Tag: GOP

‘Only a wall will work’: Trump calls for border security as new migrant caravan departs Honduras

capture

Hundreds of migrants have set off for the US from Honduras, the latest ‘caravan’ to try and enter the country. With focus once again on his planned border wall, President Trump has accused Democrats of “playing political games.”

“A big new Caravan is heading up to our Southern Border from Honduras,” Trump tweeted on Tuesday. “Tell Nancy [Pelosi] and Chuck [Schumer] that a drone flying around will not stop them. Only a Wall will work. Only a Wall, or Steel Barrier, will keep our Country safe! Stop playing political games and end the Shutdown!”

capture

The US government has been partially shut down for over three weeks, as Trump has so far failed to secure $5.7 billion in funding for a border wall from House and Senate Democratic Leaders Nancy Pelosi (California) and Chuck Schumer (New York). Despite several rounds of negotiations, Pelosi and Schumer have outright refused to fund the wall, preferring what Pelosi called a “technological wall” of drones, infrared sensors, and security cameras along the 2,000-mile border with Mexico.

Trump has countered that a wall or physical barrier is simple and more effective than an array of sensors and devices.

As the partisan bickering in Washington drags on, the members of the latest caravan gathered in the Honduran city of San Pedro Sula on Monday, preparing to set off on a journey of over 2,500 miles that will take weeks or months. Migrant rights group CIPRODEH is accompanying the caravan, and reported some 500 members, including pregnant women, disabled people, old age pensioners, “children and unaccompanied girls,” gathering in San Pedro Sula.

capture

Of the three caravans or more that left Honduras for the United States last year, the migrants have always given the same reasons for making the journey. Fleeing Honduras’ lawlessness and sky-high murder rate, they set off for the US seeking jobs and stability. President Trump, on the other hand, has characterized the caravans as an “invasion,” and warned the migrants to stay at home and apply for asylum legally.

capture

Building a wall along the Mexican border was one of Trump’s core campaign promises, and one that he has thus far been unable to achieve. The last caravan approached the border before November’s midterm elections, and Trump’s daily tweets about its progress helped drum up support for his hardline immigration policies, including the wall.

Images of the migrants pulling down fencing and swarming onto US soil were used by Trump to argue his case for the wall, while the sometimes heavy-handed response of Customs and Border Patrol agents was used by Democrats to attack Trump’s policies.

Like this story? Share it with a friend!

0

Democrats boycott White House border security meeting

By Brooke Singman

screen shot 2019-01-15 at 11.15.02 am

Congressional Democrats on Tuesday rejected President Trump’s invitation to a lunch meeting at the White House to discuss border security, in the latest sign that both sides of the government shutdown standoff remain entrenched in their positions with no compromise in sight.

A senior administration official told Fox News that the president had invited Democrats to join his lunch with members of Congress in the Roosevelt Room shortly after noon. But moments before the session, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said in a statement that nobody took them up on the offer.

“The President has a proposal on the table that includes additional technology at ports of entry, allows minors from Central America to seek asylum in their home country, and physical barriers between ports of entry made of steel instead of concrete,” she said. “Today, the President offered both Democrats and Republicans the chance to meet for lunch at the White House. Unfortunately, no Democrats will attend. The President looks forward to having a working lunch with House Republicans to solve the border crisis and reopen the government.

“It’s time for the Democrats to come to the table and make a deal.”

She said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer “refuse to negotiate.”

Trump, however, did not invite House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, instead reaching out to rank-and-file Democrats including centrist Democrats from districts where Trump is popular. A Pelosi aide reportedly said she gave lawmakers her blessing to attend, telling her leadership team that other congressional Democrats can see what she and others have dealt with during the shutdown.

Pelosi predicted that after meeting with Trump, the lawmakers would want to make a “citizen’s arrest,” according to the aide.

But the lawmakers ultimately decided not to attend. The meeting boycott leaves unclear how and when both sides might negotiate a resolution to the partial shutdown, which was triggered when Trump demanded nearly $6 billion for a border wall and Democrats refused — and is now the longest in U.S. history.

TRUMP SUGGESTS PELOSI SHOULD STOP GETTING A PAYCHECK AMID SHUTDOWN

The last meeting with Democratic leaders did not end well. Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., sat down last week with Trump, but Schumer said it ended when the president “just got up and walked out.”

“He asked Speaker Pelosi, ‘will you agree to my wall?’ She said no. And he just got up, and said, ‘Well, we’ve got nothing to discuss,” Schumer said last week.

Pelosi, after the meeting, said the president was “petulant,” and Schumer added that Trump slammed his hand on a table in frustration and had a “temper tantrum”—a move Trump, Vice President Pence and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy later denied.

Trump rejected the account, tweeting that “Cryin’ Chuck” Schumer “told his favorite lie when he used his standard sound bite that I ‘slammed the table & walked out of the room. He had a temper tantrum.’ Because I knew he would say that, and after Nancy said no to proper border security, I politely said bye-bye and left, no slamming!”

screen shot 2019-01-15 at 11.17.40 am

Trump initially requested $5.7 billion in funding for security and construction of the wall, citing the “humanitarian crisis” and “invasion” at the border as reasons. Democrats have vowed to block any type of spending package that would involve funds to build a wall along the Southern border.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

But Trump has continued to press for wall funding, tweeting Tuesday: “A big new Caravan is heading up to our Southern Border from Honduras. Tell Nancy and Chuck that a drone flying around will not stop them. Only a Wall will work. Only a Wall, or Steel Barrier, will keep our Country safe! Stop playing political games and end the Shutdown!”

