Headlines

Cuomo escalates safety mandates, orders all ‘non-essential’New Yorkers to stay home

Coronavirus live update: Unprecedented stop in economic activity, Americans worry about looming bills

UK SHUT ...

Spring breakers party on beaches, despite social distancing

Indiana becomes seventh state postpone presidential primary

Junk bond default rate to triple within 12 months S&P says

Fed begins pumping municipal bonds ...

‘Stunning’ correlation: Coronavirus not spreading in malaria countries

U.S.-Mexico to partially close border

IRS extends tax filing deadline until July 15th as coronavirs spreads, Mnuchin says

Delta, United sending largest planes to desert for storage ...

Lobby insists abortions must continue during coronavirus crisis

Headlines

McConnell prepares to move forward on impeachment trial rules without Democrats

Mortgage rates fall further, as buyers rush into first open houses of 2020

Tesla: most valuable car company in America ever ...

State Department urges Americans abroad to ‘keep a low profile’

Pompeo says U.S. will abide by laws of war after Trump suggests targeting Iranian cultural sites

US trade deficit falls more than expected to hit lowest level since Trump took office

IRS personal income-tax audits drop to lowest level in decades ...

Nancy Pelosi to introduce Executive Surrender resolution in House

Grassley: Impeachment could delay USMCA by a month

GM warns of ongoing challenges in China as stock falls 15% in 2019

Super Pump: Repo panic returns as Fed injects $99 billion ...

Chelsea Clinton rakes in $9 million as corporate board director

Tax Returns

I am a little baffled about the kerfuffle over Trump’s tax returns ... both federal and New York state. It would seem to me that both the state and federal tax authorities have total access to these returns and, if there are any issues of fraud or concealment, that these issues are to be adjudicated between the experts in the relevant tax authorities and Trump’s tax experts. Since New York is clearly not friendly to Trump and the IRS under Obama displayed overt hostility toward Republicans, one would think that any possible malfeasance in these returns has been well inspected.

And, since any tax issues have been well scrutinized by the experts on both sides, what makes the spittle-flecked Democrats believe that non-tax experts in the general public will any be better equipped to deal with the nuances of such tax disputes. The only rationale for airing these very complex tax returns in public would seem to be to try to find some extra-legal info that can be used to embarrass Trump politically. And this seems to be exactly the reason why tax returns have been decreed to be kept private.

Tax law issues in Trump’s returns are best resolved between the attorneys on both sides ... or in the relevant tax courts ... not on the hostile editorial pages of the Washington Post.

Tax Cuts

There is a lot of misunderstanding regarding Trump’s 2018 tax cuts. Polls say that only 17% of Americans believe that they got a tax cut whereas our IRS says that the actual number is 66%. My own daughter was doubtful that she got a cut because her refund wasn’t as large as before ... forgetting the fact that her tax withholdings throughout the year were smaller. When we went through the numbers together she was surprised at the size of her tax savings.

The media and demagogic Dems have played up the fact that it was corporations and the rich that got the majority of these benefits. Yes, corporations generally did benefit ... which is why the afterburners are on in our economy and the stock market is way up ... benefiting many retirement accounts. But, it is not true that, in general, the wealthy made out like bandits.

Let me explain. The new tax law had two zingers for many plutocrats — mortgage interest payment deductions were capped on loans of $750,000 AND real estate, state and local taxes were limited to a total of $10,000 if itemized. This latter construction meant that high-income people in high-tax states like New York, New Jersey, California, Connecticut, etc. really were punished in the itemized deductions column ... which generally meant that they ended up in that 34% of individuals who payed higher taxes.

Yes, the super-wealthy who could hire tax attorneys may have stopped some of this bleeding but, in general, it was the blue-state six-figure-income earners with big mortgages who payed more, and in many cases, much more income taxes last year.

QED.

Headlines

IRS could be forced to release Trump’s taxes in the heat of 2020

Theresa May announces her resignation as UK prime minister amid Brexit crisis

Trump moves to escalate investigation into intel agencies ...

Senate moves bill forward to urge sanctioning China for Muslim camps

Weld lays out GOP primary map for defeating Trump

Mortgage rates fall sharply on China trade tensions

Pelosi: ‘Villinous’ Trump wants us to impeach ...

Nadler: Mueller ‘wants to testify in private’

Trump: Huawei could be part of a trade deal

China denounce US ‘rumors and lies’ about Huawei’s ties to Beijing

Mayor Pete surges ... Swipes at Biden ...

