World entering ‘new and dangerous phase’ of Covid-19 as pandemic accelerates, WHO chief warns

The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic is far from over and has actually entered a “new and dangerous” phase, the World Health Organization (WHO) chief has said, warning that the killer virus is “spreading fast.”

Speaking at a press conference via video link on Friday, WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that humanity is now facing a new stage of the pandemic that has been plaguing countries around the globe for several months.

The world is in a new and dangerous phase. Many people are understandably fed up with being at home… but the virus is still spreading fast.

Globally, the novel coronavirus has infected more than 8.6 million people, and over 450,000 have died from the disease. Some 4.5 million Covid-19 patients have successfully recovered from the disease.

Falling numbers of confirmed new cases have prompted many countries to partially lift their strict lockdown measures, kept in place for weeks in an attempt to curb the spread. Many other restrictions and guidelines, such as wearing face masks and observing social-distancing rules, remain in place for many.

In recent days, the US – by far the worst-affected country from the outbreak – has registered new spikes in the disease across several states. The surge in case tallies prompted California and Oregon to implement mandatory face-mask rules for public places. Similar moves are being considered in North Carolina and Arizona.

https://www.rt.com/news/492396-coronavirus-new-phase-accelerating-pandemic/

More lies FEAR PORN

Tulsa Mayor Issues Curfew After Credible Threats by Violent Far Left Organizations – Restrictions Announced for Pilots and Drone Operators

The Tulsa police issued restrictions for pilots and drone operators during the Trump rally on Saturday and into Sunday morning.

On Thursday Republican Mayor G.T. Bynum announced a curfew in the city and moved rally attendees blocks from the arena due to credible threats of violence by far left groups and anarchists.

FOX News reported:

The president’s tweet comes after Tulsa Mayor G.T. Bynum, a Republican, declared a civil emergency and announced a curfew near the arena where Trump plans to hold a campaign rally on Saturday.

Bynum, in his order, said “in the interest of national security,” he would establish a “federal exclusion zone” in the vicinity of the rally.

Bynum cited recent “civil unrest,” expected “crowds in excess of 100,000” in the vicinity of the rally and opposition protests in his decision to place a federal exclusion zone for a six-block radius near the arena.

The mayor specifically warned that he has “received information from the Tulsa Police Department and other law enforcement agencies that shows that individuals from organized groups who have been involved in destructive and violent behavior in other States are planning to travel to the City of Tulsa for the purposes of causing unrest in and around the rally.”

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2020/06/tulsa-mayor-issues-curfew-credible-threats-violent-far-left-organizations-restrictions-announced-pilots-drone-operators/

Mother Of Atlanta Cop Charged With Murder Fired For "Creating An Uncomfortable Workplace"

The stepmother of an Atlanta police officer who was charged with murder this week was fired from her job.

The company said in a statement that “it is imperative to maintain a safe environment for all employees.”

“Melissa Rolfe’s termination was a direct result of her actions in the workplace and violation of company policy,” Equity added. “While working with Melissa as she transitioned to a leave of absence granted by our organization, we discovered she violated company policy and created an uncomfortable working environment for many of our employees.”

Rolfe “ultimately lost the confidence of her peers, leadership, and many employees who no longer felt comfortable engaging with her,” the company continued. When employees’ views “create a hostile working environment,” they can be fired, it said.

Melissa Rolfe pictured on Equity Prime Mortgage’s website. Her profile was removed. (Screenshot/Equity Prime Mortgage)

Equity confirmed the firing following a report from Fox News’ Tucker Carlson.

On his show Thursday night, Carlson cited a source and said Rolfe was fired.

“Apparently, she was fired and her only crime was being Officer Rolfe’s stepmother,” he said.

Rolfe was told previously that her job was safe, according to the source.

Equity earlier Thursday released a lengthy statement saying the company is guided by the principle: “Do the right thing, always.”

“Our unwavering commitment to always doing the right thing has led us to sever ties with an employee who has expressed views that do not align with our culture,” it said, adding it doesn’t tolerate “racism, discrimination, or injustices of any kind.”

This screen grab taken from body camera video provided by the Atlanta Police Department shows Rayshard Brooks speaking with Officer Garrett Rolfe in the parking lot of a Wendy’s restaurant, in Atlanta, Ga., late on June 12, 2020. (Atlanta Police Department via AP)

Police Officer

Garrett Rolfe, an Atlanta officer, was with another cop on June 12 responding to a call of a man sleeping in a car in a Wendy’s drive-through.

After testing the man for sobriety for about 40 minutes, an altercation broke out when the man, Rayshard Brooks, resisted arrest.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/mother-atlanta-cop-charged-murder-fired-creating-uncomfortable-workplace

Trump Campaign Manager Says Mark Zuckerberg Understands the Importance of Free Speech – Day After Facebook Removes Trump Ad!

President Trump’s campaign manager Brad Parscale joined FOX and Friends on Friday morning to discuss the Tulsa rally on Saturday, the 2020 campaign and Joe Biden.

During the discussion Parscale was asked about the Tech Giant’s suppression of free speech and conservative voices.

This was ONE DAY AFTER Facebook removed a Trump Campaign ad and Twitter flagged a Trump parody tweet as “manipulated media.”

Instead of voicing concern Parscale praised Mark Zuckerberg for understanding “the importance of free speech.”

Brad Parscale: I worry about the Palo Alto Mafia as I call them. What they feel like they have a moral obligation because American voters are not smart enough to see how smart they are… There’s been hearings about how Google manipulates results to get you to think the way they want. Twitter censoring videos and content. Facebook manipulating algorithms. These things continue to be a problem. Last night I tweeted there is a new rising platform called Parler… I continue to hope we make a transition away from these people. And I think Twitter is one of the worst of all of them. Unfortunately, it’s a necessary evil… Hopefully, by the end of this election we see a move away from it. Because I think Palo Alto mafia is one of the worst things out there… I think certain people like Mark Zuckerberg has stayed strong and understands the importance of free speech.

