OCTOBER 30 AND 31, 2018


NEWS AND VIEWS


IN THE AMERICAN SOUTH, THE MOST FAVORED WHIPPING BOYS ARE BLACK, BUT THE JEW HAS NEVER BEEN FAR BEHIND. IN THE WEST, IT IS THE HISPANIC AND NATIVE AMERICAN GROUPS. IN THE NORTHEAST, ANYBODY WHO IS SUFFICIENTLY DIFFERENT MAY BECOME A VICTIM.

ON LAST SATURDAY’S HORRIBLE EPISODE, I BELIEVE ALMOST EVERYBODY WAS TAKEN BY SURPRISE, EXCEPT MAYBE THE SPLC OR THE FBI. ONE GROUP DID STATE THAT THEY HAD EXPECTED SOMETHING LIKE THAT – MAYBE AN FBI AGENT. I AM OFTEN AWARE OF ABUSES ON A FREQUENT BASIS BECAUSE OF THIS NEWS BLOG, BUT I DIDN’T TRACK ANTI-JEWISH EVENTS. I HAVE WATCHED THE JEWISH SITUATION IN THE US MUCH LESS THAN THAT OF BLACKS.

IT JUST DIDN’T SEEM TO BE AN IMMEDIATE DANGER, THOUGH I DON’T TRUST THE RIGHTISTS UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES. I GREW UP AROUND TOTALLY UNFAIR THINKING PROCESSES IN THE SOUTH, BUT THERE WERE NO KLAN ACTIONS, AND CERTAINLY NOTHING AT ALL DONE AGAINST JEWS THAT I WAS AWARE OF. IT SEEMED LIKE ANOTHER TIME AND PLACE FROM THE BAD OLD DAYS OF THE KKK ACTIONS. OF COURSE, THEY WERE THERE, BUT I DIDN’T SEE ANY MARCHES OR CROSS-BURNINGS, ETC. IT WAS JUST A SAFER ENVIRONMENT IN GENERAL BACK THEN.

IN ADDITION, BY THE 1950S, ELVIS PRESSLEY WAS THE KING, AND I WAS A TEENAGER. WAS I IN LOVE? OH, YES, BUT MY BOYFRIENDS WERE MORE FRIENDS WHO HAPPENED TO BE BOYS THAN THE SERIOUS INVOLVEMENTS. LIFE WAS OPENING UP, AND I HAD BEEN KISSED SWEETLY AND TIMIDLY. LIFE SEEMED GOOD. SO, THAT WASN’T A PERFECT SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT, BUT NOT AN EMERGENCY CASE LIKE THIS PITTSBURGH HAPPENING EITHER.

AS SOON AS THOSE WORDS LEAVE MY MOUTH, I MUST SAY THAT WHAT HAPPENED IN WHITE NEIGHBORHOODS WERE UNDOUBTEDLY NOT THE SAME AS THOSE THINGS THAT HAPPENED AMONG THE BLACKS, AND ESPECIALLY TO THE BLACKS; BUT BEING A SHELTERED KID IN A SHELTERED PLACE, I WASN’T AWARE OF ANY OF IT. THE WORST THING IS THE FACT THAT I WAS NOT TAUGHT ANY OF THE WORST ABUSES OF SLAVERY IN HIGH SCHOOL, AND CERTAINLY NOT IN EARLIER YEARS. THE PORTRAYAL OF SLAVERY AND BLACK RIGHTS WAS SO SUGAR COATED THAT IT WAS UNRECOGNIZABLE. IT WAS A WATERMELON LIFE FOR ME – OF COURSE I HAD HEARD THAT BLACKS ESPECIALLY LOVE WATERMELONS, BUT WHY WOULD ANY INTELLIGENT PERSON NOT LOVE THEM? DELICIOUS IS DELICIOUS, RIGHT? I DIDN’T REALLY APPRECIATE WHAT SUCH A MEME AS THE MELON HAS MEANT IN OUR HISTORY.

IN MY HIGH SCHOOL YEARS, THE VERY BEGINNING OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS EVENTS WERE OCCURRING, BUT NOT VIOLENTLY. WE HAD ONE OF THE NATION’S FIRST SIT-IN EVENTS OCCURRING IN GREENSBORO, NC 15 MILES FROM WHERE I LIVED. MY WIKIPEDIA PLACES THAT AS 1960, WHICH WAS EARLIER THAN I REMEMBERED IT AS BEING. THAT MAY BE WHY IT DISTURBED ME TO THE DEGREE THAT IT DID. I REMEMBER A LOCAL NEWS PHOTOGRAPH OF A SMALL GROUP OF BLACK MEN STANDING IN LINE STARING DOWN A SMALL GROUP OF ARMED POLICE OFFICERS WITH GERMAN SHEPHERD DOGS, LITERALLY STRAINING AT THEIR LEASHES. THAT SADDENED ME DEEPLY. THE HOSTILITY WAS CLEAR. IT’S LIKE WATCHING A RAPE OCCUR. IT’S TOO HARMFUL FOR A SENSITIVE KID TO ABSORB EMOTIONALLY AND THEN SLOUGH IT OFF, AS WE MUST IN ORDER TO ADAPT.

ONE THING I HAVE LEARNED IN LIFE IS TO MOVE ON. THAT SLOUGHING OFF PART IS STILL HARD FOR ME, BUT NOW I JUST FEEL THAT IT SHOULD BE HARD. GOOD PEOPLE SHOULDN’T FIND THAT EASY. I ALSO BELIEVE NOW IN JOINING IN ALL LEGAL AND MEANINGFUL RESISTANCE TO DEEP UNFAIRNESS OF ALL KINDS. I HAVE BECOME A SOLDIER ON THE PART OF GOOD AGAINST GROSS UNFAIRNESS, THOUGH IT IS MAINLY IN THIS BLOG AND IN INTERPERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS. MY WAY TO COUNTERACT DISRESPECT TOWARD BLACK PEOPLE IS TO FIND THEIR INTERESTING, LOVING AND LOVEABLE INNER PERSONS. I JUST DON’T MAKE MY PERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS BY GROUP AS MUCH AS BY INDIVIDUALITY. I LIKE PEOPLE FOR WHO THEY ARE, AND NOT FOR WHAT THEY ARE. IN OTHER WORDS, MAKE FRIENDS WITH BLACKS, JEWS, ASIANS, THE VERY POOR, LESBIANS AND GAYS, ETC., AND DO SOCIAL THINGS WITH THEM. I AM THE YOUNGEST CHILD. MY MIDDLE SISTER DID THAT, BUT I SUSPECT THAT MY OLDEST SISTER HASN’T. IN FACT, I SUSPECT THAT SHE MAY POSSIBLY HAVE VOTED FOR TRUMP. I ASKED HER, AND SHE REFUSED TO TELL ME. PAINFUL. I LOVE HER, BUT I MAY NOT LIKE WHAT SHE IS.

WE HAD JEWISH PEOPLE IN THE TOWN, BUT NOT MANY I DON’T THINK; AND THEY DIDN’T GROUP DEFENSIVELY TOGETHER NOR MAKE WAR IN THE STREETS AS SOMETIMES HAPPENS IN NEW YORK CITY AND SUCH PLACES. THERE IS GREAT HOSTILITY IN THE LARGE NORTHERN CITIES BETWEEN ETHNIC AND RELIGIOUS GROUPS, NOT JUST ON RACIAL GROUNDS. IT’S AS THOUGH NO DIFFERENCES MAY BE SIMPLY IGNORED. I DON’T HAVE IT IN ME TO LIVE LIKE THAT. I DON’T LIKE ANY GROUP OF PEOPLE ENOUGH TO PUT UP WITH THE BS IF THEY ARE OF THE “EXCLUSIVE” TEMPERAMENT. OF COURSE, I’VE ALWAYS BEEN ONE OF THOSE “INDEPENDENTS” EVEN BEFORE I KNEW ANYTHING ABOUT BERNIE SANDERS.

ABOUT JEWISH ISSUES, THOUGH, I’VE BEEN ON THE ALERT SINCE I FIRST SAW THE DONALD TRUMP RALLIES WHICH OPENLY INCITED PHYSICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL ABUSES OF HUMAN RIGHTS, IF IT’S THE RIGHT GROUP TO BE THE WHIPPING BOY. A YOUNG REPORTER WITH A NEUROLOGICAL DISORDER IS AN ACCEPTABLE TARGET. WE DON’T HEAR THE TERM MUCH, BUT THAT IS CALLED “ABLEISM.” BULLYING THE MENTALLY CHALLENGED KID IN SCHOOL IS FAIR GAME IN AMERICAN CULTURE IN PLENTY OF PLACES. SAD, BUT TRUE. TRUMP HAS TOTALLY DISAVOWED ANY RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HIS ANTICS AND THE DISOBEDIENCE OF THE LAW BY HIS FOLLOWERS, ESPECIALLY THIS SHOW OF LOYALTY BY A TRUMP GOON AT THE SYNAGOGUE ON THE JEWISH SABBATH, OCTOBER 27TH. I PROPOSE A NEW FEDERAL HOLIDAY, SUCH AS “FREEDOM OF RELIGION DAY”, OR PERHAPS “ANTIDEFAMATION DAY.” I’M AFRAID TRUMP FEELS SECRETLY PROUD OVER THIS, RATHER THAN ASHAMED. WHAT GOOD CONTROL HE HAS OVER HIS FOLLOWERS.

