Video: Proof the DNC has Doubled Down on Howard Dean

Former Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chairman, Howard Dean was likely the biggest left wing ideologue ever appointed to the position. If you remember any of his antics when asked a tough question, you know that he was the master at avoiding it entirely while attempting to set a new narrative directed at his opponents. Surely, the Democratic Party couldn't do worse than him as chairman. Oh, yes they did. Far left whacko, Debbie Wasserman Schultz has only been in the job a short while and is already proving to be the quintessential smoking gun for claims that the left has doubled down.

Here, while being interviewed by CBS's Harry Smith, the subject is Rep. Paul Ryan's plan to fix Medicare. After conceding that the Democrats reject Ryan's plan, he then asks Schultz if the Democrats have a plan at all. Her refusal to answer that with a 'yes' or a 'no' communicates the answer, which is no. She then proceeds to lie about Ryan's plan. I'll give Dean credit on one thing. He was much smoother at lying while changing the subject than Schultz is. This is just plain pathetic.

Via Hot Air:



Last week, DWS charged that if the Republicans were in charge, Americans would all be driving foreign cars. Lost on her was the fact that she drives a Japanese vehicle.

She then proceeded to deride Republicans for having the gall to insist that illegal aliens are breaking the law.



If you're a Democrat, you likely miss this guy.

Chrislam Alert: Billboards Promote Jesus as Islamic Prophet

An Islamic group named MyPeace has funded a campaign that involves billboards in Australia that have the word 'JESUS' prominently shown and then next to it, the words 'A Prophet of Islam.' If you believe that the Bible is the True Word of God, then you know this is a lie. If you're someone who claims to be a Christian while supporting the message - not the right to communicate the message - you're simply not a Christian. One of the billboards was vandalized in a show of protest.

While the Christian community, in large part, found the billboards intentionally and unnecessarily provocative, there were reportedly some CINO's (Christians in Name Only) who enjoyed seeing the billboards. Welcome to Chrislam.

Via OnIslam:

Organizers have defended the campaign, saying the billboards have received a positive response from Christians.

MyPeace organizer Diaa Mohamed told Fairfax he had received "overwhelmingly positive feedback from Christians, atheists, Muslims, everyday Australians".

He condemned the billboard’s vandalism as validating “the reason they went up in the first place".

He said his group will go ahead with plans for similar ads with slogans as “Holy Quran: the final testament” and “Muhammad: mercy to mankind” - on buses travelling through the city and in the Hills district.

Putting aside the argument about whether the billboards are a form of protected speech (they should be), the notion that any Christian would not view what's on those billboards as an affront to their faith should cause such individuals to seriously question their own faith because it's NOT Christianity. It's Chrislam.

More on Chrislam HERE.

Houston Cop Killed by Drunk Illegal Alien

At some point, our federal government must be considered to have blood on its hands for its refusal to enforce our immigration laws. Once we finally accept that premise, we must start pinning down individuals responsible. Houston Police Officer Kevin Will was manning a roadblock in the early morning hours when a very drunk illegal alien, who ignored that roadblock hit Will, who was killed instantly but not before warning others to get out of the way. The name of the illegal alien is Johoan Rodriguez. His BAC was .238 and he was in possession of cocaine.

Officer Will's wife is currently an expectant mother of the couple's third child.

Via Fox Houston:

Suspect in Officer’s Death in Country Illegally: MyFoxHOUSTON.com

Is Obama's Violation of War Powers Act Impeachable?

Though George Will doesn't use the word 'impeach' in his column, he does use the word meretricious to describe Obama's attempt to split hairs with regard to the 1973 War Powers Act, a law that says any President must seek congressional approval within 60 days of engaging American forces in military conflict, which is what's going on in Libya right now. Seemingly inherent in Will's indignation over Obama's violation of the law - the 60 day expiration occurred over a week ago - is the implication that in breaking the law, impeachment considerations should be a consequence.

Will writes, via the Washington Post:

Enacted in 1973 over President Nixon’s veto, the WPR may or may not be wise. It is, however, unquestionably a law, and Barack Obama certainly is violating it. It stipulates that a president must terminate military action 60 days after initiating it (or 90, if the president “certifies” in writing an “unavoidable military necessity” respecting the safety of U.S. forces), unless Congress approves it. Congress has been supine and silent about this war, which began more than 70 days ago.

All presidents have resented the WPR but have taken care to act “consistent with” its 48-hour reporting requirement. So on March 21, two days after the administration took the nation to war in Libya, Obama notified Congress of this obvious fact, stressing that U.S. operations would be “limited in their nature, duration, and scope” in the service of a “limited and well-defined mission.” Months ago, before it metastasized into regime change, the “well-defined” mission was to protect civilians.

In his March 28 address to the nation, Obama said “the United States will play a supporting role.” But the WPR does not leave presidential warmaking utterly unrestrained if it is a “supporting role.”

Perhaps, in addition to continuing the debate about whether Obama is breaking the law, another question needs to be answered in light of how he's treated his ideological allies - Louis Farrakhan and Jeremiah Wright - as a result of his actions in Libya. Both were angry with Obama over the decision to go into Libya, as was the leader of the group the Obama Justice Department let off the legal hook in the Voting rights case - Malik Zulu Shabazz of the New Black Panther Party (NBPP).

Why is Obama going to the mat over Libya?

Read it all.

Report: Turkey's Prime Minister has ties to Muslim Brotherhood Leader

The facts surrounding this 'Arab Spring' in the Middle East warrant a look at an extremely important premise. That premise is as follows: The Muslim Brotherhood is working hand-in-glove with the Turkish government and is actively supporting the uprisings in the Middle East and North Africa. Once enough of the governments in these Muslim nations fall, Turkey will move in to restore the Islamic Caliphate that was the Ottoman Empire. Those pieces are falling into place almost daily.

The latest example that supports such a premise comes courtesy of the Syrian ambassador to Turkey, Nidal Kabalan, who is expressing extreme concern over the relationship between a Muslim Brotherhood leader - Gazi Misirli - and Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, whose government is siding with the participants in Syria's uprisings, which have the support of the Muslim Brotherhood, as they did in Egypt, Tunisia, and Libya. Turkey has also been publicly attacking Syria for how it's been dealing with protesters.

Hurriyet Daily News via GMDR:

"I think Turkey has been trying to play a role, maybe which in principle has a good intention, but the Muslim Brotherhood, those who have taken part in armed operations against the Syrian army in 1980s, have Syrian blood on their hands," Kabalan said.

---

"The Muslim Brotherhood has been attacking the army. You have to understand that sensitivity." Kabalan said the political wing of Muslim Brotherhood had been engaged in dialogue with the Syrian government, but added that he was talking about the military wing of the group.

Kabalan then expressed concern over Misrili's relationship with Erdogan:

“At the gathering in Istanbul a press conference was held by Riad al-Shaqfa, a mentor of the Muslim Brotherhood. It was carried live on Al Jazeera – an unwelcome development, I have to be honest. We did not like it. You should not give a platform to people with blood on their hands,” he said.

“The issue is who is meeting and what the decisions are. If it was a meeting to initiate a peaceful constructive dialogue with the country, it was not a problem,” Kabalan added.

The meeting was organized under the auspices of the Independent Industrialists’ and Businessmen’s Association, or MÜSİAD, but the financer and the real organizer was Gazi Mısırlı, one of the leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood and a Syrian who has been living in Turkey with Turkish citizenship, Kabalan said.

“When President al-Assad came to Istanbul [in 2009], Mr. Erdoğan introduced this guy and said, ‘Please, my brother Bashar, help this man.’ Mısırlı is the financer of most of the actions,” the ambassador said. “He was welcomed by Bashar al-Assad personally to go back to Syria. This was 1.5 years ago, and he did not give one single answer.”

GMBDR also links to an Israeli report that even further validates the claims of the Syrian diplomat. In it, Misrili is shown to have ties to the Muslim Brotherhood leadership in Europe.

Read GMBDR's take.

New York Times Fluff Piece on the Coming Caliphate

Talk about putting a positive spin on something very ominous for western civilization. Anthony Shadid has a piece in the New York Times with the title: 'Can Turkey Unify the Arabs?' When translated into English (from New York Times' liberal tripe), Shadid is really asking if Turkey can restore the Ottoman Empire. The reality is that the 'Arab Spring' the left wing media and Obama administration is fawning over is making that restoration a very real possibility. Once you get past the sappy personal interest story Shadid embeds in his article, there are some telling signs revealed, with NYT spin, of course. Beneath each relevant excerpt is my translation.

