Ted Cruz Blasts Obama for Failing Venezuela: ‘Negotiating with Tyrants and Bullies Never Works’

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Photo Credit: AP Photo/Fernando LlanoSen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, spoke out strongly in support of the political uprising in Venezuela and criticized President Obama for his history of “negotiating with tyrants and bullies” in the country.

Cruz criticized a State Department spokeswoman who explained Tuesday that the United States was open to closer engagement with the regime of President Nicolas Maduro.

“Negotiating with tyrants and bullies never works,” Cruz said, calling for the United States to demand the tyrannical government to stop oppressing its people and censoring the media.

Read more this story HERE.

Rand Paul – An Early GOP Presidential Front-Runner

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Photo Credit: BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFPRepublican strategists like to say the party’s next nominee needs to hail from the GOP’s gubernatorial ranks. It’s a response to how unpopular Washington is—particularly the party’s congressional wing—and a reflection of the party’s strength in holding a majority of governorships. But another reason for the gubernatorial focus is to sidestep the one formidable candidate that gives the establishment heartburn: Sen. Rand Paul.

Make no mistake: The Kentuckian scares the living daylights out of many Republicans looking for an electable nominee capable of challenging Hillary Clinton. At the same time, he’s working overtime to broaden the party’s image outside its traditional avenues of support. The 2016 Republican nominating fight will go a long way toward determining whether Paul is the modern version of Barry Goldwater or at the leading edge of a new, more libertarian brand of Republicanism.

“That’s the big challenge—is America ready? I think that Rand and his small-L libertarian Republicanism can break through,” said Paul’s longtime adviser Jesse Benton. “He’s a fundamentally better messenger than Barry Goldwater—[Goldwater’s 1964 campaign slogan] ‘In your heart you know he’s right’ is not very compelling. Rand is a wonderful communicator, and I think a message of individual liberty can build wide support.”

Either way, Paul’s brand of politics is a distinct departure from the party’s traditional moorings. His occasional sympathy for Edward Snowden puts him on an island within the party. His critique of the National Security Agency’s domestic surveillance techniques and noninterventionist views on foreign policy are gaining some conservative followers, but are still outside the party mainstream. Many conservative foreign policy hawks could sooner support Clinton than Paul in a 2016 matchup.

Read more this story HERE.

Brewer’s Foolish Veto

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By Rich Lowry.

It was jarring to read the coverage of the new “anti-gay bill” passed by the Arizona Legislature and then look up the text of the instantly notorious SB 1062. The bill was roughly 998 pages shorter than much of legislation that passes in Washington, so reading it didn’t take much of a commitment. Clocking in at barely two pages, it was easy to scan for disparaging references to homosexuality, for veiled references to homosexuality, for any references to homosexuality at all.

They weren’t there. A headline from The Week declared, “There is nothing Christian about Arizona’s anti-gay bill.” It would be more accurate to say that there was nothing anti-gay about Arizona’s anti-gay bill.

The legislation consisted of minor clarifications of the state’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which has been on the books for 15 years and is modeled on the federal act that passed with big bipartisan majorities in the 1990s and was signed into law by President Bill Clinton…

Eleven legal experts on religious freedom statutes — who represent a variety of views on gay marriage — wrote a letter to Gov. Brewer prior to her veto explaining how the bill “has been egregiously misrepresented by many of its critics.”

In addition to the federal government, 18 states have such statutes and about a dozen other states interpret their state constitutions as extending the same protections, according to the letter. The statutes, the scholars write, “say that before government can burden a person’s religious exercise, the government has to show a compelling justification.”

Read more from this story HERE.

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Photo Credit: AP Photo/Ross D. FranklinBy Bob Christie.

Gov. Jan Brewer on Wednesday vetoed a Republican bill that set off a national debate over gay rights, religion and discrimination and subjected Arizona to blistering criticism from major corporations and political leaders from both parties.

Loud cheers erupted outside the Capitol building immediately after Brewer made her announcement.

“My agenda is to sign into law legislation that advances Arizona,” Brewer said at a news conference. “I call them like I see them despite the cheers or the boos from the crowd. After weighing all the arguments, I have vetoed Senate Bill 1062 moments ago.”

The Republican governor said she gave the legislation careful deliberation in talking to her lawyers, citizens, businesses and lawmakers on both sides of the debate. Her office said it received more than 40,000 calls and emails on the legislation, with most of them urging a veto.

Brewer said the bill “could divide Arizona in ways we could not even imagine and no one would ever want.” The bill was broadly worded and could result in unintended negative consequences, she added.

Read more this story HERE.

National Young Republican Vice Chair: Tea Party ‘Senile,’ Full of ‘Bullies’

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Photo Credit: Breitbart An animated discussion over the proper role of the Tea Party in the greater conservative movement erupted on Twitter Tuesday night when Southern Regional Vice Chair Luke Niles of the Young Republican National Federation (YRNF) labeled grassroots activists as “senile.” He further labeled them “bullies” and prone to “temper tantrum[s].”

