Congressman Drops Bombshell About Lisa Page Testimony

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By The Daily Wire. Congressional leaders have praised the testimony of former FBI agent Lisa Page in recent days and have said that they found her testimony to be very credible as some of them claim she gave a very different account of events than her former lover, disgraced FBI agent Peter Strzok.

Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-TX) told Fox News’ Maria Bartiromo that there were “significant differences” in Page’s testimony compared to the testimony given by Strzok and that she gave congressional investigators new information they did not previously have.

“In many cases, she admits that the text messages mean exactly what they say, as opposed to Agent Strzok, who thinks that we’ve all misinterpreted his own words on any text message that might be negative,” Ratcliff told reporters on Monday, according to ABC News.

Rep. Steve King (R-IA) agreed with Ratcliffe’s statement, saying, “She’s certainly more cooperative than Peter Strzok was and the pieces of information filled in some blanks along the way, but we’ve got a huge jigsaw puzzle to put together.” . . .

[Louie] Gohmert then took a shot at former CIA Director John Brennan and former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, saying, “When I hear Brennan or Clapper either saying the kind of things they’ve been saying recently, then it tells me, wow, we must be getting close to them. Those guilty dogs are barking pretty loud.” (Read more from “Congressman Drops Bombshell About Lisa Page Testimony” HERE)

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Former FBI Lawyer Lisa Page Said Anti-Trump Texts With Peter Strzok ‘Mean Exactly What They Say’

By Townhall. Yesterday was day two of testimony from former FBI lawyer Lisa Page, who was also the mistress of disgraced FBI Agent Peter Strzok. The two sent tens of thousands of texts, anti-Trump in nature during some of the most politically sensitive investigations the FBI has undertaken in recent memory: the Clinton email probe and the counterintelligence investigation into whether the Trump campaign colluded with the Russians. Strzok was a key player in both investigations. Throughout 2016, the two sent texts that have raised eyebrows and questioned the credibility of the FBI’s impartiality. From “we’ll stop it” and an “insurance policy,” both referring to the Trump presidency, GOP lawmakers want to know what Strzok meant. The insurance policy is allegedly the Trump dossier, which was a campaign opposition research file compiled by former MI6 spy Christopher Steele, who was hired by Fusion GPS during the 2016 election; Fusion was hired by the Clinton campaign to find dirt on Trump. That document was allegedly used to secure a FISA warrant to spy on Trump’s former foreign policy adviser Carter Page.

Strzok’s testimony last week before Congress was a rodeo fraught with drama, as Democrats kept interrupting, some GOP members bringing up Strzok’s extramarital affair with Page, and other acts of insanity. Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN) said he would have given Strzok a Purple Heart. Strzok was combative, said his anti-Trump texts were an expression of “deep patriotism,” and that his “we’ll stop it” text was made in reference to Trump’s remarks about Gold Star parent Khizr Khan. It was ridiculous. Strzok’s main point was that his biased texts weren’t evidence of bias.

For Page, there were no fireworks. No explosive moments that we know of since it was behind closed doors. Yet, House Republicans found her testimony credible and respected her willingness to get to the truth. Her testimony on Friday did, however, raise concerns with Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) concerning whether the FBI was driving towards a desired outcomeon the Russia investigation. Now, Page reportedly told House members that those anti-Trump texts meant exactly what they mean, according to Rep. John Ratcliff (R-TX). (Read more from “Former FBI Lawyer Lisa Page Said Anti-Trump Texts With Peter Strzok ‘Mean Exactly What They Say'” HERE)

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U.S. Officials Go to Entirely New Level to Achieve Peace, Reportedly Open to Talks With Taliban

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The United States is open to holding direct talks with the Taliban to encourage negotiations between the militant group and the Afghan government to end 17 years of war, U.S. officials said Monday.

That marks a tactical shift by the Trump administration, which has previously only appeared willing to participate in discussions with the Taliban if those talks also involve the Afghan government. The U.S. officials said that Afghan-to-Afghan negotiation remains the goal of any engagement with the militants.

The officials were not authorized to speak to media and requested anonymity.

The Taliban have long refused direct talks with the Afghan government, demanding instead to negotiate with Washington. The militants have persisted in that stance despite Afghan President Ashraf Ghani’s unilateral extension of a holiday cease-fire last month in hopes of encouraging the militants to come to the bargaining table. With the Taliban continuing to mount deadly attacks, Ghani ordered government forces to resume military operations this month.

