Great Britain is now beginning the process of divorcing from the European Union and going on its own – something it’s quite capable of doing, having built an Empire, then a Commonwealth, with impact around the world, that has lasted 1,000 years. Now a new trade deal is being considered between four very old and dear friends – family members actually – and it’s starting to get a lot of interest among the citizenry of those four countries. It might just be the best idea any of the four has ever been part of! The proposed union even has an unofficial name, already becoming comonplace – CANZUK: the Canada-Australia-New Zealand-United Kingdom trade bloc. There is even a website currently promoting the idea to all four national governments and their citizens – all four of whom are in various stages of development of the idea already:
CANZUK with insignias of the four Commonwealth countries involved: Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. (Credit: Alexander MacLeod)
I believe strongly that the United Kingdom/Great Britain would indeed be best served by joining with these particular member states of the current British Commonwealth, to form a new trade bloc, like the EU – Australia, New Zealand and Canada (FULL DISCLOSURE: I was born I, and have lived all of my 51 years, as a citizen of Canada).
The personal, professional, business and national connections between these four particular countries are incredibly deep. Of course, this is because we are family, as I stated previously – Great Britain being our mother, and the other three nations (Australia, New Zealand and Canada) being sisters, who to this day very much love and respect one another.
The trust and credibility built between these four nations goes all the way back to our individual founding as colonies of the British Empire, and now member sovereign states of the Commonwealth. The daughter states are all within 44 years of being the exact same age:
New Zealand – May 7, 1856
Dominion of Canada – July 1, 1867
Commonwealth of Australia – January 1, 1901
These four nations fought through two World Wars, the Great Depression, and a host of other challenging times… side by side.
(from l to r, Rt. Hon. Malcolm Turnbull, Prime Minister of Australia, Rt. Hon. Teresa May, Prime Minister of Great Britain, Rt. Hon. Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada, and Rt. Hon. Jacinda Ardern, Prime Minister of New Zealand)
We share Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II as our common monarch. A shared monarch is an essential aspect of CANZUK, which represents a global institution which has played an important role as a symbol of a common heritage and parliamentary tradition.
The Crown is the cornerstone of our democratic governments, and the rule of law over a long history of peaceful constitutional development. It is instructive to note that the English speaking countries which have retained the monarchy have been far more successful in avoiding civil unrest than their republican counterparts such as France and the United States.
The four nations have the same Parliamentary governmental system, a similar Constitution, and are all members of the British Commonwealth. We have similarly-ranked and recognized educational institutions, as well as similar trends in the business and financial realms, and similar geopolitical aspirations. The four nations also have, for the most part, the respect and trust of the majority of the nations of the world.
Interest and support is already high in all four nations for such a trade bloc agreement:
Overall National Average Support (in %):
National Support by Region (in %):
We have a similar racial profile, speak the same language (with some various differences that only make things more interesting). Canada, Australia and New Zealand even share a similar currency with a near-identical value – the Dollar. For example, on October 2, 2019 (information provided by Google Finance)
1 New Zealand Dollar equals 0.83 Canadian Dollar
1 Australian Dollar equals 0.89 Canadian Dollar
1 New Zealand Dollar equals 0.93 Australian Dollar
With the United Kingdom “Brexiting” the European Union trade bloc and going on their own, this idea has gained newfound interest in the UK, and across the other three nations as well.
Erin O’Toole, one of the candidates for the Conservative Party leadership, has made one of the key planks of his campaign his determination to “pursue a Canada, UK, Australia, New Zealand trade and security pact.” The idea of creating a “CANZUK” zone of free trade and free movement of labour is catching on elsewhere, too.
In New Zealand, the junior coalition partner in the government, the Act New Zealand party led by David Seymour (who himself worked for five years in Canadian politics), is explicitly in favour of free movement and free trade within CANZUK.
Proposed flag of the CANZUK union, composed of elements from all four national flags. Some with overactive imaginations say this reminds them of a white supremacist flag.
In official party circles within the U.K. and Australia, the wheels are grinding a little slower, but the former Australian prime minister Tony Abbott is already into most of the idea, proposing a free-trade agreement and free-movement area encompassing Australia, New Zealand and the U.K. And in Britain, Theresa May’s Conservative government has made it clear it wants new trade agreements with Canada, Australia and New Zealand as soon as possible after it leaves the EU.
The idea of CANZUK begins with a free-trade agreement, free-movement area (the freedom to live and work in each others’ countries) and defence-partnership agreement. O’Toole favours all three of these main planks, and he’s right that it all makes perfect sense.
The post-Cold-War alliances are obsolete. NAFTA is dead. The EU is losing a key member.
The CANZUK countries, working closely together, would make a formidable contribution to world affairs. They would have the largest total landmass of any free-trade zone. They would collectively constitute the fourth-largest market in the world, after the U.S., EU and China.
Their combined military spending would be the world’s third largest, well ahead of Russia, and on European Geostrategy’s geopolitical power index, the CANZUK countries collectively have a strength around 70 per cent of that of the U.S. — and nearly twice that of China or France. With a combined global trade footprint nearly twice as big as Japan’s, the CANZUK countries would have substantial influence in opening up global markets and guiding global regulation across a range of issues from banking to shipping to the environment.
What makes CANZUK a natural union is perhaps self-evident. Canada, the U.K., Australia and New Zealand share a similar culture, similar values, and analogous legal, business and social systems that allow us to get along easily and interchangeably. (The term CANZUK was originally a term diplomats used to refer to these four countries because of how frequently they would vote the same way at the UN.)
Most of the main issues our political parties focus upon are instantly comprehensible to anyone from another CANZUK state. Our laws and constitutions share many features, making trade deals and mutual regulatory recognition a relatively straightforward matter. Our citizens enjoy a roughly similar per capita GDP (which is just not true of the other Commonwealth nations with similar constitutions) and face few hurdles in integrating into another CANZUK country’s labour market. Our societies are peaceful and orderly.
And in our modern globalized world, we see that we are much more similar to each other than we are to others. The challenges of dealing with Japanese or Chinese business partners can be overcome, but they cannot be denied. Continental Europeans have different foibles, different goals and different priorities from ours, as well as importantly different legal and constitutional challenges. The arrival of President Trump reminds us of just how different from us many parts of the U.S. really are, and always have been.
Furthermore, while the U.S., the EU and China can all make valuable trading partners in their different regions, each CANZUK state that encounters them is regionally overmatched and, standing alone, will inevitably be dominated. Working together though, exploiting our natural affinities and the world of mass communication, high-value services and rapid transit, CANZUK can allow us stand our ground and project our own values and agendas.
The post-Cold-War alliances and assumptions are obsolete. NAFTA is dead. The EU will soon lose one of its largest members. Trump might downgrade NATO, abandon the WTO and even diminish the UN. It’s tempting, in a world of change, to try to cling to as much of the old certainties as possible. But if we look up and out, something new beckons. Free trade, free movement and a new security partnership between countries of shared culture and natural affinity. CANZUK is the global deal of tomorrow.
Dr. Andrew Lilico, born in New Zealand but based in London, is executive director and principal of Europe Economics, a fellow of the Institute of Economic Affairs, and chairman of the IEA Monetary Policy Committee.
I cannot imagine today a more thankless job than President of the United States of America.
While I do appreciate all of the kind words and comments of encouragement for me to seek the highest office in the land (and there have been exactly ZERO of those so far), I feel I simply must decline the opportunity (though such a chance does not exist, as I was born and live currently in Canada). And I wanted to share with the millions of you out there reading this (well, there might be 50 if I’m lucky) why I cannot be your President (hypothetically, as again, it’s not actually possible).
Dear reader – hold your tears, your shouts of disappointment and your calls to reconsider, until I have finished explaining why. It just might encourage those in the United States who can fix such things to begin making repairs to the US political system, so that highly-qualified people like myself (which is probably categorically untrue) would consider applying for the job – rather than the same tired old raging pinheads that often find this type of role exciting and meaningful …to them. And they are tired and old – they’ve been running on this hamster wheel far past their expiration dates. Which is why they always have such dead eyes.
I get it, you’re disappointed that I don’t want to become a future President – or Prime Minister somewhere – if that opportunity also came up somewhere.
But take no offense to my words, unless of course I meant to offend, and in that case, I’ll point it out to you, so that you may be properly triggered as you see fit. I want to be an equal opportunity irritant. And “Being An Irritant” is in fact my established goal for this piece. Thank you for therefore for being triggered as you see fit, if you felt so inclined at some point.
I take it as a high compliment indeed. But no need to tell me about it in the comments – just know that I would be delighted to hear of it if you did tell me… and if I cared to read about it. Did that sound insensitive? Oh yes, I should mention – I can be a bit insensitive. Though if you did know me at all, by now you’d also know that this blog isn’t a safe space for liberals, the triggered, social justice warriors, whiners, Antifa, Black Lives Matter, or other vaious snowflakes in all their shapes, sizes, colors and genders. So you read it at your own discretion.
Coming back to my main point – there is not a chance in Heaven or Earth that I would want to be the president of United States of America, even if it was given to me by accident or I inherited it without having to campaign for three minutes. Because that is literally about my limit of interest in trying for same position.
Oh I know some people would say: yeah right! As if you would give up something like living in the White House, and all of the trappings of the presidency – the limousine, Air Force One, all the opportunities to meet famous people that you would have, getting to travel all over the world and speak to huge crowds everywhere you go. Being adored by at least 50% of the population that elected you (unless your “approval rating” fell below 50%).
And I could never have a job that had an approval rating that was determined by some very unstable people at times out there. Nor would I want to have to apply for my job and have 110 million people or so deciding on whether I get the job. And then having to reapply for it again in less than 4 years – paying up to a $1 billion to run for a job that I would make about $400,000 a year doing.Return on Investment (ROI) seems a bit off there.
Having the power to make a real difference in your country – your words having the ability to actually help heal people, give people jobs, give people hope, inspire future generations, protect them against the threats of natural and man-made disasters, and defend them in a time of war against hostile enemies. Now that would be cool. But the President of the United States rarely gets to do any of that stuff, except in the movies, before we go to kick butt with some alien invasion force.
True, your words would muster and command a combined armed forces with;
The nuclear launch codes that control over 6,800 nuclear missiles strategically placed around the world
Control over the operation of 800 military bases in 79 countries around the world including the United States itself, of course, which would be staffed by:
170,000 soldiers on active duty in 150 countries around the world, with another 40,000 on classified missions that no one has ever publically heard about in undisclosed locations
384,544 soldiers/officers in the Army
273,192 sailors/officer in the Navy
146,638 Marines
255,181 Air Force personnel
36,900 Coast Guard officers
And all that amazing equipment, like those on the sea:
20 active aircraft carriers, including the brand new USD Gerald R Ford, commissioned in July 2017, and the George HW Bush, at about $5 billion each. Getting your name on something like THAT would be pretty cool, as just seeing it approach on the horizon would most likely cause your enemies to wet themselves with fear – and I’ve always thought that kind of power to be rather addicting, should one possess it.
10 frigates
65 destroyers
66 submarines
Over 4,000 Abrams tanks parked in the desert, excess from current needs. (Credit: WN.com )
Those on land, including:
9,000 tanks, including 4,000 brand-new M1 Abrams tanks sitting in the Nevada desert that are entirely unnecessary excess, as a result of having one factory that makes them, and they don’t want to ever shut it down, for national security reasons.
38,822 armored personnel vehicles
950 self-propelled artillery
795 towed artillery
1197 rocket launchers
2,830 attack jets
1,962 fighter/a
973 attack helicoptersAnd in the not-so-friendly skies above, like:
Having that kind of firepower around would certainly make one’s job easier as President, but it’s a lot of pressure to pay those kind of bills for gas, groceries and guys! Ok there are girls too…
It’s a thankless job to have to be leader of the Free World. Because the world is not Free, it has cost an awful lot in dollars, blood and time to build it over the centuries. And the problems a President faces – a $20 trillion debt? I have had moments worrying about paying my $300 Mastercard bill at times. That’s just beyond ridiculous to know that you will start the PResidency buried in debt, and just keep adding to it until the end of your term – because America just can’t pay its bills. And some day a President is going to have to deal with THAT too, or countries like China, that hold about $7 trillion in US debt, will deal with it for America.
And Americans are often sick without health care, go through natural disasters without insurance, are often send to war without adequate troops and resources, and usually are n the sights of some terrorist who hates America. Because it’s cool to hate America today, it seems. Who wants to be leader of a country that no one likes? That makes international meetings like the United Nations feel like being on the school yard as a kid, and never getting picked to play sports, though you are the gargantuan kid in class who grew 2 feet faster than anyone else.
And you’d be President over a lot of people that you frankly find a hard time stomaching. The hatred in these Divided States of America is quite shocking. And no, I’m not talking about your standard Right-wing hatred, which the media seems to be completely stuck on, though it’s frankly not a “thing” as much as they want it to be. Though the Right does hate the MEDIA, so I guess there’s some truth to it.
It’s the Left that’s vandalizing Bank of America branches and smashing windows, then looting Starbucks. it’s Black Lives Matter that’s burning cities down – that they later realize they actually LIVE IN as well. Being President over stupid people, no matter what their politics, is really a downer.
Now add to that a crowd of 20,000 people in a stadium, and the president comes out to a sea of people all around him, the lone object on a stage and often with light dimmed through the building, while spotlighting him at the same time.
“The President? No…we work for the guys who tells the President what to do.”
My goodness, it’s like the Secret Service is trying to make such an attack as easy as possible. Certainly they must realize that they cannot protect him completely – and that when he is potentially involved in a shooting, for example, that jumping on him doesn’t stop an attack be or protect him from all of those people. It just hurts to be hit where you were hit. LOL
There is no way that they would even be able to see an event like that unfold before. That just screams “assassination” to me.