Via NYT:

As the Arab world beyond the border struggles with the inspirations and traumas of its revolution — a new notion of citizenship colliding with the smaller claims of piety, sect and clan — something else is percolating along the old routes of that empire, which spanned three continents and lasted six centuries before Ataturk brought it to an end in 1923 with self-conscious revolutionary zeal.

Translation: as the 'Arab Spring' rages, Turkey is gaining more power and Islamist support.

Even amid the din of the upheaval in the Arab world, that new sense of belonging represents a more pacific and perhaps more powerful undertow pulling in directions that call into question more parochial notions. The undertow intersects with the Arab revolution’s search for a new sense of self; it also builds on economic forces now reconnecting an older imperium, as well as on Turkey’s new dynamism and on efforts to bring reality to what has long been nostalgia.

Translation: I have no idea.

“The normalization of history,” proclaims the Turkish foreign minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, whose government has tried to reintegrate the region by lifting visa requirements and promoting a Middle Eastern trade zone, as it deploys its businessmen along the old routes and exports Turkey’s pop culture to an eager audience.

“None of the borders of Turkey are natural,” he went on. “Almost all of them are artificial. Of course we have to respect them as nation-states, but at the same time we have to understand that there are natural continuities. That’s the way it’s been for centuries.”

Translation: going back to the way things were is really what's best for the world. We want an Islamic Caliphate / Ottoman Empire like we had before. There were no borders. We were all part of the Islamic order. To get back to that, we're lifting travel restrictions.

THE DRAWING OF 20TH-CENTURY BORDERS rendered traumas large and small. Sectarian and ethnic cleansing after World War I rid Turkey and Greece of much of their diversity. The horrors of nationalism and the Holocaust made Salonica, a celebrated melting pot, unrecognizable in its modern incarnation. Even history’s footnotes were rewritten.

Translation: That Islamic Caliphate we had never should have been dismantled. Doing so has caused such a mess. By the way, the 'holocaust' mentioned there is NOT meant to be interpreted as the Armenian holocaust perpetrated by the Ottoman Turks against the Armenians; if you ask the Turks, it didn't take place.

No one in Marjayoun would necessarily pine for the days of the Ottoman rulers… Yet more than a few in Marjayoun today might express a nostalgia for the time and place the Ottoman Empire represented, when Marjayoun’s traders ventured to Arish on the coast of the Sinai Peninsula and down the Nile to Sudan, by way of Palestine.

Translation: If we actually SAY we want the return of the Ottoman Empire, there will be unnecessary attention paid to such words. We'll just subtly express 'nostalgia' for it.

Just as Arab nationalism still runs run deep, with the fate of Palestine its axis, so does Turkish nationalism, which includes a sense that the country deserves a role in the region, and beyond that at least echoes of its Ottoman age. The more sophisticated Turks dismiss charges of a new rationale for Turkish imperialism and call the goal instead a peaceful partnership that might look like the free-trade zone that presaged the European Union after World War II.

“It’s been almost 100 years that we’ve been separated by superficial borders, superficial cultural and religious borders, and now with the lifting of visas to Jordan, Syria and Lebanon, we’re lifting national boundaries,” said Yusuf Yerkel, a young academic on Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan’s staff. “Turkey is challenging the traditional understanding of policy in the Middle East in place since the 20th century.”

Translation: A return to the Ottoman Empire is in their DNA and they're doing everything possible to restore it without anyone really noticing. They just can't say they yearn for it (see previous translation).

Across the region, the Arab revolution has inspired a rethinking of identity, even as older notions of self hang like a specter over the revolts’ success. In its most pristine, the revolution feels transnational, as demands of justice, freedom and dignity are expressed in a technology-driven globalism. It echoes even in Turkey, where religious and national divides are increasingly blurred.

Translation: they are pushing for the dissolution of national borders so that all Muslims can belong to one Caliphate again - the Ottoman Empire.

Read it all (if you can).

Video: Police Slam Liberal Whacko to Ground, Arrest Code Pink Leader

This is sheer awesomeness. Far left whacko Adam Kokesh, Code Pink leader Medea Benjamin, and a slew of other lefties were preparing to protest inside the Jefferson Memorial. Before carrying through with their 'dance protest,' they were warned by a Park Police officer that they would be arrested if they performed any such dance or protested inside. Immediately after issuing that warning, Media Benjamin and some whacko intentionally slow danced right behind the officer, who proceeded to bump into them and then arrest both.

Kokesh and the other protesters who made clear that their level of emotional maturity isn't much beyond that of toddlers, just kept on dancing. Sit back and enjoy.

These cops need a raise.



h/t GWP

Video: Bernadine Dohrn wants 'Arab Spring' in America

Bernadine Dohrn, the infamous female face of the Weather Underground gave an interview to Russian Television and embraced what she perceived as the fall of American capitalism and hopes to see an uprising in America similar to what's going on in the Middle East. She also referred to the United States as a 'Terrorist' country (apparently she is not one her mind). Perhaps the most telling words out of her mouth were the ones that showed complete and total ignorance of the Muslim Brotherhood's goals.

Dohrn insisted that the United States went into Libya over oil and stayed out of Bahrain for the same reason. Lost on her is that Bahrain's uprising was Shiite while the Muslim Brotherhood uprisings that took place in Egypt, Tunisia, and now Libya are all Sunni. If she believes the tripe about the U.S. going into Libya over oil, it demonstrates her ignorance of the true intentions of the Brotherhood.

Via The Blaze:

Using Math to Prove Obama Scandal is Inevitable

Is there a way to predict successfully whether or not the Barack Obama administration is destined to be mired in a huge scandal, regardless of the sycophantic media? As much as the latter is an 'X' factor because we've never witnessed a media so collectively in the tank for any president before, the numbers - according a mathematical scholar named Brendan Nyhan - indicate that a significant scandal is about to befall the administration.

Via the Daily Mail:

President Obama's administration is set to be rocked by scandal - at least, according to one political scientist's mathematical formula.

A newly-released report by scholar Brendan Nyhan predicts the reputation of the 44th U.S. president will soon be marred by controversy.

Where Are the Obama Scandals? calls the odds of scandal 'high and rising' after two years in office, based on his interpretation of data from presidential scandals between 1977 and 2008.

In fact, according to Nyhan, the odds of a major scandal hitting the administration increase to between 95% - 100% between now and one year from now:

Serving as a guest columnist, he presented detailed graphs illustrating the likelihood of a scandal to unfold before the 2012 presidential election - rising between 95 and 100 per cent by June of next year.

Nyhan defines scandal as the 'elite perception of misbehavior whose occurrence is also influenced by political and media context'.

The report reads: 'Obama has been extremely fortunate: My research on presidential scandals shows that few presidents avoid scandal for as long as he has.'

He tested his hypotheses on scandal coverage data from Washington Post news reports and chronologies of presidential events covered by the New York Times.

By far and away, the biggest scandal percolating beneath the surface is the one involving Project Gunrunner. All signs are pointing to it being Watergate with Murder.

Sipsey Street reports that Issa may start hearings on June 13th.

Video: Nothing Illegal Found in Home of Marine Shot Dead by Police

This story simply stinks and there has got to be much more to it. On May 5th, during a drug raid, Pima County police in Arizona attempted to serve a search warrant at the home of Jose Guerena, a retired Marine. The video below shows that a very loud siren rang out for eight seconds before police entered Guerena's home. Shortly after barging into the home, shots can be heard. In all, at least 70 shots were fired by police inside the home. Guerena was hit multiple times and died at the scene. A S.W.A.T. team arrived shortly after Pima County police.

Perhaps the biggest red flag is that nothing illegal was found inside the home.

Both the police and Guerena's wife have given conflicting accounts. Initially, reports surfaced that police said they were fired upon but the gun in Guerena's possession was shown to have never been fired; it hadn't even been taken off of 'safety.' Vanessa Guerena's story changed as well. She initially reported that she heard no sirens but the video makes it clear that sirens blared just outside the home prior to the raid.

An interesting side note is that the Sheriff of Pima County is Clarence Dupnik, the same guy who said his office would not enforce S.B. 1070 if passed. He also waded into controversial waters earlier this year when he blamed talk radio for the Tucson shooting that critically wounded Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.

