Regional bloc plans pressure campaign against Venezuela’s Maduro

February 4, 2019

By David Ljunggren

OTTAWA (Reuters) – A major bloc of Latin American nations and Canada will discuss on Monday how to maintain pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to hold new elections as he faces widespread calls to resign after last year’s disputed presidential vote.
Sources briefed on the matter said that the 14-nation Lima Group looked set, though, to hold off imposing further sanctions on the Maduro government when it meets in Ottawa.
Most group members say Maduro should quit in favor of opposition leader Juan Guaido – who declared himself interim president last month – and are calling for a new presidential election in the troubled OPEC nation.
The United States, which is not a member of the group, also wants Maduro gone.
“How can we continue to support the opposition to keep the pressure up on the regime and push for new elections? Certainly that’s something we’ll be looking at,” said a Canadian government official.
Maduro, who has overseen an economic collapse and the exodus of millions of Venezuelans, said in an interview that aired on Spanish television channel Antena 3 on Sunday: “We don’t accept ultimatums from anyone,” adding: “I refuse to call for elections now – there will be elections in 2024.”
Maduro, who has maintained the critical support of the military, has said Guaido is staging a U.S.-directed coup against him.
Monday’s meeting in Ottawa will also discuss how to aid the people of Venezuela, including through immediate humanitarian assistance, said the office of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Last month, the Lima Group announced a travel ban on senior Venezuelan officials and a freeze on their foreign assets.
The Canadian source, who requested anonymity given the sensitivity of the situation, declined to comment when asked whether more punitive measures could be imposed.
Two sources briefed on the talks said such an announcement was unlikely for now.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration last week issued sanctions on Venezuelan state-owned oil firm PDVSA in a move likely to cut revenues for a country hit by medicine shortages and malnutrition.
Trump, in an interview that aired on Sunday, said military intervention in Venezuela was “an option.”
Trudeau spoke on Sunday to Guaido and the two “discussed the importance of the international community sending a clear message regarding the illegitimacy of the Maduro regime,” Trudeau’s office said.
The challenge for participants is that Mexico, a member of the Lima Group, opposes any measures to oust Maduro, who also has the backing of Russia, China and Turkey.
While European Union governments will soon move to recognize Guaido as interim president, members are set to use cautious language for fear of setting a precedent for political crises, said diplomatic sources.
That does not sit well with nations such as Columbia, which neighbors Venezuela.
“The most important issue now is to get Europe in line and to deepen the isolation of Venezuela and its backers,” said a government official in Bogota, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fmr VA. Gov. Terry McAuliffe Predicts Gov. Northam Will Resign

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam pauses during a news conference in the Governor’s Mansion in Richmond, Va., on Saturday, Feb. 2, 2019. Northam is under fire for a racial photo that appeared in his college yearbook. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)

 

 

 

 

Former Democrat Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe predicts Ralph Northam will step down from office.
During an interview Sunday, McAuliffe stated as soon as the blackface and Klansman photo came out, it left no room for Northam to continue serving as governor of Virginia.
The former governor added, “Well, first he said it was Friday night. And if it wasn’t him in the photo, he should have said that on Friday. I have no idea what was going on in the governor’s office on Friday. I just — if you aren’t instinctively, you know if you put black paint on your face. You know if you put a hood on. And so if it isn’t you, you come out with it immediately and say this is not me. So I can’t understand what’s going on.”
McAuliffe also said at this point, it doesn’t matter if “Northam” is in fact – the one in the picture or not, and added this chapter needs to be closed in order for the state to move forward.
Additionally, McAuliffe said the State’s Lieutenant Governor, Justin Fairfax, will do a great job of bringing the people of Virginia back together.