I THINK, THOUGH, THAT EVEN TRUMP IS LEARNING THAT SOME OF THOSE CHARACTERISTICS OF HIS ARE DANGEROUS FOR HIS PRESIDENCY. HE PROBABLY IS FULLY AWARE THAT IF HE ISN’T OUT OF OFFICE BY 2020, THE FIGHT TO UNSEAT HIM WILL BE BRUTAL. OF COURSE, HE JUST IGNORES AND DENIES EVERYTHING AS IT OCCURS, LITERALLY FABRICATING INFORMATION TO SOUND NICER TO PEOPLE IN THIS COUNTRY. HE KNOWS WELL THAT THE MOST HOSTILE PEOPLE WILL ALWAYS BE FONDER OF HIM THAN THE GENTLER ONES ARE, AND THAT IN COURTING THEIR VOTES HE WILL BE FORMING AN INFORMAL ARMY OF THUGS. THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT BOWERS IS, IN MY VIEW. HE HAS THAT ZOMBIE-LIKE LOOK ON HIS FACE, AND THE HOSTILITY OF AN ABUSED PIT BULL. THE GOOD THING ABOUT THIS SETUP IS THAT AFTER IT’S OVER, TRUMP WILL LOUDLY CONDEMN THE “EVIL” ACTION, AND DENY THAT HIS RHETORIC WAS INSTRUMENTAL IN THE EVENT.

WATCH THE SEVERAL VIDEOS ATTACHED TO THE CNN ARTICLE HERE, WHICH COVER DIFFERENT INFORMATION AND PERSONAL COMMENTARY. IN ORDER TO SEE WHY SOME OF US FEEL AS UPSET ABOUT THIS AS WE DO -- AFTER ALL, I’M NOT JEWISH, SO I’LL PROBABLY BE SAFE – READ SOME HISTORY ABOUT THE PERIOD AROUND WWII AND BEFORE. YOU WILL UNDERSTAND THE LIGHTNING SPEED AT WHICH GERMANY BECAME A TOTALLY UNFREE AND ABUSIVE POPULATION, FOLLOWING SLAVISHLY AFTER A MANIAC AS THOUGH HE WERE INDEED THE “SUPERMAN.” THEN READ THE FOLLOWING ARTICLE ON KRISTALLNACHT: https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kristallnacht.

https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/trump-pittsburgh-synagogue-shooting/index.html
President Trump visits Pittsburgh after synagogue shooting
By Meg Wagner, Veronica Rocha and Jessie Yeung, CNN
Updated 18 hr 22 min ago7:59 p.m. ET, October 30, 2018

VIDEOS -- Protesters denounce Trump's Pittsburgh visit 3:11 CNN

Trump visits Pennsylvania: President Trump and first lady Melania Trump visited Pittsburgh to show support following Saturday's deadly shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue.
However: Local and national officials declined to appear with the President.
The victims: Eleven worshippers were killed during Shabbat services. The mass killing at the synagogue was the deadliest anti-Semitic incident in US history. The first three funerals — for brothers Cecil and David Rosenthal and Dr. Jerry Rabinowitz — were held this morning.

18 hr 28 min ago
The President and first lady depart Pittsburgh

President Trump and first lady Melania Trump board Air Force One at Pittsburgh International Airport on Oct. 30, 2018, after visiting the Tree of Life Synagogue. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)President Trump and first lady Melania Trump departed Pittsburgh this evening after they met with wounded law enforcement officers at a local hospital and visited the Tree of Life Synagogue to pay their respects to the victims of Saturday's shooting.

During his visit, the President traveled alongside the first lady and prominent Jewish members of his administration -- including daughter Ivanka and son-in-law Jared Kushner -- to somberly lay stones atop the 11 Star of David markers planted in the ground outside the synagogue. The traditional Jewish practice was in remembrance of the victims of the shooting spree, the worst anti-Semitic attack in American history.

He later met with wounded officers at University Pittsburgh Medical Center.


https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/oct/30/thousand-march-remember-pittsburgh-shooting-victims-oppose-trump
Pittsburgh shooting: thousands march to remember victims and denounce Trump's visit
Organizers accuse the president of emboldening ‘a growing white nationalist movement’ with hateful speech
Carmen Gentile in Pittsburgh
Tue 30 Oct 2018 19.00 EDT

VIDEO -- 'Make America kind again': Pittsburgh mourners fill streets as Trump visits – video

Thousand have gathered in Squirrel Hill to remember those killed at a neighborhood synagogue and to oppose Donald Trump’s visit to Pittsburgh. Expressing their anger and sorrow, many blamed the president for the attack.

Young and old from all walks of life marched on Tuesday to remember the 11 Jewish people who died in the Saturday morning shooting. A suspect appeared in court on Monday.

Nearby, Trump reportedly met Jewish leaders – much to the consternation of those on hand to march. Over loudspeakers, organizers accused the president of emboldening “a growing white nationalist movement” with hateful speech towards Jews and other minorities including African Americans, the LGBTQ community and immigrants.

Participants carried signs denouncing Trump and asserting the resilience of the community. Organizers led those on hand in songs sung in Hebrew and taken from Bible verse, translating in part: “ I will build this world from love …”

Organizers asked participants to not speak to the sizeable throng of reporters on hand. One marcher, a physician at a children’s hospital, declined to give his name but in somber tones recalled his initial reaction to news of the killings.

“As soon as I hear what happened, I cried,” he said, as he marched. Asked if such an attack would at least lead to a decrease in hateful rhetoric that has spiked in recent years, he said: “I don’t know, but I certainly hope so.”

Not all demonstrators were reluctant to speak. Antoniette Hartsfeld, a 22-year-old dance major at a local university, said she had been immediately fearful for friends from Squirrel Hill.

“I was terrified for friends living here,” said Hartsfeld. “Unfortunately, I wasn’t shocked.”

A classmate, Cassidy McDermott Smith, was not so accustomed to mass killings: she hails from Australia, which banned assault weapons after the Port Arthur massacre of 1996.

“It doesn’t make a lot of sense to me, nor should it to anyone,” she said.

Trump ignored vocal appeals for him to stay away, from sources including city officials. Pittsburgh’s mayor, Bill Peduto, said Trump should postpone his visit at least until families of the dead could bury their loved ones. The first funerals for the 11 victims, among them a 97-year-old woman, were held on Tuesday.

Several lawmakers from Washington were invited to join the president in Pittsburgh, and declined. Among them was Pennsylvania’s Republican senator, Pat Toomey, and other prominent lawmakers from the president’s own party. The state’s other senator, the Democrat Bob Casey, was not invited by the White House.

Earlier this week, numerous members of the Jewish community in Pittsburgh voiced their opposition to Trump’s visit.

“For the past three years your words and your policies have emboldened a growing white nationalist movement,” read a letter by local members of Bend the Arc, a national Jewish organization.

“You yourself called the murderer evil, but yesterday’s violence is the direct culmination of your influence.”


THE NIGHT OF BROKEN GLASS

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kristallnacht
Kristallnacht
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Kristallnacht (also called Reichskristallnacht, Reichspogromnacht, English: Night of the Broken Glass) was a two-day pogrom that happened against Jews in Nazi Germany and parts of Austria. It was between 9 and 10 November 1938. About 30,000 Jews were moved to concentration camps, and over 1,500 synagogues were pillaged and partly destroyed. Also, almost all Jewish cemeteries in Germany and Austria were destroyed. This marked the change from discriminating against Jews to actively persecuting and deporting them.

Herschel Grynszpan (sometimes also spelled Grünspan), a 17-year-old Jew living in Paris, learned that his whole family had been made to go back to Zsbaszyn in Poland, even though the younger children had been born in Germany. He got a gun, and with this he fired shots at Ernst Eduard vom Rath, who was a secretary of the German embassy in Paris. This was on 7 November. Vom Rath died of his wounds on 9 November.

The motive of Grynszpan is unclear. In a judicial hearing in 1942, he said it was revenge. He meant to shoot the ambassador, but hit the secretary instead.

The NSDAP used this event as an excuse to seize Jewish property. There had been a similar event in February 1936 but there were almost no consequences. Then, a Jewish student, David Frankfurter, had fired shots at the NSDAP secretary Wilhelm Gustloff. At that time, the NSDAP could not act because of the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin.

