ET Williams

The Doctor of Common Sense

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Liberals Chant “What the Fuck Chuck” in Front of Schumer’s NYC House

Thousands of angry demonstrators gathered outside Sen. Chuck Schumer’s luxury Brooklyn apartment building — holding up signs and chanting “What the f–k, Chuck?!” — to protest his lukewarm stance on President Trump’s cabinet picks.

“Senator Schumer needs to know we’re watching him,” fumed Brad Wolchansky, a 40-year-old soccer coach from Flatbush who was carrying a cardboard cutout of a giant eye on Tuesday night.

“He works for us. We need him to be bold. We need him to stand up to Trump and oppose his picks,” Wolchansky said.

He and roughly 3,000 others gathered at Grand Army Plaza around 6 p.m. before eventually making their way over to Schumer’s building at 9 Prospect Park West, between Carroll and President streets.

As they marched, the anti-Trump demonstrators waved signs saying “Resist Trump” and “Show Some Spine Schumer” — while also chanting things like “Stay strong, Chuck” and “Shut it down, shut it down, New York is an immigrant town.”

The group is ultimately up in arms over what they refer to as Schumer’s “centrist” beliefs and willingness to play ball with the president.

While Schumer did say Monday that he would oppose at least eight of Trump’s cabinet nominees, he has already voted “yes” on three of his picks: Gen. James Mattis for the Department of Defense, Gen. John Kelly for the Department of Homeland Security and Mike Pompeo for the CIA.

“He’s talking the talk on social media, but is he walking the walk?” said Cambra Moniz-Edwards, 35, of Brooklyn. “What the f–k, Chuck?!”

Phoebe Damrosch, 38, of Brooklyn, cited Schumer’s headline-grabbing tears during a recent news conference on Trump’s immigration ban as she voiced her concern Tuesday night.

“His tears know what’s right,” the mother of three said, while carrying a sign with a pack of Kleenex tissues attached that said: “It takes a real man to cry and lead.”

Dara Barr, a 40-year-old acupuncturist from the East Village, told The Post she felt it was time for Schumer to crack the whip on the Democratic caucus — so she brought a black leather whip from home to shake like a pom-pom.

“I’m trying to whip Chuck Schumer into shape so he can whip those ‘no’ votes,” Barr said.

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Breaking News! Rex Tillerson Confirmed

Run tell that! Democrats cower when the GOP makes them. Tillerson is confirmed.

WASHINGTON — Rex W. Tillerson, the former chairman and chief executive of Exxon Mobil, was confirmed by the Senate on Wednesday in a 56 to 43 vote to become the nation’s 69th secretary of state just as serious strains have emerged with important international allies.

The many votes against Mr. Tillerson’s confirmation made his selection among the most contentious for a secretary of state in recent history, and he takes his post just as many traditional American allies are questioning the policies of President Trump. In the past 50 years, the most contentious confirmations for secretary of state were those of Condoleezza Rice in 2005, who passed by a vote of 85 to 13, and Henry Kissinger in 1973, who was confirmed 78 to 7.

Mr. Trump is the most unapologetically nationalistic president of the modern era who has questioned the value of many of the alliances and multilateral institutions that the United States has nurtured since World War II to keep world order.

How Mr. Tillerson’s translates Mr. Trump’s vow of “America First” into the kind of polite diplomatic parlance that will maintain vital alliances will be a significant test.

Among his other challenges are dealing with Mr. Trump’s promises to recast relations with China and Russia, move the American Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv, and re-examine an international nuclear deal with Iran.

A Texan, Mr. Tillerson, 64, earned an engineering degree from the University of Texas at Austin, got a job at Exxon in 1975 and climbed his way to the top, leaving only last year. Neither a diplomat, soldier nor politician, he is an unconventional choice for the job, but has vast international experience.

With operations on six continents, Exxon Mobil is in some ways a state within a state. As its chief executive, Mr. Tillerson struck deals with repressive governments — in at least one case, against the advice of the State Department. Environmentalists largely opposed his nomination

But his views on international affairs are in many ways more conventional than those of Mr. Trump, which is why even Democratic-leaning foreign affairs experts said they welcomed his selection in hopes he would bring ballast to a turbulent administration.

“Rex Tillerson will have the most demanding and complex agenda to face a secretary of state in a very long time,” said R. Nicholas Burns, a Harvard professor and career foreign service officer.