Trump signs order clamping down on welfare-dependent legal immigration

Headlines

How Mayor Pete started to look presidential

House Democrats give the IRS until April 23 to hand over Trump’s tax returns

Capitol custodial staff report sexual harassment from lawmakers ...

Ilhan Omar is a game changer for Democrats — and not in a good way

Trump, Kim tease third North Korean summit

The trucking industry is desperate for drivers — autonomous vehicles can help

‘No religion’ now as popular as Catholicism

Chicago mayor-elect Lori Lightfoot says she will welcome illegals

Italy warns against foreign military intervention in Libya

Jeff Bezos warns Amazon will have ‘multibillion dollar failures’

5.2 mag quake shakes Hawaii ...

Migrants break border gate, force their way into Mexico

Headlines

Trump befuddles his allies with ambitious legislative agenda

China makes unprecedented proposals on tech transfers as trade talks progress, US officials

Wild [Trump] rally set for Michigan ... MSNBC ratings slump ...

Jussie Smollett’s ‘community service’: 18 hours with Jesse Jackson

Mueller swiftly closes up shop

Attention Wall Street: Democrats are seeking higher taxes on capital gains

Pelosi: Won’t accept Attorney General’s ‘interpretation’ ...

Orange County ends jail contract with ICE

Trump’s Fed pick owes more than $75,000 in taxes, IRS says

Trump met with Google CEO Sundar Pichai to discuss ‘political fairness’ and China

Trump confirms FBI, DOJ will probe [Smollett] case ...

Poll: Americans evenly split on nuclear power, despite safety record

Headlines

Sanders has early lead over Warren in battle of the left

Morgan Stanley: China’s debt is set to worsen, but there’s less risk from shadow banking

Iran starts Gulf war games; Tests sub-launched missiles ...

Warren: My ‘Ultram-Millionaires Tax’ is down payment on Green New Deal

Trump stays silent on media-hating Coast Guard officer

Venezuela’s Maduro closes border with Brazil, says Columbia crossings could be next

200 ‘peacekeeping’ US troops to stay in Syria after pillout ...

Maxine Waters on Smollett: ‘I would be disappointed’ if it is a hoax

IRS analyst charged with leaking Cohen’s financial data to Avenati

China’s stimulus seems to be ‘finally kicking in’ as new loans hit record high, experts say

India orders ‘staggering’ evictions of indigenous people ...

Global warming: Snow in Los Angeles

Headlines

Supreme Court to take on partisan gerrymandering this year

Moscow says FBI detained a Russian the day after it arrested ex-US Marine

Flu widespread in 24 states; Pediatric deaths rise ...

Arrest made after man stabbed to death on London train

House Dems eye $12B in aid for states hit by natural disasters

Government shutdown means tax refund delays and no IRS customer service

Airports see rise in security screeners calling off work ...

Women's March cancellations grow; California group cites gender issues

Ocasio-Cortez floats 70 percent tax on the super wealthy to pay for Green New Deal

Tuna sells for record $3 million at Tokyo's new fish marker

Democrats look to kill Electoral College ... Make D.C. 51st state ...

Judge sets date for Rachael Dolezal welfare fraud case

Headlines

All from Internet news sites. Guess which from Politico?

Trump prepares to wound Iran deal -- then save it

Sheriff: Las Vegas shooter Paddock may have been 'RADICALIZED'

Catalonia to split from Spain within days ...

Michelle Obama: 'People don't trust politics' because GOP is 'all white, all men'

IRS awards multi-million fraud-prevention deal to Equifax

DHS backtracks claim Trump supports pat to citizenship for illegal immigrants

French Parliament approves sweeping new antiterrorism law ...

President Trump stands up for people with Down Syndrome, no excuse to 'discard human life'

Trump seeking $29 billion more in disaster assistance

Only three Democrats voted for the 20-week abortion ban

Bruce Springsteen: I won't write anti-Trump songs ...

Tech companies freak over Trump Admin plan to tax foreign profits

Headlines

All from Internet news sites. Guess which from Politico?

Scaramucci cranks up the pressure on Priebus

IRS continues to hire employees with performance problems

Plane sized asteroid buzzes Earth undetected ...