SEE ALSO THE SHORT HOME MOVIE AFTER THE EXPLOSIVE OUTBURST OF HATRED -- Title: 0254 HM Monson Collection Vienna 1938 01 49 45 00.webm
Author: Prelinger Archives
Date: 1938


I AM SAD TO SAY THAT, AT LEAST ON MY COMPUTER, THE VIDEO SHOWING THE ACTUAL MEETING OF THE TRUMP FAMILY WITH THE “SMALL PROTEST,” IS NO LONGER OPERATIVE. I’VE SEEN THIS OCCURRENCE SOME SIX OR EIGHT TIMES ON THE MSNBC RACHEL MADDOW SHOW INVOLVING ONE SENSITIVE SUBJECT OR ANOTHER. IN THE LAST YEAR OR SO AND EVEN ON THE INTERNET IN GENERAL. I HESITATE TO CALL IT CENSORSHIP, BECAUSE THERE COULD BE SOME OTHER EXPLANATION, BUT IT IS UNUSUAL AND CERTAINLY IS CONVENIENT FOR THE PRESIDENT. WHAT ISN’T SEEN WON’T HAVE TO BE EXPLAINED.

SO NOW AGAIN, MYSTERIOUSLY, SOMETHING THAT I PARTICULARLY WANTED TO SEE HAS BEEN DISABLED. USUALLY IT HAS BEEN ON MSNBC ONLY, BUT NOW IT HAS HAPPENED TO CBS NEWS. IN THE ABSENCE OF PROOF, TRUMP CAN SAY SOMETHING WHICH HE FINDS TO BE MORE DESIRABLE IN ORDER TO DIRECTLY COUNTERACT THE TELLING PROOFS OF VIDEO AND SOUND. I DID SEE CLIPS OF ANGRY PEOPLE AND THEIR AUDIBLE SHOUTS YESTERDAY ON A NEWS PRESENTATION. I THINK IT IS AN ONGOING TASK FOR THE PRESIDENT’S CLEANUP CREW TO CATCH AND ELIMINATE ALL OF THE INSTANCES THAT HE FINDS THREATENING.

I KNEW WHAT HE WAS LIKE WELL BEFORE THE 2016 ELECTION WHEN I SAW NEWS FOOTAGE OF TRUMP’S CAMPAIGN RALLIES THAT HE WAS MORE THAN UNDEREDUCATED. HE WAS FULL OF MALICE AND, YES, PATHOLOGICAL IN MANY WAYS. SANDERS HAS NUMEROUS TIMES CALLED HIM “A PATHOLOGICAL LIAR,” WHICH HE IS, BUT HE IS ALSO PURPOSELY CREATING MOBS FROM THE CITIZENRY WHEREVER HE GOES. WE TEND TO THINK OF HIS FOLLOWERS AS BEING “WORKING CLASS,” WHEN THEY ARE OFTEN WEALTHY INSTEAD. IT’S A PHILOSOPHY BOUND UP INTEGRALLY WITH A MENTAL DISEASE THAT PRODUCES SUCH MALICIOUSNESS, AND IT IS HIGHLY CONTAGIOUS. THE WAY CERTAIN REPUBLICANS HAVE TAKEN TO SPEAKING ABOUT THE LEFT AS HAVING “MOBS,” IS NOTHING COMPARED TO THIS TRUMPIAN PHENOMENON. I AND OTHERS OF LIKE MIND, NAMELY THAT WE ADHERE TO A HUMANISTIC VIEW OF LIFE RATHER THAN MATERIALISTIC, ARE SEEING IT AS SOMETHING THAT IS NOT MERELY VISUALLY UNSIGHTLY OR CULTURALLY UNCLEAN, BUT IMMEDIATELY DANGEROUS.

LOOK UP THE TERM “KRISTALLNACHT” ON GOOGLE. A CRYSTALLIZATION OF VERBAL AND EMOTIONAL NEGATIVITY OCCURRED ONE NIGHT IN GERMANY, AND A FULL-BLOWN RIOT BY THE NON-JEWISH HITLER-LED CITIZENRY ERUPTED, LASTING TWO DAYS. IT ENDED IN MASSIVE PROPERTY DESTRUCTION AGAINST ALL THINGS JEWISH. WE NEED TO SPEND SOME TIME WATCHING OLD DEPRESSION ERA AND WORLD WAR II NEWS FOOTAGE, AND THEN EXAMINE OUR MODERN PHILOSOPHY AS THE CULTURAL PROGENY OF THAT.

WE NEED TO ASK OURSELVES WHAT KIND OF COUNTRY WE WANT. THE LAND OF THE FREE MEANS ALL OF US, NOT THE SELECT WHITE AND PROTESTANT CHRISTIAN GROUP ONLY. DEMOCRACIES JUST DON’T WORK ANY OTHER WAY. WE ARE CATCHING THIS DISEASE AT AN EARLIER STAGE THAN THAT OF EUROPE, AND I BELIEVE THAT THERE ARE ENOUGH INTELLIGENT, SANE, REASONABLY WELL-EDUCATED PEOPLE AMONG US TO FORM A CORE OF SOMETHING GOOD, IF NOT PERFECT.

https://abcnews.go.com/US/funerals-11-synagogue-shooting-victims-begin-trump-heads/story?id=58846431
Trump dismisses large demonstration that greeted him outside Pittsburgh synagogue as 'small protest'
By EMILY SHAPIRO, JORDYN PHELPS BRIAN HARTMAN Oct 31, 2018, 11:46 AM ET

WATCH Trump greeted by protesters as he visits Pittsburgh synagogue

When President Donald Trump visited Pittsburgh's Tree of Life synagogue Tuesday in the wake of a shooting massacre that killed 11, he was greeted by thousands of protesters nearby.

The president dismissed the demonstration Wednesday morning, tweeting that the "small protest was not seen by us, staged far away."

"The Office of the President was shown great respect on a very sad & solemn day," Trump tweeted. "We were treated so warmly."

The president visited Tuesday with first lady Melania Trump, his daughter Ivanka Trump and son-in-law Jared Kushner in the aftermath of Saturday's bloodbath by a gunman who allegedly spewed anti-Semitic statements as he gunned down worshippers.

Trump and his family were greeted by the synagogue's rabbi, Jeffrey Myers, who escaped the bullets. But outside nearby were thousands of people from different faiths, apparently united in anger, who marched toward the temple as the president and his family arrived.

PHOTO: People protesting against President Donald Trump wait near the Tree of Life Congregation on Oct. 30, 2018 in Pittsburgh.Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images

Rev. Susan Rothenberg, a Presbyterian minister who lives down the street from the synagogue, was among those shouting and holding banners -- and she encouraged other neighbors, including children, to join her.

"Words have meaning!" some neighbors screamed toward the president.

View image on Twitter
View image on Twitter

Cecilia Vega
✔
@CeciliaVega
As @realDonaldTrump visits the Tree of Life synagogue, neighbors nearby can be heard shouting “words have meaning”

5:05 PM - Oct 30, 2018
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(MORE: 'Words from our leaders matter': Biden scolds Trump's synagogue shooting response)

"I’m just going to pay my respects," Trump told Fox News on Monday prior to the visit. "I’m also going to the hospital to see the officers and some of the people that were so badly hurt. So -- and I really look forward to going -- I would have done it even sooner, but I didn’t want to disrupt anymore."

Rabbi Myers and others greeted Trump outside the synagogue, where the president, the first lady, Ivanka Trump and Kushner lit a candle with the rabbis and Israeli Ambassador Ron Dermer in honor of the 11 victims.

PHOTO: President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump pay their respects outside the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Oct. 30, 2018.Kevin Lamarque/Reuters

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump pay their respects outside the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Oct. 30, 2018.more +
The president also placed stones, as part of Jewish tradition, and white roses on the Stars of David set up in a makeshift memorial for those killed.

PHOTO: President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump put down stones from the White House at a memorial outside for those killed at the Pittsburghs Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, Oct. 30, 2018, as Tree of Life Rabbi Jeffrey Myers watches.Andrew Harnik/AP

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump put down stones from the White House at a memorial outside for those killed at the Pittsburgh's Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, Oct. 30, 2018, as Tree of Life Rabbi Jeffrey Myers watches.more +

After visiting the synagogue, the president and first lady went to a hospital where they met with medical staff and officers who were wounded in the attack.

Meanwhile, a community is left grieving.

Three funerals are to be held Wednesday, following the first two on Tuesday.

Dr. Jerry Rabinowitz and brothers Cecil and David Rosenthal were among those gunned down by a shooter inside the Tree of Life synagogue. Rabinowitz's friends and family gathered at his funeral Tuesday morning, while the Rosenthal brothers were honored at a joint service Tuesday afternoon.

PHOTO: A mourner reacts outside Rodef Shalom Congregation before the funeral services for brothers Cecil and David Rosenthal, Oct. 30, 2018, in Pittsburgh.Matt Rourke/AP
PHOTO: Mourners gather outside Rodef Shalom Congregation before the funeral services for brothers Cecil and David Rosenthal, Oct. 30, 2018, in Pittsburgh.Matt Rourke/AP
Mourners gather outside Rodef Shalom Congregation before the funeral services for brothers Cecil and David Rosenthal, Oct. 30, 2018, in Pittsburgh.more +

(MORE: Why Jewish hospital president checked on injured synagogue shooting suspect)

Rabinowitz, 66, was killed when he ran toward gunfire in the synagogue to try to help victims, according to his nephew, Avishai Ostrin.

