From the Trenches World Report
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Senate Republicans are delaying their effort to vote on legislation repealing ObamaCare until after the July 4 recess after a number of members said they opposed the current bill.
“I think we need a little more time,” Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) told reporters before getting into an elevator.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) told members of the decision on Tuesday at a closed-door meeting. Continue reading “Senate GOP delays ObamaCare repeal vote past recess”
The Syrian government dismissed the White House’s unsubstantiated, and bizarrely ominous late Monday night allegations that it was preparing a new chemical weapons attack. According to AP, Ali Haidar, the Syrian minister for national reconciliation, dismissed the White House’s warning and said it foreshadowed a diplomatic campaign against Syria at the U.N., according to the AP. Or maybe military campaign.
The Kremlin also dismissed the White House statement, which had warned that Assad and his military would “pay a heavy price” if it goes ahead with the attack. Russian President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that “such threats to Syria’s legitimate leaders are unacceptable.” Continue reading “Syria Denies Plans For A Chemical Attack As Russia Slams US Warning As “Unacceptable””
Yahoo News – by Anna Mehler Paperny and Rod Nickel
TORONTO/WINNIPEG, Manitoba (Reuters) – Thousands of people who fled to Canada to escape President Donald Trump’s crackdown on illegal migrants have become trapped in legal limbo because of an overburdened refugee system, struggling to find work, permanent housing or enroll their children in schools.
Refugee claims are taking longer to be completed than at any time in the past five years, according to previously unpublished Immigration and Refugee Board data provided to Reuters. Those wait times are set to grow longer after the IRB in April allocated “up to half” of its 127 tribunal members to focus on old cases. The number of delayed hearings more than doubled from 2015 to 2016 and is on track to increase again this year. Continue reading “Asylum seekers in Canada who fled Trump now trapped in legal limbo”
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court is rejecting yet another call to decide whether Americans have a constitutional right to carry guns with them outside their homes.
The justices on Monday left in place an appeals court ruling that upheld the San Diego sheriff’s strict limits on issuing permits for concealed weapons.
The high court decided in 2008 that the Constitution guarantees the right to a gun, at least for self-defense at home. Continue reading “Supreme Court rejects gun rights appeal”
In a victory for the Trump administration, the Supreme Court on Monday lifted key components of an injunction against the White House’s proposed ban on travel from six majority-Muslim nations, reinstating much of the policy and promising to hear full arguments in October.
The court’s decision means the justices will now wade into the biggest legal controversy of the Trump administration — Trump’s order temporarily restricting travel, which even Trump has termed a “travel ban.” Continue reading “Trump travel ban: Supreme Court reinstates key parts of executive order”
The U.S. Supreme Court announced Monday it will hear the case of a suburban Denver baker who refused to bake a wedding cake for a gay couple on faith-based grounds, in the latest religious freedom case to be considered before the nation’s highest court.
Jack Phillips, owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop, had refused to sell a customized cake for a gay couple’s union, claiming a religious exemption to the state’s anti-discrimination law.
State courts had ruled against the businessman. Continue reading “Supreme Court to hear case of baker’s refusal to make wedding cake for gay couple”
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday narrowed the rights of property owners in disputes with governments and laid out a formula for determining when landowners are owed compensation in a case involving a vacant lot in Wisconsin on the picturesque St. Croix River.
The court decided that government officials can combine separate parcels of private land in determining whether public officials have effectively taken private property through zoning laws and must pay compensation. The ruling could make it harder for property owners to prove compensation claims. Continue reading “Supreme Court limits rights of property owners”
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SAN DIEGO (AP) – A former Mexican lawmaker arrested at the California border was charged Thursday with working for the Sinaloa drug cartel, whose once-powerful kingpin, Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, was extradited to the United States in January.
Lucero Guadalupe Sanchez, a former representative in the Sinaloa state legislature, was charged Thursday in federal court in San Diego with conspiracy to distribute 11 pounds (five kilograms) of cocaine in the United States between January 2013 and January 2017. Continue reading “Ex-Mexican lawmaker arrested at US border on drug charges”
A caught-on-camera road rage incident between a motorcyclist and a driver on a Southern California freeway led to a chain-reaction crash, sending an innocent person to the hospital Wednesday, authorities said.
The crash occurred before 6 a.m. on the southbound 14 Freeway near Newhall in Santa Clarita. The passenger who shot the video said he started recording when a gray sedan inadvertently cut off a passing motorcyclist. Continue reading “Road Rage Caught on Camera: Motorcyclist Kicks Sedan Before Multi-Car Crash”
New Jersey authorities are looking for a police officer after he skipped out on his trial on charges that he helped gang members in police investigations.
