Iran dismisses new US pressure, calls for ‘mutual respect’

Iran’s foreign minister brushed aside new pressure from the United States on Sunday, declaring that his country is “unmoved by threats” but responds well to respect. President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticized the 2015 nuclear agreement between Iran, the U.S. and five other world powers, under which Tehran agreed to curb its uranium enrichment in exchange for the lifting of international sanctions, but hasn’t said what he plans to do about it.

Dutch Far-Right Leader Vows to Rid Nation of ‘Moroccan Scum’

Geert Wilders hopes the global upsurge in anti-establishment and xenophobic feeling that has helped propel Trump to power will propel him to power. Dutch far-right leader Geert Wilders promised to crack down on “Moroccan scum” who he said were making the streets unsafe and urged the Dutch to “regain” their country as he launched his election campaign on Saturday.

The Latest: Puzder withdraws nomination for labor secretary

The fast food executive says in a statement provided to The Associated Press that he was “honored to have been considered by President Donald Trump to lead the Department of Labor and put America’s workers and businesses back on a path to sustainable prosperity.” Puzder says “while I won’t be serving in the administration, I fully support the President and his highly qualified team.”

Bono praises Mike Pence at Munich Security Conference

Good Morning America Showdown! Robin Roberts and Michael Strahan spark rumors of on-set tension after photos emerge of pair in animated talk during taping Girl, 17, who was feared to have been abducted by sex traffickers in Las Vegas is FOUND a day after her distraught mother released a video plea for her return 550lb woman, 75, is found with her skin MOLDED to her chair after being left to sit in the same place for months ‘Shaping and spreading a skein of lies’: Kellyanne Conway attacked by her alma mater’s president in scathing letter rebuking Trump administration The ultimate sacrifice: Heartbreaking moment a grieving widow meets her hero Green Beret husband’s coffin on the airport tarmac – leaving scores of plane passengers in tears Teacher-turned-stripper who ‘slept with her 17-year-old student hundreds of times’ is sentenced to three months in jail and must register as a sex … (more)

Pentagon officials: Russian actions a ‘test of the new administration’

Moscow recently deployed a banned land-based cruise missile, dispatched a spy ship up the Atlantic coast and buzzed an American warship in the Black Sea. The developments raise the question of how the new White House occupant will address Russian assertiveness and whether, after complimenting Russian President Vladimir Putin and playing down Russia’s adversarial relationship with the US, Trump will resort to any confrontational responses.

Trump set to hold campaign rally in Florida Saturday

At least 4 people have died after a powerful storm caused flash flooding in southern California.Two people were killed in two separate car accidents in San Di… — Mike Pence affirmed the United States’ support for NATO and urged Russia to deescalate violence in eastern Ukraine while speaking Saturday at the Munich Secu… “We were very pleased to see the Senate finally confirm Scott Pruitt as the new administrator for the Environmental Protection Agency . Our thanks go out to Nebraska Se… Final Day Of State Wrestling Is Underway.

Hundreds Form ‘Human Wall’ in Mexico to Protest Trump

The demonstrators held up flowers and colored flags reading the “Peace” and waved to residents of the neighboring town of El Paso, Texas. Hundreds of people in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico formed a “human wall” at the edge of the Rio Grande on Friday to protest President Donald Trump’s proposed border wall.

Trump Blames Media, Judges, Democrats In Chaos Theory Tour-De-Force

Upending decades of U.S. policy on Israel-Palestinian conflict, he told the Israeli Premier Benjamin Netanyahu that he “could live with” either a one state or a two state solution “that both parties want”. “To be honest, I inherited a mess at home and overseas”, he claimed as he spoke of jobs fleeing the country, instability in West Asia and the nuclear threat posed by North Korea.

Trump’s Sons Eric And Donald Jr. in Dubai to Open Golf Club

Two of U.S. President Donald Trump’s sons are in the United Arab Emirates for an invitation-only ceremony to open the Trump International Golf Club in Dubai. Eric and Donald Jr. attended a private luncheon Saturday afternoon with business partners of Hussain Sajwani, the billionaire who runs DAMAC Properties, the developer that partnered with Trump on the golf course.

McCain slams Trump in Munich speech without using his name

Republican Sen. John McCain delivered a withering critique of President Donald Trump in a speech Friday that highlighted fractures within the GOP as the new administration struggles to overcome a chaotic start. Speaking in Germany at the Munich Security Conference, McCain didn’t mention the president’s name, according to the prepared text, while he lamented a shift in the United States and Europe away from the ”universal values” that forged the Western alliance seven decades ago.

Trump vowed to isolate family businesses, but they have seeped into White House

President Trump stands with his wife first lady Melania Trump, daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner, inside of the inaugural parade reviewing stand in front of the White House on January 20, 2017. President Trump stands with his wife first lady Melania Trump, daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner, inside of the inaugural parade reviewing stand in front of the White House on January 20, 2017.

