Border-security advocates form 'human wall' along US-Mexico border

Supporters of U.S. border security make a human wall to demonstrate their support for a border wall between the U.S. and Mexico, at Sunland Park, N.M., Feb. 9, 2019. (Hericka Martinez/AFP/Getty Images)

Just days after President Trump said his administration was prepared to “build a Human Wall if necessary” to protect the nation from illegal immigration, a group of his supporters in New Mexico joined hands along the U.S.-Mexico border in support of the construction of a border wall.
Waving American flags and holding handmade signs, advocates for tougher border security formed a human shield along the partially fenced border at Sunland Park, N.M., just across the line from Ciudad Juarez in Mexico's Chihuahua state.
AS BORDER WALL FUNDING DIVIDES WASHINGTON, NEW MULTIMILLION-DOLLAR BARRIER WILL SOON BREAK GROUND IN TEXAS

Supporters of U.S. border security make a human wall to demonstrate their support for a border wall between the U.S. and Mexico, at Sunland Park, N.M., Feb. 9, 2019. (Hericka Martinez/AFP/Getty Images)

Trump cited “Tremendous numbers” of people entering the U.S. through Mexico as the reason for his "human wall" pledge in a Tuesday tweet.
Last Sunday, the Pentagon announced nearly 4,000 additional active duty troops will be deployed to the U.S.-Mexico border. Congress has wrangled over Trump's demand for $5.7 billion to construct a border wall. The impasse led to a 35-day partial government shutdown.
Congress is reportedly nearing a deal that would include far less money for the wall -- about $1.6 billion. But whether Trump would accept the plan, which would also avoid another government shutdown, is unknown.
In January, Trump signed a resolution to temporally reopen the government while lawmakers negotiate over border security funding. He has said he may declare a national emergency to avoid another shutdown when the resolution ends on Feb. 15.

Rob Lowe deletes Elizabeth Warren 'chief' joke after Hollywood backlash

Your next Commander in Chief :-)

Rob Lowe's tweet about Sen. Elizabeth Warren was not well-received by some in Hollywood. (Reuters)

Actor Rob Lowe removed a Twitter post that poked fun at U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren on Saturday out of concern that “some peeps got upset.”
Earlier in the day, Lowe responded on the social media platform after the Massachusetts Democrat officially launched her 2020 presidential campaign with a kickoff event in Lawrence, Mass.
“Elizabeth Warren would bring a whole new meaning to Commander in ‘Chief,’” Lowe wrote in the now-deleted post, in an apparent reference to the controversy over Warren’s claims of Native American heritage.

But many social media users – including fellow Hollywood actors -- were not amused.
“What a raw blow!” “Star Wars” star Mark Hamill wrote.
“That’s not funny,” actor Vincent D’Onofrio added.
“Don’t. Jesus,” “Hot in Cleveland” star Valerie Bertinelli chimed in.
“Just when I was liking Rob Lowe after his moving comments about being his mom’s caretaker — he takes a page from Trump. Ick,” former NBC correspondent Soledad O’Brien wrote.
ROB LOWE DEFENDS PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE, CALLS CALIFORNIA COLLEGE'S INITIAL BAN 'IDIOCY'
Other users defended Lowe.
“Rob Lowe was just joking,” one user wrote. “Everybody is so sensitive these days. Just a bunch of snowflakes! #ElizabethWarren2020 is the person who lied about her race for votes.”
"Rob Lowe has no f---ing rights," another commented. "he isn't protected under the constitution. i said what i said."
Another user retweeted the image of the State Bar of Texas registration card, on which Warren had identified herself as “American Indian.”
The senator recently apologized for claiming Native American ancestry on the 1986 card, hinting that other documents with a similar claim may exist.
Ultimately, Lowe decided it was best to remove the post.
"I deleted my Elizabeth Warren tweet," he wrote. "It was a joke and some peeps got upset, and that’s never my intention. On the GOOD side: I just got to use the Oxford comma!"

Kimberley Strassel: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez -- The secret Republican weapon for 2020

Looking fairly normal, because the leftist media are now picking the photos of her acting less crazy.

