Family Research Council: ‘We are Losing a Moral Standard in the Military’

/3 Comments/in , /by

Family Research Council President Tony Perkins said former CIA Director David Petraeus’ recent resignation due to an extramarital affair “has opened the Pandora’s Box” for the Obama administration when it comes to standards of morality in the military.

“I think we should be very concerned about what’s happening in the military. General Petraeus isn’t the only one. We’ve seen other general officers that are currently either under investigation or have been disciplined for similar behavior, and I think we should be concerned when we are losing a moral standard in the military,” Perkins told CNSNews.com.

Perkins said immoral behavior in the military can damage military effectiveness, which is why military personnel can be prosecuted for having affairs.

His comments came in a recent interview CNSNews.com, in response to the question: “Do you see this issue as something that [Defense Secretary] Leon Panetta is going to have to deal with in the next four years?”

Perkins responded: “Unfortunately, I think this administration has opened the Pandora’s Box as it pertains to standards of morality in the military. They have pushed open homosexuality, it’s going to be hard to differentiate between different types of sexual behavior, and so it’s almost ‘anything goes’ in the military.”

Read more from this story HERE.

AAA Says Certain Ethanol Fuel Can Damage Cars, Asks EPA to Remove From Pumps

/4 Comments/in , , /by

The recently approved use of E15 fuel made from blending gasoline and ethanol could damage vehicles and void warranties says the American Automobile Association (AAA), which is urging the federal government to ban it from the market.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved the fuel earlier this summer, but AAA says only five percent of vehicles on the road are approved by the manufacturers to use the special blend they say causes significant problems such as accelerated engine wear and failure, fuel-system damage and false “check engine” warning lights.

The auto club conducted a recent survey it says identifies confusion among consumers as to which vehicles can use the fuel — 95 percent of those surveyed had never heard of E15, which contains 15 percent ethanol.

“It is clear that millions of Americans are unfamiliar with E15, which means there is a strong possibility that many motorists may improperly fill up using this gasoline and damage their vehicle,” said Robert Darbelnet, AAA president. “Bringing E15 to the market without adequate safeguards does not responsibly meet the needs of consumers.”

Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.), former chairman of the House Science Committee, said the findings confirm concerns on Capitol Hill that the fuel can damage cars.

Read more from this story HERE.

Sen. Reid’s Website Scrubbed of 2005 Comments Opposing Filibuster Reform

/8 Comments/in , /by

photo credit: brian finifter

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) announced earlier this month that he may take the unusual step of using a simple majority vote to limit filibusters. Yes, Sen. Reid may take steps to limit filibusters, the one recourse parties in the minority have to hold up legislation they oppose.

“Minority parties in the Senate use filibusters — parliamentary delays — to slow or kill legislation. They can only be ended by 60 votes — a margin neither party can achieve without some cooperation from the other side,” the Associated Press notes.

Democrats accuse Republicans of abusing filibusters while Republicans say they have no choice because Reid blocks them from presenting amendments. The Nevada senator, in turn, says Republicans use too much time pushing amendments that “make political statements or that are designed to derail bills,” the AP notes.

“Reid’s plan would forbid the use of filibusters when a bill is initially being brought to the Senate floor for debate and require filibustering senators to actually be on the Senate floor, a long-abandoned practice,” the report adds.

Huh. That’s funny. You know, as Buzzfeed’s Andrew Kaczynski reminds us, there was a time (2005, to be specific) when Sen. Reid totally loved the filibuster and defended it from attempts to reform it:

Read more from this story HERE.

Debt Talks Could Redefine US Senate Races

/1 Comment/in , /by

photo credit: donkeyhotey

Republican senators could find themselves with primary challenges in 2014 depending on how they handle the debt talks, a conservative group is threatening.

“The fiscal cliff negotiations and debt ceiling negotiations are going to define the primaries a lot better afterwards,” Club for Growth President Chris Chocola told The Hill.

The deep-pocketed, fiscally conservative group has been the biggest outside player in GOP primaries in recent years. They were a major factor in helping Sen.-elect Ted Cruz (R-Texas) win his primary, and gave Indiana Secretary of State Richard Mourdock (R) a big boost in his victory over Sen. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.).

