[OPINION] Hillary Clinton’s flaws are being obscured by Trump-smoke

Aug. 28–If nothing else, Donald Trump is proving to be a fabulous smokescreen for Hillary Clinton.

While the real estate mogul bloviates and offends large swaths of the American public, Clinton rides on as the front-runner in the Democratic presidential primary, Trump-smoke obscuring her own significant flaws.

Just yesterday, for example, at a campaign stop in Ohio, Clinton absurdly compared several GOPpresidential candidates’ “extreme views about women” to the views of terrorist groups.

She said: “Now, extreme views about women, we expect that from some of the terrorist groups. We expect that from people who don’t want to live in the modern world. But it’s a little hard to take coming from Republicans who want to be the president of the United States.”

I happen to share Clinton’s views on abortion and other women’s health issues, but that’s an uncalled for and offensive comparison to make. The Republican National Committee swiftly called for an apology, saying in a statement: “For Hillary Clinton to equate her political opponents to terrorists is a new low for her flailing campaign. She should apologize immediately for her inflammatory rhetoric.”

I agree. And don’t say, “But look at all the offensive things being said on the Republican side.” That doesn’t matter. Two wrongs — or 20 wrongs, or whatever — don’t make a right.

Clinton has every opportunity right now, with the Republican candidates flailing about trying to manage Trump’s xenophobic squawking, to keep to the high road. Comparing your opponents to terrorists is as low-brow as it is inaccurate.

Of course there are other issues as well. Clinton has been dismissive of the legitimate questions and concerns surrounding her use of a private email server during her time as secretary of state, seemingly missing the fact that for some of us it’s not the legality of what she did but rather the overall air of dodginess.

She has repeatedly made light of the situation, once saying she started a Snapchat account because the “messages disappear all by themselves” and, when talking about whether her private server was wiped clean, saying, “What? Like with a cloth or something?”

She seems to be dialing back the cavalier attitude now, but the damage has already been done, and it appears substantial. A Quinnipiac University poll released Thursday found this: “‘Liar’ is the first word that comes to mind more than others in an open-ended question when voters think of Clinton.”

And 61 percent of respondents say Clinton “is not honest and trustworthy,” a record low for her.

That’s a rather pitiful starting point for the person many Democrats seem to believe is their most qualified candidate.

It’s easy to look at the chaos in the GOP primary and say, “Wow, is that really the best they can do?”

But if you peer through the dust Trump keeps stirring up, you can get a look at the lackluster Democratic primary and say the same thing.

rhuppke@tribpub.com

Via: Daily Witness

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JOHN KASICH’S OBAMACARE MEDICAID EXPANSION SLAMMED AT OHIO AFP EVENT

Americans for Prosperity (AFP), one of the largest conservative activist groups in the United States, held their annual “Defending the American Dream Summit” in Columbus, Ohio, this week, but the state’s Republican Governor John Kasich was not invited.

Kasich’s decision to expand Medicaid under Obamacare—a move that the U.S. Supreme Court ruled was optional and up to state discretion—is a sore subject for fiscal conservatives and led to him being, not just left out of an event held in his backyard, but attacked by several of the event’s speakers, including former Texas Gov. Rick Perry and AFP President Tim Phillips.

Obamacare critics do not like how the law allows Medicaid, originally enacted as a safety net to provide health coverage for poor mothers and children, to be expanded to cover able-bodied, working-age adults. Federal funds cover the costs of the new enrollees but will start scaling back in 2017. Moreover, states are on the hook for administrative costs for signing up the new enrollees, whose numbers have far exceeded estimates.

For fiscal conservatives, like the activists at the AFP conference, the massive spending incurred by Medicaid expansion is especially distasteful, and Kasich’s support of it is viewed as a heretical departure from conservative principles, much like the way school choice advocates view former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush’s support for Common Core.

Kasich has defended his decision to authorize Medicaid expansion in Ohio on religious grounds, a rationale that has fallen flat with conservatives. According to a report by the Cleveland Plain Dealer, when Kasich was questioned about Medicaid expansion at a California conference sponsored by the Koch brothers, AFP’s benefactors, he replied, “When I get to the pearly gates, I’m going to have an answer for what I’ve done for the poor.”