But photos posted on the net never go away, especially the ones here and below.

The True Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez :-)

The Republican Party has a secret weapon for 2020. It’s especially effective because it’s stealthy: The Democrats seem oblivious to its power. And the GOP needn’t lift a finger for it to work. All Republicans have to do is sit back and watch 29-year-old Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez . . . exist.
AOC, as she’s better known, today exists largely in front of the cameras. In a few months she’s gone from an unknown New York bartender to the democratic socialist darling of the left and its media hordes. Her megaphone is so loud that she rivals Speaker Nancy Pelosi as the face of the Democratic Party.
Republicans don’t know whether to applaud or laugh. Most do both.
GREEN NEW DEAL: OCASIO-CORTEZ AIMS TO MAKE AIR TRAVEL OBSOLETE, AID THOSE ‘UNWILLING’ TO WORK

Ms. Ocasio-Cortez is a freight train gaining speed by the day—and helping Republicans with every passing minute.

For them, what’s not to love? She’s set off a fratricidal war on the left, with her chief of staff, Saikat Chakrabarti, this week slamming the “radical conservatives” among the Democrats holding the party “hostage.” She’s made friends with Jeremy Corbyn, leader of Britain’s Labour Party, who has been accused of anti-Semitism. She’s called the American system of wealth creation “immoral” and believes government has a duty to provide “economic security” to people who are “unwilling to work.” As a representative of New York, she’s making California look sensible.
On Thursday Ms. Ocasio-Cortez unveiled her vaunted Green New Deal, complete with the details of how Democrats plan to reach climate nirvana in a mere 10 years. It came in the form of a resolution, sponsored in the Senate by Massachusetts’ Edward Markey, on which AOC is determined to force a full House vote. That means every Democrat in Washington will get to go on the record in favor of abolishing air travel, outlawing steaks, forcing all American homeowners to retrofit their houses, putting every miner, oil rigger, livestock rancher and gas-station attendant out of a job, and spending trillions and trillions more tax money. Oh, also for government-run health care, which is somehow a prerequisite for a clean economy.
Keep reading Kimberley Strassel's column in the Wall Street Journal.

Nearly 60 percent of Virginia's African-Americans want Gov. Northam to remain in office: poll

Nearly 60 percent of African-Americans in Virginia want Gov. Ralph Northam to remain in office despite the recent scandal surrounding a racist photo on the Democrat's 1984 medical school yearbook page, according to a poll released Saturday.
The Washington Post-Schar School poll, conducted Wednesday through Friday, found Virginia's broader population to be split evenly about Northam’s fate, with 47 percent wanting him to stay and the same percentage wanting him to resign.
African-Americans, however, prefer that the Democrat remain in office, 58 percent to 37 percent. Whites are more evenly divided.
The poll also found that 11 percent of Virginia residents have either worn blackface or known someone who has. Northam has denied that he is one of two men shown on his yearbook page, backtracking an earlier admission. The photo shows one person in blackface and the other dressed in a Ku Klux Klan hood and robe.
“Initially, I could have forgiven him, and I think he could have gotten past it. It was something that was 35 years ago,” David Hughes, an African-American sheriff's deputy in Newport News, told the Post. “What really bothered me was the change in story.”
Hughes, 54, thinks the governor should resign.
Louise Butler, 76, of Richmond, grew up during segregation and was bothered by the Klan costume, which she said brought back memories of violence and discrimination directed at African-Americans before the Civil Rights Movement.
She told the paper she believed Northam was committed to racial equality despite whatever views he may have held in 1984.

This image shows Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam’s page in his 1984 Eastern Virginia Medical School yearbook. (Eastern Virginia Medical School via AP)

“He’s been a good governor, and he’s been good, as far as I know, to black people,” Butler said.
In an interview Saturday, Northam said he wants to heal the wounds that some feel after the racist photo emerged.
"There are still some very deep wounds in Virginia, and especially in the area of equity. ... There are ongoing inequities to access to things like education, health care, mortgages, capital, entre­pre­neur­ship," he said. "And so this has been a real, I think, an awakening for Virginia. It has really raised the level of awareness for racial issues in Virginia. And so we’re ready to learn from our mistakes.”
Other results from the poll revealed about a third of Virginians think Attorney General Mark Herring should resign after he admitted to wearing blackface at a party in college. Most residents are still undecided – 65 percent – on the future of Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, who is accused of sexual assault by two women. Fairfax denies the accusations.
Respondents were not asked about the second allegation against him, that was made public Friday after the poll began.

