Conservative Happenings

Friday, July 24, 2015

New York Times Edits Clinton Email Story At Her Request

U.S. Democratic Presidential candidate and former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaks during the National Council of La Raza annual conference in Kansas City, Missouri July 13, 2015. REUTERS/Dave Kaup

The New York Times altered its story about two inspectors general calling for an investigation into whether Democratic Party front-runner Hillary Clinton mishandled classified information on her secret private email server.

The change to the lede paragraph came at the request of the Clinton campaign, Politico reports.

“It was a response to complaints we received from the Clinton camp that we thought were reasonable, and we made them,” Times reporter Michael Schmidt said, according to Politico.

The current version of the Times story starts:

WASHINGTON — Two inspectors general have asked the Justice Department to open a criminal investigation into whether sensitive government information was mishandled in connection with the personal email account Hillary Rodham Clinton used as secretary of state, senior government officials said Thursday.

But the original lede, as captured by NewsDiffs, which tracks changes to posted news stories, implicated Clinton as a target of the probe:

WASHINGTON — Two inspectors general have asked the Justice Department to open a criminal investigation into whether Hillary Rodham Clinton mishandled sensitive government information on a private email account she used as secretary of state, senior government officials said Thursday.

The original version highlighted the accusation that Clinton was the reason for and subject of the call for a criminal investigation, that “Clinton mishandled” classified information. The edited version leaves the impression that the information may have been handled, but only “in connection” to Clinton’s actions.

This was discovered by the left-wing DailyKos Elections Twitter feed.

‏@DKElections

"Clinton mishandled" & "mishandled in connecttion" w/Clinton's email acct = huge, huge difference

RETWEETS7
FAVORITES9

10:18 PM - 23 Jul 2015

‏@DKElections

"Clinton mishandled" & "mishandled in connecttion" w/Clinton's email acct = huge, huge difference

RETWEETS7
FAVORITES9

10:18 PM - 23 Jul 2015

Via: Daily Caller

[VIDEO] Lafayette movie theater shooting: Injury count increases to 9

Including the gunman, a total of 12 people were shot at The Grand Theatre in Lafayette on Thursday night (July 23), officials said as they revised the number of injured from seven to nine.

Three people died in the shooting, including the shooter, who police say died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Police are not yet publicly identifying the shooter, who was described as a 58-year-old white male. Lafayette Police Chief Jim Craft, speaking at a news conference at about 1:45 a.m. Friday, said investigators have multiple addresses for the suspect -- including in different states -- and are working to follow up on all of those leads.

Craft provided more details early Friday about how the series of events unfolded. Witnesses told police the shooter was "seated in the theater just like everybody else," apparently watching the comedy "Trainwreck" with the rest of the audience, when he stood up and started shooting with a semi-automatic handgun. The first two people he shot were directly in front of him, Craft said.

Two police officers were very close to the theater and were able to respond to the chaotic scene in less than a minute, Craft said. The officers entered the theater as a stream of theatergoers fled. As the officers entered, they heard a single gunshot, which was the suspect shooting himself. He may have seen the police coming, Craft said.

Officials found suspicious packages in the suspect's car and inside the theater, but after detonating them, determined they weren't anything of significance.

Officers are now continuing the lengthy work of processing the crime scene, which could take four to six hours, Craft said. Many people left shoes, purses and other items behind as they fled.

Bodies of two of the people who died remained inside the theater as of about 1:45 a.m. The third person died at a hospital, Craft said.

Police spent much of Thursday night interviewing dozens of witnesses. Though they had left by early Friday morning, many of their cars remained in the theater's parking lot. Craft said officials plan to do follow-up interviews with the witnesses on Friday, and also hope to speak with those who had been injured.

The next update from police is expected at about 6 to 6:30 a.m. Friday.

Via: NOLA

[VIDEO] Civil defense: Citizens, vets, guardsmen and cops take up arms to protect military facilities

It’s supposed to be the other way around, but civilians – as well as state and local authorities – have taken up the task of protecting the military in the wake of the Chattanooga terror attack.

Citizens groups, veterans, local law enforcement and the National Guard are all standing armed watch over the men and women of the military, protecting them from terrorists and – some say - from a federal policy that leaves service members unable to defend themselves on Pentagon property.

“After the recent shooting in Chattanooga, it has become clear that our military personnel must have the ability to defend themselves against these types of attacks on our own soil,” Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said. “Arming the National Guard at these bases will not only serve as a deterrent to anyone wishing to do harm to our service men and women, but will enable them to protect those living and working on the base.”

