2016 Iowa Republican Caucus

2016 Iowa Republican Caucus 30 Delegates: Caucus Allocation (February

Politics

New Benghazi Emails Prove Hillary Clinton Lied To Victims’ Families, Likely Congress

President Obama, left, and Hillary Clinton, right, at the ceremony for the victims of Benghazi on Sept. 14, 2012.

(Washington, DC) – Newly uncovered emails obtained by Judicial Watch reveal top aides for then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton always knew the Benghazi mission compound was under attack from a terrorist group, and Clinton herself lied to the victims’ families. The documents, which were obtained as a result of a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against the State Department, make no reference to a spontaneous demonstration or Internet video.

Separate emails obtained in April 2014 demonstrated that senior White House advisor Ben Rhodes, who was the deputy national security adviser for strategic communications and assistant to President Obama, helped to manufacture the Internet video talking points and prepped then-Ambassador Susan Rice for her despicable Sunday show appearances on ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox News and CNN.

Islamic terrorists connected to al Qaeda, who the Pentagon knew had previously declared Libya “an Islamic state,” attacked the U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi on the evening of September 11, 2012. U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens and U.S. Foreign Service Information Management Officer Sean Smith were both killed in the initial wave. A few hours later, a second terrorist strike targeted a different compound located approximately one mile away, killing CIA contractors Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty and injuring 10 others.

Hillary Rodham Clinton issued an official statement claiming the assault was the result of “a response to inflammatory material posted on the Internet.” Shortly after, while speaking at the ceremonial return of the victims’ bodies, Clinton said that the attack was prompted by “an awful Internet video that we had nothing to do with,” promising the families that the man who made the video would pay.

The bodies of the victims of the Benghazi terror attack arrive on Sept. 14, 2012.

“These emails leave no doubt that Hillary Clinton’s closest advisers knew the truth about the Benghazi attack from almost the moment it happened,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “And it is inescapable that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton knowingly lied when she planted the false story about ‘inflammatory material being posted on the Internet.’”

It is widely known that then-Chief of Staff Cheryl Mills is a long-time confidant of the Clintons, particularly Hillary. Those closest to the Clintons — and the media for that matter — find it impossible that Hillary would not have known everything made clear to Mills that night, or any other night. The emails offer deeper insight into the development of the bogus story, at least at Clinton’s State Department.

The obtained emails unequivocally show that Obama administration officials fed a completely fabricated story to the American people, the media, and worse of all, to the closest members of the victims’ families.

When asked in May 2013 if President Obama, Secretary Clinton, and Susan Rice specifically told her the video was to blame for the attack that led to her son’s death, Sean Smith’s mother gave a crystal clear account of the statements made by these specific members of the Obama administration.

“Oh yes, they all told me about the reason that this happened was the video,” said Pat Smith. “Every one of them told me that. Yes, they actually did, and Susan Rice also. Nose to nose. I was with – they were hugging me!”

Members of the Obama administration arrive at the ceremony for the victims of Benghazi on Sept. 14, 2012.

That was three days after the Benghazi attack. Charles Woods, father of former Navy SEAL and Benghazi terrorist attack victim Tyrone Woods, has also on multiple accounts verified Mrs. Smith’s story, claiming he was told the same tall tale.

But while emails surfaced showing the White House knew that was a bogus story, Clinton’s role in the coverup, which she vehemently denied during her testimony to Congress, has alluded journalists and congressional investigators. Previously uncovered documents show the State Department under Hillary Clinton was highly incompetent before, during, and after the Benghazi attack, even indicating officials intentionally ignored the Stevens’ request for additional security. But a smoking gun that shows intentional deception on behalf of Clinton and aides, hasn’t surfaced.

Until now.

The lawsuit filed by Judicial Watch specifically focused on Secretary Clinton’s involvement in the Benghazi scandal, requesting “any and all records concerning, regarding, or related to notes, updates, or reports created in response to the September 11, 2012 attack” including “but not limited to, notes, taken by then Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton or employees of the Office of the Secretary of State during the attack and its immediate aftermath.”

