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News, US

Airport police stand in the TSA area of terminal 1 after a shooting incident at Los Angeles airport (LAX), California November 1, 2013. (Photo: Reuters)

Airport police stand in the TSA area of terminal 1 after a shooting incident at Los Angeles airport (LAX), California November 1, 2013. (Photo: Reuters)

The electronics ban on devices larger than a cell phone for U.S.-bound flights is indefinite and applies 9 airlines and 10 airports from eight countries. Administration officials are calling the measure an active-emergency amendment in response to “evaluated intelligence” that terrorist groups continue to target aviation and consumer items for use in an attack.

The eight Muslim-majority nations impacted by the electronics ban include Jordan, Egypt, Turkey, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar and Morocco. The airlines affected include: Royal Jordanian, Emirates, Egypt Air, Turkish Airlines, Kuwait Airlines, Qatar Airways, Emirates, Etihad and Royal Air Maroc.

Airports impacted by the electronics ban include Queen Alia Airport, Cairo Airport, Ataturk Airport, King Abdulaziz Airport, King Khalid International Airport, Kuwait International Airport, Mohammed V International Airport, Doha Airport, Dubai Airport and Abu Dhabi Airport.

“Terrorist groups continue to have an interest in targeting planes,” according to one senior Administration official, who briefed reporters on a teleconference call late Monday.

The electronics ban pertains to the cabin of passenger aircraft and to U.S.-bound direct flights, only. Devices prohibited include laptops, tablets, Kindles, iPads and gaming devices larger than a cellphone.

On Monday, Royal Jordanian Airlines tweeted that the carrier had banned all electronic or electrical devices from carry-on luggage on flights to and from New York, Chicago, Detroit and Montreal effective Tuesday, March 21. The tweet was subsequently deleted during the day.

“We are not disappointed with the airlines,” a senior administration official said. “They have an obligation to their passengers.”

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The electronics ban on devices larger than

Politics

President Donald J. Trump waves to supporters after speaking at a rally at the Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville, Ky., Monday, March 20, 2017. (Photo: AP)

President Donald J. Trump waves to supporters after speaking at a rally at the Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville, Ky., Monday, March 20, 2017. (Photo: AP)

House Republicans late Monday announced changes to their ObamaCare repeal bill that could ensure its passage ahead of the scheduled vote on Thursday. The 43-page “manager’s amendment” to the American Health Care Act (AHCA) incorporates ideas from members who were previous “No” votes in an effort to shore up support ahead of a floor vote.

House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., said the amendment was the result of a “member-driven process” and “inclusive approach” to governing, driven by negotiations between the White House and congressional Republicans. He praised the president for bringing the Republican conference together and “listening to members” about their concerns.

“With this amendment, we accelerate tax relief, give states additional options to spend health care dollars how they choose, strengthen what were already substantial pro-life protections, and ensure there are necessary resources to help older Americans and the disabled,” Speaker Ryan said in a statement. “With the president’s leadership and support for this historic legislation, we are now one step closer to keeping our promise to the American people and ending the ObamaCare nightmare.”

The new details aim to reduce cost to seniors and permit states to impose work requirements on some Medicaid recipients. It was enough to get several members of the House Freedom Caucus and other moderate Republicans who previously opposed the bill to come on board.

“We’re taking additional action tonight to strengthen the American Health Care Act to better serve the millions of Americans who have been hurt by ObamaCare,” Ways & Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady, R-Texas, and Energy & Commerce Committee Chairman Greg Walden, R-OR, said in a joint statement. “Our legislation includes ideas from Republican members who are committed to improving health care for patients and families across the country.”

The manager’s amendment is really two amendments wrapped up into one, with the first making technical revisions to the original bill to ensure compliance with the Senate rules governing reconciliation bills. The second, put forward by the Ways and Means Committee, pushes up the repeal of ObamaCare taxes from 2018 to 2017, “strikes” a provision allowing excess tax credits to be deposited into Health Savings Accounts, and gives the Senate a budget buffer to increase tax credits for older Americans.

