Smyth Radio: December 2015

Thursday, December 31, 2015

Saudis face fuel price jump under new austerity plan - FT.com

www.ft.com

Petrol may still be cheaper than bottled water in Saudi Arabia but the hiking of fuel prices by two-thirds this week is nonetheless a radical departure in a country that for decades has traded economic handouts for political loyalty.

Saudis rushed to petrol stations across the kingdom hours after the government unveiled a radical austerity programme on Monday, hoping to fill their tanks before prices rose. Higher quality 95-octane petrol increased by 50 per cent to Sr0.90 ($0.24) and lower-quality 91 grade jumped by two-thirds to Sr0.75 a litre the following day.

On this topicIN Gulf

Government officials said a five-year plan to reform energy subsidies is part of a broader programme to create a more efficient, productive economy, as oil prices have hit 11-year lows and the country’s deficit ballooned to 15 per cent of GDP this year.

“This is not just about energy, it is a commitment to seize the moment and take the right decisions to change our economy,” Adel al-Fakih, economy and planning minister, told the Financial Times.

The kingdom, which is trying to reduce the budget deficit to 11 per cent next year, has also pledged to rein in public sector wages, which account for half of all budgetary spending, and is to launch a privatisation programme.

It is also planning to implement some new taxes. The finance minister, Ibrahim al-Assaf, told pan-Arab daily Al-Hayat that the government was expected to introduce a Gulf-wide sales tax of around 5 per cent within two years.

Saudi Arabia, which spent around $107bn, or 13.2 per cent of gross domestic product, on energy subsidies in 2014, is one of the world’s biggest consumers of energy, with rock-bottom prices fostering excessive consumption.

“Subsidies have long been a fiscal drag on the state and have been unreasonably high even by global standards,” said John Sfakianakis, a Riyadh-based economist. “Subsidy reform is essential if the economy is to be in turn more efficient and eventually more productive.”

But while most Saudis recognise the need to reduce consumption, many are already worried about the rising cost of living and know their pockets will be hit.

“No one is happy about these increases,” said one executive.

Ali al-Naimi, the veteran oil minister, last month raised doubts about the energy price increases, saying there was no “dire need” for the kingdom to withdraw direct assistance to its population.

Saudi social media users resorted to humour to discuss the price hikes — open dissent is avoided after a crackdown on freedom of expression in the wake of the 2011 Arab uprisings.

“Men are worried about the price of petrol,” tweeted one user. “By God, someone tell them the price of Mac rouge?”, referring to a popular makeup brand. Others circulated articles listing 18 methods to improve vehicle fuel efficiency.

Officials, keen to pre-empt any popular backlash, point out that Saudis are still paying much less than some of their other Gulf peers. In the neighbouring United Arab Emirates, for example, the price of petrol is 60 per cent higher, said Mr Fakih, who is overseeing the subsidy reform programme. The UAE, a wealthier state with more expatriates, increased the price of petrol significantly earlier this year with minimal public opposition.

Riyadh’s increase in electricity tariffs is also geared towards a minority of wealthy Saudis who consume large quantities of power. Some 87 per cent of bills will not change, Mr Fakih said.

He added that while the government will monitor the impact of the reforms, especially on inflation, for the time being there were no plans to introduce schemes to compensate poor Saudis for the higher prices.

“Only after we assess the situation will we consider our next steps,” he said. “This is just the first step; over the next few years expect more changes.”

The private sector, as well as consumers, will be hit by the subsidy reductions. Gas prices for local power generation increased on Tuesday from $0.75 per million British thermal units to $1.25 mbtu and ethane, the main feedstock for petrochemicals, rose more than 100 per cent to $1.75 per mbtu from $0.75 per mbtu.

Some investors are concerned that increasing domestic energy prices will undermine the main selling point for investors in energy-intensive industry, but analysts say the higher prices will promote efficiency.

“Businesses have to become more efficient,” said Mr Sfakianakis. “They will have to become more competitive by using technology rather simply relying on [cheap] ex-pat labour and capital.”

Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2016. You may share using our article tools. Please don't cut articles from FT.com and redistribute by email or post to the web.

COMMENTS

Can Trump��s Clinton-Sex-Scandal Revival Hurt Hillary?

nymag.com

This week Donald Trump pulled off yet another remarkable political feat: While several of his rivals have tried and failedto turn Bill Clinton's decades-old sex scandals into a 2016 campaign issue, Trump is actually making it happen. After his complaint about Hillary calling him "ISIS's best recruiter" morphed into adebate about sexism just before Christmas, Trump changed the conversation again, tweeting on Monday "If Hillary thinks she can unleash her husband, with his terrible record of women abuse, while playing the women's card on me, she's wrong!" Tuesday on theToday show, he added, "there certainly were a lot of abuse of women, you look at whether it's Monica Lewinsky or Paula Jones, or any of them, and that certainly will be fair game."

Now with the former president set to begin campaigning for his wife in New Hampshire on Monday, other Republican candidates, including Carly Fiorina and Ben Carson, are joining in the discussion of Clinton's past sexual improprieties. The question now is whether their attacks on Bill Clinton can damage his wife's campaign, while years ago they only boosted the first lady's popularity.

As the New York Times notes, in some ways Trump is "an imperfect messenger on the issue of fidelity," considering that his marital issues were documented in the tabloids for many years, and he was onceaccused of marital rape (Ivana Trump subsequently walked back her claim). And aside from his own spotty marital history, Trump has a long history of attempting to curry favor with the Clintons and dismissing the allegations against the former president. Over the years, Trump invited the Clintons to his wedding, donated to their foundation, called Bill his favorite president, and declared Hillary would be a "great president or vice-president."

He also defended the president against the "moralists" and hypocrites pursuing the Lewinsky scandal many times, saying Clinton would have been "everybody's hero" if he'd cheated with a supermodel, and "if the Clinton affair proves anything it is that the American people don’t care about the private lives and personal of our political leaders so long as they are doing the job."

While pulling a 180 on the Clintons might destroy another candidate, Trump is spinning his reversal as more proof of his business acumen. "As a world-class businessman, you have to get along with everybody," Trump toldreporters on Tuesday. "I was able to get along with Clinton, I was able to get along with virtually every politician you can imagine ... When I went to Washington and I needed something, I got it." And of course, his willingness to accuse the former president of abusing women even as CNN's Don Lemon shut down a conservative commentator for making that same point reinforces the idea that Trump is willing to speak his mind.

Still, some Clinton supporters insist that Trump's focus on old sexual-misconduct allegations will only hurt Trump. "Why would he even bring Bill up? What good would that do? That’s not what America is really worried about right now," Bob Withington, who came to hear Hillary Clinton speak in New Hampshire on Tuesday, told the Boston Herald. "I don’t think people in this country are going to pay attention to that one bit."

Writing in the Hill, former Democratic congressional aide Brent Budowsky argued that taking on one of the greatest living politicians isn't a very smart move on Trump's part. "My advice to Trump, which he will regret not taking, is don't mess with Bill Clinton, who will bury him with a wink of his eye and a smile on his face," he said.

But this week, Washington Post columnist Ruth Marcus said that while it may be hard for Clinton supporters to admit, "in the larger scheme of things, Bill Clinton’s conduct toward women is far worse than any of the offensive things that Trump has said." She continued:

Which leads to the next question: What is the relevance of Bill Clinton’s conduct for Hillary Clinton’s campaign? Ordinarily, I would argue that the sins of the husband should not be visited on the wife. What Bill Clinton did counts against him, not her, and I would include in that her decision to stick with him. What happens inside a marriage is the couple’s business, and no one else’s, even when both halves crave the presidency.

But Hillary Clinton has made two moves that lead me, gulp, to agree with Trump on the “fair game” front. She is (smartly) using her husband as a campaign surrogate, and simultaneously (correctly) calling Trump sexist.

