News and Headlines: In The News, Politics, World News, Commentary/Opinion.
In The News:
President Trump Tightens Border Rules to End Asylum Shopping, Reduce Fraud
Specifically, the regulations solidify that most border crossers seeking asylum through the southern border will have to first seek asylum in Mexico, which has a rigorous asylum process.
The same rule has applied to the U.S. northern border with Canada for years, successfully, where foreign nationals cannot asylum shop and instead must seek asylum in the first safe country they enter.
In addition, the regulations make clear that in most cases, claims of gang violence and domestic violence are not valid grounds for asylum in the U.S. The regulations give federal immigration judges and officials the ability to weigh more particulars in each asylum case.
For example, border crossers who entered the U.S. illegally and have used fraudulent documents or have criminal convictions would be far less likely to be granted asylum to remain in the country.
Backlash to Newsom’s lockdown order grows — rural communities refuse to comply
When a county official told her Sunday she’d have to close to on-site service, she cried.
“I decided this is enough, I’m not going to take it,” Nelson said. “People are dining in full capacity now, and everybody loves it.”
Monica Gandhi, an infectious disease specialist at UCSF, said the state’s approach is overly broad.
It isn’t being tailored to suit different situations, she said, and some of the rules may even contradict the latest science, such as prohibitions on outdoor gathering.
A perceived lack of rationale, coupled with people’s struggling financial situations, fuels resentment, she said.
“It’s not (just) about civil liberties anymore,” she added. “It’s about poverty and the privilege that’s involved in the phrase ‘stay at home.’ How can I stay at home if my day-to-day putting food on the table depends on my being at work?”
Supreme Court rules in favor of Muslims suing FBI officials for targeting faith
The case, Tanzin v. Tanvir, involved three Muslim men who said that in 2013, the FBI put them on the no-fly list after they refused to inform on fellow members of their faith.
The men alleged that federal agents abused the power of the list and violated RFRA by placing “substantial burdens” on their free exercise of faith.
Lori Windham, senior counsel at Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, which filed an amicus brief in the case, noted that the 8-0 decision “emphasized” the seriousness with which the court regards freedom of religion.
“This is a good decision that makes it easier to hold the government accountable when it violates Americans’ religious liberties,” she said in a statement.
Companies connected to Gov. Gavin Newsom received nearly $3 million in federal PPP loans: report
PlumpJack, a wine business Newsom started in 1992, received nearly $3 million in PPP loans, according to a report from KGO-TV.
PlumpJack Management Group LLC includes five restaurants and bars, four Napa Valley wineries, a ski resort, and retail establishments, according to the company.
At least nine companies affiliated with the PlumpJack Group received PPP loans, the report states.
One of the companies featured in the report is Villa Encinal Partners Limited Partnership, which has 14 employees and received a loan for $918,720 on April 14, 2020, just 11 days after the lending program launched, according to SBA data.
California wineries that received more than $900,000 in PPP funding had an average of 148 employees, according to the report.
Inmates, Homeless Will Be Among First to Receive Vaccine in D.C., Mayor Says
The city says the phases were determined with an eye on creating an “equitable distribution.”
“Our community has worked hard and sacrificed, since March, to save lives and protect our most vulnerable residents,” the city said in the Thursday update.
“Now, we are ready to lead an equitable distribution of a safe and effective vaccine.”
A potential vaccine will not be made to the general public until everyone in phase 1a and 1b has had the opportunity to receive it.
It remains unclear how many vaccines the city will receive and when it will receive them.
Thomas Jefferson name dropped from school due to pain his legacy can cause black students, board says
“After deep and careful consideration of everything I’ve heard and read, I conclude that renaming both schools is in the best interest of our students and a necessary part of our equity work,” board Chairman Greg Anderson said Tuesday, WTOP said.
Some school board members said their thinking evolved over the months in favor of changing the school names, and they began to understand the hurt the Jefferson and Mason names can cause black students, WTOP reported.
The board’s unanimous vote to drop the names came despite a community survey that found 61% of the parents of Thomas Jefferson students and 57% of George Mason High parents were opposed to the idea, the station said.
Over 900 Dairy Queen customers ‘pay it forward’ at Minnesota drive-thru
The staff of a Minnesota Dairy Queen was stunned when a drive-thru customer paid for the vehicle behind him, only to set off a chain reaction that inspired over 900 others to do the same.
On Dec. 3, the anonymous customer paid for the person behind him in the Dairy Queen drive-thru in Brainerd, KARE 11 reports.
Store manager Tina Jensen said the second customer was taken aback by the sweet surprise, and asked to do the same.
FOX Business’ VIDEO: The ‘Covid-nator’ robot is being used around the world to fight coronavirus
The Covid-nator is a robot that helps breaks down pathogens using UV light to reduce spread of coronavirus.