The unprecedented, three-day cease-fire by both sides had offered a rare glimpse of peace for Afghans during which militants fraternized with security force members.

A Taliban official in the small Gulf Arab nation of Qatar told The Associated Press on Monday that no American official or intermediary has been in touch with them to start direct talks, and it had only heard of it in the media. The administration’s willingness to hold direct talks with the Taliban was first reported by The New York Times on Sunday.

The Taliban official, who also spoke on condition of anonymity because he was authorized to speak to journalists, said, “We wait for them to officially inform us.” But he added that if the U.S. is interested in talks, it should take steps to get Taliban leaders off a sanctions blacklist and support the formal opening of the Taliban office in Qatar where its political representatives reside. The official reiterated the Taliban’s call for the withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan.

Asked if the U.S. was willing to hold direct talks with the Taliban, the State Department said Monday, the United States “is exploring all avenues to advance a peace process in close consultation with the Afghan government.”

The department added that “any negotiations over the political future of Afghanistan will be between the Taliban and the Afghan government.”

Last August, President Donald Trump launched an Afghanistan strategy that centered on boosting the capabilities of Afghan security forces and aiming — with help from Pakistan and other interested nations — to compel the militants to negotiate. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited Afghanistan last week to reinforce its support for talks.

“The United States will support, facilitate, and participate in these peace discussions, but peace must be decided by the Afghans and settled among them. We expect that these peace talks will include a discussion of the role of international actors and forces,” Pompeo said after meeting Ghani in Kabul on July 9.

The U.S. invaded Afghanistan following the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, and ousted the Taliban government that had hosted al-Qaida. It has about 15,000 troops in Afghanistan, mostly for training government forces.

The conflict appears stalemated, with insurgents controlling or contesting more than 40 percent of the country. The U.N. mission in Afghanistan said Sunday that 1,692 civilians were killed in violence in the first six months of this year, the highest six-month death toll since the systematic documentation of civilian casualties started in 2009. (For more from the author of “U.S. Officials Go to Entirely New Level to Achieve Peace, Reportedly Open to Talks With Taliban” please click HERE)

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Scientists Find Creepy ‘Lizardfish’ Lurking off Coast of Carolinas

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After seeing what a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Exploration and Research team has found off the coast of the Carolinas, I can understand that fear. Scaly horrors swim beneath us — and we hardly know anything about them. . .

The expedition encountered one of the ocean’s simultaneously most bizarre and terrifying creatures on July 1. At a depth of 5,810 feet, the camera’s light casting an eerie, blue fluorescence.

The picture shows a small fish with delicately feathered fins, scales that resemble those of an iguana and a nightmare-inducing visage. Flat, button-like eyes punctuate a spiny maw that looks as though it could strip skin away with the barest twitch of its jaws.

What’s more, the animal gets even odder the more you learn about it. For instance, every member of the species possesses a set of genitals for both sexes, meaning its always able to reproduce with another lizardfish. . .

A dive on June 29 revealed “an unidentified fish … seen in a burrow,” its protruding jaw set in a seeming grimace. Think back to some of the aliens that appeared in Jabba the Hutt’s palace in the 1983 movie “Return of the Jedi,” and you have a pretty good idea of what this one looks like. (Read more from “Scientists Find Creepy ‘Lizardfish’ Lurking off Coast of Carolinas” HERE)

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Ocasio-Cortez’s Factually Challenged Position on Israel Is Embarrassing

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. . .This week on the new “Firing Line” on PBS — a program claiming to be a reboot of the famous debate show, where William Buckley once politely dismantled his guests’ weak arguments — Ocasio-Cortez was asked about Israel. A few months ago, she claimed that Israel Defense Forces was mass murdering civilians, and that Democrats should not silent on the crimes of Israel anymore.

Ocasio-Cortez: Well, yes, but I also think that what people are starting to see in the occupation of Palestine is just an increasing crisis of humanitarian conditions and that to me is just where I tend to come from on this issue.

. . .

Ocasio-Cortez: Oh, I think, what I meant is that the settlements that are increasing in some of these areas and places where Palestinians are experiencing difficulty in access to housing and homes.

