In Provocative Move, China Places Advanced Surface to Air Missiles on Disputed Island During Middle of Obama’s Asian Conference

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By Lucas Tomlinson and Yonat Friling. The Chinese military has deployed an advanced surface-to-air missile system to one of its contested islands in the South China Sea according to civilian satellite imagery exclusively obtained by Fox News, more evidence that China is increasingly “militarizing” its islands in the South China Sea and ramping up tensions in the region.

The imagery from ImageSat International (ISI) shows two batteries of eight surface-to-air missile launchers as well as a radar system on Woody Island, part of the Paracel Island chain in the South China Sea.

It is the same island chain where a U.S. Navy destroyer sailed close to another contested island a few weeks ago. China at the time vowed “consequences” for the action . . .

The missiles arrived over the past week. According to the images, a beach on the island was empty on Feb. 3, but the missiles were visible by Feb. 14.

A U.S. official confirmed the accuracy of the photos. The official said the imagery viewed appears to show the HQ-9 air defense system, which closely resembles Russia’s S-300 missile system. The HQ-9 has a range of 125 miles, which would pose a threat to any airplanes, civilians or military, flying close by. (Read more from “In Provocative Move, China Places Advanced Surface to Air Missiles on Artificial Island During Middle of Obama’s Asian Conference” HERE)

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China Has Raised the Stakes in South China Sea With Surface-To-Air Missile Batteries

By Dean Cheng. The U.S. government has reported that China has deployed several batteries of surface-to-air missiles (HQ-9) to Woody Island, Paracels, in the South China Sea. This is a significant military move, and it makes clear that China is prepared to employ military forces to support its expansive claims to the South China Sea.

The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has previously deployed some of its advanced fighters (J-11 fighters, the domestic version of the Su-27) to Woody island but did not apparently make this permanent. This surface-to-air missiles deployment appears to be for the longer term.

The HQ-9 is the Chinese equivalent of the Russian S-300/SA-10 SAM, a very advanced, very capable system comparable to the American Patriot SAM. Its deployment creates a 125-mile danger zone around the Paracels and marks a major increase in the scale and capabilities of forces deployed to the region.

While the Paracels are not the Spratlys (where China has built a number of artificial islands), they are part of the larger dispute underway about the future of the South China Sea.

Seized from South Vietnam in 1974, the Paracels remain a source of contention between China and Vietnam, which has not acceded to the Chinese seizure. In 1988, China sank three Vietnamese ships in nearby waters, to underscore its commitment to retaining those islands.

The Chinese have laid claim to a vast area of the South China Sea encompassed by what is known as the “Nine Dash Line” (recently revised to 10 dashes). The area includes not only the Paracels and Spratlys, but also Macclesfield Bank and Mischief Reef, as well as the Pratas island group (currently held by Taiwan). To administer these dispersed territories, the Chinese promoted the city of Sansha, on Woody Island, in 2012 to a prefecture level and vested it with authority over all of these islands. The Chinese have also sought to treat the region, which includes vital shipping lanes over which $5.3 trillion’s worth of trade transits, as virtually their territorial waters.

Chinese vessels have repeatedly sought to enforce these expansive claims. In 2009, for example, Chinese forces interfered with the operations of the USNS Impeccable and several other ships. Earlier this year, the USS Curtis Wilbur, in a recent freedom of navigation operation, sailed near Woody Island to underscore the American commitment to freedom of the seas. (For more from the author of “China Has Raised the Stakes in South China Sea With Surface-To-Air Missile Batteries” please click HERE)

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U.S. Failed 3 Times to Deport Illegal Alien Who Murdered Woman

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The Department of Homeland Security Inspector General has reluctantly agreed to “investigate” how the agency could possibly fail to deport an illegal immigrant with a serious criminal record at least three times, allowing him to murder a young woman in Connecticut. Pressure from the state’s congressional delegation landed the probe on the busy watchdog’s lengthy list of “ongoing projects” so interested parties shouldn’t hold their breath for answers.

Before delving into the details of this gruesome case, it’s important to mention that Connecticut has long protected illegal immigrants with sanctuary policies and even offers them special drivers’ licenses, known as Drive Only. The state also gives illegal aliens discounted tuition at public colleges and universities and authorities work hard to restrict the feds from deporting illegal immigrants. In fact, despite President Obama’s amnesty and open-borders policies, Connecticut is always a step ahead when it comes to protecting illegal immigrants and granting them rights. Undoubtedly, this attracts a large population of undocumented aliens like the murderer in this case.

