‘Good for business’: Trump adviser Bolton admits US interest in Venezuela’s ‘oil capabilities’

With the Venezuela crisis escalating after the US’ provocative intervention against elected leader Nicolas Maduro last week, an honest admission by National Security Advisor John Bolton was overlooked by the media: It’s about oil.

Trump’s top adviser, who has been branded the most fervent hawk in the administration, has admitted that Washington is heavily invested in political outcomes in Caracas particularly because of Venezuela’s vast untapped oil reserves.

Indeed, it just so happens that Venezuela has the world’s largest proven oil reserves.

Speaking to Fox Business host Trish Regan, Bolton said that the US had “a lot at stake” in Venezuela’s political crisis, specifically citing the country’s oil and the economic benefit it could bring to the US.

It will make a big difference to the United States economically if we could have American oil companies invest in and produce the oil capabilities in Venezuela.

During a separate appearance on Fox Business, Bolton was less explicit, telling host Stuart Varney that getting rid of Maduro was paramount since he was bringing “countries with interests hostile to ours” into the country and ousting him would be a “potential major step forward” for “business” opportunities in the region.

Of course, Bolton also repeated the usual lines, claiming the US intervention in Venezuela’s domestic politics was about ousting an “authoritarian” leader and protecting democracy and human rights — but the comments about oil betrayed what many have suggested is the underlying reason and driving force behind the White House’s interference.

https://www.rt.com/usa/449982-john-bolton-oil-venezuela/

War for the cabal Gold Oil and death!

‘I’m Not Going to Enforce That’: Sheriffs Disobey New Anti-Gun Laws—Refuse to Disarm Citizens

Klickitat County, WA — In reaction to the tragic shootings throughout 2018, Washington state has passed and is planning to pass a slew of new anti-gun bills that will make them one of the most regulated states in the country. But these bills are being met by resistance from an unlikely group. A handful of sheriffs is standing up to the “unconstitutional” nature of the bills and is promising disobedience.

Sheriff Bob Songer is one of these sheriffs who is outspoken about his resistance. During an interview with the Guardian, published over the weekend, Songer told the newspaper that the anti-gun legislation passed last November “is unconstitutional on several grounds. I’ve taken the position that as an elected official, I am not going to enforce that law.”

Songer—like every single sheriff and law enforcement officer in the country—swore an oath to uphold the Constitution, and now he’s overtly honoring it by protecting the Second Amendment.

As the Guardian reports:

Songer also cited ongoing litigation by the National Rife Association gun industry lobby and others which aims to demonstrate the laws violate both the second amendment and the state’s constitution. He also said that if other agencies attempted to seize weapons from county residents under the auspices of the new laws, he would consider preventively “standing in their doorway”.

In November, the state’s voters handily passed an initiative, I-1639, which mostly targeted semi-automatic rifles. As of 1 January, purchasers of these weapons must now be over 21, undergo an enhanced background check, must have completed a safety course, and need to wait 9 days to take possession of their weapon. Also, gun owners who fail to store their weapons safely risk felony “community endangerment” charges.

Feeling the wind at their backs after the ballot, gun campaigners and liberal legislators have now gone even further in the new legislative session. Bills introduced in the last week to Washington’s Democrat-dominated legislature look to further restrict firearms. Some laws would ban high capacity magazines and plastic guns made with 3D printers. Others would mandate training for concealed carry permits, and remove guns and ammo during and after domestic violence incidents.

The sheriff of Ferry County agrees with Songer and is also promising not to enforce the laws. Sheriff Ray Maycumber told the Guardian that he will resist the legislation as well.

Police officers standing up for the gun rights of the citizens they serve is rare, but it has happened before. In Connecticut in 2014, legislators passed into law highly restrictive gun control, gun bans, and bans on high capacity magazines.

The laws were so overreaching and unconstitutional that hundreds of law enforcement officers came together to resist it.

