awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom at the State of the Union earlier in the week, "America's Anchorman" was back to work on Friday. While sharing the behind-the-scenes story of his trip to Washington, D.C., to accept the award, "El Rushbo" said that he has received some good news from doctors.
'It's advanced lung cancer. But there's good news...'
"It's late stage. It's advanced lung cancer," Limbaugh said.
"But there's good news associated with the diagnosis and the treatment," he added without going into further details.
In a later segment, while speaking with a caller, Limbaugh noted he has "great doctors that have already discovered some interesting things that should facilitate treatment" of his disease.
The conservative radio legend also said he cannot tell the full story behind his invitation to the State of the Union, as doing so would reveal "medical details" he would rather keep confidential.
Now, I know many of you want to know the story of the State of the Union address on Tuesday night and how that all happened, and someday I hope to be able to tell you the entire story. I can't tell you the entire story now without divulging medical details that I, frankly, don't want to give. I don't want to give people an opportunity to start investigating and writing about and pronouncing opinions and this kind of thing. People know enough about what I have.
'I'm stunned'
However, Limbaugh did disclose some details of the phone call he received from President Donald Trump on Tuesday morning when the commander-in-chief invited him to his annual address to Congress.
I answered the phone, and they said, "Can you hold for President Trump?"
I said, "Yes."
"Rush! Rush! How you doing, buddy? Great to hear from you! Hey, look, what are you doing later today?"
I said, "Well, I have a serious medical procedure that's gonna start — all this — at 5 o'clock."
"Well, look, what's the doctor's name? I want to call him and have him delay it for a couple days 'cause I need you down here tonight."
I said (chuckles), "Uh… (chuckles) Mr. President, um… I'm stunned."
Limbaugh said the President told him: "Look, your health comes first; there's no question. But can't they just do half of what they're gonna do and then send you down here? Believe me, you don't want to miss this. It's gonna be great."
The conservative commentator said his wife strongly encouraged him to accept the president's invitation and immediately went to work planning their travel arrangements to Washington.


theblaze--2020-02-08--'Socialism doesn't frickin' work!' — Chris Matthews stuns MSNBC panel with rant against socialism

`` I 've seen what socialism 's like , and I do n't like it .
OK ?
It 's @ @ @ @ @ it does n't frickin ' work . ''

Chris Matthews appeared to stun the guest panel on MSNBC after the Democratic debate on Friday when he declared his opposition to socialism and told them it doesn't work.
"The issue of this campaign, it is that word socialism," Matthews said.
"Some people like it. Younger people like it. Those of us like me, who grew up in the Cold War and saw some aspects of it if you're visiting places like Vietnam like I have, and seen countries like Cuba, being there," he added.
"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 distinguished between Democrats, who he said were to the left of Republicans and preferred more social programs, to socialists that he identified with the communists and other revolutionaries.
He went on to opine that had the communists taken over that he would be among those who would be lined up and executed, and implied that people like Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and his supporters would be applauding his execution.
"I have my own views of the word socialist and I'll be glad to share them with [the Democratic party] in private, and they go back to the early nineteen fifties. I have an attitude about them. I remember the Cold War," Matthews said.
"I have an attitude towards [communist Cuban dictator Castro], I believe that if Castro and the reds had won the Cold War, there would have been executions in Central Park, and I might have been one of the ones being executed!" he continued.
"And certain other people would have been there, cheering, OK?" Matthews concluded. "So I have a problem with people taking the other side."
Socialist Democrats and Sanders supporters on social media excoriated the long-time Democrat on social media for his comments.
Here's the video of his comments:


theblaze--2020-02-08--Donald Trump Jr 'thanks' Adam Schiff for 'unearthing who all needed to be fired' from Trump administ

Donald Trump Jr 'thanks' Adam Schiff for 'unearthing who all needed to be fired' from Trump administration

Donald Trump Jr 'thanks ' Adam Schiff for 'unearthing who all needed to be fired ' from Trump administration 'Were @ @ @ @ @ investigation skills ... '

Donald Trump Jr. expressed mocking gratitude toward House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) on Friday, for his assistance in rooting out "who all needed to be fired" from his father's administration through the congressman's efforts leading House Democrats' failed impeachment of President Donald Trump.
The younger Trump sent his message on Twitter shortly after the news broke that the Trump administration removed two employees who testified during the lower chamber's impeachment probe over President Trump's interactions with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenski.
What are the details?
"Allow me a moment to thank—and this may be a bit of a surprise—Adam Schiff," Trump Jr. tweeted. "Were it not for his crack investigation skills, @realDonaldTrump might have had a tougher time unearthing who all needed to be fired. Thanks, Adam!"
He finished the message with a laughing emoji and the hashtag, "FullOfSchiff."
Trump Jr. sent out the tweet as news was still circulating that impeachment witnesses Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman and U.S. Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland had both been relieved of their duties following reports that President Trump was planning to retaliate against those who testified after being subpoenaed by House Democrats at the behest of Schiff.
What's the background?
President Trump was found not guilty by the Senate earlier this week, after a tense and divisive impeachment process in both chambers of the legislature.
Ever since President Trump won the 2016 election, he has been threatened with impeachment by Democratic members of Congress. On Thursday, the president gave a speech in reaction to his acquittal, where he talked about the toll the impeachment took on his family.
"I want to apologize to my family for having them have to go through a phony, rotten deal by some very evil and sick people," President Trump said, before hugging his daughter, Ivanka, and wife, Melania. The president added, "So, I just want to thank my family for sticking through it. This was not part of the deal."
H/T: The Washington Examiner