Pg 4)
Gorsuch’s opinion has explained why that is a job for Congress, echoing his prior statements on the role of the judge: “to put aside their personal politics and preferences to decide cases and to follow the law and not try and make it.”
And by echoing Scalia’s opinion in Johnson, this case also illustrates how Gorsuch carries Scalia’s legacy.

Pg 3)
Gorsuch’s concern in Dimaya was, like Scalia’s in Johnson, a fundamentally conservative one: hostility to vague laws and arbitrary power.
Gorsuch wrote that “vague laws … can invite the exercise of arbitrary power … by leaving the people in the dark about what the law demands and allowing prosecutors and courts to make it up.” Gorsuch explained:
The Immigration and Nationality Act requires a judge to determine that the ordinary case of the alien’s crime of conviction involves a substantial risk that physical force may be used. But what does that mean? Just take the crime at issue in this case, California burglary, which applies to everyone from armed home intruders to door-to-door salesmen peddling shady products. How, on that vast spectrum, is anyone supposed to locate the ordinary case and say whether it includes a substantial risk of physical force? The truth is, no one knows.
Gorsuch gave the following examples of the confusion that results from the “ordinary case analysis”:
Does a conviction for witness tampering ordinarily involve a threat to the kneecaps or just the promise of a bribe? Does a conviction for kidnapping ordinarily involve throwing someone into a car trunk or a noncustodial parent picking up a child from daycare? These questions do not suggest obvious answers.
Because the statute “leaves judges to their intuitions and the people to their fate,” Gorsuch wrote, “the Constitution demands more.”
And Gorsuch explained exactly why that is.
Looking to history, Gorsuch cited early American court cases and turned to the Federalist Papers for the principle that “without an assurance that the laws supply fair notice, so much else of the Constitution risks becoming only a ‘parchment barrier, against arbitrary power.”
And Gorsuch discussed exactly how vague laws might jeopardize other constitutional rights.
“Take the Fourth Amendment’s requirement that arrest warrants must be supported by probable cause,” Gorsuch wrote, “and consider what would be left of that requirement if the alleged crime had no meaningful boundaries.”
Finally, Gorsuch observed precisely how vague criminal laws undermine the separation of powers.
Only Congress may enact law, but if Congress writes vague statutes, Gorsuch wrote, then it leaves judges, prosecutors, and police “free to ‘condem[n] all that [they] personally disapprove and for no better reason than [they] disapprove it.’”
Thus, to “keep the separate branches within their proper spheres,” Gorsuch wrote, is “the more important aspect” of the vagueness doctrine.
And that is the most important aspect of Gorsuch’s opinion in Dimaya.
To judge how individual justices vote in particular cases in relation to one another, without regard to the substance of their opinions, unjustifiably politicizes the judiciary.
Dimaya is interesting not because of how the justices voted in relation to one another, but because of how the justices—especially Gorsuch and Justice Clarence Thomas—debated legal history and precedent, and did so respectfully.
Yes, the other conservative justices all dissented. Roberts dissented, joined by Thomas and Justices Anthony Kennedy and Samuel Alito, arguing that, unlike the law in Johnson, the statute at issue in this case was not vague.
Thomas also wrote a separate dissent, joined by Kennedy and Alito, challenging Gorsuch on the merits of the vagueness doctrine.
And yes, Gorsuch’s opinion is not what the government hoped for in this case.
The government had pointed to the executive’s “considerable constitutional authority” in immigration and foreign affairs but, as Gorsuch wrote, “to acknowledge that the president has broad authority to act in this general area supplies no justification for allowing judges to give content to an impermissibly vague law.”
Now, Congress can go back to the drawing board and draft a more precise law.

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The Immigration and Nationality Act

Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, any alien who is convicted of an “aggravated felony” in the United States is subject to deportation, regardless of their ties to the country. Congress defined “aggravated felony” by a long list of specific offenses and offense types (at 8 U.S.C. §1101(a)(43)), one of which is “a crime of violence” punishable by imprisonment for at least one year.

Congress defined “crime of violence” elsewhere, in 18 U. S. C. §16, in part by stating that it includes any felony “that, by its nature, involves a substantial risk that physical force against the person or property of another may be used in the course of committing the offense.”

Only that provision, known as the residual clause, was at issue in this case.

But in order to figure out which convictions trigger that residual clause, the court assesses the presence of “substantial risk” by looking not at the facts of the case, or the elements of the crime, but to “the ‘nature of the offense’ generally speaking,” and asks this: Does “‘the ordinary case’ of [this] offense pose[] the requisite risk”?

Immigration judges held that James Dimaya, a Philippine native and lawful permanent resident, is deportable because he was convicted—twice—of first-degree burglary under California law. The government sought to remove Dimaya after his second conviction, and immigration judges found that first-degree burglary counts as a “crime of violence” under federal law.

Dimaya appealed to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which ruled that the “residual clause” is unconstitutionally vague.

The 9th Circuit relied in part on Johnson v. United States, a 2015 opinion that the Supreme Court published while Dimaya’s appeal was pending.

In Johnson, the court struck down part of the definition of “violent felony” under the Armed Career Criminal Act on vagueness grounds.

That law increased the sentence of a defendant convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm if he had three or more previous “violent felony” convictions, which includes any felony that “involves conduct that presents a serious potential risk of physical injury to another.”

Scalia wrote the majority opinion for the court in that case, joined by Chief Justice John Roberts, Ginsburg, Breyer, Sotomayor, and Kagan.

Scalia concluded that the residual clause left “grave uncertainty about how to estimate the risk posed by a crime,” and further “uncertainty about how much risk it takes for a crime to qualify as a violent felony.” Rather than make up those aspects of the law himself, Scalia chose instead to send Congress back to the drawing board.

For that, Scalia’s opinion advanced the rule of law and the separation of powers.

Gorsuch’s Concurring Opinion

In his concurring opinion this week in Dimaya, Gorsuch provided thorough reasoning for a narrow conclusion: that “to the extent it requires an ‘ordinary case’ analysis, the portion of the Immigration and Nationality Act before us fails the fair notice test for the reasons Justice Scalia identified in Johnson.”

Gorsuch Defends the Rule of Law in Immigration Case.
Apr/18/18 John-Michael Seibler
If you take anything away from Justice Neil Gorsuch’s opinion concurring with the Supreme Court’s so-called “liberal” bloc in an immigration case this week, it should be his continued faithfulness to the rule of law and the separation of powers.
In Sessions v. Dimaya, Justice Elena Kagan wrote the court’s opinion—joined by Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor, and in part by Gorsuch—holding that part of the Immigration and Nationality Act, which defines a “crime of violence” for purposes of removal proceedings, is unconstitutionally vague.
Gorsuch wrote a separate opinion expressing concerns about how vague laws can lead to the arbitrary exercise of governmental power.
Some media outlets and noted conservatives have suggested that Gorsuch’s opinion is surprising or misguided, ruling with the liberal justices and against the Trump administration.
For example, a New York Post headline reads, “Gorsuch Sides With Liberal Justices in Supreme Court Immigration Vote.” And Mark Levin tweeted, “Gorsuch blows it, big time.”
Whatever you think of any immigration policies or other issues surrounding this case, one thing is clear: Gorsuch faithfully applied fundamental constitutional principles and upheld the rule of law.
In many ways, Gorsuch also carried on Justice Antonin Scalia’s legacy.
Consider what the law in this case required, and what Gorsuch wrote.

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The Newton-Azrak Award, in turn, is named after Patrol Inspectors Theodore L. Newton Jr. and George F. Azrak, who were killed in the line of duty after they were ambushed, overtaken, kidnapped, and executed by drug smugglers.
The death of those heroes prompted the inception of the Newton-Azrak Award, and it is particularly significant that this award has been given to two agents who saved lives, at the risk of their own.
And then there’s our friend, union President Paul Perez.
Thankfully, Hurricane Harvey didn’t hit the valley. But like any Texan, Paul doesn’t view his sphere and responsibility as limited to the immediate community in which he lives.
He stepped forward and helped lead relief efforts, to bring Border Patrol agents to help those in Hurricane Harvey. Boats and jet skis and agents went up to Houston to help rescue people in high-water rescue situations, because suddenly we had the Rio Grande in downtown Houston.
Over 2,000 man hours and hundreds of thousands of dollars of goods were donated by Border Patrol agents. The agents donated water, food, hygiene products, and medical supplies to the cities of Refugio and Port Aransas. The donated goods were transported from the union’s office in Edinburg in one 18-wheeler, seven U-Haul trucks, and two flatbed trailers.
Paul didn’t sit around and say, “Gosh, that’s really terrible what’s happening up there, sure hope somebody does something about it.”
That’s not Texas!
In Texas, when you see a need, you step forward and solve it.
Right now, there’s a great debate about the direction this country should go. It’s about different visions, different sets of ideas. There are some in Washington who believe our immigration laws shouldn’t be enforced, and that our borders should be open; that our cities should be sanctuaries for those who come to break the law; who believe the Constitution and the Bill of Rights are mere “rough drafts,” not deserving of protection.
But that’s NOT Texas!
The sense of duty to our fellow Americans, respect for the laws of the land, and boundless spirit of self-sacrifice shown by the heroic men and women of the Border Patrol is who we are.
Now, That’s Texas!