Another crucial question will be how much influence Mr. Tillerson has on Mr. Trump. All cabinet secretaries must compete for power with White House aides who have long personal relationships with and frequent access to the president. But Mr. Trump’s reliance on a close circle of advisers to write and vet executive orders while keeping departments that must implement them largely in the dark is without precedent.

Mr. Trump invited Mr. Tillerson for a private lunch at the White House on Wednesday, the first time Mr. Tillerson has appeared on the president’s official schedule.

Mollifying vital allies infuriated by Mr. Trump’s orders could be a full-time job. A ban on refugee arrivals and entries from seven Muslim countries, for instance, has enraged Iraqi officials whose cooperation is vital in the fight against the Islamic State — a top administration priority. It has also infuriated many European leaders crucial to efforts not only in Syria, but Afghanistan and Libya as well, and it has tarnished what had been viewed as a successful trip by Prime Minister Theresa May of Britain, who on Monday said she opposed the ban.

Relations with Mexico have plunged to their lowest level in decades after Mr. Trump insisted he would build a border wall regardless of Mexican opposition, and his administration proposed slapping a 20 percent tariff on Mexican imports to pay for it. President Enrique Peña Nieto canceled a planned meeting, although the two spoke by phone.

The relationship with Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany, already tense from Mr. Trump’s repeated denunciations of the European Union for which she is a principal guardian, threatened to become toxic after Peter Navarro, the director of Mr. Trump’s new National Trade Council, denounced the relatively low value of the euro as an unfair currency advantage for Germany.

“Tillerson faces the most difficult task of any secretary of state in the postwar era in trying to reconcile President Trump’s intention to make a radical break from decades of bipartisan consensus U.S. foreign policy leadership with the reality that, if he succeeds, such a break could lead to global chaos,” said Ryan C. Crocker, who served as the United States ambassador to five Muslim countries.

Mr. Tillerson may also face difficult internal hurdles. Much of his department’s top leadership has departed — many because the Trump administration, like others before it, refused to keep political appointees. But the Trump transition team has been so short-handed and the pickings among Republican foreign policy veterans who had not criticized Mr. Trump so slim that dozens of positions are likely to remain empty for some time.

More worrisome, morale among the department’s rank-and-file career officers has plunged, with a dissent memo against the administration’s refugee and entry bans being submitted on Tuesday garnering more than 900 signatures, an extraordinary number.

Whether Mr. Tillerson meets these challenges with defiance or moderation will be a telling indication of his leadership.

Sean Spicer, the White House press secretary, said Monday that foreign service officers “can get with the program or they can go.”

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Texas Mayor is 1st Transgender Elected Official

Texas Mayor Becomes First Elected Official to Come Out as Transgender

AYFKM? You’re a dude, damit. Get over it.

Eight months after taking office, the mayor of a small Texas town has become the first transgender elected official to come out publicly in the state’s history.

“As your Mayor I must tell you about something that has been with me since my earliest memories, I am Transgender”  said Jess Herbst, the mayor of New Hope in Collin County.

She gave the message in an open letter posted on the town’s website.

Herbst, who has been documenting her transition on her personal blog JessHerbst.com., also talked about how her decision affected her family:

“It is gender identity not sexual preference that applies to me. I love my wife, and she loves me, we have no intention of change. My daughters have been adamant supporters of me and are proud to tell people their father is transgender.”

“I live my life as a female now, and I will be performing my duties to the town as such,” Herbst wrote.

She also welcomed the great strides made in the transgender community in recent years, pointing to the growing number of high-profile trans figures in sports and media.

With “celebrities like olympic gold medalist Caitlyn Jenner, Laverne Cox from the show ‘Orange is the new Black’ [sic] and popular shows like ‘Transparent’, society finally has a chance to see and learn about who we are” she wrote.

Contrary to most in the LGBTQ community, Herbst said she was not particularly sensitive to which pronouns people use when addressing her, and encouraged constituents to email her if they had any questions.

Herbst’s announcement comes as transgender rights have become the focus of an intense battle between state and federal lawmakers over so-called bathroom bills, including Texas’ Senate Bill 6.

According to the Texas Observer, Herbst criticized Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick on Facebook in January for pushing SB 6 as one of his priorities for 2017:

“Mr. Patrick: Let me get this straight, are you saying that right now, without your bill being passed, anyone can assault someone in the bathroom without breaking the law?” she wrote. “That [sic] some some kind of weird screwed-up loophole if so.”

