Florida Republican who openly follows 'QAnon' conspiracy theory running for Congress

A Florida bookseller who openly follows the "QAnon" conspiracy theory is running for a Florida House seat.

Florida Politics first reported earlier this week that Matthew Lusk launched a Republican campaign in March to represent the state's 5th Congressional District.

The seat is currently occupied by Democratic Rep. Al Lawson (D-Fla.), who easily won election last fall. The seat is not considered competitive right now by the Cook Political Report.

Lusk, who is from Macclenny, Fla., told Florida Politics and The Daily Beast that he follows "QAnon" because he thinks there is a legitimacy to what its supporters have posted. He stressed to The Daily Beast that this did not make him a “brainwashed cult member.”

"QAnon" is a conspiracy theory about a "deep state" plot against President Trump and those who back him. It was first shared on the message board 4chan by a person claiming to be a senior security official in the Trump administration in 2017.

The theory promotes a number of false allegations, including that Democratic lawmakers are part of a globalist pedophile cult.

QAnon gained increased attention in 2018 after many attendees of a Trump rally held up posters promoting the theory.

Lusk said he treats posts from "Q," which is the person or people behind QAnon, as others would treat news content from networks like CNN and Fox News.

He argued that the theory has a "very articulate screening of past events, a very articulate screening of present conditions, and a somewhat prophetic divination of where the political and geopolitical ball will be bouncing next," The Beast reported.

Lusk says on his campaign website that he will be running on a platform that includes a call to eliminate the IRS and legalize prostitution. He also lists "Q" as one of the issues he feels strongly about.

“Who is Q,” a portion of his site reads.

The Daily Beast, citing FEC registrations, reported that Lusk is currently the only Republican vying to run for Florida's 5th Congressional District seat. He's placed about $2,000 into his campaign, according to The Daily Beast.

https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/438260-florida-republican-who-openly-follows-qanon-conspiracy-theory-running-for

How about a headline along the lines of… "Florida Republican who openly follows 'QAnon' The Great Awakening is running for Congress".

Pence confronts Venezuelan ambassador at UN: ‘You shouldn’t be here’

Vice President Pence called out Venezuela's United Nations ambassador to his face while addressing the body's Security Council on Wednesday – a speech he used to declare it's time for Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro to step down.

“With all due respect, Mr. Ambassador, you shouldn’t be here,” he said, looking directly at the representative, Samuel Moncada, who was in the room. “You should return to Venezuela and tell Nicolas Maduro that his time is up. It’s time for him to go.”

Moncada looked up from his phone and shook his head at Pence’s remarks.

Pence urged the Security Council to act to end the Maduro regime and recognize Interim President Juan Guaido. He said also it’s time for the U.N. to seat Guaido's representative at the U.N. – and expel the current representative.

“Now it’s time for the United Nations to act, and for the world to stand with the people of Venezuela as they march for freedom,” Pence said.

He also announced the U.S. will be providing nearly $61 million in humanitarian assistance, in addition to the $213 million the State Department says it has already provided to Venezuelan refugees living in nearby countries – as well as $43 million in development and economic assistance.

The U.S. has also increased sanctions on the country to pressure the government to hand over power to opposition leaders, who are largely supported by the country's population.

But he faced immediate opposition from Russian ambassador Vassily Nebenzia, who said the United States has “artificially provoked a crisis in this country in order to overthrow a legitimately elected leader and replace him with their own pawn."

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/mike-pence-venezuelan-ambassador

18 States Offer In-State Tuition For Illegals… And Legal Residents Are Not Happy About That

The Eleventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruled that colleges in Georgia are not required to admit illegal immigrant students.

The decision further sparked a national conversation about the rights of Dreamers, as well as the legality of offering them in-state tuition benefits, which usually allow students attending college in their home states to pay far less than their peers from different states.

Citing US Code 1623, which states that anyone who is not legally a citizen cannot be entitled to any benefit that is denied to a citizen of the United States, some have questioned whether those here illegally should be offered in-state tuition rates that aren’t available to other students who are citizens. Currently, 18 states, offer some form of a pathway for in-state tuition to those living here illegally.

According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, 18 states — California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Maryland, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Texas, Utah, and Washington — offer in-state tuition to illegal immigrant students. Two more states — Oklahoma and Rhode Island — offer in-state tuition to illegal immigrant students, pending approval from the Board of Regents.

https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-04-10/18-states-offer-state-tuition-illegals-and-legal-residents-are-not-happy-about