"In addition to being the president of the congregation, he was a doctor, a healer ... when he heard shots he ran outside to try and see if anyone was hurt and needed a doctor. That was Uncle Jerry, that’s just what he did," Ostrin wrote on Facebook.

PHOTO: Jerry Rabinowitz is seen here in this undated file photo.Courtesy Rabinowitz Family
Jerry Rabinowitz is seen here in this undated file photo.
"Jerry was above all one of the kindest physicians and human beings in our community," University of Pittsburgh Medical Center officials said in a statement. The hospital network said it "cannot even begin to express the sadness and grief we feel over the loss of Dr. Jerry Rabinowitz."

View image on Twitter
View image on Twitter

Max Londberg
@MaxLondberg
The line outside Jerry Rabinowitz’ service has extended half a block. David Sogg, one of his patients, arrived by bicycle, said his doctor of nearly 20 years would have been glad.

10:44 AM - Oct 30, 2018
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(MORE: Portraits of the 11 synagogue shooting victims)

Slain brothers Cecil Rosenthal, 59, and David Rosenthal, 54, never missed a service and were always at the synagogue because it was a place they felt the most safe, fellow congregant Scott Levin told ABC News.

The two brothers were developmentally disabled.

"Cecil and David had a love for life and for those around them," according to a statement from ACHIEVA, a local organization which provides support for people with disabilities.

PHOTO:David and Cecil Rosenthal are seen here in this undated file photo.Best Buddies

(MORE: Pittsburgh synagogue rabbi says massacre that killed 11 not just against Jews but 'an attack on America')

"Cecil’s laugh was infectious. David was so kind and had such a gentle spirit," Chris Schopf, Vice President of ACHIEVA Residential Supports, said in the statement. "Together, they looked out for one another. They were inseparable. Most of all, they were kind, good people with a strong faith and respect for everyone."

PHOTO: A mother and child place flowers, Oct. 29, 2018, at a memorial for victims of the mass shooting at the Tree Of Life Synagogue, in Pittsburgh.Jeff Swensen/Getty Images

(MORE: Pittsburgh synagogue shooting prompts wide outpouring of public support)

"All of Pennsylvania stands with the victims and their families," Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf tweeted Monday as the state capitol building was lit in tribute. "We join the Pittsburgh Jewish community and Jewish Americans across our nation in mourning."

Photo of Pennsylvania Capitol with single blue light

Governor Tom Wolf
✔
@GovernorTomWolf
Tonight, the State Capitol is lit in tribute to the victims of the Tree of Life Synagogue shooting. All of Pennsylvania stands with the victims and their families. We join the Pittsburgh Jewish community and Jewish Americans across our nation in mourning.

7:42 PM - Oct 29, 2018
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(MORE: Top leaders in Congress won't appear with Trump in Pittsburgh)
Trump on Saturday strongly condemned the shooting in Pittsburgh as "evil."

PHOTO: People stand in front of flowers and candles placed below a police cordon outside the Tree of Life Synagogue after a fatal shooting in Pittsburgh, Oct. 27, 2018.Brendan Smialowski /AFP/Getty Images

Early on Saturday, just a few hours after the shooting, the president said, "It’s presumed that this is a case where if they had an armed guard inside, they might have been able to stop him immediately ... Maybe nobody would have been killed except for him. So it’s a very, very difficult situation."

When a reporter asked if all synagogues and churches should have armed guards, Trump said, "I hate to think of it that way ... It’s certainly an option."

Charges against suspected gunman Robert Bowers include 11 counts of obstruction of exercise of religious beliefs resulting in death and 11 counts of use of a firearm to commit murder.

PHOTO: Robert Bowers is pictured in a booking photo released by the Butler County Prison on Oct. 30, 2018.Butler Co. Prison

Robert Bowers is pictured in a booking photo released by the Butler County Prison on Oct. 30, 2018.

Bowers, 46, faces 22 charges that make him eligible for the death penalty, prosecutors said.

He is being held in the Butler County Prison.


**** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** ****


CHANGING FROM THE SYNAGOGUE EVENTS TO A HAPPIER FUTURE, I WILL PROCEED TO BERNIE SANDERS, ANOTHER JEWISH PERSON WHO SO FAR HAS NOT BEEN THREATENED, THAT I’VE HEARD OF ANYWAY. IT IS FAR MORE LIKELY, THOUGH, THAT HE SIMPLY HAS NOT ALLOWED SUCH INFORMATION TO BECOME PUBLIC. I’M SURPRISED HE DIDN’T RECEIVE A PIPE BOMB LAST WEEK. IT IS ALWAYS TERRIBLY POSSIBLE THAT IT WILL OCCUR, HOWEVER, AND ESPECIALLY NOW. AS LONG AS THERE IS MANKIND, THERE IS POTENTIAL VICIOUSNESS. WHEREVER THERE IS THE STRAIN OF POLITICAL UNIFICATION THAT USES HATRED AND MIND CONTROL TO MARTIAL ARMIES OF CRIMINALS, PEOPLE WILL BE IN IMMINENT DANGER. EVERYONE IN THE USA IS AWARE OF WHAT HAS EMERGED FULLY FORMED IN OUR COUNTRY, I AM SURE, WHETHER THEY CHOOSE TO ACKNOWLEDGE IT EMOTIONALLY OR NOT. I HOPE THAT HE WILL REMAIN SAFE AND HEALTHY TO HELP US KEEP OUR COUNTRY WHOLE.

SANDERS REFUSES TO PLEDGE TO RUN OR NOT RUN, OR TO FINISH OUT HIS 2018 TERM EITHER. SO, THERE! HIS PHRASEOLOGY, THOUGH, IS EVEN BETTER THAN TRUMP’S. HE SAID, “THE SIMPLE TRUTH IS I HAVE NOT MADE THAT DECISION. BUT I’M NOT GOING TO SIT HERE AND TELL YOU THAT I MAY NOT RUN. I MAY. BUT ON THE OTHER HAND, I MAY NOT,” HE SAID AT A FORUM MONDAY NIGHT IN VERMONT.” I BELIEVE HE’S TIRED OF THAT QUESTION, ESPECIALLY WHEN THE REPORTERS TRY TO SNEAK IT IN DISGUISED AS AS SOMETHING ELSE.

https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/413819-sanders-wont-promise-to-serve-full-senate-term-as-he-considers-2020-run
Sanders won’t promise to serve full Senate term as he considers 2020 run
BY TAL AXELROD - 10/30/18 10:34 AM EDT

Video – 2018 General Election Forums Candidates For Us Senate

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) declined to pledge to serve a full six-year term if he is reelected this November, as is expected.

“Right now, my focus is on the year 2018, but if you’re asking me to make an absolute pledge as to whether I’ll be running for president or not, I’m not going to make that pledge. The simple truth is I have not made that decision. But I’m not going to sit here and tell you that I may not run. I may. But on the other hand, I may not,” he said at a forum Monday night in Vermont.

“If I’m elected president of the United States? Mmm. Probably impossible to be a senator and a president at the same time. So the answer to that is probably no. But I haven’t made that decision as to whether I’ll run … If I run and win, the likelihood is I will not be Vermont’s senator” he responded when asked again if he would commit to serving a full term.

Sanders ran against Hillary Clinton in 2016 for the Democratic presidential nomination. Though he lost, he lit a fire underneath the progressive wing of the party.

Should Sanders run in 2020, he would likely join a crowded Democratic field.

Sanders himself has visited crucial states in a presidential campaign such as Iowa, New Hampshire and North Carolina.

Other potential Democratic contenders in 2020 have also traveled widely, including former Vice President Joe Biden, Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), and Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.).


THIS ARTICLE SHOWS SOME NEW DEMOCRATIC NAMES OF PEOPLE WHO MAY BE INTERESTED. THE MOST INTERESTING TO ME IS AVENATTI, THOUGH I’M NOT SURE HOW COOL-HEADED HE IS. AT LEAST HE’S NOT PASSIVE OR UNINTERESTED IN JUSTICE.

https://www.politico.com/story/2018/10/30/sanders-biden-avenatti-2020-media-primary-943252
These are the 6 Democrats leading the 2020 media primary
Bernie Sanders is one of a small group of 2020 Democratic contenders generating the bulk of media attention.
By DAVID SIDERS 10/30/2018 05:04 AM EDT

ELECTIONS

These are the 6 Democrats leading the 2020 media primary
Bernie Sanders is one of a small group of 2020 Democratic contenders generating the bulk of media attention.
By DAVID SIDERS 10/30/2018 05:04 AM EDT

PHOTOGRAPH -- Sen. Bernie Sanders, seen here campaigning for Colorado Democrats on Oct. 24, 2018, remains one of the possible candidates getting the most attention in the run-up to the 2020 election season. | David Zalubowski/AP Photo

Never mind the chatter about 20 or 25 Democrats running for the presidential nomination in 2020. In the media primary — the scramble for newspaper headlines, TV hits and social media mentions — there are only six or seven contenders.