While this is normally an elected position, Herbst, who was already serving as Mayor pro tem, was appointed by the town council last summer to replace the previous mayor Johnny Hamm after he died.

She is believed to be the first transgender official to have held public office in Texas, according to the Observer.

New Hope has 640 registered voters and is located in one of the Texas’ most conservative counties.

 

 

http://heatst.com/culture-wars/texas-mayor-becomes-first-elected-official-to-come-out-as-transgender/

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Chicago Gangs Want to Work With Trump To Fight Crime

 

CHICAGO (CBS) — The founder and pastor of a megachurch in Ohio told President Donald Trump he has spoken to gang leaders in Chicago who want to work with the White House to reduce violent crime.

Dr. Darrell Scott, senior pastor of New Revival Center in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, was a guest of Trump’s at an African-American History Month meeting at the White House. He said he is a “black Trump supporter,” and claimed he was “contacted by some of the top gang thugs in Chicago for a sit-down.”

Taking a swipe at former President Obama, who began his political career as a community organizer in Chicago, Scott said the gangs “want to work with the administration … they believe in this administration; they didn’t believe in the prior administration. They told me this outta their mouths.”

“They reached out to me, because they’re associating me with you. They respect you. They believe in what you’re doing, and they want to have a sit-down about lowering that body count. So in a couple weeks, I’m going into Chicago,” Scott said. “I said we’ve got to lower that body count. We don’t want to talk about anything else; get that body count down, and they agreed that the principals that can do it – these are guys straight from the streets, no politicians, straight street guys – but they’re going to commit that if they lower that body count, we’ll come in and we’ll do some social programs.”

Trump said, “I think that’s a great idea, because Chicago is totally out of control.”

“If they’re not going to solve the problem — and what you’re doing is the right thing — then we’re going to solve the problem for them, because we’re going to have to do something about Chicago, because what’s happening in Chicago should not be happening in this country,” Trump added.

Chicago had more than 760 murders in 2016, the highest number in 19 years. The first month of 2017 saw that trend continue, with 51 homicides in January, one more than January 2016.

Scott said the gang members who reached out to him want to work with Trump.

“They see hope with you,” he said.

Trump said, “I think that’s great.”

Last week, Trump threatened in a Tweet that he would “send in the feds” if Chicago couldn’t get a grip on its violent crime issues.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel said if Trump really wants to help Chicago address violent crime, he should stop talking about it, and actually provide federal resources — including increased federal prosecutions of gun crimes, more money for youth mentoring and jobs programs, and additional federal agents to assist Chicago police in fighting gangs and gun violence.

“Send more FBI, DEA, ATF agents. We don’t have to talk about it anymore. Just send them,” the mayor said Wednesday while meeting with young men taking part in the Becoming A Man mentoring program. “Invest in law enforcement with our Police Department. Every major city has to do more. Move more FBI, DEA, ATF. They do a great job. Use the ability to prosecute gun crimes at the federal level, and maximize that potential.”

The mayor said he has spoken repeatedly with the president, vice president, and the president’s chief of staff about getting more federal resources to address crime in Chicago — such as youth mentoring and summer jobs initiatives.

“In that sense, they are aware of what our requests are, and we will look forward to working with them on that,” he said. “Supporting our police officers, supporting our kids, investing in our neighborhoods and communities are key.”

Emanuel said he would like to see more federal funding for youth mentoring so the city can expand the BAM program from three years to five years. He said the program is currently open to young men in grades 8-10, and he wants it opened to students in 7th and 11th grades as well.

“I’m a father of three. It takes you 18 years, and sometimes longer, to be a role model, guidance; somebody that pushes, pulls, nurtures. These young men need all of that and more,” he said.

The mayor also said, while the city’s summer jobs program has expanded from 14,000 to 31,000 kids in recent years, federal support for the program has been reduced.

“Give these kids a summer job. Help give them not only a paycheck, but a résumé that goes with it, so the next time they apply for a job they can prove that they actually had. You know how hard it is yourselves, that first job,” he said.

Emanuel said he does not know why Trump seems so fixated on Chicago violence.

“He’s an investor in Chicago, so obviously he believes in it,” he said.

The mayor called Chicago a “fabulous city” and pointed to recent accomplishments like Major League Soccer choosing Soldier Field to host its 2017 All-Star Game, and Peoria-based Caterpillar choosing Chicago for its new global headquarters. Emanuel said the federal government needs to invest more in economic development in Chicago, and to in programs that will help its youth take advantage of that progress.

