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US and S. Korean troops start drills amid N. Korea standoff

U.S. and South Korean troops kicked off their annual drills Monday that come after President Donald Trump and North Korea exchanged warlike rhetoric in the wake of the North's two intercontinental ballistic missile tests last month.

The Ulchi Freedom Guardian drills are largely computer-simulated war games held every summer and have drawn furious responses from North Korea, which views them as an invasion rehearsal. Pyongyang's state media on Sunday called this year's drills a "reckless" move that could trigger the "uncontrollable phase of a nuclear war."

Despite the threat, U.S. and South Korean militaries launched this year's 11-day training on Monday morning as scheduled. The exercise involves 17,500 American troops and 50,000 South Korean soldiers, according to the U.S. military command in South Korea and Seoul's Defense Ministry.
No field training like live-fire exercises or tank maneuvering is involved in the Ulchi drills, in which alliance officers sit at computers to practice how they engage in battles and hone their decision-making capabilities. The allies have said the drills are defensive in nature.
South Korea's President Moon Jae-in said Monday that North Korea must not use the drills as a pretext to launch fresh provocation, saying the training is held regularly because of repeated provocations by North Korea.
North Korea typically responds to South Korea-U.S. military exercises with weapons tests and a string of belligerent rhetoric. During last year's Ulchi drills, North Korea test-fired a submarine-launched ballistic missile that flew about 310 miles in the longest flight by that type of weapon. Days after the drills, the North carried out its fifth and biggest nuclear test to date.
Last month North Korea test-launched two ICBMs at highly lofted angles, and outside experts say those missiles can reach some U.S. parts like Alaska, Los Angeles or Chicago if fired at normal, flattened trajectories. Analysts say it would be only a matter of time for the North to achieve its long-stated goal of acquiring a nuclear missile that can strike anywhere in the United States.
Earlier this month, President Donald Trump pledged to answer North Korean aggression with "fire and fury." North Korea, for its part, threatened to launch missiles toward the American territory of Guam before its leader Kim Jong Un backed off saying he would first watch how Washington acts before going ahead with the missile launch plans.

Manhunt for Barcelona suspect intensifies, 'everything indicates' he was driving van

Authorities in Spain on Monday said “everything indicates” that Younes Abouyaaquoub was the van driver who plowed into a crowd of people in Barcelona last week, killing 13 and injuring 120 others.

The 22-year-old remains at large and is believed to be the final member of the Islamic extremist cell at large after the attacks in Barcelona and a nearby town.

Police said in a news conference that the search for Moroccan-born Younes Abouyaaquoub, 22, has continued in Catalonia, and has expanded to the neighboring French border, Reuters reported.
Abouyaaquoub, the suspected driver of the van used in Thursday’s terrorist attack that killed 13 people and injured 120 others, is believed to be the only member of the 12-person terror cell who may have crossed the border into France.
A police official confirmed to Fox News that three vans found in relation to the Spanish attacks were rented using a credit card under Abouyaaquoub’s name.
Police have identified 12 people as part of the extremist cell which coordinated the two vehicle attacks in Barcelona and Cambrils. Other members of the cell have either been arrested, shot by police or killed in Catalonia, the site of a house explosion Wednesday night.

Secy Mattis: New Afghan Strategy Incoming, Pres. Trump to Announce

Defense Secretary James Mattis attends a news conference, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2017, at the State Department in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Defense Secretary James Mattis says President Trump will personally unveil a long awaited new strategy for the war in Afghanistan.
The president has been carefully considering his options for months and made a decision last week during a national security meeting at Camp David in Maryland.
Mattis says the new strategy is worth the wait.
“I am very comfortable that the strategic process was sufficiently rigorous and did not go in with a pre-set condition in terms of what questions can be asked or what decisions were being made.”
Mattis has confirmed military options presented to President Trump for the region, range from a full withdrawal to a troop increase.
President Trump is expected to make the announcement Monday.

