Obama Vetoes $612 Billion Defense Bill in Rebuke to GOP

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President Barack Obama vetoed a sweeping $612 billion defense policy bill Thursday in a rebuke to congressional Republicans, and insisted they send him a better version that doesn’t tie his hands on some of his top priorities.

In an unusual Oval Office ceremony, Obama praised the bill for ensuring the military stays funded and making improvements on armed forces retirement and cybersecurity. Yet he pointedly accused Republicans of resorting to “gimmicks” and prohibiting other changes needed to address modern security threats.

“Unfortunately, it falls woefully short,” Obama said. “I’m going to be sending it back to Congress, and my message to them is very simple: Let’s do this right.” (Read more from “Obama Vetoes $612 Billion Defense Bill in Rebuke to GOP” HERE)

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Oklahoma Earthquakes Are a National Security Threat?

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In the months after Sept. 11, 2001, as U.S. security officials assessed the top targets for potential terrorist attacks, the small town of Cushing, Okla., received special attention. Even though it is home to fewer than 10,000 people, Cushing is the largest commercial oil storage hub in North America, second only in size to the U.S. government’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve. The small town’s giant tanks, some big enough to fit a Boeing 747 jet inside, were filled with around 10 million barrels of crude at the time, an obvious target for someone looking to disrupt America’s economy and energy supply.

The FBI, state and local law enforcement and emergency officials, and the energy companies that own the tanks formed a group called the Safety Alliance of Cushing. Soon, guards took up posts along the perimeter of storage facilities and newly installed cameras kept constant surveillance. References to the giant tanks and pipelines were removed from the Cushing Chamber of Commerce website. In 2004, the Safety Alliance simulated a series of emergencies: an explosion, a fire, a hostage situation.

After the shale boom added millions of additional barrels to Cushing, its tanks swelled to a peak hoard of more than 60 million barrels this spring. That’s about as much petroleum as the U.S. uses in three days, and it’s more than six times the quantity that triggered security concerns after Sept. 11. The Safety Alliance has remained vigilant, even staging tornado simulations after a few close calls . . .

This is all part of the disturbing rise in earthquakes in Oklahoma, which has corresponded to increased fracking activity and oil production in the state. Since 2008, Oklahoma has gone from averaging fewer than two earthquakes per year that measure at least 3.0 in magnitude to surpassing California as the most seismically active state in the continental U.S. This year, Oklahoma is on pace to endure close to 1,000 earthquakes. Scientists at the National Earthquake Information Center in Colorado recently published a paper (PDF) raising concerns that the welter of moderate-sized earthquakes around Cushing could increase the risk of larger quakes in the future. (Read more from “Oklahoma Earthquakes Are a National Security Threat” HERE)

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Paul Ryan Has Revealed His Decision on Speaker Run

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It’s official. Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., is seeking to be the House Speaker–but he wants the infighting to stop.

Ryan made his announcement late Thursday in a letter to members of the House Republican Conference. Ryan told Republican colleagues that he is “ready and eager” to serve and pledged that if he could unify the party in the House, he “would go all in.”

“After talking with so many of you, and hearing your words of encouragement, I believe we are ready to move forward as a one united team,” Ryan wrote.

Moving together as a team has been an issue for GOP congressional members. Conservatives often clashed with former House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., was expected to take over leadership after Boehner left office at the end of the month, but suddenly withdraw his name.

Ryan made it clear in his letter that America has a lot of problems, and he expects Republicans to be unified in finding solutions.

“I know you’re are willing to work hard and get it done, and I think this moment is ripe for real reform,” Ryan wrote, adding that all Republican members generally believe in the same principles. (Read more from “Paul Ryan Has Revealed His Decision on Speaker Run” HERE)

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You’ll Never Guess What Organization Is More Popular Than Obama and Clinton – It Will Definitely Surprise You

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A new poll shows The National Rifle Association is more popular than the Democratic party’s two most prominent members, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.

According to the Gallup Poll, 58 percent of Americans surveyed said they have a favorable view of the gun rights group, while 35 percent said they have an unfavorable view . . .

