Sen. Ben Sasse (R-NE) scolded Democratic presidential candidate Beto O&#8217;Rourke on Wednesday for supporting a plan to strip religious institutions of their tax-exempt status if they do not officially recognize same-sex marriage.
&#8220;Last week, a former member of Congress didn&#8217;t blink an eye &#8212; a former member of Congress now running for President &#8212; didn&#8217;t blink an eye when he announced that he would strip religious institutions &#8212; colleges, churches, and other not-for-profit service organizations &#8212; he would strip them of their tax-exempt status if they don&#8217;t agree with his political positions,&#8221; Sasse said while speaking on the Senate floor. &#8220;That&#8217;s a pretty major departure from what America is and what we usually talk about in this body.&#8221;
&#8220;So, we should pause, and we should call that what it is. That is extreme intolerance, it is extreme bigotry, and it&#8217;s profoundly unAmerican,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;The whole point of America is the First Amendment, and the whole point of the First Amendment is that no matter who you love, and no matter how you worship, we believe in America that everyone, everyone is created with dignity.&#8221;
<iframe title="Ben Sasse: &quot;Government Doesn’t Define True And False Religion&quot;" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CFJCwN2d-yg?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>
While Sasse refrained from directly naming the person he was referring to, O&#8217;Rourke notably received widespread backlash after he revealed during CNN’s LGBTQ town hall event earlier in October that he would penalize religious institutions that adhere to their own religious texts by denying them tax exemptions under federal law.
&#8220;There can be no reward, no benefit, no tax break for anyone or any institution, any organization in America, that denies the full human rights and the full civil rights of every single one of us,&#8221; O&#8217;Rourke said at the time. &#8220;So as president, we&#8217;re going to make that a priority, and we are going to stop those who are infringing upon the human rights of our fellow Americans.&#8221;
Following the town hall, the Nebraska lawmaker swiftly <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/bigoted-nonsense-sen-ben-sasse-condemns-betos-call-to-strip-churches-of-tax-exempt-status-for-opposing-same-sex-marriage">issued a statement</a> condemning the &#8220;bigoted nonsense,&#8221; and called on leaders from both parties to do the same. Sasse took to the Senate floor on Wednesday to <a href="https://www.sasse.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/d99566cc-0d90-4356-af2d-db257f298cd6/religiouslibertyresolution.pdf">introduce a resolution</a> in response to O&#8217;Rourke, which would put every member of Congress on record on whether or not they &#8220;affirm the First Amendment and, in particular, the free exercise of religion and the free assembly clauses.&#8221;
&#8220;This is a fundamental American tenet. It&#8217;s why this country was founded. And because we are all created with dignity, none of us have the right to dictate the conscience commitments of other people,&#8221; Sasse said. &#8220;The freedom of the conscience is a fundamental American belief and thankfully politicians have no business policing that.&#8221;
&#8220;At the end of the day, there are really just two kinds of societies: there are societies that are about force and power, and there are societies that are about persuasion, about assembly, and about love,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;For more than 230 years, we&#8217;ve decided in this country that we&#8217;re the latter. We&#8217;re a community of persuasion, not primarily a community of power and force. In America we don&#8217;t think the center of life is defined by government. We think the frame of life is defined by government.&#8221;
Sasse further explained that the First Amendment of the Constitution consists of five entwined freedoms &#8212; religion, speech, press, assembly, and protest &#8212; which serve as the foundation of America.
&#8220;The five freedoms are interconnected, interdependent, and all in that same amendment &#8212; the First Amendment &#8212; for a reason,&#8221; Sasse said. &#8220;These are the rights of conscience that belong together, and they cannot be taken or policed by government.&#8221;
&#8220;So that means that if a Texas politician pandering for a sound bite decides to make a bold-faced threat against Muslims, Jews, and Christians, all Americans from every faith and every walk of life, we have an obligation to come together and to defend our freedoms,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;So we should do that.&#8221;
&#8220;I don&#8217;t care what some nitwit said on CNN last week to satisfy his fringy base and try to get a sound bite in a presidential debate,&#8221; Sasse added. &#8220;The American people ought to know that this body stands for the historic First Amendment. That&#8217;s what we all took an oath to uphold and to defend, and that&#8217;s what we ought to vote to affirm again.&#8221;

Dr. Christine Blasey Ford And Supreme Court Nominee Brett Kavanaugh Testify To Senate Judiciary Committee

WATCH: Ben Sasse Slams &#8216;Nitwit&#8217; Beto O&#8217;Rourke For Targeting Religious Institutions: &#8216;Extreme Bigotry&#8217;

Ben Sasse

Beto O'Rourke

First Amendment

Free Speech

LGBT

On Wednesday, the United States House of Representatives passed <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-joint-resolution/77/text?q=%7B%22search%22%3A%5B%22actionDateChamber%3A%5C%22116%7CH%7C2019-10-16%5C%22+AND+%28billIsReserved%3A%5C%22N%5C%22+OR+type%3A%5C%22AMENDMENT%5C%22%29%22%5D%7D&amp;r=43&amp;s=1">H.J. Res. 77</a>, titled: &#8220;Opposing the decision to end certain United States efforts to prevent Turkish military operations against Syrian Kurdish forces in Northeast Syria.&#8221;
The resolution, which passed 354 to 60 (129 Republicans voted for the resolution along with 225 Democrats), reads in part:
<blockquote>Whereas thousands of Syrian fighters, including Syrian Kurds, fought courageously with the United States against the brutality of ISIS throughout Syria, liberating nearly one-third of Syrian territory from ISIS’ so-called “caliphate”&#8230;
Whereas Turkey has historically threatened, forcibly displaced, and killed Syrian Kurds, including during military operations in the Afrin District&#8230;
Whereas, during the counter-ISIS campaign in Syria, the SDF captured thousands of ISIS fighters, including foreign terrorist fighters from around the world who pose threats to our allies in the region &#8230; Whereas the SDF has warned the United States and international community that a Turkish incursion into Northeast Syria would significantly decrease the SDF’s ability to combat ISIS and to continue providing security and management for ISIS detainees and their family members&#8230;
Whereas an abrupt withdrawal of United States military personnel from certain parts of Northeast Syria is beneficial to adversaries of the United States government, including Syria, Iran, and Russia: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That Congress—
(1) opposes the decision to end certain United States efforts to prevent Turkish military operations against Syrian Kurdish forces in Northeast Syria;
(2) calls on Turkish President Erdogan to immediately cease unilateral military action in Northeast Syria and to respect existing agreements relating to Syria;
(3) calls on the United States to continue supporting Syrian Kurdish communities through humanitarian support, including to those displaced or otherwise affected by ongoing violence in Syria;
(4) calls on the United States to work to ensure that the Turkish military acts with restraint and respects existing agreements relating to Syria; and
(5) calls on the White House to present a clear and specific plan for the enduring defeat of ISIS.</blockquote>
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have condemned President Trump’s decision to pull American troops from northern Syria, allowing Turkish forces to move into the area.
On October 6, the White House released an <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/statement-press-secretary-85/">official statement</a>, which noted that following a phone call between Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan and President Trump, &#8220;Turkey will soon be moving forward with its long-planned operation into Northern Syria.&#8221;
The press release went on to state that the U.S. military would &#8220;not support or be involved in the operation.&#8221;
The president defended the move in a tweet: &#8220;As I have stated strongly before, and just to reiterate, if Turkey does anything that I, in my great and unmatched wisdom, consider to be off limits, I will totally destroy and obliterate the Economy of Turkey (I&#8217;ve done before!). They must, with Europe and others, watch over the captured ISIS fighters and families. The US has done far more than anyone could have ever expected, including the capture of 100% of the ISIS Caliphate.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
&#8230;.the captured ISIS fighters and families. The U.S. has done far more than anyone could have ever expected, including the capture of 100% of the ISIS Caliphate. It is time now for others in the region, some of great wealth, to protect their own territory. THE USA IS GREAT!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1181232251390042118?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 7, 2019</a></blockquote>
During a <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/trump-orders-u-s-forces-withdraw-further-syria-esper-says-n1065516">recent interview</a>, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper stated that approximately 1,000 American troops will be withdrawn from northern Syria. <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/trump-orders-u-s-forces-withdraw-further-syria-esper-says-n1065516">NBC News</a> reports that according to two U.S. military officials, only 300 troops are set to remain at the al-Tanf garrison located near Syria’s southeast border with Lebanon and Iraq.
The Turkish advance has led to death and chaos in the area.
The <a href="http://www.syriahr.com/en/?p=144050">Syrian Observatory for Human Rights</a> claims that more than 250,000 civilians have been displaced in the days following the Turkish advance, and as many as 71 civilians have been killed.
<blockquote>The death toll among the Syria Democratic Forces, military councils and internal security forces since the start of the Turkish military operation on Wednesday afternoon have risen to 158, while the number of deaths among Syrian factions loyal to Ankara and the pro-Turkey cells killed in the attacks and clashes with the SDF during the same period reached 128&#8230;</blockquote>
The <a href="https://www.apnews.com/7e90fd08a89e49d9bcae6a85a131a64a">Associated Press</a> reports that &#8220;hundreds of Islamic State families and supporters escaped from a holding camp in Syria amid the fighting between Turkish forces and the Kurds.&#8221; The camp is located in the subdistrict of Ain Issa.
Amidst the chaos of the Turkish advance into Syria, there are fears that Kurdish forces currently guarding thousands of ISIS detainees might have to abandon their posts in order to join the fight, possibly giving the detainees room to flee their cages.
During a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/watch-gen-mattis-says-isis-will-resurge-if-we-dont-keep-the-pressure-on">recent interview</a> with ABC’s &#8220;This Week,&#8221; former Secretary of Defense Gen. James Mattis appeared to echo such fears, saying that &#8220;if we don’t keep the pressure on, then ISIS will resurge.&#8221;
One of President Trump’s loudest critics on this issue has been Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), who, during a Wednesday interview on CBN, said he would become the president’s &#8220;worst nightmare&#8221; if things didn’t change.
&#8220;I am looking to President Trump to change this. I will do anything I can to help him, but I will also become President Trump’s worst nightmare,&#8221; Graham told host Pat Robertson. &#8220;I will not sit along the sidelines and watch a good ally, the Kurds, be slaughtered by Turkey and watch Iran move into Syria and become another nightmare for Israel. This is a defining moment for President Trump. He needs to up his game.&#8221;
Graham added that if the United States pulls out of Syria, the Islamic State (ISIS) will return and Iran will &#8220;take over.&#8221; The Senator then implored Trump to be more like Reagan and less like Obama, and &#8220;stand up to Erdoğan,&#8221; or face losing in 2020.
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Also on Wednesday, Trump addressed Graham, <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/trump-says-lindsey-graham-would-like-to-stay-in-the-middle-east-for-the-next-thousand-years">saying</a>: &#8220;Lindsey Graham would like to stay in the Middle East for the next thousand years with thousands of soldiers and fighting other people’s wars. I want to get out of the Middle East.&#8221;
But Graham isn’t the only Republican lawmaker questioning the president.
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) has also condemned Trump’s move, saying that while we cannot stay in &#8220;foreign theaters forever &#8230; we still have major national security interests in Syria.&#8221;
The senator stated that ISIS cannot be allowed to regroup, adding:
<blockquote>It would also be DISGRACEFUL if we sat idly by while Turkey slaughters the Kurds, as public reports suggest that Turkish leader Erdogan explicitly told President Trump he intends to do. Kurds risked their lives—for many years—to fight alongside us.
Our enemies and rivals (Iran, Russia, etc.) don’t abandon their allies; if we want allies to stand with America in the future, we shouldn’t either. Honorable nations stand by their friends.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Our enemies and rivals (Iran, Russia, etc.) don’t abandon their allies; if we want allies to stand with America in the future, we shouldn’t either. Honorable nations stand by their friends.
— Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenTedCruz/status/1181275477815824384?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 7, 2019</a></blockquote>
On Thursday, Sen. Graham and Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) introduced <a href="https://www.lgraham.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/558353c0-2323-4ea1-8545-637af1cbf7e0/graham-van-hollen-turkey-sanctions-bill-outline.pdf">legislation</a> that would severely sanction Turkey as a whole, as well as Turkish leaders specifically.
Graham and Van Holden’s legislation includes sanctions against those who would engage in the sale of military equipment or services with Turkey, and &#8220;prohibits the sale of U.S. defense articles, services, technology, [and] materials to the Turkish Armed Forces &#8230; [as well as] ammunition sales and transfers to the Turkish Armed Forces,&#8221; reads the summary text from Sen. Graham’s website.