Border Patrol Agents Are American Heroes!
Apr/3/18 Sen. Ted Cruz
The following is adapted from a speech Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, delivered on April 3 at the National Border Patrol Council in Edinburg, Texas, and has been edited for length.
Growing up, my dad would tell me stories about the legends of Texas history. I’d dream of fighting alongside Col. William Travis, Jim Bowie, and Davy Crockett at the Alamo, or conquering the Wild West.
In the last five years I’ve served in the Senate, I have been incredibly privileged each and every day to encounter heroes every bit as glorious as those we looked up to as children.
They’re farmers, ranchers, and small business owners. They’re first responders and law enforcement, and members of the military—all of whom rush toward danger instead of away from it.
The liberal Left continue to push their radical agenda against American values. The good news is there is a solution.
And they’re the brave men and women of the Border Patrol, who go out every day in dangerous territory, risking their lives to protect the safety and security of our communities, of our families, of our homes.
One such man was Border Patrol Agent Javier Vega Jr., known as “Harvey” by his friends and family. On Aug. 3, 2014, Harvey was enjoying family time with his wife, Andrea; his sons, Jiovanni and Jarod; and his parents, Javier Sr. and Marie. They were fishing in one of their favorite spots, an isolated area in Willacy County about 35 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border.
As they were enjoying their day, two men, who were later identified as criminal illegal aliens, approached the family and attempted to rob them, subsequently opening fire on the family. Harvey was shot and killed during the commission of this criminal act while attempting to protect his family from these two criminals, who had BOTH been previously DEPORTED SEVERAL times!
Javier Sr. was also hit during the shootout, and is still recovering to this day.
Harvey lost his life doing what he had been doing all his life: protecting others.
As a former Marine, Harvey was drawn to the Border Patrol out of a sense of duty and patriotism.
Harvey has since been recognized and memorialized in the National Peace Officers Memorial and the Customs and Border Patrol Valor Memorial, and this coming May he’ll be honored in the Texas Peace Officers’ Memorial.
We salute the bravery, the heroism, and the sacrifice of heroes like Javier Vega.
Agents Remigio Guerra III and Anthony Anderson are both recipients of the prestigious Newton-Azrak Award, the Border Patrol’s highest award for bravery. Both agents are from the Laredo South Station.
They received this award for actions that resulted in the rescue of four illegal aliens from the Rio Grand River. Anderson risked his life by jumping into the river and pulling the subjects onto dry land, with the assistance of Guerra.

This is right on.
But why do we have border patrol when the stinking feds do not support them! Allowing a caravan of undocumented and some converted to Islam coming up from Honduras and Guatemala. When they leave their country, what happens to the $$ we send to those countries to help their people. Supplement the BP with N and U.S. Army.
Otherwise we are going to be run over just like Europe.
Why have ICE when these hordes are allowed in.
If Americans leave the country and return we must show ID, passports etc.
And this "Caravan" displays nothing.--
well except papers provided by Mexico!

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The institutes are complicit in these efforts to covertly influence public opinion and to teach half-truths designed to present Chinese history, government, or official policy in the most favorable light."
A major problem with the institutes is that the five-year contract signed by the host academic institutions gives the Chinese government total control over staffing and curriculum.
According to a report from the National Security Agency, teachers are paid and dispatched by the Chinese government, as are the institutes’ directors.
American academic deans have no input into Confucius activities and course offerings, and may not even know that a Confucius Institute is landing on their campus.
But with China offering grants of about $100,000 to $150,000 to cover annual operating expenses and with all staffing expenses paid for, U.S. colleges and universities have gratefully accepted the offer. ***GREED!***
Yet in doing so, they have sacrificed their academic integrity and independence, and potentially created inroads for Beijing to “covertly influence public opinion and to teach half-truths” to our students.

Confucius sys:
......"When in danger, or in doubt,
Run in circles, scream and Shout."
Texas A&M Shuts Down 2 Chinese Learning Institutes Deemed National Security Threats.
Apr/18/18 Helle Dale
Tensions between the U.S. and China just reached two college campuses in Texas.
On April 9, the Texas A&M University system announced its intention to close two 'Confucius Institutes' located at its College Station and Prairie View campuses, respectively.
The Chinese government-funded institutes offer language and cultural programming for students, but a recent letter from Reps. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, and Michael McCaul, R-Texas, flagged them as “a threat to U.S. national security,” saying they serve “as a platform for China’s intelligence collection and political agenda.”
In response, university Chancellor John Sharp decided to close the two institutes.
He released a statement saying:
We have great respect for Congressmen McCaul and Cuellar. I don’t question their judgment, nor their patriotism. In addition, they have access to classified information we do not have. We are terminating the contract as they suggested.
The liberal Left continue to push their radical agenda against American values. The good news is there is a solution.
This action follows similar decisions by the University of Chicago and Pennsylvania State University to sever their ties with China. Concerns over the Confucius Institutes, which are located at universities around the world, have been growing in recent years and have come under increased scrutiny from members of Congress, the media, and academic organizations like the American Association of University Professors.
Located primarily in the United States and other Western countries, ostensibly to 'further Chinese language' training and cultural programs, the number of institutes funded and controlled by the Chinese Ministry of Education has mushroomed.
According to a 2017 study by the National Association of Scholars, from their beginning in 2004, the number of Confucius Institutes housed at colleges and universities has grown to well over 1,000 worldwide and 103 in the United States.
In addition, over 500 Confucius classrooms are housed at American high schools.
In a hearing before the Senate intelligence committee on Feb. 15, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., asked FBI Director Christopher Wray what the intelligence community thinks of this Chinese presence on American campuses of higher education.
Wray confirmed that the FBI is monitoring Confucius Institutes around the U.S. and has ongoing investigations of some of them. He said:
"I think the level of naiveté on the part of the academic sector about this creates its own issues. They’re exploiting the very open research and development environment that we have, which we all revere, but they’re taking advantage of it.

GA GOP Candidate Lashes Out At Anti-Constitutional Carry Opponent.
Apr/24/18 by Tom Knighton
As a Georgia resident, I’ve been pleased with how we’ve managed to get back many of our rights in recent years. However, despite the pro-gun consensus in much of the state, it seems they haven’t progressed as far as I think they probably should have. After all, this is the pro-gun South. Why are we still requiring a permit when so many other states have gone with constitutional carry.
Then today, I get a press release from GOP gubernatorial candidate and state senator Michael Williams that seems to suggest an answer.
WILLIAMS SLAMS CAGLE FOR OPPOSING CONSTITUTIONAL CARRY. Apr/24/18
Conservative businessman and Republican candidate for governor, Senator Michael Williams released the following statement on Casey Cagle’s opposition to Constitutional Carry.
Yesterday, Cagle shockingly admitted to 11Alive News that he opposes Constitutional Carry and any other legislation that expands gun rights in Georgia.
“It seems every day another one of my fake conservative opponents slips up and tells the truth. Just one week after duping the NRA into believing he supported gun rights, Casey finally admitted he opposes Constitutional Carry, a basic gun right provided by the Constitution. Regular Georgians don’t have taxpayer funded armed security guards by our side every day like Casey. The 2nd Amendment is our security. When I’m governor, I will sign Constitutional Carry into law, expand gun rights, and allow law-abiding citizens to use their constitutional rights without government intrusion or permission.”
Yesterday, Casey Cagle told 11Alive’s Doug Richards that he opposes Constitutional Carry and that he doesn’t know any areas where gun rights need to be expanded in Georgia.
Republican Senator Michael Williams has co-sponsored and authored Constitutional Carry legislation in the Georgia State Senate multiple times over the last 4 years.
Sure enough, Cagle says exactly that.
In fact, he specifically states his opposition to constitutional carry!
But Cagle also said he’s not in favor of “constitutional carry” proposals that would allow legal gun owners to conceal and carry handguns without a permit.
A bill to eliminate carry permits got no traction in the 2018 session of the legislature.
“Georgia is in a very good position where our gun laws stand today,” Cagle said, adding he knows of no areas where gun rights need to be expanded in the state.
Cagle, our current Lt. Governor, is the frontrunner for the GOP nomination at this time.
However, this comment is a real problem for me.
We don’t need a permit to exercise our First Amendment rights. I can stand on a public street corner and say whatever I want without a permit. While permits are required for large protests, that has more to do with logistics than trying to limit speech in any way.
I don’t need a permit to exercise my right to not incriminate myself in a court of law. I simply exercise the right. That’s the thing about rights. They’re rights. You don’t need permission to exercise them.
But the Second Amendment is clearly about the right to keep and bear arms. Why must I beg for government permission to carry a handgun?
Georgia is a permissive open carry state; you need a permit to carry either concealed or openly, so it goes expressly against the Second Amendment to require permits for the carry of a handgun!
So NO, Lt. Governor Cagle, Georgia is not in a very good position where our gun laws stand.
It’s in a better position than it was a decade ago, but there’s still work to be done, and as a Georgia voter, I have to say that if you’re unwilling to help us get there, I’m sure one of the other candidates you’re running against will be happy to oblige us.

Federal Judge: Mr. Trump, You Have 90 Days To Restart DACA!
Apr/25/18 11:40 AM Matt Vespa
Well, the battle over what to do for recipients enrolled in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals has been thrown back into the frying pan.
Like crabgrass, this issue keeps arising—and causing headaches for the Trump administration.
The Trump White House decided to gradually phase out the constitutionally questionable program, effectively rescinding an executive order issued by former resident
obuma.
Yet, politically, they couldn’t leave almost one million illegal aliens subject to immediate deportation; the political consequences would be too great.
So, they added in a six-month enforcement delay, affording Congress time to pass a DACA fix.
In other words, the Trump White House gave Congress time to pass the law the right way.
Democrats weren’t playing ball. This was the best option since close to a dozen state attorneys general threatened to sue the Trump administration should they do nothing on DACA.
White House lawyers felt rightly that they couldn’t defend the law in court. So, here we are. Failed DACA fixes, government shutdowns over illegal aliens, and Democrats turning down the legalization of 1.8 million illegals, putting them on the pathway to citizenship, in exchange for border wall funding.
It’s been a whirlwind—an issue that’s been a thorn in the side of the administration. Health care is the other one.
So, what’s new? A federal judge says DACA has to be restarted, though he gave Department of Homeland Security three months to better elaborate on why this program should go,(via NYT):
In the biggest setback yet for the Trump administration in its attempt to end a program that shields some undocumented young adults from deportation, a federal judge ruled Tuesday that the protections must stay in place and that the government must resume accepting new applications. Judge John D. Bates of Federal District Court for the District of Columbia said that the administration’s decision to terminate the program, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, was based on the “virtually unexplained” grounds that the program was “unlawful.” The judge stayed his decision for 90 days and gave the Department of Homeland Security, which administers the program, the opportunity to better explain its reasoning for canceling it. If the department fails to do so, it “must accept and process new as well as renewal DACA applications,” Judge Bates said in the decision.
The ruling was the third in recent months against the Trump administration’s rollback of DACA.
Federal judges in Brooklyn and in San Francisco each issued injunctions ordering that the program remain in place. But neither of those decisions required the government to accept new applications.
For all the lawyers out there, feel free to chime in, but I thought the constitutionally shaky ground for DACA stemmed from the fact that the executive passed legislation.
We have separation of powers; DACA crossed that line. And the notion that a succeeding president can’t rescind an executive order of his predecessor sounds ridiculous.
On The Hill, there's chatter of a new DACA fix that has the support of at least 218 members of the House, which is enough for passage. It's a way to pressure Speaker Ryan to hold a vote, which he wasn't going to do!
We'll see what happens now though.