At the time, 250 law enforcement officers in Connecticut signed an open letter stating that they will not enforce the new anti-gun and magazine laws, which they considered to be a violation of the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Also, some entire towns—law enforcement officials and politicians alike—have moved to become “sanctuary cities” for gun rights in the wake of the recent anti-gun legislation sweeping the country.

As TFTP reported last year, in Effingham County, IL, the town board voted in April to order its employees not to enforce any laws that would “unconstitutionally restrict the Second Amendment” to the U.S. Constitution.

https://thefreethoughtproject.com/sheriffs-gun-laws-disobey/

Kamala Harris Makes Misleading Climate Change Claim In Her First Campaign Speech

Democratic California Sen. Kamala Harris, who’s running for president in 2020, claimed that global warming was behind devastating natural disasters Americans see every year, including wildfires and hurricanes.

“Let’s speak truth — climate change is real and it is happening now,” Harris said at her first presidential rally in Oakland, California, Sunday.

“Everybody here knows from wildfires in the west to hurricanes in the east to floods and droughts in the heartland, but we’re not going to buy the lie, we’re going to act based on science fact, not science fiction,” Harris said at the rally, which attracted thousands.

However, Kamala Harris might be the one peddling “science fiction” when it comes to climate science. While scientists actively debate the role global warming might play in natural disasters, there’s little scientific support for the claims she made in her speech.

A look through the U.S. government’s fourth National Climate Assessment (NCA) shows little evidence for what Harris claims “everybody knows” about global warming. In fact, there’s little evidence and low confidence in tying global warming to many types of natural disasters.

Let’s start with western wildfires. The NCA, released in 2017, found “low to medium confidence for a detectable human climate change contribution in the western United States based on existing studies.”

California, which Harris represents, saw its deadliest wildfire on record last year that took the lives of 86 people and destroyed thousands of structures. While tragic, a University of Washington climate scientist found “no credible evidence” linking the deadly Camp Fire to global warming.

For Atlantic hurricanes, the NCA found an increase since the 1970s, but noted “there is still low confidence that any reported long-term (multidecadal to centennial) increases in TC activity are robust, after accounting for past changes in observing capabilities.”

https://dailycaller.com/2019/01/28/kamala-harris-climate-change-2020/

Conservatives Unite Against H.R. 1, ‘Ultimate Fantasy of the Left’

Over 150 conservative leaders nationwide released a “Memo to the Movement” from the Conservative Action Project on Monday, declaring that they are opposed to the Democrats’ kick-off legislation H.R. 1, which would profoundly shift elections toward liberal candidates and open the door to rampant voter fraud, calling Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s bill “the ultimate fantasy of the left.”

“Conservatives are united in opposing H.R. 1, the attempt by House Democrats to fundamentally undermine the American electoral system,” the Memo begins.

It explains several key features of Pelosi’s inaugural legislation, outlining how it is designed to ensure that a liberal Democrat wins the White House in 2020 and the Left gains unified control of Congress and well as take over state governments.

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2019/01/28/conservatives-unite-against-h-r-1-ultimate-fantasy-of-the-left/

NOAHIDE WORLD ORDER

NWO [N does not refer to “New”].

Noahide = Now where to hide

A new religion, subordinate to Judaism

But who are these Noahides? They are members of a new religion, subordinate to Judaism, founded by rabbis from Israel, mainly from Chabad and the religious Zionist movement. According to the World Center, there are dozens of Noahide communities across the world, with more than 20,000 believers. That’s a hefty number, given that the religion was only founded at the beginning of the decade. Small Noahide communities exist in various countries, with the largest one in the Philippines.

Cooperation between Israel and the Philippines is constantly growing, and this week reached new heights with the visit to Israel of the country’s president, Rodrigo Duterte. The Philippines are a key arena of Chabad activity, and one of the primary venues where the new religion is being disseminated. There are four Chabad centers in the country, and in addition to assisting Jews, they support 10 Noahide houses of prayer. The Hasidic emissaries view the Philippines community as the model for Noahide communities in other countries. A group from the community was brought to Israel two years ago, and its members met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has also sent his greetings to all the communities worldwide.