Trump and Erdogan.

House Votes Overwhelmingly To Condemn Trump’s Military Pullback In Turkey

Donald Trump

Kurds

Lindsey Graham

Recep Tayyip Erdogan

Turkey

U.S. House of Representatives

NBA commissioner Adam Silver now claims that the league never apologized to China in the wake of Houston Rockets GM Daryl Morey tweeting in favor of the Hong Kong protesters.
Speaking with <a href="https://www.tmz.com/2019/10/17/adam-silver-nba-china-lebron-james-daryl-morey-trump/">TMZ Sports</a>, Silver said that even though the NBA appeared rather conciliatory towards the Chinese government, the league never directly apologized.
&#8220;I&#8217;d hate to see this relationship end over this incident,&#8221; Silver said. &#8220;We do need to reset with the Chinese government and everybody has to establish what the rules of the road are going to be going forward.&#8221;
The original statement issued by NBA chief communications officer Mike Bass in response to Morey&#8217;s &#8220;stand with Hong Kong&#8221; tweet expressed regret for having offended Chinese fans.
&#8220;We recognize that the views expressed by Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey have deeply offended many of our friends and fans in China, which is regrettable,” the statement said. “While Daryl has made it clear that his tweet does not represent the Rockets or the NBA, the values of the league support individuals’ educating themselves and sharing their views on matters important to them. We have great respect for the history and culture of China and hope that sports and the NBA can be used as a unifying force to bridge cultural divides and bring people together.”
Silver told TMZ Sports that it &#8220;bothered&#8221; him people viewed the statement as apologetic to the Chinese government, arguing that he walked a tight-rope by speaking out in favor of free expression.
&#8220;It bothered me that in saying we regretted upsetting hundreds of millions of Chinese fans while at the same time supporting Daryl Morey’s speech, it bothered me, I’d say, that it was interpreted as an apology to the Chinese government,&#8221; he said. &#8220;We certainly didn’t apologize to the Chinese government. We supported Daryl from the get-go in terms of his ability to tweet. We also made clear that there were consequences from that speech. And, I think that was no doubt frustrating to a lot of people in the NBA community because it was incredibly disruptive.&#8221;
&#8220;But, you know, we accepted that,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;Daryl knew we accepted that. There was not much we could do about that. But, I think it bothered me that somehow even though we – I felt were holding the line in a way that many companies haven’t been able to in China, meaning there was no discipline of our employee, there was never a suggestion that we weren’t supporting him. In fact, I spoke out in favor of freedom of expression. Somehow, there was a sense from some people that that was the equivalent of kowtowing to the Chinese government. I certainly didn’t see it that way, but people are entitled to their opinion.&#8221;
While the initial statement appeared to apologize to the Chinese government, Silver told reporters shortly thereafter that the NBA would not stand in the way of players and coaches expressing themselves.
“It is inevitable that people around the world &#8212; including from America and China &#8212; will have different viewpoints over different issues,” <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/dennis-rodman-believes-he-can-fix-the-nba-china-situation">Silver said</a>. “It is not the role of the NBA to adjudicate those differences. This is about far more than growing our business … values of equality, respect and freedom of expression have long defined the NBA — and will continue to do so. As an American-based basketball league operating globally, among our greatest contributions are these values of the game.”
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/la-clippers-coach-doc-rivers-morey-right-in-saying-support-hong-kong">LA Clippers Coach Doc Rivers: Morey ‘Right In Saying’ Support Hong Kong</a>

Attendees Arrive For Allen &amp; Co. Media And Technology Conference

NBA Commissioner: ‘We Certainly Didn&#8217;t Apologize To The Chinese Government’

Following strong Tuesday night performances, Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Pete Buttigieg, the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, have come away from the debate stage with even stronger financial viability. 
On Wednesday, Lis Smith, a senior advisor to Pete Buttigieg, announced on Twitter the Buttigieg campaign had raised $1 million in the aftermath of the first debate. The campaign indicated that the donations had come from “tens of thousands of donors.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">We are officially over $1M raised in the past 24 hours from tens of thousands of donors <a href="https://t.co/ceJDEzi8AF">https://t.co/ceJDEzi8AF</a>
— Lis Smith (@Lis_Smith) <a href="https://twitter.com/Lis_Smith/status/1184530421733822471?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 16, 2019</a></blockquote>
Klobuchar also announced on Twitter that she raised $1.1 million in the 24 hours after the debate. The fundraising haul is the largest amount Klobuchar has received in any single day while running for president, and is nearly 20% of the amount she raised in the entire third quarter of 2019.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
WE DID IT! Together we raised $1.1M in the 24 hours since the debate! This couldn&#8217;t have happened without you and your support. Let&#8217;s not stop! Keep the momentum going and donate today! <a href="https://t.co/iVg91M9DTq">https://t.co/iVg91M9DTq</a>
— Amy Klobuchar (@amyklobuchar) <a href="https://twitter.com/amyklobuchar/status/1184665450292154371?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 17, 2019</a></blockquote>
During the debate, Klobuchar attacked Warren for supporting “Medicare For All,” drawing attention to the fact that Warren has yet to explain how she would pay for single-payer health care for everybody. 
“At least Bernie’s being honest here and saying how he’s gonna pay for this, and that taxes are going to go up,” Klobuchar told Warren, as reported by <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/video/us/elections/100000006761445/klobuchar-warren-health-care.html">The New York Times</a>. “We owe it to the American people to tell them where we’re going to send the invoice.”
After Warren deflected from Klobuchar’s criticism, Klobuchar rebutted, proclaiming that “the difference between a plan and a pipe dream is something that you can actually get done.”
A new study released by the <a href="https://www.urban.org/research/publication/incremental-comprehensive-health-reform-how-various-reform-options-compare-coverage-and-costs">Urban Institute</a>, a liberal think tank, showed that a plan similar to “Medicare for All” would increase federal health care spending by around $32.5 trillion dollars over the next decade.
As the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/watch-moderate-2020-democrats-rip-elizabeth-warren-over-medicare-for-all-you-are-making-republican-talking-points">Daily Wire</a> previously reported, Buttigieg attacked Warren for not being honest about how “Medicare for All” would be funded.
“Look, this is why people here in the midwest are so frustrated with Washington in general and Capitol Hill in particular,” Buttigieg told Warren during the debate. “Your signature, senator, is to have a plan for everything — except this. No plan has been laid out to explain how a multi-trillion dollar hole in this ‘Medicare for All’ plan that Senator Warren is putting forward is supposed to get filled in.”
In another startling debate moment, Buttigieg sparred with Beto O’Rourke after the former congressman suggested that Democrats were cowering on the issue of gun confiscation. 
“The problem isn’t the polls, the problem is the policy. And I don’t need lessons from you on courage, political or personal,” Buttigieg told O’Rourke on the debate stage Tuesday, as reported by <a href="https://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2019/10/15/pete-buttigieg-beto-orourke-gun-violence-2020-democratic-presidential-debate-cnn-nyt-vpx.cnn/video/playlists/cnn-new-york-times-democratic-debate/">CNN</a>. “Everyone on this stage is determined to get something done. Everyone on this stage recognizes — or at least I thought we did — the problem is not other Democrats who don’t agree with your particular idea of how to handle this.” 
However, Buttigieg was not moderate on the issue, as he proceeded to place blame on the NRA and “their enablers in congress.”
According to <a href="https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2020/president/us/2020_democratic_presidential_nomination-6730.html">RealClearPolitics</a>, Buttigieg is currently polling in fourth behind Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT). Klobuchar, who has failed to gain as much traction, is polling in eighth behind businessman Andrew Yang.