Pg 2)
And on the clinton Foundation:
Several of the emails demonstrate the commingling of clinton State Department and clinton family foundation business:
In a November 2010 email with subject line, “How do I get through to bill clinton,” Rafael Anchia, a lawyer with Haynes Boone, asks clinton campaign official Ed Meier if he could get to the “gatekeepers” to get bill clinton to give a speech in Spain, noting that “a large bank is willing to pay for it.”
Meier forwarded the email to former State Department Deputy Chief of Staff Jake Sullivan who forwarded it to former Deputy Chief of Staff huma abedin.
abedin sent it to bill clinton’s scheduler at the clinton Foundation, Terry Krinvic, who provided clinton’s contact information, to which Sullivan responded, “Awesome.”
In September 2011, Abedin sent Sullivan an email concerning the clinton Global Initiative (CGI) with “Potential questions for Closing Plenary conversation between Secretary clinton and chelsea clinton” in which abedin included some “proposed questions” to put to killary and chelsea clinton.
Four days later, Sullivan forwards a revised list of questions (completely redacted as interagency deliberative process) to abedin and clinton’s Chief of Staff, cheryl mills, saying, “Here are my proposed questions.”
“It is shameful that killary clinton attempted to delete or hide classified information and that obuma appointees james comey and lorretta lynch refused to prosecute her,”
Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton said about the finding. “It is clear that the clintons were using the State Department to run an extensive influence peddling scheme. Americans should be concerned that while untold resources are devoted to the abusive Mueller special counsel investigation of President Trump, this Justice Department seems uninterested in prosecuting the clintons.”

Judicial Watch Finds New Classified Emails, Others Confirm Collusion Between State Department and clinton Foundation.
Apr/25/18 3:30 PM Katie Pavlich
Government watchdog Judicial Watch has found a series of new emails belonging to former Democrat presidential candidate killary clinton that contain classified information.
They were stored on her unsecured server. Further, they show collusion between the clinton Foundation and the State Department.
Out of 281 pages of new emails, ten contain classified information and "appear to be among those that clinton had attempted to delete or had otherwise failed to disclose."
Here's the list of classified information they found:
A document labeled “plan” was completely redacted as classified.
A November 2012 email chain discusses the “Mid East” and includes then-Deputy Chief of Staff Jake Sullivan, Blair as “aclb” and cinton.
Another November 2012 email chain discusses the “Mid East” and includes Sullivan, clinton's office manager Claire Coleman, Blair and clinton.
A November 2012 email chain fully redacted is titled “Mid East Peace” and includes Blair, clinton, obuma’s -Special Envoy to the Middle East David Hale.
Sullivan and Blair's Chief of Staff and former Downing Street aide Catherine Rimmer.
In an April 2011 email exchange between Blair, clinton and Sullivan concerning “Israel,” Blair says he “had another long session with BB Netanyahu.”
A May 2011 exchange concerns “Israel” and includes Blair, clinton and Sullivan.
A May 2011 email concerns “Palestinians” and includes Blair, clinton and Sullivan. Blair says, “I’ve also sent you a paper.”
A June 2011 email regarding “Israel” includes Blair, Sullivan and clinton. Blair says, “Saw Israeli PM. Put the concept of a Q statement. He was receptive. Palestinians interested too. I know there are discussions also you guys are having. And the French initiative….”
In a July 2011 email – with several national security redactions – written by Blair to clinton and Sullivan, Blair says, “I saw BB… Molcho, chief negotiator in the Israeli negotiating team with the Palestinians, will speak to -David Hale. I can see Cameron and Sarkozy with David… I saw Egyptians….”
A September 2010 email exchange is titled “Info for you,” and includes Sullivan, Blair and cinton. Blair writes that he just spent three hours with Netanyahu, and Sullivan, using his Sprint BlackBerry, he writes “We have pitched this to redacted.”

Victory? GOP Holds Arizona House Seat in Special Election Win, However...
Apr/25/18 1:05 PM by Guy Benson
CNN has a point here. On the surface, Republicans held a House seat in Arizona last night, winning a special election to fill the seat vacated by a former Congressman who resigned under strange circumstances. This was a red district in a red state, and Democrats put up a relatively weak and inexperienced nominee who held far-left views on issues like healthcare and abortion. The GOP and aligned groups dropped roughly a million dollars in insurance money to deny Democrats another momentum-building upset in Trump country, while the opposition spent very few resources. So on paper, this was an easy win. When the votes were tallied, it was a win -- and that's what ultimately counts -- but the nature of that victory isn't likely to reassure anxious Republicans.
The victor, conservative Debbie Lesko, prevailed by less than six percentage points in a district Trump carried by 21 points in 2016. That same year, the now-departed House incumbent won with nearly 69% of the vote, and the Dems
didn't even field a candidate, a member of the Green Party got crushed instead.
That's quite a swing -- and it's one that reflects the double-digit shift toward Democrats we've been tracking in off-year and special elections since last year.
Usually, the losing team's excuses and spin ring hollow the morning after a defeat. But there's more than a little bit of truth to the Left's narrative today:
And with Republicans defending an open Senate seat in Arizona this year and possibly two, these facts from last night aren't terribly reassuring either:
I realize these are uncomfortable things for conservatives to read, but burying our heads in the sand won't make the truth go away.
Remember, these aren't just polls, "the polls were wrong in 2016!" These are results.
And as we highlighted yesterday, when a president's
"deserves re-election" standing is hovering in the high 30's, bad things happen to his party in the subsequent midterm cycle.
The data shows that the GOP has bled support in every single federal special election since Trump became president. Barring an unforeseen change in the political winds, it's looking like triage will be the name of the game for Republicans this fall.
By the way, the too-close-for-comfort outcome in Arizona wasn't the only concerning result from yesterday's special elections:
This is the stuff waves are made of.
To repeat: We're not cherry-picking wavey data points. Virtually all of the relevant data points look wavey, even the "good" ones. We've written up a few surveys lately that have shown the president's approval ticking up and Republicans gaining on Democrats on the generic ballot -- but a handful of new polls out today show a comfortable Democratic lead:
That closely mirrors new findings from Politico/YouGov, which puts the national ballot at D+9.
I'll leave you with another nugget from that survey, pertaining to the post-passage battle over tax reform:
Politico poll (generally ugly for Trump/GOP) shows a plurality in favor of TaxReform (44/39), despite most saying they haven’t noticed their beefed up paychecks. R’s must focus on improving awareness on that latter point.
Guy Benson

ICYMI: Anti-Gunners Vandalized A Top NRA Official's Home!
Apr/25/18 4:18 PM Matt Vespa
So, in the Left’s war against the National Rifle Association, some tried to take the war home to its top people. Chris Cox, the head of the NRA’s Institute for Legislative Affairs, its lobbying arm, found his house plastered with fake blood. His wife’s business has also been targeted. The harassment has been going on for quote some time.
National Rifle Association lobbyist Chris Cox says his house was splashed with fake blood — twice.
Then, someone made a fake website for his wife’s interior design business, altering images of artwork to show photos of child gun-violence victims.
Last week, two gun-control activists protested outside Cox’s Alexandria, Va., home and handed out fliers outside his wife’s nearby business.
“Mr. and Mrs. Cox have been targeted over the past few months by repeated acts of criminal and unlawful conduct, including having their home vandalized on two occasions,” Elizabeth Locke, attorney for the Cox family, said in a statement. “These coordinated tactics have crossed the line of civility and human decency.”
An attorney for Patricia Hill, the alleged vandal, did not immediately provide a comment regarding the fake-blood incidents.
The other protesters say they have been careful not to cross legal lines and knew nothing of the vandalism. They are all part of a growing movement that insists gun-control advocacy should be more aggressive — and more personal.
Amanda Gailey, from Nebraska, and Catherine Koebel, from southwestern Virginia, met through gun-control-activist circles and connected over agreement that the movement has been too timid. Calling themselves “The Great American Gun Melt,” they want to pull gun-control politics to the left with more radical action.
Now, Hill is facing misdemeanor destruction of property charges (via AP):

Protesters are targeting the northern Virginia home of the National Rifle Association’s top lobbyist and say the protests will continue.

In one case, court records show Patricia Hill of Lincoln, Nebraska, has been charged with misdemeanor destruction of property outside the home of NRA lobbyist Chris Cox.