 

 

Northam has unscheduled staff meeting amid calls for resignation: report

 

Gov. Ralph Northam, D-Va., met with key staff members for an unscheduled staff meeting on Sunday before the Super Bowl and is apparently considering his next move after a photo emerged showing a man in blackface and another in Ku Klux Klan garb in his 1984 medical school yearbook page, a report said.
Northam resisted calls to resign a day earlier-- insisting that he did not appear in the yearbook photo, which contradicted his earlier remarks when he apologized for the picture. The Washington Post, citing unnamed sources, reported that resignation is an active consideration, and called the meeting emotional. The paper reported that there is another meeting set for Monday.
Northam reportedly spent much of the day inside his home meeting with close advisers who—to at least some degree—have differing opinions on how to proceed. Some want the governor to fight through and work to rebuild his image. Pam Northam, the state’s first lady, wants her husband to continue to fight, the paper reported, citing two sources.
Northam's office did not immediately respond to an email from Fox News early Monday.
Some high-profile Democrats would prefer he rebuilds his image after leaving office. Hillary Clinton and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Saturday tweeted out that he needs to step aside.
The Virginian-Pilot released the photo on Friday from Northam's 1984 Eastern Virginia Medical School yearbook. The Post reported that the images first appeared on Big League Politics, a conservative website.
Earlier in the week, Northam made headlines over comments about abortion that he said were taken out of context. He was on a radio program where he described a hypothetical situation where an infant who is severely deformed or unable to survive after birth could be left to die.
"So in this particular example, if a mother is in labor, I can tell you exactly what would happen, the infant would be delivered. The infant would be kept comfortable. The infant would be resuscitated if that’s what the mother and the family desired, and then a discussion would ensue between the physicians and the mother," the former pediatric neurologist said while on WTOP to discuss the Repeal Act.
That prompted accusations from prominent Republicans that he supports infanticide. Northam tweeted later: "I have devoted my life to caring for children and any insinuation otherwise is shameful and disgusting."
Northam, in regards to the photo outrage, said he plans on continuing to lead.
"If we get to the point where we feel that we’re not effective, that we’re not efficient, not only for our caucuses, but the Commonwealth of Virginia, then we will revisit this and make decisions," he said on Saturday.

Dumb Dems Voting For Dumb Politician Cartoons

Libtards

Thousands gather in Caracas to rally support for Interim Pres. Juan Guaido

Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido, who has declared himself the interim president of Venezuela, greets supporters as he arrives at a nationwide demonstration demanding the resignation of President Nicolas Maduro, in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Feb. 2, 2019. Guaido said humanitarian assistance will begin flowing into the crisis-wracked country within the next few days, despite Maduro’s objections. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 3:05 PM PT – Sat. February 2, 2019

Thousands of Venezuelans take to the streets in Caracas to protest against embattled President Nicolas Maduro.
Saturday citizens rallied in support of self-declared Interim President Juan Guaido, where he delivered a speech to the people.
There, he said humanitarian aid is on the way for citizens, and called on the military to not intervene in its delivery or distribution.
Further, Guaido said the protests will continue, until all of his supporters achieve freedom from the Maduro regime.
Meantime, supporters of Maduro gathered to hear him deliver remarks, where he agreed to hold early elections for the National Assembly.
“On the agenda, the Constituent Assembly has a constitutional, historical and political evaluation to call for early parliamentary elections this very year,” said Maduro. “I am in agreement. That the legislative power be re-legitimized by the country and that we go toward free elections with a guarantee and may the people decide for a new National Assembly. Do you agree? I agree and I stand by that decision.”
Maduro’s remarks come after the U.S. declared Guaido as the legitimate leader, while European Union member states are expected to follow suit next week.
Saturday marked the anniversary of former president Hugo Chavez entering office, who served from 1999 to 2013.

