The Unpopular Truth
Instead of treating drug users as criminals, Oregon will now offer them addiction services funded by marijuana tax revenue, which is more than $100 million a year in the state.
Only small amounts of drugs are decriminalized, such as less than 1 gram of heroin or MDMA; 2 grams of cocaine or methamphetamine; 12 grams of psilocybin mushrooms; and 40 doses of LSD, oxycodone or methadone.
First, they tried to bring him down with a sex "scandal" that almost elevated a creepy lawyer to a Democratic presidential contender. Then they cooked up a baseless impeachment. A virus came from China to later derail what could have been a landslide win for him. Then numerous blatant push polls tried to demoralize his supporters. (Just pick one. Less than a week before the election, an ABC News–Washington Post poll gave Biden a 17% lead in Wisconsin. Is there any way to sue these two corrupt companies?)
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Philadelphia, PA - November 5, 2020 - (The Ponder News) -- Donald J. Trump for President, Inc. released the following statement on the Trump Campaign's major election integrity victory in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania:
"In a major victory for election integrity, election transparency, all Pennsylvania voters, and the rule of law, the Trump Campaign has prevailed in our suit challenging our Republican poll watchers’ complete lack of any meaningful access to the ballot processing and counting process.
"The eyes of the country are on Pennsylvania, but Pennsylvania Democrats, led by their radical left Secretary of State whose only goal is to steal this election from President Trump, has kept eyes off of the absentee ballot counting process. That ends now in Philadelphia.
"As a result of this incredible legal victory, the lower court’s order has been reversed. Now, according to the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania, ‘all candidates, watchers, or candidate representatives’ shall ‘be permitted to be present for the canvassing process’ and ‘be permitted to observe all aspects of the canvassing process within 6 feet, while adhering to all COVID-19 protocols, including, wearing masks and maintaining social distancing.'
"For the good of the nation, every Pennsylvania county should follow the lead of this judge and provide access for observers to ensure transparency and integrity in Pennsylvania. That is the only way to ensure a fair, transparent election in which all Pennsylvania voters can have confidence their vote will count."
- Justin Clark, Trump 2020 Deputy Campaign Manger and Senior Counsel
The lawsuit takes issue with a state Supreme Court ruling that postmarked ballots be presumed to have been mailed before Nov. 3, even if not clearly postmarked to that effect.
READ MORE BY CLICKING HERE!
The day after the election, the Trump campaign says it has filed lawsuits Wednesday in Georgia, Pennsylvania and Michigan, and will ask for a recount in Wisconsin.
READ MORE by clicking here
And, rightfully so. Anyone who was watching the election numbers knows that Trump had these states before we all went to bed. Suddenly, a bunch of votes were shipped in, not verified and all had Biden's name on them. Sounds fishy to The Ponder!
According to a report by Michelle Malkin, the count was secretive and poll watchers were refused admittance to watch.
U.S. District Judge Gary Feinerman in Chicago, Ill., rejected a rule Monday implemented by the Trump administration that aimed to deny green cards to immigrants utilizing food stamps and other public benefits. The decision applies nationwide, not just in the state of Illinois.
Read the whole article at NPR by clicking HERE
Read Illinois Advocates Commend Federal Court Ruling Striking Down Public Charge Rule from the Illinois Coalition of Immigrant and Refugee Rights by clicking HERE
In Lincoln’s Lyceum Address of January 1838, titled “On the Perpetuation of Our Political Institutions,” he described mobs as the enemy of law-abiding citizens. He also captured the exasperation of citizens when government does nothing to suppress the mobs.
Lincoln, who was only 28 at the time, said this about mobs:
“Having ever regarded Government as their deadliest bane, they make a jubilee of the suspension of its operations; and pray for nothing so much, as its total annihilation.
“While, on the other hand, good men, men who love tranquility, who desire to abide by the laws, and enjoy their benefits, who would gladly spill their blood in the defense of their country; seeing their property destroyed; their families insulted, and their lives endangered; their persons injured; and seeing nothing in prospect that forebodes a change for the better; become tired of, and disgusted with, a Government that offers them no protection; and are not much averse to a change in which they imagine they have nothing to lose.
