Ben Shapiro speaks at UC Berkeley despite arrests and protests

Conservative star Ben Shapiro spoke at the University of California at Berkeley on Thursday night amid extraordinary security measures – costing around $600,000 – prompted by fears of an outburst by violent agitators possibly descending on the campus.

All the precautiuons were to ensure that the 33-year-old conservative could deliver a speech on a college campus that was home to the Free Speech Movement in the 1960s. The scene was a stark change from Shapiro’s 2016 UC Berkeley talk, where the security costs were minimal.

“No violence, no nothing. And now we are spending well into six figures so that I can say many of the same things. It's utterly absurd,” Shapiro told the audience Thursday.
Metal detectors, concrete barriers and police barricades put the campus on effective lockdown.
“Conservatives here have done something amazing. They’ve achieved something incredible,” he added. “If you look outside, there’s K-bar everywhere. They’ve built basically these structures to keep Antifa from invading the premises.
"So that means Berkeley has achieved building a wall before Donald Trump did.”
Local police officers, who were allowed to use pepper spray against violent demonstrators after receiving approval this week from the Berkeley city council, arrested at least three people armed with weapons before the event, reiterating that no weapons are allowed near campus.
But the violent protesters known as Antifa, or “anti-fascists” – spooked by the security – did not show up to shut down Shapiro’s speech in their usual fashion and instead were allegedly in the audience challenging him, the Washington Times reported.
The talk by Shapiro -- author of the bestsellers "Brainwashed," "Porn Generation" and "Project President" -- was met with resistance mostly from Berkeley students who were heard chanting, “Speech is violent, we will not be silent!” and accusing Shapiro, an observant Orthodox Jew, of being a white supremacist or neo-Nazi.
“Thanks to Antifa and the supposed anti-fascist brigade for exposing what the radical left truly is,” he told the massive audience, despite a last-minute decision by the university to reportedly seize all unclaimed tickets to prevent entry to late-ticket buyers.
“All of America is watching because you guys are so stupid. It's horrifying, I am grateful, and you can all go to hell, you pathetic, lying, stupid jackasses," he added.
He celebrated the police for ensuring the event occurred, saying “These are the folks that stand between civilization and lawlessness."
He added that “the only people who are standing between those ATMs and the Antifa are the police, and all they get from the left is a bunch of crap.”
The event remained cordial despite students’ disagreements with Shapiro, who was questioned on his views regarding abortion, economics and general politics. He was not interrupted by any protesters inside the venue.
In the speech aftermath, some more-confrontational protesters came out, shouting at the police officers and scuffling with counter-protesters.
Two more people were reportedly arrested – bringing the total number arrested to five.
Among the protesters was By All Means Necessary (BAMN) ringleader Yvette Felarca, who was recently arrested for allegedly inciting a riot, Fox News reported.
A crowd led by Felarca marched down a street, shouting “Nazi scum of our streets,” according to Berkleyside, while counter-protesters also marched down. The police had separated the two factions to ensure no large clashes occurred.

Schumer, Pelosi Cartoons

Pres. Trump Meets With Sen. Scott on Race Relations

Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., the only African-American Republican serving in the Senate, talks to reporters about his plan to meet with President Donald Trump to discuss race and Trump’s widely criticized response to last month’s protests and racial violence in Charlottesville, Va., at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2017. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

In an effort to build relations and get a better understanding of African American issues, President Trump meets with South Carolina Senator Tim Scott.
Scott is currently the only black Republican senator, and the pair discussed race issues in the wake of Charlottesville.
The one-on-one meeting Wednesday at the White House is also an effort by the president to unify the country.
They talked about issues facing African Americans, and how the president can continue to improve the lives of all people in the country.
White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders commented on the meeting, calling it productive.

Jemele Hill says 'white supremacist' comments 'painted ESPN in an unfair light'

ESPN host Jemele Hill took to Twitter on Wednesday evening “to address the elephant in the room,” after coming under fire Monday for calling President Donald Trump a “white supremacist.”   

“My comments on Twitter expressed my personal beliefs. My regret is that my comments and the public way I made them painted ESPN in an unfair light. My respect for the company and my colleagues remains unconditional,” Hill tweeted.

