Confirmed: Democrats Coordinated Their Temper Tantrum at Kavanaugh Hearing, Guess Who Led the Way

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By Townhall. Democrats coordinated and planned over the long holiday weekend to obnoxiously interrupt the confirmation hearing for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. The hearing started Tuesday morning and will likely run through the end of the week.

Right from the start, Democrat members of the Senate Judiciary Committee repeatedly spoke out of order, personally attacked Chairman Chuck Grassley and demanded the hearing be adjourned. Cortney has the details covered here. . .

By 11 a.m., Kavanaugh still hadn’t given his opening statement. The hearing started at 9:30 a.m.

(Read more from “Confirmed: Democrats Coordinated Their Temper Tantrum at Kavanaugh Hearing, Guess Who Led the Way” HERE)

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Lindsey Graham Certain Kavanaugh ‘Is Going to Be on the Supreme Court’

By Fox News. Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham called Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh “the single best legal mind of his generation,” adding he’s certain the judge “is going to be on the Supreme Court.”

Graham told Fox News’ Martha MacCallum that Trump was the “big winner” in Wednesday’s hearing and that Democrats were the “big losers.” He said that Republicans have voted in favor of certain liberal judges in the past when the party was in the minority — but he claimed Democrats have been unwilling to do the same.

“I think the country is tired of the yelling and they’d like us to get things done. And, at times, Donald Trump drives me crazy, but he’s produced, and Kavanaugh is the single best legal mind of his generation. Any Republican president would’ve picked him.”

Graham went on to say that Kavanaugh is “equally qualified if not more” qualified than Justice Sonia Sotomayor and Justice Elena Kagan, both of whom were approved for the high court during the Obama administration. (Read more from “Lindsey Graham Certain Kavanaugh ‘Is Going to Be on the Supreme Court'” HERE)

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Buzz Aldrin Blasts Hollywood Over American Flag Censorship

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Legendary Apollo 11 astronaut Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin took the upcoming film “First Man” to task for failing to include the moment when he and fellow astronaut Neil Armstrong planted the American flag on the moon during their 1969 mission.

Aldrin, 88, who was the second man to step on the moon, posted a picture on Sunday of himself and Armstrong planting the flag with the hashtag “Proud to be an American.”

Aldrin’s post came after Ryan Gosling, who portrays Armstrong in “First Man,” defended the filmmakers’ decision not to include the iconic moment, arguing it was not just an American achievement.

“I think this was widely regarded in the end as a human achievement [and] that’s how we chose to view it,” Gosling told reporters at the Venice Film Festival last month, according to Fox News.

Gosling, a Canadian, added, “I also think Neil was extremely humble, as were many of these astronauts, and time and time again he deferred the focus from himself to the 400,000 people who made the mission possible.”

Armstrong famously intoned as he prepared to leave the lunar landing craft, “One small step for man; one giant leap for mankind.”

The Ohioan died in 2012 at the age of 82. Prior to being selected for the space program in the late 1950s, he served as a U.S. Navy fighter pilot in the Korean War and a test pilot afterwards.

After graduating from the United States Military Academy at West Point, Aldrin also flew fighter jets in the Korean War and went on to enter the space program in the early 1960s.

He retweeted a picture of himself saluting the American flag close to the 49th anniversary of the historic achievement last month.

Aldrin plans to participate in events throughout the upcoming year leading to the 50th anniversary of his and Armstrong’s walk on the moon.

Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., called the notion the moon landing was not an American achievement “total lunacy.” He noted, “It wasn’t a UN mission.”

“This is total lunacy. And a disservice at a time when our people need reminders of what we can achieve when we work together,” he tweeted. “The American people paid for that mission, on rockets built by Americans, with American technology & carrying American astronauts. It wasn’t a UN mission.”

President John Kennedy first set the goal of the United States reaching the moon by the end of the 1960s.

In an address to Congress in May 1961, he said, “I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the Earth. No single space project in this period will be more impressive to mankind, or more important for the long-range exploration of space; and none will be so difficult or expensive to accomplish.”

JFK reiterated the goal at a speech at Rice University Stadium in Texas in September 1962.

Armstrong’s sons Rick and Mark, along with their father’s biographer James R. Hansen, released a statement last week dismissing the notion that “First Man” does not recognize the lunar landing as an American achievement, Fox News reported.

“This story is human and it is universal. Of course, it celebrates an America achievement. It also celebrates an achievement ‘for all mankind,’” the statement said, adding that “the filmmakers chose to focus on Neil looking back at the earth, his walk to Little West Crater, his unique, personal experience of completing this journey, a journey that has seen so many incredible highs and devastating lows.”

“First Man” director Damien Chazelle (who also directed Gosling in “La La Land’) added in his own statement on Friday, “The flag being physically planted into the surface is one of several moments of the Apollo 11 lunar EVA [extravehicular activity] that I chose not to focus upon,” he said on Friday.

