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Politics

Mark Prichard, 59, Patrick Diehl, 70, were arrested for allegedly threatening to kill Republicans at Sen. Jeff Flake's office. (Photo: Pima County Sheriff)

Mark Prichard, 59, Patrick Diehl, 70, were arrested for allegedly threatening to kill Republicans at Sen. Jeff Flake’s office. (Photo: Pima County Sheriff)

Two protestors were arrested on Thursday at Sen. Jeff Flake’s office in Tucson, Ariz., one for allegedly threatening to kill Republicans. The Pima County Sheriff’s office confirmed that Mark Prichard, 59, was arrested after he made threatening comments that referenced the shooting of House Majority Whip Steve Scalise.

“You know how liberals are going to solve the Republican problem?” Prichard reportedly asked an aide. “They are going to get better aim. That last guy tried, but he needed better aim. We will get better aim.”

Patrick Diehl, 70, was arrested when deputies say he tried to force his way into the office. A staffer had opened the door to give pamphlets to the protesters on how to contact Sen. Flake, and Diehl attempted to force the staffer aside.

Prichard was charged with criminal trespassing as well as threats and intimidation after staffers in the district office called authorities. Diehl and Prichard were transported to the Pima County Adult Detention Complex, and the protest was allowed to continue.

Earlier this week, a news release announced a planned protest and sit-in. It claimed to include members of several leftwing groups, including: Our Revolution, #AllOfUs, Democracy Spring, Democratic Socialists of America, The People’s Consortium, Progressive Democrats of America, ResistHere.org, Ultraviolet and Working Families Party.

The statement was a reference to the shooting on June 14 at Eugene Simpson Stadium Park in Alexandria, Va. by a leftwing gunman. James Hodgkinson, of Belleville, Illinois, was identified as the man who shot the House Whip and three others–including Capitol Police special agent Crystal Griner, Tysons Food lobbyist Matt Mika and congressional staffer Zach Barth–as Republicans were practicing for the Congressional Baseball Game.

“No force was used in apprehending either of the two men, and no violence occurred from the protest itself,” a spokesman for the Pima County Sheriff’s office said. “The Pima County Sheriff’s Department would like to remind everyone that Sen. Flake’s office is not public property, but is rented space in a privately owned business area.”

Hodgkinson, 66, a leftwing activist and supporter of Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., was shot and killed by Capitol Police during the attack. He carried a hit list containing the names of six Republicans.

Sen. Flake was on the baseball field that day.

MedStar Washington Hospital Center readmitted Rep. Scalise and downgraded his condition to “serious” amid new concerns of infection. He received several blood transfusions to combat blood loss and needed multiple surgeries after suffering a gun shot wound to his hip area.

It is the latest in what has been a string of recent arrests involving left-wingers threatening the lives of Republicans.

Nebraska Democrat: ‘I’m Glad Scalise Got Shot. I Wish He Was F–king Dead’

On June 28, Miami-Dade Police Department arrested 34-year-old Steve St. Felix after he made a threat on social media against Republican state Representative Jose Felix Diaz. The Facebook post stated St. Felix would kill the lawmaker if he appeared at a political meeting.

Police also said St. Felix admitted to writing the threat after his arrest and that he was “fed up with the Republican Party.” Officials added that St. Felix said he failed to take unspecified medication at the time.

Two protestors were arrested on Thursday at

Politics

Radical activist and Islamist Linda Sarsour addresses the 54th Annual Islamic Society of North America (ISNA). (Photo: SS)

Radical activist and Islamist Linda Sarsour addresses the 54th Annual Islamic Society of North America (ISNA). (Photo: SS)

Radical activist and Islamist Linda Sarsour told the Annual Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) fighting the Trump Administration is “jihad.” The ISNA, which held its annual meeting this past weekend, has a long history of and established ties to Islamic extremism.

As Jordan Schachtel of Conservative Review notes, Sarsour began the speech by thanking Siraj Wajjah – a man “listed as an unindicted co-conspirator in the 1993 World Trade Center bombings.”

“Our number one and top priority is to protect and defend our community. It is not to assimilate and to please any other people in authority. And our top priority…is to please Allah, and only Allah.”

Sarsour, one of the main organizers of the Women’s March on Washington and a pro-sharia law Palestinian-American activist, has been an outspoken supporter of Sharia law and the anti-Israel Boycott. She attacked the Trump administration and called on the Muslim community to unite against the White House.