Wow. This was the day after Facebook removed a Trump ad.

Obviously, as we have argued previously Brad Parscale is not up for the fight.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2020/06/wow-trump-campaign-manager-says-mark-zuckerberg-understands-importance-free-speech-day-facebook-removes-trump-ad-video/

Fed To Add Pandemic Stress Test, Will Consider V-, U- Shaped Recovery; Double Dip Recession

In a speech published the Fed's vice chair Randy Quarles, which comes one week before the results of the Fed's annual stress tests are revealed (and which some speculate will impose limits on how many dividends the banks can pay out), the Fed's top banking regulator announced that for the first time, the Fed will also add a coronavirus pandemic stress test, one which assess for an optimistic V-shaped recovery, ii) for a slower, U-shaped recovery (in which only a small share of lost output and employment is regained in 2020), which also sounds optimistic, and iii) a W-shaped double dip recession which accounts for a second wave in infections.

From the speech:

Based on past experience and our standing policies, our February scenario assumed stress in corporate debt and real estate markets, among other details, and an increase in unemployment considerably larger than occurred in the Great Recession. Compared to what we are now experiencing, this scenario was less severe than the unprecedented drop in employment and output in the second quarter of 2020 but more severe than the extent of stress we're seeing in debt markets. It also didn't include the unprecedented extent of fiscal stimulus.

But the larger issue is the unprecedented uncertainty about the course of the COVID event and the economy. The range of plausible forecasts is high and continues to shift. We don't know about the pace of reopening, how consumers will behave, or the prospects for a new round of containment. There's probably never been more uncertainty about the economic outlook. Although our policies on stress testing emphasize the value of not increasing capital requirements under stress and thus exacerbating a downturn, our first priority must be—and is—to understand the implications of quite plausible downside scenarios from our current position for bank capital.

In light of that uncertainty, our sensitivity analysis considers three distinct downside risk paths for the economy:

first, a rapid V-shaped recovery that regains much of the output and employment lost by the end of this year;

second, a slower, more U-shaped recovery in which only a small share of lost output and employment is regained in 2020;

and third, a W-shaped double dip recession with a short-lived recovery followed by a severe drop in activity later this year due to a second wave of containment measures.

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/fed-add-pandemic-stress-test-will-consider-v-u-shaped-recovery-double-dip-recession

Tucker Carlson becomes target of SPELLS, with #WitchesAgainstTucker trending amid slander lawsuit and BLM controversy

As Fox News defends host Tucker Carlson’s show against accusations of not being factually accurate, the hashtag #WitchesAgainstTucker began trending on Twitter, conjuring up some highly unusual critics of the commentator.

“We, the witches of Poland will no longer tolerate the behaviors of @TuckerCarlson. I am calling on all witches of Poland to cast your spells on him,” humorous rapper and successful Twitter troll Elijah Daniel tweeted, appearing to kick off the #WitchesAgainstTucker hashtag, which has received support from thousands of users.

Daniel followed up with a tweet written in Polish, stating, “You opened your mouth full of hatred and now you are cursed. The evil man is now with you forever. For generations, your offspring will be cursed from birth, from the deities below."

The rapper has tweeted about the gay-rights debates currently raging in Poland, but the topic appears to have little to do with Carlson directly. Many following the hashtag admitted they did not even know why it was trending, but were happy to have a reason to blast the Fox host.

Some called for Carlson to “apologize,” though they didn’t specify what specifically he should be atoning for.

“Witches gets things done. Tucker can’t run. Tucker can’t hide. He just better just apologize,” one user tweeted.

Others simply played into the ridiculousness of the hashtag, which somehow found itself trending alongside legitimate news items.

Carlson has lately found himself at the center of the ‘commentary vs news’ debate raging over Fox News, which has made him the scapegoat for many social media activists displeased with the network’s conservative leanings.

Fox is currently defending itself from a slander lawsuit by Karen McDougal, who claims to have had an affair with Donald Trump, and was paid by the National Enquirer’s parent company, American Media, not to reveal her story in advance of the 2016 presidential election. In a show in 2018, Carlson accused McDougal and others of trying to “extort” the president. Erin Murphy, an attorney with Fox News, has answered the suit by saying Carlson’s show is not meant to be a fact-based program.

What we’re talking about here is not the front page of the New York Times. It’s ‘Tucker Carlson Tonight,’ which is a commentary show,” Murphy said.

Advertisers have recently been dropping the show over comments critical of the Black Lives Matter movement. Despite this, Carlson remains the US’s most-watched cable-news host.

https://www.rt.com/usa/492394-witches-against-tucker-carlson-twitter/

Heavily Censored Video - The Corona Vaccine is Planned Population Reduction

Names named.

Eyes on, needs verification.

https://www.bitchute.com/video/zcWPlXP8rtXW/

Romania passes legislation to ban gender studies

Romania’s Senate passed new legislation this week that bans making any reference to gender identity as something distinct from one’s biological gender. It still needs to be signed by the President.

The legislation was added as an amendment to a larger bill on educational policies on Tuesday by the centre-Right People’s Movement Party. The Social Democratic Party supported it as well.

The amendment received 81 yes votes, 21 no, and there were 27 abstentions. It prohibits “activities to spread the theory or opinion of gender identity, understood as the theory or opinion that gender is a different concept from biological sex and that the two are not always the same,” according to a report by Romanian news portal G4 media.

While the law will not impact the civil rights of transgendered people, it will effectively end the teaching of gender ideology in Romania’s schools and universities.

If it is signed into law, the amendment will make Romania the second country in the European Union to ban gender studies after Hungary, which enacted a similar law in 2018. Advocates of the law in Hungary claimed that gender ideology was destroying the country’s values, as previously reported by Voice of Europe. Poland’s ruling Law and Justice party has also been on a campaign against gender ideology and has promised to put forward similar legislation.