Nevertheless, DHS has a duty to remove dangerous foreigners who pose a threat regardless of local policies shielding the perpetrators. In this case the outrageous negligence on the part of federal immigration authorities permitted a Haitian national (Jean Jacques) to brutally stab a woman in her apartment, leaving her body inside a closet. The heinous crime occurred last summer and sketchy information of how the government repeatedly dropped the ball has slowly been uncovered by local media outlets that, not surprisingly, have encountered strong resistance in obtaining substantial details. This led Connecticut’s two U.S. Senators and a congressman—all Democrats—to hound the DHS IG into investigating the matter. The watchdog recently added the case to its long docket, perhaps to appease the incensed lawmakers, media and local citizens.

Here’s what we already know from local media reports in Norwich, the city of about 40,000 residents where the murder occurred; the DHS agency responsible for deporting illegal immigrants, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), failed to remove Jacques at least three times dating back to 2002. As if this weren’t atrocious enough, Jacques spent 17 years in prison for attempted murder before authorities released him—instead of deporting him—in January of 2015, the Norwich Bulletin reports. Six months later the 41-year-old illegal alien convict stabbed 25-year-old Casey Chadwick to death. Police said Chadwick died of sharp forced injuries to the head and neck. Jacques is being held on a $1 million bond. (Read more from “U.S. Failed 3 Times to Deport Illegal Alien Who Murdered Woman” HERE)

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Time to Fight Back: Anchorage Businesses Forced to Allow Transgender Bathroom Use

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Under the ordinance the Anchorage Assembly passed recently regarding sexual orientation and gender identity, here’s what an employer or operator of a place of public accommodation is lawfully allowed to do –

“Maintain and enforce gender-segregated restrooms, locker rooms or dressing rooms, provided that persons are allowed to use such facilities consistent with their gender identity and nothing in this chapter shall be deemed to require the provision of special facilities to accommodate any person(s) based upon sexual orientation or gender identity.”

Many communities and States are taking proactive measures to protect women and girls. The South Dakota legislature just passed a common sense bill and they are now awaiting the Governor’s signature.

Residents of Anchorage. Residents of Alaska. It’s time to start up a conversation.

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Decision Looms for Army Sergeant Who Protected Afghan Boy From Child Rapist

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Photo Credit: Fox News A decorated Army sergeant who protected an Afghan boy from a child molester could find out any day whether his actions will end his career in the military.

Sgt. First Class Charles Martland, a Green Beret with an 11-year Special Forces career, was stationed in Afghanistan in 2011 when the boy’s mother came to him and said she’d been beaten and her son raped by a local police commander. Martland and another soldier summoned the police official and, when the man laughed at them, threw him off the base. Martland and Daniel Quinn were both disciplined for their actions.

Last year, amid military cuts, the Army Human Resources Command recommended Martland be discharged in part based on his disciplinary record, but an official decision by U.S. Army brass is expected by March 1.

“Charles did the right thing in Afghanistan by standing up to a child rapist and corrupt commander, and now it’s the Army’s turn to do the right thing and reverse the decision to expel him from the service,” said Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., whose office has been assisting Martland. “Permitting Charles to continue serving is in the best interest of the Army and the nation.”

Supporters mounted an online petition backing Martland and separately, 93 members of Congress have called for an investigation into the military’s silence in the face of rampant sexual abuse of children in Afghanistan. (Read more from “Decision Looms for Army Sergeant Who Protected Afghan Boy” HERE)

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Bush Campaign Ridicules Story That It’s out of Cash

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By Jonathan Swan. Jeb Bush campaign officials and a top fundraiser are pushing back aggressively against a story by conservative talk show host Erick Erickson in which he claims that the Bush campaign will stop paying staff on Saturday due to lack of funds.

Citing “sources close to the Bush campaign,” Erickson wrote that there was a phone call on Wednesday night in which the news leaked out that the Bush campaign was out of cash.

After Erickson’s story reverberated through the political world on Thursday morning, Bush campaign spokesman Tim Miller tweeted:

Al Cardenas, a longtime Bush insider and senior fundraiser, told The Hill — with his tongue firmly planted in cheek — that he was amazed that “Erick has better information than I do.”