Amy Klobuchar

Candidates Who Attacked Warren Over &#8216;Medicare For All&#8217; Draw Massive Fundraising Boost

2020 Election

Elizabeth Warren

Health Care

Pete Buttigieg

The Young America&#8217;s Foundation has announced that Daily Wire Editor-in-Chief Ben Shapiro will be <a href="https://www.yaf.org/news/ben-shapiro-to-speak-at-stanford-university-november-7/">speaking at Stanford University on November 7th</a>, and predictably, leftists are apoplectic, taking to social media to denounce the California school for rolling out the welcome mat to &#8220;hate.&#8221;
Far-left cartoonist Eli Valley, whose work often builds on anti-Semitic tropes — and who has targeted Shapiro in the past with drawings reminiscent of those that appeared in the Nazi-era German tabloid, Der Sturmer — labeled Shapiro a &#8220;hatemonger&#8221; and the Stanford College Republicans a &#8220;hate group&#8221; in a recent tweet which, of course, included one of his signature pen-and-inks.
&#8220;Stanford College Republicans—a hate group that in the past year has brought a Holocaust Revisionist and a Jew for Jesus to campus—is now hosting hatemonger <a class="css-4rbku5 css-18t94o4 css-901oao css-16my406 r-1n1174f r-1loqt21 r-1qd0xha r-ad9z0x r-bcqeeo r-qvutc0" dir="ltr" role="link" href="https://twitter.com/benshapiro" data-focusable="true">@benshapiro</a> Flashback to when these Nazi allies called my portrait of Shapiro &#8216;Nazi&#8217;-like,&#8221; Valley tweeted.
<img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-56523" src="https://editorial.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/Valley-277x300.png" alt="" width="277" height="300" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2019/10/Valley-277x300.png 277w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2019/10/Valley-768x830.png 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2019/10/Valley.png 947w" sizes="(max-width: 277px) 100vw, 277px" />
He later added that &#8220;the Hitler Youth Stanford Division is at it again,&#8221; in reference to Shapiro&#8217;s planned speech, essentially likening YAF and Shapiro himself to Nazis (an odd label for the man who repeatedly earns the title as the top target of anti-Semites on social media).
Valley went on to clarify his insult, saying that &#8220;they&#8217;re Hitler Youth bc they hosted a Holocaust Revisionist, plastered student dorms w/images from Der Stürmer, champion the Hero of American Nazism, + now host a man who inspired a teen to become a Nazi + vandalize a synagogue.&#8221;
He then went on to connect everything back to Republicans and Israeli politics, in a Kevin Bacon game-like conspircy theory.
Valley is hardly alone, of course. Perennial Twitter presence Eugene Gu, who is a Stanford alum, took time out of his busy schedule of replying fruitlessly to President Donald Trump&#8217;s tweets to criticize Stanford, calling their willingess to host Shapiro for a lecture &#8220;an absolute disgrace.&#8221;
&#8220;Stanford inviting Ben Shapiro to speak on campus is an absolute disgrace. Ben is a dishonest troll with zero intellectual depth or critical thinking skills. He only knows how to inflame and manipulate the media to cover his antics and gain legitimacy through his bullying lies,&#8221; Gu tweeted.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Stanford inviting Ben Shapiro to speak on campus is an absolute disgrace. Ben is a dishonest troll with zero intellectual depth or critical thinking skills. He only knows how to inflame and manipulate the media to cover his antics and gain legitimacy through his bullying lies.
&mdash; Eugene Gu, MD (@eugenegu) <a href="https://twitter.com/eugenegu/status/1183169292809883648?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 12, 2019</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
This was only hours after Gu targeted Shapiro independently, suggesting that Shapiro should be on a psychiatric hold because of a clip from Shapiro&#8217;s radio program that circulated on social media last week.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
With all the violent gun threats he made, including those against specific individuals and public officers, Ben Shapiro should be under consideration for a 5150 involuntary psychiatric hold and have all his firearms removed from his possession.
&mdash; Eugene Gu, MD (@eugenegu) <a href="https://twitter.com/eugenegu/status/1182788506428461057?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 11, 2019</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Gu&#8217;s Tweet does prove partially useful — it does show why civil rights groups and many conservatives object to so-called &#8220;Red Flag&#8221; laws that allow friends and family members to petition the government to revoke someone&#8217;s Second Amendment privileges.
Not to be outdone, Stanford&#8217;s educational elite also got in on the action. <a href="https://www.yaf.org/news/meltdown-stanford-blue-checks-lose-fragile-grasp-on-reality-ahead-of-shapiro-lecture/">Young America&#8217;s Foundation</a> reports that Stanford professor (and co-founder of the campus&#8217;s &#8220;anti-Fascist&#8221; group, ironically) David Palumbo-Liu is encouraging Stanford students to follow in the footsteps of Boston University students, who circulated a Change.org petition to revoke &#8220;racist hatemonger&#8221; Shapiro&#8217;s invitation to speak.
<img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-56527" src="https://editorial.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/liu-261x300.png" alt="" width="261" height="300" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2019/10/liu-261x300.png 261w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2019/10/liu-768x882.png 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2019/10/liu-892x1024.png 892w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2019/10/liu.png 974w" sizes="(max-width: 261px) 100vw, 261px" />
YAF also notes that Palumbo-Liu is scheduled to speak on a panel about the anti-Semitic Boycott, Divest, and Sanction (or BDS) movement, which is being held on campus (and could certainly be considered controversial in its own right, just perhaps not by the campus&#8217;s leftists).
In fairness to Palumbo-Liu, he does bring up a good point: Stanford has rejected a permanent art installation featuring a quote from Chanel Miller, formerly known as Emily Doe, the victim of a sexual assault that took place on Stanford&#8217;s campus. Her attacker, Brock Turner, famously received only six months in jail for his crimes because the judge felt Turner was a good kid (he ended up serving only three, and his bizarre sentence prompted a California minimum sentencing law, and the first successful judicial recall in California history).
<a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2019-10-04/the-space-where-brock-turner-sexually-assaulted-chanel-miller-is-at-the-center-of-an-ongoing-battle-at-stanford">The LA Times reports Stanford</a> censored the quote because certain Stanford students believed the quote would be too triggering to victims of sexual assault and other forms of violence, even though Miller&#8217;s quote has, the Times reports, changed the way sexual assault is discussed on campus.
Instead of allowing the art installation to serve its purpose — forcing Stanford students to confront an incident that happened on their campus — Stanford would rather silence Miller. Palumbo-Liu, though, doesn&#8217;t seem to see the irony of asking for one controversial statement to be allowed, but another banned.

Ben Shapiro

Leftists Lose It Over Ben Shapiro Speech At Stanford University

Former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama are now Hollywood power players, according to the latest top 100 list from <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lists/thr-100-hollywood-reporters-powerful-people-entertainment-1246527/item/thr-100-2019-dick-wolf-1246575" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-track-label="inline|intext|n/a">The Hollywood Reporter</a>.
Clocking in at number 50 ahead of top names like Jeffrey Katzenberg and James Cameron, THR said that the Obamas are soaring into Hollywood with deals from every corner:
<blockquote>Who wouldn&#8217;t take their call? The former president, 58, and first lady, 55, kicked off 2019 with a Sundance acquisition — doc American Factory, which premiered to strong reviews on Netflix in August en route to an awards-season run. Tonia Davis and Priya Swaminathan, co-heads of Obama banner Higher Ground, are steering projects under the couple&#8217;s deal with the streamer — including adaptations of David W. Blight&#8217;s Frederick Douglass bio and Michael Lewis&#8217; Fifth Risk, and Bloom, a post-World War II-era show about fashion — plus podcasts under a new deal with Spotify.</blockquote>
Earlier this year, the Obamas&#8217; production company, Higher Ground, announced an impressive slate of content for Netflix and Spotify. Netflix Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos hailed their slate as a symbol of their commitment to “diverse creators and unique voices.”
“President Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, and the Higher Ground team are building a company focused on storytelling that exemplifies their core values,” Sarandos said. “The breadth of their initial slate across series, film, documentary, and family programming shows their commitment to diverse creators and unique voices that will resonate with our members around the world.”
In a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/here-are-seven-projects-barack-and-michelle-obama-paul-bois">statement announcing the projects</a> at the time, former President Obama said that Higher Ground is proud to use the power of dramatic narrative to explore social justice issues. “We created Higher Ground to harness the power of storytelling,” he said. “That’s why we couldn’t be more excited about these projects. Touching on issues of race and class, democracy and civil rights, and much more, we believe each of these productions won’t just entertain, but will educate, connect and inspire us all.”
Michelle Obama said the projects will offer something “for everyone” that will likely generate conversations. “We love this slate because it spans so many different interests and experiences, yet it’s all woven together with stories that are relevant to our daily lives,” she said. “We think there’s something here for everyone — moms and dads, curious kids, and anyone simply looking for an engaging, uplifting watch at the end of a busy day. We can’t wait to see these projects come to life — and the conversations they’ll generate.”
In May of 2018, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/28789/netflix-names-former-obama-ambassador-susan-rice-paul-bois">Netflix announced</a> it would be adding to its board of directors former Obama administration United Nations Ambassador Susan Rice.
“We are delighted to welcome Ambassdor Rice to the Netflix board,” said Netflix co-founder and CEO Reed Hastings at the time. “For decades, she has tackled difficult, complex global issues with intelligence, integrity and insight, and we look forward to benefiting from her experience and wisdom.”
Former Ambassador Rice said she was “thrilled” to be joining the “cutting-edge” company. “I am thrilled to be joining the board of directors of Netflix, a cutting-edge company whose leadership, high-quality productions, and unique culture I deeply admire,” she said at the time.

President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama Portraits  &#8211; Washington, DC

Barack And Michelle Obama Make List Of Hollywood’s ‘Most Powerful’ People

Barack Obama

Hollywood

Michelle Obama

Netflix

Free of the chains that come with the pursuit of Chinese profits, the ever-so-fearless &#8220;South Park&#8221; took basketball superstar LeBron James to the woodshed for his denunciation of Houston Rockets General Manager (GM) Daryl Morey&#8217;s support for Hong Kong protesters
According to <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/south-park-episode-mocks-lebron-james-china-comments-1248405">The Hollywood Reporter</a> (THR), Wednesday&#8217;s episode of the hit show centered around the school implementing healthy options on the school lunch menu, prompting anger from character Eric Cartman. Later, when Cartman confronts the students protesting in favor of healthy lunches, the protestors cite free speech as their reasoning. His reply nearly echoed the words spoken by LeBron James on Monday night.
&#8220;Their protesting is ruining my lunch. Yes, we do have freedom of speech, but at times there are ramifications for the negative that can happen when you are not thinking about others and only thinking about yourself,&#8221; Cartman said. &#8220;They’re trying to change peoples’ lunch. They don’t realize it harms people financially, physically, emotionally, spiritually.&#8221;
&#8220;South Park&#8221; has taken a no-nonsense stand against China after the government banned the show from airing in the country in response to an episode criticizing American big business for catering to the Chinese censors to make a quick buck. &#8220;<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/south-park-trolls-china-after-country-bans-the-show-f-the-chinese-government">F*** the Chinese government</a>,&#8221; the show said in response.
Wednesday&#8217;s episode came in response to LeBron James saying that Houston Rockets GM Daryl Morey was uneducated about the situation in Hong Kong, arguing that he should have waited to send out a tweet in support of the protesters.
&#8220;We all talk about this freedom of speech, yes, we all do have freedom of speech but at times there are ramifications for the negative that can happen when you’re not thinking about others and you’re only thinking about yourself,&#8221; James told reporters on Monday. &#8220;I don’t want to get into a … feud with Daryl Morey, but I believe he wasn’t educated on the situation at hand and he spoke. So many people could have been harmed, not only financially, but physically, emotionally, and spiritually.&#8221;
As backlash quickly mounted on social media, James dug himself an even deeper hole when he attempted to clarify his remarks by somehow casting the National Basketball Association as the victim.
&#8220;My team and this league just went through a difficult week. I think people need to understand what a tweet or statement can do to others. And I believe nobody stopped and considered what would happen. Could have waited a week to send it,&#8221; James <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/disaster-lebron-tries-to-explain-china-remarks-digs-deeper-hole">said immediately after on Twitter</a>.
Further sinking himself into a hole, James then said on Tuesday that only politicians should comment on the China situation, even though he has been hyper-political throughout his basketball career.
&#8220;I’d be cheating my teammates by continuing to harp on something that won’t benefit us trying to win a championship because that’s what we’re here for,&#8221; James told reporters on Tuesday. &#8220;We’re not politicians. I think it’s a huge political thing but we are leaders and we can step up at times. But … you don’t feel like you should speak upon things you shouldn’t have to.&#8221;
After the election of President Trump, James referred to Trump voters as &#8220;<a href="https://www.excaliburnews.com/lebron-james-ridiculed-after-calling-trump-supporters-uneducated/">uneducated</a>.&#8221;

