A Tale of Two Parties

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness.” Charles Dickens, Tale of Two Cities One of America’s two major political parties has devolved into a gang of thugs.

Based on photo with Putin, Trump calls Schumer ‘hypocrite’

President Donald Trump, his administration under siege for contacts with Russian officials, is calling for “an immediate investigation” into Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s own ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Trump’s evidence? A 14-year-old photo of Schumer and Putin holding coffee and doughnuts in a New York City gas station.

Flip the script: Cursive sees revival in school instruction

Police in a Seattle suburb say they are seeking a white gunman after Indian Sikh man said he was shot in arm, told to “go back to your own country.” . Police in a Seattle suburb say they are seeking a white gunman after Indian Sikh man said he was shot in arm, told to “go back to your own country.”

Hillary Clinton photographed appearing to read news of Mike Pencea s email scandal

For critics of President Donald Trump’s administration and supporters of former Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, the image was all too ironic: Clinton on a plane, looking down with apparent interest at a copy of USA Today, with the news of Vice President Mike Pence’s use of a personal email splashed across the top banner. You guys, my friend is on the same plane as Hillary Clinton.

How the US press reacted to Trump’s Congress speech

In his address to a joint session of Congress Tuesday night, Trump used the word “America” – or a variant – more than 70 times . Obama averaged 52.4 million viewers during his first address to the joint Congress as the USA was struggling under the recession- about 17% more than what Trump received on Tuesday, according to The Hollywood Reporter .

The Latest: AOL emails among records Gov. Pence kept private

Vice President Mike Pence pauses while speaking before administering the oath of office to Energy Secretary Rick Perry, left, Thursday, March 2, 2017, in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House complex in Washington. Vice President Mike Pence pauses while speaking before administering the oath of office to Energy Secretary Rick Perry, left, Thursday, March 2, 2017, in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House complex in Washington.

Mexican sewage spill flares US noses and tempers

Coronado and Imperial Beach waters remain closed to swimmers and surfers Wednesday after more than 140 million gallons of… . A sign warns of sewage contaminated ocean waters on a beach in front of the iconic Hotel del Coronado on Wednesday, March 1, 2017, in Coronado, Calif.

Backlash greets Trump proposal to gut Great Lakes cleanup funding

A hydraulic dredge gathers mill debris from Muskegon Lake, a Great Lakes Area of Concern watershed cleanup project funded through the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. Drastic proposed cuts to Environmental Protection Agency funding that pays for Great Lakes pollution cleanup are not sitting well with environmental groups, Great Lakes mayors and members of both parties on Capitol Hill.

Lawyers try to delay ‘all-American’ Argentine’s deportation

Daniela Vargas, whose father and brother were picked up during a recent immigration raid of undocumented immigrants listens as speakers discuss the series of raids that also picked up other undocumented immigrants across th… The Mexican government is beefing up its aid to migrants in the U.S. through the creation of 50 legal assistance centers in response to President Donald Trump’s measures to curb illegal immigration. The Mexican government is beefing up its aid to migrants in the U.S. through the creation of 50 legal assistance centers in response to President Donald Trump’s measures to curb illegal immigration.

Pence fought against releasing records as Indiana governor

Vice President Mike Pence repeatedly stonewalled media requests to view public records when he was Indiana’s governor, including emails about state business distributed from a private AOL account that was hacked last year. Revelations Pence used the account to discuss homeland security and other official matters, first reported Thursday by the Indianapolis Star, are just the latest in a series of transparency battles involving the Republican’s tenure as governor.

In search of a grand bargain: Ways to bridge budget gap

As Oklahoma’s 2017 legislative session enters its fourth week, one thing is abundantly clear: Republicans, Democrats and Gov. Mary Fallin are nowhere close to a budget deal. The Legislature and governor’s office have until the end of May to sign off on a plan that closes an $878 million budget shortfall for the upcoming year.

A look at the threats, vandalism against Jewish institutions

Jewish community centers, schools and cemeteries have been dealing with waves of bomb threats and vandalism this year. Most of these crimes remain unsolved, though a man in St. Louis was charged Friday with eight of the threats made against Jewish institutions as well as a bomb threat to New York’s Anti-Defamation League.

Can the Democrats find something to build on in Georgia?

Patricia Murphy, pens stories for The Daily Beast as well as Roll Call, she is a very gifted and entertaining writer who we are happy to have as a guest on The Politically Incorrect Podcast. We talk about the rebuilding of the Democratic Party, the crazy happening on Capitol Hill and if starting with the Repealing and Replacing of Obamacare could be a hill the GOP might just die on.

Pressure mounts as Sessions backs off from Russia probe

Attorney General Jeff Sessions may not have been clear about his contacts with Russian officials during the 2016 election, but this much is evident: The controversy over any Kremlin involvement in American politics is not going to fade away anytime soon. Sessions on Thursday became the second high-ranking member of the Trump administration to take a hit over conversations with Russia’s envoy to the U.S., recusing himself from any probe that examines communications between Trump aides and Moscow.

