Trump approves updated travel restrictions on 8 countries, adding North Korea and Venezuela to list

President Trump on Sunday signed off on updated travel restrictions that would limit entry for people coming to the U.S. from eight countries, as the existing travel ban is set to expire.

The new travel restrictions, set to take effect Oct. 18, would slow or limit entry from citizens of North Korea, Chad, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria, Venezuela and Yemen. North Korea and Venezuela were not listed in the earlier ban.

Iraqi citizens do not face the same travel restrictions, but will "be subject to additional scrutiny to determine if they pose risks" to U.S. security, the White House said.
The new policy could complicate the Supreme Court's review of the order. The high court is scheduled to hear arguments over its legality on October 10.
Officials stressed that valid visas would not be revoked as a result of the proclamation. The order also permits, but doesn't guarantee, case-by-case waivers.
"As President, I must act to protect the security and interested of the United States and its people," the proclamation states. He later tweeted, "Making America Safe is my number one priority. We will not admit those into our country we cannot safely vet."
The announcement comes the same day Trump’s temporary ban on visitors from six Muslim-majority countries is set to expire, 90 days after it went into effect.
The targeted countries are those that the Department of Homeland Security officials have said refuse to share information with the U.S., or haven't taken necessary security precautions.
Acting Homeland Security Secretary Elaine Duke, in a statement released Sunday, said the new travel restrictions "will protect Americans and allow DHS to better keep terrorists and criminals from entering our country. The restrictions announced are tough and tailored, and they sent a message to foreign governments that they must work with us to enhance security."
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said in a statement that Trump's proclamation is the president "carrying out his duty to protect the Ameican people."
Tillerson added: "The State Department will coordinate with other federal agencies to implement these measures in an orderly manner. We will continue to work closely with our allies and partners who share our commitment to national and global security."
The travel restrictions are based on a new baseline developed by DHS that includes factors such as whether countries issue electronic passports with biometric information and share information about travelers' terror-related and criminal histories. The U.S. then shared those benchmarks with every country in the world and gave them 50 days to comply.
The eight countries the restrictions target are those that refused or were unable to comply.
Following the terrorist attack in London last week, Trump tweeted: "The travel ban into the United States should be far larger, tougher and more specific-but stupidly, that would not be politically correct!"
Critics have accused Trump of overstepping his presidential authority and violating the Constitution's protections against religious bias. During his campaign, Trump called for a "total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States."

Milo protest was 'most expensive photo op' in UC Berkeley's history, says official

Conservative commentator Milo Yiannopoulos holds protest signs while speaking at the University of California in Berkeley, California, U.S., September 24, 2017. REUTERS/Noah Berger - RC1F9EBC0040

A picture may be worth a thousand words, but is it worth $800,000?

Officials at the University og California, Berkeley, said the brief appearance of right-wing provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos on campus Sunday cost the school $800,000 to ensure his safety.

Yiannopoulos appeared at the steps of the iconic Sproul Hall – the birthplace of the 1960s Free Speech movement – after his highly anticipated Free Speech Week was abruptly cancelled.
The open-air event lasted less than an hour. Yiannopoulos spent the time taking pictures with fans, signing his new book and took part in did a National Anthem.
Attendees--including Yiannopoulos-- had to pass through metal detectors.
Dan Mogulof, a campus spokesman, dubbed the event “the most expensive photo op in the university’s history,” The San Francisco Chronicle reported.
Police arrested at least 11, including four dressed in an all-black outfits commnly worn by the violent Antifa group, The Mercury News reported. One man wearing a “Make America Great again” was also detained.
This is the second time recently that the school had to spend six figures to ensure the safety of a conservative. Ben Shapiro appeared on campus two weeks ago and the school said it spent $600,000 at that event.
Shapiro at that time blamed the city’s radical Antifa agitators who were the reason UC Berkeley had to spend such money on safety. “Free speech isn't free. It costs over $600,000 thanks to Antifa,” he tweeted.
The Sunday protest was organized in response to the cancellation of the Free Speech Week, where both organizers and the university blamed each other for lack of commitment to ensure its happening.
The former Breitbart editor claims he was forced into cancelling the event, which was supposed to include speakers such as former White House advisor Steve Bannon and Ann Coulter, due to the university’s unreasonable requests and lack of support.
At a press conference on Saturday, Yiannopoulos accused the university of using bureaucratic tricks to derail the event, adding that UC Berkeley “had done everything in its power to crush” the Free Speech Week.
UC Berkeley, meanwhile, said Yiannopoulos and the student group that organized the event did not meet multiple deadlines to ensure the event occurs. He also dismissed the accusations that the institution tried to block the event, noting that they were prepared to spend vast amount of money to ensure the safety.
Yiannopoulos told Berkeleyside, a local publication, that he plans to return to campus, every year if he finds that necessary. He added that he hopes to reschedule speeches by Bannon and Coulter.

