August 13, 2016


News and Views


http://www.cbsnews.com/news/does-donald-trump-pay-zero-in-taxes/

New York Times: Does Donald Trump pay zero in taxes?
By REBECCA SHABAD CBS NEWS
August 12, 2016, 11:17 AM

Play VIDEO -- Trump's taxes remain a secret, and other MoneyWatch headlines


Real estate and tax professionals say that it's possible that Donald Trump has paid zero federal income tax in recent years, according to The New York Times.

That's the theory columnist James Stewart wrote about in the newspaper after speaking to a number of experts.

"It's both possible and legal that Donald Trump would pay little or no income tax," Len Green, an accountant and chairman of the Green Group, a tax and accounting advisory firm, told Stewart, the report said.

Steven M. Rosenthal, a veteran tax lawyer and senior fellow at the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy, agreed that the GOP presidential nominee could be paying nothing.

"I would expect he's paying little or no tax," Rosenthal said, according to the report. "Real estate is notorious for throwing off huge deductions."

The federal tax code, the report notes, contains some of the most generous tax breaks for real estate developers that can allow them to reduce their reported income to near zero or report a loss.

This comes as Hillary Clinton released her 2015 tax returns on Friday. Trump, on the other hand, has refused to release his own because he claims that he is being audited and cannot release them during that process.

The Times points out that while President Richard Nixon refused to release his tax returns, every presidential candidate since then has done so.

Trump has dodged questions about whether he would release them before November's election.

A report from the New Jersey Division of Gambling Enforcement revealed in May that Trump paid no federal income taxes for at least two years during the 1970s. He took advantage of the tax code provision that allows developers to report negative income.

That month, he also said that his tax rate is "none of your business" when asked about it by ABC News' George Stephanopoulos.



“Trump has dodged questions about whether he would release them before November's election. A report from the New Jersey Division of Gambling Enforcement revealed in May that Trump paid no federal income taxes for at least two years during the 1970s. He took advantage of the tax code provision that allows developers to report negative income.”

At least two of the articles in today’s Blog make me nauseous. This is one of them. Even if he is exaggerating his wealth for personal aggrandizement, to pay nothing is obscene. See the interesting article by NPR below on the subject of politicians and their taxes.



http://www.npr.org/2016/08/12/489791576/3-reasons-we-care-about-politicians-taxes

3 Reasons We Care About Politicians' Taxes
August 12, 2016 1:25 PM ET
Domenico Montanaro - 2015

Photograph -- Richard M. Nixon with Checkers, his family's cocker spaniel, in 1952. Nixon, who was then the Republican vice presidential nominee, mentioned Checkers in a TV-radio report on his finances. AP
POLITICS -- New Emails Raise Questions About Ties Between Clinton Foundation And State Dept.
Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton gives a speech today on the economy after touring Futuramic Tool & Engineering, in Warren, Mich.
POLITICS -- FACT CHECK: Clinton Lays Out Economic Plan In Contrast To Trump
POLITICS -- In An Effort To Pressure Trump, Clinton Releases Tax Rate
IT'S ALL POLITICS -- Hillary Clinton Releases 8 Years Of Tax Returns
Photograph -- Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton at a campaign event in Iowa earlier this week.
Photograph -- Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton delivers a speech on the U.S economy in Warren, Mich., on Thursday.
IT'S ALL POLITICS -- The Problem With Donald Trump's One-Page Summary On His Wealth
Photograph -- Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks at his South Carolina campaign kickoff rally in Bluffton, S.C.
IT'S ALL POLITICS -- How Much Is Donald Trump Worth? We Still Don't Know
Video -- Trump speaking, ABC News via YouTube
Photograph -- Donald Trump holds up a copy of what he says his net worth is in June 2015. It claims his net worth at almost $9 billion, though others have estimated it to be far lower. Richard Drew/AP
Photograph -- From left: Anthony Scaramucci, Carla Sands, Betsy McCaughey
POLITICS -- After Criticism, Trump Adds Women To His Economic Advisory Team


If it's Friday in politics, there's the potential for a news dump.

