Published on Jan 31, 2019
At least two more migrant caravans are now headed towards the US border according to newest data from the Pentagon.
‘No wall money’: Pelosi draws line in the sand on border budget ahead of potential second shutdown
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi declared a pre-emptive victory in her first post-shutdown press conference, sticking to her ‘not a dime’ position on border security funding despite the looming deadline.
“Winning is good,” Pelosi quipped to a packed House, in a boast more characteristic of her Republican rival. Her victory might be short lived, however, as the leading House Democrat expressed hopes rather than guarantees that a second shutdown would be kept off the table.
Disgraced NY AG used campaign cash to defend against sex abuse claims
Former New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman used funds from his reelection campaign to pay for his legal defense during an investigation into allegations he slapped, choked, and otherwise abused multiple women.
Schneiderman, who portrayed himself as a champion for women and gallant #MeToo supporter while in office, resigned suddenly last May, hours after reports from four women claiming he’d slapped or choked them surfaced in a New Yorker article. It was the ultimate irony for the state AG, who had filed a lawsuit seeking better compensation for the women accusing Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein of sexual assault and misconduct earlier that year.
Using campaign funds to pay for legal defense does not break any rules in New York, as long as it involves matters related to an elected official’s duties. Responses to the revelations – reported by AP, based on Schneiderman’s own campaign finance reports – have not been kind to the fallen prosecutor.
“What a luxury to be able to assault women who donated to your campaign and then use the money to defend yourself,” said Michelle Manning Barish, a Democratic activist who accused Schneiderman of abusing her while they were dating in 2013. She was horrified to find out he’d paid for his legal defense out of the contributions of women like her, saying: “That money was given in good faith by donors who expected Mr. Schneiderman to help women.”
Schneiderman made his last payment to law firm Clayman & Rosenberg LLP in December, for a total of $339,710, a month after a special prosecutor closed the investigation without filing charges. The ex-AG did release a somewhat equivocal statement afterward, declaring he accepted “full responsibility for my conduct in my relationships with my accusers, and for the impact it had on them.”
One could say Schneiderman got his money’s worth, dodging charges for a sum amounting to less than half his re-election committee’s spending in the eight months following his resignation. He also continued to rent a Manhattan office and pay employee wages.
“Once the committee has honored all its commitments, the remaining funds will be donated to worthy and appropriate causes, consistent with the law,” a spokeswoman for Schneiderman said. The committee did refund about $1.5 million in contributions, but still has about $6.5 million in the bank. Barish called on donors to demand that the rest is given to charities for battered women and abuse survivors.
Spending campaign cash on legal defense is almost an institution in New York politics. Both former State Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos (R) and former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver (D) spent millions of campaign dollars fighting corruption charges in recent years, though they were both eventually convicted.
“The system is a scandal,” said Blair Horner, executive director of the New York Public Interest Research Group.
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Illegal Busted for Selling Child Porn in Louisiana
By Peter D’Abrosca
An illegal alien in Houma, Louisiana was arrested and charged with multiple crimes related to child pornography, according to that state’s attorney general.
“Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry today announced the arrest of an illegal alien living in Houma on numerous counts of Internet crimes against children,” said a press release.
“Jose Juan Hernandez, 42, illegally living in Houma, was arrested on 1 count of Pornography Involving Juveniles Under the Age of Thirteen (Distribution) and 17 counts of Pornography Involving Juveniles Under the Age of Thirteen (Possession),” the release continued.
Hernandez has been booked into the Lafourche Parish Detention Center and ICE has placed a detainer on him.
Landry blasted the United States’ broken immigration system.
“Yet again, our office has arrested another illegal immigrant accused of exploiting children,” he said. “This man who should not be in our country has been picked up for possessing and distributing pornography involving juveniles under the age of 13.”
“Too many Louisiana families have become victims of crime because of our Southern border in name only,” he continued. “So I again urge the Congress to support President Trump, build the wall, and help us make our communities safer.”
