Time to go..! Republicans are extremely bad at what they do.
In the wake of a mass shooting, the Congress continues to be inept.
Congress continues to support terrorism by allowing them access to firearms. The four amendments that could prevent access to firearms if you're on a terrorist watch list failed.
Sens. Jon Tester (D-MT), Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) and Joe Manchin (D-MT) aided the Republicans in crashing the bills.
The background check amendment failed, the terrorist watch list amendment and the semi automatic weapons ban were dismissed by the senate.
The GOP and those spineless Democrats have once again failed in passing reasonable gun control in the wake of terrorism, mass shootings and grieving families.
Is it time for the voters to dismiss the inept lawmakers?
Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) voted for the bills. He said this opportunity missed shows that Congress is totally inept and the National Rifle Association once again wins the battle.
GUN VIOLENCE IS THE NUMBER ONE THREAT IN THE UNITED STATES. CONGRESS ALLOWS THESE SENSELESS ACTS OF VIOLENCE TO CONTINUE!
I am really tired of the Republicans in control of Congress. They can't pass laws, they stall President Barack Obama's nominees and continue to waste taxpayer money grandstanding.
California Attorney General Kamala Harris will face Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-CA) in an open U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA). One of these women could be the state's first woman of color elected to Senate.
The California U.S. Senate race is going to be a bitter contest. However it's just going to be only one party doing all the fighting. California state attorney general Kamala Harris and Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-CA) will face off in a U.S. Senate race for the open seat being vacated by Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA).
Both candidates are Democrats and women of color. They are fighting for the seat and will court Democrats, Republicans and independents across the state for support.
Harris is from Oakland and is the daughter of Indian mother and Jamaican father. She was the District Attorney of San Francisco from 2004 to 2011. She won the California race for Attorney General in 2010 and won reelection in 2014.
Sanchez is from Lynwood and the daughter of a Mexican immigrant. She is the current congresswoman from the 46th Congressional District. Her sister is Rep. Linda Sanchez (D-CA) from the 38th Congressional District.
Both women are highly qualified and will be a historical first for the state. One of these candidates could become either the state's first woman of color elected to the U.S. Senate.
The Republicans by default lost the opportunity to win the seat. They have no viable candidate on the ticket.
Under California's nonpartisan blanket law, all candidates appear on the same ballot, regardless of party. In the primary voters may vote for any candidate, regardless of party, regardless of party affiliation. The top two finishers regardless of party will compete for the general election.
Washington state and Louisiana have similar races.
So it's going to be an ugly race despite it being two Democrats running.
With Harris being favored to win the race, Sanchez will have to court Republicans and independents to give her a momentum boost.
Perennial loser Carly Fiorina was the last Republican to run for the U.S. Senate seat against Boxer.
In 2010, Fiorina backed by the insurgency tried to uproot Boxer in a year when Republicans were confident enough to retake the U.S. Senate. She unsuccessfully ran for the seat.
In 2016 Fiorina would run for president. She ended that bid. She became the running mate for Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX). When Cruz ended his bid, she faded like fellow perennial loser Mitt Romney.
Fiorina became a historical first. Her days as a veep candidate was seven days. She goes down in history as one of the worst candidates to ever run for office.
Cosby being helped by his bodyguards. The troubled entertainer will have to testify in court after one of his accusers press charges on him. He admits to slipping the drinks but he denies raping the women.
If you haven't heard the news, that famed comedian Bill Cosby will have a day in court. He will face the judge, the jury and the prosecutor who is willing to put him in the iron college for the rest of his life.
Of course, Cosby is innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Well, last year Bill Cosby went from A-list to washed up in a matter of months. He was accused by over 4 dozen women of having slipping quaaludes into their drinks and having his way with them.
One of the accusers decided the time is now. Cosby who admitted to having numerous affairs denies raping the victim.
The victim was a former employee at Temple University, Cosby's old alma mater.
Cosby, 78 was present for the preliminary hearing in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania discussing the charges with his defense team.
The victim named Andrea Constand, accused Cosby of slipping her something in her wine and then they would have sex. She would wake up feeling sick and not remembering a thing.
Career is over. From A-list to washed up in a matter of months.
Cosby tried to hide the assault by paying for Constand's daughter's education. Cosby had also allegedly slept with a 17 year old model in 1976.
If found guilty of this charge, he could be facing up to 30 years in the iron college and will have to register as a TIER III sexual offender for the rest of his life.
His career is all but ruined. The Cosby Show, Fat Albert, Cosby, Little Bill, iSpy, The Bill Cosby Show, A Different World, his music and comedy albums, his movies like Ghost Dad are scrapped from every network and cable channel.
His management company fired him out the cannon. Now Cosby is certain to lose his wife Camille and his family's support if more damning evidence comes forth.
Cosby was the TV Dad who told Black men to pull up their pants and raise them children. I guess he's one to talk about Black men!
The most nastiest election year ever. This is the most unproductive Congress ever!
Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders are very bad. If one of them becomes the 45th President of the United States, they will have the most unproductive Congress ever.
The presidential candidates are extremely negative. The American public isn't inspired to vote for these guys. Bernie Sanders finally got his share of negative exposure. His supporters acted a fool at the Nevada Democratic convention, and he didn't condemn the ignorance. The public is starting to turn on Sanders.
Trump is the frontrunner in negativity. Clinton follows closely behind and Sanders is gaining on her.
The Republican controlled Congress is extremely bad. They have stall the nomination of Merrick Garland, they wasted over $7 million investigating Benghazi and now calling Facebook to face harsh criticism
And yet, no media coverage of President Barack Obama's rising job approval ratings. At present time, the president is enjoying 56% job approval in his final year.
Besides who wants to be the president of a do nothing Congress?
