Category Archives: news

High-Ranking Iranian Official Dies from Coronavirus

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by Daveda Gruber:

According to Iranian state media another high-ranking official, Hossein Sheikholeslam, has died from the coronavirus.

Sheikholeslam, who was sixty-eight years old, was the Iranian ambassador to Syria. He studied at the University of California at Berkely and later became a leader of the radical Iranian students who stormed the U.S. Embassy in Tehran on November 4, 1979 and held hostages until January 20, 1981.

Sixty-six American citizens at the U.S. embassy in Tehrān were held hostage and fifty-two of them were held for 444-days, which is more than a year.

It was reported that Sheikholeslam died late Thursday. He had tested positive two days prior to dying but the Islamic Republic News Agency had announced that he was recovering.

Sheikholeslam is the sixth Iranian politician or government official to be killed by the virus in Iran. Before his death he was serving as an aide to Foreign Affairs Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.

Zarif called the U.S. strike on Iran’s top military leader, Qassem Soleimani, “an act of terror.”

Iran has rejected help with the coronavirus outbreak that was offered by the Trump administration.

The Iranian death toll from coronavirus reached 124 with 4,747 cases across the country being reported. Iran may enforce a travel ban between Iranian cities.

Iranian officials who have died fro the corona virus are:

Mohammad Mirmohammadi: Member of the Expediency Council which advises supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei

Mohammad Ali Ramezani: Member of parliament.

Mojtaba Pourkhanali: Agriculture ministry official

Ahmad Toyserkani: Adviser to the judiciary chief

Hadi Khosroshahi: Former envoy to the Vatican

Mojtaba Fazeli: Secretary to a senior cleric

A member of Tehran parliament, Fatemeh Rahbar, remains in a coma after being infected.

ISNA is reporting many other officials have been infected and are under quarantine.

Among them are:

Vice President Masoumeh Ebtekar who is known in the West as “Screaming Mary” for her role as a spokeswoman during the hostage crisis.

Grand Ayatollah Musa Shobairi Zanjani, who is considered one of the country’s highest religious authorities.

Iraj Harirchi, who is the deputy health minister, tested positive last month right after downplaying the outbreak.

Revolutionary Guard General Hossein Salami falsely accused the U.S. created the virus in the midst of growing tensions between the two nations.

Salami told a crowd in the Iranian city of Kerman, “We will win in the fight against the virus, which may be the product of the American biological invasion, which it first spread to China and then to Iran and the rest of the world. The U.S. must know that if it did it, (the virus) will return to it.”

Islamic leaders are facing enragement and suspicion from the people of Iran because of the shooting down a Ukrainian passenger jet in January. One hundred and seventy-six people died in the downing of the jet and most of them were Iranian citizens. Maybe this was Salami’s way of diverting the blame of the coronavirus to take concerns off the Iranian government, and in fact, change the dialoge.

Health minister Saee Namaki said, “This virus is highly contagious. It is a serious matter, do not joke about it.”

I agree that the coronavirus is not a joke but pointing fingers at a country which is not an ally, is not the answer.

I’d add that losing government officials in Iran is not a concern of mine but maybe KARMA may have played a part in it.

Nadler Okay with Letting FISA Expire

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by Daveda Gruber:

Jerrold Nadler D-N,Y., who is the Chairman of the  House Judiciary Committee, is willing to let the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) expire.

Nadler canceled Wednesday’s hearing on reforming a FISA bill because Democrats are divided on the issues at hand. The legislation was expected to pass the Judiciary Committee but lawmakers can’t agree on how to reauthorized the program. Essentially, it would expire in ten days, which would fall on March 15th.

Nadler favors a major overhaul to the surveillance program and is the product of talks between Nadler and Representative Adam Schiff D-CA.

The surveillance program gives the government authority to wiretap and electronically skim information between foreign entities and those inside the U.S. which would be in the interest of national security.