Alexandria Police spokeswoman Crystal Nosal said Friday there were two separate incidents stretching back to last fall.
A court hearing has been scheduled for May 21.
Now, Mr. Cox, the NRA, and the rest of the gun rights movement should have expected this, and I bet they did.
The NRA, which is one of the oldest civil rights organizations in the country, is vilified to no end by the news media. It doesn’t make it okay, however.
Now, as for Amanda Gailey and Catherine Koebel, the two women who just hold signs outside his home, it’s their right to do that.
Their push to yank the gun control movement further to the left is annoying. But it’s not a massive protest, and there’s a silver lining.
If anything, these women are doing their part in filling the NRA’s coffers.
It’s the cumulative effect. Recently, the organization had its best month in fundraising in 15 years!
So, keep vandalizing, keep acting like crazy people. You’re getting the gun rights base more motivated to vote in 2018. The Left peddling full-blown gun confiscation. Let’s see how that works out.
"Threatening people at their homes and businesses, vandalizing their homes and terrorizing their families, including young children, will not persuade anyone to disarm." Dana Loesch

Yeti Offers Reason For Canceling Order, But NRA Doubles Down!
4:00 pm Apr/5/8 by Tom Knighton
Yeti isn’t having a good week. First, they canceled a bunch of NRA-related orders, then they tried to tell people that it had nothing to do with the heat the NRA is experiencing these days. A lot of people weren’t buying it.
Among those people were the folks at the NRA.
“Yeti severed ties with the NRA and is now engaging in damage control after a backlash from many of its customers,” Marion Hammer, past NRA president and head of the group’s affiliate organization in Florida, told Guns.com.
“In early March, Yeti refused to place a previously negotiated order from NRA-ILA, citing ‘recent events’ as the reason – a clear reference to the tragedy in Parkland, Florida,” said Hammer, going on to say the company then delivered notice to the NRA Foundation that it was ending a seven-year agreement and demanded that the gun group remove the Yeti name and logo from the NRA’s websites and print material.
“While Yeti is trying to spin the story otherwise, those are the facts,” Hammer said. “While Yeti can choose to run from the NRA, they can’t run from the facts.”
In response to Yeti’s post laying out their side of the story, some 11,000 have commented, with some accepting the company’s assertions that NRA jumped the gun, with many others choosing to take a different path.
“And this folks, is what is called a ‘back pedal’ in marketing terms…” wrote commentor Kory Gausen, in a comment liked over 2,500 times.
Others pointed to an incident where Yeti backtracked when called out on a “gun free zone” established in their flagship retail store in Austin last year.
In other words, this ain’t looking good for Yeti.
I’ll be honest, when I first heard of what was happening,
I wondered if it was just a general kind of thing that the NRA happened to get wrapped up in.
But when I found out that orders had to be canceled,
I knew the truth.
When programs are discontinued, businesses generally handle it by sending out an email to all who are participating.
It’s a formal letter kind of email explaining that they’re canceling this discount program and what, if anything,
will take its place.
I’ve gotten dozens of them through the years.
What doesn’t typically happen, however, is to have existing orders canceled. Nor is it typical for “recent events” to be referenced in any way, other than referring to something that happened at the company where there’s no ambiguity.
Yeti made a decision. Now they’re having to live with that decision, and they don’t like it.
They really don’t like that so many of their competitors have stepped up to fill the void for many of their potential customers!
In addition to RTIC, Pelican Coolers is offering to make a donation to the NRA when customers make certain purchases!
Other companies who make similar coolers are making it clear they support the Second Amendment, as well.
Yeti is making the noises, we know that they’re overpriced anyway!!

Beware: Politically Motivated Violence Is Reportedly on the Rise.
2:00 pm Apr/25/18 by Tom Knighton
When we see unrest in other countries, one of the hallmarks seems to be politically motivated violence. These guys kill those guys because those guys have different opinions on how to run the country. Those guys then kill these guys in both retaliation and because these guys have different opinions on how to run the country.
And those opinions on how to run the country have real-world impact. It’s one thing when the communist is some guy spouting nonsense at the coffee shop. It’s another when a large number of them are gaining ground and actually take over the nation.
Either way, it seems politically motivated violence is on the rise in the U.S.
Making the click-through worthwhile: How a small act of vandalism in Alexandria, Va., suggests we’re likely to see more politically motivated violence, not less; America’s gun owners send a message with their wallets; and a horrific act in Toronto that technically wasn’t formal terrorism but is starting to feel indistinguishable from it.
Back in 2003, Chris Hedges wrote a book entitled War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning. his 2008 book, American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War on America. Still, there’s a lot of truth in the title.
We’re in a battle, we’re charging forward, we’re crusading for a cause, we’re chasing a goal, we’re fighting for our beliefs, we’re taking a beating, we’re getting flak, our proposal is shot down, we’ve reached a ceasefire.
A new idea represents a “revolution.”
Perhaps politics is another force that gives many Americans meaning. It gives them an enemy, a target and focus for all of their worst impulses and feelings. Very few of us can completely escape the temptation to feel hate, contempt, disdain, and a desire for someone else. Politics gives us a target and an excuse.
See those people over there? They’re not just mistaken or wrong, they’re trying to destroy the country. They’re “a basket of deplorables,” as killary put it.
Ted Nugent — not merely a rock star, but member of the board of the National Rifle Association — declares “the evidence is irrefutable,” the Parkland survivors who are pushing gun control “have no soul.” No one feels guilt about attacking a vampire or a zombie or a robot; their lack of a soul means there is no moral consequence.
Connecticut governor Dannel Malloy decreed, “The NRA acts like a terrorist organization” and defends the label because the organization “uses fear to coerce.” No word on whether the governor believes labeling another group of people “terrorists” is using fear to coerce as well.
Yes, the rhetoric is bad. I can’t help but believe the anti-gun left is the one ramping up the violence. After all, we had a group of GOP lawmakers targeted and shot at by a Bernie Sanders supporter, leaving Rep. Steve Scalise seriously injured.
Republican Rep. David Kustoff was run off the road due to his vote on a bill.
So far, there’s not really anything close to that from our side. The worst you can say is that there are some racist jackwagons out there causing harm, but those are people that neither conservative or liberals defend.
If this trend continues, more and more of us may well find ourselves having to defend our beliefs, ourselves and our families with more than just words.
If you ever needed a reason to train, this is it. Not only do you run the risk of being targeted by criminals for whatever reason, but it seems there may be a possibility some jackwagon wants to off you because of your failure to support something like universal healthcare.
No, it probably won’t get that bad. The question is, do you want to take that chance?

That means practically no one would be able to buy Ruger products. They’d be forced to compete for limited government contracts.
Why should Ruger support that?
Let’s say Ruger decided to bow down to Amalgamated’s demands. What then?
Then Ruger would become a pariah in the firearm industry.
Second Amendment advocates, most of whom are already gun owners and gun purchasers, would make it their mission to warn people off from buying Ruger products. “They’ll sell to you, but they won’t support your Second Amendment rights,” we’ll say, and we’ll be right.
This will directly impact their bottom line.
Luckily, Amalgamated probably doesn’t have the juice it’s pretending it does. Amalgamated isn’t listed as one of the top-20 investors in the company, which means any impact it makes is likely fairly minimal. While it’s possible it will pick up more shares to increase its ability to pressure the company, it’s unlikely it’ll do so sufficiently to really have much sway.

In fact, I wonder just how many shares of Ruger it owns, anyway. After all, based on its corporate culture–it’s the largest union-owned bank in the country–and how most of its notable clients are progressive/liberal entities, I’d be surprised to see it having owned many gun stocks prior to Parkland.

Oh, I’ll admit it may well have. Hypocrisy is hardly new in gun grabber circles, after all. But I still have my doubts.

Either way, though, Ruger would be stupid to bow down to these demands. There’s literally no upside for the company to do so, which Amalgamated doesn’t seem to get.

Bank Threatens Ruger Over NRA Ties.
4:00 pm Apr/24/18 by Tom Knighton
It stands to reason that gun companies would support the National Rifle Association. The NRA wants to keep as large a pool of people being able to buy guns as possible. That means gun manufacturers would have a much larger base of people to sell their products to. In other words, supporting the NRA is rational self-interest, if nothing else.
However, a bank is threatening Sturm, Ruger & Company over its NRA support.
Amalgamated Bank said it will pull investments from Sturm, Ruger & Company and withhold support for an board member if the gun maker fails to adopt new corporate policies and cut ties with the National Rifle Association. The bank’s chief executive Keith Mestrich described Ruger’s relationship with the NRA as “short-termism” in their resistance to new gun laws.
“They fail to proactively adopt corporate social responsibility efforts commensurate with the lethality of their product, and display hypocrisy in touting adherence to the law while working with the NRA to weaken the law as much as possible,” Mestrich said. He made a fiduciary argument that Amalgamated would have to pull funds because Ruger’s effort “creates significant financial and reputational risks” that will hurt the company and shareholders.
Amalgamated sent a letter, dated April 19, to Ruger’s board urging them to adopt corporate policies for gun makers recommended by gun control group Everytown for Gun Safety. The policies range from endorsing universal background checks and increasing funding for federal regulators and gun violence research to monitoring inventory distribution and investing in gun safety technology (ie smart guns).
The letter also singled out company board member Sandra Froman, who also serves on the NRA’s board. Because of the NRA’s political mission, the bank argued her presence is “a potentially significant conflict of interest.” As shareholders participating in Ruger’s annual meeting on May 9, the bank threatened to withhold support for Froman if the company failed to adopt Everytown’s policies.
What Amalgamated doesn’t get is that Ruger and the NRA share the same fight, if for different reasons.
The endgame of all gun control policies is to eventually restrict gun ownership to just a select few, making it practically impossible for the average citizen to own a gun.