FOX Business’ Jeff Flock with more.
Philadelphia Allows Gun Permit Applications by Email
Attorney Andrew Austin, who represented Gun Owners of America in its lawsuit against the state of Pennsylvania, added that the city is accepting emailed applications because of difficulties meeting its own deadline for allowing in-person applications.
“They were going to lose,” Austin said.
“I think what they wanted to do was just avoid [the judge] entering a judgment for GOA.”
Kraut and Austin said that they are still looking to ensure a timely application process.
“Instead of making people wait to apply, they may now decide that maybe they can’t comply in 45 days, which, again, the law is against,” Austin said.
“But it is Philadelphia, so they may try to do things that are wrong.”
Sexual Misconduct Shakes FBI’s Senior Ranks
An assistant FBI director retired after he was accused of drunkenly groping a female subordinate in a stairwell.
Another senior FBI official left after he was found to have sexually harassed eight employees.
Yet another high-ranking FBI agent retired after he was accused of blackmailing a young employee into sexual encounters.
Each of the accused FBI officials appears to have avoided discipline, the AP found, and several were quietly transferred or retired, keeping their full pensions and benefits even when probes substantiated the sexual misconduct claims against them.
Beyond that, federal law enforcement officials are afforded anonymity even after the disciplinary process runs its course, allowing them to land on their feet in the private sector or even remain in law enforcement.
Minneapolis police union head blasts city council, says officers ‘cannot keep the public safe with these cuts’
The cut comes as Minneapolis, like many other major American cities, is dealing with a spike in violence.
“The City Council is decimating the police department,” Kroll told Fox News. “The number of working officers is the lowest it’s been in 50 years.
Murders, shootings, and other violent crimes are approaching record levels. Our officers are severely overworked, understaffed, and cannot keep the public safe with these cuts.”
CA May Add $55K to $700K Church Fine for Violating Coronavirus Rules
Calvary Chapel in San Jose, California, is facing a fine of as much as $55,000 for violating coronavirus lockdown orders by holding indoor services.
This latest fine is on top of more than $700,000 in fines already imposed on the church.
Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Peter Kirwan said the orders issued by the county’s health department were necessary to slow the spread of the coronavirus and that the church needed to comply with the county and the court.
The San Francisco Chronicle reported on the judgment issued this week:
New Yorker cartoonist arrested on child porn charges: cops
Rhinebeck resident Danny Shanahan, 64, was charged with possession of a sexual performance by a child, cops said in a statement.
The kiddie porn was allegedly found on his computer after Village of Rhinebeck Police obtained a warrant to search it, the Daily Voice reported.
Earlier this year, the famed illustrator’s son, Render Stetson-Shanahan, was sentenced to between five and 15 years in prison in the brutal 2016 stabbing death of his Queens roommate Carolyn Bush.
EXPOSING USA Today’s phony fact check
Commentary/Opinion:
USA Today wants full context? Here you go!
Liz Wheeler.
Chinese woman’s secret relationships w/ US officials; Chinese regime sent $400 million to Dominion?
A Chinese spy used every imaginable means to approach US politicians.
This happened in an area with ideal conditions for foreign intelligence.
Chinese residents are fleeing a mega city en mass. This, after the city saw an outbreak of CCP virus cases. They fear the city will lock down like Wuhan.
Cutting off gas and electricity in the bitter winter, local authorities in Beijing are forcing residents to leave their homes.
The neighbourhood will then be demolished by authorities going against contracts they originally made.
A leaked document becomes further evidence the Chinese communist regime is detaining Uyghurs in the Xinjiang region arbitrarily.
And a Swiss bank has ties to China’s intelligence and military agencies. And it sent big money to the company behind US voting system Dominion, before the presidential elections.
Politics:
Exposed: We Investigated 3 Voting Machine Companies, You’ll Never Guess What We Found | Declassified
Behind a significant portion of voting machines used in the United States lies a complex web of questionable foreign ties, a hidden ownership structure, and transparency concerns with the software itself, as well as a connection between three key voting systems companies: Smartmatic, Sequoia Voting Systems, and Dominion Voting Systems.
Information from lawsuits, public records, and witness interviews helps to untangle this web.
The Epoch Times spoke with an intelligence source knowledgeable on Venezuela and its criminal activities, a former CIA official who is an expert in Latin American politics and counterterrorism, and a former director of Venezuela’s National Electoral Council who was fired for exposing election fraud in the country.
Two of the sources requested anonymity so they could speak freely on the matter.
Ari Fleischer: Media committed ‘dereliction of duty’ on Hunter Biden story
Commentary/Opinion:
Fox News contributor Ari Fleischer discusses the media blackout on Hunter Biden coverage during the 2020 presidential campaign.