Here is a recent video report from KGUN



Here is a video of the actual raid via The Blaze:

G8 Dhimmis Praise 'Arab Spring,' Poised to Feed it with Money

At the G8 Summit in France, eight Dhimmi leaders of 8 countries (United States, Great Britain, Italy, France, Japan, Canada, Germany and Russia) have decided to heap praise on the 'Arab Spring' (rise of the Muslim Brotherhood across the entire Middle East) as freedom and Democracy in action. Isn't it such a lovely thing? Leaders talked about throwing gasoline, er I mean money, on the fire in Egypt and Tunisia in a show of support.

Each one of these leaders is one of three things: 1.) completely ignorant of what's taking place (highly unlikely, since they're smack dab in the middle of it and people on the outside looking in can easily tell), 2.) supports the reinstallation of an Islamic Caliphate OR 3.) intimidated into going along (the most likely explanation for most of the 8 leaders). That is what makes them 'Dhimmis.'

CNN reports on the G8 Leaders' love for the 'Arab Spring':

Leaders at the Group of Eight summit in France expressed their support for democracy activists in the Middle East and North Africa on Friday but stopped short of pledging money to support them.

The G8 leaders raised the possibility that multilateral development banks could provide more than $20 billion to support reforms in Egypt and Tunisia, where popular uprisings dislodged authoritarian rulers.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy said the amount of aid could reach $40 billion. In addition to the possible $20 billion, he cites about $10 billion in bilateral commitments not mentioned in the G8 summit's communique and $10 billion in contributions from Gulf Arab states such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait.

"The changes under way in the Middle East and North Africa are historic and have the potential to open the door to the kind of transformation that occurred in Central and Eastern Europe after the fall of the Berlin Wall," the G8 leaders said in a statement.

That last paragraph, that includes an excerpt from the G8 statement is bolded for a reason. It's ironclad proof that the leaders of those eight nations have decided it's best to submit to the will of the Muslim Brotherhood. It doesn't get any simpler than that.

This is an utter disgrace. It's an eight-headed Neville Chamberlain on steroids.

h/t Weasel Zippers

Turkey's Persecution of Christians on the Rise

Leaders of two Christian rights organizations - Christian Solidarity International (CSI) and the International Christian Union (ICU) - are making it very clear that Islamic extremism in the nation of Turkey is very much on the rise, both culturally and at the highest levels of government. CSI's John Eibner says the motives for the attacks are both Islamic fundamentalism and strong Turkish nationalism, which rejects Christians from other countries. Sounds a bit like Nazism, doesn't it?

Via WND:

"The Christians in Turkey are small in number, but they continue to face pressure from the government, but also prejudice in society," Eibner observed. "So there's social discrimination and official discrimination.

"From time to time, acts of horrific violence such as the beheading of Bishop Padovese and the ritual killing of missionaries and church workers … intimidate the Christian community," he said.

Almost one year ago to the day, Bishop Luigi Padovesi, the Vatican's representative to eastern Turkey, was found with his throat slit at his home in the Mediterranean port city of Iskenderun. His driver, a Muslim man named Murat Altun, later confessed to the crime.

ICU's President, Joseph Hakim is not only convinced that Turkey's Prime Minister Erdogan is actively participating in this persecution but that Turkey's government is attempting to lead all of Europe's Muslims.

"Turkey is trying to position itself to become a power in Islam and Turkey has taken it upon itself to lead the European Muslims. They want to control as much as they can, so they can become the real leaders of European Muslims," Hakim asserted.

Taken in the context of the 'Arab Spring' (rise of Muslim Brotherhood) taking place in places like Egypt, Tunisia, Libya, Syria, etc., the argument that an Islamic caliphate is the goal of the Muslim Brotherhood is far more tenable.

Former PLO operative, Walid Shoebat, has been warning of this very thing for years.

Read it all.

Blagojevich Takes the Stand, Crickets Chirp

Former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich took the stand during his re-trial and it went virtually unnoticed by media outlets. A day earlier, Rahm Emanuel and Jesse Jackson, Jr. testified and that too was practically ignored. Blago's decision to testify was likely rooted in desperation as the prosecution greatly scaled back the circus atmosphere of the first trial. As for his testimony, reports suggest that Blago did his best to play the sympathy card; at this point, it's really all he's got left. Based on the reports, it appears that the gravity of what the former Governor is facing is starting to set in.

Via Chicago Sun-Times:

With all eyes on him, Rod Blagojevich stood up, buttoned his suit-coat, pecked his wife on the cheek, then made the walk across a federal courtroom.

After years of false promises and of making statements only in front of television cameras, the former governor of Illinois on Thursday raised his right hand and took an oath before sitting in the witness chair.

“I’m Rod Blagojevich,” he said to jurors with a hint of nervousness. “I used to be your governor, and I’m here today to tell you the truth.”

And over the next few hours he told them quite a bit.

He admitted his salty language on secret FBI tapes made him “an effin’ jerk,” confessed to having “a man crush” on Alexander Hamilton, then showed a video of himself and Jesse Jackson Jr. hugging it out.

Rod Blagojevich even choked up when talking about meeting his wife.

In the first trial, the prosecution's tactics almost seemed to benefit Blago while embarrassing the Obama administration. The second trial appears to be doing the exact opposite. Again, perhaps the biggest mistake Blago made was deciding not to put up a defense in the first trial. He might have been able to capitalize on the local media frenzy and gotten the trial even more attention. He didn't and the second trial has garnered virtually ZERO interest, even with his testimony.

Read it all.

Video: Body Language Lady Confirms Obama Contempt for Netanyahu

It was obvious to all who objectively watched the recent exchange between Barack Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office last week but it is nice to get confirmation from a body language expert. Tanya Reiman appeared on the O'Reilly Factor and left no room for doubt. In her judgment, the contempt Obama displayed for Netanyahu was undeniable, despite the words of each men. Reiman's appearances on O'Reilly are usually met with an immediate change of the channel for me because her readings are usually of people and / or exchanges with no real consequence or substance. She also usually appears to be disinterested in engaging in the political waters.

Not here. This was a very interesting read by Reiman. She didn't mince words and stated unequivocally that Obama's body language when being scolded by Netanyahu communicated more than just a dislike.

Via GWP:

Nazi Party Coming out of Closet in Egypt? No, Seriously

The Muslim Brotherhood was founded in Egypt. It has been seizing control there ever since Mubarak's ouster. Its leaders aligned with Hitler during WWII. Now, go figure, the Nazi Party in Egypt, which allegedly operated in secret under Mubarak, is coming out of the proverbial closet via facebook. The leftwing media that pushed the notion of Democracy in Egypt is now conspicuously silent on this one. Because nothing says freedom and Democracy like the resurrection of Hitler's Party.

Via Jerusalem Post:

A group of Egyptian political activists have announced plans to set up a local version “of the Nazi party,” an Egyptian newspaper reported on Thursday.

Citing a leftist Egyptian news portal, the Al-Masry Al-Youm daily said that “the party’s founding deputy is a former military official,” and that the party would be aimed at bringing “together prominent figures from the Egyptian society.”

The report cited founding member Emad Abdel Sattar as saying that the unestablished party “believes in vesting all powers in the president after selecting him or her carefully,” and that “preparations are under way to choose the most competent person to represent the party.”

Almasry Alyoum added that an Egyptian Nazi party “operated secretly under former President Hosni Mubarak, whose regime prevented party leaders from carrying out their activities freely.”

The newspaper said it could not verify the report, but said it found two Facebook pages that appeared recently under the title of “the Egyptian Nazi Party,” which have so far attracted 70 followers.

Members are “increasing at an unexpected rate, and several people came to ask about the nature of the party and its plans,” the report said.

Remember how all those leftwing advocates of socialism insisted that Hitler's version of socialism was COMPLETELY different than the brand they love to champion? Go figure, those who championed the 'good' brand in Egypt helped to usher in the bad brand.

Read it all.

Anti-Muslim Note Written in Arabic (Red Flag)

Echoes of the 'Crash the Tea Party' effort last year, in which some whacko encouraged fellow liberal whackos to infiltrate Tea Parties and pose as racists. In Washington State, an anti-Islamic note apparently intended to portray the author's 'Islamophobia' was placed on a car windshield. There was, however, a small problem. The note was written in Arabic - in addition to English. Wouldn't you just love to know the number of 'Islamophobes' in America who know both English and Arabic and actually extend the courtesy of communicating their message in such a bilingual way?

