#341951

The ex-president’s contract showed how his charity work overlapped with the Clintons’ private and public lives.

#341952

In light of security threats aimed at Islamic State commanders, the terror group has banned the full-face cover in sensitive areas of Mosul, Iraq.

#341953

'A safe space for Black CSLA students ...'

#341954

For those of us who have remained sufficiently awake during the course of this wretched election cycle, this is a suspicion we’ve held for some time. Trump’s real motivation for what appears to be nothing more than a candidacy based on satire? Reality TV. Trending WE TOLD YOU SO: Trump Insider Confirms Plans for Trump TV The Washington Examiner is reporting on what every expert | Read More

#341955

In the name of ‘fairness’ the left pushed for a system which aims to allow as many people as possible to have the chance to go to university, removing...

#341956

For anyone who is economically literate, concerned about civil liberties,
opposed to corruption and cronyism, in favour free trade and fiscal
conservatism, supportive of peaceful internationalism, and/or in possession
of a conscience, the 2016 US Presidential election is unlikely to produce a
good result.
Hillary Clinton’s Democratic campaign amounts to a Frankensteinian attempt
to create a powerful but confused and unnatural electoral monster. In
essence, she is seeking to sew together a continuation of the Obama-era
status quo, a pitch to the centre and disaffected establishment Republicans
, a pandering to Sanders-inspired left-wingers, and a kids-gloves approach
to populist dissatisfaction.
Donald Trump’s Republican platform is a hodgepodge of bad ideas. The
central narrative and policies turn on isolationist-nationalism and
authoritarian populism, exemplified by aggressive nativist rhetoric and
opposition to immigration, international institutions, and trade deals.
Trump also has a confused foreign policy, synthesising isolationism with
erratic aggression.
This has been combined with the usual Republican package of tax cuts and
deregulation. However, any continuity with conservatism is a veneer and
should be of no comfort to principled Republicans. Trump’s proposed tax
cuts are unfunded, and would add at least $10 trillion to the budget
deficit. His enthusiasm for deregulation seems confused, given his
platform’s support for reinstating Glass-Steagall. And a
moderate-alienating social platform sits in uncomfortable tandem with
Trump’s own ambivalence on these issues.
It is, therefore, ambiguous how either candidate would actually govern.
Clinton is more predictable and will probably fall back on continuing
Obama’s policies with a more hawkish outlook on foreign affairs. Platitudes
and watered down policies will be offered to the left, whilst centrists and
moderate Republicans will have to make do with stability.
A Trump Presidency would have uncertainty as its defining characteristic.
It is impossible to tell which, if any, of his policies he actually
believes in or intends to implement, even if his flip-flopping is set
aside. Does he actually want to pull out of the UN? Would he actually rip
up existing trade agreements? Would he really consider using nuclear
weapons? Does he genuinely intend to build The-WallTM on the Mexican border
and ‘Make Mexico Pay’? Does he really think he can ‘bring back jobs’
through protectionism? Has he even read NAFTA?
If his expressed views and attitudes are taken at face value, he remains
unpredictable. Asides from the contradictions between his policies, his
temperament and belligerence appear to pose something of a security risk.
The exact nature of his isolationism is unclear, as is the extent and
manner of any realignment in US-Russian relations. It is also unclear
exactly how far any trade war with China would go. Many of his policies are
also near impossible to achieve. Attempting to follow-through on banning
Muslims from entering the USA, building The-WallTM, and mass deportations
will cause chaos.
Even a Republican controlled Congress is likely to resist Trump’s most
draconian and nonsensical policies. Trump is likely to respond by trampling
any constitutional restraints. Civil disobedience and resistance would be
likely, as would spiralling cycles of violence. And if, as is likely,
building a 2000-mile wall and deporting 11 million people cannot be done,
the frustrated response of Trump’s base could be very dangerous.
Given all of the above, and how objectionable and destructive many of
Trump’s policies are in themselves, a Clinton win is the less bad option.
Whilst the Democratic platform falls somewhat short on civil liberties,
surveillance, and criminal justice reform, it is at least not flirting with
fascism. Likewise, whilst Clinton has embraced populism on trade (a
reversal that exemplifies her lack of consistency and principle) and has
picked up fiscally irresponsible ideas (such as ‘free college’) from
Sanders, her budget adds less to government debt than Trump’s, and she at
least doesn’t seem to be under the impression that she can personally
manage a multi-trillion dollar economy as a dictatorial CEO.
It is also important that Clinton does not win an overwhelming mandate. The
very real flaws with her candidacy should be reflected electorally, and her
ramshackle coalition should not be proven viable. Paradoxically, Trump must
also lose by a large margin. If Trump loses by anything less than a
landslide, his impact on the Republican Party will be deep and permanent.
It will remain a nativist-populist party, with any commitment to small
government, fiscal responsibility, individual liberty, and tradition a
distant memory. He will also have succeeded in making openly bigoted and
inflammatory discourse, as well as uninformed and fantastical policies,
mainstream and electorally viable.
Trump must receive less than 40% of the vote, whilst Clinton should not win
more than 50%, with the gap being filled by third party candidates. In an
ideal world, the Johnson-Weld ticket would win by a landslide (and a sane
Republican Party would have nominated them itself). As it is, this is a
somewhat unlikely result. However, the opportunity for the Libertarian
Party to make a significant breakthrough is real. It is worth remembering
that Ross Perot received 19% in 1992 and George Wallace received 13% in
1968.
If Johnson can break double-digits, dissatisfaction with the two main
parties, and the importance of a fiscally conservative but socially
tolerant bloc, cannot be ignored. I would say the same of the Green Party,
as a principled liberal-left is desirable, if it were not for Jill Stein’s
apparent commitment to the kookiest and most irresponsible aspects of the
eco-left.
This election may not provide any good options. But it’s clear what the
least damaging result would be.

