College Cartoons

Kanye West professes 'love' for Donald Trump, criticizes Obama, radio host says??

Rapper Kanye West, pictured here with president-elect Trump in December 2016, recently said he has love for the president in a recent interview, according to a radio host.  (Reuters)

Rapper Kanye West this weekend professed his "love" for President Trump and complained that he "couldn’t get anything done" with former President Obama, according to a radio host who interviewed West.
The interview with Hot 97 host Ebro Darden came after West expressed his unexpected support for conservative activist and Black Lives Matter critic Candace Owens on Twitter.
"I love the way Candace Owens thinks," West tweeted Saturday. The post followed a lengthy string of pseduo-philisophical one-liners and platitudes, including "all you have to be is yourself" and "images are limitless and words aren't."
Owens, who is black, has been criticized for her support of President Donald Trump and for her conservative political thoughts.
SINGER SHANIA TWAIN, AFTER BACKLASH, APOLOGIZES FOR SAYING SHE'D HAVE VOTED FOR TRUMP
West took on groupthink and identity politics the next day, adding, "[W]e have freedom of speech but not freedom of thought."
According to Darden, who recounted his conversation with the famed rapper on Monday's "Ebro in the Morning" broadcast, West said he liked Owens because “she’s challenging conventional black thought."
He also expressed love for Trump, Darden said, explaining that he had “reached out to Obama for years and couldn’t get anything done, but Trump gave me a meeting.”
Obama famously called West a "jackass" during a taping of an interview, and reportedly doubled down on that epithet later.
"[West] said, 'I do love Donald Trump,'" Darden said.
The rapper reportedly told Darden his goal was to "deprogram" people, according to Vulture.
On Sunday, singer Shania Twain apologized for saying she would have voted for Trump in 2016 after a significant social media backlash.
KANYE WEST BOOED FOR SAYING HE WOULD HAVE VOTED FOR TRUMP
Fox News' Greg Gutfeld said West's comments are significant not because he endorsed any conservative views, but because he demonstrated a tolerance for hearing them.
"He challenged the mob," Gutfeld said. "Their goal is to stigmatize. Smears always shut down debate. ... There's nothing scarier to a leftist than a free thinker."
The Atlanta-born rapper has a history of provocative, unexpected statements.

"There's nothing scarier to a leftist than a free thinker."

West famously said that "George Bush doesn't care about black people" in the wake of 2005's devastating Hurricane Katrina.
In 2016, West told a California crowd at a concert that he would have voted for Trump.
"I said something that was kind of politically correct. I told y’all I didn’t vote, right? What I didn’t tell you … If I were to have voted I would have voted on Trump," West said.
"That don’t mean that I don’t think that Black Lives Matter, that I don’t mean that I don’t think I believe in women’s rights … because that was the guy I would’ve voted for."
Despite not being well-received, the rapper continued to tell his fans to "stop talking about race so much."
West's history of independent-minded comments drew the attention of Infowars host Alex Jones this week, who tweeted Monday that he admired West and wants him to come on his show.

Yeti calls NRA claims 'inaccurate' says it has 'unwavering' belief in Second Amendment

Yeti, the premium cooler-maker, was forced to defend its Second-Amendment stance after an NRA email.  (Yeti)

Yeti, the premium cooler-maker synonymous with the outdoors and country music, was forced on Monday to defend its “unwavering belief and commitment” to the Second Amendment after widely read email from the National Rifle Association.

The NRA emailed its members that the Austin-based company “suddenly, without prior notice” indicated that it wanted to cut business ties with the NRA Foundation, The Statesman reported.

Since the initial report, some customers have taken to social media to destroy their Yeti products, including the #YetiCoolerChallenge, where a woman blows up here cooler.
The company is about 10 years old but rose to prominence in recent years. Chris Jansen, a country singer, wrote about the cooler in his 2015 hit "Buy Me a Boat."