The chain of internal emails listed below was put together by Judicial Watch, and it tracks the events surrounding the terrorist attack in real time at its onset. Remember, it was three days later on September 14, 2012 — just under two months before the hotly contested president election and a time Mitt Romney was leading Obama by 7 points according to Gallup — when Clinton and the entire Obama administration told the victims’ families that they would “get the man who made the inflammatory video.”

On September 11, 2012, at 4:07 PM, Maria Sand — who was then a Special Assistant to Mrs. Clinton — forwarded an email from the State Department’s Operations Center entitled “U.S. Diplomatic Mission in Benghazi is Under Attack (SBU) [Sensitive But Unclassified]” to top Clinton aide Cheryl Mills, Jacob Sullivan (then-Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy), Joseph McManus (then-Hillary Clinton’s Executive Assistant), and a list of other Special Assistants in the Secretary’s office:

The Regional Security Officer reports the diplomatic mission is under attack. Tripoli reports approximately 20 armed people fired shots; explosions have been heard as well. Ambassador Stevens, who is currently in Benghazi, and four COM [Chief of Mission] personnel are in the compound safe haven. The 17^th of February militia is providing security support.

Both Cheryl Mills and Jacob Sullivan are on the partial list of notable witnesses to be questioned by the House Select Committee on Benghazi, which Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C, released earlier this month. This latest round of emails will give the committee plenty of new information that was previously unavailable to them.

On September 11, 2012, 4:38 PM, State Department Foreign Service Officer Lawrence Randolph forwarded Mills, Sullivan and McManus an email from Scott Bultrowicz, who was the former director of the Diplomatic Security Service (a fired scapegoat), with the subject line, “Attack on Benghazi 09112012”:

DSCC received a phone call from [REDACTED] in Benghazi, Libya initially stating that 15 armed individuals were attacking the compound and trying to gain entrance. The Ambassador is present in Benghazi and currently is barricaded within the compound. There are no injuries at this time and it is unknown what the intent of the attackers is. At approximately 1600 DSCC received word from Benghazi that individuals had entered the compound. At 1614 RSO advised the Libyans had set fire to various buildings in the area, possibly the building that houses the Ambassador [REDACTED] is responding and taking fire.

Nearly seven hours later, at 12:04 am, on September 12, Randolph sent an email with the subject line “FW: Update 3: Benghazi Shelter Location Also Under Attack” to Mills, Sullivan, and McManus that has several updates about the Benghazi attack:

I just called Ops and they said the DS command center is reporting that the compound is under attack again. I am about to reach out to the DS Command Center.

This email thread also contained earlier, enlightening email updates:

September 11, 2012 11:57 PM email: “(SBU) DS Command reports the current shelter location for COM personnel in Benghazi is under mortar fire. There are reports of injuries to COM staff.”

September 11, 2012 6:06 PM (Subject: “Update 2: Ansar al-Sharia Claims Responsibility for Benghazi Attack (SBU): “(SBU) Embassy Tripoli reports the group claimed responsibility on Facebook and Twitter and call for an attack on Embassy Tripoli”

September 11, 2012, 4:54 PM: “Embassy Tripoli reports the firing at the U.S. Diplomatic Mission in Benghazi has stopped and the compound has been cleared. A response team is on site to locate COM personnel.”

The State Department emails reveal the first official confirmation of the death of Ambassador Stevens, which corroborates the testimony of Gregory Hicks, the whistleblower and highest ranking department official on the ground the night of the attack. On September 12, 2012, 3:22 AM, Senior Watch Officer Andrew Veprek forwarded an email to numerous State Department officials, which was later forwarded to Cheryl Mills and Joseph McManus, with the subject line “Death of Ambassador Stevens in Benghazi”:

Embassy Tripoli confirms the death of Ambassador John C. (Chris) Stevens in Benghazi. His body has been recovered and is at the airport in Benghazi.

Only two hours later, Joseph McManus forwarded the news about Ambassador Stevens’ death to officials in the State Department Legislative Affairs office with instructions not to “forward to anyone at this point.”