The amendment in Romania may be an attempt to bolster support among members of the Romanian Orthodox Church, which has strongly opposed gender studies. 81% of Romanians are members of the Orthodox Church.

The amendment has now been forwarded to President Klaus Iohannis for his signature. Opponents are calling for him to refuse to sign it, however. Some academics and human rights advocates are against it, with liberals claiming that it would “send education in Romania back to the Middle Ages.”

https://voiceofeurope.com/2020/06/romania-passes-legislation-to-ban-gender-studies/

Georgia city council asks mayor to resign over rant, saying 'privilege is wearing $300 Beats headphones while living on public assistance'

Mayor Ben Rozier of Bloomingdale also wrote that 'privilege is wearing $200 sneakers when you've never had a job'

The city council of Bloomingdale, Georgia, has asked the mayor to immediately resign over his comments on Facebook ripping those he believes possess "privilege," including those who wear "$300 Beats headphones while living on public assistance" and those who wear "$200 sneakers when you've never had a job."

Mayor Ben Rozier's now-deleted post in the Gossip Bloomingdale GA Facebook group from Tuesday night appeared to be a response to the term "white privilege," WJCL-TV reported.

Here's what Rozier wrote:

"What is privilege?….

"Privilege is wearing $200 sneakers when you've never had a job.

"Privilege is wearing $300 Beats headphones while living on public assistance.

"Privilege is having a Smartphone with a Data plan which you receive no bill for.

"Privilege is living in subsidized housing where you don't have a water bill, where rising property taxes and rents and energy costs have absolutely no effect on the amount of food you can put on your table.

"Privilege is the ability to go march against, and protest anything that triggers you without worrying about calling out of work and the consequences that accompany such behavior.

"Privilege is having as many children as you want, regardless of your employment status, and [to] be able to send them off to daycare or school you don't pay for.

"Privilege is sending your kids to school early for the before-school programs and breakfast, and then keeping them there for the after-school program…paid for by the people who DO HAVE TO DEAL WITH RISING TAXES AND COSTS! …you know, us so-called 'PRIVILEGED' the ones who pay while you TAKE TAKE TAKE!"

City council wants Rozier to 'tender his resignation immediately'

Bloomingdale's city council asked for Rozier's immediate resignation over his comments, according to a news release posted Thursday on the city's Facebook page.

The council said it doesn't "condone or endorse any single or collective posts" from Rozier, and that it's "unfortunate that Mayor Rozier's [post] on Facebook has caused this set of circumstances and ill will in our beloved community. In no way does this reflect the ideals and values of the City of Bloomingdale or the Bloomingdale City Council."

The statement concluded: "Based on the actions of Mayor Rozier, the entire City Council has respectfully requested that Mayor Rozier tender his resignation immediately."

The Savannah Morning News said calls to Rozier were not immediately returned.

WJCL reported that a resident scheduled a protest for this weekend on the steps of city hall.

The paper added that Rozier in 2018 commented on a video that's since been removed from Facebook showing a black man blocking cars in a roadway — and that he called a commenter a "cotton picker."

https://www.theblaze.com/news/ready-georgia-city-council-asks-mayor-to-resign-over-rant-saying-privilege-is-wearing-300-beats-headphones-while-living-on-public-assistance

Migrant transport NGO picks up 165 migrants off Libyan coast

The German migrant transport NGO Sea Watch picked up 165 migrants in rubber dinghies off the Libyan coast in two separate operations on Wednesday.

Nearly 100 illegal migrants were picked up just 29 miles off the coast of Zawiya, a district west of the Libyan capital of Tripoli, during vessel’s first operation which was carried out Wednesday morning. Apparently, a Libyan Coast Guard boat was also en route to intercept the migrants, but was no longer needed since the Sea Watch reached the dinghies first.

The NGO claims that their actions were morally justified because the Libyan Coast Guard would have brought the illegal migrants back to Libya had they reached them first.

Shortly after the first pick-up had occurred, Sea-Watch announced that its search plane “Moonbird” had located another dinghy filled with migrants. Later that day, the NGO announced that an additional 65 migrants had been picked up by the boat.

Closer to Tripoli, the Libyan Coast Guard was able to reach boat filled will illegal migrants before the NGOs could get to them. Following the pick-up, the Italian NGO Mediterranea, which was also in the area, expressed their outrage at the Libyan Coast Guard.

“While celebrating the rescue of children, women and men by Sea Watch 3, we are also outraged that others have been captured by the Libyan Coast Guard. And thus go back to hell, before our eyes … Powerless, we witnessed the intervention of Libyan militias on speed boats donated by our country,” the leftist NGO wrote.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, NGOs have had their migrant taxiing operation severely hindered. In early June, however, the German and Italian migrant transport vessels were permitted to resume their services after Italian authorities temporarily impounded the ships for two months.

Recently, three migrants who were brought to Sicily last year by Sea-Watch were convicted by a Sicilian court of crimes which involved murder, torture, sexual violence, human trafficking, and involvement with criminal organizations, as previously reported by Voice of Europe. The three migrants were each sentenced to 20 years imprisonment for their crimes.

https://voiceofeurope.com/2020/06/migrant-transport-ngo-picks-up-165-migrants-off-libyan-coast/

CDC Chief: Coronavirus Cases Across U.S. Are ‘Plateauing’

The United States is in a better position to deal with the spike in Chinese coronavirus cases plaguing several states, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Robert Redfield indicated this week.

“We have learned a great deal about #COVID19 and, across the nation cases we are plateauing,” Dr. Redfield wrote on Twitter Wednesday. “There are still outbreaks, but we have a better capacity to handle them with early case identification, contact tracing, and isolation”:

COVID-19 refers to the disease caused by the highly contagious and lethal coronavirus.

