By Florida Bill
Florida Professor James Tracy was satisfied that he could say almost anything, no matter how outrageous and unpatriotic, and that he would sleep well knowing that the privilege of "free speech" was there to protect him.
In the USA, free speech is a right which commands respect and maximum protection. It is owned by everyone--the sensible and the nut jobs. It protects a speaker against reprisals and retaliation by government, and there are no prior restraints on one's dialogue.
Surprisingly, freedom of speech is a right guaranteed by most nations to its citizens. It is even a part of the charter of the United Nations. But America is different from other nations. Here, it is sacred, and without prior restraint. Consequences in America are based on common sense. Like screaming "fire" as a joke in a crowded theater--that can earn the speaker a fine, maybe even incarceration. Words designed to incite violence can also trigger a consequence for the speaker.
In Saudi Arabia and other parts of the Middle East, prior restraint on speech is the law. There, for example, criticism or blasphemy of Islam can bring the death penalty.
Free speech can cause controversy. Burning the American flag is considered free speech, although millions want the conduct punished. Parading in a Jewish neighborhood with Nazi flags also is protected. Mouthing obscenities on the air waves might be penalized, but generally it is given a pass. The late George Carlin was advised to avoid his "seven dirty words," but sometimes he did and sometimes he didn't.
Without concern of citizens who were troubled by conspiracy talk, Professor Tracy expounded on his theory that the Sandy Hook school room massacre of 26 persons was an "elaborate hoax" cooked up by the government. Lots of complaints, but no real worry for Dr. Tracy. After all, he was a tenured faculty member at Florida Atlantic University, an untouchable, you could say. He had a doctorate in history from the respected University of Iowa and he knew his rights as set forth in the Bill of Rights.
His conspiratorial baloney flowed fast and loose from his mouth following the shooting of 20 children and six adults in the Connecticut classroom in December of 2012 by a 20-year-old interloper. Inside the university classrooms where he taught communications, and in his blog, he opined that Sandy Hook never happened and was arranged by FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) to promote a push for gun control, which was a priority of the Obama administration.
His conspiratorial theory led to a fiery and offensive disagreement with the father of a 6-year-old pupil killed, and Tracy tormented the father in his blog, observing that parents were making use of the "hoax" to make money.
University officials wanted him out. Americans were peeved and annoyed with his hokum. The school was proscribed from firing him and shutting down his conspiratorial babble because of his right of "free speech"--but was there another way around that barn?
They took Al Capone down for tax evasion, not murder, and OJ was sent away for a "robbery." Ward Churchill, the University of Colorado professor who said that 9-11 was the work of "Little Eichmanns" in the USA, he was kicked off the faculty for "repeated intentional scholarly misconduct." It took eight years to flush out Churchill, and five to remove Dr. Tracy.
In January of 2016, the University regents gave Tracy his pink slip on grounds that he had neglected to fill in annual faculty forms seeking information on his outside employment and professional activities. Ridiculous, said Tracy, and he sued for violation of his civil right to speak freely without fear of censorship or reprisal.
He contended that the stated grounds of failing to complete routine faculty forms after repeated requests was a ruse and a smoke screen. The real reason, he argued, was the content of his blog and his public statements concerning Sandy Hook, and that stepped upon his constitutional rights.
In December of 2017, a jury heard the evidence and upheld the action of the university. His conspiratorial writings were not a factor. Simply put, he was terminated for thumbing his nose at university regulations applicable to all faculty members. "He just didn't follow the rules," said one official of the University. Tracy says that he will appeal to a higher court.
Tracy, 52, a resident of Boca Raton, Florida, and a father of three, had been a faculty member at FAU since 2002, and was granted tenure in 2008. Yes, free speech is an inviolable right found in the first amendment of the Constitution. In America, it is absolutely sacred--- but there is always a second way to skin a rat.
xxx
l,
By Florida Bill
On December 7, Minnesota's Al Franken announced that he would be resigning from the U.S. Senate. Currently, he has reset the date of his exit to January 2 at which time he can commence collecting his annual benefits of $122,000 and perks.
Meanwhile, colleagues that had pushed him to hand in his resignation are now asking him to reconsider and allow allegations against him that he is a harasser of women to be investigated by the Ethics committee. If he decides on that course, he will remain a Democrat member of that august body, as the last time that the Ethics committee expelled anyone was in 1861.
Who would be surprised if Franken, elected in 2008, opted to remain as a senator? He is really an empty suit who votes the party line and endorses a left-wing, anti-Trump philosophy. His replacement will be a carbon copy. Franken's troubles began when seven or eight women claimed that he hit on them in a sexual way--kissing them and pushing his tongue into their mouths. One woman said that he pawed her as she took a nap, and then he was so amused with his tom foolery that he had a photo made of his smiling face with his cupped hands on the woman's breasts so as to memorialize the moment.
It is certainly not the worst story of sexual harassment and it really does not make the 67-year-old Franken into a monster predator. A useless senator--yes. A predator--no. It doesn't rise to the level of the charge of rape made against Bill Clinton or his infamous blue-dress moment; nor the abuses endured by the comely staffers of U.S. Reps Conyers and Hastings and other congressmen.
