Conservative Blogger
Sunday, December 17, 2017
Keeping 'Dreamers' would cost taxpayers $26B over next 10 years, feds say
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| Carlos Esteban and other supporters of the DREAM Act and DACA demonstrate outside the White House in Washington, Sept. 5, 2017. |
Allowing 2 million illegal immigrant “Dreamers” to
remain in the U.S. would cost taxpayers $25.9 billion over the next
decade, the Congresssional Budget Office says in a report released Friday.
Dreamers are the prospective beneficiaries of the DREAM Act
(Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors), legislation
introduced in the U.S. Senate earlier this year to provide a pathway to
citizenship for some illegal immigrants.
They would include those who've participated in DACA
(Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals), received temporary protected
status, or have fulfilled certain educational requirements.Under the bill, immigrants who benefited from DACA would be eligible for Medicaid, food stamps, education funding, and various other programs, provided that the applicants meet certain requirements.
Of the 11 to 12 million illegal immigrants currently in the U.S., some 3.25 million would be eligible for the DREAM Act. However, the report estimates that only 2 million would apply, 1.6 million of whom would earn legal status over the next 10 years. A remaining 1 million would become citizens with that same time period, which would allow them to sponsor relatives, the report states.
The CBO estimates that the bill would increase budget deficits by $25.9 billion over the 2018-2027 period while increasing net revenues by $0.9 billion.
DACA, originally implemented in 2012 under the Obama administration via executive order, allowed individuals who entered or the United States illegally as minors to receive a two-year period of deferred action and elligibility for a work permit.
By 2017 approximately 800,000 individuals – or Dreamers – were taking advantage of DACA. The Trump administration announced its intention to ax DACA earlier this year.
Hallmark Christmas movies under fire for spreading 'Caucasian cheer'
The Hallmark Channel is a throwback to an age when Hollywood produced family-friendly films and love stories that did not involve leather and whips.
The network has earned millions of loyal fans for
broadcasting movies that promote the virtues of faith and family --
stories that tug at your heartstrings.“We are a place you can go and feel good,” Bill Abbott, the chief executive of Crown Media, told the Washington Post.
“We intentionally branded ourselves as the happy place. Abbott said. “Hallmark’s tagline is ‘the heart of TV.’”Would Slate be just as indignant about the ethnic casting habits of BET or Univision or the LGBT-friendly Bravo television network?
And viewership has skyrocketed since President Trump promised to make America great again – making Hallmark one of the most-watched cable television networks in the nation.
For the sake of full disclosure, I’m a fan of “When Calls The Heart,” produced by my good friend, Brian Bird. It’s a great place to escape from the unhinged rantings of Rachel Maddow and Don Lemon.
But it turns out not everyone is a fan of Hallmark. Click here to watch my Fox Radio commentary on this issue.
Slate published a scathing review of the network -- complaining about its around-the-clock Christmas movies.
"They brim with white heterosexuals who exclusively, emphatically, and endlessly bellow “Merry Christmas” to every lumberjack and labradoodle they pass. They’re centered on beauty-pageant heroines and strong-jawed heroes with white-nationalist haircuts," the Slate writer declared.
There were complaints about the lack of gay people and feminists and Muslims in Hallmark Channel's movies.
Slate also whined about what it called the network's "42 hours of sugary, sexist, preposterously plotted, plot hole–festooned, belligerently traditional, ecstatically Caucasian cheer."
It’s true that most of the stars in Hallmark’s Christmas movies have a fair complexion – but to say it’s a holiday white-out would be inaccurate.
Would Slate be just as indignant about the ethnic casting habits of BET or Univision or the LGBT-friendly Bravo television network?
"The Christmas-down-your-throat bombast, holly-jolly sexism, the characters’ zaniness and unyielding impulsiveness—it’s all very Trumpian behavior," the Slate writer said.
I say better that than the run-of-the mill pornographic debauchery that normally spews out of Hollywood.
Fortunately, for the folks over at Slate there is a perfect solution to their television viewing dilemma – just change the channel.
As for me and my house, we’re going to put an extra log on the fire, pour a cup of hot cocoa and enjoy a very Hallmark Christmas.
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.
Australian man accused of brokering North Korea missile sales
Australian police have arrested a Sydney man
accused of acting as an agent for North Korea by allegedly attempting to
broker sales for Pyongyang including components used in ballistic
missiles.
"This case is like nothing we have
ever seen on Australia soil," Australian Federal Police Assistant
Commissioner Neil Gaughan told reporters Sunday morning. "This is black
market 101."
The suspect has been identified as a 59-year-old
naturalized Australian citizen who was born in South Korea. He
was arrested Saturday and charged over two transactions that were
unsuccessful."But we estimate that if these trades were successful, we're talking tens of millions of dollars," Gaughan said.
Police allege the man was generating tens of millions of dollars for the Pyongyang regime by arranging the sale of missiles, components and expertise from North Korea to other international entities, and was trying to arrange the transfer of coal from the country to Indonesia and Vietnam.
"This man was acting as a loyal agent for North Korea who believed he was acting to serve some higher patriotic purpose," Gaughan said. "I think at the end of the day he would sell whatever he could to make money back for the North Korean government."
Gaughan added that there was no evidence any weapons or components passed through Australia and said the governments of Indonesia and Vietnam -- or authorities in those countries -- were not involved.
"We’re alleging all the activity occurred offshore," Gaughan said.
The suspect is the first person charged under Australia's Weapons of Mass Destruction Act and faces a maximum 10-year prison sentence. However, Gaughan said the investigation was ongoing and more charges were expected.
Police started investigating the man after a tip-off from another international agency on another matter, Gaughan said, adding that the man's activities also involved commodities including oil and gemstones.
