Kicking off Ramadan with a bang

Coptic Christian attack: 10 of the 29 dead ID'd as children heading to monastery to pray

Same shit. Different day

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Ten of the 29 victims killed in Friday’s ambush attack on a bus transporting Christians to a monastery south of Cairo were identified as children, a top bishop told The Wall Street Journal.

As many as 10 masked attackers in three SUVs stormed the bus dressed in military uniforms and demanded that the passengers recite the Muslim profession of faith, witnesses said. Then, the gunmen opened fire.

The children were traveling with their parents to pray at an ancient monastery in central Egypt. Many suffered gunshot wounds to the head and chest, Bishop Makarios, a Coptic clergyman in Minya Province, told The Journal. Three children on board the bus reportedly survived.

Survivors claimed the killers left behind flyers about the holy Muslim month of Ramadan, which begins Friday evening. Local media also reported that the attackers were recording video themselves.

The attack came on the eve of the start of the Muslim holy month. It was the fourth attack targeting the country's Christian minority since December, and it came on the same week of the suicide bombing in Manchester, where children were believed to be the target.

Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on Friday ordered retaliatory military strikes in Libya in response to the ambush. Sisi said that suspected ISIS militants attacked the bus.

"I direct my appeal to President Trump: I trust you, your word and your ability to make fighting global terror your primary task," el-Sisi said.

Trump reportedly affirmed U.S. support in a White House statement. “America stands with President Al Sisi and all the Egyptian people today, and always, as we fight to defeat this common enemy."

The airstrikes hit bases in Libya where the attackers had trained, the country's military said.

Egypt's Copts, the Middle East's largest Christian community, repeatedly have cried out for help from discrimination, as well as outright attacks, at the hands of the country's majority Muslim population. Coptic Christians account for about 10 percent of Egypt's 93 million people.

Ayman Ezzat, a rickshaw driver, told The Journal that blamed the massacre on el-Sisi, saying the president hadn’t done enough to protect the Christians.

“Our lives have turned into hell,” he said. “I’m a Copt and I curse myself every day for bringing [Mr. Sisi] to power. He failed us. He sold us.”

Kicking off Ramadan with a bang

Debbie Wassermouth Schultz Threatens Capitol Police Over IT Staffer Investigation Former DNC chair demands evidence be returned to her

Capitol Police officer won't make eye contact fearing he'll lose his lunch.

 She's so ugly, on Halloween she went to a haunted house and came out with an application.

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In February 2017, Debbie Wasserman Schultz’s top IT staffer, Imran Awan, was reported as under criminal investigation for the theft of a wide range equipment and data. Awan and several other staffers are accused of accessing congressional computers without permission. It's still unclear what, if any, data was stolen and what the motives for the breach were. In a recent budget hearing with the U.S. Capitol Police, Debbie Wasserman Schultz pushed for the U.S. Capitol police chief to return equipment of hers that was confiscated by the police as part of the investigation after it was discovered hidden in a crevice of a House office building.

"hidden in a crevice of a House office building"?

“So if a member says there is equipment that has been lost, (someone accidentally dropped it in the crevice) and you find it, it would be returned to the member?” Wasserman Schultz asked, implying the equipment should have been returned to her regardless of the investigation because the owner of the equipment (her) is not the subject of the investigation. She added, “I don’t understand how that is possible. Members’ equipment is members’ equipment. My understanding is that the Capitol Police is not able to confiscate members’ equipment when the member is not under investigation. It is their equipment and it is supposed to be returned.”

She sure wants that laptop back pronto.

Gives more credence to the blackmail story: 

 Dems are being blackmailed 

Why would Democrats hire Pakistani Muslims, one of which prior to hiring filed bankruptcy and had a criminal record and put them in charge of handling sensitive government information?

The U.S. Capitol police chief responded, “I think there are extenuating circumstances in this case, and working through my counsel and the necessary personnel, if that, in fact, is the case, and with the permission of the investigation, then we’ll return the equipment. But until that happens we can’t return the equipment.”

Wasserman Schultz then threatened the chief. “I think you’re violating the rules when you conduct your business that way and you should expect that there will be consequences.” It's unclear what Wasserman Schultz believes those consequences should be, as her communications director refused to provide the Daily Caller with a comment on the exchange.

The Daily Caller reported on what equipment Wasserman Schultz was demanding to have returned: “A federal employee with knowledge of the situation and who requested anonymity told The Daily News Foundation’s Investigative Group that as House authorities closed in on Imran Awan and his brothers, a laptop used by Imran was hidden in an unused crevice of the Rayburn House Office Building. Wasserman Schultz’s office is in Longworth House Office Building, a separate structure. The laptop was later found by Capitol Police and seized because it was relevant to the criminal investigation, the source said.”