Chazelle further stated: “To address the question of whether this was a political statement, the answer is no. My goal with this movie was to share with audiences the unseen, unknown aspects of America’s mission to the moon — particularly Neil Armstrong’s personal saga and what he may have been thinking and feeling during those famous few hours.” (For more from the author of “Buzz Aldrin Blasts Hollywood Over American Flag Censorship” please click HERE)

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Going to Trial This Year: Lawsuit Seeks to Expose Billionaire’s Pedophile Ring Involving U.S. Politicians, Other World Leaders

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By The Shiny Sheet. A long-awaited-for trial that promises a first-ever exploration of the sexual misdeeds of billionaire convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein is expected to begin Dec. 4 in Palm Beach County Circuit Court.

During a two-hour hearing on Wednesday, Circuit Judge Donald Hafele dispensed with a series of routine motions filed by attorneys representing Epstein and those representing his longtime nemesis, lawyer Bradley Edwards. . .

However, the money manager who counts President Donald Trump, former President Bill Clinton and Britain’s Prince Andrew among his friends has no plans to be there, his attorneys said.

After Epstein paid $5.5 million to settle the three lawsuits and undisclosed amounts to settle dozens of others, he sued Edwards and his former boss, disbarred lawyer and convicted Ponzi schemer Scott Rothstein. Epstein claimed Rothstein and Edwards used the cases they filed against him to lure investors into the $1.2 million Ponzi scheme. Investors were lured by tales of bogus settlements of various lawsuits filed against high-profile people.

After Rothstein was sentenced to 50 years in federal prison, Epstein dropped the lawsuit. Edwards responded by suing Epstein for malicious prosecution to clear his reputation. Epstein knew Edwards wasn’t part of Rothstein’s scheme but sued him to punish him for representing the young women, Scarola claims. (Read more from “Going to Trial This Year: Lawsuit Seeks to Expose Billionaire’s Pedophile Ring Involving U.S. Politicians, Other World Leaders” HERE)

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Investors Claim Jeffrey Epstein Built $473m Ponzi Scheme

By Dave Simpson. Shareholders filed a putative class action against financier, billionaire and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein in New York federal court on Tuesday for his alleged role in developing and executing a $473 million Ponzi scheme for which Steven Hoffenberg was convicted in 1997.

Hoffenberg signed an affidavit in a separate New York state court case last week, laying out all of Epstein’s alleged involvement in the scheme that landed Hoffenberg in prison. (Read more from “Investors Claim Jeffrey Epstein Built $473m Ponzi Scheme” HERE)

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Nancy Pelosi Snaps When Reporter Asks About Her Slumping Support From Democrats

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House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi expressed little patience with a reporter who questioned whether the former speaker of the house would have the support needed to take up her old post should the Democrats prevail in November.

“It is the least important question you could ask, with all due respect to your list of questions there,” she told NPR’s Scott Detrow in a story published on Tuesday.

Regarding her support among the Democrat caucus, Pelosi said, “We have 430 candidates. How many have you heard from?”

By NBC News’ count, 57 Democratic candidates and incumbents are on record saying they will not support Pelosi for speaker.

Last week, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., spoke positively about his party’s prospects of holding the House in the fall, arguing recent generic ballot polling showed the GOP where it was ahead of the 2016 elections.

“Two weeks ago, the generic ballot was at the exact same place it was the day before the election in 2016,” McCarthy pointed out that the GOP lost five seats that year.

Earlier this month, Rasmussen Reports found the congressional generic ballot tied at 44 percent, while a Reuters/Ipsos survey gave Democrats a four-point edge at 41 to 37 percent.

These results are similar to polling in the final week before the 2016 election, with multiple surveys showing the two sides nearly tied or having as much as a three-point lead on either side.

The Cook Political Report rates 182 current Democratic seats as solid holds heading into the midterms, while Republicans have 150.

However, when those rated likely to lean toward a party are factored in, the advantage shifts in the GOP’s favor, 202 to 192. Forty-one seats are rated as a toss-up.

The magic number to win control of the House is 218. (For more from the author of “Nancy Pelosi Snaps When Reporter Asks About Her Slumping Support From Democrats” please click HERE)

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Experts Warn of ‘Life-Threatening’ Storm Surge Along Gulf Coast

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Tropical Storm Gordon is strengthening and should hit the central U.S. Gulf Coast as a hurricane late Tuesday before moving over the lower Mississippi Valley on Wednesday.

Gordon formed into a tropical storm near the Florida Keys early Monday, lashing the southern part of the state with heavy rains and high winds.

By early Tuesday morning, the storm was centered 230 miles east-southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River, with top sustained winds of 65 mph, forecasters said. It was moving relatively quickly, at about 17 mph.