Groups like Watchdog.org, a project of the Franklin Center for Government Accountability, and the Foundation for Government Accountability have joined AFP in criticizing Kasich. Nearly half a million Ohioans signed up under Kasich’s Medicaid expansion, and the plan was already 33 percent over budget in just its first year.

According to Watchdog’s Jason Hart, Ohio’s Medicaid enrollment numbers under Obamacare now exceed 600,000 and have cost taxpayers $4.4 billion.

Phillips, the AFP President, mentioned Kasich’s Medicaid expansion when he addressed the nearly 4,o00 activists on the conference’s first day. Even though he never said Kasich’s name, the implication was clear when he vowed that they would continue to fight against Medicaid expansion: “Whether proposed by a Democrat or a Republican, we’ll continue to oppose it with all we’ve got.”

“President Obama and some Republicans want to take millions of the most vulnerable citizens and they want to throw them into a Medicaid bureaucracy where the care is substandard,” continued Phillips, as the audience cheered in agreement. “They call that compassion. We call it immoral.”

Perry also took a swipe at his fellow Republican presidential contender during his remarks on Saturday. Kasich has repeatedly claimed that the federal funds going to pay for Ohio’s Medicaid expansion “belong” to Ohioans and would be spent in other states if Ohio had not claimed them. Perry rejected this argument as “just nonsense.”

“That money doesn’t come from an endless vault of money in Washington. It is borrowed from bankers in China and children in Cleveland and Columbus,” Perry added. “Justifying Medicaid expansion on the grounds of returning federal money to your home state can only be done if you turn a blind eye to the fact that we are $18 trillion in debt.”

Avik Roy, Senior Advisor to Perry’s presidential campaign and well-regarded as a health care policy expert before joining the campaign, spoke on a well-attended panel Saturday morning on the issue of Medicaid expansion. Like Perry, Roy found Kasich’s justifications wholly unconvincing.

Via: Breitbart

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When A Mom Spotted One Question On Her Fourth Grader’s Math Homework, She Lost It

The district confirmed it was aware of the situation Thursday, providing a more detailed response Friday morning.

The mother of one Ohio elementary school student is enlisting the assistance of local and social media to determine why a recent classroom assignment was peppered with what she felt to be inappropriate references.

She posted a social media photo showing an assignment sent home on the second day of the school year, prompting the press and concerned parents to share the image.

I suggested that with questionable wording, he should, maybe, have the pages retyped with new words and recipes he agreed. So not sure this resolved anything, but at least this teacher is aware that parents do pay attention to their kids’ assignments.

The district confirmed it was aware of the situation Thursday, providing a more detailed response Friday morning:

The wording is both insensitive and developmentally inappropriate. It also runs counter to the values of NAM and Cincinnati Public Schools, where we celebrate the diversity of our families and respect differences in backgrounds and beliefs.

Former district teacher Tyran Stallings agreed that the language used in this lesson was worrisome.

“I had an issue with the fact that liquor is being brought in a fourth grader’s classroom,” he said, “and in terms of education, I think that’s ridiculous.”

Should elementary school students be exposed to such references? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Via: Western Journalism

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15 States Finally Standing Up Against Obama’s Unconstitutional Regulations

Fifteen State Attorney Generals have filed suit against Obama’s Environmental Protection Agency for their sweeping and unconstitutional carbon regulations.

The fifteen states who petitioned the court on Thursday are West Virginia, Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Wisconsin and Wyoming.

If you are like me, you are wondering where your state is in the list.

The Blaze reports that under the unconstitutional regulations, the EPA will “regulate the electricity industry and require states and utility companies to meet goals, providing rewards and penalties.”

EPA spokeswoman Liz Purchia told Reuters, “To ensure that the Clean Power Plan’s significant health benefits and progress against climate change are delivered to all Americans, EPA and the Department of Justice will vigorously defend it in court.”

Fine, but you have no constitutional authority to do so.

West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey said, “This rule is the most far-reaching energy regulation in the ... to transform itself from an environmental regulator to a central planning agency for states’ energy economies. The Clean Air Act was never intended to be used to create this type of regulatory regime, and it flies in the face of the powers granted to states under the U.S. Constitution.”

