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IRS Claims It Can’t Find Lois Lerner Emails

June 16, 2014 By Editor Leave a Comment

lois_lerner_IRSAt issue is whether the IRS probes were politically motivated and directed by the White House. Congressional investigators were hoping for answers in Lerner’s emails.

The IRS also screened liberal groups, which Democrats claim as proof that there was no abuse of power. That’s wishful thinking. The fact that liberal groups were screened is mitigating, not dispositive.

Republicans lawmakers are prone not to trust any explanation from the White House. Their most conservative voters assumed from the start that the White House was targeting right-leaning groups for intimidation.

“The fact that I am just learning about this, over a year into the investigation, is completely unacceptable and now calls into question the credibility of the IRS’s response to congressional inquiries,” said Rep. Dave Camp, R-Mich., chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. “There needs to be an immediate investigation and forensic audit by Department of Justice as well as the inspector general.”

Obama has adamantly rejected the suggestion that the IRS was used for political purposes. “That’s not what happened,” he told Fox News in February. Rather, he said, IRS officials were confused about how to implement the law governing those kinds of tax-exempt groups. “Not even a smidgen of corruption” occurred, he said. His allies dubbed it a “phony scandal.”

Six weeks after the scandal broke, I chastised House Republicans for cherry-picking evidence and jumping to conclusions. In the same column, I urged the president to be transparent: pave way for investigators to question witnesses under oath and subpoena the White House and his own reelection campaign for related emails and other documents.

If forced to guess, I would say that the IRS and its White House masters are guilty of gross incompetence, but not corruption. I based that only on my personal knowledge of—and respect for—Obama and his team. But I shouldn’t have to guess. More importantly, most Americans don’t have a professional relationship with Obama and his team. Many don’t respect or trust government. They deserve what Obama promised nearly six weeks ago—accountability. They need a thorough investigation conducted by somebody other than demagogic Republicans and White House allies.

Somebody like … a special prosecutor. Those words are hard for me to type two decades after an innocent land deal I covered in Arkansas turned into the runaway Whitewater investigation.

Nothing has changed. The White House is stonewalling the IRS investigation. The most benign explanation is that Obama’s team is politically expedient and arrogant, which makes them desperate to change the subject and convinced of their institutional innocence. That’s bad enough. But without a fiercely independent investigation, we shouldn’t assume the explanation is benign.

lerner_loisA sloppy mistake, the government calls it, but you couldn’t blame a person for suspecting a cover-up—the loss of an untold number of emails to and from the central figure in the IRS tea-party controversy. And because the public’s trust is a fragile gift that the White House has frittered away in a series of second-term missteps, President Obama needs to act.

If the IRS can’t find the emails, maybe a special prosecutor can.

The announcement came late Friday, a too-cute-by-half cliche of a PR strategy to mitigate backlash. “The IRS told Congress it cannot locate many of Lois Lerner’s emails prior to 2011 because her computer crashed during the summer of that year,” the Associated Press reported.

Lerner headed the IRS division that processed applications for tax-exempt status. The IRS acknowledged last year that agents had improperly scrutinized applications for tax-exempt status by tea-party and other conservative groups.

By Ron Fournier

Filed Under: All Stories, Economy, Elections, Entitlement, Ethics, Foreign, Gender, Religion, Sci-Tech

How a Dad’s Involvement Can Change His Children’s Future

June 14, 2014 By Editor Leave a Comment

a-dad-and-sonChildren with involved fathers are more likely to graduate from college—particularly among middle- and upper-income families but also among those from lower-income backgrounds, a recent study found.

According to this new research by Brad Wilcox at the University of Virginia, the family structure that best promotes this involvement is a married, intact family. This is the case for youth from lower-educated homes as well as those from more highly educated homes.

Wilcox also found fathers are more involved with their children today than they have been in the past. The amount of time fathers spend with their children each week has increased from 4.2 hours on average in 1995 to 7.3 hours on average in 2011. The down side is that fewer teens live in intact families, particularly teens from working-class and lower-income homes.

On the other hand, their peers from college-educated homes are “triply advantaged,” according to Wilcox: “They typically enjoy more economic resources, an intact family, and an involved father.”

The question then is, how to keep youth connected with their fathers, or, as Wilcox puts it, how to “bridge the fatherhood divide between children from college-educated and less-educated families.”

guys-kidsIncreasing the odds that more children are raised in homes with their married mother and father is a crucial factor in the equation.

Today, more than  40 percent of children are born to unwed mothers. Among lower- and moderately educated (high school diploma or less) households, the number is much higher. Taking this factor into account along with the high rate of divorce, 55 percent of children are expected to spend some time outside of an intact-parent family before they reach their 18th birthday.

Despite the trends, accepting the decline of marriage is not the answer. Marriage is critical to helping children succeed, as Wilcox’s research and a multitude of other studies attest. Marriage is the foundation of a strong society, helping men, women and children thrive.

Some communities are taking action. In his recent book, Brigham Young University professor Alan Hawkins describes a plan for helping individuals and couples build and maintain lasting, healthy marriages. As I wrote last month in Public Discourse, Hawkins makes the case that preparing for and maintaining a healthy marriage is a lifelong endeavor. His strategy includes relationship and marriage education throughout different stages of life: from helping youth in high school learn how to build healthy relationships that will prepare them for marriage down the road, to helping couples in crisis salvage their marriage if possible.

Hawkins points to examples of schools, communities and states that have taken important steps to providing opportunities to build and strengthen marriages.

For example, he points to high schools in Alabama that have taught “relationship literacy education” classes. Students who participated in these classes had more realistic attitudes about marriage and better conflict-management skills a year after participating, compared to their peers who didn’t participate. More than half of the students came from low-income households.

Additionally, First Things First in Chattanooga, Tenn., runs a “community healthy marriage initiative.” First Things First provides marriage education courses, operates public advertising campaigns about the importance of marriage and sponsors events for couples and families. They report that their efforts have reduced divorce rates in their community by nearly 30 percent (although a more rigorous evaluation is needed).

Finally, Utah and Oklahoma have taken the lead on marriage initiatives by providing marriage and relationship education to couples.

There are promising examples, yet far more is needed. As Hawkins points out, the United States must renew a culture of marriage if real change is to take place. Leaders at every level need to promote the culture of marriage.

A restoration of marriage in the United States will ensure more children have the opportunity to thrive, not only academically but when it comes to their physical and emotional health, as well as their own relationship success. Ultimately, it will mean providing a culture that gives Americans the greatest likelihood to succeed in achieving their dreams.

By Rachel Sheffield

Filed Under: All Stories, Economy, Elections, Entitlement, Ethics, Foreign, Gender, Religion, Sci-Tech

Obama Says ‘Millionaires’ Must Pay for Others’ Student Loans

June 14, 2014 By Editor Leave a Comment

Obamas-PenUsing his pen again in “this year of action,” President Obama today took executive actions to ease the burden of student debt at the expense of “millionaires.”

The program, “Pay as You Earn,” expands an existing federal loan option available to undergrad and graduate students. It issues caps on monthly loan payments at 10 percent of the borrower’s discretionary income and forgives their remaining balance after 20 years.

For those working in public service or the government, any remaining debt is forgiven after 10 years. An estimated 5 million more borrowers will become eligible under the new plan. Before today, only those who took out loans after 2007 were entitled to “Pay as You Earn” benefits.

To finance the program, Obama proposed closing “tax loopholes” for the wealthy, or what he called “millionaires.”

“This should be a no-brainer,” he said today at the White House. “It would be scandalous if we allowed those kinds of tax loopholes for the very, very fortunate to survive while students are having trouble just getting started in their lives.”

Carmel Martin, executive vice president for policy at the progressive think tank Center for American Progress, welcomed Obama’s actions.

“Millions of federal loan borrowers—from young adults to senior citizens—are struggling to repay their student loans,” Martin said. “The steps that President Obama announced today will make it easier for borrowers to meet their obligations without the strain and worry of excessive monthly payments.”

Less celebratory was House Speaker John Boehner, who  responded with a statement saying, “Today’s much-hyped loophole closure does nothing to reduce the cost of pursuing a higher education or improve access to federal student loans, nor will it help millions of recent graduates struggling to find jobs in the Obama economy.”