“Gallup’s survey shows that, even after shootings nationwide, Americans overall still have a favorable opinion of the NRA, as they typically have, suggesting that the public may not be specifically blaming the organization for the crimes of those who commit mass shootings.”

According to a Gallup Poll between Oct.19-21, just under 50 percent approve of Obama’s job performance, while 45 percent disapprove. Meanwhile, in a NBC/Wall Street Journal survey of Americans taken Oct. 15-18, 39 percent of those surveyed had a favorable view of Clinton, compared to 48 percent with an unfavorable view. (Read more from “You’ll Never Guess What Organization Is More Popular Than Obama and Clinton – It Will Definitely Surprise You” HERE)

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DEA Agents Received Thousands of Dollars in Bonuses While Under Investigation for ‘Prostitute Sex Parties’ Scandal

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U.S. agents who allegedly had ‘sex parties’ with prostitutes hired by Colombian drug cartels were rewarded with bonuses of up to $32,000 dollars, according to a new report.

Half of the Drug Enforcement Administration agents who were investigated in connection with hiring prostitutes while overseas still received their bonuses, an expose by the Department of Justice revealed.

A regional director who failed to report that his staff were throwing the ‘prostitute sex parties received a bonus of nearly $68,600 in May 2013.

DEA policy prevents employees from receiving bonuses for three years following discipline actions for ‘significant misconduct’ or while an investigation is ongoing . . .

‘Today’s Inspector General report raises serious concerns about the disciplinary process at the Drug Enforcement Administration,’ [Bob] Goodlatte said. ‘Not only did the agents involved in sexual misconduct outlined in a previous report escape appropriate punishment, the majority of them received bonuses or other work perks.’ (Read more from “DEA Agents Received Thousands of Dollars in Bonuses While Under Investigation for ‘Prostitute Sex Parties’ Scandal” HERE)

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Senate Overrides Christie’s Veto of Gun Control Bill

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The New Jersey Senate voted on Thursday to override Gov. Chris Christie’s veto of a gun control bill, the first time state lawmakers had mustered enough votes in more than 50 attempts at undoing one of his vetoes.

An override, which still must pass the State Assembly, would dilute one of the claims Mr. Christie has repeatedly made while campaigning for the Republican presidential nomination — that he has managed without fail to hold his party together in the State House. Democrats control both branches of the Legislature, but they need help from Republicans to override one of Mr. Christie’s vetoes.

The governor said in a debate with other Republicans running for president that he had “vetoed 400 bills from a crazy liberal Democratic Legislature” and pointed with pride to the failure of every challenge. But his string of successes at thwarting lawmakers came to an end on Thursday when three Republican sponsors of the bill joined the Democrats in voting to override.

“It’s presidential politics,” said the Senate president, Stephen M. Sweeney, a Democrat from Gloucester County who is considered a probable candidate for governor in 2017. “The only person that objected to this bill was the governor.”

Mr. Sweeney said he believed Mr. Christie was playing to conservative voters in states with early primaries by refusing to put his name to a law that could be cited as a restriction of the right to bear arms. But the bill was really about mental health, not gun ownership, the senator said. (Read more from “Senate Overrides Christie’s Veto of Gun Control Bill” HERE)

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Joe Says No: Biden Won’t Run, a Boost for Clinton

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After months of tortured indecision, Vice President Joe Biden said Wednesday he won’t be a candidate in the 2016 White House campaign, solidifying Hillary Rodham Clinton’s status as the Democratic front-runner and the party’s likely heir to President Barack Obama’s legacy.

Standing under bright sun in the White House Rose Garden, Biden spoke movingly about mourning the recent death of his son, Beau, a process he said does not match the political calendar. While he said his family was emotionally prepared to undertake a grueling presidential campaign, they arrived at that decision too late for him to mount a credible bid for a job that has long been the north star of his political ambitions . . .

