Obama still backing Pelosi while other Democrats move on

“I think everybody knows how much I love Nancy Pelosi,” former President Barack Obama said Friday at a Democratic Party fundraiser in California.

The list of Democrats expressing frustration with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi has been growing longer in recent weeks, but don’t expect to see former President Barack Obama’s name on it.
At a party fundraising event Friday afternoon in Northern California, Obama spoke highly of Pelosi – and even predicted that she will return to the job of House speaker after November’s midterm elections.
“I think everybody knows how much I love Nancy Pelosi,” Obama told the gathering at a home in affluent Atherton, Politico reported.
"Nancy, I believe, is one of the greatest speakers we ever had, and will once again be one of the greatest speakers we ever have after we get through this cycle," he continued. “And there's not much I could have gotten done without having Nancy there alongside of me every step of the way.”

"Nancy, I believe, is one of the greatest speakers we ever had, and will once again be one of the greatest speakers we ever have after we get through this cycle."
- Former President Barack Obama

But less than two weeks ago, Politico reported that at least 20 challengers running in Democratic primaries have been openly dismissive of Pelosi’s leadership.
In addition, a group of incumbent Democrats – including U.S. Rep. Brian Higgins of New York and Conor Lamb of Pennsylvania – say they won’t back Pelosi for another term as party leader.
"Our leadership is out of touch with what is going on, not only in Pennsylvania, Ohio and Michigan but in Cheektowaga, West Seneca, Hamburg, Orchard Park and Lancaster," Higgins told the Buffalo News, referring to swing states that voted for Donald Trump in 2016, as well as municipalities near Buffalo.

"Our leadership is out of touch with what is going on ... in Pennsylvania, Ohio and Michigan ... "
- U.S. Rep. Brian Higgins, D-N.Y.

Perhaps the biggest blow to Pelosi’s future prospects occurred last Tuesday in New York City, when 28-year-old Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez defeated longtime U.S. Rep. Joseph Crowley, 56, chairman of the House Democratic Caucus.
To many political watchers, it suggested that Democratic voters have grown tired of the party’s old guard and want a new generation of leaders.
But Pelosi quickly dismissed Ocasio-Cortez’s upset victory as a “one district” fluke – a comment that may serve only to further inspire the younger, more far-left candidates seeking to move on Pelosi and her contemporaries.
The event where Obama spoke was co-hosted by Pelosi and U.S. Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Calif., and held at the home of Liz Simons and Mark Heising, who head the philanthropic Heising-Simons Foundation.
It was part of a three-stop Obama fundraising tour in California, which included an event in Beverly Hills on Thursday night.

Student Highlights 'Shocking' Backlash After Classmate's Pro-Trump Comment During Debate

A California high school student said that a pro-Trump classmate received backlash after he voiced his support for a border wall during a class debate.
Shaina Chen, 17, said Saturday on "Fox & Friends" that during a debate about race in politics, the classmate stated: "We should build the wall."
Chen said the suggestion was met with "awkward silence" from the rest of her class.
She also detailed what happened in a New York Post opinion piece, in which she said students insulted the classmate and called him names.
Chen said Saturday that she didn't expect the reaction from her classmates, being that they attend a "diverse" school near liberal San Francisco.
"Just to have that happen, I was so surprised," Chen said.

There was discomfort in the hallway, but I noticed it was also the first time people continued a debate after class was over. In fact, this single statement led to weeks of discussion on race and the right degree of government involvement in race-related issues.

She said the reaction was "shocking" because she hadn't seen that type of opposition to free speech before in her school.
She also said that many teachers don't debate politics in their classes because it's a "sensitive" topic.
Chen wrote in her op-ed that as so many students today are opinionated, they've forgotten the value of a diversity of opinion.
"In a school that practices diversity in almost anything, we were really missing a huge chunk of diversity," Chen said.

Free speech is important, even — or, perhaps, especially — in high school, because it makes people uncomfortable. Discomfort sparks discussion and promotes an acceptance of the existence of different opinions.

She said that a diversity of opinion should be respected by everyone, and that those who can't are not open-minded or free-thinking.

House Democrat Tulsi Gabbard dodges debates in home state -- despite demanding them in 2016: report

U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, D-Hawaii, delivers a nomination speech for Sen. Bernie Sanders at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, July 26, 2016.  (Reuters)

A House Democrat is drawing heat in her home state for her history of refusing to participate in debates prior to primary elections.
But ironically, U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii resigned from her position with the Democratic National Committee in 2016 because she believed the party hadn't scheduled enough debates among its presidential candidates that year.
Gabbard has declined to debate her opponent ahead of the Aug. 11 primary in Hawaii's 2nd Congressional District, continiung a pattern of snubbing her primary opponents every time since being elected to Congress six years ago, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported.
“Blocking debates from happening through non-participation is the opposite of democracy,” said Sherry Campagna, Gabbard's chief primary challenger for Hawaii’s 2nd Congressional District. “I’ve asked for a debate. I have received silence for merely presenting a choice.”
The debate dodge is not an unusual tactic for incumbents. But the backlash against Gabbard is fueled by her past remarks urging former Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz to increase the number of debates during the 2016 Democratic presidential primary campaign, calling it an issue of “democracy,” the Star-Advertiser reported.
At the time, Gabbard said additional debates would “give the American people the opportunity to hear from these presidential candidates, to listen to what they’ve got to say, to hold them accountable for their views and their positions,” the paper reported, citing CNN.