“Why, sisters and brothers, why are we so unprepared. Why are we so afraid of this administration and the potential chaos that they will ensue on our community?” she said, calling for “jihad” using words, as opposed to violence.

[brid video=”150710″ player=”2077″ title=”Liberal Linda Sarsour Fighting Trump is JIHAD…Muslims have NO need to assimilate”]

“A word of truth in front of a tyrant ruler or leader, that is the best form of jihad,” she said.

Sarsour, as People’s Pundit Daily recently reported, is well-funded by billionaire financier and former Nazi sympathizer George Soros. She was named a “Champion of Change” by the Obama administration in 2012.

She said that Muslim-Americans’ number one priority should be protecting and defending their communities, not assimilating or pleasing people in power.

“I hope, that when we stand up to those who oppress our communities, that Allah accepts from us that as a form of jihad, that we are struggling against tyrants and rulers not only abroad in the Middle East or the other side of the world, but here in these United States of America, where you have fascists and white supremacists and Islamophobes reining in the White House,” she said.

Watch her full address below, and see Asra Nomani feel free to weigh in on whether President Trump should ban the Muslim Brotherhood and affiliated groups with which Sarsour associated with.

[brid video=”150711″ player=”2077″ title=”Linda Sarsour Addresses 54th Annual ISNA Convention”]

Radical activist and Islamist Linda Sarsour told

Economy

A waitress serves a steak and fried shrimp combo plate to a customer at Norms Diner on La Cienega Boulevard in Los Angeles, California May 20, 2015. (Photo: Reuters)

A waitress serves a steak and fried shrimp combo plate to a customer at Norms Diner on La Cienega Boulevard in Los Angeles, California May 20, 2015. (Photo: Reuters)

The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) said its closely-watched Non-Manufacturing Index (NMI) came in at 57.4 in June, beating the 56.5 forecast.

“The non-manufacturing sector continued to reflect strength for the month of June,” said Anthony Nieves, Chair of the Institute for Supply Management Non-Manufacturing Business Survey Committee. “The majority of respondents’ comments are positive about business conditions and the overall economy.”

New Orders, at 60.5, are extraordinarily strong and gained from 57.7 in June. Business Activity/Production, at 60.8, bumped up 0.1 and were also very strong.

Like it’s manufacturing counter-part, the closely-watched PMI, as well as regional Federal Reserve data, strength in private reports have yet to be mirrored by the results of monthly government reports.

The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) said

Economy

Jobless claims, an application for first-time unemployment benefits. (Photo: Reuters)

Jobless claims, an application for first-time unemployment benefits. (Photo: Reuters)

The Labor Department said Thursday heavily estimated first-time jobless claims in the week ending July 1 rose 4,000 to 248,000, within the forecast. Seven states, including California, were estimated for the week.

That drastically increases the chances of a significant revision along with next week’s report. Lagging continuing claims data showed an increase by 11,000 in the June 24 week to 1.956 million with the unemployment rate for insured workers unchanged at a very low 1.4%.

Data in the Labor Department report remain at historic lows and continue to indicate a strong demand for labor.

No state was triggered “on” the Extended Benefits program during the week ending June 17.

The highest insured unemployment rates in the week ending June 17 were in Puerto Rico (3.2), Alaska (2.4), New Jersey (2.1), California (2.0), Connecticut (2.0), Pennsylvania (2.0), Illinois (1.8), Massachusetts (1.7), Nevada (1.7), and Rhode Island (1.6).

The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending June 24 were in New Jersey (+7,210), California (+4,144), Massachusetts (+2,367), Connecticut (+2,318), and New York (+1,596), while the largest decreases were in Pennsylvania (-2,769), Maryland (-1,683), Wisconsin (-1,387), Illinois (-719), and Georgia (-701).

The Labor Department said Thursday heavily estimated

Economy

Unemployment Graphic

Unemployment Graphic

The ADP National Employment Report finds the U.S. private sector added 158,000 jobs in June, still strong but less than the 180,000 forecast. The goods-producing sector cancelled itself out this month, while the service sector accounted for all 158,000 jobs.

“Despite a slight moderation in the month of June, the labor market remains strong,” said Ahu Yildirmaz, Vice President and co-head of the ADP Research Institute. “For the month of June, jobs were primarily created in the service-providing sector.”

While Manufacturing added 6,000 jobs, it was offset by a loss of 4,000 in Natural Resources & Mining and 2,000 in Mining.

Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody’s Analytics, said, “The job market continues to power forward. Abstracting from the monthly ups and downs, job growth remains a stalwart between 150,000 and 200,000.At this pace, which is double the rate of labor force growth, the tight labor market will continue getting tighter.”

The Labor Department on Friday will release its report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which is forecast to show 164,000. That’s unlikely to change given the ADP National Employment Report.

The ADP National Employment Report finds the

Politics

U.S. President Donald Trump gives a public speech in front of the Warsaw Uprising Monument at Krasinski Square in Warsaw, Poland July 6, 2017. (Photo: Reuters)

U.S. President Donald Trump gives a public speech in front of the Warsaw Uprising Monument at Krasinski Square in Warsaw, Poland July 6, 2017. (Photo: Reuters)

President Donald J. Trump in Poland on Thursday called on the West to “defend our civilization” against those who seek to “undermine our values.” Speaking at Krasinski Square, the symbolic monument to the 1944 Warsaw Uprising, he drew on the Polish experience to argue “the defense of the West” and its values are only possible if people have the will to “defend them at any cost.”

“We must work together to confront forces that threaten over time to undermine our values and erase the bonds of culture, faith, and tradition”, he said to repeated chants of “Donald Trump! Donald Trump!”

“As the Polish experience reminds us – the defense of the West ultimately rests not only on means but also on the will of its people to prevail. The fundamental question of our time is whether the West has the will to survive?” he asked. “Do we have the confidence in our values to defend them at any cost? Do we have enough respect for our citizens to protect our borders? Do we have the courage to preserve our civilization in the face of those who would subvert and destroy it?”

The U.S. President has much in common with Poland’s ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party, which holds a blend of conservative-populist views that are similar on immigration, climate change and the protection of national sovereignty from globalization. PiS has fought against migrant quotas forced on them by larger European Union (EU) nations, such as France and Germany .

“Our freedom and our civilization depend on these bonds of history, culture, and memory,” President Trump said. “Just as Poland could not be broken, I declare for the world to hear that the West will never ever be broken and our values will prevail, our people will thrive, and our civilization will triumph.”

The EU even threatened Poland with sanctions if they did not accept thousands of migrants from the Middle East, something Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydło said revealed “the madness of the Brussels elite” after the Manchester terror attacks.

Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic have argued forced quotas invite terrorism. Drawing on their history of leading the largest military resistance against the Nazis during World War II, he warned of the modern threats the West faces today, including mass immigration and Islamic terrorism.

“We are confronted by another oppressive threat – one that threatens to export extremism and terror all around the globe,” the President said. “The EU and America have suffered one terror attack after another. We are going to get it to stop… We must stand united against these shared enemies to rip them of their territory.”

President Trump also praised Poland for meeting their obligations to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and slammed Russian  for its “destabilizing” role in the region.

“American knows that a strong alliance of free, sovereign, nations is the best defense for our freedoms and our interests. That is why my administration has demanded that all members of NATO finally meet their full and fair financial obligation,” he said. “As a result of this insistence billions of dollars more have begun to pour into NATO.”

In May, during his first foreign trip aboard, President Trump told NATO-member nations that American taxpayers are done paying for their defense if they don’t meet their financial obligations. While Poland not only meets their obligation, it contributes nearly as much as the United States (US) as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP).

Meanwhile, 23 of the 28 members nations, including France and Germany, aren’t paying their fair and agreed upon share for the common defense. As People’s Pundit Daily recently explained, President Trump is employing textbook structural realism. There are two main strategies nation-states use to prevent aggressors from tipping the balance of power: balancing and buck-passing.

For years, U.S. administrations have allowed NATO to buck-pass by allowing them to ignore their obligations.

WATCH FULL VIDEO BELOW OR READ TRANSCRIPT WHILE YOU WATCH

President Donald J. Trump in Poland on

Politics

FILE PHOTO - House Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-LA) speaks to reporters at the U.S. Capitol, hours before an expected vote to repeal Obamacare in Washington, D.C., U.S. on May 4, 2017. (Photo: Reuters)

FILE PHOTO – House Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-LA) speaks to reporters at the U.S. Capitol, hours before an expected vote to repeal Obamacare in Washington, D.C., U.S. on May 4, 2017. (Photo: Reuters)

MedStar Washington Hospital Center readmitted and downgraded the condition of House Majority Whip Steve Scalise to “serious” amid new concerns of infection. Rep. Scalise, 51, was shot in June at Eugene Simpson Stadium Park by a leftwing gunman.