Awan’s investigation is one of several legal issues currently plaguing Debbie Wasserman Schultz. She has also been named as a co-defendant in an ongoing class action lawsuit filed on behalf of Bernie Sanders supporters over the rigging of the Democratic primaries, and another class action lawsuit was filed over the Democratic National Committee stiffing dozens of field organizers their fair pay after $1 million in bonuses were given out by the Democratic National Convention Committee. Former DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz may have resigned from her post in July 2016 after her efforts to sabotage Sanders were exposed in emails released by Wikileaks, but the Democratic establishment has rewarded her loyalty by lining up in support of her. Barack Obama, Joe Biden, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, and Hillary Clinton campaigned on her behalf leading up to her first primary challenge ever in August 2016. The Clinton campaign immediately hired her to serve as honorary chair of the campaign’s 50 state program. After Clinton lost the election to Trump, Wasserman Schultz was appointed in February 2017 to the House Budget Committee and allowed to retain her position in Democratic congressional leadership as a chief deputy whip. She has also been featured by several mainstream media outlets as a spokesperson for the Democratic Party, despite millions of voters viewing her as a divisive relic from Hillary Clinton’s failed candidacy that was forced upon Democratic voters by party leadership.

And she's still a Congresswoman!

Debbie Wassermouth Schultz Threatens Capitol Police Over IT Staffer Investigation Former DNC chair demands evidence be returned to her

This certainly gives credence to Trump's wiretapping claim

Obama's NSA Violated Privacy Protections, Docs Say

Check out this 1-minute clip. If they had the compulsion to wiretap lowly Kucinich (a Democrat) would it be a stretch to believe they would go after Trump?

Video 347

The National Security Agency under former President Barack Obama frequently violated privacy protections while scouring through overseas intercepts – and failed to disclose the extent of the problems until late last fall, Circa reported Wednesday.

According to the outlet, declassified documents unveil serious constitutional abuses by the intelligence community – showing more than 5 percent of searches seeking Internet data on Americans inside the NSA's controversial Section 702 database violated safeguards.

The Obama administration disclosed the problems at a closed-door hearing last Oct. 26 before the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, Circa reported.

The court even rebuked administration officials, saying the failure to disclose the extent of the violations earlier amounted to an "institutional lack of candor" and the improper searches constituted a "very serious Fourth Amendment issue," Circa reported, citing a court document from April.

Circa has reported there was a three-fold increase in NSA data searches about Americans – and a rise in the unmasking of American citizens' identities – since 2011 when so-called minimization rule changes were made by the Obama administration.

Though Obama administration officials have said the unmaskings were legal and intelligence agencies were monitored to avoid abuses, Circa reported the FISA court and NSA's own internal watchdog found otherwise.

"Since 2011, NSA's minimization procedures have prohibited use of U.S.-person identifiers to query the results of upstream Internet collections under Section 702," the April court ruling declared, Circa reported. "The Oct. 26, 2016, notice informed the court that NSA analysts had been conducting such queries in violation of that prohibition, with much greater frequency than had been previously disclosed to the Court."

"If we determine this to be true, this is an enormous abuse of power," Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., told Fox News, per Circa. "This will dwarf all other stories. There are hundreds and hundreds of people."

The American Civil Liberties Union called the lack of oversight "shocking."

"You have these problems going on for years that only come to the attention of the court late in the game, and then it takes additional years to change its practices," said Neema Singh Guliani, the ACLU's legislative counsel in Washington, Circa reported.

"I think it does call into question all those defenses that we kept hearing, that we always have a robust oversight structure and we have a culture of adherence to privacy standards."

The NSA acknowledged it self-disclosed the mass violations to the court last fall; in April it suspended the type of searches that were violating the rules, even deleting prior collected data on Americans to avoid any further violations, Circa reported.

"NSA will no longer collect certain internet communications that merely mention a foreign intelligence target," the agency said in the statement dated April 28.

This certainly gives credence to Trump's wiretapping claim

Obama in Berlin: 'We can't hide behind a wall'

But you can behind a red line!

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Rebecca Savransky 05/25/17 08:07 AM EDT

Former President Obama on Thursday encouraged people not to "hide behind a wall," making an oblique dig at President Trump during a talk in Berlin.

"In this new world we live in, we can’t isolate ourselves," Obama said while on stage with German Chancellor Angela Merkel during a forum in Berlin, according to the Associated Press.

"We can’t hide behind a wall."

Trump's signature campaign promise was to build a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border as part of the fight against illegal immigration.

During the event, which marked the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation, Obama told the audience that "we have to push back against those trends that would violate human rights or suppress democracy or restrict individual freedoms."

He also issued a warning about people who are always certain about their opinions, another apparent criticism of Trump.

"If I become so convinced that I’m always right,” Obama said, “the logical conclusion of that often ends up being great cruelty and great violence.”

The former president offered praise for Merkel, calling the German leader one of his "favorite partners" in his presidency and someone who had done "outstanding work."

Despite tensions that emerged after revelations in 2013 that the National Security Agency had tapped Merkel's and other German officials' phone lines, the American and German leaders were seen as having a cooperative relationship. During a trip to Germany in November, Obama called Merkel his "closest ally."

Trump met Merkel for the first time at the White House earlier this year. He has frequently been critical of the German leader for what he called open-border policies and Germany's willingness to offer asylum for refugees.