Redfield’s comments came after several governors in states experiencing a rise in new COVID-19 cases asserted last week that they can handle the spike and are refusing to reimpose lockdown measures.

Earlier this year, most of the U.S. shut down to hinder the spread of the virus and improve health systems’ capacity to deal with COVID-19.

Some public health officials warned that the demonstrations soon after the May 25 death of George Floyd would likely intensify the spread of the virus, which has disproportionally impacted minority populations.

As of Wednesday, several states were seeing upward trends in newly reported coronavirus cases, but the majority were seeing a drop or a steady number of cases, data from Johns Hopkins University showed.

The daily number of coronavirus-related deaths continues to drop across the United States, The COVID Tracking Project wrote on Twitter Thursday:

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2020/06/19/cdc-chief-coronavirus-cases-u-s-plateauing/

Louisville Officer Involved In Breonna Taylor’s Death To Be Fired, Mayor Says

A Louisville police officer involved in the death of Breonna Taylor will be fired, Democratic Kentucky Mayor Greg Fischer said Friday.

“Termination procedures” were “initiated” against Louisville Metro Police Officer Brett Hankison by Police Chief Rob Schroeder, according to Fischer. Hankison was one of three officers who forcefully entered Taylor’s apartment March 13 and opened fire after Kenneth Walker, her boyfriend, began to shoot at them.

“Unfortunately, due to a provision in state law that I very much would like to see changed, both the Chief and I are precluded from talking about what brought us to this moment, or even the timing of this decision,” Fischer said during a press conference Friday reported by The Hill.

Taylor was shot eight times and two of the officers at her house were in plainclothes. Walker believed they were intruders after the cops entered the residence with a no-knock warrant as Taylor slept, according to The Hill.

Schroeder wrote in a letter to Hankison that he “blindly” fired off rounds into the apartment, The Hill reported. He called the incident “a shock to the conscience.”

“I find your conduct a shock to the conscience,” Schroeder wrote, according to the Courier Journal. “I am alarmed and stunned you used deadly force in this fashion. The result of your action seriously impedes the Department’s goal of providing the citizens of our city with the most professional law enforcement agency possible. I cannot tolerate this type of conduct by any member of the Louisville Metro Police Department. Your conduct demands your termination.”

Officers Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly and Myles Cosgrove, also involved in Taylor’s death, are on administrative reassignment.

There have been a number of calls for various police officers to be fired or charged amid the Black Lives Matter movement and associated protests following the death of George Floyd while in Minneapolis police custody.

https://dailycaller.com/2020/06/19/louisville-officer-brett-hankison-fired-breonna-taylor-death/

Hundreds of Michigan Residents Turn Over Unsolicited Ballot Applications Sent to Dead, Noncitizen, Underage ‘Voters’

Hundreds of Michigan residents have responded to state Sen. Ruth Johnson’s (R-Holly) request for evidence of ballot applications sent to dead, noncitizen, or underage “voters” by Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson (D).

Breitbart News previously reported that Benson used $4.5 million of CARES Act funds to usurp the power of local clerks to automatically send unrequested ballot applications to all 7.7 million Michigan registered voters.

Several people took to social media or contacted Johnson’s office to complain that applications arrived at their address for previous occupants, many of whom moved away years ago or are dead.

Eric Johnson posted on Facebook that he received an application at his home for the former owner’s dad who has “been dead 20 years.”

In an appearance on The Kyle Olson Show, Johnson contended Benson is breaking Michigan law and even her own department rules with the mailings.

MCL 168.931a states that “the name of an elected or appointed official of this state or a political subdivision of this state shall not appear on any ballot-related material that is provided to an elector.”

A letter to the voter receiving the unsolicited ballot application was signed by Benson and her name appeared in the letterhead.

Benson’s letter invited voters to take a cell phone photo of the application and “email it to your clerk,” which triggered anger from Benson’s own allies.

“My inbox is absolutely flooded with email messages having attachments of photographed applications,” Westland City Clerk and former Democrat state Rep. Richard LeBlanc wrote on Facebook.

“Some are sideways, some have the barcode not showing, most are legible, but all of them are taking an incredible amount of time to print and respond,” he said.

LeBlanc said emails with only an attachment and no message “are not being opened, so I’ll get criticized later for that.”

Further, Benson’s Election Officials’ Manual instructs, “Clerks may not mail absent voter applications without having received a verbal or written request.”

Last week, Johnson put out a request for examples of faulty ballot applications, and she shared some of those with The Kyle Olson Show and Breitbart News.

Johnson has been trying to get answers from Benson to no avail.

Johnson’s Senate Elections Committee scheduled a hearing in early June and confirmed Benson’s attendance, but the day before, Benson informed the committee that she had only allotted 30 minutes for her appearance.

Her presentation used up all of that time and she offered to answer “one” question before leaving.

“What this secretary of state has done is try to take away our decentralized system,” Johnson said, and explained elections are managed by local clerks and canvassed by county clerks before the results are sent to the state.

Johnson is seeking subpoena power so she can compel the secretary of state to appear and answer questions. But that appears to require bipartisan support to authorize such legal demands.

The former secretary of state fears her successor is trying to run out the clock before the 2020 election.

So far, Johnson has found many examples of ballot applications being sent to deceased residents or those who have moved away.

“We’ve got two noncitizens, one 16-year-old,” so far she said, while others received “blank” letters.

Benson “never should have hijacked the locals’ role of sending out the absentees,” Johnson said.

Here’s the first segment detailing some of Johnson’s findings:

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2020/06/19/hundreds-of-michigan-residents-turn-over-unsolicited-ballot-applications-sent-to-dead-noncitizen-underage-voters/

Gove: If Brexit trade deal isn’t reached by October, no-deal comes back into play

It will be difficult to wrap up a Brexit trade deal with the EU by the end of the year if “significant progress” isn’t made by October, UK cabinet office minister Michael Gove said, suggesting a no-deal split is a possibility.

