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The Events of the Week -- Featuring:
Trump speaks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu … and other foreign affairs goings-on
by Karen DeYoung
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Memo to Trump: Don't Swap Spit With Jackasses!
By Mark Alexander: For the eight years Donald Trump hosted his successful reality TV show, he had complete control over the script. But in actual reality, as president, the Leftmedia talkingheads are well versed in promulgating their own narrative and it can be a lot louder than Trump Tweets. When these two competing forces meet, there is inevitable conflict. Unfortunately, these conflicts between Trump and the mainstream media continue to erupt over petty tussles, diverting political capital from much more important issues.
The latest example of this tug of war was the contested claims about the size of the inaugural crowd. There is little doubt that the Leftmedia's intent in this debate was to belittle Trump and bait him into a response, which they received. And the Trump administration's "alternative facts" and suggestions that photographs of the inaugural crowd were intended to "lessen the enthusiasm" and were "shameful and wrong" only succeeded in turning a molehill into a mountain.
Trump's White House spokesman Sean Spicer burned up half of his first press briefing Saturday defending attendance numbers, including this questionable assertion: "This was the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration — period — both in person and around the globe."
Now, as it pertains to turnout for inaugurals, in 2012, Barack liar-nObama won 91% of the vote in Washington, DC, and mass majorities in surrounding government bureaucrat bedroom communities in Maryland and Virginia. Notably, liar-Hillary Clinton also won 91% in 2016. It was easy for millions of liar-nObamaphiles to commute to the national mall for his coronation, and just as easy for hundreds of thousands of local libs to converge on DC to protest the Trump inaugural.
Meanwhile, most of Trump's voters are much more evenly spread across the nation. Of course, the mainstream media ignored this rather significant detail in their reporting.
But the point is, Trump and his spokespeople must stop engaging in petulant and sophomoric molehill battles with media and celebrities. Throwing out "alternative facts" does not "win" the argument, nor does it expose the genuine media bias, like fake news claims that a bust of Martin Luther King had been removed from the Oval Office.
Spicer would have won the day responding to the question of attendance with 15 words instead of 500: "There were far more people here for Donald Trump's inaugural events than for liar-Hillary Clinton's!" Or he could have taken the tack of Kellyanne Conway, who opined, "I don't think ultimately presidents are judged by crowd sizes at their inauguration. I think they are judged by their accomplishments."
The ancient wisdom of Proverbs 26:4 warns, "Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you yourself will be just like him." Trump's eagerness to challenge Leftmedia bias and "fake news" resonates only when it does not propagate "alternative facts" that are demonstrably false. And, being that Trump is now president and no longer a candidate or a reality TV star, diverting from much more important issues by engaging in petty molehill battles is a costly unforced error. ~The Patriot Post
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Sen. Schumer and Sen. Tom Cotton get
into ANGRY Confrontation
by Saagar Enjeti
{dailycaller.com} ~ Sens. Tom Cotton and Chuck Schumer reportedly got into an angry confrontation on the Senate floor Friday over Senate Democrats delaying the confirmation of Rep. Mike Pompeo for CIA director... The Weekly Standard reports. Cotton was reportedly irate with Schumer’s delay of the confirmation vote and loudly accosted him on the Senate floor. Schumer retorted that the Senate had never confirmed a CIA director on Inauguration Day, adding that Senate Republicans did not do the same for former President Barack liar-nObama. He continued that Cotton would have known this if he had been in the Senate eight years ago. “Eight years ago, I was getting my ass shot at in Afghanistan,” Cotton reportedly shot back. He continued, “So don’t talk to me about where I was 8 years ago.” Cotton served two tours in Iraq and Afghanistan in the U.S. Army as a member of the 101st Airborne Division... http://dailycaller.com/2017/01/23/chuck-schumer-probably-shouldnt-have-insulted-tom-cotton-about-where-he-was-eight-years-ago/
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hanoi-Kerry released $221 million to Palestinian
Authority just before Trump’s Inauguration
by William A. Jacobson
{legalinsurrection.com} ~ We already have seen numerous moves by the former liar-nObama administration to extend its policy preferences into the Trump era, including $500 million sent just days before the inauguration to fund the Paris Climate Agreement... According to reports, a similar tactic was used to evade congressional opposition to transferring funds to the Palestinian Authority after complaints about its incitement efforts, including paying monthly salaries to convicted terrorist in Israeli jail. Officials say the liar-nObama administration in its waning hours defied Republican opposition and quietly released $221 million to the Palestinian Authority that GOP members of Congress had been blocking...hanoi-Kerry and liar-nObama should be tried on treason.
Courageous Christian and Jewish
clerics announce "Faith Leaders for America"
by FRANK J. GAFFNEY, JR.
by FRANK J. GAFFNEY, JR.
