THE FOUNDATION

“Men, to act with vigor and effect, must have time to mature measures, and judgment and experience, as to the best method of applying them. They must not be hurried on to their conclusions by the passions, or the fears of the multitude. They must deliberate, as well as resolve.” —Joseph Story, Commentaries on the Constitution, 1833

TOP RIGHT HOOKS

Judge Halts DC’s Rule Requiring Justification for 2A Rights

The courts may have forced the District of Columbia to recognize its citizens' right to keep and bear arms, but the city did all it could to restrict the number of firearms. When journalist Emily Miller tried to get a gun in February, she was told she was only the 16th person the city deemed had a “good reason” to carry a handgun — probably because she was a journalist writing about the topic. On Monday, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ordered the city to stop enforcing the rule making citizens justify their rights, saying it violated the Second Amendment. “The District of Columbia’s arbitrary ‘good reason’/‘proper reason’ requirement … goes far beyond establishing such reasonable restrictions,” the court wrote in the ruling. “Rather, for all intents and purposes, this requirement makes it impossible for the overwhelming majority of law-abiding citizens to obtain licenses to carry handguns in public for self-defense, thereby depriving them of their Second Amendment right to bear arms.” The fight’s not over, though. The city is expected to appeal, and the issue of DC’s gun laws could end up at the Supreme Court once again. More…

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Gov. Jindal Takes Action on Religious Freedom

Last month, Louisiana began debating a Religious Freedom Restoration Act, similar to the ones that caused so much uproar in Indiana and Arkansas. Lawmakers were tiptoeing around the law, however, because of its optics. Everyone from the state’s big businesses to the tourism industry opposed the bill at its public hearing because they alleged it would sanction discrimination against homosexuals. Four weeks later and the bill is good as dead after a Louisiana House committee rejected it 10-2. In response, Gov. Bobby Jindal — who is considering a presidential bid that would appeal to conservative Christians — announced he would go it alone and issue a truncated version of the bill as an executive order. The order would ensure that individuals who believe marriage is between one man and one woman would not lose tax exempt statuses, professional licenses or employment over their beliefs. It’s “not about discrimination. It’s about the First Amendment,” Jindal said. While it’s commendable for Jindal to stand while Louisiana’s lawmakers cower, it’s worrisome that he’s essentially using Barack Obama’s tactics in pressing change. More…

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BSA Water Gun Ban — Because ‘Pointing a Firearm’ Isn’t Kind

The Boy Scouts of America have been dealing with political correctness for years, though in the past it has been with weighty subjects such as homosexual leaders and scouts. This time, it’s not nearly so serious, but it’s absurd all the same. Boy Scout blogger Bryan Wendell writes, “As summer — and pool weather! — lingers on the horizon, it’s a good time to remind you that BSA policies prohibit pointing simulated firearms at people. Yes, that includes water guns.” And he’s actually serious. According to the 2015 Boy Scouts of America National Shooting Sports Manual, “Water guns and rubber band guns must only be used to shoot at targets, and eye protection must be worn.” Fine, safety first and all. Wouldn’t want a Scout hit in the eye with a rubber band. But Wendell goes on to explain, “Why the rule? A Scouter once told me this explanation I liked quite a bit: A Scout is kind. What part of pointing a firearm [simulated or otherwise] at someone is kind?” So now we’re going to raise a generation of Scouts to be scared of water guns. What red-blooded American boy hasn’t enjoyed the heck out of a water gun fight? Well, now the Boy Scout variety, that’s who.

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FEATURED RIGHT ANALYSIS

The Company Clinton Keeps

By Dan Gilmore

If one of the marks of a good leader is the ability to choose and then keep good advisers, then let Hillary Clinton be known for the company whose advice she seeks.

Longtime Clinton lackey Sidney Blumenthal made The New York Times this week when the paper reported on leaked information that the House Select Committee on Benghazi may issue a subpoena for his role in the events surrounding the attack on the Benghazi consulate Sept. 11, 2012. Indeed, the House followed up that leak by issuing the subpoena that day. Blumenthal will appear before the committee June 3.

We don’t know who leaked the information and supporting emails to the Times. The ranking Democrat on the committee, Elijah Cummings, was quick to pin blame on Republicans for an illegal witch-hunt. “[T]he latest abuses by the Committee are just one more example of a partisan, taxpayer-funded attack against Secretary Clinton and her bid for president,” he said in agrammatically challenged statement. But it’s hard to see how Republicans would gain by leaking news of their own subpoena.

