The Front Page Cover
2016 The truth will set you free
Featuring:
Old Mideast foes unite over gas deals,
struggle against jihadists
by David Wainer,
Jonathan Ferziger & Ahmed Feteha
~~~
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Kaine and Unable
Following Donald Trump's lead in announcing Mike Pence as his VP pick the Friday before the GOP convention, liar-Hillary Clinton trotted out Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine as her running mate Friday afternoon, just in time for the Democrat convention to stumble out of the gate today in Philadelphia. (More on that below.) Kaine is pro-Second Amendment, pro-life, pro-traditional marriage and supports tax cuts. Wait — scratch that. Kaine ran as a conservative in his 2005 race for governor, but, though he's still a relative moderate in a far-Left party, he's since skewed decidedly more "progressive" on every one of those issues.
That's still not enough to placate Bernie Sanders. "Kaine's support for fast-track authority for the job-killing Trans-Pacific Partnership and recent backing of bank deregulation will make our work more difficult," Sanders said. (No wonder Kaine recently changed his mind on the TPP.) "He's a very nice guy," Sanders continued. "His political views are not my political views. Would I have preferred to somebody like an Elizabeth Warren selected by Secretary liar-Clinton? Yes, I would have."
Oh well. Unity! Arguably, liar-Clinton's choice betrays her confidence that a win in November is a given. As The Wall Street Journal put it, "[S]he can risk choosing a capable if conventional Senator who can help her govern perhaps more than he can help her win." Instead of solidifying her left flank with Elizabeth Warren or minorities with Julian Castro, liar-Clinton chose a milquetoast white dude to help lead the Identity Politics Party.
In any case, liar-Clinton accomplished at least this: She's got a likeable running mate. "He is a genuinely nice person," her announcement fundraising email said. That is, of course, in striking contrast to liar-Clinton herself. -The Patriot Post
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Court Rules: No to Blanket Clemency for Ex-Felons
The Virginia Supreme Court ruled on Friday against Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe's unprecedented unilateral action of restoring voting rights to more than 200,000 ex-felons. Responding to the ruling, Virginia House Speaker William Howell, a Republican, said, "Our nation was founded on the principles of limited government and separation of powers. Those principles have once again withstood assault from the executive branch. This opinion is a sweeping rebuke of the governor's unprecedented assertion of executive authority."
The court ruled 4-3 against the governor, calling his argument for his decision "overstated at best." Virginia law gives the governor the authority to grant clemency on a case-by-case basis, which the court found did not justify McAuliffe's blanket pardoning action. McAuliffe was attempting to take a page out of Barack nObama's playbook, with his similar executive action on immigration — knowing the courts would strike it down, he still got political credit with a key constituency. Democrats seem to have a hard time when it comes to playing by the rules, as liar-Hillary Clinton and her personal server attest to. But not to be thwarted, McAuliffe has already declared that he will now seek to grant clemency by personally signing each of the 200,000 plus individual pardon orders. It will be interesting to see how he will meet the "particulars of every case and state his reasons for each pardon" as the law requires. The court should easily see through this charade as well. This was and always has been a play for more Democrat votes. Virginia was once staunchly conservative, but it has become a swing state. And this current election is no different, as Virginia is once again in play for both parties. Does anyone really believe that McAuliffe would have taken this unprecedented action if it were primarily Republican votes in play? -The Patriot Post
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Political elite: Self-interest disguised as principles,
public service for personal profit
by LAWRENCE SELLIN, PHD
by LAWRENCE SELLIN, PHD
{familysecuritymatters.org} ~ It is the consolidation of power that engenders corruption, but it is indifference that sustains it. Up until recently, our permanent, professional political class was largely content spending their entire careers living off of taxpayer revenues... while, at the same time, finding new ways of squandering our hard-earned cash on projects and services meant more to ensure their reelection than providing any tangible benefits to their constituents. Concomitantly, they expanded the reach of the federal government, further limiting our liberty with laws designed to consolidate their power and justify their useless existence. Apparently, life as public parasites was simply not enough. The new paradigm for the permanent, professional political class is public service for private profit... http://www.familysecuritymatters.org/publications/detail/political-elite-self-interest-disguised-as-principles-public-service-for-personal-profit?f=must_reads
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Those Nagging EMP Threats!
