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Barrasso: 'ObamaCare is a Bus Going Over a Cliff - The Dems Say Stay Onboard'

A top Republican characterized ObamaCare as a "bus going over a cliff," urging his colleagues to rid the American people of the "government's control" of health care.
Senator John Barrasso (R-Wyoming) said the current senate bill eliminates government mandates and taxes, and stabilizes health insurance markets.
The former orthopaedic surgeon said that premiums will decrease by 30 percent in the short-term, and said Medicaid's solvency will be stabilized.
The latest Fox News Poll showed that 27 percent of voters support the bill, while 54 percent oppose.
Barrasso said he is willing to hear ideas from his colleagues, including notable bill opponent Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), on how to make the bill better and get it through the Senate.
"ObamaCare is a bus going over a cliff. The Democrats are saying 'stay onboard' and I'm saying we're just trying to rescue people from this collapsing ObamaCare debacle," Barrasso said.

Military option for North Korea being prepared for Trump, McMaster says

President Trump's national security adviser said Wednesday that the administration is considering a wider range of strategies on how to deal with North Korea, including the military option.
“The threat is much more immediate now and so it’s clear that we can’t repeat the same approach – failed approach of the past,” H.R. McMaster, the adviser, said during a security conference with Homeland Security Chief John Kelly.
He said it would be insanity to continue to do the same thing the U.S. has done for years and expect a different result.
McMaster’s comments come a day before Trump is scheduled to meet with South Korean President Moon Jae-in. South Korea’s new leader vowed to stand firmly with Trump against North Korea, downplaying his past advocacy for a softer approach toward the isolated regime.
"Together we will achieve the dismantlement of North Korea's nuclear program, peace on the Korean Peninsula and eventually peace in Northeast Asia," Moon said.
The talks between Moon and Trump, which begin with dinner on Thursday night and then formal talks on Friday, come amid intense wrangling over North Korea.
China is pushing the United States to start negotiations with the North. That prospect appears unlikely as Trump grows frustrated over Beijing's level of economic pressure on the North, its wayward ally.
North Korea shows no sign of wanting to restart talks on abandoning its nuclear weapons program.
Moon told The Washington Post that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is "unreasonable" and "very dangerous" and that pressure was necessary. But Moon said sanctions alone would not solve the problem, and dialogue was needed "under the right conditions."
The THAAD missile defense is also expected to be talked about. Seoul delayed the full deployment of the U.S. system that is intended to protect South Korea and the 28,000 U.S. forces on the peninsula.
Moon's government has ordered an environmental review before allowing additional launchers for the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense system. South Korean officials say that does not mean they are placating China or reversing the decision, which risks angering Washington.
The U.S. has stepped up shows of military force near the Korean Peninsula under Trump, and outrage in Washington over North Korea has only grown since the death last week of U.S. university student Otto Warmbier. He had spent 17 months in detention in the totalitarian nation for stealing a propaganda poster and returned home this month in a coma. Three other Americans and six South Koreans are still being held in the North.