Thirty-six other Democratic senators initially called for Franken to resign, and he acquiesced with an announcement that he would leave in the coming weeks. It was a "painful " matter to watch, said Sen. Dick Durbin, assistant minority leader in the senate. He was "my friend," he added.
In announcing his intention to resign in the coming weeks, Franken never acknowledged any improper behavior toward his lady friends, and he never apologized. He was leaving, he said, but will remain "an activist" in promoting a left-wing agenda for the nation.
Personally, I look upon Franken as a dim bulb and one of the most inept and unlikeable senators in Washington, but it makes no real difference if he quits or stays. If he stays in the senate and allows the Ethics committee to review the matter, he might be censured or reprimanded, but expelled--never. The last senator to be expelled from the senate was during the Civil War.
Gov. Mark Dayton has announced that he will appoint the female Lieutenant Governor, Tina Smith, to take Franken's place until a special election can be held. Smith, like the grinning Franken, is a Democrat who shares the anti-Trump agenda on all matters, and the fact that she is a woman suggests Democrats' endorsement of the "MeToo" fad.
Franken has a background as a "funny man" on TVs "Saturday Night Live." Also, he has appeared in some movies, including "Trading Places" in which he played a simple-minded baggage handler on a train who tended to an ape being transported. He was elected eight years ago to the Senate by a margin of 312 votes over the Republican incumbent, and was reelected two years ago.
Franken's alleged misbehavior with women was boorish, but Franken saw himself as a comedian and figured that that is the way he should act. No doubt, he figured that he was increasing his popularity by patting women on theirs butts and delivering an unwelcome kiss, but he did not walk about in his shorts as did another congressman who reportedly had women brought to his office to provide him the sexual relief he needed. He never dropped his drawers to display his package as some celebs and newsmen have done.
At one point, Franken has said that he would allow the Ethics committee to investigate the charges made against him and that he will cooperate fully. In past years, congressional ethics committees in both the House and the Senate have been kind and forgiving of members who came under fire. Ted Kennedy, for example, was the "Lion of the Senate" despite his felonious conduct in the death of a young woman he was driving home in Chappaquiddick some years ago. Robert Byrd, a KKK leader who wrote prolifically of his dislike for Blacks, was welcomed into the Senate from West Virginia and hailed for his greatness.
In the House, the former Massachusetts Representative, Barney Frank, was reprimanded by the Ethics committee for fixing 33 traffic tickets for his homosexual lover with whom he lived, but was given a pass for the operation of a gay brothel being operated out of the basement of his residence. He retired with a package of more than $100,000 per year, and perks.
Yes, Franken is a fool who should never have been elected to the Senate because he had nothing to contribute, and has contributed nothing. It appears that not a single piece of legislation with any guts or any amendment to important legislation carries his name. He is simply an obsequious know-nothing who votes as he is told, whether good or bad for citizens.
Will Franken seek forgiveness and get teary-eyed as he announces that he will remain a senator? We'll have to see.
xxx
By Florida Bill
Inspector General Michael Horowitz...Come out from behind that rock and tell Americans the results of your investigation into the conduct of James Comey as you promised you would do.
Is the former FBI director a "fix" artist and a leaker of privileged documents who supervised a "sham" investigation into the alleged misdeeds of Hillary Clinton?
What is already pretty clear is that Comey lied in public statements after being sworn to tell the truth; that he forwarded privileged documents to the Washington Post newspaper, and that he sought to protect Hillary Clinton from negative attacks. Is the time coming where citizens will hear the truth, unfiltered by a biased media hellbent on destroying President Trump?
FBI Director Christopher Wray, appointed by President Trump in June and confirmed by the Senate in September, testified recently before the House Judiciary Committee, and assured everyone that Horowitz is assessing the conduct of the former FBI chief in his investigation of Hillary Clinton and her mishandling of classified emails. Wray also indicated that he, along with everybody else, would like to see some movement on the part of the IG.
We will await his findings and then take the appropriate and necessary action if warranted, Wray told Congressmen on the committee.
Wray is the FBI chief who replaced Comey who was fired by President Trump on May 9. Wray was grilled for several hours by U.S. Representatives who demanded to know the fate of Comey. There are many who believe Comey "tanked" his investigation of Hillary Clinton, ignored her criminal misdeeds, and then conspired with Democrats and biased FBI agents to promote her candidacy for president.
On Jan. 12, eight days before President Trump was sworn into office, Horowitz announced at a news conference that he would examine the behavior of Comey for possible misconduct in his investigation of Mrs. Clinton and use of her private email server in her basement while she was Secretary of State in the Obama administration. If misconduct is found, Horowitz said he would not hesitate to recommend prosecution. He promised a written report at the conclusion of his work.
IG Horowitz was appointed in 2012 with confirmation by the Senate to provide oversight of the sprawling Department of Justice, which includes the FBI as its key component. The IG supervises a nationwide work force of more than 450 special agents, auditors, inspectors and attorneys with a mission of detecting fraud and mismanagement. The announcement by the IG of his investigation of Comey's probe of Mrs. Clinton, came in the midst of a firestorm of complaints about Comey, and of the "get out of jail free" card which he gave to Mrs. Clinton despite evidence indicating her criminal behavior in the handling of classified emails; and her corrupt supervision of the billion dollar Clinton Foundation.
