by | Jan 30, 2024 | Aggregate
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland is set to undergo back surgery this coming weekend, prompting a temporary transfer of his official responsibilities to Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco, the Justice Department confirmed on Monday.
Garland, 71, is scheduled for a “minimally invasive” medical procedure called interlaminar decompression, which is intended to alleviate stenosis in his spine. The surgery aims to alleviate persistent lower back pain from which the Attorney General has been suffering.
According to the National Health Service (NHS), interlaminar decompression is a surgical procedure used to treat spinal conditions, most commonly spinal stenosis, which is a narrowing of the spaces in the spine that can cause pressure on the spinal cord and nerves.
After surgery, the patient will be encouraged to walk and move around, and it’s likely the patient will be discharged 1 to 4 days afterward. It will take about 4 to 6 weeks to reach the expected level of mobility and function.
According to the Justice Department’s Public Affairs Director Xochitl Hinojosa, Garland will be under general anesthesia for approximately 90 minutes. During this time, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco will assume Garland’s official responsibilities.
“The delegation of his duties will go to the Deputy Attorney General shortly before the procedure, during the procedure, and for a brief period following the procedure to allow for recovery from general anesthesia,” Hinojosa said in a statement per NBC News.
“The Attorney General is expected to return home on the same day of the procedure and resume work the week of February 5th,” Hinojosa added.
More details on the Attorney General’s condition and the outcome of the surgery will likely be made available following the procedure. The Justice Department has not indicated there will be any further disruption to Garland’s duties beyond the short recovery period.
This temporary change of guard comes at a time when Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is also under scrutiny for failing to promptly disclose his hospitalization due to complications from prostate cancer treatment.
It can be recalled that Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, 70, secretly had prostate cancer surgery on December 22. He was placed under general anesthesia for the operation after being gravely ill with a spreading infection and intestinal issues requiring a tube to drain his stomach.
Then, on January 1, he was admitted to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Maryland following the complications from the surgery.
The Pentagon said that Austin did not inform Joe Biden, the White House, or Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks about the medical procedure.
Austin kept just about everyone in the dark about his condition until early January, including Joe Biden, even though the U.S. is involved in conflicts in the Middle East and Europe and a hot zone in the South China Sea.
Austin’s chief of staff, Kelly Magsamen, had previously ordered an in-house investigation of the mishandling of Austin’s absence. Magsamen has been blamed in press reports for failing to notify the White House, Congress, and senior DoD staff of Austin’s illness and absence because she was ill with the flu.
The post U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland to Temporarily Hand Over Power While Undergoing Back Surgery appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
by | Jan 30, 2024 | Aggregate
Wow! Talk about a Charley Foxtrot (aka Cluster F*ck). CENTCOM (i.e., U.S. Central Command put out a press release about the Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) attack on its base located on the northern border of Jordan known as Tower 22. Why is it a Charley Foxtrot? Because it is now clear that Jordan did not want this base identified and is loathe to admit that it has U.S. troops in its territory.
The Kingdom of Jordan wasted no time in denying that this took place inside Jordan:
Jordanian Minister of Government Communications Muhannad Mubaidin said Sunday that the attack targeting U.S. forces near the Syrian border did not occur inside Jordan.
Mubaidin told the state-run Al Mamlaka TV that the attack targeted the al-Tanf base in southeastern Syria.
I do not know what the nature of the basing agreement between Jordan and the United States. Normally, a host country would stipulate that the U.S. could (or could not) acknowledge military operations or activities. In this case it looks like CENTCOM issued the statement about the attack without consulting with the Government of Jordan. This could mean that going forward, the Jordanians may ask the United States to shut down its operations and move everything across the border into Syria. I imagine my former colleagues at the State Department are scrambling to try to un-ruffle Jordan’s feathers. At a time when the U.S. is desperate to keep its allies in the region on board with U.S. policy, this is a major black eye for U.S./Jordanian relations.
The Pentagon is being very stingy with details surrounding the attack. This was not a small drone. This is the kind of damage and casualty count you would get from something like a Hellfire missile. I’m not saying that was what was used. But the UAS was large and carried a powerful warhead of some kind.
The other oddity is that U.S. military sources are claiming that the U.S. forces that it was a “friendly” aircraft, which is supposed to explain why no air defense was activated. Here is the latest excuse:
American air defenses failed to intercept an attack drone that killed three U.S. troops and wounded dozens in Jordan because the incoming aircraft was mistaken for a friendly drone returning to the base, officials said Monday. . . .
