red dog 1
red dog 1's JournalMarco Rubio's Blatant Lie About His Personal Finances Should Worry You
Daily Kos
October 29, 2015
By Laura Clawson
A crucial part of Marco Rubio's big debate victory came out of his ability to lie with conviction and an innocent look in his eye.
Not just about his tax plan, but about his own personal finances.
Here it is:
"Senator Rubio, You yourself have said that you've had issues.
You have a lack of bookkeeping skills.
You accidentally inter-mingled campaign money with your personal money.
You faced foreclosure on a second house you bought.
And just last year, you liquidated a $68,000 retirement fund.
That's something that cost you thousands of dollars in taxes and penalties.
In terms of all of that, it raises the question whether you have the maturity and wisdom to lead this $17 trillion economy.
What do you say?'
RUBIO:
"Well, you just -- you just listed a litany of discredited attacks from Democrats and my political opponents, and I'm not gonna waste 60 seconds detailing them all."
Discredited attacks?
As Florida Republican Joe Scarborough said Thursday morning:
"Marco just flat-out lied to the American people, there,' he continued, "And I was stunned that the moderators didn't stop there and go, "Wait a second, these are court records. What are you talking about?"
There are two issues here.
One is the substance of the question: Rubio and his "scandal plagued"-doesn't-begin-to-describe-it friend, former Rep. David Rivera, only last summer sold the house which had at one point been in foreclosure.
That is a fact, not a "discredited attack."...And so on.
The financial problems and mismanagement detailed in the question were accurate, so make of his personal finances what you will.
More:
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2015/10/29/1442388/-Marco-Rubio-s-blatant-lie-about-his-personal-finances-should-worry-you
"Marco Rubio's "house of horrors"
http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/marco-rubios-house-horrors
Secret Aerial Surveillance Over U.S. Cities by Aircraft Owned by "Dummy" Companies?
From June 2, 2015
(HuffPo)
"FBI Confirms Wide-Scale Use Of Surveillance Flights Over U.S. Cities"
"The FBI is operating a small air force with scores of low-flying planes across the U.S. carrying video and at times, cell phone surveillance technology -- all hidden behind fictitious companies that are fronts for the government, the Associated Press has learned.
The FBI confirmed for the first time the wide-scale use of the aircraft, which the AP traced to at least 13 fake companies, such as FVX Research, KQM Aviation, NBR Aviation and PXW Services.
Even basic aspects of the program are withheld from the public in censored versions of official reports from the Justice Department's Inspector General."
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10026767319
From June 5, 2015
(Wired Magazine)
"What An NYPD SPY Copter Reveals About The FBI's Spy Planes"
"The New York Police Department had a high-tech surveillance helicopter that it obtained in 2003 through a government grant and exposed publicly to the media that year when it gave journalists a tour of the $10 million toy.
Wired Magazine began investigating the chopper in 2008, and uncovered, but hasn't published until now information about the precise surveillance components installed on it and the methods the NYPD used to conceal it's ownership and operation.
Like the FBI, the NYPD used a shell company to register the aircraft.
But the NYPD also requested special 'undercover' registration handling from the FAA to thwart tracking by aviation enthusiasts who might spot it in the air and attempt to investigate the registration number associated with it.
The NYPD also asked the FAA to notify it's aviation unit if anyone contacted the agency inquiring about the aircraft.
Last month, the issue of secret law enforcement aircraft began getting attention after plane spotters around the country began reporting suspicious aircraft registered to shell companies that were flying unusual routes over numerous cities.
The Associated Press caught on to the stories and this week published it's own piece identifying some fifty surveillance aircraft that were registered to more than a dozen shell companies and were being used by FBI field offices around the country."
http://www.democraticunderground.com/1016124063
From May 29, 2015
(Minneapolis Star Tribune)
"Mysterious Low-Flying Plane Over Twin Cities Raises Questions Of Surveillance"
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10141105054#top
Bernie Sanders campaign: No more Mr. Nice Guy
CNN
By Eric Bradner
Updated October 27, 2015
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- When Bernie Sanders launched his 2016 presidential bid, he swore off negative campaigning.
Months later, the Vermont senator is signally that he's increasingly willing to take personal shots at his chief rival in the Democratic primary, a little more than three months from the Iowa caucuses.
In Sanders' view, he's finishing what Hillary Clinton started -- first in the opening Democratic debate, when she assailed his moderate record on guns: then in the Iowa Jefferson-Jackson Dinner, where she suggested his criticism of both sides' "shouting" on gun laws was a gender-based attack on her.
Sanders' senior strategist, Tad Devine, says the campaign is reacting to Clinton's attacks.
"If they're going to have a campaign that attacks Bernie on gun safety, and implies he engages in sexism, that's unacceptable," Devine told POLITICO.
"We're not going to stand for that...We're not going to sit here and let her attack him.
We're going to have to talk about other things if they do that," Devine said.
"If they're going to engage in this kind of attack, they need to understand we're not going to stand there and take it."
More:
http://www.cnn.com/2015/10/26/politics/bernie-sanders-hillary-clinton-attacks/index.html
BuzzFeed journalist attacked by far-right Jewish extremists in Paris
The Guardian
October 23, 2015
A leading French journalist working for BuzzFeed was attacked by far-right Jewish extremists as a mob tried to storm the offices of the country's national news agency on Thursday.
David Perrotin was protected by police after being surrounded by a dozen masked men brandishing batons.
