Trump, Feinstein spar over reports of Chinese spy on her staff

At his rally in central Ohio on Saturday night, President Trump took aim at U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, criticizing the longtime member of the Senate Intelligence Committee for reportedly having a suspected Chinese spy on her staff in the past.
“The leader of the Russia investigation, Dianne Feinstein, had a Chinese spy as her driver for 20 years,” Trump said about California’s senior U.S. senator, the Washington Times reported. “And she’s leading the Russian ‘witch hunt.’ Isn’t that something? And then she says to me, ‘What did you know about this and that?’ Give me a break.”

“The leader of the Russia investigation, Dianne Feinstein, had a Chinese spy as her driver for 20 years. And she’s leading the Russian ‘witch hunt.’ Isn’t that something? And then she says to me, ‘What did you know about this and that?’ Give me a break.”
- President Donald Trump, at a rally in Ohio on Saturday

The president’s remarks continued a feud that Trump had begun on Twitter on Friday night, when he reacted to reports of the Feinstein story.
“Dianne is the person leading our Nation on ‘Collusion’ with Russia (only done by Dems),” the president tweeted. “Will she now investigate herself?”
Feinstein retaliated with a pair of tweets Saturday.
“The FBI told me 5 years ago it had concerns that China was seeking to recruit an administrative member of my Calif staff (despite no access to sensitive information),” Feinstein wrote in the first message. “I took those concerns seriously, learned the facts and made sure the employee left my office immediately.
“Compare that to your actions: attacking the FBI and refusing the advice of your national security team. SAD! I appreciated then and now the diligent work of our law enforcement and intelligence agencies and acted in the best interests of the country. Give it a try!”
Earlier in the week, Politico and other outlets reported that Feinstein learned from the FBI about five years ago that a staffer in her San Francisco office was suspected of delivering political intelligence, though nothing top secret, to officials at the local Chinese Consulate.
Feinstein was said to have been “mortified” when she learned the news, according to Politico.
The FBI wasn’t able to charge the individual, but Feinstein “forced him to retire,” a source told the San Francisco Chronicle.
In Ohio, Trump used the Feinstein story as an example that other countries besides Russia are engaged in espionage against the United States.
“Not only China, it’s a lot of people,” Trump said, according to the Washington Times. “And we’ve got to stop it. We’ve got to stop meddling, we’ve got to stop everybody from attacking us. But there are a lot. Russia’s there, China’s there. We’re doing well with North Korea, but they’re probably there [spying]. We’ve got to stop everybody.
“And I like Dianne Feinstein. But I don’t like the fact that she had a Chinese spy driving her, and she didn’t know it.”
Earlier this year, Trump blasted “sneaky Dianne Feinstein” after the Democrat released the transcript of a congressional interview with the co-founder of Fusion GPS, the firm behind the anti-Trump dossier, claiming the move was “possibly” illegal.
“The fact that Sneaky Dianne Feinstein, who has on numerous occasions stated that collusion between Trump/Russia has not been found, would release testimony in such an underhanded and possibly illegal way, totally without authorization, is a disgrace. Must have tough Primary!” Trump tweeted in January.
Trump’s visit Saturday to Lewis Center, Ohio, was mostly about supporting state Sen. Troy Balderson, a Republican looking to win a special election for a U.S. House seat this coming Tuesday.

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New Law in Israel Sparks Backlash from Arab Minority Group

OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 7:55 AM PT — Fri. Aug. 3, 2018

A new law in Israel is sparking fury and protests among religious minority group in the country.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu walked out of a meeting with Druze leaders Thursday, following the backlash from a newly imposed nation-state law.
He was in the meeting to negotiate whether a separate law would be used to protect the religious minority or to add an amendment to the Jewish nation-state law.

Israelis hold a banner showing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a protest against the Israel Jewish nation bill, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Monday, July 30, 2018. Last week Israel’s parliament approved a controversial piece of legislation that defines the country as the nation-state of the Jewish people. Opponents and rights groups have criticized the legislation, warning that it will sideline minorities such as the country’s Arabs. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

The Druze are the most integrated minority in Israel, but the controversial law has provoked anger and fear.
“We see it as a discriminatory law which doesn’t give expression to our citizenship, doesn’t give expression to our sense of belonging,” stated Rafik Halabi, head of the local Israeli-Druze Council. “We told the prime minister unequivocally – we want civilian equality for all residents, we won’t be able to live in a state where part of its population, especially such a loyal and good population, feels excluded.”
Following the talks, Druze community leaders say the community is planning to demonstrate against the proposed legislation on Saturday.