by AMBASSADOR HENRY F. COOPER
by AMBASSADOR HENRY F. COOPER
{familysecuritymatters.org} ~ "A single nuclear weapon detonated at high altitude over this country would collapse our electrical grid and other critical infrastructure and endanger the lives of millions... With North Korea in possession of nuclear missiles and Iran close to having them, an EMP is no longer a theoretical concern - it is a real threat. Moreover, China and Russia include sabotage as part of their warfare planning. Nonetheless, hundreds of electrical utility in the U.S. have not acted to protect themselves from EMP and they cannot be expected to do so voluntarily since homeland security is a government responsibility. The President, the Congress, the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Defense, the States, the utilities and the private sector should work together on an urgent basis to enact Republican legislation, pending in both chambers, to protect the national grid and encourage states to take the initiative to protect their own grids expeditiously." ~ Republican Party Platform-July 18, 2016. These are welcome words amid the hoopla at the convention of the Grand Old Party, and hopefully they will stir some serious follow-through after the quadrennial silly season that should end on November 8, 2016, regardless of the outcome of the election. While I applaud this initiative, I also want to emphasize a couple of unmentioned aspects of this existential threat to all Americans that also deserve attention... http://www.familysecuritymatters.org/publications/detail/those-nagging-emp-threats?f=must_reads
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nObama Yawns as Iran Continues
to Do This Terrifying Thing
{teapartyjournal.com} ~ Just two days before the one year anniversary of nObama’s nuclear deal with Iran, where many believe that nObama granted that government a Fast Pass to a nuclear bomb... so they could fulfill their promise to “wipe Israel from the map,” Iran conducts its fourth ballistic missile test. Iran is barred from conducting ballistic missile tests for eight years under UN Resolution 2231, which went effect July 20, 2015, days after the nuclear accord was signed. Iran is “called upon not to undertake any activity related to ballistic missiles designed to be capable of delivering nuclear weapons, including launches using such ballistic missile technology,” according to the text of the resolution... http://teapartyjournal.com/obama-yawns-as-iran-continues-to-do-this-terrifying-thing/
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Dinesh D’souza
Exposes The DNC & liar-Hillary...
by Tami Jackson
{lidblog.com} ~ The political arena is tough and hardened — cross a line or the wrong people and payback is a proverbial you know what. Or worse... Dinesh D’Souza paid a steep price for his mistake: D’Souza asked two people to contribute a total of $20,000 to the New York Senate campaign of Wendy Long, and later reimbursed them. He pled guilty and was sentenced to five years probation, eight months in a halfway house, a $30K fine, eight hours of community service each week, and therapy on a weekly basis. It’s clear D’Souza was guilty. But it’s equally clear that others have committed exponentially worse campaign transgressions with only a slap on the wrist. Those others, however, had not produced a visual indictment of nObama: D’Souza’s 2012 Movie “2016: nObama’s America” grossed $33 million and revealed the radical, anti-American worldview of Barack nObama. Political reprisals swiftly warned the author/filmmaker: don’t you dare mess with nObama and the Progressive elites... http://lidblog.com/dinesh-dsouza-exposes-the-dnc-hillary-in-stunning-hillarys-america-movie/
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Old Glory’s Old News To The New Democrats As The Palestinian Flag Flies At The DNC
by Raheem Kassam
{breitbart.com} ~ The flag of pan-Arab nationalism, born out of violent rebellion and struggle or jihad, was flown today on the floor of the Democratic National Convention... What it means that the flag of Palestine can be spotted in Philadelphia, with not an Old Glory in sight, is that the Democratic Party of America is taking a hard-left turn. Bernie Sanders delegate Ali Akın Kurnaz is being credited on Twitter with raising the flag which represents a violent struggle against the only functioning democracy in the region, Israel. This is the only reasonable interpretation of what hard-left activists attempt to dress up in the garbs of human rights and self-determination. The Palestinian flag is symbol of barbaric Arab nationalism, the kind of which saw the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem meet with Adolf Hitler in 1941 to discuss ridding the Arab world of Jews... http://www.breitbart.com/2016-presidential-race/2016/07/25/old-glorys-old-news-palestinian-flag-flown-dnc-delegates/
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Tim Kaine Promises Bill to Legalize
Illegal Aliens in ‘First 100 Days’
by Stephen Dinan