Saturday, President Donald J. Trump made a deal with Democrats to reopen the federal government for a period of three weeks to continue negotiating for the wall, while federal government employees get paid. In the event that Congress will not fund the wall, he will likely declare a national emergency to get it done.
242 Migrants Dropped Off Near U.S. Mexico Border, Cross into Arizona
By Richard Moorhead
A large group of 242 illegal immigrants arrived in Arizona on Thursday, having been dropped off by buses on a Mexican highway adjacent to the nation’s border with the United States.
This arrival marks the latest in a string of unusually large groups crossing the U.S-Mexico border illegally, usually turning themselves in and requesting asylum.
Border Patrol sources alleged that “several busloads” of the migrants were dropped off in Northern Mexico, almost immediately crossing the border, which was only fortified for the prevention of vehicular crossings in this sector. Migrants, who were mostly from the Central American nation of Guatemala, were said to simply crawl under the fencing with ease.
In similar fashion to recent large groups of migrants, the border crossers were apprehended by Border Patrol shortly after their arrival in the United States, having been detected by motion sensors. This was likely all part of their plan, as fighting a battle for legal residency within the American immigration courts is often viewed by migrants as a more favorable way to obtain legal status in the country.
Should their claims for asylum be accepted, the American taxpayer would be on the line for providing free world-class education, welfare, healthcare and public services for the migrants, regardless of their illegal entrance into the country.
Large groups of migrants pose an increasingly prevalent issue for Border Patrol and Homeland Security, which institutionally are more structured to deter smaller groups of adult men coming to the United States illegally to seek work. The group that arrived Thursday is one of several that came this month, with one that tunneled in near Yuma containing 376 people.
A wall, while serving as an essential component of comprehensive border security, is unlikely to deter these sorts of groups that aim to utilize the immigration court system to secure residence. A more specific solution would involve reforming the system to crack down on fake asylum claims and requiring migrants to submit claims for asylum in a safe third country, such as Mexico.
Chuck Schumer Unveils Who Will Give Democratic Response To SOTU
ANOTHER HOOD RAT WITH A MIC.
By Molly Prince
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer revealed on Tuesday that defeated Georgia Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams will give the Democratic response to the State of the Union address.
“I was very delighted when she agreed,” Schumer confirmed to Zach Cohen, the National Journal’s Senate correspondent.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi formally invited President Donald Trump to deliver the State of the Union address on Feb. 5, to which Trump accepted the invitation. The State of the Union was originally scheduled for Jan. 29, however, it was delayed after Pelosi refused to host it during the government shutdown.
“I am writing to inform you that the House of Representatives will not consider a concurrent resolution authorizing the president’s State of the Union address in the House Chamber until the government has been reopened,” Pelosi wrote on Wednesday. (RELATED: Stacey Abrams Allegedly Attempts To Run Illegal Ads In Support Of Non-Existent Gubernatorial Run-Off)
Five days later, after Congress passed a bill to re-open the government, Pelosi sent a second letter to Trump.
“When I wrote to you on January 23rd, I stated that we should work together to find a mutually agreeable date when government has reopened to schedule this year’s State of the Union address,” the Speaker wrote. “In our conversation today, we agreed on February 5th.”
After losing in November to Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, Abrams has been mulling over a second run for the position when his term expires in 2022. However, she is also considering running for Georgia’s U.S. Senate seat when Republican Sen. David Perdue is up for re-election in 2020.
Abrams and her campaign consistently accused Kemp of racist voter suppression. A spokeswoman for Abrams’ campaign released a statement in October claiming that the he was “maliciously wielding the power of his office to suppress the vote for political gain and silence the voices of thousands of eligible voters — the majority of them people of color.”
Following Abrams’ loss, she has appeared regularly on cable news shows repeating those assertions. There has been no evidence to corroborate Abrams’ claims.
LIBERAL ECONOMICS . . .
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