Cheryl Mills asks that the State Department stop answering press inquiries at 12:11 am on September 12, despite the ongoing questions about “Chris’ whereabouts.” In an email to State Department spokesman Victoria Nuland, Jacob Kennedy, and Phillipe Reines (then-Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Strategic Communications and Senior Communications Advisor), Mills writes:

Can we stop answering emails for the night Toria b/c now the first one [Hillary Clinton’s “inflammatory material posted on the Internet” statement] is hanging out there.

Earlier in the chain of emails, Nuland told Mills, Sullivan, and Patrick Kennedy (Under Secretary of State for Management) that she “ignored” a question about Ambassador Steven’s status and whereabouts from a CBS News Reporter. And when comparing the dates the reason is clear. The emails not only show how the Internet video talking points took root at the State Department, but also strike at the heart of the administration’s claim that there was no time to respond.

CIA contractors Kris (“Tanto”) Paronto, Mark (“Oz”) Geist, and John (“Tig”) Tiegen all claim the stand down order — which officials denied and they eventually disobeyed — delayed them a critical 30 minutes. Further, they agree that if they were not told to stand down, then Ambassador Chris Stevens and Sean Smith would still be alive. But the emails suggest administration officials were more concerned with the manifesting story about an Internet video than responding to the attack.

A top official was clearly eager to push a statement from the leftists Rabbi David Saperstein, who was then-Director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, a far left liberal group. The September 2012 statement names and condemns “the video that apparently spurred these incidents. It was clearly crafted to provoke, offend, and to evoke outrage.”

Michael Posner, who was then-Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, forwarded the statement on September 12, 2012, to Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Wendy Sherman, and Jacob Sherman with the note:

This is an excellent statement – our goal should be to get the Conference of Presidents, the ADL etc. to follow suit and use similar language.

Worth noting, just as then-Ambassador Susan Rice was subsequently promoted to National Security Advisor, so too did President Obama promote Rabbi Saperstein, who he nominated to be Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom in July 2014. The still-Democratic led Senate confirmed him in December 2014.

The documents also reveal concern for uncontrollable foreign press reports, which cited the cause of Ambassador Chris Steven’s death as being from asphyxiation. According to the reports, doctors attending Stevens said he could have been saved had he arrived at the hospital earlier.

The Obama administration blacked out reactions from White House and top State Department officials to news stories published on September 14, 2012, just two days after the attack. One of the reports quoted a visitor who criticized the lack of security at the Benghazi Special Mission Compound and another headlined, “America ‘was warned of attack and did nothing,’” a story supported by previously uncovered documents from Judicial Watch.

According to the documents shared with PPD, the emails obtained by Judicial Watch list well over 20 invited participants in a secure video teleconference, or what they refer to as a “SVTC.” Participating officials on the September 14, 2012, early morning call include senior White House, CIA, and State Department political appointees. The former head of the CIA, General David Petraeus, would later refuse to go along with the Internet video talking points, and was relieved of his post after an affair became public.

However, the Obama administration knew of the affair in April of that year, yet only leaked the story when the White House-CIA disagreement over Benghazi unfolded.

“The contempt for the public’s right to know is evidenced not only in these documents but also in the fact that we had to file a lawsuit in federal court to obtain them,” Fitton added. “The Obama gang’s cover-up continues to unravel, despite its unlawful secrecy and continued slow-rolling of information. Congress, if it ever decides to do its job, cannot act soon enough to put Hillary Clinton, Cheryl Mills, and every other official in these emails under oath.”

As PPD recently reported, Chairman Trey Gowdy, of the House Select Committee on Benghazi and a former prosecutor, said he and other committee members want to schedule the appearance of Hillary Clinton “as soon as possible.” However, Chairman Gowdy said he is waiting for the State Department to provide documents that were initially subpoenaed in 2013 but have yet to arrive. He said he wants time for the documents — which include those related to the State Department’s Accountability Review Board investigation and other relevant emails and the like — to be reviewed in order to “constructively ask questions of Secretary Clinton.”