Still, Cummings is defending a diehard Clinton loyalist, nay, hatchet man. Denied a position in the Obama State Department in 2009, Blumenthal scored a job at the Clinton Foundation. It was from there that he advised then-Secretary of State Clinton on the deteriorating situation in Libya, all the while working with a group of business partners who wanted to build schools, hospitals and shelters in the war-torn North African nation. Say, what’s that definition for “conflict of interest” again?

The story of Hillary Clinton and Blumenthal begins in the ‘90s. Bill and Hillary were in the White House and Blumenthal was a journalist at The New Republic. Blumenthal dropped all appearance of objectivity and pledged his heart to the Clinton Machine. In a 1998 profile, The Baltimore Sun described Blumenthal as someone who played both journalist and political player, and who craved the power networking and slinging ink brought.

During his time as a Clinton staffer, Blumenthal earned the nickname “GK” — or “Grassy Knoll” — for his penchant for floating conspiracy theories. He was the person who pinned the Clinton’s ills on a “vast right-wing conspiracy.” He was the one who dismissed Monica Lewinsky as a stalker.

When Hillary Clinton needed to dig up dirt on Barack Obama in the 2008 Democrat primary, Blumenthal took the shovel.

Naturally, when Obama appointed Clinton as secretary of state, Clinton wanted to hire Blumenthal. But Obama’s chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, shot the idea down. The New York Times reported in 2009 that Blumenthal’s attacks against candidate Obama cut too deep and there was bad blood. That and Blumenthal’s security clearance might have been affected after he was charged with a DWI when he was stopped for driving 70 mph in a 30 mph zone while campaigning for Clinton in 2008.

So, instead, Blumenthal went to work at the Clinton Jobs-for-Hacks Program Foundation.

When it came to gathering information on Libya, Clinton found she had limited intelligence. Investigative nonprofit news outlet ProPublica reported, “According to State Department personnel directories, in 2011 and 2012 — the height of the Libya crisis — State didn’t have a Libyan desk officer, and the entire Near Eastern Magreb Bureau, which covers Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco and Libya, had just two staffers.”

And who should Clinton turn to but her old friend “GK” Blumenthal. From 2011 to 2013, he passed on reports from his “very sensitive sources” to Clinton’s private email account. But Blumenthal, a wonk based inside the DC Beltway, couldn’t have done this research by himself.

In its story on Blumenthal’s involvement with Clinton in Libya, the Times reports, “Much of the Libya intelligence that Mr. Blumenthal passed on to Mrs. Clinton appears to have come from a group of business associates he was advising as they sought to win contracts from the Libyan transitional government. The venture, which was ultimately unsuccessful, involved other Clinton friends, a private military contractor and one former C.I.A. spy seeking to get in on the ground floor of the new Libyan economy.”

On top of Blumenthal’s self-interested dealings, he fired off half-baked conspiracies. In a March 8, 2012, email marked CONFIDENTIAL, Blumenthal alleged that France’s and Britain’s intelligence agencies were working to destabilize Libya by encouraging groups in eastern Libya to create a semi-autonomous zone. Clinton forwarded this report to her then-deputy chief of staff Jacob Sullivan and wrote, “This one strains credulity.”

Sullivan offered to forward Blumenthal’s report — just like he forwarded the other reports to Clinton’s staff, including Ambassador Chris Stevens — but he agreed: Grassy Knoll’s report “seems like a thin conspiracy theory.”

Clinton could have asked for more information and staff from the State Department. She was the secretary, after all, and she needed it. Instead, like her email system, she created a homebrewed intelligence network.

Then on Sept. 11, 2012, terrorists attacked the Benghazi consulate. Chris Stevens was killed, along with three other Americans. The day after, State released a secret memo pinning the blame on a premeditated terrorist attack. But that’s not what Blumenthal wrote. ProPublica reported: “On September 12, 2012, the day after the Benghazi attack, Blumenthal sent a memo that cited a 'sensitive source’ saying that the interim Libyan president, Mohammed Yussef el Magariaf, was told by a senior security officer that the assault was inspired by an anti-Muslim video made in the U.S., as well as by allegations from Magariaf’s political opponents that he had CIA ties.”

