Month: December 2016

More empty excuses from Clinton Democrats

It doesn’t seem that a day goes by that we don’t hear or read another reason why Hillary Clinton and the Democratic Party lost a bid for the White House; that all the way to Election Day was supposed to be, and fronted by the media, a foregone conclusion. The most recent excuse is Vladimir Putin leading the hacking of the Democratic National Committee in an attempt to sway the election towards Donald Trump.

How Can You Mitigate Risks When Flying a Drone Beyond Visual Line of Sight?

Precisionhawk, one of the leaders in the drone market, released a report this week outlining operational risks when flying drones beyond visual line of sight . Precisionhawk’s research comes from its participation in the Federal Aviation Administration’s Pathfinder program, which was created to explore incremental expansion of drone operations in the national airspace.

Putin news conference: Relations with US ‘can’t be worse’

Russian President Vladimir Putin downplayed suggestions Friday there was a risk of a new nuclear arms race between Russia and the United States, shrugging off comments by US President-elect Donald Trump on Twitter as “nothing new.” “As for the newly elected president of the US, there is nothing new,” Putin said during his annual news conference that lasted four hours.

Israel accuses Obama of anti-Israeli ‘shameful move’ at UN

An Israeli official on Friday accused President Barack Obama of colluding with the Palestinians in a “shameful move against Israel at the U.N.” after learning the White House did not intend to veto a Security Council resolution condemning settlement construction in the West Bank and east Jerusalem the day before. “President Obama and Secretary Kerry are behind this shameful move against Israel at the U.N.,” the official said.

Report ties top cop Eddie Johnson to LaQuan McDonald shooting aftermath

New problems for Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson. The Chicago Tribune is reporting that Johnson, who was a police Deputy Superintendent when white officer Jason VanDyke shot and killed black teenager LaQuan McDonald in October of 2014, was among a group of top police officials who saw the dashcam video of the shooting just days after it occurred.

Democrats want a fresh face for the 2020 presidential election, poll finds

If there is one lesson that Democrats and independents seem to have taken away from the 2016 presidential election, it’s that they want a completely fresh start in 2020. A whopping 66 percent of Democrats and independents selected “someone entirely new” when that option was included on the list of potential 2020 presidential candidates, according to a USA TODAY/Suffolk University Poll released on Wednesday.

NY Times: Trump Seeks Path for Mexico Wall

President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team has contacted border officials to ask where a wall could be constructed along the U.S.-Mexico border, according to The New York Times. Trump referred to the “big, beautiful wall” as a key campaign promise, one he said would combat illegal immigration, and his aides continue to say that border wall construction is a priority for the new administration.

Politico: Obama Delivering Farewell Speech in Chicago

President Barack Obama is planning to deliver his farewell speech in Chicago – less than two weeks before Donald Trump takes office, Politico reports. The address, billed as a major speech, is expected to be delivered on Jan. 10. In his address, Obama is expected to thank Chicago and the state of Illinois for launching his political career, according to the website.

British Army major, 36, is found hanged in a bathroom at his home

First contact: Incredible images show lost Amazonian tribe living like their ancestors did 20,000 years ago – and firing SPEARS at photographer in his helicopter ‘Slaughter the pigs’: Berlin killer’s chilling ISIS video is revealed – hours after he is gunned down by Italian police in shootout in Milan Vladimir Putin boasts he knew Donald Trump would win the US election – but says ‘who knows’ who hacked Hillary Clinton’s emails ‘Let it be an arms race, we will outmatch them at every pass’: Trump doubles down after tweeting U.S. should ‘expand’ its nuke capability EXCLUSIVE: 11-year-old Meghan Markle plays with her nephew – showing what her family says is the motherly side Prince Harry should be proud of The best airport lounges in the world named in prestigious awards: Layover spot in Heathrow ranked No1 Is there a forgotten pharaoh buried in this tomb? Newly-discovered 4,200-year-old … (more)

HB2 dispute demonstrates divide –

Repealing North Carolina’s law limiting LGBT protections at the close of a bitter election year was supposed to heal blows to the economy and perhaps open a truce in the culture wars in at least one corner of the divided United States. The deal was supposedly reached with input from top politicians and industry leaders: Charlotte agreed to eliminate its anti-discrimination ordinance on the condition that state lawmakers then repeal the legislation known as House Bill 2, which had been a response to Charlotte’s action.