A hurricane warning was put into effect for the mouth of the Pearl River in Mississippi to the Alabama-Florida border. As much as 8 inches of rain could fall in some parts of the Gulf states through late Thursday.

The Miami-based National Hurricane Center is predicting a “life-threatening” storm surge along parts of the central Gulf Coast. A storm surge warning has been issued for the area stretching from Shell Beach, Louisiana to Dauphin Island, Alabama. The warning means there is danger of life-threatening inundation. The region could see rising waters of 3 to 5 feet.

“The deepest water will occur along the immediate coast near, and to the east of, the landfall location, where the surge will be accompanied by large waves,” the center said.

Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards declared a state of emergency Monday and said 200 National Guard troops will be deployed to southeastern Louisiana.

The storm’s predicted track had shifted slightly east as of Monday evening, meaning Louisiana is currently just outside the area under the hurricane warning. Still, the southeastern part of the state remains under a tropical storm warning and residents need to be prepared for the storm to shift west, Edwards said.

“This storm has every possibility to track further in our direction,” Edwards said during a news conference Monday evening.

New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell said the city has “the pumps and the power” needed to protect residents. But authorities issued a voluntary evacuation order for areas outside the city’s levee protection system, including the Venetian Isles, Lake Saint Catherine and Irish Bayou areas.

Cantrell urged residents within the levee protection area to stock up on supplies and shelter in place.

Miami Beach Police said via Twitter that the Labor Day holiday was “NOT a beach day,” with rough surf and potential rip currents. Red flags flew over Pensacola-area beaches in Florida’s Panhandle, where swimming and wading in the Gulf of Mexico was prohibited.

More than 4,000 Florida Power & Light customers lost power Monday due to weather conditions.

The National Weather Service said conditions were “possible” for tornadoes in the affected parts of South Florida on Monday night.

The storm left many businesses on Florida’s Gulf Coast feeling shortchanged by the holiday weekend. The area has already been heavily impacted by this summer’s so-called “red tide” — massive algae blooms that have caused waves of dead marine life to wash up along the coast.

Jenna Wright, owner of a coffee shop in Naples, Florida, told the Naples Daily News that she had expected higher numbers for the Labor Day weekend.

“This is normally a decent weekend, but the storm and red tide aren’t helping,” Wright said. “We’re a beach coffee shop, and if people can’t go to the beach, then we won’t get any customers.”

Separately, Tropical Storm Florence continues to hold steady over the eastern Atlantic. Forecasters say little change in strength is expected in coming days and no coastal watches or warnings are in effect. (For more from the author of “Experts Warn of ‘Life-Threatening’ Storm Surge Along Gulf Coast” please click HERE)

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Red Hen Nightmare: Restaurant That Refused to Serve Sarah Sanders Is Torpedoing the Town’s Tourism Business

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In June, Trump White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders decided to eat at The Red Hen in Lexington, Virginia. They were refused service. Yes, in the great fight against the Trump White House, some liberals decided that they would take their stand here. It was so brave (sarc.). . .

Wilkinson has no regrets telling Sanders to leave. It’s her business. She can refuse service, even if the reason is immensely stupid. As liberals continue their campaign to bully people and destroy livelihoods of people whose politics they hate, the Right has responded in kind: circle the wagons and don’t apologize. It’s the natural reaction to the Left’s boycott, demonize, and harass strategy. Is this the optimal way of living and doing business? No—but the Left forced us into this arena. Since this Red Hen fiasco, which was also an entirely avoidable, the town’s tourism has suffered. The regional governing boards recently decided to spend some of their emergency funds to improve the image of the area, which has taken a hit (via Roanoke Times):

Rockbridge Regional Tourism approved a recovery plan to boost its marketing after The Red Hen restaurant controversy brought a slew of negative national media coverage this summer.

The regional tourism board, with members from Lexington, Buena Vista and Rockbridge County, met with the Lexington City Council on Thursday for an update on tourism initiatives and numbers.

The board had initially approved the recovery plan soon after news of The Red Hen controversy was spreading across the country. At the end of June, the restaurant’s owner declined to serve presidential press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders when she visited the restaurant.

(Read more from “Red Hen Nightmare: Restaurant That Refused to Serve Sarah Sanders Is Torpedoing the Town’s Tourism Business” HERE)

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From Trump to Kobach: How the Populists and American Union Workers Are Taking Back the GOP

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American union worker support for populist-nationalist Republicans may have started with President Trump, but it’s not ending with him as many in the pundit class had predicted. . .

Not only through taking down free trade, but also anti-worker mass immigration policies, Trump garnered historic support from the country’s union workers. When Trump said the mass importation of foreign workers to take blue-collar U.S. jobs was driving down wages and crowding out working-class Americans, union workers nodded in agreement. . .