Grassy Knoll’s fiction became the official story for a couple of weeks, and that is why the Benghazi committee wants to speak to him.

Blumenthal’s story isn’t over. He has been with Clinton since the beginning. If she wins the presidency, “Grassy Knoll” will be somewhere in the upper reaches of her administration, whispering in her ear.

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TODAY AT PATRIOTPOST.US

• ANALYSIS: As Ramadi Falls, Obama Sticks to Failed Strategy
• Fournier: ‘I Don’t Believe Hillary Clinton’
• Hillary Might Ponder Answering Questions
• Arizona Reforms Welfare Amid Budget Woes

BEST OF RIGHT OPINION

• Walter Williams: The True Black Tragedy
• Stephen Moore: Unraveling the Poverty Myths Obama Is Promoting
• Tony Perkins: Cowardly Lyin' Kills Louisiana’s Religious Liberty Bill
• Michelle Malkin: Maglite’s Tony Maglica: Torchbearer of the American Dream
• John Stossel: Dr. Capitalism

For more, visit Right Opinion.

OPINION IN BRIEF

Walter Williams: “Much of today’s pathology seen among many blacks is an outgrowth of the welfare state that has made self-destructive behavior less costly for the individual. Having children without the benefit of marriage is less burdensome if the mother receives housing subsidies, welfare payments and food stamps. Plus, the social stigma associated with unwed motherhood has vanished. Female-headed households, whether black or white, are a ticket for dependency and all of its associated problems. Ignored in all discussions is the fact that the poverty rate among black married couples has been in single digits since 1994. … The bulk of today’s problems for many blacks are a result of politicians and civil rights organizations using government in the name of helping blacks when in fact they are serving the purposes of powerful interest groups.”

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SHORT CUTS

Insight: “The Constitution is not neutral. It was designed to take the government
off the backs of people.” —Justice William O. Douglas (1898-1980)

Obstruction: “I have said repeatedly: I want those emails out. Nobody has a bigger interest in getting them released than I do.” —Hillary Clinton (She used a private server and email addresses, turned over tens of thousands of printed pages of emails to the State Department after deleting tens of thousands of others, and then has the audacity to complain they’re not moving fast enough.)

Class warfare: “If everyone is paying their fair share of taxes than we certainly should and can live within our means. But our problem now is that taxes are being paid by the middle class. The rich, the wealthy and the corporations are not paying their fair share and so therefore we don’t have enough to do what the government and do what the country needs the government to do and that’s the problem.” —Rep. Hank Johnson (D-GA)

Village Idiots: “Women hold 28 percent of seats in Afghanistan’s Parliament — a higher proportion, I would note, than in the United States Congress.” —Samantha Power, Ambassador to the UN, suggesting America’s legislative body is more sexist than Afghanistan’s

Non Compos Mentis: “Are we gonna light our hair on fire every time that there is a setback in the campaign against ISIL?” —Obama spokesman Josh Earnest, referring to the jihadist movement’s takeover of Ramadi

Demo-gogues: “[C]limate change constitutes a serious threat to global security, an immediate risk to our national security, and, make no mistake, it will impact how our military defends our country.” —Barack Obama

Late-night humor: “Jeb Bush said recently that he believes apps on the Apple Watch could help Americans better manage their healthcare than Obamacare. So there you go. If you can’t afford healthcare, just buy yourself an Apple Watch.” —Seth Meyers

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Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis!
Managing Editor Nate Jackson

Join us in daily prayer for our Patriots in uniform — Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen — standing in harm’s way in defense of Liberty, and for their families.

THE FOUNDATION

“Stability in government is essential to national character and to the advantages annexed to it, as well as to that repose and confidence in the minds of the people, which are among the chief blessings of civil society.” —James Madison, Federalist No. 37, 1788