The attempt by the states could be more easily dismissed through nullification of EPApolicies, since they are not even law and since the EPA is an unconstitutional agency. However, something had to be done immediately.

“If we were to wait on the EPA to get this rule published, it could be well into 2016 before the States complete arguments and receive a ruling on a request to stay this rule,” Attorney General Morrisey said. “By that time, many states will already be in the middle of drafting their compliance plans ahead of the September 2016 deadline. We want to ensure that no more taxpayer money or resources are wastefully spent in an attempt to comply with this unlawful rule that we believe will ultimately be thrown out in court.”

“While this request is not typical, the EPA is playing games by putting the risk of a delay in publication entirely on the states,” Morrisey added. “We hope the court will spare our states any more unnecessary harm, and that the EPA will not needlessly delay the publication date.”

Of course, Barack Obama, being the Marxist that he is, called the unconstitutional measures “the single most important step the U.S. has ever taken to fight climate change.”

The problem is that there is no climate change. There is no global warming. All of this is false science in order to extort money from the American people, impose communism inAmerica, shutdown business and eventually control the people.

“This is one of those rare issues because of its magnitude, because of its scope, that if we don’t get it right, we may not be able to reverse it,” Obama said. “There is such a thing as being too late when it comes to climate change. That doesn’t mean it’s hopeless. We can take action.”

The problem is that men do no create the weather or change the climate. God does. He determines how far the seas go (Job 38:8-11) and how hard the winds blow (matt 4:39). Yes, even hurricanes, tempests and such are at His command. Climate change is nothing more than a ruse. It is a lie because it comes from those whose father is the father of lies (John 8:44), the devil.

It’s long past time that states began to start banding together to ignore, not go to court with, the federal government in matters like this. Furthermore, they should ignore the court’s ruling, which is just that (ie. A ruling), and begin nullifying and interposing themselves between citizens, businesses and other entities in the states and the federal government.

Better yet, why don’t we simply band together to eliminate the federal government altogether and go back to sovereign states and Articles of Confederation. That would eliminate much of the tyranny that is strangling us today.

Via: Tea Party Command Center

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States ration birth, marriage, death certificates after paper company suddenly closes

WASHINGTON –  Someone call Dunder Mifflin: Several states are reporting a paper crisis, after an Ohio company that produces highly specialized paper for vital records closed without warning.

California has been hit the hardest by the shortage, and several counties are now being forced to ration birth, marriage and death certificates. 

In California, the only other company that can meet its needs, under state law, is in Canada. Officials say it would likely take months for Canadian Bank Note Co. to get up to speed with the state’s paper needs – but that’s only after a contract is signed. In the interim, counties are left finding short-term solutions for the growing backlog.

The restrictions “will impact a lot of folks,” Rob Grossglauser, a lobbyist for the County Recorders’ Association of California, told the San Francisco Chronicle.

The closure of Sekuworks, the Ohio paper company, has a handful of states scrambling to find a fix, including Minnesota and South Carolina. 

But California law is specific and requires the state to print all vital statistic certificates using a specialized – and some argue antiquated – type of printing, known as "intaglio." Besides Sekuworks, no other U.S.-based companies can handle that type of printing. 

Since the company closed, several California counties there have started to limit residents to one copy of a birth, marriage or death certificate. The restrictions are creating major headaches for people who are realizing just how important the documents are when trying to obtain licenses, handle funeral arrangements or apply to schools.

Intaglio printing is done using ink that is below the surface of the plate. The design is etched into the printing plate, which is typically made from copper, zinc, aluminum and in some cases, coated paper. The benefit of intaglio is that it’s a near-perfect way to prevent counterfeits. Minnesota employs the method for a range of sensitive documents and South Carolina – which recently adopted new standards – used it for death certificates. 

But critics argue it’s too labor intensive, antiquated and expensive.

In central California, Stanislaus County officials are now working with area school districts to provide a free “verification of birth” for people who otherwise would need a copy of their child’s birth certificate to enroll in school.  