Obama in Berlin: 'We can't hide behind a wall'

Trump lawyer in Russia probes has Russian ties of his own

The hidden headline:

At CNN... You Can Never Win

Conflict of interest? Ever see CNN report (Barry's right-hand man) Ben Rhodes' brother is the president of CBS news? 

If this was Dershowitz the Russian connection would have been his great-great-great-grandfather arrived here in 1739. 

These bastards could investigate and find a needle in a haystack. 

Unless if course, that needle, was college transcripts. Then they wouldn't touch it with a 10 foot pole. 

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(CNN)The prominent New York lawyer expected to represent President Donald Trump in the widening Russia probes has professional connections of his own to Moscow, which could create yet another public-relations problem for the White House. 

Marc Kasowitz, who has been Trump's go-to lawyer for years on both personal and business matters, is defending a Russian bank, OJSC Sberbank, in an ongoing lawsuit in US court. He also represents a company controlled by a Russian billionaire, Oleg Deripaska, who has close ties to the Kremlin.

Kasowitz' clients with Russian ties may not pose any legal conflicts of interests as he prepares to help Trump navigate an investigation that the president calls "a witch hunt." But the optics of the situation -- a lawyer with Russian-linked clients representing a president, whose campaign is being investigated for alleged collusion with Russia -- could make a messy situation for Trump even messier.

Larry Noble, general counsel for the non-partisan Campaign Legal Center, said Kasowitz' client list could potentially raise questions for the White House.

"Could there be some line of communication between these clients and the White House? Is there any situation where the interests of one conflicts with the other? These are the questions that come up," Noble said in an interview. 

Josh Galper, a crisis management attorney and co-founder of the firm Trident DMG, said if Kasowitz is hired, as expected, his clients with Russian ties could become another unnecessary distraction for the White House.

"The first rule of crisis management is not to create another crisis for yourself through the people that are representing you," Galper said. "When you're in an environment like the White House, you have to apply judgment to problems of appearance." 

Trump's expected decision to hire Kasowitz comes the week after the Justice Department appointed a special counsel to oversee the federal investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. Congressional committees are also investigating Russia's role.

Court documents show Kasowitz represents OJSC Sberbank, one of the country's largest banks.

A 2016 lawsuit accuses OJSC Sberbank of conspiring with granite-mining company executives in an "illegal scheme to... dismantle" a competitor and seize its assets. An attorney for some of the other defendants told CNN the allegations are unfounded.

Other defendants in the case include former Russian officials, such as the former minister of economy and trade, though Kasowitz is only listed as representing the bank in the case. The case is still pending.

Kasowitz is also listed in a federal lawsuit as an attorney for Veleron Holding BV, an investment company controlled by Deripaska. 

Deripaska has served as a representative of Russia on the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Business Advisory Council and was photographed with Putin at one of the council's meetings in 2006. 

Kasowitz serves as an attorney for Veleron in a federal lawsuit under appeal involving Morgan Stanley.

In 2012, Veleron accused Morgan Stanley of insider trading on a deal that involved a separate bank financing Veleron's investment in a Canadian auto parts manufacturer. 

In 2015, a jury ruled for Morgan Stanley, but Veleron has appealed the case -- with Kasowitz listed as an attorney.

The White House did not respond to a request for comment on Kasowitz' Russian clients.

Kasowitz could not be reached for comment on his representation of OJSC Sberbank of Russia. A spokesperson for his firm previously told CNN that Kasowitz only represents the Veleron firm, and not Deripaska personally. .

"Our representation of Veleron did not emanate from and has nothing to do with our representation of any Trump personnel or entities, and we have never relayed information or facilitated communication between Mr. Deripaska and his representatives and President Trump and his representatives," the spokesperson said in the prior statement to CNN.

Deripaska, who owns the Russian industrial group Basic Element, also has connections to Trump's former campaign chairman Paul Manafort, who worked for Derispaka as a consultant.

In 2008, Deripaska invested about $19 million in a business venture launched by Manafort and other partners. The partnership invested in a Ukrainian telecommunications company - Black Sea Cable- but the deal failed.

Deripaska's subsequent legal claims against Manafort's business venture appear to have been dropped.

"Mr. Manafort believes the matter is dormant and will not be pursued further," a spokesperson for Manafort previously told CNN. 

In a statement published in US newspapers in March, Deripaska said he would take part in any related hearings before Congress. 

Putin, asked about the possibility of Deripaska testifying at a US congressional hearing, said he was not against it.

"That's his right. Let him do it," Putin said in March during a panel in the Russian city of Archangel.

Kasowitz has defended Trump in many legal matters over the years. He represented him in the suit filed by the New York Attorney General against Trump University and in a 2006 case filed against a journalist who wrote a book about Trump.

Kasowitz also sent letters on behalf of Trump threatening legal action during his presidential campaign. An October 2016 letter signed by Kasowitz demanded that the New York Times retract a story about two women who said that Trump had touched them inappropriately.

Trump lawyer in Russia probes has Russian ties of his own