That there are countries in which groups and communities identify themselves as belonging to the Jewish people, or as descendants of the 10 lost tribes of Israel, is nothing new. Similarly, we’re familiar with Christians who admire Israel. But the Noahides are a theological phenomenon of very recent vintage. It’s a form of Zionist mission, which seeks to create a world religion whose believers adore the Jewish people and the State of Israel – without belonging to either. The believers are required to accept the supremacy of Judaism but are not accepted into the Jewish people and are even barred from upholding such commandments as Sabbath observance. Anyone who wishes to be a Noahide is called upon mainly to recognize the Jewish people and its state.

Last month, Nova Religio, a journal devoted to emergent and alternative religions, published an article by Rachel Z. Feldman, assistant professor of religious studies at Franklin and Marshall College, in Pennsylvania, titled “The Children of Noah: Has Messianic Zionism Created a New World Religion?” In the summer of 2017, Feldman visited Noahide communities on the Filipino island of Cebu, which are supervised by Chabad rabbis. Like most Noahides around the world, the members of the Cebu community came mostly from Protestant churches, but had abandoned their belief in the New Testament.

https://israelpalestinenews.org/haaretz-noahide-project-seeks-to-create-a-world-religion-whose-believers-adore-israel/

Return of the ‘War Room’: Facebook to set up new election integrity centers in Dublin & Singapore

Facebook will set up two new centers to monitor “election integrity,” based in Dublin and Singapore. These centers will tackle fake news and hate speech, and will probably trigger fresh accusations of censorship.

After its hands-off approach to content policing led to accusations of fake news and misinformation in 2016, Facebook dramatically ramped up its content-policing efforts in the run-up to November’s midterm elections in the US. The social media giant partnered up with third-party ‘fact checkers’ to vet news content, trained an AI to spot and remove “false news stories,” introduced transparency rules for political advertisements, and went as far as building a physical “war room” to monitor elections for “foreign interference” in real-time.

Now, the social media giant is taking its aggressive approach worldwide.

Facebook announced on Monday it will set up two new regional centers, located in its Dublin and Singapore offices. Facebook’s Dublin office is the company’s biggest location outside California.

“These teams will add a layer of defense against fake news, hate speech and voter suppression, and will work cross-functionally with our threat intelligence, data science, engineering, research, community operations, legal and other teams,” read a blog post from Facebook. As well as probing Facebook, the teams will monitor Instagram and WhatsApp for misuse, according to another blog post from the company.

Facebook’s US-based “war room” attracted some media attention in the run-up to the midterm elections in November, but the company itself was tight-lipped on what exactly its staff did to detect malicious foreign activity and election meddling. The company’s head of civic engagement, Samidh Chakrabarti, only said that “we’ve been working with governments around the world, with security experts around the world, with civic society around the world to share information about threats that we see.”

Among the experts consulted by Facebook is the Atlantic Council. NATO’s academic wing, the Atlantic Council teamed up with Facebook last summer to help the social network “expose and explain falsehood online.”

https://www.rt.com/news/449967-facebook-election-integrity-center/

>>4940117

You Glow Clown

‘A turn back? Great!’: Trump hails more Bible classes in schools

As numerous US states introduce bills that would require or encourage ‘Bible literacy’ classes in public schools, President Trump has given the proposals the thumbs-up, calling the idea “great!”

Lawmakers in six states have introduced ‘Bible literacy’ bills, aimed at encouraging high schoolers to brush up on the Old and New Testaments alongside their regular subjects.

The state lawmakers say they want to restore traditional values in schools, while critics including the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) say the proposals violate the separation of church and state. The elective classes would allow students to earn extra credit for studying the Bible from a historical and literary perspective.