Obama’s decision to bypass Congress with a presidential memorandum snubs Senate Republicans, who are debating alternative approaches they believe would address the fundamental causes of rising tuition costs. The president’s action lasts only as long as he is in office.

Instead of addressing the root of the problem, the senators argue, granting more students access to federal education subsidies gives colleges and universities the green light to continue raising tuition costs.

“Repayment caps such as those offered through IBR and other policies put no downward pressure on college prices,” said Lindsey Burke, the Will Skillman education fellow at The Heritage Foundation. “Transferring the burden of student loan financing from university graduates—who will earn significantly more over the course of a lifetime than someone with a high school diploma—to the three-quarters of taxpayers who do not hold bachelor’s degrees is inequitable.”

Obama said the financial burden of the new “Pay as You Earn” installments will fall on “millionaires,” meaning higher income taxes for higher earners. “I want Americans to pay attention to see where their lawmakers’ priorities lie here:  lower tax bills for millionaires, or lower student loan bills for the middle class.”

Secretary of Education Arne Duncan told reporters at the White House that the administration doesn’t currently know how much the expanded payment cap will cost. “We’ll figure that out on the back end.”

Over the past 30 years, average tuition at a public four-year college has more than tripled, the White House said, while family income has largely remained stagnant. An analysis by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York found that recent college graduates in the United States face a more challenging job market, which has left them overqualified and underemployed.

Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., ranking member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, said the president’s time would be better spent on measures to increase employment. “Republicans are ready to offer and debate our proposals to create more good jobs and to create better schools which mean better jobs,” Alexander said.

Kelsey Harkness is a news producer at The Daily Signal.

Filed Under: All Stories, Economy, Elections, Entitlement, Ethics, Foreign, Gender, Religion, Sci-Tech

Obama Fiddles While Terrorists Retake Liberated Cities

June 12, 2014 By Editor Leave a Comment

Obama-Nixon_SpeechThe Obama administration’s apparent miscalculation of the threat posed by Al Qaeda-aligned militants in Iraq drew severe criticism Thursday from top Republican lawmakers, who accused President Obama and his national security team of “taking a nap,” warning “the next 9/11 is in the making.”

The administration once again appears to have been caught off guard by an explosion of violence in a country U.S. forces helped liberate from a dictator.

Al Qaeda-aligned Sunni militants were advancing south and threatening to move on Baghdad on Thursday after overrunning the northern Iraq cities of Mosul and Tikrit — with Iraqi government forces in rapid retreat.

GOP lawmakers vented that advances made by the militant Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) are confirming their “worst fears” about what would happen in the wake of the Obama-ordered U.S. troop withdrawal in 2011.

“What’s the president doing? Taking a nap,” House Speaker John Boehner snapped, before abruptly ending his weekly press conference on Thursday.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said Iraq is “collapsing,” calling it another potential Benghazi and urging the president to address the American people.

“The next 9/11 is in the making,” Graham said.

White House and State Department officials say the Obama administration is considering sending additional aid, but have not specified what that might be. The Iraqi government reportedly is seeking U.S. airstrikes. Republican lawmakers and military analysts are urging the administration to quickly piece together a gameplan.

obama_nero_fiddleSen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said Thursday that the current national security team is a “failure,” urging Obama to get a “new team.” He also took a shot at Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, saying: “We need a new chairman.”

The escalating violence follows repeated assurances by the Obama administration that Al Qaeda is “on the run” and that its offshoots are not the threat they’re made out to be.

As recently as Monday, State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said of the situation in northern Iraq, “I don’t get the sense that they’re gaining a lot of territory.”

Obama also brushed off concerns about Al Qaeda affiliates during an interview with The New Yorker, in a piece published in January.

“If a jayvee team puts on Lakers uniforms, that doesn’t make them Kobe Bryant,” the president said. That was in regard to concerns, at the time, that Islamist militants had taken over Fallujah — the comment also followed Islamist militants overrunning the U.S. compound in Benghazi, Libya, killing four Americans.

Yet in Iraq, militants with ISIS have made considerable gains since January. (They were listed in 2004 by the State Department as a terrorist organization under their old name, Al Qaeda in Iraq, shortly after the group formed.)

Gen. Jack Keane, former Army vice chief of staff and Fox News military analyst, said the administration has not put enough effort into forming a “comprehensive strategy” to partner with governments in the region to share intelligence and battle Al Qaeda affiliates.

“This caliphate exists, and it will be the most menacing thing in the Middle East if unattended,” Keane said.

He acknowledged that the administration has “decimated” the Al Qaeda leadership in Pakistan to a degree. But he said: “The fact of the matter is the Al Qaeda and its affiliates … is on the rise in the Middle East and in Africa.”

Keane also said the U.S. lost leverage with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, whom Keane said needs to be saved “from himself.” U.S. lawmakers have faulted Maliki’s Shiite-led government for alienating the Sunni minority, in turn fueling tensions and giving Sunni militants an opening to exploit.

The Wall Street Journal reported that, privately, administration officials acknowledge they were caught off guard by the sudden developments in northern Iraq, where security forces abandoned their posts and militants overran key locations.

Military leaders reportedly said they thought Iraq’s forces could hold off ISIS — they were wrong.

Amid the deliberations, congressional Republicans continue to fume over the administration’s response to the terror attack in Benghazi in 2012, for which nobody has yet been brought to justice, and have launched a formal select committee investigation.

The developments also follow President Obama foreign policy speech last month at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point where he backed a policy of restraint abroad and called for a wind-down of U.S. “military adventures.”

Few expect that U.S. ground troops would be dispatched to Iraq, no matter how dire the situation becomes.

At issue now, among other things, is whether to provide more military aid and approve airstrikes. Maliki reportedly has sought U.S. airstrikes, but so far has been turned down.

A statement from the National Security Council made no commitment.

“We are not going to get into details of our diplomatic discussions but the Government of Iraq has made clear that they welcome our support in their effort to confront [ISIS],” spokeswoman Bernadette Meehan said. “We have expedited shipments of military equipment since the beginning of the year, ramped up training of Iraqi Security Forces, and worked intensively to help Iraq implement a holistic approach to counter this terrorist threat.  Our assistance has been comprehensive, is continuing, and will increase.”

White House Press Secretary Jay Carney, in a statement overnight, offered “condolences” to the families of those killed, but did not specify what actions the administration would take.

“The United States will stand with Iraqi leaders across the political spectrum as they forge the national unity necessary to succeed in the fight against ISIL,” he said, adding “we will also continue to provide, and as required increase, assistance to the Government of Iraq to help build Iraq’s capacity to effectively and sustainably stop [ISIS’s] efforts to wreak havoc in Iraq and the region.”

To date, the U.S. has provided considerable military assistance. The State Department said Wednesday that that has included: 300 Hellfire missiles, millions of rounds of small arms ammunition, machine guns, grenades, rifles and more. Officials say the U.S. also supplied Bell IA-407 helicopters and is set to send over F-16 fighter jets.

A statement from Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz.,; Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.; and Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H., blamed the current situation on the U.S. decision to withdraw all troops from Iraq.

“We call on the president to explain to Congress and the American people how he plans to address the growing threat to our homeland and our national security interests posed by the rapidly expanding Al-Qaeda safe haven in Iraq and Syria,” they said.

Published June 12, 2014 / FoxNews.com

Filed Under: All Stories, Economy, Elections, Entitlement, Ethics, Foreign, Gender, Religion, Sci-Tech

Benghazi Terrorists Used State Dept. Cell Phones to Call Leaders–Obama Knew

June 11, 2014 By Editor Leave a Comment

obama-angryThe terrorists who attacked the U.S. consulate and CIA annex in Benghazi on September 11, 2012 used cell phones, seized from State Department personnel during the attacks, and U.S. spy agencies overheard them contacting more senior terrorist leaders to report on the success of the operation, multiple sources confirmed to Fox News.

The disclosure is important because it adds to the body of evidence establishing that senior U.S. officials in the Obama administration knew early on that Benghazi was a terrorist attack, and not a spontaneous protest over an anti-Islam video that had gone awry, as the administration claimed for several weeks after the attacks.