2019 Democratic Party Collapsing Cartoons

Northam insists he's not in racist photo because he's left-handed while men in photo are right-handed

Democrat Eat Their Own :-)

Critics: Ralph Northam can't possibly come up with another way to explain himself out of the yearbook mess.
Northam: Hold my beer.
The embattled Virginia governor says he's certain he's not one of the two men shown in a racist photo in his 1984 medical school yearbook -- because the men in the photo are holding beers in their right hands while he’s left-handed.
Northam, who initially apologized for the racist photo, but later backtracked and said he doesn’t believe he’s actually in it, has been fighting for his political life ever since the picture showing a man in blackface and a man in Ku Klux Klan garb emerged Feb. 1.
LIBERAL HYPOCRISY: DEMOCRATS' CALLS FOR NORTHAM TO RESIGN FADE AS THREE SCANDALS THROW VIRGINIA INTO CHAOS
Most top Democrats and his party have issued statements calling for him to resign amid the controversy, but Northam insists on his innocence and is trying to convince others that the picture was added to the yearbook by mistake and doesn’t feature him.
Northam's left hand-versus-right hand theory.
Northam reportedly told his staff that the photo struck him as odd because, while attending the medical school, he particularly had trouble using his right hand and even struggled to use a scalpel with it.
He claimed that his left hand is his dominant hand and pointed out that another picture in the yearbook shows him holding a beer with his left hand.
VIRGINIA DEMS REPEAT CALL FOR NORTHAM TO RESIGN, BUT NOT FAIRFAX OR HERRING
But the latest theory isn’t convincing many on social media, with many users noting that Northam, even while being left-handed, has been pictured comfortably using his right hand, including to hold beer and sign bills.
Northam, who admitted wearing blackface as part of a Michael Jackson costume in a different instance the same year, is looking for ways to withstand the calls to resign by coming up with policy initiatives that tackle Virginia’s history of racism.
He’s also begun a learning process and started reading works written by black Americans, according to the outlet. The books include the 1976 Alex Haley novel “Roots” in addition to the Ta-Nehisi Coates 2014 essay “The Case for Reparations."

New border-security deal in Congress would likely offer Trump just a fraction of requested $5.7B for wall

Details of a likely bipartisan border-security deal in Congress are being worked out after the White House indicated it will accept an agreement giving President Trump just a fraction of the money he's demanded for his proposed U.S.-Mexico border wall.
Congressional negotiators said the money allocated to the border wall will be far below Trump’s requested figure of $5.7 billion, a demand that led to a showdown with congressional Democrats and the longest-ever federal government shutdown. The figure is likely to be somewhere around $1.6 billion.
The deal would not only partially fund the wall, it would also prevent another government shutdown next weekend. Trump threatened to go with the shutdown again, though congressional Republicans are unlikely to have the stamina for another shutdown for which they have been held responsible.
One White House aide indicated that Trump will accept whatever agreement comes out of the negotiations as he understands there isn’t enough willpower among Republicans to fight for the full border-wall funding.
But even with a breakthrough in negotiations, Democrats are insisting that the money given to the border security shouldn’t be just for the physical barrier.
“Throughout the talks, Democrats have insisted that a border security compromise not be overly reliant on physical barriers,” Evan Hollander, a spokesman for Democrats who control the House Appropriations Committee, told the Associated Press. “We will not agree to $2 billion in funding for barriers.”
The White House may still attempt to get the additional funding for the wall by using executive action, though such a move is likely to be met with resistance and lawsuits.
The negotiations also include talks about the type and location of the barriers. The question of the number of beds the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency could have for detained migrants has also been raised, in addition to some high-tech surveillance equipment and the number of personnel.
Still, some GOP lawmakers believe the deal’s details could be too much for Trump to swallow, with Rep. Mark Meadows saying “I'm not optimistic it'll be something the president can support.”
A bipartisan deal is likely to pass even without the votes of conservative Republicans, who demand more money for the border wall, and progressive Democrats, who oppose funding of immigration authorities.