Via Jihad Watch:

The fact that he left a word out of his English version opens the possibility that the note was penned by an angry Coptic Christian or some other native Arabic-speaking victim of Islamic jihad, but it also opens the possibility that the whole thing is just another clumsy fake by Islamic supremacists trying yet again to portray Muslims as victims and thereby deflect attention away from jihad activity.

After all, it has happened before. Hamas-linked CAIR, which is (of course) involved in this case, and other Muslims have not hesitated to fabricate "hate crimes." CAIR and other groups like it want and need hate crimes against Muslims, because they can use them for political points and as weapons to intimidate people into remaining silent about the jihad threat.

Maybe the Redmond cops who are busy investigating this "hate crime" will find some angry Christian Arab who left this note. But they should not omit to investigate the possibility that the author of the note was from the same poor victimized group that the note targeted.

It is beyond a stretch to believe that the individual who wrote this note was a Coptic Christian. In fact, this tactic has been used consistently by left wing activists, who are very sympathetic with Islamic groups.

Here is a video from KOMO in Seattle. Notice that the note appeared on the woman's car windshield after she had only been in a Starbucks for just a few minutes. What are the odd?

More here.

Paging N.O.W. - facebook Page calls for Beating Female Saudi Drivers

There may be no further evidence that civil rights groups and the National Organization of Women (NOW) have zero interest in the cause they supposedly champion than the deafening silent response to a facebook page with thousands of 'likes' in Saudi Arabia that is calling for men to physically beat any woman caught driving a car. Perhaps the biggest whiner of civil rights abuses is the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR). It would seem that the mistreatment of women in Saudi Arabia would be a far better cause than filing complaints in the United States that allege abuses that, even if true, are so exponentially less discriminatory.

Via Breitbart:

A campaign has been launched on Facebook calling for men to beat Saudi women who drive their cars in a planned protest next month against the ultra-conservative kingdom's ban on women taking the wheel.
The call comes as activists are demanding the release of Manal al-Sharif, a Saudi woman who was jailed for defying the ban.

The page, titled "The Iqal Campaign: June 17 for preventing women from driving," refers to the Arabic name for the cord used to hold on the traditional headdress worn by many men in the Gulf, advocating the cord be used to hit women who dare to drive.

It has drawn over 6,000 "likes" on the popular social networking website.

Some on the page proposed distributing boxes of Iqals to youths and encouraging them use them to hit women who participate in the June 17 protest.

One joked about the price of Iqals going up due to men buying them before the protest.

Code Pink, CAIR, ACLU, NOW, etc. are conspicuously silent. Even if they make a statement condemning the action, that action is so egregious, these groups should be dropping everything to fight against it.

My money's on 'not gonna happen.'

Blago Trial: Rahm and Jesse Jackson Jr. Take Stand, no Fireworks

The entertaining circus that was the first Rod Blagojevich trial is certainly missing from the second trial, despite both Rahm Emanuel and Jesse Jackson, Jr. both taking the stand. The big difference so far is that in the first trial, the prosecution played a lot of tapes which actually served to ingratiate Blago with the public. They humanized him and were often quite funny, cuss words notwithstanding. The prosecution didn't do any of that this time around and Blago has garnered little to no attention as a result.

In the first trial, Blago's lawyers were effective at playing up the possibility that Emanuel, Jackson, Jarrett, and a host of other high profile people would be called to the stand, including Blago himself. It had an air of, 'if you think the prosecution's arguments were entertaining, you just wait.' What ensued was an anti-climax, the likes of which haven't been seen since Geraldo opened Capone's vault. No one was called. In hindsight, that may have been Blago's biggest mistake. He had an opportunity to capitalize on the inertia of the very dynamic circus atmosphere.

The second trial is proving to have the opposite kind of inertia. The prosecution induced yawn's and virtually no attention. When it became Blagojevich's turn, the decision to call Emanuel and Jackson to the stand didn't even get the ball rolling. Their testimony was a virtual non-event.

Via Westport News:

In their cross-examination of U.S. Rep Jesse Jackson Jr., prosecutors asked him about an unrelated incident, previously reported by the AP. Jackson confirmed Blagojevich had once considered Jackson's wife for a position as head of the Illinois lottery. Jackson said his wife didn't get the promised appointment after Jackson refused to give Blagojevich a $25,000 campaign donation.

Jackson claimed Blagojevich later apologized the appointment didn't pan out but made it clear the donation was part of the reason.

"He snapped both fingers and said, 'You should have given me that $25,000,'" Jackson testified, pantomiming a pose from the governor's idol, Elvis Presley.

Another high-profile witness to take the stand Wednesday was Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel.

Emanuel testified that, in his former job as chief of staff to President Barack Obama, he knew of no deal in which Blagojevich had asked for a top job in exchange for appointing Obama's preferred candidate to the president-elect's vacant U.S. Senate seat in 2008.

This may all come down to whether Blago decides to throw a Hail Mary pass and testify at his own trial. It may be all he has left. If the testimony of Jackson and Emanuel isn't drawing the much needed attention Blago's team wants, there really aren't any more options.

Read it all.

Project Gunrunner: Grassley Threatens to Block Nominees Unless Given Answers

As ranking member of the Senate Judiciary, Chuck Grassley (R-IA) doesn't have the subpoena power Darrell Issa does over in the House. That's the main reason Grassley is running into far more stonewalling when requesting documents that will shed more light on the Project Gunrunner scandal that is responsible for the deaths of two U.S. federal agents - Brian Terry and Jaime Zapata. It appears Grassley is threatening to block Obama's nominees unless he starts getting the answers he's demanding.

Via The Hill:

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) is vowing to block President Obama’s nominations until he gets detailed answers on a controversial program that resulted in drug cartels acquiring more than 1,300 firearms from the U.S.

Grassley is pressing the Department of Justice (DOJ) on who initiated the “Gun Runner” program that authorized the sale of guns to people acting as straw purchasers for drug cartels in Mexico. Gun Runner might have contributed to the death of at least one federal agent.

As the ranking Republican on the Judiciary Committee, Grassley has been working closely with House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) for the past several months, gathering documents and conducting interviews with DOJ officials and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) agents in an attempt to find out who gave the order for the operation.

Sources note that unlike Grassley, Issa has subpoena power.

Gun Runner and another operation called Fast and Furious were designed to dismantle the gun-smuggling routes that drug cartels use to ferry high-powered assault rifles from the U.S. into Mexico. By allowing people to illegally purchase large quantities of the weapons from gun dealers, officials hoped to trace the firearms to the drug cartel members and prosecute them. But ATF whistleblowers allege that officials lost track of the guns.

The degree to which Grassley's threats will be effective remains to be seen but it could get very interesting if there's a judge Obama is really chomping at the bit to appoint.

h/t to Sipsey Street

Ruh Roh: Herman Cain Backtracking on his Islamic Comments

Not sure how to digest this one. In March, a Huffington Post reporter confronted Herman Cain about the likelihood of Cain appointing a Muslim as a Judge or Cabinet member if elected president. Cain's response - which is the kind of response that has helped his stock rise with conservatives who understand the Islamic threat - was pointed and relatively clear. He explained why he would be uncomfortable with making such appointments and he focused on Sharia Law.

Here is that exchange:



Yesterday, Cain appeared on Glenn Beck's radio show and backtracked a bit. Intentional or not, Beck made it more difficult for Cain not to backtrack by feeding into the paradigm that allows Muslims to be portrayed as victims of racism. That paradigm puts conservatives on defense, it's ill-advised, and it's not relevant or correct. The issue is NOT the violation of Muslim rights. Jews are far more victimized. The issue is Sharia Law. Cain and Beck attempt to separate the two and it simply cannot be done. When the conversation is allowed to morph from a critique of Islamic Law to violations of Muslims' civil rights based on religion, it's a no-win. That's not the issue; the issue is Islamic Law.

Show me a Muslim who does NOT support Sharia Law and I'll show you either a bad Muslim or a non-Muslim. I think Cain hurt himself a bit here. He did leave enough wiggle room in his answer back in March but his answer to Beck seemed to rely on that wiggle room instead of further condemning Sharia Law as 100% antithetical to Constitutional Law. Again, compare the First Amendment with Article VI.

