September 5, 2015

Evangelical Death Threats Against Planned Parenthood Are On The Rise

By: Rmuse
Friday, September, 4th, 2015, 9:44 am

Throughout its history, despite being a so-called religion founded on Jesus Christ’s teaching to love all humanity, Christianity has been responsible for millions of deaths and the threat of god-approved extinction of non-believers, the wrong kind of Christians, and whichever group church leaders targeted. There is biblical precedence for killing in god’s name permeating the so-called “Old Testament,” but it is not featured in the “Christian” New Testament except during the “end times” when Jesus Christ kills off the segment of humanity that refuses to be his disciples. In the criminal justice system, god would be guilty of criminal solicitation to commit murder for commanding, encouraging or requesting other people to engage in specific conduct (homicide) which would establish his complicity in its commission or attempted commission. According to the law, it is immaterial that the actor fails to communicate with the person he solicits to commit a crime if his conduct was designed to effect such a communication.

In 21st Century America, there is a growing segment of the population that believes they are biblical god’s surrogates, and since he is incapable of verbally commanding his followers to commit murder on his behalf, extremist evangelicals are doing his bidding and are guilty of criminal solicitation. And, they are soliciting for murder with veritable impunity because this is America and no human being, particularly a human associated with the government, dare investigate so-called pro-life advocates calling for the murders of Planned Parenthood personnel.

A little over a month ago after an anti-abortion group released heavily-edited and contrived videos of a Planned Parenthood doctor discussing donations of fetal tissue for medical research after pregnancy terminations, a rash of “criminal solicitations” for murder began appearing all over the Internet. One specifically “ominous warning on Fox Nation” said, “I’ll pay ten large to whomever kills Dr. Deborah Nucatola. Anyone. Go for it.” The intended victim is the senior director of Planned Parenthood who was secretly filmed in one of the edited videos.

Another threat was lodged at the CEO, Cate Dyer, of the biomedicine company doing the medical research using fetal tissue. The threat said, “The CEO of StemExpress should be hung by the neck using piano wire and propped up on the lawn in front of the building with a note attached.” The solicitation of murder was accompanied with Dyer’s home address and a handsome offer of “ten grand to whomever beats me to her house.” The violent warning “that Dyer must die” ended the solicitation to kill an American citizen because of where she works. A legal complaint was filed in California district court by the National Abortion Federation (NAF), but since the criminal solicitation originated with rabid evangelicals, nothing can possibly happen because freedom of religion.

more
http://www.politicususa.com/2015/09/04/evangelical-death-threats-planned-parenthood-rise.html

September 5, 2015

Sarah Palin Uses The Pen Name 'Denali' To Bash Obama's Alaska Trip

No one knows Alaska like its former Gov. Sarah Palin.

So the former Republican vice presidential nominee wrote a listicle Friday over at IJReview to tell President Barack Obama just how badly he failed at getting to know Sarah Palin's Alaska.

Among the things Palin said Obama missed were visiting the Hubbard Glacier, which she says is actually "growing" despite warnings of climate change; meeting with oil industry workers; and visiting the Alaskan coast, from where she insisted that yes, "you can actually see Russia."

Curiously, Palin wrote the listicle under the name "Denali," which an editor's note helpfully explained was the code name the U.S. Secret Service used for her during the 2008 presidential campaign. Elected officials in Ohio, the home state of President William McKinley, heavily criticized the Obama administration this week for changing the name of Alaska's Mt. McKinley — the tallest peak in North America — back to its original name, Denali.

h/t Mediaite

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http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/sarah-palin-bashes-obama-alaska-trip

September 4, 2015

‘Worst coupon ever': Twitter trolls take over #FreeKimDavis — and it’s hilarious

With Texas Sen. Ted Cruz (R) calling jailed Kentucky county clerk Kim Davis the first Christian woman arrested by her government “for living according to her faith,” supporters of the intransigent government employee took to Twitter expressing support with #FreeKimDavis.

As might be expected, Twitter trolls showed up and hijacked the hashtag, mocking her multiple marriages, those who compare her to civil rights pioneer Rosa Parks, and making the obligatory references to women-behind-bars Netflix show, Orange Is the New Black.