Following President Trump's victory, Democrats came out swinging. They demanded Comey's resignation, blaming him for Hillary Clinton's failed candidacy because of his bizarre and questionable investigative techniques. Republicans, on the other hand, saw Comey as a manipulator who conducted a "sham" investigation of Clinton, sans a grand jury, predetermined that Clinton would be adjudged innocent of any misdeeds and would ultimately be elected President.
Soon after Trump discharged Comey using his constitutional authority, embittered Democrats sought to turn the tables on President Trump and shift attention away from Comey and his questionable exoneration of Mrs. Clinton.
To accomplish that, and with the assistance of the "fake news" media, Trump was accused of "collusion" with the Russians. Subsequently, a Special Counsel, Robert Mueller, a personal friend of the embattled Comey, was appointed to that post. Currently, Mueller's investigation is spinning its wheels, but has not produced an iota of evidence of "collusion," and Mueller, himself, has failed to live up to his reputation as a professional who will be fair and unbiased. Because of apparent conflicts, and a troubling close friendship with Comey, the respected Wall Street Journal newspaper, and Judicial Watch, a bipartisan government watchdog organization, along with several congressmen, have called upon Mueller to resign as special counsel. At the same time, there have been calls for President Trump to fire him.
The case against Comey is strong, and it would be virtually impossible to envision a path taken by Horowitz that does not identify missteps and misconduct by the former FBI chief as he ran interference for Mrs. Clinton. Comey has even acknowledged in public statements that he downplayed the seriousness of her criminal investigation saying he did so at the direction of Attorney General Loretta Lynch.
Was the investigation of Mrs. Clinton a "sham"? Horowitz has that question in front of him. Among the facts for him to consider are that Comey never empanelled a grand jury and never questioned Mrs. Clinton under oath and had prepared a statement exonerating her of any misdeeds months before the investigation came to an end.
Director Comey looked the other way as Mrs. Clinton ignored subpoenas for documents and emails, including 33,000 which were scrubbed permanently from her computer. Grants of immunity were provided by Comey to her closest aides, Huma Abedin and Cheryl Mills for unknown reasons. Thousands of Clinton emails were later discovered on the computer of Abedin's estranged husband, Anthony Weiner, an ex New York congressman now serving a prison sentence as a sex offender.
Comey has also been said to have ignored allegations of Mrs. Clinton's allegedly corrupt practices in directing the operations of the billion dollar Clinton Foundation which was receiving donations from foreign officials while she was Secretary of State. In one case, the foundation received $145 million dollars from Russians who had gained access to 20 per cent of America's uranium reserves after Mrs. Clinton approved the transfer.
Horowitz has been silent concerning his investigation. In November, he was ordered to appear before a congressional committee, where he reported that his investigative team had interviewed many witnesses and would complete its work by March or April of next year, and written conclusions will be provided at that time.
xxx
By Florida Bill
In this "MeToo" revolution, a U.S. Senator and two U.S. Representatives have resigned their offices as a consequence of their unwelcome sexual advances directed at female associates and members of their staffs.
Perhaps these resignations are just the tip of the problem in view of the revelation of the existence of the Congressional Office of Compliance (COC) which has doled out some $17 million since 1997 in resolving and papering over the indiscretions of congressmen, many of them believed to be sexual in nature.
A few days ago, it was disclosed that in 2014, the COC paid $220,000 to a woman who had sued the suave, liberal, silver-bearded Congressman, Alcee Lamar Hastings, for hitting on her sexually, demanding rendezvouses at a hotel and hugs; and for inquiring of her as to the type of underwear she had on, and how often she changed it. The Ethics committee got involved, but found that the indiscretions didn't rise to the level of being in contempt of Congress, and that $220,000 would make things right and wipe the book of any problems. Taxpayers are a generous lot, no question about that.
In the 435-member House of Representatives, the 81-year-old Hastings, a Democrat, is said to be Sui Generis, legalese for "the only one of a kind." He is not unique for pushing important legislation or for his sexual aggressiveness, but because he is a disgraced federal district judge who was thrown off the bench for bribery, and then was elected a congressman in South Florida and welcomed with a seat in that same august body which had impeached him for dishonesty. Despite those rather shameful credentials, Hasting has risen to occupy chairs of leadership in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Minnesota Sen. Al Franken is resigning after eight years in office in the face of accusations that he was a sexual predator and in response to demands from 36 Democratic colleagues that he quit. Rep. John Conyers of Michigan, a veteran of 52 years in Congress, also is resigning, accused by a staffer of harassing her. He gave his accuser $27,000 as reparation, and was pressured by colleagues into quitting. No one is asking Hastings to quit, but if any legislator should be shown the door, it is the disingenuous Hastings.
Hastings, represents the 20th congressional district in South Florida. He was accused and sued for sexual harassment by Ms. Winsome Packer, a staffer on a congressional commission which Hastings chaired. He called the accusations 'ludicrous" and insisted that at the time the money was paid out, he had no knowledge of the settlement. He adds his opinion that the money was "needlessly paid to Packer." Until a few days ago, no one had even been aware of the accusation of his sexual misconduct, and of the big check from a hush fund to make it all go away.