TOP RIGHT HOOKS

State Dept. Knew Terrorists Were Planning Benghazi Attack

The State Department knew that al-Qaida-backed jihadists perpetuated the Sept. 11, 2012, attack on the Benghazi consulate the day after the attack that killed four Americans. On Sept. 12, State released a secret memo including “not finally evaluated intelligence” that had none of the Obama administration’s false narrative about a spontaneous protest over a YouTube video. “The attack was planned ten or more days prior on approximately 01 September 2012,” the memo said. “The intention was to attack the consulate and to kill as many Americans as possible to seek revenge for U.S. killings of Aboyahiye ((ALALIBY)) in Pakistan and in memorial of the 11 September 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center buildings.” The document was pried loose from State by Judicial Watch, which also released documents showing the Obama administration knew of the looming threat of Syrian violence before the civil war broke out. Judicial Watch’s Tom Fitton asserted that if the public knew in 2012 what it knows now regarding the Obama administration’s conduct surrounding the Benghazi attack, “Mitt Romney might very well be president.” More…

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‘Dead Broke’? Hardly

Last year, Hillary Clinton bemoaned her impoverished state upon leaving the White House at the end of Bill’s second term. “[W]e came out of the White House not only dead broke but in debt,” she lamented. “We had no money when we got there and we struggled to, you know, piece together the resources for mortgages for houses, for Chelsea’s education — you know, it was not easy.” Even if that were completely true, they didn’t waste much time winning, as Barack Obamarecently put it, “society’s lottery.” The Associated Press reports, “Hillary Rodham Clinton and former President Bill Clinton reported Friday that they earned more than $30 million combined in speaking fees and book royalties since January 2014.” That’s more than $1 million per month. Nice work if you can get it. Bill justifies it all, saying, “I gotta pay our bills” — they did pay off a mortgage of up to $5 million — and that he gives most of his income to the Clinton Foundation anyway. Never mind that the Foundation’s pay-to-play setup is grossly corrupt. Meanwhile, Hillary complained in Iowa, “There’s something wrong when CEOs make 300 times more than the American worker.” She might not be the best messenger for that one.

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A Bloody Weekend in Chicago and Baltimore

In what has become an all-too familiar story, more blood was spilled on the streets of Chicago over the weekend after a barrage of shootings claimed nearly 50 victims, two of whom succumbed to their injuries, according to the latest available data. The Chicago Tribune reports that felonious shootings were already up 22% compared to 2014 before this latest episode: “Through May 10, there were 627 shooting incidents, up from 516 for the same year-earlier period, the police department said. Last year saw shooting incidents rise to 2,084, up nearly 12 percent from 1,866 in 2013.” In all, 49 residents were shot between Friday afternoon and Monday morning, and at least one of the victims was a 14-year-old. Even more sadly, the escalation in violence is not confined to Chicago. According to The Baltimore Sun, four more people also were murdered in Freddie Gray’s hometown over the weekend. All told, “At least 87 people have been killed in Baltimore this year, 22 more than at this time last year,” the Sun reported. “Nonfatal shootings are up nearly 50 percent across the city.” Both of these cities, and other megalopolises for that matter, have two identical themes: tight gun control laws, and deep-rooted poverty. But as we’ve seen over and over again, no number of laws on the books will alleviate the broader symptoms that culminate in lethal urban mayhem.

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FEATURED RIGHT ANALYSIS

Politics and Policy: Obama’s ‘Ban’ on Military Supplies for Police

By Paul Albaugh

On Monday, Barack Obama announced a ban on some of the surplus military style gear that has been transferred to police departments over the last several years. The announcement is surprising, given Obama’s track record of being on the wrong side of almost every policy. As with all of his policy decisions, though, this move is entirely for political reasons.

We have previously expressed concern about the militarization of police forces across our nation. Is it really necessary for local police forces to use military gear and vehicles in their duties to serve and protect? Perhaps one might point to violence and rioting in Ferguson and Baltimore as a reason for this military equipment, but it’s also arguable that — at least in Ferguson — it only made things worse.

None of this is to say there aren’t legitimate concerns for officers who seek protection from violent criminals. “We need to only look back to Baltimore to see what happens when officers are sent out ill-equipped in a disturbance situation,” said James Pasco, executive director of the Fraternal Order of Police, in response to Obama’s order. “Because you don’t like the optics, you can’t send police officers out to be hurt or killed.”

Indeed, our society has devolved in dangerous ways and law enforcement officers are on the front lines. That said, this escalation and war-like view of civilian law enforcement is troubling for those who love Liberty.

Police departments have been able to arm themselves in recent years through the Defense Department’s 1033 Program for excess property. Since its inception in 1997, more than $4.3 billion worth of equipment has been transferred to local police departments with at least half a billion dollars' worth transferred in 2013 alone.