A Wall Street Journal opinion piece echoed her point, saying President Clinton "was a genuine sexual harasser in the classic definition of exploiting his power as a workplace superior, and the Clinton entourage worked hard to smear and discredit his many women accusers." It goes on to recount how Clinton adviser Sidney Blumenthal, who remains a friend of the couple, smeared Monica Lewinsky, and says this reflects on the "standards that would prevail in another Clinton Presidency."

So far the Clintons have remained mostlysilent on the new round of accusations, but with Trump vowing to keep up his counterattacks, we'll soon see if the Clinton sex scandals are a serious campaign liability, or just a holiday distraction. "She's got a major problem, it happens to be right in her house," Trump said of Hillary's sexism allegations on Tuesday. "If she wants to do that we're going to go right after the president, the ex-president, and we'll see how it all comes out."

COMMENTS

FBI offers $5,000 reward after bacon found at Vegas mosque

hosted.ap.org

LAS VEGAS (AP) -- The FBI is offering a $5,000 reward for information that helps them find the person who put raw bacon on the door handles of a Las Vegas mosque.

The FBI said in a statement Wednesday that agents are trying to find the man seen in a surveillance video putting the meat on the entrances of the Masjid-e-Tawheed mosque. Authorities call it a desecration of the Islamic worship center.

The Quran, the holy book of Islam, prohibits Muslims from eating pork, and pigs have been used to taunt or offend Muslims.

Both the FBI and Las Vegas police say they're investigating the case as a possible hate crime.

Las Vegas police spokesman Larry Hadfield said the bacon was wrapped on the door knobs, and was also found on the ground and fences.

Officials at the mosque couldn't immediately be reached for comment.

The FBI said the incident happened about 3:15 a.m. Dec. 27. The culprit is described as a white man wearing a dark blue hat, jacket and black-framed glasses. He had black or dark brown hair with long, thin sideburns.

The site west of the Las Vegas Strip wasn't damaged, and no one was hurt. The mosque was empty at the time, and the case was reported by members who came to worship later that morning.

Several threatening incidents at mosques have been reported in recent weeks. A Molotov cocktail went off at an Islamic center in Tracy, California, days ago, and a severed pig's head was found outside a Philadelphia worship site earlier this month.

COMMENTS

State Dept. breaks judge’s deadline on Clinton emails

www.washingtontimes.com

The State Department broke a judge's order on the number of former Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton's emails it was supposed to release Thursday, blaming the holiday season for throwing it off track.

The department promised another release of emails next week to make up for its breach, and said even the emails it was releasing Thursday will not be fully processed and won't be able to be sorted by senders or recipients in the department's computer system.

"We have worked diligently to come as close to the goal as possible, but with the large number of documents involved and the holiday schedule we have not met the goal this month. To narrow that gap, the State Department will make another production of former Secretary Clinton's email sometime next week," the department said in a statement.

It's the latest embarrassment for the department, which has repeatedly struggled to handle the more than 30,000 emails Mrs. Clinton returned to the government nearly two years after she left office.

The department is under a federal court order to release emails every month since the summer, but broke the order by missing the first deadline under that order. It had caught up, but has now fallen behind again.

All told, some 5,500 pages of documents will be released later Thursday. It's not clear yet how many actual individual emails that works out to, since many of them span multiple pages.

Under the court order, the government is supposed to release 4,800 full emails this month. The final 5,400 emails are to be released near the end of next month — just days before Iowa voters hold the caucuses that kick off the primary season, deciding whether Mrs. Clinton will be Democrats' presidential nominee.

She belatedly returned her emails after the Obama administration, prodded by Congress's probe into the 2012 Benghazi terrorist attack, realized she had taken all of her messages with her when she left office. The administration then publicly revealed that Mrs. Clinton had refused to use a regular account on the State.gov email server, instead creating an account on a server she kept at her home in New York.

Hundreds of the messages she returned contain information that has now been deemed classified — though Mrs. Clinton insists it was not secret at the time she sent it. She says she didn't break any laws in keeping her own account.

COMMENTS

Iran denies it fired rockets near US TRUMAN

Iran's president orders stepped-up missile production

hosted.ap.org

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) -- President Hassan Rouhani on Thursday ordered the accelerated production of missiles in response to possible new U.S. sanctions.

In a letter to the defense minister published on the president's website, Rouhani said Iran won't accept any limitations on its missile program.

A senior U.S. official told the AP on Wednesday that America is considering designating a number of additional targets for sanctions related to Iran's ballistic missile program.

Both the U.S. and Iran insist the missile program is not part of a landmark agreement Tehran reached with world powers in July that is to lift international sanctions in exchange for Iran curbing its nuclear program.

"Apparently, the U.S. government ... is considering adding new individuals and institutions to the list of its previous oppressive sanctions," Rouhani said in the letter. "It's necessary to continue with greater speed and seriousness the plan for production of various missiles needed by the armed forces within the approved defense policies," he wrote.

Rouhani added that the "development and production of Iran's ballistic missiles, which have not been designed to carry nuclear warheads, are important conventional instruments to defend the country and will continue."

Iran had earlier denied U.S. accusations that it launched a provocative rocket test last week near Western warships in the Strait of Hormuz, dismissing the claim as "psychological warfare."

Gen. Ramezan Sharif, a Revolutionary Guard spokesman, said its forces did not carry out any drills in the key Persian Gulf waterway. Sharif said the security of the strategic Persian Gulf remains among Iran's top priorities. His comments were posted on the Guard's website.

Cmdr. Kyle Raines, a U.S. Central Command spokesman, said Wednesday that Guard vessels fired several unguided rockets about 1,370 meters (1,500 yards) from the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier and other Western warships and commercial traffic last Saturday. Raines said the firing came 23 minutes after Iranians announced a live fire exercise over maritime radio.

While the rockets weren't fired in the direction of any ships, Raines said Iran's actions were "highly provocative."

"Firing weapons so close to passing coalition ships and commercial traffic within an internationally recognized maritime traffic lane is unsafe, unprofessional and inconsistent with international maritime law," he said.

Nearly a third of all oil traded by sea passes through the Strait of Hormuz, which has been the scene of past confrontations between America and Iran, including a one-day naval battle in 1988, during the Iran-Iraq war.

COMMENTS

Obama Tells Jerry Seinfeld Many World Leaders "Insane" In New Crackle Coffee Klatsch

deadline.com

The night before GOP frontrunner Donald Trump was scheduled to ring in 2016 onFox News Channel, President Obama debuted on Jerry Seinfeld’s Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee on Crackle. Seinfeld explains in the interview that Obama has gotten off just enough funny lines during his presidency to barely qualify as a guest on his Crackle gig.

“How many world leaders do you think are just completely out of their mind?” Seinfeld asks, one of the better interviews conducted with Obama during his presidency.

“A pretty sizable percentage,” Obama answered, continuing what Comedy Central late-night host Larry Wilmore has dubbed Obama’s “Doesn’t Give a F•ck”year in office.

US preps order for up to 34 MILLION 'green cards' and work permits

www.dailymail.co.uk

An online draft proposal from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services says it will look for a vendor to supply the blank cardsAt least 4 million per year for five years, including a possible 9 million in the early goingDocument says the move is 'to support possible future immigration reform initiative requirements'Obama has pledged to unilaterally change US immigration policy this year, but recently pushed back his timetable until after November 4 elections

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services plans to seek a vendor to produce as many as 34 million blank work permits and 'green cards' – the paperwork that authorizes immigrants to live and work in the United States – as the White House prepares to issue an executive order after the Nov. 4 midterm elections.

According to a draft solicitation published online, the government agency will look for a company that can produce a minimum 4 million cards per year for five years, and 9 million in the early stages.

