=====

__Acrimony deepens after government shutdown's first day__
*http://www.cnn.com/2018/01/20/politics/government-shutdown-daca-deal-developments/index.html*
*CNN)Day one of the government shutdown ended with recriminations between the parties deepening and no sign of progress towards ending the impasse.

The White House, Republican and Democratic leaders spent most of Saturday apportioning blame and flexing partisan muscles after the Democrats blocked a Senate bill to fund the government and the federal machine ran dry on cash at midnight on Friday.
While both the House and Senate were in session Saturday, there was little sign of an opening, as leaders who will eventually have to talk to one another to resolve the showdown stayed in their corners.
"Everyone's dug in. No movement at all from either side," said a Democratic aide.
President Donald Trump had been hoping to be the star of the show at a glitzy fundraiser at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida Saturday celebrating the anniversary of his inauguration. But he was forced to stay in Washington.*

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🇫🇷 **Macron admits France would vote to LEAVE EU if country held referendum**
<https://archive.is/gmaLk>

Emmanuel Macron has sent shockwaves throughout Europe after he conceded that French voters would quit the EU if France held an in/out referendum on the Brussels-led bloc. No other European Union country has risked putting membership of the bloc to a public vote since Britain surprised member-states by voting to leave the bloc in 2016,

Asked about the Brexit vote, the candid president told Marr: "I am not the one to judge or comment on the decision of your people. "But, my interpretation is that a lot of the losers of globalisation suddenly decided it was no more for them."

Marr then pushed the French president, regarded by many as the EU's new leader, on whether Britain's decision was a one-off. The BBC journalist asked: "If France had had the same referendum, it might have had the same result?" Macron responded: "Yes, probably, probably. Yes. In a similar context. But we have a very different context in France."
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🇬🇧 **Oxford University extends time for maths and computer science exams in bid to help women get better grades**
<https://archive.is/k9GR3>

Oxford University has extended time for maths and computer science exams in a bid to help women get better grades. Undergraduates were given 105 minutes to complete their papers, rather 90. There was no change in difficulty or the length of questions and female students were said to do better as a result.

Dons trialed the changes to allow women to achieve higher results, with just seven female maths finalists achieving firsts last year compared with 45 men. The proposals were put forward to reduce the 'undue effects of time pressure' which the prestigious university believe effects women more than men, reports the Sunday Times.

A document obtained by the Times, under Freedom of Information laws, showed that faculty at the university believed the changes could: 'mitigate the... gender gap that has arisen in recent years, and in any case the exam should be a demonstration of mathematical understanding and not a time trial.'
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🇺🇸 **California Democrats want businesses to give half their tax-cut savings to state**
<https://archive.is/Z9nEi>

California lawmakers are targeting the expected windfall that companies in the state would see under the federal tax overhaul with a bill that would require businesses to turn over half to the state.

A proposed Assembly Constitutional Amendment by Assemblymen Kevin McCarty, D-Sacramento, and Phil Ting, D-San Francisco, would create a tax surcharge on California companies making more than $1 million so that half of their federal tax cut would instead go to programs that benefit low-income and middle-class families.

“Trump’s tax reform plan was nothing more than a middle-class tax increase,” Ting said in a statement. “It is unconscionable to force working families to pay the price for tax breaks and loopholes benefiting corporations and wealthy individuals. This bill will help blunt the impact of the federal tax plan on everyday Californians by protecting funding for education, affordable health care, and other core priorities.”
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🇺🇸 **California to register illegal aliens to vote – automatically**
<https://archive.fo/xd6km>

California will take the next step in blurring the lines between citizens and non-citizens beginning April Fool’s Day when the state complies with a court order to begin automatically registering to vote all those who are granted driver’s licenses.

The state has long provided driver’s licenses to all who simply claimed, without proof, that they were citizens of in the country legally. There were no checks made or documentation required.

But beginning April 1 every person who gets a California driver’s license will be automatically entitled to vote.

“We are very pleased that Californians will have easier access to voter registration,” said Jeremiah Levine, an attorney with Morrison Foerster who represented the voting-rights groups. “We are especially satisfied that changes will be made before California’s statewide and federal primary elections.”

