Joe Biden has been making his 2016 deliberations all about his late son since August.
Aug. 1, to be exact — the day renowned Hillary Clinton-critic Maureen Dowd published a column that marked a turning point in the presidential speculation.
According to multiple sources, it was Biden himself who talked to her, painting a tragic portrait of a dying son, Beau’s face partially paralyzed, sitting his father down and trying to make him promise to run for president because “the White House should not revert to the Clintons and that the country would be better off with Biden values.”
It was no coincidence that the preliminary pieces around a prospective campaign started moving right after that column. People read Dowd and started reaching out, those around the vice president would say by way of defensive explanation. He was just answering the phone and listening.
But in truth, Biden had effectively placed an ad in The New York Times, asking them to call. (Read more from “Biden Himself Leaked Word of His Son’s Dying Wish” HERE)
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2015-10-06 23:26:532016-04-11 10:57:39Biden Himself Leaked Word of His Son’s Dying Wish
By Julia Hahn. Data from the United States Census Bureau show that languages spoken in Muslim countries are surging into U.S. households due to rapid growth in immigration from Muslim nations.
The Census Bureau’s 2014 American Community Survey (ACS) reveals that Arabic and Urdu – Pakistan’s national language– are the fastest-growing foreign languages spoken at home, according to a new report by the Center for Immigration Studies.
After five decades of large-scale immigration, a record 63.2 million U.S. residents, or more than one-in-five, speak a language other than English when at home.
Previous reports have shown that the United States is now the second largest Spanish speaking country in the world. But the new census study shows that the fastest-growing foreign languages, in percentage terms, are languages spoken by immigrants from Muslim-majority countries.
Between 2010 and 2014, there was a 29 percent increase in Arabic, a 23 percent increase in Urdu, and a 9 percent jump in Persian, which is spoken in Iran. (Read more from “Here’s the Fastest Growing Language in the U.S.” HERE)
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Record 63.2 Million Non-English Speaking Residents, Surge in Arabic, Chinese, Spanish
By Paul Bedard. More than one in five U.S. residents speak a language other than English at home, a record, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
In an analysis of the recent Census American Community Survey, a huge surge was recorded in those who speak Chinese, Spanish, Arabic and Urdu, Pakistan’s national language.
The report from the Center for Immigration Studies documented the growth of immigrants in the United States and provided evidence of concerns new immigrants are slow to assimilate into American culture, namely by speaking English at home.
According to the Center’s analysis released to Secrets Tuesday morning, in 2014, a record 63.2 million U.S. residents — native-born, legal immigrants, and illegal immigrants — spoke a language other than English at home. That represents a surge of 16.2 million since 2000 and 1.4 million just since 2013.
Overall, wrote the Center’s Steven A. Camarota and Karen Zeigler, the number of non-English speakers has doubled since 1990. (Read more from this story HERE)
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2015-10-06 23:25:102016-04-11 10:57:40Here’s the Fastest Growing Language in the U.S.
By Akin Oyedele. The trade deficit swelled to $48.3 billion in August, according to the Department of Commerce.
Economists had estimated that the trade deficit, or the excess of imports over exports, increased to $48 billion from $41.81 in the prior month. Core imports rose 2.6%, driven by consumer goods.
“In one line: Horrible; trade is set to be a significant drag on Q3 GDP growth,” wrote Pantheon Macroeconomics’ Ian Shepherdson in a client note.
Shepherdson added that exports have not yet recovered from the West Coast port disruptions earlier this year.
The goods and services deficit has increased 5.2%, or $17.6 billion year-to-date. (Read more from “Trade Deficit Balloons to $48.3 Billion” HERE)
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Deal Reached on Pacific Rim Trade Pact in Boost for Obama Economic Agenda
By David Nakamura. President Obama hailed the historic 12-nation Pacific Rim trade deal completed here Monday as an accord that “reflects America’s values,” but within hours the administration had turned from the negotiating table to selling the agreement on Capitol Hill, a reflection of the harsh political climate the controversial pact is expected to face in Congress.
Obama pledged that the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), the largest free-trade agreement in a generation, would open new markets for U.S. goods and services and establish rules of international commerce that give “our workers the fair shot at success they deserve.”
But almost immediately there were signs of the tough fight ahead to win final ratification from Congress next year. Lawmakers from both parties criticized the pact as falling short in crucial areas, raising the prospect that the White House could lose the support of allies who had backed the president’s trade push earlier this year.
“Closing a deal is an achievement for our nation only if it works for the American people and can pass Congress by meeting the high-standard objectives laid out” by lawmakers in the spring, said Sen. Orrin G. Hatch (R-Utah), chairman of the Senate Finance Committee. “While the details are still emerging, unfortunately I am afraid this deal appears to fall woefully short.”