Next year, when candidates will likely need to meet a polling threshold to claim a place in the critical early debates, that ability to generate media attention will be more important than ever. And over the past three months, the candidates creating the bulk of it — Sen. Bernie Sanders, former Vice President Joe Biden, lawyer Michael Avenatti and Sens. Elizabeth Warren, Kamala Harris and Cory Booker — have dominated the discussion.

More than two-thirds of a burgeoning field’s traditional online print media mentions — and nearly three-quarters of its social media output — have been about those 2020 prospects, according to a data analysis conducted for POLITICO by the media intelligence company Meltwater.

Though a prospective candidate’s media mentions are not necessarily tied to a presidential campaign, as in Avenatti’s high-profile representation of porn star Stormy Daniels, the heavy focus on a small group of contenders threatens to shape the race before it begins in earnest, with the prospect of sidelining some potential candidacies before they even launch.

News Share of Voice Pie Chart
Data provided by Meltwater.

“If the national press doesn’t consider you serious, you’re doomed,” said former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, who ran for president in 2008. “The reality is that in any presidential race, the better known candidates have an advantage.”

Sanders, who lost to Hillary Clinton in the 2016 Democratic primary, now leads the field of potential 2020 candidates in mentions on traditional news sites, appearing in nearly 114,000 articles over the past three months, according to a Meltwater analysis of hundreds of thousands of print and online broadcast news sources ranging from CNN to The Washington Post to small outlets in rural Iowa.

Biden, Avenatti and Warren were all mentioned in at least 70,000 articles, while Harris and Booker came up at least 50,000 times.

That reach reflects — and also feeds — their higher national profiles. But for lesser-known prospects — such as Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper, former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, Montana Gov. Steve Bullock and former San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro — it could throttle their fundraising. Each of them appeared in fewer than 10,000 articles online, along with John Delaney, the Maryland congressman who has been running for president since last year.

A candidates’ penetration in the news media in part reflects the fickle tendencies of the press. But at the moment, the 2020 candidates who are winning news coverage are also dominating the social media landscape, leaving little room for lesser-known contenders to find an alternative platform for exposure.

Although media saturation “doesn’t produce votes,” said Rose Kapolczynski, a Democratic strategist in California, “press attention creates an opening for a candidate.”

There’s no better example than Avenatti, who burst into public view representing Daniels in her legal entanglements with Trump. The Los Angeles attorney — who has never held elected office — appeared in more social media posts during the past three months than any other prospective candidate, according to a Meltwater analysis of Facebook, Twittter, Instagram, Reddit and other social media sources.

Following Avenatti in social media share are Sanders, Warren and Texas Rep. Beto O’Rourke, who has become a media and fundraising sensation in his effort to unseat Republican Sen. Ted Cruz.

Two years after the most recent presidential election, Democrats still grimace at the effect that national exposure can have on a campaign. In the 2016 Republican primary, then-candidate Donald Trump benefited from nonstop news coverage, even before most observers considered him a serious contender.

In recent months, top-tier Democrats have spent freely to cultivate followings online, while competing for traditional media coverage surrounding flashpoints in Washington — from Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court confirmation hearings to immigration and health care policy.

Meltwater executive John Box said that for candidates running in 2020, “managing the interplay between what drives the viral moments on social — which is increasingly becoming a primary source of information for certain voters — and what gets traction in today's news cycle will be key to standing out.”

Beto O'Rourke
2020

The 15 Races That Will Determine How Democrats Approach 2020
By BILL SCHER

Harris drew widespread attention for her questioning of Kavanaugh during his confirmation hearings, while Sanders benefited from Amazon’s announcement that it would begin paying hundreds of thousands of workers a minimum wage of $15 an hour. According to Meltwater, Biden drew his most news mentions following his eulogy for Sen. John McCain.

Yet the full weight of traditional and social media tends to shift during a presidential campaign, often abruptly — and it’s not always a positive.

Warren’s biggest news day came the day this month that she released DNA results to support past claims of Native American ancestry — a highly choreographed event that was widely panned.

Steve Bullock visits Iowa.
For Montana Gov. Steve Bullock and other lesser-known potential 2020 candidates, there’s an uphill battle to join the top tier of contenders. | Charlie Neibergall/AP Photo

Avenatti’s mentions spiked surrounding his representation of Kavanaugh accuser Julie Swetnick, a role some Democrats criticized as distracting from Kavanagh’s main accuser, Christine Blasey Ford.

“Paris Hilton has high name ID, too,” said Matt Bennett of the center-left group Third Way. “You have to have both high name ID and be a credible candidate for president.”

Former Iowa Democratic Gov. Tom Vilsack, who briefly ran for president in 2008, said it is “way too early” to draw conclusions about the 2020 primary based on media exposure.

“If you call me in January or February of next year, then by then, people will be engaged, people will have announced, we’ll have a good sense of who’s serious and who isn’t,” said Vilsack, a secretary of agriculture in the Obama administration.

For now, said Vilsack, “We don’t know these people. We see them on TV.”

But with the primary campaign expected to begin in earnest immediately after the midterm elections next week, a reckoning does not appear far off.

Mathew Littman, a Democratic strategist and former Biden speechwriter, said primary debates next year could “change the equation” for candidates not now gaining traction in the media.

But from now until the primary begins to jell is "really not a very long process,” Littman said.

“At a certain point, so many people are going to be fighting for so little time to get exposure,” Littman said. “So the people who are already out there, I think it’s smart … If you’re out there, people start to talk about you.”


WILL CONGRESS GIVE THEM THE MONEY TO DO THEIR JOB, OR ARE OUR REPRESENTATIVES TOO AFRAID OF THE NRA?

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/cdc-director-robert-redfield-says-cdc-poised-to-do-more-gun-research-if-congress-funded-it/
CBS NEWS October 30, 2018, 9:57 AM
CDC director says they're "poised" to do more gun research if Congress funds it

Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, says the CDC is "poised" for additional research on the causes of gun violence if Congress chooses to give it additional funding. According to Redfield, how the CDC prioritizes its spending is largely driven by where "Congress puts the priority to want to fund us."

"We have a program called the National Violent Surveillance System… and so, we currently are recording violent deaths from all causes, including firearms. And so that is, that's ongoing," Redfield said.

In 1996, Congress passed the Dickey Amendment*, which prohibits using public health funds to "advocate or promote gun control," but earlier this year, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said he would instruct the CDC to conduct research on the causes of gun violence.

CDC director Robert Redfield says pandemic flu is "very possible"

Asked what kind of constraints the CDC faces from that provision, Redfield said, "I don't feel we have any restrictions to do research. The issue will be if Congress can give us funding to expand the research that we're currently able to do. … The secretary has also made it clear that we do not have a restriction to do research. Basically, what we need to do is get a funding mechanism for Congress to instruct us to do that research."

Redfield also spoke about what he considers considers [sic] the public health crisis of our time: the opioid epidemic. Preliminary CDC data shows the number of deadly drug overdoses nationwide has plateaued for six straight months even though more than 72,000 Americans died last year from drug overdoses. A little over 48,000 of those deaths were from opioids.

It's a crisis that hits close home for Redfield.

"It's personal to me. I think you know one of my six children almost died from cocaine that was contaminated with fentanyl," Redfield told "CBS This Morning" co-host John Dickerson. "You know, my wife and I have a very supportive family. But my own son was in tears when he finally told us that he was using cocaine. And I didn't understand, you know, why didn't he come earlier? Well, because he was made to feel ashamed. ... You know, who knows why he started using cocaine?

According to Redfield, we now know that 2 to 6 percent of people who get a single prescription for an opioid for routine procedures like wisdom tooth removal end up becoming chronically dependent.

"There's a pathophysiological reason for addiction… and the more we can embrace that, not make people feel bad about it," he said. "We don't make people feel bad if they have cancer. We have to allow people to embrace the medical illnesses they have and help them get the best therapy treatment so that they can go on to a productive and happy life."

Despite recent CDC numbers suggesting the rise in drug overdoses has leveled off, the CDC director said it is going to require "enormous effort" to get the epidemic under control.

"Well, I think, first and foremost, we have to recognize it for what it is. It's a medical condition. It's not a moral failing, right. And the second thing we have to recognize is it's actually a chronic medical condition," he said. "You know, I try to encourage people to support families like us that are trying to win the battle against opioid addiction. … Recognize that treatment success is possible. It should become the rule, not the exception."

© 2018 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.