“We’re just a group of citizens who exercise their rights and do things like this when it comes to filling security gaps where the government falls short,” spokesman Chris McIntire

- Chris McIntire, 3% of Idaho

The July 16 attack that left four Marines and a Navy sailor dead at Chattanooga’s Navy Operational Support Center and Marine Corps Reserve Center, and followed a shooting at a recruiting center nearby, has sparked a national conversation on the 23-year-old policy. But governors, sheriffs, police chiefs and concerned citizens across the nation are not waiting for Washington to change the law.

The governors of Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Florida, Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas and Wisconsin have all signed orders in the last several days to allow National Guard troops to carry loaded guns on bases and at military recruiting centers in their states.

Citizens, veterans and local police are also stepping up to protect service members.

In Idaho, an 800-member volunteer group calling itself “3% of Idaho” is guarding military recruiting centers in an effort it dubs “Operation Guardian Angel.”

“We’re just a group of citizens who exercise their rights and do things like this when it comes to filling security gaps where the government falls short,” spokesman Chris McIntire, who said his group is not a militia and takes its name from the number of colonists believed to have taken part in the Revolutionary War, told KBOI 2News on Tuesday.

James Maxwell was one of five men who stood guard Wednesday outside a Farmington, N.M., recruiting substation. He told the Daily Times service members deserve protection since the attack in Chattanooga and amid calls from ISIS for its "lone wolf" sympathizers to attack Americans who wear the uniform.

"They weren't expecting anything to happen in Chattanooga," he told the newspaper. "They're sitting ducks here."

Via: Fox News

How Democratic-Leaning Detroit Helped Shape Ben Carson's Conservative Views

Long before Benjamin Carson was a Republican presidential candidate, he was a hero and a role model.

For a generation of black parents, the retired neurosurgeon's life's story was used to inspire their children. He grew up poor in Detroit. His mother had a third-grade education and could not read. Carson initially didn't do especially well in school. His poor grades led some of his classmates to refer to him as "dummy."

Detroit's Benjamin Carson High School of Science and Medicine is named after presidential candidate Ben Carson.

Brakkton Booker/NPR

Carson would eventually overcome those obstacles. He became a stellar student and went on to Yale and then to the University of Michigan's medical school before becoming the head of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore at just 33 years old. He would later receive international recognition for leading a surgical team in what was the first operation to separate twins conjoined at the back of the head.

Despite his success, the scars of growing up in poverty left their mark on Carson.

"One of the things that really bothered me when I was a kid was poverty. I didn't like being poor," Carson said to a room full of mostly black high school students at Detroit's Benjamin Carson High School of Science and Medicine (named for him) on the day of his presidential announcement in May. "I remember we used to have popcorn balls at school. And they looked so good, but they cost a nickel. And I never had a popcorn ball, the whole time."

Carson, the only black candidate in the 2016 presidential race, grew up in Detroit during the 1960s. It was not — and is not — exactly known as a haven of conservatism, especially in the black community. Back then, the civil rights movement was gaining momentum, the "Motown Sound" became synonymous with the Motor City and the Vietnam War had no end in sight. Going to where Carson grew up and talking to former classmates and friends revealed a young man determined not to allow the grip of poverty to keep him bound to southwest Detroit.

Via: NPR

POLL: CLINTON TRAILS THREE REPUBLICAN CONTENDERS IN KEY STATES

If this news doesn’t have Joe Biden, Al Gore, or Elizabeth Warren seriously considering entering the presidential race — and serious Democrats urging them to do so — then nothing will. According to a Quinnipiac University Swing State Poll, Hillary Clinton trails Marco Rubio, Jeb Bush, and Scott Walker in Colorado, Iowa and Virginia.

Two of the three Republicans Clinton trails are neither well known nor in possession of a well known name. Thus, the poll results should be viewed mostly as a referendum on Hillary.

This assessment is confirmed by Clinton’s favorability ratings. In Virginia, they are 41-50. In Colorado, they are 35-56. In Iowa, where Clinton has been a fairly constant presence, they are 33-56 — a tribute to her skill as campaigner.

Clinton runs ahead of these numbers against the three GOP hopefuls, but behind all three. Against Rubio, she trails by 8 points in Colorado and Iowa and 2 in Virginia. Against, Walker she is down 9 points in Colorado, 8 in Iowa, and 3 in Virginia. As for Bush, he of the burdensome family name, Clinton is 5 points down in Colorado, 6 down in Iowa, and 3 down in Virginia.

Clinton is losing ground. In April Quinnipiac, Clinton didn’t trail in of these match-ups against the three Republicans, and she was ahead in five of the nine.

Naturally, Clinton is suffering as a result of the various revelations and scandals of the past several months. According to Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University poll, she has lost ground on the question of her honesty.