California has two types of certified birth notices – an authorized copy and an informational copy. While both are certified copies of the original document, an authorized copy establishes the identity of a person. An informational copy cannot be used for identity purposes and carries an inscription across the face of the document stating, “INFORMATIONAL, NOT A VALID DOCUMENT TO ESTABLISH IDENTITY.”

Informational copies are available to anyone who requests one. Authorized copies are not.

County Clerk-Recorder Lee Lundrigan sent letters to school districts notifying them of the change and has been working to provide parents with emergency options.

South Carolina initially addressed its paper shortage by limiting the number of death certificates it issued to five per person.

The move put pressure on funeral homes and handicapped their ability to help families through the difficult process of losing a loved one. While a five-certificate limit might sound like a lot, Pamela Amos, general manager at McAlister-Smith Funeral Homes, told The Post and Courier that most families need at least 10 certified copies of a death certificate and that the state-sanctioned limits caused “a major issue for a lot of families.”

The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control – the agency authorized to issue the certificates – was notified on July 9 Sekuworks had laid off most of its employees and was in the process of selling its business. 

South Carolina, though, lifted its five-copy limit on Aug. 11 after the state signed a new contract with supplier R.R. Donnelley, Jim Beasley, a spokesman with the state DHEC, told FoxNews.com. Beasley indicated the state, unlike California, was able to revise its own security standards, and in turn use a different kind of paper. 

“In 2014, we had already begun the process of revising our specifications for security paper to be used on birth and death certificates,” Beasley said. “We had issued a request for proposals from vendors to meet the new standard. Coincidentally, the bids for a new provider were scheduled for opening on July 9, 2015, the same day we were informed of the work situation with Sekuworks.”

The DHEC began processing back-order requests immediately and expects to resume normal operations by Wednesday, he said.

Meanwhile in Minnesota, officials at the state’s Department of Health are working to establish a new contract with a new vendor. The state is still about a month away before “everything is in place and a new supply could start flowing,” Doug Schultz, a spokesman for the Minnesota DOH, told FoxNews.com. Schultz believes there is enough supply statewide to meet the demand if offices cut down on duplicates. 

“Requests for certificates will continue to be fulfilled, but that fulfillment may occur at locations people don’t regularly use, through the U.S. mail or from neighboring county vital records offices,” he said.

Multiple emails, telephone calls and other attempts by FoxNews.com to reach Sekuworks were not successful.

Via: Fox News

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Poll: 23% of Americans View Boehner Favorably; 22% View McConnell Favorably

CNSNews.com) – A new Gallup poll on Congress and its leaders shows that only 23% of Americans view House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) favorably, and only 22% view his Senate counterpart, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) favorably.

Gallup further reports that Boehner’s ranking is similar to that of then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) in October 2010, when only 26% of Americans viewed her favorably. Also, for then-Senate Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) in October 2014, he was viewed favorably by only 21% of Americans.

When looking specifically at Republicans, Gallup found that only 37% had a favorable view of Boehner, and only 34% had a favorable view of McConnell.

Boehner has been the Speaker of the House of Representatives since January 2011. McConnell became the Senate Majority Leader in January of this year.

Via: CNS News

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DR. BEN CARSON: THE PEOPLE WILL RISE UP AND REGAIN CONTROL OF GOVERNMENT

GOP presidential candidate Dr. Ben Carson joined Breitbart News Sunday on SiriusXM Patriot Channel 125 with host Stephen K. Bannon, Breitbart News’ Executive Chairman, who asked Carson about his numbers and support increasing after the first GOP presidential primary debate last week in Cleveland, Ohio.

A recent NBC poll after the debate noted that Carson is right behind GOP frontrunner Donald Trump and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX). Also following the debate, the Carson campaign posted on Facebook, “Even more, it’s clear that the people were listening – we gained over 100,000 friends and patriots on Facebook during the debate.”

Bannon asked Carson if he thought the fact that he didn’t get much talking time from Fox News in the beginning of the debate had anything to do with being underestimated by some critics as a top tier candidate.

“The traditional world of political punditry and political experts think that the possibility of someone like me being successful is zero. That’s been their attitude from the very beginning,” Carson answered.

