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Trump Breaks NATO: Leaders Pledge ‘Unwavering Commitment’ to Boost Defense Spending

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By The Daily Wire. Leaders of member nations that belong to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) pledged their “unwavering commitment” to increasing their defense funding of the organization after President Donald Trump slammed the group for treating the United States unfairly.

The commitment from European leaders came after Trump publicly embarrassed NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg during a meeting early on Wednesday morning. . .

“So, we’re protecting Germany, we’re protecting France, we’re protecting all of these countries,” Trump said. “And then numerous of the countries go out and make a pipeline deal with Russia where they’re paying billions of dollars into the coffers of Russia. So, we are supposed to protect you against Russia.”

“You tell me if that is appropriate.” Trump continued. “This has been going on for decades. This has been brought up by other presidents, but other presidents never did anything about it.” (Read more from “Trump Breaks NATO: Leaders Pledge ‘Unwavering Commitment’ to Boost Defense Spending” HERE)

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NATO Pledges to Boost Defense Spending After Stern Words From Trump

By Fox News. . .The U.S. and European allies signed a declaration stating they are “committed to improving the balance of sharing the costs and responsibilities of alliance membership.”

The declaration comes after confrontational and testy discussions between Trump and other NATO leaders.

Since the election, Trump has criticized NATO countries for not paying their fair share, while suggesting he would only come to the defense of NATO nations that fulfilled their financial obligation.

Trump also has pressed NATO countries to fulfill their goal of spending 2 percent of their gross domestic products on defense by 2024. NATO estimates that 15 members, or just over half, will meet that benchmark based on current trends. . .

Via Twitter, he called for members to meet the 2 percent commitment immediately. And in a statement Wednesday, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said Trump, at the summit, “suggested that countries not only meet their commitment of 2 percent of their GDP on defense spending, but that they increase it to 4 percent. Trump wants to see our allies share more of the burden and at a very minimum meet their already stated obligations.” (Read more from “NATO Pledges to Boost Defense Spending After Stern Words From Trump” HERE)

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Mueller Reveals Tenuous Link Between Manafort Charges and Trump

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It’s often been observed that special counsel Robert Mueller, assigned to investigate alleged Trump-Russia collusion in the 2016 presidential campaign, has yet to charge anyone with a crime involving Trump-Russia collusion in the 2016 presidential campaign.

The biggest of Mueller’s indictments, that of one-time Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort, has no connection at all to collusion. And until a few days ago, it appeared to have no connection to Donald Trump, either.

Now, though, Mueller has revealed why he believes the Manafort prosecution is related to the 2016 Trump campaign. It’s a small part, a very small part, of the overall charges against Manafort. And it has nothing to do with any actions by the candidate — now the president — himself.

Mueller’s revelation came in an argument he is having with the Manafort defense over what subjects can and cannot be discussed in front of jurors in Manafort’s upcoming trial. (Manafort is charged in both Virginia and the District of Columbia with various counts of bank fraud, tax evasion and failure to register as a representative of foreign interests; the Virginia trial is scheduled to begin later this month.)

Manafort doesn’t want the jurors to hear about any theories of collusion between Trump and Russia. Beyond that, Manafort doesn’t even want the jurors to hear about his connection with Donald Trump. Given the degree of anti-Trump feeling in the heavily Democratic District of Columbia and in northern Virginia — the Manafort filing dryly notes that jurors are “likely to have strong views about President Trump” — that’s an understandable feeling. (Read more from “Mueller Reveals Tenuous Link Between Manafort Charges and Trump” HERE)

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‘Children’ at Border Included Murderers, Rapists

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Official government incident reports obtained by Judicial Watch after three years of delay provide a clearer profile of the “unaccompanied alien children” who flooded the U.S. border during the Obama administration and continue to arrive, documenting that among them were admitted murderers, rapists, drug smugglers, prostitutes and human traffickers. . .

Significantly, he said, the incident reports “also support the Trump administration’s contention that the UAC crisis, which continues, includes murderers, rapists, drug smugglers and human traffickers being routinely allowed into the United States.”

Trump – who has faced fierce criticism for enforcing a policy in effect under Presidents Bush and Obama requiring that children of parents being prosecuted for illegal entry be temporarily put in the custody of HHS – has argued gangs such as MS-13 have “exploited the loopholes in our laws to enter the country as unaccompanied alien minors.”