Although quiet on the topic until now, President Donald Trump sided with the religious lobby on Monday. “Numerous states introducing Bible Literacy classes, giving students the option of studying the Bible,” he tweeted. “Starting to make a turn back? Great!”

The bills have been introduced this month in Florida, Indiana, Missouri, North Dakota, VIrginia, and West Virginia. Similar bills in Alabama, Iowa, and West Virginia failed to pass last year, and a bill allowing elective Bible and Hebrew Scriptures classes passed in Kentucky in 2017.

In all six states considering Bible literacy bills, the House and Senate are both under Republican control. All six have Republican governors, except Virginia. Many of these Republicans have been keen to reintroduce the Bible to public schools, with state Rep. Aaron McWilliams of North Dakota telling Fox News that “without allowing the Bible into schools… we look at establishing a religion of secularism in school by not having anything else.”

More

https://www.rt.com/usa/449978-trump-bible-classes-schools/

>>4940162

Can't be ignored this shit. This is the leverage on Trump IMO.

D.C.’s Homicide Rate Soars In The Midst Of National Decline

Chief of Police points to less stringent penalties emboldening criminals

Tough gun laws said to be ineffective with D.C.’s shared border with Va.

Easy access to guns means that petty disputes end up as homicides

High capacity magazines result in more lethal shootings

WASHINGTON — Zyair Bradley was 20 years old. He loved football and boxing, music, dancing and playing jokes on people. He had a job and “a million friends.” He was a son, a protective big brother and his mother’s “beautiful angel.” He was also one of 18 people to have been murdered in the District of Columbia just this month.

As homicides across the country’s most populated cities declined overall in 2018, Washington, D.C. saw an increase of almost 42 percent in its murder rate, which experts say will continue to trend upwards in 2019. The D.C. Chief of Police warned that easing penalties would make the District less safe.

“Repeat offenders who have committed gun crimes will be back on the street sooner,” wrote Chief Peter Newsham in an editorial that ran in The Washington Post last summer. “Less-stringent penalties embolden criminals, demoralize law enforcement and enable violent offenders to return more quickly to terrorizing the very communities who are calling out to the government for help.”

For law enforcement officers, it’s frustrating. For mothers like India Bradley, it’s devastating.

“I had to sign my baby’s death papers,” Bradley said. Alexis Washington, who was killed along with Zyair, left behind a 3-year-old son. “That little boy — as I’ve lost a son, he’s lost a mother. I pray for justice daily. We need answers.”

The Brennan Center for Justice reported 116 homicides in the District in 2017 and 165 in 2018. In other cities like Baltimore, Detroit and Chicago, homicides fell.

“In context, it takes us back to where we were in DC a couple years ago,” said Ames C. Grawert, senior counsel in the justice program at The Brennan Center.

MORE:

https://dailycaller.com/2019/01/27/dc-homicide-rate-soars-national-decline/

>>4940258

Amen

Russian fighter jet intercepts US reconnaissance plane over Baltic Sea

A Russian Sukhoi Su-27 fighter jet intercepted a US P-8A Poseidon reconnaissance plane over the Baltic Sea

MOSCOW, January 28. /TASS/. A Russian Sukhoi Su-27 fighter jet (NATO reporting name: Flanker) intercepted a US P-8A Poseidon reconnaissance plane over the Baltic Sea, Russia’s Defense Ministry announced on Monday.

The airspace control equipment registered a target over the neutral waters of the Baltic Sea approaching the Russian state border, the ministry said.

"A quick reaction alert Su-27 fighter jet from the Air Defense Force was scrambled to intercept the target in the air. The Russian fighter’s crew approached the air object at a safe distance and identified it as a P-8A Poseidon reconnaissance plane of the US Air Force," the ministry noted.

The Russian plane subsequently returned to its home airbase, the ministry said.

The Su-27 is a fourth-generation multirole supersonic all-weather fighter aircraft armed with air-to-air and air-to-surface missiles of various types (it has from 10 to 12 external hardpoints for missiles). The fighter jet is also furnished with a 30mm automatic aircraft gun (with a rate of fire of 1,500 rounds per minute and an ammunition load of 150 rounds).