Jeff Fecke
@jkfecke

Don't #FreeKimDavis. Not unless she quits or agrees to do her job.
5:47 PM - 3 Sep 2015

Kragar
@Kragar_LGF

Don't fall for the scam people! They say #FreeKimDavis, but if you read the fine print, its only if you buy one of equal or greater cost

3:42 PM - 3 Sep 2015
40 40 Retweets 50 50 favorites

12 12 Retweets 18 18 favorites

"Dr.'' Ryface
@Ryface

#FreeKimDavis She's the White Rosa Parks Who Refuses To Get Off The Bus Until The Bus Stops Letting Black People On Again

10:33 AM - 4 Sep 2015
58 58 Retweets 66 66 favorites

-snip-

http://www.rawstory.com/2015/09/worst-coupon-evertwitter-trolls-take-over-freekimdavis-and-its-hilarious/

September 4, 2015

Federal court says Indiana religious non-profit groups must comply with Obamacare

Source: Reuters

A group of religiously-affiliated non-profit organizations in Indiana must comply with Affordable Care Act’s provision allowing their employees to get insurance coverage for contraception, despite their religious objections.

A divided panel of the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday lifted a lower court order exempting the groups from the law. The non-profits, which include the Saint Anne Home & Retirement Community of the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Grace Schools, Biola University and others, sued the federal government in 2012.

The Affordable Care Act requires employers to provide insurance for their employees, including access to contraception and sterilization and other preventative services for women.

It allows religiously affiliated non-profits to opt out of paying for contraception themselves if they notify the federal government of their objection. Insurers are then required to provide the coverage to employees at no extra cost.

-snip-

Read more: http://www.rawstory.com/2015/09/court-upholds-contraceptive-mandate-against-indiana-non-profits/

September 4, 2015

UPDATED: Kim Davis' Attorney Says She Will Appeal Contempt Ruling Today

Source: TPM

Mat Staver, founder of Liberty Counsel, said Friday that jailed Kentucky clerk Kim Davis will appeal her contempt of court ruling by the end of the day and has no plans to resign as Rowan County clerk.

In a press conference held outside the Carter County Detention Center, where Davis remains in custody, Staver reiterated that Davis has no plans to resign her publicly elected post, and that she has a "clean conscience."

When the team of attorneys met with Davis during Friday visitation, Staver said she was in good spirits, had already started Bible study "by herself," and told them "all is well." Staver also said he could not say how long Davis would be imprisoned, but that she was a "prisoner of her conscience."

"We need more people – whether you agree with her or not – who are willing to stand by their conscience and convictions," he said.

-snip-

Read more: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/mat-staver-kim-davis-contempt-appeal

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UPDATE:

Jailed Kentucky clerk sees licenses issued on Friday as invalid: her attorney

REUTERS
04 SEP 2015 AT 15:40 ET

The Kentucky county clerk who was jailed for refusing to issue marriage licenses to gay couples considers the licenses issued on Friday by her office as invalid, her attorney said.

Kim Davis, who was jailed on Thursday afternoon, also has no intention of stepping down from her job as clerk for Rowan County, Matthew Staver said in front of the detention center in Grayson, Kentucky, where Davis is being held.

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http://www.rawstory.com/2015/09/jailed-kentucky-clerk-sees-licenses-issued-on-friday-as-invalid-her-attorney/

September 4, 2015

Hillary Clinton On Emails: 'I'm Sorry It Has Been Confusing To People'

Source: TPM

When asked if she wanted to apologize to the American people for the email server snafu embroiling her campaign for President, Hillary Clinton said simply she regretted it had been “confusing.”

“At the end of the day, I’m sorry that this has been confusing to people and raised a lot of questions,” Clinton said during an exclusive interview Friday on MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell Reports. She also admitted that setting up a private server “wasn’t the best choice.”

"You know, I was not thinking a lot when I got in. There was so much work to be done, we had so many problems around the world. I didn’t really stop and think, ‘what kind of email system will there be?’" Clinton told Mitchell. When the conversation turned to GOP frontrunner Donald Trump, Clinton noted the former reality TV star is “going after so many people, from basketball players” to political opponents, a reference to Trump’s sophomoric response to an op-ed by former NBA player Kareem Abdul-Jabbar earlier this week.

Clinton went on to juxtapose her manner of speaking with Trump’s, saying while she conducts herself as is appropriate for someone seeking the nation’s highest office, the Republican billionaire is “the candidate of being against. He’s great at innuendo and conspiracy theories and really defaming people,” she said of Trump’s brash manner. “Loose talks, threats, insults...They have consequences.”

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Read more: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/hillary-clinton-msnbc-trump-emails

September 4, 2015

Ted Cruz indifferent to rule of law in Kim Davis case

By Steve Benen

When Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) condemns President Obama – a frequent occurrence – the far-right national candidate often emphasizes the rule of law. Cruz doesn’t just think the president is wrong; he thinks Obama is a tyrannical dictator who flouts legal norms.

“The pattern we’ve seen under President Obama, disregarding the law, is really one of the most troubling aspects of this presidency,” Cruz said last year. “When he disagrees with the law … he simply refuses to comply with it.” The Republican senator added that the president is “lawless.”