Eric Stahl, who recently retired as a major in the U.S. Air Force, served as commander and pilot of the C-17 aircraft that was used to transport the corpses of the four casualties from the Benghazi attacks – then-U.S. Ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens, information officer Sean Smith, and former Navy SEALs Glen Doherty and Tyrone Woods – as well as the assault’s survivors from Tripoli to the safety of an American military base in Ramstein, Germany.

In an exclusive interview on Fox News’ “Special Report,” Stahl said members of a CIA-trained Global Response Staff who raced to the scene of the attacks were “confused” by the administration’s repeated implication of the video as a trigger for the attacks, because “they knew during the attack…who was doing the attacking.” Asked how, Stahl told anchor Bret Baier: “Right after they left the consulate in Benghazi and went to the [CIA] safehouse, they were getting reports that cell phones, consulate cell phones, were being used to make calls to the attackers’ higher ups.”

A separate U.S. official, one with intimate details of the bloody events of that night, confirmed the major’s assertion. The second source, who requested anonymity to discuss classified data, told Fox News he had personally read the intelligence reports at the time that contained references to calls by terrorists – using State Department cell phones captured at the consulate during the battle – to their terrorist leaders. The second source also confirmed that the security teams on the ground received this intelligence in real time.

Major Stahl was never interviewed by the Accountability Review Board, the investigative panel convened, pursuant to statute, by then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, as the official body reviewing all the circumstances surrounding the attacks and their aftermath. Many lawmakers and independent experts have criticized the thoroughness of the ARB, which also never interviewed Clinton nor the under secretary of State for management, Patrick Kennedy, a key figure in the decisions about security at the consulate in the period preceding the attack there.

benghazi_attackersIn his interview on “Special Report,” Stahl made still other disclosures that add to the vast body of literature on Benghazi – sure to grow in the months ahead, as a select House committee prepares for a comprehensive probe of the affair, complete with subpoena power. Stahl said that when he deposited the traumatized passengers at Ramstein, the first individual to question the CIA security officers was not an FBI officer but by the senior State Department diplomat on the ground.

“They were taken away from the airplane,” Stahl said. “The U.S. ambassador to Germany [Philip D. Murphy] met us when we landed and he took them away because he wanted to debfrief them that night.” Murphy stepped down as ambassador last year. A message left with Sky Blue FC, a private company in New Jersey with which Murphy is listed online as an executive officer, was not immediately returned.

Stahl also contended that given his crew’s alert status and location, they could have reached Benghazi in time to have played a role in rescuing the victims of the assault, and ferrying them to safety in Germany, had they been asked to do so. “We were on a 45-day deployment to Ramstein air base,” he told Fox News. “And we were there basically to pick up priority missions, last-minute missions that needed to be accomplished.”

“You would’ve thought that we would have had a little bit more of an alert posture on 9/11,” Stahl added. “A hurried-up timeline probably would take us [an] hour-and-a-half to get off the ground and three hours and fifteen minutes to get down there. So we could’ve gone down there and gotten them easily.”

Bret Baier currently serves as anchor of Fox News Channel’s “Special Report with Bret Baier” (weeknights 6-7PM/ET), the top-rated cable news program in its timeslot. Based in Washington, D.C., he joined the network in 1998 as the first reporter in the Atlanta bureau. Click here for more information on Bret Baier. 

James Rosen joined Fox News Channel (FNC) in 1999. He currently serves as the chief Washington correspondent and hosts the online show “The Foxhole.”

Filed Under: All Stories, Economy, Elections, Ethics, Foreign, Gender, Religion, Sci-Tech

STUNNING UPSET: House GOP leader loses to Tea Party-backed rival

June 10, 2014 By Editor Leave a Comment

cantor_concedeHouse Majority Leader Eric Cantor lost his GOP Virginia primary race Tuesday night in a stunning upset to Tea Party-backed challenger Dave Brat.

Brat, an economics professor and political novice, had latched onto the increasingly hot-button issue of immigration and accused Cantor, the No. 2 Republican in the GOP-led House, of supporting immigration legislation that would give “amnesty” to millions of people living illegally in the United States.

Cantor conceded defeat about an hour after defeat and the Tea Party’s biggest upset victory of 2014 — thanking volunteers, supporters and campaign staffers.

“It’s disappointing,” he told a small crowd in Richmond. “But I believe in this country. I believe there is opportunity around the next corner.”

He added, “Serving you as the 7th District congressman and having the privilege of being the majority leader has been the highest honor of my life.”

In the closing weeks of the race, Bratt argued the seven-term congressman’s support for legal status for children who have illegally entered the country fueled the problem of children from Central America pouring across the southern border, creating a humanitarian crisis.

Cantor, considered next in line to take over for House Speaker John Boehner, tried to respond forcefully by boasting in mailers of blocking Senate plans “to give illegal aliens amnesty.”

Cantor and other House Republican leaders had advocating a more step-by-step approach to immigration reform that would in part begin with tighter border security, instead of the comprehensive bill backed by the Senate.

Brat said Cantor, who was first elected in 2000 and has ties to Tea Party-backed lawmakers in Congress, has spent too much time in Washington and lost touch with the conservative base in his Richmond-area district.

“It’s hard to represent people when you haven’t met them,” said Brat, who teaches at Randolph-Macon College, a small liberal arts school north of Richmond.

Despite the attacks, Cantor had appeared well positioned for reelection in his 7th congressional District seat.

The most recent campaign finance reports show he spent more than $1 million in April and May but still has more than $1.5 million in the bank.

Brat, by contrast, raised just more than $200,000 for his campaign, according to the most recent campaign finance reports.

Big business, which supports immigration reform, and other groups also spent heavily to help Cantor.

The American Chemistry Council, whose members include many blue chip companies, spent more than $300,000 on TV ads promoting Cantor. And the political arms of the American College of Radiology, the National Rifle Association and the National Association of Realtors had five-figure independent spending to promote Cantor.

Bratt helped offset the cash disadvantage with endorsements from conservative activists, like radio host Laura Ingraham, and with help from Tea Party activists angry at Cantor.

Cantor, a former state legislator, was elected to Congress in 2000. He became majority leader in 2011.

Fox News’ Chad Pergram and The Associated Press contributed to this report

Filed Under: All Stories, Economy, Elections, Ethics, Sci-Tech

Hillary’s Memoir Invites Us to Forget Her Record

June 10, 2014 By Editor Leave a Comment

Hillary Clinton testifiesHillary Clinton will likely be the next president of the United States, and why not? We live in an age of choreographed reality, and hers is among the most choreographed of lives. Also, an age of the triumph of symbol over substance and narrative over fact; an age that demonstrates the power of the contention that truth matters only to the extent people want it to matter. Mrs. Clinton’s career is testimony to these things as well.

Which brings me to the subject of her book.

However one feels about Mrs. Clinton, she was the least consequential secretary of state since William Rogers warmed the seat in the early years of the Nixon administration.

benghazi_attackersI obtained an advance copy of “Hard Choices,” her latest doorstop of a memoir, and started reading it before its publication Tuesday. There she is, bitterly regretting her vote to authorize the war in Iraq. There she is again, standing by her actions during the Benghazi debacle, insisting on the relevance of the “Innocence of Muslims” video.

Elsewhere we find her equivocating over her opposition to the Iraq surge (which, as we learned from Robert Gates’s memoir “Duty,” she privately admitted was purely political), or allowing that the Obama administration’s decision to stand silent over the stolen 2009 Iranian revolution was something she “came to regret.”

To continue reading Bret Stephens’ column in the Wall Street Journal, click here.

Bret Stephens is the deputy editorial page editor responsible for the international opinion pages of The Wall Street Journal. He also writes “Global View,” the paper’s weekly foreign-affairs column, and is a member of the Journal’s editorial board.

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Harry Reid Fights for Speech Restrictions

June 10, 2014 By Editor Leave a Comment

HarryReidThe largest hearing room the Senate has in the Hart Building was standing-room only on Tuesday when the Senate Judiciary Committee held its hearing on the resolution proposed by Sen. Tom Udall (D-N.M.) that would amend the First Amendment and give Congress unlimited, plenary power to restrict political speech and political activity.