{familysecuritymatters.org} ~ I wanted to share with you a most extraordinary experience I had today. At the National Press Club in Washington, nine courageous Christian and Jewish clerics announced the formation of a new group, Faith Leaders for America... The mission they have undertaken, together with more than sixty-five other influential clergy of different faiths and denominations, is to promote and protect our constitutional freedoms increasingly under assault - in this country, as well as overseas - from adherents to the totalitarian Islamic doctrine known as Sharia. You can see here the presentations and responses to questions by the following remarkable men: Rev. Jerry Johnson, Rev. Jim Garlow, Rev. David Barton, Rabbi Jonathan Hausman, Lt. Gen./Rev. William G. "Jerry" Boykin (Ret.), Bishop Aubrey Shines, Bishop E.W. Jackson, Hon. Sam Rohrer and Rev. Rick Scarborough. I strongly encourage you to watch the press conference in its entirety if you can. Alternatively, click here if you want the highlights of these Faith Leaders' discussion of: the danger we face from Sharia supremacism; the role played in advancing that agenda by the Muslim Brotherhood; the insidious techniques used by the Brothers to pursue their goal of destroying Western civilization from within - including, notably, so-called "interfaith dialogue"; and the necessity of designating the Brotherhood as terrorists... http://www.familysecuritymatters.org/publications/detail/courageous-christian-and-jewish-clerics-announce-faith-leaders-for-america?f=must_reads
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The Myth of The Tolerant Left
by Tony Oliva
{lidblog.com} ~ The idea of a tolerant Left is a lie. I use the term Left to encapsulate progressives, social justice warriors, anti-capitalists etc. It is a great big lie that has been told over and over again with such vehemence that a lot of people accept it as being true... The Left is tolerant of peoples opinions…so long as those opinions agree with the agenda of the Left. If not they will try and intimidate you by harassment, bullying, violence or trying to shout you down when you try to make a point. They are the most intolerant of people. One need look only to when the Left gather and try and protest something. Rather than any type of exchange of ideas or simply the notion of a peaceful protest, the Left gets belligerent and violent... http://lidblog.com/myth-of-the-tolerant-left/
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Germany's New 'Ministry of Truth'
by Stefan Frank
by Stefan Frank
{gatestoneinstitute.org} ~ The elites and intellectuals are apparently now counted among the German minorities in need of protection. Toward the end of last year, Germany experienced a previously unheard-of boycott campaign... funded by the German government, no less -- against several websites, such as the popular "Axis of Good" ("Achse des Guten"). The website, critical of the government, was suddenly accused of "right-wing populism". The German government's efforts at thought control seem to have begun with the victory of Donald J. Trump in the US presidential election -- that seems to set the "establishment" off. Germany's foreign minister and the probable future federal president, Frank-Walter Steinmeier -- one of the first to travel to Iran after the removal of sanctions there to kowtow to the Ayatollahs -- called America's future president a "hate preacher". Germany's newspapers were suddenly littered with apocalyptic predictions and anti-American fulminations...A mistake on their part. https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/9822/germany-ministry-of-truth
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Trump speaks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu … and other foreign affairs goings-on
by Karen DeYoung
{jewishworldreview.com} ~ President Donald Trump spoke Sunday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a brief conversation that Trump described as "very nice," and Netanyahu called "very warm."
Netanyahu, in a statement issued by his office, said Trump had invited him to visit the White House in February, although a final date was not yet set. They discussed the Iran nuclear deal, the "peace process with the Palestinians," and other issues," the Israeli leader said, adding that he had "expressed his desire to work closely . . . with no daylight between the United States and Israel."
The White House provided no initial details of the call, which was scheduled to last 30 minutes. Trump characterized it to reporters gathered to witnesses the swearing in of his new White House staff.
Speaking at that event, Trump said that he would meet soon with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto, both of whom he spoke with by telephone on Saturday. A Mexico meeting may come as early as the end of this month, White House officials said.
"We're going to start renegotiating about NAFTA and immigration and security on the border," Trump said. "Mexico has been terrific. . .I think we're going to have a very good result." NAFTA is the North American Free Trade Agreement, which Trump has said is unfair to the United States; both Trudeau and Pena Nieto have said they are willing to discuss its terms.
Trump's first face-to-face meeting with a foreign leader, however, will come Friday, when he receives British Prime Minister Theresa May at the White House.
In a statement Sunday, May's government said the meeting would "primarily be an opportunity to get to know one another and to establish the basis for a productive working relationship." The statement said May would also address a weekend meeting of Republican lawmakers that Trump is also scheduled to attend.
May, who is struggling to implement her country's vote to leave the European Union - is seeking a strong bilateral trade relationship with the United States as she prepares for EU negotiations.