Inspector General (IG) Michael Horowitz reported errors and flaws which occurred in the application in the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) to eavesdrop or spy on former Trump campaign aide Carter Page. This was an integral part of the FBI’s Russia investigation.

Concerns about FISA is shared with Republicans and Democrats. Alleged abuses were uncovered in the Russia investigation and to make matters worse, the Trump administration is struggling to fill a vacancy for a new director of National Intelligence.

President Trump has gone out on a limb and criticized government intelligence agencies and  accused them of abusing their authority in an effort to spy on political opponents. He has demanded major reforms before he will pass a reauthorization.

Not reaching a conclusion on the issues would interrupt surveillance operations conducted by the FBI and the National Security Agency (NSA).

Democrats have been accused by Republicans who are advocating for changes, of tabling  discussions in an attempt to prevent changes from being made.

Republicans are divided on this, as well. There are some who want to renew FISA with minimal changes and then later on tackle significant reforms.

The Senator from Kentucky, Rand Paul R-Ky., is one who opposes FISA but he has opposition from Attorney General William Barr and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.

Personally, I don’t like the idea of Americans being under surveillance but I do like that foreigners can be surveyed.

This issue always takes me backed to September 11, 2001. What if we had surveyed the terrorists? Could that have stopped the attack on the Twin Towers? I’m not certain of the answer to my own question but I don’t want to give up my freedom. But if my own phone records and whereabouts could have stopped so many untimely deaths and the aftermath health issues, would it be worth it?

I’ll let my readers answer. Would you give up what you had in freedom rights to insure that foreigners could be spied upon?

 

 

Is Schumer Threatening Supreme Court Justices?

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by Daveda Gruber:

On Wednesday Senator Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., went on a rant at a pro-abortion rally that was hosted by the Center for Reproductive Rights and in effect seemed to be threatening two Supreme Court Justices.

Schumer was all hyped up as the Supreme Court heard arguments in a high-profile abortion case and stood at a podium yelling a warning to Supreme Court Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh.

The Minority Leader cited the case of June Medical Services LLC v. Russo, and said that this is the first “major” abortion case since President Trump’s court picks have been on the bench.

The clash in the case deals with restrictions over who can perform abortions. It involves  Louisiana law similar to one in Texas that the court ruled unconstitutional in 2016.

This came about before either of President Trump’s justice picks was sitting on the bench.

This case that is before the court is part of a larger effort by pro life efforts by red states to pass laws regulating abortion. This would test how supportive the new justices will be of precedents already set, for instance, Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey, which formed the basis for abortion being legal.

The law that is in question requires abortion doctors in Louisiana to have admitting privileges at a nearby hospital for reasons that protect the woman in case a woman experiences complications during or after an abortion.  Restrictions on abortions because of facilities available close to a hospital would significantly reduce the number of available convenient  facilities the state.

Those who back the law dispute that it regulates abortion providers in the same manner that other medical providers are regulated by the state. It also makes certain that doctors are competent. Those who are opposed to the law say that it targets abortion providers with the ultimate goal of shutting them down.

In a 2016 case that was out of Texas the Supreme Court invalidated a very similar law.

Wednesday’s oral arguments revealed that Kavanaugh and Chief Justice John Roberts questioned whether Lousiana might be different from Texas in terms of the practical effect the law would have.

Kavanaugh asked “Assume all the doctors who currently perform abortions can obtain admitting privileges, could you say that the law still imposes an undue burden, even if there were no effect?”

Today Schumer shouted, “I want to tell you, Gorsuch. I want to tell you, Kavanaugh. You have released the whirlwind and you will pay the price! You won’t know what hit you if you go forward with these awful decisions.”

You can imagine that the video of Schumer went viral on social media.

You can see the video here:

In the heat of the moment, Schumer had accused Republican legislatures of “waging a war on women,” and he said reproductive rights are “under attack in a way we haven’t seen in modern history.”