Hastings was appointed a federal district judge in 1979 by President Carter. In 1981, he was accused of accepting a $150,000 bribe, and in 1988 he was impeached by the House of Representatives by a vote of 413-3, convicted by the Senate and removed from the bench. The US. Supreme Court affirmed the congressional decision. With that, Hasting acquired the distinction of being the 6th federal district judge impeached and thrown off the bench in about 250 years.
With his judicial career in rags, Hastings turned to politics. He ran unsuccessfully for Florida Secretary of State in 1991, but the following year he ran for Congress and was elected, and has been reelected 12 times since then. At one point Nancy Pelosi, then Speaker, considered naming her fellow Democrat as the head of the Select Committee on Intelligence, but declined in the face of opposition.
A few years ago, Rep. Hastings, with his golden tongue, was in the forefront of an unsuccessful congressional move to increase their annual $174,000 salary. The proposal fostered an uproar and Hastings was castigated for his "arrogance" and "insensitivity." One man observed that with the country's shaky economy and a median American household income of $51,000 a year, the congressional cry of poverty over a $174,000 salary was grossly misplaced.
Hastings employs his girl friend Patricia Williams on his staff and she has earned several million dollars for her staff assistance since 1993. Ms. Williams was his counsel and companion during his trial and impeachment proceedings. In 2012, Judicial Watch, a nonpartisan government watchdog organization, upbraided Hastings for his "nepotism" on Capitol Hill, having paid Williams $622,000 between 2007 and 2010. Hastings did not quibble about the amount of her earnings, but argued that since she was a girl friend, and not a family member, it did not equate to "nepotism." Williams' present annual salary is reported as $168,000.
During the recent swearing in of Donald Trump as America's 45th President, Hastings declined to attend the ceremony and he excoriated the republican president for failing to embrace the values and tenets of the Constitution. Trump's behavior, asserted Hastings, prohibits him from occupying the highest office in the land, and with his Russian connections, he will never keep this country safe. There shall be "no harsher critic (of him) than me."
Perhaps beating the anti-Trump drum, a popular tune these days, will keep Hastings safe from the same fate that fellow Democrats John Conyers and Al Franken suffered. Congress certainly has its pets, and Rep. Hastings is one of them.
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By Florida Bill
These days, we are learning a good deal about the loose-zipper conduct of some prominent politicians, entertainers, and newsmen. It isn't that this is a new phenomenon in the relationship between the sexes, but it is drawing lots of headlines these days as female targets become more vocal about unwanted sexual aggressiveness.
Recently, the flood gates have opened and complaints of outlandish behavior of some "icons" and prominent men have been pouring out. Even 88-year-old John Conyers, with 52 years as a U.S. representative from Michigan, has been accused by staffers in his office for hitting on them sexually. One woman complained so vociferously of his harassment that he reached into his office budget and gave her $27,000. The House Ethics committee says it will investigate.
Funny man Al Franken, the Minnesota senator who used to be a regular on Saturday Night Live, is under the gun for delivering an unwanted kiss with his tongue out to a radio news anchor several years ago. Also, he cupped his hands over each of her breasts as she was taking a nap and had a picture of himself made, smiling at the camera so as to memorialize the fun. More women are apparently coming forward.
"I'll be happy to cooperate fully in an investigation by the Ethics Committee " said Franken apologizing and professing embarrassment as a result of his behavior. No real worry there as the complaint is in friendly hands. Discipline is rare and the ethics committee hasn't expelled anyone since 1862. Former Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme court, Roy Moore, is running for U.S. Senator in Alabama in a special election on Dec. 12. A number of women are claiming that he pawed them sexually some four decades ago when they were in their teens, and he was an assistant district attorney in his early 30s. One woman says she was 14 at the time and another puts her age at 16. Whereas much of the current bad behavior is sparking heartfelt apologies and embarrassment, Moore, a Christian Conservative, has been adamant that the charges against him are "garbage," and "fake news" promoted by the Washington Post newspaper and Democrats. Currently, Judge Moore is leading in the polls against his Democratic opponent.
Pundits and some politicians are talking of possible expulsion from office for moral unfitness. If that was a possibility, a whole lot of wrongdoers got off easy in the past. Sen. Ted Kennedy, youngest brother of a popular President, was a member of the U.S. Senate for 47 years. In 1969, a presumed assignation of his with a young campaign worker resulted in her drowning in the waters off Chappaquiddick island during an auto accident from which he escaped. Kennedy plead guilty to leaving the scene of an accident and was given probation by a Massachusetts judge after which he was welcomed back into the Senate. For the incident, and despite his apparent felonious conduct, he became known as the "Hero of Chappaquiddick," and the "Lion" of the Senate. The Ethics committee never got involved.
Barney Frank who was a U.S. representative from Massachusetts for 32 years, retired in 2013. In the mid 1980s, Frank answered an ad for a "gay" partner in a newspaper and subsequently hired a young male prostitute named Steve Gobie as his assistant. Gobie lived with Frank, received a salary, and used Frank's auto--and operated a gay brothel from the Frank residence. Eventually the ethics committee got wind of the activity and made an investigation.