The Ligue de Defense Juive was protesting against Agense France Presse's coverage of the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Trouble broke out soon after 8 P.M. when about 100 people brandishing flags and letting off flares tried to storm AFP's offices.
As the crowd approached the entrance to the building, opposite the Paris stock exchange, tear gas was sprayed in their faces, and skirmishes with CRS riot police broke out.
Some of the demonstrators were shouting "We're coming to get you," at journalists, while others screamed "Islamic terrorists."
More;
http://www.theguardian.com/media/2015/oct/23/buzzfeed-journalist-attacked-paris-david-perrotin-ldj-afp
Jim Hightower: The Haircut
Jim Hightower
October 16, 2015
It's always interesting to see Congress in action -- though "interesting" can also be appalling.
For example, what a sight it is to watch Republican leaders as they gleefully try to repeal Obamacare - the law extending health care to all Americans.
As they vote one-by-one to kill it, their mantra is, "No to big government health care."
What you can't see, however, is them later slipping down the hallways of the Capitol to a little-known, exclusive medical office that gives them free health care, paid for by the same
"big government" they were just ranting about.
You might think that such raw hypocrisy would cause them to feel at least a twinge of moral discomfort - but apparently they've been immunized to prevent such outbreaks of morality.
A good illustration of the Congressional mindset is presently making the rounds on the Internet
Called "The Haircut," it tells the story of a barber who cuts the hair of a florist, but refused to take payment from the flower peddler.
"I'm doing community service this week," he explained.
The next morning when the barber went to his shop, he found a thank-you note and a dozen roses at his door.
His next customer was a police officer needing a trim.
Again, the barber declined any payment.
The next morning he found a thank-you note and a dozen donuts waiting for him, a gift from the grateful cop.
Then, lo and behold, a congressman came in for a haircut.
When he tried to pay, the barber once more waved off the money, repeating his commitment to community service.
The lawmaker was delighted by this generous gesture.
And, sure enough, when the barber went to his shop the next morning, he was greeted by another surprise: a dozen Congress critters lined up waiting for a free haircut.
See, it's just a matter of one's moral make-up.
Assuming, of course, that you have a moral make-up.
http://www.jimhightower.com
Oregon Shooting Hero Chris Mintz Leaves Hospital
NBC News
October 8, 2015
"Oregon Shooting: 'Heroic' Army Vet leaves Hospital"
A victim of the deadly shooting at an Oregon college who has been hailed as a hero for trying to save other students during the rampage has been released from the hospital.
Chris Mintz, 30, left Mercy Medical Center in Roseberg, Oregon, on Wednesday night, a friend who asked not to be named told NBC News.
He was shot several times during a rampage by Christopher Harper-Mercer at Umpqua Community College on October 1.
Harper-Mercer, 26, killed nine during the rampage and then shot himself, according to police.
"He tried to protect some people," Mintz's aunt Sheila Brown told NBC News in the attack's aftermath.
"We were told he did heroic things."
More:
http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/oregon-college-shooting/oregon-shooting-heroic-army-vet-chris-mintz-leaves-hospital-n440756
How a Reclusive Computer Programmer Became a GOP Money Powerhouse
Washington Post
By Frances Stead Sellers
October 6, 2015
He has obtained almost mythic stature in the new big-money world of presidential politics --
a reclusive computer programmer, a hedge fund magnate and the biggest individual
Super-PAC donor so far of this campaign cycle.
Robert L. Mercer worked on a team that revolutionized the arcane world of machine translation.
Then he made his fortune devising algorithms to outwit Wall Street traders.
Throughout it all, he has avoided attention.
The tiny public record reveals a man of exacting and perhaps unreasonable standards,
sued by his household staff in a dispute over, among other things, partially filled shampoo bottles.
He has emerged very occasionally and cast himself as a computer nerd with a romantic attachment to machines.
Now the supremely private Mercer is putting his obscurity at risk by assuming the role of kingmaker in the post-Citizens United era of unrestricted giving -- and, in his inscrutable way, leaving the political world uncertain about his goals and motives.
Mercer, 69, co-chief executive of the wildly successful New York hedge fund company
Renaissance Technologies, burst into the public eye this year when he poured $11 million into a Super-PAC supporting Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz.
Read more:
Google: "How a reclusive computer programmer became a GOP money powerhouse"
(Sorry, for some reason I was unable to post a direct link to this WaPo story, despite many attempts)
Turkey Vows to Protect Borders After Russian Jet Incursion
Associated Press
October 5, 2015
ANKARA,Turkey -- Turkey's prime minister vowed Monday to take all necessary measures to protect the nation's borders from violation after a Russian fighter jet entered it's airspace over the weekend, prompting Turkey to scramble jets and summon the Russian ambassador in protest.
NATO said another Russian jet intruded into Turkey's airspace Sunday, and it called urgent consultations on the issue.
The alliance strongly protested the Russian violations and noted "the extreme danger of such irresponsible behavior."
Russia admitted to the first incursion Saturday, but said it intruded "by mistake" and assured Ankara it wouldn't happen again.Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said in a televised interview.
However, a senior U.S. official said the Obama administration doesn't believe the Russian incursion was an accident, and officials are in urgent talks with allies about what to do.
Neither country spoke about the second incident.
The U.S. official wasn't authorized to publicly discuss sensitive military matters and spoke on condition of anonymity.
In Madrid, U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said Monday that Washington is conferring with Turkish leaders about the infringement.
More:
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2015/10/05/world/europe/ap-eu-turkey-russia-syria.html
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