“Blocking debates from happening through non-participation is the opposite of democracy."
- Sherry Alu Campagna, Democratic primary challenger

Gabbard even stepped down from her position as DNC vice chairwoman to endorse then-candidate Bernie Sanders after reaching an impasse over the debate schedule, the Daily Beast reported.
That same year, Gabbard also refused multiple debate requests from her then-primary challenger Shay Chan Hodges, the Star-Advertiser reported. Hodges had privately asked her to meet for debates across the state, but the only debate to occur that season was when Gabbard publicly stated she never received such a request.

“(I)t is the right thing to do for the voters."
- Scott Humber, news director, Hawaii News Now

As this year’s primary approaches, television station Hawaii News Now has tried for more than a month to schedule a debate between Gabbard and Campagna, but Gabbard once again declined to participate, news director Scott Humber told the Star-Advertiser.
“(I)t is the right thing to do for the voters,” Humber, who said he’d keep the invitation open, wrote in an email.
Meanwhile, Erika Tsuji, a spokeswoman for Gabbard, told the paper that Gabbard has more important priorities in her home state when she returns from her duties in Washington.
The congresswoman “is spending the limited precious time she’s able to be home with her constituents, discussing issues of importance with them," Tsuji wrote in an email, "including difficulties they are having due to the recent natural disasters on Kauai, Oahu, and Hawaiii island, especially the victims of the Puna lava flow, as well as fulfilling her National Guard service requirements."

Maxine Waters brushes off alleged threats, vows to 'Impeach 45'

During a speech Saturday at an immigration rally in California, U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters reacted defiantly to alleged threats reportedly directed at her following her previous remarks about the Trump administration’s “zero tolerance” immigration policy.
Waters took the podium at the Families Belong Together rally in downtown Los Angeles, one of the many rallies staged across the country urging for the reunification of families who were separated at the U.S.-Mexico border.
She told the crowd that she has “no fear” and is “in this fight” after saying some congressional lawmakers felt “intimidated.”
“And I know that there are those who are talking about censuring me, talking about kicking me out of Congress, talking about shooting me, talking about hanging me,” she told the disapproving crowd. “All I have to say is this: If you shoot me, you better shoot straight. There's nothing like a wounded animal.”

“And I know that there are those who are talking about censuring me, talking about kicking me out of Congress, talking about shooting me, talking about hanging me. All I have to say is this: If you shoot me, you better shoot straight. There's nothing like a wounded animal.”
- U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif.

Waters went on to say that she was willing “to make whatever sacrifices” were necessary, adding: “I am not about to let this country go by the way of Donald Trump.”
“We are sick and tired of him. He's been there too long,” she said. “They dare me to say 'Impeach him.' Today I say, 'Impeach 45.'”

“I am not about to let this country go by the way of Donald Trump. ... We are sick and tired of him. He's been there too long. They dare me to say 'Impeach him.' Today I say, 'Impeach 45.'”
- U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif.

Her remarks came after she encouraged her supporters earlier this month to fight back against the White House amid a controversial immigration policy that ultimately led to the separation of migrant children from their parents after crossing the border.
Those earlier remarks prompted a reaction from President Donald Trump, in a Twitter message Wednesday:
"Congratulations to Maxine Waters, whose crazy rants have made her, together with Nancy Pelosi, the unhinged FACE of the Democrat Party," the president wrote. "Together, they will Make America Weak Again! But have no fear, America is now stronger than ever before, and I’m not going anywhere!"
Waters was also featured prominently in a campaign ad posted online by the Republican National Committee that criticized the political left as being "unhinged."
Speaking previously on MSNBC, Waters said that current administration officials who defend Trump “know what they’re doing is wrong,” and said they soon won’t be able to peacefully appear in public without being harassed.
“They’re not going to be able to go to a restaurant, they’re not going to be able to stop at a gas station, they’re not going to be able to shop at a department store,” she went on to say. “The people are going to turn on them, they’re going to protest, they’re going to absolutely harass them.”
She made similar comments at a Los Angeles rally, telling supporters that she wanted “history to record that we stood up that we pushed back that we fought that we did not consider ourselves victims of this president.”
Following the remarks, Waters had to call off scheduled appearances in Texas and Alabama after various threats were allegedly made at her, according to the Los Angeles Times. Waters reportedly told radio station KPFK-FM on Saturday that organizers of the events “didn’t have all of our security in order and organized for those two trips, but we’ve got it together now.”
“We're going on with our schedule, and we're going to keep talking about this president and his policies, and we're going to keep fighting for these children and their parents and these families,” she told the station, the Times reported.