Monday’s announcement that trade ministers had reached consensus on the deal, after five days of negotiations, started the clock on the final stages of winning approval from national legislatures. The United States, where the 2016 presidential campaign is underway, is not the only nation where political turbulence could affect completion of the deal. (Read more from this story HERE)
By Mark Hensch. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee says that “sin and evil” are to blame for the recent mass shooting in Oregon, not access to guns.
“You know, we have not so much a gun control problem as we do have a problem with sin and evil,” Huckabee told host Alisyn Camerota on CNN’s “New Day” on Monday.
“I think we always talk about what the weapon was, but whether it’s a pressure cooker or whether it’s a gun, we’re dealing with people who are either deranged or they’re very focused, because they want to kill people in the name of terrorism,” the GOP presidential candidate added.
“This is a matter of evil,” he said. “This is an evil thing, when people kill another person. It happens way too often.”
Huckabee’s remarks follow a mass shooting in Oregon last week that killed 10 people, including the alleged gunman. (Read more from “Huckabee: ‘Sin and Evil’ Caused Oregon Shooting” HERE)
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Marco Rubio Addresses Gun Control in Wake of Oregon Shooting
By Amanda Andrade-Rhoades. Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida is now among the many presidential candidates who have weighed in on what might have caused the tragic shooting at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon, which left nine students and the gunman dead.
In an interview with Today, Rubio fell in line with most of his Republican colleagues and said that gun control wouldn’t fix the issue. “For example, these were not assault rifles; these were handguns that he had purchased,” he said. “The laws that many are proposing would have done nothing to prevent these attacks.”
Rubio suggested that the U.S. consider the role of mental illness, “which we need to begin to address more seriously, as opposed to stigmatizing it or, in some cases, trying to put it aside, and that’s a societal thing that we need to confront.” (Read more from “Marco Rubio Addresses Gun Control in Wake of Oregon Shooting” HERE)
Donald Trump pranked his perpetually sweating rival Marco Rubio with a heat relief care package full of spring water and towels.
The bombastic billionaire sent his fellow Republican a 24-pack of Trump Ice Natural Spring Water — with Trump’s face emblazoned on the labels — and two “Make America Great Again” towels, aides told CNN.
“Since you’re always sweating, we thought you could use some water. Enjoy!” the Trump camp wrote in a note inside the package.
Rubio, who recently exchanged insults with Trump after the real estate mogul called him out for sweating during a debate, took the gag gift in stride . . .
The Florida senator touched on more serious issues in Tuesday interview, too. In the wake of last week’s school shooting in Oregon, Rubio advocated for better metal health services — but not stricter gun laws. When Matt Lauer asked what could have prevented gunman Chris Harper Mercer from buying 14 guns, Rubio said “His family shouldn’t have allowed him to do it.” (Read more from “This Is Why Donald Trump Sent Marco Rubio ‘Trump-Brand’ Water Bottles” HERE)
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2015-10-06 23:18:092016-04-11 10:57:40This Is Why Donald Trump Sent Marco Rubio ‘Trump-Brand’ Water Bottles
Twelve Pacific Rim countries on Monday reached the most ambitious trade pact in a generation, aiming to liberalize commerce in 40 percent of the world’s economy in a deal that faces skepticism from U.S. lawmakers.
The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) pact struck in Atlanta after marathon talks could reshape industries, change the cost of products from cheese to cancer treatments and have repercussions for drug companies and automakers.
Tired negotiators worked round the clock over the weekend to settle tough issues such as monopoly rights for new biotech drugs. New Zealand’s demand for greater access for its dairy exports was only settled at 5 a.m. EDT on Monday.
If approved, the TPP pact would cut trade barriers and set common standards for a region stretching from Vietnam to Canada. It would also furnish a legacy-shaping victory for U.S. President Barack Obama, who will further promote the agreement on Tuesday in remarks to business leaders in Washington.
The Obama administration hopes the pact will help the United States increase its influence in East Asia and help counter the rise of China, which is not one of the TPP nations. (Read more from “Historic Pacific Trade Deal Faces Skeptics in Congress” HERE)
Bill Clinton’s administration gathered enough evidence to send a top-secret communique accusing Iran of facilitating the deadly 1996 Khobar Towers terrorist bombing, but suppressed that information from the American public and some elements of U.S. intelligence for fear it would lead to an outcry for reprisal, according to documents and interviews.
Before Mr. Clinton left office, the intelligence pointing toward Iran’s involvement in the terror attack in Saudi Arabia that killed 19 U.S. servicemen and wounded hundreds was deemed both extensive and “credible,” memos show.
It included FBI interviews with a half-dozen Saudi co-conspirators who revealed they got their passports from the Iranian embassy in Damascus, reported to a top Iranian general and were trained by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard (IRGC), officials told The Washington Times.