From the start of his run in 2015, there was a single Kansas elected official backing Trump’s brand of economic patriotism: Kris Kobach, who is now running to be the governor of Kansas.

Kobach had already made a name for himself among the populist-nationalist movement, taking on the business lobby and the open borders Left with his push for mandatory E-Verify, his crafting of sanctuary city bans in numerous states, and his plea to Americans that mass immigration was hurting the most vulnerable in American society during the President Obama years, the working and middle class. . .

If Trump’s election is indicative of the way to which the GOP is heading, Kobach can expect a win in his home state of Kansas. But, Kobach says, the U.S. worker-centric Republican agenda is not something that should be isolated to the White House and Topeka. (Read more from “From Trump to Kobach: How the Populists and American Union Workers Are Taking Back the GOP” HERE)

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Obama Requirement Blamed for Doctor Burnout

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The Citizens’ Council for Health Freedom charges the Obamacare requirement that doctors use electronic health records has caused a surge of burnout in the medical profession, explains Joseph Farah’s G2 Bulletin. . .

A new report in the American Journal of Medicine found that over just three years as Obamacare was being implemented, “physician burnout increased significantly, from 45.5 percent to 54.4 percent.” . . .

“The hours spent cloning notes in a mandated doctor computer relationship leaves the physician unable to experience the best part of being a doctor,” it said.

CCHF pointed out one physician, Tom Davis, “left his 25-year practice and 3,000 patients because of the ‘demands of data entry, the use of that data to direct care’ – in other words, outside control of treatment decisions.” . . .

“Fifty-four percent of physicians are affected by burnout, and the leading cause is the EHR,” Brase said. “One study found that doctors spend two hours at the computer for every hour they spend caring for patients. And a 2015 Mayo Clinic study found more than 7 percent of nearly 7,000 doctors had considered suicide in the past 12 months.” (Read more from “Obama Requirement Blamed for Doctor Burnout” HERE)

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Strange Disappearance of Wikileaks Consultant

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The internet transparency entity WikiLeaks tweeted on Sunday about Arjen Kamphuis’ “strange disappearance,” saying he has been missing since August 20, when he left his hotel in the northern Norwegian town of Bodo.

WikiLeaks said that Kamphuis, an associate of founder Julian Assange, had a ticket for a flight departing on August 22 from Trondheim, which is over 700 kilometers (435 miles) south of Bodo. . .

A website set up to gather information on the missing person says: “He is 47 years old, 1.78 meters tall and has a normal posture. He was usually dressed in black and carrying his black backpack. He is an avid hiker.” . . .

Norwegian police can’t legally access his cellphone movement data until Kamphuis is officially reported missing in the Netherlands, according to the Norwegian Verdens Gang tabloid newspaper.

The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it was aware of his disappearance after Kamphuis’ friend and privacy activist Ancilla van de Leest tweeted about his disappearance. (Read more from “Strange Disappearance of Wikileaks Consultant” HERE)

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Trump Responds to Possible 2020 John Kerry Run

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By The Hill. President Trump on Monday tweeted that he would be “so lucky” if former Secretary of State John Kerry launched a White House bid to challenge Trump in 2020.

“I see that John Kerry, the father of the now terminated Iran deal, is thinking of running for President. I should only be so lucky – although the field that is currently assembling looks really good – FOR ME!” Trump tweeted.

Kerry, the 2004 Democratic presidential nominee, did not rule out a potential 2020 White House bid during an interview on Sunday. He said on CBS’s “Face the Nation” that talking about the 2020 race is a “distraction.”

“Talking about 2020 right now is a total distraction and waste of time,” Kerry said. “What we need to do is focus on 2018. We need to win back the confidence of the country to move in a better direction and to do it in sensible ways. We are in a moment of crisis for our country. The world is in a moment of crisis.” (Read more from “Trump Responds to Possible 2020 John Kerry Run” HERE)

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Trump Slams John Kerry as ‘Father’ of Iran Deal Amid 2020 Speculation

By Fox News. President Trump slammed John Kerry on Monday, labeling the former Massachusetts senator and secretary of state the “father” of the Iran nuclear deal amid speculation that Kerry could challenge Trump in the 2020 election. . .

In January, the Israeli newspaper Maariv reported that Kerry, during a visit to the Middle East, told Palestinian officials he was considering running for president in 2020.

Trump has been critical not only of the Iran deal but also of Kerry’s role in negotiating the now-defunct agreement. The president repeatedly has called Kerry the “worst negotiator I’ve ever seen.”

Kerry also criticized former President Barack Obama in his CBS interview, arguing that Obama should have followed through on his infamous “red line” warning to Syria, and that the United States “paid a price” as a result of Obama’s inaction. (Read more from “Trump Slams John Kerry as ‘Father’ of Iran Deal Amid 2020 Speculation” HERE)

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