President Barack Obama has pledged that he will make a move on immigration reform this year. His original timetable called for a decision by the end of the summer.

Republicans have decried the plan as an 'amnesty' for millions of illegal immigrants, including hundreds of thousands of unaccompanied minors who have come across the U.S.-Mexico border this year.

SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO AND THE DOCUMENTS

'#Not1More': An immigration activist heckled President Barack Obama on Sunday as he spoke during a campaign event for Democratic Maryland gubernatorial candidate Anthony Brown

Along with its solicitation for blank green cards and work permits, USCIS published images showing what the finished cards will look like

A draft RFP – a Request For Proposal – is typically published in advance so government contractors can prepare to submit their bids when the final version is published.

The draft came complete with photos of what the finished cards will look like.

Obama's high numbers of illegal immigration 'removals' – what used to be called 'deportation' – has earned him the nickname 'deportation president,' but most of those ejected border-crossers never get to the interior of the U.S.

Still, activists have protested his policies, including some who heckle his speeches. One yelled at him Sunday in the middle of a campaign stump speech supporting Democratic Maryland gubernatorial candidate Anthony Brown.

A USCIS official told MailOnline on Monday that the draft was published 'in case the president makes the move we think he will,' but added that the agency's Document Management Division (DMD) is by no means committed to buying the materials.

A second official at the agency said the proposal was drafted as a contingency in case immigration reform legislation passes in Congress, not in anticipation of action from the White House.

Either way, the online draft explains that 'DMD requires card consumables for the production of USCIS' Permanent Resident Card (PRC) and Employment Authorization Document (EAD) cards.'

'These cards and related consumables, when assembled, become highly specialized and secure identification documents.'

And a successful bid, the draft solicitation says, will be able to support a 'potential "surge" in PRC and EAD card demand for up to 9M (9 million) cards during the initial period of performance to support possible future immigration reform initiative requirements.'

Advocates for Mexican and Central American immigrants have lambasted Obama for deporting illegal aliens even though the numbers are down sharply. This Sept. 8 protest in front of the White House featured a crying young boy (left) whose father was deported

Obama delayed his immigration action until after the midterm congressional election to avoid alienating law-and-order voters, but can afford to frustrate illegal imigrants – who can't legally cast ballots

Former State Department foreign service officer Jessica Vaughan, now an immigration expert at the Center for Immigration Studies, told Breitbart.comthat the RFP 'seems to indicate that the president is contemplating an enormous executive action that is even more expansive than the plan that Congress rejected in the 'Gang of Eight' bill.'

That legislation, which passed in the U.S. Senate last year only to be stalled in the House of Representatives, was a broad reboot of American immigration policy that won support from a handful of Republicans.

In included a provision to provide a pathway to citizenship for so-called 'dreamers' – people living in the country illegally who were brought to Americans as children before June 15, 2007.

Obama's Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which he ultimately enacted without congressional support, uses the EAD cards as part of its implementation.

USCIS says it processed 862,000 EADs overall between January and June of this year.

But 'the guaranteed minimum for each ordering period is 4,000,000 cards,' according to the draft RFP.

'The estimated maximum for the entire contract is 34,000,000 cards.'

The company that ultimately wins the contract will also be required to store the blank cards until the government needs them.

COMMENTS

Carson staffers resigned

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2015/12/31/top-carson-campaign-staffers-resign.html

Greatest Donald Trump Montage of Support across the Spectrum of People and News Outlets

Great Video

BREAKING: Cruz may drop out to become Trump’s VP

WARNING: This is pure speculation based on lots of articles and meetings between Trump and Cruz, not only that but Cruz has support but not enough to Win 2016 vs Dems.
Listen To Military Talk Radio 24/7 on iHeart Radio and Live Shows on Sunday 5-8pm est. on SmythRadio.

By Voltova Dmitri - November 28, 2015
http://prntly.com/blog

One America News, Washington Post, and Prntly have all discovered that Ted Cruz and Donald Trump have been in deep talks about Cruz being Donald Trump’s running mate . Cruz spared his rhetorical firepower against Trump, and Trump has not criticized the Texan senator at all.
Trump even hinted at selecting Ted Cruz to serve him as VP in his quest to Make America Great Again.
Voters are excited to hear this turn of events, as people have grown delighted.
EDIT: for the readers who say this is false, simply read the numerous news articles that state this, from Washington Times and One America News
From Washington Post:

The remark piqued the interest of tea party and conservative activists who had already theorized that recent moves by the two campaigns signaled a secret pact.
“It’s highly likely that there is a sweetheart deal there, and it is a very good thing with almost no downside,” said Tom O’Halloran, host of the Texas-based conservative webcast Patriot Radio Show, who subscribes to the theory of a secret Trump-Cruz ticket.
“It’s a brilliant move,” he said. “It sounds to me like a deal that was made in heaven.”
Mr. O’Halloran and other believers pointed to a purported secret meeting between Mr. Trump and Mr. Cruz in Dallas at the end of the summer and the absence of attacks waged by the combative Mr. Trump against Mr. Cruz, the only major candidate to be spared Mr. Trump’s blisteringly personal attacks.
Mr. Cruz has mostly refrained from attacking any of his rivals in the crowded GOP field.
However, Mr. Cruz last month said that he was confident that he could beat Mr. Trump in the primary race.
“I don’t believe Donald is going to be the nominee, and I think, in time, the lion’s share of his supporters end up with us,” Mr. Cruz said in an interview on WABC Radio.
“If you look to the records of all the Republican candidates, there’s a big difference between my record and that of everyone else if you ask who has stood up to Washington,” he said. “I think his involvement has been tremendously helpful to my campaign, because it’s framed the central question of this primary.”
The detente between the two camps will be put to the test now that Mr. Cruz is surging in Iowa and within striking distance of Mr. Trump.

Hilton Head, SC 30 DEC 2015 - TRUMP BLASTS HILARY AND MEDIA [VIDEO]

During the Rally at Hilton Head, South Carolina Donald J. Trump told a packed, record breaking size room that he had to put Hilary on blast and that America is "Fed Up" with the corruption of the system and everyone is "Fed Up" with "You Guys the Media they are the Worst", as he points to the news media.

Calling Out the Corrupt Media

Program ID:: 402610-101
Category:: Public Affairs Event
Format:: Forum
Location:: Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, United States
First Aired:: Dec 30, 2015

Airing Details

Dec 30, 2015 | 11:04am EST | C-SPAN 1

Donald Trump on 2016 Race: 'It's War'

by Ali Vitali

HILTON HEAD, S.C. — For Donald Trump, the 2016 election is a war - one he's not planning on losing.
Trump called rival candidates like Hillary Clinton and Jeb Bush his "enemies" in the war for the White House on Wednesday. "We view this as a war," he told a packed house here. "Don't we view this as war? Right? It's war."

His latest battle is a war of words with Democratic presidential frontrunner Hillary Clinton after she accused the real estate mogul of sexism. Trump has responded in recent days by rehashing former President Bill Clinton's infidelities and alleged sexual misconduct, as well as repeating his claim that "nobody respects women more than Donald Trump."
Trump, who has always had a nothing-off-limits approach to campaigning, called Bill Clinton one of the "greatest abusers in the world," cited "tremendous abuse of women," and elicited laughter from the crowd when he mentioned Hillary Clinton's "husband's situation."