But that was in 2014. In 2015, Cruz sees Kentucky clerk Kim Davis ignoring court orders, ignoring Supreme Court rulings, and ignoring her oath of office – and the GOP presidential candidate sees her as some kind of hero. In a written statement released late yesterday:

Cruz’s statement went on to argue, “Those who are persecuting Kim Davis believe that Christians should not serve in public office. That is the consequence of their position. Or, if Christians do serve in public office, they must disregard their religious faith–or be sent to jail.” He added that Davis should face no consequences for brazenly defying federal court orders she doesn’t like.

I’m not sure what’s worse: the possibility that Cruz actually believes this nonsense or the fact that Cruz expects Americans to take his arguments seriously. Let’s unwrap the senator’s statement a bit, because by Cruz standards, it’s an extraordinary piece of propaganda.

more
http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/ted-cruz-indifferent-rule-law-kim-davis-case?cid=eml_mra_20150904

September 4, 2015

GOP’s Ben Carson eyes end to Veterans Administration

By Steve Benen

Republican presidential candidates often like to talk about the cabinet agencies they’re eager to destroy. Just this week, for example, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) dismissed the federal Department of Education as unnecessary. In the last presidential election, then-Gov. Rick Perry (R) said he intended to scrap three cabinet agencies, though he famously forgot the third.

But when GOP candidates go after these agencies, they usually stick to departments like Commerce, Education, and occasionally Energy. Ben Carson, a leading 2016 contender, actually has a very different idea in mind. The Military Times reported:

The retired neurosurgeon said, “We don’t need a Department of Veterans Affairs. Veterans Affairs should be folded in under the Department of Defense.”

As regular readers probably know, plenty of Republican presidential candidates support incorporating a voucher system into the VA, effectively privatizing parts of veterans’ care, but Carson is the first national candidate, at least in recent memory, to suggest eliminating the cabinet agency altogether.

John Biedrzyck, head of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, isn’t impressed. “To suggest that disabled veterans could be sent out into the economy with a health savings account card overlooks the fact that civilian health care has waiting lists of their own … and presupposes that civilian doctors have the same skill sets as VA doctors, who see veterans of every age and malady every day,” Biedrzyck said in a statement.

more
http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/gops-ben-carson-eyes-end-veterans-administration?

September 4, 2015

Christie: I’d ‘Officially Retire’ Biden If He Runs Against Me In 2016

Source: TPM

GOP presidential candidate and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie told a small crowd on Thursday at a New Hampshire restaurant that he would handily defeat Vice President Joe Biden in a general election. “I would win and officially retire him,” Christie bragged, according to the Bergen Record newspaper.

During a somber Thursday appearance at an Atlanta synagogue, Biden told the audience he was considering running for President but was unsure if he “has the emotional energy to run” following the death of his son Beau in May. "If I can reach that conclusion that we can do it in a fashion that would still make it viable, I would not hesitate to do it," Biden said.

Christie seemed eager for Biden to join the fray, and joked about the vice president returning to his home state of Delaware after losing. "If it turns out that the vice president is the nominee of the Democratic Party, it will be a great day for the University of Delaware, right?" Christie said, according to the newspaper.

The New Jersey governor’s remarks were met with laughter by his audience of about 30 people, the paper reported.

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Read more: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/christie-retire-biden-2016-race

September 4, 2015

Huckabee On Kentucky Clerk's Jailing: Even Serial Killer Jeffrey Dahmer Got Bail!

Source: TPM

Republican presidential candidate former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee said on Friday during an appearance on Fox News that serial killers got better treatment by the American justice system than the Kentucky county clerk who was jailed for refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

Huckabee has been one of the most vocal presidential candidates to defend Rowan County, Kentucky clerk Kim Davis after she was jailed Thursday on contempt of federal court. The ex-governor brought up the comparison to serial killers during an interview on Fox's "America's Newsroom."

"Jeffery Dahmer got bail, the Boston Stranger got bail, John Wayne Gacy got bail," Huckabee said. "Kim Davis, because of her convictions, was not given bail." Huckabee said he will host a rally on Tuesday in Grayson, Kentucky in support of Davis. "What she did was follow the Kentucky Constitution," he said. "This is an unbelievable moment in American history."

Because Huckabee's poll numbers have remained low, Fox News anchor Martha MacCallum asked how he feels about the state of his presidential campaign. "Summer blockbusters never win the Oscars," Huckabee said in a vague insult to current GOP frontrunner Donald Trump.

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Read more: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/mike-huckabee-serial-killers-kim-davis