The revelations about what the Clinton administration knew are taking on new significance with the recent capture of the accused mastermind of the 1996 attack, which has occurred in the shadows of the U.S. nuclear deal with Iran.
Ahmed al-Mughassil was arrested in August returning to Lebanon from Iran, and his apprehension has provided fresh evidence of Tehran’s and Hezbollah’s involvement in the attack and their efforts to shield him from justice for two decades, U.S. officials said. (Read more from “Bill Clinton Suppressed This Evidence of Iran’s Terrorism” HERE)
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2015-10-05 22:28:212016-04-11 10:57:41Bill Clinton Suppressed This Evidence of Iran’s Terrorism
With less than four weeks left in his decades-long congressional career, Boehner is maneuvering to shape the House Republican Conference on his way out. His goal is to leave the conference he helped build —with countless hours of grunt work and hundreds of millions of dollars in fundraising — in the strongest position possible.
He has all but officially endorsed Rep. Kevin McCarthy to succeed him, giving the majority leader enough of a nod to express confidence but short of the full-throated endorsement that could sink him. Boehner tried to lure a candidate into the majority leader race against one of his own top lieutenants, a move aimed at bolstering McCarthy’s right flank.
And on Monday, he delayed for several weeks the election of the party’s next majority leader and whip. This move gives the conference time to reconsider their internal rules, and could quash arguments that the leadership is rushing to a vote.
None of the moves are seismic, but they are meaningful. And one man in particular is feeling the brunt: Louisiana Rep. Steve Scalise, the current whip who is running for majority leader. (Read more from “Boehner Making Waves on His Way to the Exit” HERE)
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2015-10-05 22:17:462016-04-11 10:57:42Boehner Making Waves on His Way to the Exit
“I think [gun control is] the worst thing in the world that can happen,” said [Carolyn] Kellim, 86, who runs KC’s Exchange gun shop out of her home . . .
“This is hunting territory,” Kellim said, smiling proudly. Her views about guns — and who should be able to buy them — didn’t change, she said, when a gunman shot and killed nine people and wounded at least nine others at Umpqua Community College not far from her home . . .
An ex-girlfriend of a surviving victim scoffed at the idea of tightening gun laws, and Kendra Godon, an elementary education student who hid from the shooting in a nearby classroom, said she hoped her community’s tragedy wouldn’t get spun into the national debate about firearms.
John Hanlin, Douglas County’s sheriff and the public face of the community since the shooting, is also an outspoken critic of increasing gun control . . .
“Gun control is NOT the answer to preventing heinous crimes like school shootings,” Hanlin wrote in a letter posted on the Sheriff’s Office’s Facebook page. (Read more from “Oregon Sheriff Wrote, ‘Gun Control Is NOT the Answer,’ and Residents Agree” HERE)
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2015-10-05 22:15:592016-04-11 10:57:42Oregon Sheriff Writes, ‘Gun Control Is NOT the Answer,’ and Residents Agree
Baltimore’s bloody summer ended with a barrage of bangs, as the rate of homicides and gun crimes continued to spike in the wake of the racially charged case of Freddie Gray, whose death in police custody left citizens angry and cops demoralized.
For September, homicides were up 39 percent and non-fatal shootings nearly doubled over the same month in 2014, continuing a disturbing trend that has gripped the Charm City since Gray’s death in April and the rioting that followed. For the year, murders are up 52 percent and non-fatal shootings 80 percent over last year . . .
For the year, the 246 homicides recorded through Sept. 26 put Baltimore dangerously close to the record pace of 1993, when 353 people were victims of homicide. The fact that the spike occurred after April 19 bodes even worse: Before the unrest following the Gray arrest, Baltimore had recorded 65 homicides for the year. A four-decade high of 42 homicides in May was topped in July when 45 people were killed in homicides, making Baltimore the second deadliest city in America on a per capita basis, trailing only St. Louis.
Whether due to demoralized cops, emboldened criminals or some combination of the two, the city is scrambling to turn the tide. Twenty-six killings in September represented a welcome drop from the record 43 seen in May, when the city was roiled by protests and police were ordered by the mayor to stand down in the face of riots. In a statistical quirk that may have an ominous explanation, other categories of violent crime, such as rape, robbery and assault, are only up marginally since the death of Gray, a drug suspect whose death in a police van led to criminal charges against six cops.
In the wake of the riots and amid a strong perception Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and other civic leaders did not support cops, union officials openly acknowledged that their members felt abandoned. (Read more from “Bloody Baltimore: No End Seen to Post-Freddie Gray Spike in Homicides, Shootings” HERE)
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2015-10-05 22:13:502016-04-11 10:57:43Bloody Baltimore: No End Seen to Post-Freddie Gray Spike in Homicides, Shootings