It was only after Judicial Watch uncovered the Ben Rhodes emails, which were excluded in documents the administration previously produced to Congress in an identical request, that Speaker John Boehner allowed the May 8 2014 vote to establish a select committee. While Democratic Party leadership called the committee “a political witch hunt,” 7 Democrats voted with Republicans.

(Washington, DC) – Newly uncovered emails obtained

Chicago Biz Barometer: Midwest Manufacturing Activity Contracts In February

(Photo: REUTERS)

Midwest manufacturing activity fell to its lowest level since July 2009, according to the latest Chicago Business Barometer. The index formerly known as the Chicago Purchasing Managers Index, and an affiliate of the Institute of Supply Management (ISM), tumbled to 45.8 in February from January’s 59.4.

The closely-watched barometer fell below the 50-point threshold, which indicates that business activity is contracting for the first time since April 2013. The sharp fall in business activity in February came as Production, New Orders, Order Backlogs and Employment all saw double digit losses.

ISM said the West Coast port strike and the harsh winter “probably had a negative impact in February,” though it is difficult to gauge the magnitude if any at all.

“It’s difficult to reconcile the very sharp drop in the Barometer with the recent firm tone of the survey,” said Philip Uglow, chief economist of MNI Indicators,. There’s some evidence to point to special factors such as the port strike and the weather, although we’ll need to see the March data to get a better picture of underlying growth.”

The report also indicated that organized labor has negatively impacted manufacturing activity, particularly over the ongoing strike over more benefits:

Supplier Deliveries was the only component to increase between January and February with the port strike at least partly to blame. Unseasonably cold weather and the extreme blizzards seen on the East Coast also had an impact.

Purchasing managers reported days to source capital equipment were at the highest level since March 2008. New Orders suffered the largest monthly decline on record, leaving them at the lowest since June 2009. Lower order intake and output levels led to a double digit decline in Employment which last month increased markedly to a 14 month high.

The latest Chicago Business Barometer of Midwest

U.S. Economic Growth In 4Q Revised Lower

(Photo: Reuters)

U.S. economic growth in the fourth quarter slowed more sharply than initial government estimates indicated fueled by a wider-than-reported trade deficit, which subtracted 1.15 percentage points from GDP growth.

The Commerce Department said Friday that a slow pace of stock accumulation by businesses and a large trade deficit slowed gross domestic product to a 2.2 percent annual pace, revised down from the 2.6 percent pace estimated last month.

The economy grew at a 5 percent rate in the third quarter, but the 4Q revision was not in line with most expectations. As PPD previously reported, the trade deficit in December widened sharply to its highest level since 2012 despite lower energy costs, indicating initial 4Q growth estimates were inflated and would be revised down.

Growth in consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of U.S. economic activity, was revised down by one-tenth of a percentage point to a 4.2 percent pace in the fourth quarter. However, not that there is a high bar to beat, but it is still the fastest since the first quarter of 2006.

An alleged tightening in the labor market and lower gasoline prices were expected to prop up domestic consumer demand. But the number of Americans filing first-time jobless claims rose significantly last week, a clear indicator the labor market isn’t tightening as often argued. Initial unemployment benefit claims rose by 31,000 to a seasonally adjusted 313,000 in the week ended Feb. 21.

Business spending on equipment was revised to show it rising at a 0.9 percent rate, rather than the previously reported 1.9 percent contraction. Growth in final sales to domestic purchasers was revised to a 3.2 percent pace from the previous 2.8 percent rate, while businesses accumulated $88.4 billion worth of inventory in the fourth quarter, far less than the $113.1 billion the government had estimated last month.

That resulted in the GDP growth contribution from inventories being revised down to one-tenth of a percentage point from an initially reported 0.8 percentage point. However, it is possible that the slower pace of inventory accumulation will positively impact 1Q GDP growth.

Strong domestic demand sucked in more imports than previously reported, resulting in a trade deficit, which subtracted 1.15 percentage points from GDP growth, revised from the previously reported 1.02 percentage point drag.

Residential construction spending was also revised down, while 4Q government spending was not as weak as previously reported.