Los Angeles Lakers v Brooklyn Nets &#8211; NBA China Games 2019

‘South Park’ Trolls LeBron James Over China Stance

China

Communism

LeBron James

South Park

Some of the brightest stars in the pop culture galaxy want to ride Greta Thunberg’s teen coattails.
The Swedish activist generated media cheers this month for her fight against climate change. She’s not a scientist, nor does she have access to data that other people lack. She’s merely a distraught girl telling us the world will end soon if we don’t drastically change our lifestyles.
Greta’s cry coaxed Jane Fonda to get <a href="https://www.hollywoodintoto.com/jane-fonda-climate-change/">arrested on a regular basis</a> to wake up the world, even if the Oscar winner’s own lifestyle is far from Greta approved.
Now, a gaggle of fellow stars are joining the fray. Only they have a confession to make in the process. Yes, we’re eco-hypocrites, but we have no other choice thanks to our fossil fuel culture.
A new <a href="https://rebellion.earth/2019/10/16/celebrities-backing-extinction-rebellion-say-yes-we-are-all-hypocrites-in-open-letter-to-media/">open letter</a>, signed by such luminaries as Thom Yorke, David Byrne, Jude Law, Mel B of Spice Girls fame, Lena Headey (“Game of Thrones”) and Benedict Cumberbatch, insist we shouldn’t judge them on their actions.
Led by the group Extinction Rebellion, the stars want to weaponize their collective clout to counter climate change. And, thanks mostly to new media outlets (like conservative news sites, Twitter, and Facebook), they know they’re viewed by many as pure, unadulterated hypocrites.
Busted.
The mainstream press doesn’t call them that, of course. A few British papers do, now and then, but most stateside reporters are loathe to admit it to their readers. Instead, they regurgitate celebrity talking points without skepticism, even when stars like Fonda suggest we’ll have to coerce any government unwilling to take the climate change pledge.
In short, these stars don’t want their inconvenient lifestyle choices to be held against them.
“We live high carbon lives and the industries that we are part of have huge carbon footprints. Like you – and everyone else – we are stuck in this fossil-fuel economy and without systemic change, our lifestyles will keep on causing climate and ecological harm.”
If the world is truly on fire, as they claim, shouldn’t they skip their next tour or movie project to do their fair share? Couldn’t “Avengers” star Mark Ruffalo commit to a cyber-press tour rather than jetting across the globe? Did anyone fear “Avengers: Endgame” wouldn’t make a gazillion dollars, with or without a killer Ruffalo quote?
Haven’t they all made enough money, to paraphrase a former Commander in Chief?
The signatories won’t let criticism or labels stop them. “The stories that you write calling us climate hypocrites will not silence us,” they warn.
They’re also imploring the media to do more to back their efforts, as if reporters need any more urging to do just that.
But will it force these eco-warriors to change their lifestyles? It’s doubtful if it hasn’t happened yet. How many of those aforementioned celebrities live in the lap of proverbial luxury? How many travel hither and yon on private planes, sometimes just to scratch that <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2981991/I-fly-coast-cheeseburger-Harrison-Ford-s-passion-flying-seen-amass-huge-collection-vintage-modern-aircraft.html">cheeseburger itch</a>? Just how large are their carbon footprints, anyway?
Leonardo DiCaprio, the most vocal star on the climate change issue, knows most reporters won’t scold him for his private planes or yacht adventures. They didn’t after he made a <a href="https://variety.com/2016/film/news/leonardo-dicaprio-oscar-speech-climate-change-1201717970/">climate change plea</a> following his Best Actor win for 2015’s “The Revenant.”
What these stars really want is carte blanche to keep on wagging their fingers at us sans complaint. Things are different now, though. Stories stifled by the American press have a way of wriggling free, no matter how many social media platforms crush dissent. And, in the wake of Lebron James’ catastrophically tone deaf defense of China’s dictatorial ways, we’re even less eager to be lectured by our celebrity betters.
No open letter will change that.

Emma Thomson climate change.

Guilty Celebrities: Ignore Our Massive Carbon Footprints … Please

Climate Change

Global Warming

Greta Thunberg

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg gave a defiant speech on Thursday in which he highlighted the importance of free speech in response to critics&#8217; demands for heightened content auditing amid the 2020 presidential election cycle.
&#8220;I&#8217;ve focused on building services to do two things: give people voice and bring people together,&#8221; Zuckerberg said while addressing a crowd at Georgetown University. &#8220;These two simple ideas — voice and inclusion — go hand in hand.&#8221;
&#8220;We&#8217;ve seen this throughout history, even if it doesn&#8217;t feel that way today. More people being able to share their perspectives has always been necessary to build a more inclusive society,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;And our mutual commitment to each other — that we hold each others&#8217; right to express our views and be heard above our own desire to always get the outcomes we want — is how we make progress together.&#8221;
Zuckerberg&#8217;s remarks come as the tech executive has been facing blowback for how it handles falsehoods published on the social network. Facebook announced in late-September that the site would refrain from fact-checking or moderating politicians&#8217; speech.
Democrats have been especially vocal in their opposition to the approach; they have taken particular issue with Facebook&#8217;s decision not to censor an ad from President Donald Trump&#8217;s re-election campaign that accused former Vice President Joe Biden of using foreign aid as a bargaining chip to force the removal of a Ukrainian prosecutor who was investigating a company of which his son was a board member.
&#8220;People having the power to express themselves at scale is a new kind of force in the world — a Fifth Estate alongside the other power structures in our society,&#8221; Zuckerberg said. &#8220;People no longer have to rely on traditional gatekeepers in politics or media to make their voices heard, and that has important consequences.&#8221;
&#8220;I understand the concerns that people have about how tech platforms have centralized power, but I actually believe the much bigger story is how much these platforms have decentralized power by putting it directly into people&#8217;s hands,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;It&#8217;s part of this amazing expansion of voice that we&#8217;ve experienced through law, culture and now technology as well.&#8221;
Zuckerberg noted that individuals are increasingly falling subject to the &#8220;dangerous&#8221; belief that accomplishing their own idealized political outcome is more important than allowing their fellow Americans to have their own voice.
Highlighting examples throughout history that illustrates both how the escalation in voices accelerates unification and the censorship of voices hinders progress, Zuckerberg invoked Frederick Douglass and Martin Luther King Jr., as well as events such as the American founding and Civil Rights movement, the worldwide spread of democracy, and the Vietnam War protests.
&#8220;So, giving people a voice and broader inclusion go hand in hand, and the trend has been towards greater voice over time,&#8221; the Facebook CEO said. &#8220;But there&#8217;s also a counter-trend, which is that in times of social turmoil, our impulse is often to pull back on free expression because we want the progress that comes from free expression, but we don&#8217;t want the tension.&#8221;
Set off by recent events such as the 2008 financial crisis, the boost in globalization, and even worldwide migration, Zuckerberg argued that Americans are again facing a social tension heightening impulses to pull back on free expression.
&#8220;In the face of these tensions, once again a popular impulse is to pull back from free expression. We&#8217;re at another cross-roads,&#8221; he said. &#8220;We can continue to stand for free expression, understanding its messiness, but believing that the long journey towards greater progress requires confronting ideas that challenge us or we can decide the cost is simply too great. I’m here today because I believe we must continue to stand for free expression.&#8221;
He further expressed his pride in representing a company which values the American tradition of free expression, but noted that free speech is also not absolute, especially when that freedom infringes on another individual&#8217;s rights. He also examined some of the difficulties in determining what should constitute acceptable speech on the social media platform.
&#8220;The future depends on all of us. Whether you like Facebook or not, we need to recognize what is at stake and come together to stand for free expression at this critical moment,&#8221; Zuckerberg said. &#8220;I believe in giving people a voice because, at the end of the day, I believe in people.&#8221;
&#8220;And as long as enough of us keep fighting for this, I believe that more people&#8217;s voices will eventually help us work through these issues together and write a new chapter in our history — where from all of our individual voices and perspectives, we can bring the world closer together,&#8221; he added.

Mark Zuckerberg Talks Free Expression At Georgetown University

Mark Zuckerberg Defends Free Speech Amid Political Blowback: &#8216;I Believe In People&#8217;