University of Berkeley Cartoons

UC Berkeley student group cancels 'Free Speech Week' event

Confusion swirled over the fate of University of Berkeley’s controversial “Free Speech Week” after the student group that organized it canceled the event but a featured speaker insisted it was still being held.

UC Berkeley spokesman Dan Mogulof said Saturday that the Berkeley Patriot student organization told university administrators that the four-day event scheduled to start Sunday had been canceled.

But the event's co-organizer, right-wing provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos, said in a Facebook post that while the student group may have pulled out, he and other speakers had not.
"We shall speak in Berkeley, we shall speak on the plazas and the steps. We shall defend free speech, whatever the cost may be. We shall never surrender!" Yiannopoulos wrote, adding that he was paraphrasing Winston Churchill.
The conservative student group Berkeley Patriot was dropping out for safety reasons, the Berkeleyside, a local website, reported Saturday.
“The university has made it impossible to hold the event,” the group’s attorney, Marguerite Melo, told the website. “A lot of these speakers have withdrawn. To have an empty gesture of ‘Free Speech Week,’ when there are no speakers is impossible. And the university couldn’t guarantee our speakers would be safe.”
“We are very disappointed,” she added “We are going to cancel. We have made a determination, or our clients have, that it is just not safe. If we had had Zellerbach Hall, that would be a different story. But my clients didn’t want to be responsible, even morally, if something happened.”
The website reported that the group’s withdrawal does not mean Yiannopoulos and the other speakers he has invited can’t come to public spaces on the campus. It only means there won’t be amplification provided.
"It is extremely unfortunate that this announcement was made at the last minute, even as the university was in the process of spending significant sums of money and preparing for substantial disruption of campus life in order to provide the needed security for these events," Mogulof said in a statement, according to KNTV.
Some headline speakers, including Ann Coulter, have backed away from the event or said their names were listed without their knowledge.
In an email to the Associated Press Friday, Coulter said she considered going but opted not to after she heard "the administration was dead set on blocking this event."
"I also don't think Berkeley deserves to hear a brilliant and entertaining Ann Coulter speech," Coulter added in her email.
Steve Bannon, the former chief strategist for President Donald Trump, was on Yiannopoulos' lineup of speakers, but has not said publicly if he plans to attend. It was reported Friday that Bannon would not travel to Berkeley and was focusing his energies on campaigning for Roy Moore in next week's Republican runoff for the Senate in Alabama.
A number of other listed speakers have posted comments on social media saying they don't plan to show up, either. Among them is James Damore, a former Google employee who was fired for writing a memo viewed as sexist. He tweeted that he never knew he was on the list.
Yiannopoulos' attempt to speak at Berkeley in February was shut down by masked anarchists who rioted on campus.

Trump urges fans to boycott NFL in ongoing criticism of flag-kneeling players

A picture is worth more then a thousand words.

A picture is worth more then a thousand words.

A picture is worth more then a thousand words.

President Trump on Sunday extended his attack on NFL players who kneel during the national anthem, and suggested fans boycott games as he continued his call for team owners to “fire or suspend” the offenders.

“If NFL fans refuse to go to games until players stop disrespecting our Flag & Country, you will see change take place fast,” Trump tweeted. "Fire or suspend!”

Several minutes later, he tweeted: "..NFL attendance and ratings are WAY DOWN. Boring games yes, but many stay away because they love our country. League should back U.S."
Trump started his criticism in earnest Friday night when he asked a crowd at a political rally in Alabama: "Wouldn't you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, to say 'get that son of a b ---- off the field right now? He's fired.'"
He continued the criticism Saturday when he rescinded Golden State Warrior Stephen Curry’s invitation to the White House this spring to honor his team’s 2017 NBA championship.
Trump’s weekend remarks were met with sharp criticism from professional athletes and team owners -- including NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, who called the remarks “divisive,” and NBA star LeBron James, who called Trump a “bum.”

North Korea stages massive anti-US rally

Totally Brainwashed.

Tens of thousands of North Koreans packed into Kim II Sung Square in Pyongyang on Saturday as the government staged a massive rally against President Donald Trump and the United States.

The huge crowd listened to speeches from senior officials, and a parade of marchers carried signs with slogans such as “Decisive revenge" and “Death to the American imperialists."

The rally capped two days of response to a combative speech by Trump on Tuesday at the United Nations General Assembly in New York City.
In response to recent weapons tests by North Korea and a steady stream of provocative statements from the government of Kim Jong Un, the U.S. president mocked Kim as a "Rocket Man" who was on a "suicide mission," and said the U.S. would “have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea" if forced to defend itself or its allies.