The weaponized drone struck the soldiers’ living quarters, described as containerized housing, at a facility known as Tower 22 in northeastern Jordan, where its border converges with Syria and Iraq. Sabrina Singh, a Pentagon spokeswoman, said the attack occurred early Sunday as personnel at the base were still in bed asleep.
The Pentagon has revised the number of personnel injured in the attack, from 34 to more than 40, Singh said. Another official, who like some others spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe the military’s ongoing assessment of the incident, said 47 troops were wounded as a result of the incident.
Fifty total casualties? Holy smoke. I think the only drone in the U.S. arsenal packing that kind of punch is the MQ Predator B:
The MQ-9 carries a variety of weapons including the GBU-12 Paveway II laser-guided bomb, the AGM-114 Hellfire II air-to-ground missiles, the AIM-9 Sidewinder,[13] and the GBU-38 Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM).
So what was it? Has Iran or some other country or group got its hands on a system comparable to the MQ 9 drone? Or was this a ballistic missile that the air defense failed to engage? The current story about the tyrpe of weapon used is not the truth. What is certain is that whatever air defense system in place on that base failed.
I discussed some of the latest developments in Ukraine and the attack on Tower 22 with the Judge this morning:
The post The Attack Was In Jordan, But Jordan Plays Dumb appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
by | Jan 30, 2024 | Aggregate
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-NY, is urging the Democrat Party leadership to “do more” to promote “vision” for the country,” like “codifying abortion” and “reproductive rights to prevent Trump from regaining the presidency.
NBC’s Kristen Welker pressed Cortez on why Joe Biden is “struggling against” Donald Trump” in the 2024 presidential race as the former president battles four indictments while getting “slapped with an $83 million civil suit.”
The progressive “squad member” firebrand evaded the question, arguing Nikki Haley’s losing performance in New Hampshire is indicative of Trump’s weak candidacy.
“We can take a look at the overall landscape here. It’s not just what we are talking about with President Biden, uh, but former President Trump also has extraordinary vulnerabilities,” she said. “We saw that in the fact that he is a former sitting president, virtually head of his party, virtually everyone has dropped out and endorsed him, and still, as we just saw, Nikki Haley — she cleared about 43 percent in New Hampshire bodes very not well for Donald Trump and his ability to win a general election.”
“When it comes to President Biden, you know, I think we need to really focus and understand young people are a very strong part of this electorate. We have a diverse coalition in the Democratic Party that has its own concerns. Whether it is what’s happening in Gaza, or any other of issues. But right now, I think November is going to be about the coalition we put together and the policy promise we can make between now and then.”
Welker pressed Cortez again on whether Biden is equipped to defeat Trump.
“Do you think President Biden is the strongest person to take on former President Trump given everything you’ve just said,” Welker asked the congresswoman.
Cortez downplayed Trump’s win in New Hampshire and evaded the question regarding Biden’s dwindling support a second time, noting Biden garnered more votes in the 2020 race than Obama.
“I think what we have right now, what we’ve seen in New Hampshire, he is virtually the nominee of the party. His turnout in New Hampshire is actually not something to ignore. We saw from a write-in campaign –remember President Biden wasn’t even on the ballot in New Hampshire. He won overwhelmingly with turnout that even exceeded Obama’s 2012 turnout, when Obama was on the ballot. And so there are quite a few indicators of his strength in New Hampshire. We will see what happens in South Carolina and of course when we get into important primaries like Michigan.”
After Cortez sidestepped the question and changed the subject, Kersten pressed Cortez a third time on the prospects of Biden defeating Trump.
“Just to be clear though,” Welker asked, “Do you think the president is the strongest person to take on Mr. Trump, if he is the nominee, and that’s still an if?”
“Uh, yes,” Cortez said. “Especially when we look at this field. We have Dean Phillips and Marriam Williamson, President Biden I think without questions among that field is the strongest nominee.”
Cortez ceded Biden is dissuading voters as his administration fails to tout his plans for the future, like “codifying reproductive rights” and forgiving student debt if Democrats win the House and Senate, Cortez ceded.
“It’s not just enough for Democrats to talk about what they are running against. You want the president to be talking about what he is running for,” she said. “I think we can certainly do more to be advancing our vision. And I believe we have a strong vision that we can run on. For what it’s worth, the president has said, if you give me the House, and if you give me the Senate and reelect me to the presidency, we will codify abortion rights and the rights to choose in this country. We will codify reproductive rights.