Changes made by the the Energy and Commerce allow states to opt-in to a traditional Medicaid block grant, as well as implement work-requirements for Medicaid recipients. It also “enhances” the growth rate for the aged and disabled population on Medicaid. Under ObamaCare, Americans can deduct from their taxes the cost of medical expenses that exceed 10% of their income. The new amendment to the AHCA reduces this threshold to 5.8%.

The announcement comes shortly after President Donald J. Trump told supporters at a rally in Louisville, Kentucky on Monday night that the AHCA “is our chance to end ObamaCare and the ObamaCare catastrophe.”

“We’re confident these changes will set AHCA up for success in the House. We look forward to working with our Senate colleagues to get this bill over the finish line and send it to the President as quickly as possible,” the chairmen added. “President Trump deserves tremendous credit for rolling up his sleeves and working tirelessly to deliver on his health care promise to the American people.”

President Trump will meet with Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill Tuesday morning to further discuss the legislation and push for its passage, while the House Rules Committee is scheduled to review it Wednesday. Speaker Ryan added that he welcomes changes and ideas senators have for the AHCA as long as they do not “jeopardize” reconciliation, which is a parliamentary rule previously used by Democrats to pass ObamaCare, and must now be preserved to avoid their filibuster.

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House Republicans late Monday announced changes to

Economy

President Donald Trump arrives for a meeting with retail industry leaders in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017. From left are, Gary Cohn, director of the National Economic Council; J.C. Penney CEO Marvin Ellison and Jo-Ann Craft Stores CEO Jill Soltau.

President Donald Trump arrives for a meeting with retail industry leaders in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017. From left are, Gary Cohn, director of the National Economic Council; J.C. Penney CEO Marvin Ellison and Jo-Ann Craft Stores CEO Jill Soltau.

The Chicago Fed National Activity Index (CFNAI) rose to 0.34 from a revised minus 0.2 in January, bringing the 3-month average to a 2-year high at plus 0.25. The gains in the index were fueled by tightening employment and increased strength for production, making February a good month for the U.S. economy.

Employment added 0.21 to the index overall in February, climbing from 0.06 in the prior month as the labor market grew more robust and unemployment edged lower. The manufacturing component of the industrial production report also showed strength. Production added 0.09 juxtaposed to 0.04 in January.

Personal consumption and housing were a net negative, climbing slightly to -0.03 from -0.11. Sales, orders, and inventories contributed 0.08 compared to -0.01 in January.

What it is and how it works?

The Chicago Fed National Activity Index (CFNAI) is a weighted average of 85 existing monthly indicators of national economic activity that tracks overall economic activity and inflationary pressures monthly. It is constructed to have an average value of zero and a standard deviation of one. Since economics trend toward growth, any positive reading at all reflects growth above that trend, while a negative index indicates growth below trend.

Released On 3/20/2017 8:30:00 AM For Feb, 2017

Prior Prior Revised Actual
Level -0.05 -0.02 0.34 
3 Month Moving Average -0.03 0.07 0.25 

The Chicago Fed National Activity Index rose

Politics

U.S. Supreme Court nominee judge Neil Gorsuch is sworn in to testify at his Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., March 20, 2017. (Photo: Reuters)

U.S. Supreme Court nominee judge Neil Gorsuch is sworn in to testify at his Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., March 20, 2017. (Photo: Reuters)

Judge Neil Gorsuch said in his opening statement on day one of his Senate confirmation hearing that “a judges job is to follow the words in the law, not replace them.” Praising his former boss Justice Anthony Kennedy and his former mentor, the late Justice Antonin Scalia, President Donald J. Trump’s pick for the U.S. Supreme Court made his judicial philosophy clear.

“Justice Scalia was also a mentor,” he said. “He reminded us that words matter; that a judge’s job is to follow the words in the law, not replace them with those that aren’t.”