Democratic lawmaker got the Bern. Congressman Chaka Fattah (D-PA) was told to shake.
The Bern was felt in Philadelphia yesterday.
Rep. Chaka Fattah (D-PA) was told to bounce. The lawmaker who is under federal indictment knew the odds weren't in his favor. He decided to keep his political fires burning with the people who lobbied him in.
He faced defeat from Pennsylvania state representative Dwight Evans. Evans decided that Philadelphia needed a leader who wasn't two feet deep in the corruption.
Fattah will serve out the remainder of his term. He will appear in federal court on corruption charges.
He could face 15 years in federal time out if found guilty.
For 11 terms, Fattah was outspent by Evans.
Fattah is accused of accepting bribes and misusing campaign funds for his friends and his family under the guise of charitable grants.
Fattah tried to run for mayor of Philadelphia but failed to win the Democratic nomination.
Philadelphia mayor Jim Kenney and Pennsylvania's Democratic governor Tom Wolf threw their support to Evans.
Fattah tried to throw Obama into the race. President Barack Obama declined to endorse Fattah in this election. The White House was none too happy to hear Fattah using Obama's name in vein.
Fattah is married to Renee Chenault-Fattah. She was a local news agitator. She bounced from the job after the feds started to look into her dealings with lobbyist. Some of them lobbyists were informants for the FBI and they've watched the lawmaker for some time.
The Bernie Sanders effect may have not helped him win Pennsylvania. The effect did throw an established lawmaker out of Congress.
Legendary singer Billy Paul passed away on Sunday.
The Associated Press reports that Billy Paul has passed away at the age of 81 years old. The famed singer was known for the 1972 hit single "Me and Mrs. Jones."
Paul passed away from pancreatic cancer in his New Jersey home.
Paul was a part of the Philadelphia Sound. The sound that brought a genre of soul music characterized by funk influences and lush instrumental arrangements, often featuring sweeping strings and piercing horns. The subtle sound of a vibraphone can often be heard in the background of Philly soul songs. The genre laid the groundwork for disco and what are now considered quiet storm and smooth jazz by fusing the R&B rhythm sections of the 1960s with the pop vocal tradition, and featuring a slightly more pronounced jazz influence in its melodic structures and arrangements.
Known by his beard and large glasses, Paul was one of many singers who found success with the writing and producing team of Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff, whose Philadelphia International Records also released music by the O'Jays, Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes, and Lou Rawls.
"Me and Mrs. Jones" was an extramarital confession and a characteristic Gamble and Huff production, setting Paul's thick tenor against a lush and sensuous arrangement. Many fans best remember the moment when Paul's otherwise subtle vocals jump as they reach the title words, stretching out "Me" and "And" into multiple syllables and repeating "Mrs. Jones, Mrs. Jones, Mrs. Jones." (Paul himself was married to the same woman for decades).
Paul's voice made him "one of the great artists to come out of Philly and to be celebrated worldwide," Gamble and Huff said in a statement late Sunday.
"Our proudest moment with Billy was the recording of the salacious smash 'Me and Mrs. Jones.' In our view, it is one of the greatest love songs ever recorded," they said.
The song was one of the top singles of 1972 and brought Paul a Grammy the following year for best male rhythm 'n blues performance, with runners-up including Ray Charles and Curtis Mayfield. Paul remained identified with the song for the rest of his life.
Paul continued to perform live until he fell ill and his manager said he had been lining up numerous appearances at the time of his death. Among his favorites in concert was a cover of Prince's "Purple Rain." (Prince died last Thursday).
He was born Paul Williams but later agreed to his manager's suggestion that he change his name to Billy Paul to avoid confusion with songwriter Paul Williams and other musicians with the same name. A Philadelphia native, he sang much his life, performing with such jazz stars as Charlie Parker and Dinah Washington and being featured on a handful of singles while still in his teens.
Paul was drafted into the military in his early 20s, and found himself on the same base in Germany with a couple of famous show business names, Elvis Presley and Gary Crosby, Bing Crosby's son.
"We said we're going to start a band, so we didn't have to do any hard work in the service," he told bluesandsoul.com in 2015. "We tried to get Elvis to join but he wanted to be a jeep driver. So me and Gary Crosby, we started it and called ourselves the Jazz Blues Symphony Band."
By the mid-1960s, the Beatles had inspired him to incorporate more rhythm 'n blues into his singing and he had found a new home for his recordings after meeting Gamble at a Philadelphia music shop. His early albums with Gamble and Huff, including "Ebony Woman" and "Going East," sold modestly, before "Me and Mrs. Jones" briefly made him a superstar.
He will be missed.
Paul faced numerous obstacles following his biggest hit. Radio stations resisted his more socially conscious follow-up song, "Am I Black Enough for You" and the Rev. Jesse Jackson was among those who objected to the explicit "Let's Make a Baby."
Years later, Paul sued Gamble and Huff and other industry officials over unpaid royalties and was awarded $500,000 by a Los Angeles jury in 2003.
Paul is survived by his wife, Blanche Williams, with whom he had two children. Although he endured many difficult moments with Gamble and Huff, he would look back on those years as a lost golden age.
"It was like a family full of music," he told bluesandsoul.com. "It was like music round the clock, you know. And I reminisce and I still wish those days were here."
World News Today send our condolences to the family of Billy Paul. His memorable song will forever etched in stone as one of the greatest soul hits.
The media mogul's latest endeavor: Opening up a charter school.
Sean "Puffy" Combs, known as Puff Daddy/Diddy told the junk food media that he's going bring Hartford's Capital Prep Charter School to Harlem. He wants to turn an abandoned building in Harlem into a school for social justice. The school will cater to high school students from 6th grade to 12th grade.