pic.twitter.com/EhrTay3RAa

— YETI (@YETICoolers) April 23, 2018

The Statesman's report pointed out that the email comes at a time other high-profile companies have ended their relationship with the NRA after the Florida School shooting.
News4Jax reported that it obtained the NRA email that claimed that the company refused to say why it “will no longer sell products” to the foundation.
Yeti—which sells coolers that reach $1,299-- worked to clarify its position. The company said that it notified the foundation and other organizations, a few weeks ago, that it was “eliminating a group of outdated discounting programs.”
“When we notified the NRA Foundation and the other organizations about this change, Yeti explained that we were offering them an alternative customization program broadly available to consumers and organizations, including the NRA Foundation,” the statement read. “These facts directly contradict the inaccurate statement the (NRA) distributed on April 20.”
The company said, it has “always prominently featured hunters pursuing their passions.”
Fox News reached out to Yeti and did not immediately receive comment.
Despite the company’s statement, which was posted on Facebook and Twitter, many commenters appear unconvinced about the statement.
One user, who received 1,700 likes by late Monday, posted, “I will use all my Overpriced Yeti products for target practice and buy new RTIC coolers for my outdoor uses!!”
(RTIC is a cooler brand that competes with Yeti.)
Another user called the statement “damage control.”
Still, some users appeared to have moved on from the back-and-forth and will continue to use the product.
"All they (Yeti) said was they weren't offering the discount program any longer to the NRA and other organizations and a new program was in effect, the NRA took it negatively and ran with it," a commenter said.
Last month, Yeti ended its plans to go public, citing “market conditions,” The Wall Street Journal reported. 

Petition to fire Fresno State professor attracts 10,000 signatures

What a Idiot!

A petition to fire the Fresno State professor who called the late Barbara Bush “an amazing racist” has attracted over 10,000 signatures as of Tuesday morning.

The appeal calls upon California State University, Fresno to terminate the employment of English professor Randa Jarrar for comments she made about Bush shortly after her death.

“Immediate termination of Professor Randa Jarrar for racism and inflammatory comments regarding a former First Lady of the United States, Barbara Bush,” the petition reads.
Jarrar has come under fire after calling Bush “an amazing racist” and said she was happy that “the witch is dead,” just hours after she died.

The professor, who’s currently subject to an internal university investigation and on leave for the semester, also boasted that she can’t be fired because she’s a tenured professor.
“I work as a tenured professor. I make 100K a year doing that. I will never be fired. I will always have people wanting to hear what I have to say,” she wrote on Twitter.

Jarrar also drew the ire of people for posting a phone number for a crisis hotline at Arizona State University, falsely claiming that’s her number. The hotline, normally receives just a few calls per week, was flooded with calls.
The controversy over the professor’s remarks prompted some donors to the university to consider pulling out financial support if Jarrar isn’t removed from the position.
Ed Dunkel Jr., who made sizable financial contributions to Fresno State, said he will await the outcome of the controversy before deciding whether to close his checkbook.
“I have a lot of friends that I've been talking to, and these are people who donate now and talking about holding back, and some are even questioning whether to send their kids to Fresno State," Dunkel told the Fresno Bee.
BUSH-BASHING PROFESSOR HAS FRESNO STATE SCRAMBLING TO KEEP ITS DONORS

But while Fresno State leadership has condemned Jarrar for her comments about Bush, she received backing from advocacy groups, saying her speech was protected under the First Amendment.
“Jarrar’s tweets are unquestionably protected speech under the First Amendment and Fresno State has no power to censor, punish, or terminate Jarrar for them,” Adam Steinbaugh, senior program officer for FIRE (Foundation for Individual Rights in Education), said in a statement to Fox News.
The embattled professor was also applauded at a literary festival she was forced to withdraw from amid the controversy.