This Friday, that means tax returns. The Clinton campaign, in an effort to pressure Donald Trump into releasing his taxes, released the Clintons' 2015 numbers. The Clintons made $10.6 million combined, mostly from speeches, and paid an effective federal tax rate of 34.2 percent. Clinton's vice presidential candidate, Tim Kaine, also released 10 years' returns. In 2015, Kaine made about $313,000 and paid a 16.1 percent tax rate. (Here are all the tax returns released by the Clinton campaign.)

Clinton and her husband, former President Bill Clinton, have already released tax returns dating to the 1970s given their long history in public life. The Clintons, in June of last year, released the previous eight years of returns. Here's some of what we found out from those, as reported by NPR's Scott Horsley:

*Income: The Clintons "earned $139 million since 2007. They paid nearly $44 million in federal taxes during that period." Much of that income came from paid speeches.

*Tax rate: The couple's effective federal tax rate ranged from 25 percent in 2007 to 36 percent last year. (The average American pays about 10 percent in tax. The wealthiest pay about 25 percent.)

*Charity: "The Clintons ... gave between 8 and 15 percent to charity" (mostly through the Clinton Family Foundation).
Donald Trump displays a copy of a summary of his net worth during his presidential announcement Tuesday.

It has become tradition in U.S. presidential politics that the party standard-bearers release their tax returns. In fact, every major-party nominee in recent history has done so. Trump, though, has declined to follow suit. Why? Trump says he is being audited by the IRS and won't release his taxes until that audit is done. But there's nothing preventing Trump from releasing his taxes while under audit, a point the Clinton campaign and its supporters have pressed, arguing that Trump must be hiding something.

It's possible Trump pays $0 in taxes, or close to it, the New York Times reported, because of deductions for real estate developers. There's some history of that for Trump, who "reported losses and paid no federal income tax in 1978 and 1979 and paid only modest sums — a total of less than $75,000 — for the prior three years," the Times wrote.

Trump himself fueled that speculation when he told ABC's George Stephanopoulos in May, "I fight very hard to pay as little tax as possible."

That Americans demand that the people who run for president serve up what amounts to a financial colonoscopy is something of an odd, voyeuristic tradition. (You can read all of the released tax returns from past presidents and vice presidents and the current 2016 field here at the Tax History Project's archive. Candidates are also required under federal law to release financial disclosures that show ranges of the worth of assets and debts.)

Below are three reasons we care about what's in those tax returns — and a little history of where this tradition came from.

First, A Little History

It's a political cliche to say that if you want a friend in Washington get a dog.

And the origin of politicians releasing their tax returns goes back to Richard Nixon — and his cocker spaniel.

Nixon, running as Eisenhower's vice president in 1952, was accused of financial wrongdoing "related to a fund established by political backers to pay for campaign expenses," Joseph J. Thorndike of the Tax History Project wrote in 2012.

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speaks at a rally at Osceola Heritage Park, in Kissimmee, Fla.

Nixon admitted to taking one gift — Checkers, the family dog — from a donor. "[T]he kids, like all kids, love the dog," Nixon said, "and I just want to say this, right now, that regardless of what they say about it, we're gonna keep it."

What's become known as Nixon's "Checkers speech" was all an attempt to clear his name. He challenged the Democratic Party ticket, headed by Adlai Stevenson, to "make a complete financial statement as to their financial history," as he believed he had.

If they didn't, Nixon alleged, it would be proof "they have something to hide." So Stevenson and his running mate, Alabama Sen. John Sparkman, released a decade of their tax returns. Eisenhower, the guy at the top of the ticket with Nixon, even released a summary of his own taxes.

Nixon, though, did not.

The practice of releasing taxes didn't become tradition until 21 years later — again involving Nixon. PolitiFact wrote:

"The IRS audited Nixon in 1973, when questions bubbled up about a fishy charitable donation and speculation that Nixon had tried to game the tax system, according to a paper prepared for the United States Capitol Historical Society. (This happened around the same time as the Watergate investigation but was a separate issue.) Nixon said one of his most well-known lines amid this scandal: 'People have got to know whether or not their president is a crook. Well, I am not a crook'.