The League of Women Voters and three other groups sued the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles and Secretary of State’s Office in May 2017, claiming the state burdens would-be voters by making them fill out the same information on two separate forms to register to vote.
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🇺🇸 **Explosive device triggers fire at Florida mall, forcing evacuation**
<http://archive.is/uI053>
 
An improvised explosive device caused a fire at a central Florida mall Sunday evening and forced the building to be evacuated.

The Polk County Sheriff's Office said firefighters were called to the Eagle Ridge Mall in Lake Wales shortly before 5:30 p.m. When they arrived, they found smoke coming from a corridor located next to the mall's JCPenny entrance.

The firefighters determined that one device had been detonated in the corridor, and found a backpack with other possible explosive devices in it.

The blast caused no injuries, but investigators said there was damage to the ceiling and corridor walls.

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🇺🇸 __***Ford earnings: Disappointing outlook, stock weakness among stumbling blocks'***__
<https://www.marketwatch.com/story/ford-earnings-disappointing-outlook-stock-weakness-among-stumbling-blocks-2018-01-19>
Ford Motor Co. comes to the week of its fourth-quarter earnings release hobbled by weak guidance and lows for its stock.

The auto maker is scheduled to report results after the bell on Wednesday.

Ford’s guidance earlier this month has disappointed Wall Street, and analysts are likely to scour earnings for signs the company can weather the storm.

Bright points for Ford F, +0.17% include its best-selling pickup trucks and SUVs, the type of vehicles that U.S. residents have taken a marked liking in recent years at the expense of sedans and compacts. The company is also looking at launching compact SUVs this year, which have also grown in popularity.

“That’s where the profits are, and where the volumes are,” said Efraim Levy, an analyst with CFRA.

Related: Tesla’s roaring start to 2018 is costing short sellers $1 billion

Ford has played catch-up to rival General Motors Co. GM, +0.32% which is winning Wall Street’s favor thanks to moves that include selling its European business and taking a lead in electric vehicles. That catch-up has hurt Ford’s profitability, Levy said.

Tailwinds for Ford also include its promised investments in electric vehicles and mobility and the company’s ongoing cost-restructuring efforts.

🇮🇱 **El Al pilots refuse to fly African asylum seekers being deported**
<https://archive.fo/SgQm6>

At least three El Al pilots recently published Facebook posts announcing their refusal to participate in the government’s mass deportation of African asylum seekers by not flying them to Rwanda or Uganda following the passing of controversial legislation sanctioning their expulsions.

The act is mostly symbolic as El Al does not fly directly to Rwanda or Uganda, and deported migrants usually fly on other airlines through Ethiopia or Jordan.

Among the pilots who publicized his disapproval of the plan was Iddo Elad, who wrote on Facebook Sunday that he would refuse to “fly refugees to their death.”

Last month, the Knesset approved an amendment to the so-called Infiltrator’s Law mandating the closure of the Holot detention facility and the forced deportations of Eritrean and Sudanese migrants and asylum seekers starting in March.
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🇨🇳 **China bans hip hop, actors with tattoos from appearing on television**
<https://archive.fo/kr7A4>

Chinese government censors are cracking down on television programs that feature “tattoo artists, hip-hop culture, subculture (non-mainstream culture) and funeral culture (decadent culture),” according to news portal Sina.

China’s top media regulator, the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio Film and Television of the People’s Republic of China (SAPPRFT), outlined rules for television stations Friday that include not using actors “whose heart and morality are not aligned with the party and whose morality is not noble.”

Hip hop culture, which is relatively a new phenomenon in China, has risen to prominence among Chinese youth largely due to the success of shows like “Rap of China.”

According to the BBC, “Rap of China” was viewed more than 2.5 billion times 2017 on China’s largest video streaming website, IQiyi.

China also recently banned a number of popular Western artists from performing in the country, including Lady Gaga, Selena Gomez and Maroon 5 for their ties to the Dalai Lama, and Justin Bieber for “bad behavior.”
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<:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466>


🇺🇸 **EXCLUSIVE: INFOWARS RELEASES SECRET FISA MEMO**
<http://archive.is/yiaAj>
 

Update: Despite media claims to the contrary, our congressional sources confirmed that the below memo documenting NSA spying on US citizens serves as a primary source of information for the Nunes summary memo:

William Binney, former tech head of the NSA contacted us this morning to send us the link to the reportedly classified memo that lawmakers said was a blueprint of how the Obama administration and the Deep State spied on President Trump.