Prospective Dem candidate Amy Klobuchar's treatment of staff led to rebuke from Harry Reid: report

Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., is expected to launch her 2020 presidential campaign on Sunday, but is facing an early crisis over a wave of accusations that she has mistreated staff -- with her conduct reportedly getting so bad that then-Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid told her to change her behavior.
Klobuchar is expected to announce her 2020 run in Minneapolis on Sunday. But that announcement was overshadowed this week when HuffPost reported this week that Klobuchar has such a bad reputation over her treatment of staff that a number of potential staffers have withdrawn from consideration to manage her campaign because of it.
AMY KLOBUCHAR ALLEGEDLY MISTREATED STAFFERS, SEES DIFFICULTY GETTING TEAM FOR 2020 RUN: REPORT
The left-wing outlet reported that staffers described Klobuchar as “habitually demeaning and prone to bursts of cruelty,” although others said that while working for Klobuchar was challenging, it was also rewarding. Some pushed back and questioned whether those making the accusations “were falling for sexist stereotypes about female leaders with high standards.”
Klobuchar’s team issued a lengthy statement saying she is “proud” of her staff.
"Senator Klobuchar loves her staff — they are the reason she has gotten to where she is today. She has many staff who have been with her for years — including her Chief of Staff and her State Director, who have worked for her for 5 and 7 years respectively, as well as her political advisor Justin Buoen, who has worked for her for 14 years — and many who have gone on to do amazing things, from working in the Obama Administration (over 20 of them) to running for office to even serving as the Agriculture Commissioner for Minnesota," a campaign spokesperson told HuffPost. "She is proud of them and the work they have done for Minnesota."
But since the outlet published its first story, more stories of alleged mistreatment emerged. Former staffers said that Klobuchar’s wrath left employees in tears, and that one was accidentally hit with a flying binder, according to ​​​​BuzzFeed News.
“I cried. I cried, like, all the time,” said one former staffer.
While BuzzFeed also received some positive stories from former staffers (one said Klobuchar threw her a baby shower and cooked a meal for her friends and family), it noted she has one of the highest turnover rates of staff in the Senate.
Klobuchar would reportedly blow up about anything from minor grammar mistakes, the use of the word “community” in press releases, or failing to charge her iPad.
On Friday evening, HuffPost published a story filled with new allegations, including that she required staff to perform personal duties such as washing dishes. Such a demand would be in violation of the Senate’s rules and federal law against personal use of the office, it said.
The outlet cites a 2012 campaign memo that includes demands such as “only speak when spoken to at events” and telling staffers that while waiting for her in a dressing area or bedroom they should pick up her dirty laundry and place it in a basket. The memo included the following passage:
“Especially while in the car during a busy day: if she is EXTREMELY upset about something, let her rant through it, DON’T interupt [sic] her unless ABSOLUTELY necessary and be careful when trying to calm her down...Often she just needs to talk things out in the open and is not interested in other people’s opinions -- this is something that you will become used to and adjust to -- its just a note for the first time this happens.”
The allegations of mistreatment were reportedly well known to other senators as well. HuffPost reported that Reid spoke to Klobuchar in 2015 about her mistreatment of staff. A Reid spokesman told the outlet that he didn’t remember if he had such a discussion, and instead described her as “one of the most brilliant, hard-working members of the Senate.
According to HuffPost, a former aide to then-Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., said that a terrified Klobuchar staffer came up to them to explain Klobuchar’s lateness to an event: “I’m supposed to tell you...Senator Klobuchar is late today because I am bad at my job.”
If Klobuchar announces a candidacy, she will likely enter a crowded field that already includes Sens. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., Cory Booker, D-N.J. and Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass. On Friday, she teased the announcement again, releasing a video in which she said she would be making it on Boom Island.
"As in boom, drop the mic," she quipped.