Constitution

Facebook

Mark Zuckerberg

In a new undercover sting video released on Thursday by James O&#8217;Keefe&#8217;s Project Veritas, a production supervisor at CNN suggested that he wants President Donald Trump to die &#8220;hopefully soon.&#8221;
The remarks were included in a nearly 16-minute long video in Project Veritas&#8217; third installment of its undercover sting video series on CNN, which the group has dubbed &#8220;Expose CNN.&#8221;
Highlights from the video include [emphasis added]:
Gerald Sisnette, Field Production Supervisor at CNN:
<ul>
<li>“This is a story that’s not gonna go away … The only way this will go away is when he [Trump] dies. Hopefully soon.”</li>
</ul>
Patrick Davis, Manager of Field Operations at CNN:
<ul>
<li>“… I hate seeing what we were and what we could be and what we’ve become. It’s just awful … I mean, we could be so much better than what we are … And the buck stops with him [Zucker].”</li>
<li>“I haven’t listened to a 9AM call in about 15 years. I just stopped. Just, I can’t listen to it. It’s all bulls**t. It’s all just a bunch of bulls**t. And I wish that wasn’t the case.”</li>
<li>“And you learn it in journalism school, we’re supposed to be middle of the road, that’s our job. Now it’s just infotainment is all it’s become.”</li>
<li>“We don&#8217;t, even though we&#8217;re totally left-leaning, we&#8217;re not, we don&#8217;t wanna admit it.”</li>
</ul>
Scott Garber, Senior Field Engineer at CNN:
<ul>
<li>“We used to cover news. We used to go out and do stories … But Trump is more important.”</li>
</ul>
Adia Jacobs, CNN Technical Operations Supervisor:
<ul>
<li>“When Zucker took over it wasn’t until Trump that we ended up being all Trump all the time.”</li>
</ul>
Mike Brevna, Floor Manager at CNN:
<ul>
<li>“It’s the Trump Network, dog. It’s like everything is all Trump … they[&#8216;re] not even thinking about anybody else. They sold themselves to the devil.”</li>
</ul>
Christian Sierra, CNN Media Coordinator:
<ul>
<li>“… [C]onflict is what sells, nobody wants to hear one-minute canned statements … Because conflict drives clicks … create clicks, get more money.”</li>
<li>“It&#8217;s always about the money.”</li>
</ul>
WATCH:
<iframe title="PART 3: CNN Field Manager: Zucker’s 9am Calls ‘BS;’ “...Totally Left-Leaning…Don&#039;t Want to Admit it”" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/qbQwAQ0tDTQ?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>
The third installment of &#8220;Expose CNN&#8221; comes after the the first round of leaked videos hit the news on Monday, where CNN President Jeff Zucker <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/project-veritas-video-cnn-head-appears-to-admit-network-pushing-impeachment-has-personal-vendetta-against-trump-employee-says">told</a> employees that he wanted everything to be about the “moves towards impeachment.”
In the video, Zucker also said that he wanted his employees to &#8220;knock off&#8221; their friendliness toward Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC).
In the video, Neville said that Zucker “has a personal vendetta against Trump” and that he “blatantly hates Trump” and that it impacts CNN’s news coverage of the president.
Neville added: “But then you have higher up executives, like Zucker and other people, who are saying, ‘Well, we gotta make profits.’ So, you end up with things like — I don’t know if you heard this, but this week they had like a f***ing game show to, like, decide what dates they’re, it’s gonna be this debate.”
Sierra said that after Trump won, “the mood was just so sour the whole day” at CNN&#8217;s offices.
“Cooper hates him &#8230; Don Lemon hates him,” Sierra continued. “Cuomo doesn’t like him” and Jake Tapper “doesn’t like him either.”
Sierra later said that the network does not cover Democrats and Republicans the same way during interviews.
“We’re tough on the Republicans,” Sierra said. “More so than the Democrats. Our Democratic interviews are like softballs, compared to the Republicans … if you notice like every time, we ask questions to Republicans, like it’s always a little tougher than when we do get the Democrats.”

Trump Twitter CNN

WATCH: CNN Employee Appears To Say He Wants Trump To Die &#8216;Hopefully Soon&#8217;

Project Veritas

As LeBron James refuses to &#8220;shut up and dribble&#8221; over the NBA&#8217;s China controversy, Los Angeles Clippers coach Doc Rivers said that Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey was &#8220;right in saying&#8221; that Americans should support the Hong Kong protesters.
&#8220;I don’t know. I didn’t pay much attention to it other than what [Daryl Morey] said. And he was right in saying that. But there’s consequences to every action. I’ve been saying that as well &#8230; It’s a tough issue, clearly,&#8221; Rivers said, as reported by Jovan Buha of The Athletic.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Doc Rivers on the NBA’s situation with China: “I don’t know. I didn’t pay much attention to it other than what (Daryl Morey) said. And he was right in saying that. But there’s consequences to every action. I’ve been saying that as well. &#8230; It’s a tough issue clearly.”
&mdash; Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) <a href="https://twitter.com/jovanbuha/status/1184259288857923585?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 16, 2019</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Contrast Rivers&#8217; statement with that of LeBron James on Monday night, when the superstar said that Morey was uneducated about the situation in Hong Kong and should have waited before tweeting support for the protesters.
&#8220;We all talk about this freedom of speech, yes, we all do have freedom of speech but at times there are ramifications for the negative that can happen when you’re not thinking about others and you’re only thinking about yourself,&#8221; James told reporters on Monday. &#8220;I don’t want to get into a … feud with Daryl Morey, but I believe he wasn’t educated on the situation at hand and he spoke. So many people could have been harmed, not only financially, but physically, emotionally, and spiritually.&#8221;
The controversy only deepened for James when reports surfaced on Thursday that he had pressured NBA commissioner Adam Silver to punish Morey for supporting the Hong Kong protesters.
&#8220;Nearly a week ago today, in a Shanghai hotel room, or Shanghai hotel ballroom, Adam Silver got up and addressed the players, and LeBron James is one of the players who got up and spoke and said, &#8216;Hey, what are we doing here? Daryl Morey made these statements,'&#8221; Dave McMenamin of ESPN said, as reported by <a href="https://theathletic.com/1281993/2019/10/14/charania-inside-what-went-on-among-nets-and-lakers-players-on-the-ground-in-china-amid-the-nba-china-conflict/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://theathletic.com/1281993/2019/10/14/charania-inside-what-went-on-among-nets-and-lakers-players-on-the-ground-in-china-amid-the-nba-china-conflict/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1571419475326000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEL9P1gMhZVfNJQQZ7Km97v1x9ZEg">The Athletic</a>. &#8220;You know damn well if a player made the same statements and caused such poor ramifications for the league, there would be some sort of league recourse.&#8221;
&#8220;There would be repercussions the player has to pay,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;You know, potentially this tweet could cost the NBA hundreds of millions of dollars. That could come out of the players’ pockets, and so that’s the double standard that was being addressed in that meeting.&#8221;
Other members of the NBA have expressed support for Daryl Morey while taking tacit swipes at James for throwing Morey under the bus. Enes Kanter of the Boston Celtics, for instance, said that professional athletes should speak out about these important issues, citing his own fight against the Turkish government.
&#8220;Professional athletes have an enormous opportunity to be a source of inspiration for the younger generation, lead by example, and prove to them that as long as you stand up for what you believe in, everything is possible,&#8221; he <a href="https://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2019/10/10/enes-kanter-will-not-silenced-over-turkey/J8RsHZo2qlu7zzOw6OcYSJ/story.html">wrote in an op-ed for the Boston Globe</a>. &#8220;I am looking forward to giving my best to the Boston Celtics and enjoying this new chapter of my NBA career with people in this great city who have welcomed me warmly.&#8221;
&#8220;I have a prominent platform and I want to use it to promote respect for human rights, democracy and personal freedom,&#8221; Kanter continued. &#8220;For me, this is bigger than basketball. Being a champion of tens of thousands of voiceless people back in my home country carries a risk that includes death threats and arrest warrants.&#8221;

Los Angeles Clippers Media Day

LA Clippers Coach Doc Rivers: Morey &#8216;Right In Saying&#8217; Support Hong Kong

On Wednesday night, Fox News&#8217; Tucker Carlson, citing published accounts, suggested the real reason Megyn Kelly was canned from her job at NBC last year was because she called for an outside investigation into the network over internal claims of sexual misconduct and the suspect handling of allegations into Democrat mega-donor Harvey Weinstein. 
&#8220;Last September, early September, you (Kelly) on your show, on the air on NBC, called for an independent investigation into these allegations,&#8221; Carlson said to Kelly, who appeared alongside the host on &#8220;Tucker Carlson Tonight.&#8221;
Carlson ran a clip of Kelly doing just that on September 2, 2018. &#8220;There is a question about whether or not there should be an outside investigator to take a hard look at this,&#8221; Kelly said, referring to allegations of sexual misconduct aimed at former “Today” host Matt Lauer and apparent stonewalling on Weinstein reporting of then-NBC journalist Ronan Farrow. “To me, as a lawyer, it&#8217;s just always better to just send it outside, and then people can have more faith in it and if there&#8217;s nothing to hide, you have no worries about it,” Kelly added. 
&#8220;People&#8217;s jaws hung open when you said that,&#8221; Carlson told Kelly. &#8220;There have been a couple of published accounts that say you were fired from NBC, a little more than a month later, for saying that.&#8221;
Kelly was ostensibly canned from NBC in October for discussing whether it’s “racist” or not for people to darken their faces for Halloween costumes. 
Carlson then pointed out that MSNBC host Chris Hayes similarly questioned NBC&#8217;s handling of such allegations and reporting. 
&#8220;He (Hayes) is saying essentially what you said, which is he doesn&#8217;t trust the management at NBC News,&#8221; Carlson said to Kelly. &#8220;Given your experience, do you think he&#8217;s in jeopardy of being fired?”
&#8220;No comment on that,&#8221; Kelly tellingly responded. “I will say, the question is open as to whether [NBC] put dollars ahead of decency.” 
“There needs to be an outside investigation into this company,” she continued. “They investigated themselves, that doesn&#8217;t work. Fox News had an outside investigator, CBS News had an outside investigator, NPR, the NFL, this is how it’s done. You get somebody on the outside who can be trusted.” 
As outlined by Tiana Lowe earlier this week, it’s become increasingly clear that Kelly was likely fired for questioning NBC management, rather than the “blackface” comments, in light of reporting from Farrow&#8217;s new book &#8220;Catch and Kill.&#8221;
“Ronan Farrow&#8217;s explosive reporting on the lengths NBC went to shut down his investigation into Harvey Weinstein grants further credence to an unpalatable, sexist, and abhorrent rationale for Kelly&#8217;s firing: NBC wanted to silence Kelly&#8217;s coverage of their former anchor, Matt Lauer,” Lowe posted at <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/nbc-probably-fired-megyn-kelly-for-her-matt-lauer-coverage">The Washington Examiner</a>. 
“In the weeks before the blackface nothingburger, Kelly spent ample amounts of time on her talk show reporting on the numerous sexual assault and harassment allegations plaguing Lauer. Unlike many of her fellow daytime hosts, Kelly had covered the #MeToo beat in scrupulous and, at times, necessarily unsavory detail: conducting explosive interviews with multiple Weinstein victims, and when the Lauer story broke and his termination from NBC came shortly thereafter, Kelly covered it with the same righteous indignation,” she continued. “On live television, Kelly called on her own employers to allow an external team to investigate the network&#8217;s handling of the entire Lauer affair, and she went so far as to interview one of Lauer&#8217;s accuser on air.”
“It&#8217;s a massive gamble to criticize the ethics of your own employer on national television, but Kelly rightly made that bet. And NBC fired her for it,&#8221; Lowe claimed. &#8220;We can be more confident thanks to new reporting by Farrow.&#8221;
WATCH:
<iframe title="Megyn Kelly joins Tucker Carlson in first interview since leaving NBC" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BSCiT6OeL2A?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Megyn Kelly

Tucker Carlson Floats Real Reason Megyn Kelly Was Canned From NBC: Called For Independent Investigation