Another Store Chain Announces It Will Stop Selling Firearms.
8:30 am Mar/21/18 Tom Knighton
There is a strong anti-Second Amendment bias running through the veins of several American stores lately. Some, like Walmart and Dick’s, have decided age discrimination is a viable strategy to virtue signal. Others like Kroger have hoisted their flags in other ways.
So, when store chain Fred Meyer announced they were out of the firearm business as well, the kneejerk reaction by some was to assume it was virtue signaling as well.
Luckily, that doesn’t seem to be the case.
Superstore company Fred Meyer will stop selling guns and ammunition. The Portland, Oregon, -based chain in a statement Friday said it made the decision after evaluating customer preferences. The company sells guns at nearly 45 of its 132 stores in Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Alaska.
“Fred Meyer has made a business decision to exit the firearms category,” the company said. “We are currently working on plans to responsibly phase out sales of firearms and ammunition!”
Of course, those who remain skeptical do have a good reason. After all - The company, a subsidiary of Cincinnati, Ohio,-based Kroger Co., didn’t give a timeline in the statement.
Fred Meyer spokesman Jeffery Temple in an email to The Associated Press on Saturday said the company wasn’t offering interviews. Interesting, no?
However, the company maintains that its decision had nothing to do with Parkland.
Fred Meyers was set to follow Walmart and Dick’s in discriminating against adult Americans but decided to just get out of the gun business entirely.
The company said the firearms category represents about $7 million annually of its revenue and sales have been declining.
“We made the decision early last week after evaluating changing customer preferences and the fact that we’ve been steadily reducing this category in our Fred Meyer stores over the last several years due to softening consumer demand,” the company said. “More recently we have been transitioning away from gun departments as a result of our ongoing work to optimize space in our Fred Meyer stores.”
Frankly, I can accept making a business decision to not sell guns. Most so-called superstores only seem to sell a few guns and, if my local Walmart is any indication, there’s never anyone there to actually sell you the damn gun in the first place.
If that’s the norm at most of these places, then there’s little reason to assume guns would ever generate much revenue for them.
So, are they virtue signaling or not?
I’m inclined to think not. After all, they were virtue signaling when they decided to follow Dick’s lead and raise the age they’d sell guns to, so if this was a decision motivated by pandering to the anti-gun left, I have to believe they’d admit it. They’re saying no such thing, so I believe them.
It’s a shame, though. They only sold guns at 45 of 135 locations and then wonder why firearm sales aren’t a bigger part of their revenue stream. It makes you wonder just where they sold them and how that might have impacted sales as well. After all, you’re going to do a lot better selling guns in a store in rural Montana than you would in New York City.
Either way, they’ve made their decision. I suspect it won’t even amount to a ripple for the most part.

Real American: Waffle House Hero Raises Money For Victims.
Apr/24/18
The hero who disarmed a shooter who killed four people at a Tennessee Waffle House early Sunday has raised nearly $100,000 — and counting — for the victims’ families since the tragedy!
The 29-year-old suspect, Travis Reinking, was arrested Monday after a daylong manhunt. He was originally jailed on $2 million bond; that was revoked today.
Reinking is accused of pulling up to a Waffle House in his pickup truck at 3:19 a.m. and sitting for three to four minutes before climbing out and fatally shooting Taurean C. Sanderlin, 29, of Goodlettsville, an employee of the restaurant, and patron Joe R. Perez, 20, of Nashville; both were standing outside.
Wearing only a jacket, he also shot up the front window of the location. Inside, the gunman fatally shot DeEbony Groves, 21, of Gallatin, and Akilah Dasilva, 23, of Antioch.
Two others were wounded: Shanita Waggoner, 21, of Nashville, and Sharita Henderson, 24, also of Antioch.
Waffle House customer James Shaw, Jr., 29, was in the restroom and seized an opportunity to rush Reinking, fighting the killer for his gun and tossing it over the counter. Reinking fled and shed his jacket nearby; in it, police found two more magazines for his rifle.
Shaw, a Nashville native, attended Tennessee State University and works for AT&T. He has a 4-year-old daughter. He was grazed by a bullet and suffered third-degree burns from grabbing the barrel of the rifle. After being treated and released, he was in church Sunday alongside Nashville Mayor David Briley.
Shaw told CNN on Monday evening that he realized a shooting was happening "when the glass was broke and shattered and there was dust in the air."
"And I looked back and there was a gentleman right there beside the entrance of Waffle House. And he was laying there on the ground. He was no longer alive. And he shot again and that's when I jumped from my seat and kind of slid on the ground to the entrance up the bathroom," Shaw said. "When he started shooting, I actually jumped and lunged towards the bathroom area and I was actually looking at him and then when he -- he actually shot towards the bathroom area and I was actually grazed with a bullet in my upper right elbow. After that I think he had to reload. I saw an opportunity to kind of take advantage of him."
"So I ran through the door as fast as I could and I hit him with the door and that kind of made him a little woozy and he kind of let go of the gun. And then he was tussling for the gun, kind of wrestling for it. And he had it in one hand and that's when I took it from him."

Will US Citizens Be Released From North Korean Jail As Precondition For Peace Talks?
Apr/19/18
President Trump said the U.S. is working to secure the release of three U.S. citizens held by North Korea, but didn’t say if their release would be a precondition of the meeting Trump plans to hold with Kim Jong-un.
At a joint press conference at Mar-a-Lago with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Trump was asked why CIA Director Mike Pompeo didn’t bring home the hostages when he recently visited Pyongyang or return with any indication of such concessions by the North Koreans.
“Do you intend, or are you willing to sit down with Kim Jong-un if Americans are still being held in North Korea?” a reporter asked Trump.
The president replied, “The fact is that they do have three prisoners. We have been talking about them. We’re negotiating now. We are doing our very best. As you know, they’ve been there a long time. And it’s harsh treatment.”
Kim Dong Chul, a U.S. citizen detained in North Korea.
A North Korean court has sentenced the ethnic Korean U.S. citizen to 10 years in prison for what it called acts of espionage.
President Trump said the U.S. is working to secure the release of three U.S. citizens held by North Korea, but didn't say if their release would be a precondition of the meeting Trump plans to hold with Kim Jong-un.
At a joint press conference at Mar-a-Lago with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Trump was asked why CIA Director Mike Pompeo didn't bring home the hostages when he recently visited Pyongyang or return with any indication of such concessions by the North Koreans.
"Do you intend, or are you willing to sit down with Kim Jong-un if Americans are still being held in North Korea?" a reporter asked Trump.
The president replied, "The fact is that they do have three prisoners. We have been talking about them. We're negotiating now. We are doing our very best. As you know, they've been there a long time. And it's harsh treatment."
"We fought very hard to get Otto Warmbier back. And when we came back, he was in very, very bad condition. It was a very sad event!" Trump said of the University of Virginia student who died days after his return last summer.
"We are likewise fighting very diligently to get the three American citizens back. I think there's a good chance of doing it. We're having very good dialogue. We will keep you informed. But we are in there, and we are working very hard on that."
"We have come a long way with North Korea," he continued. "We were, as you know -- and when I say 'we,' for many years they have been talking to North Korea and nothing has happened. This should have been taken care of by past administrations when they were not nearly so far along. But we put unbelievably powerful sanctions on, and many other things."
Trump didn't mention the three hostage Americans by name.
They are:
Kim Dong Chul, a businessman and naturalized U.S. citizen who previously lived in Fairfax, Va., was arrested in North Korea's special economic zone in October 2015 and accused of spying for the South Koreans, which Seoul denied. In a forced confession, Kim said he was guilty of espionage and spreading Christianity. Kim, 64, was sentenced to 10 years of hard labor.
Tony Kim, also known as Kim Sang-duk, 59, was a professor at China's Yanbian University of Science and Technology who had been visiting to teach at Pyongyang University of Science and Technology, the only private college in the country with a sizable foreign staff, for a period of several weeks. Kim had also been a humanitarian aid worker in North Korea and helped deliver critical foreign aid to regions devastated by 2016 floods. He and his wife were arrested in April as they tried to fly out of the country; she was released while he was detained and accused of committing hostile acts.

In a statement signed by its Director of Communications, Fr. Moses Iorapuu and made available to newsmen read in part, “Reverend Fathers Joseph Gor and Felix Tyolaha have been confirmed dead in the deadly attack by herdsmen/Jihadists early today,Tuesday on Mbalom village and St. Ignatius Quasi Parish Ukpor-Mbalom.”
Iorapuu, who regretted that the herdsmen in their classic style, burnt down homes, destroyed food items and killed at will maintained that the police seemed to know nothing of the attacks which have been going on in other villages within Benue State since the Anti Open Grazing Law came into effect last year.
“Many people are asking why the International community has remained silent over the massacre of Benue citizens?
“The answer is simple: It has been the goal of the Jihadists to conquer Benue and Tiv people who resisted their advance into the middle belt and the Eastern part of Nigeria since 1804, the people who rejected islam and fought for the unification of Nigeria in the civil war of 1967 – 1970.
“The people of Eastern Nigeria therefore have little sympathy for Benue people who fought on the side of Nigeria .
The muslim North is enjoying a sweet revenge over
shadowed by an insensitive regime.
He lamented that there are over 170,000 internally displaced persons in eight camps in Benue before the Naka invasion stressing that this current invasion of Mbalom would further swell the humanitarian crisis the state is already faced with….

Catholic Church Attacked, 2 Priests & 17 Parishioners Dead! Why No Media Attention?
Apr/25/18 By Robert Spencer
Nigeria: muslims raid church, murder two Catholic priests, 17 parishioners.
What? A Catholic church? There must be some mistake. Pope Francis has claimed that “authentic islam and the proper reading of the koran are opposed to every form of violence!”
It has become a superdogma in the Catholic Church:
if you don’t believe that islam is a Religion of Peace, you will be ruthlessly harassed and silenced by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and the hierarchy elsewhere as well. The bishops of the Catholic Church are much more concerned that you believe that islam is a religion of peace than that you believe in, say, the Nicene Creed.
So we can only hope that Pope Francis and a few choice members of the USCCB is on his way to Nigeria now to explain to these Fulani herdsmen that they’re misunderstanding their peaceful religion.
“Leave them; they are blind guides. And if a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit.” (Matthew 15:14)
“JUST IN: Herdsmen kill two Catholic priests, 17 parishioners in Benue,” by Rose Ejembi, Sun News Online, April 24, 2018 (thanks to the Geller Report):
At least 19 people including two Catholic priests and parishioners were, on Tuesday, killed by suspected Fulani herdsmen in Ayar Mbalon village, Gwer East Local Government area of Benue State.
Daily Sun gathered from sources that the parishioners and the priests had gone for early morning mass at about 5:30a.m. when the herdsmen who stormed the village and the church wasted no time in spraying bullets on everyone in sight.
Our correspondent observed that since Governor Samuel Ortom traveled out of the country, spate of killings in the state in the last few weeks seemed to be on the increase as hardly a day passes without news about herdsmen killing.
“The rampaging Fulani herdsmen this morning attacked Ayar Mbalom village in Gwer East Local government Area of Benue State and killed two Rev. Fathers and many others,” a source said.
Many were said to have died on the spot while several others sustained injuries even as remains of the dead were at the time of this report being moved to the morgue of St. Theresa’s Hospital.
Meanwhile, the Catholic Diocese of Makurdi has given the names of the deceased Reverend Fathers killed in the attack at their St. Ignatius Quasi Parish, Ukpor Mbalom as Joseph Gor and Felix Tyolaha.