Earlier on Sunday, Netanyahu tweeted that "Stopping the Iranian threat, and the threat reflected in the bad nuclear agreement with Iran, continues to be a supreme goal of Israel."
Netanyahu also met with his security cabinet on Sunday, telling them that he would allow continued construction of Jewish settlements in East Jerusalem, according to Israeli media accounts.
Those settlements are considered illegal by most of the world. The liar-nObama administration called them "illegitimate" and "obstacles to peace." Israel disputed this.
On Sunday, Jerusalem's construction committee approved 566 housing units in east Jerusalem settlements.
Meanwhile, Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat said that Trump was a "true friend" to Israel, referring to a reported statement by Trump press secretary Sean Spicer that the administration was at the "very beginning stages" of discussing a move of the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
"We will offer them all the assistance necessary," Barkat said in a statement. "The U.S. has sent a message to the world that it recognizes Jerusalem as the united capital of Israel."
No country in the world has its Israel embassy in Jerusalem, which is also claimed by the Palestinians as their capital. While Congress long ago passed a resolution ordering the move, both Republican and Democratic presidents have repeatedly waived the order on national security grounds.
Trump pledged during his campaign to move the embassy, and his designated ambassador to Israel, New York bankruptcy lawyer David Friedman, has called the move was a "big priority" for the new administration.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas met with Jordanian King Abdullah II on Sunday to discuss what to do if Trump makes good on the promised move. Jordan plays an important role in Jerusalem as a caretaker of the holy Muslim sites in the eastern side of the city.
Abbas said in a statement after his meeting with the king, "We wish two thing of the new American administration: First, to stop talks about moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem; and second, to get involved in conducting serious negotiations between Palestine and Israel to reach a political solution which is for the best interest of Palestinians, Israelis and the whole region."
In his confirmation hearing, secretary of state nominee Rex Tillerson called Israel "our most important ally in the region," and criticized former president Barack liar-nObama for undermining Israeli security, but did not directly address the embassy question.
Tillerson's confirmation was all but assured on Sunday, when a pair of Republican senators who had expressed concerns about him announced they will vote to confirm him. Sens. John McCain of Arizona and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, two traditional GOP hawks who have voiced skepticism about Tillerson's ties to Russia, released a joint statement saying that after much thought, they have decided to back him.
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee plans to vote Monday afternoon on Tillerson. Regardless of the outcome, his nomination will move to the full Senate floor for a vote, Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Bob Corker, R-Tenn., said last week.
While much of the drama about Tillerson's fate has faded, there is still the question of how Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., will vote in the committee. Rubio grilled Tillerson about Russia during his confirmation hearing and seemed dissatisfied with some of his responses.
In appearances on Sunday talk shows, both McCain and Graham made clear that they remain uncertain about Trump's foreign policy intentions, and that they hope to work with those they approve of in the Cabinet, some of whose ideas have contrasted with those expressed by the new White House.
If Trump's promise to put "America first" is "a throwback to the '20s and '30s isolationism . . . the world will deteriorate even quicker, Graham said on CBS's "Face the Nation." "If it is a new way of Ronald Reagan peace through strength, I would like to work with you."
"I don't know what America first means," Graham said. On issues such as a new relationship with Russia, or possible cuts in foreign aid, he said, "I would tell him...talk to General Mattis," Trump's newly confirmed Defense Secretary, who has emphasized the use of "soft power" and working with allies.
Tillerson understands those same priorities, Graham said, adding that Trump should not "be weak on Russia."
McCain, speaking on ABC's "This Week," echoed concerns about Russia, and Trump's call for warmer relations, adding that Russian President Vladimir Putin was "a war criminal."
He said Mattis, Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn, newly confirmed Secretary of Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, and Dan Coats, named as Director of National Security, shared his view that Russia is "our major challenge."
"I couldn't have picked a better team," McCain said. "And so I'm confident that Trump will listen to them and be guided by them."
Asked whether he had "utmost confidence" in Trump himself, McCain said "I do not know, because he has made so many comments that are contradictory.
Netanyahu, in a statement issued by his office, said Trump had invited him to visit the White House in February, although a final date was not yet set. They discussed the Iran nuclear deal, the "peace process with the Palestinians," and other issues," the Israeli leader said, adding that he had "expressed his desire to work closely . . . with no daylight between the United States and Israel."
The White House provided no initial details of the call, which was scheduled to last 30 minutes. Trump characterized it to reporters gathered to witnesses the swearing in of his new White House staff.
Speaking at that event, Trump said that he would meet soon with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto, both of whom he spoke with by telephone on Saturday. A Mexico meeting may come as early as the end of this month, White House officials said.