"Nixon eventually released a slew of financial information to the public in December 1973, including the previous four years of tax returns, to try to quell the criticism. He asked a congressional committee to examine them, too. However, the congressional investigation ultimately found that Nixon owed $476,431 (approximately $2.3 million in today's dollars) in unpaid taxes and accrued interest. Oops."
From that point on, tax-return disclosure became the norm for people wanting to be president.

Reasons We Care

1. Conflicts of interest: Almost every candidate who runs for public office is fairly wealthy. (Even the candidates who have the government pay their salary, like Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden, make far more money than the average American.) Because of that wealth, how they made their money (we'll get to heart in a second) can tell you whether they have potential conflicts of interest — who they made that money from.

Trump's business interests all over the world could become entangled with presidential politics. Just look at his response to Brexit — that the dropping euro could be good for tourism to places like his Scottish golf course. For the Clintons, the Clinton foundation could also raise the issue of conflicts of interest as it raises gobs of money from foreign entities. Would some of those governments expect special treatment from a second President Clinton? A look at recently released emails from her time at the State Department — and what aides did for big Clinton foundation donors — gives people reason to question.

2. Do they have heart? Tax returns tell us how much candidates give to charity. The Clintons, as noted above, gave between 8 and 15 percent — or about $15 million total — during that eight-year period. Most of that went through the Clinton Family Foundation, as The Atlantic reported. They also contributed to the Nelson Mandela Foundation, First United Methodist Church and the Humana Challenge golf tournament.

People could have questions about why so much of their money went to their own foundation — and whether that's really in the spirit of giving. For Trump, on the other hand, it took a Washington Post investigation to unearth that he hadn't given $1 million to veterans' charities, as he had promised after a fundraiser he held earlier this year (an event he held in competition with a debate he decided not to attend because he was upset that Fox News' Megyn Kelly was moderating). Trump eventually laid out how much was raised and allocated in a testy news conference. So is criticism of Trump unfair? Is he really quietly a very charitable person — or not? Tax returns would reveal that.

3. Are they like us? Again, these candidates are much wealthier than the average American. Median household income in this country is $53,482, according to the census. The Clintons made $28 million in 2014 (mostly from speeches). They also live in a posh New York suburb, Chappaqua, where they bought their home for $1.7 million in 1999 just before leaving the White House. (In 2016 money, that appreciates to about $2.5 million.) The average home price in the U.S. in June 2016 was $358,000 (median home price was $307,000).

Trump, of course, makes it a point to say he's "really rich," claiming he's worth $9 billion. Trump's net worth is something of a mystery. He says it fluctuates even based on his own "feelings." The Washington Post reported this week on a 2007 deposition that caught Trump in repeated lies and exaggerations when it came to his wealth and earnings. His tax returns would certainly clarify whether he is as rich as he says.

There's also the business of tax rates. The Clintons have paid a fairly high tax rate over the years. Trump, on the other hand, has boasted that, "I fight very hard to pay as little tax as possible" and called his tax rate "none of your business." But when a candidate fights hard to pay less in taxes than most people, especially when he is uber-rich, that can be a political problem. That was certainly the case in 2012, when the Obama campaign and its outside group allies were able to paint Mitt Romney as someone who got away with paying less in taxes. (Romney paid an effective tax rate of 14 percent because so much of his income came from dividends and capital gains.)



ZIKA UPDATE


http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory/puerto-rico-reports-10690-zika-cases-amid-ongoing-41330959?cid=clicksource_4380645_2_daypart_dp_hed

US Declares Health Emergency in Puerto Rico Due to Zika
By DANICA COTO, ASSOCIATED PRESS
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Aug 13, 2016, 2:35 AM ET

Photograph -- FILE - In this May 23, 2016, file photo, an Aedes aegypti mosquito sits inside a glass tube at the Fiocruz institute where they have been screening for mosquitos naturally infected with the Zika virus in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The U.S. surgeon general is urging Puerto Rico on Thursday, Aug. 11, to step up its public education campaign against Zika as he warned that 25 percent of the island will be infected with the mosquito-borne virus by year's end. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana, File)


The U.S. government on Friday declared a public health emergency in Puerto Rico as a result of a Zika epidemic.

