JORDAN SATHER WE KNOW U ARE A PSYOP STOP FUCKING POSTING
Senate aims to confirm man for bench despite racial concerns
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republicans are working to soon fill the nation’s longest judicial vacancy with a North Carolina lawyer whose nomination has raised objections from black lawmakers and civil rights groups concerned about his work defending state laws found to have discriminated against African-Americans.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has helped push 84 of President Donald Trump’s nominees over the finish line and is itching for more. With just a few more weeks to go before Congress adjourns for the year, he has teed up a vote on the nomination of Thomas Farr, 64, to serve as a district court judge in North Carolina.
The Senate Judiciary Committee advanced Farr’s confirmation with a party-line vote back in January, meaning McConnell has waited about 10 months and until after the midterm elections to hold a vote on the floor.
Senators tend to save their biggest fights in the judicial arena for Supreme Court and appeals court nominees, but Farr’s nomination has proved an exception.
“It’s hard to believe President Trump nominated him, and it’s even harder to believe the Senate Republicans are considering it again,” said Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York in one of about 20 tweets he has sent out in recent days concerning Farr.
Farr has the backing of home-state Sens. Richard Burr and Thom Tillis, both Republicans. They have noted that Farr was also nominated to the same position by former President George W. Bush and has a “well qualified” rating from the American Bar Association. They have protested the implication that Farr is racially insensitive or biased.
“I think absolutely destroying a good man’s reputation is inappropriate,” Tillis said before the committee advanced Farr’s nomination.
In introducing Farr last year, Burr said the judiciary needs good people and he “fills every piece of the word good.”
But Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., described Farr as “probably the worst of the litter” when it comes to Trump’s judicial nominees.
“Could this administration have picked an individual who is more hostile to the rights of minorities than this man? It is hard to imagine,” Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said in the same committee hearing.
GOP leaders in charge of the North Carolina Legislature hired Farr and others at his firm to defend congressional and legislative boundaries that the Legislature approved in 2011. A federal court eventually struck some boundaries down as racial gerrymanders and the Supreme Court affirmed that decision.
https://apnews.com/2286037bb68248b2b662a16c7bd26739?utm_medium=AP_Politics&utm_source=Twitter&utm_campaign=SocialFlow
https://apnews.com/c06ed53489254491bc1fb619c505d33e?utm_campaign=SocialFlow&utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=AP_Politics
‘Murphy Brown’ Threatens ICE Agents: 'I Will Spatchcock You,' Tries Intimidation to Stop Raid
Nothing says "Thanksgiving" like some virtue-shaming dialogue about illegal immigration recited by a liberal Hollywood feminist, am I right? The Thanksgiving episode of CBS’s Murphy Brown even included a threat of physical violence to ICE agents and when that didn’t work, verbal intimidation was used.
In the episode airing November 22, titled "Thanksgiving and Taking," Murphy Brown (Candice Bergen) insists on cooking a Thanksgiving dinner for her son Avery (Jake McDorman), a journalist, since he is home this year. He usually misses the holiday with Murphy because of his work assignments. She also insists that her co-workers join them.
When bar and grille owner Phyllis and her helper Miguel (a DACA student worker) show up with the liquor, Miguel tells Murphy he can’t stay for dinner because he is going to help his parents on their food truck. Murphy insists they come to dinner, too, since a winter storm is moving in and they will have no customers.
https://www.newsbusters.org/blogs/culture/karen-townsend/2018/11/22/murphy-brown-threatens-ice-agents-i-will-spatchcock-you
WP BS
UAE signals jailed UK academic could be freed in 'amicable solution'
LONDON (Reuters) - The United Arab Emirates signalled on Friday that a British academic it jailed for life on spying charges could be freed after his family appealed for clemency.
Matthew Hedges, 31, was sentenced on Wednesday on charges of spying for the British government, in a move described as deeply disappointing by Prime Minister Theresa May.
“Mr Hedges’ family have made a request for clemency and the government is studying that request,” the UAE’s ambassador to London, Sulaiman Hamid Almazroui, said.
“We have an extremely close partnership with the UK,” he told reporters. “Because of the strength of that relationship we are hopeful that an amicable solution can be reached.”