WE ARE ENMESHED IN DARKNESS SINCE THE RIGHT TOOK OVER. THIS IS JUST MORE OF THE SAME. AS FOR ONE OF THE MOST STRAIGHTFORWARD AND CLEARLY COURAGEOUS AND GENTLEMANLY MEN I HAVE EVER SEEN FORCING HIS ATTENTIONS ON ANY WOMAN EVER, I REALLY DOUBT THAT. OF COURSE, MY EXPERIENCE AND INSTINCTS COULD BE WRONG, I SUPPOSE.

SEE ALSO THE NBC ARTICLE BELOW, AND SOME OTHER SNIPPETS.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/alleged-scheme-to-pay-women-to-fabricate-sexual-assault-allegations-against-mueller-referred-to-fbi/
By KATHRYN WATSON CBS NEWS October 30, 2018, 2:44 PM
Alleged scheme to pay women to fabricate sexual assault allegations against Mueller referred to FBI

VIDEO -- RED AND BLUE – There is no caption here, but this is a summary: “Trump’s lawyers set limits for Mueller. no agreement between Trumps lawyers and Mueller on face-to-face interview. “...could be going towards a subpoena here.” Query as to whether there is a DOJ policy against Mueller “taking certain actions around election time.” Keir Dougall states that there is no rule against it, though there is a “custom.” So, will Mueller issue a subpoena and will he wait until after the election? I certainly hope so, on both questions. We will need as many democrats as possible.

An alleged scheme to pay women to fabricate claims of sexual assault against Special Counsel Robert Mueller has been referred to the FBI, the special counsel's office confirmed to CBS News.

"When we learned last week of allegations that women were offered money to make false claims about the special counsel, we immediately referred the matter to the FBI for investigation," special counsel spokesman Peter Carr said in a statement to CBS News. The special counsel's office did not go into detail about the allegations or who is behind them.

At the same time, in a Facebook video posted Tuesday, right-wing Newsmax host and lobbyist Jack Burkman claimed a "number of women" allege Mueller perpetrated sexual assault. Burkman claimed the first of the women will "unveil a very bad sexual assault" at a news conference Thursday at noon.

The Atlantic reported Tuesday that the special counsel learned of the scheme from several journalists who had been contacted by a woman who alleged that a man claiming to work for Burkman offered her about $20,000 to accuse Mueller of sexual misconduct and harassment. The woman told the Atlantic that she had worked for Mueller as a paralegal decades ago. Mueller, she said, "was always very polite" and "never inappropriate."

In May, Burkman offered a reward for damaging information about Mueller, and during the confirmation process for now-Justice Brett Kavanaugh, he offered a $25,000 reward for damaging information about Kavanaugh's accusers.

Mueller is investigating Russian election meddling and any ties to Trump associates. The president has declared Mueller's probe is "illegal" and a "witch hunt," and some supporters of the president have attempted to discredit Mueller's investigation.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

— CBS News' Andres Triay and Steven Portnoy contributed to this report

© 2018 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.


FOR MORE ABOUT THE MUELLER STORY, CONTINUE HERE. THIS IS A STRANGE SET OF ARTICLES. APPARENTLY, THIS HAS BEEN GOING AWHILE, BUT IT WASN’T DISCUSSED IN ANY NEWS SOURCE THAT I HAD SEEN; THE WOMAN HAD BEEN TO A SERIES OF NEWS OUTLETS WITH HER STORY OF BEING OFFERED MONEY TO LIE AGAINST MUELLER.

I DUG AROUND A LITTLE AND FOUND MORE BIZARRE PEOPLE AND CONNECTIONS. ONE OF THE CENTRAL LINKS IS WITH THE “GATEWAY PUNDIT,” A “NEWS” SITE THAT HAS BEEN CAUGHT OUT IN AT LEAST THREE SEPARATE FAR RIGHT TALL TALES, WHICH TRASHED INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE, IN MY VIEW, “THE GOOD GUYS.”

FOR MORE OF IT, GO TO THIS ARTICLE IN THE “DAILY BEAST” ON ONE OF THE KEY PLAYERS, NAMED JACOB WOHL. IF THERE IS A LINK AS TO WHO MAY HAVE HIRED THESE GOOFBALLS TO RUN A SCAM ON THE PUBLIC DESIGNED TO HURT MUELLER, I HAVEN’T SEEN THAT, BUT I WOULD BET A TINY AMOUNT OF MONEY ON THERE BEING A MONEY ANGLE HERE. HOPEFULLY THE FBI CAN HANDLE THAT PART, BECAUSE THIS IS MALICIOUS.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/jacob-wohl-teen-hedge-funder-turned-pro-trump-media-star-was-accused-of-cheating-clients.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/mueller-refers-sex-assault-scheme-targeting-him-fbi-investigation-n926301
Mueller refers sex misconduct scheme targeting him to FBI for investigation
"We immediately referred the matter to the FBI for investigation," said Peter Carr, spokesperson for the special counsel.
Oct. 30, 2018 / 2:34 PM EDT
By Brandy Zadrozny, Ben Collins and Tom Winter

PHOTOGRAPH -- Special Counsel Robert Mueller departs after briefing members of the U.S. Senate on his investigation of potential collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign on Capitol Hill on June 21, 2017.Joshua Roberts / Reuters file

Special counsel Robert Mueller last week asked the FBI to investigate* a possible scam in which a woman would make false claims that he was guilty of sexual misconduct and harassment, after several political reporters were contacted about doing a story on the alleged misconduct.

Multiple reporters were contacted over the past few weeks by a woman who said she had been offered money to say she had been harassed by Mueller, the special counsel who is probing possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia. After investigating, according to the political website Hill Reporter, the reporters each independently determined the allegations of misconduct and harassment were likely a hoax and that it was unclear if the woman had been offered money to make the claim. The reporters then contacted the special counsel's office to report that they had been approached about the scheme.

"When we learned last week of allegations that women were offered money to make false claims about the special counsel, we immediately referred the matter to the FBI for investigation," said Peter Carr, spokesperson for the special counsel.

VIDEO -- Exposed: Right-wing conspiracy theorist's plot to smear Mueller unravels
OCT. 30, 201808:18

While investigating the possibility of a hoax, the Hill Reporter's Ed Krassenstein, who was one of the reporters contacted, said he received threats, including a text message reading, "You're in over your head…. Drop this" which included his and another editor's home addresses.

Around the same time reporters began to be contacted about the misconduct allegations, Jack Burkman, a Republican lobbyist and radio host, began promoting, via his Facebook page, that he is investigating sexual misconduct and alcohol-related allegations against Mueller. On Tuesday morning he tweeted that he would hold a press conference two days later to "reveal the first of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's sex assault victims."

Over the past two years, Burkman has peddled a separate, evolving conspiracy theory that has blamed several different wild plots for the death of Democratic staffer Seth Rich, who was shot on a Washington street in 2016 during an apparent botched robbery.

Krassenstein told NBC News he reached out to the special counsel's office on Tuesday telling them what he knew about the scheme.

View image on Twitter
View image on Twitter

Jack Burkman
@Jack_Burkman
Some sad news. On Thursday, November 1, at the Rosslyn
Holiday Inn at noon, we will reveal the first of Special Counsel Robert
Mueller's sex assault victims. I applaud the courage and dignity and
grace and strength of my client.

12:15 PM - Oct 30, 2018
4,431
12.7K people are talking about this
Twitter Ads info and privacy

He also gave NBC News the phone numbers used by the woman alleging she was offered money to make the allegations, which were both disconnected.

The woman allegedly worked at the law firm Pillsbury, Madison and Sutro at the same time as Mueller in 1974. Reporters say she said she was supposed to claim the misconduct took place during that period. NBC News gave the woman's name to a spokesperson for the law firm, which is now called Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP. In a statement, the spokesperson said, "We have no record of this individual working for our firm."

Krassenstein and other journalists also pointed to Jacob Wohl*, a disgraced hedge fund manager turned pro-Trump conspiracy theorist and Surefire Intelligence, a company connected to him, as being involved with Burkman's alleged plot.

"I gave Burkman a call. I wanted to know who 'Surefire Intelligence' is. That's when he told me about Jacob Wohl,*" said Krassenstein. "To me, this was all a setup from somebody trying to discredit the media."

Early this morning, Wohl tweeted, "Several media sources tell me that a scandalous story about Mueller is breaking tomorrow. Should be interesting. Stay tuned!"

Nightly News Full Broadcast (October 30th)

Reached by direct message on Twitter, Wohl denied having a hand in any plot to pay women making false allegations against Mueller. "I don't have any involvement in any investigations of any kind. I'm not quite that cool," he said.

The allegations still took off as far-right news sites tied to Wohl and known for spreading fake news and disinformation published viral posts. Gateway Pundit, where Wohl is employed as a writer, touted their "exclusive documents" about a "very credible witness."


Jacob Wohl
✔
@JacobAWohl*
Spoke to a prominent DC insider today who told me there are several women prepared to make credible allegations against Dirty Cop Robert Mueller

3:46 PM - Oct 19, 2018
2,255
1,457 people are talking about this
Twitter Ads info and privacy

In a statement, Surefire Intelligence tweeted that it "does not comment on current, past or future operations, nor the lack thereof."