"We're going to start renegotiating about NAFTA and immigration and security on the border," Trump said. "Mexico has been terrific. . .I think we're going to have a very good result." NAFTA is the North American Free Trade Agreement, which Trump has said is unfair to the United States; both Trudeau and Pena Nieto have said they are willing to discuss its terms.
Trump's first face-to-face meeting with a foreign leader, however, will come Friday, when he receives British Prime Minister Theresa May at the White House.
In a statement Sunday, May's government said the meeting would "primarily be an opportunity to get to know one another and to establish the basis for a productive working relationship." The statement said May would also address a weekend meeting of Republican lawmakers that Trump is also scheduled to attend.
May, who is struggling to implement her country's vote to leave the European Union - is seeking a strong bilateral trade relationship with the United States as she prepares for EU negotiations.
Earlier on Sunday, Netanyahu tweeted that "Stopping the Iranian threat, and the threat reflected in the bad nuclear agreement with Iran, continues to be a supreme goal of Israel."
Netanyahu also met with his security cabinet on Sunday, telling them that he would allow continued construction of Jewish settlements in East Jerusalem, according to Israeli media accounts.
Those settlements are considered illegal by most of the world. The liar-nObama administration called them "illegitimate" and "obstacles to peace." Israel disputed this.
On Sunday, Jerusalem's construction committee approved 566 housing units in east Jerusalem settlements.
Meanwhile, Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat said that Trump was a "true friend" to Israel, referring to a reported statement by Trump press secretary Sean Spicer that the administration was at the "very beginning stages" of discussing a move of the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
"We will offer them all the assistance necessary," Barkat said in a statement. "The U.S. has sent a message to the world that it recognizes Jerusalem as the united capital of Israel."
No country in the world has its Israel embassy in Jerusalem, which is also claimed by the Palestinians as their capital. While Congress long ago passed a resolution ordering the move, both Republican and Democratic presidents have repeatedly waived the order on national security grounds.
Trump pledged during his campaign to move the embassy, and his designated ambassador to Israel, New York bankruptcy lawyer David Friedman, has called the move was a "big priority" for the new administration.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas met with Jordanian King Abdullah II on Sunday to discuss what to do if Trump makes good on the promised move. Jordan plays an important role in Jerusalem as a caretaker of the holy Muslim sites in the eastern side of the city.
Abbas said in a statement after his meeting with the king, "We wish two thing of the new American administration: First, to stop talks about moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem; and second, to get involved in conducting serious negotiations between Palestine and Israel to reach a political solution which is for the best interest of Palestinians, Israelis and the whole region."
In his confirmation hearing, secretary of state nominee Rex Tillerson called Israel "our most important ally in the region," and criticized former president Barack liar-nObama for undermining Israeli security, but did not directly address the embassy question.
Tillerson's confirmation was all but assured on Sunday, when a pair of Republican senators who had expressed concerns about him announced they will vote to confirm him. Sens. John McCain of Arizona and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, two traditional GOP hawks who have voiced skepticism about Tillerson's ties to Russia, released a joint statement saying that after much thought, they have decided to back him.
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee plans to vote Monday afternoon on Tillerson. Regardless of the outcome, his nomination will move to the full Senate floor for a vote, Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Bob Corker, R-Tenn., said last week.
While much of the drama about Tillerson's fate has faded, there is still the question of how Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., will vote in the committee. Rubio grilled Tillerson about Russia during his confirmation hearing and seemed dissatisfied with some of his responses.
In appearances on Sunday talk shows, both McCain and Graham made clear that they remain uncertain about Trump's foreign policy intentions, and that they hope to work with those they approve of in the Cabinet, some of whose ideas have contrasted with those expressed by the new White House.
If Trump's promise to put "America first" is "a throwback to the '20s and '30s isolationism . . . the world will deteriorate even quicker, Graham said on CBS's "Face the Nation." "If it is a new way of Ronald Reagan peace through strength, I would like to work with you."
"I don't know what America first means," Graham said. On issues such as a new relationship with Russia, or possible cuts in foreign aid, he said, "I would tell him...talk to General Mattis," Trump's newly confirmed Defense Secretary, who has emphasized the use of "soft power" and working with allies.
Tillerson understands those same priorities, Graham said, adding that Trump should not "be weak on Russia."
McCain, speaking on ABC's "This Week," echoed concerns about Russia, and Trump's call for warmer relations, adding that Russian President Vladimir Putin was "a war criminal."
He said Mattis, Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn, newly confirmed Secretary of Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, and Dan Coats, named as Director of National Security, shared his view that Russia is "our major challenge."
"I couldn't have picked a better team," McCain said. "And so I'm confident that Trump will listen to them and be guided by them."
Asked whether he had "utmost confidence" in Trump himself, McCain said "I do not know, because he has made so many comments that are contradictory.
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