Combs is co-founding the school with Steve Perry, a recognized name in education reform who has sparred with union leaders and made TV appearances such as on CNN's "Black in America." Perry founded a public magnet campus in Hartford, Conn., in 2005, and a charter in Bridgeport, Conn., founded in 2015. Charter schools are publicly funded and can be privately operated.
Combs provided office space and staff in New York to launch the school, Perry said. Initially, those staffers canvassed the neighborhood for support. Perry said he hasn't asked Combs to donate his money to the school, and the musician's day-to-day involvement is still to be determined.
Teachers are called illuminators because they're more than just instructors, said Capital Prep Harlem Principal Danita Jones.
He's accepting students this session.
This is the media mogul's first attempt at opening up an institution for disadvantaged youth.
Combs is the founder of Bad Boy Entertainment. Through the 1990s and 2000s the label was credited to the success of Notorious B.I.G., 112, Total, Faith Evans, Mase, The Lox, Craig Mack and Black Rob.
Bad Boy's latest acts include Cassie, Machine Gun Kelly, and French Montana.
Dirty politician faces an onslaught of criticism from Pres. Obama, the public and fellow Republicans who fear they may lose in competitive senate races.
Two weeks in and no budging on the Merrick Garland nomination for the Supreme Court.
Republican leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said in the junk food media that the nomination will be for the next president. It's pretty much pissed off the president and the Democrats. President Barack Obama in final year still at work. He may be a lame duck, but he's not sulking about being called that.
His job approval right now sits in the mid 50s.
Obama is still constitutionally entitled to have a nominee confirmed to the Court.
The Democrats are saying that Republicans are inept and they can't govern. They fear the conservative outrage brewing if they give in to the public's demand to nominate a justice to the high court.
The court's swing is somewhat conservative. Now that Antonin Scalia passed away, Republicans feared that Obama's pick for the Supreme Court could swing the court into a progressive direction.
Conservatives are outraged over Sen. Jerry Moran (R-KS) complaining about the senate not holding hearings on Garland.
The Garden City Telegram reported that Moran told a small group gathered in a Cimarron, Kan., courthouse on Monday that GOP senators “should interview Garland and have a hearing on his nomination,” in the paper’s words.
Sen. Jerry Moran (R-KS) warns Republicans that the plan to stop Obama's court pick will backfire.
“I can’t imagine the president has or will nominate somebody that meets my criteria, but I have my job to do,” Moran said, according to the report. “I think the process ought to go forward.”
Another Kansas paper, the Dodge City Daily Globe, reported that Moran was even more explicit in comments to a Rotary Club there: “I think we have the responsibility to have a hearing, to have the conversation and to make a determination on the merit,” he said.
He says that he rather vote against Garland than hold his nomination up. He understands that if a Republican wins the presidency, the Democrats will block nominees for the Court.
The partisan gridlock affecting Washington, DC is pathetic. I mean Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) are worthless politicians and leaders.
The Republicans also trying to cock block a recess appointment to the Court. The president could impose a recess nomination if the Republicans hold firm on their threat.
Here's a poll for you
Should the U.S. Senate confirm Merrick Garland for the Supreme Court?
I really hope that the Senate come to its senses and confirm Obama's nominee.
Little Frankie, we'll sure miss you! Frank Sinatra, Jr. was the son of singer and actor Frank Sinatra and his first wife, Nancy Barbato Sinatra. He was the younger brother of singer and actress Nancy Sinatra, and the older brother of television producer Tina Sinatra.
Born in Jersey City, New Jersey, into the household of one of the most popular singers in the world, Frank Jr. hardly saw his father, who was constantly on the road either performing or working in films. However, Frank Jr. recalls wanting to become a piano player and songwriter from his earliest days. His father wanted to name him after Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was President at the time of his birth.
Sinatra was kidnapped, at the age of 19, on December 8, 1963 at Harrah's Lake Tahoe (room 417).
He was released two days later after his father paid the $240,000 ransom demanded by the kidnappers. Barry Keenan, Johnny Irwin, and Joe Amsler were soon captured, prosecuted, convicted, and sentenced to long prison terms for kidnapping, of which they served only small portions (mastermind Keenan was later adjudged to have been legally insane at the time of the crime and hence not legally responsible for his actions).
Famed attorney Gladys Root represented one of the three men.
Seth MacFarlane idolized Frank, Jr.
A rumor at the time was that Frank Sr. arranged this in an attempt to gain publicity for his son's fledgling singing career – a rumor believed to have inspired the plot for the Hawaii Five-O episode "Tiger by the Tail"– but this was proven to be false. The kidnappers demanded that all communication be conducted by payphone. During these conversations, Frank Sr. became concerned he would not have enough change. This prompted Frank Sr. to carry a roll of dimes (10 cent coins) with him at all times for the rest of his life; he was even buried with 10 dimes in his pocket.
At the time of the kidnapping, Frank Sr. and the Rat Pack were filming Robin and the 7 Hoods. The stress of the kidnapping, in addition to the assassination of Sinatra's close friend John F. Kennedy just a few days previous, caused him to seriously consider shutting down production completely, though the film was ultimately completed
Frank leaves behind a son.
While in Daytona Beach, Frank was scheduled to perform at an event. He was feeling ill and was admitted to a local hospital. According to his publicist he died of a heart attack.
He was 72 years old,
He guest starred on the Fox animated sitcom Family Guy. He played himself helping Brian and Stewie open up a trendy nightclub after their business was failing. Seth MacFarlane plays the voices of both Brian and Stewie Griffin. MacFarlane is an animator, voice actor, comedian, and Oscar Award winning music writer and singer.
Frank Sinatra, Jr. was a friend to Family Guy, and a friend to me. I'm saddened at his passing, but grateful to have known him. RIP, Frank.