Previously Trump has said that President Clinton's prior scandals are "fair game" and, when asked Tuesday night in Council Bluffs, Iowa, if his own prior indiscretions could be treated the same, he agreed they could be.
Turning his focus on the actual candidate, Trump admitted that he'd "love, love, love having a woman president" but that it "can't be [Clinton], she's horrible" and "gives me a headache." He added that "women don't like Hillary," however NBC News/Wall Street Journal polling data shows Trump losing women 33 to 57 percent against Hillary Clinton. He does, however, win among men, 48 to 43 percent.
The Clinton's weren't the only candidates to draw Trump's ire. The GOP frontrunner punched back at one of his favorite and most consistent targets, Jeb Bush. Calling Bush out for low poll numbers, Trump wondered aloud if he didn't have anything better to do with his time. "He should go home and relax," Trump said. "He shouldn't be wasting his time."
But despite Bush's falling poll numbers and the acknowledgement by Trump that he should no longer focus his time or attacks on the former Florida governor, Trump can't seem to let his feud with Bush go. "I shouldn't even talk about him, he's down to two or three" Trump said, "but it bothers me when I see a guy spending $60 million on ads, against me a lot of it, right?"
And while Trump has in the past stated that our international community, specifically the Middle East, was better off with dictators like Saddam Hussein and Qaddafi in power, he went further Wednesday telling the South Carolina crowd that Hussein's methods, such as use of sarin gas, allowed for stabilization in the region. Remembering the constant back and forth between Iraq and Iran, Trump said: "They fight, that's what they do. They fight…and they were equal, militarily. They go this way, 10 feet, they go this way, 10 feet…then Saddam Hussein throws a little gas, everyone goes crazy oh he's using gas. They go back, forth, it's the same. And they were stabilized. And I said if you go after one or the other in this case Iraq you're going to destabilize the Middle East, that's what's going to happen."
As has become typical of Trump's rallies, he spent some time reading polls that show him ahead - admitting that if they turn negative he won't highlight or talk about them in the same way. For now, though, he's ahead but not taking any chances. Previewing increased spending and ads, Trump admitted that he's doing all he can to shore up the nomination as states prepare to vote.
And if Trump doesn't come out on top, he will have failed and wasted his time in the process. With a serious tone he declared to the crowd: "If I don't win, I will consider this - and I mean this - a total and complete waste of time."

Wednesday, December 30, 2015

Bill Cosby charged with 2004 sex assault, free on $1M bail

www.nydailynews.com

Bill Cosby was charged Wednesday with sexually assaulting a Temple University employee at his suburban Philadelphia mansion in 2004.

Montgomery County Prosecutor Kevin Steele announced the aggravated indecent assault case against the creepy comedian at a spellbinding press conference that dealt the most devastating blow yet to Cosby's once-wholesome image as America's Dad.

“The evidence is strong,” Steele said. "We made this determination because it was the right thing to do."

The new case marks the first criminal prosecution of the fallen funnyman and sets the stage for what could be a blockbuster trial involving other accusers with similar stories.

Police Handout

Bill Cosby booking photo after being charged with sexually assaulting a Temple University employee at his suburban Philadelphia mansion in 2004.

Cosby, 78, faces up to a decade behind bars if convicted. He walked into the courtroom for his arraignment using a cane and wore a gray hoodie sweater.

He replied yes several times to Magistrate Judge Elizabeth McHugh in Montgomery County as she set his bail at $1 million and ordered him to hand over his passport.

He did not enter a plea and is due back in court Jan. 14.

“Make no mistake, we intend to mount a vigorous defense against this unjustified charge and we expect that Mr. Cosby will be exonerated,” Cosby’s attorneys said in a statement.

Authorities said in an affidavit that Cosby made two separate and unwanted sexual advances on victim Andrea Constand in the months leading up to the January 2004 assault.

Constand, who worked with Temple’s women’s basketball team, stepped forward a decade ago and said Cosby doped and groped her, but prosecutors at the time declined to file charges citing a lack of evidence.

KENA BETANCUR/AFP/Getty Images

Bill Cosby arrives in court to be arraigned in Elkins Park, Pa. on Wednesday.

The affidavit made public Wednesday said Constand returned to his home on the day of the assault thinking they were going to discuss her career. Instead, Cosby offered her three blue pills to “take the edge off” and urged her to drink wine, according to the paperwork.

"These will make you feel good. The blue things will take the edge off,” Cosby said, according to documents.

Constand asked if the pills were herbal.

“Yes,” Cosby allegedly replied, according to the affidavit. “Down them. Put ‘em down. Put them in your mouth.”

“Just taste the wine,” he urged her afterwards, according to documents.

She later claimed to have experienced blurred vision and difficulty speaking and was unable to consent when Cosby had sex with her, the affidavit states.

View GalleryWomen who have accused Bill Cosby of sexual assault

Constand passed out and eventually woke up around 4 a.m. the next day with her bra undone, according to the affidavit.

Cosby, dressed in a robe, gave her a muffin, walked to the front door, opened it and said, “Alright,” the paperwork states.

Ron Bull/AP

Andrea Constand in 1987.

Constand told investigators she left the residence without saying anything.

After the alleged assault, Constand fled to Canada to be near family and eventually told her mom what happened. The mom confronted Cosby over the telephone.

Cosby admitted the encounter during their conversation, said he gave Constand some type of "prescription" medication and invited the women on an all-expenses-paid trip to Florida, the affidavit states.

Cosby later gave an interview to Cheltenham Township police in January 2005 and claimed the sexual encounter was consensual, according to the affidavit.

He admitting giving Constand one and a half over-the-counter Benadryl pills and claimed she willingly engaged in petting and kissing and "never pushed him away," the affidavit states.

“When directly asked if he ever had sexual intercourse with the victim, Cosby gave (police) the unusual answer, ‘never asleep or awake,’” the affidavit claims.

KING:

Constand sued Cosby in 2005 and settled out of court in 2006.

Victoria Will/Victoria Will/Invision/AP

Over 50 women have accused Bill Cosby of drugging and assaulting them.

MARK BLINCH/REUTERS

Constand, who has accused Bill Cosby of sexually assaulting her, walks in a park in Toronto, Canada, on Wednesday, the same day a Pennsylvania prosecutor announced sexual assault charges against the comedian stemming from their alleged 2004 encounter at his Philadelphia mansion.

Bill Cosby is accused of sexually assaulting Andrea Constand (r.) in 2004. He was arraigned in a Montgomery County, Pa. court Wednesday and released on $1 million bail.

In deposition testimony related to the civil lawsuit, Cosby said under oath that he gave Constand three halved pills that he described as "three friends to make (her) relax," according to the affidavit.

He also acknowledged under oath that he obtained seven prescriptions in his own name for Quaaludes.

CNN

Montgomery County Prosecutor Kevin Steele announced the charges against Cosby.

"When you go the Quaaludes, was it in your mind that you were going to use these Quaaludes for young women that you wanted to have sex with?" Constand's lawyer asked Cosby on Sept. 29, 2005, according to the deposition excerpted in the affidavit.

"Yes," Cosby replied.

Constand has said she will cooperate with prosecutors in the new case, Steele said.

"He urged her to take pills he provided and drink wine," Steele said during the press conference. "Unable to move or respond to his advances, he committed aggravated indecent assault.

View GalleryCelebrity mug shots

"Frozen, paralyzed, unable to move. A person in that state is unable to consent," Steele added.

Her attorneysreleased a statementthanking Montgomery County authorities for "the consideration and courtesy they have shown Andrea during this difficult time."

Cosby has said the sex was consensual.

Authorities had until next month to file charges against Cosby under the state's 12-year statute of limitations for felony sexual assault.

A judge unsealed depositions in Constand's suit filed in Philadelphia federal court earlier this year, prompting prosecutors to reopen her case.

"We examined evidence from the civil case and information from other alleged victims," Steele said.

“Reopening this case was not a question. Rather, reopening this was our duty.”

He said Cosby's prior testimony about obtaining and distributing Quaaludes, which Cosby called "disco biscuits" during his deposition in the Constand case, played a significant role in the charging decision.

Over 50 women have accused Cosby of assaulting them. They have shared similar stories in which Cosby targeted them after gaining their trust and using his trusted public persona to his advantage.

Cosby has denied the accusations and said the women are out to get money.