For one thing, there’s no such thing, nor has there ever been such a thing, as an Arab “Palestine.” There are a number of books Ocasio-Cortez could read about Arab history — or about the Turks or the Ottomans or the Jewish presence in Israel going back to 1500 BC, or even about situation that existed from 1947-1967 — but nowhere will she ever find a chapter on an independent Arab nation-state called “Palestine.” The idea itself is largely a post-World War II invention. You might hope that a Palestine will one day exist, but none has ever existed before.

Second, Ocasio-Cortez might not know this, but there are no “increasing settlements” in Gaza, the topic of the initial tweet Hoover was asking about, because there are no settlements in Gaza. In 2005, Israel conceded Gaza a large amount of autonomy, and with it the ability to conduct multi-party elections and live peacefully with its neighbors. In the process Israel dismantled all Israeli “settlements” in the Gaza Strip and expelled around 8,000 Jews who would have been massacred otherwise. (Read more from “Ocasio-Cortez’s Factually Challenged Position on Israel Is Embarrassing” HERE)

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President Trump Says He Misspoke With Putin: I Have Full Faith in America’s Intelligence Agencies

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Speaking at the White House Tuesday afternoon, President Trump clarified remarks he made during a joint press briefing with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki Monday.

The president said he accepts U.S. intelligence analysis that Russia did in fact interfere in the 2016 presidential election through propaganda, while stating there was no collusion between the Kremlin and his campaign. He said his administration is doing everything possible to prevent Russian meddling in future elections.

“I have full faith in our intelligence agencies,” Trump said. “I accept our intelligence community conclusion that Russia’s meddling in the 2016 election took place.”

After clarifying his remarks, Trump reiterated the progress he believes was made with Putin during a two hour long private meeting between the two leaders.

(Read more from “President Trump Says He Misspoke With Putin: I Have Full Faith in America’s Intelligence Agencies” HERE)

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Planned Parenthood Sues State Over New Abortion Reporting Requirements

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Planned Parenthood of the Great Northwest and the Hawaiian Islands (PPGNHI) filed a lawsuit Tuesday against Idaho’s Abortion Complications Reporting Act which went into effect July 1st.

The legislation details 37 abortion complications that must be reported to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare including infection, blood clots, and hemorrhaging. The bill also requires that any psychological conditions following an abortion be reported such as depression, anxiety, and sleeping disorders.

It mandates that abortion providers report the number of times their patients have had past abortions and other information about the patients including age, race, and number of children.

The law argues that “to facilitate reliable scientific studies and research on the safety and efficacy of abortion, it is essential that the medical and public health communities have access to accurate information both on the abortion procedure and on complications resulting from abortion.” . . .

“The law violates constitutional guarantees of due process and equal protection by arbitrarily singling out one particular medical procedure and requiring invasive reporting that has nothing to do with protecting patient health care,” according to Planned Parenthood. “Providers will now face potential criminal and civil penalties and professional discipline, which could result in the loss of their medical license, for non-compliance with these unconstitutional, vague and overreaching reporting requirements. Furthermore, the information gathered by these requirements is not protected from disclosure, putting patient and provider privacy at risk.” (Read more from “Planned Parenthood Sues State Over New Abortion Reporting Requirements” HERE)

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Here’s Why MGM Just Filed a Lawsuit Against the Las Vegas Shooting Victims

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MGM International Resorts, the owners of Mandalay Bay and the Route 91 Harvest Festival venue, have filed a lawsuit against more than 1,000 victims of the Las Vegas shooting. The goal of their lawsuit is to avoid liability, the Las Vegas-Review Journal reported.

According to the lawsuit, MGM’s security company, Contemporary Services Corp., was certified by the Department of Homeland Security for “protecting against and responding to acts of mass injury and destruction.”

A 2002 federal act, known as the SAFETY Act, extends liability protection to companies who use “anti-terrorism” technology and services that “prevent and respond to mass violence.” Contemporary Services Corps. utilized those technologies, which allowed them to be certified by DHS. Having that certification removes security companies from being held liable should an incident like the Las Vegas shooting occur.

MGM argues that the liability protections extend to their company because they were the ones who hired Contemporary Services Corp. They cite the SAFETY Act as their cause for being protected from liability.

The purpose of the lawsuit is for a judge to decide if MGM falls under the SAFETY Act. If the judge rules in the company’s favor, future civil lawsuits against MGM would not be viable. (Read more from “Here’s Why MGM Just Filed a Lawsuit Against the Las Vegas Shooting Victims” HERE)

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Feds Reveal Suspected Serial Rapist Is Illegal Alien

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U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Monday blasted San Francisco over its sanctuary policy that “shields criminal aliens who prey on the community” by pointing to an illegal immigrant charged in connection to the rapes of four women, The San Francisco Chronicle reported.