Wohl declined to comment on his involvement with Surefire Intelligence. However, his email is listed in the domain records for Surefire Intelligence's website and calls to a number listed on the Surefire Intelligence website went to a voicemail message which provided another phone number, listed in public records as belonging to Wohl's mother.

Wohl stopped responding to NBC News after being told Surefire's official phone number redirects to his mother's voicemail.

A few hours later, the Gateway Pundit published what it called "exclusive documents" it had obtained of an alleged sexual misconduct accusation against Mueller. The documents were partially redacted, but the top of each page included the phrase "International Private Intelligence" below a shorter, redacted line. International Private Intelligence is the slogan of Surefire Intelligence on the company's website.

The open-source intelligence group Bellingcat pulled apart the construction of the company's online presence. It found that someone with the email address jacob.wohl@nexmanagement.com was involved in the domain registration of the Surefire Intelligence website and that many of the LinkedIn profiles of people who reportedly worked there used stolen, edited photos of models as their profile images. One featured a photo of Israeli supermodel Bar Rafaeli. In another case, a fictitious profile of a Surefire financial investigator in Zurich had a black and white image of actor Christoph Waltz as its profile photo.

Gateway Pundit has now posted a message on its site that says, "Earlier today we were given information on accusations against former FBI Director Robert Mueller. We took the documents down and are currently investigating these accusations. There are also serious allegations against Jacob Wohl. We are also looking into this."

"There is still a press conference scheduled for Thursday at noon in Washington, D.C."

Brandy Zadrozny
Brandy Zadrozny is an investigative reporter for NBC News.

Ben Collins
Ben Collins covers disinformation, extremism and the internet for NBC News.

Tom Winter
Tom Winter is a producer and reporter for the NBC News Investigative Unit based in New York, covering crime, courts, terrorism, and financial fraud on the East Coast.

Adiel Kaplan contributed.


GATEWAY PUNDIT*
https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/the-gateway-pundit/

A questionable source exhibits one or more of the following: extreme bias, overt propaganda, poor or no sourcing to credible information and/or is fake news. Fake News is the deliberate attempt to publish hoaxes and/or disinformation for the purpose of profit or influence (Learn More). Sources listed in the Questionable Category may be very untrustworthy and should be fact checked on a per article basis. Please note sources on this list are not considered fake news unless specifically written in the notes section for that source. See all Questionable sources.

Bias: Extreme Right, Propaganda, Conspiracy, Nationalism, Some Fake News

History

The Gateway Pundit is an extreme right news and opinion website that is not afraid of conspiracy theories and the occasional publication of falsehoods (see analysis). The website was founded by Jim Hoft in 2004 to “speak the truth” and to “expose the wickedness of the left.”

According to their about page “The Gateway Pundit is one of the top political websites. It is consistently ranked as one of the top political blogs in the nation. TGP has been cited by Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh, The Drudge Report, The Blaze, Mark Levin, FOX Nation and by several international news organizations.”

The Gateway Pundit is owned by Jim Hoft and funded primarily through online advertising.

Analysis / Bias

In review, The Gateway Pundit demonstrates extreme right wing bias in story selection that always favors the right and denigrates the left. There is significant use of loaded emotional language in headlines such as this: President Trump RIPS INTO Peter Strzok After He’s Fired – Calls For Hillary ‘Sham Investigation’ to be ‘Properly Redone’. The Gateway Pundit is also fiercely dedicated to the promotion of Donald Trump. TGP always sources their information, but sometimes utilizes questionable sources such as Breitbart and Mike Cernovich, who both a have terrible track records with fact checkers.

The Gateway Pundit has published numerous false or conspiracy stories such as Hillary Clinton having a seizure, identifying an innocent person in the Las Vegas mass shooting and again identifying the wrong person after the motor vehicle homicide at the White Supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. Further, TGP claimed the “FBI received tips well in advance of the Florida school shooting and decided, for whatever reason, not to act.” Finally, based on publishing false information, TGP has faced lawsuits for defamation and damages to innocent individuals.

A factual search reveals several failed fact checks by IFCN fact checkers. Here are a select few.

Anti-Trump Protesters Bused Into Austin, Chicago – FALSE
Did a Woman Say the Washington Post Offered Her $1,000 to Accuse Roy Moore of Sexual Abuse? – FALSE
‘Spooked’ Clinton Campaign Manager Deleted Tweets – FALSE
Fake news posts blame Puerto Rico’s truck drivers for refusing to ship relief supplies – PANTS ON FIRE
Overall, we rate The Gateway Pundit Questionable based on extreme right wing bias, promotion of conspiracies and numerous instances of publishing false (fake) news. (10/4/2016) Updated (D. Van Zandt 8/13/2018)


WHY ARE WE TALKING ABOUT COST HERE RATHER THAN SAFETY AND HEALTH? BECAUSE YOU’RE REPUBLICANS, YOU SAY? OH, THAT MAKES SENSE.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-tent-cities-all-over-the-place-for-migrants-how-much-would-it-cost/
By GRAHAM KATES CBS NEWS October 30, 2018, 1:24 PM
Trump wants to "put tents up all over the place" for migrants. How much might that cost?

President Donald Trump said during a Monday morning interview with Fox News that the federal government will "build tent cities" for thousands of asylum-seeking migrants slowly making their way north toward the U.S. border in two large caravans from southern Mexico and Central America.

Mr. Trump said in the interview with Laura Ingraham that the administration will detain any Central Americans who complete the more than thousand-mile trek while they await "their trial" after claiming asylum. The group is still weeks or more away from reaching the U.S. border.

"We're going to build tent cities. We're going to put tents up all over the place. We're not going to build structures and spend all of this, you know, hundreds of millions of dollars — we're going to have tents," Mr. Trump said.

But tent cities are not a cheap solution. Hundreds of millions of dollars is how much the one tent city currently operated by the federal government is costing this quarter alone. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said in a Sep. 18 announcement in the Federal Register that it expected to spend $367 million on the government's tent city at the Tornillo Port of Entry in Texas in just the final three months of the year.

That facility currently houses about 1,500 unaccompanied migrant minors, but was recently expanded to make room for up to 3,800 beds.

By comparison, the two large migrant caravans traveling through Central America and Mexico are estimated to include a combined 6,500 people.

While the tents at Tornillo are located on federal land, documents obtained by CBS News through a Freedom of Information Act request show HHS has struggled to find new locations to house migrants, in particular sites for tents.

On August 2, Capt. Gregory Davis, HHS' Director of the Division of Unaccompanied Alien Children Planning and Logistics, wrote in a letter to other HHS personnel that the search for potential new migrant housing sites that were "land only," and had no previously constructed buildings, was "becoming problematic for us."

Instead, the agency was seeking non-tent "hard sided facilities in both the private and federal sectors," preferably in areas of central Texas "largely away from hurricane and flood risk."

The search for such a facility, Davis wrote, could include, "Looking at a Texas map, anywhere in a circle roughly outlined by Lubbock, Midland, San Antonio, Austin and Dallas. I know that is a massive section of TX."

An attachment to Davis' email, included below, describes the types of properties that could be used for an unaccompanied minor facility.

Questions sent to HHS about "tent city" locations and budgets were not immediately returned.

© 2018 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.


AFTER THE STORM – WALMART DONE GOOD!!

https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/party-held-homeless-baby-born-wake-hurricane-58854310
Party held for homeless baby born in wake of hurricane
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS PANAMA CITY, Fla. — Oct 30, 2018, 1:33 PM ET

PHOTOGRAPH -- Lorrainda Smith, feeds her two-day-old son Luke out of the back of her pickup truck while preparing to spend the first night out of the hospital with her newborn and husband Wilmer Capps in a parking lot in Panama City, Fla., Monday, Oct. 15, 2018, as their home was badly damaged from Hurricane Michael. "One day we had it all, the next we had nothing," added Smith. "This is not what I thought I'd be bringing him back to." (AP Photo/David Goldman)

The family of a baby who spent his first night out of the hospital in a Walmart parking lot after Hurricane Michael just got a surprise baby shower.

The happy event happened at a Walmart near the store where the family hunkered down in those dark days following the Category 4 storm.

Wilmer Capps, his wife Lorrainda Smith and their baby Luke were surprised on Tuesday after they were told to show up at the Walmart for a hurricane recovery meeting.

They were greeted with the best news they've had in a while: a year's supply of diapers, a food voucher, and a cake with rubber duckies on it that said, "Walmart loves Luke."

"It was a real big surprise," said Smith, a Panama City native.

The family's home was damaged, as was much of the Florida Panhandle city. On baby Luke's first night out of the hospital, the family hunkered down in the back of their pickup in the parking lot, because they were low on gas and fearful of driving at night with a curfew in place.

After that night, they got help finding a room in a hotel where several Walmart employees were staying. Other store workers and a company truck driver have helped them with necessities since then.