His career irreparably damaged, Cosby has fought back in the last month by filing defamation suits against some of his accusers.

sbrown@nydailynews.com

Tags:bill cosby ,sex crimes ,pennsylvania

COMMENTS

A guide to the allegations of Bill Clinton’s womanizing

www.washingtonpost.com

A photograph showing former White House intern Monica Lewinsky meeting President Bill Clinton at a White House function submitted as evidence in documents by the Kenneth Starr investigation and released by the House Judiciary Committee in 1998. (Getty Images)

On Twitter, Donald Trump, the GOP presidential front-runner, lashed out at Hillary Clinton, directly attacking her husband, the former president, for what Trump called “his terrible record of women abuse.”

If Hillary thinks she can unleash her husband, with his terrible record of women abuse, while playing the women's card on me, she's wrong!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump)December 28, 2015

Trump is obviously referring to the sexual allegations that have long swirled around Clinton, even before he became president. We’d earlier explored this question in 2014when Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) wrongly claimed that a half dozen women had called Clinton a “sexual predator.” But for younger voters who may be wondering what the fuss is about, here again is a guide to the various claims made about Clinton’s sex life.

We will divide the stories into two parts: consensual liaisons admitted by the women in question and allegations of an unwanted sexual encounter.

Consensual affairs

Gennifer Flowers — a model and actress whose claims of a long-term affair nearly wrecked Clinton’s first run for the presidency in 1992. (Clinton denied her claims at the time, but under oath in 1998 he acknowledged a sexual encounter with her.)

Monica Lewinsky — intern at the White House, whose affair with Clinton fueled impeachment charges. This was a consensual affair, in which Lewinsky was an eager participant; she was 22 when the affair started and Clinton was her boss.

Dolly Kyle Browning — A high school friend who said in a sworn declaration that she had had a 22-year off-and-on sexual relationship with Clinton.

Elizabeth Ward Gracen — a former Miss America who said she had a one-night stand with Clinton while he was governor — and she was married. She went public to specifically deny reports he had forced himself on her.

Myra Belle “Sally” Miller — the 1958 Miss Arkansas who said in 1992 that she had had an affair with Clinton in 1983. She claimed that she had been warned not to go public by a Democratic Party official: “They knew that I went jogging by myself and he couldn’t guarantee what would happen to my pretty little legs.”

Some might argue that because Lewinsky and Gracen had relations when Clinton was in a position of executive authority, Clinton engaged in sexual harassment.

Allegations of an unwanted sexual encounter

Paula Jones — A former Arkansas state employee who alleged that in 1991 Clinton, while governor, propositioned her and exposed himself. She later filed a sexual harassment suit, and it was during a deposition in that suit that Clinton initially denied having sexual relations with Lewinsky. Clinton in 1998 settled the suit for $850,000, with no apology or admission of guilt. All but $200,000 was directed to pay legal fees.

Juanita Broaddrick — The nursing home administrator emerged after the impeachment trial to allege that 21 years earlier Clinton had raped her. Clinton flatly denied the claim, and there were inconsistencies in her story. No charges were ever brought.

Kathleen Willey — The former White House aide claimed Clinton groped her in his office in 1993, on the same day when her husband, facing embezzlement charges, died in an apparent suicide. (Her story changed over time. During a deposition in the Paula Jones matter, she initially said she had no recollection about whether Clinton kissed her and insisted he did not fondle her.) Clinton denied her account, and the independent prosecutor concluded “there is insufficient evidence to prove to a jury beyond a reasonable doubt that President Clinton’s testimony regarding Kathleen Willey was false.” Willey later began to claim Clinton had a hand in her husband’s death, even though her husband left behind a suicide note.

Note that no court of law ever found Clinton guilty of the accusations.

Peter Baker, in “The Breach,” the definitive account of the impeachment saga, reported that House investigators later found in the files of the independent prosecutor that Jones’s lawyers had collected the names of 21 different women they suspected had had a sexual relationship with Clinton. Baker described the files as “wild allegations, sometimes based on nothing more than hearsay claims of third-party witnesses.” But there were some allegations (page 138) that suggested unwelcome advances:

“One woman was alleged to have been asked by Clinton to give him oral sex in a car while he was the state attorney general (a claim she denied). A former Arkansas state employee said that during a presentation, then-Governor Clinton walked behind her and rubbed his pelvis up against her repeatedly. A woman identified as a third cousin of Clinton’s supposedly told her drug counselor during treatment in Arkansas that she was abused by Clinton when she was baby-sitting at the Governor’s Mansion in Little Rock.”

The Bottom Line

Trump’s claim is a bit too vague for a fact check. In any case, we imagine readers will have widely divergent reactions to this list of admitted affairs and unproven allegations of unwanted sexual encounters. But at least you now know the specific cases that Trump is referencing.

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The Washington Post's Tom Hamburger explains how Bill and Hillary Clinton's bond as a political team formed over time, starting with his 1974 race. (Sarah Parnass/The Washington Post)

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Check out our 2016 candidates fact-check page

COMMENTS

10 fox stories 2015

http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2015/12/30/ten-stories-that-fired-up-america-in-2015.html

Brawl breaks out and its not Trump

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2015/12/30/brawl-breaks-out-in-gop-race-below-trump-tier.html

Police May Confiscate Guns without Notice to Owner Starting January 1

JOE KLAMAR/AFP/Getty Images

by AWR HAWKINS29 Dec 201510,886

Beginning January 1, police in California may confiscate firearms from gun owners thought to be a danger to themselves or others without giving the owner any notice.

This is the result of the implementation of “gun violence restraining orders” (GVROs), which go into effect New Year’s Day.

According to KPCC, GVROs “could be issued without prior knowledge of the person. In other words, a judge could issue the order without ever hearing from the person in question, if there are reasonable grounds to believe the person is a threat based on accounts from the family and police.” And since the order can be issued without the gun owner even being present to defend him or herself, confiscation can commence without any notice to the gun owner once the order is issued.

To be fair, Los Angeles Police Department Assistant Chief Michael Moore does not use the word “confiscate” when talking about confiscating firearms. Rather, Moore says, “The law gives us a vehicle to cause the person to surrender their weapons, to have a time out, if you will.”

KPCC reports that “California law already bans people from possessing guns if they’ve committed a violent crime or were involuntarily committed to a mental health facility.” And now, with GVROs, California law allows judges to bar people from possessing guns even if they have not committed a violent crime or were involuntarily committed. Because of this, Gun Owners of California Executive Director Sam Paredes warns that GVROs “may create a situation where law-abiding gun owners are put in jeopardy.”

Follow AWR Hawkins on Twitter:@AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.

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Breitbart California, 2nd Amendment, gun control, Second Amendment, Gun Confiscation, Gun Violence Restraining Orders, GVRO, Gun Owners of California,Sam Paredes

Drudge Boosting Donald Trump?

Why Is Matt Drudge Boosting Donald Trump?
Daily Beast Jealous
www.thedailybeast.com

The Republican frontrunner owes his rise to a whole host of factors. But Drudge’s conservative media behemoth could’ve stopped him. Why didn’t it?

Who’s responsible for Donald Trump? The establishment honchos of the Republican Party first and foremost, for not having to stones to stand up and stop the crazy in their party over the last seven years when Steve King and Louis Gohmert and Michele Bachmann and all the others said the unhinged things they said. The cable networks, for covering his every utterance and letting him play them like a fiddle.

A less discussed culprit: Matt Drudge. He may not get the headlines he got 15 years ago, so if you don’t read his site you might think he’s kinda gone away. Well, he has not. The Drudge Report is as huge as ever: Around 700 million visitors a month.

