NYC GOP club defiant after criticism for holding holiday party that included 'unmasked conga line'

'Adults have the absolute right to make their own decisions'

A New York City Republican Club has issued a response after facing backlash over a video showing they held a large holiday gathering where attendees joined in a conga line with no masks in sight, despite COVID-19 restrictions requiring that facial coverings be worn in restaurants unless eating or drinking.

The Whitestone Republican Club dismissed their critics, explaining that "adults have the absolute right to make their own decisions."

What are the details?

The New York Times reported that just days before Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) closed indoor dining in the Big Apple due to the coronavirus earlier this month, the Whitestone Republican Club held a holiday party at a Queens restaurant called Il Bacco. According to The Hill, "at least 50 guests" were at the indoor affair.

Footage circulated online showing revelers trotting to music in a line through the banquet, drawing condemnation on social media and from the governor himself, who said during a press conference, "Why would you do an unmasked conga line in the middle of a covid pandemic, whatever your political persuasion, defies a logical explanation."

The eatery was hit with an investigation by the State Liquor Authority over the ordeal, but the owner insists they were in compliance with the law, including the state's requirement that restaurants limit capacity to 25%.

The Whitestone Republican Club reacted with defiance to the uproar, and they did not hold back.

"So apparently the media is freaking out because we dared to celebrate the holidays in a perfectly ordinary and unremarkable way – with a gathering of friends and family," the club said in a statement on their Facebook page on Tuesday. "We're now getting calls from the New York Times, Gothamist, the Washington Post and other outlets asking for our comments. On a holiday party. Let that sink in."

The club dunked on "idiot" Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) and "King Cuomo" before explaining:

"Yes, we held a holiday party. A good time was had by all. We abided by all precautions. But we are not the mask police, nor are we the social distancing police. Adults have the absolute right to make their own decisions, and clearly many chose to interact like normal humans and not paranoid zombies in hazmat suits. This is for some reason controversial to the people who believe it's their job to tell us all what to do. We ALL have the inalienable right under the First Amendment to peaceably assemble, and that's what we did. There's no pandemic clause in the Constitution, no matter how badly the media and Cuomo want you to believe otherwise."

"We urge ALL New Yorkers regardless of political affiliation to go out and enjoy the holidays in whatever way makes them happy and comfortable," they wrote, concluding, "Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah, and best wishes to all for a peaceful and prosperous new year!"

The Hill noted that New York is currently seeing a surge in coronavirus cases, "especially in Queens," reporting that "as of Tuesday, the state's department of health has recorded a total of more than 878,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases, with nearly 12,000 newly reported infections on Tuesday alone."

But The Times pointed out that "both Democrats and Republicans in the region have hosted risky get-togethers," reporting that "criticism abounded after Democratic leaders in Brooklyn held a birthday party in late November where many participants lacked masks."

Several high-profile Democratic politicians have been busted nationwide violating their own COVID-19 guidance, including California Gov. Gavin Newsom and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (Calif.).

Anything else?

The CDC recommends Americans limit holiday celebrations to members of their own households this year, due to the pandemic that has claimed the lives of more than 300,000 people in the U.S.

Yet, even White House Coronavirus Task Force member Dr. Deborah Birx was caught flouting her own guidance by traveling over Thanksgiving weekend to gather with extended family for the holiday. Birx announced this week that she will be retiring due to the backlash she and her family have received since the hypocrisy was exposed.

https://www.theblaze.com/news/nyc-gop-club-defiant-after-criticism-for-holding-holiday-party-that-included-unmasked-conga-line

Five Outrageous Items Snuck in the “COVID Stimulus” Bill

1. Billions to Foreign Nations

While Americans scrape by, the U.S. government is preparing to give billions to foreign nations, including Egypt, Sudan, Ukraine, Israel, Burma, Pakistan, and Cambodia.

The U.S. Congress also managed to sneak in $33 million for “democracy programs for Venezuela”, a clear continuation of regime change efforts in that nation. Additionally, Ukraine will be given $275 million “to provide assistance, including training; equipment; lethal assistance; logistics support, supplies and services; sustainment; and intelligence.” Another section of the bill gives $453 million for “assistance for Ukraine.” The funds for Ukraine are likely part of the effort to destabilize Russia and give the U.S. a foothold in the region long into the future.