Coons' bipartisan gesture during Pompeo panel brings colleague to tears

Democratic senator changes his vote to 'present,' sending Mike Pompeo's nomination to be secretary of state to the full Senate; Fox News senior judicial analyst Brit Hume weighs in on the clash over President Trump's pick to be the nation's top diplomat.
The Senate will likely vote to confirm Mike Pompeo as the nation’s top diplomat later this week.
But Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., appeared to earn that distinction for at least a few hours Monday night.
The fate over Pompeo hop-scotched between no fewer than five members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee late Monday as the panel tried to discharge the nomination to the floor.
The success of the nomination initially hinged on Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., who long opposed Pompeo. Then it was up to Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., who had been undecided.
Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, next. He was running late.
It later toggled to Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., who was away in mourning at the funeral of a best friend in Georgia.
Finally, Pompeo’s future landed in the hands of Coons, who opposes the nominee for secretary of state. And by the end of the night, it was the Delaware Democrat who helped propel the nomination to the floor with a surprising, O. Henry twist.
Coons will oppose the Pompeo nomination on the floor later this week. But on Monday, Coons found a friend in need: Isakson.
Isakson supports Pompeo’s nomination and will vote yes. But the Georgia Republican delivered the eulogy at the funeral back home and couldn’t make the 5 p.m. ET meeting of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Pompeo. Senators on the panel were slated to vote Pompeo’s nomination out of committee and advance it to the floor. But the question was whether they would vote on the nomination favorably, unfavorably or without recommendation.
The panel is narrowly divided: 11 Republicans and 10 Democrats.
After lots of drama last week and Monday, it was clear Pompeo would likely secure just enough votes to score confirmation. But the question lingered about how the committee would send the nomination to the floor. The committee can grant a nominee a favorable vote, an unfavorable vote or grant no recommendation whatsoever.
It was first thought there was trouble with Paul. Paul announced his opposition to Pompeo a few weeks ago and even took a special meeting with the nominee late last week.
“I think that it would be quite surprising to the voters of Kentucky to see Rand Paul vote for John Kerry for Secretary of State and yet against Mike Pompeo,” Marc Short, the White House Director of Legislative Affairs, said.
It was also unclear where Flake may come down.
Never before had a nominee for secretary of state received anything but a glowing score from the committee. The last time the full Senate confirmed a cabinet-level nominee with an unfavorable committee recommendation came in 1945. That’s when the Senate confirmed former Vice President Henry Wallace as commerce secretary.

“I want to thank Sen. Coons for displaying statesmanship. It shows that senators at the right time can do outstanding things.”

The Senate confirmed Clarence Thomas for the Supreme Court despite the judiciary committee giving the nominee no recommendation in 1991.
So it was thought Pompeo may secure anything but a favorable recommendation.
However, moments before the committee met, Paul flipped his vote to yes. Flake also ended his holdout and announced he was a yea. So, the committee appeared to be on track to give Pompeo the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval on an 11-10, party-line vote.
Not for long.
Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., the committee’s chair, indicated there “were some logistical issues” the panel had to work through.
When Corker gaveled the session to order, Portman, Isakson and Coons were absent. It was quickly confirmed that Portman and Coons ran into travel snafus but were en route. Isakson’s office said the senator was speaking at the funeral and wouldn’t hit DC until after 11 p.m. ET.
Portman arrived. But not Coons. His flight was canceled.
“If I were to call the vote right now, we would vote (Pompeo) out right now,” said Corker, knowing that with the presence of Portman and the support of Paul and Flake, the committee could vote in favor of the nominee 10-9. “Let it be noted that I told Sen. Coons we would wait until he was here to have the vote.”
Coons finally arrived. However, Isakson was still in Georgia. The vote to report Pompeo out of committee with a favorable recommendation would be 10-10.
A tie.
By rule, ties fail. But Corker forged ahead, declaring that Isakson, despite his absence was “aye by proxy.” So 11-10. Still, committee rules forbid proxy votes on behalf of absent senators if they impact the outcome of a roll call tally. So there was a conundrum.
Corker fretted about setting a new precedent, dispatching the Pompeo’s nomination to the floor with anything short of a favorable rating. Corker then mulled delaying the vote until Isakson could arrive late Monday night.
“I’m willing to stay until whatever hour is necessary,” said Sen. Bob Menendez, D-NJ, the top Democrat on the committee.
“Bring the coffee,” shot back Corker.
Still, the committee voted. And sure enough, the vote was 11-10. But in essence, deadlocked thanks to Isakson’s proxy vote.
Coons proffered sending the nomination to the floor with no recommendation. Corker suggested a voice vote where the senators aren’t recorded and the loudest side prevails.
Corker then pondered if a Democrat could vote present. And Coons, despite his opposition to Pompeo, offered to switch his committee vote from no to present in an effort to advance the nomination to the floor – to offset the absence of his friend Johnny Isakson.
The committee voted again. This time the vote was 11-9 with Isakson voting yea by proxy and Coons voting present, not nay. Coons decision to switch to “present” made Isakson’s yea vote count, despite his absence.
A “present” vote by Coons this time meant Isakson’s proxy vote wasn’t the deciding factor in the tally. In fact, the vote just as easily could have been 10-9 with Coons voting present, without Isakson’s ballot. But Coons took one for the team. He took one for the committee. He took one for the Senate. He took one for the Trump Administration. And most significantly, he took one for his friend Johnny Isakson.
“I want to thank Sen. Coons for displaying statesmanship,” said Corker, choking back tears. “It shows that senators at the right time can do outstanding things.”
Coons said it would have been “cruel” to haul Isakson back to Washington just to vote sometime before the witching hour Monday night.
“Johnny Isakson is one of my best friends,” said Coons. “Johnny had a difficult day. He delivered the eulogy today for his best friend.”
Coons said when his father died, a Republican senator he didn’t know well offered to “pair” his vote with Coons so he could attend the funeral. The practice of “pairing votes” is when two senators on opposite positions of an issue agree in tandem not to vote. The phenomenon offsets each other’s votes. The Coons-Isakson alliance on Pompeo wasn’t a true “paired” vote. But the outcome was the same.
“Several of my Democratic colleagues said it’s the right thing to do,” observed Coons.
In a statement later, Coons said he’d still vote against Pompeo on the floor.
“It was not an abandonment of principles. It was simply a courtesy to a friend who would do the same for me. I think we need more of that in the Senate, and I think we need more of that in this country,” said Coons.
Earlier in the day on Fox, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders upbraided Democrats for opposing Pompeo.
“At some point, Democrats have to decide whether they love this country more than they hate this president,” said Sanders.
A lot of Democrats don’t think much of President Trump. Many don’t support Mike Pompeo to be the next Secretary of State. But after this evening’s vote, one thing’s for sure: Chris Coons has love for his friends.