The choice to the Supreme Court is Merrick Garland. If confirmed, the Court could swing in progressives favor. Republicans vow to fight until January 20, 2017.
It's rare that a president gets an opportunity to more than two justices to the Supreme Court. Since 1989, most of the presidents had an opportunity to nominate two to the Court.
Ronald Reagan was the last president to have nominated three to the Court. Of those three were Sandra Day O'Conner who retired in 2005. Antonin Scalia who recently passed away in 2016. Anthony Kennedy, currently the longest serving justice in the Court.
Picking justices for the Supreme Court is controversial. Given the partisan rancor by the Republicans in the current 114th Congress, a simple replacement to the Court is going to be a "showdown".
President Barack Obama has nominated Merrick Garland as his choice for the Supreme Court. Expect the Republican controlled senate to fight with the nomination.
Garland is a centrist candidate who the president decided to pick on. He felt that this choice is the most capable of getting through the Senate.
This choice also signals the end of the conservative lean on the court. With the sudden death of Scalia, Republicans fear that their party is collapsing.
Donald Trump, a brokered convention, the infighting between Republicans in Congress shows the signs of the Republican Party's incapability to lead the nation. Democrats are cautiously hoping that the civil war will split the party.
Obama is not playing games with Republicans.
Inept Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has already signaled that he's not willing to take the matter up until the next president comes forth. That right there is the example of partisanship which is driving Congress to low job approvals.
At 11am, the president will address the nation.
Merrick Brian Galand is the Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, he is 63 years old and a graduate of Harvard University and Harvard Law School.
He is married to his wife Lynn (nee Rosenman). He is a father of two daughters. He is Jewish.
Garland was seen on the shortlist of many qualified judges. Sir Srinivasan and Paul J. Watford were on the short list but faced a difficult path given the partisan rancor in the Senate.
Before Elena Kagan was appointed a justice of the Court, Garland was seen on the short list as well.
Republicans better confirm a nominee to the Supreme Court. Their plan will backfire if they refuse Obama's choice to the court.
Obama warned that if he doesn't get a nomination confirmed, the next president will suffer. Cause I bet you if the Republicans block a nominee to the Supreme Court, the next president (if its a Republican) will face the same obstruction from Democrats.
Chris Christie bucks Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, John Kasich and Ben Carson by endorsing Donald Trump for president.
The failed Republican presidential candidate Chris Christie comes out for Donald Trump. This is a smack to the face of Marco Rubio, the establishment's choice for a nominee. This also is a smack to the face against John Kasich, the Ohio Republican governor.
"I am proud to endorse Donald Trump for president", says Chris Christie.
Christie, the current governor of New Jersey fought Donald Trump while he was running on the stage. Christie at first thought Trump was a joke. He said that Trump's policies aren't tested and we don't want a sideshow as our president.
I guess now he's having second thoughts. Or perhaps this is Christie's retribution against Rubio after he played dirty bull in the New Hampshire primary.
Trump had brought Christie to his press conference in Fort Worth, Texas. The governor said that Trump is the only candidate capable of beating Hillary Clinton.
This is a shocking announcement given that Christie is part of the establishment after he embraced President Barack Obama during his handling of Hurricane Sandy.
Many Republicans blamed Christie for ruining perennial loser Mitt Romney's presidential campaign.
Christie is not well liked in his state. Despite landsliding his Democratic opponent in a state that trends even more Democratic, Christie pulled in Black and Hispanic voters. Christie who once had the halo over his head is now heading back to Trenton with his tail in between his legs.
Christie bowing out was a blow to the establishment. With Jeb Bush, Chris Christie, Scott Walker and Rick Perry out the race, there's no candidate outside of John Kasich capable of mending the Republican Party together.
Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) will likely continue to be the Majority Leader of the Senate. Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) will retire as the Minority Leader putting his seat in a competitive race.
Again, I don't care for the Republicans and Democrats. They both suck. They both are out for their own. They don't understand the plight of the American people. They are invested in the special interest groups and elites that continue to pour money into their races. They will play partisan games and continue grandstanding for the sake of their federal perks.
Here's my outlook for the U.S. Senate elections. The Republicans have 54 members currently serving. They have to lose 5 seats to fall back into the minority. Some of the seats are in states that President Barack Obama carried in the 2012 election.
With the pending fight in the nomination of a Supreme Court justice, most Republicans stand firm in opposing a choice to replace Antonin Scalia. Some of the Republicans are polling somewhat well to somewhat bad in their respective states. They know the risk of being inept in their home states.
Republicans will have to protect Ohio, Florida, Wisconsin, Illinois and New Hampshire. These seats are considered TOSS UP. These seats are competitive but it could also put risk on usually safe seats such as Arizona, Indiana, Pennsylvania and North Carolina. This would be a challenge for Republicans.
With the job approval of Congress at record lows, it's not easy for Republicans to bring up the failures of Obama when they're the ones also in power. But don't think it's an easy road for the Democrats. It's going to be a tough fight for Democrats to win back the trust of the American people.
Democrats have to fight for seats in states like Nevada, Colorado and Maryland. I conclude these states as TOSS UP. It's likely going to be a hard road for the Dems to recapture the Senate.
Depending on who becomes the nominee, I have pegged the candidates and how I believe that Republicans will continue to hold on to the majority of the senate. The odds are 52 - 48.