This memo, hiding in plain site, serves as the basis for the four-page memo of Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) which reveals perjury by the Obama administration when connected to other research.

This is the basic compendium of the NSA abuses spotlighted by Nunes:

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🇺🇬 **Uganda's President says he loves Donald Trump because he's frank about Africa**
<https://archive.fo/IuIp7>

Pesident Donald Trump has a big fan in Uganda: President Yoweri Museveni.

Less than two weeks after Trump allegedly used a vulgar term to describe nations in the continent, the Ugandan President is applauding him, saying he "talks to Africans frankly."

Trump's remarks sparked a diplomatic uproar, with the African Union demanding a retraction and an apology. But Museveni is of a different opinion, describing Trump as honest and saying African nations only have themselves to blame for lagging behind.

"Donald Trump speaks to Africans frankly. Africans need to solve their problems," Museveni tweeted Tuesday.

"You can't survive if you are weak. It is the Africans' fault that they are weak. We are 12 times the size of India, but why are we not strong?"

"America has got one of the best presidents ever. Mr. Trump. I love Trump," Museveni said in video posted by local media Tuesday. "I love Trump because he talks to Africans frankly. I don't know if he's misquoted or whatever, but when he speaks I like him because he speaks frankly."
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🇺🇸 **WH says ‘dreamer’ citizenship under discussion**
<https://archive.fo/8Iagp>

President Donald Trump says he’s open to a pathway to citizenship for hundreds of thousands of young people who were brought to the country as children and are now here illegally.

Trump told reporters, “We’re going to morph into it. It’s going to happen, at some point in the future, over a period of 10 to 12 years.”

Trump was talking about the young immigrants who had been protected from deportation and given the right to work legally in the country under the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.

Trump said earlier that citizenship for the roughly 700,000 people whose legal protections run out March 5 is “going to happen, at some point in the future, over a period of 10 to 12 years.”
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<:perfect:348458410783539211> **Cuckolding can be positive for some couples, (((study))) says **
<https://archive.fo/Bmti6>

In our current political climate, the term "cuck" -- short for "cuckservative" -- has become an insult of the so-called alt-right, aimed at men they view as spineless and emasculated. The slur has its roots in the concept of cuckolding, or having an adulterous partner.

But, according to a recent study by David Ley, Justin Lehmiller and the writer Dan Savage, acting on cuckolding fantasies can be a largely positive experience for many couples, and hardly a sign of weakness.

References to cuckolding appear in literature as early as the 13th century, usually in the form of male characters who fear that their child has been sired by another man during an act of infidelity. Today, however, cuckolding has become fetishized into a powerful sexual fantasy for some men, who get aroused by the idea of their romantic partner engaging in sexual activity with someone else. Women also share this fantasy, but less so than men.

"For men and couples considering the issue of cuckolding, it's important there be honesty, integrity, communication, mutuality and shared values," advised Ley. "I've seen men who try to trick their wives into cuckolding them, and this never, ever ends up well."

For couples who do decide to move forward, it's important to take things slow. "The reality of watching your spouse have sex with someone else -- or knowing they're doing it, if you're not there -- is often very different than the fantasy. It can dredge up powerful emotions, so take baby steps and keep talking and communicating," said Savage. "That said, the rewards can be amazing, according to couples who have successfully folded cuckold play into their relationships."
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🇺🇸 **The Photo That Never Saw The Light of Day: Obama With Farrakhan In 2005**
<https://archive.fo/fjpbc>

A journalist announced last week that he will publish a photograph of then-Illinois Sen. Barack Obama (D) and Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan that he took in 2005 at a Congressional Black Caucus meeting, but did not make public because he believed it would have “made a difference” to Obama’s political future.

Farrakhan is a minister who leads the Nation of Islam and has made anti-Semitic remarks. During Obama’s presidential campaign, conservatives pushed multiple apparently racially motivated conspiracy theories about Obama’s religion and supposed ties to Islam.