And what they’ve been getting for the last six months is a steady stream of pro-Trump agitprop. Drudge’s own weird, quasi-libertarian, crypto-racialist-populist political views have found their perfect echo in Trump’s campaign. If you’ve read the Drudge site over the years, you know how expert the site has always been at finding and promoting news stories that aren’t capital-P political on their face but whose political moral, and the reason Drudge highlights them, is obvious.

A preposterous-sounding grievance from a minority group member; a left-wing academic making some nutty claim or another; some new manifestation of political correctness afoot. These stories are the mother’s milk of the site, and they create the same paranoia that Trump is creating, and among the same audience.

And the audience is gobbling it up—and regurgitating it in the hoped-for way. As Republican-turned-independent (and now Hillary Clinton supporter) Jimmy LaSalvianoted at Salon recently, after every GOP debate, the Drudge site polls its readers on who won. And every time, Trump has won, usually big.

It’s no wonder. The Drudge site is (gulp) its readers’ most trusted news source, and nearly every day it’s playing a pro-Trump piece high up. As I write this, Tuesday the 29th, the story is “New poll shows Trump strong among minorities.” The link is to a story on World Net Daily, a far-right site whose stock in trade isheadlines like “Democrats Think Christians Bigger Threat Than Muslims,” and it’s to a poll commissioned by…World Net Daily! It finds that “40 percent of blacks are lining up behind Trump, as are 45 percent of Hispanics, and even nearly 19 percent of Asians.” Right.

Now, if you’re reacting to this by thinking so what, tell me something new, my answer is that I am telling you something new. In 2012, Drudge generally backed not Newt Gingrich or Ron Paul or Rick Santorum or Herman Cain, but Mr. Establishment himself, Mitt Romney! You can go back and Google it and find loads of stories from that cycle about how Drudge highlighted pro-Romney storiesand how the other GOP contendersgroused that Drudge was helping Mittens.

Why the change? I’m not exactly a Drudge world insider. The public evidence we have is the big and very rare interviewDrudge gave back in October to wingnut radio host Alex Jones, where he delivered gems like this one: “You’ve got to be the greatest you can be now—now. Before this country is so completely altered and we’re left with Hillary’s brain in the Oval Office in a jar. Cuz that’s what we’re getting. She is old and she’s sick. She is not a contender. They’re making her a contender with these propped up Saturday Night Live things; it’s like a head on a stick. And then on the Today show with [Savannah Guthrie]—a head on a stick. She is not a viable, vibrant leader for this country of 300—including the illegals, 380 million—Americans. So the media is trying to put us to sleep.”

Eighty million illegals. And you thought it was 11.5 million. See how the corporate media have been lying to you? For what it’s worth, Drudge has been a major promoter of Jones’ conspiracy-mongering websites, often giving them prominent links.

So now we’re getting to crunch time. How much juice does Drudge still have with GOP primary voters, especially in the key states? Probably a lot is my guess. It’s obviously impossible to say how much Drudge has helped Trump thus far. Trump probably didn’t need a push from Drudge to get where he is. But look at it from the reverse point of view: If Drudge had been anti-Trump these last six months, Trump very well might not be where he is right now.

The more serious question is how much juice Drudge might have in a general election contest. He will want to destroy Hillary Clinton, there’s no doubt about that. If Trump is actually the Republican nominee, Drudge will have his dream match-up: the right-wing nativist fuck-the-establishment candidate versus a Clinton. Destroying, or trying to destroy, a Clinton (Bill) is what made Drudge world famous in the first place, back in 1998. But that didn’t work out for him. And promoting the candidate that half the Republican Party would run away from holding its nose doesn’t seem like the best way to stop this Clinton.

Maybe deep down on some level even they only dimly grasp, all these people want her to be the president. She’s great for ratings and page views, and everything they don’t like about a changing country that they no longer speak to or for can be immediately blamed on her. Only a Clinton victory would support their idea of America as a place where the corporate media are brainwashing people to become diversity-worshipping automatons, and conservative media will be there to ride the decline.

And that’s what Drudge’s move from Romney to Trump proves: On the radical right, it’s not about stopping liberalism anymore. It’s about demolishing conservatism.

COMMENTS

Glenn Beck attacks Melania Trump as a lesbian porn star

By clyde -

Dec 29, 2015

by CAIDEN COWGER

In recent Facebook post, libertarian radio talk show host Glenn Beck thought that it would be funny to viciously attack Donald Trump’s wife, Melania Trump.

“[If Donald Trump is elected President], the First Lady would be the first to have posed nude in lesbian porno shots,” Beck stated on Facebook.

The problem is that this claim is not verified. We searched and searched for articles to back up Beck’s claim, and were unable to find any except from one 2007 post from an unpopular celebrity gossip website called Omgblog.com. Nice try, Glenn.

For the record, The New York Daily news reported the story; however, it was listed in their gossip section (which means that it is just a rumor).

Sean Hannity responded to Beck’s disgusting attack, “I thought you were libertarian? Also I go back to the fact that you have changed. Trump’s wife is a mother and what she did in the past doesn’t make my top 10,000 list of problems we face as a country.”

While Hannity is not aware that Beck’s claim was solely based on a rumor from an unpopular tabloid article, his response pointing out Beck’s hypocrisy was brilliant.

Day after day on his radio show, Beck has been smearing Donald Trump and now he is smearing his wife by spreading unproven, disgusting rumors designed to degrade her.

To everyone who still gets your news from Glenn Beck, remember this: you are getting your news from a guy who gets his news from tabloid magazines.

red flag news

Trump DESTROYS TODAY Host on Clinton’s Lewinsky Affair: It was Not ‘Alleged’… You Don’t have to Use the Word ‘Alleged’ (VIDEO)

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Jim Hoft Dec 29th, 2015 1:10 pm 107 Comments

Donald Trump spoke by telephone Tuesday with TODAY’s Savannah Guthrie. Trump denied calling Bill Clinton a racist, saying that he merely passed on what the Obama campaign said about him in 2008.

The New York businessman then went on to explain that Clinton was responsible for “a lot of abuse of women” citing the Monica Lewinsky scandal.

Donald Trump: If you look at the different situations. Of course, we could name many of them. I could get you a list and have it sent to your office in two seconds. But, certainly there was a lot of abuse of women. You look at whether it was Monica Lewinsky or Paula Jones or many of them. And they certainly will be fair game. Certainly if they play the woman’s card with respect to me. That will be fair game.

Savannah Guthrie: You mention Monica Lewinsky. Are you saying an alleged extramarital affair which he has now admitted. Is that fair game?

Donald Trump: It was not alleged. Was that alleged? I don’t think that was alleged.

Savannah Guthrie: He’s admitted it.

Donald Trump: You don’t have to use the word “alleged.”

Ouch.
He says Bill Clinton is “certainly fair game” if his wife, presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton, “plays the woman card.”
Hat Tip Jeff

Gateway Pundit

Sharia in Las Vegas: Police HUNT Man Who Placed BACON On Mosque’s Door Handles

ByPAMELA GELLER on December 29, 2015

ISLAMIC LAW IN AMERICA

Las Vegas, America’s den of iniquity, gambling, prostitution — you name the vice, you can buy twice. So I am bemused, though not amused, that bacon left on the door handle of a mosque has the Las Vegas Police department on a jihad to find the perps. The bacon is being investigated as a “hate crime.” Seriously. Bacon on a door handle is a crime now? Maybe in Muslim countries, but when did America decide that we would be a sharia nation as well?

Sharia in Vegas. That’s what this is. In the UK, an 18-year-old girl was jailed for this very thing. This is America, not Yemen or the UK, but not for long. And while what these pranksters did was silly, jail time? For a bad joke? Defacto Islamic law (sharia) in Las Vegas, of all places.

This isn’t a hate crime. This is Islamic law. Look at FBI “hate crime” statistics. Attacks on synagogues are at record levels. Unprecedented. Mosques stats — not even close. No one gives a fig about the synagogues. That tells you all you need to know.