Deputy AG Rosenstein Says Justice Dept. Should Not Be Driven by Politics

Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein said the Justice Department is duty-bound to make decisions that are not pleasing to everyone.
He made those remarks Thursday at a meeting with the American Bar Association in Chicago.
Rosenstein said the DOJ must never be driven by politics, but make decisions based on the cautious wisdom required by the law.
While he did not mention his critics by name, Rosenstein said government attorneys often have difficulty dealing with Congress.
Last month, members of the House introduced articles of impeachment against Rosenstein for not complying with congressional records requests.

China Defends Relationship with Iran, Refuses to Halt Oil Imports

China is defending its relationship with Iran, calling their cooperation “justified, reasonable and lawful.”
During a news conference Friday, China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said China does not support unilateral sanctions against the Islamic Republic or “long arm jurisdiction.”
Shuang went on to suggest China’s rights and interests should be preserved.
“We hope Japan will translate its positive remarks regarding China-Japan ties into concrete actions, do something conducive to improving ties and push forward with the development of bilateral relations in the right path,” he stated.
The remarks come in response to an American request to halt Iranian oil imports.
According to recent reports, Chinese officials did not agree to stop the oil imports. However, they said the country would agree to not increase them.

RNC Spokeswoman: GOP Must Increase Lead in Senate, House to Get Southern Border Wall Built

OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 12:57 AM PT — Fri. Aug. 3, 2018

A top Republican National Committee spokeswoman is saying she believes the southern border wall will get built if the GOP extends their majorities in Congress leading into the November midterms.
During an interview on The Hill Friday, Kayleigh McEnany called the border wall a “lightning rod issue” for the Republican base.
This comes just a day after President Trump said he was torn on whether to force a government shutdown in order to get border wall funding.
During a speech in Pennsylvania this week, the president reaffirmed his promise to build the wall, but said Democrats could make the process tedious.

A U.S. Border Patrol agent looks at one of border wall prototypes Thursday, June 28, 2018, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

“And we’re going to start to get really nasty over the wall, you know — the Democrats…anything I want they want to oppose,” stated President Trump. “You know, I just figured out how to do the wall — I’ll say ‘I don’t want to build the wall’ and they’ll insist on building it.”
Meanwhile, McEnany suggested that border security is one of the more popular issues for supporters of the RNC.
“I was talking to one of our interns and she said ‘do you know one of the most emailed things I get at the RNC is, when are we going to build the wall?’ — because that really motivates our base, building the wall, immigration,” she explained. “That is a lightning rod issue, it’s in the top three of concerned voters, top issues.”
According to a recent report however, that funding for the wall and border security may not just be a hot button issue exclusively for conservatives.
The report — published by the Bipartisan Policy Center — asserted that “most Americans believe the current immigration system is broken, out of control and antiquated.” Moreover, the status of the border wall is still in question.
The House released a spending bill for the wall last month, but their five billion dollar total is much less than the $25 billion originally requested by President Trump.
Congress will have until next month to agree on a set total when the federal budget year ends on Thursday, September 30.

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Republican running for Oregon governor wants top state Dems to resign over sexual harassment at Capitol

Knute Buehler, who’s running for governor in deep-blue Oregon, says two top Democrats should resign for allowing a culture of sexual misconduct in the state Capitol.  (Associated Press)

The Republican candidate in Oregon's race for governor is calling on two top state Democrats to resign after allegations that they allowed a pervasive atmosphere of sexual hostility to exist in the state Capitol.
Knute Buehler, who recently pulled even in the polls against Democratic incumbent Gov. Kate Brown in the deep-blue state, directed his criticism at Senate President Peter Courtney and House Speaker Tina Kotek.
“For too long casual attitudes and unprofessional behavior has been accepted and tolerated in the Capitol. I am calling on Senate President Peter Courtney and House Speaker Tina Kotek to step down,” Buehler, who’s also a state lawmaker, tweeted.
“Accountability and change begins with the people in charge who failed to prevent, failed to properly investigate and possibly covered-up serious allegations of sexual harassment within the Capitol,” he said in a statement.
The call for resignations comes after Oregon Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian on Wednesday filed a complaint accusing Courtney and Kotek of not doing enough to protect women from Republican Sen. Jeff Kruse and covering up a pervasive culture of sexual harassment at the state Capitol in Salem.
Kruse was forced to resign in February after an investigation found that he sexually harassed and groped a number of women in the Capitol over the years and ignored warnings about his behavior. Kruse reportedly escalated his inappropriate behavior after being told to stop touching women without their consent.
Buehler, who has a real shot this November to become the first non-Democrat governor of the state since late 1980s, was the first Republican lawmaker to urge Kruse to resign amid the sexual misconduct allegations.
REPUBLICAN CHALLENGER PULLS EVEN WITH ANTI-TRUMP DEMOCRAT IN SOLID BLUE OREGON’S GOVERNOR’S RACE: POLL

In this Feb. 13, 2015, file photo, Oregon Senate President Peter Courtney, left, and Speaker of the House Tina Kotek confer at the Capitol in Salem, Ore. The two fellow Democrats are being accused of covering up a pervasive culture of sexual harassment at the state capitol.  (Associated Press)