During the 2008 presidential election, conservatives questioned the indirect ties between Farrakhan and Obama, who attended a church that gave Farrakhan an award. At a 2008 presidential debate in Cleveland, Obama said he had “been very clear” in his “denunciation” of Farrakhan’s remarks.

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1 interesting how retarded people are and how the fbi just picks on retards
https://www.cnn.com/2018/01/24/politics/harlem-suarez-isis/index.html
CNN
The massive FBI sting to bring down an ISIS-supporting weightlifter in Key West
Harlem Suarez grabbed a jalapeno pepper from his plate and took a big bite. The heavily tattooed Cuban-American crepe-maker was eating dinner with two new friends, Shariff and Mohammed, at a Denny's in Key West on a warm June night. Suarez wanted to impress them but they laughed instead, joking in Arabic that he seemed suicidal.

Suarez told Mohammed and Shariff that he was interested in conducting a domestic attack because traveling overseas was too costly.
"What city were you trying to go to?" asked Shariff.
"Iraq," Suarez replied.
"I'm saying...no, what city were you going to fly into?" Shariff asked.
"What do you mean?" Suarez replied.
"Just you're gonna fly directly to Iraq," Shariff said.
"But ... the ticket's like five thousand dollars," said Suarez.
"Jeez, where'd you look at? At what site?" asked Shariff.
"Internet," Suarez responded.
-reminder the fbi does this to right wing retards as well.

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<:trump:284711336934375425> **Trump: 'I wouldn't say I'm a feminist'**
<https://archive.fo/XGumh>

President Trump said that he wouldn’t call himself a feminist in a new interview with Piers Morgan, Morgan said Saturday.

The British news host tweeted out Trump’s quotes from the interview on Saturday night.

“No, I wouldn't say I'm a feminist. I mean, I think that would be, maybe, going too far,” Trump said in the interview, according to Morgan. “I’m for women, I'm for men, I’m for everyone.”

The full interview with Morgan will air on Sunday.
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🇺🇸 **Google employees say the company's not doing enough to protect them from harassment, threats**
<http://archive.is/7xXwd>
 
SAN FRANCISCO — The firing of Google engineer James Damore for suggesting men are more suited to technical roles than women has triggered a culture war inside the Internet giant, with some Google employees saying the company is not doing enough to protect them from a harassment campaign that has subjected them to hateful comments and violent threats. 

These employees, many of whom volunteer as diversity advocates, say they've been targeted by some of their own coworkers for fighting to bring greater diversity to Google's 78,000-plus staff of mostly white and Asian men.

Their personal information and comments expressed in internal company forums have been leaked to the public and published on far-right websites, leading to mistreatment by online vigilantes. What's more, they say they've been subjected to doxing on 4Chan and Kiwi Farms after screenshots were included in the 161-page lawsuit Damore filed in January alleging Google discriminates against whites, conservatives and men.

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<:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> **Spermageddon: Why the human race could be infertile in 50 years **
<http://archive.is/Ngb3n>
 

odern medicine has long presumed fertility to be the dominion of women, a space ruled by gynaecologists and invasive procedures explained by softly pink pamphlets. But that is only half the story. Possibly even less, according to mounting evidence. Male fertility is dipping, and fast. Sperm may prove to be the greatest casualty of modern life.

Last summer, scientists at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem found that male sperm counts had fallen by almost 60 per cent in 40 years. In what was the largest study of its kind, they analysed data from 43,000 men from North America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand, taking in 185 studies from 1973 to 2011. Its lead author, Dr Hagai Levine, decreed the result an ‘urgent wake-up call’.

Sperm studies have historically been piecemeal and played second fiddle to female fertility research, but warning signs have been flashing for years. In 2012 a study...

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<:perfect:348458410783539211>
🇺🇸 **People show huge interest in Robinhood Crypto, but skeptics worry it will just fuel the bubble**
<http://archive.is/Ua1za>
 
Just over 24 hours since no-fee stock trading app Robinhood announced it would roll out free digital currency trading in February, 530,000 and counting have signed up to "get early access."

That surge of interest has quickly brought out the critics: skeptics of bitcoin's skyrocketing price and Robinhood's ability to provide fair prices for customers.