{washingtontimes.com} ~ A new liar-Clinton administration would pursue a bill to legalize illegal immigrants in “the first 100 days” of her tenure, vice presidential candidate Tim Kaine told Spanish-language network Telemundo in an interview Monday, presenting a deep contrast with Republicans... Mr. Kaine also predicted that House Republicans, who stopped President nObama’s last bid for legalization in 2013, will reverse themselves next year and said House Speaker Paul D. Ryan will lead the GOP to embrace legalization. “Paul Ryan and the other leaders of his party are going to understand that if they want a future for their party they are going to have to work together to find a solution to this,” Mr. Kaine told “Noticias Telemundo,” according to a transcript provided by the network...This is illegal and breaking our laws is not a right. http://m.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/jul/25/tim-kaine-promises-bill-legalize-illegal-immigrant/
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Murder Rate Up in 29 of Largest Cities
by Greg Richter
{newsmax.com} ~ The murder rate in 29 of the largest American cities was up in the first six months of 2016, according to data from the Major Cities Chiefs Association... According to the data, reported on by The Wall Street Journal, homicides were up 15 percent in the 51 large cities that provided information for the survey. More than half of that was attributed to two cities, however: Chicago, which is plagued by gang violence, and Orlando, where 49 people were shot to death at a gay nightclub in June by a man who pledged allegiance to the Islamic State during his attack. Major cities have experienced more than 1,000 more robberies, almost 2,000 more aggravated assaults and more than 600 non-fatal shootings in 2016 compared to this time last year, CNN reported... http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/murder-rate-up-29/2016/07/25/id/740429/?ns_mail_uid=29878495&ns_mail_job=1679323_07262016&s=al&dkt_nbr=45tivyni
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Germany: Christian Names for Muslim Migrants?
by Soeren Kern
by Soeren Kern
Ruprecht Polenz
{gatestoneinstitute.org} ~ Muslim migrants in Germany who feel discriminated against should be given the right to change their legal names to Christian-sounding ones, according to a senior German politician... The latest innovation in German multiculturalism is being championed by Ruprecht Polenz, a former secretary general of the ruling Christian Democratic Union (CDU). He believes the German law which regulates name changes (Namensrecht) should be amended to make it easier for men named Mohammed to become Martin and women named Aisha to become Andrea. German law generally does not allow foreigners to change their names to German ones, and German courts rarely approve such petitions. By custom and practice, German names are only for Germans... https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/8547/germany-muslims-names
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3,000 DACA Recipients Already
Put on Path to Citizenship
by fairus.org
{fairus.org} ~ In response to a congressional inquiry, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) finally admitted that Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) illegal aliens are being put on a path to citizenship... Specifically, USCIS sent a letter to Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Mike Lee (R-UT) that revealed that 2,994 DACA have "been approved for adjustment of status" — likely receiving legal permanent resident (green card) status — after further exploiting our immigration laws by being granted "advance parole." (See Letter from Senators Grassley and Lee, Mar. 2, 2016, and USCIS Response, June 29, 2016) Notably, this admission directly contradicts President nObama's promise from June 2012 when he unilaterally implemented DACA, stating in the Rose Garden, "This is not amnesty, this is not immunity. This is not a path to citizenship." (See Rose Garden Remarks, June 15, 2012)... http://www.fairus.org/legislative-updates/legislative-update-7-26-2016#1
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When It Comes to Islam,
Western Leaders Are Liars or Idiots
by Raymond Ibrahim
{frontpagemag.com} ~ When it comes to the connection between Islam and violence against non-Muslims, one fact must be embraced: the majority of those in positions of leadership and authority in the West are either liars or fools, or both... No other alternative exists. The reason for this uncharitable assertion is simple: If Islam was once a faraway, exotic religion, today we hear calls for, and see acts of, violence committed in its name—or the name of its deity “Allahu Akbar!” —practically every day. And many of us still have “ears that hear and eyes that see.” It’s no secret: Muslims from all around the world and from all walks of life—not just “terrorists” or “ISIS”—unequivocally and unapologetically proclaim that Islam commands them to hate, subjugate or kill all who resist it, including all non-Muslim “infidels.”... http://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/263632/when-it-comes-islam-western-leaders-are-liars-or-raymond-ibrahim
..