Harvey Weinstein

Matt Lauer

Ronan Farrow

Tucker Carlson

<div>
Russian President Vladimir Putin has used the Syrian Civil War to strengthen his strategic position against NATO and expand Russian influence in the Middle East.
Why is Russia Involved in the Syrian Conflict?
Since taking office, Vladimir Putin has been intent on restoring Russia as a great world power.
Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the Russian military radically shrank and decayed. A strong navy is essential to project power and protect commerce but, despite 23 million miles of coastline, Russia does not have a single warm water port. Ports that are not frozen year-round are very shallow. In order for a Russian ship to access a world ocean, it must go through a chokepoint controlled by either a NATO member country or Japan, a close ally of the United States.
Putin has prioritized rebuilding the armed forces and <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/1356788000662?journalCode=tstc20#_i4" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/1356788000662?journalCode%3Dtstc20%23_i4&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1571413841640000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHkWX4yQlDDZ0qE8UQxx_q8gARJQA">restoring</a> the Russian navy’s ocean-going capability in order to deter NATO, which he views as the greatest threat to Russia.
The Kremlin’s military strategy is designed to break out of “perceived NATO encirclement,” <a href="https://www.defensenews.com/naval/2015/10/06/us-russia-building-arc-of-steel-from-arctic-to-med/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.defensenews.com/naval/2015/10/06/us-russia-building-arc-of-steel-from-arctic-to-med/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1571413841640000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEvmaf9ato1RTP6xN3yYmV1AHODRA">according</a> to Adm. Mark Ferguson, commander of the U.S. Naval Forces Europe and the Allied Joint Force Command in Naples, by creating an “arc of steel from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean.” In <a href="https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/2013/december/russian-navy-rebalances-mediterranean" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/2013/december/russian-navy-rebalances-mediterranean&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1571413841640000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGy8X8ILTtYdhkU31jtSUCowetvOg">2013</a>, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu similarly stated the “Mediterranean region was the core of all essential dangers to Russia’s national interests” and established a naval department task force in the region on a “permanent basis.”
Tartus
During the Cold War, advanced ships from both the United States and Soviet Union were <a href="https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/2013/december/russian-navy-rebalances-mediterranean" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/2013/december/russian-navy-rebalances-mediterranean&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1571413841640000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGy8X8ILTtYdhkU31jtSUCowetvOg">present</a> in the Mediterranean Sea. More recently, American ships have been focused in the Persian Gulf and Western Pacific.
Russia’s only naval base outside the former Soviet Union is in Tartus, Syria. After the Soviet collapse, it was only used occasionally by Russian ships, but the Kremlin expressed renewed interest in the facility in <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/oct/08/syria.russia" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/oct/08/syria.russia&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1571413841640000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGp1pPoaYKG_By5IRaBoVsLH4OBIQ">2005</a>. Tartus is used for maintenance and is capable of holding 11 warships at a time, including nuclear submarines. In 2017, Syria and Russia signed a new lease for 49 years, with plans for <a href="https://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/how-russia-turning-syria-major-naval-base-nuclear-warships-19813" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/how-russia-turning-syria-major-naval-base-nuclear-warships-19813&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1571413841641000&amp;usg=AFQjCNG5F5GWbWVrYyupsXG2FlxxEpz_qg">expansion</a>.
Without Tartus, all Russian ships must sail through the Bosporus Strait, which is controlled by NATO member Turkey.
Putin began providing weapons to Assad to “fight terrorism” in 2011. However, the anti-ship cruise missiles and advanced air-defense systems the Kremlin <a href="https://www.criticalthreats.org/analysis/the-new-cold-war-in-the-mediterranean" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.criticalthreats.org/analysis/the-new-cold-war-in-the-mediterranean&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1571413841641000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHX4sHEqDhcMJmRYVIaCZEfLZmRgg">provided</a> were not to fight ISIS — a group with no ships or planes. “These systems are aimed at denying NATO the ability to operate freely in the Eastern Mediterranean, as well as helping to crush all opposition to Assad,” Frederick Kagan and John Miller <a href="https://www.criticalthreats.org/analysis/the-new-cold-war-in-the-mediterranean" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.criticalthreats.org/analysis/the-new-cold-war-in-the-mediterranean&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1571413841641000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHX4sHEqDhcMJmRYVIaCZEfLZmRgg">wrote</a>. “Russian submarines can threaten both seaborne and land targets and if they range the entire Mediterranean, no NATO capitol is safe,” Kagan and Miller continued.
The Kremlin has benefitted from the Syria conflict in a number of ways. Putin has used this regional instability to establish working relationships with Iran, Turkey, Israel, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan; in every case, backing the status quo, as Leonoid Bershidsky <a href="https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/10/08/putins-russia-is-a-middle-eastern-country-a67624" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/10/08/putins-russia-is-a-middle-eastern-country-a67624&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1571413841641000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEyaCEjEof3gn0W7B_1L2YQfb7zpQ">points out</a>. “Such a record endears Middle Eastern leaders to Putin: They can be reasonably certain he won’t pull a fast one on them. With the U.S., they can’t be so sure, since Washington has backed or directly performed several regime changes in the region,” Bershidksy <a href="https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/10/08/putins-russia-is-a-middle-eastern-country-a67624" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/10/08/putins-russia-is-a-middle-eastern-country-a67624&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1571413841641000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEyaCEjEof3gn0W7B_1L2YQfb7zpQ">writes</a>.
Continued U.S. presence in Syria will not alter Russia’s strategic position in the Eastern Mediterranean. However, it is worth nothing that as U.S. credibility has decreased in the region, Russian credibility has actually increased.
&nbsp;
</div>
<div>
Morgan Wirthlin is Chief of Staff at the Center for Security Policy, located in Washington, D.C.
</div>

Russian President Vladimir Putin visits Nizhny Novgorod

WIRTHLIN: Russia&#8217;s Strategic Gain In Syria

Foreign Policy

Middle East

Russia

Syria

Vladimir Putin

On Wednesday’s episode of “The Michael Knowles Show,” Knowles talks about the moment at the recent Democratic Party presidential primary debate when Pete Buttigieg destroys Beto O’Rourke for his stance on guns. Video and partial transcript below:
Beto O&#8217;Rourke [is] trying to play into that left lane. Beto’s campaign is falling apart, [and] there is pretty much no reason he should be at this debate anymore. And so he&#8217;s he&#8217;s been trying to signal that he&#8217;s as left as they come over the past few months. This is after a career where he played himself off mostly as a moderate in Congress — and so he obviously doesn&#8217;t believe in anything — but he felt leftism was going to bring him all the way. It looks like that&#8217;s not going to work. 
So one last try, he&#8217;s going to say that we&#8217;re going to undermine the Second Amendment. He&#8217;s going to take away all your guns, going to go door-to-door, take them all away. 
<blockquote>COOPER: How exactly are you going to force people to give up their weapons? You don&#8217;t even know who has those weapons. 
O’ROURKE: Look, we&#8217;re gonna make sure that the priority is saving the lives of our fellow Americans. I think almost everyone on this stage agrees that it&#8217;s not right, and as president, would seek to ban the sale of AR-15s and AK-47s. Those are weapons of war. They were designed to kill people effectively [and] efficiently on a battlefield. 
COOPER: To be clear, exactly how are you going to take away weapons from people who do not want to give them up and you don&#8217;t know where they are? 
O’ROURKE: If someone does not turn in an AR-15 or an AK-47 — one of these weapons of war — or brings [it] out in public and brandishes it in an attempt to intimidate, as we saw when we were at Kent State recently, then that weapon will be taken from them. If they persist, there will be other consequences from law enforcement. </blockquote>
Other consequences, so we&#8217;re going for it. I&#8217;m Beto! Hell yeah, we&#8217;re going to take your AR-15! We&#8217;re going door to door. We&#8217;re gonna get the cops to come and steal all your guns and completely undermine the Constitution. 
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One thing that really bothers me — his was probably the highlight of the night, in terms of Orwellian language — every aspect of this gun debate is dishonest. So there&#8217;s no such thing as a mandatory buyback. The government didn&#8217;t sell you your gun in the first place, so it&#8217;s not going to buy it back from you. I guess you could try to buy guns from people if you&#8217;re the government, but if it&#8217;s a mandatory buyback, then you ain&#8217;t buying it. It&#8217;s not like it&#8217;s a free exchange where money is changing hands. It&#8217;s the government confiscating your weapons. Mandatory buyback, it’s absolutely outrageous.
Same thing with weapons of war. All weapons are weapons of war &#8230; all of firearm technology advances because of war, because of armed conflict. That is the impetus for improving firearm technology, that&#8217;s been true since the dawn of time and will remain true in the future. 
And then the other one is assault weapon. All weapons are assault weapons. All weapons are assault weapons, they are designed to assault you. If a weapon is not designed to assault you, it&#8217;s not a weapon. Like this leftist tears tumbler is not a weapon because it&#8217;s not meant to assault you — it&#8217;s meant to receive the leftist tears after you have been assaulted by facts and logic. So that language just goes on and on throughout the entire debate. Beto is running on it, it&#8217;s not going anywhere, he probably won&#8217;t even be at the next debate.
Pete Buttigieg, however, sees Bernie&#8217;s going far, hard left, Beto’s going hard left, [and] Liz Warren doesn&#8217;t know exactly where she wants to be. So Buttigieg sees an opening. At the early part of this primary, he was doing pretty well. He was getting some press because he was the reasonable one. He was at least pretending to be a Christian, he was at least pretending to be moderate. He was at least pretending to be a good ol&#8217; boy from the Midwest. And so Buttigieg takes on Beto O&#8217;Rourke head-on, and pretty much wipes the floor with him on the question of guns. 
<blockquote>O’ROURKE: Let&#8217;s follow their inspiration and lead, and not be limited by the polls and the consultants and the focus groups &#8230; we have time to do what&#8217;s right there. 
BUTTIGIEG: The problem isn’t the polls, the problem is the policy. And I don&#8217;t need lessons from you on courage, political or personal. Everyone on this stage is determined to get something done. Everyone on this stage recognizes — or at least I thought we did — the problem is not other Democrats who don&#8217;t agree with your particular idea of how to handle this. The problem is the National Rifle Association, and their enablers in Congress, and we should be united in taking the fight to them. </blockquote>
Poor Beto, you can see it in his eyes. He just thinks, oh man, I totally walked into that. He&#8217;s saying we need the courage to steal people&#8217;s guns and undermine the Constitution, and there&#8217;s Pete Buttigieg, who comes in — he&#8217;s one of two people on that stage who&#8217;s ever served in the military — saying I don&#8217;t need lessons from you about courage. Totally wipes the floor with him.
<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-michael-knowles-show/id1266577963?mt=2">Listen to full episodes of “The Michael Knowles Show” on iTunes. </a>
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/show/the-michael-knowles-show">Watch “The Michael Knowles Show” on-demand! </a>