Schumer went on to say, “We will tell President Trump and Senate Republicans who have stacked the court with right-wing ideologues that you’re gonna be gone in November, and you will never be able to do what you’re trying to do now ever, ever again!”

At this time, conservatives hold a 5 to 4 majority. That, in itself, could tilt the scales against the abortion centers and with good cause.

Any ruling against abortion clinics, whether it be for medical assistance to women or for assisting a baby who survives the abortion, would be a win in my opinion. Somehow, I don’t think that pro-abortion activists care about the baby, if he or she survives, is an issue.

There are too many people who seem to think that abortion is a way of avoiding a pregnancy. All women who do not want children have other options. There are many forms of contraceptives that are easily available. Abstaining is also an alternative.

Too many women and men too, for that matter, who don’t understand that abortion is murdering a living baby. Yes, the baby is alive in the womb with a beating heart and killing him or her is MURDER!

Comey Gets a No Thanks for Endorsing Biden

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by Daveda Gruber:

Former Vice President Joe Biden has been getting endorsed by former running mates, as some drop out of the race for the top spot as the Democrat front-runner but he got an unexpected endorsement from the former FBI Director James Comey.

Comey left the Republican Party in 2018 because of a bad case of Trump Derangement Syndrome. He voted in his first Democratic primary and gave his endorsement through Twitter. He tweeted this:

Biden was eager to accept the former presidential candidates’ endorsements. Senator Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., and former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg both suspended their presidential campaigns and joined Biden on the campaign trail and endorsed him.

The former Vice President got a much needed boost entering Super Tuesday.

Biden’s campaign rapid response director Andrew Bates was quick to spot the endorsement from Comey and answered in his own tweet:

It appears that the Democrats are still holding a grudge for Comey over his announcement in 2016, just days before the 2016 presidential election, that the FBI was reopening its investigation into former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s handling of classified information and her use of a private email server while she worked for the government.

So as much as Comey would like to stay relevant, both parties seem to not want any part of him.

I wonder if Comey was surprised to get the no thanks on his endorsement? Too bad it didn’t get sent snail mail to the Biden campaign. They could have just written Return to Sender on the envelope.

I’d say Comey was shocked otherwise he wouldn’t have bothered to do it in the first place.

Hillary Clinton Still on the Hook

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by Daveda Gruber:

On Monday Judicial Watch got some good news when a federal judge ruled to have former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton appear for a sworn deposition.

The conservative watchdog group will be able to call the two time loser of presidential elections against former President Barrack Obama and President Donald Trump, to answer questions about her use of a private email server that she conducted government business on.

This ruling comes after Judicial Watch exposed that the FBI released a December 2019 status conference in which it is explained that “approximately thirty previously undisclosed Clinton emails.” It also revealed that the State Department “failed to fully explain” where they came from.

D.C. District Court Judge Royce C. Lamberth said in his ruling that Clinton’s past responses left much to be desired.

Clinton has argued that she has already answered questions on this issue. She disputed that she should not have to do this again.

Lamberth said, “As extensive as the existing record is, it does not sufficiently explain Secretary Clinton’s state of mind when she decided it would be an acceptable practice to set up and use a private server to conduct State Department business.”

The federal judge also acknowledged that Clinton responded to written questions in a separate case saying that, “those responses were either incomplete, unhelpful, or cursory at best. Simply put her responses left many more questions than answers.”

Lamberth is also against written questions and answers saying that writing “will only muddle any understanding of Secretary Clinton’s state of mind and fail to capture the full picture, this delaying the final disposition of this case even further.”

Even after all this time, after the State Department has been pushing hard for the discovery phase of the case to end, Lamberth said he is not ready to close the case and said that “there is still more to learn.”

It appears that Clinton is still on the hook for her use of a private email server. And as it should be. She never faced justice for her alleged criminal deeds.

Could that day be coming? My hopes for justices have been with me for a very long time now. I’m beginning to lose hope of actual justice being served.