“Congressman Steve Scalise has been readmitted to the Intensive Care Unit at MedStar Washington Hospital Center due to new concerns for infection,” the hospital said in a statement. “His condition is listed as serious. We will provide another update tomorrow, July 6.”

The House Majority Whip received several blood transfusions to combat blood loss and needed multiple surgeries after suffering a gun shot wound to his hip area.

Doctors were having trouble controlling post-trauma bleeding. MedStar Washington Hospital Center said his condition had steadily improved, though his recovery would be a difficult battle for him and his family.

Nebraska Democrat: ‘I’m Glad Scalise Got Shot. I Wish He Was F–king Dead’

Rep. Scalise was transferred out of the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) on Thursday, June 22 and remained in fair condition until today. Doctors warned of “an extended period of healing and rehabilitation.”

James Hodgkinson, of Belleville, Illinois, was identified as the man who shot the House Whip and three others–including Capitol Police special agent Crystal Griner, Tysons Food lobbyist Matt Mika and congressional staffer Zach Barth–as Republicans were practicing for the Congressional Baseball Game.

Hodgkinson, 66, a leftwing activist and supporter of Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., was shot and killed by police during the attack. He carried a hit list containing the names of six Republicans.

MedStar Washington Hospital Center downgraded the condition

Politics

United States U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, right, speaks during United Nations Security Council meeting on North Korea's latest launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile, Wednesday July 5, 2017 at U.N. headquarters. (Photo: AP)

United States U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, right, speaks during United Nations Security Council meeting on North Korea’s latest launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile, Wednesday July 5, 2017 at U.N. headquarters. (Photo: AP)

U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley told the United Nations (UN) Security Council the world is running out of time to peacefully stop North Korea. The emergency meeting on Wednesday was called after North Korea launched an intercontinental ballistic missile on July 4, 2017.

“The world is on notice,” Haley said. “If we act together we can still prevent a catastrophe and we will rid the world of a grave threat. If we fault to act in a serious way, there will be a different response.”

North Korea tested a new version of the KN-07 that flew for 37 minutes and reached a height of 1,500 miles, breaking the DPRK’s previous record of 30 minutes and 1,000 feet set on Mother’s Day. Officials told People’s Pundit Daily the U.S. Pentagon believes is was “something new,” a version of the KN-17 outfitted with a second stage, rather than single-stage, liquid propulsion system.

It gives Pyongyang the capability to reach the U.S. via Alaska and U.S. Ambassador Haley warned it increased the risk of a military conflict.

“Make no mistake, North Korea’s launch of an ICBM is a clear and sharp military escalation,” Amassador Haley said. “Their actions are quickly closing off the possibility of a diplomatic solution. The United States is prepared to use the full range of our capabilities to defend ourselves and our allies. One of our capabilities lies with our considerable military forces. We will use them, if we must, but we prefer not to have to go in that direction.”

She also announced that the U.S. will introduce a new security resolution proposing tougher economic sanctions to cut off North Korea’s access to funding. It not only will target the rogue leftwing regime, but nations who enable them.

“We will not look exclusively at North Korea,” she said. “We will look at any country that chooses to do business with this outlaw regime. We will not have patience for stalling or talking our way down to a watered down resolution.”

On unilateral action,she indicated the Trump Administration is willing to engage in a trade war with North Korea’s partners to further isolate Pyongyang. Ambassador Haley told the UN she spoke at length with President Donald J. Trump on Wednesday morning about “countries that are allowing, even encouraging trade with North Korea, in violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions.”

“There are countries that are allowing, even encouraging, trade with North Korea in violation of UN Security Council resolutions,” she told the UN. “Such countries would also like to continue their trade arrangements with the United States. That’s not gonna happen. Our attitude on trade changes when countries do not take international security threats seriously.”

U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley told the United

World

A man watches a TV broadcast of a news report on North Korea's ballistic missile test, at a railway station in Seoul, South Korea, July 4, 2017. (Photo: Reuters)

A man watches a TV broadcast of a news report on North Korea’s ballistic missile test, at a railway station in Seoul, South Korea, July 4, 2017. (Photo: Reuters)

U.S. Defense Department officials said North Korea tested a new version of the KN-07 during the record-breaking July 4 missile launch. It flew for 37 minutes and reached a height of 1,500 miles, breaking the DPRK’s previous record of 30 minutes and 1,000 feet set on Mother’s Day.

Pentagon sources tell People’s Pundit Daily the U.S. believes is was “something new,” though a version of the KN-17. However, it was outfitted with a second stage, rather than single-stage, liquid propulsion system that gives Pyongyang the capability to reach the U.S.–Alaska.