Gove was asked about a potential cut-off point for Brexit negotiations at the Commons Northern Ireland Committee on Thursday. “We don't have a date, per se, pencilled in, but it is the case that if we haven't secured significant progress by October, then it will be difficult,” he said.

The Tory minister went on to add he’d hoped “that we would have clarity beforehand,” but that nailing down the details and ensuring a free trade agreement can be reached becomes “increasingly difficult” without progress by that time.

Formal negotiations between the UK and the EU are set to resume on June 29. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said he wants the trade deal made in July, but the EU expects it to take until October at least. Any trade agreement reached then requires ratification by both parties, which could take several months.

The deadline for the UK to request an extension of the transition period is July 1, but Johnson has insisted he won’t seek to push it out past the end of the year. The EU’s chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, has said that lawmakers should be prepared for the possibility that a deal won’t be reached in time.

https://www.rt.com/uk/492274-gove-brexit-no-deal-eu/

Former Bolton Chief Of Staff Explains The ‘Turning Point’ That ‘Disproves The Whole Book’

Former National Security Council Chief of Staff Fred Fleitz told Martha MacCallum on Thursday that what his former boss described as a “turning point” for his views about President Donald Trump’s capabilities to lead actually “disproves the whole book.”

National Security Advisor John Bolton’s upcoming book, “The Room Where It Happens,” is reportedly filled with criticisms of Trump’s decisions, leadership capability, and fitness for office. Although copies have been distributed to media outlets including the Daily Caller, the Justice Department has attempted to block the book from its scheduled June 23 publication by filing a lawsuit against the former national security advisor.

Fleitz said during “The Story with Martha MacCallum” that he had called for Bolton to “withdraw the book” in January because he doesn’t believe someone in that position “should be revealing internal candid discussions with the president.”

“The president has to be able to know that whatever he says in those discussions won’t be made public,” he said. “If he thinks they are going to be made public, a president won’t consult with experts and I think that is a dangerous prospect for national security.”

“I want to talk about this in terms of what John Bolton called the turning point for him with Mr. Trump, which Bolton said was ‘the most irrational thing I ever saw a president do,'” said Fleitz, responding to MacCallum’s question about why Bolton wrote and released the book. “And this was when President Trump decided last June not to bomb Iran at the advice of John Bolton and other national security advisors.”

Recalling when Trump decided not to attack Iran after a U.S. drone was shot down because “we would have killed 100-200 people,” Fleitz called it a “principled decision.”

“This was not to win votes,” he said. “This wasn’t to promote the president domestically. It reflected the presidents’s principle not to get America into additional wars. And it was an act of leadership, because he bucked all of his national security advisors, Pompeo, the Secretary of Defense, so when we hear that the president does not have principles, he’s not qualified to lead, this incident that Bolton puts forward as the turning point for his relationship with President Trump in my mind it disproves the whole book.”

Fleitz noted that while Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and others “found out how to work with the president and be effective,” Bolton and others “couldn’t figure this out.”

“The job of the senior advisors is to work with the president, not to fight with him and to implement his policies,” Fleitz concluded. “And I am very sorry that John Bolton couldn’t figure out how to do that.”

https://dailycaller.com/2020/06/18/fred-fleitz-john-bolton-donald-trump-book/

Church of England Apologises for Second Time for Slavery Ties

The Church of England has again apologised for its links to slavery, after a report revealed nearly 100 clergymen were paid compensation after its abolition.

The state church said on Thursday that its ties to slavery were a “source of shame” after a University College London report revealed that 99 of its clergy had received compensation for lost property and earnings in slave colonies. The money was paid out in accordance with the Abolition of Slavery Act of 1833 when the UK government bought the freedom of every slave in the British Empire, and banned the practice.

However, the compensation was not made to the Church of England, The Telegraph clarified, but to the individual clergymen themselves, in today’s money what would total £96 million. Many claimants founded some 32 churches around the country, for the benefit of local communities.

The Church had campaigned for the abolition of slavery since the early nineteenth century. Nevertheless, the seat of the worldwide Anglican communion has already apologised for its historical ties to slavery 14 years ago.

Apologising once appears not to be enough, however. Liberal Democrat MP Layla Moran said England’s Church must use the Black Lives Matter protests — initially sparked by the death of a black man in police custody in the U.S. — “to confront past links to slavery and make amends”.

A spokeswoman from the Church of England told ITV: “While we recognise the leading role clergy and active members of the Church of England played in securing the abolition of slavery, it is a source of shame that others within the Church actively perpetrated slavery and profited from it.

“In 2006 the General Synod of the Church of England issued an apology, acknowledging the part the Church itself played in historic [sic] cases of slavery.

“We reiterate our commitments to support every effort by the Church and other agencies to oppose human trafficking and all other manifestations of slavery across the world.”

The establishment media and organised leftist groups have sought to focus intense attention in the United Kingdom on the American protests, despite being largely unrelated to the British experience. The protests, however, resulted in British institutions being pressured into apologising for any instances in its past that it had been associated with slavery.

Insurer Lloyds of London and pub chain Greene King said on Thursday that it would pay reparations to minority organisations due to its historical links to slavery.

https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2020/06/19/church-of-england-apologises-second-time-slavery-ties/

Twitter Permanently Blacklists British Conservative Katie Hopkins

Twitter permanently blacklisted the account of Katie Hopkins, a British conservative commentator who had over 1 million followers prior to her ban. The company claims the deverification of her account and the subsequent ban are based on “hateful conduct.”

A Twitter spokeswoman confirmed that Hopkins has been permanently banned in an email to Breitbart News, accusing her of “hateful conduct.”

“Keeping Twitter safe is a top priority for us – abuse and hateful conduct have no place on our service and we will continue to take action when our Rules are broken,” said the spokeswoman. “In this case, the account has been permanently suspended for violations of our Hateful Conduct policy.”