Mueller Probe Cartoons

Michael Goodwin: Lawsuit shows Democrats are getting desperate as Mueller probe stalls

It’s not just Hillary Clinton who can’t quit Russia. The whole Democratic Party keeps going back to 2016.
In a move that reeks of desperation, the DNC filed a civil suit Friday against President Trump’s campaign, Russia and WikiLeaks, alleging a vast (right wing!) conspiracy to tip the election to Trump.
The suit’s flamboyant charges made headlines, but that only served to obscure the real meaning. Namely, that top Dems are giving up their fantasies that special counsel Robert Mueller will deliver them from political purgatory by getting the goods on Trump.
The trashy suit is their way of trying to keep impeachment and Russia, Russia, Russia alive for the midterms in case Mueller’s probe comes up empty.

Professor who tweeted anti-Barbara Bush comment applauded at arts festival

Sick.

The embattled Fresno State professor who tweeted out against Barbara Bush last week was hailed on Saturday by a local literary community and received backing from civil right groups.

Randa Jarrar, a tenured English professor at the school (also known as California State University at Fresno), sparked outrage after she called the former First Lady  “an amazing racist” moments after she died and said she’s happy “the witch is dead.”

Jarrar has since left the country and is currently on leave this semester. A university’s investigation is underway.
Although the professor was widely condemned for her remarks, a local Fresno literary festival applauded her each time they heard her name.
BUSH-BASHING PROFESSOR HAS FRESNO STATE SCRAMBLING TO KEEP ITS DONORS
Jarrar was set to headline LitHop, a day-long festival for the art community, but withdrew just days before the Fresno event due to the controversy.

Statement from @fresnocity regarding Randa Jarrar's appearance at LitHop. pic.twitter.com/LBXjbA7DxP

— Fresno City College (@fresnocity) April 18, 2018

"I support Randa Jarrar's free speech and I also denounce any violence against her or threats of violence against anyone else," Lee Herrick, founder of LitHop, told the audience of around 100 people, The Fresno Bee reported.
Juan Luis Guzman, director of the festival, said the controversy over Jarrar’s remarks brought the community together. "I saw a lot of people showing their love and support for Randa," he said.
Carmen Giménez Smith, a poet and the new headliner of the festival, dedicated a poem to Jarrar that included the passage “a writer is dangerous,” according to The Bee. The poet said Jarrar is a writer who tests the limits and pursues liberty through her literature.
Jarrar also received support from a Fresno State lecturer who claims to have been demoted after tweeting that President Donald Trump “must hang” in order to “save American democracy.”

Randa Jarrar, a professor at Fresno State, was applauded at a literary arts festival.  (Facebook)

Lars Maischak, a history lecturer, wrote Wednesday that the university and the professor is siding with Jarrar’s attackers and is failing to stand up to the “fascist threat to academic freedom.”
Multiple advocacy groups came out in support of the professor as well.
“Jarrar’s tweets are unquestionably protected speech under the First Amendment and Fresno State has no power to censor, punish, or terminate Jarrar for them,” Adam Steinbaugh, senior program officer for FIRE (Foundation for Individual Rights in Education), said in a statement to Fox News.