#341957

The French Prime Minister, Manuel Valls, rejects as "unacceptable" a New York Times article in which French Muslim women complain of discrimination.

#341958

As Hillary Clinton began her speech at a rally in Cleveland, Ohio this afternoon, the democratic presidential candidate suffered what MSNBC anchor Ari Melber described as "one of the worst coughing fits I have ever seen." She coughed and cleared her throat through over 4 minutes of almost incoherent babble before MSNBC cut away, joking that hillary had quipped "every time I think about Trump I get allergic."

#341959

They are trying to climb to the top using a ladder that has no rungs.

#341960

President Obama, who arrived in Laos late Monday night to become the first U.S. president ever to visit the Southeast Asian country, is encountering more than his usual share of friction and confrontation on his 10th trip to the region.

#341961

Students at the University of Massachusetts beware: making jokes about the death of Harambe the gorilla could be viewed as a "microaggression" and an attack on

#341962

Gary Johnson is a total fraud and a complete idiot. Facebook @ https://www.facebook.com/paul.j.watson.71 FOLLOW Paul Joseph Watson @ https://twitter.com/Pris...

#341963

The FBI's Labor Day weekend document dump regarding its investigation of Hillary Clinton gives those who thought the result was predetermined much to complain about. The FBI's notes confirm that her former chief of staff, Cheryl Mills, was among the several lawyers representing Clinton in her FBI interview. Mills was hip-deep in the events at the heart of the FBI's criminal investigation and was herself a material witness who had previously sat for her own interview. Yet not only was she allowed by the Department of Justice to participate as counsel in Clinton's interview, her communications with Clinton and other material witnesses also were actively protected by the Department of Justice throughout the criminal and civil investigations.
Typically, the DOJ would look askance where a material witness sought to act as a lawyer for the subject of a federal criminal investigation. In Mills's case, Justice lawyers went out of their way to accommodate this highly unusual dual-hat role. For those who wonder whether Clinton's FBI interview was all for show, Mills's participation as a lawyer should be Exhibit A.

#341964

My take on the recent Clinton ad that comes on every commercial break. Made with Kdenlive on Manjaro Linux.

#341965

Hillary for America - Just One Wrong Move Commercial

#341966

Can the state force someone to communicate a message he fundamentally disagrees with? The case againt Jack Phillips and Masterpiece Cakeshop will decide.

#341967

Thirteen people were killed and at least 52 others, including a pregnant woman, were wounded in shootings across Chicago over Labor Day weekend.

#341968

Late Monday night, the group Eagle Forum released a statement that its founder, the Christian and conservative icon Phyllis Schlafly, had passed away at the age 92 and immediately, The New York Times published a story to serve as cue cards for the major broadcast networks to blast Schlafly for stymying the Equal Rights Amendment and advocating for traditional family values for decades. At the same time, others used the initial moments after the announcement to hurl venom that only the left could summon in reveling at her passing.

#341969

The University of Colorado at Colorado Springs has clamped down on students who challenge the orthodoxy regarding manmade global warming.

#341970

Choke Artist: Hillary Clinton Has Yet Another Coughing Fit on Plane Ride from Ohio to Iowa

#341971

So far in this war we have funneled weapons to terrorists, armed multiple sides and generally acted as if we don’t have a clue what to do in the region -- and we’ve done it all unconstitutionally.

#341972

Mel Gibson's 'Hacksaw Ridge' Draws 10-Minute Standing Ovation in Venice

#341973

Hillary Clinton’s mysterious handler disappeared in mid-August. In recent bizarre events on the campaign trail a strange man was noticed ...

#341974

The thousands of Muslim asylum seekers pouring into Denmark have spawned a backlash, and questions over whether the country has a latent racial hostility at its core.

#341975

Few things stay private in the digital age, and Scalia’s grave has become public with the help of a website