Hopkins previously faced a temporary suspension from the social media platform following pressure on Twitter from the Center for Countering Digital Hate, the same far-left British organization that assisted NBC’s recent hitpiece against The Federalist and ZeroHedge, which resulted in Google pulling ad revenue from the latter and threatening the former with the same.

The British nonprofit’s purpose appears to be to smear conservative and right-wing news sources. As previously reported:

Google took action after it was contacted by agenda-driven journalists at NBC, who presented the company with research from a leftist nonprofit, the Center for Countering Digital Hate, that smears a number of conservative websites including Breitbart News, and calls on digital advertisers to financially blacklist them.

The nonprofit falsely claims that Breitbart News promoted the Obama “birther” theory, citing as “evidence” a Breitbart story that explicitly rejects the theory. As purported evidence of Breitbart’s “hate,” the nonprofit also links to a recent piece recommending Americans buy guns and ammunition to protect themselves amid violent riots.

It is currently unclear if CCDH played any role in the permanent blacklisting of Hopkins’ account.

Twitter’s justification for the previous, temporary suspension of Hopkins’ account was the same as the one it used for the current ban: “violating the site’s hateful-conduct policy which bans the promotion of violence or inciting harm on the basis of race, religion, national origin or gender identity.”

https://www.breitbart.com/tech/2020/06/19/twitter-permanently-blacklists-british-conservative-katie-hopkins/

Leaked Documents Reveal Extent of Former Mexican Border Governor’s Corruption, Contract Rigging

Officials loyal to a now imprisoned former Mexican border governor were accused of contract rigging for equipment intended for local government hospitals, according to leaked documents exclusively obtained by Breitbart Texas. Officials are also believed to have profited from government supplies of fuel and asphalt.

Breitbart Texas obtained exclusive access to documents from Mexico’s Attorney General’s Office, formerly known as PGR, which include statements from witnesses that shed light on acts of corruption and alleged ties to cartels. The investigation is largely focused on the term of former Tamaulipas Governor Eugenio Hernandez Flores (2005-2010), who is currently in a Mexican prison fighting extradition to Texas for money laundering charges.

Some of the statements point to high-ranking members of the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas having sway in selecting police chiefs in their particular regions. Other statements explain how allegedly rigged contracts funneled government funds back to officials close to the former governor.

https://www.breitbart.com/border/2020/06/19/exclusive-leaked-documents-reveal-extent-of-former-mexican-border-governors-corruption-contract-rigging/

Columbus, Ohio Democrat Mayor Ginther to Remove Columbus Statue Outside Columbus City Hall — It’s Racist

Democrats are tearing the country apart.

It obviously is their plan.

On Thursday the Democrat Mayor in Columbus, Ohio announced he would remove the racist statue of Columbus outside the Columbus City Hall.

The Christopher Columbus statue was a gift from the people of Genoa, Italy.

Democrats are tearing this country apart.

10WBNS reported:

Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther announced the statue of Christopher Columbus outside of city hall will be removed as soon as possible.

Ginther said the statue on the Broad Street side will be placed in storage.

“For many people in our community, the statue represents patriarchy, oppression and divisiveness. That does not represent our great city, and we will no longer live in the shadow of our ugly past,” said Mayor Ginther. “Now is the right time to replace this statue with artwork that demonstrates our enduring fight to end racism and celebrate the themes of diversity and inclusion.”

http://www.cuzzblue.com/2020/06/columbus-ohio-democrat-mayor-ginther-to.html

Walmart employee here. We were given these shirts today. Walmart profits billions off of this pandemic, then compares their sacrifice to WW2 veterans

http://www.hideoutnow.com/2020/06/walmart-employee-here-we-were-given.html

In US Military First, the Air Force has Picked a Woman as Top Enlisted Leader

The next top Air Force enlisted leader is a woman, the first to ever serve as the highest ranking enlisted non-commissioned officer of a U.S. military branch.

The19th Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force will be JoAnne Bass, currently the command chief master sergeant for the Second Air Force at Keesler Air Force Base, Mississippi, the service announced Friday. She will replace Kaleth O. Wright, who came into the role in 2017.

Airmen "are counting on leaders like me to make a positive impact in their lives," Bass said in a video posted by Wright on social media. "I owe them my best."

Wright also hailed Air Force Chief of Staff. Gen. Charles "CQ" Brown, who earlier this month was confirmed in a historic Senate vote as the first African American to ever serve as the top uniformed officer for any of the military branches.

"Gen. Brown knocked it out of the park with this selection," Wright said on Twitter. "Proud moment in history, Great to be an Airman!"

"She has unique skills that will help us both lead the Total Force and live up to the high expectations of our Airmen," Brown said in a statement about Bass. "She is a proven leader who has performed with distinction at every step of her accomplished career. I have no doubt that Chief Bass will provide wise counsel as we pursue and implement initiatives to develop and empower Airmen at all levels."

Bass previously served as chief for the Air Force enlisted developmental education program at the Pentagon, according to her official biography. She has also deployed in support of Operations Southern Watch, Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. She began her career in 1993 at Pope Air Force Base, North Carolina and later served at Ramstein Air Base, Germany; and at Goodfellow Air Force Base, Texas, as the the command chief master sergeant for the 17th Training Wing, her bio states.

Air Force officials said Bass emerged as "the consensus choice from a group of more than a dozen finalists from across the Air Force's global operation," according to a news release. "The finalists were selected based on breadth of experience, recommendations from senior commanders and performance across each candidate's Air Force career."

Officials noted Brown and Bass are coming into a service in transition, not only as the military charts its course to take on new, future threats, but also as it addresses racial disparities across the force.

The Air Force has been outspoken on social issues and has made a number of moves of late to promote a culture of inclusivity and affirm Air Force values.

Wright was the first member of senior military leadership to speak out publicly following the May 25 death of George Floyd, a black man, at the hands of police officers in Minneapolis.