Frank was "reprimanded" by the committee for "fixing" 33 parking tickets which his roommate had received, but it determined that Frank had no knowledge of the brothel, although Gobie disputed that. The following year, Frank was reelected by a large margin to his seat in the Congress. Newsmen and members of the media are being identified as harassers of women. Recently Charlie Rose, 75, a long time CBS talk show host and journalist, has been fired for sexual mistreatment of women working for him. In some cases, Rose was said to parade about in the raw as female staffers looked on.
Popular "Today" Co-host Matt Lauer who had been around NBC for some 20 years has been terminated for "inappropriate sexual behavior" with multiple women at the station. His office was super private, sealed with a switch under his desk, and he often brought in comely young NBC staffers whom he propositioned, and sometimes showed them a sex toy, and then dropped his pants to display his package. He has apologized for his conduct, and said that "repairing the damage is now his full time job."
Fox News has been the target of numerous complaints from female employees contending that certain bosses wanted sex in return for on-air assignments. The station President, the late Roger Ailes, resigned and the popular news man and commentator Bill O'Reilly was fired after reports surfaced that he and the station had spent some $13 million settling harassment complaints against him over the last 15 years. Eric Bolling, who hosted an afternoon talk show, was fired on complaints that he had photographed his manhood on his phone and sent it to women working at the station. There are many new reports of uninvited sexual conduct by members of the Hollywood crowd. Among them are tough guy Stephen Segal, and Oscar winners Dustin Hoffman and Kevin Spacey. Spacey, who has also been receiving awards for his TV show, "House of Cards," has been accused of molesting actor Anthony Rapp when Rapp was 14 years old, some 30 years ago. Spacey, who is gay, said that he does not really remember the incident, but if his conduct was out of line sexually, he apologizes. He has also been accused of harassing cast and staff of the popular Netflix series.
And then there is Director Harvey Weinstein (and his brother), who have been accused of sexual misconduct, assault and harassment by scores of women.
President Trump has not gone unscathed, although he denies all accusations, labeling them false and "fake news." Bill Clinton is famous for his lusting activities in the Oval office, and even the elder Bush has been sucked into the dialogue for patting some rear ends from his wheel chair. The tarred paint brush has smeared many other big names in the past, but without the boomerang effect we are seeing today, ranging from John F. Kennedy to perhaps the most shocking of them all, everybody's TV father figure, Bill Cosby.
A good question: "Who's next?" Probably, some nervous fellows out there.
xxx
By Florida Bill
Former CIA Director John Brennan is an old Obama favorite who shows up periodically on various forums attacking President Trump for alleged inefficiency and for having held hands with the Communist Russians who helped him become the nation's 45th president.
In one recent TV interview, Brennan blistered Trump for having said he was honored to have met Russian President Putin--to Brennan that was a "dishonorable thing to say." He indicated contempt for Putin and the Communist way of life, but his contentions might belie real feelings.
The 62-year-old Brennan is a controversial figure whose past appealed to President Obama, but to others he is seen as questionable in his fealty to Uncle Sam.
In 1976, Brennan, fresh out of college, endorsed and voted for Gus Hall, Communist candidate for President, over Democrat Jimmy Carter, and the incumbent Republican Gerald Ford. Four years later, in 1980, and despite his pumping for Hall and a radical new government for America, he applied for and was accepted for a position in the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
He was a member of the spy circle in the CIA for 25-plus years. He worked in the Middle East, near east and in south Asia, and as an analyst and a station chief in Saudi Arabia. Also he served as director of the National Counter-Terrorism Center. He was an assistant to President Obama for Homeland Security from 2009 to January, 2013, when Obama selected him to be CIA chief.
In March of 2013, the Senate approved Brennan's appointment as CIA director, but his 1976 push for Communist Gus Hall was not known to senators or considered in weighing his credentials. There were other reasons for tough opposition to his appointment to the country's highest and most sensitive intelligence post. One called into question his position on the country's use of drones against terrorists abroad and inside the USA, and another involved criticism from a former FBI agent that he leaned too strongly in favor of the Muslim world and could not be trusted.
It was not until 2016 that Brennan's support in 1976 for a radical communist became widely known. Brennan himself made the unabashed revelation when he was speaking during a conference of the annual Congressional Black Caucus Foundation. He told of his political activism after college and his dissatisfaction with the state of affairs in America at that time, but that he was not a registered member of the communist party. Political activism, he pointed out proudly, should never disqualify a person from serving in the intelligence division of government, and he noted that he was living proof of that.
James Guandolo who was an FBI agent in the Middle East from 1996 to 2008 lobbied against Brennan's appointment as head of the CIA since he said he cannot be trusted. He said that Brennan who was fluent in the Arabic language, was a "closet" Muslim who had converted to Islam in 2008 and was continually lobbying President Obama to employ more Muslims in high government jobs.
Guandolo claimed that Brennan had been persuaded by the Saudi King to convert and he did, and he subsequently fulfilled his Islamic duty by making the pilgrimage to Mecca which is a requirement and a privilege to be exercised only by pious Muslims. Despite criticism of his appointment and challenge to his loyalty, and a filibuster, Brennan was approved by the Senate by a vote of 63-34.
Guandolo's assessment of Brennan lacked some strength since he had resigned from the FBI in 2008 under a cloud in the midst of charges that he had engaged in a sexual affair with a woman in the agency. After leaving, he formed a successful company designed to provide training for police and security officers in assisting them in recognizing and identifying terrorists. He has remained steadfast in his opposition and criticism of Brennan's trust worthiness.