The fact that so many would want to even attempt to kill him and also have this open freedom to express their opinion about it online, Giving some other less stable individual ideas they shouldn’t normally have, is frightening. And in most cases the people that killed a president didn’t even pay for the crime in jail – they were killed themselves or something else before that happened. So there really isn’t much of her justice for the murder of a President.
People rarely contact you at your office when your President because they like you. It’s usually to express sorrow to you on behalf of their government, which means you’re already dealing with some hardship that you don’t really want to hear about from anybody else.
Or some president or prime minister who has the balls to complain to you about the things that they don’t agree with you on from other governments – People that you often or even financially supporting through for federal aid of some kind and yet went to chips fall they’re nowhere near to help you when you need it
US presidents have fans too, I guess but most of the people that gather outside of the stadium or five meeting that you’re attending aren’t there because they like you. Often, those people wouldn’t be that motivated – it’s because they actually literally hate you. I consider myself to be fairly able to handle criticism, but to never be able to read in the newspaper or watch TV or go online without without seeing some negative story about you online or in print or on video would suck the life out of me
Then there’s family – I’m a be mentally or emotionally or physically ready to be president and go through all the scrutiny and all the unfair criticism and all the negative press and all the lies and Tristan up the words – I need to prepare for that emotionally, physically or mentally – but not all of your friends or family members have signed up for that.
Then there is your image before you became president. People want to vote for you for reason and usually it’s because you’re a good communicator and you say things that they resonate with. My problem is that I have a very active Twitter account with over 34,500 tweets, read by my 7000+ followers and over 8,000,000+ some other people total over four years. Some of those are highly controversial, to be sure, And they were meant to be. I am proud of my belief system because I feel I’m on the right side of history and it took me years to get there. I wouldn’t be editing any of that just so I don’t trigger someone in Iowa.
But in order to be president, you have to have such a sanitized belief system and all, that you no longer are who they knew in the first place. Or if they’ve just met you for the first time, they think you are something that you absolutely don’t agree with under the tables. But suddenly you believe in gun-control because you want to New Hampshire female vote, or you suddenly feel led to support the tobacco industry because you want those South Carolina suburban/rural votes – and you may not even dress the way that you feel like dressing. I’m in shorts and T-shirts guy, jeans at best, and I just can’t see myself wearing a suit in every single situation publicly. If I present United States why can’t they wear whatever the hell I want – which accounts. Because you really aren’t the most powerful person in the world. The voter in that swing state that you’re trying to impress is. And they could just be the scariest redneck weirdo you’ve ever seen in your life in real life.
So I just wouldn’t fit the norm. It would suck the life out of me.
So in conclusion, I just wouldn’t want to be President. I’m sorry that this may disappoint some of you, though of course I’m Canadian so I couldn’t be if I wanted to. That didn’t stop a particular Kenyan before, but I digress. America – make it easier for a person to want to be President. It’s the highest office and should be a difficult job to compete for and win – but are we actually seeing the only people in America who are qualified for the job, actually getting the job? Ummm, no
CNN released a new poll today, conducted by Philadelphia pollsters SSRS, showing that President Donald Trump’s approval rating is “holding steady” – and his numbers on handling several key issues are climbing, with almost 6 in 10 Americans say things in Hthat country are going well.
BUT WAIT… this is not GOOD news, CNN anchors “libsplained” today to their pathetically-dwindling but faithful weekday mid-afternoon viewers. If you don’t already know it, you’ll soon see why this systemic bias, demonstrated against the current President by “the Most Trusted Name In News” …is exactly why they no longer live up to the tagline.
Here’s some truth in advertising: CNN is actually “The Most Busted, Rusted and Crusted Name in News”. (I want them to properly credit me before they start using the new tagline in their regular advertising )
You may laugh or get mad – but in fact, a March 2017 Business Insider report, using data from a 2014 Pew Research Center study entitled “Political Polarization and Media Habits“, did, in fact, prove that CNN is no longer the “most trusted name in news”. In fact, the American people surveyed felt that their most trusted news sources at that time were all British, with the BBC and the Economist leading the pack. I would personally concur.
CNN provided yet one more compelling reason today (May 7, 2017), when releasing President Donald Trump’s most recent Presidential approval rating numbers, just why viewers have abandoned leftist American media outlets en masse.
I noticed it right away when Jake Tapper, one of the longer-serving hosts currently on the financially-limping CNN, stated the following on air, regarding the current Trump Gallup approval ratings:
“Brand new CNN poll numbers revealing Americans’ perceptions of the Donald Trump presidency – and they look pretty locked in, while also becoming increasingly nuanced below the surface. 41% approve of the job the president is doing, 53% disapprove. That’s about the same as it was at the end of March. Every other elected president of the modern era with the exception of Jimmy Carter had higher approval ratings at this stage of his presidency.” (Jake Tapper, CNN)
What a pile of RUBBISH. Rasmussen Reports, and other much more reputable pollsters (more on that later) disagree. @jaketapper is a disingenuous buffoon. The fact that you are so desperate to spin polling numbers as to suggest that every President should have the same approval rating at the same period of their administrations is just about the most irrelevant “amazing statistic” nonsense I’ve ever seen. I don’t think he’s stupid, but Tapper does say some very dumb things that a person could shoot holes through with very little effort.
Here’s the reality:
No two Presidents have ever faced the same issues during the same period. What a stupid metric to measure Presidential successes by. George W. Bush was President for 8 months when the Twin Towers fell, and his approval rating went through the roof, lasted about a week and then it dropped constantly right until the end of his administration. Franklin Roosevelt was elected in the midst of the Great Depression, so again, of course, he was seen as a hero at a very horrible time in American history.
Every single American President has had a lower approval rating than President Trump has right now – with the exception of Eisenhower and Kennedy (from 1952-1963).
Yes, Trump “held steady” this week over last – a 41% approval rating, according to the Gallup organization. However, the week before that, he was at 38%. Sorry, a 3% increase IN A WEEK? No one is celebrating that in the media of course, because it kills the agenda they have, which is to destroy his reputation.
That 41% that he is “holding steady” at is in fact the highest rating he’s had since May 22, 2017 (12 months). In spite of all the nonsense that has been dumped on him day after day after day – simply because he won an election that the left just will not accept. It’s embarrasing, it’s stupid, it’s child, and frankly it’s destroying America. Grow up, you whiny little jackasses.
The approval rating amongst Democrats is also at a low 13% – but that’s the highest he’s seen since his inauguration. It was at 50% of that for most of his administration thus far. THAT is a HUGE win. In addition, he’s only had 1 month thus far when his Disapproval Rating was LOWER than this. In the new poll, 40% of Democrats say things in the US are going well, up from 25% who said so in February. Democrats’ approval rating for Trump’s handling of the economy is up 11 points to 26%.
Overall, 57% say things are going well in the US today — up from 49% saying the same in February — which is the largest proportion to say so since January of 2007. That’s significant.
This darling boy of the Democratic Party had 30 weeks at 41% or less, 22 weeks at 42% and 28 weeks at 43%. While Trump only had 13% amongst Democrats maximum, in 8 years Republicans only showed 14% approval or more with Obama for less than 20 weeks (that’s about 4% of his Presidency). That by the way included the last 11 weeks of his Presidency, which was when he saw his HIGHEST OVERALL DISAPPROVAL. You know what that means? His Republican approval for a few weeks – was only because HE WAS LEAVING.
Bush dealt with the horrors of 9/11 just 8 months after being sworn in in 2001. Of course his approval ratings would be higher earlier on as a result. But he had 91 weeks at 41% approval rating (Trump’s rating today) or less.
The other darling of the Democratic Party, Bill Clinton, also had his bad moments, which included almost BEING IMPEACHED. However, in fairness, Clinton had an overall approval rating that only dipped to 41% or lower for 7 weeks, and that included a relatively strong showing amongst Republicans – kind of the mirrored image of Ronald
CNN, by the numbers:
CNN’s polling company is a woeful embarrassment. In fact, in the results of the most recent survey on Presidential approval, I noticed that on one question – the May 2-5, 2018 approval results, they asked how well things are going in the country.
In the first 3 columns, on the first row, I note that 45% said “Fairly Well and 13% “Very Well”…but somehow this added up to57% “Net Very/Fairly Well” in this pollster’s world?
Even someone in kindergarten would know that 45% + 13% = 58%
With the publicity campaign of destruction, @CNN, you aren’t winning – that’s clear. The American economy, based on the job that President Trump has been doing, is winning the day with Americans.
You know damn well that polls can be manipulated, asking whatever questions you want in the way you want, to get the results you want. Your pollster, however, can’t even seem to properly ADD so all hope is lost there. The fact you use the same pollster for everything states that they must clearly share your agenda, especially when you both end up so clearly off the mark so often in polling numbers in these Presidential approval surveys, in polling results before and on election day, and now before the mid-term elections.
In fact, RealClearPolitics, which tracks about 20 different polls for Presidential approval, shows CNN has a CONSISTENTLY lower approval rating numbers for President Trump than many of its fellow news sources. That’s kinda sad, because it’s so obvious. To continuously put out these kind of random, ridiculously off-based numbers all the time either indicates some kind of shared mental illness, a shared agenda, or a news source that doesn’t get just how badly they are being duped by their pollster.
But CNN “gets it”, alright – in fact, it reminds me (cynically) that “you get what you pay for”.
Rasmussen Reportsstill chooses to do an update every weekday to the President’s approval rating numbers, unlike the Gallup organization, which suspiciously stopped doing so in January 2018 – right around the time the President’s numbers started to improve, I note. I also note that Gallup stopped surveying 3,500 people per update, and reduced that to 1,500, while at the same time reducing the update time to weekly. Rasmussen Reports has been rated by the popular Media Fact Check site as having a “High” factual reporting history. They state on their site that “now that Gallup has quit the field, Rasmussen Reports is the only nationally recognized public opinion firm that still tracks President Trump’s job approval ratings on a daily basis.
Why does all this matter? THEIR approval numbers for President Trump for the last week was not 41% as with CNN: It was 49%.
Date
Approval Index
Strongly Approve
Strongly Disapprove
Total Approve
Total Disapprove
07-May-18
-7
33%
40%
49%
49%
04-May-18
-7
33%
40%
51%
49%
03-May-18
-7
33%
40%
50%
49%
02-May-18
-7
32%
39%
49%
49%
01-May-18
-6
34%
40%
48%
50%
30-Apr-18
-7
34%
41%
47%
52%
27-Apr-18
-7
35%
42%
47%
52%
Again, I hear you asking – “why does this matter”? Because, dear reader, in the 2016 election campaign between Trump and Clinton – Rasmussen Reports was the only one that got it right. Had you followed Rasmussen’s findings, as I and many others on the conservative side did before the election, Election Night 2016 was not a surprise to us. We didn’t have fainting spells over the outcome. We knew it weeks before it happened.
Rasmussen Reports’ final White House Watch survey showed Democrat Hillary Clinton with a 2.0% Popular Vote lead over Republican Donald Trump. After all 136+ million U.S. votes were counted, Hillary Clinton, in fact, led the Popular Vote by 2.1%. In a post-election commentary entitled “Issues Mattered After All,” Rasmussen Reports’ Managing Editor even wrote:
“The media created a false narrative about the 2016 presidential campaign, and most polling reinforced it. Controversy was the name of the media game, most of it focused on Republican Donald Trump, and many media outlets, most prominently the New York Times, and many pollsters were saying a little over a month ago that Democrat Hillary Clinton had already won. But the three daily tracking polls – the Los Angeles Times, IBD/TIPP, and Rasmussen Reports – consistently showed a much tighter race.”
In 2012 (see above), a Fordham University study by Dr. Costas Panagopoulos, who once served in the office of then Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, compared pre-election polling with the results from Election Day. The study ranked 14 organizations – but suspiciously chose to omit the results of Rasmussen Reports. However, after the 2016 election, an American Research Group study found that…
Rasmussen Reports had the highest accuracy among 25 pollsters in the 2016 election.
CNN was so shamed by their accuracy over its pathetic, completely off-the-mark disaster on Election Night, that they have attempted to discredit in an article in 2017. But results speak for themselves – when an organization is correct, the one that is so terribly incorrect doesn’t have an argument.
Stick that in your pipe and smoke it, Jake Tapper. Or whatever you leftists do for fun.
The State of Israel is set to become only the fourth nation in the world to land a spacecraft on the surface of the moon, behind the United States, Russia, and China. And they are about to do it in a way that no other nation has done it before!
(Credit: Mat & Lyon Creative)
Now, let’s be clear – we’re not talking about Israelis actually walking on the moon. That’s a feat that even the United States has not done in over 46 years (if they ever did at all), and Russia and China have never sent men to the moon.
However, an Israeli nonprofit called SpaceIL announced in 2015 that they planned to visit the moon by the end of 2017. While the clock is ticking now, if the mission ever happens at all, it will mark the first time a lunar mission is backed by private donors, rather than government funds.
SpaceIL made the announcement as part of its entry in the Google Lunar Xprize, a $30 million competition to send an unmanned rover to the moon, back in 2015.
To win the prize money, the rover has to roam around for at least 500 meters and snap high-definition video and images that can be sent back to Earth. The SpaceIL team jokes that this lunar rover, like every self-respecting Israeli, will have the capability of sending a selfie back home.
SpaceIL was the first to sign a contract among the 16 total entrants, though all aimed to eventually get to the moon.
The team will be sending its rover by way of the SpaceX Falcon 9 launcher (The US-based space company Spaceflight Industries originally purchased the rocket and SpaceIL is now partnering with it to land the spacecraft safely on the moon.)
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 launcher with a Taiwanese client payload. (Credit: SpaceX)
“Only three countries have ‘soft-landed’ a rover on the surface of the moon: the United States, the former Soviet Union, and China,” said SpaceIL CEO Eran Privman, in a statement. “Now the notion of the small state of Israel being added to this exclusive list look more promising than ever.”
The spacecraft will have the following components:
Once SpaceIL announced its launch contract, the remaining 15 teams had until December 31, 2016, to announce their own launch contracts.