“It appears the test was successful. If launched on a standard angle, the missile could have a range of more than 8,000 km,” said Kim Dong-yub, a military expert at Kyungnam University’s Institute of Far Eastern Studies in Seoul. “But we have to see more details of the new missile to determine if North Korea has acquired ICBM technology.”

Pyongyang claimed on state-run media after the launch that the test marked the “final step” in creating a “powerful nuclear state that can strike anywhere on Earth.”

U.S. officials only first recognized the missile’s existence on April 17, 2017. But it’s success heightens the threat to the U.S. and its allies around the world, particular Japan considering it believed to have some form of maneuvering reentry vehicle (MaRV) capability.

North Korean Missiles Capabilities (Source: CSIS)

North Korean Missiles Capabilities (Source: CSIS)

The Medium-Range Ballistic Missile (MRBM) is itself rather new, as the first test of the KN-17 likely occurred on April 5, 2017, when the missile was launched from Sinpo in the South Hamgyong province of North Korea.

The launch came before the G-20 summit in Germany, where Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin are each scheduled for bilateral meetings with President Donald J. Trump. Japan said on Monday they will participate in a trilateral summit on North Korea with the U.S. and South Korea at the G20.

President Trump visited Poland on Wednesday during his second trip overseas since taking the Oath of Office. While he travels, his top diplomat issued a stern warning to the radical leftwing regime in Pyongyang, saying the launch was “a clear and sharp military escalation” toward war on the Korean Peninsula.

“Make no mistake, North Korea’s launch of an ICBM is a clear and sharp military escalation,” said Nikki Haley, U.S. ambassador to the U.N., at an emergency Security Council meeting. “Their actions are quickly closing off the possibility of a diplomatic solution. The United States is prepared to use the full range of our capabilities to defend ourselves and our allies. One of our capabilities lies with our considerable military forces. We will use them, if we must, but we prefer not to have to go in that direction.”

U.S. Defense Department officials said North Korea

Politics

FILE PHOTO: Illinois Gov-elect Bruce Rauner speaks to the media after a meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama and other Governor-elects from seven U.S. states at the White House in Washington December 5, 2014. (Photo: Reuters)

FILE PHOTO: Illinois Gov-elect Bruce Rauner speaks to the media after a meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama and other Governor-elects from seven U.S. states at the White House in Washington December 5, 2014. (Photo: Reuters)

Senate Democrats in Illinois overrode Governor Bruce Rauner’s veto of the state budget bill in a special session, keeping the Land of Lincoln on a path to insolvency. The Senate passed the budget, which included $36 billion in spending and $5 billion in new taxes, with little debate.

Gov. Rauner slammed state Democratic lawmakers for fiscal irresponsibility. The state has been in a credit crisis and experts say it is now in real danger of defaulting in a fiscal meltdown. The Republican governor’s attempt to reign in spending has left the the nation’s fifth-largest state without a complete budget for two fiscal years.

“The package of legislation fails to address Illinois’ fiscal and economic crisis – and in fact, makes it worse in the long run,” Gov. Rauner said. “It does not balance the budget. It does not make nearly sufficient spending reductions, does not pay down our debt, and holds schools hostage to force a Chicago bailout.”

Senate Minority Leader Bill Brady, R-Bloomington, had called on the upper chamber to sustain the veto and get serious about the state’s fiscal woes.

“I continue to believe we’re missing an opportunity,” Leader Brady said. “I hope that we pick up that opportunity after today and can provide a comprehensive package that moves us forward.”

Senate Minority Leader Bill Brady, R-Bloomington, right, listens to the brief debate on a package of budget bills passed by the Senate on Tuesday, July 4, 2017, at the Capitol in Springfield, Ill. (Photo: AP)

Senate Minority Leader Bill Brady, R-Bloomington, right, listens to the brief debate on a package of budget bills passed by the Senate on Tuesday, July 4, 2017, at the Capitol in Springfield, Ill. (Photo: AP)

But Senate President John Cullerton and Democrats, who want to tax their way out of a spending problem, said they are willing to work with Gov. Rauner on non-budgetary measures he supports.

“We will continue to try to enact and put on the governor’s desk many of the reforms that he’s asked for,” Mr. Cullerton said after the override votes. “I’m certainly disappointed he’s vetoed a balanced budget, but I’m glad we were able to override him.”

Illinois Senate Democrats overrode Gov. Bruce Rauner's

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