Newly-Retired CENTCOM General Asks Why Iran was Allowed to Get Away With Assassination Attempt on US Soil (+video)

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Photo Credit: YouTubeThe U.S. made a serious mistake by not responding more assertively to an alleged Iranian plot to kill the Saudi ambassador to the United States in a bomb attack on a popular Washington restaurant, just-retired CENTCOM commander James Mattis said Saturday.

At an October 2011 press conference Attorney General Eric Holder and FBI Director Robert Mueller announced that Iran’s government had attempted to use a Mexican drug cartel to arrange the killing of the Saudi official, Adel Al-Jubeir, while dining at Cafe Milano in Georgetown. An Iranian-American living in Texas, Manssor Arbabsiar, and Iranian al-Quds force offifical Gholam Shakuri were charged with conspiring to carry out the bombing—which the U.S. officials said was headed off with the help of an undercover Drug Enforcement Agency informant.

“When we finally caught them in the act of trying to kill Adel, we had a beleaguered attorney general, a fine man but beleaguered politically, stand up and give a legal argument that frankly I couldn’t understand,” Mattis said at the Aspen Security Forum. “We caught them in the act and yet we let them walk free.”

Without being specific, Mattis suggested Iran should have suffered some more serious consequence for being behind the alleged plot.

“Frankly, I‘m not sure why, again, they haven’t been held to account,” he said. “They have been basically not held to account….I don’t know why the attempt on Adel wasn’t dealt with more strongly.”

Read more from this story HERE.

Jesse Ventura Lawsuit vs. Murdered Navy SEAL Can Move Forward, Judge Says (+video)

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Photo Credit: Fox NewsJesse Ventura’s lawsuit against “American Sniper” author Chris Kyle — purportedly the deadliest-ever American servicemen — can proceed with the war hero’s widow as a substitute defendant, a judge has ruled.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Arthur Boylan reportedly wrote in his decision concerning Ventura’s defamation suit, “(if) a party dies and the claim is not extinguished, the court may order substitution of the proper party.”

Boylan subsequently named Taya Kyle, executor of her husband’s estate, as replacement defendant, the StarTribune of Minneapolis reports.

Ventura, whose resume includes noted turns as Minnesota governor, WWF wrestler, Navy SEAL, and Hollywood actor, sued Kyle over an unflattering anecdote the sniper slipped into his 2012 book.

Specifically, Kyle alleged that during a 2006 tete-a-tete, the duo duked it out at a California bar after Ventura badmouthed the second Iraq War, the United States, in general, as well as then-President George W. Bush.

Read more from this story HERE.

McCain Says ‘Controversial’ Stand Your Ground State Laws Need Review (+video)

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Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) on Sunday urged states to review their “stand your ground” laws amid a widening debate over the Trayvon Martin verdict and racial profiling.

About two dozen states have laws that allow individuals to act in self defense during a conflict without attempting to retreat, including Arizona. A Florida jury’s acquittal of George Zimmerman in Martin’s killing has renewed debate over those statutes.

McCain said he “trusts the judgment” of the jury that acquitted Zimmerman, but said that “stand your ground” rules need a second look.

Read more from this story HERE.

Thousands Rally to Support Police Photographer Who Leaked Alleged Bomber Photos to Media (+video)

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Photo Credit: Fox NewsThe Massachusetts State Police photographer who may lose his job after leaking photos of accused Boston bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is receiving an outpouring of support on social media, with thousands on Facebook calling for him to be reinstated.

A Facebook page called “Save Sgt. Sean Murphy” has received nearly 35,000 “likes,” with many commenting Murphy made the right decision in leaking the photos of Tsarnaev bloodied while surrendering to authorities, The Boston Herald reports.

“Sean Murphy should be commended not condemned … he and those who brought this to a conclusion should be honored and not harassed … kudos and thank you,” one user said according to the Boston Herald.

Murphy faces a hearing to determine if he will be suspended until an internal investigation is complete. He was relieved of duty for one day after he released the photos to Boston Magazine in response to a controversial image on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine.

The photos show a downcast, disheveled Tsarnaev with the red dot of a sniper’s rifle laser sight boring into his forehead. They were taken when Tsarnaev was captured April 19, bleeding and hiding in a dry-docked boat in a Watertown backyard.