U.S. economic growth in the fourth quarter

Governor Walker waves as he arrives to speak at the 42nd annual Conservative Political Action Conference

Politics, Video

Gov. Scott Walker Knocks It Out Of The Park At CPAC 2015

Governor Scott Walker (R-WI) waves as he arrives to speak at the 42nd annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) at National Harbor, MD, February 26, 2015. (REUTERS/Joshua Roberts )

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker Thursday touted his experience taking on unions in his state, arguing he is prepared to take on challenges facing America. And the conservative activists in attendance ate it up, greeting him like a rock star outshining New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Dr. Ben Carson and Sen. Ted Cruz.

The likely Republican presidential contender made the comments — video below — on the first day of the Conservative Political Action Conference in National Harbor, Maryland.

The annual conference features more than a dozen potential Republican presidential contenders over three days hoping to win over conservative activists.

Asked how he would handle the Islamic State group if elected president, Walker said,

“For years I’ve been concerned about that threat, not just abroad but here on American soil,” Walker said. “If I can take on 100,000 protesters, I can do the same across the world.”

Walker is gearing up for a 2016 presidential contest in which foreign policy figures to play prominently. He also addressed the upcoming visit from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who will speak to Congress next week.

“We need a leader who understands that when the Prime Minister and leader of our long-time ally asks to come to Congress to share his concerns about Iran, we should show him and his country our respect,” Walker said. “We need to show the world, that in America you have no better ally and no greater enemy.”

Walker’s comments drew sharp reaction from defeated union leaders.

“It’s disgusting that Gov. Walker would compare everyday heroes — educators — to international terrorists,” said Betsy Kippers, a teacher and president of the Wisconsin Education Association Council.

Kippers and other union bosses will soon be forced to deal with right to work legislation, further degrading their long-time hold in a state where progressive labor got their start.

“Governor Scott Walker will sign legislation to make Wisconsin a “Right to Work” state, prohibiting employees from being forced to join a union against their will,” the governor’s camp told PPD Thursday. “It’s the right thing to do for job creators and employees alike.”

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker at CPAC Thurs.

Politics, Video

Sen. Ted Cruz At CPAC 2015: ‘Hillary Clinton Embodies Corruption Of Washington’

Sen. Ted Cruz at CPAC 2015: “Hillary Clinton embodies the corruption of Washington. We need to take Washington D.C. power back to the American people.”

Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz slammed likely 2016 Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton and aimed to separate himself from other 2016 GOP hopefuls.

“Hillary Clinton embodies the corruption of Washington,” Sen. Cruz said. “We need to run a populist campaign standing for hard-working men and women. We need to take the power out of Washington and bring it back to the American people.”

“Now how do you differentiate — there are lots of terrific candidates,” he added. “2016 looks like it’s going to be a crowded race.”

Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz slammed likely

News

The State Department’s Refugee Program Shouldn’t Be Terrorist-Funding Welfare Scam

Hillary Clinton argued against designating Boko Harum a terrorist organization when serving as Secretary of State.

While immigration is a very contentious issue for the politicians in Washington, there’s actually some level of agreement among people in the real world. Almost everybody agrees that it would be foolish and short-sighted not to allow some immigration, particularly from young, educated people with valuable skills.

Similarly, there is widespread agreement that you can’t have completely open borders, particularly for those who are unlikely to be net contributors to the economy.

So the real debate (and this is where there is a lot of room for disagreement) is who gets to come to America and under what conditions.

I don’t raise this issue because I have any wise words – much less proposed solutions – on the overall issue of immigration.

Instead, let’s look at the profoundly perverse way that the federal government is using the refugee program to expand the problem of dependency.

Here are some excerpts from a disturbing story in the Washington Times.

The State Department has helped to relocate tens of thousands of refugees from the war-torn African nation of Somalia to Minnesota, where they can take advantage of some of America’s most generous welfare and charity programs. …Most of Minnesota’s Somali population started off as legal refugees through a program administered by the U.S. State Department through the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration. Minnesota was selected among the nation’s states for relocation primarily because of its robust entitlement offerings.

Gee, isn’t that wonderful. We’re bringing people into the country and settling them where they can get the largest amount of handouts.

