Fox News Host Makes a Bold Prediction: Joe Biden ‘Will Not Be the Democratic Nominee’ in 2020

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Tucker Carlson made a bold 2020 prediction on Friday: Joe Biden “will not be the Democratic nominee” to take on President Donald Trump in the November general election.

According to the Daily Caller, the Fox News host said on Charlie LeDuff’s podcast “No BS News Hour” that Democrats would connive to strip Biden of the nomination because he is in a state of “decline” and replace him with a stronger, younger candidate. . .

Although the former vice president holds a formidable lead over Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders in the primary race, Carlson believes that in recent weeks, and especially as the country faces the coronavirus pandemic, Biden has proven himself to be in “mental decline” and incapable of carrying the party to victory in the fall.

He said, “I am utterly convinced, and would bet money, that Joe Biden will not be the Democratic nominee on election day. I just don’t believe that. I really don’t.” . . .

“I sincerely and totally believe that Joe Biden will not be the Democratic nominee on election day,” Carlson repeated. “I don’t believe that.” (Read more from “Fox News Host Makes a Bold Prediction: Joe Biden ‘Will Not Be the Democratic Nominee’ in 2020” HERE)

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U.S. Company Announces a Major Breakthrough in Coronavirus Testing; Coronavirus Slowdown in Seattle Suggests Restrictions Are Working

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By The Blaze. The Food and Drug Administration has issued an Emergency Use Authorization to medical device giant Abbott Labs on Friday for a five-minute coronavirus test that could be arriving to the nation’s urgent care clinics as early as next week.

In a press release, Abbott Labs characterized the device as “the fastest available molecular point-of-care test for the detection of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).” The Illinois-based manufacturer also said it expects the equipment to deliver up to 50,000 tests per day and will be ramping up manufacturing in the coming weeks, according to USA Today.

“I am pleased that the FDA authorized Abbott’s point-of-care test yesterday. This is big news and will help get more of these tests out in the field rapidly,” FDA Commissioner Steve Hahn said in a statement. “We know how important it is to get point-of-care tests out in the field quickly. These tests that can give results quickly can be a game changer in diagnosing COVID-19.” . . .

The development was hailed as a “game changer” by former FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb who said it is “very likely” there will be additional approvals for point-of-care diagnostics, “extending testing to doctor offices across the U.S.” (Read more from “U.S. Company Announces a Major Breakthrough in Coronavirus Testing” HERE)

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Coronavirus Slowdown in Seattle Suggests Restrictions Are Working

By The New York Times. The Seattle area, home of the first known coronavirus case in the United States and the place where the virus claimed 37 of its first 50 victims, is now seeing evidence that strict containment strategies, imposed in the earliest days of the outbreak, are beginning to pay off — at least for now.

Deaths are not rising as fast as they are in other states. Dramatic declines in street traffic show that people are staying home. Hospitals have so far not been overwhelmed. And preliminary statistical models provided to public officials in Washington State suggest that the spread of the virus has slowed in the Seattle area in recent days. . .

The researchers who are preparing the latest projections, led by the Institute for Disease Modeling, a private research group in Bellevue, Wash., have been watching a variety of data points since the onset of the outbreak. They include tens of thousands of coronavirus test results, deaths, and mobility information — including traffic patterns and the movements of anonymous Facebook users — to estimate the rate at which coronavirus patients are spreading the disease to others. (Read more from “Coronavirus Slowdown in Seattle Suggests Restrictions Are Working” HERE)

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Trump Admin Names Gun Makers, Retailers Essential Businesses Nationwide; But Exactly Why Are Liquor Stores Essential Businesses?

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By Breitbart. President Trump’s Department of Homeland Security released updated guidelines naming gun manufacturers and retailers as essential on Saturday, which means they are to stay open and operational nationwide during a Chinese coronavirus shutdown. . .

The Second Amendment Foundation’s Alan Gottlieb commented on the DHS declaration, saying, “Every freedom loving American owes President Trump and his administration a very big thank you for protecting our Second Amendment Rights. This is another Trump promise made and promise kept.”