Read more from this story HERE.

Krauthammer Slams Obama for “Re-Racializing” the Zimmerman Verdict with his Pathetic Press Briefing Speech (+video)

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On Fox News yesterday, Charles Krauthammer slammed Obama’s press briefing speech for having “re-racialized” the Zimmerman case.

He opined that the President’s speech was motivated by the fact that the federal government doesn’t have a case, so Obama had to do something to satisfy his extreme constituency.

Krauthammer continued:

I gave him and Holder credit all week for trying to de-racialize the issue. And what Obama did, I think, unfortunately, today, is to re-racialize it. The first statement he issued after the verdict, on Saturday, I think it was, was to talk about we have to honor what the jury decided and then he spoke about helping our communities helping our neighbors and gun control. But it wasn’t about race.

Listen to more of Krauthammer’s insightful comments here:

Man in Wheelchair Sets Off Bomb at Beijing Airport (+video)

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Photo Credit: APA man in a wheelchair set off a homemade bomb in Terminal 3 of the Beijing International Airport on Saturday evening, injuring himself but no one else, Chinese state media reported.

Order was quickly restored and no flights were affected by the explosion, state-run China Central Television said on its microblog.

The official Xinhua News Agency said a wheel-chaired Chinese man set off the device outside the arrivals exit of Terminal 3 at around 6:24 p.m. It said the man was being treated for injuries, but that no one else was injured in the explosion.


A reporter for Sky News tweeted a photo originally posted on the Chinese site Weibo that was said to capture the moment the blast happened.
Photo Credit: Mark Stone/Twitter @Stone_SkyNews
CCTV, which also reported that no one else was hurt, identified the man as Ji Zhongxing, born in 1979 and from the eastern province of Shandong.

Read more from this story HERE.

Islamic Extremists Attacking Egypt’s Christian Community Over Morsi Ouster (+video)

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Photo Credit: Fox NewsThe Muslim Brotherhood reportedly is attempting to blame Egypt’s Coptic Christian community for the recent ousting of President Mohammed Morsi and even resorting to violent tactics in an effort to gain back power.

Reports have surfaced out of Egypt that sectarian attacks against Copts by Islamic extremists are on the rise since Morsi was ousted July 3. Copts, who make up about 9% of Egypt’s population, have said they consistently have been targeted by Islamic radicals for campaigning against the Muslim Brotherhood-backed president.

“The Muslim Brotherhood’s regime caused a split in Egyptian unity on the basis of religious affiliations,” Nabil Abdel Fattah, political analyst and researcher for the Al-Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies said in a recent interview with Mid-East Christian news.

“The sectarian attacks against Copts are one of the controversial strategies pursued by Islamic extremist currents in their bid to intimidate Christians,” he added. “Whether it is out of revenge for participating in the political process or as a result of the radical ideologies these groups have, [they are] creating a stae of anarchy and insecurity across the Egyptian streets, turning current issues into a sectarian conflict to mobilize neutral citizens against their fellow countrymen.”

Nine Christians have been killed throughout the country, including one priest in the Sinai Peninsula, according a report in the Financial Times. The fatal shooting of priest Mina Aboud Sharween has led many other Coptic clergy to go into hiding.

Read more from this story HERE.

Guess Who Reportedly Accompanied Al Sharpton to NYC Rally – Then Got Jeered by Crowd?

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Photo Credit: Getty ImagesWhen the Rev. Al Sharpton and Trayvon Martin’s mother arrived at the Harlem rally for Martin today, they were accompanied by Fox News commentator Geraldo Rivera, according to National Review Online.

NRO adds that Rivera had “no cameraman and seemed to be observing the proceedings as a guest.”

Some protesters apparently spot Rivera and began to complain and shout, “Get Fox out!” and “What are you doing here?”

Read more from this story HERE.

Houston Police Investigate Claims of Eight People Held Captive in ‘Dungeon’ For Up to Ten Years – UPDATED

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Photo Credit: YouTubeBy Tom Dart. Police in Houston are investigating claims that four men have been held as long-term captives in dire conditions at a house in the city.

