Current Events And Commentaries
“And this know, that if the goodman of the house had known what hour the thief would come,
he would have watched, and not have suffered his house to be broken through.” ~ Jesus
he would have watched, and not have suffered his house to be broken through.” ~ Jesus
Luke 12:39
TheBlaze
Truth Lives Here
10 Ways Obama Bypassed Congress In 2014
By Fred Lucas — President Barack Obama began 2014 vowing to act without Congress if need be to get things done. This week, the White House proudly heralded more than 80 executive actions taken during the year, some of biggest taking place after his party took a beating in the November midterms.Here’s a sampling of the unilateral actions the White House boasted about, and a few that weren’t mentioned:
1. Immigration
On Nov. 20, Obama announced action that would shield about 5 million illegal immigrants from deportation by prioritizing deportations for people who committed crimes.
“The historic actions the president took on immigration offer millions of undocumented immigrants a path out of the shadows while holding them accountable to undergo background checks and become taxpayers, all while doing everything we can to attract and keep the most talented high-skill workers to our shores from around the world,” said a White House blog post this week by presidential assistants Jeffrey Zients and Cecelia Munoz.
2. Climate Change
While in China in November, Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping reached what the leaders called a historic climate change deal. The United States set a goal of reducing carbon emissions by between 26 and 28 percent by 2025, which would be rolling back to 2005 levels. China said its CO2 emissions would peak in 2030.
But aside from the climate deal with China, Obama also took several other climate-related actions: In July, he announced executive actions to help state and local government prepare for climate change. In October, agencies released plans for cutting emissions and preparing for flooding and extreme weather. Obama also pledged $3 billion in U.S. funds to the United Nations-affiliated Climate Resiliency Fund to help cut emissions for the poorest countries. And in Februar, Obama ordered the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Transportation to establish new fuel efficiency standards for large vehicles.
“To combat climate change, the president took steps to improve fuel efficiency for heavy-and medium-duty vehicles, put in place a Clean Power Plan to substantially cut carbon pollution from power plants; took action to make substantial cuts to hydrofluorocarbons; and reached a historic agreement to cut greenhouse gas emissions with China, among many others,” the White House said.
3. Minimum Wage
On Feb. 12, Obama signed an executive order raising the minimum wage for federal employees and federal contract workers to $10.10 per hour. He wanted Congress to raise the wage to that level for the rest of the country. That never happened, but the White House believes it motivated action in other states.
“President Obama rallied support for raising the minimum wage, while signing an executive order to raise the minimum wage for workers on new federal contracts,” the White House blog said. “Cities, states and businesses across the country responded to that call, taking action that will benefit 7 million Americans as of 2017. And workers on new or modified federal contracts will be paid at least $10.10 starting on New Year’s Day.”
4. Police
After the controversies in Ferguson, Missouri, and New York City where unarmed black men died after altercations with police officers, Obama asked for a review of best practices police departments can take to rebuild trust in their communities. On Dec. 18, he signed an executive order to create the Task Force on 21st Century Policing. The task force is set to hold listening sessions around the country and issue a report in March.
5. Guns
Early in the year, the Obama administration took action regarding mental illness and guns. The executive action came through regulations by the Department of Justice and Department of Health and Human Services. The DOJ clarified rules on who is prohibited from purchasing a gun under existing federal law, which the White House said had been ambiguous. HHS required states to submit more information on individuals through the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, which was previously withheld under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPPA, which protects medical privacy.
Obama also issued an executive order in early October to make it more difficult to fire employees of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, by allowing more ATF employees to be converted to career-employees classifications and eligible for civil service protections. The ATF, a scandal-plagued agency in recent years, is generally regarded as the least-favorite federal agency among gun owners.
None of Obama’s gun-related executive actions were mentioned in the White House’s year-end report.
6. Pay Discrimination
Obama issued an executive order to prevent gender pay discrimination among federal contractors in April. Three months later, he signed another executive order to ban pay discrimination among federal contractors against anyone in the LGBT community.
7. ‘Promise Zones’
In January, Obama established five “promise zones” in the United States: economically depressed areas across the country where businesses locating or expanding would be eligible for federal economic development grants, loans and tax incentives. The first five locations were San Antonio, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Southeastern Kentucky and the Choctaw Nation in Oklahoma.
8. Tax Inversion
In September, Obama took action against corporate “tax inversions,” the term used for when an American company merges with a smaller foreign company, locating the in the foreign country to avoid the higher U.S. corporate tax rates. The Treasury Department announced regulations to make inversion less attractive by banning some of the techniques firms used to avoid paying U.S. taxes, while also requiring that a company’s U.S. owners own less than 80 percent of the newly merged company to get the tax benefits. The actions were announced less than a month after Burger King’s move to buy a Canadian coffee company and relocate in order to pay the lower Canadian corporate taxes instead of U.S. taxes.
