Posts

Congressman: FBI Is Engaging in Purge of ‘Conservative Employees’

/0 Comments/in , /by

After recent FBI raids on conservative figures, including the former President of the United States, speculation has grown that the agency is in bed with Democrats.

Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) is alleging that the FBI is engaging in the “purge” of Republican employees who hold conservative viewpoints.

In the past several weeks, they’ve raided the home of a former president, taking the phone of a sitting member of Congress, and we saw what they did to the pastor and his family and seven children: 20 agents, guns drawn, going to his house, when the local officials said there was no crime whatsoever,” Jordan said, criticizing the FBI.

According to Jordan, more than a dozen FBI whistleblowers have conceded to him and Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee that the agency is going on a firing spree of those who don’t align with a far-left narrative.

Jordan and several other Republicans have launched an investigation into the “serious allegations of abuse and misconduct within the senior leadership of the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.” (Read more from “Congressman: FBI Is Engaging in Purge of ‘Conservative Employees'” HERE)

Photo credit: Gage Skidmore via Flickr

Delete Facebook, Delete Twitter, Follow Restoring Liberty and Joe Miller at gab HERE.

Trump Doesn’t Need to Prove Claims Evidence Was Planted, Judge Rules

/0 Comments/in , /by

Former President Donald Trump does not have to submit a declaration on whether the Justice Department planted evidence at Mar-a-Lago before his legal team reviews the stash, a judge ruled in a victory for his legal team.

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon overruled the special master she appointed, who sought a sworn document from Trump’s legal team on whether the DOJ planted evidence. She also pushed back key deadlines for the third-party special master review of material seized.

“There shall be no separate requirement on Plaintiff at this stage, prior to the review of any of the Seized Materials, to lodge ex ante final objections to the accuracy of Defendant’s Inventory, its descriptions, or its contents. The Court’s Appointment Order did not contemplate that obligation,” Cannon wrote.

In her ruling, she took note of Trump’s lawyers’ concerns that their “current inability to access the Seized Materials” would hinder them from corroborating the DOJ’s inventory of Mar-a-Lago records. (Read more from “Trump Doesn’t Need to Prove Claims Evidence Was Planted, Judge Rules” HERE)

Photo credit: Gage Skidmore via Flickr

Delete Facebook, Delete Twitter, Follow Restoring Liberty and Joe Miller at gab HERE.

If the Feds Go After a Pro-Lifer Who Shoved a Bully, They’ll Go After Anyone

/0 Comments/in , /by

On Sept. 23, Pennsylvania pro-life activist Mark Houck was arrested on federal criminal charges. The details of the alleged crime and the arrest itself remain disputed, but we know enough to make a couple of observations about our nation and the current political climate.

Houck was arrested in connection with an alleged assault on a volunteer at a Philadelphia abortion facility. Unsurprisingly, the accounts differ as to what occurred. The Department of Justice issued a press release stating that Houck twice assaulted the alleged victim because he was a volunteer at an abortion facility. . .

Already we have a federalism problem here. Perhaps we have become too quick to accept the existence of an elaborate regime of federal criminal law. But as we know from the Tenth Amendment, the federal government has only the limited powers enumerated in the Constitution, with any remaining powers being reserved to the states or the people. From this comes the accepted principle in our federalist republic that states have the general police power. Federal criminal statutes and prosecutions must be limited to cases where the Constitution grants enumerated powers, such as interstate activity or crimes involving foreign agents and national security.

In this case, what we have is a very uneventful assault, where one man pushed another man. Hardly the stuff of a federal crime. An assault is a run-of-the-mill crime, and it is up to states to criminalize and prosecute such routine offenses. It is only when the assault occurs in a discriminatory way — in this case, because the alleged victim works at an abortion facility — that the feds claim jurisdiction. It remains questionable whether access to abortion facilities and assaults that occur on these properties should be within the jurisdiction of federal criminal authorities at all, but that goes beyond the scope of this essay.