"I think it's buyer beware," said Joe Saluzzi, co-founder and partner at Themis Trading. "It's not a stock. It's not a security."

For all the worries about it being a "bubble,"bitcoin has become a big business. As its price soared 2,000 percent in the 12 months through mid-December to above $19,000, Coinbase, the leading U.S. marketplace for trading major cryptocurrencies, more than doubled its userbase to over 13 million.

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🇺🇸 **Axios: Trump administration is considering nationalizing 5G mobile network**
<http://archive.is/iEC5r>
 
Washington (CNN) — The US government is considering a federal takeover of portions of the country's mobile broadband networks, according to documents obtained by Axios.

A National Security Council official presented senior members of the President Donald Trump's administration and other agencies with information suggesting that the United States needs to centralize its 5G network by the end of President Donald Trump's first term as a safeguard against Chinese cybersecurity and economic threats, according to the documents.

Government control of 5G infrastructure would be unprecedented and highly controversial, as the industry has traditionally been privately controlled.

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__***Hallandale Beach Mayor Joy Cooper suspended after FBI sting arrest***__
*https://www.cbsnews.com/news/hallandale-beach-mayor-joy-cooper-suspended-after-fbi-sting-arrest/*
*HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. -- Florida Gov. Rick Scott has suspended longtime Hallandale Beach Mayor Joy Cooper following her arrest on public corruption charges including three felonies, CBS Miami reports.

According to court documents, FBI agents posing as wealthy developers gave Cooper money in exchange for political favors in 2012. She has served on the city commission nearly 20 years.

Cooper, a 57-year-old Democrat, posted bond on Thursday night and her attorney said she would fight the charges.

The Miami Herald reports that Cooper met with undercover agents posing as wealthy land developers who wanted to bring a development project to the city. She boasted she could ensure votes for the project and allegedly solicited money that exceeded the $500 limit on local campaign contributions, the Herald reports.

At her home Friday, her son Matt Cooper told CBS Miami "she will be vindicated."

School Shooting Kentucky
Joy Cooper CBS MIAMI/MIAMI-DADE CORRECTIONS
After her arrest, Cooper issued a statement to the media defending her integrity. "I have dedicated my time and energy to focus on performing all of my duties with utmost integrity. I can assure you that I will vigorously fight these allegations in court."

Cooper recently defended herself against accusations she was drunk at a commission meeting in November. Cooper said she was recovering from a sickness after returning from a trip from Mexico.*


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__***Trump reportedly called for release of FISA abuses memo, which DOJ says would be 'reckless' without review***__
*http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/trump-reportedly-called-for-release-of-fisa-abuses-memo-which-doj-says-would-be-reckless-without-review/article/2647312*
President Trump called for the public release of the controversial House Intelligence Committee memo on alleged surveillance abuses last week, even as his Justice Department warned against doing so without a proper review.

According to the Washington Post, White House chief of staff John Kelly talked with Attorney General Jeff Sessions twice about the matter on Wednesday, once in a small group meeting and another time over the phone.


Guns & Roses Part 3 | UPROXX Docs
Watch Full Screen
This is the first known instance of the White House actively pushing for the memo's release. White House press secretary Sarah Sanders told reporters last week that the president supports "full transparency" when it comes to the memo, but declined to directly confirm Trump would allow its release.

A White House official nor the Justice Department did not return a request for confirmation or comment.

Republicans say the four-page memo, written by Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes and staff, contains evidence of misuse of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act which could undermine the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.

Reports have suggested the memo details how the FBI included false claims from "Trump dossier" author Christopher Steele about Trump associates' ties to Russia in an approved application to spy on Trump campaign adviser Carter Page, but current and former law enforcement officials have said much more information was also used to justify the surveillance application.

<:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466> <:gayfrogs:319792618576019466>


🇺🇸 **GOING APE Inside the bizarre world of human-chimp hybrids known as HUMANZEES – as a renowned scientist claims one was born in a Florida lab before being killed by panicked doctors**
<http://archive.is/fdhmW>
 
A HUMAN-chimpanzee hybrid was born in a Florida lab 100 years ago before being killed by panicked doctors, claims a renowned scientist.