Skepticism over the character and loyalty of Brennan inside the intelligence agency did not end with confirmation by the Senate. In fact, it intensified when he declined to be sworn into office by placing his hand on the Bible. Instead, Brennan insisted on using an 1787 version of the Constitution which did not contain the entire Bill of Rights on which to pledge his loyalty. The complete Constitution, used today, was approved in 1791, and replaced the 1787 draft.
The abbreviated version selected by Brennan did not contain Amendments 1,4,5 and 6 and in effect technically invalidated his obligation to "protect and defend" those civil rights guaranteed in the constitution. Those amendments guarantee to citizens rights of free speech, religion and press; and provide protections against government arrest and prosecution. Through the years there have been a small number of United States officials who have declined to be sworn into a high office with the Christian Bible. Included in those rare occasions were Congressman Keith Ellison of Minnesota, and Judge Carolyn Walker Diallo of Brooklyn. In 2006 Ellison, and in 2015, Walker-Diallo pledged their loyalties to the United States with their palms on the Koran, the Islamic bible.
When CNN and NBC and CBS call, Brennan reports and feathers the media agenda to oppose and impeach President Trump. In the NFL controversy, Brennan praised the players who drop to one knee while the National Anthem is playing. He asserts that the athletes are actually respecting the flag, as they call attention to the mistreatment of their Black brothers. The President's travel bans are too "simplistic," he says, and are heavy against Islam and do nothing to protect the country against visiting terrorists. When the President praised fallen CIA officers, Brennan described his words as a "despicable display of self-aggrandizement."
No one knows the core values of Brennan, but they are suspect. An FBI agent and former Marine officer who worked closely with him in Saudi and in other parts of the Middle East says that he cannot be trusted. As Brennan continues his attack on the "America First" President, be aware of his buried past as he digs in.
XXX
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By Florida Bill
It is an understatement to say that the United States is the most magnanimous nation on planet earth. Its great arms and largess extend to 142 countries, touching 76 per cent of the globe.
Annually, it writes checks totaling $35 billion in foreign aid and it does all this despite being saddled with a national debt of $20 trillion dollars. That generosity goes out, compliments of America's taxpayers. Eighty six per cent of the money goes to nations in the Middle East and Africa.
It is difficult to get your mind around the enormity of the $35 billion being doled out by the United States. In raw numbers, a billion dollars is 1,000 millions. So the aid which is distributed to other nations, big and small, amounts to thirty-five thousand million dollars each year.
If you consider that there are 306 million Americans living in some 30,000 cities, towns and villages inside 50 states, you might wonder how come some of those billions are not used to improve homegrown infrastructure; to pave roads and to repair tottering bridges as federal projects. Use a few billions to make life a little easier for the poverty-stricken--imagine the jobs that could be created.
With Donald Trump as the President, he should be able to find a measly $15 billion for the wall he talks about, assuming, of course, that the tab for the wall is not picked up by the Mexican government. Any spill over can be applied to the debt.
Lots of Americans are meat and potatoes people who are careful not to let their personal spending go haywire, driving them into a black hole of debt. In view of the country's huge debt, its largess is remarkable--kind of crazy you could say. Yes, let's help those who need it, but does it make sense to allow our own house to get in disarray while printing and handing out money. America's debt increases by $32,000 each second and by two billion dollars each day. Some financial experts tell us that the USA, with its wild spending, is headed for bankruptcy.
Nineteen trillion dollars, the national red paper, makes the $35 billion in foreign aid look like peanuts. A trillion equates to one thousand (1,000) billions; so 19 trillion equates to nineteen thousand (19,000) billions. The amount is staggering, incomprehensible. One fascinating descriptive analogy of the national debt is that if you live to be 80 years old, your heart will beat about 3 billion times; And it would take 602,000 years for 19 trillion heartbeats to tick away.
The debt is what it is. But then, what is foreign aid all about, and where and to whom does the money go? It helps out a lot of needy countries and people and maybe the countries will like us in return. Kind of a quid-quo pro, you might say. The United States has an annual budget of about $4 trillion dollars. Relative to this bottom line, foreign aid constitutes less than one per cent of annual spending-- not enough to make any real difference.
The top recipients of aid were five nations in the Middle East. In one representative year, Israel, received $3.5 billion. Others were, Egypt, $1.5 billion; Iraq, $300 million; Jordan, $300 million; and Pakistan, $280 million. Israel is a cherished friend and America's only genuine ally in the Middle East. Over the years, Israel has received well over $100 billion dollars in aid from America and has developed the military strength to counter any attack. Egypt which has been in and out of favor, has received more than $70 billion dollars between 1948 and the present.
American foreign aid is designed to assist individual countries in two general areas: economic assistance and military assistance. The billions for Israel currently and in the past have been used primarily for military build up and protection against nations like Iran and the Palestinians who refuse to recognize Israel's right to exist and are dedicated to its destruction. For sure, America has its back.
Conservative members of Congress and Libertarians question the extent of America's foreign aid. Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky has said that "in our hours of need, why send billions of tax dollars to countries which hate us. I support aid to allies when it promotes American interests, like Israel; but I oppose foreign aid for countries that hate us and burn our flag. It is the wrong thing to do."