“Thus, then, by the operation of this mobocratic spirit, which all must admit, is now abroad in the land, the strongest bulwark of any Government, and particularly of those constituted like ours, may effectually be broken down and destroyed, I mean the attachment of the People.
“Whenever this effect shall be produced among us; whenever the vicious portion of population shall be permitted to gather in bands of hundreds and thousands, and bum churches, ravage and rob provision stores, throw printing presses into rivers, shoot editors, and hang and burn obnoxious persons at pleasure, and with impunity; depend on it, this Government cannot last.”
Fox News Reports:
LOS ANGELES - The Biden campaign canceled at least two events in Texas on October 30 after vehicles carrying Trump flags and signs surrounded one of its campaign buses traveling from San Antonio to Austin, according to Democratic officials.
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Shortly after this, Forbes posts this Headline:
Trump Claims Supporters Were ‘Protecting’ Biden-Harris Bus Surrounded On Highway
OMG! It was a JOKE, Forbes! Get OVER it!
I'm laughing.
Washington, D.C. - October 31, 2020 - (The Ponder News) -- “In Eastern Washington, and especially in Northeastern Washington, wolf predation on calves has become common. I regularly hear from people who’ve seen wolves around their property and who cannot defend themselves without risking a felony,” said McMorris Rodgers. “By delisting the gray wolf and restoring local decision-making, we can allow people in our state and community to use science-based wolf management practices that will benefit both our endangered and native animals while protecting farmers and ranchers. As the Obama administration made clear in 2013, the gray wolf is recovered. Unfortunately, the gray wolf was not delisted. Thank you to the Trump administration for respecting local decision-making and delisting this recovered species in the lower 48 states,” stated U.S. Representative Cathy Rodgers McMorris (R-WA, 5th).
More than 45 years after gray wolves were first listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), the Trump Administration and its many conservation partners are announcing the successful recovery of the gray wolf and its delisting from the ESA. U.S. Secretary of the Interior David L. Bernhardt was at the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge to announce that state and tribal wildlife management agency professionals will resume responsibility for sustainable management and protection of delisted gray wolves in states with gray wolf populations, while the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) monitors the species for five years to ensure the continued success of the species.
The Service based its final determination solely on the best scientific and commercial data available, a thorough analysis of threats and how they have been alleviated and the ongoing commitment and proven track record of states and tribes to continue managing for healthy wolf populations once delisted. This analysis includes the latest information about the wolf’s current and historical distribution in the contiguous United States
“Today’s action reflects the Trump Administration’s continued commitment to species conservation based on the parameters of the law and the best scientific and commercial data available,” said Secretary Bernhardt. “After more than 45 years as a listed species, the gray wolf has exceeded all conservation goals for recovery. Today’s announcement simply reflects the determination that this species is neither a threatened nor endangered species based on the specific factors Congress has laid out in the law.”
In total, the gray wolf population in the lower 48 states is more than 6,000 wolves, greatly exceeding the combined recovery goals for the Northern Rocky Mountains and Western Great Lakes populations.
The gray wolf is the latest in a strong list of ESA recoveries that includes the bald eagle, peregrine falcon, American alligator, brown pelican and 48 other species of animals and plants in U.S. states, territories and waters. Countless more have improved or stabilized. Collectively, these successes demonstrate that the ESA can make a difference for imperiled species.
No administration in history has recovered more imperiled species in their first term than the Trump Administration. Since 2017, thirteen species – and now the gray wolf – have been determined to not be either a threatened species or endangered species under the ESA’s List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife, and another seven species have been downlisted from endangered species to threatened species. To provide context for this in looking at other administrations in their first term, the Obama Administration recovered six species; the Bush Administration recovered eight species; and the Clinton Administration recovered nine species.
“President Trump’s Administration has focused on proactive measures, including partnerships with organizations, to ensure listed species flourish to the point of recovery,” said Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Aurelia Skipwith. “Today is a win for the gray wolf and the American people. I am grateful for these partnerships with States and Tribes and their commitment to sustainable management of wolves that will ensure the species long-term survival following this delisting.”