Judicial Watch began investigating the matter in 2014 when a wave of “unaccompanied alien children,” or UACs, overwhelmed the government’s capacity at the southwest border. The documents from the Health and Human Services Department’s Administration for Children and Families were submitted to the Office of Refugee Resettlement from May to November 2014.

Judicial Watch filed a Freedom of Information Act request Nov. 12, 2014, but only now has received the documents. (Read more from “‘Children’ at Border Included Murderers, Rapists” HERE)

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U.S. Embassy in London Alerts Americans of Possible Violence During Trump Visit

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By The Blaze. . .Widespread protests are being planned across Britain to take place while the US president is in the country. In an effort to prepare and warn Americans ahead of the demonstrations, the US Embassy is encouraging its citizens to take extra precautions.

With tens of thousands of Brits signed up to take part in the protests of President Trump’s policies, the embassy further warned that “several of the events are expected to attract large crowds and there will be road closures in connection with these events.” . . .

It’s all about “the resistance.” Environmentalist groups, trade unions, refugee advocates and other interest groups are teaming up to try and make the president’s visit as uncomfortable as possible. . .

Shabbir Lakha, organizer for Together Against Trump — a coalition representing several groups — said, “We want to show our opposition to Donald Trump and everything that he represents.”

News editor Gordon Robertson of The Daily Record said, “We have a great respect for the office of the president and affection for American presidents, but not the incumbent.” Robertson called President Trump “a threat to international stability,” and added that “he has a tenuous relationship with the truth. We want to let him know that we don’t appreciate what he stands for.” (Read more from “U.S. Embassy in London Alerts Americans of Possible Violence During Trump Visit” HERE)

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President Donald Trump Talks of UK ‘Turmoil’ Ahead of Visit

By BBC. The UK is in “turmoil” and “it is up to the people” whether Theresa May stays as prime minister, Donald Trump has said ahead of his first visit to the country as US President.

Mr Trump told reporters before leaving Washington there were “a lot of things going on” in the UK at the moment.

He said he got on well with Mrs May and had “always liked” Boris Johnson, who quit as foreign secretary on Monday.

Mr Trump arrives on Thursday after attending the Nato summit.

The US President is set to arrive in the UK on the same day as the government publishes its White Paper setting out in more detail Mrs May’s controversial offer to the EU on future relations after Brexit. (Read more from “President Donald Trump Talks of UK ‘Turmoil’ Ahead of Visit” HERE)

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Trump’s Supreme Court Pick Sends Three Messages

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In picking Brett Kavanaugh for the U.S. Supreme Court, President Trump sent three messages.

1) Contrary to his pledge during the presidential debates, appointing judges that will overturn Roe v. Wade is not a top priority for President Trump — or at least not right now. Kavanaugh could very well pleasantly surprise us and be such a vote. Provided the pro-life movement puts a credible challenge to Roe before the Court, which it hasn’t done since Casey a quarter century ago. However, it’s guess-work either way. Amy Barrett, on the other hand, was a moral certitude to be such a vote (which is why the base wanted her). Kavanaugh, like his predecessor Anthony Kennedy (whom Kavanaugh used to clerk for) is a risk appointment for conservatives. Not necessarily a risk to be another Kennedy, as much as a risk to not turn out to be the game-changing upgrade we were hoping for. Think more John Roberts than Antonin Scalia.

2) President Trump is not interested in a prolonged ideological battle with Democrats, like Barrett would’ve ignited for months. Trump is much more comfortable with political guerrilla warfare. Like riffing at his rallies to fawning crowds, or condemning low-lying fruit like NFL kneelers and media hacktavists most of America already loathes. But here, for the first time in his presidency, he was presented the chance to truly go to war with the Left on something that really matters and determines the future, and there’s no way to spin it. He punted. Even in an election year when energizing his base, while triggering the alt-Left to public insanity, would’ve clearly helped him — he punted. Remember this missed opportunity later, should Democrats capture the House this fall and mire the president in impeachment next year.