In the complaint, Avakian said that as early as March 2016, Courtney and Kotek "knew or should have known of Senator Kruse's conduct and the broader sexually hostile environment in the Capitol, but did not take immediate and appropriate action."
He also said other powerful officials in the state Capitol – such as top legislative lawyer Dexter Johnson and human resources chief Lore Christopher – told the harassed women not to tell anyone about them being harassed by Kruse or other officials, the Oregonian reported. The victims were also told that they had no standing to sue the harassers.
Courtney and Kotek signed a memo stating they will participate in any subsequent investigation about the allegations laid out by Avakian. “We welcome additional scrutiny and a thorough investigation related to the commissioner's complaint,” reads the memo, according to the publication.
The state House speaker said she takes every complaint seriously and encouraged “anyone with a complaint to come forward. We must do better.”
Kotek, meanwhile, criticized Buehler for calling for their resignation, accusing him of politicizing the situation.
“Let's not politicize this. This is about people's lives," Kotek said. “We want a workplace that is respectful and safe, where everyone can do their best to help the people of Oregon.”

Black pastors see Trump bringing 'new hope' -- but still need to convince their flocks

The Rev. John Gray, pastor of Relentless Church in Greenville, S.C., and other religious leaders meet with President Trump at the White House, Aug. 1, 2018.  (Associated Press)

Two black Christian pastors who were among a group of religious leaders meeting with President Trump at the White House this week are now facing backlash from congregants back home.
The Rev. Phillip Goudeaux of Calvary Christian Center in Sacramento, Calif., and the Rev. John Gray, head of Relentless Church in Greenville, S.C., came under fire from critics who say Trump's policies have harmed the black community.
But at Wednesday's event, dubbed “Meeting with Inner City Pastors,” many of the pastors who attended expressed sympathetic views toward Trump, with one pastor -- the Rev. Darrell Scott, of Cleveland -- calling Trump “the most pro-black president we’ve had in our lifetime.”

Pastor Phillip Goudeaux of Calvary Christian Center in Sacramento, Calif., has come under fire for attending a meeting with President Trump.  (Calvary Christian Center)

Scott also slammed former President Barack Obama for not trying to “prove something to our community” because “he got a pass.”
Goudeaux, a spiritual adviser to the family of Stephon Clark –  the unarmed black man who was fatally shot March 18 by two police officers in Sacramento -- praised Trump as well, saying the president restored “hope” to his community, but jokingly urged Trump to not give up on the state of California.
“Please don’t give up on California and Sacramento,” Goudeaux quipped, according to the transcript. “I’m right in the capital there, and we’re working in every area to try to make a difference in people’s lives.

"So, I guess the greatest word I can say for you, Mr. President, is that you have given this country expectations, given us a new hope, a new excitement to believe that things are getting better and are going to get better."
- Pastor Phillip Goudeaux

“So, I guess the greatest word I can say for you, Mr. President, is that you have given this country expectations, given us a new hope, a new excitement to believe that things are getting better and are going to get better,” Goudeaux continued. “And we appreciate that leadership, your tenacity to keep pushing in against all the opposition that comes against you. Thank you so much.”
Gray, meanwhile, was skeptical about attending the meeting with Trump and initially thought he would decline the invitation.
“My wife told me ‘If you go, no one will hear what you say. They won’t understand why you’re there. And any good that could come out of it will get lost in translation,’” Gray wrote on Facebook. “I had not one thing to gain by being there. Not. One.”
Gray said he eventually decided attending the event and even led the prayer so he could speak out about prison reform.

"That could greatly end up benefiting many people who look just like me."
- Pastor John Gray on his decision to attend the meeting

“That could greatly end up benefiting many people who look just like me,” he said. “The pain of so many is too real. The hurt. The isolation. The sense of disenfranchisement. The real hate that has bubbled to the surface of the national discourse.
"I myself have been vocal about my personal disagreements with key policy decisions of this administration,” he added.

President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with inner city pastors in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington, Wednesday, Aug. 1, 2018.  (Associated Press)

But despite their open-minded approach, the two pastors were still facing condemnation from their communities.
Tre Borden, who works in the Sacramento area and attended the Calvary Christian Center when he was young, shared a photo of Goudeaux and called him and other religious leaders “shameless” and “contemptible” for attending the meeting, the Sacramento Bee reported.
“The majority of people in Phillip Goudeaux’s Del Paso congregation are poor and black,” he told the publication. “For him or any other black religious leader to align himself with Trump and his policies in this day and age is extremely distressing and hypocritical. How can he possibly think our current president is helping people who are on the margins of society?”
Gray is reaching out to many people who are criticizing him on social media. His Facebook posts concerning the meeting drew thousands of comments, many of which were critical.
“The pain of those who have been hurt is real. And I would be a dishonorable man not to acknowledge that,” Gray wrote. “But I will honor what I believe was the mandate on my life to be there and available to God should He choose to give me voice,” he added, noting that his comments on social media about why he attended didn’t “invalidate the visceral reaction of those who can’t imagine why I would be in the room.”