In a historic and unprecedented event, both majority leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and minority leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) appeared as the first two witnesses.  They had starkly different presentations, with Reid complaining about so-called “dark money” and corporations and special interests “meddling” in congressional races.  He clearly doesn’t like the fact that Americans have the ability to criticize him and his policies.

McConnell went back to first principles, talking about the First Amendment and the fundamental importance of protecting political speech, as did Floyd Abrams, the well-known First Amendment lawyer who won the historic New York Times Co. v. Sullivan case.  As Abrams said, the purpose of this proposed amendment is clearly “limiting speech intended to affect elections.”  He observed that the title of the amendment, “Restore Democracy to the American People,” is based on the false notion that our democracy has already been lost.  According to Abrams, “the notion that democracy would be advanced – saved, ‘restored’ – by limiting speech is nothing but a perversion of the English language.”

The Democratic witnesses in favor of the amendment seemed obsessed with the Koch brothers, including a state senator from North Carolina who made bizarre claims about supposed Koch-financed efforts to implement a voter ID law to “suppress” the votes of racial minorities.

It was almost funny – Democrats can’t even hold a hearing about the First Amendment without working in their talking points about voter ID and “vote suppression.”  All of the Republican senators who spoke, including Sens. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) and Ted Cruz (R-Tex.), made stirring statement about the importance of preserving the Bill of Rights.  I won’t summarize their statements but they are worth watching (here and here).

What was most interesting was something that happened before the hearing started that shows just how dangerous it would be to give Congress the power Udall, Reid and 39 other Democratic senators are seeking (there are 41 cosponsors of this resolution) and how they don’t believe the rules should apply to them.  I was standing in line outside the hearing room waiting to get in and get a seat.  There was a sign prominently taped to the wall where we were all standing that warned attendees of all of the things not allowed in the hearing room, like standing, shouting, applauding, and most importantly, “no signs.”

I was at the head of the line when a large cart loaded with boxes came down the hallway, accompanied by six or seven individuals, many holding protest signs like “Restore the First Amendment – Get Oil Money out of Elections” and “Big $$ out of Politics.”  The boxes had prominently pasted on their side the names of liberal advocacy groups and PACs including People for the American Way, the Daily Kos, Public Citizen, Wolf PAC, Moveon.org, the Coffee Party, and Common Cause.  The boxes were apparently full of petitions supporting Udall’s censorship amendment.  As the cart headed into the hearing room with the protest signs held high, I reminded the Democratic committee staffer supervising entry that these individuals were violating the posted rules about no signs and no protests.  She just ignored me and looked away.

About thirty photographers and reporters facing the entry started snapping pictures of the advocacy group representatives the moment they came in as the cart was trundled up to the front of the hearing room.  Several of the advocacy representatives went to sit down, but not before standing up with their signs held high and posing for more photos from the media.

I have no doubt that if I had attempted to walk into the hearing room with signs protesting this amendment, as opposed to supporting it, I would have been stopped by the committee staffer, and if I had persisted, she would have called over the Capitol policeman who was also standing at the entrance studiously not seeing the liberal protestors violating the posted rules.

Senate Judiciary Hearing on Campaign Finance Amendment in Washington, D.C.It is true that Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) warned the attendees after the hearing started about no sign waiving or protests and one individual was eventually ejected; however, Leahy only did that after the cameras were turned on for anyone watching the hearing on the committee website.  It was his committee staff who, after all, allowed their supporters to come in early with their protest signs and helped to stage-manage protests prior to the start of the hearing for the benefit of the photographers in the hearing room.  You can see one of those photos here – notice there are no staffers or Capitol Police hurrying over to eject the CodePink demonstrators from the hearing room.

So it seems that some Democratic senators want to amend the Constitution so that the American people give them the power to set the rules for raising and spending money on political campaigns and independent expenditures that speak in support of, or opposition to, candidates.  However, at the very hearing at which this amendment was introduced, some of these senators were prepared to apply the Senate’s own rules to only one side of the debate.  Not something that inspires confidence that any such rules on political activity and political speech would ever be enforced in a nonpartisan, unbiased, and objective manner.

Hans A. von Spakovsky is a Senior Legal Fellow at The Heritage Foundation.  Along with John Fund, he is the coauthor of “Who’s Counting? How Fraudsters and Bureaucrats Put Your Vote at Risk” (Encounter 2012) and the upcoming “Obama’s Enforcer: Eric Holder’s Justice Department” (HarperCollins/Broadside June 2014).

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Ethics Complaint Targets Harry Reid for Abuse of Power

June 9, 2014 By Editor Leave a Comment

Harry-Reid1Tea Party Patriots filed an ethics complaint against Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., alleging he has abused his power in a campaign to smear conservative donors.

The complaint, filed Monday with the Senate Select Committee on Ethics, alleges Reid has purposely tried to damage the names of Charles and David Koch, prominent conservative donors whom Reid has publicly criticized for running advertisements attacking Democrats. It also cites Reid’s partisan campaign activities, which allegedly violate Senate rules and federal law.

Tea Party Patriots filed a separate complaint against Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., for his alleged role in influencing the Internal Revenue Service to scrutinize conservative nonprofit groups.

“Whitehouse exerted pressure on federal agencies to target tea party non-profits and to criminally prosecute groups such as ours,” the complaint reads.

Whitehouse was the main sponsor of the DISCLOSE Act, legislation that would have forced nonprofits who make campaign donations to disclose their donors.

harry_reidCleta Mitchell, an attorney representing the Tea Party Patriots, says the complaints were timed to coincide with a Senate Judiciary Committee meeting Tuesday, where congressional leaders, including Reid, clashed over a proposed constitutional amendment to curb political spending.

“We are tired of Reid, Democratic senators, and the White House bullying conservatives and conservative donors,” Mitchell said. “They do not respect the First Amendment rights of citizens and we are sick of it, so we are fighting back.”

Speaking at the Senate Judiciary Committee meeting, Reid defended the proposed amendment, a plan that Democrats plan to vote on this year.

“I support this constitutional amendment,” Reid said. “Our involvement in government should not be dependent on bank account balances. It’s bad for America. What the nation needs is to bring sanity back to campaigns.”

Upon receiving a complaint, the Senate Select Committee on Ethics, chaired by Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., will initiate a preliminary inquiry to review the case.

If the committee finds substantial evidence, it can issue a public or private letter of admonition, or initiate an adjudicatory review. It can then recommend the Senate take disciplinary action.

In another, unrelated complaint filed Tuesday with the Senate Select Committee on Ethics, the Center for Competitive Politics, another conservative nonprofit, charges nine Democratic senators with “interfering with the administrative proceedings of the IRS.”

06-02-2014 Date-Stamped Senate Ethics Complaint Re Sen Reid by John Hinderaker

By Josh Siegel / @JoshDailySignal

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Obama Official Calls Bergdahl’s Platoon Members ‘Psychopaths’

June 5, 2014 By Editor Leave a Comment

Following Obama’s brokered deal with the Taliban to exchange five of their most notorious and violent leaders for Bowe Bergdahl, a firestorm erupted. Numerous individuals who served with Bergdahl in the 501st Infantry Regiment have come forward and said that Bergdahl deserted his post in 2009. His infantry leader and others have even said that communications chatter indicated that, following Bergdahl’s desertion, there was an American looking for the Taliban to speak to them. They also said that attacks against them by the Taliban got more direct after Bergdahl deserted.

Not only did these men have to risk their lives, with six from his troop losing their lives, searching for a deserter, they were forced to sign a non-disclosure agreement while in the Army agreeing not to speak about Bergdahl’s disappearance or the search efforts to find him. In addition, reports have surfaced that Obama knew Bergdahl was a deserter in 2010 and the Intelligence community had concerns that Bergdahl was collaborating with the enemy.

But, that has not stopped members of Team Obama and their allies in the Democrat Media Complex from attacking the men who have spoken out about their firsthand knowledge of the Bergdahl situation. On Wednesday, Obama’s LEAN FORWARD network, MSNBC, planted the seed of denigration of those speaking out about Bergdahl. Chuck Todd said, “I’ve had a few aides describe it to me as ‘we didn’t know they [those who served with Bergdahl] were going to swift-boat Bergdahl.”