In a series of tweets Monday, Hill claimed Trump was “unqualified and unfit to be president,” and that “his rise is a direct result of white supremacy.”
The network responded Tuesday, saying Hill’s comments “do not represent the position of ESPN,” and that she “recognizes her actions were inappropriate."
White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, meanwhile, said Wednesday that she believes Hill’s statements about the president constituted a “fireable offense.”
“That is one of the more outrageous comments that anybody could make and certainly is something that is a fireable offense by ESPN,” Sanders told reporters at the White House daily briefing.
Hill co-hosts the 6 p.m. broadcast of “SportsCenter” alongside Michael Smith, and has been on ESPN since 2013.
As of Wednesday, the tweets have not been deleted from Hill’s account.

Schumer, Pelosi say they have deal with Trump to protect 'Dreamers'

:-)

Democratic congressional leaders emerged from a meeting with President Donald Trump Wednesday vowing to pursue an agreement protecting immigrants who were brought illegally into the U.S. as children from deportation.

In a joint statement, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said they and Trump had "agreed to enshrine the protections of DACA into law quickly, and to work out a package of border security, excluding the wall, that's acceptable to both sides."

An estimated 800,000 young immigrants are currently covered by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, which was formed by former President Barack Obama in 2012. Earlier this month, the Trump administration announced it was winding down the program over the next six months, putting pressure on Congress to pass a legislative solution.
A source briefed on the meeting confirmed to Fox News that Trump and the leaders agreed to pair the DREAM Act, which provides for giving young illegal immigrants eventual citizenship, with some measures enhancing border security. The source said that those measures do not include Trump's long-promised wall across the U.S.-Mexico border.
However, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders issued a tweet denying that the border wall was off the table. A Democratic aide familiar with the conversations told Fox News that Trump "was clear he would continue to fight for the wall separate from this agreement."
Prior to Sanders' tweet, the White House issued a statement describing the meeting as "constructive" and "a positive step toward the President's strong commitment to bipartisan solutions for the issues most important to all Americans." The statement added that the three had discussed "policy and legislative priorities," including "tax reform, border security, DACA, infrastructure and trade."
During a White House meeting with moderate House members from both parties earlier Wednesday, Trump had urged lawmakers to come up with a bipartisan solution.
"We don't want to forget DACA," Trump told the members at the meeting. "We want to see if we can do something in a bipartisan fashion so that we can solve the DACA problem and other immigration problems."
The apparent deal is the latest example of Trump's sudden pivot to bipartisanship after months of railing against Democrats as "obstructionist." He has urged them to join him in overhauling the nation's tax code, among other priorities.
Trump, who was deeply disappointed by Republicans' failure to pass a health care overhaul, infuriated many in his party when he reached a three-month deal with Schumer and Pelosi to raise the debt ceiling, keep the government running and speed relief to states affected by recent hurricanes.
"More and more we're trying to work things out together," Trump explained Wednesday, calling the development a "positive thing" for both parties.

"If you look at some of the greatest legislation ever passed, it was done on a bipartisan manner. And so that's what we're going to give a shot," he said.
The "Kumbaya" moment now appears to extend to the thorny issue of immigration, which has been vexing lawmakers for years.
Funding for Trump's promised wall had been thought to be a major point of contention between Republicans and Democrats as they attempted to forge a deal.
House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., who also sat down with Pelosi to talk immigration Wednesday, told the Associated Press that deporting the so-called "Dreamers" was "not in our nation's interest," and said the president had "made the right call."
"I wanted him to give us time. I didn't want this to be rescinded on Day One and create chaos," Ryan said, arguing the time would allow Congress to "come up with the right kind of consensus and compromise to fix this problem."

White House disputes Schumer, Pelosi's border wall claim

Well, at least that's solved.

Two top Democrats emerged Wednesday from dinner at the White House with President Donald Trump saying the meal was “very productive."