Mexican Illegal Cartoons

Central America battles corruption, violence despite billions in US aid

MEXICO CITY –  U.S. foreign policy in Central America has long been a considered a two-way street. America provides aid to promote stability, economic progress and reduce violence. In return, Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador are supposed to reduce illegal immigration.
Last week, President Trump suggested that America isn't getting what it paid for: "When countries abuse us by sending their people up, not their best people, we are not going to give any more aid to those countries. Why the hell should we? Why should we?"
As a fresh wave of refugees from the so-called North Triangle reaches the U.S.-Mexico border, Trump isn't the only one asking if Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador are keeping their end of the bargain.
"The violence is bad, the conditions horrible, but at the same time it is not the responsibility of the U.S.A. to solve all the problems of other countries," says Ana Quintana, executive director of the Allison Center for Foreign Policy Studies.
Over the past decade, U.S. taxpayers have provided $1.5 billion in aid to El Salvador, $1.4 billion to Guatemala and $1.1 billion to Honduras, according to the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
Yet according to the thousands of migrants seeking asylum in the U.S., all three countries remain mired in poverty and beset by gang and drug violence. Corruption, they say, has never been worse.
"In Honduras we just can't live anymore because of the gang," says Mirna Ruiz, who has fled her home nation and is currently in Tijuana. "We can't even go shopping because we are afraid."
Vice President Pence met with leaders of all three nations Thursday in Guatemala and told them the U.S. expects to see them do more to control their own borders. And while President Trump proposed cutting their aid in next year's budget, many Democrats think that’s a mistake.
"We are working on infrastructure in the Northern Triangle," Rep. Norma Torres, D-Calif., told reporters last week at an immigrant detention center outside of San Diego. "Let's continue that policy, let’s continue to help them in their own country."
Addressing the root causes of illegal immigration is a long-term proposition. Advocates say it would cost more in the long run to abandon Central America now.
Others argue it's time to demand more accountability. Historically foreign aid budgets have passed through Congress with little debate. Congressional committees rubber-stamped State Department requests, and the gravy train continued.
Immigration from El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala increased by 25 percent between 2007 and 2015, compared to just a six percent increase in arrivals from Mexico, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of U.S. Census data. In 2011, 42,000 illegal immigrants were apprehended from those three countries combined. Last year, the number of apprehensions had skyrocketed to 163,000 — 50,000 more than apprehensions of people from Mexico.
And while these immigrants tell Border Patrol agents and asylum officers they are being persecuted at home, surveys of recently deported immigrants from those countries admit 95 percent went to the U.S. for work, not because of violence.
"The United States is not and should not be in a position to be complacent and accept countries who are not fulfilling their obligations," says Quintana. "Until there is a serious focus by the administration, a serious focus by Congress to really delve into this we are not going to see the crisis at the border stop."

California's sweeping data-privacy bill signed into law

California Gov. Jerry Brown speaks during a news conference in Sacramento, Calif., March 7, 2018.  (Associated Press)

California lawmakers gave consumers unprecedented protections for their data and imposed tough restrictions on the tech industry, potentially establishing a privacy template for the rest of the nation.
The law, which was rushed through the legislature this week and signed by Gov. Jerry Brown on Thursday, broadens the definition of what constitutes personal information and gives California consumers the right to prohibit the sale of personal data to third parties and opt out of sharing it altogether. The bill applies to internet giants such as Facebook Inc. and Alphabet Inc.’s Google but also will affect businesses of any size that collect data on their customers.
Ashkan Soltani, a digital researcher and former chief technologist for the Federal Trade Commission, said the regulations are the first of their kind in the U.S.
While the law only applies to consumers in California, tech companies will likely shift their policies to conform to the new law given the complexity of carving out conflicting standards. It may also spur Congress to consider federal legislation, coming after multiple hearings in which legislators peppered industry executives with questions about whether they were taking data privacy seriously enough.
The bill doesn’t go into effect until 2020 and could still be amended. It is almost certain that major tech firms will lobby heavily to get certain concessions, and an industry group said Thursday that it would push for changes.
By passing the bill, the legislature headed off a more restrictive ballot initiative that recently qualified to appear before California voters in November. The ballot initiative was strongly opposed by most of the tech industry, which broadly viewed the legislation as the lesser of two evils.