9. Expanding Credit
Six years after the mortgage crisis, the Obama administration has taken actions to make it easier to get a home loan. On May 30, the Department of Housing and Urban Development along with the Federal Housing Finance Agency announced plans to expand access to mortgage credit. Earlier this month, the administration introduced the Home Affordability Modification Program, or HAMP, which includes $5,000 for an individual’s foreclosure prevention.
10. Green Industries
In September, Obama announced a series of government and private sector plans to buy more solar panels and promote the solar industry. In November, Obama announced commitments from 120 businesses, nonprofits and schools would buy electric vehicles and install workplace-charging stations....
Supremes To White House: What About ‘Death Panel?’
By Bob Unruh, WND — The Supreme Court is telling the Obama administration to present its case for Obamacare’s Independent Payment Advisory Board – the provision that critics have described as a “death panel” – even if it doesn’t want to. The high court Monday ordered the administration to respond by Jan. 21 to a lawsuit brought by the Goldwater Institute that challenges the constitutionality of Obamacare. The administration previously had declined to offer comments on the case against IPAB, which, according to the Obamacare law, is unanswerable to Congress and unaccountable to the federal courts. The panel, given the authority to approve or disapprove payments for services and set the level of payment, was intended to control Medicare costs....The Presidential Horse Pucky Dance
Wild Bill For America
The election of a new President is coming up. Bill thinks America is ready for a different kind of candidate.
Obama Wants Group With Ties To 1993 And 2001
WTC Attacks Removed From Terror List
WTC Attacks Removed From Terror List
By Ben Barrack, Shoebat.com — Last month, an Islamic country – the United Arab Emirates (UAE) designated two Islamic groups in the U.S. as terrorist organizations. Since that time, the Obama administration been trying to get those organizations off the list.The two groups – the Muslim American Society (MAS) and the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) – have distinct ties to the larger Muslim Brotherhood organization, which has been officially designated as a terrorist entity by Egypt, another Muslim country. As Shoebat.com has reported, the former Secretary General for MAS, Shaker Elsayed admitted the group was founded by Muslim Brotherhood leaders....
ISIS Leader Warns America “You Are Next.”
Gabor (Gabe) Zolna
ISIS leader is marching towards Baghdad and he warned U.S. that “soon we will be in direct confrontation.” That my friends means that they will be attacking us right here in the United States.
Frontpage’s 2014 Person Of The Year:
The American Police Officer
The American Police Officer
By Daniel Greenfield, Frontpage Mag — As we sit here in our homes with our families and loved ones around us, tens of thousands of children wonder if their parents will come home tonight. Their fathers and mothers aren’t stationed in Iraq or Afghanistan. They’re on duty in places like Englewood in Chicago where there are 2 violent crimes for every 1,000 people in one month, Columbus Square in St. Louis or Bedford-Stuyvesant in New York City where two police officers were just murdered. The men and women of law enforcement are on the front lines of the war at home. From the mugger on the block to the terrorist on the hijacked plane, they are the first ones there....Tanking: Commander In Chief Obama’s Popularity With Troops Down To 15%
PJTV: TRIFECTA
Even though they support his repeal of Don’t Ask-Don’t Tell, a new poll shows soldiers give a thumbs down salute to their Commander in Chief. Obama’s popularity has tanked, at 15 percent. Why has he lost their respect? Bill Whittle, Stephen Green and Scott Ott find you don’t have to be a soldier to understand why Obama’s so little liked among the military.
JetBlue Offering Free Flights For Officers Wanting To Attend Slain Cops’ Funerals
By Yehuda Remer, Ben Shapiro's Truth Revolt — Jet Blue Airlines is giving free flights to officers who want to attend the funerals of the two slain NYPD officers killed last week. According to the NY Post, the airline will comp two officers from each department who would like to attend the funeral from anywhere Jet Blue flies. “We’re honored to do what we can to support the communities we serve, and our team has made flights available to law enforcement agencies … who wish to send representatives to New York to support their brethren,” said JetBlue spokeswoman Sharon Jones....U.S. Economy Under Obama
» Cartoonist: Ken Catalino’s political cartoons have been published in newspapers around the country as well as in BusinessWeek and on CNN, and his humor cartoons have appeared in Playboy and Reader’s Digest. He was recently awarded first place for editorial cartooning by the New York Press Association.
Jesus Privately Briefing His Inner Circle of Disciples
Regarding The Last Days
Regarding The Last Days
“And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world? And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many. And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows. Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake. And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.” ~ Matthew 24:3-14