Islamization of America is out of control.

“Las Vegas Police Hunt Man Who Placed Raw Bacon On Mosque’s Door Handles”, TSG, December 29, 2015

Police are seeking to identify a man who placed raw bacon on the door handles of a Las Vegas mosque, an apparent hate crime that was recorded by surveillance cameras.

According to cops, the defacement of the Masjid Tawheed mosque occurred around 3:15 AM Sunday. Video captured a man first placing bacon on the handle of the mosque’s rear door. The vandal then walked to the mosque’s main entrance and stringed several pieces of bacon across the front door handles (as seen in the adjacent photo).

The bacon was discovered hours later by worshipers arriving at the mosque for early morning prayers. Muslims are prohibited from touching or consuming bacon and other pork products.

Based on surveillance video, the suspect, who wore a baseball cap and glasses, appears to be a white male with a mustache, goatee, and long sideburns. It is unclear how he arrived at the mosque in Spring Valley, a town two miles from the Las Vegas Strip.

In April, an Oklahoma mosque reported to cops that “someone put uncooked bacon on the door handles of the men’s and women’s mosques” on a Sunday morning. No arrests have been made in connection with the incident at the Islamic Society of Edmond.

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ACT OF WAR? Close Call With Iranian Rockets

U.S. Carrier Harry S. Truman Has Close Call With Iranian Rockets

www.nbcnews.com

The U.S. aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman came about 1,500 yards from an Iranian rocket in the Strait of Hormuz last week, two U.S. military officials told NBC News on Tuesday.

As the Truman was transiting the strait, which connects the Arabian Sea and the Persian Gulf, Iranian Revolutionary Guards conducted a live-fire exercise right near the U.S. carrier Saturday, officials said.

A U.S. military official said an Iranian navy fast and short attack craft began conducting a live-fire exercise at the same time the carrier was nearing the end of the strait, firing off several unguided rockets. A French frigate, the U.S. destroyer USS Buckley and other commercial traffic were also in the area.

Aircraft Carrier U.S.S. Harry S. Truman steams underway on March 29, 2003 in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea. U.S. Navy / Getty Images File

The official said the U.S. ships were in the "internationally recognized maritime traffic lane" at the time, not in any territorial waters, when the Iranian navy announced over maritime radio that it was about to conduct a live-fire exercise and asked other vessels to remain clear.

After the warning, the rockets were fired from a position about 1,500 yards off the carrier's starboard side and in a direction away from passing coalition and commercial ships and the traffic lane, the official said. The rockets were not fired at the Truman and other ships, only near them.

While the official said the Iranians were "clearly not" targeting ships, the action was "unnecessarily provocative and unsafe."

There were no direct communications between U.S. and Iranian navies.

Coalition forces continued transiting without any further incident, the official said, adding that the Truman is now in the Gulf and launching aircraft in support of Operation Inherent Resolve.

COMMENTS

Three of the best videos of Ronald Reagan enjoy.

Courtesy of the Reagan Library

1. Reagan Christmas Message John 3:16

2. Reagan Warned Us About Obama

3. Rare Footage of Ronald Reagan Speaking the Gospel

Tuesday, December 29, 2015

Minorities line up behind … Donald Trump

www.wnd.com

Donald Trump

Editor’s Note: This is another in a series of reports on the polling by Clout Research, a national opinion research firm in Columbus, Ohio, for WND.com.

Pundits might point to billionaire Donald Trump’s huge lead in the GOP presidential primary race as being the result of his generally anti-Washington, anti-government, anti-establishment, anti-politically correct attitude.

If so, it’s not just whites who are ticked at the bureaucracy, but minorities too.

Because a new poll, which still has Trump leading the race, shows 40 percent of blacks are lining up behind Trump, as are 45 percent of Hispanics, and even nearly 19 percent of Asians.

Blacks and Hispanics, in fact, even support Trump at a higher level than whites.

Like the reporting you see here? Sign up for free news alerts from WND.com, America’s independent news network.

The results are from a new WND/Clout poll by Clout Research, a national opinion research firm in Columbus, Ohio. The telephone survey of registered voters was taken Dec. 18-27, except for the holiday, and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.35 percentage points.

Only Dr. Ben Carson pulled more support from the black community than Trump, at 50 percent, and no one had more support from Hispanics than Trump. Among Asians, 37.5 percent supported Sen. Marco Rubio, with Sen. Ted Cruz matching Trump’s 18.8 percent.

Among whites, Trump was far and away the leader, with 37.7 percent of the respondents. Cruz was second at 25.1 percent.

The rankings put Trump in the No. 1 slot, Cruz second at 23.3 percent, Rubio third at 10.1, Carson fourth at 9.4 percent, and Jeb Bush fifth at six percent.

Will Bill and Hillary Clinton ever be held accountable? Help make sure they are by supporting the Hillary Clinton Investigative Justice Project, an effort targeting the racketeering enterprise known as the Clinton Family Foundation

Explained Fritz Wenzel, chief of Clout Polling, “The Republican presidential primary preference nationally remains unchanged through the Christmas holiday and heading into the New Year, as Donald Trump continues to lead by double digits.

“The newish development of Sen. Ted Cruz rising and now solidifying his top-tier stature is likely going to remain for the coming weeks before the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary. But the rise of Cruz signals nothing new in this race, as voters continue to voice their complete dissatisfaction with the GOP establishment. Cruz merely supplanted Carson as a more conservative outsider alternative to Trump.”

He said a key will be whether Republicans, whose divisions have been opened by Trump’s brash criticism of the establishment and refusal to go along, can come together.

“There really is just one more act to come and question to be answered before the nomination is sealed: ‘Will the establishment coalesce behind one moderate candidate and mount a serious challenge, or will they remain divided and be conquered?’” Wenzel said.

“For this challenge to develop, three of four candidates – Bush, Rubio, Kasich and Christie – would have to step aside, and given the stakes involved, it is hard to imagine that happening in time to make a difference. The clock has now become a serious factor in this race.”

He said moderates like Trump, with a sizable chunk also favoring Marco Rubio, while conservatives favor Cruz.

“Cruz does so badly among moderates that it is hard to make a case for him as the consensus candidate. Trump’s ability at this stage of the game to gain solid support among all demographic groups makes him a significant favorite to win the nomination. It is interesting to note that there is a significant gender gap inside the race for the GOP nomination – as Trump wins only 29 percent support among men but wins 47 percent support among women who will be voting in the GOP primary elections. Among conservative women voting in the GOP primaries, Trump wins 53 percent support,” Wenzel reported.

The survey shows Trump collecting nearly 40 percent of the GOP support, but also 31 percent of the independents and even 26-plus percent of the Democrats.

While Ohio Gov. John Kasich gets 31 percent of the Democrats who responded to the poll, most other candidates share tiny fractions. Only Cruz was event close to Trump, with 21 percent of the Democrats, 24 percent of the GOP and 21 percent of the independents.

It showed Trump dominates among those voters who think of themselves as very liberal or liberal, with 60 percent and 40 percent support, respectively. But he’s no slouch among the moderate and conservatives either, with support higher than 41 percent in each group.

The rest of the support was splintered among the candidates.

The question: “If you were voting today in your state’s primary or caucus election for the Republican nomination for president, and the candidates were, in alphabetical order, Jeb Bush, Ben Carson, Chris Christie, Ted Cruz, Carly Fiorina, John Kasich, Marco Rubio and Donald Trump, for whom would you vote?”

Among men and women, Trump also had far and away leads, with 30 percent of the men and more than 46 percent of the women. Only Cruz was within sight, with about 23 percent of support from each group.