In the end, there were 5 total teams that made it to the final cut:
According to Xprize, parts for the newly updated spacecraft are already beginning to arrive at the team’s facility in preparation for the 2017 launch.
“This takes us one huge step closer to [realizing] our vision of recreating an ‘Apollo effect’ in Israel,” Privman said, referring to the 1969 space craze that got a generation of American kids interested in science.
Israelis won’t be setting foot on the moon, but they’ll be breaking major ground nonetheless. And we at the Calling Out Community can’t wait to see it happen.
America, Canada, and Australia have always shared so many things together – as any three sisters would.
Let’s take a peek into some personal correspondence between them this week, get a glimpse at the lives of these international icons, all loved by millions – and how much they mean to each other.
My dear sister America:
Happy 241st Birthday to the most wonderful, influential and loving sister one could ever ask for.
My dear, you are and will always be the great Land of the Free, you are STILL the Home of the Brave, STILL the world’s only Superpower, STILL a beacon of hope and a light in the darkness to millions around the world.
I owe my own freedom to you, and I will always appreciate so much all that you do for my people every day. Not only are we so blessed to share a wonderful border, but it will likely always be the largest and most peaceful in the world.
I’m so glad you and I don’t have to get into any of that “wall construction” business – I’d hate feeling that either of us would be shut out from the other. Australia and I were talking this week on the phone, however, and we both agree that you simply MUST get that Southern wall started right away.
I love this photo, but can’t put my finger on what’s different – did you do something with your hair? ‘Lady Liberty By Hellder Gonzales’ (Credit: Toonpool)
Your Man is doing a great job, by the way, in draining that old swamp behind the house. I could practically smell that nonsense from here. I don’t understand how on earth this was allowed to go on for so long, but thankfully you finally found the right man to do the job.
Did I hear correctly that he offered to work for you for free? How do you find these people? My man spends the housekeeping budget like it was his last day on Earth. And between you and I, his wife is a frightful bore (I hid her guitar this week – shh shhh don’t say anything. She’s still shrieking out those horrible ditties she writes for her kids.)
Speaking of which, did you see the photos of their kids at my birthday party? The boys were so handsome in their little Maple Leaf bow ties – but I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – I’m telling you, their eyes are a cry for help.
I’ve grown weary of going to bed with a headache because of her, so I ummm…hahaha… keep a pistol by the bed hahaha. WHAT, its registered lol Sorry, sorry I remember – guns are not a joke with you. I wasn’t thinking – we just can’t relate to the Wild West up here. (Or Cleveland. I don’t get that city at all.)
I laughed by the way when I opened my birthday gift from you and saw the President Trump bobblehead. I will treasure it. Our Prime Minister is like a bobblehead as well – head full of sand, nods yes to everything and never says anything of value. Maybe we could time share your President every second weekend or something, pretty please? AFTER HE BUILDS YOU THAT WALL!
And coming back to our earlier point – your man is made of money. I wouldn’t be too concerned about whether he gets a salary or not – if he doesn’t care, neither should you. You should, however, be checking out if you can contract him out for the next 8 years now. Neither of us are going to find one like that for a long time. The cost is irrelevant. You need to have a man like that on this project. And you could buy whole planets with your credit cards so spare me the whining about it. If you could continue to have Maxine Waters take a salary, you certainly can pay the man what he was worth. Which is billions, I’m aware.
When Mother smiles, she still lights up a room.
Have you seen on TV lately how Mother is ageing so quickly, it seems, these days? Oh I know, you don’t think of her that way anymore. But anyway, I was actually quite surprised. I hear Father has stopped doing public events altogether which I’m sure is just fine with Mummy – she’s got enough to do without him hanging around all the time. Well, I’m sorry but the man needs a hobby and breathing down her neck will never be a very profitable one for him.
However, she’s still as strong and sharp as ever, and she is always so proud of us and Australia. I will always marvel at her British sensibilities and her ability to stand up and stare down any evil Cretan that tries to blow up something over there.
Are they still trying to sneak into the yard at night without being invited? Oh dear – I hate to say this, and you know I welcome ANYONE with open arms, but that behaviour is outrageous and unacceptable. I worry about you being all alone in that giant house, knowing those people are just lurking around outside. Truly I cannot even imagine it. However, I saw a recent photo of you and you looked so tough! I was like “wow, that woman’s still got it going on”, you know what I mean?
I sometimes honestly walk around and just check all the doors and windows a few times before bed to make sure all is safe. Maybe that’s why we’ve been relatively free of that terrorist nonsense?
Before I sign off, I did want to again mention about that silly Reputation Institute Award. Well, the Award isn’t silly – in fact, I didn’t tell you that it actually made me cry. I just couldn’t believe that many of the 39,000 G8 residents they polled could vote for ME instead of their own country. (Well, in Germany’s case that’s not terribly surprising – I would never trust a Fatherland run by a woman).
Now, people do love you as well, don’t get all twisted up on this. It’s the Most Trusted Nation in the World award. I’ll be frank – it’s hard sometimes to feel totally safe and trusting with you – you always have a nuclear missile or an aircraft carrier nearby.
Those even makes me nervous – oh yes, so again I do appreciate the offer to have some protection from Putin and that chubby little Korean with the bad haircut, but I do not wish those nuclear devices to be cluttering around in my yard or basement. Ok? Point one for me from the MidWest or something.’ Just don’t point one AT me.
Remember that crazy artist that did these for us when we were little? I just found them the other day haha. I remember this day like it just happened – your hair was so dark then! We are both grey old ladies now! Well you are anyway lol
I digress. So yes, the people voted me the #1 Most Trusted Nation on Earth and it was a coincidence that they announced it two days before my birthday. Yes, this is the 6th year in a row I’ve come in 1st or 2nd.
SORRY – not trying to run it in – but it really IS nice to be #1 most trusted again. No, I don’t know what Sweden did to get to #1 last year or even #2 this year. Maybe people feel sorry because of all the Muslim riots there? Beats me.
But don’t think people don’t love you just as much or more. I’m the shy girl with the love of flannel and jeans that everyone wants to be friends with. You’re the super powerful global superstar they all want to be like. That is far more incredible.
And Australia is frankly just the best of all worlds – damn her haha. Gorgeous, loving, smart as Hell and tough as nails – no wonder she could handle her own continent. Lord, I miss her – we always have so much fun together and everyone wants to see her.
Which reminds me, I’m off – I need more place settings at my table before she arrives. I always want to have room for one more at my table no matter what.
The bottom line is, America, my dear sweet sister, sometimes we gripe about each other, often we take each other for granted. But when our futures were threatened by common enemies, we didn’t give a second thought to bearing arms side by side and fighting and dying together for the cause of Liberty and Freedom.
And we’d do it again if we had to. America, you still have people who believe in you from outside your borders, that cheer you on and defend you and honour and celebrate your victories.
You are the beacon that the whole world lights its path with. You stand in the harbour in New York and I might catch a glimpse of you on TV or a movie and…
Well, I’ve never told you this America and keep it between us. But when I see you standing there with your lamp held high in New York – I get tears in my eyes and a lump in my throne and you want to know why?
Because when people have looked at you in that harbour, holding that lamp and being so strong for everyone else….you are the most beautiful woman that has ever stood on this planet.
I stand in total and complete amazement of you. I am in awe. Because people would stay up for hours as their ships came from the UK or Asia or Australia. They were excited to see the country and go to Disneyland or whatever – but people would stay up for hours and stand on the deck of the ship in very cold weather often…
just because they wanted to see your face. And I’m one of them. I’ll always be your biggest fan. That’s what sisters are for. And you have no truer friend or dearer sister than this 150-year-old Dominion of Canada (I know I can’t believe it either
We thank God for you. Every single day we thank God for you. You give hope to hundreds of millions. You’re “American Dream” is being repeated again and again on pillows all over the world tonight. (Though people like my Canadian Dream too, I have to say. Hahaha)
America, I have known you and loved you and fought with you and shopped with you and been your next door neighbour my entire life. I look up to you in 100 ways and I’ve never been prouder of you.
Stay strong my sister. Be brave. Be honest. Be kind. And be at my house at 7:00 next Thursday – I’m hosting a dinner for Australia. I love when we three can be in the same room, because honey, we make those old European broads look like used cars.
Love you so much,
Your #1 Most Trusted Sister
(I had to)
On Friday, January 27, 2016, President Donald Trump signed an Executive Order in which he partially banned immigration in the United States by citizens from seven different countries: Iran, Iraq, Somalia, Libya, Yemen, Syria, and Sudan.
This wasn’t a surprise since the president was fulfilling at least part of a campaign promise for a TOTAL ban on immigrants from Islamic countries for an indefinite period. The media firestorm has been daunting, and most people would not have been able to withstand the withering attacks in social media and in all major news outlets all day Saturday. They obviously know very little about Donald Trump.
UPDATE – JUNE 26, 2017
On Monday, June 26, 2017, President Trump signed a new Executive Order, restricting travel by residents of six countries into the United States for a period of 90 days – which included all of the original countries in the January 28 travel ban, with the exception of Iraq. This new Order was crafted to counter the firestorm generated by the news media, and subsequent judiciary intereference in carrying out the original Order.
That same day, the United States Supreme Court said it would allow the government to implement parts of its suspended travel ban against citizens from the six Muslim-majority countries with one major caveat: The ban cannot apply to those with “a credible claim of a bona fide relationship with a person or entity in the United States.”
The state department has now attempted to define what counts as a “bona fide relationship.” Visa applicants from Syria, Sudan, Somalia, Libya, Iran, and Yemenwill be able to enter the United States if they can prove that a close family member is already living in the US, according to a state department cable seen by the Associated Press. That includes parents, spouses, children, adult sons or daughters, son-in-laws or daughter-in-laws or siblings, but not “extended family members” like grandparents, aunts or uncles, cousins, in-laws, or fiancés.
ORIGINAL POST – JANUARY 28, 2017
Then, less a week after being sworn into office, President Trump issued an Executive Order on Friday, January 27 entitled: “PROTECTING THE NATION FROM FOREIGN TERRORIST ENTRY INTO THE UNITED STATES”, to fulfill at least part of a 2016 election campaign promise. (Full text of the Order may be found here).
(Credit: CNN)
Now, this Executive Order isn’t even close to what the President promised to do, which initially was a total ban on Islamists coming into the United States. The libtard news media were outraged that a President would dare do the very thing he promised for 6 months or more to do on the campaign trail. Utilizing the usual gaggle of half-baked celebrity interviews, and panels of “experts”, fake news networks like CNN practically frothed at the mouth with excitement over the story, which they believed would devastate Donald Trump politically.
After the Executive Order was signed, several leaders in the high-tech sector came out swinging against the ban, in a very calculated, concerted effort – and receivedreceving far more coverage from mainstream media than their positions or influence deserved. Why this industry is so specifically harmed by this ban, or chosen as spokesmen for its opposition, is beyond me. However, it should be of concern to federal regulators that privacy piranhas like Google, Apple, and Microsoft are also now admitting to be hiring people from extremely undesirable places in the world, none of which seem to have any kind of vibrant tech sector previously. One could understand a backlash if we banned residents of India, for example, because they have a widely recognized tech sector. But Iraq? Yemen? Somalia? Give me a break – do they even have stable electricity in all of these countries?
Here are just a few of their tweets and statements
Throughout Saturday, January 28, several news outlets – CNN and the New York Times – were painfully obvious in their biased reporting of this Executive Order:
CNN reported that the ban affected 135 million people.The source of this “amazing statistic” (my codeword for “fake news”) is a mystery. As IBI Times reported on August 13, 2015:
The immigrant population in the United States hit a record high of 42.1 million in the second quarter of this year, an analysis of monthly Census Bureau data by the Center for Immigration Studies, released Thursday, has revealed. The number of immigrants rose by 1.7 million since the same time last year. Immigrants currently comprise 13.3 percent of the nation’s total population, reaching the highest level in the nation in 105 years.
On average, there have been approx. 1 million immigrants a year, and this ban is currently for 4 months only maximum. In addition, the countries named have never been a big immigrant source for America, with the exception of Iraq in the top 10 nations, with at about 96,000 per year.
One of the first things I noticed, of course, was that all the flags look the same except for Somalia, which was very strange. I’m sure it’s a coincidence but considering they are in different parts of the world, it’s unusual.
The second thing that I noticed, and probably the most important in terms of what we were just talking about – CNN’s figure of 135 million people being affected by this travel ban is FAKE NEWS. First of all, as indicated above, there are only 42 million immigrants currently in America, growing by 1 million approximately per year. Secondly, in the 7 countries named – just the sheer number of people living in all 7 countries combined – there are over 219.6 million people. So CNN literally pulled this number out of its collective rear end.
2. All media outlets have called this is a ban on Muslims. – this is no more a ban on Muslims than calling off a Toronto Blue Jays game could be construed as shutting down Major League Baseball, or taking an item off of McDonald’s menu would be the same as shuttering the entire chain.
First off, Muslims can be found in all 196 countries of the world – so banning 7 countries out of 196 is 3.5%, not a total ban as the hysterical Left suggests. Nor is a ban on 220 million people in those 7 countries (and not all people living in those 7 countries are Muslim) out of 1.6 billion Muslims in the world (as of 2010, according to Pew Research) valid evidence of a total ban (its 13.7% maximum) on Muslims. The following Muslim-dominated countries are NOT even affected by this travel ban:
3. Big media also credits President Trump for picking the countries himself for this ban. In fact, National Public Radio (NPR) contended that Trump picked countries the family doesn’t do business with. Total BS. On January 21, 2016, President Obama’s Department of Homeland Security announced that it was placing limited restrictions on certain travellers who had visited Iran, Iraq, Sudan, or Syria on or after March 1, 2011. In February 2016, Al Jazeera reported the Obama Administration added Libya, Yemen, and Somalia to the list of “countries of concern”. That is the COMPLETE LIST announced Friday.
