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Trump, the outsider, turning to insiders for campaign help

Donald Trump has defied and mocked the Washington establishment on his ride to the top of the 2016 GOP presidential field. But his emerging domestic and foreign policies show that, behind the scenes, he is starting to rely on some established Republican voices.

On immigration, Trump, a billionaire businessman who has never held public office, turned to Alabama GOP Sen. Jeff Sessions to help draft his recently unveiled campaign platform. Sessions, one of Washington’s leading foes of illegal immigration, in turn touted Trump's proposal.
“It’s just a mainstream plan that politicians have been promising to do for 30 years,” Sessions told Fox News on Monday. “These are things that are bread-and-butter basics.”
Trump’s proclamation on day one of his campaign that he would build a wall along the country’s southern border and “have Mexico pay” was clearly directed at the party’s conservative base, and was included in the immigration platform. But his plan, and commentary on it, also had the markings of Sessions' well-honed argument that allowing illegal immigrants into the U.S. depresses wages and takes jobs from Americans -- and that granting them a path to citizenship is tantamount to amnesty.
“They have to go,” Trump proclaimed Sunday on NBC about illegal immigrants and children born to them in the United States.
That Trump and his attention-grabbing, roughly eight-week-old campaign would eventually have to focus more on policy appears inevitable. Likewise, it was only a matter of time before the Republican front-runner -- who does not keep a battalion of campaign advisers on hand -- would have to turn to some established voices for help.

More on this...

• Sen. Jeff Sessions on helping Trump craft immigration plan

But whether he continues to reach out to them, and whether that may hurt Trump among voters drawn to his renegade-style campaign, remains to be seen.
“Trump's supporters don't like him because of his consistency or his deep understanding of the issues,” Republican strategist Joe Desilets, managing partner at the D.C.-based political consulting firm 21st & Main, said.
“They like him because he is a flame-thrower who speaks his mind regardless of the consequences. With that said, I find it difficult to see Trump's supporters abandoning him over who his policy advisers are.”
Trump has indeed attacked the Washington establishment -- including so-called “career politicians” and the Republican National Committee. Most polls show him with a double-digit lead over his closest GOP rivals. He has also threatened to launch an independent bid if mistreated by Washington Republicans, which could severely hurt the party’s chances of winning the 2016 White House race.
In Washington circles, Sessions is still a standard-bearer for the immigration policy right. But he's not the only GOP voice Trump is consulting.
On foreign policy, Trump told NBC that he picks up military advice from analysts on TV including retired Army Col. Jack Jacobs and John Bolton, a former U.N. ambassador and a Fox News contributor.
Whether Trump has personally spoken to either for policy advice is unclear. Bolton does not discuss details of private policy discussions. Jacobs, who now describes himself as a journalist, did not respond to an attempt to contact him.
But Bolton has been seen talking privately with Trump and other GOP candidates including Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush on the sidelines of at least two recent gatherings -- the New Hampshire Republican Party’s “First in the Nation” Leadership Summit and the Iowa Freedom Summit.
Trump's campaign operation itself may also be evolving. For ground-game strategy, Trump has hired long-time Republican operative Chuck Lauder to run his Iowa campaign.
Lauder is well known for helping GOP presidential candidate and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum pull off a surprise win in the 2012 Iowa caucuses.
Trump’s immigration plan, meanwhile, also calls for overhauling the federal government’s H-1B work visa program to keep U.S. companies from what he calls importing “cheaper workers from overseas” to fill vacancies for skilled jobs.
It is an issue on which Sessions’ office has increasingly focused since helping defeat the Senate’s bipartisan immigration bill in 2013.
“One thing I like about (Trump’s) plan is that he emphasizes how this unlawful, huge flow of immigration is hammering poor people -- African Americans, Hispanics who are here struggling to get a higher wage,” Sessions also told Fox News on Monday.
In Trump’s policy papers released Sunday, the campaign also cited Chris Crane, president of a union that represents ICE agents and who is an outspoken critic of the Obama administration’s immigration policy -- often aligned with other Washington conservatives critical of that immigration policy.
The document quotes Crane arguing that ICE agents are being forced to apply Obama’s 2012 executive order on illegal immigrant children to adult inmates in jail including “serious criminals who have committed felonies, who have assaulted officers and who prey on children.”

Grassley questions whether Clinton attorney had clearance for thumb drives

A top Republican senator is questioning whether Hillary Clinton's personal attorney had the security clearance to keep thumb drives containing thousands of her emails, after it was revealed some of her messages contained highly sensitive -- even "top secret" -- information. 