Fast forward to the 10:00 mark.



h/t The Blaze

BBC Finally Wakes Up, Notices Fethullah Gulen Movement

Go figure. The most prominent news source in Great Britain has finally taken notice of Fethullah Gulen. There have been several bloggers ringing alarm bells about the Gulen movement for years and the BBC pooh poohed such warnings with its silence. Now, all of a sudden, it has decided to look into it. This has become a disturbing trend with leftwing media outlets that ultimately have to face realities they continuously choose to deny and ignore until it's no longer possible to do so. Those troublesome little conservative bloggers that liberal media establishments view with contempt continue to scoop them.

Via Edward Stourton at BBC:

Inspired by a little-known Turkish imam, the Gulen movement is linked to more than 1,000 schools in 130 countries as well as think tanks, newspapers, TV and radio stations, universities - and even a bank.

This massive network is unlike anything else. It has no formal structure, no visible organisation and no official membership.

Its supporters say they simply work together, in a loosely affiliated alliance inspired by the message of charismatic preacher Fethullah Gulen, who promotes a tolerant Islam which emphasises altruism, hard work and education.

Turkish businessmen are attracted by what they see as his international outlook and pragmatic approach to issues like using credit.

In Turkey today, it is thought to have up to 10 million supporters. A recent study suggests many give between 5%-20% of their income to groups affiliated with the movement.

Critics claim its aim is to gain power, to spread socially conservative Islamic attitudes on issues like marriage and alcohol around the globe, and to suppress any opposition.

In the past year, three of its most prominent critics have been jailed in Turkey, sparking claims that it has become a sinister controlling force in its native land.

Mr Gulen's critics point to a video which surfaced in 1999, in which he seemed to tell his followers that they should deliberately attempt to infiltrate mainstream structures:

"You must move within the arteries of the system, without anyone noticing your existence, until you reach all the power centres. You must wait until such time as you have got all the state power, until you have brought to your side all the power of the constitutional institution in Turkey."

You'll note that Stourton links to a BBC article in which the entity he writes for reported on Gulen's controversial comments in 1999. This is obviously an attempt by Stourton to show he is not ignorant of Gulen. In reality, the revelation makes it worse for the BBC. It shows that they've known about Gulen and have refused to investigate him as his movement has grown substantially over the last 12 years.

It's good to see BBC finally report on this but GOSH DOG, what took so long?!

h/t Free Republic

Honduras Back in the News (Not Good)

When would-be dictator Manuel Zelaya was legally removed from power back in 2009, the interim president who replaced him - Roberto Micheletti - took on the world and won. Zelaya, a Hugo Chavez stooge and leftist, attempted to permanently install himself as the president of Honduras; the congress and the military removed him because the Honduran Constitution specifically states that no president can serve more than one term. What ensued was an international crisis with all of the world's powers aligned against the interim government.

Micheletti remained in power just long enough to see elections take place a few short months later. His replacement as president, Porfirio Lobo, is making a big mistake right now in allowing Zelaya to return to Hondura - a Very BIG mistake.

Via CNS News:

An agreement signed in Colombia this week allowing the ousted former Honduran president, Manuel Zelaya, to return home and resume political activity without fear of prosecution marks “a great day” for the Honduran people, according to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

But in the view of Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, the accord sets the stage for Zelaya and his leftist ally, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, to further damage democracy in the small Central American country.

“Hugo Chavez’s handprints are all over this deal,” Ros-Lehtinen said in a statement. “He can’t wait to have Zelaya back in Honduras so he can begin pulling the strings again and undermine that nation’s democracy.”

Clinton, by contrast, said on Monday that the U.S. “commends” the Chavez regime for its role in securing the agreement.

Micheletti's resolve in 2009 was unmatched in modern times. He did not buckle in the face of very strong international and hemispheric pressure from the U.N., the O.A.S., and the United States but in hindsight, he made one mistake. Instead of arresting Zelaya and putting him on trial, Micheletti exiled the former leader. Now Zelaya is coming back without condition. Look for Zelaya to work day and night to amend the Constitution so that he can be reinstalled.

Though Micheletti set a high standard for courage, Lobo has proved with this agreement that he doesn't meet that standard.

Read it all.

Video: Benjamin Netanyahu's AIPAC Speech

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) on May 23rd, a couple days after Barack Obama spoke. Based on what we saw between the two on May 19th - when Obama called for Israel to return to 1967 lines and on May 20th, when Netanyahu told Obama very publicly inside the Oval Office such a notion is a non-starter, neither man is budging. Obama doubled down at AIPAC. In his speech, Netanyahu reiterated what he said in the Oval Office. It's long but worth watching.

Via Hapblog:

Videos: Obama's Limo Bottoms Out in Ireland

Already embarrassed on the world stage just a few days earlier by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Barack Obama was served another dose of unwelcome humility in Ireland as he and his motorcade attempted to leave the U.S. embassy. Obama's limo - The Beast - was flown in for him to use on his visit but he wasn't in the car very long; it didn't even make it onto the street. Below are three different angles. Be sure to have your speakers turned up. Listen to the crowd's reaction to the loud 'Crunch.' It's kind of like how the crowd reacts at a football game, to a dropped pass.

The short version.



Listen for the laughs.



This one has the best audio.



Netanyahu last seen chuckling.

h/t The Blaze

Video: Andrea Mitchell Yammers that Obama Treated like a 'Schoolboy' by Netanyahu

Ahem (cough, cough). Excuse me, I'm choking on the double standard that rammed itself down my throat while watching this clip of liberal media whack job Andrea Mitchell yammer about how Netanyahu treated Barack Obama in the Oval office. Watch as she blows right past WHY Netanyahu spanked Obama and asserts that he went too far in doing so. She then warns of possible 'blowback' against Israel. The pro-Obama, liberal media bias doesn't get more obvious than this.

Lost on Mitchell - wilfully so - is that we have every indication that Netanyahu objected to the language in Obama's May 19th speech before it was given. Obama was very likely warned NOT to use it. He did so anyway. Furthermore, why wasn't it disrespectful of Obama to go to AIPAC and reiterate what he said that so angered Netanyahu?

Via MediaIte:



h/t Weasel Zippers

Video: Paul Ryan on Meet the Press

Last week, Newt Gingrich appeared on Meet the Press and basically pointed to Paul Ryan's budget solution as 'right wing social engineering, ' regardless of his denials in the face of Tea Party outrage at such a charge. Yesterday, it was Ryan's turn. We are watching a changing of the guard right before our eyes. Gingrich is the face of the 1994 Contract with America that fell apart a decade later when a Republican Congress spent like drunken sailors and paved the way for Barack Obama.

Newt's time is over and the juxtaposition of his appearance with David Gregory with Ryan's appearance one week later demonstrates it perfectly.

The quote of the exchange comes when Gregory challenges Ryan on polls that show a lack of support for his plan. After pointing to a need to lead rather than follow polls, Ryan delivers a smackdown:

"The Senate Democrats haven't even proposed or passed a budget for 753 days and we have a budget crisis."

Ryan made Newt look even more sophomoric.

Via NewsBusters:



Compare that with Newt one week earlier:

Gunwalker Informant: U.S. Government 'More Corrupt' than Mexican Government

We can officially count Fox News' William La Jeunesse among mainstream media reporters who are actually covering the Project Gunwalker scandal; Sharyl Attkisson was the first. The Fox News website has posted his entire raw interview with a confidential informant about what our government has been engaged in relative to an operation that allowed guns to 'walk' into Mexico. These guns and this operation - Fast and Furious - are responsible for the deaths of countless Mexicans and two federal U.S. Agents - Brian Terry and Jaime Zapata.

Fast forward to the 4:00 mark if pressed for time. These are incredibly explosive revelations that could lead directly to the White House. Perhaps one of this informant's many bombshells is his claim that the U.S. Government is actually MORE CORRUPT than Mexico's government.

Via Fox News with Big h/t to David Codrea, who has actually posted the entire raw footage.



Here is the short report that aired back in April:

Video: Obama Doubles Down on 1967 Borders Comment, Licks Wounds

While speaking at AIPAC one day after he got a spanking in the Oval Office from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about his comments regarding Israel returning to the 1967 borders, Obama decided to fire back at Netanyahu. Indignant, Obama re-read the same comments that were so inflammatory on Thursday. He did so while claiming that he didn't veer off the path of what has long been U.S. policy with respect to Israel. Even if he's technically correct, his calculated ambiguity and timing is what hurt him. Both were calculated. Otherwise, Netanyahu wouldn't have objected so much.

As I said on my radio show this morning, Obama used Alinsky Rule #3 on Thursday, which says:

"Go outside the experience of your opponent. It will cause confusion, fear and retreat."