Erdogan: Universities need to stop Muslim 'brain drain to West'

Joint Chiefs: 'No change' to transgender policy

Pakistani village orders teen raped for her brother's crime

Texas GDP soars 3.9%: California flatlines at 0.1%

Amazon Bezos world's richest man

Graham: Firing Mueller would be the 'beginning of the end' of Trump's presidency

Newt Gingrich tells Scaramucci to slow down and learn the business

OJ sends cease and desist to Goldmans ... says threatening him ...

The 'Trump option': Basic health care for all, private insurance for everything else

Headlines

The following headlines have all been found on Internet news sites. Guess which ones came from Politico?

Democrats turn on DHS chief [Kelly]

ICE agents round up 113 criminal aliens in New Jersey sweep

In 'crisis' mode, Qatar hires Bush Attorney General to lead lobbying effort

Pressure on May to step aside ...

Top OMB nominee 'burned' at stake for his Christian faith

Romney reveals that Clinton nudged him to consider Trump's Secretary of State overture

Professor equates white marble statues with white supremacy

Biden's niece pleads guilty to stealing $100,000

Many Puerto Ricans crave statehood, but the timing could not be worse

Congressman: Trump fired Comey, now IRS Commissioner Koskinen needs to be removed

Conservatives near revolt on Senate healthcare reform

Iran finalizes deal to buy 60 Boeing planes ...

Headlines

These headlines are real ... they have all been discovered on Internet news sites. 

Guess which ones came from Politico?

Former Bush AG: Trump right, there was surveillance ...

Rob Reiner: Trump is 'mentally unstable'

Liberals to Senate Democrats: Step up the Gorsuch fight

Comey turns on Trump

[NYT's] Kristol urges IRS agents to leak Trump's tax returns

Chicago goes 6 days without homicide for first time since 2012 ...

NYC Mayor DeBlasio hiding 500,000 illegals, vows to resist immigration laws

NYC dumps Kellogg's cereals because of health concerns

White House wants it both ways on revised travel ban

Norway: Immigration Minister slammed for wearing crucifix in 'vile attack'

Canadian border patrol struggling with wave fleeing USA

FL judge orders Trump immigration order unconstitutional

Headlines

These headlines are real ... they have all been discovered on Internet news sites.

Trump imposes new Iran sanctions over missile tests ...

Terror at the Louvre 'Allahu-Akbar'

Gun saves tourists from terrorist at Louvre Museum in Paris

IRS moves to revoke passports for unpaid taxes ...

Ohio State course suggests that Muslims help build America

Trump gears up to dismantle Dodd-Frank

The White House knows who the rioters at conservative events are

Over 12,000 tweets calling for [Trump's] assassination ...

Liberals worry about Ruth Bader Ginsburg health ...

Disney CEO refuses to attend White House Business Exec. Forum

Black Caucus chafes at Latino who wants to join

Leftist activist tries to protest O'Keefe, shows porn to a reporter instead

Headlines

These headlines are real ... they have all been discovered on Internet news sites.

[Trump] Team prepares dramatic cuts, ax to government spending ...

Bust: Massive [Pittsburgh] mall sold for $100 at foreclosure auction

Air Force launching missile-launch warning satellite ...

Puerto Rican terrorist freed by Obama placed 130 bombs across U.S.

California 'accidentially' releases information on 3,500 firearms instructors

CNN: If Trump were killed during inauguration, Obama appointee would be president

Trump asks key Obama counter-terrorism officials to stay on

Trump to immediately sign as many as 200 executive orders

Senate Dems will allow only two Trump nominees to be confirmed by day one

Ash Carter: I don't support commuting Chelsea Manning's sentence

Mnuchin slams Obama's economy: 'The unemployment rate is not real'

Mnuchin wants to INCREASE the size of the IRS ...

Headlines

These headlines are real ... they have all been discovered on Internet news sites.

GrubHub CEO tells pro-Trump employees to resign ...

IRS sued for Clinton Foundation docs

Giuliani: 'Bunch of spoiled crybabies' protesting DJT

Lady Gaga pushes petition demanding Electoral College vote for Clinton

CNN broadcasts protester's call for death and violence

Trudeau ready to renegotiate NAFTA ... Mexico too ...

Trump could walk away from decades of 'climate deals' ...

Socialist Seattle Councilwoman calls for Inauguration protest

TPP R.I.P. ...

Assange still without Internet ...

Oregonians submit ballot proposal to secede from Union ...