The P-8 Poseidon is an anti-submarine warfare patrol plane designed to spot and destroy enemy subs in the areas of patrolling and reconnaissance and take part in anti-ship and rescue operations.

Russia’s Defense Ministry regularly provides the statistics of flights by fighter jets of the Aerospace Force to intercept and shadow foreign military planes near the Russian borders but without giving details of specific incidents.

The Defense Ministry’s newspaper Krasnaya Zvezda reported on January 25 that fighter jets of the Russian Aerospace Force were scrambled twice over the week to prevent violations of the country’s airspace. According to the paper, the fighter aircraft thwarted an attempt to breach Russia’s airspace.

http://tass.com/defense/1042149

Egypt Issues Ultimatum to Hamas on Cooperation with Iran

Israel Hayom has learned that alongside Jerusalem’s decision to postpone the transfer of Qatari funds to Hamas following the escalation on Israel’s border with the Gaza Strip, Egypt has issued the terrorist organization’s political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh (pictured) an ultimatum.

Cairo has made it clear that Haniyeh must decide whether “Hamas takes its orders from Tehran or continues to implement the understandings for calm” formulated by the head of Egyptian intelligence Abbas Kamel.

A senior Egyptian intelligence official told Israel Hayom that senior Hamas members, chief among them Haniyeh, had contacted Kamel with the request that Israel be sent the message that “Hamas was not involved in the grave events on the border.”

Hamas further asked the Egyptian intelligence chief to “prevent the postponement of the transfer of the money from Qatar.” Haniyeh clarified that “Hamas will not ignore the Islamic Jihad’s provocations, which were carried out at the direct order of Tehran.”

The source said that while “Hamas was furious that senior Islamic Jihad officials did everything they could to bring about an escalation in the security situation in Gaza that postponed the transfer of money from Qatar to the [Gaza] strip,” they did not expect the Egyptian ultimatum, which pushed them into a corner.

The Egyptian official’s remarks come as Egypt and other Sunni Muslim countries, like Saudi Arabia and other Persian Gulf states, are hoping to keep Iran from establishing itself militarily in Gaza as it has done in Yemen and Syria, at the same time as it eyes other Sunni Arab states.

Israel Hayom has further learned from the Egyptian official that Cairo made it clear to Haniyeh that “Egypt has no plans to take part in the indirect talks Qatari emissary [to Gaza] Mohammed al-Emadi is conducting on the issue of the postponed transfer of funds to Gaza.” This is due to the bitter rivalry between Qatar and Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan and the UAE.

Qatar has been accused of providing support, funding and shelter to terrorist organizations and their operatives, including radical Sunni Islamic terrorist groups directed by Hamas’s umbrella movement, the Muslim Brotherhood, which was outlawed in Egypt and other Gulf states, as well as Shi’ite terrorist organizations like Hezbollah, which take their orders from Tehran.

The Egyptian official emphasized that “it was made clear to Haniyeh and the heads of Hamas that Cairo would not lay the groundwork for Qatar’s moves in Gaza, and Egypt has no intention of intervening in the event a military confrontation breaks out in Gaza because Hamas is looking the other way at the Palestinian Islamic Jihad’s provocations that come at the orders of Tehran.”

He said Cairo relayed to Hamas the message that it was to blame for the crisis, “and that they will need to deal with it and contain the IDF’s [Israel Defense Forces] attacks so that they can get the money from Qatar.”

https://www.breitbart.com/middle-east/2019/01/27/egypt-issues-ultimatum-to-hamas-on-cooperation-with-iran/

Unholy Alliance: The US Has an Unhealthy Relationship With Israel

Today, while driving through town, I wound up behind a minivan that had a big sticker on the back. The sticker had an Israeli flag in the middle of it, and under it the quotation from the book of Genesis that reads “I will bless those who bless thee.”