Evolutionary psychologist Gordon Gallup coined the term “humanzee” which refers to a human-chimp crossbreed – a scientifically possible hybridisation which was attempted throughout the 20th century.
Gallup, who developed the famous mirror "self-recognition" test which proved primates could acknowledge their own reflection, claims his former university professor told him that a humanzee baby was born at a research facility where he used to work.

Speaking to The Sun Online, he said: “One of the most interesting cases involved an attempt which was made back in the 1920s in what was the first primate research centre established in the US in Orange Park, Florida.

“They inseminated a female chimpanzee with human semen from an undisclosed donor and claimed not only that pregnancy occurred but the pregnancy went full term and resulted in a live birth.

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🤔

🇺🇸 **Agents In Texas Find 76 Illegal Aliens in a Tractor-Trailer**
<https://archive.fo/aAnOC>

On January 26, 2018, agents at the Border Patrol Checkpoint on north Highway 83 encountered a tractor-trailer at the primary lane. The driver was questioned regarding his immigration status and was referred to secondary for further inspection. Upon further inspection, Border Patrol agents discovered 76 illegal aliens inside the trailer.

The 76 illegal aliens were found in good health. The 76 subjects were determined to be from the countries of Mexico, Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala. Thirteen unaccompanied alien children were among those rescued in this event. The driver, a United States Citizen, was arrested and the tractor-trailer was seized by Border Patrol.

“These criminal organizations view these individuals as mere commodities without regard for their safety. The blatant disregard for human life will not be tolerated. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to disrupt and dismantle these organizations and prosecute those responsible,” said Laredo Sector Assistant Chief Patrol Agent Gabriel Acosta.

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🇺🇸 **House Republicans Vote to Release Secret Memo on Russia Probe**
<http://archive.is/g0WHm>
 
WASHINGTON — Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee, apparently disregarding Justice Department warnings that their actions would be“extraordinarily reckless,” voted Monday evening to release a contentious secret memorandum said to accuse the department and the F.B.I. of misusing their authority to obtain a secret surveillance order on a former Trump campaign associate.

The vote threw fuel an already fiery partisan conflict over the investigations into Russia’s brazen meddling in the 2016 presidential election. Republicans invoked a power never before used by the secretive committee to effectively declassify the memo that they had compiled. Democrats called the three-and-a half-page document a dangerous effort to build a narrative to undercut the department’s ongoing Russia investigation, using cherry-picked facts assembled with little or no context.

What comes next was less clear. Under the obscure House rule invoked by the committee, President Trump now has five days to review the document and decide whether to try to block it from going public. The White House has repeatedly indicated that it wants the memo out, but Mr. Trump’s Justice Department had been working to slow or block its release.
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🇺🇸 **House Intel committee votes to release Nunes memo**
<http://archive.is/dNFfZ>
 
Washington (CNN) — The House Intelligence Committee voted Monday evening to publicly release a Republican memo alleging abuses of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, but voted against releasing a memo written by the committee's top Democrat, Rep. Adam Schiff told reporters.

Schiff says Republicans on the committee voted to release the controversial memo by chairman Devin Nunes.

The Nunes memo says that the FBI abused the FISA surveillance law over its use of the opposition research dossier on Donald Trump and Russia as part of the case to obtain a FISA warrant for former Trump campaign foreign policy adviser Carter Page. It cites the role of deputy attorney general Rod Rosenstein and outgoing deputy FBI director Andrew McCabe for their roles in overseeing aspects of the investigation, according to a source briefed on the matter.

Separately, Republicans on the House Oversight and Judiciary Committees are expected to get briefed Tuesday by Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz, who is investigating FBI actions during the 2016 election, according to two members of the panels, which are conducting a separate investigation into the FBI..
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🇺🇸 **Republican memo likely to be released Thursday -Trump administration official**
<http://archive.is/61wMq>
 
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A Republican memo alleging anti-Trump bias at the FBI and U.S. Justice department is likely to be released on Thursday, an official of President Donald Trumps administration said on Wednesday.

The FBI said earlier on Wednesday it had "grave concerns" about the accuracy of the top-secret House Intelligence Committee memo, challenging President Donald Trump's pledge to release it.

