From the Trenches World Report
Enforce our Bill of Rights
Aug. 20, 2019 – 1:10 – The National Rifle Association says Trump told Wayne LaPierre that universal background checks for potential gun purchasers are off the table. Continue reading “President Trump tells NRA boss that universal background checks are dead”
Bloomberg – by Jennifer A Dlouhy
After protesters disrupted construction of an oil pipeline in North Dakota by chaining themselves to construction equipment and pitching tents along the route, oil and chemical companies found a way to keep it from happening again.
They made it a crime. Continue reading “Oil Companies Persuade States to Make Pipeline Protests a Felony”
The Daily Beast – by Pilar Melendez
“Five years after Eric Garner’s dying plea “I can’t breathe” became the rallying cry against police brutality across the nation, the police officer who killed him has been fired.
New York City Police Commissioner James O’Neill announced on Monday that NYPD officer Daniel Pantaleo has been fired. O’Neill terminated Pantaleo, 34, after it was determined he violated department policy by restraining Garner with a prohibited chokehold in 2014. Continue reading “Five Years After Killing Eric Garner, NYPD Fires Officer Daniel Pantaleo”
New York City‘s chief medical examiner has ruled that disgraced financier and accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein committed suicide by hanging in his prison cell last week.
In a brief statement Friday, Dr. Barbara Sampson said her ruling came following a “careful review of all investigative information, including complete autopsy findings.” Continue reading “New York medical examiner: Jeffrey Epstein’s death was a suicide by hanging”
Peter Fonda, whose counterculture classic Easy Rider helped usher in the New Hollywood movement of the 1970s that paved the way for filmmakers from Martin Scorsese to Quentin Tarantino, has died after suffering respiratory failure due to lung cancer. Fonda, the son of screen legend Henry Fonda, younger brother of Jane Fonda and father of actress Bridget Fonda, was 79. Continue reading “‘Easy Rider’ Peter Fonda dead at 79: ‘Please raise a glass to freedom’”
A pair of suspicious pressure cookers shut down a subway station in lower Manhattan on Friday morning, according to sources and police.
Authorities urged straphangers to avoid the Fulton Street subway station because of the suspicious packages, which were reported by a 911 caller. Continue reading “Pair of pressure cookers shut down Lower Manhattan subway station”
Governor Greg Abbott today, under Article 4, Sections 1, 7, and 10 of the Texas Constitution, formed a Domestic Terrorism Task Force in the wake of the El Paso shooting to combat these hateful acts and extremism in Texas. The group of experts will analyze and provide advice on strategies to maximize law enforcement’s ability to protect against acts of domestic terrorism. The task force will hold its first roundtable meeting with Governor Abbott on Friday, August 30th. Continue reading “Governor Abbott Forms Domestic Terrorism Task Force In The Wake Of El Paso Shooting”
Onlookers were seen taunting and throwing things at Philadelphia police Wednesday night amid a wild shootout and subsequent standoff that saw six cops wounded, and video posted online shows one woman shoving a police officer making his way to the scene.
Philadelphia’s KYW-TV reporter Alexandria Hoff described on Twitter Wednesday night how a crowd of people bordering the blocked off active shooter scene allegedly harassed officers. Continue reading “Philadelphia police pelted with objects, taunted during harrowing shootout, standoff: reports”
Washington Examiner – by Anna Giaritelli
Police in San Antonio arrested a man early Tuesday morning in connection with gunshots fired through the windows of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in the city, according to the agency.
Local law enforcement responded around 3 a.m. CT Tuesday to shots fired at the ICE field office located north of Interstate 410 near Brookhaven Drive, the FBI confirmed in a statement provided to the Washington Examiner. Continue reading “Shots fired into San Antonio ICE office in latest attack on the agency”
Portland, Ore., is gearing up for a set of dueling rallies this weekend that is expected to bring an informal coalition of right-wing groups– some of which have been decried as white nationalists and white supremacists– and so-called anti-fascists, who have violently opposed these right-wing demonstrators.
Portland’s so-called “Antifa” members have issued an online call to followers to turn out to “defend Portland from a far-Right attack.” Continue reading “FBI to assist in Portland as city braces for dueling Antifa, right-wing protests”
Ivanka Trump is reportedly calling members of Congress to feel out various gun control proposals and to figure out what needs to be done in order to get them passed.
Axios reports that Ivanka “has quietly been calling lawmakers since the El Paso and Dayton massacres to gauge their openness to movement on gun legislation when Congress returns.” Continue reading “Report: Ivanka Trump Calling Congressional Members About Gun Control”
WASHINGTON – The Trump administration rolled back longstanding federal protections for wildlife under threat of extinction Monday in a move that could expand oil and gas drilling and other development across America’s wilderness.
More than 40 years after Congress passed the Endangered Species Act, Interior Secretary David Bernhardt and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said the changes were necessary to make more efficient and transparent a bureaucratic process about which oil companies, ranchers and other industries have long complained. Continue reading “Interior rolls back endangered species protections in boon for oil companies”
Federal charges have been filed against the friend of the gunman who killed nine people in Dayton, Ohio, last week.
The friend, who was not identified in a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice, allegedly lied on federal firearms forms. A press conference detailing the charges will take place Monday afternoon. Continue reading “Federal charges filed against friend of Dayton gunman Connor Betts for allegedly lying on federal firearms forms”
A North Texas homeowner on Sunday fatally shot an alleged intruder after the suspect pulled out a gun when confronted, a report said.
The dramatic scene unfolded in Saginaw, a suburb of Forth Worth, at about 5 p.m., according to CBS local. The homeowner reportedly fetched his gun after hearing the commotion. There were reportedly two would-be burglars, according to reports. Continue reading “Texas homeowner fatally shoots armed suspect during robbery attempt, cops say”
The State Department has updated the working definition of anti-Semitism detailed on its website to include comparisons between current Israeli policies and those of the Nazis. The move comes just two weeks after the House passed a resolution denouncing the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement and amidst consistent attacks on Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) for introducing a bill that affirms the right to boycott foreign countries in the name of human rights. Continue reading “State Dept updates antisemitism definition to include comparisons of Israel to Nazi Germany”
New York Daily News, August 9, 2019
Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz, Britain’s Prince Andrew and former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson were among those whose names surfaced Friday after a trove of documents were released in a case with strong ties to disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Thousands of long-awaited court documents have been unsealed in a lawsuit against a woman accused of being Epstein’s fixer, and the papers include references to the names of seedy book titles purchased by Epstein. Continue reading “Names are named as court documents related to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein are unsealed”
Breitbart – by Charlie Speiring
President Donald Trump again indicated Friday that Republicans to lead the way to expand background checks for Americans purchasing firearms.
“I think that Republicans are going to be great and lead the charge along with the Democrats,” Trump said. Continue reading “Donald Trump: Republicans Can ‘Lead the Charge’ on Expanding Background Checks”
Police in Texas are searching for a gunman who opened fire on a freeway in Houston during the evening rush hour Thursday, killing a driver and his passenger.
Houston Police Department Assistant Chief Bobby Dobbins told reporters that vehicle rear-ended another on Interstate 10 East shortly before 6 p.m. causing the vehicle in front to spin out. Continue reading “Suspect at large after shooting on Texas freeway during rush hour kills 2”
The phrase “leading causes of death” might bring to mind cancer, heart disease, suicide and drug overdose.
But new research published this month in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences finds that young American men are at a surprisingly high risk of being killed by a police officer. Continue reading “Police shootings are a leading cause of death for young American men, new research shows”