“I am traveling on Saturday to Nevada to help oversee that effort, and we have staff waiting for me,” Cardenas said in a telephone interview. “And nobody’s been notified about this information. (Read more from “Bush Campaign Ridicules Story That It’s out of Cash” HERE)

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Supporters to Jeb: The Donald’s in Your Head

By David Catanese. Jeb Bush supporters think their presidential candidate has been thrown off his optimistic tone by the rancorous bullying of Donald Trump.

And they’re telling him that to his face.

During a midday campaign stop at a country club here Wednesday, Bush was confronted at least three times by seemingly benevolent backers who critiqued his message and offered candid advice about how to right the course.

“I’m afraid that your message doesn’t resonate to the national community,” said Edward Scott, a Maryland resident who was traveling in the Palmetto State for work and supports Bush. (Read more from “Supporters to Jeb: The Donald’s in Your Head” HERE)

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Watch: Antonin Scalia’s Son Just Revealed What He Thinks Caused His Father’s Death

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By Randy DeSoto. The oldest son of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia believes his father died of natural causes.

“Our family just has no doubt that he was taken from us by natural causes,” Eugene Scalia, 52, said on the Laura Ingraham radio show on Wednesday. “We accept that. We’re praying for him. We ask others to accept that and pray for him.”

Scalia, who is an attorney, understands why people would have a hard time wrapping their minds around his father’s sudden passing.

Scalia is one of nine children the late justice had with his wife of fifty-five years, Maureen. “Everybody loses their dad at some point,” the oldest son observed. “And I feel blessed that it’s not just the family who feels that he was great, but that there are millions of people who feel that and so many, like you, who are honoring it.”

Eugene told Laura Ingraham that his mother is a strong woman who is holding up well. “I don’t know that the Lord could design a better support network,” he said. That includes “a built-in priest,” the justice’s son, Paul.

Justice Scalia, who was a devout Catholic, joked during an interview that Eugene and his other sons were relieved when Paul decided to “take one for the team” and become a priest. (Read more from “Antonin Scalia’s Son Just Revealed What He Thinks Caused His Father’s Death” HERE)

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Scalia’s Son Calls the Conspiracy Theories About His Dad’s Death a ‘Hurtful Distraction’

By Allan Smith. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia’s eldest son is slamming the wild conspiracy theories about his father’s death on Saturday at the age of 79.

“It’s, I think, a distraction from a great man and his legacy at a time when there’s so much to be said about that and to help people even more fully appreciate that,” Eugene Scalia said on Laura Ingraham’s radio show Wednesday. “And, on a personal level, I think it’s a bit of a hurtful distraction for a family that’s mourning.”

He added that his father “would have been the first to tell you … that we’re from dust, we return to dust, your life could be taken from you at any instant.”

“He lived this incredibly full and active life,” he continued. “But I knew, and he knew, that he was at a place in life where he could be taken from this world at any time.” (Read more from “Scalia’s Son Calls the Conspiracy Theories About His Dad’s Death a ‘Hurtful Distraction'” HERE)

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Recent National Poll Reveals Major Turn Around in GOP Race

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By Mark Murray. Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump has fallen behind Ted Cruz in the national GOP horserace, according to a brand-new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll.

In the poll, Cruz is the first choice of 28 percent of Republican primary voters, while Trump gets 26 percent. They’re followed by Marco Rubio at 17 percent, John Kasich at 11 percent, Ben Carson at 10 percent and Jeb Bush at 4 percent.

The results from the poll — conducted after Trump’s victory in New Hampshire and Saturday’s GOP debate in South Carolina — are a significant reversal from last month, when Trump held a 13-point lead over Cruz, 33 percent to 20 percent.

Republican pollster Bill McInturff, who conducted this survey with Democratic pollster Peter Hart and his firm Hart Research Associates, says Trump’s drop could signal being “right on top of a shift in the campaign.” (Read more from “Recent National Poll Reveals Major Turn Around in GOP Race” HERE)

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New Polls Disagree on Who’s Leading GOP Presidential Race

By CBS New York. Two new polls on Wednesday night painted very different pictures of the Republican side of the presidential race.