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🇺🇸 **FBI Officials Knew of New Clinton Emails Weeks Before Alerting Congress**
<http://archive.is/2zBkm>
 
Top FBI officials were aware for at least a month before alerting Congress that emails potentially related to an investigation of Hillary Clinton had emerged during a key stretch of the 2016 presidential campaign, according to text messages reviewed by The Wall Street Journal.

FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe had learned about the thousands of emails by Sept. 28, 2016, and Director James Comey informed Congress about them on Oct. 28, 11 days before the presidential election, the messages show. Mr. Comey later said nothing in the new emails had changed the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s decision that Mrs. Clinton had committed no prosecutable offenses.

That lag is one focus of an investigation by the Justice Department’s inspector general, or in-house watchdog, into a variety of FBI actions in advance of the 2016 election, according to people familiar with the matter.Mr. McCabe stepped down this week, and FBI Director Christopher Wray in a note to bureau employees announcing Mr. McCabe’s departure also said he wouldn’t comment on the inspector-general probe. The Washington Post first reported the inspector general’s interest in the time lag.

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🇺🇸 **Worries Grow That the Price of Bitcoin Is Being Propped Up**
<http://archive.is/WytQv>
 
A growing number of virtual currency investors are worried that the prices of Bitcoin and other digital tokens have been artificially propped up by a widely used exchange called Bitfinex, which has a checkered history of hacks and opaque business practices.

In December, Bitfinex was subpoenaed by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, a United States regulatory agency. The news, first reported by Bloomberg on Tuesday and confirmed by a source familiar with the subpoena but not allowed to publicly discuss an ongoing investigation, led to a sell-off in most virtual currencies.

The people behind Bitfinex issue a virtual currency called Tether. Unlike most digitals tokens, every Tether is supposed to be backed by traditional money — the United States dollar. New Tether tokens are issued when investors give them dollars. One dollar is worth one token.

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<:shiiiiit:348458410217308170> **Democratic congresswoman caught on camera playing CANDY CRUSH while Trump delivered State of the Union while two others answered emails and read tweets**
<https://archive.fo/Z6hy9>

A Democratic congresswoman was caught on camera playing Candy Crush during Tuesday night's State of the Union address.

Michigan Rep. Brenda Lawrence tapped her way through the game on her iPhone while Donald Trump was speaking about revamping America's international trade posture.

New Jersey Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman was reading responses to her tweet about the president's alleged 'white nationalism' while he talked.

And Ohio Rep. Joyce Beatty was inspecting a proposed press release reacting to the speech – while it was barely a third of the way through.

'That State of the Union is put out an hour in advance so Democrats and Republicans can read along,' the spokesman said. 'And while the speech was going on, she was putting together a statement in response.'

The other two congresswomen's offices, however, didn't offer any explanation. *Members of Congress are paid $174,000 per year.*

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<:trump:284711336934375425> **Cuba: Fidel Castro's son 'takes own life**
<http://archive.is/T3r5Q>
 
The 68-year-old son of Cuba's former leader Fidel Castro has died in Havana after taking his own life, according to Cuban state media.

Fidel Ángel Castro Díaz-Balart was found on Thursday morning and is said to have suffered from depression.

The first-born son of the late president was nicknamed "Fidelito", or Little Fidel, because of the family resemblance.

He was a nuclear physicist, trained by the former Soviet Union.

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🇺🇸 **Train's emergency brake was activated, safety arms at site of GOP train crash appeared to malfunction**
<http://archive.is/2nlZY>
 
Federal investigators said Thursday that data gathered from an Amtrak train carrying Republican lawmakers that hit a garbage truck near Crozet, Virginia, on Wednesday indicates that the engineer activated the emergency brake and the train came to a full stop 20 seconds later.

Investigators with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) haven't determined what caused the crash but said they are hopeful they will be able to recover footage from the train's front-facing camera, which could offer insight on whether the truck was moving at the time of impact and whether the signal system at the crossing was functioning properly.

Pete Kotowski, the NTSB's lead investigator at the site, said officials have interviewed one Amtrak crew member and hope to speak with the train engineer and truck driver in coming days. They also have interviewed four witnesses, some of whom indicated there may have been previous problems with the crossing signals.
(Everyone should keep a close eye on this story)

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