Old Mideast foes unite over gas deals,
struggle against jihadists
by David Wainer,
Jonathan Ferziger & Ahmed Feteha
{jewishworldreview.com} ~ When Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi turned a standard speech on electricity supplies into an unexpected appeal for peace between Israel and the Palestinians, one man who wasn't surprised was Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The televised address in May capped months of backstage diplomacy by a group including former British premier Tony Blair. With Netanyahu wary of a separate French-led proposal that could impose a solution to the Palestinian conflict, almost every step was coordinated with his veteran negotiator, Yitzhak Molcho, according to people familiar with the secret talks.
Nearly four decades after their peace accord changed the face of the Middle East, Israel and Egypt are slowly turning a cool relationship into an alliance. They have tightened security cooperation to unprecedented levels and have been laying the legal groundwork for a multi-billion dollar energy contract, as gas discoveries in the Mediterranean and the persistent threat from Islamist militants shift the political dynamics across the region.
"In this time of turmoil and instability all around the Middle East, it's very important for reasonable countries to keep some kind of cooperation," Israeli Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz said in an interview in his office in Jerusalem.
In the latest sign of the warming relations, Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry visited Israel on Sunday to discuss efforts to renew stalled Israeli-Palestinian peacemaking, the first public visit by an Egyptian foreign minister in nine years. Blair met Netanyahu on Monday to follow up on the Shoukry visit and help lay the groundwork for a summit with el-Sisi, according to an Israeli official who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the diplomatic sensitivity.
"My visit to Israel today is a continuation of Egypt's longstanding sense of responsibility towards peace for itself and all the peoples of the region, particularly the Palestinian-Israeli peoples,"
Shoukry said, standing beside Netanyahu at a press conference. Netanyahu said it "illustrates the change that has taken place in Israeli-Egyptian ties, including President el-Sisi's important call to advance peacemaking, with the Palestinians as well as Arab states."
Arrangements are being made for Netanyahu to travel to Egypt by the end of the year for a meeting with el-Sisi, Channel 2 television said, without saying where it got the information. The aim would be to promote the Saudi-initiated regional approach to brokering an Arab-Israeli peace and preempt the French proposal for resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which the Israeli leader opposes, Channel 2 said.
In his speech at a new power plant in Assiut, 400 kilometers (250 miles) south of Cairo, el-Sisi said he saw "a great chance for a better future," between Israel and the Palestinians. An ensuing statement by Netanyahu championing Egypt's involvement was coordinated, the people familiar with the talks said, speaking on condition of anonymity. French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said it was "complementary" to his country's effort.
Returning as a key power broker in the region would help burnish Egypt's international image as it struggles to revive its economy. Potential rewards would mitigate any increased risk of attack by militants because of closer ties to Israel. The affinity between el-Sisi, 61, and Netanyahu, 66, is also remarkable given that antipathy toward Israel still runs deep in Egypt.