A recent article on the incident explains that the Justice Department relies on the section of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act that “prohibits violent, threatening, damaging, and obstructive conduct intended to injure, intimidate, or interfere with the right to seek, obtain or provide reproductive health services.” (Read more from “If the Feds Go After a Pro-Lifer Who Shoved a Bully, They’ll Go After Anyone” HERE)

Delete Facebook, Delete Twitter, Follow Restoring Liberty and Joe Miller at gab HERE.

30 Ex-FBI Agents Stand Up to Support Whistleblower Who Exposed Agency’s Political Bias

/0 Comments/in , /by

Thirty former FBI agents, including a retired deputy assistant director, head of counterterrorism and five SWAT team members, have spoken out publicly in support of suspended FBI whistleblower Stephen Friend.

Their heartfelt messages, obtained exclusively by The Post, show a deep and widespread anguish about the politicization of the FBI.

“It’s time to stop the FBI from being the enforcer of a political party’s ideology,” says Ernie Tibaldi, a retired agent from San Francisco. “We need to reestablish the FBI as the apolitical and independent law enforcement entity that it always was.”

He expressed gratitude to Friend “for having the courage to stand up to the corruption that has taken over the leadership of the FBI.”

Many former agents hailed Friend, a SWAT team member in Florida, as a “hero,” after he was punished for refusing to participate in what he regarded as unnecessarily heavy-handed SWAT raids over Jan. 6 misdemeanors. (Read more from “30 Ex-FBI Agents Stand Up to Support Whistleblower Who Exposed Agency’s Political Bias” HERE)

Delete Facebook, Delete Twitter, Follow Restoring Liberty and Joe Miller at gab HERE.

Pro-Life Activist Pleads Not Guilty; Lawmakers Demand Merrick Garland Explain Alleged FBI SWAT Raid on Catholic Pro-life Activist Mark Houck

/0 Comments/in , , /by

By Washington Times. A Pennsylvania anti-abortion activist arrested at his home pleaded not guilty Tuesday to federal charges stemming from an altercation at an abortion clinic, a case fueling Republican claims that the Biden administration is targeting its political foes.

Mark Houck, president of the Catholic nonprofit The King’s Men, entered the plea in Philadelphia federal court on two counts of violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances [FACE] Act for allegedly pushing a volunteer patient escort last year outside a Planned Parenthood facility in Philadelphia.

Republicans and pro-life groups have decried the arrest, accusing the FBI of going overboard by descending on Mr. Houck at his home with his wife and seven children present, even though his attorneys say he previously offered to turn himself in voluntarily and that local authorities dropped the case.

Sen. Josh Hawley, Missouri Republican, fired off a letter Monday to Attorney General Merrick Garland saying that if “the shocking reports about the FBI arresting a man Friday in rural Pennsylvania are true, then you have a lot to answer for.”

“Not only did your office turn a local dispute into a national case, but the FBI reportedly executed the search warrant in as extreme a manner as one can imagine,” said Mr. Hawley. “Reports state that the FBI sent as many as 20 to 25 agents to conduct the arrest. And the FBI allegedly arrested Houck at gunpoint early in the morning in front of his seven children.” (Read more from “Pro-Life Activist Pleads Not Guilty Amid Rising GOP Outrage Over FBI Raid on Home” HERE)

_________________________________________________

Lawmakers Demand Merrick Garland Explain Alleged FBI SWAT Raid on Catholic Pro-life Activist Mark Houck

By Breitbart. As many as 22 lawmakers have called upon Attorney General Merrick Garland to provide an explanation as to why the FBI allegedly sent 25-30 fully-armed agents to arrest Catholic pro-life activist Mark Houck as his “screaming” children watched in horror.

Released Tuesday, the open letter spearheaded by Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) said that the FBI should have an “extraordinary reason” for arresting Houck the way they allegedly did. The letter said:

There is much to learn about the extent of the FBI’s operations in this case, apparently since state-level charges were apparently dismissed by local authorities in Philadelphia. Surely, the FBI must have an extraordinary reason for showing up at the home of an American family, allegedly with roughly 25 heavily armed federal agents, and arresting a father in front of his seven children.

“At the moment, it appears to be an extraordinary overreach for political ends,” the letter added.