“We will never be the city we can be unless also these young men not only believe in themselves, but all that potential investment – that is happening, that does make Chicago a great city – that they also can participate,” he said.

Scott’s comments about violence in Chicago prompted an angry response from community activist Jedidiah Brown, who has taken part in anti-Trump protests, but also has been a frequent critic of the Chicago Police Department and the Emanuel administration. In a series of Tweets on Wednesday, he accused Scott of exaggerating his claims about speaking to top gang members in Chicago.

Brown said the people Scott spoke to are “no longer in streets” and don’t have any control over gangs that would allow them to decrease violent crime in Chicago.

 http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2017/02/01/donald-trump-ohio-pastor-chicago-gangs-violent-crime/

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Choir Teacher Arrested for Doing Cartwheels Without Panties

How graceful

Cartwheeling choir teacher arrested for indecent exposure…

Yeah, I bet they wanted a look at that nasty crotch.

 

PAWHUSKA, Okla. (KTUL) — Pawhuska police say a substitute teacher has been arrested after she allegedly exposed herself to students.

Lacey Sponslor, 34, was subbing a junior high choir class when she allegedly did a cartwheel, according to police. She was reportedly not wearing undergarments and exposed herself to the class.

One of the students recorded the act on a cell phone, according to police. Another student told police Sponslor had been talking about doing drugs and mentioned she was not wearing underwear, according to police documents.

Sponslor reportedly told police she was “just dancing” with the students, according to the documents.

http://www.news9.com/story/34399056/cartwheeling-choir-teacher-arrested-for-indecent-exposure

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Trump Tells McConnell to Go Nuclear if Dems Fight Gorsuch Nomination

Trump: I will tell McConnell to ‘go nuclear’ if Democrats hold up Gorsuch nomination

McConnell is too much of a pussy to go nuclear, but Trump put him on the spot

 

President Donald Trump said Wednesday he will urge Senate Republicans to scrap filibuster rules, or take the “nuclear option,” if Democrats in the increasingly tense chamber use them to block his nomination of Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court.

After Trump nominated the 49-year-old conservative appellate judge to the top U.S. court Tuesday night, Democrats signaled they could delay the process. If they filibuster, Republicans, who have 52 Senate seats, would need 60 votes to confirm him unless they change the rule on the maneuver.

Trump told reporters at the White House he would encourage Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., to take that route, which would require only a simple majority.

“Yes, if we end up with the same gridlock that they’ve had in Washington, … if we end up with that gridlock, I’d say, ‘If you can, Mitch, go nuclear.’ Because that would be an absolute shame if a man of this quality was caught up in this web.”

Trump’s choice sets up a second straight year of bitter partisanship over the court seat, which was left vacant by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia nearly a year ago. Then-President Barack Obama nominated Washington appellate Judge Merrick Garland for the spot, but the Republican-controlled Senate never held a vote on him.

At his age, Gorsuch could help to tip the ideological balance of the court for decades. Democrats, already combative about the seat because of Garland, criticized Trump’s pick due to Gorsuch’s rulings such issues as gun rights and religious objections to a birth control coverage provision in the Affordable Care Act.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Tuesday night the Senate “must insist upon 60 votes for any Supreme Court nominee.” He repeated that on the Senate floor Wednesday.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., among other Democrats, pledged to oppose Gorsuch’s nomination.

McConnell has not explicitly endorsed scrapping the filibuster rule, but has urged Democrats to hear Gorsuch out fairly.

The 60 vote rules applies to Supreme Court justices. Other federal judges only need a majority in the 100-seat Senate.

Trump on Wednesday called Gorsuch an “exceptionally qualified person” and said he wants him to go through an “elegant process.”

“I really think he’s a very dignified man and I’d like to see him go through a dignified process,” he said.

Gorsuch is an appeals judge for the 10th Circuit in Colorado. He was nominated to the role in 2006 by then-President George W. Bush and was confirmed by voice vote.

Partisan tensions in the Senate have ramped up in the early days of Trump’s administration. Senate Democrats boycotted the Finance Committee vote on Trump’s nominees to lead the Treasury and Health and Human Services departments, and Republicans advanced them Wednesday without the other party present.

http://www.cnbc.com/2017/02/01/trump-i-will-tell-mcconnell-to-go-nuclear-if-democrats-hold-up-gorsuch-nomination.html