3) The opinions of the conservative legal community, which loves Kavanaugh, matter greatly to Trump. While that’s inarguably better than anything that would’ve come from a President Hillary or any other Democrat, it also means you’re less likely to get choices that will push back on bad precedents like Roe, Kelo, etc. once on the High Court. Because this is pretty much what we see from these folks on the federal bench, too. They’re usually pretty good against new bad stuff, no threat at all against the old bad stuff. Kavanaugh is the consummate beltway legal beagle insider. He’s pretty much the same kind of pick you would’ve gotten from a Jeb Bush or any other conventional Republican had they won the presidency. He’s Team GOP, not MAGA.

Though conservative fundraising groups will send out their hosanna emails claiming otherwise, which they would’ve done had the president nominated a yellow dog, and Democrat groups will claim he’s a modern-day Moses come to re-impose Leviticus, this is all just political theater that will now be ignored out here in the cheap seats.

This is not a pick that will inspire the base to do anything other than yawn, and return to their summer. In 48 hours, he’ll largely be forgotten by most voters until his formal confirmation process begins.

It does Trump no harm, but not much good, either. Since Kavanaugh is likely to give the typical canned answers we’ve come to expect from GOP judicial nominees at confirmation hearings, he won’t have a chance to do anything that potentially pleases Trump’s base until after the midterm elections are over. Which he very well may do, but he won’t be doing it in time to alter the trajectory of the 2018 elections.

This is a political single that drives in a run, but it could’ve been a walk-off homer.

(For more from “Trump’s Supreme Court Pick Sends Three Messages” please click HERE)

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Dem Congressman Brags About Getting Free Food in Restaurants Due to His Immigration Stance

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By Townhall. Rep. Ted Lieu (D-CA) had a unique take Monday in light of Trump administration officials facing harassment from protestors in restaurants and other public places over President Trump’s immigration policies. Lieu bragged on Twitter that he actually gets free food at restaurants, attributing it to his immigration stance.

There has been a debate recently about the civility of heckling Trump administration officials in public after protestors disrupted Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen’s dinner and White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders was asked to leave a restaurant in Lexington, Virginia because she worked for Trump. (Read more from “Dem Congressman Brags About Getting Free Food in Restaurants Due to His Immigration Stance” HERE)

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WAPO Columnist Accuses Trump of ‘Fomenting Violence’ Against Journalists

By The Daily Caller. Washington Post columnist Jennifer Rubin accused President Donald Trump of “fomenting violence” against journalists.

Rubin, a staunch critic of Trump’s, linked the Republican’s past comments about reporters to a shooting in a Maryland newsroom on Thursday that left five journalists dead. That despite evidence suggesting the shooting suspect, Jarrod Warren Ramos, had a long-standing feud with the Capital Gazette over an unfavorable article published about him in 2011.

“We haven’t talked very much about what happened in Annapolis,” Rubin said during a panel discussion on “Real Time with Bill Maher” Friday.

Before Ramos was identified, liberals and some journalists widely speculated the shooter was motivated by Trump’s past comments about journalists. (Read more from “WAPO Columnist Accuses Trump of ‘Fomenting Violence’ Against Journalists” HERE)

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President Trump Announces His Historic Nomination for the Supreme Court

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By The Blaze. President Donald Trump announced Monday evening that he would be nominating Bret Kavanaugh for the Supreme Court, likely changing the character of the highest court for generations to come. . .

Brett Kavanaugh is 53 years old, worked in the solicitor general’s office in the George HW Bush administration, and was a clerk for Justice Anthony Kennedy. He also worked under Kenneth Starr and helped draft the impeachment against former President Bill Clinton. . .

Kavanaugh currently sits on the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, and was appointed to that court by President George W. Bush in 2006. The nomination was approved by a vote of 57-36. . .

Trump had promised to choose Supreme Court nominations from a list comprised with the guidance of the Heritage Foundation and the Federalist Society, both conservative think tanks.

Democrats have already indicated that they would oppose any nomination by the president. Critics have pointed to what they saw as unfair tactics by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) in stalling on former President Obama’s nomination, Merrick Garland, until after the election.

(Read more from “President Trump Announces His Historic Nomination for the Supreme Court” HERE)

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Trump Taps Federal Appeals Court Judge Brett Kavanaugh for Supreme Court

By NBC News. President Donald Trump on Monday nominated Brett Kavanaugh, a federal appeals court judge in Washington, to succeed Justice Anthony Kennedy on the Supreme Court.