The doctoral student at Durham University has been held since May 5, when he was arrested at Dubai International Airport after a two-week research visit.
“We have asked for clemency - we will wait to see what happens,” Hedges’ wife Daniela Tejada told Reuters after the ambassador spoke. She denies he is a spy.
His family have cast him as a talented researcher who fell foul of the UAE’s security and justice system. The UAE cast him as a British spy who was given a fair trial for grave espionage offences.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-emirates-britain-idUSKCN1NS10K?utm_campaign=trueAnthem:+Trending+Content&utm_content=5bf7ebe404d301777d913ba1&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=twitter
Far-right activist Robinson appointed adviser to UKIP leader
LONDON (Reuters) - The leader of the eurosceptic United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) has appointed far-right activist Tommy Robinson as an adviser.
Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, is the founder of the English Defence League, which has staged violent demonstrations against Islam.
Under current UKIP party rules, he is barred from joining the party, leading party leader Gerard Batten to appoint him as an adviser in a personal capacity.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-ukip-robinson/far-right-activist-robinson-appointed-adviser-to-ukip-leader-idUSKCN1NS0P9
Syrian opposition activist behind Kafranbel protests reportedly killed by unknown assailants
BEIRUT, LEBANON (2:00 P.M.) – The Syrian opposition activist that was behind the Kafranbel protests was reportedly killed on Friday morning by unknown assailants.
Ra’ed Fares, 36, was gunned down by unknown assailants in his hometown of Kafranbel, today, opposition activists reported via social media.
In addition to the death of Fares, Syrian opposition activist Hammoud Jneid was also gunned down by unknown assailants.
While no group has claimed responsibility for the attack, opposition activists have accused the jihadist rebels of Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham of carrying out the assassination.
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/syrian-opposition-activist-behind-kafranbel-protests-reportedly-killed-by-unknown-assailants/
UAE reviewing clemency request in Briton spy case: ambassador
The United Arab Emirates is reviewing a request for clemency from the family of a British researcher sentenced to life in prison on espionage charges this week, the country's ambassador to London said on Friday.
Matthew Hedges's family "have made a request for clemency and the government is studying that request," Ambassador Sulaiman Hamid al-Mazroui said in a televised statement shown on BBC and Sky News in which he also defended the UAE's judiciary.
"The government does not dictate verdicts to the courts," Mazroui said, dismissing criticism of the judicial process in the UAE from Hedges's family and insisting that genuine researchers were able to visit his country "freely".
"Matthew Hedges was not convicted after a five-minute trial as some have reported. This was an extremely serious case. We live in a dangerous neighbourhood and national security must be our top priority," he said.
A UAE court on Wednesday sentenced 31-year-old Hedges, who was studying for a doctorate on the UAE's foreign and security policies at Durham University in northern England.
He had been arrested at Dubai airport on May 5.
British Prime Minister Theresa May said earlier she was "deeply disappointed and concerned" at the verdict in what is a key ally for Britain in the Gulf region.
The UAE foreign ministry also responded saying it hoped for "amicable solution to the Matthew Hedges case".
Hedges's wife Daniela Tejada has criticised British officials for their handling of the case, saying they had refused to defend her husband for fear of upsetting Dubai.
https://sg.news.yahoo.com/uae-reviewing-clemency-request-briton-spy-case-ambassador-110947399.html
Moment gunmen with hand grenades and a suicide vest march towards Chinese consulate in Pakistan before killing four people as anger grows over Beijing 'oppression' in the region
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6420679/Chinese-Consulate-Karachi-stormed-gunmen.html?ito=social-twitter_mailonline
Migrants defy Trump at Mexico border as US forces flex muscle
Tijuana (Mexico) (AFP) - Hundreds of Central American migrants staged a boisterous demonstration on the US Mexico border Thursday, screaming for President Donald Trump to let them in as US soldiers and riot police put on a menacing show of force.
The increased tension over the presence of a thousands-strong migrant caravan came as Trump marked Thanksgiving Day by threatening to close the border if he thinks Mexico has lost control of it.