A professor at Duke University has observed that America is generous and there are nations with poor people that need help. Alongside other nations which give aid to other countries, she points out, the United States "has one of the lowest percentages of gross national income donated to foreign aid," indicating that the USA is in a position to do more to help those that need assistance.
Yes, America is--and should be-- generous, no question about that. Yet Sen. Paul has an excellent point--no aid for countries that hate us. Remember the films of jubilation in Pakistan with men, women and children dancing in the streets, after hearing news of he 9-11 attack in New York where 2,500 Americans were killed.
But something needs to be done about the national debt which soared by $10 trillion under President Obama.
America needs to put its own house in order and be sensible in its foreign aid programs, and it should quit doling out money it doesn't have to countries which stomp Old Glory and hate us.
By Florida Bill
These are rocky times for Judge Roy Moore. But Alabama voters who have in the past stood proudly alongside him in the face of liberal caterwauling and mudslinging, may not be any more inclined to forget him now.
Five women have accused him of pursuing them sexually when they were teenagers some four decades ago. Moore calls the accusations "garbage" and more "fake news," engineered by Democrats and the biased Washington
Post newspaper.
Prominent establishment Republicans, as well as Democrats who have always demonized Moore's Christian and conservative voice, are calling for the Republican former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice to withdraw as a candidate for U.S. Senator in the scheduled special election Dec.12. Nevertheless, polls continue to favor him over his Democratic opponent.
Some antagonists have even predicted that if Judge Moore runs and is elected, the Senate will decline to seat him and will expel him as unfit to serve in that august body. That however is far fetched since the allegations of misbehavior are denied by Moore, and there is no judge or jury to adjudicate them. The drumbeat from liberal anti Christians should disappear with Moore's election.
The unproven allegations directed at Moore's morality actually pale alongside the conduct of Sen. Ted Kennedy who was welcomed in the Senate as its "lion" despite his culpability and undisputed felonious conduct in the death of a young woman in Chappaquiddick in 1969.
Also, the late West Virginia Sen. Robert C. Byrd came to the Congress in the 1950s after active years with the KKK, in which he was a top recruiter and had a title of the "Exalted Cyclops" of his local chapter. His writings were viciously anti Black. Nevertheless, the racist Democrat was welcomed by senators with no talk of expulsion.
Principal accusations against Judge Moore have been made by Leigh Corfman, 53, and Beverly Young Nelson, 55, who have contended that Moore, in his early 30s and then an assistant district attorney in Etowah county, pawed them aggressively in an effort to obtain sexual relationships. Corfman says she was 14 at the time and Nelson says she was about 17.
There is no judge or jury to adjudicate these charges. That would have been the case had the women acted within a statute of limitations, but now, with passage of nearly a half century, it is simply the word of the women against a highly respected Christian conservative public figure from the strong Republican state of Alabama.
Ms. Corfman's credibility is at issue since it has been reported that she has in the past brought claims against three church pastors for unwelcome sexual advances and has admitted to drug use, sex parties, attempted suicide and a life marked by bad decisions. Also, she has been married and divorced three times with numerous court appearances dealing with custody, property and alimony. Corfman said that she declined to make these matters public in the past because of the embarrassment and pain it would cause her two children.
Nelson has said that Moore knew her in 1977 as a waitress, admired her for her good looks and then signed her high school yearbook. That story also is suspect. She has said that Moore offered her a ride home from the restaurant and then in the auto pursued her sexually and when she resisted, he pushed her from the car onto the pavement and drove off. Moore says the story is fiction. He says that he never knew Ms. Nelson and never signed her yearbook and that the signature is a forgery. Nelson's attorney has declined to produce the yearbook with the original signature for examination by an expert. While appearing on CNN, Nelson's lawyer, Gloria Allred, declined to say that she would permit her client to take a polygraph test.
How is it, asks one popular radio personality, that Moore's so-called pedophilic behavior has been bottled up for four decades? Just how was that achieved? It does not make sense. Moore has been a candidate in several highly publicized elections for District Attorney, Circuit Judge and Supreme Court Chief Justice, and no opponent of Moore's ever mentioned it, nor did the offended women ever come forward. Why now? It emerges to the applause of the liberal media and bitter Democrats in the short weeks prior to the special election for U.S. Senator to fill the seat left vacant by Jeff Sessions,who resigned to become Attorney General. Alabama may well be the strongest Republican state in the USA. In past years, Democrats opted not to even offer a candidate for some important offices, including U.S. senator.
Judge Moore, a graduate of the U.S. military academy at West Point who served as a captain for five years in the army, is a fierce Christian conservative who has always had the respect of citizens of Alabama. On two occasions, he was elected chief justice of the Alabama State Supreme Court. He was removed as the chief judge by higher authorities when he refused to rid the courthouse of a monument containing the Ten Commandments in response to a lawsuit promoted by atheists. He was later reelected to that office but removed a second time when he refused to recognize same sex marriages.
Judge Moore has said that he will not drop out of the race and provide credence to the bogus charges against him. It is an uphill fight for him, but the Alabama voters, not the media, will have the last word, and will make the decision as to who will represent them in the U.S. Senate.