We can’t blame police departments for accepting surplus military gear. Think about it; in an era of budget constraints amongst police forces across the nation, who wouldn’t accept such a sweet deal? On another note, at least some of the military gear was staying in our own country instead of being sold or given to our past, future or even present enemies. Oh, wait, that’s still happening.

The Washington Post highlights that “banned items are tracked armored vehicles, bayonets, grenade launchers, ammunition of .50-caliber or higher and some types of camouflage uniforms. … Other equipment, including tactical vehicles [such as MRAPs], explosives and riot equipment, will be transferred only if local police provide additional certification and assurances that the gear will be used responsibly.”

Two points: First, other than bayonets, everything on this list was already banned. Second, as Reason’s Scott Shackford notes, however, the layer of certification is merely “another layer of bureaucracy.” And with a federal bribe to the tune of $163 million to get law enforcement agencies on board, who will be first in line?

Speaking before a crowd in Camden, New Jersey, Obama stated, “We’ve seen how militarized gear sometimes gives people a feeling like they are an occupying force as opposed to a part of the community there to protect them. … Some equipment made for the battlefield is not appropriate for local police departments.”

In the wake of protests against police across the nation, Obama’s remarks reveal his political motivation. He’s saying, “I’m with you, the people of these cities who are the victims of out of control cops, and I’m going to do something about it.”

But, per his standard divisive tactics, he’s pitting the police against the people. That only exacerbates the problem. Is it really out of control cops with military gear that cause lawlessness, or is it failed government policies that stifle economic opportunities and prevent people from leaving poverty plantations and drug zones?

Again, we aren’t disputing Obama’s executive action to demilitarize police forces, as it may open the door for further action to be taken through Congress. But it’s his intentions behind doing it now that cause concern. Recently, several on the far Left, most notably Al Sharpton, have called for federalizing police forces, an unconstitutional idea that Obama had floated on the campaign trail in 2008. Let’s hope his effort to supply or not supply local police isn’t a step toward that goal.

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TODAY AT PATRIOTPOST.US

• ANALYSIS: Did Someone Say It’s Time for Lindsey Graham
• The Irony in Clinton’s Berating Wealthy CEOs
• When Will Kerry Divest From Fossil Fuels?
• School District to Teach High School Students Gender Spectrum
• Sharpton’s Daughter Learns the Shakedown
• The EPA Wants to Control Your Water

BEST OF RIGHT OPINION

• Cal Thomas: Who Is a Journalist?
• Michael Barone: The Two-Point-Something Campaign
• Stephen Moore: Judges for Higher Taxes, Not Pension Reform, in Illinois
• Thomas Sowell: ‘Just Asking’
• Michael Reagan: Escaping Poverty in Kenya and Baltimore
• Jeff Jacoby: Patriot Act’s Most Controversial Section Fades to Black)
• Arnold Ahlert: Denying Reality Itself: Progressivism’s Last Gasp

For more, visit Right Opinion.

OPINION IN BRIEF

Cal Thomas: “Many of today’s ‘journalists’ do not have to run the gauntlet I and others of my generation had to run. Many don’t have to pull all-nighters on a stakeout, cover local school board and city council meetings, or rush to the ER to report on the aftermath of a gun or knife fight, all while earning low pay. These assignments honed our talent and judgment; they forced us to grow up. These qualities were once considered vital for creating good journalists, but today, it appears that if you are blonde, have great legs, or worked in the White House and can read a teleprompter, bammo, you are a journalist. George Stephanopoulos had no journalism background when he joined ABC News. He has a degree in theology, which might be appropriate given the media’s self-worship and sense of its own importance. If he had come up through the ranks, he might have been more attuned to the ethical problem of donating money to a foundation headed by people for whom he used to work and whose policies he promoted as a top White House aide, and then not disclosing the donation while engaged in an interview with someone critical of that foundation. Most media outlets have printed codes of ethics. It would be a good idea for journalists and journalistic pretenders to re-read and practice them.”