There is a positive aspect to this though. If Clinton is under investigation, she wouldn’t make a good vice presidential nominee for anyone.

Democratic Debate of Dimwits, Dupes and Dullards

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Yes, there is a lot going on in the world (Chinese Coronavirus, La Raza on the Supreme Court, Chris Tingle Mathews referring to Bernie Sanders as Hitlerian ) but I have to say it is hilarious watching bigots ask other bigots questions.

Yes, I am referring to the Democratic “Debate” that took place this week and for the love of all that’s holy someone please tell these “intellectuals” to put their hands down.

You don’t have the answers Democrats . . . to anything.

Debate is a tough thing to call a collection of imbeciles attempting to hide from their pasts, except of course the Fidel Castro loving Leader of the Democratic Party, who continues to double down on his support of oppression and stupidity.

After twenty minutes of listening to the Elizabeth Warren I’m Going To Keep Attacking Mini Mike because I Don’t Like His Cheekbones Show, Socialist South African Sanders was asked to explain his 50 to 60 TRILLION dollar Mandela Medicare for all program.

He stumbled and bumbled through the MATH because MATH doesn’t deal in fiction, unless I guess you are part of the Klobuchar, Buttigiggy, Steyer, Warren, etc., klan.

Yes, KLAN because that’s exactly what the Democrat candidates are.

A group of White apologists constantly telling “black and brown folk” that their lives suck and have sucked for hundreds of years because of seventy-three year old Donald Trump.

There’s that MATH again.

It’s amazing to listen to and I’ll say this.

Those who are being labeled in the “black or brown folk” category by the Progressives should never vote for any of these bigots due to the entire Liberal premise that Americans who don’t have white skin, aren’t smart enough, to take care of themselves.

As if Obama’s Food Stamp ridiculousness wasn’t absurd, Bernie Sanders plans to make “African-Americans” government funded weed dealers in order for the “black population” to escape White Oppression.

The man actually said this at the last debacle . . . err . . . debate.

Of course these scheming steaming piles of bile will eventually succumb to their own hate as the entire country is constantly told that without their help blacks “will be back in chains”.

Without their help women will be barefoot, pregnant, and treated like second class citizens.

Without their help homosexuals will be beaten and murdered.

Sounds like Iran where the great Democratic Hope Barack Obama helicopter dropped BILLIONS of dollars in the middle of the night.

Sounds like Cuba where the great Democratic Hope Barack Obama had lunch and a baseball game with a murdering thug that the current great Democratic Hope said, “Did some good things”.

In the last debate “Mike” Bloomberg stated that aside from himself the rest of the field was a bunch of Communists.

He finally got something right.

He then stated that if he doesn’t get the nomination he will support whoever does.

I know you Liberals are slow so let me tee it up for you.

Bloomberg just admitted that he’d support Communism.

In the world where I was raised we had a saying.

Better dead than red.

If you lost souls push We The People into this particular choice there is no doubt of the outcome.

There will be lots of red and it won’t be us buying the farm.

We’ll just deal with it Bloomberg style.

Dig a hole and plant you.

No water required.

Jason Kraus

www.aleadernotapolitician.com

www.freeamericanetwork.com

VP Pence: US Ready for Anything

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by Daveda Gruber:

On Thursday Vice President Mike Pence assured the nation that the federal government is prepared for any potential health crisis while speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) outside Washington.

CPAC is an annual political conference attended by conservative activists and elected officials from across the United States. CPAC is hosted by the American Conservative Union (ACU).

President Trump has put Pence at the helm of the team to lead the U.S. response to the coronavirus outbreak.

Pence said, “We’re ready. We’re ready for anything,” which was what Trump had said yesterday.

Pence called for political unity when he said, “We’re all in this together. This is not the time for partisanship. The American people expect us to work together.”

Pence added went on to say, “I promise you this administration will work with leaders in both parties, on the state and local level. This president will always put the health and safety of America first.”