Wright also cited concern black members of the Air Force, and a call for change and improvement in the service, including a review of the military justice system.

The Air Force has since initiated that review.

https://www.military.com/daily-news/2020/06/19/us-military-first-air-force-has-picked-woman-top-enlisted-leader.html

Iraq Demands Turkey, Iran Stop Attacking Kurdish Forces in the North

Iraq summons envoys, issued 'strongly-worded memorandum'

After attacks througbout Wednesday, Iraq has summoned the ambassadors from Turkey and Iraq and issued them a “strongly-worded memorandum” to condemn their ongoing offensive against the Kurdish PKK in far northern Iraq.

The Iraqi officials say they view the offensive as an affront to Iraqi sovereignty. Turkey had airlifted troops into the area earlier this week and launched the offensive, dubbed Operation Claw-Tiger, against the PKK. Turkey maintains that the attacks are legal.

Turkey-based PKK separatists have had a presence in Iraq for years, and Turkey attacks somewhat regularly. Iraq’s complaints rarely mean they’ll actually do anything to try to stop them.

Iran’s involvement is something new, however. Though Iran has its own problems with Kurdish separatists they’ve rarely gone after such groups in Iraq, and this seems to be the first direct participation in a Turkish-led offensive.

https://news.antiwar.com/2020/06/18/iraq-demands-turkey-iran-stop-attacking-kurdish-forces-in-the-north/

Former Norfolk Doctor Sentenced For Role In Internet Pharmacy Organization

https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/former-norfolk-doctor-sentenced-role-internet-pharmacy-organization

Trump warns protesters ahead of Tulsa rally

President Trump on Friday warned individuals against protesting in Tulsa, Okla., ahead of his Saturday campaign rally there, suggesting any demonstrators would be treated harshly.

“Any protesters, anarchists, agitators, looters or lowlifes who are going to Oklahoma please understand, you will not be treated like you have been in New York, Seattle, or Minneapolis,” Trump tweeted Friday. “It will be a much different scene!”

Trump has heavily criticized Democratic leaders in New York, Seattle and Minneapolis for not sufficiently cracking down on demonstrations, some of which have turned unruly, that have erupted across the country to protest racism and police brutality in the wake of the death of George Floyd.

Asked about the tweet later Friday, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said that Trump was referring to "violent protesters" and not suggesting that the right to protest peaceably shouldn’t apply to his rallies.

“What the president is noting is that there were inexcusable scenes that we saw play out in New York and Seattle and Minneapolis and that we would not see Tulsa, Oklahoma, look that way,” McEnany told reporters at a briefing.

The city of Tulsa has announced a curfew for Friday and Saturday in order to prevent violent protesting around Trump’s rally, which has been shrouded in controversy since the president initially announced plans last week to hold it in Tulsa on June 19.

Trump was forced to move the date to June 20 after widespread outcry over the campaign’s decision to not just stage the event on Juneteenth, an annual holiday that marks the end of slavery in the United States, but to stage it in Tulsa, the site of one of the deadliest incidents of anti-black racial violence in the country in 1921.

The Trump campaign has also faced criticism for holding the large-scale event during the coronavirus pandemic, prompting concerns from the city’s health department.

The campaign plans to distribute masks and hand sanitizer to attendees as well as perform temperature checks before the rallygoers enter Tulsa’s BOK Center. The venue holds 19,000 people, and the campaign said it has received more than 1 million requests for tickets.

Attendees have also been asked to sign a waiver agreeing not to sue the campaign or the venue in the event of illness or injury.

“Big crowds and lines already forming in Tulsa. My campaign hasn’t started yet. It starts on Saturday night in Oklahoma!” Trump tweeted later Friday.

Trump has been repeatedly criticized for his handling of the protests in the wake of Floyd’s killing at the hands of police in Minneapolis.

https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/503547-trump-warns-protesters-ahead-of-tulsa-rally

EU’s elder statesman: Annexation flouts biblical tenet ‘Thou shalt not steal’

Luxembourg FM Jean Asselborn warns move would ‘make it very difficult’ for the EU to sign future agreements with Israel, explains why his country would recognize Palestinian state

Jean Asselborn is the closest thing Europe has to an elder statesman. He is the continent’s longest-serving top diplomat, having been Luxembourg’s foreign minister for the last 16 years; and he is widely respected in the European Union’s foreign affairs milieu, with an influence over its international relations in inverse proportion to his tiny country’s size.

He has long been a staunch supporter of the Palestinian cause, and in recent weeks assumed the role of one of the EU’s most vocal opponents of Israel’s plan to unilaterally annex parts of the West Bank — second perhaps only to the bloc’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell.

Asselborn, 71, was behind an unsuccessful effort to issue a joint EU statement warning Israel against such a move, and has reportedly urged his colleagues to recognize a Palestinian state if Israel goes ahead with its plan to apply sovereignty over the Jordan Valley and all settlements across the West Bank — the 30 percent of territory allocated to Israel under the Trump administration peace plan.

He has also been a fixture in the media speaking out against annexation, including taking his case straight to the Israeli people with interviews in the Israeli press.

“An annexation would be contrary to the security interests of the whole region, including Israel,” Asselborn said Monday at a virtual meeting of EU foreign ministers with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. “Now is the time for urgent concerted action to preserve the prospect of peace.”

In an interview with German news magazine Der Spiegel earlier this month, Asselborn didn’t just warn that annexation constitutes a violation of international law, but suggested that it may well be a violation of divine law.

https://www.timesofisrael.com/eus-elder-statesman-annexation-flouts-biblical-tenet-thou-shalt-not-steal/

Russians unite amid pandemic, Putin says

Putin is convinced that the country "could overcome all the difficulties and is on the right track"

MOSCOW, June 19. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin says that the Russians have united in the face of pandemic and that helped to minimize losses.