Slate: Women 'sold out the Sisterhood' by voting for Trump

Pardon Me?

Trump's best line at the Catholic charities event a few weeks back was the one about Hellary bumping into him and saying, "Pardon me?" Now, she has lost the election and he is soon to be confronted with this choice. It is clear to most Americans that this woman is guilty of many serious transgressions. The aura of years of malfeasance hangs over her like that cloud of dust around Pigpen. She has skated through life ignoring all the ethical and legal boundaries and never really been punished for it ... except of course by losing two attempts at the presidency. But she has also been richly rewarded financially for her arrogant flaunting of our laws.

But is her punishment enough that she has been twice denied the big POTUS prize? This is the decision that Trump will have to make ... unless of course Obummer makes it for him ... which I consider quite unlikely ... due to his obsession with his legacy. Like always, Obummer prefers to let others do the dirty work. But even if this happens, I believe that the Clinton Foundation and its bevy of capos should be prosecuted with the full might of Trump's Justice Department and his IRS.

The question then presents itself ... what if Obummer doesn't let Hellary off the hook? My answer is simple. If Trump pardons her, then he will be sending a clarion message to his voters that he is (re)joining the Establishment ... the very people he opposed in this past election. As THE agent of change, showing mercy to this evil, evil woman  would be the Christan thing to do, but not the right thing to do. This past election was not just the Globalists versus the Nationalists ... it was also the Establishment against the crockery breakers, the Populists. Thus, a presidential pardon would also send too clear a message to future politicians that laws are for little people ...and Republican campaign promises are also will o' the wisp.

Headlines

These headlines are real ... they have all been discovered on Internet news sites.

Wikileaks bombshell: John Podesta owned 75,000 shares of Putin-controlled energy company

Pence to overflow VA crowd: 'This is a movement'

Fed's collect record $3.27 trillion in taxes ... deficit jumps 34% ...

Witness refutes Trump [sexual] assault claim ...

Jill Stein: Hillary could start nuclear war ...

CIA plans Cyberstrike on Russia

Clinton Foundation internal audit: 'We may have misled IRS'

Jake Tapper says [Donna Brazille's] leak to Clinton campaign 'very, very troubling'

'Global warming' activists disappointed Hurricane Matthew wasn't worse ...

Geert Wilders to face trial on charges of inciting racial hatred

Cable race: Maddow tops Megyn ...

Obama to lift ban on importing Cuban cigars, rum, drugs

Money Laundering

The following article is a very thorough and interesting case study in money laundering by David Brock and his network of "non-profits" and Democrat political-action organizations including Media Matters ... see: Zero Hedge Article for some revealing reportage. Actually these barely concealed  fiscal shenanigans seem to be more a money skimming operation than a money laundering one. It would seem that Brock, who once was a liberal Democrat, then a purported Republican before changing back his allegiance in 1997 under suspicious Clintonian circumstances, was a little fast and loose in setting up this scam ... as such operations usually have many more layers of camouflage.

It seems likely the this amateurish attempt to copy the Clinton crime family's Foundation complex was meant primarily to reward Mary Pat Bonner, President of the Bonner Group, the documented  money skimmer. Ms. Bonner jointly rented a summer house in the Hamptons with Mr. Brock and is assumed to be either his girlfriend or, more likely, his beard. Why the IRS has not investigated this obvious money skimming (or laundering) is beyond me? It is blatantly obvious in the included imaged documents. Perhaps the IRS was too busy thwarting all those Tea Party groups from getting a tax exempt status?

It is not clear if and how Ms. Bonner rewarded Mr. Brock for all this easy money (which would make it money laundering.) That would be "the rest of the story."

Headlines

These headlines are real ... they have all been discovered on Internet news sites.

BOOM: French villa valued at $330 million

POPE: Transgenderism 'annihilation' of mankind ...

Iowa parade [float] showcases [Hillary] Clinton in prison

Chart: NY Times [nonfiction] bestseller list all anti-Clinton books

PANIC: Khizr Khan deletes law firm website that specializes with Muslim immgration

N[ew] Z[ealand] coldest in a century

Federal judge: IRS still targeting Tea Party with classic 'Catch 22'

98% of head lice now resistant to treatment

Mexico calls for greater integration with USA

Obama sent $400 million cash to Iran as Amerucan prisoners freed

6 foot gator caught -- in MA

Iran displays ransom cash ... 'expensive price' to free hostages