The government in Cairo and civil society groups typically have sought to keep dealings with Israelis to a minimum, and official contact is frequently kept secret. Tawfik Okasha, a lawmaker, was attacked with a shoe in February by a colleague then expelled from parliament for meeting with Israel's ambassador to Cairo. Dozens of militant attacks by an Islamic State affiliate on Egyptian security personnel have allowed el-Sisi to pull closer to the Jewish state. Israel, also targeted by militants operating in Egypt's Sinai peninsula and the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, has let him boost military operations along their shared border beyond what the 1979 treaty permits.
"There is definitely a high level of cooperation that could be unprecedented, especially in the field of combating terrorism," said Mohamed Kamal, a former lawmaker and a political science professor at Cairo University. "Egypt will handle this issue in a rational way, based on national interest."
El-Sisi has acted with a fervor his predecessors lacked against armed groups and weapons moving between Sinai and Gaza, destroying and flooding hundreds of cross-border tunnels. Israel has responded to el-Sisi with financial gestures and, according to the Israeli military's deputy chief of staff, increased intelligence-sharing.
"The level of cooperation is something we've never experienced before," Major-General Yair Golan said. "It's not about love, it's not about common values. I wouldn't describe it as the relationship we have with the United States of America, but I think it's a good starting point."
A former senior Israel official said his country has conducted numerous drone attacks on militants in Sinai in recent years with Egypt's blessing. He spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss confidential military activity.
Israel's closeness to el-Sisi precedes his presidency. When he was defense minister, Israel lobbied the U.S. to release military aid to Cairo suspended over Egypt's deadly crackdown on Islamists. They argued it was needed to address security threats in Sinai, the former senior Israeli official said.
Potential gas deals would take cooperation to another level. Israeli supplies would ease Egypt's energy crunch until it can develop its own field, the largest in the Mediterranean.
After Israel and Turkey ended a six-year rift last month and said they would start talks on energy supplies, Netanyahu publicly sent a message of reassurance to el-Sisi. Israel's Leviathan field "can supply Egypt, and that is something we are working to advance, as well as Turkey," he said at a news conference in Rome last month.
Idle Egyptian liquefaction plants could be reactivated to convert the Israeli gas for export to Europe and other international markets. Israel may forgive as much as half of a $1.7 billion fine international arbiters ordered Egypt to pay it for an earlier, broken gas contract, two people familiar with the matter said in May.
For Egypt, there's more at stake than energy supplies: assuming a leading role in peace talks is an opportunity after criticism that longtime Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak had allowed Egypt's influence to wane, and el-Sisi had expected his words to resonate.
"I'll talk on a subject that could be totally unexpected and it is not a simple one," he said. "I hope everybody listening to me in Egypt, the Arab region, the Palestinians and the Israelis, will pay attention."
The televised address in May capped months of backstage diplomacy by a group including former British premier Tony Blair. With Netanyahu wary of a separate French-led proposal that could impose a solution to the Palestinian conflict, almost every step was coordinated with his veteran negotiator, Yitzhak Molcho, according to people familiar with the secret talks.
Nearly four decades after their peace accord changed the face of the Middle East, Israel and Egypt are slowly turning a cool relationship into an alliance. They have tightened security cooperation to unprecedented levels and have been laying the legal groundwork for a multi-billion dollar energy contract, as gas discoveries in the Mediterranean and the persistent threat from Islamist militants shift the political dynamics across the region.
"In this time of turmoil and instability all around the Middle East, it's very important for reasonable countries to keep some kind of cooperation," Israeli Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz said in an interview in his office in Jerusalem.
In the latest sign of the warming relations, Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry visited Israel on Sunday to discuss efforts to renew stalled Israeli-Palestinian peacemaking, the first public visit by an Egyptian foreign minister in nine years. Blair met Netanyahu on Monday to follow up on the Shoukry visit and help lay the groundwork for a summit with el-Sisi, according to an Israeli official who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the diplomatic sensitivity.
"My visit to Israel today is a continuation of Egypt's longstanding sense of responsibility towards peace for itself and all the peoples of the region, particularly the Palestinian-Israeli peoples,"
Shoukry said, standing beside Netanyahu at a press conference. Netanyahu said it "illustrates the change that has taken place in Israeli-Egyptian ties, including President el-Sisi's important call to advance peacemaking, with the Palestinians as well as Arab states."