HHS Secy: Pres. Trump’s drug proposal ‘replaces system of backdoor deals’

FILE- In this Oct. 26, 2018, file photo Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar speaks about proposed reforms to Medicare Part B drug pricing policies at the Brookings Institute in Washington. The Trump administration says it is moving ahead with a plan to let patients directly receive prescription drug discounts negotiated behind-the-scenes between drugmakers, middlemen, and insurers. Azar said Thursday, Jan. 31, 2019, the proposed regulation would encourage the major industry players to channel any such discounts to consumers when they purchase their prescriptions. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)

OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 3:20 PM PT – Sat. February 2, 2019

Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar takes to social media to tout President Trump’s new drug pricing proposal.
In a video posted to Twitter Saturday Azar said the proposal has the potential to be the “most significant change in how drugs are priced at the pharmacy counter ever”.
The proposal calls for banning drug makers from providing rebates to pharmacy benefit managers in Medicare and Medicaid managed care plans.
Azar referred to these managers as middle-men who get a kickback from the drug companies when patients buy their medications
“How can anyone possibly defend this catastrophically broken status quo that rewards higher prices, conceals kickbacks to middlemen and denies seniors tens of billions of dollars in savings at the pharmacy counter?” said Azar.
According to Azar, if a patient pays $300 for medications the “kickback” could be anywhere between $60 to $100.

.@POTUS's proposal has the potential to usher in the most significant change in how your drugs are priced at the pharmacy, ever. It replaces a system of backdoor deals that drive up your drug prices with a system of discounts given directly to Americans at the pharmacy counter. pic.twitter.com/akin7uDvyB

— Secretary Alex Azar (@SecAzar) February 2, 2019

Michael Moore says Dems need to accept far-left Ocasio-Cortez as party leader: 'No middle ground anymore'

Documentary filmmaker Michael Moore says Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is the de facto leader of the Democratic Party. (Fox News)

Please don't smile.

Documentary filmmaker Michael Moore declared U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez the new leader of the Democratic Party, while urging political moderates to take a position because there “is no middle ground anymore.”
“She is the leader. Everybody knows it. Everybody feels it,” Moore said of the freshman congresswoman from New York during a Friday interview on MSNBC.
Moore said the age requirement to run for president - 35 - should be constitutionally amended so that Ocasio-Cortez could make a play for the White House.
Moore also urged those with moderate views to “take a position,” in response to a question about whether someone like Ocasio-Cortez, with very progressive politics, could turn off moderates.
“If you're being moderate, stop being moderate. Take a position,” Moore responded. “There's no middle ground anymore. There's no halfway point to should somebody be paid a living wage. 'Well, I'm a moderate so I think they could be paid half of that living wage.'
"You know, on the issue of choice, there is no halfway there. You're either for it or you're against it. Do you believe in equal rights for women? Do you believe we should have an Equal Rights Amendment? There's no middle ground. There's no time for moderation,” he continued.

Deroy Murdock: Walls work. Democrats know this but they want Trump to fail

Of all the Democrats’ arguments against a southern border wall, the shadiest is that it would not work.
According to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D., Calif., President Trump is “forcing American taxpayers to waste billions of dollars on an expensive and ineffective wall.” As he joined Pelosi in rebutting the president’s January 8 Oval Office address, Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York decried Trump’s “ineffective, unnecessary border wall.” Schumer added: “We can secure our border without an expensive, ineffective wall.”
In fact, walls work. Love them or hate them, their effectiveness is indisputable.
AS TRUMP MAKES BORDER WALL PITCH, OTHER COUNTRIES SAY THEIRS WORK
• “Part of our area is covered with some fencing on our east side. That accounts for about 6 percent of our traffic,” Border Patrol chief Raul Ortiz told journalists during President Trump’s January 10 visit to Rio Grande Valley, Texas. “Where we have no fencing, over 90 percent of our traffic occurs in those areas.” A day earlier, Ortiz added, 450 people were apprehended in the unfenced sector, including 133 from such non-Latin nations as India, Pakistan, and Romania.
• Some 560,000 illegals were caught astride San Diego and Tijuana in Fiscal Year 1992, when a border wall was installed there. By FY 2017, the Border Patrol says it snared 26,086 — down 95.3 percent.