Chocola emphasized that he has “no idea” who the Club will target next year, and said much depends “on what happens with the fiscal cliff and debt ceiling” as well as previous votes.

“If Republicans vote for something that raises taxes, doesn’t do any entitlement reform or spending cuts, does nothing to actually address our fiscal challenges every one of them is going to have a problem and we’re the least of their problems, they’ll have primaries everywhere,” he warned. “This is an important test for all Republicans: Whether they go along and accomplish nothing or stand up and try to solve our problems.”

Read more from this story HERE.

Eligibility Challenge Returns to Haunt Florida

/6 Comments/in , /by

A lawsuit challenging Barack Obama’s presence on the 2012 presidential election ballot because of questions over his constitutional eligibility that was thrown out by a judge who earlier determined it wasn’t timely has returned to haunt election officials in the state with a request that the Obama victory results be quashed.

“Defendant Barack Hussein Obama is a direct threat to the safety and security of the United States, and its Constitution, which plaintiff must protect and defend by oath,” according to the complaint, which was delivered to Secretary of State Ken Detzner today.

The case earlier this year was dismissed by Circuit Judge Terry Lewis, who said Obama’s eligibility could not be challenged at that time because under Florida election law, technically, Obama hadn’t been nominated to the position.

As WND reported, Michael Voeltz, who identifies himself as “a registered member of the Democratic Party, voter and taxpayer in Broward County,” had challenged Obama’s eligibility, arguing that the “natural born citizen” clause was rightly understood in historical context to mean a child not only born in the U.S., but born to two American-citizen parents, so as not to have divided loyalties. Obama, however, readily admits to being born a dual citizen because of his father’s British citizenship.

In his decision then, Lewis noted that the United States Supreme Court has concluded that “every person born in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, becomes at once a citizen of the United States.”

Read more from this story HERE.

GOP Activists Target Priebus, Party Split On Re-Election Bid

/9 Comments/in , /by

photo credit: gage skidmore

A postelection civil war is brewing among Republicans, with some conservative activists angry over the party’s poor performance this cycle gunning for party Chairman Reince Priebus and planning demonstrations at the Republican National Committee’s annual winter meeting in Charlotte, N.C.

The protesting activists adamantly oppose the re-election of Mr. Priebus to a second two-year term and say they have a suitcase full of gripes about him. Some are blaming Mr. Priebus and other top party officials for the misspending of GOP donors’ money in President Obama’s clear victory over GOP nominee Mitt Romney Nov. 6 and also for the Republicans’ badly outclassed get-out-the-vote efforts.

“Republicans want a change. They have had it with Priebus,” said Mike Karem, a Kentucky GOP strategist who has been involved in Republican presidential campaigns since Richard Nixon’s 1972 re-election victory. “We lost the presidency; we lost House seats, Senate seats; we picked up only one governor; and we had 3 million fewer Republicans turn out for Romney and other Republican candidates than turned out in 2008.”

“If [Mr. Priebus] worked for you, would you keep him based on his record?” Mr. Karem added. “The answer is, ‘Hell, no!’”

Mr. Priebus, a former Wisconsin GOP chairman who won strong early reviews after taking over a dispirited and financially troubled RNC in 2011, is not without a strong base of support. Most of the RNC’s 168 voting members have pledged to support him for a second two-year term. He also has the support of SenateGOP leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker John A. Boehner and is preparing a counterattack against his detractors for as early as Friday, a Republican close to the chairman’s office said privately.

Read more from this story HERE.

West Point Chapel Hosting First Homosexual Marriage

/13 Comments/in , /by

The first same-sex marriage at the U.S. Military Academy’s Cadet Chapel at West Point will be celebrated Saturday as Brenda Sue Fulton and Penelope Dara Gnesin exchange vows.

The ceremony comes a little more than a year after President Obama ended the military policy banning openly gay people from serving.

Fulton, a veteran and the communications director of an organization called Outserve — which represents actively serving gay, lesbian and bisexual military personnel — confirmed in an e-mail to USA TODAY Friday night: “We will be the first same sex couple to wed at the Cadet Chapel at West Point.”