4. The Executive Order bans Muslims and/or bans these 7 specific countries. A link is provided above tp the original Executive Order, which President Trump signed on Friday, January 26. The text of the Executive Order is being hosted by CNN – so there is no inherent Trump bias.
Protesters are very organized – this list was a single days’ activities on January 28. Who’s paying for this and why is #blacklivesmatter involved?
I defy you to read it from start to finish and find an example of more than ONE of those seven countries (besides Syria) that’s actually even named in the Executive Order. I defy you to also find the word “Muslim” or “Islam” anywhere in that Executive Order – IT DOES NOT EXIST.
The Executive Order refers to “foreign nationals admitted to the United States“, seeking “Suspension of Issuance of Visas and Other Immigration Benefits” to “nationals of countries of particular concern” – the administrative staff then simply used the Obama administration’s “countries of concern” list in their announcement.
It does target Syrian nationals specifically as, of course, there was a separate immigration outreach to them, and President Trump had made very clear on the campaign trail thathe was not comfortable with it – because the US was letting in people who had never been properly cleared. President Trump said that a system of “extreme vetting” would be developed to screen everyone from those 7 countries in the future – therefore suggesting that the ban was a temporary one at best.
SO LIBTARDS OF AMERICA REJOICE – there’s no monster hiding under your bed. There is one visible, however, at virtually every anti-ban protest. This particular monster lies to rile up the crowd – which is tantamount to SEDITION.
By Islam Rising, Founding Blog Member Calling Out Community Posted January 28, 2017. Updated June 26, 2017
We’d love to hear from you:
On Tuesday this week (June 24, 2017), newly-installed 45th President of the United States, Donald J Trump, sent the following tweet to his 21.8 million followers on Twitter (and in so doing, to the world):
The loony left has used this Wall as some tangible proof of Trump’s “inherent racism”. Yet, they show absolute hypocrisy as they do – for you see, a wall already exists in part, has for decades, and you’ll be VERY surprised to learn:
WHO REALLY ordered the original Wall to be built
WHAT the original price tags was to build and maintain a Wall like this
WHEN was it started, and WHERE the project is at now, and
WHY the wall is even necessary in the first place?
[Editors note: We refer to it simply as the “Wall” from this point forward – a capitalized proper noun.]
“So we built the wall, and the whole wall was joined together up to half of its original height, for the people had a mind to work.” (Nehemiah 4:6, New American Standard Bible)
“Ashurbanipal On A Chariot” by Unknown. He was without question the greatest ruler of the Assyrian Empire
Ancient history seems to be repeating itself in our modern age as America faces Her greatest challenge in 2017 – the threat from “enemies, both foreign and domestic” – and anyone who has taken the Oath of Allegiance has sworn to protect America from such threats.
In around 605 BC, the civilized world was embroiled in a titanic conflict between great empires – the allied armies of Egypt and Syria (under Pharoah Necho II) were attacked by the armies of Babylonia (modern Iraq, led them by King Nebuchadnezzar II), who was allied with the Medes, Persians and the Scythians (who together form modern Iran). It was by far the greatest military conflict in the history of the Persian Gulf.
Somehow at that time, the little nation of Israel got caught in the middle of this conflict, and the Babylonians invaded Israel after Israel’s King Josiah had been killed, the Israelite army defeated, Jerusalem conquered and her walls destroyed. Over the next 70 years, the brain trust of Israel was deported to the Babylonian empire on a constant basis.
The parallels between little Israel and the United States today, in the context of this story, are more than a bit surreal. Like Israel, the United States found itself the victim of a great surprise attack on 9/11, leaving the symbolic walls of the nation torn down – and the American homeland has never been more vulnerable to future attacks than it is right now.
Like Israel, for decades America seemed to have no leadership motivated or inspired to rebuid those “symbolic walls” and bringing the US back into a position of full safety and security.
Enter Nehemiah in 445 BC.
A high official in the Persian court of King Artaxerxes I, Nehemiah served as the king’s cupbearer (Nehemiah 1:11), which evidently put him in a position to speak to the king and request favors from him. After hearing about the sad state of affairs in Judah (Israel’s southern Kingdom) Nehemiah acquired the king’s permission to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the city and its fortifications. He is even given letters from the king to ensure safe passage and to obtain timber from the king’s forest for the gates and walls of Jerusalem.
Nehemiah returned to Jerusalem in 445 B.C. as the provincial governor of Judah. He immediately surveyed the damage to the entire city on his well-known night journey around the walls (Nehemiah 2:12–15). He enlisted the help of the people to quickly repair the breaches in the wall. He also urged them to set up guards to defend against the constant threat of those who opposed their efforts, including the armies of Samaria, the Ammonites and the Ashdodites.
Enter Donald Trump in 2016 A.D.
There are remarkable parallels between Donald Trump and Nehemiah of old. Mr. Trump has been a highly placed official in the United States business community, which also put him in a position through technology to speak to the people directly (as America has no king, the people control America’s destiny). Mr. Trump sought to inspire them (and on Election Day he acquired the people’s permission) to come to Washington to rebuild America and make Her great again. He also had surveyed the needs and announced that, like Nehemiah of old, a physical wall was needed to protect American interests.
In a January 25, 2017 New York Times story, Mr. Trump announced that construction on his Wall will commence as soon as possible, and enlisted America’s help to quickly build the same. Mr. Trump also urged Americans to be on guard against the constant threat of those who oppose their efforts, including neighbouring nations and terrorist groups worldwide.
Nehemiah said that he didn’t want to take advantage of food and land allotments that were due to his office because there was already such a great burden on the people of his province (Nehemiah 5:14–19). He also made the other nobles and officials forgive all outstanding debts and ordered them to return all land and money that had been taken as taxes so the people would be able to feed themselves and their families.
Donald Trumphas also refused to take a Presidential salary if at all possible, following in the footsteps of the second-wealthiest President in U.S. history, George Washington, worth am estimated $500 million before he took office. Mr. Trump has also vowed to with the “nobles” in Congress and Senate to cut taxes, restoring the people to a place where they too can feed themselves and their families.
The hurried work of repairing and rebuilding Jerusalem’s walls and gates was completed by Nehemiah in just 52 days (Nehemiah 6:15). Another of Nehemiah’s accomplishments was to make a record and genealogy of all the nobles, officials and people who were then living in Judah.
Today, Donald Trumpalso has announced a plan to speedily build the wall between the United States and Mexico, and for the sake of general security, has suggested creating a record of certain of our cultural groups in the country that have been perceived as a direct threat in the past, so they can better be tracked while in the country – particularly the Muslim community – and to also deport those who were not in the country legally.
Now It Gets Really Crazy…
(Credit: US Border Services and Protection)
You are likely of the belief that this Wall running along the Southern border is a Trump concoction – and many of you believe it is a racist, right-wing, isolationist conspiracy that singles out particular people groups for open persecution from America.
That narrative is all nonsense. Every nation on earth with the exception of America seems to have the right to keep whoever they want out and let on whoever they want in floods. But worn enemies of America have used Her greatest strength as a weakness: flapping the Constitution in Her face and declaring that they cannot be held back… from what we have found out later were some diabolical plansagainst Her!
The Leftist media, and the Liberal (Canada) and Democratic (US) Parties have made this Wall the ‘Trump Plan’, making him the lightning rod for their deep-seated, propaganda-fueled, revisionist history in the process.
We’re not letting them get away with it. For you see, dear friends, this Wall is not a new idea. It’s not even HIS idea. In fact, it’s not even a new barrier construction project along the Southern border – Reutersreported in October 2009 that, of the 1,989 miles of border between the US and Mexico…
A “fence” already exists on 660 miles (33.2%, or almost exactly 1/3) of the Mexican-US border. Not “under construction” or “in planning”, either. Those portions have already been completed.
And no friends, the United States has not found anyone else so far to pay for it. They don’t have President Trump’s negotiation skills. Nor did they apparently have Donald Trump’s ability to manage large construction projects or to oversee budgets to ensure that things were built in a cost-effective manner.
What you are about to learn, however, is that the Clinton narrative about this Wall being a dumb Trump idea is nonsense…
… because in September 1994, President Bill Clinton introduce the same Wall idea, called Operation Gatekeeper, which included $800 million for border guards, as well as a 10 foot high “fence” (they took pains not to call it a “wall”) in places that would go 8 5/8 miles from the Pacific coast, cutting between the cities of Tijuana and San Ysidro, CA. – the busiest border crossing in the world.
The farthest-West section of the US-Mexican border Wall, between Tijuana and San ysidro, CA – 2010. alive and well already – since 1994.
In May 1999 I stayed a block from that Wall and watched as nightly, hundreds of people would line up with their wire cutters, blow torches or bolt cutters, to cut through the wall and escape. They didn’t have to be the fastest runner in the group – just faster than most of the rest caught soon after. And according to recent media reports, every hole cut in the wall costs $1,300 to fix – over 20 years, that’s $6.5 BILLION, because some of their “fence”. According to the New York Times, the Clinton fence at that time cost between $16 million and $21 million A MILE. President Trump couldn’t do worse than that, but he surely can do better.
The Clinton barriers were built as part of three larger “Operations” to taper transportation of illegal drugs manufactured in Latin America and immigration: Operation Gatekeeper in California (above), Operation Hold-the-Line in Texas, and Operation Safeguard in Arizona. And why did they build the Wall then that they somehow didn’t think we needed still now?
Ninety-six-point-six (96.6) per cent of apprehensions by the Border Patrol in 2010 occurred at the southwest border. The number of Border Patrol apprehensions declined 61% from 1,189,000 in 2005 to 723,840 in 2008 to 463,000 in 2010. Great to see the reductions, but SERIOUSLY, 463,000 illegal immigrants in one year from Mexico alone? And that’s the ones they CAUGHT.
The decrease in apprehensions may be due to a number of factors including changes in U.S. economic conditions and border enforcement efforts. Border apprehensions in 2010 were at their lowest level since 1972.[6]
Folks, regardless of the political nonsense, the wall is happening, the wall is here, the wall is for your benefit. And as we see from the voting record in the U.S. Senate to the right, President Clinton thought the Wall/Fence was important, and Senator Clinton voted in favor of it.
Enough already.
By Shawn J., Founding Editor Calling Out Community Posted January 26, 2017
For the first time ever, the United States has been added to an annual list of the world’s persecutors of Christians and countries that are regressing in religious freedom.
We respect their opinions and can see why they would be concerned. But we’re also very concerned about what harm this messaging brings.
The United States, Mexico and Russia have been listed as “new and noteworthy” nations in the 2016 “Hall of Shame Report” published by the Washington, D.C., based human rights group International Christian Concern (ICC), the operators of the website Persecution.org.
The “worst of the worst” countries for Christian persecution – the “most egregious state persecutors” – included Iraq, Syria, Nigeria and North Korea.
Others listed as “core countries” – or nations that are less egregious in their persecution but are “perennial abusers of religious freedom” – were Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, China and India.
While ICC notes “there is no comparison between the life of a Christian in the U.S. with persecuted believers overseas,” the group noted a number of “worrying trends as an alarming indication of a decline in religious liberty in the United States.
ICC President Jeff King explained:
“We felt it was very important this year that we highlight three countries where religious discrimination and persecution are deemed unusual but have reached a certain threshold of concern. These are Mexico, Russia, and sadly, the United States.
While conditions in the U.S. are in no way comparable to other countries on the list, a certain segment of the culture and the courts seem to be intent on driving faith out of the public square. There have been too many court cases with bad decisions to miss the clear trend line.
I personally think this is absolute nonsense, and the Church is now being named the fool as a result. One group has latched onto this concept, and are “making hay while the sun shines” – left-wing nutjobs , like the ones at RightWingWatch.org.
This narrative has become an important rallying cry for a movement that has found itself on the losing side of many of the so-called “culture wars.” By reframing political losses as religious oppression, the Right has attempted to build a justification for turning back advances in gay rights, reproductive rights and religious liberty for minority faiths.
See, this is why I hate special interest groups. I don’t care whether they’re on the right wing or on the left wing side of life, both sides usually prepackage or repackage or even manufacture news to begin with, to justify their position or belief. And ironically, the left is using this as a rallying cry for THEIR twisted, sick purposes as well.
It was completely unhelpful of Persecution.org to say that the United States is now a persecutor of Christians in the same league as Russia! That was just stupid. Have Christians lost some of their rights, some of their freedom of speech, some of their right to assemble, and freedom of worship? Perhaps, but as a comparative with RUSSIA? How idiotic.
And any backpedalling of freedoms in society is partly the American Church’s own doing. If the American church is losing rights, it’s because it doesn’t speak up and fight back.
Televangelist financial scandals, and massive money-making corporations run under the guise of charitable works,for example, has brought shame and reproach to the body of Christ – and it’s wrong.
Some pastors and evangelists run nonprofit societies, yet they live in million-dollar mansions due to the sale of their books and CDs – which they hawk through said non-profit ministries. That’s wrong, and may even be considered tax evasion.
The accuser with her grandparents, TBN founders Paul and Jan Crouch, on her wedding day. (Credit: Daily Mail)
For example, in March 2012, London’s Daily Mailnewspaper reported that two former employees of the world’s largest Christian television channel, Trinity Broadcasting Network, founded by Televangelists Paul and Jan Crouch, accused the non-profit of spending millions of dollars of its funding on extravagant personal expenses. Among purchases were a $50 million jet, 13 mansions and a $100,000-mobile home for Mrs Crouch’s dogs. Their accuser? Their granddaughter, Brittany Koper, 26, recently filed her allegations in court after a brief appointment as the network’s chief finance director in July. Pretty hard to ‘blame the Devil’ or excuse this in any possible way.
I recently even read in America some pastors stating that if they lose their tax-exempt status as a church or as a charitable entity, they will withdraw their services from society and let the city or province or state or whatever see just how much that service has given to that state or province free of charge. What a travesty – we were called to reach out to society whether they acknowledge it or not, financially or otherwise.