No Israeli Prime Minister had experienced a U.S. President invoke 1967 borders in the way Obama did, just one day before a White House visit. If Obama was relying on his hero's Rule #3 working on Netanyahu, it backfired in a big way and this video is proof; watch Obama lick his wounds.



h/t the Blaze

Shocker: Islamist Convicted of Threatening South Park Creators an Obama Campaign Worker

Remember when South Park portrayed Islam's Muhammad by dressing him in a bear outfit so you couldn't see him? After all, they did honor the wishes of the Islamists not to show a picture of their prophet. It wasn't good enough for a Jihadist named Zachary Chesser, who threatened Matt Stone and Trey Parker - the creators of South Park. Chesser was sentenced to 25 years in prison for threatening the pair. The kicker has to do with what the would-be Jihadist did with his time back in 2008. He campaigned for Barack Obama.

Via The Smoking Gun:

In U.S. District Court filings, Chesser’s lawyer and family members described him as a passionate young man whose interests pinballed from subject to subject (sports, Japanese anime, break dancing, heavy metal, Buddhism, Islam) and often turned on a dime. His attorney reported that despite Chesser’s “increasing devotion to a rigid form of Islam,” he “volunteered to campaign in the 2008 presidential election.” However, “by the time the election came on November 4, 2008, Mr. Chesser had become convinced it would be a violation of Islamic law to vote.”

In a character letter, Chesser’s stepmother recalled him “ranting about how the Koran says he can’t support Obama even though he had signed up to help with the campaign."

Chesser apologized in a “Statement of Responsibility” for the “harm and pain I have caused,” noting that he was “ashamed and bewildered that I was capable of doing it.” Chesser added that, “I have always been a pacificist” and “The jihadi ideology I was drawn into was contrary to everything I had grown up thinking and believing.”

Is it me or did Chesser admit that Islam is violent?

Interesting that this comes on the heels of Obama's flap over comments perceived as anti-Israel this week.

h/t GWP

VIdeo: Are you Ready for the 'Cain Doctrine?'

The 'Cain Train' will be an energized bunch for sure. Former Godfather Pizza CEO Herman Cain announced his 2012 candidacy for President in Atlanta at Centennial Park and he has tapped into the Tea Party fervor in much the same way that Sarah Palin energized the conservative base back in 2008. If not for her, John McCain would have been lucky to show better than Walter Mondale in 1984. The RINO herd is thinning (Mitch Daniels is the latest to fall) in large part because they know they can't offer what the Tea Party demands. It's an educated and very powerful voting bloc. RINOs like Huckabee and Daniels have figured out that it's a group that can't be fooled; Newt is taking his sweet time figuring it out but he'll get there.

Here is Cain with Neil Cavuto one day prior to his announcement via Pundit Press:



Here is Cain's speech in Atlanta. It's long but worth the watch. Via The Blaze:

Anwar al-Awlaki's Visit to the Pentagon for Lunch in 2002

Anwar al-Awlaki is the Islamic cleric who inspired Nidal Malik Hasan to kill 14 people at Fort Hood. He was born in New Mexico and now operates out of Yemen. In the days after 9/11, he was questioned because of his connection to three of the hijackers. Less than five months later, he was invited and attended a luncheon at the Pentagon. There was a warrant out for his arrest before he fled the country but it was withdrawn by Colorado's U.S. Attorney. al-Awlaki was briefly detained at JFK airport but was allowed to go free after it was discovered the warrant had been withdrawn.

Catherine Herridge at Fox News has been investing this story for many months and it appears there were several government officials who signed off on the Pentagon luncheon.

Fox News obtained new documents through a Freedom of Information Act request as part of a year-long investigation called "Fox News Reporting: Secrets of 9/11." An internal Department of Defense email that announced the event with Awlaki also laid out other details, like a proposed menu including pork, which is prohibited for Muslims. The email states "the chef will create something special for vegetarians."

The documents show that more than 70 people were copied on the invitation, which originated in the Defense Department’s Office of the General Counsel. It is home to the Pentagon's top lawyer.

"I have reserved one of the executive dining rooms for February 5th, which is the date he (Awlaki) preferred," a defense department lawyer wrote in the e-mail announcing the event.

"He (Awlaki) will be leaving for an extensive period of time on February 11th."

The e-mail states that New Mexico born al-Awlaki was the featured guest speaker on “Islam and Middle Eastern Politics and Culture."

The Defense Department lawyer who vetted the imam wrote that she "had the privilege of hearing one of Mr. Awlaki's presentations in November and was impressed by both the extent of his knowledge and by how he communicated that information and handled a hostile element in the audience."

Nefarious Islamic operatives and duped sympathizers have infiltrated the highest levels of our federal government. There really is no doubt about that at this point.

al-Awlaki was also once a president of the Muslim Students Association (MSA) at Colorado State University. Yet further evidence that the MSA and al-Qaeda both roll up under the Muslim Brotherhood - as if you needed further evidence.

Here's a short promo from a Fox News expose' about this scandal:

Obama Channels Nixon over Libya

When Obama commenced his 'kinetic military action' in Libya two months ago, he did so without the approval of Congress. Thanks to the War Powers Act of 1973, the clock began ticking relative to that operation. From that point, he had 60 days before he had to get the approval of Congress to continue those operations. Those 60 days expired yesterday. Today, there is no congressional approval and the kinetic military action has not ceased. Yes, Obama blew the deadline.

Interestingly, the Act was passed on Nixon's watch as a result of the Vietnam War. Congress even overrode Nixon's veto to pass it. The irony is palpable. Barack Obama is siding with a vetoed Nixon.

His argument for not pulling out of Libya? Well, it's not really a military action, it's only a kinetic one.

Via ABC News:

In an effort to satisfy those arguing he needs to seek congressional authorization to continue US military activity in accordance with the War Powers Resolution, President Obama wrote a letter to congressional leaders this afternoon suggesting that the role is now so “limited” he does not need to seek congressional approval.

“Since April 4,” the president wrote, “U.S. participation has consisted of: (1) non-kinetic support to the NATO-led operation, including intelligence, logistical support, and search and rescue assistance; (2) aircraft that have assisted in the suppression and destruction of air defenses in support of the no-fly zone; and (3) since April 23, precision strikes by unmanned aerial vehicles against a limited set of clearly defined targets in support of the NATO-led coalition's efforts.”

A senior administration official told ABC News that the letter is intended to describe “a narrow US effort that is intermittent and principally an effort to support to support the ongoing NATO-led and UN-authorized civilian support mission and no fly zone.”

“The US role is one of support,” the official said, “and the kinetic pieces of that are intermittent.”

Correct me if I'm wrong but wasn't the war in Vietnam labeled a 'police action' and not a war?

Congress should not stand by and let this happen. Then again, the most powerful Republican in Congress does cry a lot.

More on the missed deadline at WaPo

Video: Netanyahu finds Woodshed in Oval Office, takes Obama to it

The joint press conference held by Obama and Netanyahu inside the Oval Office got started late because of the meeting between the two that preceded it. At the heart of the controversy surrounding the Israeli Prime Minister's visit to the White House were the comments made by Obama as Benjamin Netanyahu was already en route from Israel. In his speech on May 19th, Obama said Israel needs to return to its 1967 borders. Reports were that Netanyahu was furious and the press conference held after the meeting on May 20th would seem to vindicate those reports.

To be sure, Netanyahu did not show anger in this exchange but he did school the president with facts and an outright refusal to agree to what Obama called for a day earlier. Obama gave his statement first and then Netanyahu gave his. I'd show Obama's part but it had no substance; he likely expected the same from Netanyahu. He was wrong and he has no one to blame but himself.

Via The Blaze:

Video: Did Obama Adviser Call for Invasion of Israel?

For those inclined to believe that Obama's words about Israel's borders being defined by '1967 lines' were taken out of context by the Associated Press, perhaps this interview excerpt of Samantha Power in 2008 might change your mind. Power is a close adviser to Obama and is a Director of the Multilateral Affairs on the National Security Council. There is a preponderance of reputable reports that say Power has been an integral part of Obama foreign policy decisions, including the mess that is Libya.

In that context, see if Power seems to be calling for an invasion of Israel here.