Pompeo presses Turkey on release of pastor, North Korea on keeping denuke promise

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday pushed Turkey to release a detained American pastor whose case prompted the Trump administration to slap sanctions on senior Turkish officials, and said North Korea is still lagging behind on its promise to denuclearize.
Pompeo made the remarks before attending separate meetings with top Turkish and North Korean officials on the sidelines of a Southeast Asian security conference in Singapore.
He urged the Turkish government to release Andrew Craig Brunson, the American pastor detained in Turkey since December 2016 on espionage and terror-related charges, which both Brunson and the U.S. vehemently deny.
The administration is also seeking the release of several detained local employees of the U.S. diplomatic missions in the Turkey.
Pompeo said the administration’s actions on Wednesday – imposing sanctions on Turkey's justice and interior ministers – were a sign of how seriously the U.S. is treating Brunson’s case.
“The Turks were on notice that the clock had run out and it was time for Pastor Brunson to be returned and I hope they'll see this for what it is: a demonstration that we're very serious,” he told reporters.

"The Turks were on notice that the clock had run out and it was time for Pastor Brunson to be returned and I hope they'll see this for what it is: a demonstration that we're very serious."
- Secretary of State Mike Pompeo

“We consider this one of the many issues that we have with the Turks,” Pompeo continued, but didn’t elaborate.
The U.S. government has been uneasy over Turkey’s military actions in Northern Syria and the plans to purchase an advanced air defense system from Russia.
“Brunson needs to come home as do all the Americans being held by the Turkish government,” he added. "Pretty straightforward. They've been holding these folks for a long time. These are innocent people.”
In terms of North Korea, Pompeo criticized the communist state for lagging behind on plans to honor the agreements made in Singapore during a summit in June between Kim Jong Un and President Trump.
The top diplomat said there was “still a ways to go before” achieving the goal of ridding the North of its nuclear weapons. As of now, the country is still in violation of numerous U.N. Security Council resolutions, Pompeo said.

"To the extent they are behaving in a manner inconsistent with that, they are in violation of one or both the UN Security Council resolutions, we can see we still have a ways to go to achieve the ultimate outcome we're looking for."
- Secretary of State Mike Pompeo

“Chairman Kim made a commitment to denuclearize,” Pompeo told reporters. “The world demanded that [he] do so in the U.N. Security Council resolutions. To the extent they are behaving in a manner inconsistent with that, they are in violation of one or both the U.N. Security Council resolutions, we can see we still have a ways to go to achieve the ultimate outcome we're looking for.”
The remarks came after the White House said Thursday that Trump received a new letter from the North Korean leader in the wake of concerns that not enough progress has been made in getting rid of the nuclear weapons. Trump reportedly replied by letter to Kim.
The administration didn’t provide the contents of their letters, with White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders saying only that the letters addressed the commitment to work toward North Korea's “complete denuclearization.”

Underdog Bill Lee surges to win Tennessee GOP gubernatorial primary; pivotal Senate race takes shape

Bill Lee and his wife, Maria, thank supporters at a victory party in Franklin, Tenn., after Lee defeated a crowd of better-known Republicans to take Tennessee's GOP gubernatorial nomination, Aug. 2, 2018.  (Associated Press)

Underdog conservative outsider Bill Lee upset a crowded field of well-funded, better-known candidates to win Tennessee's Republican gubernatorial primary Thursday, sending shockwaves through a state where he was down double-digits in polls as recently as last month.
U.S. Rep. Diane Black, who had the endorsement of Vice President Mike Pence, was the clear favorite in the race. Former state economic development chief Randy Boyd, who had the backing of former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, was widely considered Black's chief rival.
But President Trump, who has a 56 percent approval rating in Tennessee, stopped short of endorsing any candidate in the race, including Black -- despite keeping her by his side and praising her at several events.
Lee, a businessman whose poll numbers surged dramatically in the last week of the campaign, took advantage of infighting among his rivals, as he traveled the state and touted his Christian values while Boyd and Black sparred.
On the eve of the primary vote, supporters of Black's campaign, perhaps realizing the threat posed by Lee's insurgent candidacy, released an attack advertisement suggesting Lee's company had terminated an employee and Army National Guard member for being deployed.
Lee strongly denied the allegations, and his company sent out a cease-and-desist letter concerning the messaging.