“We can do more,” she continued. “we need to be talking about healthcare. Of course, me as a progressive, I want to see the age of Medicare drop. Whether it’s to 50, as the president has discussed earlier or to zero. This is my preference, to extend Medicare to all people in the United States of America. But I believe we could be doing more. We can talk even more about the fact that public colleges and universities should be tuition-free or reduced. The president has advanced student loan forgiveness just this month for people who have taken out safe loans, under $12,000. They will see their loans wiped out. But I do believe, advancing that affirmative vision is going to be very, very important.”
Cortez said she is “committed” to ensuring those movements “are not stamped out with a Trump presidency.”
“I think my role is in allegiance to people’s movements across this country: in the labor movement that had extraordinary gains last year, whether it was the Teamsters, whether it was UAW’s historic contract, whether it is the bubbling labor fights that we are seeing across the country,” Ocasio-Cortez said.
WATCH:
Cortez has accused the Biden administration of backing war crimes by backing Israel’s military operation in Gaza, calling Israel’s military action “genocide.”
Welker asked Cortez whether Bideni is supporting a genocide, “or does that go too far?”
“I think what we are seeing right now throughout the country is that young people are appalled at the violence and the indiscriminate loss of life,” Cortez said, sidestepping a direct question again.
The New York Democrat instead cited the recent decision by the United Nations’ International Court of Justice that Israel has a responsibility to prevent genocide.
“They are still determining whether it’s a genocide. Do you think that term is responsible given it’s still under investigation?” Welker doubled down, noting that President Biden has been dubbed “Genocide Joe” by some pro-Palestinian activists.
“I believe that they are. They’re still determining it. But in the interim ruling, the fact that they said there’s a responsibility to prevent it, the fact that this word is even in play, the fact that this word is even in our discourse, I think, demonstrates the mass inhumanity that Gazans are facing,” Cortez said. “I don’t think that it [using the word] is something to completely toss someone out of our public discourse for using.
The post AOC Urges Biden, Democrats To Talk More About ‘Codifying Abortion’ And ‘Reproductive Rights’ To Defeat Trump appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
by | Jan 30, 2024 | Aggregate
Jair and Carlos Bolsonaro. Photo by Alan Santos/Brazilian Presidency
By Fernando de Castro in Brazil
Carlos Bolsonaro, a Rio de Janeiro city councilman and son of former conservative Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, became the target of a search and seizure operation conducted by the Federal Police on Monday, January 29. Law enforcement agents carried out the operation at both his residence and parliamentary office.
The action was authorized by Supreme Federal Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, a jurist known to be at odds with supporters of former President Bolsonaro and recognized for his staunch criticism of right-wing ideologies.
The Federal Police, now under the leadership of the government headed by the communist Lula da Silva, faces accusations of targeting conservative opposition figures in Brazil. Just a few days ago, two conservative deputies from Jair Bolsonaro’s party were also subjects of police operations.
An ongoing investigation is probing alleged illegal surveillance of authorities by the Brazilian Intelligence Agency during Bolsonaro’s presidency.
The latest Federal Police operation occurred a day after a “Super Live” event featuring Jair Bolsonaro and his sons. The live stream garnered up to 400,000 simultaneous viewers.
During the broadcast, Jair Bolsonaro introduced a new political training course and provided strategies for conservative voters to select candidates in the 2024 local elections in Brazil.
The individuals under investigation may face charges of unauthorized access to someone else’s computer system, involvement in a criminal organization, and interception of telecommunications, computer, or telematic communications without judicial authorization or for purposes not permitted by law.
Conservatives accuse the Supreme Federal Court of engaging in a “fishing expedition”, a practice prohibited in Brazil.
Jair Bolsonaro criticized the operation, dubbing the Federal Police as the “Gestapo.” At the time of the operation, he was fishing with his sons and returned home around 11 a.m., where they were met by federal agents.
The post BRAZILIAN POLITICAL STORM: Bolsonaro’s Son Targeted in Federal Police Raid – Two Bolsonaro Deputies Also Targeted — Just Like the Democrat Party Here at Home! appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
by | Jan 30, 2024 | Aggregate
In a controversial and heart-wrenching case, Montana’s Child Protective Services has been accused of forcibly transporting a 14-year-old girl from her family in Montana to Wyoming for gender transition treatment, leading to a complete revocation of her parents’ custody.