Swift-boating is a negative term meaning “unfairly smearing someone on our team.”

An Obama official decided to take the slander hurled at those who served with Bergdahl who have chosen to speak out to another level. On Twitter, Brandon Friedman, who is the deputy assistant secretary of public affairs at the Department of Housing and Urban Development, accused Bergdahl’s platoon members of ‘smearing him publicly’ because they are psychopaths.

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While Obama’s claims about the reason he illegally traded five Taliban terrorists for Bergdahl as well as the circumstances surrounding it keep changing, there is consistency in the stories being told by those who served with Bergdahl and were forced to look for him. So, Team Obama feels a need to do what they are known to do – go on the attack in an attempt to discredit those they perceive as an enemy to their actions and agenda. They will go to any length as they enter the protectionist stance, even if it means dishonoring our military and endangering America.

By Jennifer Burke

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The Tragedy of Obama’s Foreign Policy

June 3, 2014 By Editor Leave a Comment

20obamaFor six years the world has scratched its head about President Obama’s foreign policy doctrine. Is it “leading from behind,” as he himself has said on occasion, stepping back in hopes that an international coalition will take charge? Is it using American military or economic power to topple dictators? Is it killing enemies with drone strikes and spying on allies with advanced technology? Is it using words instead of weapons?

With much fanfare, the president set out to set things straight on Wednesday by articulating a comprehensive Obama Doctrine in a major foreign policy address at West Point’s commencement ceremonies.

But it wasn’t a full-course meal at all; it was more like a Krispy Kreme donut. It seemed wonderful at first, beckoning in its sweetness, so yummy you wanted to gobble it up. But after it was finished, it was all air and empty calories, leaving you just as hungry as before you took that first bite.

Krispy Kreme claims the “batter is the best part.” Same with an Obama speech. It’s all about what’s on the outside, not what’s inside.

Heavenly for a moment, but once that moment passes, you’re just as hungry as before. Only afterward do you realize you’ve ingested hundreds of calories for a momentary sugar high.

On the surface the president’s speech sounded eminently sensible: We “will use military force, unilaterally if necessary, when our core interests demand it – when our people are threatened; when our livelihoods are at stake; when the security of our allies is in danger.” But we are not going to invade every country that harbors terrorists, nor necessarily rush in to every crisis. We’re going to enlist partners, and work through international institutions.

Of course! What idiot wants to go to war? And isn’t everything better when done with friends?

The speech was filled with the silent echo of the Obama administration’s theme song, “Blame Bush.”

Everything the president said sounded good. Sadly, it bore no resemblance to what the president has been doing for the last six years.

He expanded the Afghanistan war effort, though our core interests were not involved and he didn’t believe our efforts would succeed.

He went to war against Libya, toppling the government and leaving chaos in its wake, on the mere possibility that Qaddafi might kill innocent Libyans.

Yet Obama refused to move against Syria’s Bashar al-Assad, who gassed his own people and murdered more than 100,000 innocents, including women and children. Obama has tried, but failed, to enlist partners to stop the slaughter in Syria, and his efforts at getting the U.N. to impose severe sanctions on Russia and Iran have failed.

As for “using force…when our people are threatened”? What about his administration’s failure to provide adequate security to our people in Benghazi despite known terrorist threats, and then standing by helplessly while they were attacked and four were slaughtered?

Krispy Kreme claims the “batter is the best part.” Same with an Obama speech. It’s all about what’s on the outside, not what’s inside.

He claimed to have ended the Iraq and Afghan wars that he inherited. He has ended them, not by winning them, but by walking away. In truth, those wars were probably not “winnable” in any real sense of the word, but we’ll never know. They began as Bush’s neocon fantasies and ended as Obama’s incompetent tragedies.

benghazi-1And while Obama was busy offering up Krispy Kremes, others were eating his lunch. He claims Putin was foiled in Ukraine because he mustered an international community to criticize him, but he neglects to mention that Crimea is now part of Russia and eastern Ukraine is under its operational control. The other peoples along Russia’s border, in countries like Poland or Romania or the Baltics, certainly don’t think Putin is finished.

Obama honestly believes his interim deal with Iran has stopped Tehran’s nuclear weapons program in its tracks. But as Obama delivered his West Point speech, Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, told his nuclear scientists that while the negotiations with the West will continue, “the activities of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the field of nuclear research and development won’t be halted at all.”

And in a stunning international development, the Russian and Chinese presidents toasted each other for ending nearly four decades of enmity to join together in an anti-American alliance. In the 1970s, the only threat America faced was the Sino-Soviet alliance. President Nixon drove a wedge between the two in 1972 with his opening to China. The only remaining existential threat to America was the Soviet Union, and President Reagan engineered its collapse in the 1980s. For the last generation the United States has enjoyed unprecedented peace and prosperity, in no small measure because of it.

Now the situation has been reversed, with China and Russia once again in alliance. The Obama administration hardly noticed.

The tragedy of the Obama foreign policy is it didn’t have to be this way. Krispy Kremes weren’t the only thing on the menu. It was never a choice between going to war and doing nothing, between eating Krispy Kremes and going hungry.

If America chooses, we can develop our own energy resources and not be pressured into wars in the Middle East. Cheap energy will restore our economy and wither the economies of our adversaries. It will give us the means to help our allies without sending in the Marines. It will give us more than the Obama options of going to war or doing nothing.

The age of Obama and his feckless foreign policy is drawing to a close. What comes next will determine whether America once again restores its economy, and once again basks in the warm light of keeping the peace through strength.

Kathleen Troia “K.T.” McFarland is a Fox News National Security Analyst and host of FoxNews.com’s “DefCon 3.” She served in national security posts in the Nixon, Ford and Reagan administrations. She was an aide to Dr. Henry Kissinger at the White House, and in 1984 Ms. McFarland wrote Secretary of Defense Weinberger’s groundbreaking  “Principles of War ” speech.  She received the Defense Department’s highest civilian award for her work in the Reagan administration.

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Obama Defends Releasing ‘Taliban Dream Team’ for Deserter

June 3, 2014 By Editor Leave a Comment

File photo of U.S. President Obama speaking about continuing government shutdown during White House news conference in WashingtonPresident Obama, in his first public comments on the controversial trade of five Taliban prisoners for Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl since the deal was announced, acknowledged Tuesday there’s “absolutely” a risk that the former Guantanamo inmates will try to return to the battlefield — but nevertheless defended the deal as in America’s interest.

“I wouldn’t be doing it if I thought that it was contrary to American national security,” Obama said.

The president is facing heavy criticism from Congress for negotiating the release of the “Taliban Dream Team” and for proceeding with the prisoner swap without telling lawmakers in advance. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., in an interview with Fox News on Monday, said the prisoners — high-ranking Taliban leaders — are “hell-bent on killing Americans.”

Speaking in Poland at the first stop of a European tour, Obama did not deny that the prisoners could try again to target Americans.

“Is there the possibility of some of them trying to return to activities that are detrimental to us? Absolutely,” Obama said. “That’s been true of all the prisoners that were released from Guantanamo. There’s a certain recidivism rate that takes place.”

But he said the Qataris, who are supposedly watching over the newly freed Taliban prisoners, are monitoring them, as is the United States. He claimed America will be “keeping eyes on them.”

The president also responded to concerns about Bergdahl’s conduct, and questions over whether he had effectively deserted when he walked off his post in 2009, only to be captured by the Taliban.

Obama-BergdahlObama said they saw an opportunity to bring Bergdahl back and seized it, and that the U.S. government will bring a soldier back regardless of circumstances.

Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, issued a similar statement in response to concerns about Bergdahl’s conduct. On Facebook, Dempsey said those questions “are separate from our effort to recover ANY U.S. service member in enemy captivity.”

“This was likely the last, best opportunity to free him. As for the circumstances of his capture, when he is able to provide them, we’ll learn the facts,” Dempsey said. “Like any American, he is innocent until proven guilty. Our Army’s leaders will not look away from misconduct if it occurred. In the meantime, we will continue to care for him and his family.”