Alaska - Lisa Murkowski (RUNNING) (SAFE)
Hawaii - Brian Schantz (RUNNING) (SAFE)
Washington - Patty Murray (RUNNING) (SAFE)
Oregon - Ron Wyden (RUNNING) (LIKELY DEMOCRAT)
California - Barbara Boxer (RETIRING) (LIKELY DEMOCRAT)
Colorado - Michael Bennet (RUNNING) (TOSS UP) (ODDS: REPUBLICAN)
Idaho - Mike Crapo (RUNNING) (SAFE)
Nevada - Harry Reid (RETIRING) (TOSS UP) (ODDS: REPUBLICAN)
Utah - Mike Lee (RUNNING) (SAFE)
Arizona - John McCain (RUNNING) (LEANS REPUBLICAN)
North Dakota - Jim Hoeven (RUNNING) (LIKELY REPUBLICAN)
Another woman! Could President Barack Obama pick Attorney General Loretta Lynch to become the next Associate Justice of The Supreme Court?
The news today is the president won't exercise a recess appointment to the Supreme Court.
The president warned Republicans that he will take measures necessary to get a nominee confirmed to the Supreme Court. In due time, the president will pick a potential candidate who will face an uphill battle in the U.S. Senate.
The first African American woman could be nominated to replace the late Antonin Scalia. Some legal analysis signal that the president could choose his Attorney General as the potential nominee for the Supreme Court.
Loretta Lynch, the current Attorney General is floated around in the media. She was the first Attorney General in U.S. history to have a unprecedented hold on her confirmation. It took over 104 days before the Senate confirmed her with the slimmest of votes.
Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV), then Majority Leader warned Republicans that the "nuclear option" will happen if they continue to stall the president's nominees.
The SCOTUS blog signaled that Lynch is a "very serious choice" for the Court.
Many in the junk food media speculate who's going to be the pick for the Supreme Court. We have no clear name in the listing. But rest assured, the Republicans are adamant against any nominee President Barack Obama picks.
It was learned today that the Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia had passed away. He died one month shy of his 80th birthday. He was 79 years old.
World News Today send our condolences to the family of Justice Antonin Scalia.
A New Jersey native, Scalia was then a lawyer, a professor and a mentor. He mentored presidential candidate and current senator Ted Cruz (R-TX).
He was of Italian-American heritage and is the father of nine. He was married to Maureen McCarthy, a woman Scalia found love after having a blind date.
Scalia was appointed by Ronald Reagan in 1986, he served as one of the longest serving justices in the Court. He was known for his colorful and yet controversial stances on many issues brought to the Court.
Scalia said that the day will come when monumental change could occur. But as an originalist he wanted to keep things the way is was. He shown that type of actions when he became the influential decision maker in the District of Columbia v. Heller case. That stripped localities from issuing gun bans in the communities. The gun owners cheered that as one of the Court's biggest gun rights decisions.
Scalia was in West Texas. He apparently passed away of natural causes. He was a featured speaker and guest at the Cibolo Creek Ranch, a resort in the Big Bend region south of the town of Marfa.
He was attending a private party at the ranch. When he didn't arrive for a breakfast gathering, a bell hop went to the room and found his body.
The U.S. Marshals are investigating the ranch to make sure that issues there didn't result in negligence.
The nation's court is hanging at the balance.
Conservatives praised the justice for taking the ground on issues such as abortion, gun rights, tort laws and gay marriage. His death is a huge blow to the conservative movement.
Matter of fact, they feared this could happen.
Scalia's death has far-reaching implications for the Court and a set of major court cases are set to come down. One in particular deals with Affirmative Action. The Fisher v. University of Texas case was going to be a monumental decision. President Barack Obama's executive orders on immigration were brought up in the court. A split decision will void the case. The Republicans also threatened to bring Obamacare back into the Court.
President Barack Obama and members of Congress as well as the candidates had chimed in on the passing.
Obama will nominate a person to fill the vacancy. It will be certainly a fight with Republicans in the Senate. They have the majority. They can hold the nominee or call a vote to reject the nominee.
Already putting out a statement, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said that the next president will fill the vacancy. The Republicans will pull bullshit moves to hold back Obama's nominee.
But eventually they'll have to vote on it.
It also makes them vulnerable to Democrat charges that the Republicans can't govern. Democrats warn Republicans that denying Obama a nominee will result in "payback" if a Republican wins the White House.
Republicans are in a situation where they have a no win situation. They can't deny the president his Constitutional right to nominate a Supreme Court justice. They are allowed to run the clock out on the nominee. The Democrats can also force a vote on the floor.
Republicans are going to be fucked regardless of what they do!
We will keep you informed on this developing story.
Cable network strikes back at washed up celebrity Stacey Dash
Stacey Dash getting hammered by Black entertainers. The washed up actress who appeared on that right wing network to blast a cable network that caters to Black culture.
BET got a taste of the venom Dash delivered a week ago. She went on that right wing network to say that Black America should eliminate Black History Month, BET and the NAACP Image Awards.
Dash believes that these awards are solely handed to Black entertainers and not White ones.
Of course, she got that wrong. BET fired back at her for that one. They even said that she's one to talk. Her ass appeared on the BET comedy-drama The Game.
BET devoted Jams to her. They played every video of her with the hashtag #NeverForget,
Videos that featured Stacey Dash included Memphis rapper MJG "That Girl", Carl Thomas' "Emotional", Kanye West's "All Falls Down", and Rick Ross' "Super High".
I am guessing BET is playing "Moving", "Mo Money", "Clueless" and Renaissance Man. These were movies Dash appeared in.
Rick Ross and Stacey Dash on the set of his music video.
Dash got slammed by her cousin Dame Dash, the former CEO of Roc-A-Fella Records. He says his cousin is doing "world class coonary"
She blasted Jada Pinkett Smith and Spike Lee for boycotting the Oscars after they failed to nominate Black entertainers. Jada's husband Will Smith was snubbed in his role in Concussion.
Many agitators in the junk food media claim that Jada and Will's Overbrook Entertainment doesn't do enough for the Black community. They claim that now "they want to take action after it affects them".