Rep. Diane Black, businessman Randy Boyd, state Rep. Beth Harwell and businessman Bill Lee are among the top Republican contenders in the Tennessee gubernatorial race.  (Campaign photos)

Harsh rhetoric in the campaign was backed by big money. The top four Republican contenders for governor, including Black, Lee, Boyd, and State House Speaker Beth Harwell, spent a combined $40 million of their own personal wealth fighting over who is more devoted to Trump, setting records and underscoring the president's continuing influence in state races. The candidates were seeking to replace the state's term-limited Gov. Bill Haslam.
Former Nashville Mayor Karl Dean, a moderate, won the Democratic primary for the state's governorship, defeating state House Minority Leader Craig Fitzhugh in a mostly cordial race. But the surprising results in the Republican gubernatorial primary contest will reverberate nationally, serving as a bellwether for Trump enthusiasm and establishment influence in a state that supported the president by double digits in 2016.

Karl Dean, who was favored to win the Democratic gubernatorial nomination in Tennessee, celebrates his victory Thursday.  (AP)

Meanwhile, the Democratic and Republican Senate primaries on Thursday provided less drama, but posed perhaps even greater national significance.
U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn won the Republican nomination in Tennessee's open U.S. Senate race to replace the retiring Sen. Bob Corker, which holds major implications for Democrats' chances for overturning the 51-49 Republican Senate majority in November.

Phil Bredesen, left, and Marsha Blackburn were projected to win their respective primary battles and face off in a key Senate fight in November.  (AP)

Blackburn easily overcame minimal opposition in Thursday's primary. She and former Gov. Phil Bredesen, who won the state's Democratic primary on Thursday, have long looked past the primaries to their upcoming general election matchup.
Polls have shown Blackburn and Bredesen are neck-and-neck in the race, which Fox News currently assesses is a tossup. Blackburn could become the first woman elected to the U.S. Senate by Tennessee voters.
She calls herself a "hardcore, card-carrying Tennessee conservative" who would fight for President Donald Trump's agenda.

Former Gov. Phil Bredesen, front center, campaigning Wednesday in Memphis, Tenn., in his bid for U.S. Senate. Bredesen and Republican U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn faced only nominal primary opposition in their race to replace retiring Republican Sen. Bob Corker.  (AP)

Bredesen is running as an independent thinker who says he will work with Trump when his ideas make sense for Tennessee and oppose him when they don't.

MEET THE CANDIDATES: WHO ARE THE KEY PLAYERS IN TENNESSEE'S GUBERNATORIAL RACE?
The Blackburn-Bredesen showdown is among several races crucial to Trump’s plans to maintain control of the Senate, where Republicans are defending a narrow two-seat majority. If Democrats retake the Senate, it would deal a major blow to Trump's agenda, hampering his ability to appoint federal judges and all but killing the prospect of signature initiatives like a southern border wall.
Trump has endorsed Blackburn, an eight-term congresswoman, and traveled to Tennessee in May to campaign for her. Blackburn told Fox News at the time that Trump's support had helped her candidacy build "momentum."
Blackburn served on Trump’s transition team and has not shied away from embracing the president. She is one of the lawmakers who signed onto a letter nominating him for the Nobel Peace Prize.
In a Thursday appearance, Governor Haslam touted Blackburn's candidacy. The governor suggested that keeping Republican Senate control is important in part because Tennessee Sen. Lamar Alexander would lose his health committee chairmanship, among other leadership changes.
Bredesen, 74, has helped his viability in the red state by assuring voters that he is not hyperpartisan and promising he is not “running against” Trump. If elected, he will become the first Democrat to win a Senate campaign in the Volunteer State since Al Gore in 1990.
BATTLE LINES DRAWN AS DEMOCRATS HOPE TO FLIP CRITICAL TENNESSEE SENATE SEAT
A Harvard graduate worth tens of millions of dollars, Bredesen has touted his business credentials, saying they will help him win over “economic Republicans, the more traditional-minded Republicans" in November.
He also has received some high-profile support of his own. Corker, a Republican and frequent Trump critic, has praised Bredesen in the race, calling him a "very good mayor, a very good governor, a very good business person."
By contrast, Corker has often had harsh words for Trump. In a dramatic moment at a hearing in July, for example, Corker pressed Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to explain what he characterized as Trump's "purposeful" efforts to sow misinformation and discord.
WATCH: POMPEO FIGHTS BACK AFTER CORKER HITS TRUMP FOR SOWING 'DISTRUST' ON PURPOSE
Corker, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has previously acknowledged his attacks on Trump might not be endearing him to many of his constituents.
Tennessee, like its southern neighbors, was once dominated by Democrats. But it hasn't elected one to statewide office since 2006, and in 2012 Republicans secured supermajorities in both houses for the first time since Reconstruction.
Voters also decided on nominees for nine House races on Thursday.