The letter demanded that Merrick Garland respond by September 30. (Read more from “Lawmakers Demand Merrick Garland Explain Alleged FBI SWAT Raid on Catholic Pro-life Activist Mark Houck” HERE)

Delete Facebook, Delete Twitter, Follow Restoring Liberty and Joe Miller at gab HERE.

Report: FBI Raided Catholic Activist Even After He Agreed to Surrender Peacefully (VIDEO)

/0 Comments/in , , /by

By Breitbart. The FBI reportedly sent 25-30 armed agents to apprehend pro-life Catholic activist Mark Houck at his rural Pennsylvania home in the early morning last week even after he had agreed to surrender peacefully.

According to attorney Peter Breen, Thomas More Society Vice President and Senior Counsel, Houck agreed to turn himself over to authorities voluntarily three months ago.

“Rather than accepting Mark Houck’s offer to appear voluntarily, the Biden Department of Justice chose to make an unnecessary show of potentially deadly force, sending twenty heavily armed federal agents to the Houck residence at dawn this past Friday,” Breen told Breitbart News. “In threatening form, after nearly breaking down the family’s front door, at least five agents pointed guns at Mark’s head and arrested him in front of his wife and seven young children, who were terrified that their husband and father would be shot dead before their eyes.”

“This case is being brought solely to intimidate people of faith and pro-life Americans,” he added. “Mark Houck is innocent of these lawless charges, and we intend to prove that in court.”

Mark Houck, the founder and president of The King’s Men — a group dedicated to helping men become better husbands, fathers, and leaders — was arrested at his rural Pennsylvania home last Friday for allegedly violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act during his regular sidewalk counseling outside of an abortion clinic in 2021. Speaking with LifeSiteNews, Houck’s wife, Ryan-Marie, said that around 25 to 30 fully armored FBI agents stormed their property early Friday morning, aiming their rifles as the children screamed in horror.

(Read more from “Report: FBI Raided Catholic Activist Mark Houck Even After He Agreed to Surrender Peacefully” HERE)

_________________________________________________

Biden’s Position on Abortion Is So Extreme, the White House Won’t Even Say It Out Loud

By The Federalist. The vast majority of Americans support restricting abortion but Democrats, including those running the Biden administration, are unwilling to support any protections for unborn life.

That became especially apparent on Friday when the White House, after being repeatedly pressed by Fox News, refused to answer whether President Joe Biden supported limits on abortion.

The White House isn’t just dodging questions about abortion restrictions in private, it’s also refusing to answer them in public.

When Fox News White House Correspondent Peter Doocy asked White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre a similar question during a press briefing that same day, she evaded it with a long-winded regurgitation of the Biden administration’s disdain for pro-life Republicans.

“Republicans are saying ‘we don’t want abortion after 15 weeks.’ Why can’t you say how many weeks?” Doocy asked again.

(Read more from “Biden’s Position on Abortion Is So Extreme, the White House Won’t Even Say It Out Loud” HERE)

Delete Facebook, Delete Twitter, Follow Restoring Liberty and Joe Miller at gab HERE.

The FBI Lied to a Judge So They Could Bust Open Thousands of Safety Deposit Boxes

/0 Comments/in , , /by

It looks like the FBI is in for yet another scandal.

According to a new report from the LA Times, FBI agents busted into thousands of safety deposit boxes in California. After they rummaged through the private property of innocent people, it turns out they lied to a federal judge to get access to the boxes in the first place.

“The privacy invasion was vast when FBI agents drilled and pried their way into 1,400 safe-deposit boxes at the U.S. Private Vaults store in Beverly Hills. They rummaged through personal belongings of a jazz saxophone player, an interior designer, a retired doctor, a flooring contractor, two Century City lawyers and hundreds of others,” the LA Times reports. “Agents took photos and videos of pay stubs, password lists, credit cards, a prenuptial agreement, immigration and vaccination records, bank statements, heirlooms and a will, court records show. In one box, agents found cremated human remains.”

“Eighteen months later, newly unsealed court documents show that the FBI and U.S. attorney’s office in Los Angeles got their warrant for that raid by misleading the judge who approved it,” the report continues. “They omitted from their warrant request a central part of the FBI’s plan: Permanent confiscation of everything inside every box containing at least $5,000 in cash or goods, a senior FBI agent recently testified.”