U.S. lays out criteria for visa applicants from six Muslim nations

Visa applicants from six Muslim-majority countries must have a close U.S. family relationship or formal ties to a U.S. entity to be admitted to the United States under guidance distributed by the U.S. State Department on Wednesday.
The guidance defined a close familial relationship as being a parent, spouse, child, adult son or daughter, son-in-law, daughter-in-law or sibling, including step siblings and other step family relations, according to a copy of a cable distributed to all U.S. diplomatic posts and seen by Reuters.
The cable, first reported by the Associated Press, said close family “does not include grandparents, grandchildren, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, cousins, brothers-laws and sisters-in-law, fiancés, and any other ‘extended’ family members.”
It also specified that any relationship with a U.S. entity “must be formal, documented, and formed in the ordinary course, rather than for the purpose of evading the E.O.,” a reference to U.S. President Donald Trump’s March 6 executive order barring most U.S. travel by citizens of the six nations for 90 days.
The cable provides advice to U.S. consular officers on how to interpret Monday’s Supreme Court ruling that allowed parts of the executive order, which had been blocked by the courts, to be implemented while the highest U.S. court considers the matter.
The six nations whose citizens are covered by the executive order are Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen.
Asked about the guidance issued on Wednesday night, the State Department declined to comment on internal communications.
The cable’s language closely mirrored the Supreme Court’s order on the travel ban, though it appeared to interpret it in a narrow manner, notably in its definition of close family.
It was unclear on Wednesday evening whether the State Department’s interpretation of the court’s order would spark further legal action by opponents of the ban.
The guidance gave several examples of what might constitute a bona fide relationship with a U.S. entity, and said broad categories would be exempt from the travel ban, such as those eligible for student visas, “as their bona fide relationship to a person or entity is inherent in the visa classification.”
Similarly, those eligible for family or employment based immigrant visa applications are exempt from the travel ban, the cable said.
The cable said “a worker who accepted an offer of employment from a company in the United States or a lecturer invited to address an audience in the United States would be exempt” from the travel ban, but someone who simply made a hotel reservation would not count as someone with a bona fide relationship.
Trump’s executive order also imposed a 120-day ban on entry to the United States by refugees. Monday’s Supreme Court order, however, said the ban did not cover those refugees “who can credibly claim a bona fide relationship with a person or entity” in the United States.
The State Department guidance was unclear on what U.S. refugee agencies regard as a key question: whether their own dealings with refugees applying to come to the United States constituted a bona fide relationship.
The cable said that consulates should continue to interview applicants for so-called diversity visas, which are granted to individuals from countries that typically do not send many immigrants to the United States. In 2015, around 10,500 citizens from the six banned countries were selected for the diversity visa lottery, according to State Department figures.
The travel ban will likely bar such visas for citizens of the six countries, the cable acknowledged, stating that “we anticipate that very few DV applicants are likely to be exempt from the E.O.’s suspension of entry or to qualify for a waiver.”

Campaign Research Group Sued for Exposing Voter Data

An analytics firm specializing in voter information is being hit with a lawsuit.
Two Florida residents say Deep Root Analytics left the personal information of 198 Americans exposed online without any kind of online security protection.
The lawsuit claims the firm was negligent in protecting information about the general public, specifically Florida residents.
The company uses data to determine how to target voter demographics.
Last week the Upguard Security firm discovered the group set up the data to be available to anyone who visited Amazon’s cloud storage account without a password.
A spokesperson for Deep Root says the lawsuit is without merit.

Gender Neutral Cartoons

Paying workers to protest: The controversial trend of social justice benefits

Since the election, scores of activists have taken to the streets, town halls and rallies to blast President Trump. That’s all with the blessing of their boss thanks to social justice benefits and paid time off work policies that are growing in popularity.
At San Francisco marketing firm Traction, social justice benefits take the form of two so-called "Days of Action" a year.
"They can take part in a protest, they can volunteer for a cause that is meaningful to them," says CEO Adam Kleinberg. "Civic engagement is a foundation of our democracy, and companies should encourage it."
DOZENS OF WORKERS LOSE THEIR JOBS FOR PARTICIPATING IN DAY WITHOUT IMMIGRANTS PROTEST
Kleinberg says while he's liberal, Traction's new policy is neutral: so long as it's not a group that promotes violence, such as the Ku Klux Klan, his 50 employees can support whatever political group or cause they want. They must first get approval from management and submit a request for the time off.
"If someone wanted to participate in a pro-life rally," says Kleinberg, "they are absolutely welcome to do that. This is not about the partners at Traction promoting our agenda, it's about having a broader view of democracy, and encouraging people to be engaged."
But in the famously left-leaning Bay Area, conservative activists don't buy it.
"They want, basically, a harder left turn than we're seeing now," says Howard Epstein, vice chair of communications for the San Francisco Republican Party. "And if you're going political, you're going to discourage some people from going to your place of business."
EVERGREEN STATE COLLEGE EXCUSES STUDENT PROTESTERS FROM HOMEWORK
It is a risk: Consumers opposed to an official endorsement of protest culture might spend their money elsewhere. When news of Traction's “Day of Action” benefit spread, Kleinberg was the target of a backlash and calls for a boycott.
"Traction has been called everything from fascists, to socialists, to communists, to libtards, candya---s. I'm not quite sure what being a candya-- is, but if being candya---s is what it takes for Traction to inspire change, we're willing to own that."
In a statement to Fox News, outdoor apparel maker Patagonia had a similar stance.
"We hire activists... who are incredibly passionate about the environment. And, at times, protesting is part of that passion," said Dean Carter, vice president of human resources. "It all fits in with the company’s greater mission to make the best product, cause no unnecessary harm and use business to inspire and implement solutions to the environmental crisis.”
Several big corporations are also responding to their worker’s desire to advocate. Facebook told its employees they could take paid time off to May Day rallies which, in many cases, were largely about defending immigrant rights. Earlier this year, Comcast gave its workers paid time off to protest Trump’s travel ban.
Most companies give their workers time off to vote, but "this is different – this is going to a new level," said Scott Dobroski, community expert with employment firm Glassdoor.
A recent Glassdoor survey found more than half of employees believe they should have time off to advocate for social change, regardless of their politics.
"Many employers," Dobroski said, "are taking note that social change and positive action matters to employees – both in and out of the workplace."
Claudia Cowan currently serves as Fox News Channel's (FNC) San Francisco-based correspondent. She joined the network in 1998.