This is what we have become? A money-making whore that demands society look the other way while we generate revenues in exactly the same way as secular society does, but tax-free? Is a tax-free status a Christian right? Hardly. Jesus said, concerning taxes: “Give unto Caesar that which is Caesar’s, and give unto God that which is God’s” (Mark 12:17) Is it a good witness to disobey or even break laws around charitable institutions? NO.
If the American Church lost its charitable non-tax status across the board, it would be a gift in disguise. How many churches suffer financially while televangelists bring in $50+ million per year? Are any of those evangelists truly necessary to the body of Christ? Sure, a few – Billy Graham, James Robson, Reinhard Bonnke, Greg Laurie and a few others are changing the world.
THIS is what Christian persecution looks like.
Governments’ response to some Christian ministries’ tax-robbing ways is not persecution. We are also taxpayers, which means that everytime a ministry steals from society like this, we all pay for it anyway. Misusing the label ‘persecution’ is the most ridiculous thing of all, and mocks the real suffering of believers worldwide.
According to a September 20, 2015 report2 in the Daily Express newspaper, a Christian is martyred every 5 minutes by Islamic State terrorists alone. Believers are often singled out, tortured and faced with the brutal choice of converting to Islam or being slaughtered, according to Christian Freedom International.Those who refuse to comply have reportedly had their limbs cut off or have been crucified.
Research by CFI found that more than 200 million Christians are facing persecution in 105 countries, making Christianity the most at-risk faith group in the world. More Christians have been martyred in the 20th and 21st centuries than during the previous 19 combined, the organisation has claimed.
Don’t like the guy or what he stands for but in this context, he’s dead-on.
Not everyone agrees with this American Church persecution assessment either. For over 60 years,Open Doorshasbeena respected international organisation with a mission of advocacy for persecuted Christians in 60 countries around the world. I note that in their 2016 list of the top 50 countries where Christians face the most severe persecution for their faith, America was not found.
North Korea has ranked #1 for 13 years because it is illegal to be a Christian in North Korea, and Christians are often sent to labour camps or are killed if they are discovered. I was, therefore, both shocked and inspired to see that regardless of this verdict, North Korea has over 300,000 Christian believers. God, keep your hand on all of them, wherever they may be.
Are these the only countries where Christians are persecuted? Sadly no. Open Doors says that there are more than 65 countries where Christians are persecuted. If the American Church focused on their plight instead of its myopic own, they could change that dynamic for many of them.
By Shawn J., Founding Editor Calling Out Community Posted January 8, 2017
We’d love to hear from you:
In Donald Trump’s final days on the campaign trail, he promised his supporters that “every dream you ever dreamed for your country” will come true if he became President — one of dozens of sweeping promises he made and is now expected to fulfill
In January, Jenna Johnson of the Washington Post compiled a list of 76 campaign promises Trump had made. Since then, the list has grown to 282, collected from Trump’s speeches, public comments, tweets and campaign and transition websites.
Now, in a series of posts, we will lay out every single one of these promises. We want President-Elect Trump to succeed, and to stay on track with his very aggressive agenda as he does. We want to assist him where we can, and ensure our elected officials in Washington know that we expect them to do the same.
Originally published in The Washington Post. Jenna Johnson is a political reporter who covered Donald Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign. Follow @wpjenna
JOBS
Create at least 25 million jobs and “be the greatest jobs president that God ever created.”
As this best-selling book and Netflix documentary assert, China is killing the American economy.
Bring back manufacturing jobs from China, Mexico, Japan and elsewhere. States that can expect a rush of jobs include Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Michigan, Ohio, Florida, New Hampshire, Iowa, Nevada, New York and Virginia.
3. Encourage manufacturers to build or grow factories in the United States with tax incentives.
4. Refuse to eat another Oreo until Nabisco fully moves production back to the United States from Mexico.
5. Tell Ford’s president that unless he cancels plans to build a massive plant in Mexico, the auto company will face a 35 percent tax on cars imported into the United States. Trump is confident he can get this done before taking office. (Trump has twice incorrectly said this has already happened.)
6. “Get Apple to start building their damn computers and things in this country, instead of in other countries.”
7. Call the executives at the parent company of Carrier, an air-conditioning manufacturer that is closing a plant in Indiana and moving to Mexico, and threaten to impose a 35 percent tariff on air conditioners imported into the United States. Trump predicts the company will say: “Sir, we’ve decided to stay in the United States.”
22. “I promise I will never be in a bicycle race. That I can tell you.” (Trump has criticized Secretary of State John F. Kerry, who was injured while riding a bicycle amid the Iran negotiations.)
23. “In negotiation, you must be willing to walk. . . . When the other side knows you’re not going to walk, it becomes absolutely impossible to win.”
25. “I don’t settle cases. I don’t do it.” (This month Trump settled a fraud lawsuit against Trump University for $25 million.)
President-Elect Trump and his three adult children – Eric, Donald Jr. and Ivanka. (Credit: Vanity Fair)
26. Fully focus on the presidency and put his three oldest children — Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump and Eric Trump — in charge of running his company. (Trump has yet to take steps to fully isolate himself from his business, and his three oldest children have played a major role in his transition team. In an interview with the New York Times on Tuesday, Trump noted that he could legally continue running his business.)
28. Pass the Middle Class Tax Relief and Simplification Act, which will reduce the number of tax brackets from seven to four and lower income taxes for all. The highest earners would pay a 25 percent tax. Individuals earning less than $25,000 per year or couples earning less than $50,000 would not be charged income tax, although they would have to file a one-page form with the IRS that states: “I win.”
29. Lower the corporate tax rate to 15 percent and get rid of most corporate tax loopholes or incentives. Allow corporations a one-time window to transfer money being held overseas, charging a much-reduced 10 percent tax.
30. Eliminate the carried interest loophole for Wall Street, the federal estate tax, the alternative minimum tax and the so-called marriage penalty that affects some high-income earners. Continue to allow taxpayers to deduct mortgage interest and charitable donations from their taxes.
31. “We are going to have the biggest tax cuts since Ronald Reagan.”
TRADE
32. Renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement or withdraw from the deal under Article 2205.
(Credit: Smoloko.com)
33. On the first day in office, pull out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, President Obama’s signature trade deal linking countries around the Pacific Rim.
34. Negotiate trade deals with individual countries instead of regions. Trump would gather together the “smartest negotiators in the world” and assign them each a country. Billionaire hedge fund manager Carl Icahn would be in charge of trade negotiations with China and Japan.
35. Identify all foreign trading abuses that affect American workers and “use every tool under American and international law to end those abuses immediately.” This would include cracking down on “sweatshops in Mexico that undercut U.S. workers.”
36. Impose new taxes on imports into the country from companies that used to be based in the United States. Trump’s most frequently cited number is 35 percent.
37. Impose a 45 percent tariff on Chinese products imported into the United States.
ECONOMY AND FEDERAL BUDGET
38. “We will double our growth and have the strongest economy anywhere in the world.” Grow the nation’s economy by at least 4 percent per year, although Trump has also suggested he will boost growth to at least 6 percent per year — if not much higher.
(Credit: The Independent Report)
39. Eliminate the $19 trillion national debt within eight years by “vigorously eliminating waste, fraud and abuse in the federal government, ending redundant government programs and growing the economy to increase tax revenues.”
40. Never default on this debt, as the United States can “print the money” or renegotiate the amount owed with creditors, as the self-described “king of debt” has done with his private businesses.
41. Cut the budget by 20 percent by simply negotiating better prices or renegotiating existing deals.
42. Implement the “Penny Plan,” which each year would reduce net spending by 1 percent of the previous year’s total. Over 10 years, Trump says, this would reduce spending by almost $1 trillion. Defense and public safety spending would be exempt.
43. Immediately institute a hiring freeze on all federal employees to reduce the workforce through attrition. There would be exceptions for those in the military, public safety and public health.
44. Order every federal government department head to “provide a list of wasteful spending projects that we can eliminate in my first 100 days.” Review each agency and then decrease the size of the “bloated government,” making it “leaner and more responsive to the public.”
45. Stop spending money on space exploration until the United States can fix its potholes. Encourage private space-exploration companies to expand.
46. Stop so-called zombie spending, in which the government funds programs that have had their congressional authorization lapse. By cutting 5 percent of this spending, Trump estimates he could save almost $200 billion over 10 years.
47. Collect unpaid taxes, which Trump says could be as much as $385 billion per year.
52. “Completely repeal” the Affordable Care Act and replace it with something “terrific” that is “so much better, so much better, so much better.” Americans will have “great health care at a fraction of the cost.” Trump plans to call Congress into a special session to do this, which will likely be unnecessary.
53. Eliminate the individual mandate, as “no person should be required to buy insurance unless he or she wants to.”
55. Knock down the regulatory walls between states for health insurance, making plans available nationally instead of regionally. “Insurance costs will go down and consumer satisfaction will go up.”
56. Expand use of Health Savings Accounts, which allow workers to save money for medical expenses without having to pay federal income tax on those funds. These payments will be allowed to accumulate and can be passed on to heirs. These funds can be used by any member of a family.
57. Encourage states to establish high-risk pools to cover individuals who have not maintained continuous coverage.
59. Reduce the number of individuals on Medicaid and/or using the Children’s Health Insurance Program. Trump would also cut any health care offered to undocumented immigrants.
In Donald Trump’s final days on the campaign trail, he promised his supporters that “every dream you ever dreamed for your country” will come true if he became President — one of dozens of sweeping promises he made and is now expected to fulfill
In January, Jenna Johnson of the Washington Post compiled a list of 76 campaign promises Trump had made. Since then, the list has grown to 282, collected from Trump’s speeches, public comments, tweets and campaign and transition websites.
Now, in a series of posts, we will lay out every single one of these promises. We want President-Elect Trump to succeed, and to stay on track with his very aggressive agenda as he does. We want to assist him where we can, and ensure our elected officials in Washington know that we expect them to do the same.
Originally published in The Washington Post. Jenna Johnson is a political reporter who covered Donald Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign. Follow @wpjenna
BORDER SECURITY
65. Fully fund the construction of an “impenetrable physical wall” along the southern border with Mexico. The wall will be one foot taller than the Great Wall of China and “artistically beautiful,” constructed of hardened concrete, rebar and steel. The wall might cover only about 1,000 miles of the nearly 2,000-mile border because of natural barriers, and Trump is open to using fencing in some places.
(Credit: CNN.com)
66. Make Mexico pay for the wall, “100 percent.” If Mexico refuses, then the United States will impound remittance payments taken from the wages of undocumented immigrants, cut foreign aid, institute tariffs, cancel visas for Mexican business leaders and diplomats, and increase fees for visas, border-crossing cards and port use.
69. Supplement the wall with “above-and below-ground sensors, towers, aerial surveillance and manpower.” Hire an additional 5,000 Border Patrol agents and expand the number of Border Patrol stations.
70. End “catch-and-release.” Anyone who illegally crosses the border will be detained until they are removed from the country.
75. Immediately deport undocumented immigrants who have committed a crime, are a member of a gang or pose a security threat. Trump estimates this is 2 million to 3 million people, although experts say the number is much lower.
76. Deport the millions of undocumented immigrants who are in the United States on an expired visa.
78. Issue detainers for undocumented immigrants who are arrested for any crime and immediately begin removal proceedings.
79. Do not grant amnesty to immigrants who are in the country illegally. “Anyone who has entered the United States illegally is subject to deportation,” and those wanting legal status will have to return to their home country and apply for reentry.
80. Restore the Secure Communities deportation program, which was ended by the Obama administration in 2014. The program was a partnership among federal, state and local law enforcement agencies that worked together to identify and deport undocumented immigrants.
81. “Expand and revitalize” use of Section 287(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, which allows the Department of Homeland Security to deputize state and local law enforcement officers to perform the functions of federal immigration agents.
Kate’s Law is dedicated to Kate Steinle, whom an illegal felon and total strangee shot and killed on the Pier in San Francisco, CA, dying in her dad’s arms. Later we learned the demon that shot her had been thrown out of the US for committing previous felonies – and was let back in. I hope he hangs. (Credit: DC Gazette)
82. On the first day in office, ask Congress to pass “Kate’s Law” — named for Kate Steinle, who was killed by an undocumented immigrant in San Francisco last summer — to “ensure that criminal aliens convicted of illegal reentry face receive strong mandatory minimum sentences.”
83. Introduce legislation named for Michael Davis Jr. and Danny Oliver, law enforcement officers in California who were killed by an undocumented immigrant in 2014. Such legislation would hasten the removal of “criminal immigrants and terrorists.” (Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama introduced the Davis-Oliver Act in June 2015, but it did not go anywhere.)
84. Stop issuing visas to countries that refuse to take back citizens who immigrated illegally to the United States.
85. Allow “tremendous numbers” of legal immigrants based on a “merit system,” selecting immigrants who will help grow the country’s economy.
87. Expand the number of H-1B visas for highly skilled workers so that more of the “talented people” who graduate from Ivy League institutions can stay in the United States and work in Silicon Valley.
88. Get rid of the H-1B visa program because it’s “very, very bad” for American workers.
89. Continue to allow lowly paid foreign workers to come to the United States on temporary work visas to pick grapes and work in seasonal resorts.
91. End birthright citizenship, only granting citizenship to babies whose parents are legally in the country.
92. Sunset visa laws, forcing Congress to periodically review and revise them.
93. Strongly enforce visa expiration dates. Complete the biometric entry-exit visa tracking system, which has been authorized by Congress but has yet to be completed.
94. Strengthen and expand the use of E-Verify, which allows employers to check an employee’s eligibility to work.
95. Urge assimilation because “our system of government, and our American culture, is the best in the world and will produce the best outcomes for all who adopt it.”
96. Accomplish more immigration reforms in a few months than politicians have accomplished in the past 50 years. With these reforms, Trump promises: “Crime will go down, border crossings will plummet, gangs will disappear, and welfare use will decrease.”