Syracuse University permanently expels fraternity over 'anti-Semitic' video

A fraternity at Syracuse University was permanently expelled Saturday.  (Syracuse University)

A fraternity at Syracuse University was permanently expelled Saturday after an offensive video surfaced that members say was intended as satire.
The New York school's Theta Tau chapter said on its website that one of its members this year is a conservative Republican, and the new members roasted him by playing the part of a racist conservative character.
"It was a satirical sketch of an uneducated, racist, homophobic, misogynist, sexist, ableist and intolerant person," the statement said. "The young man playing the part of this character nor the young man being roasted do not hold any of the horrible views espoused as a part of that sketch."
WARNING GRAPHIC VIDEO BELOW 
Chancellor Kent Syverud apparently did not see the supposed humor in the sketch. He called the video "racist, anti-Semitic, homophobic, ableist and sexist" in a video posted on the university's website.
He said disciplinary actions against the individual students involved could include suspension or expulsion. Syracuse.com reported that 18 students received citations, which are not criminal.
The video showed a group of men laughing uproariously at performances punctuated by racist language against blacks, Jews and Hispanics and simulated sex acts. Some students contend the video illustrates larger issues of racism and sexism at the university.
The Daily Orange posted the six-minute video on its website that depicts an oath: “I solemnly swear to always have hatred in my heart for n*****s, s***s and most importantly the f***ing k***s.”
The Syracuse chapter of Theta Tau, a national engineering fraternity, apologized for the video Friday and says its members believe racism "has no place on a university campus."
The school said it will never be allowed to release the names of the students in the video over federal privacy law. News of the skit circulated through the campus on Wednesday.
The fraternity did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment on the chapter's expulsion Saturday, the AP reported.
Syverud said that in addition to expelling the Theta Tau chapter, university official "have begun a top-to-bottom review of our entire Greek system."

Feinstein denies bowing to left-wing pressure on Trump's CIA nominee

California Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein on Sunday bristled at the suggestion she is reflexively opposing President Trump's nominee for CIA director to bolster her liberal bona fides during her contested re-election campaign in the left-wing state.
In a testy exchange on CBS' "Face The Nation," Feinstein insisted she is only doing her "due diligence" on Gina Haspel, 61, and played down the role of her insurgent ultra-progressive challenger, state Sen. Kevin de León, in her decisionmaking.
Feinstein was pointedly rebuked in February by the California Democratic Party, which declined to endorse her run for Senate during its annual convention. A majority of delegates backed León.
"I am of the opinion that putting somebody right now at the head of the CIA who played a role in, let's say, torture is not necessarily appropriate," Feinstein told CBS host Margaret Brennan, echoing her past statements on Haspel. "I have met with Gina Haspel. I know her somewhat. I know that she is talented but I also know that she was fully supportive of the program that many of us are very critical of."
Haspel ran the CIA's first overseas detention site in Thailand, where imprisoned militants were repeatedly waterboarded, The New York Times reported in February 2017. The CIA declassified and released a 2011 memo clearing wrongdoing for her role in drafting an order to destroy videotaped evidence of so-called enhanced interrogation techniques.
In March, Feinstein drew widespread criticism from California progressives for referring to Haspel as a "good deputy director."
Feinstein said she wouldn't make a final decision on whether she supports Haspel until after her confirmation hearing.
Haspel would be the first woman to ever lead the CIA.
PROBE CLEARED HASPEL IN DESTRUCTION OF WATERBOARDING TAPES

"I care about who is head of the CIA, and I'm going to do my due diligence."

"There are those who are questioning whether it's possible for you personally to be supportive of her, given the pressures you are feeling from progressives back in your home state of California right now, that you just can't afford to support any Trump nominee," Brennan said. "Can you explain how you're weighing those things?"
Feinstein shot back: "Well, that isn't correct. Obviously, that's your interpretation of it, and you're welcome to that interpretation.
"I care about who is head of the CIA, and I'm going to do my due diligence, have a chance to ask her questions in the public arena and we'll do just that, and then we'll make up my mind whether I believe she's an appropriate person to head this agency," she continued.
While the vastly better-funded and more established Feinstein is widely expected to defeat León during the June primary, the upstart challenger is continuing to build momentum.
Earlier this month, billionaire Democratic donor Tom Steyer backed León, saying he "has proven himself to be the best of the next generation, and I am proud to support him for U.S. Senate."