Via Verum Serum:



Stanley Kurtz of NRO writes of Power:

Knowing what Samantha Power wants reveals a great deal about Barack Obama’s own ideological commitments. It’s not just a question of whether he shares Power’s long-term internationalist goals, although it’s highly likely that he does. Power’s thinking also represents a bridge of sorts between Obama’s domestic- and foreign-policy aspirations. Beyond that, Power embodies a style of pragmatic radicalism that Obama shares. Both Obama and Power are skilled at placing their ultimate ideological goals just out of sight, behind a screen of practical problem-solving.

Again, unless Obama calls out the AP for misquoting him, both are highly suspect.

h/t VS

Videos: Obama on Israel's 1967 Borders and 'Arab Spring'

Ed Morrissey over at Hot Air makes a valid point about Obama's speech and the AP's claim that the President called for pre-1967 borders. If you watch the statement in question (:55 mark), Obama refers to any negotiation being based on '1967 lines with mutually agreed swaps.' Any ambiguity that ensued as a result of this speech was likely welcomed by Obama, especially when one considers that the AP toes the liberal line and is virtually state-run. While the choice of words may have technically reflected long-standing policy, something was lost in the translation somewhere.

If Obama is really all that concerned about being taken out of context by the AP, he would be defusing the situation right now. Regardless of how his comments were intended to be received, they have been received by Israel and Arabs who have now formed a facebook group to organize a descent on Israel's borders. Unless Obama corrects the record, we are left to conclude only that he has no problem with the AP report.

Via the Daily Conversation:



Check out Hot Air's take.

I find this portion of Obama's speech even more problematic. Even as the Muslim Brotherhood continues to gobble up countries, revealing its true face, Obama champions what they are doing and even welcomes future uprisings. What happened in Egypt and Tunisia coupled with what's happening in Syria and Libya is something this administration supports. This portion of Obama's speech makes that clear. As bad as Gadhafi and Assad are, any vacuum left by their expulsion will be filled with something far worse - the Muslim Brotherhood, a group that seeks a global Islamic Caliphate.

Video: Socialist Bernie Sanders (I-VT) Confronted about Selling Book (Capitalism)

Jason Mattera of Human Events decided to confront avowed socialist and U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders - a man who has railed against capitalism for years - at the Senator's book signing in a Barnes & Noble. The premise is simple. When someone writes a book and wants to sell as many copies as possible, the quintessential example of capitalism would be going to a place where there is a vast supply of those books for sale and offering sign them as an enticement to sell them.

So how does an avowed socialist engage in such capitalism? Mattera confronted Sanders and asked him that very question.

Via Human Events:

Report: ATF Scrambling to get Confiscated Guns from DEA Raid

This Gunwalker scandal continues to show signs that it's heading for critical mass. Yesterday, it was an internal memo that was leaked. Today, it looks like the DEA has come into possession of 50-60 AK-47's during a traffic stop. The weapons were apparently headed for Mexico and purchased during Operation Fast and Furious.

Here is what Sipsey Street claims to have confirmed through inside sources:

Within the past few days DEA in Phoenix was survielling what they believed to be a dope load. A traffic stop was executed. The haul was not drugs but instead 50 to 60 AK-47’s, wrapped in cellophane and intended for Mexico that were purchased during Fast and Furious. DEA has the guns and ATF is reportedly scrambling to take possession of the guns from DEA to avoid further bad publicity.

ATF agents continue to come forward in greater numbers and it seems they're providing much of the information to Issa and Grassley that the congressman and senator are not getting from Holder and ATF Director Kenneth Melson.

More to follow.

Gunwalker: Grassley Sends Another Demand Letter to Holder

Between letters and subpoenas, Rep. Darrell Issa and Sen. Chuck Grassley are sure filling up Eric Holder's inbox. The latest is a letter from Grassley, ranking member of the Senate Judiciary committee. Perhaps the most stinging aspect to the letter - in addition to the number of requests he makes - is the specificity of the requests.

Here is an excerpt from the letter in which he reiterated what he wants Holder to produce:

1) All records relating to communications between the ATF and the Federal Firearms Licensee (FFL) who sold the weapons to Avila, including any Report of Investigation (ROI) or other records relating to the December 17, 2009 meeting “to discuss his role as an FFL during this investigation.”

2) All records relating to communications between ATF headquarters and Phoenix Special Agent in Charge (SAC) William Newell from December 1, 2010 to the present, including a memorandum, approximately 30 pages long, from SAC Newell to ATF headquarters following the arrest of Jaime Avila and the death of CBP Agent Brian Terry.

3) A copy of the presentation, approximately 200 pages long, that the
Group 7 Supervisor made to officials at ATF Headquarters in the Spring of
2010.

4) Copies of all e-mails related to Operation Fast and Furious, the Jaime
Avila case, or the death of CBP Agent Brian Terry sent to or from SAC
Newell, Assistant Special Agent in Charge (ASAC) George Gillette, Group 7
Supervisor, or the Case Agent between November 1, 2009 and January 31,
2011.

HERE is a link to the entire letter. Be sure to read it because Grassley appears to be honing in on what the ATF knew about the death of another U.S. Agent - Jaime Zapata of ICE. Zapata was killed in Mexico and, like Border agent Brian Terry, he died as a result of Operation Fast and Furious.

The detail Grassley provides in this letter is likely meant to underscore the fact that ATF agents are confiding in him in greater and greater numbers.

h/t to David Codrea

Is 'Son of Hamas' Digging a Deeper Hole?

Earlier this month, former PLO member Walid Shoebat outed the 'Son of Hamas' - Mosab Hassan Yousef - as someone who says one thing in english and something else entirely in Arabic. Yousef is the son of one of Hamas' founders and went on a book tour last year to promote his story about how he converted to Christianity. Unfortunately for him, Shoebat unearthed some interviews Yousef gave in Arabic and claims that the alleged convert is actually plotting against Israel and plans to do so by infiltrating western churches.

Yousef has apparently decided that Shoebat's claims against him are gaining enough traction to warrant a character witness. There is indeed a problem, however with who Yousef has decided to lean on. His name is Gonen Ben-Itzhak and he was once Yousef's Shin Bet handler. Unfortunately for the 'Son of Hamas,' Gonen was fired from the Shin Bet for - of all things - lying and financial mismanagement.

Shoebat writes about this at Pajamas Media:

In an attempt to defend himself from my exposure of his record and actions, Mosab Hassan Yousef has solicited help from Gonen ben Itzhak – Yousef’s former handler within Shin Bet (Itzhak was fired from the organization). Itzhak intended to write and publicize a letter damaging my name and credibility. I obtained the letter sent by Itzhak prior to its publication, have seen its claims, and can offer proof beyond any doubt defending myself from the spurious charges therein.

It is crucial to note Itzhak’s own background: he was fired from Shin Bet for “financial mismanagement and lying.” Additionally, former deputy head of the Shin Bet (and current Kadima MK) Gideon Ezra has questioned the credibility of Mosab’s story, saying it was all “exaggerated.” Itzhak is also an extremist Greenpeace activist and a pro-Palestine, anti-settlement advocate. This man is now countering my honest, factual reporting of Yousef by claiming he investigated me and found that I was a “fraud.” I can prove he is now lying about my past, and given his current behavior, I am not surprised at the stated reason for his previous firing.

Makes perfect sense. After Mosab Hassan Yousef is called out as a fraud for what he actually says in Arabic, he enlists the support of an eco-wacko leftist who was fired for lying and financial mismanagement.

HERE is a link to an interview Gonen gave to Haaretz last year in which he actually admits to why he was fired by Shin Bet.

Shoebat appears to be having his case made by the very individual he has outed.

Read it all.

Catholic Church in Florida puts Osama Bin Laden on Prayer List

This is what can happen when Churches get lukewarm. A parishioner at a Catholic church in West Palm Beach, FL submitted a prayer request for none other than Osama Bin Laden. The church apparently took the next step and published the request in its bulletin. Some may have seen it as some kind of mistake but the pastor appears to have doubled down and is defending the act by saying those who don't like it are simply being ruled by irrational emotions.

Via WPTV 5:

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - The name of Osama bin Laden appears in the Holy Name of Jesus Sunday bulletin. There's a cross next to it.

A parishioner made a prayer request for the mastermind behind the 9/11 attack on America.

A church secretary took the Mass intention a week ago. She admitted she thought it was a joke at first. But few are laughing.

"I think it's totally wrong, he doesn't belong in the Catholic religion. For what he did to Americans, he doesn't belong anywhere," says Lois Pizzano, a Catholic Church member. "It's unconscionable, it's sacrilegious," said Pizzano.