FBI ‘singling out Chinese-Americans with insider threat program’ to …

Since the 2015 hack of millions of government files, insiders claim agents have been more determined to identify potential internal threats Among ways to determine threats is to find if an employee has tried to beat a polygraph test by changing their body language to thwart the result The bureau has apparently stepped up its interrogation of employees, specifically those with Chinese backgrounds, after last year’s hack of millions of government personnel files that was traced back to Chinese hackers. Employees must submit to routine polygraphs every five years.

Banks lift global stocks, dollar holds near 14-year peak

European stocks edged higher on Friday, helped by banks after two regional bellwethers settled investigations into U.S. mortgage securities, while oil and the dollar were on the back foot in light trading ahead of the Christmas break. Traders work at their desks in front of the German share price index, DAX board, at the stock exchange in Frankfurt, Germany, December 22, 2016.

Stocks could suffer as Trump trade policy takes shape

The year-end stocks rally on the heels of the election of Donald Trump as U.S. president was built on expectations of reduced regulations, big tax cuts and a large fiscal stimulus. Traders work on the floor at the opening of the day’s trading at the New York Stock Exchange in Manhattan, New York City, U.S., December 22, 2016.

The Latest: Putin: Democrats should apologize over emails

Russian President Vladimir Putin gestures during his annual news conference in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Dec. 23, 2016. Putin says he sees “nothing unusual” in Donald Trump’s pledge to strengthen the U.S. nuclear forces, calling the statement is in line with the U.S. president-elect’s campaign promises.

The Latest: Putin rejects accusations of meddling in US vote

Russian President Vladimir Putin is praising U.S. President-elect Donald Trump for keenly feeling American voters’ mood to win the election, and he rejects the White House’s accusations of meddling in the vote. Speaking at an annual news conference, Putin said Friday that Russia hopes to develop “businesslike and constructive relations that would benefit both Russia and the United States.”

The Latest: Putin says nuke missiles can pierce any defense

Speaking at Friday’s end-of-year news conference, Putin said Russia had to develop the capability after the U.S. in 2001 opted out of a Cold War-era treaty banning missile defense systems. He argued that the modernization of Russian nuclear forces is in line with existing arms control agreements, including the New Start Treaty with the United States.

Berlin Terror Suspect Killed in Milan by Police

Italian police killed the man suspected of carrying out this week’s Berlin terrorist attack near a Milan area train station earlier Monday, Interior Minister Marco Minniti said at a press conference in Rome. Bloomberg’s Guy Johnson reports on “Bloomberg Surveillance.”

QUIZ: How Well Did You Pay Attention To Markets This Year an hour ago

It was a year dominated by some yuge surprises, but how closely have you been paying attention to the details? Here are 60 things that happened in 2016: 2. How long did China’s stock exchanges stay open before recently introduced circuit breakers ended trading on Jan. 7 after a 7 percent fall? 3. Crude dropped below $30 for the first time since 2004, but what was the proximate cause of the selloff? 5. What did the U.S. Food and Drug Administration find odd about some Parmesan cheese produced in rural Pennsylvania? 2. The ECB cut rates, but President Mario Draghi gave mixed signals at the press conference.

Trump: Beef up U.S. nuke clout

President-elect Donald Trump said Thursday on Twitter that the United States should greatly “expand its nuclear capability,” appearing to embrace an end to decades of bipartisan presidential efforts to reduce the role of nuclear weapons in U.S. defenses and strategy. Trump’s midafternoon post may have been a response to President Vladimir Putin of Russia, who in a speech earlier Thursday called for continued improvement of his country’s nuclear abilities so it can “reliably penetrate any existing and prospective missile defense systems.”

Cardinal Mahony: churches may offer sanctuary to a DREAMersa who face deportation

Writing in L’Osservatore Romano, Cardinal Roger Mahony, who served as archbishop of Los Angeles from 1985 to 2011, discussed the plight of “DREAMers”: persons who were brought illegally to the United States by their parents when they were children. “While President-elect Donald J. Trump has pledged to implement several severe immigration policies, including the deportation of 11 million undocumented immigrants and the construction of a wall on the Mexican border, the most pressing and imminent challenge his incoming administration presents on this critical issue is its promise to rescind the DACA program,” Cardinal Mahony wrote.

How Barack Obama Failed Black Americans

Born in 1953, I am a child of the waning years of legal segregation in the United States. My parents, on the other hand, spent about 40 years of their lives under Jim Crow, and all of my grandparents lived most of their lives under official American apartheid.

Under Obama, a Disaster for the Democrats

The president’s policies have cost his party Congress, governorships, and nearly a thousand seats in state legislatures. Four faithless electors ditched Hillary Clinton in the Electoral College on Monday, double the number who dumped Donald J. Trump.