Turkey steps up scrutiny on Muslim migrants from Russia

Turkey has increased scrutiny of Russian-speaking Muslim communities in the past few months following a series of attacks blamed on Islamic State, a concrete example of the renewed relationship between the two countries. Turkish police have raided the homes of Russian-speaking immigrants in Istanbul, detained many and expelled others, according to interviews with Russian Muslims living in the city.

Photo credit: NEWSCOM

Donald Trump has promised a foreign policy of muscular retrenchment, in which a better-resourced U.S. military intimidates our enemies without serving as a global cop. More than any president since Richard Nixon, our new commander in chief sees virtue in brutal authoritarians, especially if they are fighting radical Islam.

Netanyahu and Trump push reset of US-Israel relationship

President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made their debut Wednesday as chummy partners preparing to tackle the Middle East’s toughest challenges side by side. Netanyahu beamed at his new American counterpart and declared him the best friend Israel could possibly wish for, while Trump offered lofty praise for Israel, denounced the Iranian nuclear deal and declined to back a two-state solution – a longstanding, bipartisan US policy that the Israeli Prime Minister has questioned.

5 things for Wednesday, February 15, 2017: Trump and Russia, Kim Jong Un, Netanyahu

High-level advisers close to then-presidential nominee Donald Trump were in constant communication during the campaign with Russians known to US intelligence, multiple current and former intelligence, law enforcement and administration officials tell CNN. President-elect Trump and then-President Barack Obama were both briefed on details of the extensive communications between suspected Russian operatives and people associated with the Trump campaign and the Trump business, according to US officials familiar with the matter.

Yobs go on wrecking spree at Stafford allotments

YOBS went on a wrecking rampage at four allotment sites in Stafford stealing tools, smashing a disabled toilet, breaking windows and trashing sheds. Cotonfields, St George’s Road, Holmcroft and Rising Brook were all targeted by thugs over night on Saturday, with drawers turned out, CCTV destroyed and even coffee grinds tipped all over the place.

Trump handling of security information at Mar-a-Lago queried by House panel

President Donald Trump’s handling of U.S. security information at his Florida resort came under congressional scrutiny on Tuesday as a watchdog panel asked the White House to explain reports that Trump dealt with a sensitive foreign policy issue in view of club guests. Representative Jason Chaffetz, head of the House of Representatives oversight committee, sent a letter asking the White House for details on how Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe responded to a North Korean ballistic missile test while visiting the Mar-a-Lago golf resort over the weekend.

Report: Friedman will apologize for using a kapoa to describe liberal Jews

President Donald Trump’s nominee for U.S. ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, is expected to apologize during his Senate confirmation hearing for derogatory statements he has made against liberal Jews. Representatives of the nominee told Sen. Benjamin Cardin, D-Md., who is the senior Democratic member of the Foreign Relations Committee that will hold the confirmation hearing, that Friedman will apologize for use of the term “kapo” to attack J Street, the liberal Jewish Middle East policy group, the New York Times reported on Tuesday.

Why Arab Autocrats Haven’t Confronted Trump

You’d think, given the harsh anti-Muslim Trump administration in Washington, that the Arab kings and dictators would be lining up to condemn the ruthless sectarian laws being drawn up by an American President who approves of torture. All that claptrap about “bad dudes” and “Islamic terror”.

Tensions over Trump deepen fractures among American Jews

The early weeks of the Trump administration have widened divides between liberal and conservative Jews, setting off quarrels over anti-Semitism, Israel and the Holocaust. Well before the 2016 election, discussion over Israel had become so barbed among Jews that Jewish groups began organizing civility training so relationships and holidays wouldn’t be ruined.

‘Morning Joe’ Calls Flynn Resignation ‘Troubling on a Deep, Global Level’

President Donald Trump tweeted praise at his young aide who spoke with Chuck Todd John Dickerson Chris Wallace and George Stephanopoulos this Sunday “She goes out and lies and you find out about those lies a couple hours later or if she’s not lying, Willie, she is – actually what I’ve heard she is – so out of the loop”. In his Talking Points Memo tonight, Bill O’Reilly reacted to the apparent confusion within the Trump administration surrounding the resignation of National Security Adviser Michael Flynn.

The Canadians leave town, just before a tornado of turmoil hits Washington

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has assured his U.S. counterpart over the phone that there might be 10,000 problems that land on his White House desk – and Canada won’t be among them. Trudeau had barely left Washington and the cheer of a drama-free day was swiftly overshadowed by an incoming storm of palace intrigue, back-stabbing, leaks, international incidents and a spying scandal that rocked Donald Trump’s White House.