Senate Confirms Multiple Pentagon Positions, Rick Perry Considered to Lead DHS

The Senate unanimously voted on the confirmation of eight nominees on Tuesday, including Wall Street executive Richard Spencer to Navy Secretary.
Spencer is a former Marine Corps aviator and investment banker.
Ellen Lord, the CEO of Textron Systems, will serve as the Pentagon’s Acquisition Chief.
The approval of these nominees brings the total number of Pentagon confirmations in the Trump administration to 15.
Meanwhile, Energy Secretary Rick Perry is reportedly being considered to replace General John Kelly in the Department of Homeland Security.
Sources familiar with the administration’s deliberations say Perry is among the people being looked at for the role.
However, an official in the Energy Department says Perry is focused on his current mission, but is honored to be mentioned.
Earlier this week, the White House downplayed rumors President Trump could move Attorney General Jeff Sessions from his position to the Department of Homeland Security.

DHS Spokesman Being Considered for WH Communications Director Role

New Chief of Staff John Kelly is reportedly considering an official from his former department for the role of White House communications director.
Administration sources say Homeland Security spokesman David Lapan is at the top of the short list for the spot.
Prior to serving at Homeland Security, Lapan led press operations at the Defense Department and the Marine Corps.
Lapan says he hasn’t spoken with anyone in the administration about the job, and noted he would need time to consider the proposal if he was offered the role.
This comes after former Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci was removed from his position earlier this week.

Conservative Cartoons

Ingraham on Republicans: 'A lot of them don't want Donald Trump to succeed'

Fox News contributor Laura Ingraham lashed out at establishment Republicans Tuesday night, telling Fox News' "Hannity" that "a lot of them don't want Donald Trump to succeed."

"A lot of them don't like his policies," said Ingraham, who singled out Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake as being part of "a significant Chamber of Commerce wing of the Republican Party."

Flake made headlines Tuesday with the release of his book, titled "Conscience of a Conservative," in which he described the GOP as being in "denial" about the consequences of electing Trump president.
'CHAOS IS NOT A GOOD PRINCIPLE': FLAKE SAYS GOP 'IN DENIAL ABOUT TRUMP
"Republicans play the safe gentlemanly game of politics," Ingraham told host Sean Hannity. "They agree with the Democrats on a lot of these key issues, and they don’t agree with Donald Trump on a lot of key issues, so they’re not willing to fight for him."
The Lifezette editor-in-chief theorized that Trump's critics have yet to get over his surprise victory in last year's election.
"He crushed them and they never got over it," Ingraham said. "The day after the election, they began plotting what they hoped would be his demise."

US may get tougher against China trade policies

The Trump administration is signaling it intends to take a harsher stance on trade issues than it has during its first six months.

The U.S. is considering using rarely invoked U.S. trade laws to fend off China’s demands that foreign companies share their technology in return for access to the country’s vast market.

The move is prompted by discontent among U.S. businesses, which have grown frustrated with China’s trade and market access practices, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Those practices have helped position China to become a global leader in emerging technologies, such as microchips and electric cars, the New York Times reported.
The U.S. policy shift also may reflect White House frustration that it hasn’t received the help it hoped for from China in addressing North Korea’s nuclear ambitions.
But a senior Chinese official said Monday there was no link between North Korea’s nuclear program and China-U.S. trade, Reuters reported.
Meanwhile, trade ministers from China and other nations -- including Brazil, Russia and India -- concluded a conference in Shanghai on Wednesday, agreeing to promote international cooperation and oppose "trade and investment protectionism," Reuters reported.
A source familiar with the U.S. discussions said the Trump administration planned to employ Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, which allows Washington to investigate China’s trade practices and, within months, raise tariffs on imports from China, or impose other sanctions.
Section 301 was used frequently in the 1980s to combat Japanese imports of steel, motorcycles and other items, but less frequently after the World Trade Organization was founded in 1995, Reuters reported.
The new investigation would focus on China’s alleged “forced technology transfer policies and practices,” the source said, adding that the Trump administration could launch the probe as soon as this week.
One question not yet answered is whether the Trump administration would work with the WTO or seek to impose penalties on China without relying on the international body, the Wall Street Journal reported.
On Monday, U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross wrote an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal, assailing China and the European Union for “formidable nontariff trade barriers” and asserting the U.S. would use “every available tool” to combat those barriers.

GOP Senators: Stay on Health Care or ‘Move On’ to Tax Reform

Losers?

Some GOP Senators are saying it’s time to move on from health care, and onto tax reform, despite pressure to stay the course from the president and White House officials.

Senate Finance Committee Chairman, Orrin Hatch said it’s time to move onto other legislative priorities. He’d “like to get off health reform for a while,” and let it calm down to come back to it later and then we’ll get that solved.”  Hatch says, “We do need to do tax reform. This country hasn’t had tax reform since 1986.”

Monday, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin reiterated he was 100% confident tax reform could be done this year, saying, “we will pass tax reform. This  is about creating jobs about creating wage growth about a simpler and fairer tax system. We’re going to simplify personal taxes, 95% of Americans will be  able to fill out their tax return on a large post card.”