Officers received a call at about 8.25am local time Friday morning alleging that several men were being held against their will in a converted garage at a single-story home on Whitecastle Lane, 10 miles north of downtown.

Police arrived and found four men aged roughly from 50 to 80 living there. Three appeared to be malnourished and were taken to a local hospital. They had been at the house for varying lengths of time, with one claiming he had been kept there for about a decade. Officials are investigating whether the men are homeless invalids or military veterans who were forced to hand over their welfare money.

“All four said they had been enticed to that location with the promise of beer and cigarettes and not been allowed to leave,” a police department spokesman told the Guardian. Several women with apparent mental disabilities were also found to be living there, he added.

One man who does not live at the property was detained for questioning and has not been charged, pending further investigation, the spokesman said.

Read more from this story HERE.

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Photo Credit: Houston Police DepartmentGrandson, 31 of woman who owned Houston house where three starved and abused men were kept in ‘prison room’ for a DECADE is charged

By Jessica Jerreat. The grandson of the owner of a Houston house, where three malnourished men were discovered living in ‘deplorable’ conditions on Friday, has been charged.

Walter Jones has been charged with injury to the elderly by act, and injury to the elderly by omission.

Jones is suspected of keeping the men, including a military veteran, in a filthy garage while he claimed their disability welfare and veterans’ checks.

The alleged victims, who had to be taken from the house on stretchers because they were so malnourished, told police they had been lured to the house with the promise of cigarettes and food, according to CNN.

Once inside the house they were not allowed to leave, police spokesman Jodi Silva said. She added: ‘They were apparently given scraps to eat. Very little food was being provided to them.’ Read more from this story HERE.

Obama Takes Over White House Press Briefing to School the Nation On Trayvon Martin and Racism (+video)

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Photo Credit: globalgrind.comObama Takes Over White House Press Briefing To Speak On Trayvon Martin

By Jennifer Bendery. President Barack Obama made an unexpected appearance at Friday’s White House press briefing to talk about the outcome of the Trayvon Martin case and, more broadly, how the United States continues to grapple with racial bias.

“When Trayvon Martin was first shot, I said that this could have been my son. Another way of saying that is, Trayvon Martin could have been me 35 years ago,” Obama said.

Obama said he understands why people are so upset that George Zimmerman was found not guilty for shooting and killing Martin, an unarmed teen who was walking down the street in Sanford, Fla., in February 2012. Zimmerman, a neighborhood watchman, pursued Martin for no clear reason and ultimately shot him in what he said was self-defense. Read more from this story HERE.

Here’s a full video of Obama’s remarks:

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Obama Says that the Disproportionate Criminal Conduct of Black Young Men is an “Excuse” for Treating Them Differently

By Neil Munro. President Barack Obama took the White House podium Friday [and] acknowledged that African-American males have a higher-than-average crime rate, shortly before he dismissed the data as an “excuse” for treating black youths differently.

“Now, this isn’t to say that the African-American community is naive about the fact that African-American young men are disproportionately involved in the criminal justice system, that they are disproportionately both victims and perpetrators of violence,” he said.

He immediately suggested that Americans should ignore the data. ”The fact that a lot of African-American boys are painted with a broad brush and the excuse is given, well, there are these statistics out there that show that African-American boys are more violent — using that as an excuse to then see sons treated differently causes pain,” he said.

A November 2011 report by the Justice Department said that young African-American men comprise only 1 percent of the population, but commit 27 percent of the murders. Read more from this story HERE.

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Obama Calls For Review Of ‘Stand Your Ground’ Laws After Trayvon Martin Verdict

By Amanda Terkel. President Barack Obama is calling for a review of the controversial Stand Your Ground laws that were at the heart of the killing of Trayvon Martin.

“I think it would be useful for us to examine some state and local laws to see if it — if they are designed in such a way that they may encourage the kinds of altercations and confrontations and tragedies that we saw in the Florida case, rather than defuse potential altercations,” Obama told reporters in a surprise press conference at the White House on Friday.

Florida was the first state in the nation to pass a law that allows an individual who feels threatened to “stand his or her ground and meet force with force, including deadly force.” There are now about 30 states with such statutes. Read more from this story HERE.