The DHS declaration comes just days after Governor Phil Murphy (D) laughed in the face of a man who expressed concern that the statewide shutdown in New Jersey had put an end to gun sales, thereby eliminating the ability to get a firearm for self-defense. (Read more from “Trump Admin Names Gun Makers, Retailers Essential Businesses Nationwide” HERE)

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Why Are Liquor Stores Essential Businesses?

By Psychology Today. With an increasing number of states issuing “stay at home” or “shelter in place” directives, businesses regarded as essential remain open. The lists of “essential businesses” have some variation across states and with the federal government, but there are large swaths of overlap.

Essential businesses or workers include those concerned with healthcare, telecommunications, information technology, defense, food and agriculture, transportation, energy, water and waste water, law enforcement, and public works. All of these types of work contribute to the common good. In every state with a “stay at home” directive, liquor stores are considered essential businesses. That’s quite interesting.

The most obvious explanation may be that liquor falls under the category of food and agriculture. This category includes groceries, pharmacies, convenience stores, and other retailers that sell human food, animal or pet food, and beverage products. Restaurants with carryout or delivery service fall into this category as well. Liquor stores obviously sell beverages, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic. They often also sell snack foods. Many states allow convenience stores to sell alcohol. Mystery solved.

There is more to the story, I suspect, than membership in the food and agriculture category. We might push the question further back to ask why alcoholic beverage products are included. The amount of money that excise alcohol taxes bring federal, state, and local governments is significant. The United States government levies taxes on alcohol in three categories of spirits (hard liquor), beer, and wine.

The unit of measurement is the gallon with the exception of beer, which is the barrel (31 gallons) The federal tax on a gallon of spirits is $13.50 and wine $1.07-3.40 depending on alcohol content. Beer is $18.00 per barrel. The federal government collects roughly $1 billion from alcohol taxes each month. States add their own taxes on top of the federal taxes. States’ taxes on alcohol vary tremendously; Washington state has the highest rate at $32.52 per gallon of spirits while Missouri has one of the lowest at $2.00 per gallon. Quite simply, there’s big money in alcohol sales. (Read more from “Why Are Liquor Stores Essential Businesses?” HERE)

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New Clinton Scandal Memos Confirm FBI Stalled a Month to Search Weiner’s Laptop

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The FBI waited a month between the time it discovered Hillary Clinton emails on disgraced ex-Congressman Anthony Weiner’s laptop and obtaining a search warrant – as Clinton and Donald Trump were entering the closing weeks of their tight 2016 White House race, according to newly obtained records by the conservative watchdog group Judicial Watch.

The documents are communications between former FBI official Peter Strzok and former FBI attorney Lisa Page, who exchanged emails during the 2016 race that suggested they did not support Trump becoming president.

Weiner, at the time the emails were discovered, was married to top Clinton aide Huma Abedin. The emails were purportedly from when Clinton was Secretary of State. The Justice Department was already investigating Clinton using a private server to send official State Department information.

“These new records show how Hillary Clinton was protected from investigation over the Weiner laptop by the FBI for a full month during the presidential campaign … No wonder the FBI is slow rolling the release of these documents,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton.

Judicial Watch obtained the records through a January 2018 Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit. (Read more from “New Clinton Scandal Memos Confirm FBI Stalled a Month to Search Weiner’s Laptop” HERE)

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Bill De Blasio Cements His Disgraceful Legacy With Wuhan Virus Response

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New York City mayor Bill de Blasio has finally found something that he is worse at than running for president. The mayor has not only been flat-footed in dealing with the Wuhan virus that is ravaging Gotham, he has also been remarkably tone deaf. Perhaps nothing made this more patently clear than his decision to hit the gym on March 16th, just a day after closing all of the schools, bars and restaurants in the city.

While de Blasio’s arch nemesis Gov. Andrew Cuomo has garnered praise for his handling of the Chinese virus, the mayor has stumbled time after time. Even the closing of the schools was a debacle. Over the weekend prior to Monday, March 16, it was obvious not just that New York City would be hit with the virus, but that it would be hit hard. And yet, Hizzoner decided to wait until late Sunday to announce that schools would be closed the following day.

By refusing to make the obvious decision to close schools earlier, de Blasio threw the city’s parents into a confused rush to try to figure out childcare. What has truly been bizarre from the outset of this crisis is that anyone who took ninth grade biology understood that the most densely populated city in the country was always bound to be slammed by the virus. How de Blasio managed not to see this is frankly remarkable.

