Exclusive–Marcus: Democrats Can’t Win Based on Their Ideas, So They Want to Change the Rules of the Game

One of the biggest criticisms of President Trump is that he violates so-called “democratic norms.” Leading Democrats, think tank officials, and newspaper columnists have continuously wrung their hands over how everything from Trump’s tweets to his legitimate criticisms of the mainstream media somehow threatens American governing institutions. “Trump has assailed essential institutions and traditions…” claims a left-wing outfit in a report issued this year.

Yet these same groups are conspicuously silent on Democrats’ blatant and unapologetic attempts to subvert U.S. founding institutions in their lust for power that they cannot achieve through the existing governing framework. In recent weeks, Democrats have called for abolishing the country’s constitutional voting system, allowing children to vote, and packing the Supreme Court. Still smarting from Hillary Clinton’s election loss, where she received more total votes than Trump, leading Democrats are calling to convert the nation’s constitutional voting system into a popular vote. Eight Democratic presidential primary candidates want to dump the electoral college, while others are open to the idea. “My view is that every vote matters,” said Democratic presidential primary candidate Elizabeth Warren last month. “And the way we can make that happen is that we can have national voting and that means get rid of the electoral college.” Sen. Warren is well aware that the current system created by our framers already features a national or popular vote. Every vote is counted, but the electoral college ensures that every state is also counted, balancing popular democracy with geographic democracy, so the wishes of people throughout the country are listened to — not just those in the big cities.

Under a popular vote system, a Democrat could win by never campaigning outside the Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Boston, Washington, and Chicago metro areas. If you thought the heartland was overlooked by politicians now, just wait until the votes there don’t matter under a popular vote system.

Recognizing the support they have from young people who have never filed a tax return or provided for their families, Democrats are also pushing to lower the voting age to 16. “I myself have always been for lowering the voting age to 16,” says House Majority Speaker Nancy Pelosi. “I think it’s really important to capture kids when they’re in high school…” Last month, a majority of House Democrats voted to lower the federal voting age to this threshold. Aside from 18 being the voting age set in the constitution, this is the widely recognized age of adulthood, with the rights and responsibilities that it caries. Why stop at 16? If the voting age were lowered to 13 — the onset of the teenage years — Democrats could certainly “capture” millions more votes. By pushing to allow kids to vote, Democrats are tacitly admitting their platform’s appeal to those who want free stuff.

The backstop of Democrats’ goals of centralizing and expanding government power has always been the Supreme Court. Impatient that it will tilt conservative for the near future and annoyed that Mitch McConnell followed Chuck Schumer’s 2007 precedent of no judges confirmed in a presidential election year, numerous 2020 Democratic hopefuls have called for the court to be expanded under a Democratic president. Remember: Only the Supreme Court stopped FDR’s socialist policies such as outlawing some businesses from setting their own prices for their goods. Given Democrats increasing radicalism, the Supreme Court may again be needed to prevent similar socialist goals such as wealth taxes and energy nationalization that are priorities of FDR’s Democratic descendants.

Today’s Democrats can’t win based on their ideas, so they want to change the rules of the game. That means riding roughshod over the constitution and governing norms that have made the U.S. the best country in the history of the world. It takes some gall for them to claim that it’s Trump who threatens the American way of life.

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2019/04/11/exclusive-marcus-democrats-cant-win-based-on-their-ideas-so-they-want-to-change-the-rules-of-the-game/

Report: France Blocks E.U. from Condemning Libyan Warlord’s Invasion of Tripoli

France, which owns oil assets in Libya, reportedly sidelined a European Union statement this week calling on the Paris and Moscow-backed Libyan strongman Gen. Khalifa Haftar to halt his eastern army’s offensive against forces loyal to the North African country’s internationally recognized government in Tripoli.