Vehicle and pedestrian traffic at the busy San Ysidro crossing came to a halt for 40 minutes as dozens of US police wearing helmets and holding rifles formed a line facing the Mexican side of the frontier. Separately, riot police rehearsed deployment movements. US Customs and Border Protection called all of this a "large-scale readiness exercise."
American soldiers in khaki-colored uniforms set off rockets that exploded with a pungent-smelling white smoke. Helicopters hovered overhead.
Trump has already deployed nearly 6,000 troops along the border and on Thursday he threatened to go even further.
"If we find that it gets to a level where we are going to lose control or where people are going to start getting hurt, we will close entry into the country for a period of time until we can get it under control," Trump told reporters, before firing a warning to Mexico.
"The whole border. I mean the whole border," he said, adding that "Mexico will not be able to sell their cars into the United States."
At almost the same time as the police and troop exercise, at another nearby border crossing called El Chaparral, Central American migrants from the caravan emptying into Tijuana defied the president with a loud rally.
"Open the gates, Trump! We are not looking for war, but work," shouted Alberto Ruiz, a 22-year-old Honduran.
After a trek of more than a month from Honduras, nearly 5,000 migrants have been living in a makeshift shelter fashioned from an open air sports arena. It rained Wednesday night, drenching their mattresses and other belongings.
"Let's go to the border! There we can pressure Trump. We are only wasting time and strength at the shelter," Carlos Rodriguez, also Honduran, yelled into a bullhorn.
-
'A special day' -
"Today is a special day. It is Thanksgiving in the United States. They are not going to lynch us," he said as a crowd applauded and screamed in support.
As the chill of night set in, dozens of migrants lugged their wet belongings from the shelter and set up a new camp right in the middle of a street near the El Chaparral crossing.
Authorities in Tijuana have set up a job fair in an attempt to recruit skilled workers from among the migrants for the benefit of local companies, while Mexico's migration agency has offered them temporary residency papers.
Some have taken advantage of the offers but others are simply determined to reach the US.
Since setting out more than a month ago, mostly from Honduras, thousands of migrants – including many women and children – have covered about 4,400 kilometers (2,700 miles), either walking or hitchhiking, before the first groups began reaching Tijuana at the end of last week.
But there have been tensions since they started arriving at the border town, with some locals fearing crime and violence.
The migrants are mostly fleeing poverty and unrest in Central America's "Northern Triangle" – El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, where gang violence has fuelled some of the highest murder rates in the world.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/hundreds-migrants-push-us-mexico-border-bridge-221000657.html
Challenger Brindisi Claims Victory Over Top Trump Ally Claudia Tenney
One of the most outspoken defenders in the House of President Donald Trump has apparently lost her bid for re-election after a lone term in office.
Democrat Anthony Brindisi claimed victory Tuesday in New York’s 22nd District over Republican Rep. Claudia Tenney, who ran one of the most pro-Trump campaigns this past cycle.
Brindisi, who billed himself as a centrist on the campaign trail and has signed a letter saying he will not vote for Nancy Pelosi for speaker on the House floor in January, led Tenney by 1,293 votes on Election Night, a lead of less than 1 percent….
https://www.rollcall.com/news/politics/challenger-brindisi-claims-victory-top-trump-ally-claudia-tenney
Whitaker’s post provides ample tools to disrupt Mueller probe
Matthew Whitaker doesn’t have to fire Robert Mueller to throw a wrench in the special counsel’s investigation.
Much of the focus on President Trump’s appointment of Whitaker to temporarily replace former Attorney General Jeff Sessions has been on the possibility of Whitaker removing Mueller, a move that would undoubtedly spark public outrage and trigger full-scale investigations by Democrats, who are poised to control of the House in January.
But federal regulations offer Whitaker, now acting attorney general, broad authority with respect to the special counsel that extends beyond the ability to remove Mueller, giving him the ability to curtail the probe in ways that would not necessarily become public knowledge until after the Russia investigation is over.
Whitaker has the power to weigh in on any major steps in the probe, such as the issuance of new subpoenas and indictments.
Should he remain at the helm of the Justice Department until the conclusion of the investigation, it will be up to Whitaker to decide which portions, if any, of Mueller’s final report are submitted to Congress or released to the public.