And apparently that’s Minnesota, the France of America.

“Minnesota is exceptional in many ways but it’s the closest thing in the United States to a true social democratic state,” said Ahmed Samatar, a professor of international studies at Macalester College, in St. Paul. “That translates into the way Somali refugees have been received here they’ve been given a secure environment, housing, education, health care, perhaps even some minimum income to sustain them until they can stand on their own feet. That’s all provided by Minnesota,” said Mr. Samatar, who has tracked the State Department’s refugee program. Outside Alaska, Minnesota spends more per low-income person on public welfare than any other state in the U.S., according to a report by the Center for the American Experiment, a think tank located in Minneapolis. The report found Minnesota outspent its average peer state in welfare subsidies by nearly $4,000.

Oh, just in case you’re thinking that maybe the situation isn’t so bad because at least private charities are involved, it turns out that those organizations are simply contractors for the government.

…the…charitable organizations operating within the state with which the State Department contracts …In addition to its generous welfare subsidies, Minnesota also has a number of charitable organizations that contract with the State Department like Lutheran Social Services, Catholic Charities, and World Relief Minnesota.

In other words, taxpayers are getting hit twice, once for official welfare payments and once for coerced “charity” laundered through groups jostling for space at the public trough.

At this point, you may be wondering whether all this spending is having a desirable effect?

As taxpayers, are we getting value for our money?

Yes, but only if you define dependency and unemployment as valuable.

Even though Minnesota has a good job market, that doesn’t seem to have translated into jobs for the Somali refugees. Minnesota’s state demographer’s office reports that only 41 percent of Somali men are working and 54 percent of Somali women are employed, meaning many may rely on the state’s handouts to survive, and are more susceptible to extremists pull. “It seems safe to assume that if they’re not working, then they’re likely receiving public welfare benefits,” said Peter Nelson, director of public policy at the Center of the American Experiment.

Amazingly, the left-wing governor of the state has doubled down on failure, expanding handouts.

Gov. Mark Dayton has expanded the state’s entitlement programs, although he remains mum on the state’s expense at doing so.

Though, to be fair, maybe he doesn’t care because Uncle Sam is the sugar daddy, picking up a big part of the tab.

“The state of Minnesota receives funding through the federal Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Refugee Resettlement to promote the successful resettlement and integration of refugees in Minnesota,” said a spokeswoman at the state’s Department of Human Services. …Minnesotans have also welcomed them onto their entitlement rolls, with the state’s cash assistance and food stamp programs, skyrocketing in recent years. The number of Somali adults and children who participated in the Minnesota’s family cash assistance program jumped 34 percent from 2008 to 2013, according to the state’s statistics. Likewise, Minnesota’s food assistance participation increased 98 percent, to 17,300 adults and children, which does not include U.S.-born Somalis, in the same timeframe.

At this point, you’re probably very upset. At least if you’re a taxpayer.

After all, haven’t we learned from painful experience that redistribution subsidizes poverty?

But I’ve saved the “best” for last.

…the effort is having the unintended consequence of creating an enclave of immigrants with high unemployment that is both stressing the state’s safety net and creating a rich pool of potential recruiting targets for Islamist terror groups. This population is…being targeted by Islamist terror organizations like the Islamic State and al-Shabab, a Somalia-based group with links to al Qaeda, according to U.S. officials. Among Minnesota-based Somali-Americans, American converts to Islam or Somali refugees, there have been numerous convictions for various levels of collaboration with Islamist terror groups, plus reports of fighting with al-Shabab or other Islamist groups.

Yup, tax dollars for terrorists.

It seems that these bums want a little excitement in their lives.

So they’re joining al-Shabab.

Since 2008, as many as 40 men from Minneapolis have joined Islamist groups after being pulled in by jihadists through social media, federal officials say. Last year, an American youth named Douglas McAuthur McCain died in Syria fighting for the Islamic State. Mr. McCain was recruited in Minnesota, where he lived. In 2009, another Minnesota youth, Troy Kastigar posted a recruiting video for al-Shabab before he was killed fighting for the terrorist group in Somalia. Kastigar and McCain are thought to have been friends. That same year a Somali man who left Minneapolis joined al-Shabab and blew himself up in a suicide bombing at an Ethiopian consulate in Somalia, killing 24 people.