Niles engaged with a number of individuals taking issue with his claims, including Breitbart Texas’ Managing Director Brandon Darby.

The dialogue took a rather ironic trajectory when Niles categorically labeled grassroots activists in the Tea Party as “senile angry people mad at everything.”

Read more this story HERE.

Witnesses Warn House Panel: US Is in a ‘Constitutional Crisis’

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photo credit: ‘caveman chuck’ cokerMultiple witnesses told the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday that Congress is in danger of ceding all of its power to the presidency if it continues on the path it is on.

“We are in the midst of a constitutional crisis with sweeping implications for our system of government, constitutional lawyer Jonathan Turley told the committee. “For Congress not to act borders on self-loathing.”

“If you want to stay relevant as an institution, I would suggest that you not stand idly by and let the president take your power away,” testified Elizabeth Price Foley, a law professor at Florida International University.

Rep. Bob Goodlatte, a Virginia Republican, heads the committee and told Fox News’ Megyn Kelly, “It didn’t start with Obama.”

Read more this story HERE.

Planned Parenthood Told Them Their Abortion Was Risk-Free, Now They Can’t Have Children (+video)

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Photo Credit: LifeNewsBy Brad Mattes.

There’s a group of women Planned Parenthood doesn’t want to talk about. In fact, they won’t even admit they exist. They’ll gladly usher vulnerable women into their abortion chambers. But when those very same women experience physical or psychological effects of their abortion, they’re considered an anomaly.

They don’t fit the façade the abortion industry has carefully built for public consumption. According to the Planned Parenthood website, there are no long-term risks associated with abortion. They reject any link between abortion and breast cancer. They deny that women may experience intense psychological consequences. And they claim there’s no relationship between abortion and infertility, miscarriage or future premature birth. Call it misleading, neglectful or deceptive, Planned Parenthood’s marketing is intentionally designed to point women in one direction—in favor of abortion.

The ramifications for women’s health and future fertility are huge. Planned Parenthood cites that in the US, an estimated 4 out of 10 women facing an unplanned pregnancy will choose abortion. That means millions of women are post-abortive. What’s important to note is the impact may not be felt immediately. Many women experience an initial sense of relief. In their minds, their “problem” has been taken care of. Later, when issues do surface, she may not make the connection that there’s a link to her abortion experience. These women then suffer from what seems to be unexplained physical or mental conditions.

A study from Norway shows that abortion can be tied to long-term psychological distress. For five years, researchers followed women who had miscarriages and women who had abortions. What they discovered was that women who suffered a miscarriage, experienced more anxiety and depression early on. But abortion was associated with increased anxiety two years and five years after the event.

Pro-abortion activists want you to believe that abortion is “safe.” Not true. And when things go wrong, it can be physically devastating. Planned Parenthood in Birmingham, Alabama was sued when a botched abortion left a young woman infertile. Roberta Clark came to have a “safe and legal” first-trimester abortion. An ultrasound was performed and the worker concluded that she was eight weeks, four days pregnant with an intrauterine pregnancy. A pelvic exam was given confirming the same diagnosis.

Read more this story HERE.

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Photo Credit: AP Photo/Susan WalshPlanned Parenthood Produces Video Promoting Bondage and Sadomasochism to Teens

By Barbara Hollingsworth.

Planned Parenthood of Northern New England (PPNNE)–which received more than $2.75 million in government funding in 2012–has produced and posted online a video specifically aimed at teenagers that promotes bondage and sadomasochism (BDSM) and proposes “rules” to follow when engaging in these activities.

“People sometimes think that those who practice BDSM are emotionally scarred or were once abused—not true, it’s a total myth,” the host of the video, Laci Green, informs its intended audience of teens.

“BDSM relies upon and creates trust,” she says.

In a message published at the beginning of PPNNE’s 2012 annual report, PPNNE President Meagan Gallagher described the genesis of the project that produced the video on bondage and sadomasochism.

Read more this story HERE.

Chain Cites ‘Copyright Law’ in Refusing to Print Images of Bible Verses, Woman Says

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Photo Credit: Kelly TaylorA Mississippi woman says she waged a nearly three-week battle to get pictures of Bible Scripture printed, after the photo department at a national chain store insisted that her images of Gospel inspiration violated copyright laws.

Kelly Taylor, 46, of Gulfport, told FoxNews.com her local Walgreens refused to process two prints of Scripture verses she had ordered online, first blaming it on a “technical issue,” then explaining it was due to copyright law — which has never applied to the Good Book.

“I was in total shock; it just dumbfounded me the whole day,” she said. “I feel this is an attack on Christians.”

After a clerk told her the order had been deep-sixed, Taylor got an explanation by way of an automated email.

“Hello Kelly! Due to a technical issue we were unable to process your print order at this time,” the email read. “For more details, contact a photo team associate — they’re happy to help! Just have your order number handy.”

Read more this story HERE.