Arrangements are being made for Netanyahu to travel to Egypt by the end of the year for a meeting with el-Sisi, Channel 2 television said, without saying where it got the information. The aim would be to promote the Saudi-initiated regional approach to brokering an Arab-Israeli peace and preempt the French proposal for resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which the Israeli leader opposes, Channel 2 said.
In his speech at a new power plant in Assiut, 400 kilometers (250 miles) south of Cairo, el-Sisi said he saw "a great chance for a better future," between Israel and the Palestinians. An ensuing statement by Netanyahu championing Egypt's involvement was coordinated, the people familiar with the talks said, speaking on condition of anonymity. French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said it was "complementary" to his country's effort.
Returning as a key power broker in the region would help burnish Egypt's international image as it struggles to revive its economy. Potential rewards would mitigate any increased risk of attack by militants because of closer ties to Israel. The affinity between el-Sisi, 61, and Netanyahu, 66, is also remarkable given that antipathy toward Israel still runs deep in Egypt.
The government in Cairo and civil society groups typically have sought to keep dealings with Israelis to a minimum, and official contact is frequently kept secret. Tawfik Okasha, a lawmaker, was attacked with a shoe in February by a colleague then expelled from parliament for meeting with Israel's ambassador to Cairo. Dozens of militant attacks by an Islamic State affiliate on Egyptian security personnel have allowed el-Sisi to pull closer to the Jewish state. Israel, also targeted by militants operating in Egypt's Sinai peninsula and the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, has let him boost military operations along their shared border beyond what the 1979 treaty permits.
"There is definitely a high level of cooperation that could be unprecedented, especially in the field of combating terrorism," said Mohamed Kamal, a former lawmaker and a political science professor at Cairo University. "Egypt will handle this issue in a rational way, based on national interest."
El-Sisi has acted with a fervor his predecessors lacked against armed groups and weapons moving between Sinai and Gaza, destroying and flooding hundreds of cross-border tunnels. Israel has responded to el-Sisi with financial gestures and, according to the Israeli military's deputy chief of staff, increased intelligence-sharing.
"The level of cooperation is something we've never experienced before," Major-General Yair Golan said. "It's not about love, it's not about common values. I wouldn't describe it as the relationship we have with the United States of America, but I think it's a good starting point."
A former senior Israel official said his country has conducted numerous drone attacks on militants in Sinai in recent years with Egypt's blessing. He spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss confidential military activity.
Israel's closeness to el-Sisi precedes his presidency. When he was defense minister, Israel lobbied the U.S. to release military aid to Cairo suspended over Egypt's deadly crackdown on Islamists. They argued it was needed to address security threats in Sinai, the former senior Israeli official said.
Potential gas deals would take cooperation to another level. Israeli supplies would ease Egypt's energy crunch until it can develop its own field, the largest in the Mediterranean.
After Israel and Turkey ended a six-year rift last month and said they would start talks on energy supplies, Netanyahu publicly sent a message of reassurance to el-Sisi. Israel's Leviathan field "can supply Egypt, and that is something we are working to advance, as well as Turkey," he said at a news conference in Rome last month.
Idle Egyptian liquefaction plants could be reactivated to convert the Israeli gas for export to Europe and other international markets. Israel may forgive as much as half of a $1.7 billion fine international arbiters ordered Egypt to pay it for an earlier, broken gas contract, two people familiar with the matter said in May.
For Egypt, there's more at stake than energy supplies: assuming a leading role in peace talks is an opportunity after criticism that longtime Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak had allowed Egypt's influence to wane, and el-Sisi had expected his words to resonate.
"I'll talk on a subject that could be totally unexpected and it is not a simple one," he said. "I hope everybody listening to me in Egypt, the Arab region, the Palestinians and the Israelis, will pay attention."
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