The family’s media representative, Mattie Watkins, has disclosed a distressing account to The Gateway Pundit involving the Kolstad family of Montana.
Todd and Krista Kolstad have been embroiled in a legal and emotional struggle for their 14-year-old daughter after Montana CPS took drastic action that is tantamount to “kidnapping.”
In April 2023, the Montana legislature passed State Bill 99, which banned the medical transitioning of minors. However, a series of events unfolded in August that significantly impacted the Kolstad family.
Their daughter was transported to Wyoming, a state with different laws regarding the medical transition of minors, by the Montana CPS for treatment of her sudden onset “gender dysphoria,” despite the parents’ express disapproval.
In August 2023, police informed the Kolstads of a text message from their daughter claiming she was suicidal. They were notified by police that their daughter had allegedly ingested drain cleaner and taken an overdose of ibuprofen.
Todd Kolstad, a US Air Force veteran, said in a video, “Our 14-year-old daughter has struggled for quite some time in school from bullying. We have had many meetings over the years with the school systems trying to address these issues.”
“We even moved from Flathead County in west Montana to a much smaller town in Valley County in east Montana, hoping that this will give our daughter a fresh start in a new school system and new environment. On August 18, 2023, we received a call from our local city police. We were informed that our 14-year-old daughter was texting a friend that she had met at a school track meet, saying she wanted to kill herself.
“It should be noted our daughter had only met this child once face to face several months prior and had only phone conversations with her ever since. We took this threat seriously and spoke to our daughter. However, we knew she was struggling with anxiety since school was about to start on Monday. She was also very angry with us because we told her she needed to put her two-week notice in at her summer job so she could focus on starting the 9th grade, Todd said.
The hospital found no evidence of drain cleaner and ibuprofen, which was later confirmed by a negative toxicology report. Despite this, the girl, who now wished to be called “Leo” and use male pronouns, was admitted for observation, during which the staff ignored the Kolstads’ objections based on their faith and values.
Source: Reduxx.info
Krista said in a video, “The hospital continued to call our daughter Leo, even though she’s a minor, and after I stated it’s against our wishes, our religion, and our core family values, the hospital told me to call their lawyer if I have an issue, as they will do what the patient tells them.”
“I said to them, according to State Bill 99, they may not under the law provide transgender care nor transition our child. Their response was, they are not providing surgery or hormones, so they’re operating in the gray area of the law. I further explained that my understanding of the law was a minor is a minor, and there’s no difference between a four-year-old and a 14-year-old, and we prefer to be called by her birth name.”
Further complicating the matter, a hospital aide discussed “top surgery” (elective double mastectomy) with the girl, leading to a complaint from Krista Kolstad.
“The hospital put our daughter on 24-hour supervision because this was a suicide threat. The hospital placed an aide outside her door who began talking about having top surgery and how she identified as nonbinary. I objected and reported it as inappropriate to the doctor on duty. At that point, I was told, why are you not more concerned that your daughter is trying to harm herself than what the aide is talking about?”
Montana CPS and hospital staff consistently dismissed the Kolstads’ concerns and authority as parents. Despite their willingness to provide mental health care, their daughter was eventually transported to Wyoming for treatment.
Nurses repeatedly dismissed her as “just the stepmom” and undermined her parental authority. Krista has been in her daughter’s life since she was about seven years old when she married Todd in 2017.
The Kolstads agreed to inpatient care and counseling to address their daughter’s historic mental health issues but expressed concern at the idea of sending her to Wyoming, which has no laws against “transitioning” children.”
After a last-minute notification of an available bed in Wyoming, and without the parents’ consent, CPS and police presented a court order taking custody of the girl, citing the parents’ refusal to provide medical care. Communication with their daughter was cut off.
“Court dates were set and the Kolstads were assigned a public defender who advised them to “play nice” with CPS,” Watkins said.
Following her transport to Wyoming, the Kolstad’s daughter was subjected to social transition measures like chest binding and is now under consultation for birth control to halt her menses, actions that align with a model criticized as a fast track from social to medical transition.
“On September 27, a judge temporarily blocked SB 99 pending a lawsuit filed by patients and medical professionals. Since then, she has been given a chest binder, which can restrict breathing, break skin and bruise or fracture ribs. She is currently in consultation for birth control “menstrual therapy” to halt her menstrual cycle,” said Watkins.