Judge Gorsuch, 49, who serves on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit in Colorado, touted that he has been in “the majority 99% of the time.” Appointed in 2006 by President George W. Bush, he was previously a deputy assistant attorney general at the Justice Department and is the youngest Supreme Court nominee in 25 years. In July 2006, Judge Gorsuch was confirmed by the Senate unanimously by a voice vote, including the vote of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.

The American Bar Association, which is a known leftwing association, has given Judge Gorsuch a stellar rating. But Senate Democrats have already said they will obstruct the confirmation, which comes as liberal judges in federal district and appellate courts have sought to use judicial activism to stop President Trump’s key agenda items, including a temporary travel ban on 6 Muslim-majority nations known to be hotbeds of Islamic terrorism.

U.S. District Judge Derrick Watson, who was nominated to the federal bench by President Barack Obama, granted a temporary halt to President Trump’s revised travel ban after the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals blocked the first executive order. The very liberal court is the most overturned court in the country, seeing almost 90% of their rulings thrown out by the High Court.

Judge Watson’s heavily criticized ruling was based on the Establishment Clause, meaning he agreed it was a faith-based ban despite 90% of the world’s Muslim population not being impacted. President Trump called the ruling, which came less than two hours after the hearing, an “unprecedented judicial overreach.” The judge in Hawaii conceded he couldn’t stay within the letter of the law because it was President Trump who signed the executive order.

Judge Gorsuch slammed such activism as legislating from the bench.

“It’s time to lose our egos and open our minds,” he said, criticizing judges who are “secret legislators.”

“If judges were just secret legislators, declaring not what the law is but what they would like it to be, the very idea of a government by the people and for the people would be at risk,” Judge Gorsuch said.

Polls show most voters view Judge Gorsuch as mainstream and, further, more voters support his confirmation than they did for President Barack Obama’s nominees. Him being viewed as mainstream is fueled in large part by 68% of likely voters believing the Court should rule based on what’s written in the U.S. Constitution and legal precedents.

Judge Neil Gorsuch said in his opening

News

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, left, and Russian President Vladimir Putin, right.

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, left, and Russian President Vladimir Putin, right.

I have long said that Russian President Vladimir Putin is no longer a communist and has no interest in attempting to re-create the Soviet Union.

In fact, many Russian leaders now decry the Soviet state. Parts of the Russian Orthodox Church, with whom Mr. Putin has allied in a bid to tighten his grip on power, condemned Lenin recently and recommended destroying his mausoleum in Red Square.

No, Mr. Putin does not want to re-create the old USSR, but he does want a return of the Russian empire, or maybe even a hybrid version of the Soviet Union, without the communism.
Skeptical? Just look around the world.

This week, in the Caucasus, the Russian government essentially closed the border between the Georgian territory of Abkhazia and the rest of the country Russian troops have occupied the ethnic enclaves of Abkhazia and South Ossetia since the Russo-Georgian war of 2008, recognizing them as independent states. Mr. Putin also signed an order to allow the recruitment of South Ossetians for enlistment in the Russian armed forces.

In Moldova, the Kremlin has been pressuring diplomats who are attempting to investigate the theft of 20 percent of the country’s treasury assets, billions of dollars, which they say ended up in Russia. They suspect a scheme to destabilize the pro-EU government in Chisinau and move the leadership back to the Kremlin’s orbit. The prime minister has accused Moscow of intimidation of its diplomats and other harassment.

Or take Ukraine. Moscow’s annexation of Crimea is a done deal, and there are stirrings in the pro-Russian separatist east. The Russian government recently agreed to accept passports and other official government documents for rebel-controlled areas of Donetsk and Luhansk when traveling and working in the Russian Federation. The “Luhansk People’s Republic” also announced that it will use the Russian ruble for its currency going forward.