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SHORT CUTS

Insight: “Let us not seek the Republican answer or the Democratic answer, but the right answer. Let us not seek to fix the blame for the past. Let us accept our own responsibility for the future.” —John F. Kennedy (1917-1963)

Alpha Jackass: “We have almost 7.3 billion people breathing and burning an atmosphere, which is, in the planetary scheme of things, quite shallow. We all share the same air. That’s why our climate is changing. Denying it is in no one’s best interest. If you know any climate deniers, I’m sorry. But, try asking them this question: ‘Do you believe that it’s a conspiracy of health professional that is duping the world into believing that cigarette smoking causes cancer?’ The scientific consensus on climate change is at least as strong as the consensus on smoking. Climate change is a real deal. So, hey deniers — cut it out, and let’s get to work.” —Bill Nye to Rutgers University graduates

Class warfare: “Look, the deck is still stacked in favor of those at the top. We know that, and so we have to be especially focused on how we’re going to bring about the changes that will ignite opportunity for everybody willing to work hard for it.” —Hillary Clinton

Non Compos Mentis: “Members deserve to be paid, staff deserves to be paid and the cost of living [in DC] is causing serious problems for people who are not wealthy to serve in this institution. … We aren’t being paid properly.” —Rep. Alcee L. Hastings (D-FL) complaining about his roughly $174,000/year salary

Late-night humor: “Former New York Governor George Pataki may enter the race for president. It’s not definite, but he tweeted that he’ll announce his 2016 plans on May 28 in New Hampshire. Well, what’s he gonna do, go to New Hampshire to say he’s NOT running? That’s like getting down on one knee and saying, ‘I think it’s time to see other people.’” —Jimmy Fallon

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Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis!
Managing Editor Nate Jackson

Join us in daily prayer for our Patriots in uniform — Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen — standing in harm’s way in defense of Liberty, and for their families.

THE FOUNDATION

“Having been poor is no shame, but being ashamed of it, is.” —Benjamin Franklin, Poor Richards Almanack, 1749

TOP RIGHT HOOKS

DHS Report Undercuts Obama’s Amnesty Rationale

While Barack Obama’s amnesty actions are held up in court, the administration has argued Obama’s power grab is simply prosecutorial discretion and a prioritization of enforcement. Specifically, Obama’s Justice Department says it can “focus limited resources on higher priority aliens” who pose “threats to national security, border security, and public safety.” That’s a convenient lie, however, as revealed in a recent report from DHS Inspector General John Roth: “DHS uses prosecutorial discretion in deciding to what extent it will enforce immigration laws, including whether to place aliens in or take them out of the removal process. However, the Department does not collect and analyze data on the use of prosecutorial discretion to fully assess its current immigration enforcement activities and to develop future policy. … As a result, DHS may not be using its significant investment in immigration enforcement as efficiently as possible. The Department may also be missing opportunities to strengthen its ability to remove aliens who pose a threat to national security and public safety.”

In other words, DHS isn’t collecting the information needed to even assure that it’s doing what Obama claims is a “priority” — removing dangerous aliens. We’re pretty sure the Fifth Circuit Court would find this report relevant as it considers the legality of Obama’s actions. More…

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It Will Be Years Before Tsarnaev Pays for His Crimes

On Friday, a Boston jury condemned Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, one of the Boston Marathon bombers, to death by lethal injection for detonating his pressure-cooker bomb that killed four people. Now, the years of legal red tape begins — the appeals, the stays, the years of waiting. Death is the most just punishment society can mete out to this jihadi; life in prison wouldn’t have been enough. Since 1988, the federal government has sentenced 80 people to death, yet only three have received their penalty. Jazz Shaw at Hot Air notes, “But now, this very young terrorist will awaken each day and go to bed each night counting the days he has left, looking at a life far shorter than any his less heinous peers envision. Will the next appeal be approved? Will he be granted a stay? Can he hang on to precious life, no matter how lonely and morbid, for just a little longer before he faces the darkness of eternity?” Now, Tsarnaev’s defense team will test every procedure of the trial, trying to find a crack that will overturn his sentence. Boston.com says his defense will most likely make issue that the trial was not held outside Boston, and that some of the evidence was sealed for the sake of national security. More…