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By Florida Bill
Tip your hat to the hunter extraordinaire: the Cairn terrier. The little dog with the big personality.
The feisty Cairn, almost always wheaten or black in color, though maybe a blend leaning slightly to toward rouge, is a descendant of a wolf, believe it or not, and gained its fame and reputation as an aggressive hunter in the fields and underground tunnels of beautiful Scotland. Some say it was in the Isle of Skye. They were commissioned to examine rocky piles known to farmers as cairns and to rid them of any interlopers such as mice, rats, snakes, rabbits or squirrels or any other unwelcome critter hanging around.
In fact, it was said these hunters would "go to ground," in search of such critters, and there are still competitions where terriers are sent into tunnels with caged rats and timed on how quickly they reach the prey and for how long they perform: barking, baying, scratching or staring intensely.
With a determined nature and guided by a nose which can always detect a foreign critter hiding where he does not belong, the sturdy Cairn would do his work and provide for the farmer, his friend and mentor, a rock pile as free and as sterile as a rock pile can be. Unwelcome visitors are dispatched by the Cairns by grabbing them by the neck and delivering some mighty shakes.
In America and much of the world, the tough little Cairn has become a respected and beloved pet in tens of thousands of homes. They love their owners and the kids and other dogs--well, most of the time, when it comes to other canines. They do a good deal of barking and they will sound off mightily at footsteps, even those dropped by a squirrel or bunny. Some owners will laughingly say their Cairns bark at the sound of a leaf dropping.
They are powerful and dominating when it comes to rodents and the unlikeable critters are never too much for the determined Cairn. According to canine expert Stanley Coren, he learned of a terrier named Tiny who was said to have polished off some 5,000 rats in his lifetime. That's dedication.
Recently, I saw on a social media site an inquiry and concern from a Cairn "mom" that her pet was an overly aggressive hunter of little critters, and that perhaps that was a negative quality which her Cairn possessed. Somewhat distressed, she invited comments from other owners on what she perceived as an unwelcome trait which she was not fond of.
The answer is that the instinct to hunt is in the canine genes. For me, also a Cairn booster, I look upon their talent to ferret out the intruder with admiration--a Cairn doing what a Cairn was meant to do.
Not too long ago, our male, Andy, a handsome, wheaten colored Cairn weighing in at about 16 pounds, left our back door and raced to the far end of our fenced one-acre yard. He seemed to be on a mission. Minutes later I saw him furiously shaking a black "rope" in his mouth. It wasn't a rope, it was a black garter snake about three feet long. Most interesting was that Andy seemed to know that the alien was there. He made quick work of the intruder. How? What tipped Andy off? Just a couple of days ago, our 7-year-old black Cairn, Wendy, declined to answer our whistle and call which was completely unlike her while inside our home in South Florida. We went to look for her and found her staring at a closed closet door. It was the unmistakable Cairn "death stare," with her nose inches from the tiny slit under the door. No question, but there had to be something inside the closet where we have boxes stored with Xmas decorations and other items and some luggage. We were hoping that a mouse had not gotten into the house.
Opening the door, Wendy shot in without hesitation. She nosed around items piled on the floor and darted under the shelf housing the air conditioner. Presto, within seconds, she exploded out with a large Palmetto bug--an unpleasant fact of life in Florida--in her mouth, zoomed to another corner of the house, and then dropped the lifeless meddler onto the floor. Thanks, Wendy. We cleaned up the remains, and Wendy then went about her business.
Niki, another female cairn of ours in our Chicago days, would suddenly stake out a pantry or closet and we knew it was time to buy a mouse trap.
The search by the young and middle aged Cairn is never ending. Maybe age will slow them down, but just a little. The cairn does not discern which intruder might be a more or less welcome addition to the terrain. They are all prey. Here in Florida, and perhaps elsewhere where there is an abundance of sun and showers, we need to keep an eye on the inquisitive Cairn lest in his instinct to hunt, he comes upon the dreaded Bufo toad, which will react to danger by exuding a substance on its skin which is poisonous to dogs and can even be fatal. When the Cairn sees the toad, he attacks and most large toads cannot move fast enough to escape. If it happens, which it has to us three times, we wipe out the inside of the dog's mouth with a wet rag and then rush the little fur head to the vet for immediate treatment, which will save the dog if the action is timely enough. Anyway, be on guard against these dog menaces. Bufos are ugly looking dudes whose size can match a dessert plate.
Is the cairn a dedicated hunter? I would say, yes, absolutely. We sometimes fear ours got an overabundance of terrier genes. So, what is it about an unwelcome critter which draws their attention? What do they hear? What do they smell?
The dog's nose is, according to some experts, about a million times more sensitive than man's ability to smell. In one experiment I read about, a tiny mouse was placed in the center of a one acre field of grass, and the dog--I like to think it was a cairn--was released to hunt. Within minutes, the proud dog returned, mouse in tow. That was all nose. It was the hunter, home from the hills.
The Cairn terrier has a tradition to uphold. Hunting is what he does and what he has always done. His people and the unconditional love which he bestows upon his owners of course comes first. But intruders and aliens are definitely not welcome in Cairn territory. So do not be concerned. Enjoy your Cairn. There is no other dog like yours in the world!!!!
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