Billionaire liberal Tom Steyer joins George Soros in backing Florida Dem for governor

Andrew Gillum, mayor of Tallahassee, Fla., is seeking the state's Democratic gubernatorial nomination.  (Facebook)

Florida gubernatorial hopeful Adam Gillum received another big boost Thursday in his bid to win the state’s Democratic nomination.
A second billionaire liberal activist has pledged to support the mayor of Tallahassee as he looks to move from City Hall to the Statehouse.
Gillum, 38, who already has the endorsement of Democratic donor George Soros, has now attracted support from billionaire Tom Steyer as well, the Tampa Bay Times reported Thursday.
Steyer’s NextGen America organization announced Thursday that it has pledged $1 million to Gillum’s campaign, the newspaper reported.
Steyer, 60, is a Californian and former Farallon Capital executive who has appeared in national TV ads calling for the impeachment of President Donald Trump.
“As we battle for the heart and soul of this nation, Andrew Gillum is the kind of leader we need on the front lines,” Steyer said in a written statement late Thursday. “He’s someone we can trust to do the right thing, to put the people before the powerful, and who is unafraid to stand up for justice, now when we need it most.”
The backing from both Soros and Steyer is expected to boost Gillum’s candidacy as he takes on four big-money Democrats in the state’s primary election Aug. 28.
Those other Democrats are former U.S. Rep. Gwen Graham, Palm Beach billionaire Jeff Greene, Orlando businessman Chris King and former Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine.
Gillum, the election’s only African-American candidate, frequently reminds crowds that he lacks the financing of his Democratic rivals, Politico reported.
On the Republican side, the two top candidates are Florida Agriculture Commissioner Ada Putnam and U.S. Rep. Ron DeSantis, who sparred Thursday in a debate on Fox News Channel.

Putnam, DeSantis spar over Trump support, shootings in Fox News GOP debate in Florida

Florida Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam and Rep. Ron DeSantis sparred Thursday in Fox News’ Florida Republican gubernatorial debate over their support for President Trump, while DeSantis championed his relationship with the president and Putnam argued he’s more focused on local issues than his opponent.
Putnam, who spent 10 years in Congress before being elected statewide in Florida, used his opening statement to portray DeSantis, elected to Congress in 2012, as a creature of Washington. “What an exciting time to be in front of a live audience of 1,000 Florida Republicans,” Putnam said in his opening remarks. “It's different than a Washington, D.C. studio. Welcome to Florida, congressman.”
DeSantis played up Trump’s endorsement of his campaign, expressing doubt that Putnam adequately supports Trump. “I am proud to have the endorsement of President Trump in this race,” he said.
Added DeSantis, “When Donald Trump was trying to win Florida in 2016, Adam Putnam did not attend a single rally with him. You couldn’t find Adam Putnam if you had a search warrant.”
But Putnam played up his support for Trump, saying, “I support our president's agenda for our country.” He later emphasized: “I am focused on Florida.”
The two candidates took shots at each other throughout the hour-long debate. But on the issues, they both called on Trump to appoint a conservative to the Supreme Court, criticized California Democratic Rep. Maxine Waters for her controversial recent comments and expressed concern over school shootings while defending Second Amendment rights.
Thursday’s debate, moderated by Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum, took place at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee ahead of the Aug. 28 primary.
The debate unfolded amid breaking news of the mass shooting at the Capital Gazette newsroom in Annapolis, Maryland, where police said at least five people were killed. The candidates discussed gun control, referencing the recent infamous massacres in Florida at a nightclub and a high school.
FOX NEWS POLL: FLORIDA GOP GUBERNATORIAL PRIMARY
“It is critically important that we defend our rights and protect our students in the schools,” Putnam said. “Those two things are not incompatible.”
“My wife and I have two young kids under the age of two,” DeSantis said. “The thought that someone would come and shoot them fills me with rage.”
Both called for the removal of Scott Israel, the sheriff of Broward County who came under criticism after the massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland in February.
“I would have removed that sheriff from Broward County. He failed his citizens and he should have been removed,” DeSantis said.
“Sheriff Israel is under investigation and he needs to go,” Putnam said.
Thursday’s televised showdown is part of Fox News’ series of debates leading up to the 2018 midterm elections.
Though Trump endorsed DeSantis, a recent Fox News poll of Florida likely GOP primary voters finds Putnam ahead of DeSantis by a 32-17 percent margin. However, 39 percent of voters said they're unsure who they will back in the primary. Meanwhile, 46 percent of those supporting a candidate say they could still change their mind.
Meanwhile, there’s a crowded Democratic primary for governor, including Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum, Palm Beach billionaire Jeff Greene, former U.S. Rep. Gwen Graham, Orlando businessman Chris King and former Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine.
The current governor of Florida, Republican Rick Scott, is challenging incumbent Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson for the Senate.

Obama immigration Cartoons