In a potential reference to claims that soldiers died during the search for Bergdahl, Dempsey also wrote: “Finally, I want to thank those who for almost five years worked to find him, prepared to rescue him, and ultimately put themselves at risk to recover him.”

Meanwhile, concerns continue to mount about the risk posed by the five Taliban members who were released. Defense Department documents on WikiLeaks detail the violent backgrounds of the prisoners.

One, Mohammad A Fazl, served as the Taliban Army chief of staff and was wanted by the United Nations for possible war crimes, “including the murder of thousands of Shiites.” He was listed as a high risk to the U.S. and its allies.

Another, Khair Ulla Said Wali Khairkhwa, was “directly associated” with Taliban leader Mullah Omar and Usama bin Laden.

Published June 03, 2014 / FoxNews.com

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Perplexing Tweets from Released ‘POW’s’ Father

June 2, 2014 By Editor Leave a Comment

Obama-BergdahlThe release of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, said to be America’s last POW, comes amidst criticism and concern. Barack Obama, as president, is supposed to notify Congress 30 days in advance of any prisoner’s release from Gitmo. His decision to exchange five of the most notorious Taliban terrorist leaders held at Guantanamo Bay for Bergdahl, without following the protocol put into place for prisoner release, is criticism that such a move is illegal. While Obama stated that Bergdahl’s health was failing and he didn’t have 30 days to wait, the BBC reported that Bergdahl was in good health.

Beyond that, the actions of Bergdahl’s father Robert, both before his release and afterwards at the ceremony at the Rose Garden on Saturday, is causing speculation as to the real story behind his son’s release.

On May 28th, Robert Bergdahl tweeted what now is an eerily disturbing message.

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The tweet has since been deleted, but was documented by Twitchy.

In addition, during the press conference at the Rose Garden announcing his son’s release, Robert gave a message that sounded similar to the one released by the Taliban after their terrorists were released.

The Daily Caller reported that Bergdahl, speaking in Arabic, quoted  the most frequent phrase in the Koran. He said, Bismillah ir-Rahman ir-Rahim” —which means “In the name of Allah, most Gracious, most Compassionate.”

After Bergdahl’s praise to Allah, Obama gave him a big, heartfelt hug.

Compare his words to the Taliban statement praising the release of the terrorist as “due to the benevolence of Allah Almighty and the sacrifices of the heroic and courageous Mujahidin of the Islamic Emirate.”

In what can only be described as alarming, the Twitter account @ABalkhi, to which Bob Bergdahl tweeted that he was working to free the rest of the Guantanomo prisoners, is the Twitter account of the Islamic Emirate.

What is REALLY going on here?

By Jennifer Burke

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WH Petition to Free Marine from Mexico Prison Reaches 100K

June 1, 2014 By Editor Leave a Comment

andrew-tahmooressiA petition on the White House website asking President Obama to demand the release of a Marine sergeant in a Mexico prison has garnered more than 100,000 online signatures — a threshold that typically elicits an administration response.

“The effect of this unjust incarceration on a decorated combat Marine is despairing,” says the petition, which as of Saturday afternoon had 116,051 signatures.

Marine Sgt. Andrew Tahmooressi was arrested March 31 after crossing the Mexican border with three guns in his truck.

Tahmooressi said he accidentally crossed the border and immediately told Mexican authorities that he had three guns in his possession and that he was unable to make a U-turn.

He said he was handcuffed and taken to prison and that his treatment worsened when he tried to escape.

Tahmooressi, who suffers from post traumatic stress disorder, said guards hit him so many times in face that he felt his jaw fall out of place.

U.S. Secretary of State Kerry gestures as he asks reporter to repeat question during news conference with Indian Foreign Minister Khurshid at Hyderabad House in New DelhiHe also said he was stripped naked and chained to a bed, with his feet on one end and his hands on another.

A State Department official, in a letter on Friday to Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., who has been pushing for the Marine’s release, said consular officers have visited Tahmooressi 12 times.

The State Department said last week they have raised concerns with Mexican authorities about his treatment.

“We’ve been very engaged,” said department spokeswoman Jen Psaki. “We’ll continue to press the case.”

She also said Secretary of State John Kerry has been involved in the situation.

The White House describes the online petition effort as “a new way to petition the Obama administration to take action on a range of important issues.”

Some administration responses are messages posted on the site, which now has 82 petitions.

Published May 31, 2014 / FoxNews.com

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Day Before He Leaves White House, Carney gets Grilled on VA Scandal

May 31, 2014 By Editor Leave a Comment

carney_leaves_white_houseOn Thursday, the day before a double resignation at the White House, ABC’s Jon Karl grilled Jay Carney over Barack Obama’s confidence in Eric Shinseki. Less than 24 hours later, the press secretary and Veterans Administration head had both quit. During the back-and-forth, Karl pressed, “But does the President right now have confidence in Sec. Shinseki, yes or no? It’s a very simple yes or no question. You told us last week he did have confidence, does he have confidence now?” [See video below.]

Carney dodged and responded, “Jon, the President addressed this question from the podium.” The journalist pointed out, ” But he wasn’t asked directly if he had confidence in him.” The now-ex-press secretary dismissed this as “word play.” Karl continued to push, insisting, “It’s a basic question. It’s not wordplay. Its a central question: Does he have confidence in a member of his cabinet?”

Thursday’s World News played a brief clip of the exchange. Karl followed it by predicting to anchor Diane Sawyer: “That, Diane, is what it sounds like, usually right before somebody is about to get fired.” 

More than once, Karl has tangled with Carney. But World News and Good Morning America on May 21 simply ignored the tough questions on Shinseki. This also happened on May 15. On that day, Karl demanded:

JON KARL: On the VA, I’ve heard you and I’ve heard others at the White House talk about the V.A. as having a good record on dealing with the backlog of claims – and actually praising the V.A. on this issue. In light of the way this – as we learn more about problems not just in the Arizona office, but in – but in other parts of the country, are you still saying you think that the Veterans Administration has done a good job in dealing with the backlog of claims? Are you still going to say that?

On Friday, Carney and Obama hugged as the President announced his resignation. This was hours after Shinseki quit.

A transcript of the May 29 World News segment and the full press briefing transcript can be found below:

5/29/14

6:35

DIANE SAWYER: And now, there is growing outrage tonight over the VA hospitals and the breakdown of care for American veterans. Right now, a growing chorus calling for VA Secretary Eric Shinseki to step down. So, let’s bring in ABC’s chief Washington correspondent Jonathan Karl. So, Jon, is he out and where does he stand at this moment?

JON KARL: Well, Diane, there are well over 100 members of Congress, many of them Democrats who are saying it’s time for Shinseki to resign. And I am telling you, there’s a growing sense here at the White House that Secretary Shinseki’s days are numbered. Just look what happened today when I tried to get a straight answer here about where Shinseki stands with President. Very simple yes or no question, does the president have confidence in Secretary Shinseki? Yes or no?

JAY CARNEY: Jon, the President addressed this question from the podium.

KARL: No, he wasn’t asked directly. Does he have confidence in Secretary Shinseki?

CARNEY: The president believes, and is confident, that Secretary Shinseki has served his nation admirably.

KARL: That, Diane, is what it sounds like, usually right before somebody is about to get fired. That said, Secretary Shinseki, I am told, told veterans’ groups today that he has no intention to leave. Then again, that may not be his choice to make.

Full transcript Jon Karl’s May 29 press briefing question:

JON KARL: Does the president have confidence in Secretary Shinseki?

JAY CARNEY: Jon, the president addressed this question from the podium.

KARL: He wasn’t asked directly does he have ‘confidence’ in Sec. Shinseki.

CARNEY: The president believes that — and is confident that Sec. Shinseki has served his nation admirably, heroically as a soldier, as a general, and that he has accomplished some very important things as the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and I listed them, but they include extending education benefits, reducing veteran homelessness, and reducing the size of the backlog for disability claims while expanding vastly the number of veterans who can make a claim.

KARL: But does the president right now have confidence in Sec. Shinseki, yes or no? It’s a very simple yes or no question. You told us last week he did have confidence, does he have confidence now?

CARNEY: What I would point you to is what the president said–

KARL: But he wasn’t asked directly if he was confident.