Here is a video of Pence speaking at CPAC:

Still, it remains doubtful that the top Democrats are likely to fight alongside Republicans.

On Monday, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said that Trump’s proposed $2.5 billion request to undertake the outbreak was “long overdue and completely inadequate to the scale of this emergency.”

On Wednesday Trump did not hold back words as he called Pelosi “incompetent” and accused her of using the virus for political means.

Trump said, “She’s trying to create a panic and there is no reason to panic, All they are trying to is get a political advantage, but this shouldn’t be a political thing.”

The virus has killed at least 2,800 people worldwide and infected around 82,000 mainly in China. The virus is difficult to detect as it resembles a common cold or flu. The coronavirus does affect the chest and lungs.

U.S. authorities recently confirmed the first American coronavirus case that had no link to international travel in California but it happened in an area near Travis Air Force Base, which was used to transport an American back to the U.S. with the virus, which is near Solano County, where the case was detected.

Dr. Sonia Angell, Director of the California Department of Public Health and State Public Health Officer said in a statement, “We have been anticipating the potential for such a case in the U.S., and given our close familial, social and business relationships with China, it is not unexpected that the first case in the U.S. would be in California.”

Testing is happening in other areas of the country where coronavirus is suspected.

Democrats would love to find something new to blame Trump for but no one seems to be buying the garbage that they spew. Trump was not the cause for the virus nor did he not react in the proper manner. Trust me, Trump’s got this under control.

House Dem Calls South Carolina Debate a Disgrace

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by Daveda Gruber:

On Wednesday, Debbie Dingell, who is the Democratic Representative of Michigan, was not happy with the performance of her fellow Democrats, who are running for the front position in the race for the presidential candidate.

Dingell, who is the wife of the late Representative John Dingell, called the White House hopefuls on stage at the debate in South Carolina a “disgrace.”

Speaking of the spectacle on Tuesday night Dingell said, “It was a disgrace. It was a circular firing squad. They’re forgetting about what we need to be focused on.”

She went on to say, “They’re contributing to the fear and hatred in this country. I’m sure Russia and China were delighted at their performance.”

Some critics blamed CBS News moderators for not keeping the seven candidates in order but it actually was the candidates who were out of control but Dingell blamed the candidates.

Dingell added, “It was disgusting. They [talked over] each other. They fought each other. They came with lines to destroy each other.”

It really was chaotic on the stage. Senator Bernie Sanders I-Vt., who is a self proclaimed Socialist was defiantly under attack. The reason being that Sanders has emerged as the frontrunner in the primary race.

The two former mayors, Mike Bloomberg and Pete Buttigieg, disputed that with Sanders as the nominee, Democrats who were on the ballot could lose to Republicans.

Remember that people do vote “Down the Line” and Dingell could have a point there.

Still, Dingell said that she was “tired of people stirring that pot.”

Dingell retorted “They are all strong candidates but if they keep tearing each other apart, they are helping each other make sure none of them are strong at the top of the ticket.”

Dingell has deep ties in the Democratic Party in swing-state Michigan but hasn’t endorsed a candidate yet.

I’d like to tell Dingell that it’s not worth it to endorse anyone of them but I’ll keep that to myself and with my readers.

Biden Thinks He’s Running for the US Senate

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by Daveda Gruber:

Former Vice President Joe Biden forgot that he was running to be the Democratic nominee for the presidency and instead told people that he was a Democratic candidate for the “United States Senate.”

Biden, along with other 2020 candidates, attended the South Carolina Democrat Party’s First in the South Dinner. It has been reported that the former VP received a rather long ovation. As a matter of fact, the longest out of all the candidates.

Biden must have been in his glory because he feels that he’s got South Carolina locked up for his first win because he hasn’t won a primary in any state yet.

South Carolina has been Biden’s “firewall” after losing primaries in Iowa,  New Hampshire and Nevada.