For the record, Jada and Will have donated $$$$$$$$$$$ to charity and invested in working in the communities they've grown up in. Will grew up in Philadelphia and Jada grew up in Baltimore.
As usual the concern troll nonsense that drives attention from reality. Out of 2,900 awards being handed out, only 31 Black winners of the Academy Awards.
That's a real problem that needs to be solved.
Now that it's gotten attention, many of the detractors are working overtime to discredit #OscarsSoWhite and #BlackLivesMatter.
Dash lit up a shit storm from many in the Black community.
Philadelphia Police nabbed man who tried to shoot up an officer. He claimed that he's devoted to the Islamic State.
Philadelphia Police are hailing a fellow officer for his bravery. He managed to dodge the grim reaper on Friday morning. A man who claims support to the Islamic State ran up on a lawman in an undercover vehicle. He let 13 slugs fly into the cruiser.
The officer returned fire.
Edward Archer is being treated for his injuries along with the officer. Archer will be charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
Man ambushes the lawman.
Police Commissioner Richard Ross echoed the statement at a news conference on Friday, saying that Archer confessed to the shooting "in the name of Islam." But Mayor Jim Kenney told ABC-6 that the attack had nothing to do with "being a Muslim or the Islamic faith," and everything to do with mental illness.
Archer's mother told Philly.com that her son had been hearing voices, and Ross said investigators are not yet sure whether he was truly radicalized. Late Friday, a U.S. Muslim advocacy group told Reuters that Archer didn't appear to be a mosque-going Muslim.
"At this hour, it does not appear that he was an observant or mosque-going Muslim" in the local community, said Jacob Bender, executive director of the Philadelphia Chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.
The officer, identified as 33-year-old Jesse Hartnett, was sitting in his patrol car around 11:30 p.m. at 60th and Spruce Streets when a gunman fired nearly a dozen shots through the driver’s side of the car.
Jesse Hartnett survived a point blank shooting by nutjob.
“When you look at the video, this is one of the scariest things I’ve ever seen,” Commissioner Ross said. “This guy tried to execute the police officer. The police officer had no idea he was coming. It’s amazing he’s alive.”
“We’re thankful to God he’s here today because it easily could’ve been a police funeral.”
Hartnett was taken to Penn Presbyterian Medical Center where he underwent surgery for a broken arm. Ross says the officer’s arm suffered significant damage and that he has a long road to recovery. As of Friday night, he was listed in stable condition and police officials say he will need several surgeries to repair his arm.
World News Today send our prayers to Jesse Hartnett.
Archer could face LIFE in the iron college if he's convicted of attempted murder. Archer is innocent until proven guilty.
The Cos mugshot heading to TMZ and The Smoking Gun.
The entertainer appeared in court today with cameras in tow. The 78-year old Bill Cosby was walking with a cane. He almost tripped trying to enter the Montgomery County, Pennsylvania court to be arraigned on sexual assault charges.
He posted a $1 million get out of jail free card. He also relinquished his passport.
Cosby faces a some serious charges. This has to be the biggest celebrity scandal of 2015. To see America's Dad take this nosedive is shocking. But I'm not too surprised.
He was a powerful voice in the entertainment industry. He created the hit series The Cosby Show. He inspired children with Fat Albert and The Cosby Kids. He entertained us with his comedy acts.
The conservative Craigslist once lauded Cosby's in your face reactions towards Black America. See what happens now when the conservative agitator splashes the New York Daily News hard hitting front cover.
The victim Andrea Constand decided to publicly come forth acknowledging she was a victim of a 2004 assault. The incident happened when the Temple basketball coach went to his home outside of Philadelphia.
She claimed that he gave her some alcohol with a "herbal additive". She would pass out.
No sense of knowing what's going on, she realized that Cosby was fingering her privates and groping her. She was in a paralyzed state. The two settled out of court with a disclosed amount. But the charges never went forth until now.
Andrea was one of the first women to publicly accuse the comedian of sexual misconduct. At the time, the Montgomery County district attorney declined to pursue charges. Constand later sued Cosby and they settled out of court for undisclosed terms in 2006.
Cosby is innocent until proven guilty. These charges are felonies. They can carry 2 to 15 years in the iron college. The severity of the offense could land a TIER III label on the entertainer.
The nation of Cosby is crumbling. And it seems like the leader of this country is being taken to trial.
A prosecutor in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania served Bill Cosby. The allegations of sexual assault have finally brought him a court date. This plan announced today comes as a major blow to Cosby. As if he didn't need anymore bad news.
The entertainer's reputation took a nosedive after 50 women came forth saying that Cosby's drugged them and sexually assaulted them.
The Montgomery County District Attorney's Office and the Cheltenham Township Police have scheduled a news presser to discuss the charges being handed to Cosby.
This case deals with the 2004 allegations. The charge is aggravated indecent assault. This charge could carry up to 15 years in the iron college with TIER III label if convicted. Cosby denies any fault to what happened. Cosby is likely to have his passport seized in case he decides to flee authorities.
Cosby is innocent until proven guilty. He is expected to head to Pennsylvania to post bail and have a court hearing.
The former Walmart driver was served in the accident that seriously injured famed comedian Tracy Morgan. The accident ended up killing his friend Jimmy Mac (aka. Jimmy McNair).
The trucker Kevin Roper denied guilt in the accident. He was riding his rig on 24 hours of no sleep.
He ended up blazing through a construction area on the New Jersey Turnpike. The trucker didn't pay one bit of attention and ended smacking up the hummer limousine which Tracy and Jimmy Mac were in.
The comedians were coming from a gig in New Jersey and they were on their way to Baltimore when this jumped off.