98. Be unpredictable and keep all military strategy a secret. “No one is going to touch us, because I’m so unpredictable.”
99. Put “different generals” in place because “under the leadership of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, I think the generals have been reduced to rubble.” Trim military bureaucracy.
100. Find great generals — like the next Gen. George Patton or Gen. Douglas MacArthur — and do not allow them to go on television news shows to explain their military strategy. Trump prefers generals who are rough, foul-mouthed and beloved by their troops.
101. As soon as he takes office, ask Congress to repeal the defense sequester that limited the military’s budget.
108. Grow the Marine Corps to 36 battalions, increasing the active-duty force from its current target of 182,000 to 200,000.
109. Involve all 50 states in rebuilding the military and developing new technologies. Create thousands of jobs building these new ships in Philadelphia, Portsmouth, N.H., and Hampton Roads, Va. North Carolina’s Research Triangle will also play a key role.
115. Drop that “dirty, rotten traitor” Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl out of an airplane into desolate Afghanistan without a parachute. Trump has also suggested that Bergdahl be shot.
116. “I will not hesitate to deploy military force when there is no alternative. But if America fights, it must fight to win.”
CYBERSECURITY
117. Assemble a “cyber review team” of the best military, civilian and private sector cybersecurity experts to comprehensively review all systems and technology, starting with the most sensitive ones. The team will also remain current on new methods of attack and set up protocols for each agency and government officials.
118. Establish a training program for government employees to make certain they understand what defenses are available and utilize them. Punish those who violate classification rules, holding them responsible to the fullest extent of the law.
119. Solicit recommendations from the secretary of defense and Joint Chiefs of Staff for strengthening and augmenting the country’s Cyber Command.
120. Order the Department of Justice to create joint task forces to coordinate responses to cyberthreats. (The FBI already runs “cyber task forces” in each one of its 56 field offices.)
In Donald Trump’s final days on the campaign trail, he promised his supporters that “every dream you ever dreamed for your country” will come true if he became President — one of dozens of sweeping promises he made and is now expected to fulfill
In January, Jenna Johnson of the Washington Post compiled a list of 76 campaign promises Trump had made. Since then, the list has grown to 282, collected from Trump’s speeches, public comments, tweets and campaign and transition websites.
Now, in a series of posts, we will lay out every single one of these promises. We want President-Elect Trump to succeed, and to stay on track with his very aggressive agenda as he does. We want to assist him where we can, and ensure our elected officials in Washington know that we expect them to do the same.
Originally published in The Washington Post. Jenna Johnson is a political reporter who covered Donald Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign. Follow @wpjenna
123. Dramatically reform the agency. Fire “the corrupt and incompetent” leaders and make it easier for the secretary to fire people. Trump promises to protect and promote “honest employees” who highlight wrongdoing. These employees will also receive bonuses.
124. Create a commission to investigate “all the fraud, cover-ups and wrongdoing that has taken place in the VA.” Present these findings to Congress to spur legislative reform.
125. Create a White House hotline that is active 24 hours a day and is answered by a real person who will handle veterans’ complaints of wrongdoing at the VA and “ensure no complaints fall through the cracks.”
126. Allow veterans to take their military identification card to any medical facility that accepts Medicaid patients to receive care. Veterans can also seek care “at a private service provider of their own choice.” Trump promises that: “Under a Trump administration, no veteran will die waiting for service. These days are over starting January 2017.”
127. Embed satellite VA clinics in rural hospitals and underserved areas, and ensure that every VA hospital is permanently staffed with obstetrics and gynecology doctors.
128. Increase funding for the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injuries and mental health issues. Increase the number of mental health professionals.
130. Veterans who apply for a job at a VA facility will have five points added to their qualifying scores. For all jobs across the country, employers should consider veterans ahead of immigrants.
131. Invest more heavily in programs that help military veterans transition back to civilian life, including job training and placement services.
132. “Ensure our veterans get the care they need wherever and whenever they need it. No more long drives. No more waiting backlogs. No more excessive red tape.”
FOREIGN POLICY
“A Trump administration will never ever put the interest of a foreign country before the interest of our country. From now on, it’s going to be America first.”
134. Force other NATO countries to pay for more of their defense, and only come to the aid of other countries if those nations have “fulfilled their obligations to us.” In particular, Trump expects Germany, Japan, South Korea and Saudi Arabia to pay more for the security the United States provides.
135. Call a summit with NATO allies and a separate summit with Asian allies to discuss “a rebalancing of financial commitments” and adopting new strategies, such as upgrading “NATO’s outdated mission and structure.”
136. Get along with Russian President Vladimir Putin. “I hope that we get along great with Putin because it would be great to have Russia with a good relationship.” Trump would also look into lifting the sanctions imposed on Russia after its annexation of Crimea.
137. Communicate with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un about his nuclear program, which would mark a major shift in U.S. policy toward the isolated nation. “I would speak to him, I would have no problem speaking to him.”
138. Stay out of the Syrian civil war. Although Trump considers Syrian President Bashar al-Assad “bad,” he has said the United States has higher priorities. Around the world, Trump has said, he prefers stability over regime changes.
139. Reverse Obama’s executive orders and “concessions towards Cuba until freedoms are restored.” Trump has pledged to “demand political and religious freedom for the people of Cuba.”
141. Help Haiti and its “incredible people” rebuild their country.
Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met November 10 at Trump Tower. (Credit: Jerusalem Post)
142. Be a “true friend to Israel.” Trump says the United States will “be working with Israel very closely, very, very closely.”
143. Do not throw a lavish state dinner for Chinese President Xi Jinping, as Obama did last year, and instead buy Jinping a “double-size Big Mac” and tell him “we gotta get down to work.”
145. “It is time to shake the rust off of America’s foreign policy. It’s time to invite new voices and new visions into the fold.” Trump wants to “establish a foreign policy that will endure for several generations.”
IRAN
146. Tear up the Iran deal and then “totally” renegotiate the whole thing.
147. Negotiate the release of all U.S. prisoners held in Iran before taking office. (Five Americans were released during the campaign, including Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian; Trump has claimed some credit for this.)
148. Refuse to call Iran’s leader by his preferred title. “I’ll say, ‘Hey baby, how ya doing?’ I will never call him the supreme leader.”
150. “We can’t continue to allow China to rape our country, and that’s what they’re doing.”
151. Direct the secretary of the treasury to label China a currency manipulator.
152. Instruct the U.S. trade representative to bring trade cases against China, both here and at the World Trade Organization. If necessary, apply tariffs against China consistent with Section 201 and 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 and Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962.
153. Adopt a “zero tolerance policy” for Chinese hackers and those who steal American intellectual property and ideas.
159. Work with allies to cut off funding to the Islamic State, expand intelligence sharing and use cyberwarfare to disrupt and disable their propaganda and recruiting. Work closely with NATO and “our Arab allies and friends in the Middle East.” Partner with Israel, King Abdullah II of Jordan, and Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sissi and “all others who recognize this ideology of death that must be extinguished.”
160. “Bomb the s — — out of ISIS” and “knock them out.” Also bomb oil fields controlled by the Islamic State, then seize the oil and give the profits to military veterans who were wounded while fighting.
161. Target and kill the relatives of suspected terrorists, a violation of international law.
162. Shut down parts of the Internet so that Islamic State terrorists cannot use it to recruit American children.
163. Bring back waterboarding, which is widely considered torture, and use interrogation techniques that are “a hell of a lot worse than waterboarding.” Even if such tactics don’t work, Trump says, suspected terrorists “deserve it anyway, for what they’re doing.” (Trump suggested after the election, however, that he was reconsidering his position because of a conversation with a general who opposed the tactic.)
164. Establish a Commission on Radical Islam that will include “reformist voices in the Muslim community” and will identify the warning signs of radicalization, educate the American public and develop protocol for police officers, federal investigators and immigration screeners.
(Crecit: JihadWatch.org)
165. Temporarily ban most foreign Muslims from entering the United States “until our country’s representatives can figure out what is going on.” Trump would allow exceptions for dignitaries, business people, athletes and others who have “proven” themselves. Although Trump’s aides, surrogates and running mate insist he no longer wants this so-called Muslim ban, Trump himself has yet to fully disavow the idea and it is still posted on his campaign website.
166. Temporarily suspend “immigration from some of the most dangerous and volatile regions of the world that have a history of exporting terrorism.” Order the Department of State, Homeland Security and the Department of Justice to develop a list of regions and countries to include. The list will likely include Syria and Libya.
167. Create an ideological screening test for all immigration applicants with the goal of keeping “radical Islamic terrorists the hell out of our country.” For example, immigrants from Iraq and Afghanistan would be asked for their views on honor killings and sharia law, along with their opinions of women, gays and minorities.
168. Heavily surveil mosques in the United States. Trump has said he would “strongly consider” closing some mosques.
169. Encourage Muslim communities to “cooperate with law enforcement and turn in the people who they know are bad — and they do know where they are.”
170. Deport those “who are guests in our country that are preaching hate.”
172. “Our administration will be a friend to all moderate Muslim reformers in the Middle East, and will amplify their voices. This includes speaking out against the horrible practice of honor killings.”
173. “If and when the Vatican is attacked by ISIS, which as everyone knows is ISIS’s ultimate trophy, I can promise you that the pope would have only wished and prayed that Donald Trump would have been president because this would not have happened.”
REFUGEES
Syrian refugees demonstrate at a 2015 Jordanian camp. (Credit: World Bank)
174. Bar Syrian refugees from entering the country and kick out any who are already living here, as they might be “the ultimate Trojan horse.”
175. Create a database of Syrian refugees. Trump has also seemed open to the idea of creating a database of Muslims in the country, although his aides say that is not true.
176. Set up safe zones in Syria and then force wealthy Persian Gulf nations such as Saudi Arabia to pick up the bill. “They’re gonna put up all the money. We’re not gonna put up money. We’re gonna lead it and we’ll do a great a job. But we’re gonna get the Gulf states to put up the money.”
In Donald Trump’s final days on the campaign trail, he promised his supporters that “every dream you ever dreamed for your country” will come true if he became President — one of dozens of sweeping promises he made and is now expected to fulfill
In January, Jenna Johnson of the Washington Post compiled a list of 76 campaign promises Trump had made. Since then, the list has grown to 282, collected from Trump’s speeches, public comments, tweets and campaign and transition websites.
Now, in a series of posts, we will lay out every single one of these promises. We want President-Elect Trump to succeed, and to stay on track with his very aggressive agenda as he does. We want to assist him where we can, and ensure our elected officials in Washington know that we expect them to do the same.
Originally published in The Washington Post. Jenna Johnson is a political reporter who covered Donald Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign. Follow @wpjenna
ENERGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT
178. Gut, if not eliminate, the Environmental Protection Agency, which Trump has called a “disgrace.”
180. Eliminate “intrusive” regulations, along with “any regulation that is outdated, unnecessary, bad for workers, or contrary to the national interest.” Eliminate duplication in regulations, deferring to local officials and residents. Remove the “draconian barriers” to allow energy infrastructure projects and development to proceed.
181. Eliminate the Clean Water Rule that defines the “waters of the United States” and gives added protection to tributaries that impact the health of downstream waters.
182. Scrap the Clean Power Plan, which reduces the amount of carbon pollution from power plants. Trump says this could save the country $7.2 billion per year.
183. Oppose a carbon tax on fossil fuels use that could be used to reverse damage to the environment caused by the release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
184. Revoke restrictions on new drilling technologies and support “safe hydraulic fracturing” to create “millions of jobs.” Lease more federal land for drilling, including “vast areas of our offshore energy resources.”
185. Ease federal regulations on coal mining to revive the industry. Eliminate Obama’s moratorium on new leases for coal mined from federal lands.
186. Treat climate change like the “hoax” that Trump has said it is. (In a recent interview with the New York Times, Trump seemed to soften that position.)
187. Cancel all funding for domestic and international climate change programs, which he estimates would total $100 billion over two terms. Trump would instead spend that money on domestic infrastructure projects.
188. Pull out of the Paris Agreement, which was recently signed by 196 countries pledging to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.
189. Become the world’s dominant leader in energy production. Attain “complete American energy independence” so that the United States is no longer dependent on foreign oil.
191. Ask TransCanada to renew its permit application for the Keystone XL pipeline so that it can be approved.
192. “Unleash an energy revolution that will bring vast new wealth to our country.” Create at least a half million jobs a year, prompting a more than $30 billion increase in annual wages over seven years. This will increase the GDP by more than $100 billion annually. Use the revenue from energy production to rebuild roads, schools, bridges and public infrastructure.
Everglades water way on a rainy afternoon
193. Restore and protect the Florida Everglades, even though it’s a “rough-looking sight down there.”
195. Spur the spending of $1 trillion in public and private dollars on infrastructure projects over 10 years. Invest in “transportation, clean water, a modern and reliable electricity grid, telecommunications, security infrastructure, and other pressing domestic infrastructure needs” without adding to the national debt.
196. Negotiate rates for these projects that are one-third of what the United States is currently paying. “Cut wasteful spending on boondoggles” by streamlining the permit and approval processes.
197. Provide tax incentives to encourage public-private partnerships.
199. Triple funding for revolving loan fund programs to help states and local governments upgrade drinking water and wastewater infrastructure.
200. Create “thousands of new jobs in construction, steel manufacturing, and other sectors” to carry out this work. Only “American workers” will be hired for these jobs.
201. Modernize airports and air traffic control systems. Reform the Federal Aviation Administration and Transportation Security Administration to reduce wait times and hassle for travelers.
203. “Drain the swamp” in Washington and “cut our ties with the failed politicians of the past.”
204. Propose a constitutional amendment to impose term limits on all members of Congress, limiting House members to three terms, or six years, and senators to two terms, or 12 years.
205. Institute a five-year ban on White House and congressional officials becoming lobbyists after they leave office. (Trump is already having staff and Cabinet members sign pledges.