The Kremlin is active in the Balkans, aggressively supporting pro-Russian parties and seeking governments friendly to Moscow, while opposing any move by Balkan states that want to join NATO.

Mr. Putin’s ambitions aren’t limited to former Soviet territories or satellite states. The Kremlin is also furthering its reach in the Middle East and North Africa. Having helped turn the tide for the government in Syria’s civil war, defeating anti-Assad forces backed by the incompetent Obama administration, Russia is now looking for other opportunities to reignite long-dormant relationships with other onetime Soviet allies.

Just this week, word leaked of Russian special forces reportedly in action within Egypt along the Libyan border. Egypt used to be a client of Moscow, and Mr. Putin wants it back. Helping Egypt defeat Islamic extremists in the area, coupled with the carrot of increasing Russian tourism once again, seems to be a recipe for influence that is working for Moscow.

In Libya, Russia is backing the rogue Gen. Khalifa Haftar is his fight against the U.N.-backed unity government. The potential prize: new influence in the region, oil revenues, potential military base sites and another warm-water port. Mr. Putin gave the Libyan rebel leader a one-on-one with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Moscow and a VIP tour of a Russian warship in the Mediterranean.

Mr. Putin knows that, eventually, the Trump administration will get its domestic house in order and begin to focus on foreign policy more closely. The Kremlin still holds out hope that Mr. Trump will relax sanctions and help Russia crawl out of the economic downturn it has been struggling with for the past few years. Until then, however, the Kremlin seems to have decided to make hay — and grab territory — while the afterglow of the weak Obama sun is still shining.

This article first appeared on L. Todd Wood’s Threat Assessment on The Washington Times.

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Vladimir Putin is no longer a communist

World

Israeli-PM-Benjamin-Netanyahu-UNGA-10-01-15

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks at the United Nations General Assembly on October 1, 2015. (Photo: AP)

The controversial and criticized United Nations (UN) report declaring Israel an “apartheid state” has been pulled and Rima Khalaf, the head of the commission has resigned.

The report by the United Nation’s Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) recommended bringing the State of Israel “to an end.” The ESCWA is made up of 18 Arab states, the majority of which do not even recognize the State of Israel’s existence.

U.N. Secretary General had asked for it to be taken down from the website, although the executive summary of the anti-Semitic text is still on the UN website. Rima Khalaf, of Jordan, is a well-known anti-Semite who has previously compared the State of Israel to Nazi Germany. On her way out, she said Israel was committing “war crimes against humanity.”

U.N. Under-Secretary General and ESCWA Executive Secretary Rima Khalaf speaks during a news conference announcing her resignation from the United Nations in Beirut, Lebanon, March 17, 2017. (Photo: Reuters)

U.N. Under-Secretary General and ESCWA Executive Secretary Rima Khalaf speaks during a news conference announcing her resignation from the United Nations in Beirut, Lebanon, March 17, 2017. (Photo: Reuters)

“It is only normal for criminals to pressure and attack those who advocate the cause of their victims,” Khalaf wrote in the resignation letter, adding that she stands by the report.

The ESCWA report was co-written by Richard Falk, a disgraced 9/11 truther and conspiracy theorist. He blamed the Boston Marathon Bombing on “American global interests” and “Tel Aviv.” Former U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon once said that using Mr. Falk “undermines the credibility and work of the United Nations.”

The UN report released by the ESCWA

Politics

Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, meets with Attorney General nominee Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., on Tuesday, Nov. 29, 2016 in Washington. (Photo: AP)

Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, went on a rare Twitter rant targeting FBI Director James Comey on Monday. Iowa’s favorite senator has served on the committee every year since he first was elected to the Senate and does not make comments such as these loosely, unlike someone else we all know.

The tweets came during a highly-anticipated hearing before the House Intelligence Committee with both Mr. Comey and NSA Director Mike Rogers.

Mr. Comey took the extraordinary step of confirming a probe into whether there was collusion between Russia and President Trump or his anyone in his campaign. But he would not confirm what he has told lawmakers in closed briefing sessions.