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Ramadi Falls to ISIL

Using car bombs and suicide bombers, ISIL launched an attack Sunday that overran the Iraqi city of Ramadi, capital of the Anbar province and once home to 850,000 people. The Iraqi government was so desperate to hold the city that it called up Shiite militias backed by Iran, a move the Obama administration discourages because it heightens the chance of sectarian war. However, the Pentagon is spinning the defeat, saying the capture of Ramadi is little more than a propaganda victory for ISIL. Pentagon spokesman Col. Steve Warren said, “ISIL seems to have the advantage. They will use this for their own propaganda purposes, but it doesn’t give them a significant tactical advantage.” But Obama’s former ambassador to Iraq has a different take.James Jeffrey told Bloomberg, “It’s a desperate situation in Ramadi. … We can’t assume time is on our side. It isn’t. My feeling is something needs to happen quickly or we’re going to lose all of Anbar.” On Saturday, the Pentagon announced that U.S. Special Forces killed a senior ISIL leader who controlled the group’s moneymaking schemes. While the Pentagon is taking it on the chin for Obama’s failed military strategy, silent professionals are doing their jobs.

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FEATURED RIGHT ANALYSIS

Hysterical Democrats Take the Exploitation Train

By Robin Smith

In the case of hysterical leftists, their response to every crisis, real or manufactured, is to find the political angle that supports a statist or collectivist policy and begin the echo chamber of victimization and mass protest. The horrific Amtrak derailment is no exception.

First, the facts. Forensic examination of video footage from cameras mounted on the Amtrak passenger train shows that it inexplicably accelerated from 70 mph to 106 mph in the 65 seconds before the crash, all while heading into a turn with an authorized speed limit of 50 mph. This feat, according to Amtrak and the National Transportation Safety Board, should have been impossible due to the train’s design, which allows it to accelerate only via manual control.

Amtrak train No. 188 crashed due to the defiance of the laws of nature and, quite possibly, human error.

Oh, but ne'er a crisis should be lost as an opportunity to level political blame at those who demand accountability, transparency and results in government spending and programs.

After the Philadelphia Amtrak train met with calamity, the eight lives lost and the two hundred plus injured passengers were converted from tragic victims of a horrific accident to props in political theater.

A harsh statement? Well, let’s roll tape.

At a House Transportation Committee hearing Wednesday, only one day after the train wreck, Oregon Democrat Rep. Peter DeFazio was shown blasting Republicans who should be “cognizant of the real world out there, of what happened last night, of what the capital needs of Amtrak are, and will not engage in short-sighted budget cutting.”

Rep. Steve Israel (D-NY) decried that a decision to block a $1 billion spending increase was directly responsible for the deadly incident and its victims: “Last night we failed them. We failed to invest in their safety.” This Democrat’s statement was made so early in the first responders' rescue and recovery phase that not all the victims had yet been cleared from the wreckage.

And Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA) declared, “We don’t know the connection between funding and this incident, but regardless, Amtrak needs more funding.”

Presstitutes lined up to do their part, parroting the DNC-approved narrative that “mean Republicans wouldn’t increase spending by $1 billion as requested, so people died!” (Imagine that spoken in the most dramatic, angst-filled oratory to get the full intended effect.)

News accounts attempted to tie the House Appropriations vote to the absence of a high-tech safety system — the Positive Train Control (PTC) — that theoretically would govern the Philadelphia train and override any human error or mechanical failure that could cause such a dramatic and inappropriate increase in speed.

NTSB member Robert Sumwalt told reporters Wednesday evening, “Based on what we know right now, we feel that had such a system been installed in this section of track, this accident would not have occurred.” Leading the crash probe, Sumwalt was interviewed just hours after the House Appropriations Committee “voted down a Democratic amendment that would have offered $825 million for the technology known as positive train control,” according to Politico.

Ready for the fact-filled footage that didn’t make the edits?

The House Appropriations Committee only rejected a $1 billion increase, which would have almost doubled Amtrak’s annual budget from $1.4 billion to $2.4 billion. But, why, oh why, you ask, would there be any hesitation to approve such a massive increase in Amtrak spending?

According to its own records, Amtrak operated at a $1 billion loss in 2014 and $1.2 billion losses in 2012 and 2013. To Democrats and their presstitutes, billion-dollar losses each year merit more money to lose.

The NTSB showed its own reckless behavior in making erroneous and accusatory remarks. ThePTC safety system is in place on the very Amtrak line where this crash occurred. Why was this advanced safety system not operational? Government regulation, of course.

The PTC operates through wireless networks requiring Federal Communications Commission approval. FCC negotiations have been ongoing since 2011 to award Amtrak use to implement this system.