Elizabeth Warren Native American Cartoons

'Calexit' co-founder: Elizabeth Warren might not be 'allowed in' proposed California spinoff reserved for Native Americans

The plan to break California off from the rest of the U.S. is back with a new twist. The leaders of Calexit have announced a new version of their plot to create an independent California: All federal lands in California will be returned to the Indian tribes, creating "the first ever autonomous Native American nation in North America." #Tucker
The co-founder of a movement calling for California to secede from America -- after giving away nearly half the state to form an "autonomous Native American nation" -- suggested Wednesday that Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren might not be welcome in the proposed new territory.
Speaking on Fox News' "Tucker Carlson Tonight," "Calexit" organizer Marcus Ruiz Evans said the issue ultimately would be up to the "brown-skinned" inhabitants of the California spinoff state.
"Elizabeth Warren would not be able to come in there, unless the Native people of the area say she's welcome," Evans said. "If they didn't do that, it doesn't matter what she says; she wouldn't be allowed in."
Warren has long been accused of falsely saying she is of Native American heritage to help in securing jobs, including one as a Harvard law professor. President Trump has repeatedly called Warren, a Wall Street critic and potential White House rival, “Pocahontas,” to highlight the controversy.
'REAL INDIAN' RUNNING AGAINST SEN. WARREN SUES AFTER CITY DEMANDS HE STOP CALLING HER 'FAKE INDIAN'

President Trump has suggested tossing a DNA testing kit at Warren during a presidential debate.  (AP)

Supporters of Trump, Evans said, shouldn't expect a much better reception.
"The primarily Trump voters will have to do what brown-skinned people tell them to do, because brown-skinned people will be in charge," Evans told host Tucker Carlson. "And if they don't like that, they're welcome to leave California."
Calexit's new plan to give Native Americans all federal lands in the state, running from the border with Mexico to the state boundary shared with Oregon, was announced earlier this week.
Because most of the federal land would include conservative-leaning portions of California, the plan would create a “buffer zone between Donald Trump’s America and the new independent California Republic,” Evans said in a statement Tuesday.
Evans explained to Carlson that while eastern California admittedly isn't the state's prime real estate, giving it away “would at least be a step in the right direction” -- and, he claimed, a better system than existing Native American reservations, which he said remain subject to federal interference.

TRUMP SUGGESTS SLOWLY TOSSING DNA TESTING KIT AT WARREN DURING PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE
Another Calexit co-founder, Louis Marinelli, told Fox News he is well-aware that many conservatives support California leaving the rest of the country.
“We would love to see official numbers on nationwide support for Calexit,” he said, adding that, “on a constant basis ... people [are] emailing how they want California to secede, or as they put it: break off and fall into the ocean.”
Calexit is distinct from Cal 3, a prominent parallel effort to split California into three states, purportedly to improve its governance.
The California Supreme Court earlier this month blocked the Cal 3 proposal from the November ballot, saying it was too significant a change to the state’s structure to be undertaken by a ballot initiative. Instead, the court ruled, the state’s constitution required action by the legislature.
The move was a setback not just for Cal 3, but also for Calexit, whose organizers say is often confused for Cal 3 and could face similar legal objections.

Mueller responds to Trump attorneys' request for parameters of potential interview

Special Counsel Robert Mueller has finally responded to a letter from President Trump's outside attorneys about what the scope and format of a potential interview with the president would be, sources familiar with the investigation told Fox News on Wednesday.
The sources said Mueller has agreed to cut the number of questions for Trump from an initial list of 49 and is willing to have some questions answered in writing – though he wants other questions answered orally.
However, the sources added that Mueller has not agreed to the president's demands to limit his questioning to matters related to allegations of collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia. The special prosecutor still wants to ask the president about obstruction of justice and other topics.
The sources also said talks with the special counsel about a possible interview are continuing, but as one source said: "There is still a long way to go."
While the Trump legal team's current posture is still not to have the president sit for an interview with Mueller, a source familiar with the investigation told Fox News, “never say never.”
Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani, speaking to reporters following an appearance at a Republican congressional campaign event in New Hampshire, said the president's legal team had received "a letter back" from the special counsel's team on Tuesday and "now we're in the process of responding to their proposal."
"I'm not going to give you a lot of hope it's going to happen," Giuliani said of a potential Trump-Mueller sitdown, "but we're still negotiating."
On Wednesday morning, Trump tweeted that Attorney General Jeff Sessions should stop Mueller's "Rigged Witch Hunt right now, before it continues to stain our country any further."
Sessions recused himself from overseeing the Russia investigation last year, handing off that responsibility to Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.
Trump has asserted previously that Mueller has too many conflicts of interest for him to fairly lead the investigation, citing his ties to fired former FBI Director James Comey as well as what the president called a "very nasty & contentious business relationship" in a tweet earlier this week.
Democratic lawmakers said Wednesday that Trump's Sessions tweet amounted to obstruction of justice. But White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said the message represented "the president's opinion" and not an order to the Justice Department.
"If he wanted to obstruct [the investigation], he'd obstruct it, just end it," Giuliani said of Trump in New Hampshire. "Then you'd all battle whether he has the legal right to do that, which I think he does. But he's not going to do that. He's made it clear he wants it to run its course."