206. Institute a lifetime ban on White House officials lobbying on behalf of a foreign government.
207. Ban foreign lobbyists from raising money for American elections.
209. “Lock her up.” Instruct the attorney general to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate Hillary Clinton’s “situation because there has never been so many lies, so much deception.” Trump had said the investigation would include Clinton’s use of a private email server while she was secretary of state and the ways in which the Clinton Foundation raised money. (Trump told the New York Times on Tuesday this is now a lesser priority. “I want to move forward, I don’t want to move back. And I don’t want to hurt the Clintons. I really don’t,” he said.)
211. Limit the influence of the Department of Education and give more control to local school districts. The department might also see a major budget cut.
212. Get rid of Common Core because it’s “a disaster” and a “very bad thing.”
213. “Be the nation’s biggest cheerleader for school choice,” use the “pulpit of the presidency” to campaign for expanded school choice in all 50 states and support the election of local, state and federal officials who agree.
214. Allow families to redirect their share of education spending to a private, charter, magnet, religious or homeschool. Provide $20 billion in federal funding to establish block grants that states could use to help children in low-income families enroll at private and charter schools.
217. Take away federal tax breaks and other perks from colleges and universities that do not make “a good faith effort” to reduce the cost of tuition and the amount of student debt.
220. Cap repayment of federal student loans at 12.5 percent of a person’s discretionary income and forgive any remaining balance after 15 years. Current income-based plans allow for payments of 10 to 15 percent of discretionary income, with balances forgiven after 20 to 25 years.
In Donald Trump’s final days on the campaign trail, he promised his supporters that “every dream you ever dreamed for your country” will come true if he became President — one of dozens of sweeping promises he made and is now expected to fulfill
In January, Jenna Johnson of the Washington Post compiled a list of 76 campaign promises Trump had made. Since then, the list has grown to 282, collected from Trump’s speeches, public comments, tweets and campaign and transition websites.
Now, in a series of posts, we will lay out every single one of these promises. We want President-Elect Trump to succeed, and to stay on track with his very aggressive agenda as he does. We want to assist him where we can, and ensure our elected officials in Washington know that we expect them to do the same.
Originally published in The Washington Post. Jenna Johnson is a political reporter who covered Donald Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign. Follow @wpjenna
CHILD CARE
223. Rewrite the tax code to allow parents to fully deduct child-care expenses for up to four children and elderly dependents. (Some of these expenses are already deductible under the law.)
225. Add incentives for employers that offer on-site child care to employees. Trump has said companies can “very easily” and inexpensively do this because “you need one person or two people, and you need some blocks and you need some swings and some toys.”
226. Guarantee six weeks of paid maternity leave by amending the conditions of unemployment insurance employers are required to carry.
INNER-CITY POVERTY AND VIOLENCE
227. “Every action I take, I will ask myself: Does this make life better for young Americans in Baltimore, Chicago, Detroit, Ferguson who have as much of a right to live out their dreams as any other child America?”
Detroit, the fastest-growing city on Earth in the 1950s, is now the fastest-shrinking city in America. Detroit needs a miracle NOW. (Credit: New York Times)
228. Rebuild and fix inner cities, especially Detroit. “The inner cities are unbelievably dangerous. The education is no good, the safety is horrible, and there are no jobs. And I tell everybody: ‘What the hell do you have to lose?’ I’m going to fix it.”
229. Quickly end inner-city violence, which Trump has repeatedly compared to war zones. “I’ll be able to make sure that when you walk down the street in your inner city, or wherever you are, you’re not gonna be shot. Your child isn’t gonna be shot.”
233. “The crime and violence that today afflicts our nation will soon come to an end. Beginning on January 20, 2017, safety will be restored.” On that day, Trump says, “Americans will finally wake up in a country where the laws of the United States are enforced.”
Mainstream media reports cop killings as if they were an epidemic. They are not. (Credit: Maggionews)
234. Stop the surge of violent crime and homicides in Chicago within “one week.”
235. “Dismantle every last criminal gang and cartel threatening our cities. . . . They are not going to be here very long, folks. They’re gonna be out of here.”
236. Immediately stop the killing of police officers. “It’s going to stop, okay? It’s going to stop. We’re going to be law and order. It’s going to stop.”
237. Sign an executive order calling for the death penalty for anyone found guilty of killing a police officer.
240. Expand the use of “stop and frisk,” which Trump says worked “incredibly well” in New York.
241. Encourage profiling and targeting “people that maybe look suspicious.”
242. “The police and the law enforcement in this country — I will never ever let them down, just remember that.”
SUPREME COURT
The U.S. Supreme Court Building in Washington, DC. (Credit: USA Today)
243. Pick Supreme Court justices who are “really great legal scholars,” opposed to abortion and fans of the Second Amendment. Select a replacement for Justice Antonin Scalia from a list of more than 20 contenders that has already been released.
RELIGIOUS LIBERTY
244. “If I become president, we’re all going to be saying ‘Merry Christmas’ again.”
245. Get rid of the Johnson Amendment, which prohibits tax-exempt organizations like churches from formally endorsing or opposing political candidates.
246. Sign the First Amendment Defense Act if it passes Congress. The legislation, introduced by Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), would prevent any federal agency from denying a tax exemption, grant, contract, license or certification to an individual, association or business that discriminates against gays.
249. Sign into law the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, which would prohibit abortions after 20 weeks, the point at which antiabortion activists say a fetus can feel pain.
250. Make the Hyde Amendment permanent. Since 1976, Congress has annually passed the Hyde Amendment, banning the use of federal dollars — in particular, Medicaid funds — for abortion, except in the case of rape, incest or a threat to the mother’s life.
GUNS
251. On the first day in office, get rid of gun-free zones at military bases, recruiting centers and, in some cases, schools. These zones are like “target practice for the sickos and for the mentally ill.”
252. Use “common sense” to fix the mental health system to prevent mass shootings. Expand treatment programs and reform laws to make it easier to take preventive action.
254. Arm more of the “good guys” who can reduce the severity of mass shootings. Get rid of bans on certain types of guns and magazines so that “good, honest people” can own the guns of their choice.
255. Fix the background check system used when purchasing guns to ensure states are properly uploading criminal and health records.
257. Impose a minimum sentence of five years in federal prison for any violent felon who commits a crime using a gun, with no chance for parole or early release.
(Credit: PilotOnline.com)
258. Expand programs like Project Exile, a federal program started in Virginia in 1997 that locked up criminals possessing illegal guns for years in federal prisons far from their homes.
259. “The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed upon. Period.”
MEDIA
260. “Open up our libel laws so when they write purposely negative and horrible and false articles, we can sue them and win lots of money.”
261. Oppose the killing of journalists. “I hate some of these people, but I would never kill them.”
262. Stop AT&T from buying Time Warner, the parent company of CNN. Federal antitrust regulators would have to review and approve that type of merger.
263. “It’s time to reject the political and media elite that’s bled our country dry.”
273. Provide more funding for drug treatment, especially for heroin addicts. “We are going to work very hard with medical professionals to take care of those people that are so badly addicted.”
275. “The whole psyche [of the United States] will change” on Election Day.
276. “Whether you vote for me or not, I’m with you. I will never ever let you down.”
277. “I will give you everything.”
278. “I pledge to protect and defend all Americans who live inside of our borders. Wherever they come from, wherever they were born, all Americans living here and following our laws will be protected. America will be a tolerant and open society.”
279. Be a cheerleader for America and bring the country’s spirit back. “Bring us all together as Americans. We’re living in a divided nation. We’re living in a very divided nation. We’re going to be brought together.”
280. Bring back the American Dream. “Take the brand of the United States and make it great again.”
281. “We will start winning again and winning like you’ve never seen before.”
282. “Together we will make American wealthy and prosperous again. We will make America strong again. We will make America safe again. And we will make America great again.”
By Shawn J., Founding Editor Calling Out Community Posted December 3, 2016
We’d love to hear from you:
The November 8th election of the 45th President of the United States, Donald Trump, has brought with it a flood of interest in his family, including possibly one of the most unique First Ladies in American history.
For only the second time since the American Revolution, the First Lady is foreign born – Abigail Adams, the wife of John Quincy Adams, the 6th President (1825-1829), was born in England.
Melania Trump has emerged from the shadows of her internationally-known billionaire husband to stand on her own merits as quite possibly the most perfectly-suited First Lady in recent memory. It seems, to use a tired old cliche, that she was born to be First Lady.
Yet so many know so little about her. We feel its high time to start the introductions.
The incomparable new First Lady of the United States, Melania Trump. (Credit: Wikipedia Common)
Despite being married to one of the most controversial and colourful Presidents-Elect in American history (or perhaps because of it), Melania Trump remains an even deeper enigma than her famed husband.
Her quiet, signified demeanour and reserved personality make Melania an easy target for liberals, with articles labeling her as a “mannequin” and condemning her silence being published constantly.
Although the famous former model seems to have it all, one would be wise not to assume that she won the lottery only after her marriage to Donald (his third). In fact Melania is a self-made millionaire!
Melania Trump is a successful jewelry and watch designer and former model, but she is most popularly known for her marriage to American billionaire real estate developer and 2016 U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump. Melanie presently has an estimated personal net worth of $50 million.
What’s more, a prenuptial agreement between them means she wouldn’t get a dime from Trump should they get a divorce. So clearly she didn’t marry him for his money – she didn’t need it.
Her life story is of someone who’s struggled against all odds – and overcame. When I learned the TRUTH about Melania Trump, I realized she was the living definition of a Proverbs 31 woman – the kind of First Lady that America has been deprived of for far too long.
Melania Trump is an entrepreneur in her own right, having launched a line of jewelry and watches on QVC 5 years ago.
Melania Trump has graced the covers of the most prestigious fashion industry magazines. But like many Americans today, Melania’s success was the result of a courageous work ethic and humble beginnings.
Melanija Knavs was born on April 26, 1970 in the small Slovenian railroad town of Sevnica – long before she changed the spelling of her name to pursue a modeling career.
Despite the struggles many Slovenians faced during the country’s Communist times, the Knavses worked extremely hard to give their children a positive upbringing.
Her mother, Amalija Ulcnik, created sewing patterns at a factory that manufactured children’s clothing. She met Viktor Knavs in 1966 while he worked as a chauffeur for a nearby town’s mayor.
Melania’s parents instilled conservative values in her and her sister, such as putting family first and having an exceptional work ethic.
“I love my childhood. It was a beautiful childhood,” Melania said. Her son, Barron (10), speaks Slovenian fluently and uses it to speak with his grandparents, who now live near the Trumps in New York at Trump Tower.
Strong, beautiful, fearless, and confident – our next First Lady could well be the most-photographed in history BEFORE becoming First Lady!
Melania’s father left his job as a chauffeur to become a salesman at a state-owned car company in Ljubljana, Slovenia and found his family an apartment there – all to provide his children with exceptional education opportunities with their new prestigious address.
Amalija’s career as a seamstress had a profound impact on Melania. Once Melania learned to draw, she would sketch her own designs, and her mother or sister, Ines, would sew them. Melania also made her own jewelry.
Amalija spent evenings after work sewing clothing for herself and her two daughters. Instead of wearing clothes from the store, the Knavses designed and sewed everything they wore. Melania’s childhood friends remember her always being dressed elegantly and carrying herself with confidence – there was always something striking about her.
Melania’s modeling career began when she was 16-years-old at a modeling contest when she attracted the attention of photographer Stane Jerko, whose test photos of the breathtaking teenager resulted in her signing with a modeling agency in Milan.
has graced the covers of 13 magazines including Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Ocean Drive, InStyle, New York Magazine, Avenue, Allure, Vanity Fair, Self, Glamour, GQ, Elle, FHM
Despite her success as a model, Melania’s goal was to become a designer. So she applied to the School of Architecture at the University of Ljubljana in Slovenia, becoming one of the few to pass the school’s notoriously difficult entrance exams.
She kept to herself, she was a loner. After a shoot or a catwalk, she went home, not out. She didn’t want to waste time partying,” Jerko remembers.
After obtaining a degree in design and architecture at the University of Ljubljana, Melania was jetting between photo shoots in Paris and Milan – but Melania had even bigger dreams. Melania knew that if she wanted to achieve her goals she would have to move to America.
Melania finally made it to New York in 1996 after landing an American modeling contract – but nothing could prepare for the struggles that were down the road.
Shortly after she began pursuing her modeling dreams in America, Melania struggled to find work because she was considered “too old.” The modeling industry isn’t friendly to models once they hit their later twenties, and at just 26-years-old, Melania was worried her best days were already behind her.
Melania went to castings every day, but photographers continued picking someone else over her, and often someone younger. She was having a difficult time supporting herself, and endured the challenging season while being overseas, away from her tight-knit family back in Slovenia.
Eventually, Melania got her “big break” and it wasn’t long before she graced the magazine covers of Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, British GQ, In Style, New York Magazine, the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue, Allure, Self, Glamour, Vanity Fair, and Elle.
Donald and Melanie burst out laughing as she tells Today Show hosts on April 21, 2016 hosts that she REALLY wants him to stop Tweeting☺
But nothing could prepare her for the life-changing experience she would eventually encounter during her thriving modeling career.
While at a party during the New York Fashion Week in the fall of 1998, Melania met Donald Trump. She was a tall, shy brunette at just 28-years-old – while Trump was a brash 52-year-old real estate mogul.
“I didn’t know much about Donald Trump,” she says of their first encounter. “I had my life, I had my world. I didn’t follow Donald Trump and what kind of life he had.”
Although Trump attended the party with a date, he was instinctively drawn to Melania. When Trump’s date went to the bathroom, he seized the opportunity to chat for a few minutes with the Slovenian model he’d noticed.
Unlike the women who swooned every time the famous billionaire approached them, Melania remained unimpressed. When Trump asked for her number, she refused and instead asked for HIS contact information – she didn’t want to be just another woman he called, and she waited an entire week before calling him.