By the early part of the 20th century, the gray wolf had become scarce across almost the entire landscape of the lower 48 states. But, the dedicated efforts of partners that included states, tribes, conservation organizations and private landowners working together under the auspices of the ESA, brought this great predator back to healthy, stable numbers. Gray wolves in the United States exist primarily as two large, genetically diverse, stable to growing populations broadly distributed across several contiguous U.S. States, with an additional large population in Alaska that was never listed.
Gray wolves in the Northern Rocky Mountains, where a healthy and sustainable population roams across Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, and eastern portions of Oregon and Washington, were previously delisted. These states have since managed this delisted population effectively and responsibly. Wolves have even expanded into western Oregon, western Washington, northern California and most recently in northwest Colorado.
The Western Great Lakes wolf population in Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota, the largest outside Alaska, is also strong and stable. These states have been key partners in wolf recovery efforts and have made a commitment to continue their activities. The states of Washington, Oregon, California and Colorado are also committed to conserving wolves, as demonstrated by their development of management plans and laws protecting wolves.
This final rule excludes Mexican wolves as that species remains listed under the ESA. The final rule will be effective 60 days after publication in the Federal Register.
In 2013, the Obama Administration’s U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service found that gray wolf recovery goals had been achieved, yet the effort to delist the animal from the ESA was met with politically-motivated attacks and lawsuits by radical environmental groups. Management of gray wolves was transferred from the states to the federal level following two 2014 U.S. District Court decisions that reinstated gray wolves under the protections of the ESA.
The best available scientific and commercial information continued to indicate the gray wolf does not meet the definitions of a threatened or endangered species. With a range-wide population of more than 6,000, gray wolf recovery efforts have exceeded the combined goals for the Northern Rocky Mountains and Western Great Lakes populations. In Washington state alone, there are at least 108 known wolves in 21 known packs, including at least 10 breeding pairs, and the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation reported 37 wolves in five packs.
The gray wolf joins the bald eagle, peregrine falcon, American alligator, brown pelican and 33 other species of animals and plants in U.S. states, territories and waters that have been brought back from the brink with the help of the ESA.
On March 15, 2019, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service published a proposed rule in the Federal Register to delist the gray wolf and announced the opening of a 60-day public comment period on the proposed action, ending May 14, 2020. In response to requests, the Service extended the comment period until July 15, 2019, to allow all interested parties additional time to comment on the proposal and to allow for a public hearing. In addition, a final peer review report on the proposal was made available on June 3, 2019.
On May 28, 2019, 35 U.S. Representative wrote a bipartisan letter in support of the proposed rule, urging the Administration to use the best available science to delist the gray wolf. Click here to read the letter.
In the 115th Congress, Rep. Newhouse introduced H.R. 6784, the Manage Our Wolves Act, which passed the House on November 16, 2018. In Washington, the gray wolf is only listed as endangered in two-thirds of the state. The Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife has publicly supported changing the federal designation in order to fully implement their local management plan. Click here and here to read the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife’s 2015 and 2018 letters requesting the federal delisting of the gray wolf.
See more information by clicking HERE.
(Washington, D.C. - October 31, 2020 - (The Ponder News) -- WASHINGTON – U.S. Representative Kathleen Rice (D-NY, 4th), a member of the House Homeland Security Committee, introduced the Election Security Assessments Act (H.R. 8697), which would require the Director of National Intelligence to submit annual reports on pre-election threats to Federal elections to Members of Congress and State election officials.
“Foreign interference in our elections represents one of the gravest threats to American democracy in the history of our nation,” said Rep. Kathleen Rice. “Given what is at stake, it is absurd that Director Ratcliffe and the Trump Administration at large have been tight-lipped and dismissive about these threats. Seemingly for fear of harming the President politically. The Election Security Assessments Act will require that information sharing take place and ensure that Congress and State election officials are not left in the dark about the threats facing our elections.”
Rice’s introduction of the Election Security Assessments Acts comes following Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe’s decision to scale back election security briefings to Congress. These briefings were retrenched despite U.S. intelligence that Russia and other actors are still interfering in the 2020 election.
Full text of the Election Security Assessments Act can be found here.