Beto O&#8217;Rourke

KNOWLES: Beto O’Rourke Placed His Faith In Leftism And Lost

Democratic Party

Guns

Leftism

Progressivism

Religion

Left-leaning members of the media definitely don&#8217;t want anyone asking Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) whether her plan to provide Medicare benefits for all Americans (as well as her plan to forgive student loans, expand social welfare programs, and tackle climate change) might result in a middle class tax hike.
Following her middling debate performance, journalists who (apparently) prefer Warren were concerned that she was being distracted and, ultimately, derailed by questions probing whether her ambitious platform is in any way realistic. The questions are fair; Warren has promised a lot and there&#8217;s no guarantee a single tax hike on &#8220;Wall Street bankers&#8221; will provide the kind of revenue a &#8220;Medicare for All&#8221; plan would require in perpetuity.
CNN&#8217;s debate moderators wanted to know, quite simply, what would happen when Warren ran out of banker money. But that was clearly a bridge too far for Warren&#8217;s friends in the media.
Margaret Sullivan of the Washington Post was, seemingly, the first to call out CNN over its obsession with how Warren plans to finance her platform, suggesting in her debate wrap up for the mainstream media publication that questions about a possible middle class tax hike were &#8220;doing President Trump’s work for him,&#8221; because &#8220;it’s legitimate to dig into the costs, but not in a way that creates a nice GOP campaign ad.&#8221;
It&#8217;s not technically the media&#8217;s job to keep a candidate from harming themselves, of course.
The questions, Sullivan adds, &#8220;miss[] the larger lens of overall costs.&#8221;
Warren&#8217;s bigger problem was, of course, that Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), who is also proposing a &#8220;Medicare for All&#8221; plan, was right next to her on the debate stage, and openly admitted to the moderators that a middle class tax hike would likely be needed to pay for such an extreme expansion in social welfare. Sanders, however, claims that a slight hike in taxes would be preferable, overall, to having an expensive private health plan for most Americans.
Sullivan was hardly the last to claim that the legitimate query was a &#8220;gotcha&#8221; question for a Democrat.
NYU journalism professor Jay Rosen, who has, himself, questioned (rightly) how Republicans plan to pay for major programs, was also quick to call questions directed at Warren about possible middle class tax hikes unfair. He even went further, suggesting that journalists who ask such questions expose their own lack of credibility.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
The &quot;make Elizabeth warren say she would raise taxes on the middle class&quot; question should be a credibility killer. For the journalists who keep asking it.
&mdash; Jay Rosen (@jayrosen_nyu) <a href="https://twitter.com/jayrosen_nyu/status/1184468405732159488?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 16, 2019</a></blockquote>
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And then there&#8217;s the Huffington Post&#8217;s Lydia Polgreen, who has some helpful messaging advice for Warren.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
“Will you raise middle class taxes” is a lazy, gotcha question based on untested premises. A fairer question would be to ask candidates to explain how they’d convince voters of the tax tradeoff’s benefits. <a href="https://t.co/BLqtVXpJZ9">https://t.co/BLqtVXpJZ9</a>
&mdash; Lydia Polgreen (@lpolgreen) <a href="https://twitter.com/lpolgreen/status/1184477831096651776?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 16, 2019</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The linked story explains how Democrats must change the way they answer the &#8220;middle class tax hike&#8221; question. Rather than avoiding the idea that they&#8217;ll raise taxes, or lying about possible tax increases, on the theory that most Americans are opposed to paying more for government services through a system that takes their money by force, Democrats should embrace the idea of Americans paying more overall and argue the benefits of such a &#8220;just&#8221; system.
That might not be the wildly popular idea that progressives in the media think it is.

Media Begs: Please Don&#8217;t Ask Elizabeth Warren About Middle Class Tax Hikes

Media Bias

On Wednesday’s episode of “The Andrew Klavan Show,” Klavan talks about Joe Biden’s weird debate answer about raising the capital gains tax. Video and partial transcript below: 
So the MSM narrative about this debate is “Biden&#8217;s Falling, Warren’s Rising.” So everybody turned on Warren, and everybody was mean to Warren. It&#8217;s her turn in the barrel, and the media judges are kind of trying to decide: Warren is the best, but who else is good? They&#8217;re saying maybe Joe Biden won, or maybe Amy Klobuchar [won] &#8230;
But I have a completely different take on what happened. I thought the whole thing was just embarrassing. Maybe I&#8217;m so against socialist ideas — maybe life is so prejudiced against socialist ideas — that I can&#8217;t see [how] people are going to fall for this &#8230; These people just look like they are sinking into the floor. Let me just show you this clip of Joe Biden&#8217;s tax plan as he talks about why he&#8217;s going to raise taxes on the rich.
<blockquote>BIDEN: What I&#8217;ve talked about is how you get things done. And the way to get things done is, take a look at the tax code right now. The idea [is that] we have to start rewarding work, not just wealth. I would eliminate the capital gains tax — I would raise the capital gains tax to the highest rate of 39.5%. I would double it because, guess what? Why in God&#8217;s name should someone who&#8217;s clipping coupons in the stock market make, in fact, pay a lower tax rate than someone who in fact, is, like I said, a schoolteacher and a firefighter? It&#8217;s ridiculous, and they pay a lower tax. </blockquote>
Huh? What the [expletive] did he just say? I mean, that&#8217;s their candidate? That&#8217;s their tied-for-the-leading-guy candidate? It’s absurd. He&#8217;s fixing his dentures all the time, it&#8217;s incredible. The guy makes no sense. 
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Basically, he says — I think what he said — was he wanted to double the capital gains tax. Remember, the capital gains tax is a double tax. This is money that you already made and already get taxed, and then you take that money and you invest it in somebody else&#8217;s business. What does that do? It creates jobs, it creates wealth, it creates new businesses. It does all that stuff. And so if it works — you risk your money — [and] if it works, you get a profit. And then they tax you again, they already tax[ed] that money. There shouldn&#8217;t be any capital gains tax. It&#8217;s ridiculous.
Whenever they tell you that corporations don&#8217;t get taxed, everybody in the corporation gets taxed, and then they get taxed again for capital gains. 
How does that help the economy? So what are you going to do? They&#8217;re going to tax your investments. You don&#8217;t have to do that, go out and buy a boat. And then he says, well, look at him, he&#8217;s got a yacht, he&#8217;s not contributing anything to society. Well, you would be contributing to society if they hadn&#8217;t taken your money away. So you&#8217;re going to protect it. You&#8217;re going to take it away from them, take it away from these things — the work that it is doing for the country — and use it for yourself so you won&#8217;t get taxed on it. It&#8217;s just dumb, it is absolutely dumb.
<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-andrew-klavan-show/id1045171376?mt=2">Listen to full episodes of “The Andrew Klavan Show” on iTunes</a>
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/show/the-andrew-klavan-show">Watch “The Andrew Klavan Show” on-demand!</a>