He continued, “They’ve forgotten about the most important thing and that is the people. For decades now, we’ve kind of forgotten about the people. It was Thomas Jefferson who said that in the end just before we turn to another form of government, the people will rise up and will speak and we will regain control of government – they need to read those passages.”

Carson went on to explain why he believes his message is resonating with voters.

“I think one of the things is integrity. People have lost faith in their government, you know, whatever the government says, you pretty much say, well you know, it must be the opposite of that… that’s not what this country was designed to be,” he said. “The government works for the people and not the other way around.”

In order to get the government back to where it should be – working for the people – Carson said, “We have to reestablish the priorities and we must get back to the Constitution.”

“They’re also very concerned about our fiscal ineptitude and I don’t know if very many people other than myself are really talking about the danger that we’re in in terms of the fiscal gap – the amount of money we actually owe and the implications for the future,” he added.

On the topic of the type of questions Fox News asked the candidates, Carson in a previous interview with Breitbart News appeared disappointed the candidates didn’t receive more pressing questions on issues like national security and foreign policy.

“I would have rather seen something a little more serious and directed really more toward the gigantic issues that are going to destroy this nation if we don’t do something about it,” he told Bannon. “I would have liked to have seen a situation where everybody had an opportunity to respond because the electorate must have an opportunity to compare apples to apples.”

Bannon asked Carson about his plan for immigration, which was a topic Carson said he wished he had been asked about during the debate.

“It is a big problem and it’s perfectly solvable by sealing all of the borders… not just the southern border because we have to worry about the jihadists who want to destroy us and are infiltrating our society… it’s not just fences and walls, it’s electronic surveillance and drones,” Carson explained about protecting the borders, adding more personnel could help keep the border safe.

Carson went on to explain what he plans to do once the borders are secured.

“You also have to turn off the spigot that dispenses the goodies. If there were no goodies to come here for, what would be the point of risking going through all of that barrier just to get here for noting – and you have to make the hiring of people who are not here legally a criminal offense,” he explained. “Then, you still have the 11 million people who are here – many of whom don’t know any other place, so where are you going to send them back to?”

He said it is “not practical” to round up and deport all 11 million people.

“What we have to do is provide them an opportunity to become guest workers, provided that they pay their back tax penalty, pay taxes going forward…they’re not eligible for any benefits that citizens of America get – and if they want to become an American citizen, they have to get in the back of the line and they have to go through the same process as anybody else. That’s the way I think you take care of it,” he said, adding this plan wouldn’t collapse the farming and hotel industries among others.

Bannon asked Carson if he thought the influx of illegal immigrants are taking away from American jobs, especially in places like Baltimore where the African American unemployment rate is high.

Carson said it does make it worse, but “if you make people register and become guest workers, you have much more control over that.”

On the topic of being soft spoken and usually a voice of reason among a crowded field of GOP candidates, Carson said, “It was Teddy Roosevelt that said walk softly and carry a big stick… people that believe that just because you’re not jumping all over the place and yelling and screaming, that you don’t have resolve and backbone. You know, they need to read my autobiography and see what kind of resolve and backbone I do have.”

“People, who have to raise the decibel level of what they say, frequently don’t have anything to say,” Carson stated. “When people start actually listening to what I’m saying, I think if they have common sense they will be able to resonate quite effectively with it.”

Via: Breitbart

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USDA Putting Solar Panels on Chicken Coops

Agency announces $63 million for solar projects for farms

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is spending millions on green energy projects for farms, including putting solar panels on the tops of chicken coops.

The federal agency announced Friday that its Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) will spend $63 million on solar panels and wind turbines for the farming industry.

One project, totaling $16,094, was awarded to Blue Sky Poultry, Inc., of Bainbridge, Ga., to “install a solar array on the roof of poultry houses.”

Other projects announced by the USDA included $18,000 for solar panels for a fruit farm in Ohio, and $19,750 for a wind turbine for a farm in Minnesota.

The majority of funding is going toward similar small projects. The agency is also financing larger solar projects through loan guarantees in the amounts of $3 to $4 million, and funding a $5 million project to turn wood into gas.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said the $63 million in funding would “create jobs, reduce greenhouse gas pollution, and helps usher in a more secure energy future for the nation.”