Sarah Huckabee Sanders rips CNN, media at heated briefing

The feud between the Trump White House and CNN reached a fever pitch Tuesday during a feisty press briefing where Deputy Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders slammed “fake news” and said Americans “deserve something better.”
Sanders conducted the first televised briefing in a week, following complaints from the press corps that too many are being held off-camera. She took the podium in place of Press Secretary Sean Spicer, who was on Capitol Hill for a GOP Senate luncheon.
Breitbart News’ Charlie Spiering asked the first question, challenging Sanders on why CNN’s retraction of a recent story was not sufficient enough for the president, who on Tuesday took to Twitter and said: “Wow, CNN had to retract big story on “Russia,” with 3 employees forced to resign. What about all the other phony stories they do? FAKE NEWS!”
TRUMP TAKES AIM AT MEDIA AFTER RUSSIA STORY RETRACTION
CNN had retracted a story linking a Trump adviser to a Russian investment fund. Three journalists involved in the story’s publication have since resigned and CNN issued an apology to the Trump adviser.
“I don’t know if that response is good enough,” Sanders said Tuesday. “It’s the barrage of fake news directed at the president that has garnered his frustration. ... We have gone to a place where if the media can’t be trusted to report the news, then that’s a dangerous place for America.”
Sanders went on to reference an undercover video allegedly showing a CNN producer knocking the network's Russia-Trump coverage.
“There are multiple instances when that outlet has been wrong—there’s a video circulating now, whether it's accurate or not, not sure—but I encourage everyone to take a look at it,” she said. “If it is accurate, I think it’s a disgrace to all of media, to all of journalism.”
Sanders added that the media has been “going on [the] Russia, Trump-hoax for the better part of a year now,” and that “America is looking for something more.”
But Spiering pushed back, asking if the president expects the media “not to report on stories of a foreign country trying to influence the election?”
“I don’t think it’s expected you’re not to report on actual news, but I think there are a lot of things happening in the world that people would like to hear about—job growth, deregulation—those things deserve more coverage,” Sanders said. “I think we should take a good look at what we are focused on and making sure it’s accurate.”
Sanders added, “If we make the slightest mistake, it is an absolute tirade from a lot of people in this room, but news outlets get to go on, day after day, and cite unnamed sources, and use stories without sources.”
Brian J. Karem, executive editor of The Montgomery County Sentinel, a local newspaper in Maryland, then accused Sanders of being “inflammatory.”
“You’re inflaming everyone here,” Karem said. “We’re here to ask questions, you’re here to provide answers—what you did is inflammatory—everybody in this room is just trying to do their job.”
Sanders fired back and said that the problem is “the dishonesty that often takes place in the news media.”
“It is outrageous to accuse me of inflaming a story when I was trying to answer a question,” Sanders added.
Sanders did not take questions from a CNN reporter at the end of the briefing.
The briefing came just a day after president of the White House Correspondents Association, Jeff Mason, also a Reuters correspondent, met with Spicer and Sanders to discuss the issue of White House press briefings.
“The WHCA’s position on this issue is clear: we believe strongly that Americans should be able to watch and listen to senior government officials face questions form an independent news media, in keeping with principles of the First Amendment and the need for transparency at the highest levels of government,” Mason wrote in a letter to his fellow White House correspondents.
Mason urged the White House not to replace on-camera briefings with gaggles, or “not-for-broadcast” question-and-answer sessions.
“Though they are useful and can play an important role in informing the press and the public, gaggles are not a substitute for the open back-and-forth between reporters and administration officials that regular televised briefings allow.”
Changes are also in the works for the White House communications team.
The Trump administration confirmed to Fox News last week that Spicer would be taking on an expanded role, overseeing both White House communications and press offices, and would not run every on-camera press briefing.