The declaration allows the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to award grants, access emergency funds and temporarily appoint personnel where needed, among other things.

"This administration is committed to meeting the Zika outbreak in Puerto Rico with the necessary urgency," Secretary Sylvia Burwell said in a department statement. Burwell traveled to the U.S. territory in late April to evaluate its response to the outbreak.

A department spokesman did not immediately return a message seeking comment on what immediate steps the agency may take.

The announcement came hours after Puerto Rico reported 1,914 new cases in the past week, for a total of 10,690 since the first one was reported in December.

The mosquito-borne virus has infected 1,035 pregnant women, which is a concern to authorities because Zika has been tied to a severe birth defect known as microcephaly. More than 100 pregnant women infected with Zika in Puerto Rico who have given birth have had healthy babies, officials said.

Puerto Rico reported the first microcephaly case acquired on U.S. soil in May, involving a dead fetus that a woman turned over to health authorities. Since then no microcephaly cases have been reported, but federal officials say it is only a matter of time.

Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla said he had asked federal officials to declare a public health emergency and thanked them for their support.

"Zika poses a hidden threat to future generations of Puerto Ricans, and I feel the responsibility to do everything in my power to fight the spread of it," he said.

Garcia recently authorized the use of Bti, an organic larvicide, to fight the spread of Zika after rejecting aerial spraying with the insecticide naled as proposed by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Puerto Rico Health Secretary Ana Rius said 90 people have been hospitalized because of Zika. Officials also say 30 people have been diagnosed with a temporary paralysis condition known as Guillain-Barre that has been linked to Zika.

Health authorities say they believe the number of Zika cases is much higher because eight of 10 people show no symptoms and many don't go to the doctor.

The emergency was declared one day after the U.S. surgeon general visited Puerto Rico and said he expected 25 percent of Puerto Rico's nearly 3.5 million people will be infected with Zika by year's end.

Danica Coto on Twitter: www.twitter.com/danicacoto



BAT HOUSES

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/pic/article.cfm?articleid=1816

Bats, the Benefit of
Drs. Foster & Smith Educational Staff

Contrary to popular belief, bats are actually friendly, useful creatures. You can enlist bats during the warmer months to help you control mosquitoes and other pesky insects in your backyard so you can enjoy spending time outdoors.

Bats make up almost a quarter of all mammals, and they are the only mammals able to fly. They can be found all throughout the world, and although they may not be the cutest creatures in the animal kingdom, bats are extremely helpful to humans in many ways.

Many movies, television shows, and books have given bats a bad name. When many people hear the word "bat," they think of blood-thirsty creatures who spread diseases like rabies.

The truth is that there are only three species of bats that feed on blood, and they all live in Central and South America. According to Bat Conservation International, fewer than 10 people in the past 50 years have contracted rabies from a North American bat. People also fear that they will be attacked if they are outdoors at night when bats are present. This is a misunderstanding of bat behavior. Bats swoop down to catch flying insects, not to scare you.

70% of the more than 1,000 bat species are insectivores, meaning they feed solely on insects. Some insectivorous bats can catch up to 600+ mosquitoes an hour! In Austin, Texas there is a bat colony, estimated to have up to 1.5 million bats during peak season, that has been estimated to eat almost 10,000-30,000 pounds of insects. Take a cue from the folks in Europe who have been using bat houses to eliminate mosquitoes since the early 1900s. Most bat houses, when placed properly, will be occupied within one year of placement. Think of how many more BBQs and bonfires you'll be able to enjoy.

Don't let bat myths play on your fears. Bats are friendly, helpful creatures. When you place a bat house in your backyard, you offer bats a safe place to live. They'll help eat pesky mosquitoes, and you'll be able to spend time enjoying the outdoors during the warmer months.

DID YOU KNOW...
Bat droppings, called guano, are also beneficial. Guano is nitrogen-rich and is considered an excellent fertilizer. Some scientists have even found particular enzymes from bacteria in guano that can be used as cleaning agents in laundry soaps and other cleaners.
The summer goes by too fast as it is… don't spend it indoors.