"The transmission of classified material to an individual unauthorized to possess it is a serious national security risk," Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, wrote in a letter to Clinton lawyer David Kendall.
The FBI recently took possession of not only Clinton's personal server but three thumb drives kept by Kendall. The State Department previously has said that Clinton's attorney was approved to handle the documents -- telling Politico, before the files were turned over, that her counsel had "clearance." Further, the Clinton campaign said at the time "the thumb drive is secure."
Grassley for weeks has questioned whether that information was in fact being properly stored, asking FBI Director James Comey in late July what steps were being taken to secure the materials and whether Kendall had the "requisite security clearance."
But he upped the pressure in his letter to Kendall. He said recent revelations -- namely, inspector general findings that at least two emails on the server were classified at the "top secret" level -- and the FBI's takeover of the devices suggest Kendall was not authorized to have them.
"In light of that particular classification, which generally requires advanced protocols ... to possess and view, it appears the FBI has determined that your clearance is not sufficient to allow you to maintain custody of the emails," Grassley told Kendall in the letter, asking him a string of questions about his clearance levels.

More on this...

• Is the Democratic Party beginning to panic?

Fox News is told the thumb drives are not a complete back-up copy of the server's contents but, rather, a copy of the emails Clinton did not purge.
The Clinton campaign has maintained she never exchanged emails marked as classified at the time, though the emails flagged by the IG were said to be classified from the start. The State Department has so far found dozens of classified emails in the Clinton trove, and recently referred more than 300 messages to various agencies for review to see whether they, too, have classified contents.
Grassley raised several concerns in his letter, including that Kendall reportedly did not get a safe from the State Department to store the thumb drives until July of this year.  
For a period of months, Grassley wrote, "it appears that in addition to not having an adequate security clearance, you did not have the appropriate tools in place to secure the thumb drives. Even with the safe, there are questions as to whether it was an adequate mechanism to secure" the material.
He added, "it is imperative to confirm when, how, and why you, and any of your associates, received a security clearance in connection with your representation of Ms. Clinton and whether it was active while you had custody of Secretary Clinton's emails ... Moreover, if a person unauthorized to maintain custody of the classified materials does in fact maintain custody, it raises legitimate questions as to whether the information was properly secured from foreign governments and other entities."
An intelligence source told Fox News that the FBI has begun its review of the Clinton server and also "looked inside" the three thumb drives from Kendall.
As for Grassley's request to Kendall, the source said there apparently was a gap in the security clearance, saying it "stopped and started."
Kendall could not be reached for comment on the Grassley letter.

EPA hits oil and gas industry with new methane emissions regs

The Environmental Protection Agency unveiled plans Tuesday to slash methane emissions from oil and gas production almost in half, the latest in a series of administration regulations aimed at curbing global warming. 

The proposal, though, looked set to face stiff opposition from energy groups and Republicans lawmakers, who accused the administration of pandering to “the fantasies of the environmental Left.”
The target to cut methane by 40 to 45 percent by 2025 (compared against 2012 levels) was accompanied by proposed regulations cutting emissions from new natural gas wells, along with standards for drilling to reduce leakage on public lands.
The regulations would require energy producers to find and repair leaks at oil and gas wells and capture gas that escapes from wells that use fracking. The administration said the rules would apply only to emissions from new or modified natural gas wells, meaning thousands of existing wells would not have to comply.
"Today, through our cost-effective proposed standards, we are underscoring our commitment to reducing the pollution fueling climate change and protecting public health while supporting responsible energy development, transparency and accountability," EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy said in a statement.
EPA officials estimated the regulations would cost industry between $320 million and $420 million in 2025, with reduced health care costs and other benefits totaling about $460 million to $550 million.
In a conference call Tuesday, EPA Acting Assistant Administrator Janet McCabe said the new regulations would result in methane reductions of 20-30 percent by 2025. However, McCabe repeatedly refused to be specific about where the remaining reductions would come from, despite being pressed on the matter multiple times by reporters.
“What I am saying is that as we move forward, additional opportunities will be identified in order to get to the goal,” McCabe said. “It doesn’t mean we have every last one of them identified at this moment.”
Republican lawmakers and energy groups were swift in their condemnation of the new proposals, with many arguing methane emissions have been falling in recent years.
“The EPA’s plan to limit emissions flies in the face of technological reality. The truth is that while the oil and natural gas industry has greatly increased production on state and private lands, methane emissions have actually fallen,” House Committee on Natural Resources Chairman Rob Bishop, R-Utah, said in a statement. “The Obama Administration continues to prioritize the fantasies of the environmental Left over American energy security and economic growth.”
“The oil and gas industry is leading the charge in reducing methane,” American Petroleum Institute President Jack Gerard said. “The last thing we need is more duplicative and costly regulation that could increase the cost of energy for Americans.”
Others expressed doubt about handing the EPA more power in the light of the recent toxic Colorado river spill, caused by EPA workers.
“If recent events are any indicator, giving more power to EPA doesn't necessarily yield positive results. Just ask the citizens who live near and depend on the Animas River,” Tom Pyle, president of the Institute for Energy Research, said in a statement.
The Obama administration is expected to finalize the rules next year after a public consultation period.
The latest regulations come just weeks after the Obama administration announced more regulations on carbon emissions from power plants, calling for a 32 percent emissions cut by 2030, as compared with 2005 levels. Republicans vowed to fight the changes and a number of states and power companies immediately filed legal challenges.
The administration has also proposed regulations targeting carbon pollution from planes, and has set new standards to reduce pollution from trucks and vans.
Environmentalists praised the new rules, but noted that the ambitious goals announced under the proposals would be difficult to meet without targeting existing wells.
David Doniger, climate policy director for the Natural Resources Defense Council called the new regulations "a good start,” adding that the EPA “needs to follow up by setting methane leakage standards for existing oil and gas operations nationwide."