The USDA pointed out that the Obama administration has spent more than $291 million in grants and $327 million in loan guarantees on green energy projects for farmers through the program since the president took office.

Via: WFB

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OHIO: College Lays Off Hundreds, Blows $900k On President’s Mansion

The University of Akron, a public college in Ohio, is attracting ridicule over the revelation that it has spent lavishly to renovate its president’s house while also trying to plug a $60 million budget hole.

In an emergency effort to rapidly cut its expenses by $40 million, Akron has announced that it is eliminating 215 positions at the school. Victims of the cuts include the school’s non-profit publishing company, a big chunk of its theater staff, and its baseball team.

Scrutiny over the deep, rapid cuts has led to local press discovering that one reason for the school’s big financial hole is a massive splurge last year on the university president’s house.

According to documents obtained by the Northeast Ohio Media Group, the school spent about $950,000 renovating a house for current president Scott Scarborough, who arrived at the school late last year. The house already belonged to the school, but had received no significant work in 15 years under Scarborough’s predecessor.

While several hundred thousand dollars were spent on renovations to the heating, plumbing, and other essential parts of the house, this price tag also included a host of lavish improvements.

For example, an invoice published by The Akron Beacon-Journal found over $150,000 in spending on furnishings and decorations for the house. Purchases include several thousand-dollar chairs, five thousand-dollar kitchen stools, and an $1,800 bedroom mirror.

Most notoriously, though, the purchases include a $556 decorative olive jar, which has been swiftly singled out for ridicule by those critical of Akron’s excess. The olive jar already has its own Facebook and Twitter pages, with its “comments” including statements along the lines of “Holy shit! I cost that much?”

Akron is a public college, but has tried to defend the house spending by saying it was paid for exclusively from private donations rather than public funds. But the school also assigned a substantial number of school staff to spend hundreds of hours working on the renovation, and those staff were state employees.

Akron has had to suppress a great deal of bad publicity stemming from the layoffs, even creating a special page entitled “Just the Facts” to counter claims such “The University’s academics wallow in mediocrity” and “The University’s graduation rates are awful.”

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Via: Daily Caller

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Kasich makes quick rise in polls

It could have been embarrassing: The sitting governor of Ohio left off the primetime Fox News debate stage in his home state because of low poll numbers.

But in the two weeks since he launched his presidential campaign, John Kasich has bypassed New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, former Texas Gov. Rick Perry and other Republicans who have been in the race longer.

Last week, the main super-PAC backing Kasich’s candidacy announced it raised more than $11 million, tapping into a surprisingly deep well of influential Ohioans for a haul that puts him squarely in the middle of a well-funded pack of GOP candidates.

“Someone in that campaign knows what they’re doing,” said Tom Rath, a Republican strategist in New Hampshire, where Kasich has leaped into third place, according to one recent poll.

And Kasich’s late entrance — he was the 16th Republican to launch a presidential bid — appears to have been perfectly timed to give him a boost in the polls nationally, potentially propelling him onto Fox News’s primetime debate stage this week. 

“The timing was good,” said Doug Heye, the former communications director for the Republican National Committee. “But don’t forget, this is a guy who has had a national presence for a while now, first in Congress, and then as the host of a Fox News show. He’s got that base of people who already knew him from being cabled into people’s homes and many of them just needed a reminder.”

If Kasich can ride the momentum he has onto the debate stage this week, it will be a big early victory for his campaign. Fox News is capping the number of candidates at 10 based on national polling numbers. 

Right now, Kasich is alone in ninth place with 3.5 percent support, according to RealClearPolitics average of polls, more than double the support he had at the beginning of July. Kasich leads Christie and Perry, his two closest challengers for the final spots on the debate stage.

A Quinnipiac University survey released last week shows Kasich in even better shape, taking 5 percent support and sharing eighth place with Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas). In the same poll from May, Kasich was tied for 10th place with only 2 percent support.

It’s the second national poll to be released since Kasich officially launched his bid for the White House that shows him making gains. A CNN/ORC poll that went into the field the day after Kasich’s announcement also registered an uptick in support, from 2 percent to 4 percent, putting him in an eighth-place tie with Christie and Ben Carson. 