The wedding will be the second gay marriage West Point has hosted. The first was a small, private ceremony last weekend between two of Fulton’s friends in a smaller venue on the campus.

In September 2011, the Pentagon issued guidance stating that “determinations regarding the use of DOD real property and facilities for private functions, including religious and other ceremonies, should be made on a sexual-orientation neutral basis, provided such use is not prohibited by applicable state and local laws.”

Read more from this story HERE.

Former GM Engineer, Husband Convicted of Stealing Trade Secrets for Possible Use in China

/0 Comments/in , /by

DETROIT (AP) — A former General Motors engineer with access to the automaker’s hybrid technology was convicted Friday along with her husband of stealing trade secrets for possible use in China.

Shanshan Du won a transfer within GM in 2003 to be closer to the technology and then copied documents until she accepted a severance offer and left the company in 2005, prosecutors said.

Du, 54, and Yu Qin, 51, were found guilty Friday by a federal jury in Detroit after a trial that lasted weeks. Qin also was convicted of wire fraud and attempting to obstruct justice by shredding documents. They shook each other’s hand after the verdict but declined to comment, as did their attorneys.

Du faces up to 10 years in prison, while her husband faces up to 30. No sentencing date has been set.

Prosecutors told jurors that GM trade secrets were found on at least seven computers owned by the Oakland County couple. The government doesn’t believe the information ever made it to China, although Qin had set up his own company, Millennium Technology International, and claimed to have made contact with GM competitors overseas.

Read more from this story HERE.

Lock Your Doors & Load Your Guns: Calif. City Attorney Tells Residents to Be Self-Reliant Following Cuts to Police Force (+video)

/21 Comments/in , /by

The bankrupt city of San Bernardino, Calif. is so cash-strapped it has been forced to slash public safety budgets just to stay afloat. That includes downsizing the police force.

During a city council meeting this week, Jim Penman, the city Attorney of San Bernardino, told residents to “lock your doors and load your guns” because they will need to start protecting themselves due to the diminishing number of cops on the streets, CBS Los Angeles reports. It is the perfect example of why self-reliance is so important — because when the government can’t protect you anymore, you have be able to protect yourself and your family.

Penman has been criticized by some for his brutally honest statement but he is standing by it.

“You should say what you mean and mean what you say,” he said.

The comments came after about 150 concerned residents attended a city council meeting to express their concerns about a number of recent crimes in the area, including the murder of an elderly woman last week.

Read more from this story HERE.

US Government Releases Once-Secret Watergate Files

/1 Comment/in , /by

WASHINGTON (AP) — Watergate Judge John J. Sirica aided the prosecution in pursuing the White House connection to the Democratic headquarters break-in by providing the special prosecutor information from a probation report in which one of the burglars said he was acting under orders from top Nixon administration officials, according to once-secret documents released Friday by the National Archives.

One newly public transcript of an in-chambers meeting between Sirica, the U.S. District Court judge in charge of the case, and then-Special Prosecutor Archibald Cox in July 1973 shows the judge revealed secret probation reports indicating that E. Howard Hunt had cited orders from officials high up in the Nixon administration. Several of Hunt’s co-defendants had previously denied any White House involvement in court testimony, and Sirica told Cox and other prosecutors that he felt the new information “seemed to me significant.”

The government released more than 850 pages from the Watergate political scandal, providing new insights on privileged legal conversations and prison evaluations of several of the burglars in the case. A federal judge had decided earlier this month to unseal some material, but other records still remain off limits.

The files do not appear to provide any significant new revelations in the 40-year-old case that led to the resignation of President Richard Nixon and criminal prosecutions of many of his top White House and political aides. But the files provide useful context for historians, revealing behind-the-scenes deliberations by Sirica, the U.S. District Court judge in charge of the case, along with prosecutors and defense lawyers.

The documents stem from the prosecution of five defendants arrested during the June 1972 Watergate break-in and two men, Hunt and G. Gordon Liddy, who were charged as the burglary team’s supervisors. All seven men were convicted.

Read more from this story HERE.