Pg 6)
So for a person repeatedly named as a “mass murder” by resident obuma, and responsible for the deaths of almost 3,000 innocent people on American soil, the focus of the burial service was on a “traditional” islamic burial that was “respectful of the body,” that disparaged Jews and Christians, that referred to bin laden as allah’s “servant,” that prayed for bin laden to enter Paradise, and that adhered to the dictates of “islamic law.”
In November of 2012, the Associated Press used the Freedom of Information Act to obtain heavily redacted internal e-mails that were exchanged among U.S. military officials about this sea burial.
Here is some of the information obtained from those e-mails[13]:
1.No sailors watched bin laden’s burial at sea from the USS Carl Vinson.
2.Fewer than a dozen of the ship’s leadership was informed of the burial.
3.According to a May 2nde-mail from Rear Admiral Charles Gaouette, Traditional procedures for islamic burial was followed…The deceased’s body was washed (ablution) then placed in a white sheet. The body was placed in a weighted bag. A military officer read prepared religious remarks, which were translated into Arabic by a native speaker. After the words were complete, the body was placed on a prepared flat board, tipped up, whereupon the deceased’s body slid into the sea.
The Defense Department stated that none of the following could be located:
1.Any images of bin laden’s body on the USS Carl Vinson. It was later reported that 11 days after bin laden was killed all photographs of the body were supposed to have been destroyed or turned over to the CIA.[14]]
2.bin laden’s death certificate, autopsy report or results of DNA identification tests. The obuma administration’s concern about complying with “islamic law” virtually precluded the chance for a thorough autopsy to be done.
With regard to the DNA tests, we know that on May 2, 2011 such tests had been done because this was so stated by a “Senior Intelligence Official” in a Department of Defense background briefing that same day.[15]]
3.Any pre-raid materials discussing how the government planned to dispose of bin laden’s body if he were killed.
This is interesting in light of the statements made above by resident obuma and John Brennan about the extensive contingency planning.
During the previously mentioned DOD Background Briefing on May 2, 2011, a reporter had asked a question that has subsequently been on the minds of observers for many years:
Who actually performed the rituals, the cleaning of his body? Were they American service members? And why all this for a fellow who most of the world determined was not a very good muslim anyway? And was in fact a cold blooded killer?
Geoff Morrell, then-Pentagon Press Secretary, replied, “I don’t think we care to get into those details.”[16]
So according to the obuma administration, osama bin laden was a “mass murderer” who was not even a “muslim leader.”
Yet resident obuma thought it was important enough to be “respectful” of bin laden’s body that there was extensive pre-planning and consultation with “experts in islamic law and ritual” to ensure that bin laden was accorded a funeral that conformed to “islamic law.” However, noted muslim scholars said this funeral actually violated islamic law, and, as we saw, it also violated U.S. Navy regulations! And when more information was requested, there were gaping holes in the information made available and relevant records went missing!
Why all this for such a fellow?
The “most transparent administration in history?” was not interested in those “details.”

Pg 5)
–It is not recommended to use a casket unless there is a need for it. The body must have been washed and wrapped as required for the bodies of muslims.
Plan the setting so that those who have gathered to pray will be facing toward mecca, with the appointed leader in front facing them.
Place the body (or bodies) in between the congregation and the appointed leader in such a way that the body is parallel to the congregation and so that, from the point of view of the congregation, the body’s head is to the right.
The appointed leader should face the congregation and stand by the middle of the body if the deceased is a man and by the shoulder if the deceased is a woman.
If there is more than one body, then they should be put one in front of the other, those of the men nearest to the appointed leader, and those of the women furthest away.
2. If ,muslims are present, permit them to come forward and perform the formal funeral prayer (allahu akbar) while others stand and pray silently.
3.al-fatihah, In the name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful. Praise be to God, the Cherisher and Sustainer of the Worlds; Most Gracious, Most Merciful; Master of the Day of Judgment. Thee do we worship, and Thine aid we seek. Show us the straight way, the way of those on whom Thou hast bestowed Thy Grace, those whose portion is not wrath, and who go not astray.
[[12]] 4.Supplication of Funeral Prayer;
O allah, forgive our people who are still alive and who have passed away, forgive those who are present here and those who are absent, forgive our young and our elderly, forgive our males and females. O allah, the one whom you wish to keep alive from among us make him alive according to islam, and anyone whom you wish to die from among us, let him die in belief and faith. O allah, do not deprive us from his reward and do not put us in hardship or any type of trial after his death.
O allah, forgive him, have mercy on him, pardon him, grant him security, provide him a nice place and spacious lodgings, wash him off from his sins with water, snow and ice, purify him from his sins as a white garment is cleansed from dirt, replace his present abode with a better one, replace his present family with a better one, replace his present partner with a better one, make him enter paradise and save him from the trials of grave and the punishment of hell.
O allah, you are its Lord, you have created it, and you have guided it towards Islam, and you have taken out his soul and you know best about its secret and open deeds. We have come as intercessors, so forgive him.
O allah, grant us good in this life and good in the life to come, and save us from the torment of hell.
5.Supplication at the Committal site:
Lower the body into the water at this time, in such a way that the face is toward ka’aba, in Saudi Arabia.
O allah, this is your servant who is now your guest, and you are the best of hosts. Forgive him and expand his entrance.

Pg 4)
So what does a “traditional” islamic burial at sea from a ship of the United States Navy consist of?
For that we need to look at the official United States Navy manual titled Navy Military Funerals (NAVPERS 15555D, Revised 1999).
[10] In “Appendix E” of that manual we find the “Service for the Committal of a Person of the muslim Faith.” This “Appendix E” is presented below.
But before reading it, keep in mind the following about this service:
1.Those gathered to pray have to be facing mecca, and as the body is lowered into the sea, its face must also be facing mecca.
2.The first chapter of the koran, al-fatihah, is recited – this chapter states that allah is angry with the Jews, and the Christians have gone astray.
3.If there is more than one body, those of the men shall be placed nearest to the appointed leader, and those of the women furthest away. This second-class treatment of women is straight out of a shafi’i manual of sharia law.
[11] 4.Those attending the funeral were not there as mere observers, they were actually there as “intercessors” for bin laden. This means that they were there to petition for and pray in favor of bin laden.
Here is “Appendix E”:
NAVY MILITARY FUNERALS (NAVPERS 15555D)
APPENDIX E SERVICE FOR THE COMMITTAL OF A PERSON OF THE mUSLIM FAITH
1. During the Committal service, if for a person of the islamic faith, the commanding officer or such person appointed by the commanding officer shall ensure that the service is set up as follows:

Pg 3)
Going to another country, making those arrangements, requirements, would have exceeded that time period, in our view. And so, therefore, we thought that the best way to ensure that his body was given an appropriate islamic burial was to take those actions that would allow us to do that burial at sea.
[7] Brennan said that after bin laden had been killed,
“There were certain steps that had to be taken,” and they had to make sure that those steps were taken within “the time period allotted for it.” So according to Brennan, the “islamic law” that required that an individual be buried within 24 hours after death also limited the amount of time for any forensic examination of the body because there had to be time allowed for the burial preparations of that body!
During this May 2nd press briefing, Brennan was also asked if he had consulted with a “muslim expert” about this sea burial. Brennan replied, "We consulted the appropriate specialists and experts, and there was unanimity that this would be the best way to handle that."
Brennan refused to identify any of these “specialists and experts.”
However, there were many muslim experts that disagreed with Brennan at the time and said that this burial did not conform to islamic law: e.g., mohammed al-qubaisi, the highest religious law official in Dubai;
abdul-sattar al-janabi, an islamic scholar from Iraq; the former mufti of Egypt, shaykh nasr farid wasiland; and al-azhar, Grand Imam ahmed el-tayeb.
[8] This is quite an impressive array of experts disagreeing with Brennan’s unnamed “specialists and experts.”
And according to U.S. Navy regulations, there are only a few “classes of individuals” who are eligible for “At Sea Disposition”:
1.Members of the uniformed services.
2. Retired members of the uniformed services.
3. Members of the uniformed services discharged under honorable conditions.
4. U.S. civilian marine personnel of the Military Sealift Command.
5. Dependents of members and former members of the uniformed services.
6. Other U.S. citizens who are determined eligible by the Chief of Naval Operations for at sea committal due to notable service or outstanding contributions to the United States.
[9] Since bin laden did not fall into any of these “classes of individuals,” apparently the obuma administration felt that its version of “islamic law” took precedence over U.S. Navy regulations.

Pg 2)
[4] obuma ended this interview with these thoughts:
"As nervous as I was about this whole process, the one thing I didn’t lose sleep over was the possibility of taking bin laden out. Justice was done! And I think that anyone who would question that the perpetrator of mass murder on American soil didn’t deserve what he got needs to have their head examined."
[5] But in this interview, obuma also had this to say about the sea burial of bin laden:
We thought it was important to think through ahead of time how we would dispose of the body if he were killed in the compound. And I think that what we tried to do was, consulting with experts in islamic law and ritual, to find something that was appropriate that was respectful of the body.
[6] A more detailed explanation about the sea burial had been given in a press briefing on May 2, 2011 by John Brennan, then-Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism.
In this explanation, Brennan emphasized the extensive pre-planning and how “islamic law” had been the major concern in dealing with bin laden’s body:
The disposal of — the burial of bin laden’s remains was done in strict conformance with islamist precepts and practices. It was prepared in accordance with the islamic requirements. We early on made provisions for that type of burial, and we wanted to make sure that it was going to be done, again, in strict conformance.
So it was taken care of in the appropriate way. It took place earlier today our time…The COAs – the course of action and the subsequent decisions that would have to be made have been developed over the course of the last several months.
Senior officials, and there was a working group that was working this on a regular basis, if not a daily basis, over the last several weeks, looking at every decision and based on what type of scenario would unfold, what actions and decisions would be made. It was looked at from the standpoint of if we captured him, what will we do with him? Where would he go? If he was killed, what will we do with him?
And it was determined that it was in the best interests of all involved that this burial take place, again, according to islamic requirements, at sea…there is the requirement in islamic law that an individual be buried within 24 hours.
We went inside of Pakistan, carried out the operation, he was killed, he was removed from Pakistan. There were certain steps that had to be taken because of the nature of the operation, and we wanted to make sure we were able to do that in the time period allotted for it.