Trump made the announcement shortly after 9 p.m. ET at the White House, where he was joined by Kavanaugh and his family. NBC News broke the story shortly before the president made his choice public.

“What matters is not a judge’s personal views, but whether they can set aside those views to do what the law and the Constitution require,” Trump said in the prime-time announcement from the East Room. “I am pleased to say I have found, without doubt, such a person.”

“It is my my honor to announce that I will nominate that I will nominate Justice Brett Kavanaugh to the United States Supreme Court,” Trump added.

Kavanaugh then emerged, along with his wife, Ashley, and two young daughters. (Read more from “Trump Taps Federal Appeals Court Judge Brett Kavanaugh for Supreme Court” HERE)

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Democrats’ ‘Resist’ Strategy Against President Trump Is Backfiring

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Democrats’ “Resist” strategy against President Trump is backfiring. Polling data shows the extreme statements and policies used by Democrats are boomeranging back on them. Polls on fake news, immigration, and the Senate vote to fill the vacancy on the U.S. Supreme Court show that the public strongly supports President Trump.

If the current trend continues, the blue wave will end up as a ripple and will deliver a devastating blow to the Left’s hopes of turning Congress to Democrat control.

The Left went all out to slam President Trump’s zero-tolerance policy at the U.S.-Mexico border. Democrat politicians, the left-wing media, far-left activists, and Hollywood elites went wild. They fired their full arsenal to exploit the emotion surrounding children separated from their parents after illegally crossing the border.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said the separation of children from their parents was “barbaric” and added “… this is not who America is …”. Senator Kamala Harris, D-Calif., called for Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen to resign; actor Alan Alda asked if it was proper for the U.S. “to use emotional torture for border control” in a tweet; and MSNBC host Rachel Maddow cried on her show discussing the issue. Just in case the public missed Maddow’s tears live, the Washington Post wrote a story about her emotional reaction to guarantee national news coverage.

However, the Left’s hope to take political leverage over child separation at the southern border failed, according to a recent Harvard/Harris poll conducted on June 24 and 25.

The poll found that 70 percent of registered voters want stricter enforcement of immigration laws, 66 percent think illegal aliens who cross the border should be sent home, and 61 percent think illegal alien parents who cross the border with children should be sent home.

While 61 percent blamed the Trump administration for separating children from their parents, 71 percent strongly backed President Trump’s decision to issue the executive order to keep children together with their parents after illegally crossing the border.

Democrat and left-wing activists’ calls to abolish Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) were soundly rejected; 68 percent do not want ICE disbanded.

Upping the emotional amplitude on childhood separations resulted in the public harassment of members of the Trump administration risking further alienation of the public from the Democrat Party. White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Homeland Security Secretary Nielsen were harassed in two separate instances in restaurants by left-wing activists.

The extremism from the Left is getting so out of hand that Democrat leaders made an effort to douse the flames before they result in voter backlash or, even worse, violence. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Pelosi criticized Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., over her comments urging public harassment of Trump administration officials.

The Democrat leaders’ effort to sway Waters failed, and she doubled down on her call for using aggressive tactics. Waters’ pushback against Democrat leaders is getting backup. About 200 black women and allies wrote a letter to Schumer and Pelosi supporting Waters.

The left-wing media’s effort to use its power and influence to harm President Trump is destroying news outlets’ credibility. According to a poll conducted by Axios/SurveyMonkey, 72 percent of adults in the U.S. think “traditional major news sources report news they know to be fake, false, or purposely misleading.” So almost three-quarters of adults believe the media is driven by politics, not the truth.

A breakdown of the results by political identification found a significant percent of Independents (79 percent) believe the media twists the facts and a majority of Democrats (53 percent) felt the same way.

Democrats’ messaging on the Supreme Court vacancy also shows that the public is growing tired of the “resist President Trump” strategy. Senator Schumer wants the Senate vote on the new Supreme Court nominee to come after the midterm elections, adding it would be the “height of hypocrisy” to hold a vote before the November elections. Schumer used the decision by Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell not to vote on former President Obama’s Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland before the 2016 election as the basis of his criticism.

Public opinion is not on Schumer’s side. A recent NBC News/SurveyMonkey poll found that 62 percent of U.S. adults believe President Trump’s Supreme Court pick should be voted on before November.