In addition, she has lost ground on the question of being a strong leader. It’s difficult to look like a strong leader when you’re unwilling to face the press or answer other than softball questions.

Ominously, perhaps, for Clinton, Quinnipiac’s Brown points out that “Vice President Joseph Biden, who is considering a 2016 run, does better than Clinton on honesty and on caring about voter needs, always a key Democratic strong point.”

Donald Trump fares even worse than Clinton among those polled in the three swing states. But the GOP won’t be saddled with Trump as its nominee. And the poll tends to confirm what common sense tells us — voters aren’t holding Trump against Rubio, Walker, or Bush.

The real Trump problem lies in the possibility that he will run as a third candidate. As poorly as she’s faring, Clinton might well carry the three states polled by Quinnipiac pretty handily in a three-way race involving Trump.

Via: Powerline

Thousands ruled ineligible for Mass. Medicaid

Tens of thousands of people have been removed from the state's Medicaid program during the first phase of an eligibility review, according to figures from Gov. Charlie Baker's administration obtained by The Associated Press.

BOSTON (AP) — Tens of thousands of people have been removed from the state's Medicaid program during the first phase of an eligibility review, according to figures from Gov. Charlie Baker's administration obtained by The Associated Press.

The eligibility checks, required annually under federal law but not performed in Massachusetts since 2013, began earlier this year as part of Baker's plan to squeeze $761 million in savings from MassHealth, the government-run health insurance program for about 1.7 million poor and disabled residents.

At $15.3 billion, MassHealth is the state's single largest budget expense.

Based on the results of the redetermination process so far, the state was on track to achieve the savings it had hoped for in the current fiscal year without cutting benefits for eligible recipients, said Secretary of Health and Human Services Marylou Sudders.

The first phase of the process involved letters sent to 503,286 Medicaid recipients over the first six months of the calendar year notifying them of the need to reapply for benefits, according to numbers provided to the AP by the Executive Office of Health and Human Services.

Final figures were not expected until Aug. 1, but of the nearly 293,000 applications processed through late June, 78 percent remained eligible for Medicaid based on income. Of those deemed ineligible, the majority will have access to subsidized private insurance through the state's health connector, though about 5 percent, according to Sudders, would not qualify for subsidized coverage.

The results of the eligibility redeterminations to date, Sudders said, were in line with the typical rate of change in the Medicaid population and she did not believe it had deprived deserving residents of coverage.

Via: The Herald News

Starbucks stock pops on earnings beat, buyback news

The coffee chain reported quarterly earnings and revenue that beat analysts' expectations on Thursday. (Tweet This)

Starbucks posted fiscal third-quarter earnings of 42 cents per share on $4.88 billion in revenue. Analysts forecast Starbucks would report earnings of 41 cents a share on $4.86 billion in revenue, according to a consensus estimate from Thomson Reuters.

After the earnings announcement, the company's shares rose over 5 percent in extended-hours trading. The coffee giant is trading well above its $57 all-time high at current extended-hours levels.

The company also announced on Thursday that it would be repurchasing 50 million shares as part of its buyback program. This is in addition to the 11 million shares that were available for repurchase as of June 28, 2015, the company said.

Starbucks expects full-year revenue growth of 16 to 18 percent. Global comparable store sales growth will remain in the mid-single digits.

This is a breaking news article. Check back on CNBC's website for updates to this story.

Via: CNBC

Continue Reading....

Connecticut State Employees Win Settlement Protecting their Right to Refrain from Paying for Union Politics

Class-action settlement also ensures that nonunion employees who objected to subsidizing union politics will receive dues refunds

Hartford, CT (July 17, 2015) – With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, eight state employees have reached a class-wide settlement with several state officials and the Connecticut State Employee Association (CSEA)/SEIU Local 2001 union that protects their right to opt out of paying dues for union politics. The agreement covers 215 state workers and ensures that employees who resigned from the union and objected to paying dues for union politics but did not have their objections honored will receive refunds pursuant to the terms of the agreement.

In Connecticut and other states without Right to Work laws, employees can be forced to pay union dues or fees to keep their jobs. However, the Foundation-won Supreme Court precedent Chicago Teachers Union v. Hudson established that nonunion civil servants are due certain procedural protections of their right to refrain from paying dues or fees for activities unrelated to workplace bargaining, such as union political activism.

Via: NRTW

Castro: In America, geography has consequences

Where you live matters. A child born today in the Jeff-Vander-Lou neighborhood in St. Louis can expect to live 18 fewer years than a child born just 10 miles away in Clayton. Why? Because poverty presents obstacles that, too often, prevent families from getting ahead no matter how hard they try.