Austin’s ties to steel company add to concerns over industry influence
But less well-known is his membership on the board of Nucor, a steel company that’s a subcontractor to at least two major defense contractors.
The connection could further complicate his confirmation as lawmakers have made clear their wariness of installing Pentagon chiefs with defense industry ties.
Since 2017, Austin has been a member of the board at Nucor, the largest steel and steel products producer in the U.S. The North Carolina-based company makes more than 27 million tons of steel each year from 300 facilities across the U.S. It reported more than $22 billion in revenue in 2019.
Critics say this is yet another knock on a nomination that has already faced opposition due to industry ties and the need to seek a waiver. Austin retired in 2017, short of the seven-year “cooling off” period required by law.
Election Interference: Twitter Lets Georgia Runoff Misinformation Go Viral, No Warning Label
However, despite Twitter’s supposed dedication to cracking down on misinformation, the site allowed a number of tweets about Sen.Kelly Loeffler to spread virally across its platform, some with tens of thousands of likes are still active on the platform with no warnings or labels whatsoever.
One tweet has amassed almost 80 thousand likes and has been retweeted over 25 thousand times.
It claims that Loeffler is campaigning in the Georgia Senate runoff elections on “understanding what it feels like living paycheck to paycheck.”
The tweet includes a picture of a large home with a pool, claiming that it is one of Loeffler’s five homes. It is not.
The photo in the picture is actually the home of the TV host and comedian Steve Harvey,
‘Break Up Big Tech Act’ Sponsored by Gosar, Gabbard Takes on Social Media Censorship
The Break Up Big Tech Act would remove Section 230 protections — critical to the business model of the Silicon Valley Masters of the Universe — from platforms that “moderate or censor content without an opt-in from users.”
According to a press release on Rep. Gabbard’s website, the bill would also remove 230 immunities from companies that engage in the following practices:
Selling and displaying personalized as well as contextual advertising without user’s consent,
Collecting data for commercial purposes other than the direct sale of the interactive computer service, i.e. turning the user into a commodity or otherwise monetizing the transmission of content,
Acting as a marketplace in the digital space by facilitating the placement of items into the stream of commerce,
Employing digital products and designs intended to engage and addict users to the service,
Susan Rice to lead White House Domestic Policy Council
President-elect Joe Biden named Susan Rice as director of the White House Domestic Policy Council.
Media finally covers Hunter Biden story after avoiding controversy before election
In the final weeks of the campaign, there was an unprecedented media blackout of the explosive reporting from the New York Post that shed light on Hunter Biden’s questionable business dealings overseas.
On Wednesday, the Biden-Harris transition announced that his “tax affairs” were being investigated.
A well-placed government source told Fox News that Hunter Biden is a subject/target of a grand jury investigation.
According to the source, a “target” means that there is a “high probability that person committed a crime,” while a “subject” is someone you “don’t know for sure” has committed a crime.
Tucker: Social media giants suppressed Hunter Biden story to protect his father
Commentary/Opinion:
Tucker Carlson Tonight’ host accuses social media giants of suppressing Hunter Biden investigation to protect his father.
Big Tech Edition: Lone Star Texas Rising With 18 States joining; YouTube Makes More Noise
Commentary/Opinion:
Youtube is censoring all information related to “criticizing the election”, which means we will be also uploading to Rumble starting today at the same time.
Youtube will still be our primary focus until something happens to the channel in the mean time.
We take a deeper analysis into why the Texas lawsuit is so important, given that 18 states are joining in suit.
This lawsuit is the pinnacle of all lawsuit.
With more states expect to join, the Supreme Court must carefully weigh their judgements.
As well, there is need to recognize the way Trump deals with haters and media, we will also talk about that.
World News:
EU leaders unblock 1.8 trillion euro budget, recovery fund, eye climate goals
The deal on the 1.1 trillion euro Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) and a historic recovery fund also paves the way for the 27-nation bloc to agree on more ambitious cuts in greenhouse gas emissions – by 55% by 2030 against 1990 levels, rather than by 40% as now.
The new climate goals will be discussed by leaders later on Thursday, but officials said there was broad support for the new targets and governments were only working out how to fairly spread the efforts across the EU.
EU leaders also discussed COVID-19 vaccines, relations with Washington, sanctions on Turkey for drilling in contested waters in the east Mediterranean Sea and extending sanctions on Russia.
Covid-19: France moves to night-time curfew from 15 December
The infection rates are not falling as fast as the government had hoped
Prime Minister Jean Castex said the infection rates were not falling as fast as the government had hoped after a lockdown was imposed in late October.
A stay-at-home order will be lifted as planned on 15 December, when the daily 20:00-06:00 curfew will begin.