Biden’s decision puts to rest the uncertainty hanging over the Democratic primary. The race now will likely settle into a two-person contest between Clinton and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who has energized the party’s liberal base but lacks Clinton’s campaign infrastructure and support from party leaders. (Read more from “Joe Says No: Biden Won’t Run, a Boost for Clinton” HERE)

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Ben Carson: Hillary Will Lose Because She’ll Be in Jail

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Republican presidential candidate Dr. Ben Carson said Representative Rep. Paul Ryan is running for speaker “the right way,” “I’m not sure that there’s anything useful to be gained” by criticizing former President George W. Bush for 9/11, and Democratic presidential candidate former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton “could well be in jail” in an interview with Fox News Radio’s John Gibson released on Wednesday, that, according to Gibson’s site, took place before Vice President Joe Biden’s announcement that he was not running for president, which was made around 12:15 pm EDT on Wednesday.

Carson stated of Ryan, “I think he’s doing — he’s going about it the right way. He said I don’t want to do it if I can’t get the support, you know, of all the factions. That’s leadership, and that’s good. So, you know, I’m very encouraged to see that” . . .

Regarding the feud between fellow candidates Donald Trump and former Florida Governor Jeb Bush over 9/11, Carson said that he doesn’t believe Trump is blaming George W. Bush for 9/11, and that the topic wasn’t important.

When asked if Jeb Bush was right to say his brother kept the US safe, Carson responded, “There is no question that George W. Bush was laser focused on keeping us safe, and I think he did a very good job of it, no question about that. But, you know, at the same time, I would have loved to have seen more emphasis on the budget, not allowing it to get completely out of control” . . .

Carson was also asked to predict who will be the Democratic nominee, to which he said Joe Biden will win because, “Hillary could well be in jail, and it’s hard to run from there.” Carson added that, “I think she may not be actually in jail, but I think the controversy swirling around that will have an extremely damaging effect.” (Read more from “Hillary Will Lose Because She’ll be in Jail” HERE)

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Three Politicians Call out Clinton Camp for Falsely Claiming They’re Endorsing Hillary

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Three African-American politicians have come forward to dispute the Hillary Clinton campaign’s claim that they have endorsed the Democratic front-runner for president.

One of those is Wilmington, Del. mayor Dennis Williams. He was included on a list released on Tuesday of 50 current and former black mayors that the Clinton campaign claims is backing the former secretary of state.

But in an embarrassing turn, Williams tweeted out that not only has he not endorsed Clinton, he plans to back Vice President Joe Biden, should he decide to enter the presidential field.

That flub came a day after the release of a list of 90 national and local officials from Texas that the campaign claimed has endorsed Clinton.

Except the list included San Antonio mayor Ivy Taylor and Bexar County Commissioner Tommy Calvert, both of whom are African-American and both of whom have not issued endorsements. (Read more from “Three Politicians Call out Clinton Camp for Falsely Claiming They’re Endorsing Hillary” HERE)

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Here We Go: The Freedom Caucus’ Decision on Paul Ryan

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Lo and behold, here’s that potential compromise scenario I imagined. [Paul] Ryan didn’t get the 80 percent of the Freedom Caucus needed for a formal endorsement, but he did get a heavy majority of them. Is that good enough to get him to run? And is it good enough for grassroots conservatives that the group won’t be endorsing him — even though most of its individual members will? . . .

The caucus releases a statement as close to an endorsement as a non-endorsement can be:

“A supermajority of the House Freedom Caucus has voted to support Paul Ryan’s bid to become the next Speaker of the House. Paul is a policy entrepreneur who has developed conservative reforms dealing with a wide variety of subjects, and he has promised to be an ideas-focused Speaker who will advance limited government principles and devolve power to the membership. While no consensus exists among members of the House Freedom Caucus regarding Chairman Ryan’s preconditions for serving, we believe that these issues can be resolved within our Conference in due time. We all know that Washington needs to change the way it does business, and we look forward to working with Paul and all our colleagues to enact process reforms that empower individual representatives and restore respect to our institution.”

I take it this is their way of calling Ryan’s bluff, as best they can, that he won’t serve without a formal endorsement. Is he really going to turn down the Speakership because the FC would “only” provide him with a supermajority? (Read more from “Here We Go: The Freedom Caucus’ Decision on Paul Ryan” HERE)

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