Conservative Blogger
Sunday, December 17, 2017
Keeping 'Dreamers' would cost taxpayers $26B over next 10 years, feds say
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| Carlos Esteban and other supporters of the DREAM Act and DACA demonstrate outside the White House in Washington, Sept. 5, 2017. |
Allowing 2 million illegal immigrant “Dreamers” to
remain in the U.S. would cost taxpayers $25.9 billion over the next
decade, the Congresssional Budget Office says in a report released Friday.
Dreamers are the prospective beneficiaries of the DREAM Act
(Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors), legislation
introduced in the U.S. Senate earlier this year to provide a pathway to
citizenship for some illegal immigrants.
They would include those who've participated in DACA
(Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals), received temporary protected
status, or have fulfilled certain educational requirements.Under the bill, immigrants who benefited from DACA would be eligible for Medicaid, food stamps, education funding, and various other programs, provided that the applicants meet certain requirements.
Of the 11 to 12 million illegal immigrants currently in the U.S., some 3.25 million would be eligible for the DREAM Act. However, the report estimates that only 2 million would apply, 1.6 million of whom would earn legal status over the next 10 years. A remaining 1 million would become citizens with that same time period, which would allow them to sponsor relatives, the report states.
The CBO estimates that the bill would increase budget deficits by $25.9 billion over the 2018-2027 period while increasing net revenues by $0.9 billion.
DACA, originally implemented in 2012 under the Obama administration via executive order, allowed individuals who entered or the United States illegally as minors to receive a two-year period of deferred action and elligibility for a work permit.
By 2017 approximately 800,000 individuals – or Dreamers – were taking advantage of DACA. The Trump administration announced its intention to ax DACA earlier this year.
Hallmark Christmas movies under fire for spreading 'Caucasian cheer'
The Hallmark Channel is a throwback to an age when Hollywood produced family-friendly films and love stories that did not involve leather and whips.
The network has earned millions of loyal fans for
broadcasting movies that promote the virtues of faith and family --
stories that tug at your heartstrings.“We are a place you can go and feel good,” Bill Abbott, the chief executive of Crown Media, told the Washington Post.
“We intentionally branded ourselves as the happy place. Abbott said. “Hallmark’s tagline is ‘the heart of TV.’”Would Slate be just as indignant about the ethnic casting habits of BET or Univision or the LGBT-friendly Bravo television network?
And viewership has skyrocketed since President Trump promised to make America great again – making Hallmark one of the most-watched cable television networks in the nation.
For the sake of full disclosure, I’m a fan of “When Calls The Heart,” produced by my good friend, Brian Bird. It’s a great place to escape from the unhinged rantings of Rachel Maddow and Don Lemon.
But it turns out not everyone is a fan of Hallmark. Click here to watch my Fox Radio commentary on this issue.
Slate published a scathing review of the network -- complaining about its around-the-clock Christmas movies.
"They brim with white heterosexuals who exclusively, emphatically, and endlessly bellow “Merry Christmas” to every lumberjack and labradoodle they pass. They’re centered on beauty-pageant heroines and strong-jawed heroes with white-nationalist haircuts," the Slate writer declared.
There were complaints about the lack of gay people and feminists and Muslims in Hallmark Channel's movies.
Slate also whined about what it called the network's "42 hours of sugary, sexist, preposterously plotted, plot hole–festooned, belligerently traditional, ecstatically Caucasian cheer."
It’s true that most of the stars in Hallmark’s Christmas movies have a fair complexion – but to say it’s a holiday white-out would be inaccurate.
Would Slate be just as indignant about the ethnic casting habits of BET or Univision or the LGBT-friendly Bravo television network?
"The Christmas-down-your-throat bombast, holly-jolly sexism, the characters’ zaniness and unyielding impulsiveness—it’s all very Trumpian behavior," the Slate writer said.
I say better that than the run-of-the mill pornographic debauchery that normally spews out of Hollywood.
Fortunately, for the folks over at Slate there is a perfect solution to their television viewing dilemma – just change the channel.
As for me and my house, we’re going to put an extra log on the fire, pour a cup of hot cocoa and enjoy a very Hallmark Christmas.
Todd Starnes is host of Fox News & Commentary. His latest book is “The Deplorables’ Guide to Making America Great Again.” Follow him on Twitter @ToddStarnes and find him on Facebook.
Australian man accused of brokering North Korea missile sales
Australian police have arrested a Sydney man
accused of acting as an agent for North Korea by allegedly attempting to
broker sales for Pyongyang including components used in ballistic
missiles.
"This case is like nothing we have
ever seen on Australia soil," Australian Federal Police Assistant
Commissioner Neil Gaughan told reporters Sunday morning. "This is black
market 101."
The suspect has been identified as a 59-year-old
naturalized Australian citizen who was born in South Korea. He
was arrested Saturday and charged over two transactions that were
unsuccessful."But we estimate that if these trades were successful, we're talking tens of millions of dollars," Gaughan said.
Police allege the man was generating tens of millions of dollars for the Pyongyang regime by arranging the sale of missiles, components and expertise from North Korea to other international entities, and was trying to arrange the transfer of coal from the country to Indonesia and Vietnam.
"This man was acting as a loyal agent for North Korea who believed he was acting to serve some higher patriotic purpose," Gaughan said. "I think at the end of the day he would sell whatever he could to make money back for the North Korean government."
Gaughan added that there was no evidence any weapons or components passed through Australia and said the governments of Indonesia and Vietnam -- or authorities in those countries -- were not involved.
"We’re alleging all the activity occurred offshore," Gaughan said.
The suspect is the first person charged under Australia's Weapons of Mass Destruction Act and faces a maximum 10-year prison sentence. However, Gaughan said the investigation was ongoing and more charges were expected.
Police started investigating the man after a tip-off from another international agency on another matter, Gaughan said, adding that the man's activities also involved commodities including oil and gemstones.
Despite international sanctions, cash-strapped North Korea last month test-fired its most powerful missile that may be able to target the U.S. mainland.
NBC paid off producer who accused Chris Matthews of harassment, report says
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| Chris Matthews, pictured here in April, has hosted MSNBC's 'Hardball with Chris Matthews' since 1997. |
NBC paid thousands of dollars to an assistant
producer on MSNBC's "Hardball with Chris Matthews" nearly two decades
ago after she brought a sexual harassment complaint against the longtime
host, The Daily Caller reported Saturday.
The website, citing two sources,
reported that NBC paid the woman $40,000 to settle her claim against
Matthews in 1999. An NBC spokesperson told The Daily Caller the network
paid a smaller, unspecified amount as part of a severance package.
The woman complained to executives that Matthews, now
71, had made inappropriate comments to her and made inappropriate jokes
about her to others.An MSNBC spokesman told The Daily Caller that Matthews had been slapped with a formal reprimand at the time the woman made her complaint. The website reported that the network decided that the complaints were "inappropriate and juvenile," but were not intended as propositions.
Matthews has hosted "Hardball" on MSNBC since 1997. He also hosted the syndicated "Chris Matthews Show" between 2002 and 2013 and has authored eight books, most recently a biography of Robert Kennedy.
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