Feinstein was 'mortified' by FBI allegation that staffer was spy for China: report

U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein fired a staffer a few years back who was allegedly part of an effort to spy and pass on political intelligence to the Chinese government.
The staffer, based in the Democrat's San Francisco office, was suspected of delivering political intelligence, though nothing top secret, to officials based at the local Chinese Consulate, Politico reported.
The FBI informed Feinstein, the then-chairwoman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, about five years ago about the staffer and allegations that the staffer was a spy. The source who confirmed the incident to the San Francisco Chronicle said “Dianne was mortified” upon learning about it.
The suspected spy served as the lawmaker’s driver in California, but took on other roles as well, including helping out in her San Francisco office and being Feinstein’s liaison to the Asian-American community in the state. He attended Chinese Consulate events on behalf of the senator.
A former official said that the spy’s handler “probably got an award back in China” for his efforts to penetrate Feinstein’s office and pass on intelligence.
The driver was reportedly recruited years ago after he being befriended on one of the trips to Asia by someone from China’s Ministry of State Security, the country’s intelligence and security agency, the Chronicle reported.
“He didn’t even know what was happening — that he was being recruited,” a source told the publication. “He just thought it was some friend.”
The FBI wasn’t able to charge the individual, possibly because he was passing on political intelligence rather than classified materials – making the prosecution nearly impossible.
“They interviewed him, and Dianne forced him to retire, and that was the end of it,” the Chronicle’s source said. “None of her staff ever knew what was going on. They just kept it quiet.”

Trump tweets thanks to Kim Jong Un for returning remains of US war dead

In a pair of overnight tweets, President Trump sent his thanks early Thursday to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un for returning 55 boxes presumed to contain the remains of Americans who served in the Korean War.
"Thank you to Chairman Kim Jong Un for keeping your word & starting the process of sending home the remains of our great and beloved missing fallen!" Trump wrote in one tweet. "I am not at all surprised that you took this kind action. Also, thank you for your nice letter - l look forward to seeing you soon!"
The return of the remains was part of an agreement reached by Trump and Kim during a June summit in Singapore.
North Korea handed over the remains last week. A U.S. military plane made a rare trip into North Korea to retrieve the 55 cases.
Hundreds of U.S. and South Korean troops gathered for a repatriation ceremony at the Osan base in South Korea before the cases were put on military planes bound for Hawaii.
On Wednesday, Vice President Mike Pence and the top commander of U.S. forces in Asia, Navy Adm. Phil Davidson, formally received the remains during the emotional and solemn ceremony in Hawaii.
Pence spoke during a ceremony at Hawaii's Hickam Air Force Base to mark the arrival of the remains on U.S. soil and the beginning of the long process of identifying them.

"They were husbands and fathers, brothers and neighbors — long gone, but never lost to the memory of their loved ones."
- Mike Pence, U.S. Vice President

"They were husbands and fathers, brothers and neighbors — long gone, but never lost to the memory of their loved ones," Pence said.
Some of the invited guests wiped tears from their eyes during the procession.

Robert Sanfilkippo, second right, sits next to his wife, Diana Brown Sanfilippo who has spent a lifetime searching for her father, 1st Lt. Frank Salazar who died 66 years ago in North Korea, who wipes her eyes as she sits in the audience with Karen Pence, wife of Vice President Mike Pence, at a ceremony marking the arrival of the remains believed to be of American service members who fell in the Korean War at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, Wednesday, Aug. 1, 2018. Second from left is Rick Downes, who was three when his father Hal went off to the Korean War, and he has been missing ever since.  (Associated Press)

Trump lauded Pence and the ceremony in an earlier tweet.
"Incredibly beautiful ceremony as U.S. Korean War remains are returned to American soil. Thank you to Honolulu and all of our great Military participants on a job well done," Trump tweeted late Wednesday night. "A special thanks to Vice President Mike Pence on delivering a truly magnificent tribute!"
Pence also said Trump was grateful Kim kept his word.
"We see today as tangible progress in our efforts to achieve peace on the Korean Peninsula," the vice president said.

Military members carry transfer cases from a C-17 at a ceremony marking the arrival of the remains believed to be of American service members who fell in the Korean War at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Hawaii, Aug. 1, 2018.  (Associated Press)

Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said last week that the return of the 55 cases was a positive step but not a guarantee that the bones are American soldiers.
At the repatriation ceremony in South Korea, the cases were draped in United Nations flags in a possible sign of that uncertainty. On Wednesday, however, the cases were draped in U.S. flags.
NORTH KOREA RETURNED 1 DOG TAG WITH 55 SETS OF SOLDIER REMAINS, US OFFICIAL SAYS
Nearly 7,700 U.S. service members were listed as missing and unaccounted for from the 1950-53 Korean War. The Pentagon estimates that of the approximately 7,700 U.S. MIAs from the Korean War, about 5,300 are unaccounted for on North Korean soil.
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency will take the remains to a lab on the base where forensic anthropologists will study bones and teeth to identify their race, gender and age. Scientists will extract DNA and compare it to DNA samples collected from families of troops still missing from the war.
It could take months or years to determine their identities.