Trump dominated, too, among the religious categories, getting 40 percent support from Protestants, 30 percent from Catholics, 40 percent of Jews and more. Trump also dominated among the age groups as well as across all geographic regions in the country

Trust the government? Maybe you shouldn’t. Read the details in “Lies the Government Told You,” by Judge Andrew Napolitano.

See the results:

Question 3: If you were voting today in your state’s primary or caucus election for the Republican nomination for president, and the candidates were, in alphabetical order, Jeb Bush, Ben Carson, Chris Christie, Ted Cruz, Carly Fiorina, John Kasich, Marco Rubio and Donald Trump, for whom would you vote?”

Countries Rush for Upper Hand in Antarctica

www.nytimes.com

By SIMON ROMERO

Photographs by DANIEL BEREHULAK

On a glacier-filled island with fjords and elephant seals, Russia has built Antarctica’s first Orthodox church on a hill overlooking its research base, transporting the logs all the way from Siberia.

Less than an hour away by snowmobile, Chinese laborers have updated the Great Wall Station, a linchpin in China’s plan to operate five bases on Antarctica, complete with an indoor badminton court, domes to protect satellite stations and sleeping quarters for 150 people.

Not to be outdone, India’s futuristic new Bharathi base, built on stilts using 134 interlocking shipping containers, resembles a spaceship. Turkey and Iran have announced plans to build bases, too.

More than a century has passed since explorers raced to plant their flags at the bottom of the world, and for decades to come this continent is supposed to be protected as a scientific preserve, shielded from intrusions like military activities and mining.

But an array of countries are rushing to assert greater influence here, with an eye not just toward the day those protective treaties expire, but also for the strategic and commercial opportunities that exist right now.

“The newer players are stepping into what they view as a treasure house of resources,” said Anne-Marie Brady, a scholar at New Zealand’s University of Canterbury who specializes in Antarctic politics.

Some of the ventures focus on the Antarctic resources that are already up for grabs, like abundant sea life. China and South Korea, both of which operate state-of-the-art bases here, are ramping up their fishing of krill, the shrimplike crustaceans found in abundance in the Southern Ocean, while Russia recently thwartedefforts to create one of the world’s largest ocean sanctuaries here.

Some scientists are examining the potential for harvesting icebergs from Antarctica, which is estimated to have the biggest reserves of fresh water on the planet. Nations are also pressing ahead with space research and satellite projects to expand their global navigation abilities.

Building on a Soviet-era foothold, Russia is expanding its monitoring stations for Glonass, its version of the Global Positioning System. At least three Russian stations are already operating in Antarctica, part of its effort to challenge the dominance of the American GPS, and new stations are planned for sites like the Russian base, in the shadow of the Orthodox Church of the Holy Trinity.

Elsewhere in Antarctica, Russian researchers boast of their recentdiscovery of a freshwater reserve the size of Lake Ontario after drilling through miles of solid ice.

“You can see that we’re here to stay,” said Vladimir Cheberdak, 57, chief of the Bellingshausen Station, as he sipped tea under a portrait of Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen, an officer and later admiral in the Imperial Russian Navy who explored the Antarctic coast in 1820.

Antarctica’s mineral, oil and gas wealth are a longer-term prize. The treaty banning mining here, shielding coveted reserves of iron ore, coal and chromium, expires in 2048. Researchers recently found kimberlite deposits hinting at the existence of diamonds. And while assessments vary widely, geologistsestimate that Antarctica holds at least 36 billion barrels of oil and natural gas.

Beyond the Antarctic treaties, huge obstacles persist to tapping these resources, like drifting icebergs that could imperil offshore platforms. Then there is Antarctica’s remoteness, with some mineral deposits found in windswept locations on a continent that is larger than Europe and where winter temperatures hover around minus 70 Fahrenheit.

But advances in technology might make Antarctica a lot more accessible three decades from now. And even before then, scholars warn, the demand for resources in an energy-hungry world could raise pressure to renegotiate Antarctica’s treaties, possibly allowing more commercial endeavors here well before the prohibitions against them expire.

The research stations on King George Island offer a glimpse into the long game on this ice-blanketed continent as nations assert themselves, eroding the sway long held by countries like the United States, Britain, Australia and New Zealand.

Being stationed in Antarctica involves adapting to life on the planet’s driest, windiest and coldest continent, yet each nation manages to make itself at home.

Bearded Russian priests offer regular services at the Orthodox church for the 16 or so Russian speakers who spend the winter at the base, largely polar scientists in fields like glaciology and meteorology. Their number climbs to about 40 in the warmer summer months.

Inside the Bellingshausen base, satellites beam Russian television directly to flat screens on the wall. Researchers disappear for hours into a library with science fiction and detective novels. Others seek refuge in Bellingshausen’s banya, or sauna, where they unwind while sipping their ration of a couple of beers a week. Authentic flourishes include a broom of birch branches with which researchers can gently whip themselves.

“We sacrifice some of the nice things in life to go to Antarctica,” said Oleg Katorgin, 45, a construction supervisor who spent much of the past year at Bellingshausen. To help the time pass, he paints murals of idyllic tropical beach scenes, with mermaids. His paintings hang on the walls of the billiards room at Bellingshausen and a recreation area at an adjacent Chilean base overlooking Maxwell Bay.

China has arguably the fastest-growing operations in Antarctica. It opened its fourth station last year and is pressing ahead with plans to build a fifth. It is building its second icebreaking ship and setting up research drilling operations on an ice dome 13,422 feet above sea level that is one of the planet’s coldest places.

Chinese officials say the expansion in Antarctica prioritizes scientific research, but they also acknowledge that concerns about “resource security” influence their moves.

China’s newly renovated Great Wall station on King George Island makes the Russian and Chilean bases here seem antiquated.

“We do weather monitoring here and other research,” Ning Xu, 53, the chief of the Chinese base, said over tea during a fierce blizzard in late November.

The cavernous base he leads resembles a snowed-in college campus on holiday break, with the capacity to sleep more than 10 times the 13 people who were staying on through the Antarctic winter.

Yong Yu, a Chinese microbiologist, showed off the spacious building, with empty desks under an illustrated timeline detailing the rapid growth of China’s Antarctic operations since the 1980s. “We now feel equipped to grow,” he said.

As some countries expand operations in Antarctica, the United States maintains three year-round stations on the continent with more than 1,000 people during the Southern Hemisphere’s summer, including those at the Amundsen-Scott station, built in 1956 at an elevation of 9,301 feet on a plateau at the South Pole. But American researchers quietly grumble about budget restraints and having far fewericebreakers than Russia, limiting the reach of the United States in Antarctica.

Scholars warn that Antarctica’s political flux could blur the distinction between military and civilian activities long before the continent’s treaties come up for renegotiation, especially in parts of Antarctica that are ideal for intercepting signals from satellites or retasking satellite systems, potentially enhancing global electronic intelligence operations.

Some countries have had a hard time here. Brazil opened a research station in 1984, but it was largely destroyed by a firethat killed two members of the navy in 2012, the same year that a diesel-laden Brazilian barge sank near the base. As if that were not enough, a Brazilian C-130 Hercules military transport plane has remained stranded near the runway of Chile’s air base here since it crash-landedin 2014.

Still, Brazil’s stretch of misfortune has created opportunities for China, with a Chinese company winning the $100 million contract in 2015 to rebuild the Brazilian station.

Amid all the changes, Antarctica maintains its allure. South Korea opened its second Antarctic research base in 2014, describing it as a way to test robots developed by Korean researchers for use in extreme conditions. With Russia’s help, Belarus is preparing to build its firstAntarctic base. Colombia said this year that it planned to join other South American nations with bases in Antarctica.

“The old days of the Antarctic being dominated by the interests and wishes of white men from European, Australasian and North American states is over,” said Klaus Dodds, a politics scholar at the University of London who specializes in Antarctica. “The reality is that Antarctica is geopolitically contested.”

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