"The most important thing is that this situation [with the coronavirus] has united us all - it is a fact - and that helped us get out of this situation with minimal losses," Putin said on Friday during a videoconference with representatives of those economic sectors that have been affected by the coronavirus fallout.

After the video conference, Putin stated that "the economy, and the country in general, have reserves along with successful models for a real - what is more, substantial - increase in labor productivity and efficiency in all spheres."

"We can see that - thanks to the new, phased-in approaches - the time has been considerably reduced before beginning treatment of the patients with coronavirus infection, by several times in some cases, and that the output of personal protective equipment, medical equipment and medicines has multiplied. These are not just statistics or dry indicators of performance, they stand for [human] health being protected and human lives being saved," the president emphasized.

Putin believes that "the tried and tested practices that enable a rapid, cost-effective growth in productivity should have across-the-board support."

"Reserves for this growth are available everywhere. It is crucial that not only are technological improvements taking place, but that employees are changing their attitude to work, that the culture of production and labor is changing, and thus the competitiveness of our entire country is growing up," the president stressed. In his opinion, it is vital for Russia’s long-term growth.

Apart from that, the president emphasized that "we must not forget that there are enough problems and that it is not as good everywhere as we would prefer to, since people still face problems they cannot solve quickly and effectively."

Nevertheless, Putin is convinced that the country "could overcome all the difficulties and is on the right track."

"All we need to do is circulate positive practices," he said.

Putin said thank you to all those who had been working hard during the pandemic and promised that the authorities would take into consideration the proposals aimed at enhancing efficiency in a wide range of economic sectors.

To date, 569,063 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Russia, with 324,406 patients having recovered from the disease. Russia’s latest data indicates 7,841 fatalities nationwide. Earlier, the Russian government set up an Internet hotline to keep the public updated on the coronavirus situation.

https://tass.com/society/1169743

Trump Says He'll Try Again to End DACA, Accuses Supreme Court Of Punting The Issue

Trump says he will file "enhanced paper" to end DACA

He said he wants to take care of so-called Dreamers and that Democrats have abandoned them

Undocumented immigrants in the U.S. number as many as 12 million

President Trump said Friday he would submit “enhanced” paperwork to end deportation protections for so-called Dreamers following the Supreme Court ruling that said the administration failed to follow proper procedures in trying to end the 8-year-old program.

Trump accused the high court of punting the issue in Thursday’s ruling, which called the administration program to end the Deferred Action For Childhood Arrivals – DACA – program “arbitrary and capricious,” violating the Administrative Procedure Act. The court did not address the merits or legality of the program.

“We will be submitting enhanced papers shortly in order to properly fulfil the Supreme Court’s ruling & request of yesterday,” Trump tweeted, again calling on Congress to act on immigration reform. “I have wanted to take care of DACA recipients better than the Do Nothing Democrats, but for two years they refused to negotiate - They have abandoned DACA.”

He noted the ruling does nothing to advance efforts to give Dreamers – people who were brought to the U.S. without proper documentation as children – a path to citizenship.

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1273967324681338880

Trump Thursday took the court ruling personally, saying the justices ruled the way they did because they do not like him.

Immigration reform has been stymied in Congress for years. The so-called Gang of Eight, a bipartisan group of senators, crafted a measure in 2013 that died in the Republican-controlled House. Efforts to revive it in 2017 died in a spat over funding for Trump’s border wall.

Trump has made opposition to immigration – both legal and illegal – a hallmark of his administration. Immigrants make up nearly 14% of the U.S. population – 28% if their U.S.-born children are counted – with Mexican immigrants making up the greatest proportion but immigrants from South and East Asia are catching up.

Estimates on the number of undocumented immigrants range as high as 12 million, with more than half having lived in the U.S. for at least a decade and nearly a third with at least one child who was born in the U.S.

https://www.ibtimes.com/immigration-reform-trump-says-hell-try-again-end-daca-accuses-supreme-court-punting-2997215

Saudi Arabian Wealth Fund Invests $1.5 Billion In Jio Platforms, India’s Top Mobile Operator

Jio Platforms owns Jio, India's largest mobile network operator

Public Investment Fund will hold a 2.32% stake in Jio Platforms.

Jio Platforms has now raised a total of $15.2 billion in investments since April

Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, will invest $1.5 billion in Jio Platforms Ltd., the telecommunications and digital services subsidiary of Indian conglomerate Reliance Industries Ltd.

Jio Platforms owns Jio, India's largest mobile network operator.

As a result of its investment, the Public Investment Fund will hold a 2.32% stake in Jio Platforms.

Public Investment Fund is one of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds, with assets of about $320 billion.

Jio Platforms, which is controlled by billionaire Mukesh Ambani, the chairman of Reliance, has now raised a total of $15.2 billion in investments since April. (For the sake of comparison, India’s entire startup sector raised $14.5 billion last year).

Public Investment Fund becomes the eleventh investor in the mobile company, which has attracted deep-pocketed foreign investors, including Facebook (FB), private equity firms KKR & Co. and Silver Lake Partners, and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (another sovereign wealth fund), among others.

All told, these investors now hold a 24.7% stake in Jio Platforms,with Facebook owning 9.99%.

Jio Platforms is nearing 400 million subscribers, well ahead of Vodafone Idea and Bharti Airtel, each of which have about 300 million customers. Jio Platforms has skyrocketed to the top of the Indian mobile phone market by offering cut-rate voice calls and other cheap services.

The success of the mobile phone business is boosting Ambani’s strategy of diversifying away from Reliance’s core oil refining and petrochemicals businesses.

“We at Reliance have enjoyed a long and fruitful relationship with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for many decades,” Ambani said on Thursday. “From [the] oil economy, this relationship is now moving to strengthen India’s new… data-driven economy.”

https://www.ibtimes.com/saudi-arabian-wealth-fund-invests-15-billion-jio-platforms-indias-top-mobile-operator-2997207