Just like the Tsarnaev brothers. Just like the deadbeat scrounger from Australia, the nutjob moocher from the United Kingdom, and the wacko sponge in France.

So now let’s circle back to our main question. Why is the federal government bringing people into the country, luring them into dependency, and subsidizing terrorism?

Leftists sometimes like to tell us that “Government is simply the name for the things we do together.”

Well, “we” do some really stupid stuff when we act “together” through government.

Instead of a misguided refugee program that steers dodgy people into dependency, why not – with a condition of no handouts or dependency – open the door to Chinese engineers? Romanian software experts? Or Indian scientists? How about Nigerian businessmen? Maybe French doctors?

But I guess people who would assimilate and contribute to our economy aren’t as attractive as welfare recipients who despise our culture.

While immigration is a very contentious issue

Politics

Commissioner Says FCC Approved Internet Regulations Because Obama ‘Told Us To Do So’

AT&T store on New York’s Madison Avenue, left, and President Barack Obama on Saturday, Nov. 8, 2014, in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, right. (Photo: AP)

The Federal Communications Commission (FEC) Thursday voted to enact sweeping new regulations on the Internet long-sought by President Obama. In what was a straight party-line 3-2 vote following a contentious meeting, which is sure to be challenged in federal court by the broadband industry, the commission adopted so-called net neutrality — a proposal that remained secret in the run-up to the final vote.

Republican Commissioner Ajit Pai, who has supported Internet regulation at least in principle in the past, offered a scathing criticism and warned the policy represents a “monumental shift” to “government control of the Internet.”

Pai further said the Democrats on the commission did not vote based on the program’s merits or effectiveness, but because they were pressured by the Obama administration.

“President Obama told us to do so,” Pai said, accusing the FCC of bending to Obama’s will without proper debate and analysis. Pai also said that new taxes, and not just on the wealthy business owners and consumers, are inevitable.

“The order explicitly opens the door to billions of dollars in new taxes,” he said adding that rates will ultimately go up and broadband service will slow. “Read my lips: More new taxes are coming. It’s just a matter of when.”

Citing slower Internet speeds in Europe, which largely treats the Internet as a public utility, in warning that the additional regulation will lead to less investment and slower speeds in the U.S. as well.

“The Internet is not broken. There is no problem for the government to solve,” Pai said.

Republicans as a whole are blasting the plan Democratic Commissioner Mignon Clyburn voted for, and claimed “strikes the right balance.”

“The Obama Administration needs to get beyond its 1930s rotary-telephone mindset and embrace the future,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said in a statement. Fellow Republican member Michael O’Rielly called the plan a “monumental and unlawful power grab.”

While FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler said it would ensure an “open, unfettered network” by allegedly barring providers from creating paid “fast lanes” on the Internet, consumer advocates and Internet companies say it would exterminate cash-strapped startups and smaller Internet-based businesses.

“This extraordinary action has been justified by the desire to preserve net neutrality, but the FCC Order goes well beyond that reasonable objective,”National Cable and Telecommunications Association CEO Michael Powell said in a statement. “The FCC has taken the overwhelming support for an open Internet and pried open the door to heavy-handed government regulation in a space celebrated for its free enterprise. The Commission has breathed new life into the decayed telephone regulatory model and applied it to the most dynamic, free-wheeling and innovative platform in history.”

In 2005, net neutrality, which is the idea that websites or videos load at about the same speed, gained bureaucratic steam when YouTube came online and Netflix became increasingly popular. On-demand video became known as data hogs, and FCC claims began to surface that some providers were manipulating traffic without telling consumers.

By 2010, the FCC enacted open Internet rules, but the agency’s legal approach was eventually struck down. FCC officials would erase the legal ambiguity by no longer classifying the Internet as an “information service” but a “telecommunications service” subject to Title II of the 1934 Communications Act.