Russian ambassador in eye of storm over Trump campaign ties

The Trump administration’s back-to-back controversies over its Russian ties now have at least one thing in common: Ambassador Sergey Kislyak. Moscow’s top diplomat is a Washington fixture with a sprawling network, and he has emerged as the central figure in the investigations into Trump advisers’ connections with Russia.

The field, a year out

Can it be that this far in advance, the main components of the 2018 governor’s race already are coming into view? Last week gave us some additional clarity, and at least a preliminary picture, enough to hang some thoughts around, is emerging. Last week, after all, was when three-term Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter confirmed he would not seek another term and would instead support his long-time lieutenant, Brad Little, for the job.

Mike Pence Used Private Email for State Business as Indiana Governor, and Got Hacked

Mike Pence used a private email account to conduct state business while Governor of Indiana, according to the Indy Star : Emails released to IndyStar in response to a public records request show Pence communicated via his personal AOL account with top advisers on topics ranging from security gates at the governor’s residence to the state’s response to terror attacks across the globe. In one email, Pence’s top state homeland security adviser relayed an update from the FBI regarding the arrests of several men on federal terror-related charges.

Sound familiar? Mike Pence used a private email account for…

Vice President Mike Pence may have denounced Hillary Clinton’s private email server as “the kind of double standard that the American people are weary of,” but that didn’t stop him from using his own private email account for state business as governor of Indiana. A public records request revealed that Pence used his personal account for a number of sensitive governmental matters, from discussing security at the governor’s residence to being updated by his homeland security adviser on a federal terror-related case, according to the Indianapolis Star .

Sessions slams ‘unfair’ criticism of meetings with Russia

Attorney General Jeff Sessions portrayed himself as the victim in the controversy surrounding his contact with the Russian ambassador to the US , griping that criticism of him is “unfair,” and that it’s “sad to be attacked like that.” “I don’t believe anybody that was in that meeting would have seen or believed I said one thing that was improper or unwise,” Sessions said Thursday night on “Tucker Carlson Tonight.”

Today in History: March 3, 2017

On March 3, 1931, “The Star-Spangled Banner” became the national anthem of the United States as President Herbert Hoover signed a congressional resolution. In 1887, Anne Sullivan arrived at the Tuscumbia, Alabama, home of Captain and Mrs. Arthur H. Keller to become the teacher for their deaf and blind 6-year-old daughter, Helen.

Mike Pence

Vice President Mike Pence used a private email account to conduct public business as Indiana’s governor, according to public records obtained by the Indianapolis Star. The newspaper reported Thursday that emails provided through a public records request show that Pence communicated with advisers through his personal AOL account on homeland security matters and security at the governor’s residence during his four years as governor.

Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak at the center of the political moment

WASHINGTON Sergey Kislyak, Russia’s long-serving ambassador to the United States, has a habit noticed by many U.S. officials who have known the envoy. “He doesn’t get as much credit as he should, in my view, for being savvy about developing relationships with people all over the city,” said Michael McFaul, who knew the diplomat well while serving in the Obama administration as senior adviser on Russia and then as U.S. ambassador to Russia.

Sessions recuses himself from Russia investigations

Attorney General Jeff Sessions says he will recuse himself from a federal investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 White House election. Facing growing criticism following revelations that he did not disclose speaking with on two occasions Russia’s ambassador to the United States, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions said Thursday that he would recuse himself from any investigations related to the 2016 campaign.

Jeff Sessions Slams Russia Storm: ‘A Big Brouhaha’

Attorney General Jeff Sessions Thursday slammed the controversy over his two meetings with the Russian ambassador last year as “a big brouhaha” and said that he recused himself of any possible investigations involving the Trump administration in order to “clear the air.” “It was a sad thing to be attacked like that – but I think we’ve explained it and we intend to move forward,” the former Alabama senator told Tucker Carlson on Fox News.

Pols More Focused on Election Hack Than Cyber Defense

The Pentagon is pushing for a cyber “tiger team” to help the military arm itself for cyberwar but Congress is more interested in how to respond to foreign interference in the nation’s political structure, Defense One reported. The competing interests were in full view Thursday when the Senate’s Armed Services Committee held a hearing with members of the Defense Science Board a group of civilian experts who advise the Department of Defense on technical matters, the outlet reported.

Gizzi: House Conservatives Split Over Sessions

The major news Thursday from Washington, D.C., was U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ late afternoon announcement he would recuse himself from oversight of the FBI’s investigation into Russian influence in the 2016 election. But there was also a little-reported side to the Sessions saga: How many Republicans in the House – who are considered decidedly more conservative than their GOP counterparts in the Senate – were critical of the then-senator from Alabama meeting twice with the Russian ambassador last year and then failing to acknowledge the meetings at his confirmation hearings to be attorney general.

Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy asks Health and Human Services…

Secretary of Health and Human Services Tom Price isn’t a month into his new job and House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., is already asking him to take a weed-whacker to President Barack Obama’s abortion legacy. Specifically, the majority leader wants Price to enforce what’s known as the Weldon Amendment to kill an abortion-related government mandate in California.