Montana Lawmaker Introduces License Plate Reader Ban That Could Have Nationwide Effect

/0 Comments/in , /by

Following a recent string of reports suggesting law enforcement officers have used license plate scanners to track and monitor drivers without cause or warrant, state lawmakers in Montana have decided they’re having none of it.

State Rep. Daniel Zolnikov, a Republican, introduced legislation Jan. 28 “prohibiting the use of a license plate scanner by the state or a local government.” His bill was approved Feb. 13 by the Montana House Judiciary Committee in an 11-10 vote, though still has a long way through the state legislature before it becomes law.

“The purpose of this legislation is to severely limit Montana’s consideration of purchasing and implementing these devices. We have a very short period of time before the state likely starts implementing license plate scanners and starts sharing it with the Department of Justice,” Zolnikov said.

The bill does make certain exceptions, however: Scanners could still be used in parking regulation enforcement, and the Montana Department of Transportation would be allowed to use the scanners at designated virtual ports of entry, weigh station ramps that use screening systems and virtual weigh stations that use motion technology.

But the information collected under these exceptions would remain anonymous, restricting the state from identifying the vehicle, the vehicle owner, the driver of the vehicle or any passengers in the vehicle. (Read more about the law the Montana Lawmaker introduced HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

Get Ready for $10 Oil

/3 Comments/in , /by

At about $50 a barrel, crude oil prices are down by more than half from their June 2014 peak of $107. They may fall more, perhaps even as low as $10 to $20. Here’s why.

U.S. economic growth has averaged 2.3 percent a year since the recovery started in mid-2009. That’s about half the rate you might expect in a rebound from the deepest recession since the 1930s. Meanwhile, growth in China is slowing, is minimal in the euro zone and is negative in Japan. Throw in the large increase in U.S. vehicle gas mileage and other conservation measures and it’s clear why global oil demand is weak and might even decline.

At the same time, output is climbing, thanks in large part to increased U.S. production from hydraulic fracking and horizontal drilling. U.S. output rose by 15 percent in the 12 months through November from a year earlier, based on the latest data, while imports declined 4 percent.

Something else figures in the mix: The eroding power of the OPEC cartel. Like all cartels, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries is designed to ensure stable and above-market crude prices. But those high prices encourage cheating, as cartel members exceed their quotas. For the cartel to function, its leader — in this case, Saudi Arabia — must accommodate the cheaters by cutting its own output to keep prices from falling. But the Saudis have seen their past cutbacks result in market-share losses.

So the Saudis, backed by other Persian Gulf oil producers with sizable financial resources — Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates — embarked on a game of chicken with the cheaters. On Nov. 27, OPEC said that it wouldn’t cut output, sending oil prices off a cliff. The Saudis figure they can withstand low prices for longer than their financially weaker competitors, who will have to cut production first as pumping becomes uneconomical. (Read more about $10 oil HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

Phil Robertson to Receive Free-Speech Award at CPAC for his Outspoken Statements on Homosexuality

/1 Comment/in , /by

Fourteen months after he sparked a major controversy for making remarks widely perceived as anti-gay, Duck Dynasty star Phil Robertson has been named the recipient of a free-speech award from Citizens United, an organization routinely disparaged by Hollywood liberals.

Robertson will receive the “Andrew Breitbart Defender of the First Amendment Award” at this year’s Conservative Political Action Conference, which is better known as CPAC and is one of the biggest annual events for prominent movers and shakers on the right . . .

“Even when the entire mainstream media demanded he disavow his beliefs and attempted to have him fired from his own hit show for expressing these beliefs, he stood firm in his faith,” Citizens United president David Bossie said.

Bossie’s group is most famous for Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, where the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that blocking the airing of the group’s documentary film Hillary: The Movie was a violation of free speech. The FEC had argued, unsuccessfully, that the movie should adhere to laws governing political advertising, given that it was a critical look at Hillary Clinton scheduled for release when she was seeking the Democratic nomination for U.S. president. (Read more about the free-speech award HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

Scott Walker Attends Private Dinner With Ex-Reagan Advisers in New York

/1 Comment/in , /by

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker is scheduled to attend a private dinner Wednesday with longtime advocates of supply-side economics.

The gathering, set for the upscale “21” Club in Manhattan, is the latest effort by the potential Republican presidential contender to bolster his relationships with the GOP’s anti-tax wing. It also reflects the interest business-friendly conservatives have in his possible candidacy, in spite of the recent ascent of former Florida governor Jeb Bush.

Economists Larry Kudlow, Arthur Laffer, and Stephen Moore will host Walker, according to several people with knowledge of the event.

For decades, that trio of friends — all associated with President Ronald Reagan’s economic policies — have been high-profile proponents of using tax cuts to boost economic growth.