Book: Understanding Bats (Go to this website to order)
Mosquito control: Coveside Sunshine's Bat House
"Bat"chelor Pad



If you’re like me and you go “eeeww!” every time you get near a bat or even see a photo of their open mouth with it’s tiny little teeth, consider instead tens of thousands of babies born with microcephaly. Pesticides can only do so much, and genetic techniques aren’t ready for use yet, but the virus is spreading literally daily. Give a bat box some thought. Bats, unless they are ill, do not spend time on the ground. If you do see one at or near eye level, do NOT touch it, and report it to the health authorities.



http://www.cbsnews.com/news/rio-olympics-2016-egypt-judo-fighter-islam-el-shehaby-refuses-to-shake-hands-israeli-or-sasson/

Egyptian judo fighter refuses to shake Israeli opponent's hand
CBS/AP
August 12, 2016, 10:49 AM

53 Photos -- Egypt's Islam El Shehaby, blue, declines to shake hands with Israel's Or Sasson, white, after losing during the men's over 100-kg judo competition at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Friday, Aug. 12, 2016. MARKUS SCHREIBER, AP
23 PHOTOS -- Olympic-sized woes plague Rio
53 PHOTOS -- Best of the Rio Olympics


RIO DE JANEIRO -- Egyptian judo fighter Islam El Shehaby was loudly booed at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics after his first-round loss to Israel's fifth-ranked Or Sasson, when El Shehaby refused to shake Sasson's hand, in a major breach of judo etiquette.

Sasson defeated El Shehaby with two throws for an automatic victory, with about a minute and a half remaining in the bout.

Afterwards, El Shehaby lay flat on his back for a moment before standing to take his place before Sasson, in front of the referee. When Sasson extended his hand, El Shehaby backed away, shaking his head.

The referee then called El Shehaby back to the mat and obliged to him bow; El Shehaby gave a quick nod of his head.

El Shehaby refused to comment afterward.

Judo players typically bow or shake hands at the beginning and end of a match, as a sign of respect in the Japanese martial art.

The International Judo Federation said that the fact that the fight even took place between those two athletes was already a major sign of progress.

"This is already a big improvement that Arabic countries accept to (fight) Israel," spokesman Nicolas Messner said in an email. He said there was no obligation to shake hands, but to bow is mandatory.

Messner said that even though El Shehaby ultimately bowed, "his attitude will be reviewed after the games to see if any further action should be taken."

El Shahaby had come under pressure from Islamist-leaning and nationalist voices in Egypt to withdraw entirely from the fight.

On Thursday, Mataz Matar, a TV host in Al-Sharq Islamist-leaning network urged el-Shehaby to withdraw.

"My son watch out, don't be fooled, or fool yourself thinking you will play with the Israeli athlete to defeat him and make Egypt happy," he said, adding "Egypt will cry; Egypt will be sad and you will be seen as a traitor and a normalizer in the eyes of your people."

Hisham Hatab, head of the Egyptian Olympic Committee, was quoted by the daily al-Masry al-Youm as saying there will be no withdrawals, adding "Islam will play the match without troubles."

Asked whether the two athletes will shake hands, Hatab said, "the delegation doesn't allow mixing politics with sports. In Judo, the players can either shake hands or bow in respect to each other. It's up to the player." Egypt's minister for youth and sports was quoted as saying, "we have to accept competition with everyone regardless of anything."

The incident triggered strong reaction on social media:


Follow
SussexFriendsIsrael @SussexFriends
DISGRACEFUL!
Egyptian refuses to shake hand of Israeli Judoka Or Sasson after being defeated by him at #Rio2016
9:45 AM - 12 Aug 2016 · Hove, England, United Kingdom
1,931 1,931 Retweets 859 859 likes

Follow
Ariel R. @Dani_Din1
Islam El Shehaby, just showed what a loser he is, not an athlete. Happy he got kicked by Israeli, what a loser #Israel #Egypt #Judo #Rio2016
9:44 AM - 12 Aug 2016
12 12 Retweets 23 23 likes

Follow
Avi Mayer @AviMayer
YES! #ISR's Ori Sasson beats #EGY's Islam El Shehaby by ippon. The Egyptian refused to shake his Israeli opponent's hand. Sore loser.
9:35 AM - 12 Aug 2016
108 108 Retweets 108 108 likes

Egypt is the first country in the Arab world to sign a peace treaty and normalize relations with Israel, after decades of war.