Father Gavin Badway admits many in his congregation are unhappy. But he says the church has never turned down a prayer request before. He says making the right decision isn't always easy.

"Their hearts are troubled because they're thinking emotionally about what he has done and he has done a lot of evil. Nevertheless, Jesus tells us, love and forgive," says Father Badway, who is the church pastor.

Just because Christians are commanded to love their enemies doesn't mean Osama Bin Laden's name should appear in the church bulletin and be read aloud in prayer. Someone should ask the priest the last time a Jew or Christian appeared in a Mosque bulletin as anything other than a target of hate.

This is beyond shameful.

h/t Weasel Zippers

ATF Whistleblower Translates Univision Interview with Mexican President

Rene Jacquez is one of the ATF agents who decided to blow the whistle on his agency months ago. He has just translated an interview that Univision conducted with Mexican president Felipe Calderon about the gun crimes in Calderon's country. Calderon denies having had any prior knowledge of Operation Fast and Furious, an ATF operation that allowed guns to 'walk' into Mexico. There are two very specific things from this interview that should at the very least, cause one to question the premise that says Calderon was unaware.

First, note how Mexico's president makes the case for reinstating the Assault Weapons Ban that expired in 2004. He manipulates statistics in order to call for bringing it back. Evidence points to the ATF's Fast and Furious having the same objective. By instructing gun dealers to sell weapons to bad guys, the ATF - and by extension, the Obama administration - could blame the violence on American gun dealers. Why is Calderon still advocating for the gun ban in light of this evidence?

The second red flag is Calderon's admission that Mexico is indeed going after American gun dealers and manufacturers. Again, why would Mexico be doing that in light of what is now known?

Here is Jacquez's post Via CleanupATF via David Codrea:

UNIVISION NEWS TRANSCRIPT

Program: Al Punto

Content: Interview with Felipe Calderon, President of Mexico

Air Date: May 15, 2011
Key
PSC: Pamela Silva Conde
FC: President Felipe Calderon


PSC: Speaking of those bilateral relations, in your last interview with Univision, you said and I quote, “if there wasn't a flow of U.S. weapons to criminals in Mexico, we wouldn't have the death rate we have.” Do you blame the U.S. for the most part for those deaths in Mexico?

FC: I insist that it is a crucial factor. Look, it is clear that after the Assault Weapons Ban, the law banning the sale of assault weapons in the United States, which expired in 2004, the spiral of violence in Mexico began in 2005. In the four years I have been president of Mexico, we have already confiscated or seized more than 100,000 weapons.

PSC: PRESIDENT OBAMA TOLD US IN AN UNIVISION INTERVIEW THAT HE DID NOT KNOW ABOUT THE “FAST AND FURIOUS” OPERATION, AND THAT YOU ALSO DID NOT KNOW. WHEN DID YOU FIND OUT ABOUT THIS OPERATION AND IS THERE ALREADY A COUNT OF MEXICAN DEATHS DUE TO “FAST AND FURIOUS”?

FC: Basically I heard about it through the media when this subject started to surface with statements by some members of the ATF. Obviously it is an issue of great concern. This operation has to be investigated in its entirety, but certainly we are unaffiliated with the operation itself. One of those weapons was the one that killed officer Zapata, an American agent in Mexico. So the “would have” does not exist in this case. The fact is that we did not know; what I will continue to support are the actions, within the law and respect that we owe each other as countries, that American agencies take to stop the criminal flow of arms into Mexico. Look I will tell you the truth. In my view the sale of arms is fundamentally a matter of economic interest for those who manufacture and sell guns in the United States. And this interest cannot be put above the lives of thousands of people who are dying due to that indiscriminate flow.

PSC: AND PRECISELY, IS IT TRUE THAT MEXICO HAS HIRED NORTH-AMERICAN LAWYERS TO ANALYZE THE POSSIBILITY OF FILING LAWSUITS AGAINST U.S. FIREARMS MANUFACTURERS AND DEALERS? AT WHAT STAGE IS THIS PROCESS?

FC: It is true. We are exploring the possibility of legal action because don’t have other options. We have sometimes “shouted in the desert,” as the Scripture says, for this nonsense to stop. In other words, those thousands of guns sold is pure business that is killing people. So, yes, we are exploring the legal avenues by which we can stop this.

Here is Jacquez in an interview with CBS's Sharyl Attkisson back in March:

ATF Shuffling the Deck in Preparation for Hearings?

If actions do speak louder than words, the ATF is screaming from the rooftops. There are major shakeups taking place within the agency as Eric Holder and the Justice Department continue to stonewall over serious and legitimate questions about the agency's handling of Project Gunrunner's Fast and Furious operation. An insider also calls the lengths to which the agency is going with respect to the staff changes as 'unprecedented.' This could be a very clear sign that the ATF is shuffling the deck in preparation for hearings in front of Darrell Issa's Oversight committee.

Via CBS News:

CBS News has learned that virtually all the top ATF managers in Phoenix involved in the controversial "Fast and Furious" operation have been reassigned and replaced. The shake-up comes in the wake of the gunwalking scandal in which ATF allegedly allowed more than 2500 weapons to hit the streets or "walk."

Special Agent in Charge (SAC) Bill Newell has been replaced by the former Detroit SAC Tom Brandon. Newell was reassigned to ATF headquarters in Washington D.C. shortly after CBS News interviewed an ATF agent-turned-whistleblower about the alleged gunwalking.

Two new Assistant Special Agents in Charge (ASACs) have also moved into the ATF Phoenix office: Joe Anarumo of Miami and Tom Atteberry of Kansas City. Sources say they replace the ASACs who oversaw Fast and Furious in Phoenix: George Gillett, who's being reassigned to Washington D.C. headquarters; and Jim Needles, who's been tasked to the Phoenix U.S. Attorney's office.

"This is unprecedented and welcome," says one insider, who describes the new Phoenix management as "the A-Team" and "respected."

This is what happens when you turn the light on in a room full of cockroaches.

Sipsey Street has also posted an internal ATF memo that tells employees what to produce in response to the subpoena Darrell Issa issued several weeks ago. It looks like May 27th is the deadline the agency is imposing on getting all of the documents ready for Issa's committee.

Check it out. It's VERY LENGTHY.

Sen. Jim DeMint Releases Report on Right-To-Work States' Success

Otherwise known as Senator 'Tea Party,' Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC) has released a report that shows a massive influx of people into right-to-work states out of states that force unionization. The report was, no doubt, spawned by the recent controversy over Boeing's decision to open a plant in South Carolina, which is right-to-work instead of doing so in the unionized state of Washington. Anyone with a scintilla of knowledge about economics understands that empowering unions would inevitably lead to this very kind of thing. Those who support unions simply don't have that knowledge.

Via the Daily Caller:

A new report from South Carolina Republican Sen. Jim DeMint’s office shows that right-to-work states, or states which prohibit forced unionization and dues payments, are economically outperforming states without the worker protection.

According to DeMint’s study, right-to-work states enjoy more new residents, more new businesses, more new jobs, and faster income growth.

The study shows that more Americans are moving to right-to-work states, causing states that force unionization to lose seats in Congress.

From 2000-2010, forced-union states lost 9 seats while right-to-work states gained 9. The increase in population and new businesses (right-to-work states had 46 percent more private business growth) has also resulted in a greater increase in employment and income in right-to-work states.

Oh, the irony. As the Democrats continue to pander to unions in order to get more votes, they're actually losing seats in congress as a result.

HERE is a link to DeMint's report.

Read it all.

Video: Newt Slammed by Iowa Voter over his Comments

It's looking more and more like the worries out there about a weak Republican primary field may be ill-advised after all. The RINO herd appears to be thinning on its own because it's running into a much more informed and passionate base that is simply not willing to buy the political doublespeak. Gingrich went after Paul Ryan's budget plan on NBC's Meet the Press this past weekend, calling it 'right wing social engineering.' He also embraces the idea of an individual mandate, the issue at the heart of conservative rejection of Obamacare.

Huckabee appears to have dropped out before his RINO bonafides got the better of him. Gingrich is being run through the proverbial constituent grinder. Look for Romney to start feeling some real heat too after this. While in Iowa, Newt was confronted by a voter who was visibly disgusted with the former Speaker's comments on Meet the Press. Fast forward to the 1:40 mark if pressed for time.



h/t The Blaze

Did MSNBC Produce Project Gunrunner's Smoking Gun?

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