Totally Brainwashed

Saturday's rally in Pyongyang, North Korea, capped two days of response to a combative speech at the U.N. by U.S. President Donald Trump.  (Associated Press)

Kim responded last week by comparing Trump to a “barking dog,” Fox News reported.
Rallies like Saturday’s in Pyongyang are regular occurrences in North Korea, as part of the government’s effort to win approval from citizens, Agence France-Presse reported.
Members of the crowd voiced support for their government and criticized Trump and the United States, the news agency reported.

Video

North Korean foreign minister calls Trump 'deranged'

"Trump is a warmonger and a backstreet gangster," said Ri Il Ung, 24, a student at Pyongyang Mechanical University. "It's quite ridiculous that such a person could become a politician."
Ordinary North Koreans normally share only government-approved statements when speaking to foreign reporters, according to AFP.

Trump: North Korean leaders 'won't be around much longer' if they strike US

If North Korea's foreign minister hoped to draw a response from U.S. President Donald Trump with his Saturday speech to the U.N. General Assembly, he succeeded.

"Just heard Foreign Minister of North Korea speak at U.N.," the president tweeted late Saturday. "If he echoes thoughts of Little Rocket Man, they won't be around much longer!"

The president was referring to Ri Yong Ho, who on Saturday called Trump "a mentally deranged person full of megalomania," and promised that a strike on the U.S. mainland was "inevitable."
"Little Rocket Man" was Trump's now-infamous label for North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

A U.S. Air Force F-15C Eagle takes off from the Kadena runway Sept. 23, 2017, at Kadena Air Base, Japan.  (Senior Airman Quay Drawdy/U.S. Pacific Command)

With his tweet, Trump seemed to reiterate a previous asserton that any strike by North Korea against the U.S. or its allies would be met with an overwhelming response.
The address by Ri in New York City began as the Pentagon announced it had flown bombers and fighter escorts to the farthest point north of the Korean Demilitarized Zone by any such American aircraft this century.
"This mission is a demonstration of U.S. resolve and a clear message that the president has many military options to defeat any threat," Defense Department spokesman Dana White said in a statement.

"North Korea's weapons program is a grave threat to the Asia-Pacific region and the entire international community. We are prepared to use the full range of military capabilities to defend the U.S. homeland and our allies," White said.

The Pentagon said B-1B bombers from Guam, along with F-15C Eagle fighter escorts from Okinawa, Japan, flew in international airspace over waters east of North Korea on Saturday. Unlike on previous so-called "show of force" missions, the U.S. aircraft were not accompanied by South Korean or Japanese planes.
"While conducted unilaterally, this mission was coordinated with regional allies - namely the Republic of Korea and Japan - and was a strong testament to our ironclad alliance," U.S. Pacific Command spokesman Cmdr. Dave Benham told Fox News, using the official name for South Korea.

B-1 bombers are no longer part of the U.S. nuclear force, but they are capable of dropping large numbers of conventional bombs.

U.S. Pacific Command would not be more specific about many years it had been since U.S. bombers and fighters had flown that far north of the DMZ, but Benham noted that this century "encompasses the period North Korea has been testing ballistic missiles and nuclear weapons."

At the United Nations, Ri said that his country's nuclear force is "to all intents and purposes, a war deterrent for putting an end to nuclear threat of the U.S. and for preventing its military invasion, and our ultimate goal is to establish the balance of power with the U.S."

He also said that Trump's depiction of Kim as "Rocket Man" makes "our rocket's visit to the entire U.S. mainland inevitable all the more."

Trump on Friday had renewed his rhetorical offensive against Kim.

"Kim Jong Un of North Korea, who is obviously a madman who doesn't mind starving or killing his people, will be tested like never before!" the president tweeted.

On Thursday, Trump announced more economic sanctions against the impoverished and isolated country, targeting foreign companies that deal with the North.

"North Korea's nuclear weapons and missile development is a grave threat to peace and security in our world and it is unacceptable that others financially support this criminal, rogue regime," Trump said as he joined Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and South Korean President Moon Jae-in for a meeting in New York.

Hours later, Kim responded by saying Trump was "deranged" and vowed the president would "pay dearly" for threatening to "totally destroy" North Korea if the U.S. was forced to defend itself or its allies against an attack.

In a speech last week at the United Nations, Trump had issued the warning of potential obliteration and mocked the North's young autocrat as a "Rocket Man" on a "suicide mission."

Trump's executive order expanded the Treasury Department's ability to target anyone conducting significant trade in goods, services or technology with North Korea, and to ban them from interacting with the U.S. financial system.

Trump also said China was imposing major banking sanctions, too, but there was no immediate confirmation from the North's most important trading partner.

If enforced, the Chinese action Trump described could severely impede the isolated North's ability to raise money for its missile and nuclear development. China, responsible for about 90 percent of North Korea's trade, serves as the country's conduit to the international banking system.

North Korea has said it intends to build a missile capable of striking all parts of the United States with a nuclear bomb. Trump has said he won't allow it, although the U.S. so far has not used military force to impede the North's progress.

Nfl Players Kneeling During National Anthem Cartoons