“Israel-Egyptian peace agreement signed - Mar 26, 1979 - HISTORY.com

www.history.com/this.../israel-egyptian-peace-agreement-signed

History
On this day in History, Israel-Egyptian peace agreement signed on Mar 26, 1979. Learn more ... Seven months later, a formal peace treaty was signed. For their ...” .


Go to the following for information on the history of this conflict.
http://listverse.com/2008/08/29/10-attempts-at-arab-israeli-peace/
Agreements, 1919 to 2002.



According to my calculator 1979 was 37 years ago, and the bad blood still festers. Too bad. Hating our enemies TOTALLY is a very common if not necessary part of human psychology, except in certain religions which emphasize peace and cooperation. It is my opinion that only some individuals get into such a rancor filled turn of mind – those who are psychologically damaged or not very intelligent. Those people are underconfident and have been brought up with too little love. That does warp the mind in the direction of hatred.

Nonetheless, it is an appalling personal characteristic, and infinitely harmful in the world. I can think of the Friends, the Buddhists, the UUs, some Christians such as Jimmy Carter and Martin Luther King, but for the most part the readiness to wage bloody warfare is essential to group solidarity. We humans really aren’t nearly as great intellectually and morally as we think we are. Of course, a human or other creature, who will not physically, or at least verbally, defend itself is in for a rough ride, from the playground to death, but going into a church and shooting the people in there “to start a race war” is simply disgusting.

This fighting over religion, however, stymies me. It is clear to me that every person has a similar, but different, turn of mind, and a healthy society will not shun an individual because they are different, unless they are actually dangerous. This hatred of race against race, and religion against religion is not a NECESSARY part of our survival skill set, and in these modern times, it should cease to exist. Self-defense is always an acceptable reason in my view for coming to blows, but not skin color or cultural/religious dogma.


The Wisdom of Donald Trump For Today

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/donald-trump-claim-that-obama-founded-isis-was-sarcasm/

Donald Trump: Claim that Obama founded ISIS was "sarcasm"
By REENA FLORES CBS NEWS
August 12, 2016, 9:57 AM

Video – CBS News
Play VIDEO -- Trump hits Clinton on emails, says Obama "founded ISIS"
Play VIDEO -- Donald Trump: President Obama is "founder" of ISIS

Donald Trump said Friday that he was being sarcastic when he made the inflammatory claim earlier this week that Obama "founded" the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).

Follow
Donald J. Trump ✔ @realDonaldTrump
Ratings challenged @CNN reports so seriously that I call President Obama (and Clinton) "the founder" of ISIS, & MVP. THEY DON'T GET SARCASM?
6:26 AM - 12 Aug 2016
5,789 5,789 Retweets 16,861 16,861 likes

On Wednesday, Trump first introduced the attack line at a rally in Sunrise, Florida.

"In fact, in many respects, you know they honor President Obama," Trump told the crowd about the terrorist organization. "ISIS is honoring President Obama. He is the founder of ISIS. He is the founder of ISIS, OK? He's the founder! He founded ISIS! And I would say the co-founder would be Crooked Hillary Clinton."

He repeated the line again during a phone interview on CNBC Thursday morning.

"He was the founder of ISIS, absolutely," Trump said.

And then on Hugh Hewitt's radio show later that day, the GOP nominee doubled (and tripled) down on the claim, even despite the conservative talk show host's attempt to tone down Trump's rhetoric.

"I know what you meant," Hewitt told Trump of his Obama-ISIS comments. "You meant that he created the vacuum, he lost the peace."

But Trump stuck to his original statement. "No, I meant he's the founder of ISIS. I do. He was the most valuable player. I give him the most valuable player award. I give her, too, by the way, Hillary Clinton."

Hewitt tried to fact check the billionaire in real time.

"But [Obama's] not sympathetic to them," he said. "He hates them. He's trying to kill them."

Trump responded: "I don't care. He was the founder. His -- the way he got out of Iraq was that that was the founding of ISIS, okay?"

Later in the interview, the real estate mogul said his claim was "no mistake."