Laffer is best known for authoring the “Laffer curve,” an argument for increasing federal revenue by lowering taxes. Moore, a former Wall Street Journal editorial writer and founder of the Club for Growth, now works at the Heritage Foundation. Kudlow, a fixture on cable television, was one of Reagan’s advisers on fiscal and economic matters. (Read more about the dinner with the ex-Reagan advisers HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

Ted Cruz: Obama Admin. “Counterfeiting Immigration Documents” [+video]

/3 Comments/in , /by

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, believes that the Obama administration is “counterfeiting immigration documents” under the president’s immigration plan.

Speaking to Fox News following a federal judge’s decision to temporarily halt President Barack Obama’s executive action on immigration, the potential Republican presidential contender said the commander in chief is ignoring federal law.

“One of the things it points out is the president has claimed, rather absurdly, that the basis of his authority is ‘prosecutorial discretion.’ That he’s simply choosing not to prosecute 4.5 million people here illegally,” Cruz told Fox News. “But what the district court concluded, quite rightly, is they’re doing far more than that. The administration is printing work authorizations. It is affirmatively acting in contravention of federal law. Basically, what its doing is counterfeiting immigration documents, because the work authorizations its printing are directly contrary to the text of federal law. It is dangerous when the president ignores federal law” . . .

“It’s interesting, (Obama) said the law is on his side. There’s at least one person who calls himself a legal scholar who disagrees, and his name is Barack Obama,” Cruz said. “Twenty-two times President Obama has admitted he doesn’t have the authority to issue unilateral amnesty. Twenty-two times he says the constitution doesn’t allow it. He said, ‘This is not a monarchy.’ That’s his quote. And then after the last election, he said never mind and issued it anyway.” (Read more from this story about the Obama Admin. Counterfeiting Immigration Documents HERE)

Department of Homeland Security Suspends Rollout of Obama’s Immigration Actions

/2 Comments/in , /by

By Fox News. The Department of Homeland Security is suspending the rollout of President Obama’s immigration actions, after a federal judge issued an order blocking them.

DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson told Brett Beir on “Special Report” Tuesday that he strongly disagrees with the judge’s ruling and says it will be appealed promptly.

“The executive actions that we are moving forward with are on hold for the time being but this ruling will definitely be appealed and I believe it will be overturned.”

A DHS agency had been set to start accepting applications on Wednesday for the first phase of the plan — an expanded program shielding young immigrants who came to the U.S. illegally from deportation. Johnson said that is now suspended.

Johnson said DHS also will suspend its plans for implementing the broader portion of Obama’s immigration overhaul, which was set to launch in May — a program to give a deportation reprieve to potentially millions of illegal immigrant parents of legal residents. (Read more from “Department of Homeland Security Suspends Obama’s Amnesty” HERE)

________________________________________________________

Obama Vows to Fight Immigration Ruling

By Andrew Beatty. US President Barack Obama claimed history and the law were on his side Tuesday, as he vowed to fight a court order freezing controversial immigration reforms.

Obama had used an executive order to bypass a hostile Congress and drive through measures to protect about four million undocumented foreigners from deportation.

But a judge in Texas issued an emergency injunction before the measures were to come into effect starting Wednesday.

Obama was defiant: “I think that the law is on our side and history is on our side, we are going to appeal it.”

“This is not the first time a lower court judge has blocked something or attempted to block something that ultimately was shown to be lawful.” (Read more from this story HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

‘Mother F****** Never Happy!’ Former Top Obama Adviser Reveals a Different Side of Obama

/10 Comments/in , /by

Photo Credit: Business Insider By Colin Campbell. President Barack Obama stunned David Axelrod, one of Obama’s top campaign advisers, during the 2012 election when the president allegedly cussed at him and walked out of their debate-prep session. Axelrod told the story in his new book, “Believer: My Forty Years in Politics.”

Axelrod wrote that he attempted to offer some constructive criticism before Obama’s first debate with Republican nominee Mitt Romney, but Obama wouldn’t have it.

“Mother—–r’s never happy,” Obama said, according to Axelrod, before bolting out of the room. (Read more about what the Obama adviser said HERE)

___________________________________________________

Axelrod’s Book Angering the Clintons, too

By Amie Parnes. David Axelrod, the former top strategist to President Obama, has been annoying Hillary Clinton allies with his rash of recent comments about the would-be presidential candidate and her potential campaign.

The staunch Clinton supporters feel as though Axelrod, who is promoting his new book Believer: My Forty Years in Politics, has taken unnecessary aim at Clinton and her team.

“It’s not helpful, and it’s definitely not appreciated,” said one Clinton ally. “The last thing we need is another round of headlines about lingering tension, and this is doing exactly that.

“When he speaks, it gets picked up, and people listen,” the ally added.