The public is rejecting the “resist President Trump” strategy, casting serious doubt on the hope of a blue wave this fall. (For more from the author of “Democrats’ ‘Resist’ Strategy Against President Trump Is Backfiring” please click HERE)

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Watch: College Students Say They Despise Trump’s SCOTUS Nominee, but Here’s What They Don’t Realize

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By The Blaze. One of the most contentious political issues over the next several months will be President Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee and the fight for Republicans to confirm that person before the midterm elections this November.

College Reform’s Cabot Phillips recently asked students at New York University about Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, where the students offered up strong opinions — despite the fact that Trump has yet to announce who it is. . .

[Watch the opinions below

When asked what qualities the students believe shape a quality Supreme Court justice, students offered qualities such as “black,” “woman,” and “liberal.” They said the justice should not be a “swing-vote,” a reference to Anthony Kennedy, the court’s retiring justice.

The students also said Trump should listen to the American people when deciding who to nominate. When Phillips countered with the fact that former President Barack Obama nominated two liberal justices to the court and didn’t listen to conservative voices then, the students were unable to defend their suggestions.

Trump is slated to formally announce his nominee for the Supreme Court on Monday, July 9. His shortlist has reportedly been narrowed down to three justices: Amy Barrett, Brett Kavanaugh, and Raymond Kethledge. (Read more from “Watch: College Students Say They Despise Trump’s SCOTUS Nominee, but Here’s What They Don’t Realize” HERE)

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Two Nominees Are Now Trump’s Greatest Focus for Top Court, NBC News Says

By CNBC. None of the four contenders being considered as President Donald Trump’s nominee for the Supreme Court has been excluded, but the greatest focus has fallen on two candidates: Brett Kavanaugh and Thomas Hardiman, a source with first-hand knowledge of the process told NBC News.

Kavanaugh sits on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. Hardiman is a judge on the 3rd Circuit of Appeals.

The other two front-runners are Amy Coney Barrett Barrett of the 7th Circuit of Appeals and Raymond Kethledge of the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals.

CNBC reported last week that Trump privately indicated to a small group that he had settled on a nominee to succeed Justice Anthony Kennedy on the Supreme Court, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter. (Read more from “Two Nominees Are Now Trump’s Greatest Focus for Top Court, NBC News Says” HERE)

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Here’s How President Trump Is Getting Back at a Democrat Senator Over His VA Nomination

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By The Blaze. President Donald Trump praised Republican Matt Rosendale and attacked Senator Jon Tester (D-Mont.) at a rally Thursday that many see as revenge for the Democrat ending a nomination by the president. . .

Trump’s raucous rally in Great Falls, Montana, gave a boost to the Rosendale campaign against the incumbency of the Democrat. . .

Trump accused Tester of saying one thing in Montana and doing the other in Washington D.C., and criticized him for voting against ending Obamacare and the GOP tax cut.

“Jon Tester voted no on legislation to stop late-term abortions,” Trump said to loud booing. “You wouldn’t think it would play very well out here. How did he get elected? I mean I know a lot of people from Montana, you have to explain that one to me – how did he get elected?” . . .

Tester was pivotal in the failed nomination of Ronny Jackson by the president to head the Department of Veterans Affairs. The senator released information that severely damaged the reputation of Jackson as he was being considered for the job.

(Read more from “Here’s How President Trump Is Getting Back at a Democrat Senator Over His VA Nomination” HERE)

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Sen. Jon Tester Takes out Newspaper Ads Welcoming Trump to Montana Ahead of a Hostile Visit

By The Washington Post. Girding for a hostile visit to his state from President Trump, Democratic Sen. Jon Tester took out full-page newspaper ads Thursday welcoming the commander in chief to Montana and thanking him for signing 16 bills that Tester had pushed. . .

The president has trained his sights on Tester, in particular, saying he would “have a big price to pay” for his role in sinking Trump’s nomination of Ronny L. Jackson to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs in April.

In his role as the ranking Democrat on the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, Tester released a list of allegations that created a portrait of a long history of professional misconduct by Jackson. Those included claims that Jackson had a “pattern” of distributing medication with no patient history and that he crashed a government vehicle while intoxicated after a Secret Service going-away party. (Read more from “Sen. Jon Tester Takes out Newspaper Ads Welcoming Trump to Montana Ahead of a Hostile Visit” HERE)

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