Obama Tells Pentagon: Plan for Full Troop Withdrawal from Afghanistan

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Photo Credit: NATONATO defense ministers began two days of talks in Brussels on Wednesday, frustrated by yet another unmet target date for Afghan President Hamid Karzai to sign a bilateral security agreement pivotal to any ongoing foreign troop presence in the country beyond year’s end.

Signing of the BSA is a prerequisite for the concluding of a separate status of forces agreement between Afghanistan and NATO. Its member states had hoped for clarity before this week’s Brussels meeting, but the ministers will now discuss “the way forward in Afghanistan” without knowing whether the Alliance will in fact have a future role there.

On the eve of the meeting, President Obama, in a phone conversation with Karzai, effectively conceded that the mercurial Afghan leader will not sign the BSA before he leaves office after April elections; advised him that the U.S. was now preparing for a full troop withdrawal by the end of 2014; but also left open the possibility of signing the document “later this year” – that is, with Karzai’s successor – thereby allowing a proposed post-2014 counter-terror and training mission to proceed.

“However, the longer we go without a BSA, the more challenging it will be to plan and execute any U.S. mission,” the White House said in a summary of the phone call. “Furthermore, the longer we go without a BSA, the more likely it will be that any post-2014 U.S. mission will be smaller in scale and ambition.”

The BSA, designed to govern the presence of any U.S. troops in Afghanistan beyond the Dec. 31 end of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force mission, was drawn up over many months of often difficult negotiations, and approved by a gathering of tribal elders last November.

Read more this story HERE.

WH Celebrates 4 Million Enrollees in Program that Forces Everyone to Join

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Photo Credit: Reuters By Rick Moran.

As I’ve written previously, the “news” that so many million Americans have signed up for Obamacare is meaningless. It’s the law. If you don’t sign up, you pay a fine. Why this is considered a big deal – 4 million Obamacare enrollees – is a function of politics, not reality.

The Hill:

Approximately 4 million people have purchased insurance through the ObamaCare exchanges, President Obama told volunteers at an Organizing for Action summit in Washington on Tuesday.

“We now have more than 4 million Americans who have signed up for quality, affordably health insurance,” Obama said. “Four million. That’s on top of the 3 million young people who have been able to get covered staying on their parents plan… you’ve already made sure people all across America are getting better coverage.”

The announcement, which came with just five weeks left in the early enrollment period, means some 700,000 have enrolled in ObamaCare so far in February. Earlier this month, the Obama administration said just under 3.3 million people had selected coverage through the end of January.

But the number of people who have actually purchased coverage is likely significantly lower. Analysts estimate that as many as 20 percent of enrollees haven’t paid their first month’s premium, meaning roughly 800,000 of that 4 million do not actually have insurance coverage.

Read more this story HERE.

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Photo Credit: REUTERS/Kevin LamarquePoll: Uninsured opposition to Obamacare reaches all-time high

By Sarah Hurtubise.

Americans without health insurance have never seen Obamacare is such a negative light.

Kaiser Family Foundation’s monthly health tracking poll found that in February, 56 percent of the uninsured view the Affordable Care Act unfavorably.

The percentage of uninsured with a positive view reached its lowest point since Kaiser began tracking reactions in March 2010 when Obamacare was passed into law. Just 22 percent of uninsured Americans have a generally favorable opinion about the law.

This pessimistic outlook isn’t all that surprising. Health industry experts have found that exchanges are more often than not selling coverage to those that were previously insured. According to reports, majority of exchange customers either had their previous coverage cancelled due to Obamacare regulations or switched over willingly to access premium subsidies.

Read more this story HERE.

Convicted Terrorist Worked as Obamacare Navigator in Illinois

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Photo Credit: National Review A terrorist from Jordan briefly worked as an Obamacare navigator in Illinois while authorities remained unaware of her conviction for involvement in a deadly grocery store bombing and two other attacks.

Rasmieh Yousef Odeh was convicted in Israel for her role in several bombings, including the 1969 attack on an upscale Shufersol grocery store, which killed two Hebrew University students who had stopped in to buy groceries for a hiking trip in the Jerusalem hills. Leon Kanner and Eddie Joffe were killed by a bomb hidden in a candy box tucked on a shelf, which also injured nine or 10 others, according to a website maintained by the Israeli government to commemorate terror victims.

The Illinois Department of Insurance quietly revoked Odeh’s certification as a Navigator In-Person Counselor on November 24, explaining in a disciplinary report that the decision was “based on an investigation which revealed that she had been convicted in Israel for her role in the bombings of a supermarket and the British Consulate in Jerusalem and failed to reveal the conviction on her application.”

The Illinois DOI conducts background checks on navigators. National Review Online obtained the comprehensive Federal Bureau of Investigation background report for Odeh, which does not note any past criminal offenses.

According to the director of insurance’s Oct. 25, 2013, revocation letter, the Department of Insurance found out about Odeh’s history after the U.S. Attorney’s office for the Eastern District of Michigan, notified the public about her prior convictions.

Read more this story HERE.