1. Combating Vaccine “Misinformation”

Section 313 of the bill, Public Awareness Campaign on the Importance of Vaccinations, calls on the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to award grants and contracts for “public or private entities” for a “national, evidence-based campaign to increase awareness and knowledge of the safety and effectiveness of vaccines.” The section also calls for fighting “misinformation about vaccines” and promoting “scientific and evidence-based vaccine-related information.”

The campaigns to promote vaccines and combat “misinformation” would include “the use of television, radio, the internet, and other media and telecommunications technologies.”

1. Making Online Streaming a Felony

The stimulus bill also includes controversial copyright and trademark measures which could create confusion and potentially criminalize online streaming. TechDirt reported that, “small changes can not only have a massive impact, that impact can be on the public’s ability to express themselves. The idea that two such bills should be jammed through in this manner is a total and complete travesty.”

Evan Greer, the Deputy Director for Fight for the Future, accused congressional leaders of ignoring the American people and serving Hollywood companies like Disney. Greer and Fight for the Future warn that changes to copyright law could have “profound implications” for online freedom of expression.

“The CASE Act is a terribly written law that will threaten ordinary Internet users with huge fines for everyday online activity,” Greer stated. “It’s absurd that lawmakers included these provisions in a must-pass spending bill.”

1. Billions to the War Machine

Of course, a 5,000 page bill would not be complete without replenishing the stocked arsenal of the U.S. military. DefenseNews noted the bill includes “$627.3 billion in base funding and $68.7 billion in wartime overseas contingency operations funding.” Here is a (partial) rundown of what various departments have been awarded as part of the “stimulus” bill:

Department of the Army – $288,750,000

Department of the Air Force – $509,250,000

Department of the Navy – $421,250,000

Department of the Army – $264,285,000

Department of Defense – $19,952,000

Columbia Class Submarine – $2,869,024,000

Columbia Class Submarine (AP) – $1,253,175,000

Virginia Class Submarine – $4,603,213,000;

1. Billions to Gates-Founded GAVI

A “COVID-19 Stimulus” bill wouldn’t be complete without giving billions to the Global Vaccine Alliance, founded and funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. As TLAV has previously reported, the Trump Administration has already awarded GAVI billions of dollars earlier this year.

Under a section titled Global Health Programs, the stimulus bill allocates $4 billion dollars to “prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus, including for vaccine procurement and delivery.” These funds will be administered the United States Agency for International Development and “shall be made available as a contribution to The GAVI Alliance.” On page 1278, there is another provision for $3.2 billion made available to GAVI.

Interestingly, there is a notice that “none of the funds made available in this Act” should be made available to any organization which “supports or participates in the management of a program of coercive abortion or involuntary sterilization.”

What’s left for the people?

It’s important to recognize that the politicians, lobbyists, and corporate partners – what we call the Predator Class – do not care if Americans suffer. They are perfectly content with watching the economy crash and Americans suffer. This is because their agenda is The Great Reset, the reimagining of not only the American economy, but the global economy.

The only hope is for the American people – and the people of the world – to get organized and push for a Greater Reset.

https://www.activistpost.com/2020/12/five-outrageous-items-snuck-in-the-covid-stimulus-bill.html

Back To Square One: GOP To Block Pelosi Bid For $2,000 Checks, Will Offer CR Separating State From Foreign Aid

Update (1920ET): Following Pelosi's earlier plea to Republicans to agree to a bill calling for $2,000 stimulus checks which she will put to a vote in the House on Tuesday, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy said he would object to a bill boosting stimulus payments for individuals to $2,000, Bloomberg reports citing a person who participated in a private call with GOP House members. Furthermore, the Republican also plans to offer a new Continuing Resolution separating state and foreign aid from the omnibus. And since McCarthy's position will see objection from Dems, we are - as CNBC's Kayla Tausche puts it - "Back at square one."

If the measure fails on Thursday, which it now appears certain to do, Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal will introduce a new bill, called the Cash Act, to be put on the floor Monday. That bill would codify the larger stimulus payments, Pelosi told Democrats in a private call on Wednesday, according to a person on the call.

Trump’s demand for bigger checks came alongside various complaints about the tens of billions in pork, including hundreds of millions in foreign aid, contained in the $2.3 trillion ($900 billion in Covid-19 relief with $1.4 trillion in government funding) bill, which was passed with big bipartisan support on Monday despite virtually nobody reading the 5,500+ pages of the full legislation.

If Trump does not sign the approved legislation by Dec. 28, the government may shut down after midnight due to lack of approved funding: “The entire country knows that it is urgent for the president to sign this bill, both to provide the coronavirus relief and to keep government open,” Pelosi said in her letter.