The Monmouth County Sheriff’s Office says it is searching for 49-year-old Keith German after the Asbury Park patrolman failed to show up in court Tuesday. The trial went on without him. German’s lawyer isn’t commenting. Continue reading “Police looking for patrolman who skipped out on his trial”
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Continue reading “Mark Passio – The True Meaning And Purpose Of The 2nd Amendment”
Oil will continue to flow through the Dakota Access Pipeline through the summer while authorities conduct additional review of the environmental impact, after a judge on Wednesday ordered more hearings in coming months.
Last week, U.S. District Court Judge James Boasberg in Washington ruled in favor of Standing Rock Sioux and Cheyenne River Sioux tribes, who said more environmental analysis of the Dakota Access line should have been carried out. The tribes had said the 1,170-mile (1,880 km) line violates their hunting, fishing and environmental rights. Continue reading “Oil to keep flowing in Dakota line while legal battle continues”
President Trump announced Wednesday night that he will soon ask Congress to pass legislation banning immigrants from accessing public assistance within five years of entering the U.S.
“The time has come for new immigration rules that say … those seeking immigration into our country must be able to support themselves financially and should not use welfare for a period of at least five years,” Trump told a campaign-style rally in Grand Rapids, Iowa. Continue reading “President calls for barring immigrants from welfare for five years”
The Daily Caller – by Alex Pfeiffer
The Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) surveyed illegal immigrant minors in its custody and found that 28 percent of them were gang members, according to Senate testimony.
The Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing Wednesday on the “MS-13 problem.” The Salvadoran gang has grown in the recent years in the U.S. due to an influx of illegal immigrant minors from Central America. Continue reading “Feds: More Than A Quarter Of Illegal Immigrant Minors In Our Care Are Gang Members”
The Bishop International Airport (FNT) in Flint, Michigan has been evacuated after a police officer was stabbed in the neck, local media report. The airport is closed until further notice.
All passengers are safe and have been evacuated, the airport said in a statement, urging flyers to check with their airlines for potential cancellations or delays. Continue reading “Airport in Flint, Michigan evacuated after cop stabbed in the neck”
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico’s top law enforcement officer is urging the author and antiquities dealer who inspired thousands to search remote corners of the American West for a hidden chest of gold and jewels to end the treasure hunt.
The plea from State Police Chief Pete Kassetas follows what authorities believe is the latest death related to the effort to uncover Forrest Fenn’s treasure.
Colorado pastor Paris Wallace disappeared last week while searching for the bounty in a rugged area along the Rio Grande in northern New Mexico. His family reported him missing, triggering an extensive search. Continue reading “Police implore author who says he hid treasure to end hunt”
As temperatures climb in Phoenix, Arizona, more than 40 flights have been cancelled – because it is too hot for the planes to fly.
The weather forecast for the US city suggests temperatures could reach 120F (49C) on Tuesday.
That is higher than the operating temperature of some planes. Continue reading “Phoenix flights cancelled because it’s too hot for planes”
Personal information for more than 198 million American voters was left exposed this month after a data analytics firm hired by the Republican National Committee stored the files on an unsecured Amazon server.
Deep Root Analytics, the conservative analytics firm, confirmed in a statement Monday the files had been accessed without their knowledge. Continue reading “Nearly 200M Americans hit by massive voter data leak”
Washington Post – by Philip Rucker
The Chinese government has invited Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner, President Trump’s daughter and son-in-law, to visit Beijing later this year, a U.S. official confirmed Tuesday morning.
China’s invitation is an apparent effort to cultivate closer ties to the Trump administration and is an indication of the young couple’s expanding role in foreign affairs on behalf of the president. It was first reported by Bloomberg and confirmed by a U.S. official, who spoke only on the condition of anonymity because no formal announcement had been made. Continue reading “Chinese government invites Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner to visit Beijing”
SEATTLE (AP) — Family members of a pregnant mother shot and killed by Seattle police questioned Monday why they didn’t use a Taser or other non-lethal options when they encountered the woman, who the officers knew had been struggling with mental health issues.
The two officers had gone to Charleena Lyles’ apartment on Sunday after she reported a burglary. She confronted them with a knife, authorities said. Continue reading “Pregnant Woman Fatally Shot By Seattle Police Outside Apartment Building”