Donald and Melania Trump at the Republican National Convention, July 2016 (Credit: Republican National Committee)
Melania was curious to see if Trump would submit a business number. “I wanted to see what his intention is,” she explains. “It tells you a lot from the man what kind of number he gives you. He gave me all of his numbers.”
Melania’s confidence and shocking reaction to the wealthy playboy made Trump even more attracted to her. Trump could tell Melania was beautiful AND intelligent, and he was willing to do whatever it took to win the woman of his dreams.”
I’m not star-struck,” she explains. “We had a great connection, we had great chemistry, but I was not star struck. And maybe he noticed that.”
Many are quick to criticize Donald and Melania’s marriage due to their age difference, but after learning more about Melania – it’s easy to understand that these two were made for each other. Melania’s reserved personality and traditional values balance Trump’s assertive personality and controversial behavior.
Melania, Donald and their adult children Tiffany, Eric, Ivanka and Donald Trump, Jr. attend NBC’s Today Trump Town Hall at Rockefeller Plaza on April 21, 2016 in New York City. (Credit: NBC Today)
Melania’s traditional values can be seen in her absence from Trump’s campaign trail. Instead of being on the road with her husband, Melania chose to be at home in New York City to raise their 10-year-old son, Barron.
Despite the Trumps’ luxurious lifestyle, Melania refuses to let their son be raised by a nanny.
“It’s my choice not to be there [on the campaign trail],” Melania said. “I support my husband 100 percent, but … we have a 10-year-old son together, Barron, and I’m raising him.”
“This is the age he needs a parent at home,” she added.
When Donald Trump told his wife he wanted to run for president,
September 2015 photo of Donald and Melania Trump with the child they have together, Barron. (Credit: People Magazine)
Melania said they discussed it in depth and she encouraged him to run.
“I encouraged him because I know what he will do and what he can do for America,” she said. “He loves the American people and he wants to help them.”
Although she’s not out on the campaign trail, Melania stays involved in her husband’s campaign behind-the-scenes.
“She’s told me a couple of times during the debate, she was very happy with my performances, if you would want to call them a performance,” Donald Trump said. “But she said, ‘You could tone it down a little bit on occasion,’ which I understand.”
“She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue.” – Proverbs 31:26
Melania revealed the biggest untruth about her husband is the perception that he’s “nasty.”
Melania Trump greets the capacity crowd of 12,000 on February 19, 2016 at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center in Myrtle Beach, SC. (Credit: Right Side Broadcasting)
“He’s not,” Melania said. “He has a big heart and [a] very warm heart. You see who he is on the campaign trail all the time and on television, and I think – you know America needs a strong leader and a tough leader and [he] knows what he’s doing.”
“He is who he is,” she says. “Even if you give him advice, he will maybe take it in, but then he will do it the way he wants to do it. You cannot change a person. Let them be. Let them be the way they are.”
Melania’s passion for philanthropy is just a glimpse of the difference she could make as our First Lady. Some of the philanthropic causes she’s been involved with include the Martha Graham Dance Company, the Police Athletic League, the Boys Club of New York, The American Red Cross, and Love Our Children USA.
“She opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy.” – Proverbs 31:20
Though she may not have experience in politics, Melania Trump is equipped to help her husband out on the diplomatic front: in addition to her native Slovenian, Melania speaks four other languages: English, French, Serbian and German.
“She’s an incredible mother, she loves her son, Barron, so much. And I have to say, she will make an unbelievable First Lady,” Donald Trump said.
“She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness.” – Proverbs 31:27
Melania Trump’s life story is a vivid illustration of the American dream. Her humble roots, exceptional work ethic, and devotion to family clearly set her apart. If Melania can make it all the way from Slovenia to the White House, there’s no excuse for excuses, liberals.
“She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come.” – Proverbs 31:25
We love you, Mrs. Melania Trump! America needs a strong First Lady who exudes strength under adversity, is humble and cares for the country – like the Eleanor Roosevelt of the next generation. We will see great things from this amazing lady – she and her husband have come to America for such a time as this.
By Shawn J., Founding Editor Calling Out Community Posted November
Perhaps you’ve heard this one before. We thought it worth repeating:
Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are in a bar. Donald leans over, and with a smile on his face, says, “The media is really tearing you apart for That Scandal.“
Hillary: “You mean my lying about Benghazi?”
Trump: “No, the other one.”
Hillary: “You mean the massive voter fraud?”
Trump: “No, the other one.”
Hillary: “You mean the military not getting their votes counted?”
Trump: “No, the other one.”
Hillary: “Using my secret private server with classified material to hide my activities?”
Trump: “No, the other one.”
Hillary: “The NSA monitoring our phone calls, emails and everything else?”
Trump: “No, the other one.”
Hillary: “Using the Clinton Foundation as a cover for tax evasion, hiring cronies, taking bribes from foreign countries?
Trump: “No, the other one.”
Hillary: “You mean the drones being operated in our own country without the benefit of the law?”
Trump: “No, the other one.”
Hillary: “Giving 123 Technologies $300 Million, and right afterward it declared bankruptcy and was sold to the Chinese?”
Trump: “No, the other one.”
Hillary: “You mean arming the Muslim Brotherhood and hiring them in the White House?”
Hillary: “The funding of neo-Nazis in the Ukraine that led to the toppling of the democratically-elected president and to the biggest crisis that country has had since WWII?”
Trump: “No, the other one.”
Hillary: “Turning Libya into chaos?”
Trump: “No, the other one.”
Hillary: “Being the mastermind of the so-called “Arab Spring” that only brought chaos, death and destruction to the Middle East and North Africa ?
Trump: “No, the other one.”
Hillary: “Leaving four Americans, including our Ambassador, to die in Benghazi while I slept.
Trump: “No, the other one.”
Hillary: “Trashing Mubarak, one of our few Muslim friends?”
Trump: “No, the other one.”
Hillary: “The funding and arming of terrorists in Syria, the destruction and destabilization of that nation, giving the order to our lapdogs in Turkey and Saudi Arabia to give sarin gas to the “moderate” terrorists in Syria that they eventually used on civilians, and framed Assad, and had it not been for the Russians and Putin, we would have used that as a pretext to invade Syria, put a puppet in power, steal their natural resources, and leave that country in total chaos, just like we did with Libya?
Trump: “No, the other one.”
Hillary: “The creation of the biggest refugees crisis since WWII?”
Trump: “No, the other one.”
Hillary: “Leaving Iraq in total chaos?”
Trump: “No, the other one.”
Hillary: “The DOJ spying on the press?”
Trump: “No, the other one.”
Hillary: “You mean HHS Secretary Sibelius shaking down health insurance executives?”
Trump: “No, the other one.”
Hillary: “Giving our cronies in Solyndra $500 million dollars, and 3 months later they declared bankruptcy, and then the Chinese bought it?”
Trump: “No, the other one.”
Hillary: “The State Department interfering with an Inspector General Investigation on departmental sexual misconduct?”
Trump: “No, the other one.”
Hillary: “Me, The IRS, Clapper and Holder all lying to Congress?”
Trump: “No, the other one.”
Hillary: “Threats to all of Bill’s former mistresses to keep them quiet”
Trump: “No, the other one.”
Hillary: “I give up! … Oh wait, you don’t mean the time when I stole $200,000 worth of White House furniture and silverware after Bill left Office?”
Trump: “THAT’S IT! I almost forgot about that one”.
(Unknown Author)
Thanks to multi-faceted collusion between the Clinton campaign and main stream media organizations, America is developing a very serious case of historical amnesia. While this could be a potentially fatal condition, the prognosis for long-term recovery is promising if treated quickly. I prescribe viewing the following documentaries, which you must take in their entirety to gain the desired effect (click on the movie posters to go to the respective YouTube videos):
…Followed by a brisk walk in the fresh air to the local voting / station near you as soon as possible to vote for “Anyone But Hillary”.
We must purge the nation of the Clintons’ toxic politics. America, It’s not too late – you CAN be well again.
By Shawn J., Founding Editor Calling Out Community Posted October 12, 2016
We’d love to hear from you:
This concept of a trade bloc consisting of the United Kingdom/Great Britain, as well as Canada, Australia and New Zealand was discussed in a February 13, 2017 Financial Post article, which I will quote verbatim for some excellent updated information. – In the Trump era, the plan for a Canadian-U.K.-Australia-New Zealand trade alliance is quickly catching on:What makes CANZUK a natural union is perhaps self-evident. Canada, the U.K., Australia and New Zealand share a similar culture, similar values, and analogous legal, business and social systems that allow us to get along easily and interchangeably. (The term CANZUK was originally a term diplomats used to refer to these four countries because of how frequently they would vote the same way at the UN.)
By Shawn Jorgensen, Founding Editor
CNN released a new poll today, conducted by Philadelphia pollsters SSRS, showing that President Donald Trump’s approval rating is “holding steady” – and his numbers on handling several key issues are climbing, with almost 6 in 10 Americans say things in Hthat country are going well. 
What a pile of RUBBISH. Rasmussen Reports, and other much more reputable pollsters (more on that later) disagree. @jaketapper is a disingenuous buffoon. The fact that you are so desperate to spin polling numbers as to suggest that every President should have the same approval rating at the same period of their administrations is just about the most irrelevant “amazing statistic” nonsense I’ve ever seen. I don’t think he’s stupid, but Tapper does say some very dumb things that a person could shoot holes through with very little effort.
Here’s the reality:
CNN’s polling company is a woeful embarrassment. In fact, in the results of the 
By 
I’ve grown weary of going to bed with a headache because of her, so I ummm…hahaha… keep a pistol by the bed hahaha. WHAT, its registered lol Sorry, sorry I remember – guns are not a joke with you. I wasn’t thinking – we just can’t relate to the Wild West up here. (Or Cleveland. I don’t get that city at all.)
The bottom line is, America, my dear sweet sister, sometimes we gripe about each other, often we take each other for granted. But when our futures were threatened by common enemies, we didn’t give a second thought to bearing arms side by side and fighting and dying together for the cause of Liberty and Freedom.
Population:
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The parallels between little Israel and the United States today, in the context of this story, are more than a bit surreal. Like Israel, the United States found itself the victim of a great surprise attack on 9/11, leaving the symbolic walls of the nation torn down – and the American homeland has never been more vulnerable to future attacks than it is right now.
A high official in the Persian court of King Artaxerxes I, Nehemiah served as the king’s cupbearer (Nehemiah 1:11), which evidently put him in a position to speak to the king and request favors from him. After hearing about the sad state of affairs in Judah (Israel’s southern Kingdom) Nehemiah acquired the king’s permission to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the city and its fortifications. He is even given letters from the king to ensure safe passage and to obtain timber from the king’s forest for the gates and walls of Jerusalem.
There are remarkable parallels between Donald Trump and Nehemiah
Nehemiah
Donald Trump 
What you are about to learn, however, is that the Clinton narrative about this Wall being a dumb Trump idea is nonsense…
Ninety-six-point-six (96.6) per cent of apprehensions by the Border Patrol in 2010 occurred at the southwest border. The number of Border Patrol apprehensions declined 61% from 1,189,000 in 2005 to 723,840 in 2008 to 463,000 in 2010. Great to see the reductions, but SERIOUSLY,
The United States, Mexico and Russia have been listed as “new and noteworthy” nations in the 2016 “
See, this is why I hate special interest groups. I don’t care whether they’re on the right wing or on the left wing side of life, both sides usually prepackage or repackage or even manufacture news to begin with, to justify their position or belief. And ironically, the left is using this as a rallying cry for THEIR twisted, sick purposes as well.
In Donald Trump’s final days on the campaign trail, he promised his supporters that “every dream you ever dreamed for your country” will come true if he became President — one of dozens of sweeping promises he made and is now expected to fulfill
Originally published in 
6. “Get Apple to start building their 
45. Stop spending money on 
58. 
In Donald Trump’s final days on the campaign trail, he promised his supporters that “every dream you ever dreamed for your country” will come true if he became President — one of dozens of sweeping promises he made and is now expected to fulfill
94. Strengthen and expand the use of 
102. Strengthen the military so that it’s “so big and so strong and so great” that “
119. Solicit 
In Donald Trump’s final days on the campaign trail, he promised his supporters that “every dream you ever dreamed for your country” will come true if he became President — one of dozens of sweeping promises he made and is now expected to fulfill
. Appoint a Department of Veterans Affairs secretary whose 
“A Trump administration will never ever put the interest of a foreign country before the interest of our country. From now on, it’s going to be 
155. Immediately ask the generals to
In Donald Trump’s final days on the campaign trail, he promised his supporters that “every dream you ever dreamed for your country” will come true if he became President — one of dozens of sweeping promises he made and is now expected to fulfill
178. Gut, if not eliminate, the Environmental Protection Agency, which Trump has called a “
182. Scrap the 
188. Pull out of the 
200. Create “thousands of new jobs in construction, steel manufacturing, and other sectors” to carry out this work. Only “
203. “
209. “Lock her up.” Instruct the attorney general to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate Hillary Clinton’s “situation because there has never been so many lies, so much deception.” Trump had said the investigation would include Clinton’s use of a private email server while she was secretary of state and the ways in which the Clinton Foundation raised money. (Trump 
212. Get rid of Common Core because it’s “
279. Be a cheerleader for America and bring the country’s spirit back. “Bring us all together as Americans. We’re living in a divided nation. We’re living in a very divided nation. We’re going to be brought together.”
The November 8th election of the 45th President of the United States, Donald Trump, has brought with it a flood of interest in his family, including possibly one of the most unique First Ladies in American history.
Melania Trump’s life story is a vivid illustration of the American dream. Her humble roots, exceptional work ethic, and devotion to family clearly set her apart. If Melania can make it all the way from Slovenia to the White House, there’s no excuse for excuses, liberals.
Perhaps you’ve heard this one before. We thought it worth repeating:
Hillary
Hillary
in the Ukraine that led to the toppling of the democratically-elected president and to the biggest crisis that country has had since WWII?”
Hillary