Ready to anticipate the next straw-man argument? Following an investigation by the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, the NTSB, the FBI and other agencies, should this awful catastrophe be proven the result of human error, the Democrats will only add to their talking points. Be ready.

In addition to the lie that funding kept the safety system from being installed, the new narrative around the train’s unsafe acceleration will be that Republicans are attacking the engineer for hishomosexual and pro-union activism. Funny, the only folks reporting this man’s personal life are the same ones who keep blaming funding for a system already in place but choked in Obamaland bureaucracy.

The Left rewrites the truth one social media hashtag at a time and cranking up the decibel of protest.

Mark Twain seems to capture the value Democrats place on veracity and our fellow American citizens: “Never tell the truth to people who are not worthy of it.”

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TODAY AT PATRIOTPOST.US

• ANALYSIS: A Mickey Mouse Operation
• For Lack of Emails, Benghazi Committee Delays Clinton’s Visit
• Just When Gov’t Stopped Pouring Millions Into ObamaCare Website
• Obama: Yeah, I Never Intended to Enforce My ‘Red Line’
• IRS Promises to Return Seized $100K to Business Owner
• Battle of the Sexes: Females and Their Male Bosses

BEST OF RIGHT OPINION

• John Goodman: Is the Democrat Party Becoming Anti-Labor?
• Larry Kudlow: Will Anyone Ever Defend Banks?
• Tony Perkins: Gods and Generals: Left Wars Against Military Faith)
• Jim DeMint: Ex-Im Bank Is Crony Capitalism Run Amok

For more, visit Right Opinion.

OPINION IN BRIEF

John Goodman: “Here is what everyone needs to understand. It doesn’t matter what teenagers earn in their first job. Whatever they earn, they will likely spend on fun and frolic. But the skills they learn — showing up for work on time, following orders, being respectful — are skills that will pay off for a lifetime. Meanwhile, employers are substituting capital for labor — including greater use of robots — just about everywhere in the labor market. For example, there is now a 14-arm, automated harvester that can wheel through rows of strawberry plants, distinguish the ripe from the unripe and pick the berries from the green leaves surrounding them. At $100,000, the robot is not cheap. But no one in Congress is insisting that farmers pay the robot more than it’s worth and there are no laws requiring farmers to provide the robot with Obamacare or other expensive benefits.”

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SHORT CUTS

“I have witnessed five major wars in my lifetime, and I know how swiftly storm clouds can gather on a peaceful horizon. The next time a Saddam Hussein takes over Kuwait, or North Korea brandishes a nuclear weapon, will we be ready to respond? In the end, it all comes down to leadership, and that is what this country is looking for now.” —The Gipper

Demo-gogues: “Everything we’ve done over the past six years has been in pursuit of one overarching goal: creating opportunity for all. … What we’ve long understood is that some communities have consistently had the odds stacked against them. … That sense of unfairness and powerlessness has helped to fuel the kind of unrest that we’ve seen in places like Baltimore, Ferguson and New York.” —Barack Obama (Nothing says fairness like gang shootings.)

Non Compos Mentis: “I’ve been watching politics since [Dwight] Eisenhower and Adlai Stevenson, when dinosaurs roamed the earth, and Obama is my favorite, favorite president. I am just thankful for every day that he’s in office. … I’ve never seen a Congress that has been so obstructive and so contrary and so committed to doing anything that will foul up this administration. I just think it’s an absolute scandal that he has had so little cooperation.” —singer/songwriter James Taylor

Village Idiots: “ISIL’s momentum has indeed been blunted, its ability to mass and maneuver forces degraded, its leadership cells pressured or eliminated, its command-and-control and supply lines severed.” —Deputy Press Secretary Eric Schultz, whose remark came as jihadists were overrunning Ramadi, Iraq

The BIG Lie: “Make no mistake: [Dzhokhar Tsarnaev] claimed to be acting on behalf of all Muslims. This was not a religious crime. And it certainly does not reflect true Muslim beliefs. It was a political crime, designed to intimidate and to coerce the United States.” —U.S. Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz, dismissing Tsarnaev’s jihad motives

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Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis!
Managing Editor Nate Jackson

Join us in daily prayer for our Patriots in uniform — Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen — standing in harm’s way in defense of Liberty, and for their families.