Sen. Grassley also tweeted about Mr. Comey’s refusal to assure the American public that intelligence officials who feloniously leak classified information will be found and prosecuted.

James Clapper, the former director of national intelligence, said publicly that there is no evidence of collusion between President Trump, his campaign and Russia.

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Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, the chairman of

Politics

FBI Director James Comey, left, accompanied by National Security Agency Director Michael Rogers, testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington Monday. (Photo: AP)

FBI Director James Comey, left, accompanied by National Security Agency Director Michael Rogers, testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington Monday. (Photo: AP)

FBI Director James Comey and NSA Director Mike Rogers testified before the House Intelligence Committee about Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. The committee also is investigating felonious leaks of classified information by members of the intelligence committee aimed at hurting President Donald J. Trump politically, but that’s not the headline.

Mr. Comey took the extraordinary step of confirming a probe into whether there was collusion between President Trump or his anyone in his campaign, but would not confirm what he’s told lawmakers in closed settings.

Mr. Comey and Mr. Rogers, as anticipated, said there’s no evidence to back up President Trump’s claim that Barack Obama wiretapped Trump Tower.

“I have no information that supports those tweets,” Mr. Comey said. “We are obsessive about FISA in the FBI.”

Still, he would not comment for whatever reason whether a FISA request by the Obama administration to wiretap Trump Tower was turned down. Further, the director only answered the question posed by Rep. Adam Schiff, which related specifically to a “wiretap.” Chairman Devin Nunes said it was still a possibility “other” methods of surveillance were used.

Regarding the felonious leaks of classified information, Mr. Comey refused to deny reports he briefed Mr. Obama and members of his administration on Michael Flynn, who was fired as national security advisor after it was revealed he misled Vice President Mike Pence over his call with a Russian ambassador.

FBI Director James Comey and NSA Director

Politics

Donald J. Trump, left, with campaign manager Kellyanne Conway, right. (Photo: Reuters)

Donald J. Trump, left, with campaign manager Kellyanne Conway, right. (Photo: Reuters)

President Donald J. Trump has reportedly chosen George Conway, White House counselor Kellyanne Conway’s husband, to lead the Department of Justice’s civil division, multiple sources say. If confirmed, George Conway, would lead a division that enforces laws preventing discrimination.

Conway, a partner at the New York law firm of Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, has represented the National Football League and Philip Morris. More notably, he represented Paula Jones, a former Arkansas state employee who filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against Bill Clinton, in a case she took all the way to the Supreme Court.

Clinton agreed to an out-of-court settlement that saddled him with a $860,000 payment to Jones.

President Donald J. Trump has chosen George

World

U.S. President Donald Trump, right, and British Prime Minister Theresa May, left, hold a joint press conference. (Photo: Reuters)

U.S. President Donald Trump, right, and British Prime Minister Theresa May, left, hold a joint press conference. (Photo: Reuters)

A spokesperson for Prime Minister Theresa May announced Great Britain will trigger Article 50, signaling its departure from the European Union, on March 29.

“From my first day on the steps of Downing Street, I made clear my determination to strengthen and sustain the precious Union,” Prime Minister May said in a statement. “I have also been clear that as we leave the European Union I will work to deliver a deal that works for the whole of the UK.”

Despite the United Kingdom Referendum vote, otherwise and better known as Brexit, the development was uncertain. The House of Lords, the unelected upper chamber in the British Parliament, were seeking to delay and amend the Brexit bill passed in the elected House of Commons.

The more liberal elitist upper chamber began two days of debate on the bill in February, which authorized the government of the United Kingdom to start the divorce process with the European Union (EU), the 28-nation bloc. The amendments sought by the House of Lords guaranteed them a bigger say in the negotiations, but May called it a game of parliamentary “ping pong.”

A spokesperson for Prime Minister Theresa May

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