I’m sure I’m not the only New Yorker who wistfully rues that if only Anthony Weiner had cooled it with sexting teenagers we might have some competence in the mayor’s office. De Blasio’s blasé approach to the virus as it began infecting New York City looks even worse now that he is begging the federal government for help he barely seemed to think was needed just a week ago.

(Read more from “Bill De Blasio Cements His Disgraceful Legacy With Wuhan Virus Response” HERE)

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Trump Eyes Massive Expulsion of Suspected Chinese Spies

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Trump administration officials have intensified discussions over whether to expel employees of Chinese media outlets suspected of being spies, in retaliation for China’s planned expulsion of American journalists from major outlets, The New York Times reported.

Since the virus began spreading across the United States, Washington and Beijing have waged a global information war over the outbreak, the report said.

President Trump and his aides are trying to pin responsibility on China, where Communist Party officials initially covered up the dangers of the virus as it was first discovered. Trump, though, has been criticized for vast failures in the American response, the report said.

Some American intelligence officials have pushed for years to expel employees of Chinese media organizations who they say mainly file intelligence reports, the report said.

The officials now see an opening to make a strong case after Beijing abruptly announced this month that it would expel almost all American citizens who report from mainland China for The New York Times, The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal. (Read more from “Trump Eyes Massive Expulsion of Suspected Chinese Spies” HERE)

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Trump Activates Armed Forces Reserves – up to 1,000,000 Individual Reservists (VIDEO)

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By Daily Caller. President Donald Trump announced at Friday’s coronavirus task force briefing that he has granted the Secretaries of Defense and Homeland Security the “authority to activate the ready reserve components of the Armed Forces” to help battle the pandemic.

“This will allow us to mobilize medical, disaster, and emergency response personnel to help wage our battle against the virus by activating thousands of experienced service members including retirees,” Trump told the reporters gathered in the White House Brady Briefing Room. “We have a lot of people, retirees, — great, great people — who have come back in who have offered to help the nation in this extraordinary time of need.”

The text of the executive order states that the reserves shall not be activated for more than 24 months or service, and the total active units shall not exceed 1,000,000. (Read more from “Trump Activates Armed Forces Reserves – up to 1,000,000 Individual Reservists (VIDEO)” HERE)

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Trump Thanks Rachel Maddow for Highlighting Efforts of Army Crops of Engineers

By Townhall. President Trump thanked Rachel Maddow on Friday for her interview with Lieutenant General Todd Semonite, chief of engineers and commanding general of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. In a tweet, Trump gave rare thanks to the MSNBC host for highlighting the important work being carried out by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in conjunction with the Federal Emergency Management Administration and the Department of Health and Human Services.

General Semonite spoke about the Corps’ current work in assisting the federal government in its response to the coronavirus pandemic. The federal government is assisting state and local governments in preparing for the peak of coronavirus cases in their individual areas.

General Semonite said the Corps is helping to modify existing facilities — such as hotels, convention centers, college dorms, and sports arenas — to meet the needs of the medical community in treating patients with COVID-19. The general said the Corps is currently assessing 103 different places in 50 states and eight territories to meet the increased demand for hospital beds.

(Read more from “Trump Thanks Rachel Maddow for Highlighting Efforts of Army Crops of Engineers” HERE)

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AOC Complains Illegals Won’t Get Rebate Check

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Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., is blasting Republicans for refusing to send rebate checks to taxpayers without a Social Security number, including illegal aliens.

She was referring to the $2 trillion coronavirus stimulus bill that is now on its way to President Trump for his signature, DailyMail.com reported.

“To clarify, $1200 checks are ONLY going to some w/social sec numbers, NOT immigrants w/ tax IDs (ITINs),” Ocasio-Cortez wrote Thursday on Twitter.

“Thanks to GOP, these checks will be cut off the backs of *taxpaying immigrants,* who get nothing. Many are essential workers who pay more taxes than Amazon,” she said.