The trucker is now facing some time in the iron college. Now the vehicular homicide charge could carry up to 20 years in the iron college. Given that Roper may have had many run-ins with law enforcement from reckless driving, he will be barred from driving for the rest of his life.
Walmart had to choke out a lot of money to the family of Jimmy Mac and Tracy Morgan.
The former trucker got served. Kevin Roper was found guilty in the death of Jimmy McNair and severe injury of Tracy Mogran.
They cannon fired Roper and many other drivers who failed to follow their standards of safety.
Roper's failure to take a rest break ultimately led to this tragedy.
Congress passed strict rules when it comes to commercial driving.
Roper must have ignored that when he believed he could finish the task in 30 hours without at least an 6 to 12 hour sleep break.
Roper is from Alabama and he's now being held in county lockup. His sentencing may come before the end of the year.
World News Today send our prayers to Tracy Morgan. We wish him well on his journey to recovery.
Priscilla changed him. Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook announced he will donate his most of his fortune to charity. He and his wife are proud parents.
The CEO of social media titan Facebook announced that he and his wife are proud parents of a baby daughter. He also announced that he's giving away 99% of his fortune to charity.
Mark Zuckerberg and Dr. Priscilla Chan announced the birth of their first child, they also announced they'd be giving away 99% of their Facebook stock—worth nearly $45 billion, CNN reports. Zuckerberg and Chan posted an extremely lengthy open letter to their daughter Max on Facebook Tuesday.
Read it below....
Dear Max,
Your mother and I don't yet have the words to describe the hope you give us for the future. Your new life is full of promise, and we hope you will be happy and healthy so you can explore it fully. You've already given us a reason to reflect on the world we hope you live in.
Like all parents, we want you to grow up in a world better than ours today.
While headlines often focus on what's wrong, in many ways the world is getting better. Health is improving. Poverty is shrinking. Knowledge is growing. People are connecting. Technological progress in every field means your life should be dramatically better than ours today.
President Barack Obama holds a townhall with Facebook's CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
We will do our part to make this happen, not only because we love you, but also because we have a moral responsibility to all children in the next generation.
We believe all lives have equal value, and that includes the many more people who will live in future generations than live today. Our society has an obligation to invest now to improve the lives of all those coming into this world, not just those already here.
But right now, we don't always collectively direct our resources at the biggest opportunities and problems your generation will face.
Consider disease. Today we spend about 50 times more as a society treating people who are sick than we invest in research so you won't get sick in the first place.
Medicine has only been a real science for less than 100 years, and we've already seen complete cures for some diseases and good progress for others. As technology accelerates, we have a real shot at preventing, curing or managing all or most of the rest in the next 100 years.
Today, most people die from five things -- heart disease, cancer, stroke, neurodegenerative and infectious diseases -- and we can make faster progress on these and other problems.
Once we recognize that your generation and your children's generation may not have to suffer from disease, we collectively have a responsibility to tilt our investments a bit more towards the future to make this reality. Your mother and I want to do our part.
Curing disease will take time. Over short periods of five or ten years, it may not seem like we're making much of a difference. But over the long term, seeds planted now will grow, and one day, you or your children will see what we can only imagine: a world without suffering from disease.
There are so many opportunities just like this. If society focuses more of its energy on these great challenges, we will leave your generation a much better world.
• • •
Our hopes for your generation focus on two ideas: advancing human potential and promoting equality.
Advancing human potential is about pushing the boundaries on how great a human life can be.
Can you learn and experience 100 times more than we do today?
Can our generation cure disease so you live much longer and healthier lives?
Can we connect the world so you have access to every idea, person and opportunity?
Can we harness more clean energy so you can invent things we can't conceive of today while protecting the environment?
Can we cultivate entrepreneurship so you can build any business and solve any challenge to grow peace and prosperity?
Oprah Winfrey with New Jersey governor Chris Christie, Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Mark Zuckerberg.
Promoting equality is about making sure everyone has access to these opportunities -- regardless of the nation, families or circumstances they are born into.
Our society must do this not only for justice or charity, but for the greatness of human progress.
Today we are robbed of the potential so many have to offer. The only way to achieve our full potential is to channel the talents, ideas and contributions of every person in the world.
Can our generation eliminate poverty and hunger?
Can we provide everyone with basic healthcare?
Can we build inclusive and welcoming communities?
Can we nurture peaceful and understanding relationships between people of all nations?
Can we truly empower everyone -- women, children, underrepresented minorities, immigrants and the unconnected?
If our generation makes the right investments, the answer to each of these questions can be yes -- and hopefully within your lifetime.
• • •
This mission -- advancing human potential and promoting equality -- will require a new approach for all working towards these goals.
We must make long term investments over 25, 50 or even 100 years. The greatest challenges require very long time horizons and cannot be solved by short term thinking.
We must engage directly with the people we serve. We can't empower people if we don't understand the needs and desires of their communities.
We must build technology to make change. Many institutions invest money in these challenges, but most progress comes from productivity gains through innovation.
We must participate in policy and advocacy to shape debates. Many institutions are unwilling to do this, but progress must be supported by movements to be sustainable.
We must back the strongest and most independent leaders in each field. Partnering with experts is more effective for the mission than trying to lead efforts ourselves.
We must take risks today to learn lessons for tomorrow. We're early in our learning and many things we try won't work, but we'll listen and learn and keep improving.
• • •
Our experience with personalized learning, internet access, and community education and health has shaped our philosophy.
Our generation grew up in classrooms where we all learned the same things at the same pace regardless of our interests or needs.
Your generation will set goals for what you want to become -- like an engineer, health worker, writer or community leader. You'll have technology that understands how you learn best and where you need to focus. You'll advance quickly in subjects that interest you most, and get as much help as you need in your most challenging areas. You'll explore topics that aren't even offered in schools today.