CARNEY: And I don’t have – I’m not going to improve upon his words. He talked about accountability.

KARL: But he wasn’t asked directly if he had confidence in him.

CARNEY: I understand that, the word play here. What I think is more important –

KARL: It’s a basic question. It’s not wordplay. Its a central question: Does he have confidence in a member of his cabinet?

CARNEY: On the issue you are referring to when it comes to the revelations that have come to light about Phoenix and other veterans health centers, the President was deeply troubled by what we saw in the interim report from the inspector general, and he awaits the preliminary report from Sec. Shinseki from the internal audit that the secretary is conducting.

Scott Whitlock is the senior news analyst for the Media Research Center.

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Obama Bypasses Congress and It’s Going to Cost You

May 31, 2014 By Editor Leave a Comment

uncle-sam-obamaNext week, the Obama administration is planning to unveil a climate action plan that it intends to implement without legislative approval. It’s a creative approach to governing, not unlike other executive actions President Obama has taken to bypass Congress.

When lawmakers refused to pass cap-and-trade legislation, Obama announced there was more than one way to skin the cat. Through climate plans, executive orders and regulatory action, he directed his agencies to find ways to curb the country’s carbon dioxide output and commit to reducing greenhouse-gas emissions.

Leading the charge, unsurprisingly, is the Environmental Protection Agency, which will release its carbon-dioxide regulations for existing power plants on Monday. The plan will drive up energy prices for American families and businesses without making a dent in global temperatures.

Our infographic explains what it means for jobs, incomes and the states hurt most.

energy_infographic

By Nicolas Loris and Nicole Rusenko

Filed Under: All Stories, Economy, Elections, Entitlement, Ethics, Foreign, Gender, Religion, Sci-Tech

White House Scrambles After Outing CIA Chief in Afghanistan

May 27, 2014 By Editor Leave a Comment

bagram_blunderThe White House is scrambling to contain the damage from inadvertently outing the top CIA official in Afghanistan, a rare blunder that potentially puts that individual at risk.

The official’s name, identified as “chief of station,” was included in the White House press office’s basic list of senior officials President Obama met with during his surprise visit to Afghanistan on Sunday. The list of 15 names apparently came first from the military, and was circulated by the White House press office.

The list then went to a much wider audience when it was included as part of what’s known as a “pool report,” which in this case was filed by The Washington Post’s Scott Wilson.

It was only after Wilson raised the issue with the White House, according to the Post, that officials sought to circulate a new list without the officer’s name. But by that point, the mistake already had been noted on Twitter.

“There’s simply no excuse for it,” John Bolton, former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, told Fox News on Tuesday, saying the blunder left him “speechless.”

“In a White House that is filled with press flacks … was there no one who understood the significance of what they were doing?” he said. “Somebody’s head should roll for this. … This is utter incompetence.”

FoxNews.com is not publishing the name of the chief of station.

The fact that it was circulated at all, though, raises security concerns — and distracts from Obama’s visit to Bagram air base meant to honor troops in advance of Memorial Day.

Several CIA station chiefs in Pakistan have been exposed during the course of the war in Afghanistan. One of them had to be removed from the country in 2010.

It’s unclear whether the administration will be forced to take that step here. Bolton noted that the official’s identity would have been known to some in the Afghan government anyway — though the exposure could also damage intelligence operations.

The most recent high-profile incident of a U.S. official exposing a CIA agent was the outing of operative Valerie Plame’s identity in 2003.

In this case, the original list circulated by the White House included several names of well-known public officials, including National Security Adviser Susan Rice and U.S. Ambassador James Cunningham, as well as that of the chief of station.

According to the Post, Wilson noticed the reference to the station chief after he had already sent out the pool report.

When he raised the issue, the press office did not raise any objection, according to the Post. But the office later reportedly scrambled to send around a new list, without the officer’s name — apparently realizing the error.

“Soon after, I think that they talked to their bosses, and realized that it was not OK,” Wilson told The Guardian. “And they tried to figure out what to do about this, if there was a way to kind of un-ring the bell.”

Wilson said it appeared “very junior people” were just trying to follow an order without realizing the “ramifications.”

Wilson also said he wishes he had caught the mistake before sending out the list in the pool report.

“I wish I had, I regret it,” he reportedly said.

By FoxNews.com

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Pelosi Picks Her Team for House Benghazi Probe

May 21, 2014 By Editor Leave a Comment

pelosiHouse Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday reluctantly picked her team for a GOP-led Benghazi investigative committee, saying that Democrats’ participation was the only way to assure Americans of a “fair process.”

Pelosi appointed five fellow Democrats to the 12-member House select committee on Benghazi, including Maryland Rep. Elijah Cummings as the ranking member of the panel.

“We’ve already been there,” Pelosi said in naming the members, continuing to voice concerns about the probe while also ending weeks of speculation about whether her party would participate.

“Eight reviews have been conducted in the House and Senate, 25,000 documents released, millions of taxpayer dollars spent. It was not necessary to put the families or our country through this partisan exercise once again,” the California Democrat continued. “I could have argued either way.”

Cummings is also the top Democrat on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and is known to publicly spar with the chairman of that committee, GOP Rep. Darrell Issa. Pelosi also named Washington Rep. Adam Smith, the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee; California Rep. Adam Schiff, a member of the House Committee on Appropriations; California Rep. Linda Sanchez, a member of the House Committee on Ways and Means; and Illinois Rep. Tammy Duckworth, a member of the House Armed Services Committee.

“I believe we need someone in the room to simply defend the truth,” Cummings said.

Benghazia_survivorsThe committee will investigate the Sept. 11, 2012, attack in Benghazi, Libya, that killed four Americans including U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens.

Pelosi also said she agreed to have Democrats join the investigation to make it a “fair process” and to bring “openness and transparency” to the investigation.

House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, has already named the seven Republicans who will serve on the committee, including South Carolina Rep. Trey Gowdy as chairman.

“The Republican members of the … committee welcome our colleagues,” Gowdy said after Pelosi’s announcement. “I respect Mr. Cummings and his work in Congress. I look forward to working with him and the members of the committee toward an investigation and a process worthy of the American people and the four brave Americans who lost their lives.”

The committee will have special subpoena and investigative powers. There is no time frame for when the hearings will begin, but Republican committee members are scheduled to meet Thursday morning in part to discuss hiring staff.

benghazi-1Some Democrats have called the new inquiry a political sham to energize core GOP voters for the midterm elections, embarrass the Obama administration and rough up former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, a potential 2016 presidential candidate.

Pelosi all along was reluctant to bring Democrats on board.

“Why give any validity to this effort?” Pelosi asked Tuesday. “I do think it is important for the American people to have the pursuit of these questions done in as fair and open and balanced way as possible.  … By the way, two families have communicated with us saying don’t take us down this path again.”

The Benghazi attack has become a conservative rallying cry, with Republicans accusing the Obama administration of intentionally misleading the public about the nature of the attack and stonewalling congressional investigators.

The special investigation means high-profile hearings in the months leading up to the elections, with Republicans likely to target current and former administration officials. Almost certain to be called to testify is Clinton.

The panel is authorized to work through the end of the year. In the 20 months since the attack, multiple independent, bipartisan and GOP-led probes have faulted the State Department for inadequate security in Benghazi, leading to four demotions. No attacker has yet been brought to justice.

Fox News’ Chad Pergram and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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‘Worse than Afghanistan’: Mom of Marine Held in Mexico Says Ordeal Worse Than War

May 20, 2014 By Editor Leave a Comment

R_MarineThe mother of a U.S. Marine being held in a Mexican jail after he crossed the border with guns in his pickup truck said her son’s current ordeal is more traumatic than the two tours of duty he served in Afghanistan.

Andrew Tahmooressi, 25, faces up to 21 years in prison and has already lost more than 20 pounds since being arrested March 31 at a border crossing near San Diego, according to his mother, Jill Tahmooressi. She is frightened for her son, who she said suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and had three guns in his pickup truck because he is in constant fear for his safety.

“We have a decorated Marine being held in a Mexican prison for no reason,” said Jill Tahmooressi, of Weston, Fla. “By far, this is worse than Afghanistan. At least he was in Afghanistan by choice, proud and honored. Now he is being held captive under inhumane conditions.”