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said in a statement that Trump agreed to protect so-called "Dreamers" and agreed to terms on border security -- "excluding the wall."
Shortly after their statement, the White House issued one of its own. Trump indeed had a productive meal with the Democrats, but the exclusion of the border wall "was certainly not agreed to."
Pelosi's Twitter account still has a pinned tweet that reads: "Trump’s cowardice is on full display today. His cruelty must not stand! #ProtectDREAMERS."
White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said earlier Wednesday that Trump was “committed to the wall. It doesn’t have to be tied to DACA, but it's important and he will get it done.” (DACA refers to Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, an Obama-era program through which the children of illegal immigrants have been allowed to stay in the U.S.)
Matt House, Schumer’s communications director, responded on Twitter: “The President made clear he would continue pushing the wall, just not as part of this agreement.”
The New York Times cited a White House official who said Trump pushed for border wall funding at the meeting.
Beside the border wall issue, the Democrats said Trump agreed to enshrine protections for the nearly 800,000 immigrants brought illegally to this country as kids who had benefited from the DACA program.
Trump ended the program earlier this month and gave Congress six months to come up with a legislative fix before the statuses of the so-called Dreamers begin to expire.
House Speaker Paul Ryan, who also sat down with Pelosi to talk immigration Wednesday, said in an interview that deporting the so-called Dreamers was “not in our nation’s interest,” and said the president had “made the right call.”
“I wanted him to give us time. I didn’t want this to be rescinded on Day One and create chaos,” Ryan said, arguing the time would allow Congress to “come up with the right kind of consensus and compromise to fix this problem.”
The dinner took place in the White House’s Blue Room, sources told Fox News. The Congress members sat at a rectangular table with Trump at the head with Pelosi to his right, and Schumer to his left. Eleven people were in the room, sources said. The first half-hour addressed trade issues with China.
The meeting between the three came shortly after Trump overruled congressional Republicans and cut a deal with Democrats to raise the federal debt ceiling for three months. Some conservatives criticized the deal as a capitulation by Trump.
Trump, however, appears to see bipartisanship as a key to get legislation out of the starting gate.
“More and more we’re trying to work things out together,” Trump explained Wednesday, calling the development a “positive thing” for both parties.
“Some of the greatest legislation ever passed, it was done on a bipartisan manner. And so that is why we’re going to give it a shot,” Trump said.
Fox News' Chad Pergram and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
Edmund DeMarche is a news editor for FoxNews.com. Follow him on Twitter @EDeMarche.

Bringing Down America Cartoons

Kid Rock opens Detroit's new arena, blocks newspaper from attending

Rocker-turned-maybe-politician Kid Rock retaliated this week after a Detroit media outlet published a “f----- up story” saying Rock didn't deserve to open the city's new taxpayer-funded sports arena because of his racist attitudes.

Rock denied the Detroit Free Press a press pass to attend Tuesday night's opening gig at the $862 million Little Caesars Arena.

A Free Press columnist had written that Rock represented a “middle finger to Detroiters” when he was chosen to perform the opening concert. The move signaled that people of color would not be welcome in the arena, the Detroit Free Press columnist opined.
Stephen Henderson, a Free Press editorial page editor, wrote that when “divisive performer Kid Rock” was chosen to open the arena, “it sent a message to the Detroiters who made the project possible and who have yet to see the benefits promised. It's a message that's not too far off those Jim Crow-era signs warning that blacks weren't welcome.
“This is a musician who got rich off crass cultural appropriation of black music, who used to wrap his brand in the Confederate flag — a symbol inextricably linked to racism, no matter what its defenders say,” he added.
According to the Free Press, the negative article about Kid Rock was not the paper’s position but an opinion article reflecting the views of an individual writer.
But the explanation was not sufficient for Rock’s publicist, Kirt Webster, who slammed the publication after being asked for a quote, saying: “You guys wrote a f----- up story and allowed it to be published. You want a quote, there it is.”
“To be published without doing any fact-checking on what Kid Rock has done for the city of Detroit? We don't condone bad behavior. We won't reward bad behavior,” he added.
Early Monday, the artist vented on social media and attacked his critics, claiming he will focus his philanthropic work on charities that defended him.
“They are trying to use the old confederate flag BS, etc., to stir the pot, when we all know none of this would be going on if I were not thinking of running for office,” he wrote, asking his fans to “pay no attention to the garbage the extreme left is trying to create.” (Rock had previously flirted with the idea of running for a U.S. Senate seat from Michigan.)
He added: “I am however very disappointed that none of the people, businesses or charities I have so diligently supported in Detroit have had anything to say about all these unfounded attacks from these handful of jackasses and the Detroit Free Press.
“So for the unforeseen future I will focus my philanthropy efforts on other organizations besides the ones I have supported in the past.”
As for the show, the Free Press described Tuesday's event as a "rowdy, defiant initiation," and noted in a separate story that about 200 protesters demonstrated outside the venue.