Fox News’ Matt Leach and John Roberts and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

0

HOUSE GOP LEADERS REMOVE STEVE KING FROM COMMITTEE ASSIGNMENTS

House GOP Leaders Remove Steve King from Committee Assignments

“Steve’s remarks are beneath the dignity of the Party of Lincoln and the United States of America.”

By Katherine Rodriguez

House Republican leaders voted Monday to remove Rep. Steve King (R-IA) from all of his assigned committees after the Iowa Republican came under fire for his comments about white nationalism in a New York Times interview.

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) announced Monday that the Republican Steering Committee voted not to give King any committee assignments in the current session of Congress.

McCarthy, in his statement announcing the decision, called King’s comments “beneath the dignity of the Party of Lincoln and the United States of America.”

“Steve’s remarks are beneath the dignity of the Party of Lincoln and the United States of America. His comments call into question whether he will treat all Americans equally, without regard for race and ethnicity,” McCarthy said in a statement.

screen shot 2019-01-15 at 11.00.21 am

“House Republicans are clear: We are all in this together, as fellow citizens equal before God and the law. As Congressman King’s fellow citizens, let us hope and pray earnestly that this action will lead to greater reflection and ultimately change on his part,” McCarthy added.

In the previous session of Congress, King had served on the House Agriculture, Judiciary, and Small Business committees. He also chaired the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice and was on his way to becoming a ranking member of that committee in the current session before the Steering Committee’s vote.

The Iowa Republican decried the committee’s decision as a “political decision that ignores the truth,” adding that the committee misinterpreted his remarks:

King faced pushback on Thursday after he told the Times that he raised questions about why the terms “white nationalist” and “white supremacist” are considered offensive.

His comments caused an uproar, prompting Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) to call his remarks “unworthy” of the office he holds.

“If he doesn’t understand why ‘white supremacy’ is offensive, he should find another line of work,” McConnell said.

King released a statement clarifying his comments soon after the Times article went live, stating that the Times‘ assumption that he was “an advocate for white nationalism” was incorrect.

screen shot 2019-01-15 at 11.02.42 am

King also “condemned” people who support bigotry and rejected “those labels and the evil ideology that they define.

0

HUNGARY OFFICIAL: “SOROS PULLS THE STRINGS IN BRUSSELS”

Hungary Official: "Soros Pulls the Strings in Brussels"

MEP demands an explanation

Hungary Journal – JANUARY 14, 2019

Fidesz believes George Soros’s people “are pulling the strings of the European Commission’s leading politicians” and demands an explanation, Fidesz MEP Tamas Deutsch said at a press conference on an unrelated topic in Budapest on Saturday.

Deutsch noted that daily Magyar Idok learned that U.S. billionaire Soros had met for talks with the EU leaders on at least 20 occasions. Soros held talks with Jean-Claude Juncker, Frans Timmermans, Emmanuel Macron and Dimitris Avramopoulos, he added.

A poster slamming George Soros in Szekesfehervar, Hungary (Photo by Attila Kisbenedek / Contributor via Getty Images)

Deutsch said it was “absurd” that a person claiming to be a philanthropist who represents the official viewpoint of not a single country can meet with EU leaders more frequently than the prime minister or head of state of any EU member state.

Fidesz will ask for explanations, in writing, on the subject matter of all of these meetings, he added.

0

Previously Deported Illegal Immigrant Accused of Sexually Assaulting Child

screen shot 2019-01-14 at 3.36.54 pm

By Merrill Hope

A previously deported illegal immigrant accused of sexually assaulting an 11-year-old was allegedly attempting to flee the United States to Mexico at the time of his apprehension Saturday, say police in Montgomery County, Texas.

Jose Manuel Tiscareno Hernandez, 31, who resided in Conroe, was charged with the aggravated sexual assault of a child, according to a media advisory released by the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office. It stated that the suspect was “in the country illegally and has been deported back to Mexico on multiple occasions.”

Montgomery County law enforcement authorities did not elaborate as to the duration of the purported sexual abuse or provide any information about the alleged victim other than stating the victim was 11 years old when the sexual abuse began.

The search for the suspect escalated on Thursday, January 10, when the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office Special Victim’s Unit and crime investigators obtained a search warrant for Tiscareno Hernandez’s residence as part of a multi-agency probe into the sexual assault of a child, according to the press release.

“During the execution of the search warrant at the suspect’s residence, the suspect was not home but detectives received information that the suspect was intending to flee the United States and head back to Mexico,” stated Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office officials in the advisory.

In response to receiving that tip, investigators obtained an arrest warrant for Tiscareno Hernandez and a second search warrant, executed on Friday, January 11, at a different location to collect additional evidence related to the purported sexual assault of a child.

Then, on Saturday morning, January 12, state and federal law enforcement partners investigating this case located and apprehended the suspect in Conroe. Tiscareno Hernandez was booked into the Montgomery County Jail on $500,000 bond, according to online jail records.

Tiscareno Hernandez remains incarcerated, detained on a U.S. Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE) hold requested by federal authorities because of the nature of the crime and the suspect’s current immigration status, according to the press release.

Following the arrest, the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office tweeted that numerous law enforcement agencies worked together to find and arrest the “sexual assault suspect.”

screen shot 2019-01-14 at 3.40.23 pm

Those agencies included the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office Special Victims Unit and SWAT, as well as investigators with the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office, and special agents with the FBI, ICE, and the U.S. Marshals Service, according to the press release.

In Texas, the crime of sexual assault is considered “aggravated” sexual assault when it involves a child under the age of 14 years old. It is considered a first degree felony and the minimum term for this offense, if convicted, is 25 years in prison. It may also carry a fine up to a $10,000. Penalties may increase if additional charges are filed.

0

Blog at WordPress.com.

Up ↑