Joe Biden

KLAVAN: Joe Biden Stumbles Through His Nonsense Tax Plan

Taxes

An embarrassing video supposedly supporting Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s (D-MA) Native American heritage has been scrubbed from the presidential hopeful’s Twitter page. 
A year ago Tuesday, Warren posted <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/elizabeth-warren-releases-results-dna-test-just-james-barrett">results</a> of a DNA test that she took in an attempt to shake the damaging “Fauxcahontas” branding routinely echoed by President Donald Trump for her apparently fraudulent claims to having Native American heritage. For decades, Warren clung to her claims to Native American heritage, citing high cheekbones and family recipes and stories passed down over generations.
The DNA test showed that the senator is as little as 1/1,024th Native American, which is less Native American than the average European-American, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/backfire-2nd-correction-made-elizabeth-warren-dna-ryan-saavedra">according</a> to a comprehensive study. In other words, the DNA test proved her critics correct, so much so that Warren had to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/01/us/politics/elizabeth-warren-cherokee-dna.html">apologize</a> to the Cherokee Nation for calling herself Native American.
The <a href="https://gop.com/happy-anniversary-fauxcahontas">GOP</a> celebrated the anniversary of Warren’s self-own with a blog post calling the Democrat a “fraud,” as highlighted by <a href="https://freebeacon.com/politics/elizabeth-warren-scrubs-dna-test-video-from-twitter/">The Washington Free Beacon</a>. 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Happy Anniversary, Fauxcahontas! 
A year ago today, in a spectacular failure to placate the criticism that she lied about her heritage, Elizabeth Warren took a DNA test and we learned this gem: She was 1/1024th Native American. <a href="https://t.co/3wb4Fquvsj">https://t.co/3wb4Fquvsj</a>
&mdash; Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) <a href="https://twitter.com/SteveGuest/status/1184173527307554822?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 15, 2019</a></blockquote>
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Within the blog post, the GOP embedded a video-tweet from Warren bragging about her alleged Native American ancestry that was supposedly supported by her DNA test. 
“My family (including Fox News-watchers) sat together and talked about what they think of [Donald Trump]’s attacks on our heritage. And yes, a famous geneticist analyzed my DNA and concluded that it contains Native American ancestry,” the Democrat captioned the video via Twitter. 
But by Wednesday, Warren had <a href="https://twitter.com/ewarren/status/1051783184390664192?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">deleted</a> the tweet. 
The Free Beacon obtained the video before the candidate had it deleted (view below). 
In the five-minute video, Warren shows clips of Trump and other Republicans mocking her as the “fake Pocahontas” and “Fauxcahontas” while her family members vouch for her Native American claims. This is before she brags about taking a DNA test and calls a professor of genetics to confirm her Native American ancestry. “The facts suggest you absolutely have a Native American ancestor in your pedigree,” the professor tells a pleased Warren over the phone. 
But while being as little as 1/1,024th Native American cut it for Warren, it didn’t quite do so with the general public. Warren quickly moved into damage control mode for posting the video. 
The GOP <a href="https://gop.com/happy-anniversary-fauxcahontas">blog post</a> highlighted the senator’s past year spent covering her tracks “following her disastrous DNA fiasco”:
<ul>
<li>The Cherokee Nation responded to her DNA test saying it was “<a href="https://nam03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.foxnews.com%2Fpolitics%2Fcherokee-nation-responds-to-senator-warren-says-dna-test-useless-to-determine-tribal-citizenship&amp;data=02%7C01%7CAAkers%40gop.com%7Cc7b30d3638e64d42213d08d7519c31d3%7C4a082c81950a410d9618462a9c74d6ae%7C1%7C0%7C637067603629050158&amp;sdata=fjW6V3wrLOihqzCxXTzsaTx8vMp6hUefT9IZVn89qAU%3D&amp;reserved=0">useless</a> to determine tribal citizenship.”</li>
<li>She attempt <a href="https://nam03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/elizabeth-warren-apologizes-for-calling-herself-native-american/2019/02/05/1627df76-2962-11e9-984d-9b8fba003e81_story.html?utm_term=.7cc1eead7604&amp;data=02%7C01%7CAAkers@gop.com%7Cc7b30d3638e64d42213d08d7519c31d3%7C4a082c81950a410d9618462a9c74d6ae%7C1%7C0%7C637067603629050158&amp;sdata=VLe5svY7sf8Mt2cerhpUmrdHA0hiZ7cJvd2w2UuxOBs=&amp;reserved=0">apologize</a> for the “<a href="https://nam03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wsj.com%2Farticles%2Felizabeth-warren-again-apologizes-after-release-of-native-american-ancestry-link-11566241904&amp;data=02%7C01%7CAAkers%40gop.com%7Cc7b30d3638e64d42213d08d7519c31d3%7C4a082c81950a410d9618462a9c74d6ae%7C1%7C0%7C637067603629060154&amp;sdata=5sEPBici0%2Fb%2Bct6vRme83r6F7bsZMc9eRUEoq4qVMsY%3D&amp;reserved=0">harm</a>” she caused by lying about her heritage.</li>
<li>Contrary to what <a href="https://nam03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.politico.com%2Fblogs%2Fburns-haberman%2F2012%2F05%2Ffordham-piece-called-warren-harvard-laws-first-woman-of-color-123526&amp;data=02%7C01%7CAAkers%40gop.com%7Cc7b30d3638e64d42213d08d7519c31d3%7C4a082c81950a410d9618462a9c74d6ae%7C1%7C0%7C637067603629060154&amp;sdata=ZsxDb0NngEIYU75U6od6SqK1uTisWQj%2BKnqGPBmKeGU%3D&amp;reserved=0">Harvard Law</a> said, Warren <a href="https://nam03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.foxnews.com%2Fpolitics%2Felizabeth-warren-admits-shes-not-a-person-of-color-during-commencement-speech-departs-from-native-american-heritage-claim&amp;data=02%7C01%7CAAkers%40gop.com%7Cc7b30d3638e64d42213d08d7519c31d3%7C4a082c81950a410d9618462a9c74d6ae%7C1%7C0%7C637067603629070149&amp;sdata=PiRJlUJRU106BLvTww9bRgtQLAihsZdwI3GSVd2AJYA%3D&amp;reserved=0">admitted</a> she wasn’t a “person of color.</li>
<li>She <a href="https://nam03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Ffacts.elizabethwarren.com%2Fheritage%2F&amp;data=02%7C01%7CAAkers%40gop.com%7Cc7b30d3638e64d42213d08d7519c31d3%7C4a082c81950a410d9618462a9c74d6ae%7C1%7C0%7C637067603629080144&amp;sdata=myo%2FFSXsrx7kkFncSdTFikge%2B9fcdb4oUxcyl%2FlWn4M%3D&amp;reserved=0">deleted</a> the “fact squad” section on her “Heritage” from her campaign website.</li>
</ul>
“Bottom line,” the post concluded, “Elizabeth Warren lying about her heritage in order to claim minority status at a critical point in her career is emblematic of the larger problem with her and her candidacy: She is a <a href="https://nam03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cnbc.com%2F2019%2F09%2F17%2Felizabeth-warren-accepted-lobbyist-money-when-running-for-senate.html%3F__source%3Dsharebar%257Ctwitter%26par%3Dsharebar&amp;data=02%7C01%7CAAkers%40gop.com%7Cc7b30d3638e64d42213d08d7519c31d3%7C4a082c81950a410d9618462a9c74d6ae%7C1%7C0%7C637067603629080144&amp;sdata=EC%2B4URqgNBt5Z1Zf3UFAl%2FckdsExNFmLohKVFMvQRp8%3D&amp;reserved=0">fraud</a> <a href="https://nam03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fnypost.com%2F2019%2F10%2F14%2Felizabeth-warren-has-a-history-of-collecting-cash-from-billionaires%2F&amp;data=02%7C01%7CAAkers%40gop.com%7Cc7b30d3638e64d42213d08d7519c31d3%7C4a082c81950a410d9618462a9c74d6ae%7C1%7C0%7C637067603629090140&amp;sdata=vH2OFYyZzPrODu0zUV%2BV1SFBcFk8GIhaBgxG1EyablI%3D&amp;reserved=0">through</a> <a href="https://nam03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Ftwitter.com%2Fpeterwallsten%2Fstatus%2F1150821492348862464%3Fs%3D20&amp;data=02%7C01%7CAAkers%40gop.com%7Cc7b30d3638e64d42213d08d7519c31d3%7C4a082c81950a410d9618462a9c74d6ae%7C1%7C0%7C637067603629090140&amp;sdata=NBVvqJWoCJOhY9EFHwlwnSXnFyOS8up7fF%2B%2BTwvHKTo%3D&amp;reserved=0">and</a> <a href="https://nam03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2019%2F09%2F09%2Fus%2Fpolitics%2Felizabeth-warren-2020.html%3Femc%3Drss%26partner%3Drss&amp;data=02%7C01%7CAAkers%40gop.com%7Cc7b30d3638e64d42213d08d7519c31d3%7C4a082c81950a410d9618462a9c74d6ae%7C1%7C0%7C637067603629100140&amp;sdata=hV0jtHSBfs7bW5vr%2FoBXcB%2BcPlLREHi6jZo9iIFqpp0%3D&amp;reserved=0">through</a>.&#8221;
As reported by The New York Times last year, Cherokee Nation spokeswoman Julie Hubbard confirmed Warren had a “brief and private” phone call apology with the principal chief of the Cherokee Nation Bill John Baker. 
“I understand that she apologized for causing confusion on tribal sovereignty and tribal citizenship and the harm that has resulted,” said Hubbard. “The chief and secretary of state appreciate that she has reaffirmed that she is not a Cherokee Nation citizen or a citizen of any tribal nation.”
As noted by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/elizabeth-warren-apologizes-cherokee-nation-taking-kassy-dillon">The Daily Wire</a>, Warren’s DNA sparked outrage from the Cherokee Nation. “Using a DNA test to lay claim to any connection to the Cherokee Nation or any tribal nation, even vaguely, is inappropriate and wrong,” Cherokee Nation Secretary of State Chuck Hoskin Jr. said in a statement. “It makes a mockery out of DNA tests and its legitimate uses while also dishonoring legitimate tribal governments and their citizens, whose ancestors are well documented and whose heritage is proven.”
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
WATCH: Warren&#39;s DNA Test/Native American Heritage Video
Her campaign has tried to scrub the video from the internet. <a href="https://t.co/xCah6oLSLT">https://t.co/xCah6oLSLT</a> <a href="https://t.co/GeOXpHzbig">pic.twitter.com/GeOXpHzbig</a>
&mdash; Free Beacon (@FreeBeacon) <a href="https://twitter.com/FreeBeacon/status/1184522942585167872?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 16, 2019</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Sen. Elizabeth Warren

Here&#8217;s The Embarrassing DNA Test Video Warren Scrubbed From Twitter

Native Americans

The warrant for the arrest of Fort Worth officer Aaron Dean for the killing of Atatiana Jefferson, 28, in her home provides details from the account of her 8-year-old nephew, who witnessed the fatal shooting. According to the boy, his aunt was holding a handgun and pointed it at the window after she heard noises outside from the officers inspecting her home in response to a call from a concerned neighbor early Saturday morning.
Police have underscored that it &#8220;makes sense&#8221; that Jefferson would use her gun if she felt she was being threatened by someone in her own home. The lawyer representing the Jefferson family has also noted that she legally owned the gun.
As reported by <a href="https://www.dallasnews.com/news/crime/2019/10/15/atatiana-jefferson-pointed-gun-out-window-before-fort-worth-officer-killed-her-nephew-told-authorities/?fbclid=IwAR1Lx73SOk32HweII9ruwrS8na_hP0iohR7Ilh/">The Dallas Morning News</a>, the boy told authorities that he was in the room with Jefferson when she was shot and killed by Dean, one of the two officers who responded to a neighbor&#8217;s call expressing concern about Jefferson&#8217;s front door being left open and lights on so late at night.
The boy was playing video games with his aunt when she heard noises outside her home, he said. She took a handgun from her purse and pointed it &#8220;toward the window,&#8221; the boy told forensic investigators. That&#8217;s when Dean yelled, “Put your hands up! Show me your hands!” then fired a single shot, killing Jefferson.
&#8220;Interim Police Chief Ed Kraus said at a news conference Tuesday that it &#8216;makes sense that she would have a gun if she felt that she was being threatened or there was someone in the backyard,'&#8221; Dallas Morning News reports.
“It’s only appropriate that Ms. Jefferson would have a gun,” said Lee Merritt, the lawyer representing Jefferson&#8217;s family, noting that she had a license to carry the legally owned firearm. &#8220;When you think there’s someone prowling around in the back at 2 in the morning, you may need to arm yourself. That person could have a gun.”
Merritt stressed that Jefferson legally owned the firearm and was licensed to carry it.
After turning in his badge earlier in the day, Dean was arrested on Monday on murder charges. Shortly afterward, the Fort Worth Police Department issued a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/update-fort-worth-officer-arrested-after-shooting-woman-in-her-house">press release</a> providing some details about the case.
“At approximately 6 p.m., Aaron Dean was arrested for the murder of Ms. Jefferson and he has since been booked in Tarrant County Jail,” the release reads. “Our department is working closely with the Tarrant County District Attorney’s office. Our Major Case and Internal Affairs Units are continuing to work around the clock to ensure that no stone is left unturned and justice for Ms. Jefferson’s family and community are served.”
The shooting has sparked outrage from the community, some of the leaders of which suggesting that it may have been racially motivated since the officer is white and Jefferson is black.
Amid the outcry over the shooting, the department released <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/body-cam-video-fort-worth-officer-shoots-woman-in-her-home-after-non-emergency-call">body cam footage</a> on Saturday showing the officers scanning the perimeter of her home using flashlights. After checking a door and some windows, Dean shouts, “Put your hands up! Show me your hands!” He then fired through a bedroom window. The footage ends with two still shots of a handgun in the bedroom, presumably the one Jefferson was holding in self-defense when she was shot.
The video footage does not show the officer announcing that he is with law enforcement, and the neighbor who called the non-emergency police number says the officers parked around the block so their vehicle likely was not visible from inside the house.
Video below (warning: graphic content):
<iframe title="RAW: Fort Worth police release body cam after officers shoot woman in her home" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xpcV0ODTy0Y?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

The badge of a Fort Worth Police officer

UPDATE: Woman Shot By Fort Worth Police Officer In Her Home Pointed Gun At Window

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