The measure will not be waived on New Year’s Eve, to prevent big gatherings.
The government had conditioned the easing of restrictions on the number of new cases falling to around 5,000 a day. But that number remains well above 10,000 – on Thursday, there were 13,750 infections.
Australian vaccine cancelled after ‘false positive’ HIV tests
Their vaccine was one of four which the Morrison government had entered into a deal with – marking a blow to Australia’s potential pool of vaccine options.
The deal was terminated days after the government was informed about the issue on Monday. By Thursday, National Cabinet decided to scrap the use of the vaccine.
More than 200 participants took part in the trial with several returning the false positive HIV test results.
The University of Queensland-CSL vaccine uses a small component derived from HIV which is unable to infect people or replicate but can initiate a response in the body that can interfere in the screening process and return a false positive.
EU contemplates sanctioning Turkey; Egypt-Israel vital for regional security – TV7 Israel News 10.12
1) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declares the arrival of a first shipment of Coronavirus vaccine “a day of celebration” – pledging to be the first person to inoculate in the state of Israel.
2) Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is scheduled to travel to Egypt in the next several days – the first such official visit in almost a decade.
3) Leaders of European Union’ member-states convened for a two-day European Council meeting – during which they are discussing, among other topics, “the situation in the Eastern Mediterranean and relations with Turkey.”
Argentine congress debates abortion rights; activists gather
The bill, backed by President Alberto Fernández, appeared headed for approval by ruling party lawmakers in the lower house, but the outlook in the Senate was less clear.
Two years ago, during the administration of more conservative President Mauricio Macri, the Senate voted against a similar bill to legalize abortion after it was narrowly approved by the lower house.
The Roman Catholic Church in Argentina appealed to legislators for “a second of reflection on what respect for life means,” echoing the position of Pope Francis, an Argentine, that abortion is part of today’s “throwaway culture” that doesn’t respect the dignity of the unborn, the weak or elderly.
Abortion rights and anti-abortion demonstrators gathered in separate, designated areas under tight security.
‘Activist Lawyers’ Block Deportation of 23 Illegal Migrants With Last Minute Legal Challenge
On Tuesday, 23 illegal migrants were pulled off of a Home Office charter deportation flight to Poland on human rights grounds, with attorneys claiming for the first time that the migrants were victims of “modern slavery” and therefore should not be deported.
The Home Office was successful, however, in deporting nineteen criminals to Poland, including four rapists, thieves, and violent criminals convicted of grievous bodily harm, according to the Daily Mail.
The chairman of the London-based think tank, Migration Watch UK, Alp Mehmet said in response to the failed deportations: “Last-minute legal challenges have long been a problem with regard to immigration removals.”
US B-52H Bombers Fly to Middle East in Mission to Deter Iran
The flight of the two massive B-52H Stratofortress bombers over the region, the second such mission in less than a month, was designed to underscore America’s continuing commitment to the Middle East even as President Donald Trump’s administration withdraws thousands of troops from Iraq and Afghanistan.
The long-range heavy bombers, which are capable of carrying both conventional and nuclear weapons, are a formidable sight and are flown less frequently in the Middle East than smaller combat aircraft, such as American fighter jets.
Adversaries often complain about bomber flights in their region, deeming them a provocative show of force.
Another Middle East Peace Deal: Morocco Latest to Establish Ties with Israel
President Donald Trump congratulated the two parties in a tweet:
“Another HISTORIC breakthrough today! Our two GREAT friends Israel and the Kingdom of Morocco have agreed to full diplomatic relations – a massive breakthrough for peace in the Middle East!”
Less than a year ago, President Trump launched his Middle East peace plan, which departed from previous efforts in that it sought agreements between Israel and Arab states without giving a veto to the Palestinians.
Earlier U.S. administrations had believed, incorrectly, that such an approach was impossible. Then-Secretary of State John Kerry said in 2016 that no separate peace between Israel and Arab states was possible:
Commentary/Opinion:
Why Do Young Woke People Wear Che Guevara T-shirts? | Larry Elder
What’s the deal with people wearing Che Guevara t-shirts?
In today’s anti-racism culture, it seems the “woke” turn a blind eye to the real Che Guevara.
In this episode, Larry shares commentary from Humberto Fontava, who documents the Argentine Marxist revolutionary’s blatant racist, homophobic and murdering history.
He also points out how the mainstream media pushes an ignorant and dominated the romanticized image of Che Guevara.
Will Witt Interviews Viral Los Angeles Restaurant Owner About Impact of Lockdowns
Will Witt sits down with Angela Marsden, the owner of Pineapple Hill Saloon, who went viral last week after her restaurant got shut down, but a film crew set up a dining area outside for 200 members in the same parking lot.
Check it out and share this video!