Obama administration objects as Russia moves ahead with Iran missile sale

Thank you Obama.

Despite a ban on arms shipments to Iran under international sanctions, Russia appears willing to proceed with the sale of advanced S-300 surface-to-air missiles to the country -- in a development triggering objections from the Obama administration.  

“We have long expressed our concerns over reports of the possible sale of this missile system to the Iranians,” Pentagon spokesman Capt. Jeff Davis told Fox News.
Russia, along with the U.S. and others, was a party to the recently struck Iran nuclear agreement, which keeps the arms embargo in place for five more years. A State Department official told Fox News this specific S-300 missile system is not technically prohibited under United Nations sanctions or the nuclear deal. But the department does not want the sale to proceed.
“We certainly object to it,” department spokesman John Kirby told reporters.
Reuters first reported that Iran plans to sign the contract for four of the S-300 Russian missiles as soon as next week.
"The text of the contract is ready and our friends will go to Russia next week to sign the contract," Iran Defense Minister Hossein Dehghan reportedly said.
When asked to characterize the capability of Russia’s S-300 air defense system, a U.S. defense official with knowledge of Russia’s weapons systems told Fox News, “This is a very capable weapons system that can bring down U.S. or Israeli jet aircraft.”
The Obama administration has made its objections known before. When Russia first announced its plans to proceed with the sale in April, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said, “The United States has previously made known our objections to that sale, and I understand that Secretary Kerry had an opportunity to raise these concerns once again in a recent conversation with his Russian counterpart.”
The announcement comes at a time when Russia and Iran appear to have grown their diplomatic and military ties in the weeks following the comprehensive nuclear accord struck July 14 in Vienna.
Fox News first reported a clandestine visit by Iran’s shadowy Quds Force commander Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani on July 24, just 10 days following the nuclear agreement. Senior military officers and U.S. lawmakers hold Soleimani and his proxy forces responsible for the deaths of hundreds of American soldiers in Iraq.
The Quds Force is the special operations wing of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, responsible for supporting terrorist groups and proxy forces in Lebanon, Yemen and Iraq. Like Russia, it supports the Syrian regime of President Bashar al-Assad. According to local reports, Russia also delivered six MiG 31 fighter jets to Syria on Sunday.
Soleimani’s visit to Russia involved meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin and his defense minister and appears to have kicked off a series of other bilateral engagements between Iran and Russia.
Last week, Russia and Iran held joint naval exercises in the Caspian Sea, which separates the two countries.
On Monday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov hosted his Iranian counterpart Foreign Minister Javad Zarif, who was Iran’s point man in the nuclear negotiations.
“We are confident that the Vienna agreement will have an enormous impact on developing ties between our two countries,” Zarif said at a Moscow presser Monday, according to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
A last-minute provision added to the comprehensive nuclear agreement in Vienna prohibits the sale of arms for five more years with Iran.
Page 7 of the White House fact sheet explaining the comprehensive July 14 nuclear agreement between Iran and six world powers reads:
“While some of our P5 partners wanted these restrictions lifted immediately, we pushed back and were successful in keeping them for 5 and 8 more years or until the IAEA reaches its broader conclusion.”
Russia is among the “P5” partners.

Trump puts Americans first, not illegals

What I'm about to tell you is politically incorrect, but it needs to be said.

There's a reason why Donald Trump is smoking his Republican competition: He wants to put Americans first -- not the illegals.

Trump understands a fundamental truth: The United States of America has been invaded by millions of illegals from Mexico and parts due south.

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The illegals are pillaging and plundering our economy. Some are raping and murdering our fellow countrymen. They have been given accommodation at the expense of the American taxpayer.

And yet our elected leaders in Congress and the White House have chosen to stand down as the sovereignty of our great nation has been violated.

So while the politicians and pundits have scampered away from the issue – Trump stepped up to the plate and offered a concise plan that would secure our border and restore our sovereignty.