"No, it's no mistake," Trump said. "Everyone's liking it. I think they're liking it."

Trump continued to repeat that Obama and Clinton were the founders of the terrorist organization at an event in Miami later Thursday.

"I call President Obama and Hillary Clinton the founders of ISIS - they're the founders," Trump told the National Association of Home Builders: "ISIS will hand [Clinton] the most valuable player award. Her only competition is Barack Obama, between the two of them."

On Thursday evening, Trump had one more exchange with a local television reporter about Obama starting ISIS.

"Isn't what you're saying inflammatory?" a WTVJ reporter asked.

Trump responded: "Let it be inflammatory. I tell the truth."



https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2016/08/12/trump-shifts-his-tone-calls-founder-of-isis-comment-sarcastic-but-not-that-sarcastic/?wpisrc=nl_politics-pm&wpmm=1

Post Politics
Trump shifts his tone, calls ‘founder of ISIS’ comment ‘sarcastic,’ but ‘not that sarcastic’
By Sean Sullivan August 12 at 4:25 PM

Photograph -- Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally Friday in Erie, Pa. (Eric Thayer/Reuters)
Video -- Is Trump joking? It's hard to tell Play Video2:09
Related: It's happened over and over: Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump makes a controversial statement then walks it back by saying he was joking or being sarcastic. Here are some examples. (Sarah Parnass/The Washington Post)

A day after Donald Trump repeatedly called President Obama the "founder" of the Islamic State and labeled Hillary Clinton the terrorist group's "co-founder," he shifted his tone abruptly, insisting he was being sarcastic and blaming the news media for misrepresenting his comments.

Trump's Friday remarks, delivered on Twitter and at a rally in Erie, Pa., marked an a blunt change in tone from Thursday, when he lobbed his attacks against Obama and Clinton in a serious manner during interviews and speeches. In at least one of the interviews, he was given a chance to explain whether his words carried some other meaning, and he declined to do so.

On Friday, the Republican presidential nominee argued it should have been clear that he wasn't being serious.

"So I said 'the founder of ISIS,' obviously I'm being sarcastic," Trump said at the afternoon rally in Erie, using an acronym for the Islamic State. He added: "But not that sarcastic, to be honest with you."

On Friday morning, Trump took to Twitter to accuse CNN of not understanding his remarks.

Follow
Donald J. Trump ✔ @realDonaldTrump
Ratings challenged @CNN reports so seriously that I call President Obama (and Clinton) "the founder" of ISIS, & MVP. THEY DON'T GET SARCASM?
6:26 AM - 12 Aug 2016
6,669 6,669 Retweets 19,707 19,707 likes

But when given a chance to explain his comments more fully in a Thursday interview with conservative talk radio host Hugh Hewitt, Trump stuck to his attack.

"Last night, you said the president was the founder of ISIS. I know what you meant. You meant that he created the vacuum, he lost the peace," Hewitt told Trump.

Trump responded: "No, I meant he’s the founder of ISIS. I do. He was the most valuable player. I give him the most valuable player award. I give her, too, by the way, Hillary Clinton."

Hewitt noted that Obama has waged an effort against the Islamic State: "He’s not sympathetic to them. He hates them. He’s trying to kill them."

Trump responded: "I don’t care. He was the founder. His, the way he got out of Iraq was, that was the founding of ISIS."

What is now known as the Islamic State was founded by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and was active in Iraq by 2003, when Colin Powell, secretary of state at the time, mentioned him in a United Nations speech.

Trump argued Friday that his MVP comments should have signaled that he was being sarcastic.

The nominee was introduced in Erie by Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus. He plans to hold a second rally in Altoona, Pa., later Friday.

During his speech, Trump took a dig at his former GOP rivals who refuse to back him despite signing a pledge months ago to support the eventual nominee: "You know what I say to 'em: 'Get over it.'"