Orlando Vilchez Lazo, 36, is a citizen of Peru and “present in the U.S.,” the report said. He was arrested last week after police said they came across a man who fit the description of the assailant. Police said they took a DNA sample and found a link to four rapes.

Vilchez Lazo has been dubbed the “ride-share rapist,” because he would allegedly drive his car around clubs in the city and pose as a driver. The New York Times, citing authorities, reported that he even had a sticker on his car to indicate he was working for a company.

Vilchez Lazo allegedly committed at least four rapes, one in 2013 and three this year, with the most recent attack in June. Commander Greg McEachren says he often waited outside bars late at night, then drove to other locations.

He reportedly worked for Lyft at the time, but the company told the paper that there is no indication that the alleged attacks occurred while he was working for them. A spokeswoman said he was “deactivated” after word of the allegations. (Read more from “Feds Reveal Suspected Serial Rapist Is Illegal Alien” HERE)

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NFL Player Saves Man From Car Wreck in Dramatic Fashion: ‘I Prayed With Him’

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On Sunday, a 25-year-old NFL player physically ripped a car door off its hinges in order to save a man pinned down inside the vehicle after a bizarre accident.

New Orleans Saints defensive lineman Mitchell Loewen was eating brunch at a local cafe with his wife and toddler when they heard a loud crash. The vehicle, a Mercedes Benz SUV, apparently crashed through a concrete barrier on the fourth floor of a New Orleans parking garage and fell onto the street, roof-side down, reports The Times-Picayune.

Loewen and other Good Samaritans rushed to help flip the car over and noticed that the victim, a man in his mid-20s whose name has yet to be released, was trapped inside with his legs pinned down.

After it was confirmed that the man was still conscious, Loewen “wrenched open the door from the outside, ripping it off its hinges, and leaned into the car to speak with the man,” reports the outlet.

“He didn’t say much, he was just thanking us all,” said the New Orleans Saint. “I hugged him and told him he was going to be OK, and then I prayed with him. I couldn’t tell how bad his injuries were, but there was a lot of blood and broken glass.”​ (Read more from “NFL Player Saves Man From Car Wreck in Dramatic Fashion: ‘I Prayed With Him’” HERE)

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Poll Shows How Americans Reacted to Trump’s Summit With Putin

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By The Blaze. While many in the media were excoriating President Donald Trump for his bizarre comments during the press conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin, a new poll shows how Americans saw the episode. . .

According to a new Reuters poll, Americans’ approval of the president did not change substantively from the daily average in the same poll after the highly criticized meeting in Helsinki. . .

However, the average approval rating for Trump’s treatment remained low, at 42 percent of registered voters. The daily average for the month of July for the rating fell between 40 and 44.

When questioned about Russia specifically, a majority of registered voters (55 percent) said they disapproved of Trump’s handling of Russian relations, while only 37 percent approved of the same.

(Read more from “Poll Shows How Americans Reacted to Trump’s Summit With Putin” HERE)

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‘Better Than Super’: Russia Reacts to Trump-Putin Summit in Helsinki

By NPR. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, a master of diplomatic verbosity and sardonic barbs, summed up the results of the Helsinki summit in just three exuberant words: “better than super.”

After four years of getting short shrift by his American counterparts, Russian President Vladimir Putin was standing side by side with President Trump, who lavished him with the words of praise, respect and awe normally only heard on Russian state television.

When Putin militarily intervened in Ukraine in 2014, President Barack Obama called Russia a “regional power” that threatened its neighbors out of weakness, not strength. Russia’s annexation of Crimea set off a precipitous decline in relations with the United States. When he took office, Trump could not reverse the trend because of accusations that Moscow interfered in the 2016 election. . .

There is relief in the Kremlin that Trump didn’t do anything unpredictable, make any demands on which further cooperation would depend or just appear ambivalent, according to Stanovaya. But despite the friendly atmosphere, she said, the Kremlin is aware Trump could still end up taking them by surprise.

Alexander Gabuev, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Moscow Center, says that in the short term, the Kremlin can be happy about Putin’s burnished image as a statesman who holds his own with the U.S. president. (Read more from “‘Better Than Super’: Russia Reacts to Trump-Putin Summit in Helsinki” HERE)

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