The plan, which you can read here, calls for defunding sanctuary cities, building a border wall, ending the catch and release program, and the mandatory deportation of all criminal aliens.

Trump’s plan was heralded by none other than Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., the lone voice crying out in the political wilderness on this issue of national importance.

“This is exactly the plan America needs,” Sessions said. “Polling shows this plan will appeal broadly to all segments of the electorate; prioritizing the just demands of loyal, everyday Americans who have been shunned by a governing elite.”

Meanwhile, Republican presidential candidate Carly Fiorina raised doubts about Mr. Trump's political affiliation.

"It's not clear to me that Donald Trump is a Republican, first of all, based upon his willingness to run a third-party bid, and some of the positions that he's taken," Fiorina told ABC's This Week.

With all due respect to Ms. Fiorina, the fact that Trump may not be beholden to a political party very well may be the point.

Voters are disgusted with the political incompetence of both Republicans and Democrats.

And should Donald Trump pull off a historic upset and win the White House, I suspect illegals won't be the only folks running back across the border.

Todd Starnes is host of Fox News & Commentary, heard on hundreds of radio stations. His latest book is "God Less America: Real Stories From the Front Lines of the Attack on Traditional Values." Follow Todd on Twitter@ToddStarnes and find him on Facebook.

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Iowa fairgrounds become deep-fried 2016 battlefield

Six months out from the 2016 horserace getting serious in the frozen tundra of Iowa, the Republican presidential race is as hot as corn-on-the-cob and deep-fried Twinkies -- with virtually the entire field passing and clashing through the Iowa State Fair. 

After a weekend dominated at the fairgrounds by the two parties' respective front-runners, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, other key candidates -- with much on the line -- were rolling through Monday.
One, Scott Walker, is fighting to stay in the top tier after watching his numbers slip following the recent primary debate. Another, Carly Fiorina, wants to keep the momentum going after getting a boost from her standout performance on the same stage.
Standing on the Iowa stump in short sleeves, jeans and an unbuttoned periwinkle shirt, Walker on Monday sought to remind the first-in-the-nation caucus audience why he stands out in the crowded field.
"There's only one candidate that's ran who has fought and won and gotten results ... and did it without compromising on common-sense conservative principles," Walker said, referring to his successful election, recall election and re-election. "If you want someone who can win ... I'm the candidate."
His remarks were punctuated with applause and boos from the rowdy crowd. Some wore 'cheesehead' hats in solidarity with the Wisconsin governor; others shouted things like "you failed your state."

More on this...

• Gov. Scott Walker rates his presidential campaign

Walker said he was "unintimidated" by those opposing him.
Walker has seen his numbers dip, in both Iowa and nationally. In the most recent national Fox News Poll, released Sunday, Walker slipped to 6 percent, down 3 points and the lowest support he's received for more than a year. In the same post-debate poll, Trump held almost steady at the front of the field.
But Fiorina, who by most accounts won the "undercard" debate earlier this month on the Fox News/Facebook stage in Cleveland, more than doubled her support, clocking in at 5 percent.
Instead of delivering a speech on the Des Moines stage on Monday, the former HP exec just took questions from the audience. Asked about the minimum wage, she said it should be a "state decision and not a federal decision." Asked about oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, she said America must be the "global energy powerhouse of the 21st Century." On the Department of Veterans Affairs, she called their treatment of veterans a "stain on our nation's honor."
With 17 candidates in the Republican field, the Iowa State Fair is playing an even bigger role than in past elections in vetting the contenders -- in an offbeat forum where candidates are judged as much on their willingness to eat foodstuffs on a stick as they are on policy proposals.
Over the weekend, Trump made a grand entrance, landing his helicopter in athletic fields about a mile away and offering rides to children before he came onto the grounds. Almost immediately Trump was crushed by massive crowds seeking photos, handshakes and yelling encouragement. The pandemonium followed him around for roughly an hour -- and during a stop for a pork chop on a stick.
"This is beyond what I expected. This is amazing," Trump said. "It's been a day of love."
Both Trump and Clinton avoided getting up on The Des Moines Register's "soapbox," a place where candidates like Walker deliver remarks and take questions from fairgoers. A candidate can be cheered or jeered, depending on the mood of the crowd and whether supporters or opponents are on hand. In 2011 Republican candidate Mitt Romney declared from the soapbox that "corporations are people, my friend," a line that dogged the former private equity executive.
The state fair typically draws around 90,000 people daily during its 11-day run every summer, giving presidential candidates the perfect opportunity to meet potential supporters for Iowa's first-in-the-nation caucuses.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., is set to speak later Monday on the "soapbox." Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and Ohio Gov. John Kasich are scheduled for Tuesday.