But Biden can’t seem to remember things and it results in gaffes that continue to make people, who are voters, re-think their options.

When Biden was wrapping up at the dinner, he forgot which office that he was actually running for.

Biden was begging the voters for their support and said, “You’re the ones who sent Barack Obama the presidency. And I have a simple proposition here: I’m here to ask you for your help. Where I come from, you don’t go very far unless you ask. My name’s Joe Biden. I’m a Democratic candidate for the United States Senate. Look me over. If you like what you see, help out. If not, vote for the other Biden. Give me a look though, okay?”

Twitter gives a lot of information and here’s a tweet that shows Biden saying it:

Biden has been a senator in the past but he’s not running for a Senate position now. The man wants to be President of the United States and apparently forgot.

These past weeks have not been kind to the forgetful Biden. He had voters wondering about his claim to have been arrested in South Africa trying to free Nelson Mandela from prison. It was the first time for that story and there are no facts to substantiate it.

Biden also got confused about his late son Beau’s position and told CNN that the deceased son had served as U.S. attorney general. I fact, Beau Biden was attorney general for the state of Delaware from 2007-2015. He was never a U.S. Attorney General.

In a way, it would be kinder if Biden didn’t win the state of South Carolina. Maybe that would make him get out of this race and stop making a fool out of himself.

It is starting to look sad to see an old man struggling to remember key facts.

Bloomberg Claims NRA Helped Sanders

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by Daveda Gruber:

As of Monday, the internal war in the Democratic party is in full bloom. The former mayor of New York City, Michael Bloomberg, started to attack Senator Bernie Sanders I-Vt., on gun control issues.

Just ahead of the South Carolina Democratic presidential debate Tuesday, Bloomberg posted an ad on his Twitter account that hits Sanders hard on his views for the use of guns.

The ad displays Sanders taking pro-gun stances in Congress and accuses Sanders of getting elected to Congress with the help of the NRA multiple times.

In the ad a 1990 letter by chief Wayne LaPierre of the NRA is cited. It shows that Sanders is a better choice for Vermont than former Republican Representative Peter Smith. An assault-weapons ban was backed by Smith.

The caption on the ad reads, “With that letter, and thousands of dollars in advertising, the NRA helped elect Bernie Sanders to Congress. Sanders voted with the NRA and opposed federal background checks by trying to block the Brady Bill 5 [sic] times.”

Here is the ad posted on Twitter by Bloomberg:

The timing of the ad comes at a critical time because Sanders won big in the Nevada caucuses. Sanders, on the other hand, had a very poor showing in the Nevada Democratic debate.

Bloomberg has donated large sums of money to anti-gun groups and even started his own anti-gun organization which is called “Everytown for Gun Safety” in response to the Sandy Hook mass shooting.

The organization then helped organize students who witnessed or were affected in another mass shooting in Parkland, Florida.

In 2012 Sanders had a bad rating of a D-minus from the NRA. Sanders, in reality, is no friend of the NRA or pro-gun lobbyists.

Sanders tweeted out this:

The Bloomberg ad shows Sanders’ quotes on Vermont being a “rural” state and that Sanders voted with the NRA in 2005 that ensured gun manufacturers would not be held responsible for crimes committed with their products.

The Supreme Court recently ruled that allowed Sandy Hook families to sue Remington Arms, which is the gun manufacturer, in state court.

We are seeing a pattern that shows that before a Democratic debate, issues are brought to light by the 2020 candidates and that those issues are brought into the attacks on each other on the stage on live TV in front of millions of viewers.

My presumption is that Bloomberg may attack Sanders on gun control issues during the upcoming debate in order to not come across as weak as he did in the debate in Nevada.

Will it work for Bloomberg? Time will tell.

Aren’t election years fun? This election has our freedom at stake and yet I find the players on the Democratic side to be somewhat pathetic but possibly fun to watch them destroy each other.