On Thursday, Reuters revealed: An EU draft statement on Wednesday said Haftar’s attack on Tripoli put civilians at risk, disrupted normalization efforts and risked an escalation with serious consequences for Libya and the wider region. That statement was sidelined by France. French diplomatic sources said Paris did not object to calls on Haftar to halt his advance, but rather had only requested amendments including mentions of the plight of migrants in Libya and the presence in anti-Haftar forces of Islamist militants designated as terrorists by the United Nations.

On April 4, Haftar — who has seized control of most of Libya with the support of France, Russia, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) — launched an operation to seize Tripoli from troops fighting on behalf of the U.N.-brokered Government of National Accord (GNA) led by Prime Minister Fayez al-Serraj. In the wake of the fighting, the U.S. military, which is in Libya to combat jihadi groups such as al-Qaeda and the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL), “temporarily” pulled its troops out of Libya. Barring France, most Western countries, including the United States, have called on Haftar and his Libyan National Army (LNA) to stop the offensive. Haftar has surfaced as the leader of a breakaway government based in eastern Libya’s Tobruk region, placing him on a collision course with the Serraj administration headquartered in Tripoli.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the fighting between the two sides has already killed at least 56 people and wounded 266 others. Clashes have also pushed about 8,000 others out of their homes in Tripoli. The U.S.- and France-backed overthrow and subsequent execution of Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2011 has plunged Libya into chaos, with the two rival governments vying for power while jihadi groups like al-Qaeda and the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) use the oil-rich North African country as a safe haven. France’s opposition to the E.U. statement calling on Haftar to stop his Tripoli offensive has pinned the country against Italy, Libya’s former colonial ruler that backs the Serraj faction.

“In Rome, Libya’s former colonial ruler Italy warned France, which has good relations with Haftar, to refrain from supporting any one faction after diplomats said Paris had scuttled a European Union statement calling on him to halt his offensive,” Reuters noted. Italy’s Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini rebuked France for its opposition to the EU statement against Haftar.

In an interview with Italy’s Radio RTL 102.5, Salvini declared, “It would be very serious if France for economic or commercial reasons had blocked an EU initiative to bring peace to Libya and would support a party that is fighting. As minister of the interior, I will not stand by and watch.” Salvini suggested France’s refusal to rescind its support for Haftar stems from Paris’ economic interests in Libya. “Some think that the [2011 NATO-led military intervention] in Libya promoted by [then-French President Nicolas] Sarkozy was triggered more by economic and commercial interests than by humanitarian concerns,” he said. “I hope we are not seeing the same film all over again.”

Haftar has rejected U.N. pressure to accept a power-sharing agreement with Serraj to stabilize Libya, “using his leverage as a Western ally against militant Islam in North Africa,” Reuters noted. However, France 24 reported this week, “While Haftar has sold himself to the West as an anti-Islamist fighter, experts say he has close links to a branch of Salafists called Madkhalists.”

https://www.breitbart.com/national-security/2019/04/11/report-france-blocks-e-u-condemning-libyan-warlords-invasion-tripoli/

Patriots Owner Robert Kraft Fights to Conceal Massage Parlor Videos

Despite pleading not guilty to prostitution charges, the multi-billionaire’s lawyers claim the videos would do Kraft “irreparable harm.”

Kraft is one of nearly two dozen men charged with soliciting prostitution from the now-infamous Orchids of Asia Day Spa in Jupiter, Florida. And while he has “categorically” denied any “illegal activity,” the prosecution claims it has videos proving otherwise — and Kraft wants to be sure no one sees them. “Public disclosure at this stage could … destroy any prospect of Mr. Kraft receiving a fair trial,” his lawyers said, arguing that the recorded video is both “unlawful” and “expressly exempt” from disclosure under Florida law. For those reasons, they are also fighting to keep the videos out of the courtroom itself.

While several media outlets are pushing for the videos’ release, spokespeople for both the prosecution and defense have thus far refrained from comment.

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2019/04/11/patriots-owner-robert-kraft-fights-to-conceal-massage-parlor-videos/