“He has a lot of authority, starting with his authority to remove Mueller if he finds he has good cause for doing so under the relevant regulation,” said Stephen Vladeck, a University of Texas law professor. “There are both hard and soft powers that the relevant regulation gives to the acting attorney general.”
Whitaker has assumed oversight of the probe from Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein at a critical point in the investigation, as the special counsel reviews Trump’s written answers to questions about potential collusion between his campaign and Moscow in 2016 and mulls further steps in his scrutiny of longtime Trump ally Roger Stone.
There are no outward signs of Whitaker limiting the probe. In a court filing Monday, Mueller’s team signaled that their authorities remain intact following the leadership shuffle at the Justice Department. Sessions submitted his resignation at Trump’s request on Nov. 7, and Whitaker was named acting attorney general that same day….
https://thehill.com/policy/national-security/417912-ample-tools-at-whitakers-disposal-to-disrupt-mueller-probe
https://twitter.com/zerohedge/status/1065944086593585152
https://twitter.com/Ruptly/status/1065944071716384768
Migrants intercepted in dinghy as they make bid for Dover as attempts spiral
MP for Dover, Charlie Elphicke, said it was "very concerning that yet more suspected migrants have been picked up this morning".
He posted on Twitter: "The French and the Home Office must do more to put a stop to these dangerous crossings."
Fourteen suspected migrants, claiming to be Iranian, were rescued from two dinghies off the Kent coast on Thursday.
The first boast, carrying six men and one woman, was stopped by Border Force officers at 1.30am.
A second, carrying seven people on board, was intercepted at 8am.
All 14 people were passed on to immigration officials for interview.
Following an increase in attempts to enter Britan illegally, the Home Office previously said: "This year we have increased the number of coastal patrol vessels and, in light of recent events, have stepped up deployments along the South-east coast.
"We continue to work closely with law enforcement partners to tackle people-smuggling at source.
"Nobody should put their life at risk attempting to smuggle themselves into the country across the Channel.
"Thankfully this route to the UK remains relatively rare."
https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1049351/migrants-uk-dover-kent-boat-border-force-coastguard
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-climate-change-usa/u-s-report-to-detail-costs-of-climate-change-as-trump-downplays-threat-idUSKCN1NS19D?feedType=RSS&feedName=politicsNews&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Twitter
Wife of British academic jailed in UAE: We are waiting
LONDON (Reuters) - The wife of a British academic jailed by a UAE court on spying charges said on Friday that she had asked for clemency and that she was now waiting to see what happened.
The United Arab Emirates signaled on Friday that Matthew Hedges, who was sentenced on Wednesday on charges of spying for the British government, could be freed.
“We have asked for clemency, we will wait to see what happens,” Hedges’ wife Daniela Tejada, told Reuters.
“Matt was held in an undisclosed location in solitary confinement for over 5 months, with no charge, no lawyer and very limited consular access,” she said. “The judicial system in the UAE and the UK cannot be compared. I was in the court room and the hearing lasted less than 5 minutes.”
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-emirates-britain-wife/wife-of-british-academic-jailed-in-uae-we-are-waiting-idUSKCN1NS124?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=twitter
Amazon workers strike in Germany, Spain on Black Friday
BERLIN/MADRID (Reuters) - Workers at Amazon logistic centers in Germany and Spain staged strikes on Friday, walking off the job on Black Friday, the discount spending spree that kicks-off the start of the crucial Christmas shopping season.
Amazon Germany said around 620 workers were participating in the strikes at its Bad Hersfeld and Rheinberg facilities but the majority of employees were continuing to work and there was no impact on customer orders.
Germany’s Verdi services union had called for Amazon workers to strike for 24 hours until midnight on Friday, demanding better pay and labor contracts that guarantee healthy working conditions….
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-amazon-com-strikes-germany/amazon-workers-strike-in-germany-spain-on-black-friday-idUSKCN1NS1AU?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=twitter
Ebola in Congo now infecting newborn babies, UN says
LONDON (AP) — The World Health Organization says a worrying number of the newest Ebola cases amid Congo’s ongoing outbreak are in patients not usually known to catch the disease: babies.