Despite international sanctions, cash-strapped North Korea last month test-fired its most powerful missile that may be able to target the U.S. mainland.
NBC paid off producer who accused Chris Matthews of harassment, report says
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| Chris Matthews, pictured here in April, has hosted MSNBC's 'Hardball with Chris Matthews' since 1997. |
NBC paid thousands of dollars to an assistant
producer on MSNBC's "Hardball with Chris Matthews" nearly two decades
ago after she brought a sexual harassment complaint against the longtime
host, The Daily Caller reported Saturday.
The website, citing two sources,
reported that NBC paid the woman $40,000 to settle her claim against
Matthews in 1999. An NBC spokesperson told The Daily Caller the network
paid a smaller, unspecified amount as part of a severance package.
The woman complained to executives that Matthews, now
71, had made inappropriate comments to her and made inappropriate jokes
about her to others.An MSNBC spokesman told The Daily Caller that Matthews had been slapped with a formal reprimand at the time the woman made her complaint. The website reported that the network decided that the complaints were "inappropriate and juvenile," but were not intended as propositions.
Matthews has hosted "Hardball" on MSNBC since 1997. He also hosted the syndicated "Chris Matthews Show" between 2002 and 2013 and has authored eight books, most recently a biography of Robert Kennedy.
Saturday, December 16, 2017
Maria Bartiromo: Why tax reform matters so much
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Tax reform: The key issues that could derail the billBoth House and Senate lawmakers are working to make a deal on tax reform. Here is a look at the key issues, from health care to child credit tax relief, that could derail its passage |
I’m not in the habit of giving stock tips or making market calls. I’ve never claimed to be an investment strategist. But after spending years reporting on business and finance, I was convinced on the night of Nov. 8, 2016, that the conventional market wisdom was way off target.
As the night wore on and equity traders began to grasp that Donald Trump would become president, stock markets around the world started selling off. In the U.S., trading in S&P 500 futures would eventually be halted after a 5% decline. After midnight, Paul Krugman of the New York Times opined: “If the question is when markets will recover, a first-pass answer is never.”
I didn’t see it that way. For years I’d been hearing anguished people at companies large and small bemoan the growing federal burden of taxes and regulations. Now the U.S. would have a president who intended to reduce this hardship and prioritize economic growth.
When I sat down around 10:30 on election night for a Fox News panel discussion, Dow futures were down about 700 points. Markets like certainty; it was understandable that some investors were selling. Mr. Trump seemed to present more uncertainty than Hillary Clinton, who was essentially promising a continuation of the Obama administration. Mr. Trump’s talk about ripping up the North American Free Trade Agreement, for example, created big unknowns and potentially significant risks.
Keep reading Fox Business Network anchor Maria Bartiromo's column in the Wall Street Journal.
Newt Gingrich: Republican tax cuts are hit with fake news attacks
Republicans are wrapping up the biggest tax cut
bill since 1986, despite the fact that the elite media has spent weeks
attacking, distorting, and undermining the GOP tax cut legislation.
Every Democratic attack, no matter
how false or distorted, has been given extensive news coverage. Liberal
columnists and analysts have laboriously written and opined on
television against the tax bill.
If a provision cuts taxes for millions of Americans but
raises taxes for a few thousand, the elite media skips the many winners
to focus on the small number of losers.At the same time, the eight-year underperformance of the Obama administration in jobs, take-home pay, and economic growth is ignored by the elite media, while the already accelerating economic growth during the first year of the Trump presidency is underreported or downplayed.
Similarly, there is little coverage of the remarkable jump in small-business owner confidence or the equally impressive improvement in corporate CEO optimism.
The fake news game being played against the historic Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 is designed to take away all of the political advantages Republicans ought to be gaining.The fake news game being played against the historic Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 is designed to take away all of the political advantages Republicans ought to be gaining.
Consider the facts:
- The Republican tax cut takes a big step toward President Trump’s campaign goal of implementing a 15 percent corporate tax rate. The corporate rate’s reduction from 35 percent to 21 percent would have been unthinkable two years ago.
- The pass-through provision to enable small businesses to also get a strong tax cut has won enthusiastic support from the National Federation of Independent Businesses and the Job Creators Network (two of the leading small business associations). Note also that the media completely distorted NFIB’s questions about early versions of the bill and presented the group’s honest concerns as total opposition.
- The Republican tax cut bill will boost job creation and includes strong middle class and pro-family provisions. Increasing the child tax credit to up to $2,000 and doubling the standard deduction will have an incredibly positive impact on middle-class families.
- The simplification and increased deduction will allow nine out of 10 Americans to file their taxes on a form the size of a postcard. The savings in time and money that used to be spent on tax preparers will be a further advantage for most Americans.
Republicans need to be prepared to win the argument. They have to assume the liberal media will continue to push fake stories about this legislation, and they need to be ready to counter these distorted, false claims.
In every interview, Republicans must be prepared to correct reporters and anchors when they start using phony examples and false "facts."
Republicans should use social media to reach every big winner in the tax cut bill – starting with small business owners.
Writing a good bill is only step one.
Communicating the bill effectively, despite falsehoods and distortions in fake news, is the vital second step – and it requires serious commitment.
If Republicans reach every person who is helped by this bill, they will win decisively in 2018.
The Democrats who do not vote for this bill will have to explain why they are against reduced taxes, lower unemployment, a simpler tax code and more American job creation.
Winning the argument over the tax bill may be the most crucial step toward victory in 2018.
Newt Gingrich is a Fox News contributor. A Republican, he was speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999. Follow him on Twitter @NewtGingrich. His latest book is "Understanding Trump."
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