Remembering the Sea Burial of osama bin laden.
Apr/24/18 9:00 am By Stephen M. Kirby
On May 1, 2018, we will have the seventh anniversary of the killing of osama bin laden, the mastermind of the 9/11 attacks on American soil that took almost 3,000 lives; these were attacks that bin laden later described as a “martyrdom operation.”
[1] One day after he had been killed bin laden was buried at sea from a ship of the United States Navy.
[2] Let’s take a look back at that event.
On May 1, 2011, late in the evening, resident obuma announced that osama bin laden had been killed by American forces. Resident obuma said that bin laden was
the leader of al qaeda, and a terrorist who’s responsible for the murder of thousands of innocent men, women, and children…
bin laden was not a muslim leader; he was a mass murderer of muslims!
So his demise should be welcomed by all who believe in peace and human dignity.[3] On May 4, 2011, resident obuma was interviewed by the CBS program 60 Minutes. Here is what he had to say about bin laden:
Obviously bin laden had been not only a symbol of terrorism, but a mass murderer who’s eluded justice for so long, and so many families who had been affected I think had given up hope. And for us to be able to definitively say, “We got the man who caused thousands of deaths here in the United States and who had been the rallying point for a violent extremist jihad around the world” was something that I think all of us were profoundly grateful to be a part of.

NRA Rallies Opposition to Vermont Gun Bill Amid Talk of Backlash Against GOP Governor.
Apr/3/18 By Rod Kackley
Vermont Rep. Brian Savage (R) complained “227 years of Vermont tradition has just gone down the drain!” as the state House approved S. 55, a gun-control bill that included a ban on both bump stocks and high-capacity magazines. It also forbids the sale of guns to anyone under the age of 21.
The Vermont Senate followed suit Friday.
Republican Gov. Phil Scott’s spokesman said Scott would review the gun-control legislation, as is standard procedure, but it could be signed into law by the end of this week.
But the NRA is not surrendering yet. The nation’s largest gun lobbying group sent out a message Friday urging its Vermont members to call Scott’s office “immediately.”
“Vermont has historically been a state proud of its stellar public safety rating and long-held hunting traditions. Firearms have been forever cemented in the culture and responsible gun ownership has been a source of great pride,” the NRA statement read. “None of that has changed!
What has changed is a governor who emboldened an anti-gun legislature to pass a historic gun control agenda.”
If the NRA’s grassroots effort fails, Chris Bradley, president of the Vermont Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs, promised to go to court to fight the new law.
At least one of the gun-rights advocates who rallied against S. 55 on Saturday said if Scott signs the legislation the Republican would never win another term in office.
"I think the governor's going to sign it and I think it's going to be real bad for him," John Helfant told the Bennington Banner. "I don't think he's going to win another term. He's lost his base, his Republican base. I don't think there was a single person here who's going to vote for him, and he didn't win by that much last time.”
Helfant was only echoing a warning that Republican Rep. Patrick Brennan gave supporters of S. 55 during last week’s debate on the floor of the state House. The Brattleboro Reformer reported Brennan said voters would have their say on the new law in November.
"I can't agree with anything we did here today," Brennan said. "We did a great disservice to Vermonters!"
Scott told reporters on Friday that he would sign the legislation even though he promised not to support the bill in January.
But then came the Parkland, Fla., school shooting in which 17 people were killed, and news the next day that police had arrested a teenager who had plans to kill as many people as he could at a Vermont high school.
“Vermont is currently one of the healthiest and safest states in America. However, as tragedies in Florida, Las Vegas, Newtown and elsewhere – as well as the averted plot to shoot up Fair Haven High School – have demonstrated, no state is immune to the risk of extreme violence,” Scott said in a statement.

How President Trump’s Vetting Rules Keep Americans Safe.
Apr/25/18
WHAT: President Donald J. Trump’s action to restrict the entry of individuals from certain countries is working to strengthen our screening and vetting capabilities.
On September 24, 2017, President Donald J. Trump signed a Proclamation establishing entry restrictions for nationals from certain countries. The Proclamation followed an extensive, world-wide review, which determined that the selected countries were not adequately sharing information about their nationals with the United States or presented other risk factors that threatened our national security.
Following President Trump’s actions, other countries have adopted new security measures, strengthening our ability to identify and properly vet individuals entering or seeking to enter the United States. Information-sharing and identification practices between the United States and foreign governments have significantly improved as a result.
For example, in response to the President’s actions, 29 countries produced example travel documents that can be used to combat fraud, and 11 countries agreed to share information on known or suspected terrorists.
One country addressed by the Proclamation, Chad, made such significant strides in improving its information-sharing that the entry restrictions were lifted. The significant steps taken by Chad and other nations make clear that the Administration’s efforts to enhance our national security are working.
WHY: The restrictions established by President Trump are needed to prevent individuals who pose a threat to our safety and security from entering the United States.
President Trump’s top priority is the safety and security of the American people!
The Proclamation’s entry restrictions advance that priority. Without them, dangerous criminals or terrorists could evade detection and enter our country from nations that fail to fully provide the information we need for our screening and vetting processes.
Further, without the Proclamation, foreign governments would have little incentive to improve their information-sharing practices moving forward, only making the problem worse.
Simply put, the entry restrictions are needed to strengthen our national security and are succeeding in doing exactly that.

WATCH This Firefighter Catch a Three-Month-Old Baby Dropped From Raging Inferno.
04/25/18 The Daily Caller by: Henry Rodgers
An assistant fire chief caught a three-month-old baby after her father dropped her from a burning apartment building in Minnesota Sunday.
North St. Paul Assistant Fire Chief Dustin Kalis was seen catching the three-month-old baby girl after her father carefully dropped her over the second-floor balcony while smoke and flames poured out from their apartment, according to 5 Eyewitness News.
Assistant fire chief experiences a new first on the job, catching a baby carefully dropped from a balcony in apartment fire. “Never caught any babies from any balconies before."
The baby and her father had reportedly both been napping in the afternoon when the fire started. As the fire continued, Kalis and other firefighters were looking for movement in the apartment, when they saw the father and baby come rushing out to the balcony.
http://americanactionnews.com/articles/watch-this-firefighter-catch...

Trump Secures Big League 2020 Endorsement.
4/25/18 Breitbart by: Robert Kraychik
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) said he expected to support President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign in 2020 during a Tuesday interview with SiriusXM hosts Rebecca Mansour and Joel Pollak on Breitbart News Tonight.
Mansour asked Cruz, “Would you be supportive of President Trump if he ran for reelection in 2020?”
Cruz replied, “I certainly assume so. I was supportive of and campaigned for President Trump in 2016, and I am very encouraged with the substantive policy victories we are getting, whether it is an historic tax cut bill, whether it is regulatory reform that’s unleashing jobs, whether it is repealing the Obamacare individual mandate — which I led the fight to do in the United States Senate — whether it is nominating and confirming strong constitutionalists to the courts. On all of those fights I’ve been working to lead the battle. I’m content to continue working to lead that battle and defend our freedoms and defend the Constitution.”
Cruz invited American support for his Senatorial election campaign. He said, “Let me encourage everyone again, the hard left is raising tons of money.
They’re coming after us, and if you want to defend our freedom, if you want to defend the Constitution, if you want to build a wall, then we need your help.
Come to our website, tedcruz.org. Support us, contribute, because the other side is coming hard and they’re pushing impeachment and open borders and taking away our rights, and so we need to stand together and defend those rights.”
Read more at http://trumptrainnews.com/articles/trump-secures-big-league-2020-en...

She Believes In Personal Responsibility:

 About Melania On Her Birthday:

4/26/18  TTN

 Melania turns 48 today, so we wanted to wish her a happy birthday, and celebrate the fact that this first lady is an upgrade compared to liberal first ladies. Were President Trump not a Republican, Melania Trump would be hailed as the second iteration of Jackie Kennedy, for her beauty, style, and poise.
  A side of Melania that the media won't show you. We'll contrast her achievements with the presidential wives that have preceded her. This classy lady deserves much better than she gets in the press, as she stands out as a great American story. 

 Melania Trump is from Slovenia, which was in the former Yugoslavia behind the iron curtain. Her father managed car and motorcycle dealerships for a state-owned vehicle manufacturer, and her mother Amalija worked as a patternmaker for children's clothing.

 As a child, Melania participated in fashion shows featuring children's clothing, along with other children of workers at her mother's factory. She worked in fashion before attending university for a year, before modeling full time in Milan and Paris.

Cinderella Story :

 She moved to New York in 1996 and met President Trump in 1998. The president had White House ambitions then, and the New York Times asked Melania what sort of First Lady she would be;

Melania said- "I'd be very traditional, like Jackie Kennedy or Betty Ford."

  The couple got engaged in 2004 and married in 2005. 

She Is Not Political;

 Melania Trump has views but doesn't air them publicly. She never publicly said anything like,"For the first time in my adult life, I am really proud of my country because it feels like hope is finally making a comeback!"

  She doesn't drive policy or push her husband into nationalizing the healthcare system like killary.   America hasn't had this sort First Lady in a while!

BREAKING:    Trump-Hating FBI Texts EXPOSED.

4/24/18  Gateway Pundit by: Cristina Laila

 The Department of Justice WILL be releasing the ‘missing’ Strzok-Page text messages within the next 24 hours according to investigative reporter Sara Carter.