In an update published this week, the U.N. health agency reported 36 new confirmed cases of Ebola, including seven in newborn babies and infants younger than 2 years old. Six cases were reported in children aged between 2 and 17 and one case was in a pregnant woman.
While Ebola typically infects adults, as they are most likely to be exposed to the lethal virus, children have been known in some instances to catch the disease when they act as caregivers.
Few cases of Ebola in babies have been reported, but experts suspect transmission might happen via breast milk or close contact with infected parents. Ebola is typically spread by infected bodily fluids. WHO noted that health centers have been identified as a source of Ebola transmission, with injections of medications “a notable cause.”
WHO called Congo’s current epidemic “complex and challenging.” Congo’s health ministry says there are 346 confirmed cases, including 175 deaths, in what has become the worst Ebola outbreak in the country’s recorded history.
…
https://www.apnews.com/7218446381a247118466fa7d03f15fe1
EU negotiators fail to agree on Gibraltar before Brexit summit
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Union negotiators from the 27 states remaining after Brexit were unable to agree on Gibraltar during talks on Friday, diplomatic sources said of the outstanding issue before Sunday’s summit of the bloc’s leaders to seal the deal.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-eu-gibraltar-sherpas/eu-negotiators-fail-to-agree-on-gibraltar-before-brexit-summit-idUSKCN1NS19Z?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=Social&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Reuters%2FworldNews+%28Reuters+World+News%29
https://thehill.com/policy/international/418008-dozens-killed-in-pair-of-attacks-in-pakistan
BEIRUT, LEBANON (2:20 P.M.) – The Turkish Army and their rebel allies launched a new military operation in northern Aleppo, today, targeting several militants accused of kidnapping and looting.
According to oppositions activists in northern Syria, the Turkish Army and their allies from the National Liberation Front began the security operation inside the important border-city of ‘Azaz in Aleppo’s northern countryside.
The main objective of this operation is to arrest rebel fighters that have taken advantage of their position to commit crimes in the territories they control.
This new action by the Turkish Army and their allies in ‘Azaz will resemble their previous operation that targeted the Afrin region.
During their Afrin operation, the Turkish Army and their allies arrested dozens of rebels that were accused of committing crimes in this part of the country.
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/breaking-turkish-army-rebels-launch-new-operation-in-northern-aleppo/
Turkish rapist, 26, who attacked a 16-year-old girl, will be deported from Germany
A Turkish rapist who attacked a 16-year-old girl will be deported from Germany after a judge said his expulsion from the country would act as a 'deterrent'.
The defendant, named in Germany only as Ali B., raped the teenager - also of Turkish origin - in Worms, a city in Rhineland-Palatinate state.
A judge has now said the 26-year-old must leave Germany 'to discourage foreigners from a culture of sexual inequality from committing sex crimes'.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6421513/Turkish-rapist-26-attacked-girl-16-deported-Germany.html?ito=social-twitter_mailonline
https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/7809154/leaked-sex-tape-buddhist-monk-drug-gay-orgy-temple-taiwan/
Travel ticket agents Amadeus and Sabre face EU antitrust investigation
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Electronic travel services companies Amadeus (AMA.MC) and Sabre (SABR.O) are being investigated by the EU over contract terms that the bloc’s antitrust watchdog says could prevent airlines and travel agents from switching to rival ticket agents.
Airlines typically sell about 70 percent of their tickets via third parties such as travel agents but have a tense relationship with global distribution service (GDS) providers such as Amadeus and Sabre, which use software networks to sell products like airline tickets and hotel rooms to consumers.
These companies typically achieve much higher profit margins than the airlines whose tickets they help to distribute.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-travel-sabre-amadeus-it-group-eu-idUSKCN1NS12O?utm_campaign=trueAnthem:+Trending+Content&utm_content=5bf7fe8a04d30137a3185383&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=twitter
could this be Anderson Cooper himself?
interesting thought anon proposed earlier
https://www.reddit.com/r/news/comments/1hscv6/chief_justice_roberts_appointed_all_11_fisa_court/
NOICE
https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/border-issues/2018/11/22/tijuana-declares-humanitarian-crisis-migrant-caravan/2089905002/