Before McCarthy's comment, Pelosi said she planned to convene the House at 9 a.m. Thursday, although that may now be moot. If her unanimous-consent request is blocked, Pelosi would then need to decide whether they want to the bring it before the entire House for a roll-call vote.

As we explained earlier, stocks mostly shrugged off the news on the complications in Washington and on the economy because as Vital Knowledge founder Adam Crisafulli wrote, Trump’s criticism and veto threat, "won’t alter the macro narrative" and that "even if Trump actually vetoes (unlikely) and Congress fails to override it (also unlikely, given the stimulus/budget passed with veto-proof majorities), this will only delay the inevitable by 27 days (which would be unfortunate, but not material).”

"The big debate isn’t whether the $900b stimulus gets passed into law but instead if it represents a ‘down payment’ or the last major fiscal response to the pandemic,” with the outcome of Georgia Senate races in early January playing a “big role in answering that question."

Raymond James analyst Ed Mills’ base case remains that the bill passed by Congress will become law, as the package passed both the House and the Senate with veto-proof margins, and $2,000 payments have no support among Republican lawmakers. He added that Trump’s “demand is arguably a net positive for Democrats’ chances in the Georgia Senate races, as Republicans will be forced on the defensive."

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/pelosi-and-schumer-agree-trumps-demand-2000-stimulus-checks

China And Iran Start Drilling In This Super Giant Gas Field

Drilling operations of the first well of the game-changing but highly-controversial Phase 11 of Iran’s supergiant South Pars non-associated natural gas field officially began last week. Significant gas recovery from the enormous resource will commence in the second half of the next Iranian calendar year that begins on 21 March 2021. The long-stalled Phase 11 development supposedly saw the withdrawal of all Chinese involvement in October 2019. In reality, though, China is still intimately involved in its development and is looking to further scale up its activities following the inauguration of Joe Biden as U.S. President on 20 January. Along with completing the crucial Goreh-Jask pipeline oil export route by the end of the current Iranian calendar year (ending on 20 March 2021), building out its value-added petrochemicals production to at least 100 million metric tons per year by 2022, and ramping up production from its hugely oil-rich West Karoun cluster of oil fields to at least 1 million barrels per day (bpd) within the next two years, optimising the natural gas production from its South Pars gas field is a top priority for Iran. With an estimated 14.2 trillion cubic metres (Tcm) of gas reserves in place plus 18 billion barrels of gas condensate, South Pars already accounts for around 40 per cent of Iran’s total estimated 33.8 tcm of gas reserves – mostly located in the southern Fars, Bushehr, and Hormozgan regions – and about 80 per cent of its gas production. The 3,700-square kilometre (sq.km) South Pars sector of the 9,700-square km basin shared with Qatar (in the form of the 6,000-square km North Dome) is also critical to Iran’s overall strategy to sustain natural gas production across the country of at least 1 billion cubic metres per day (Bcm/d), with Phase 11’s target production capacity being 57 million cubic metres per day (mcm/d), and to its corollary plans to become a world-leader in the liquefied natural gas (LNG) market.

Given the size and scope of Phase 11, it became a focal point of U.S. attention in the aftermath of its unilateral withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) in May 2018 and during the active re-imposition of sanctions toward the end of that year. “The pressure that the U.S. put on [French oil giant] Total [which at the time of its withdrawal in the middle of 2018 from Phase 11 held a 50.1 per cent stake in the US$4.8 billion project and had already invested around US$1 billion] was enormous,” a senior Iranian oil and gas industry source told OilPrice.com. “Its ruthless handling of Total was designed by the U.S. to show the E.U. [European Union] – which was trying to find a way to ignore the new U.S, sanctions – that, regardless of the E.U.’s efforts to avoid going along with the new U.S. restrictions on Iran, it had better do so, or else,” he added. “On the eve of the signing of the next wave of financing for SP11, the U.S. Treasury Department telephoned senior bankers at the bank that was organising the money and told them that if the financing went ahead then the U.S. would instigate a full historic investigation of all of the bank’s dealings since 1979 to every country that had been blacklisted by the U.S., and it told the French government the same thing,” he underlined. “The U.S. Treasury also said that all French companies would not win any major contracts with U.S. companies whilst Total stayed in Iran, but if Total withdrew then the U.S. would make a similar projects available to it to compensate,” he told OilPrice.com.

https://oilprice.com/Energy/Natural-Gas/China-And-Iran-Start-Drilling-In-This-Super-Giant-Gas-Field.html