Pres. Trump to Visit Marine Corps Air Station Yuma

President Donald Trump gives a thumbs-up as walks to board on Air Force One at Hagerstown Regional Airport in Hagerstown, Md., Friday, Aug. 18, 2017, following a national security meeting at Camp David. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

President Trump will be in Arizona on Tuesday where he’ll hold a rally and visit a marine base.
The White House says the president will visit Marine Corps Air Station Yuma on Tuesday afternoon ahead of his rally in Phoenix later that night.
Yuma is located along the U.S.- Mexico border and security along the perimeter has been a priority for President Trump including the construction of a border wall to curb illegal immigration from Mexico.
The last sitting U.S president to visit Yuma was George W. Bush back in 2006, a visit that concentrated on the construction of a border fence.

Democrat Cartoons (Bringing down America)

The NFL doesn't have the guts to bench unpatriotic players (Bringing down America)

Colin Kaepernick Scum Man

A National Football League player refused to stand for the national anthem Saturday during a preseason game -- and in doing so he disrespected the military and the nation. 

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Oakland Raiders running back Marshawn Lynch was spotted by an Associated Press photographer sitting atop an orange cooler before the start of the preseason game against the Arizona Cardinals.
Mr. Lynch is apparently a disciple of former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick – a notorious anti-American rabble-rouser.

I suspect this will not be the last episode of anti-American activity at NFL games.

"I'd rather see him take a knee than stand up, put his hands up and get murdered," Lynch told comedian Conan O'Brien in 2016.
It was Kaepernick who sparked a national protest against the alleged police violence by taking a knee during the Star-Spangled Banner. Soon, a number of college, high school and professional athletes joined his cause.
 “If you’re really not racist then you won’t see what he done, what he’s doing, as a threat to America, but just addressing a problem that we have,” Lynch told Associated Press.
Raiders coach Jack Del Rio told SFGate.com that Lynch's disrespectful behavior is not an issue for the football team.
“He said, ‘This is something I have done for 11 years. It’s not a form of anything other than me being myself,’” Del Rio said. “I told him I very strongly believe in standing for the national anthem. But I respect him as a man and he can do his thing."
Well, that doesn't speak very well of Coach Del Rio's character either. The coach respects a man who disrespects the country?
I suspect this will not be the last episode of anti-American activity at NFL games. So I recommend head coaches take immediate action to deter such behavior.
If you ride the bench during the Star-Spangled Banner, you should ride the bench for the rest of season.
It would be a gutsy move -- but unlikely -- considering the lack of courage and patriotism in the National Football League.
Todd Starnes is host of Fox News & Commentary. His latest book is “The Deplorables’ Guide to Making America Great Again.” Follow him on Twitter @ToddStarnes and find him on Facebook.

US Army mum on whether bases will keep Confederate names (Bringing down America)

Debate is heating up throughout the country over what to do with Confederate statues and memorials. But it appears, at least for now, that 10 major U.S. Army bases will keep the names of Confederate soldiers.

The Army refused to answer questions last week on whether those bases – including Fort Bragg in North Carolina, Fort Hood in Texas, and Fort Benning in Georgia – will keep their names, the Charlotte Observer reported.

All 10 U.S. military bases named for Confederate soldiers are located in the South.
Prior to this month’s violence in Charlottesville, Va., the most recent time the names of Army bases were strongly debated was in 2015, after the slaying of nine black church members in Charleston, S.C.
At that time, Army Col. Steve Warren, a Pentagon spokesman, told Time there was “no discussion” regarding changing the names.
Base names are based on “individuals, not causes or ideologies,” public affairs chief Army Brig. Gen. Malcolm Frost said in 2015, adding that each base “is named for a soldier who holds a place in our military history.”
The other seven Army bases named for Confederate soldiers are Fort Rucker in Alabama; Fort Gordon in Georgia; Camp Beauregard and Fort Polk in Louisiana; and Fort A.P. Hill, Fort Lee and Fort Pickett in Virginia.