 The six months of ‘missing’ Strzok-Page texts will be available to Congress Tuesday night or tomorrow.

 These are the crucial months between December of 2016 up until Mueller was appointed on May 17.

 Sara Carter tweeted:

BREAKING: "DOJ will make the 6 months of missing texts that were eventually located by IG between Strzok and Page available to Congress sometime tonight or tomorrow, according to sources." developing

Trump Fires One of obuma's Most Powerful Swamp Thug Slugs.

2/27/18  American Conservative Herald  by: Steve Edwards

 We all know that President Donald Trump’s assertion that the swamp runs deep in the nation’s capital is much more than campaign rhetoric.
  The Verge has the scoop:
Election Assistance Commission chairman Matthew Masterson is being removed from his post by the White House and House Speaker Paul Ryan, according to a report from Reuters.

  Appointed to the commission in 2014 and serving as chairman since February, Masterson was expected to be appointed to a second four-year term.

  The dismissal of Masterson comes as the debate over alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election rages on. 

BREAKING:   COSBY GUILTY.  

4/26/18  AAN

 Comedian, Bill Cosby, has been found guilty on all three counts in a sexual-assault trial of drugging and sexually assaulting Andrea Constand at his home in 2004.
  Cosby's first trial ended in a deadlock last year. The most recent one began this month. He's faced dozens of sexual misconduct allegations.
  Cosby, who once embodied the ideal American father faces a maximum sentence of 30 years and a fine of $75,000. He is 80-years-old.
  NBC News reports:
  Assistant Montgomery County District Attorney Kristen Feden portrayed Cosby as a sexual predator who used his TV image as a man of wholesome values to target women he believed he could silence.
  Prosecutors called five other women who alleged that Cosby also sexually assaulted them in a manner similar to the way he assaulted Constand.
  "He preyed on Andrea Constand the same way he preyed on all those five women," Feden said.
  A sentencing hearing has yet to be scheduled.

It's possible Cosby could spend the rest of his life in prison. But then

He is 80-years-old!

Read more at http://americanactionnews.com/articles/breaking-cosby-guilty#0ceDJV...

 ~~ DON'T MESS WITH TEXAS~~

 GOP Gov Demands 'Disgraced Republican' Cover Costs of Special Election.

 ~~ DON'T MESS WITH TEXAS~~

 GOP Gov Demands 'Disgraced Republican' Cover Costs of Special Election.

Trump Drops Breaking News On comey. 

4/26/18 Fox News by Brooke Singman

 President Trump, in an exclusive interview with "Fox & Friends," blasted former FBI Director james comey on Thursday morning as a “liar and a leaker” and said he is “guilty of crimes.”

 The president, who called into “Fox & Friends,” slammed the memos that comey leaked to a friend to spur a special counsel appointment. 

 He said they included classified information, and challenged their accuracy. 

“He leaked classified information to get a special counsel and leaked the memos which are classified – the memos were about me and he didn’t write those memos accurately. He wrote a lot of phony stuff,” Trump said. “He is guilty of crimes.” 

President Trump Welcomes America’s Wounded Warriors.

4/26/18

 For many veterans, returning to civilian life can be a difficult transition. The Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) is there to help.

 In other words, WWP empowers warriors to live life on their own terms.

Now nearly a decade and a half old, Soldier Ride is one of WWP’s largest events. Described as a “four-day cycling experience,” these rides are held in communities across the country, with WWP providing hand cycles, trikes, and bicycles for participants with varying physical needs. The ride is designed to challenge veterans both physically and mentally, providing a bonding opportunity with other service members.

 U.S. Presidents have hosted participating wounded veterans since President George W. Bush in 2008. Last April, President Donald J. Trump, Vice President Mike Pence, and the First and Second Ladies welcomed 54 warriors to the White House before their ride. On April 26, President Trump will once again host a number of Soldier Riders at the White House ahead of their 2018 event.

 As the warriors start their ride in Washington, D.C., they will not only work together, develop camaraderie, and build mental and physical strength. As they ride through the city, they will also spread awareness about the sometimes difficult lives of America’s veterans.

 “Each of you has forged in battle the sacred bonds of loyalty that link our people together,” President Trump said before last year’s Soldier Ride. “Our country, our values, our very way of life, endures because of you, and it endures because brave Americans raise up in every generation . . . to fight for this country and to defend its citizens with every ounce of blood, sweat, and tears in their bodies.”

         https://youtu.be/jA6Xtg2hfPQ

U.S. Presidents have hosted participating wounded veterans since President George W. Bush in 2008. Last April, President Donald J. Trump, Vice President Mike Pence, and the First and Second Ladies welcomed 54 warriors to the White House before their ride.

Former Governor and Senator Dies. 

GOP Presidential Staff Mar/23/18 

  Former Georgia Governor and U.S. Senator Zell Miller died this morning at the age of 86, following a lengthy battle with Parkinson’s Disease.

 Miller served as Governor from 1991-1999 and later in the U.S. Senate from 2000-2005. 

  According to a statement from his family, Miller passed away peacefully surrounded by his loved ones.

  Despite being a Democrat, Miller had a maverick reputation – he gave the keynote address at both the Democratic National Convention and the Republican National Convention. As a cultural conservative he was increasingly out of place in a political party that shunned his small town, Appalachian Mountain roots. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports:

 Miller helped resuscitate Bill Clinton’s failing 1992 presidential campaign and ended up becoming one of the Republican party’s most vocal supporters, that was both his birthplace and the consummate backdrop for his colorful, controversial persona.
  Miller suffered from several illnesses, including Parkinson’s disease, in his 80s and late last year his family sent word that he would no longer be making any public appearances.

  Funeral arrangements were not immediately announced.

Illegal alien - Officer Killer booted again from Court over profane outburst before receiving death penalty.

By Ryan Gaydos | Fox News

 The illegal alien burst into laughter in court and said he regretted not killing more people, was sentenced to death Wednesday for the 2014 murder of a Mexifornia sheriff’s deputy and detective -- but not before he was again booted from the courtroom for an outburst.

Man Admits He Threatened to Kill Rep. Katko for Opposing Net Neutrality. Faces up to five years in prison.

 A man pleaded guilty this week to threatening to kill Rep. John Katko, R-N.Y., and his family if he did not support net neutrality.

 A Syracuse man admitted he threatened to kill Rep. John Katko and his family if Katko did not support net neutrality, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced Tuesday.

 Patrick D. Angelo, 29, pleaded guilty to interstate communication of a threat. He faces a maximum five years in prison and $250,000 fine.

Katko represents New York’s 24th District. The largest city in the district is Syracuse.

 On Oct. 19, Angelo called Katko’s Washington, D.C., office and threatened to kill the congressman and his family if he did not support net neutrality, which is “literally the basis of the new society,” he said.

 The U.S. Capitol Police Threat Assessment Section collaborated with the FBI on the investigation and traced the phone call back to Angelo’s number.

“Ironically, yet fittingly, by abandoning rational discourse and resorting to threats against a public official, the defendant has essentially rendered himself a mute in the political process,” U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. said in a statement, the Democrat and Chronicle in Rochester, New York, reported. “As a democratic republic, we cannot and will not tolerate true threats against those in public office.”

 Below is a transcript of the voicemail Angelo left for Katko’s office, first released by the U.S. Attorney’s office for the Western District of New York:

 “Listen Mr. Katko, if you support net neutrality, I will support you. But if you don’t support net neutrality, I will find you and your family and I will kill…you…all. Do you understand? I will literally find all…of…you and your progeny and ... just wipe you from the face of the earth. Net neutrality is more important than the defense of the United States. Net neutrality is more important than free speech. Net neutrality is more important than health care. Net neutrality is literally the basis of the new society. That even if you don’t understand, how important it is, net neutrality is literally the basis of the new … free … society. So if you don’t support it, I am willing to lay down my li- (recording ends).”

 Net neutrality refers to the idea that all internet service providers must deliver unfiltered access to all web content without providing preferential treatment to certain files or communications.

 Angelo’s sentencing is scheduled for June 21.

Man Admits He Threatened to Kill Rep. Katko for Opposing Net Neutrality. Faces up to five years in prison.

 A man pleaded guilty this week to threatening to kill Rep. John Katko, R-N.Y., and his family if he did not support net neutrality.

 A Syracuse man admitted he threatened to kill Rep. John Katko and his family if Katko did not support net neutrality, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced Tuesday.

 Patrick D. Angelo, 29, pleaded guilty to interstate communication of a threat. He faces a maximum five years in prison and $250,000 fine.

Katko represents New York’s 24th District. The largest city in the district is Syracuse.

 On Oct. 19, Angelo called Katko’s Washington, D.C., office and threatened to kill the congressman and his family if he did not support net neutrality, which is “literally the basis of the new society,” he said.

 The U.S. Capitol Police Threat Assessment Section collaborated with the FBI on the investigation and traced the phone call back to Angelo’s number.

“Ironically, yet fittingly, by abandoning rational discourse and resorting to threats against a public official, the defendant has essentially rendered himself a mute in the political process,” U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. said in a statement, the Democrat and Chronicle in Rochester, New York, reported. “As a democratic republic, we cannot and will not tolerate true threats against those in public office.”

 Below is a transcript of the voicemail Angelo left for Katko’s office, first released by the U.S. Attorney’s office for the Western District of New York:

 “Listen Mr. Katko, if you support net neutrality, I will support you. But if you don’t support net neutrality, I will find you and your family and I will kill…you…all. Do you understand? I will literally find all…of…you and your progeny and ... just wipe you from the face of the earth. Net neutrality is more important than the defense of the United States. Net neutrality is more important than free speech. Net neutrality is more important than health care. Net neutrality is literally the basis of the new society. That even if you don’t understand, how important it is, net neutrality is literally the basis of the new … free … society. So if you don’t support it, I am willing to lay down my li- (recording ends).”

 Net neutrality refers to the idea that all internet service providers must deliver unfiltered access to all web content without providing preferential treatment to certain files or communications.

 Angelo’s sentencing is scheduled for June 21.