"(T)his is an international effort to bring closure for those families."
- Jim Mattis, U.S. Defense Secretary

"(T)his is an international effort to bring closure for those families," Mattis had said.

China Tariff Cartoons

Trump to propose 25-percent tariff on $200 billion of Chinese imports

The tariff battle between the U.S. and China could be about to heat up again.

The Trump administration plans to propose slapping a 25-percent tariff on $200 billion of imported Chinese goods.

This comes after initially setting them at 10 percent, in a bid to pressure Beijing into making trade concessions, a source familiar with the plan told Reuters.

President Trump's administration said on July 10 it would seek to impose the 10-percent tariffs on thousands of Chinese imports.

While the tariffs would not be imposed until after a period of public comment, raising the proposed level to 25 percent could escalate the trade dispute between the world's two biggest economies.

The source said the Trump administration could announce the tougher proposal as early as Wednesday.

There was no immediate reaction from the Chinese government.

In July it accused the United States of bullying and warned it would hit back.

Concerns have been that a trade war between Washington and Beijing could hit global growth.

Stock markets edged up globally on Tuesday on a report that the United States and China were seeking to resume talks to defuse the situation.

A spokeswoman for the U.S. Trade Representative's Office declined to comment to Reuters on the proposed tariff rate increase or on whether changing them would alter the deadlines laid out for comment period before implementation.

In early July, the U.S. government imposed 25-percent tariffs on an initial $34 billion of Chinese imports.

Beijing retaliated with matching tariffs on the same amount of U.S. exports to China.

Trump inherited 'cyber-crisis' from Obama, VP Pence says at cybersecurity summit

Vice President Mike Pence speaks at the Department of Homeland Security National Cybersecurity Summit in New York City, July 31, 2018.  (Associated Press)

Vice President Mike Pence contended Tuesday that President Trump's administration inherited a "cyber-crisis" when he took office, laying the blame for Russian meddling on the Obama administration.
“[S]adly, previous administrations have let the American people down when it came to cyber defense,” Pence said in a speech at the Department of Homeland Security's Cybersecurity Summit in New York City. “At the outset of this administration, it became clear from early on: In a very real sense, we inherited a cyber-crisis.”

“Sadly, previous administrations have let the American people down when it came to cyber defense. At the outset of this administration, it became clear from early on: In a very real sense, we inherited a cyber-crisis.”
- Vice President Mike Pence

Pence suggested the Obama administration was to blame for major security breaches in recent years, such as the Equifax hack -- which affected the data of half the U.S. population -- and the hack at the federal Office of Personnel Management, which affected about 18 million people, CNet.com reported.
Pence vowed the White House would take proactive measures to overhaul the country’s cyber-security systems, to prevent another attack.
The vice president also derided Russia for interfering in the 2016 presidential election and vowed the Trump administration would do more to prevent future cyber-attacks.
Pence’s denouncement of Russia was unprecedented, given President Trump’s ambiguous stance on election meddling, the Wall Street Journal reported.
“While other nations certainly possess the capability, the fact is Russia meddled in our 2016 elections,” Pence said, “That is the unambiguous judgment of our intelligence community, and, as the president said, we accept the intelligence community’s conclusion.”

Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen addresses the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) National Cybersecurity Summit, July 31, 2018.  (Associated Press)

Trump was widely criticized for appearing to accept Russian President Vladimir Putin's assurance that Russia had not interfered in the 2016 election – just days after Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s indictment of 12 Russian intelligence officials. But following widespread backlash, Trump reversed his position.
At the same New York event, Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen announced several initiatives to combat future threats, Politico reported, including an election security task force, a supply chain task force and a National Risk Management center.
The risk management center will reportedly work to safeguard the nation’s banks, energy companies, and other major industries, the Journal reported.
“[O]ur digital lives are now in danger every single day,” Nielsen said, adding that the next 9/11 attack would likely “reach us online” rather “than on an airplane.”

“Our digital lives are now in danger every single day.”
- Kirstjen Nielsen, U.S. secretary of homeland security

Meanwhile, a group of demonstrators wearing red “Handmaid’s Tale” robes marched outside the summit to protest the Trump administration’s now-rescinded “zero tolerance” policy, and Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ religious liberty task force.
A group called Refuse Fascism, which organized the protest, maintains that the Trump administration’s “religious liberty” policies are discriminatory towards LGBT people and women, AM New York reported.