The case takes a further international twist as the Kolstads’ daughter may be sent to live with her biological mother in Canada who has been an absent parent for the past seven years, and also where Dr. Wallace Wong, a psychiatrist with a controversial stance on treating “trans” kids in foster care, practices.
Wong has previously been quoted as encouraging parents to use drastic measures to shorten wait times for gender transition treatments.
Watkins wrote, “Also in Canada is Dr. Wallace Wong – a perfect example of the risk of malpractice to troubled, sex-confused kids placed in government care. In addition to his private practice, the psychiatrist is responsible for children currently in the care of B.C.’s Ministry of Family and Child Development.
“A court-reported transcript of a talk Wong gave to parents in 2019 shows him bragging about a 125% increase in “trans” kids in foster care since 2010, bringing the total from 4 to 500. In 2019, there were 5,713 – 6,263 kids in B.C. foster care, making 7.98% of them “trans” compared to 0.33% of the population according to Statistics Canada. They were closer in line with government data in 2010 when there were 8,264 kids in B.C. foster care. The four “trans” kids reported by Wong would come to 0.44%.
“Wong, who has privileges in California and trains doctors for the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), then scared parents with the lie that “trans-kids” are at greater risk of suicide and coached them on how to manipulate long wait times by having their kids threaten to kill themselves.”
The Kolstad family is currently seeking funds for a private attorney to regain custody of their daughter, and donations are being solicited through a GiveSendGo campaign. You can donate HERE.
Krista said, “Todd and I love our daughter beyond words. We are not naive and understand that we have an adolescent girl who has struggled with mental health issues most of her life on our hands. The system has not helped our daughter. Instead, the system has taught her how to weaponize the system itself to receive what she wants.”
“We do not believe the system has tried to treat her mental health issues. Instead, it has forcefully focused on the transgender component and on forcing us into doing things against our family values, religious beliefs, and core moral beliefs. Much damage has already been done to our family. How many families will the system destroy?
“Is the state of Montana willing to open a door and take every troubled child who is angry with their parents, placing them in group home settings and violating their rights as caregivers, providers, and parents, and morally diminishing and destroying our family units?
“This is a medical kidnapping, and this needs to stop. We currently only have a public defender whose advice has been to play nice. We are running out of time. If there is any attorney willing to fight for us pro bono, please contact us.”
Please donate HERE.
Montana Governor Greg Gianforte (R-MT) issued a statement regarding this contentious child welfare case.
The Governor’s statement, while lengthy, has been criticized for its lack of specific details about the case. Critics argue that the statement fails to clarify whether the child was indeed taken from her family due to their refusal to support her gender identity.
In his series of tweets, Governor Gianforte wrote:
To give them their best shot at reaching their full potential, children deserve to grow up in happy, healthy homes with loving families. Sadly, this ideal is not always realized.
Unfortunately, our society finds children whose life, health, and wellbeing are at serious risk from abuse and neglect, and only as a last resort, should they be removed from their home.
Upon hearing recent allegations related to a child welfare case, I asked Lieutenant Governor Kristen Juras – an experienced attorney, constitutional conservative, mother, and grandmother – to review it.
Consulting with the director of DPHHS and personally examining case documents, Lieutenant Governor Juras has concluded that DPHHS and the court have followed state policy and law in their handling of this tragic case.
I have asked the lieutenant governor to continue monitoring the case as it progresses. Further, Senate Bill 99, which I signed into law in April 2023, prohibits medical and surgical treatments to treat minors with gender dysphoria and also prohibits the use of taxpayer resources for such treatments.
Our administration will continue to advance policies that strengthen our families and protect Montana kids, like what we have done to promote adoption and to ban permanent, invasive, life-altering medical procedures on children, like puberty blockers, hormonal treatments, and sex reassignment surgeries.
WATCH Krista and Todd:
SCOOP
The state of Montana has kidnapped a teenage girl from her parents to transition her gender in another state, subverting Montana’s laws against gender transition for minors.
A friend of the family reached out to @GabsClark5 and @AffirmReal for help because a… pic.twitter.com/imUbcFqHat
— Karlyn Borysenko, the modern day Yuri Bezmenov (@DrKarlynB) January 25, 2024
The post Montana Child Protective Services Medically Kidnapped Teen Girl to Wyoming for Gender Affirming Care, Fully Revokes Parental Custody appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