Your teachers will also have better tools and data to help you achieve your goals.
Even better, students around the world will be able to use personalized learning tools over the internet, even if they don't live near good schools. Of course it will take more than technology to give everyone a fair start in life, but personalized learning can be one scalable way to give all children a better education and more equal opportunity.
We're starting to build this technology now, and the results are already promising. Not only do students perform better on tests, but they gain the skills and confidence to learn anything they want. And this journey is just beginning. The technology and teaching will rapidly improve every year you're in school.
The Zuckerbergs with their daughter Max.
Your mother and I have both taught students and we've seen what it takes to make this work. It will take working with the strongest leaders in education to help schools around the world adopt personalized learning. It will take engaging with communities, which is why we're starting in our San Francisco Bay Area community. It will take building new technology and trying new ideas. And it will take making mistakes and learning many lessons before achieving these goals.
But once we understand the world we can create for your generation, we have a responsibility as a society to focus our investments on the future to make this reality.
Together, we can do this. And when we do, personalized learning will not only help students in good schools, it will help provide more equal opportunity to anyone with an internet connection.
• • •
Many of the greatest opportunities for your generation will come from giving everyone access to the internet.
People often think of the internet as just for entertainment or communication. But for the majority of people in the world, the internet can be a lifeline.
It provides education if you don't live near a good school. It provides health information on how to avoid diseases or raise healthy children if you don't live near a doctor. It provides financial services if you don't live near a bank. It provides access to jobs and opportunities if you don't live in a good economy.
The internet is so important that for every 10 people who gain internet access, about one person is lifted out of poverty and about one new job is created.
Yet still more than half of the world's population -- more than 4 billion people -- don't have access to the internet.
If our generation connects them, we can lift hundreds of millions of people out of poverty. We can also help hundreds of millions of children get an education and save millions of lives by helping people avoid disease.
This is another long term effort that can be advanced by technology and partnership. It will take inventing new technology to make the internet more affordable and bring access to unconnected areas. It will take partnering with governments, non-profits and companies. It will take engaging with communities to understand what they need. Good people will have different views on the best path forward, and we will try many efforts before we succeed.
But together we can succeed and create a more equal world.
• • •
Technology can't solve problems by itself. Building a better world starts with building strong and healthy communities.
Children have the best opportunities when they can learn. And they learn best when they're healthy.
Health starts early -- with loving family, good nutrition and a safe, stable environment.
Children who face traumatic experiences early in life often develop less healthy minds and bodies. Studies show physical changes in brain development leading to lower cognitive ability.
Your mother is a doctor and educator, and she has seen this firsthand.
If you have an unhealthy childhood, it's difficult to reach your full potential.
If you have to wonder whether you'll have food or rent, or worry about abuse or crime, then it's difficult to reach your full potential.
If you fear you'll go to prison rather than college because of the color of your skin, or that your family will be deported because of your legal status, or that you may be a victim of violence because of your religion, sexual orientation or gender identity, then it's difficult to reach your full potential.
We need institutions that understand these issues are all connected. That's the philosophy of the new type of school your mother is building.
By partnering with schools, health centers, parent groups and local governments, and by ensuring all children are well fed and cared for starting young, we can start to treat these inequities as connected.
Only then can we collectively start to give everyone an equal opportunity.
It will take many years to fully develop this model. But it's another example of how advancing human potential and promoting equality are tightly linked. If we want either, we must first build inclusive and healthy communities.
• • •
For your generation to live in a better world, there is so much more our generation can do.
Today your mother and I are committing to spend our lives doing our small part to help solve these challenges. I will continue to serve as Facebook's CEO for many, many years to come, but these issues are too important to wait until you or we are older to begin this work. By starting at a young age, we hope to see compounding benefits throughout our lives.
As you begin the next generation of the Chan Zuckerberg family, we also begin the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative to join people across the world to advance human potential and promote equality for all
children in the next generation. Our initial areas of focus will be personalized learning, curing disease, connecting people and building strong communities.
We will give 99% of our Facebook shares -- currently about $45 billion -- during our lives to advance this mission. We know this is a small contribution compared to all the resources and talents of those already working on these issues. But we want to do what we can, working alongside many others.
We'll share more details in the coming months once we settle into our new family rhythm and return from our maternity and paternity leaves. We understand you'll have many questions about why and how we're doing this.
As we become parents and enter this next chapter of our lives, we want to share our deep appreciation for everyone who makes this possible.
We can do this work only because we have a strong global community behind us. Building Facebook has created resources to improve the world for the next generation. Every member of the Facebook community is playing a part in this work.
We can make progress towards these opportunities only by standing on the shoulders of experts -- our mentors, partners and many incredible people whose contributions built these fields.
And we can only focus on serving this community and this mission because we are surrounded by loving family, supportive friends and amazing colleagues. We hope you will have such deep and inspiring relationships in your life too.
Max, we love you and feel a great responsibility to leave the world a better place for you and all children. We wish you a life filled with the same love, hope and joy you give us. We can't wait to see what you bring to this world.
Love,
Mom and Dad
Zuckerberg believes that his fortune could help people in need. And I applaud him and his wife for being generous. They feel that they can make a difference to those who are in need.
Of course, many conservatives and selfish rich folks bitch about how liberals want to take money to redistribute wealth.
They want liberal rich folks to shut the fuck up. The conservatives were bitching about Warren Buffet and Bill Gates giving away their fortunes to charity. They believe that liberals are destroying America by asking for the rich to pay a little more in taxes.
Conservatives don't see that the middle class is being wiped away. They too focus on trying to the rich even more richer and the poor even more dependent on the safety net. They will not give a leg up to those who struggled for a piece of the American pie.