(Read more from “The FBI Lied to a Judge So They Could Bust Open Thousands of Safety Deposit Boxes” HERE)

Photo credit: Flickr

Delete Facebook, Delete Twitter, Follow Restoring Liberty and Joe Miller at gab HERE.

A Catholic, Pro-Life Speaker Was Raided by the FBI as His Kids Watched in Horror

/0 Comments/in , , /by

A Catholic pro-life speaker was raided by the FBI for an alleged “FACE Act” violations while his seven kids watched in terror.

According to the warrant, Mark Houck was charged with violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act (FACE), due to a claimed “attack of a patient escort.” . . .

His wife Ryan-Marie, told LifeSiteNews that a SWAT team of about 25 to 30 FBI agents in 15 vehicles swarmed their house at 7 a.m., surrounding the property with armed rifles.

“They started pounding on the door and yelling for us to open it,” Houck’s wife said, adding that her husband was trying to calm down their children before opening the door.

“Please, I’m going to open the door, but, please, my children are in the home. I have seven babies in the house.’ But they just kept pounding and screaming,” Ryan-Marie explained, adding “they had big, huge rifles pointed at Mark and pointed at me and kind of pointed throughout the house.” (Read more from “A Catholic, Pro-Life Speaker Was Raided by the FBI as His Kids Watched in Horror” HERE)

Delete Facebook, Delete Twitter, Follow Restoring Liberty and Joe Miller at gab HERE.

‘Final’ Answer: Special Master Gives Trump Last Chance to Dispute FBI Inventory

/0 Comments/in , /by

The special master reviewing paperwork seized from former President Donald Trump’s Florida home on Thursday gave Trump a “final opportunity” to dispute an inventory of records taken by the FBI.

Judge Raymond Dearie said that Trump has until Sept. 30 to clarify his claims that documents may have been planted.

Dearie is the semi-retired “senior” Brooklyn federal court judge reviewing whether the government has a right to various records taken by the FBI in an Aug. 8 raid on his Mar-a-Lago resort.

Dearie wrote that the deadline will be Trump’s “final opportunity to raise any factual dispute as to the completeness and accuracy of the Detailed Property Inventory.”

Trump has not released evidence to back up his insinuations that some records may have been planted. (Read more from “‘Final’ Answer: Special Master Gives Trump Last Chance to Dispute FBI Inventory” HERE)

Photo credit: Gage Skidmore via Flickr

Delete Facebook, Delete Twitter, Follow Restoring Liberty and Joe Miller at gab HERE.

FBI Hero Paying the Price for Exposing Unjust ‘Persecution’ of Conservative Americans

/0 Comments/in , , /by

Bombshell allegations by FBI Special Agent Steve Friend contained in a whistleblower complaint filed late Wednesday with the Department of Justice inspector general reveal a politicized Washington, DC, FBI field office cooking the books to exaggerate the threat of domestic terrorism, and ­using an “overzealous” January 6 ­investigation to harass conservative Americans and violate their constitutional rights.

Friend, 37, a respected 12-year veteran of the FBI and a SWAT-team member, was suspended Monday, stripped of his gun and badge, and escorted out of the FBI field office in Daytona Beach, Fla., after complaining to his supervisors about the violations.

He was declared absent without leave last month for refusing to participate in SWAT raids that he believed violated FBI policy and were a use of excessive force against Jan. 6 ­subjects accused of misdemeanor ­offenses.

This American hero, the father of two small children, has blown up his “dream career” because he could not live with his conscience if he continued to be part of what he sees as the unjust persecution of conservative Americans.

“I have an oath to uphold the Constitution,” he told supervisors when he asserted his conscientious objection to joining an Aug. 24 raid on a J6 subject in the Jacksonville, Fla., area. “I have a moral objection and want to be considered a conscientious objector.” (Read more from “FBI Hero Paying the Price for Exposing Unjust ‘Persecution’ of Conservative Americans” HERE)

Delete Facebook, Delete Twitter, Follow Restoring Liberty and Joe Miller at gab HERE.