I would like to take this time to list my own reasons for thanking and blessing Israel, our lone ally in the Middle East, for everything she has done for us, since I am quite sure most Americans are unaware of just what kind of friend she has been to us.

https://russia-insider.com/en/unholy-alliance-us-has-unhealthy-relationship-israel/ri26005

Australia backs Venezuela's opposition leader Juan Guaido as interim president

The Australian government has announced support for Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido after he announced himself interim president on Wednesday.

"Australia recognises and supports the President of the National Assembly, Juan Guaido, in assuming the position of interim president, in accordance with the Venezuelan constitution and until elections are held," Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne said in a statement.

"Australia calls for a transition to democracy in Venezuela as soon as possible."

The announcement comes after the United States called on the world to "pick a side" on Venezuela, as the country grapples with deadly mass protests and political unrest.

Mr Guaido claims he is entitled to the presidency on the basis that President Nicolas Maduro's reelection to a second six-year term was fraudulent.

Mr Maduro cruised to reelection last May amid low turnout and allegations of vote buying by the government.

Australia has now joined Britain, France, Germany, Spain, Canada and a string of Latin American countries in recognising Mr Guaido as Venezuela's interim leader until elections are able to be held in the conflict-stricken country.

Mr Maduro, who has led the oil-rich nation since 2013 and has the support of the armed forces, has refused to stand down and rejected an international ultimatum to call elections within eight days.

https://www.sbs.com.au/news/australia-backs-venezuela-s-opposition-leader-juan-guaido-as-interim-president

Australian Gov for regimes change for gold oil and Israel.

12719~BUSTED(!)PHOTOSHOPPED IMAGES FROM VENEZUELA USED TO MANIPULATE US PUBLIC SENTIMENT(!)

Marriage Scam Paired Fort Bragg Soldiers with Immigrants, Feds Say

RALEIGH, N.C. – A sergeant and a private at Fort Bragg sought to arrange sham marriages between soldiers and immigrants, offering cash, housing benefits and furniture as incentive for potential brides, according to federal court documents.

Arrest warrants were issued last week for Sgt. Edward Kumi Anguah, described as "the facilitator" of the conspiracy, and Pvt. Ahmid Mohammed-Murtada, a recently naturalized citizen from Ghana serving in a Fort Bragg Army unit, court records show.

The investigation began in December when an agent for the Department of Homeland Security interviewed Pvt. Endasia East about having an affair with a single soldier while married to Sulemana Ibrahim, according to a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina.

During that interview, "she confirmed the marriage was in fact fraudulent," according to court records.

On its website, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services says it does not recognize "relationships entered into for purposes of evading immigration laws."

Mohammed, as he is called in court records, served in the same unit with East and approached her about marrying Ibrahim, who wanted to gain lawful permanent residence, an affidavit said. Court records show Ibrahim was a citizen of Ghana living in New York on a tourist visa that expired in July 2018.

As part of the deal, East was to receive a Basic Housing Allowance stipend, typically $1,000 or more, two months' rent totaling $1,250 and furniture for a new off-post apartment.

East and Ibrahim married at the Cumberland County Courthouse in July, then East went to dinner with Anguah, who said he arranged many fraudulent marriages, the affidavit said.

"She was told by Sgt. Anguah and Private Mohammed that she would need to stage photos with Ibrahim in order to make the marriage look legitimate," according to court documents.

The two soldiers also instructed East to place Ibrahim on her apartment lease to give the appearance he lived in Fayetteville rather than New York, records said. She also added him to service member life insurance documents.

"Private East stated Sgt. Anguah had asked her if she was willing to find additional soldiers for him to arrange marriages to," the affidavit said. "She told Sgt. Anguah she would be on the lookout."

https://www.military.com/daily-news/2019/01/27/4-face-chargesin-marriage-scam-paired-fort-bragg-soldiers-immigrants.html