However, many Republicans think the party should continue to give healthcare another shot.  I think they need to go home and tell their constituents it’s time to move on,” said Lindsey Graham, in response to his colleagues.  “Our best ideas haven’t even been presented yet. “

President Trump continues to urge Senators to push forward with Healthcare. Sunday he tweeted “Don’t give up Republican Senators, the World is watching: Repeal & Replace.. and go to 51 9nuke option), get Cross State Lines & more.”

While Graham said he would not vote on any changes to the Senate, including Trump’s suggested ‘nuke option’ he said “at the end of the day I want to help [President Trump] with an agenda I believe in.  His insistence we continue to focus on health care may save us from ourselves.”

Pres. Trump is Reviewing Pentagon’s Proposed Strategy for Afghanistan

Security forces respond at the site of a suicide attack followed by a clash between Afghanistan’s forces and IS fighters during an attack on Iraq embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, July 31, 2017. A media outlet linked to the Islamic State group says two IS militants were behind the attack on the Iraqi Embassy in the Afghan capital

As the nation’s longest war continues in Afghanistan, President Trump is reviewing the Pentagon’s proposed strategy to break a stalemate against the Taliban and al-Qaeda.
On Monday, a defense official said the department’s working on a process that is being guided by the White House.
They’re reviewing how several aspects of national power like the military, intelligence and finances will contribute to their goals in ending the country’s war.
Defense Secretary James Mattis had promised a plan by mid-July after a request for more troops.
However, officials say he wants to make sure the strategy is right before fulfilling that call.

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CNN's Fareed Zakaria: Trump won because of rebellion from 'the white working man'

Fareed Zakaria a piece of crap.

CNN host Fareed Zakaria explained how President Donald Trump rose to power on "New Day" Monday morning.

"The election of Donald Trump is really a kind of class rebellion against people like us, educated professionals who live in cities, who have cosmopolitan views about things," Zakaria said.

Zakaria also blamed racism and diversity on Trump's rise.
"A real sense of cultural alienation, older, white, noncollege education Americans have, a sense that their country is changing because of immigrants. Because maybe blacks are rising up to a central place in society, because gays being afforded equal rights. Because of, frankly, working women. Everybody is muscling in on the territory that the white working man had," Zakaria said.

Portland's sanctuary policies to blame for horrific rapes, says GOP leader

To blame for horrific rapes

Portland's reckless sanctuary city policy is to blame for the rape of two women by a man deported 20 times, Oregon's top Republican official told Fox News Monday.

State GOP chairman Bill Currier told "Fox & Friends" that Sergio Martinez, who was last detained in December but promptly released, should not have been in the country a week ago when he allegedly attacked a pair of women. The horrific attacks shocked the city and stoked fresh criticism of the pro-illegal immigrant policies.

"He was given preferential treatment,” said Currier. “Essentially in Oregon, our governor and the mayor of Portland, Ted Wheeler, have created a protected class for illegal aliens that commit serious crimes."
Martinez, 31, had a detainer placed on him as a “serious immigration violator” yet immigration officials in December were not notified. Multnomah County officials ended up releasing him back into the community.
PORTLAND MAN ACCUSED OF SEXUALLY ASSAULTING 65-YEAR OLD HAD BEEN DEPORTED 20 TIMES
Martinez is now being held without bail on charges of robbery, kidnapping and sexual abuse. One of his alleged victims is a 65-year-old woman who was brutally attacked in her home. The other woman was attacked in her apartment’s parking garage. Both attacks occurred last Monday.
Martinez has reportedly told Portland police he is a meth addict. He has been homeless in Portland for the past year.
Portland is widely known as a safe haven for illegal immigrants – no matter how many times they have been deported. The city and, Multnomah County and even the state legislature – all run by Democrats – have passed law declaring themselves a sanctuary for people in the country illegally.
THE SHOCKING DEPORTATION AND CRIMINAL HISTORY OF THE MAN WHO ATTACKED TWO OREGON WOMEN
Immigration and Customs Enforcement said Martinez has been deported 13 times since 2008. He has a lengthy criminal record in three states, with charges including battery, felony, burglary and felony illegal re-entry after removal.

He was in the Multnomah County Jail in December and ICE asked the sheriff’s department to notify them when he was released. The county ignored that request – as they do for all immigration detainers.
One month after Martinez was released, Multnomah County Sheriff Mike Reese launched an investigation into one of his deputies for contacting ICE before having a pre-trial meeting with an illegal immigrant. Around the same time, a judge was accused of letting an illegal immigrant slip out of her courtroom through the employee exit to escape ICE agents out in the hallway.
That judge was later found to have done nothing wrong.
As for Martinez, taxpayers may have to end up paying for his defense. The Portland City Council awarded $50,000 to launch a project aimed at helping immigrants fight deportation and other legal issues.
Fox News' Dan Springer contributed to this report