Via: The Hill

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Bill O'Reilly: Gov't Killing People Over Traffic Stops, But Ignoring Federal Laws

Recently two Americans wound up dead after traffic stops.

In Texas, 28-year-old Sandra Bland was stopped when she failed to signal while changing lanes. She was taken into custody where she allegedly committed suicide.

In Ohio, 43-year-old Samuel DuBose was shot dead by a police officer after being stopped for not having a license plate on the front end of his car.

The Ohio cop has been charged with murder. The Texas woman's case is being investigated by state authorities.

Talking Points does not know what precisely happened, so further comment will wait until the hard evidence is presented.

But the point is that laws -- no matter how trivial -- matter. 

And we the people, including law enforcement, are expected to obey them … all of them.

Via: Real Clear Politics

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[VIDEO] Lake County murder suspect found to be in country illegally during July 7 traffic stop

PAINESVILLE, Ohio -- Lake County sheriff's deputies learned that Juan Emmanuel Razo was in the U.S. illegally from Mexico more than two weeks before his arrest in the death of a 60-year-old Concord Township woman.

Razo made his first court appearance Tuesday in the death of Margaret Kostelnik where a judge set a $10 million bond. He's also accused in the attempted rape of a 14-year-old girl and the shooting of another woman who survived.

Razo pleaded not guilty to a charge of attempted murder, but still faces possible murder and other charges in connection to the other incidents.

Lake County Sheriff's Det. Brian Butler said during the court hearing that during a July 7 traffic stop, deputies contacted border patrol agents who advised the sheriff's office not to detain Razo despite his status as an undocumented immigrant.

Cicconetti expressed frustration at Razo's lack of documentation.Razo, who spoke with the aid of a Spanish translator, told Painesville Municipal Court Judge Michael Cicconetti at the hearing that he doesn't have a passport or a green card.

Razo told Cicconetti he has a birth certificate from Mexico, to which the judge replied, "That doesn't help you here in the United States."

Razo has lived in the country for five years and has no local criminal history, the sheriff's office said Tuesday. 

In response to a request for information, Customs and Border Protection spokesman Jaime Ruiz issued a statement that said, "we're looking at the facts of the case to find out exactly what happened."

Khaalid Walls, a spokesman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said the agency "intends to take custody of [Razo] and pursue his removal from the United States."

Razo's illegal status may hit a nerve for many at a time when immigration is a hot button political issue. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump just last month criticized Mexican immigrants, characterizing them as criminals and rapists. Trump will be in Cleveland next week for a debate.

The of violent events of Monday left neighbors of the rural Concord Township and the surrounding areas on edge. Investigators have not revealed any information about Razo's possible motive.

A 14-year-old girl told police that Razo tried to rape her about 10:40 a.m. in Helen Hazen Wyman Park in Concord Township. 

Detectives canvassed the area looking for Razo. They also searched his Lusard Street home in Painesville, but didn't find him.

As the search continued, Lake Metroparks rangers were called to a shooting near the Greenway Corridor.

A 40-year-old woman was found along the bike path with a gunshot wound to her arm. Her two 12-year-old children were unharmed.

Paramedics took the woman to the Tripoint Medical Center, where she was treated for non life-threatening injuries.

Investigators widened their search area, driving an armored vehicle along the bike path. Officials sent a reverse 911 call to residents within a half-mile radius telling them to stay inside their homes.

Officials called in help from surrounding police departments, including two K-9 units.

It was during this search that a deputy was flagged down by Kostelnik's husband. He told detectives he just found his wife dead in their Ravenna Road home with several gunshot wounds.

The Kostelniks' Ravenna Road home is directly behind the bike path where the woman was shot 

A man at about 4:30 p.m. called 911 reporting a man – later found to be Razo – was in his back yard pointing a rifle at his son.

Three deputies rushed to Palmer Road in Concord Township, where they found Razo.

Razo shot at deputies, according to reports. The deputies fired back at Razo, who jumped behind a large boulder.

The deputies ordered Razo to surrender, which he did. He was taken into custody.

A preliminary hearing is set for 8 a.m. August 3.

Northeast Ohio Media Group reporter Eric Heisig contributed to this story.

Via: Cleveland.com

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