"These people needed help. The baby needed to be cool. You could tell they were all three hot and tired and hungry. We offered everything we had," said Nick Davis, the Walmart truck driver, who met the family at the hotel when he brought a mobile shower unit for the company employees. The hotel didn't have electricity or running water at that time. "I was just trying to ease their mind. They were very stressed out."

The family is staying in another hotel now, having received two free weeks. Smith isn't sure what they'll do long-term; Capps is looking for work.

"We're taking it day by day, minute by minute," she said.


GILLUM IS A DEMOCRAT FAVORED BY BERNIE SANDERS, AND THOUGH THE BAD OLD PARTY IS FIGHTING HIM TOOTH AND NAIL, HE IS HOLDING HIS OWN. THE TRUMP EFFECT IS NOT HELPING THE GOP, I DON’T BELIEVE. THEY SHOULD SHED THEIR FAR-RIGHT MEMBERS, KEEP THEIR MODERATES, AND STAND UP PUBLICLY AGAINST TRUMP OR THE GOP WILL BE IN THE SOUP, I THINK. WHEN THE ORDINARY PEOPLE TURN AGAINST YOU, YOU’RE IN TROUBLE.

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/gillums-rise-indicative-discontent-floridians-republicans/story?id=58848780&cid=clicksource_interest_band
Gillum’s rise indicative of discontent Floridians have with Republicans
By MEG CUNNINGHAM Oct 30, 2018, 11:18 AM ET

WATCH 'The racists believe he's a racist': Florida governor's debate gets heated

Democrat Andrew Gillum’s campaign success is indicative of a wave of discontent Floridians have with Republicans.

The Tallahassee mayor faces Trump-backed Republican former Rep. Ron DeSantis and is a member of an ever-growing class of progressives aligning themselves with the agenda of Sen. Bernie Sanders.

Gillum won the Democratic primary by only a few points against Gwen Graham. That election wasn’t supposed to be easy for Gillum, because Graham’s father was once the state’s governor and a U.S. senator. She took on the role of centrist to appeal to voters, but in the final weeks leading up to the primaries, her lead started to fade and Gillum was able to inch to a three-point victory.

(MORE: Florida Gov. candidate Gillum responds to Trump tweet calling him a 'thief')

He’s staked his platform in single-payer health care and tax reform. He’s advocated for restructuring ICE and impeaching President Donald Trump.

His progressive campaign has allowed him to amass support from the largest left-wing donors, including Democratic financier George Soros. Between Soros and his sons, Gillum has raised $1.3 million alone, according to Politico.

PHOTO: Florida Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum gestures during a campaign rally along with U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, Oct. 22, 2018, at the University of South Florida in Tampa, Fla.Chris OMeara/AP

Florida Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum gestures during a campaign rally along with U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, Oct. 22, 2018, at the University of South Florida in Tampa, Fla.more +

Born in Miami, his mother drove a school bus and his father was a construction worker. He’s one of seven children and the first in his family to graduate high school and go to college, according to the Sun Sentinel. He was the youngest person elected to the Tallahassee City Commission at 23.

(MORE: 'I'm simply saying the racists believe he's a racist': Florida governor's debate gets heated)

Gillum boasts economic development and a focus on the underrepresented worker. Under his mayorship, Tallahassee was selected for Obama’s TechHire program, which provides resources to underrepresented workers in the tech field, according to the Tallahassee Democrat.

His campaign has run into some trouble with the FBI, after agents subpoenaed “thousands of pages of documents from key players in city government,” according to the Tampa Bay Times. Gillum’s accepted a ticket to the award-winning Broadway musical “Hamilton” in New York from an undercover FBI agent who was investigating corruption in Tallahassee.

PHOTO: Florida Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum speaks to supporters during a campaign rally in Kissimmee, Fla., Oct. 1, 2018.John Raoux/AP

Florida Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum speaks to supporters during a campaign rally in Kissimmee, Fla., Oct. 1, 2018.

Gillum in the governor’s debate said that although he is not the direct subject of the investigation, he has “zero tolerance for corruption.” He also said that he should have asked more questions about where the ticket came from before accepting it.

"I’m running for governor, in the state of Florida we got a lot of issues, in fact we have 99 issues and 'Hamilton' ain’t one of them," Gillum said.

(MORE: DeSantis says Floridians can't 'monkey this up' by electing African-American Democrat as governor)

PHOTO: President Donald Trump shakes hands with Representative Ron DeSantis, Republican candidate for Florida Governor, as he speaks during a campaign rally at Florida State Fairgrounds Expo Hall in Tampa, Fla., July 31, 2018.Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images, FILE

President Donald Trump shakes hands with Representative Ron DeSantis, Republican candidate for Florida Governor, as he speaks during a campaign rally at Florida State Fairgrounds Expo Hall in Tampa, Fla., July 31, 2018.more +

The race has gotten increasingly testy between DeSantis and Gillum. DeSantis recently said at a rally that Gillum would appoint “Soros-backed activists” to statehouse positions if he were appointed. He has also urged FOX News viewers not to “monkey this up” by voting for Gillum in November.

Gillum has also been a target of racist robocalls paid for by a white nationalist group from Idaho.

(MORE: Florida Democrat Andrew Gillum targeted by second racist robocall)
"Well, hello there. I is the negro Andrew Gillum and I'll be askin' you to make me governor of this here state of Florida," the call says.

DeSantis denounced the calls and said he didn't know who was making them, although the group made similar robocalls mocking California Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein.

PHOTO: Florida Republican gubernatorial candidate Ron DeSantis addresses the audience during his Jacksonville campaign stop, Oct. 25, 2018.Bob Self/Florida Times-Union via AP

Florida Republican gubernatorial candidate Ron DeSantis addresses the audience during his Jacksonville campaign stop, Oct. 25, 2018.

Gillum hasn’t shied away from President Trump’s attacks toward him online. On Monday, Trump posted a tweet calling for the support of DeSantis, in which he called Gillum a “thief,” likely in regards to the FBI investigation.


Donald J. Trump
✔
@realDonaldTrump
In Florida there is a choice between a Harvard/Yale educated man named @RonDeSantisFL who has been a great Congressman and will be a great Governor - and a Dem who is a thief and who is Mayor of poorly run Tallahassee, said to be one of the most corrupt cities in the Country!

10:54 AM - Oct 29, 2018
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Gillum fired back the same way he did when Trump attacked him in August, by telling him to tag him directly in the tweet and urging Floridians to vote.


Andrew Gillum
✔
@AndrewGillum

Governor candidate, FL
On Twitter there is a choice between having the courage to @ the person you are trash talking, or not. @realDonaldTrump is howling because he's weak. Florida, go vote today.

Donald J. Trump
✔
@realDonaldTrump
In Florida there is a choice between a Harvard/Yale educated man named @RonDeSantisFL who has been a great Congressman and will be a great Governor - and a Dem who is a thief and who is Mayor of poorly run Tallahassee, said to be one of the most corrupt cities in the Country!

11:29 AM - Oct 29, 2018
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29.4K people are talking about this
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Despite the cloud of a federal investigation over his head and the unlikely odds of his victory over Graham in the primaries, ABC News partner FiveThirtyEight forecasts Gillum with a three in four chance of taking the governor’s mansion.


JUST TO SEE THAT SOMETHING APPROACHING JUSTICE IS BEING PLANNED FOR MR. BOWERS, READ THESE CHARGES. I HAVE LITTLE DOUBT THAT THEY CAN GET THE DEATH PENALTY. I HOPE NO JURY HIJINKS OCCURS TO LESSEN HIS SENTENCE.

http://www.post-gazette.com/news/crime-courts/2018/10/28/Federal-prosecutors-seek-death-penalty-for-Robert-Bowers/stories/201810280250
Federal prosecutors seek death penalty for Robert Bowers
LIZ NAVARATIL
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
OCT 28, 2018 11:38 PM

Federal prosecutors have begun seeking approval to pursue the death penalty for Robert Bowers, who is accused of killing 11 people and wounding six others inside the Tree of Life synagogue.

“The U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania, Scott W. Brady, has initiated the approval process for seeking the death penalty against Pittsburgh synagogue shooting defendant, Robert Bowers," spokeswoman Margaret Philbin said in a statement.

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"Following consultation with the Justice Department’s Capital Crimes Unit and a careful review of the matter based upon the facts and the law, the ultimate decision regarding capital charges rests with the U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions.”


Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto speaks during a a vigil at Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall to remember the victims of the mass shooting at the Tree of Life Congregation synagogue on Sunday, Oct. 28, 2018, in Oakland. Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald is also pictured at left. (Andrew Rush/Post-Gazette)

Adam Smeltz
Peduto to White House: Talk to shooting victims' families before presidential visit

Investigators charged Mr. Bowers, 46, of Baldwin Borough, on Saturday night with 29 federal counts, including obstruction of exercise of religious beliefs resulting in death and use of a firearm to commit murder during a crime of violence, among others.

He also faces charges at the state level, including homicide, attempted homicide, aggravated assault and ethnic intimidation.