Another supporter added: “I think a lot of us are scratching our heads. Why is any of that necessary?” A third added, “She’s been a great team player, she’s been very supportive of the president and she hasn’t gotten in front of him on a lot of issues so what’s he trying to do?” (Read more from “Top Obama Adviser Angers Clintons” HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

Apparent Jihadist Stabs Two in Detroit for NOT being Muslim; Church Burned, Spray Painted with “Allahu Akbar” in Florida

/4 Comments/in , /by

By Abby Ohlheiser. A Detroit man stabbed two people at a suburban bus stop after asking his victims whether or not they were Muslim, according to police. Federal authorities are now looking at the case as a potential hate crime, police said on Tuesday.

Both of the victims were standing at the bus stop outside of Detroit with the suspect on Saturday, Southfield Police Chief Eric Hawkins said. Several people there “engaged in conversation” until the suspect, identified by Hawkins as 39-year-old Terrence Lavaron Thomas, “asked some of the folks there if they were Muslims.”

Two of them answered, the chief told The Post on Tuesday: They were not Muslims.

“[Thomas] was not not happy with that answer,” Hawkins said. Shortly after, “without provocation,” Thomas pulled out a 3-inch folding knife “and attacked one of them,” Hawkins said.

Both victims are in their early 50′s. One was stabbed five times in the attack. The other was stabbed in the hand as he tried to stop the attack, Hawkins said. Both were released from the hospital with “non-life threatening injuries.” (Read more from “Apparent Jihadist Stabs Two” HERE)

___________________________________________________________

Florida Church Set on Fire, Words “Allahu Akbar” Spray Painted on

By Daniel Dahm. A possible hate crime is under investigation after a fire was set at a Central Florida church, where vandals also spray-painted “Allahu Akbar.”The incident happened around 3 a.m. Monday at the New Shiloh Christian Church in Melbourne on Sarno Road. About 1,500 members attend the church.

Melbourne police said officers and firefighters discovered the blaze after a fire alarm sounded. Arson was the expected cause, police said.

Fire sprinklers helped contain the flames to a storage unit connected to the 125,000-square-foot building.

The words “Allahu Akbar” were spray-painted on the storage unit. “Allahu Akbar” is an Arabic phrase typically translated as “God is great” and is a common expression used in various contexts. (Read more from this story HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

Eric Holder: DOJ Still Conducting Ferguson Probes, Civil Rights “Investigation” to be Completed Soon

/1 Comment/in , /by

Attorney General Eric Holder said Tuesday he will announce results of the Justice Department’s civil rights investigation of the shooting death of Michael Brown, as well as a broader probe of the Ferguson Police Department, before he leaves office in the coming weeks.

Speaking at the National Press Club, Holder said he was briefed last week on the separate investigations.

Holder said he is “confident” that decisions on both will be ready before Loretta Lynch, who has been nominated to replace him by President Barack Obama, is confirmed by the Senate.

Michael Brown, 18, was shot to death by Ferguson police Officer Darren Wilson on Aug. 9. A St. Louis County grand jury decided to not indict Wilson. The Justice Department launched separate investigations of the shooting and the “patterns and practices” of the police department.

The nomination of Lynch, a U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York, has been largely noncontroversial, although Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., announced last week that he would vote against her to protest the Obama administration’s judicial policies. A Senate vote to confirm Lynch could come by early next month, if not sooner. (Read more on what Eric Holder said about the Ferguson probes HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

Dems in Check: Ruling Clears Way for GOP to Defund Illegal Amnesty

/2 Comments/in , /by

Late Monday night, U.S. District Judge Andrew Hansen issued a preliminary injunction on every aspect of Obama’s November 20, 2014 executive amnesty pending the outcome of the lawsuit brought by 26 states against the Department of Homeland Security. This ruling makes the decision of Senate Democrats to filibuster a clean funding bill – one that funds all lawful aspects of the department – even more indefensible. Republicans should now go for the kill.

The ruling itself was not on the underlying merits of the case, rather on the need to grant temporary relief in the likelihood that the states win the case. As Judge Hansen noted, by not granting an injunction, states would “suffer irreparable harm” because “once these services are provided, there will be no effective way of putting the toothpaste back in the tube should Plaintiffs ultimately prevail on the merits.”

However, in addition to the injunction, there are two noteworthy points in this 123-page decision. First, Hansen clearly believes states have standing and sufficient grievances to sue the federal government over executive amnesty, unlike previous judges who have held that state grievances are “speculative.” Second, it’s quite obvious Hansen believes the states will indeed prevail on the merits.

Before granting the injunction, Judge Hansen launches into an extended deconstruction of all the arguments made by the administration and makes it clear they have no authority to pass their own statutes. (Read more about the attempt to defend illegal amnesty HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.