Imagine you are a child growing up in a struggling community. Your parents might not be able to find good jobs because local businesses are hurting and there aren’t any public transit options that can connect them to the other side of town. Your family can’t afford quality housing so your apartment is full of hazards that are making you sick, resulting in more time in the emergency room and less time in the classroom. You aren’t allowed to play outside because the local playground isn’t safe from crime, impacting your health and well-being.

A ZIP code should never prevent people from reaching their aspirations. That’s why the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has taken an important step to promote greater access to quality, affordable housing for all Americans. We published a final rule updating the process by which local communities use HUD funding to Affirmatively Further Fair Housing — a key provision of the Fair Housing Act of 1968.

When this landmark law was passed 47 years ago, it boldly declared that all Americans deserve an equal chance to access safe, affordable housing near quality schools, transportation and jobs — no matter who they are, what they look like, how they worship or where they are from. As part of this effort, the Fair Housing Act required local governments and states that receive HUD funding to use it to promote fair housing and expand access to opportunities. That’s why we’ve published this rule, to simplify that process and provide better partnership to local leaders working to put opportunity within reach of every resident they serve.

In this age of limited resources, communities are often operating without the data and tools they need to chart the landscape of opportunity in their area and craft locally tailored plans to achieve their goals.

HUD’s new effort will provide these resources. It will empower mayors, county officials, and community members with publicly-open data and tools to eliminate the barriers that block many Americans from getting ahead in life. As a former mayor, I know how valuable these resources are for communities.

During the pilot phase of this effort, local leaders in the Twin Cities region used the information to plan investments in housing and infrastructure where they are needed most. In Chicago, transit agencies are expanding service between high-poverty neighborhoods and job centers. In upcoming years, cities across the nation will be able to use these tools to ensure that every family’s destiny is determined by their effort and talent, not by where they were born.

Via: Detroit News

Pelosi urges DOJ probe into group targeting Planned Parenthood

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Thursday joined calls for a federal investigation into the California-based anti-abortion group that sparked the Planned Parenthood hidden camera controversy.

“Let’s have an investigation of those people who were trying to ensnare Planned Parenthood in a controversy that doesn’t exist,” Pelosi said Thursday in her first public remarks about Planned Parenthood since the first undercover video surfaced last week.

A long-time abortion rights champion, Pelosi dismissed accusations that Planned Parenthood has raked in profits from its fetal tissue donation program.

“Planned Parenthood has said that they have done nothing illegal,” she said. “They do not ever charge, which would be illegal, for fetal tissue. They have only defrayed the cost of mailing that to someone, which is not breaking the law.”

She also criticized the selectively edited videos released by the Center for Medical Progress, pointing to the “disparities" between actual film and edited versions.

Her remarks come one day after White House press secretary Josh Earnest also defended the women’s health provider.

Planned Parenthood, which receives several hundred million dollars in federal funding, is now facing new attacks from Republicans, who say they have more momentum than ever to defund the group.

House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) has also ordered congressional investigations into Planned Parenthood’s practices, as well as a half-dozen governors.

Pelosi dismissed the GOP’s attacks against Planned Parenthood, which she said “has been going on for a long time.”

She said government investigators should, instead, focus on the legality of the Center for Medical Progress’s political activity, backing an effort by several House Democrats who have called for a Department of Justice probe.

Attorney General Loretta Lynch said Wednesday that she would review “all information” available before deciding to launch a full investigation.

Via: The Hill

Illegal Alien Crime Wave in Texas: 611,234 Crimes, 2,993 Murders

Confessed hammer killer Juan Francisco De Luna Vasquez

The murder of Kathryn Steinle on the Embarcadero in San Francisco by an illegal alien is the most familiar example of a crime committed by an alien. But an unreleased internal report by the Texas Department of Public Safety reveals that aliens have been involved in thousands of crimes in Texas alone, including nearly 3,000 homicides.

PJ Media obtained an never-before-released copy of a Texas DPS report on human smuggling containing the numbers of crimes committed by aliens in Texas. According to the analysis conducted by the Texas Department of Public Safety, foreign aliens committed 611,234 unique crimes in Texas from 2008 to 2014, including thousands of homicides and sexual assaults.

That means that the already stratospheric aggregate crime totals would be even higher if crimes by many illegal aliens who are not in the fingerprint database were included.

Confessed Texas killer Juan Vasquez

The Secure Communities initiative is an information-sharing program between the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Justice. Presumably, both departments would have data on the number of fingerprint searches conducted that revealed a criminal act involved an alien.

Texas has been ground zero in illegal alien crossings into the United States. The Texas DPS report shows that in the Rio Grande Valley, 154,453 illegal aliens were apprehended in 2013.

Via: PJ Media

Friday, July 24, 2015

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