“Since the dawn of broadband Internet service, consumers have enjoyed a fully open Internet,” Powell added. “Our industry has always been committed to providing that experience to our customers. The day after this Order becomes law, consumers will see nothing different in their experience. However, they surely will bear the burden of new taxes and increased costs, and they will likely wait longer for faster and more innovative networks since investment will slow in the face of bureaucratic oversight.”

Twitter agreed, adding that their opposition to the new rules were a matter of protecting free expression.

“Safeguarding the historic open architecture of the Internet and the ability for all users to `innovate without permission’ is critical to American economic aspirations and our nation’s global competitiveness,” Twitter said in a statement.

Whatever the government’s true intent, the rules would put the Internet in the same regulatory camp as the telephone by classifying it like a public utility, meaning they’d have to act in the “public interest” according to what the FCC deems not to be “unreasonable” business practices when providing a mobile connection to your home or phone.

However, Pai said that while the plan defers a decision on applying a service fee to Internet bills — much like is applied to phone bills — that surely will change. NCTA CEO Michael Powell agrees, warning that the everyday American consumer and small business innovators will suffer under the new regulations .

“With years of uncertainty and unintended consequences ahead of us, it falls to Congress to step in,” Powell concluded. “Working together, our legislative leaders can protect an open Internet, while ensuring that it remains free for innovation without government permission and that it continues to create strong incentives to deploying ever-faster broadband to every American. The FCC has taken us in a distressing direction. We must now look to other branches of government for a more balanced resolution.”

What do the American people think?

The vast majority of Americans don’t believe the government should fix the Internet, and believe the Obama’s net neutrality plan is all about government control. According to a recent survey conducted by Rasmussen Reports, just 26 percent of American adults agree the FCC should regulate the Internet like it does radio and television.

Meanwhile, 61 percent disagree and think the Internet should remain free of government regulation and censorship. Further, 68 percent are concerned that if the FCC does gain regulatory control over the Internet, then the government will abuse the power and attempt to control online content, or promote a political agenda. A significant 44 percent plurality say they are “very concerned.”

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Thursday voted

‘Tightening Labor Market’? First-Time Jobless Claims Rise Significantly

The number of Americans filing first-time jobless claims rose significantly last week, a clear indicator the labor market isn’t tightening as often argued. The Labor Department said Thursday that initial unemployment benefit claims rose by 31,000 to a seasonally adjusted 313,000 in the week ended Feb. 21.

Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal had expected a significant yet far smaller 290,000 new claim increase.

Jobless claims measure layoffs across the economy and, because of difficulties adjusting for seasonal data, have been artificially hovering near levels last seen during the mid-2000s economic expansion. While the weekly figure is volatile, particularly due to holidays that included Presidents’ Day last week, the four-week rolling average is also pessimistic.

The four-week moving average — which irons out volatility — was 294,500, marking an increase of 11,500 from the previous week’s revised average. The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 1.8 percent for the week ending February 14, unchanged from the previous week’s unrevised rate.

The number of Americans filing first-time jobless

Durable Goods Rise By 0.3 Percent Excluding Volatile Transportation Sector

American workers at a manufacturing plant for long-lasting durable goods. (PHOTO: REUTERS)

The Commerce Department reported Thursday that new durable goods orders for big-ticket manufactured products expected to last three years rose in January. Orders for products like refrigerators and cars climbed to a seasonally adjusted 2.8 percent in January, or up $6.5 billion to $236.1 billion from a month earlier.

Unfortunately, much of the gain was due to the transportation sector, as gains were weak otherwise across-the-board. Excluding the volatile transportation sector, new durable goods orders rose by just 0.3 percent.

Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal had expected overall orders to rise 0.6 percent. Meanwhile, business spending on equipment and software-orders for non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft-increased 0.6 percent last month from December.

The slight yet weak increase follows two consecutive monthly decreases, including a 3.7 percent December decrease.

Shipments of manufactured durable goods in January, which have been down three of the last four months, decreased $2.7 billion or 1.1 percent to $245.1 billion. This followed a 1.5 percent December increase.