The Wall Street Journal reported that U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) is now beating New York real estate mogul Donald Trump 28 to 26 percent nationally. It marks the first time Trump has been knocked from first place in any national poll.

U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Florida) came in third in the poll with 17 percent, Ohio Gov. John Kasich with 11 percent, retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson with 10 percent, and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush with 4 percent.

But a Quinnipiac Poll showed Trump with a 20 point lead and Cruz in third place behind Rubio.

In that poll, Trump had 39 percent, Rubio 19 percent, Cruz 18 percent, Kasich 6 percent, and Bush and Carson each 4 percent. (Read more from “New Polls Disagree on Who’s Leading GOP Presidential Race” HERE)

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Gun-Rights Battle Heats up in GOP Primary

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The gun-rights debate has returned to the forefront of the Republican presidential battle as the candidates charge into Saturday’s South Carolina primary, going to great lengths to prove their steadfast support of the Second Amendment.

Donald Trump and Ted Cruz are locked in a nasty fight over the issue, as Cruz effectively argues the billionaire businessman would, if elected, abolish gun rights.

“If Donald Trump becomes president, the Second Amendment will be written out of the Constitution, because it is abundantly clear that Donald Trump is not a conservative,” Cruz told ABC News on Sunday, the morning after a GOP debate in Greenville . . .

“Cruz does lie,” Trump said Wednesday at a South Carolina rally, after earlier declaring, “I’m the strongest person on the stage for the Second Amendment.” He also said Wednesday that he and his sons are “proud” National Rifle Association members.

Jeb Bush, meanwhile, drew considerable attention this week for tweeting a picture of a personalized gun with his name etched into it. Next to the photo was a single word: “America.” (Read more from “Gun-Rights Battle Heats up in GOP Primary” HERE)

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7 Second Video Summing up 2016 Election Is Going SUPER Viral

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The 2016 race for the White House has seen its ups and down – downs coming mainly from whatever comes out of Hillary Clinton’s and Bernie Sanders’ mouths – but it has also been very entertaining.

Here’s a funny mashup of some candidates making, um, awkward noises…

Clinton barking like a dog was great. Maybe she’s telling everyone that she needs to be kept outside the White House and not let in! (Read more from “7 Second Video Summing up 2016 Election Is Going SUPER Viral” HERE)

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Rubio Supported Amnesty as Far Back as 1998

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By Alex Pfeiffer. While serving as a city commissioner in West Miami, Marco Rubio voted in favor of a city resolution urging the federal government to give Honduran illegal immigrants permanent resident status and free them from risk of deportation, according to documents obtained by The Daily Caller.

The 1998 city resolution, #98-16, is titled “Resolution of the City of West Miami urging the federal government and Immigration and Naturalization Service to accord same status to Hondurans as has been afforded to Nicaraguans.”
In the year prior, the “Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act” was enacted into law. This allowed for Nicaraguan, Cuban, Salvadorian, Guatemalan and former Soviet bloc migrants who had applied for asylum to receive permanent resident status and a stay of removal.

In the minutes and agenda for the city commission meeting, adjustment for status of Peruvian immigrants is also mentioned. However, the passed resolution only pertains to Hondurans. (Read more from “Rubio Supported Amnesty as Far Back as 1998” HERE)

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Gov. Nikki Haley Endorses Marco Rubio in South Carolina

By Jacqueline Alemany. South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley endorsed Marco Rubio on Wednesday, giving the Florida Senator a highly coveted endorsement just three days before the state heads to the polls.

“I wanted somebody with fight. I wanted somebody with passion. I wanted somebody that had conviction to do the right thing. But I wanted somebody humble enough that remember that you work for all the people,” she said. “I wanted somebody who was going to go and show my parents that the best decision they ever made for their children was coming to America. We say that every day is a great day in South Carolina–ladies and gentlemen, if we elect Marco Rubio every day will be a great day in America.”

Rubio followed Haley’s speech with praise, saying she “embodies for me everything that I want the Republican Party and the conservative movement to be about, everything it is about.”

The endorsement, which was unveiled at a joint campaign event in Chapin, S.C., adds to Rubio’s support among the state’s Republican establishment: he had previously picked up the backing of South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott and Rep. Trey Gowdy. (Read more from “Gov. Nikki Haley Endorses Marco Rubio in South Carolina” HERE)

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