“At least he was in Afghanistan by choice, proud and honored. Now he is being held captive under inhumane conditions.” – Jill Tahmooressi, mother of Marine held in Mexico

Andrew Tahmooressi was arrested by Mexican military after border inspectors found three legally purchased and registered weapons in his truck. Although he claims he made a wrong turn at the poorly-marked crossing, he was taken to the notorious La Mesa State Prison in Tijuana.

Tahmooressi did not even realize he was in Mexico because of the poorly lit area and a small sign covered in graffiti, conditions verified by Fox News Channel’s Greta Van Susteren, who retraced Tahmooressi’s path for a segment that aired on Monday night. He entered Mexico at a substation border crossing and not the main San Ysidro border crossing. Once Tahmooressi found himself headed to the station, there was no opportunity to turn around.

“He was in the town of San Ysidro and you think you’re getting onto I-5 but you’re actually driving to a point of no return,” said the Marine’s mother.

Death threats at La Mesa prompted Tahmooressi to attempt an escape, an effort that got him shackled in his prison cell under deplorable conditions for more than a month, his mother said. He has since been transferred to El Hongo Federal Penitentiary, where he remains.

“All they feed him for dinner is bread and sugar water, which he discards, and a protein source for lunch and breakfast,” said Jill Tahmooressi, who is allowed to speak with her son daily by phone.

marine_momTahmooressi served two tours of duty in Afghanistan between 2010 and 2012, and he received a battlefield promotion to sergeant because of his leadership and heroism in the face of fire in the notorious Helmand Province. But once he was back home in Florida, where he was plagued by PTSD, a fellow Marine suggested he go to California for treatment at the Veterans Administration facility in La Jolla. He was in California when he made his ill-fated trip.

According to Jill Tahmooressi, her son was living out of his pickup truck while he sought transitional housing when he left a shopping center parking lot around 11 p.m. and turned down a dark road that led to the border crossing and his current nightmare.

Tahmooressi hopes that the Mexican attorneys she has hired will be able to convince the judge to find it was an accidental entry and drop the charges. A hearing is scheduled for May 28, when members of the arresting Mexican border officials and military will need to present their statements to the judge, who could make a ruling then. Beyond that, Tahmooressi’s legal team cannot say when or if the case might go to trial.

Officials from the U.S. Consulate check in on Tahmooressi, but other than that the U.S. government has been unable to intervene on Tahmooressi’s behalf. Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., is urging the Obama administration to suspend military aid to Mexico.

“Perhaps Mexico should be reminded of the hundreds of military and law enforcement incursions at the border, where officials and personnel have entered the U.S. without permission and most always carrying weapons,” Hunter said in a statement. “These incidents must be stopped altogether, but Mexico’s actions in Andrew’s case, similar to others, underscore the immediate need for a new form of legal treatment by U.S. officials when incursions occur.”

Jill Tahmooressi warned Americans to give the Mexican border a wide berth, and urged the State Department to better inform travelers with regular public service announcements and better signage along U.S. roads near border entry points.

“People should stay 10 miles from the border because it is so dangerous there,” she said. “I am appalled we don’t protect our people better on this side of the border so Americans are not subjected to Mexican brutality.”

By Joseph J. Kolb

Filed Under: All Stories, Elections, Entitlement, Ethics, Foreign, Gender, Religion, Sci-Tech

Muslims Sentence Woman to Death for Christian Faith

May 16, 2014 By Editor Leave a Comment

ibrahimInternational outrage is mounting over the death sentence a Sudanese judge ordered for the pregnant wife of an American citizen — all because she refuses to renounce her Christian faith.

Meriam Ibrahim, 26, was sentenced Thursday after being convicted of apostasy. The court in Khartoum ruled that Ibrahim must give birth and nurse her baby before being executed, but must receive 100 lashes immediately after having her baby for adultery — for having relations with her Christian husband. Ibrahim, a physician and the daughter of a Christian mother and a Muslim father who abandoned the family as a child, could have spared herself death by hanging simply by renouncing her faith.

“We gave you three days to recant but you insist on not returning to Islam,” Judge Abbas Khalifa told Ibrahim, according to AFP. “I sentence you to be hanged to death.”

But Ibrahim held firm to her beliefs.

“I was never a Muslim,” she answered. “I was raised a Christian from the start.”

Ibrahim was raised in the Christian faith by her mother, an Orthodox Christian from Ethiopia. She is married to Daniel Wani, a Christian from southern Sudan who has U.S. citizenship, according to sources who spoke on condition of anonymity.

“I was never a Muslim. I was raised a Christian from the start.” – Meriam Ibrahim

The cruel sentence drew condemnation from Amnesty International, the U.S. State Department and U.S. lawmakers.

“The refusal of the government of Sudan to allow religious freedom was one of the reasons for Sudan’s long civil war,” Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., chairman of the House congressional panel that oversees U.S. policy in Africa, said in a statement. “The U.S. and the rest of the international community must demand Sudan reverse this sentence immediately.”

Omar-al-Bashir-Sudans-presidentAmnesty International called the sentence a “flagrant breach” of international human rights law and the U.S. State Department said it was “deeply disturbed” by the ruling, which will be appealed.

Khalifa refused to hear key testimony and ignored Sudan’s constitutional provisions on freedom of worship and equality among citizens, according to Ibrahim’s attorney Al-Shareef Ali al-Shareef Mohammed.

“The judge has exceeded his mandate when he ruled that Meriam’s marriage was void because her husband was out of her faith,” Mohammed told The Associated Press. “He was thinking more of Islamic Shariah laws than of the country’s laws and its constitution.”

Ibrahim and Wani married in a formal ceremony in 2011 and have an 18-month-old son, Martin, who is with her in jail. The couple operate several businesses, including a farm, south of Khartoum, the country’s capital. Wani fled to the United States as a child to escape the civil war in southern Sudan, but later returned. He is not permitted to have custody of the little boy, because the boy is considered Muslim and cannot be raised by a Christian man.

Sudan’s penal code criminalizes the conversion of Muslims into other religions, which is punishable by death. Muslim women in Sudan are further prohibited from marrying non-Muslims, although Muslim men are permitted to marry outside their faith. Children, by law, must follow their father’s religion.

Islamic Shariah laws were introduced in Sudan in the early 1980s under the rule of autocrat Jaafar Nimeiri, whose decision led to the resumption of an insurgency in the mostly animist and Christian south of Sudan. An earlier round of civil war lasted 17 years, ending in 1972. In 2011, the south seceded to become the world’s newest nation, South Sudan.

Sudanese President Omar Bashir, an Islamist who seized power during a 1989 military coup, said his county will implement Islam more strictly now that the non-Muslim south is gone. A number of Sudanese have been convicted of apostasy in recent years, but they have all escaped execution by recanting their faith. Religious thinker and politican Mahmoud Mohammed Taha — a vocal critic of Nimeiri — was sentenced to death after his conviction of apostasy and was executed at the age of 76 in 1985.

Ibrahim’s case first came to the attention of authorities in August, when members of her father’s family complained that she was born a Muslim but married a Christian man. They claimed her birth name was “Afdal” before she changed it to Meriam. The document produced by relatives to indicate she was given a Muslim name at birth was a fake, Mohammed said.

Ibrahim refused to answer the judge when he referred to her as “Afdal” during Thursday’s hearing.

Ibrahim was initially charged with having illegitimate sex last year, but she remained free pending trial. She was later charged with apostasy and jailed in February after she declared in court that Christianity was the only religion she knew.

The US-based Center for Inquiry is demanding that all charges against Ibrahim be dropped, saying the death sentence is a clear violation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which forbids persecution or coercion of religious beliefs and the right to marry.

“Religious belief must never be coerced and free expression must never be punished, through threat of imprisonment, violence, or any other means,” the group wrote in a letter to Sudan’s UN ambassador, H.E. Hassan Hamid Hassan. “This cannot go unanswered, and the world will not stand for it.”

Fox News’ Joshua Rhett Miller and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Filed Under: All Stories, Elections, Ethics, Foreign, Gender, Religion, Sci-Tech

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