This story is simply sickening. Still, it’s the latest, so I’ve included it here. How many people are going to vote for this Homo Erectus specimen?



http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/witness-recounts-fatal-shooting-florida-woman-during-police-drill-n627371?cid=eml_nnn_20160810

Witness Recounts Fatal Shooting of 73-Year-Old Florida Woman During Police Drill
by KERRY SANDERS, ERIKA ANGULO and CORKY SIEMASZKO
NEWS AUG 10 2016, 7:17 PM ET

Photograph -- Mary Knowlton ended her employment in 1988. From 1993-2001 she served on the library board of advisers for the Scott County Library system. Provided by family.
Video -- Woman Shot, Killed During Citizen Police Academy Training in Florida 2:48
Photograph -- A civilian was killed in "Shoot/Don't Shoot" Scenario at Punta Gorda Police Department in Florida, Mary is the victim and Gary is her husband. Provided by family
Play -- Florida Official on Police Academy Shooting: 'We Are Shocked by This Horrific Accident' 1:42

An eye witness to the fatal shooting of a Florida retiree during a citizen police academy drill in which she was playing a role said Wednesday at first they thought it was "theater" when she suddenly collapsed.

But when they saw that Mary Knowlton was bleeding, they realized this was no act, witness John Wright told NBC News

"We all thought that this was part of the theater, we all thought it was expected," said Wright, who is president of the Punta Gorda Chamber of Commerce and was taking part in the training exercise. "When she went to the floor I think we all realized the severity of what we'd all witnessed."

Wright said he saw the blood and when he looked over at Punta Gorda Chief Tom Lewis there was "anxiety and panic and horror on his face."

"Nobody in their wildest dreams thought this was live ammunition in there," he said.

Wright's wrenching account of the fatal shooting of the 73-year-old mother of two grown sons came as the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE ) opened an investigation into Tuesday's tragic shooting.

Knowlton was taking part in a "shoot/don't shoot" exercise when she was struck by a live round while almost three dozen other participants looked on, Chief Lewis said. And the fatal bullet was fired from a revolver that the officer had used before in "earlier exercises."

"We were unaware that any live ammunition existed for this kind of weapon," Lewis said. "We thought only blanks were available."

Lewis said the department has "protocols in place" designed to prevent accidental shootings, but he declined to go into detail citing the FDLE probe.

The Punta Gorda Police Department later Wednesday identified the officer who shot Knowlton as Lee Coel, who has been on the force since March 17, 2014.

Coel has been placed on administrative leave while the investigation is under way.

"Like any other human being, he's very grief stricken," Lewis said. "Officers have been assigned to him to make sure he's psychologically stable."

Citizen police academies like the one Knowlton attended "are common around the state," FDLE spokesman Steve Arthur said. "They're a way of showing the community the various responsibilities of law enforcement."

So are the "shoot/don't shoot" drills, he said. "It gives people a better idea of what an officer has to deal with when confronted with ambiguous situations," said Arthur.

But asked whether it was common to use live ammunition in these kinds of drills, Arthur said, "No, it is not."

Earlier, Knowlton's son Steve told NBC News he forgives the Punta Gorda police officer who fired the fatal shot that killed his mom.

"My mom taught us never to hate," Steve Knowlton, 50, said. "I can't harbor hate."

Steve Knowlton said he was supposed to celebrate his birthday with his parents this weekend and his dad was "hysterical" when he called him with the news that his mother was dead.

A retired librarian from Minnesota who was active in Punta Gorda's civic life, Mary Knowlton had signed up for the course after two recent break-ins in her neighborhood, her son said. She also was trying to show support for police officers after the recent deadly attacks on police in Dallas and Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Steve Knowlton said his mother got picked to play the part of an "intruder." Wright disagreed and said she was actually "playing the police officer."

Knowlton "was excited to be selected as one of the two people selected to play a role in the shoot/don't shoot scenario," he said. "So Mary went over and started the role play and within 30-40 seconds of it starting, all we heard were three loud bangs," he said.

Punta Gorda's city manager expressed his condolences earlier Wednesday.

"We are shocked by this horrific accident and are grieving deeply over Mary's passing," Howard Kunik said. "We also would like to acknowledge the impact this has had on the other participants who were present during this tragedy."


ON THE PART OF THE PD IT’S AN ACCIDENT, BUT WHO SWITCHED THE BULLETS AND WHY??
WHERE IS COLUMBO WHEN WE NEED HIM?