ITINs are issued to taxpayers who are ineligible for a Social Security number, which in many cases is because they are in the country illegally. (Read more from “AOC Complains Illegals Won’t Get Rebate Check” HERE)

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This State Is Not Putting up With Gun Shops Being Closed

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By The Blaze. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton issued a letter warning city and county officials that they did not have the authority to shut down gun shops in Texas over the coronavirus pandemic. . .

Paxton outlined the Texas law that governed the power of local governments over firearms sales in his letter and came to a stern conclusion.

“Thus, although section 418.108 of the Government Code may generally allow municipal and county officials to ‘control the movement of persons and the occupancy of premises’ in a local disaster area, notwithstanding that general authority, emergency orders from local officials may not relate to the transfer, possession, ownership or sale of firearms,” he wrote.

Paxton goes on to assert that local authorities do have the right to regulate use of firearms, but that does not extend to the sale or transfer of firearms. (Read more from “This State Is Not Putting up With Gun Shops Being Closed” HERE)

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Guns and Ammo Sales, Pistol Permit Applications Soar in NC Amid Coronavirus Anxiety

By The News Observer. Just after 10 a.m. Tuesday more than 100 people were either inside or lining up outside Perry’s Gun Shop in Wendell, the store’s owner said.

Nearly half were in the store, where owner Berry Perry said he was trying to enforce social distancing.

“I am trying to limit the number of people in the store to recognize the six-foot safety limit,” he said.

The gun store, which is selling hundreds of firearms a day, is one of many across the Triangle and the nation seeing business surge as new and existing gun owners clear shelves of guns and ammunition amid the uncertainty of the novel coronavirus’ impact on the community and supply chains. (Read more from “Guns and Ammo Sales, Pistol Permit Applications Soar in NC Amid Coronavirus Anxiety” HERE)

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More Than 400,000 Jobs Available as Coronavirus Prods People to Stock up on Necessities and Order Takeout

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By Washington Examiner. The outbreak of the coronavirus across the United States has shuttered whole industries. Still, demand for essentials, such as food, toilet paper, and even pizza delivery, has increased hiring by over 400,000 jobs as people shelter in their homes and stock up on necessities.

Walmart, the largest employer in the U.S., wants to hire an additional 150,000 temporary workers by the end of May to meet the increase in demand at its stores. However, those temporary jobs could become permanent. , ,

The company will also implement a new process to expedite hiring dramatically for critical roles, such as cashiers and stockers. What is usually a two-week application cycle will be reduced to a 24-hour process.

Walmart looks to hire people who have been recently laid off because of the pandemic, said its president and CEO, Doug McMillon. . .

Amazon seeks to hire an additional 100,000 full- and part-time workers to keep up with e-commerce demand. It plans to invest over $350 million worldwide, which would include pay increases of $2 per hour for U.S. employees who work in its fulfillment centers, transportation operations, or stores, or those making deliveries so that others can remain at home. (Read more from “More Than 400,000 Jobs Available as Coronavirus Prods People to Stock up on Necessities and Order Takeout” HERE)

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Coronavirus Job Losses Hit These States the Hardest, According to Record Unemployment Claims

By Yahoo. The impact of the economic shutdown in the U.S. caused by the COVID-19 pandemic was revealed Thursday when the latest tally of Americans applying for unemployment benefits spiked to 3.28 million — the largest number ever recorded in history.

That weekly number quadruples the prior record and dwarfs, by far, the largest halt to employment seen during the 2008 financial crisis. Single weekly jobless claim numbers never topped 700,000, until now.

But digging further into the disastrous 3.28 million headline number reveals a slowdown that hit some states harder than others, and reveals why President Trump might be so eager to see businesses reopen in some communities sooner rather than later.

Key swing states, which Trump won by the slimmest margins in 2016, showed some of the largest percentage increases in unemployment applications for the week ending March 21. Ohio, Michigan, and Pennsylvania each reported a jump in weekly unemployment applications that surpassed 2,300%.

On a percentage basis, New Hampshire suffered the worst spike in unemployment claims, up more than 3,300% from just 641 claims the week prior to top 21,000 weekly claims at last clip. Conversely, Utah, which hasn’t been hit with as many reported cases of coronavirus as other states, only saw jobless claims rise by less than 1%. (Read more from “Coronavirus Job Losses Hit These States the Hardest, According to Record Unemployment Claims” HERE)

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